AU angst NaruSaku story. Hope you guys enjoy.

They were in the rain, soaking wet from the downpour of the rain. It felt like forever as they both stood there. Naruto staring at Sakura emotionless and a look she hasn't seen in years. She was crying, crying with every tear in her coming out, rapidly. She was shaking, shaking so much, you'd think it was because of the cold rain pouring above them but it wasn't. She's been crying because of what she just told Naruto. In the midst of her emotions and anger she had inside her, she'd said something to Naruto she wished she hasn't. Naruto stood there shocked at first. He was hurt beyond measure and the only thing he could feel was numbness. He felt paralysed, felt like he couldn't move. All he could do was look at the girl in front of him as she cried her eyes out.

After it felt like forever as time suddenly slowed down, Sakura decided to use all of her last remaining energy to run back home. She couldn't take it anymore. She can't look at his face after what she said. She felt like she needed to get out of there as soon as possible. With everything she had, she turned around and started running in the rain, not bothering to look back at Naruto who only stood there looking at her emotionless. She ran in the direction of her home as she desperately tried to calm herself down. The tears couldn't stop and her heart felt like it was crushed into a million pieces. She wished she could take it all back, take everything she said to him back but she knew that it was too late.

Naruto continued to stand there in the middle of the rain, not caring about getting sick or anything. He couldn't believe what happened. It was just so fast. One minute, they were talking normally and the next, everything went for the worst. The feeling he felt was nothing he has ever felt. The last time he felt this numb, and so helpless was when he was nothing but a child and the Villagers would make his life a living hell. That was the last time he remembered feelings this bad.

Sakura finally reached her house as she burst through her doors and ran upstairs to her room immediately. Her mother was in the kitchen when she heard the door open suddenly. Her mother went upstairs to Sakura's room to make sure she was alright. Her mother knocked on her door hoping for Sakura to be alright.

"Sakura, dear. Are you alright?" she asked in a worried voice.

Sakura at first didn't want to respond, she was too shaken up to even talk. She knew she had to let her mother know she was alright, she knew that her mother deserved to know that much.

"I-I'm…ok… mom" She said forcing those words out of her mouth as she continued to cry. She was a complete wreck and didn't want her mother walking in on her and seeing her like this and plus she didn't want anyone inside the room at all. She just wanted to lay in her bed, cry her heart out and stay there forever.

"Alright honey. Let me know if you need anything. Have a good night." She said while she walked downstairs to the kitchen to continue making dinner.

Sakura continued to cry as she laid on her bed In fetal position as her heart keeps breaking piece by piece. She thought about what happened, thought about every inch of detail that happened and that broke her heart even more. She wished so much that everything she said or did this day would go away, would disappear and she could have another chance but she knew that was impossible. For now, all she can do is cry and sob and hold her shaking form as the cool night passes by. As the night went by, she kept playing the scenario back and forth, inch by inch and wondered what had gotten in to her?

Why did she snap at him and tell him all those horrible things? Was she angry at him? Was she angry at something else? She didn't know, but it was haunting her.

-FLASHBACK-

Sakura and Naruto were walking side by side as the cool spring night fell down upon them. They were walking back to Sakura's house after they've spent the day together hanging out and getting Ramen. It was the usual Friday night for them. Naruto would call her out of her house in the afternoon and they would spend the whole day together, hanging out and etc.

This day was different. Sakura was on edge the whole night. She wasn't in the mood, really. She had been thinking about life, about her home and even thought about Sasuke. He's still out there and they weren't doing anything to save him at this point. They were 18 now and it had been a little over 6 years since he left and they tried so hard to bring him back but to no use, he was far too gone. Far too much into hatred to be brought back, and Naruto knew this. He knew deep down inside that Sasuke was gone but Sakura on the other hand still kept hope, hope he'll one day come back.

They had been walking for almost 25 minutes in the cloudy night before Naruto spoke up in the silence of the night.

"Hey, What's wrong" he said while turning his head towards her in a curious but worried look. She looked to be in deep thought, thinking about something important.

She jolted a bit at the sudden question and looked at him.

"I was just thinking…Why aren't we trying to rescue Sasuke-Kun?" She said with a hint of bitterness.

Naruto gave her a pained look as he looked the other way and continued walking. He knew this would come up eventually. The thing is, he needs to tell her the truth and not avoid it. It was decided awhile ago by the Hokage and the village elders that Sasuke is to be stripped from his Village status and named a criminal officially. It was a hard decision for Tsunade to do but she knew that she had to do it.

and the He turned to her and his faced turned serious in an instant. Sakura had noticed the look on his face which sent a chill down her spine. She knew this was his serious face, the face he makes when there's no room for joking around.

"Sasuke's gone. He's beyond rescuing." He said flatly and unemotionally as he finally turned to her face and saw the pained expression on her face. She quickly got angry at him and he knew that this was going to be hard. She stopped midway and took a few second to process what he told her. Anger would be an understatement to how she felt this instant. She gave him a fierce look before she started talking once again.

"Are you out of your mind, Naruto?!" She spat trying to get her point across quickly.

"Why on earth are you saying this?!" She continued as she walked towards him and nudged him on the shoulder a bit too hard. Naruto felt his heart tug at the pain on Sakura's face that was clearly evident. He knew that this was the worst thing he could tell her but he had to. She needed to know that Sasuke is far too gone, too far to be saved and she needed to know that as soon as possible so she can learn to let go of him, let go of the 12 year old image of Sasuke she held.

"Sakura…I know it's hard to process this but I'm positive that Sasuke is beyond saving. We have to learn to accept it." He said while looking at her with his arms up in attempt to protect his face in case Sakura decides to hit him.

Sakura, didn't know what to feel. She was flooded with so much emotion hitting her at the same time. She felt she could hardly breathe and she felt trapped, somehow. How could Naruto do this to her? Why did he give up so easily? Wasn't he the one who promised to bring him back to me? Sakura was asking herself these questions, while fresh streams of tears fell down her cheeks, running all the way to the floor. She couldn't believe it…no, won't accept it at all.

"Wha-t…The heck's w-wrong..with you..Naruto?!" She forced out as she got closer to Naruto once more, facing him straight.

"y-you..promised-d…you sa-said you would bring h-him back..? Now, You've g-given up?" She wiped her tears away from her cheeks, trying to keep her composure, trying desperately to figure out what was going on here? Why was Naruto giving up on Sasuke? Why, of all people, Naruto? Wasn't he the one who wanted Sasuke back the most?

Just looking at Sakura like this hurt Naruto, a lot. He never wanted to make her cry, yet that's what he's doing. He hated it, he hated himself for doing this to her but he has to let her know, he has to tell her everything. After all, Tsunade told Naruto that he was the one who should tell her about the news to make Sasuke a criminal. Naruto was the closest to Sakura, he was her best friend, her armor, the person she looked up to the most and some even went on to say that she's starting to have feelings for him.

He regained his composure, took a step forward to Sakura and held her shoulder tight. She was shaking from all the crying, from the cold hard rain pouring down on them. They both didn't care though, they were lost in each other.

"Sakura" he finally spoke up. He was looking at her with all the seriousness in the world. Naruto was never this serious unless it was important.

"Look, Sakura. I know that I promised you to bring him back, I know that. And I'm sorry, I'm so sorry for breaking that promise. I never gave up on sasuke, I never did. You've never seen him these past few years, you've never seen the hatred in his eyes. He looked at me like he doesn't even know me anymore. If I gave him a chance, I'd be dead right now."

Sakura's heart dropped at what he said. It was true, she hasn't seen Sasuke in 2 years. She hasn't seen him after the war, after he helped them defeat Madara. She thought that with him helping the Shinobi Alliance, that he was good again, that he no longer bared hatred. Oh how wrong she was.

Madara had manipulated Sasuke, told him the Uchiha's history, in his own manipulative way, he told him that he must never side with the enemy, and that he should carry on his hatred for the sake of the Uchiha clan. Sasuke being easily swayed was eventually corrupted even further than before and left the battlefield before anyone could get to him. Naruto being the stubborn person he is, chased after Sasuke and had fought him, fought him with everything hes got, to bring him back to the village, to bring him back to her, but to no use. Sasuke was even stronger now that he bared even more hatred to the village, to the leaf. Naruto was defeated and on a verge of death hadn't it not been for Kurama and the other tailed beasts helping him recover his wounds. From that day on, Sasuke was branded a criminal, branded a traitor and was never seen ever since.

Sakura, couldn't take it no more. She was feeling a million emotions at the same time. It all hit her hard and she didn't know what to do, didn't know what to say, so she let her emotions speak for her.

"Get the hell away from me…you stupid…m-monster!"

She cried harder, harder than she ever did in her entire life combined. She felt like she was going to dry up in this cold night. Naruto couldn't help but let the hurt show. He was devastated. Hearing Sakura, the girl he loved so much say these things hurt him a lot. It hurt him so much more and he couldn't help but feel his heart slowly breaking piece by piece. He knew that Sakura didn't mean it, he knew that she was speaking out of emotions, but it still didn't make it any less painful.

"S-sakura.." He said trying to hold her shoulders still but to no use as Sakura pulled back turning around and left running full speed. She didn't bother looking back, she knew exactly what she would see and she couldn't bare looking at his face, she would hate herself even more if she did. She reached her house, ran straight to her bedroom ignoring her parents questioning looks. She wanted to be alone.

Naruto stood there for some time just replaying the scenario back and forth. The ran was pouring over him as he stood in silence, taking It all in. It was kind of peaceful, he thought. The rain was gloomy but it did help him stay calm. He always loved the rain, maybe it was because no one can tell he was crying. When he was younger, when things got too difficult, he would take a walk in the rain. Walk for hours and hours until he felt like he was going to be sick.

He walked and walked through the village in the night. He thought about his entire life, he thought about Sasuke. He didn't give up on him, he just finally realized that Sasuke can't go back to the village. He can't start a normal life here with all the painful memories and the villagers naming him a criminal. For Sasuke, life for him is outside the village and Naruto was content with the thought that Sasuke would find peace somewhere else.

END OF -FLASHBACK-

Night slowly passed by as Sakura slowly lost consciousness as she started falling asleep with dry tears staining her face.

Things weren't always perfect but sometimes, you go through all the bad just to see the good in the end.

Hope you enjoyed it? let me know what you think of it. I'm not much of a writer but i'm learning and i'd love feedback. Thanks