I do not own Naruto, as evidenced by the fact that Itachi and Sakura are not wed, nor do they have to quote a fellow writer- emotionally constipated, pink haired, Uchiha babies.

Confession.

Courage is not the absence of fear, but the feeling that something else more important than your fear.

"Naruto, I used to always cry and give up…. I made so many wrong turns…. But you….. You helped me find the right path…. I always chased after you….I wanted to walk beside you all the time….I just wanted to be with you….You changed me! Your smile is what saved me! That is why I'm not afraid to die protecting you!...

I closed my eyes, smiling in rememberance.

I fell in love with you the day you saved me from those bullies. I had felt so scared. But also I had resigned myself to the inevitable beating up, the scolding that I knew would follow from my father, the inevitability of this never ending cycle of hurt and hate. You changed me. You knew you did not stand a chance against those boys and yet you stood up for me, for someone who you did not know you. Yes I fell in love with you then. I watched as you stood in front of me, with a straight, unyielding back. I loved you as you got beat up by those boys. I hated myself for not being there to tell them off and to take you home and salve your wounds. I hated myself for allowing myself to be dragged away when you took the fall for me.

The days rolled into weeks and then into months. I remembered you often. As I trained I tried to picture your resolve. I tried to let the memory of your strength carry me through the sparring sessions. I tried to hold on to it in the face of my father's ire. I held on to you. To all that you represented to me.

To my greatest joy we entered the same academy. I then saw your pain. I saw your suffering, your craving for the affection and affection that I too craved. Try as I might I could not bring myself to utter a word to you. I could not bring myself to sit down with you and to take your hands in mine and tell you, that I cared. I cared about what happened to you. And that I saw your pain. It echoed in me too. Our pain was alike. The pain of not having someone who understood you, acknowledged you as the person you are inside. Not the position you were put into.

I lived through the chunnin exams because you lent me your strength. I realized then what made you, uniquely you. I realized that never giving up and to keep fighting on, no matter how extenuating the circumstance, was how you lived your life. It was how I should live mine. I realized what my father expected of me. You were the reason why my life turned by 180 degrees. You were the reason I understood what my father was trying to tell me. You made me who I am.

That is why I swore I would get stronger. So that I could stand head to head with you, if I couldn't , I would keep trying until I did. I wanted to stand beside you as your trusted comrade. If fate willed it, I would be someone dearer.

I watched as you dedicate yourself unreservedly to your friends. I saw your dedication to your promises, I marveled. I saw the depth of your love for your comrades; I loved you, were it possible, even more for left the village swearing to come back strong enough to save Sasuke, your friends, your home; and I swore to train hard enough to be strong enough to stand by your side.

When you returned two and a half years later I missed you as you set foot into the village. When you were on the mission to rescue Gaara, I prayed for your safety. It was a monumental moment for me. I had never prayed in my life. Not for my family, not for me but I prayed for you. I wondered if your feelings for me had gotten stronger as well.

I realized that you still saw me as a fellow leaf shinobi; nothing more, nothing less. I saw your intense affection for Sakura-san. I felt heart broken. I felt a depression unlike I've ever experienced before. I had never felt this sad even when Father scolded me, said I wasn't worthy of anything. I felt torn between the intense love I feel for you and facing the possibility of my love never being requited or reciprocated.

Now, as I stand between you and Pain, I realize that it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if you don't feel quite the same way. I realized that even if you didn't ever love me the way I do, I would still continue to love you. It didn't matter if you never saw me as anything more than a trusted comrade. It would be enough. Enough for now and for the rest of my life. I couldn't stand your pain. I would do anything to ease it. Even if it meant dying for you. I still couldn't bring myself to regret loving you or standing between you and Pain.

I opened my eyes.

"Because….I love you."