"Why are you here?"
Sakura glanced over her shoulder to see Kakashi standing behind her, silhouetted against the setting sun. She turned back to stare at the monument with so many names inscribed on it.
After a moment of silence had passed, she whispered, "The same reason you're here."
Kakashi took three short steps to stand beside Sakura and stare down at the memorial as well. "Your teammates are alive."
"One isn't." The wind blew, swirling leaves around them. The wind stopped and the leaves settled at their feet. "For what he did to Naruto – did to all of us – " She let the unfinished statement hang in the air, like the warm vapor leaving their lips.
For several long minutes, they stood as if the world was frozen. The only measure of time's passage was the darkening of the sky. "How long?" she asked.
"'How long' what?" he replied in his languid voice.
"How long have you been grieving?" She gestured towards the block of stone with a nod of her head. "For them?"
The cool night air was dulling her senses as she waited for an answer that she didn't actually expect. "I'm no longer grieving." His voice broke her reverie, and she turned to him. He lifted his head to the sky, inspecting the dark clouds overhead; a couple of droplets hit his face. "I'm honoring their memories…and their sacrifice." He turned his face towards the memorial again, and then looked at Sakura from the corner of his eye.
"Then, neither should I." She tenderly thread her fingers through the fingers on his hand that hung loosely by his side. The rain began to fall. Kakashi didn't move take his hand from hers or make his escape. Sakura could've sworn she actually felt his grip tighten on hers just a fraction. The rain turned into a downpour, soaking the clothes of the two and washing away the world.
Fin
Disclaimer: I own no part of Naruto or the franchise.
Edited 2011 May 13.