Naruto © Masashi Kishimoto.

I wrote this when I was young, so it isn't the best written story. Nonetheless, I'm still going to keep it up.

Story warnings: murder, crime, gang violence, abuse, dark themes in general.

Naruto felt his eyes widen as he watched the scene play out before him. He couldn't move. His feet were glued to the ground. Never before had he been witness to something so spectacularly horrible.

"NO!" he screamed, but he knew it was too late. No warning would reach their ears in time. There was nothing he could do.

As he watched the events play out, unable to tear his gaze away, he knew the gruesome images would stay plastered to the back of his eyelids every time he closed his eyes. They would be like scars, never fading, never leaving. They would be forever.

Naruto frowned, recalling the crash. It was brutal, but one could say Sai got off easily, especially compared to the girl.

Naruto sat in the waiting room, quiet and alone. He felt hot, even though the room was cold and he was shaking, shaking, shaking. He sat there for a while until finally gathering the courage to approach the front desk.

A young nurse led him to a room at the end of a hallway. "Press the 'call' button if you need anything," he smiled cheerfully.

Naruto nodded and the nurse walked off. He slowly reached for the door. His hand hovered above the doorknob for a minute before he finally opened it.

In the hospital bed sat one of his best friends in the world, wearing one of those ugly, blue gowns. He was facing the wall ahead, eyes closed. Naruto's feet made quiet tapping sounds as he made his way closer to the bed.

The dark-haired man turned his head toward Naruto, "Is someone there?" The other cuts and scrapes have long since healed, but small, faint scars remained on his face, a permanent reminder to anyone looking at him. His eyes were shut, bandages no longer covering them like they were last time Naruto had seen him.

"Sai," Naruto said after a moment's pause, "It's me."

"Naruto?" Sai smiled and held out his hands. His arms seemed so small and fragile looking that Naruto was sure they'd snap right off. He'd always been on the slim side, but Naruto imagined that he'd lost a bit more weight during the time he was comatose. It made Naruto upset seeing his proud friend so vulnerable like that and knowing that he could have stopped it.

Naruto let out a shaky breath and inched closer so Sai could put his hands on the blond's cheeks. The dark haired boy moved his hands across Naruto's face, touching his eyelids, lips, nose and hair.

"You feel different," he stated and gave Naruto a sharp flick to the cheek before let his hand rest on his own lap. "You've got bangs… and your hair is a tiny bit longer, huh?" he asked.

"So is yours... well, a lot… you look like a girl..." Naruto said, rubbing his cheek where Sai's hand was previously touching.

Sai touched the tips of his hair. "I guess you're probably right. I'll cut it when I get out of here," he laughed and Naruto's chest tightened at the sound. "She died, right?" Sai asked quietly.

"Yeah," Naruto replied, almost choking out the word. "It's been almost a year, you know."

"I know," the brunet sympathized sincerely. "I'm sorry."

"I can't stop thinking about it…"

"Trust me," Sai said softly, "I understand. She was the last thing I saw… She was the last thing I'll ever see."

"She was with a child, you know."

Sai nodded, "I knew."

Naruto laughed bitterly, "Was I the only person who didn't know? I'm so stupid…"

"She hid it from you," Sai explained.

"The baby survived…" Naruto said.

Sai smiled and nodded his head once, but didn't say anything.

"I don't understand why she didn't tell me she was pregnant," Naruto frowned.

"She was scared," Sai said, though it was only half the truth.

"I'm scared too…! I… I can barely take care of myself. What if I mess up and permanently fuck him up?"

"You'll be a great father," Sai insisted surely.

"I'm eighteen years old…"

"I know," Sai said quietly, before asking, "What did you name him?"

"Minato," Naruto replied. "It was my dad's name." A pause. "Sai? Open your eyes, I want to see them." And so Sai's eyelids lifted, revealing the two glass eyes. "They look... very real," Naruto said in a wet voice. He forced back tears, causing a lump the size of a fist to dwell in his throat.

"Don't cry… Please…" Sai whispered.

"I'm not," Naruto sniffled; the lump in his throat was becoming unbearably tight, so he let the tears fall free.

Sai frowned, slowly reaching his hands forward. "I can hear you." He wiped the tears off his friend's face, "I can feel them."

Naruto let out a quiet sob, repeating apologies. His heart felt infinitely heavy and his chest was aching.

"It was an accident," Sai said softly, lightly ruffling his friend's messy hair. "It was certainly not your fault."

Naruto shook his head, momentarily forgetting that the man in front of him couldn't see the gesture.

"And even if it wasn't an accident, even if you planned the whole thing, I would forgive you. You're my friend. I know you didn't want any harm to come to me."

"I was so stupid… I am so stupid…"

"Not at all," Sai insisted. "If it's anyone's fault it was the driver's," he let out a bitter laugh, "Or maybe mine. I guess I'm not very fast. If I was I could have gotten us both out of the way in time. I barely reached her."

Naruto let out a shuddery sigh, sniffling loudly and wiping his nose on the back of his hand. "The driver is dead."

Sai nodded, "I don't want to sound harsh… but… is it bad if I'm relieved?"

"No. Apparently he was a drug transporter named Kabuto Yakushi. He was on his way to make a delivery. When I found that out… I thought it served him right. Fuckin' gangs… Everything that happened… Every person who died… somehow it all ties together and relates back to that."

And maybe, if Sai did reach her, then there would have been two dead bodies instead of one. The possibility crossed Naruto's mind more than once, but he never let it linger.

It hurt, though he knew he wasn't the one in the most pain.

Sai…

Naruto didn't say anything else for a while. He didn't feel like he deserved to be forgiven. He should have been the one sitting in the hospital bed with eyes wide but forever unseeing. If only he reacted quicker… or, reacted with more than just a scream. He could have saved Sai from having to experience any of this. Maybe he could have saved the girl too, no matter how much she didn't want to be saved.

The two of them stayed silent for a long time.

Naruto looked down at his hands. His fists were clenched so tightly he was drawing blood from the shallow wounds his nails were causing. He wiped his palms on his jeans and stared at his friend. It was difficult to look at him. It would be difficult for a long time.

He could tell that Sai was trying to act the same. He was trying hard to act like everything would be okay, and things would return to normal. Naruto could see right through the act. Naruto tried to tell himself that Sai was still Sai and things wouldn't change, but they would. They had to. Change is inevitable; its occurrence is an endless cycle.

"Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

Sai laughed, "Just making sure you didn't leave."

"I didn't…" Naruto scanned the room and gritted his teeth as his eyes found a magazine rack, reminding Naruto of all the things his friend wouldn't be able to do anymore. Sai loved to paint. He loved to draw. He loved to read. Whenever he had a free moment you would see him curled up on a sofa with a book about something that Naruto would consider to be rather boring. Sure, he could learn Braille, but would it be the same?

Sai was the type of person who always took pride in his appearance, now he would need help getting dressed in the morning, and making food.

Sai was not oblivious to any of this either. He knew things wouldn't be the same. Once Sai realized Naruto was going to be a father, part of him was secretly excited. He was the first person to know. He wanted to see the little boy grow up. He wanted to see him get married and eventually have children of his own. The realization that he wouldn't be able to see any of that had hit him hard.

Minato would get married, he would mature, and Sai would miss it all.

Naruto bit the inside of his cheek in an attempt to stop the tears that were gathering in the corners of his eyes again, but it only made them come out faster. 'It should have been me,' he thought, feeling bitter and remorseful. Naruto didn't have a successful job. He considered himself to be a failure in comparison to his loving friend.

"I'm glad you're awake," Naruto whispered. "I'm sorry I didn't come sooner."

"Me too," Sai smiled humbly. "You should visit again. It's nice to hear familiar voices."

"I will," Naruto promised. Naruto always kept his promises. "When are you getting out of here?"

"Next week. They want to make sure I don't fall back into a coma. It won't happen though."

Naruto promised, "I'll come again tomorrow."

"Bring the little one."

"Yeah," Naruto said, "I'm sure he'd like to meet you."

Maybe someday things would be okay…

Maybe.