Deserved

Disclaimer: I Do Not Own Naruto.

Smiling sweetly, she looked up at him, at his well-sculpted face, the defined jaw line and those smooth cheeks. She lifted a hand, placing it on the side of his face and she stared up into those onyx eyes, holding so much emotion, so much care, so much love – love and care that showed itself only to her. She moved her hand to run through his dark hair, with its soft, silky feel. It was a funny thought, that someone as tough as him had such soft silky hair. But she couldn't really give too much care to it – she loved the feel and that was all that mattered. To be able to run her fingers through his hair, have his eyes stare into her own with so much feeling poured into them, his arms wrapped around her waist holding her close, protecting her from everything around them. With a small happy sigh, she let her arms fall to his shoulders, wrapping around his neck, as she placed her head against his chest, listening to the steady rhythmic beating of his heart, while he held her ever closer and tighter. She felt him place his chin atop her head, resting against her, as she rested against him. These were the moments she loved, warm and close, silent yet comforting, with so much portrayed just by how they held each other, how they stared into each other's eyes.

A frustrated sigh escaped his lips, as he held his head in his hands. He couldn't do this to her, he just couldn't. She was beautiful, she was amazing. She was kind and loving. She was strong and capable. She was appreciable and well-appreciated. She was lovely. He… He was not quite kind, not always loving – he was quick to anger and slow to forgive. He didn't always appreciate the things he had and for that, he was not always appreciated. He was nothing in comparison to her.

She deserved more than he could give. And, with what he had to do, with what he was going to do, he could not deserve her. He was going to leave, and in leaving, he had to let her go. He didn't want to, he wanted to hold her close forever, be with her all her life. But he just wouldn't be enough for her; besides, he was going to a monster, to become a monster, to do monstrous acts. He had made and yet again, he will make her cry. He had made her angry and yet again, he will make her angry. He had made her annoyed and yet again, he will make her annoyed. He had made her frustrated and yet again, he will make her frustrated. He was a disgrace to her.

She loved him too sweetly, she graced him too kindly. She was too good.

So, all that he could do now, to protect her from himself was to leave her, as he left on his horrid quest.

Another frustrated sigh left his lips, as his head dropped from his hands and onto the desk, silent, sad tears falling from his eyes, as the thought of what had to be done pierced into his heart.

There she stood, in that one place, where they always went, where they had their quiet sweet moments, holding each other, telling each other of their love with their eyes. She stood, immobile and silent, watching as he retreated from view, further and further away from her grasp. Only at the last minute, at the very last second, did everything make itself clear and known to her, and all thought caught up with her racing mind, did she call out desperately to him, crying out his name, running out to bring him back to her. And when she couldn't catch him, when she couldn't bring him back, she stopped, sobs heaving themselves from her body, weakening her muscles, her legs collapsing from underneath her as she fell to the ground.

What had she done, to deserve this? Why, when they were in the midst of their strong held love, did he have to go? What did she do?

She tried not to think about it, tried not to return to the conversation that occurred only minutes ago, but she did. She couldn't help it. She came back to what had been said, remembering how every word left his lips and ventured its way into her mind, how her mind rejected such words, confused as to why such words would make their way into head. And when he was too far away from her, did her mind finally accept what was happening, did her mind's defences fall and the words transformed into ice cold daggers aimed straight at her heart, piercing every point possible, bringing in a drafty cold, and leaving love and blood to seep out slowly, her dreams to shatter into irrecoverable pieces, her world to fall apart, for her to enter into an apocalypse of her own.

For a while, she lay there in the autumn cold, a brown leaf occasionally falling from the trees around her. She lay there, at the base of a tree, feeling every emotion leave her body, everything that once made her sane and loving leave her world. She lay there, allowing everything to leave from the broken pieces of her heart, her dreams and her world. When everything left, and only broken shards remained, she sat up against the tree, her knees against her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs. The tears were all gone now; they took a while to go, but go they did, just like him. And while everything was gone and the autumn wind swept through her, not even able to cause an involuntary shudder of cold because all feeling was gone, she sat there, letting her mind, glue all the broken pieces together, trying to remake what was once a beautiful structure. It could have been a perfect remake. The new heart that her mind tried to fix was almost identical to the old, loving one. The only problem was that it was empty, devoid of any emotion or feeling. 'Oh how could I ever repair this heart?' Her mind seemed to cry out, to an empty abyss within her body.

It broke his heart, it really did, to say those words and to walk away. It tore his mind apart, finally hearing her cry out his name, stumbling after him, screaming herself hoarse for him to return. But he had to face the pain, embrace it all, as he left her, because, this was, after all, for her own good. He didn't deserve her, and she deserved better. It was all for the best, it really was.

Only years later, would he realise that he gave away someone beautiful and wondrous to another man, all for a stupid quest in which he became a monster. He would realise that this amazing pink haired girl wouldn't have cared if he turned into a monster or committed horrifying acts. He would realise that she forgave him, as she and her new man took him back to their hometown, and that she still held a place for him in her heart.

But he would realise, that the one man she truly loved above all else would be the man who stayed with her, who had been with her all along and who had taken her with him everywhere he went, no matter what he did.

And so, his heart broke yet again, as he was escorted home by this couple, where another man, with similar faults to the boy himself, had won the pink haired girl away forever.

So, hello there! Been a while since I've posted on fanfiction! If anyone's been waiting for me to upload, I'm sorry! But here's a story, not humourous or uplifting, but hey! It's something! :)

Review, please? Pretty please? As a reward for reviewing, you get the satisfaction of knowing you made someone happy!