Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters

"Is there anything we can do…?" Sakura asked, trailing off while she held Hinata's bloodied head on her lap. She glanced down at one of her best friends, and bit her lip a little…hoping only for the best, although she knew that in the shinobi world…hoping got you nowhere.

"No," Katsuyu replied, sighing sadly on Hinata's stomach. "She's almost gone."

Sakura's breath hitched in her throat, and she felt tears prickle her eyes as they filled in like acid.

"No," she said in a shocked whisper. She remembered Naruto's nine-tails rampage, when he thought she had died. For Naruto and herself…she would save Hinata with the last chakra she had in her body.

"No!"She yelled, in the empty lands of dirt and rumble, where her city beloved city had been. No… she would heal her, and see Hinata's beautiful smile once more…

"We've got to save her, try more or something," Sakura said, pounding her fist to her thigh, causing Hinata to gurgle and Katsuyu to tremble.

"You're the only healer left," the slug said sadly, while staring at broken bodies, and families around her. "And you've got so little chakra left…"

"I don't care," Sakura said, narrowing her green eyes in determination. "She's a friend and friends-"

"Don't always make it," Katsuyu interrupted, staring up at Sakura with unemotional eyes."But, they always live on in the heart."

Then Sakura lost control of her fierceness and began to cry; fresh tears forming streaks on her dirt-encrusted face. But then a second later, she felt guilty. Pathetic even. This isn't how Naruto would react. He would fight until he could get what he wanted…

Sakura wiped her tears and smiled a little. She would do it, save Hinata. Calling on her chakra she started to heal Hinata.

"Naruto's our hero!"

We owe him our life."

"He's so amazing mommy!"

Naruto lied in bed, remembering those words, like a replay in his soul. But right now, he wasn't feeling what he felt earlier. Excitement. Happiness. Slight Arrogance. No…it was something else. He felt numb, so numb he couldn't cry our daydream anymore. Just numb.

'How,' he thought, 'Pain should have got everyone…'

He heard a voice say in the back of his mind, "Everyone makes mistakes."

"But Hinata…"he whispered in the pitch black night, and squeezing his eyes shot. As if it were a painful memory he wish he never had although it just happened a few hours ago:

It was sunny, and a warm breeze circulated around the village. It wasn't rebuilt, but children and families were glad all the issues at hand were gone. Stands were up for food, sales back on track. And a few people decided to rebuild a row of apartments so the hero could sleep "properly".

Naruto was grinning with his arms behind his head. A few minutes earlier him, his friends and their families were pigging out on some food at the stands. It was refreshing although a little cheap. But of course no one cared, they were glad to be together again.

Walking on the rubble towards the apartments he heard Sakura yell, "Hinata!"

'Huh? Hinata?' he thought, 'I just saw her eating with us together. But something didn't seem quite right'

"Look daddy, there he is," a small toddler pointed at him with a smile. Although this time, it wasn't ridicule.

Naruto wasn't listening as he heard the dad reply proudly, "Yes honey it is. That's our Uzumaki, Naruto."

Instead Naruto was sprinting towards where he heard Sakura yell something. Apparently the two were far from everyone because when he got to them, there was no on over here.

"Sakura?" he asked confusingly, seeing her pained face. "What's wrong? What's going on?"

"I thought I healed her," she whispered with remorse. "Even Pain boosted up the healing process. Something must've gone wrong…"

Naruto's pulse quickened as he asked, "Sakura, where's Hinata?"

When she met his gaze, he felt a cold knife slice through his heart. "She's on…the brink of death."

"What?"Naruto asked, but Sakura didn't need to say anything else. To say those horrible words twice.

'It couldn't be,' he thought, turning around as he saw Hinata collapsed on a patch of grass. His eyes widened and he froze for a second.

He rushed next to her, and put her fevered head on his black pants. So it was true…but how? That couldn't be possible Pain healed everyone! He even brought people from death. Why Hinata?

"Hinata…"he said, squeezing his eyes shut not wanting tears to leak out of his eyes.

Hinata smiled gently, her gray eyes looking at Naruto lovingly.

"Naruto…" she said softly. When he opened his eyes, tears ran down his cheeks onto his soft lips.

She put a cold hand on his sun-kissed cheek, then behind his neck, small hairs tickling her hand softly.

As she leaned up painfully and in front of his face she said, "Remember…always-s remember that…I love you."

Then she quickly but her cracked lips on his, tasting the saltiness from his tears and sweetness from his lips. Naruto froze his eyes on her closed ones. As he loosened and closed his sky-blue eyes, she pulled away with a content smile on her face, lifeless in his strong arms.

Sakura was staring at the ground, wondering of these feelings she got when she saw their fleeting kiss…

As Naruto held the black-haired beauty in his arms, and cried, holding her as close as he could, he didn't see Sakura get up and run towards the village. Running to tell everyone the devastating news

End of Flashback

Naruto still couldn't believe it, that one of his fellow comrades had died. 'Maybe the chakra Pain did, have a reversing effect' he thought. 'No he argued, then why did she die so much later?'

The funeral would be tomorrow. The family wanted it as soon as possible for confidential reasons…But he wasn't ready to be there. To see her lovely face in a casket, going into the earth…

The next morning, it was raining heavily, the sky overcast with dark heavy clouds. The ground was soaked, underneath everyone's shoes, but no one cared, They were there for Hinata, not for themselves.

They were all clothed in their best attire, silently and openly mourning at this uncalled death. Right now, they were in the part of the ceremony when people gave speeches about their loved one.

As a family member exited the front Neji went up there, his gray eyes empty. Although he looked nice with a tucked in tux shirt, and dark jeans with a tie he felt horrible inside His long brown hair was matted to his head as he started, "Hinata…was a great cousin. Friend, or loved one. A cousin full of radiance and light…"

Then he started to cry, and Ten Ten went up next to him to squeeze his shoulders helpfully.

Wiping his eyes he continued, "She was shy yet out going, quiet yet loud…everything I could ask for."

Ad he went on and finished, Hinata's remaining teammates went up there. As they spoke Naruto heard them but didn't listen. Regretting all the lost time he could have spent with Hinata. Life goes by so fast…

Sakura was squeezing his hand, but he didn't feel her. Or Sai next to him, with a hand on his shoulder feeling nothing as the Ceremony progressed.

When the funeral came to a close the Hokage blessed the casket as it went underneath the fresh ground.

One by one, people left. After an hour everyone was gone, but Naruto was left. He walked towards her grave and kneeled in front of it, his blonde-hair matted to his drenched body. It read:

Hyuga, Hinata

A loyal friend, teammate and daughter

Then the date of her life and nonsense that didn't matter to him at the moment. As his tears poured in the dirt of her body, as did the rain he felt something down in his heart as he pounded his leg and said softly, "Hinata, I didn't realize…How much I loved you…

Ten Years Later...

A tall handsome man known as the Hokage sets a bouquet of flowers on a grave, he visits every year on the same date.

The day, his love Hinata died. His sky blue eyes are sad, but yet he knows she is in a far better place right now.

His wife stands a few yards away, staring at him silently and the back of his blonde head.

When he stands up, his long shaggy blonde-hair is blowing in the wind, as is his knee-length white jacket.

"Hinata," he whispers lovingly, then glancing at the sky.

As he walks towards his wife she takes his hand and leans her head on his shoulder, her once short pink hair long and flowing around them.

He could almost feel Hinata smiling down at them, the newly wed couple, and her silver eyes staring lovingly at him.

He could almost hear her soft voice whisper once more, "I love you…"

Finish

A/N:

I love the Naruto/Hinata pairing so I thought; the Pain arc and this story would work well together. I love Hinata and Naruto but…when I thought Hinata died it would show some romance in there.

Also, when I made Naruto/Sakura at the ending, it showed in my opinion a road he took. In this story, I still made him love Sakura and it's realistic, although I don't enjoy that couple.

Please review and tell me your thought on this. Thank you