Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto even though it would be nice! Reviews are appreciated! I like to know what everyone likes and dislikes in a story.
Chapter 1:
Sakura stood with her hands clenched as she stood staring at the cenotaph that was in front of her.
She remembered when Kakashi was always in front of the damn thing and staring at it, when she was a young genin starting out. She remembered him calling all the men who died whose names were on it were 'great heroes' of the village.
Sakura could feel the tears welling up in her eyes as she stared at the names.
It wasn't fair! Life wasn't fair! Why did they both have to be taken away from her?
She sniffed loudly. The surrounding sky was dark grey and she could feel a slight drop in the temperature. It was definitely going to rain soon.
Sakura clenched her teeth, What good will crying do now? It won't bring them back to life. Life goes on.
Sakura's brow furrowed, but it still wasn't fair. Why was she left alive?
"Seems unfair doesn't it?" A familiar voice said from behind her.
Sakura bit down on her bottom lip and screwed her eye's up tight as her whole body stiffened.
"Sakura…"
"Yes! It's unfair but life goes on right. I mean…"
"It's okay Sakura."
Sakura's body went rigid and her voice came out sharply, "No! No, it's not okay Kakashi!"
Kakashi looked down at the ground and said quietly, "Trust me Sakura I know how you feel."
"Do you really! Do you, do you really know what I'm thinking right now!"
"You're thinking how unfair it is that you are alive and that Naruto and Sasuske are dead. I've also heard that you haven't been eating well lately and that you practically run yourself into the ground doing hospital work."
Sakura scoffed, "What the hell do you care?"
"Maybe because it seems you're following the same path that I had." He thought to himself.
"I care a great deal Sakura."
"Bullshit!"
Kakashi was taken aback by the sudden anger in Sakura's voice.
"If you really care a great deal you sure as hell never showed it! I mean your time was always taken with Sasuske the young Uchicha protégé. Then you had your hands full with Naruto. I just somehow slipped into the background!" Sakura could feel a tear slipping down her cheek and she quickly rubbed it away.
Kakashi flinched he had never realized how much of a wound he had inflicted unknowingly on his female student.
"Maybe I could…"
"Don't bother! It sure as hell wouldn't be useful now." A cold wind blew from nowhere causing the trees to move and the leaves to shake furiously in the wind. Sakura pulled her hands closer to her body to hug herself to get some warmth into her body.
Kakashi walked up behind her and put his arms around Sakura hoping to give her some warmth and at least some feeling of security.
Sakura felt his arms slid over hers and she stiffened. Just the gesture of Kakashi putting his arms around her was comforting and yet damn irritating as well. She felt weak and vulnerable.
She didn't like that feeling. She roughly shoved Kakashi away from her body with her elbow, "Don't touch me!"
A drop of rain fell on her hand. Then it started to come down in a light pitter pat on the epitaph. It was a light rain but she could hear the clap of thunder of an approaching storm to come from a distance. The wind started to pick up and her hair was blowing in her face but she couldn't seem to care.
Tears started to pour down her face as she stared at Naruto and Sasuske's engraved names.
Sakura squatted down and put her hand on the epitaph and ran her thumb over the engraved names slowly, "Does it…" Sakura broke off and couldn't seem to find the words to say.
Kakashi finished her sentence for her, "Does it get easier?" Kakashi looked away in thought wondering if he should sugar coat it but then again, "To be honest, no it doesn't get easier. It just makes you realize your own mortality and pretty soon you just learn to deal with it."
Sakura looked down at the ground her hand still on the cenotaph as she gripped it with the edge of her finger tips, "But still how do you…"
"Cope? Like I said you learn to deal with it Sakura."
"Well, then, that's just a shitty thing to do!"
"Life is sometimes complicated Sakura."
Sakura scoffed a bit, "Like you I take it!"
Kakashi smiled at her little quip, "I'm not complicated, I'm just complex."
Sakura smiled slightly and then felt a pang of guilt for even smiling while she was supposed to be mourning her two teammate's deaths.
Sakura smiled half-heartedly as she ran her thumb over Naruto's engraved name "He always said he would not die until he became Hokage."
"He must be really pissed off right now."
Sakura looked back up at the names, "It's unfair though, Sasuske got to reach his goal but Naruto never seemed to get around to his."
Kakashi shifted uncomfortably he remembered the dreams of the future question he had asked them when they were under his charge as fresh genin out from the academy.
He had remembered when Sakura had practically radiated with a look of, 'I'm so going to marry Sasuske Uchicha and revive his clan' type look and squeal coming from her.
"Trust me Sakura, it's not the end of the world."
"It sure feels like it though."
"That's just the weather."
Sakura sniffed loudly then sneezed into her hand.
"If it makes you feel any better you can rub your hand on my vest."
Sakura opted for rubbing her hand against her medic skirt instead. The rain was starting to increase and come down in a pelting form that seemed to penetrate the very core of her body.
Sakura went to stand up turning towards Kakashi and she felt light headed and dizzy. She tried to move her leg and her body didn't seem to want to co-operate. She felt the whole world spinning slightly.
Kakashi noticed her reaction and her face was starting to pale, "Sakura are you alright?"
Sakura closed her eye's then opened them blinking, "I'm fine."
Sakura sure as hell didn't feel fine. In fact she felt miserable. She knew she was getting sick.
She was taking it out on herself by trying to ignore the situation but she couldn't. Every time she would get home at night she couldn't sleep, either that or she would start crying in her pillow. It was a hellish three weeks.
At least Kakashi was there for her.
Sakura looked at her soaked ex-sensei. He looked pitiful with his silver hair coming down over his forehead protector. She was pretty sure she was in just about the same shape as he was in. They both probably looked to be a pitiful sight right now to anyone that was wandering by.
The wind became stronger, pushing her with a tenacious force. The rain was pelting against her back and she went to try to shift her body and instead came flying towards Kakashi.
Sakura was caught by Kakashi before she could land flat on her face in the mud. Instead her face came in contact with his jounin vest.
Sakura's head throbbed and she shut her eyes trying to force the headache to go away.
Kakashi felt Sakura's body relax against him, "Sakura?"
But Sakura didn't respond because she didn't hear him.
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