The sound of glasses hitting the counter echoing threw the village of Konoha, on October 10th wouldn't surprise anyone. The birthday of their hero in the past had been celebrated by chasing him down and beating him. Now it was spent drinking. Ninja and civilian alike. Drinking themselves stupid. The village otherwise was rather quiet, other then the occasional fight and the festival. Not that many felt the need to go to the festival that was being held. A blond haired woman sat at the bar. She raised the glass to her lips and tipped. Nothing came. She pulled the glass away.
"Damn it." she muttered.
She looked up. No one was up at the karaoke stage. She hadn't expected anyone to be. She looked over. Her friends were in the same mood she was in. Tsunade sat at a booth with Jiraiya and Shizune drinking as much as she could, for once joined by the other two. Ino sighed. Behind her someone fell out of their chair. Drunk off his ass, the man stumbled out of the bar.
'Six years.' she thought.
Naruto had been gone for six years, dead for three. Yes, on the third year after another failed mission, Naruto Uzumaki, had been pronounced dead on October 10th. Ino found herself humming. It was the alcohol, as it started to affect her. She stood from her stool and walked over to the stage. The people in the bar turned their attention to her. The music started and she watched as the words scrolled onto the small screen.
"It was two weeks after the day she turned eighteen,
all dressed in white going to the church that night
She had his box of letters in the passenger seat,
six pence in her shoe,
something borrowed,
something blue,
and when the church doors opened up wide
she put her veil down trying to hide the tears
Oh she just couldn't believe it
she heard the trumpets from the military band
and the flowers fell out of her hands
Baby why'd you leave me why'd you have to go
I was counting on forever now I'll never know
I can't even breathe
It's like I'm looking from a distance, standing in the background
Everybody's saying he's not coming home now
This can't be happening to me
This is just a dream."
Ino's throat was closing. Naruto told her he would always be there. That they would be together forever and always. He lied. But he was out there still. She just knew it. But she had her doubts. Words were coming again.
"The preacher man said let us bow our heads and pray
lord please lift his soul and heal this hurt
then the congregation all stood up and sang the saddest song
that she ever heard
Then they handed her a folded up flag
and she held on to all she had left of him
oh and what could have been
then the guns rang one last shot and it felt like a bullet in her heart
Baby why'd you leave me why'd you have to go,
I was counting on forever, now I'll never know
I can't even breathe
It's like I'm looking from a distance standing in the background
Everybody's saying he's not coming home now
This can't be happening to me
this is just a dream."
Tears flowed freely down her face as she sang.
"Oh, Oh Baby why'd you leave me why'd you have to go
I was counting on forever now I'll never know
Oh I'll never know
It's like I'm looking from a distance standing in the background
Everybody's saying he's not coming home now
This can't be happening to me
This is just a dream
Oh this is just a dream
just a dream ohh."
Ino sobbed. She looked up at the crowd noticing that most were teary-eyed as well. She got off the stage and quickly exited the bar. She sat on the curb a few blocks away.
"Oh Naruto. I-I wish you were here." she chocked.
((flashback))
Ino hummed happily. She couldn't stop smiling. She had just finished her hair and make-up. Now all she had to do was wait until everything else was ready. There was a knock at her door. She was almost there when Shikamaru burst in.
"He's been taken!" he shouted frantically.
"What?" Ino asked her usually lazy friend.
"I left for like a minute to talk to Temari. When I got back he was gone. He was taken!" He went on.
It finally sunk in. Naruto had been attacked when he wasn't expecting it. She fainted.
((end flashback))
Sobs wracked her body.
((Flashback))
"The mission.. was a failure. There was no trace of him."
Tsunade lowered her head. Ino looked up.
"He's got to be out there." she said desperately.
"I'm sorry Ino. He's been gone for three years. He's gone."
Tsunade sighed, "I Tsunade, Hokage of Konoha, hereby pronounce Naruto Uzumaki, dead."
His name was taken off of the MIA list... and placed on the KIA. Even though he was killed on his wedding night and not on a mission.
((End Flashback))
"Naruto. Naruto. Naurto." Ino chocked in between sobs.
"Naruto!" she cried out. "Where are you love?"
((Flashback))
"We are all here today the celebrate the life of a friend, a loved one, a hero." Tsunade said. "But lets be honest. Naruto has pissed us all of at least once in his life, but he made up for it."
There were mumbled of agreement.
"Naruto never like funerals. He always thought they were to depressing." she pulled out a small leather bound book. "Naruto happened to keep a journal. Some, well most of this yes is slightly depressing, but I felt it is important to read. It shows us what the blond trouble maker was really thinking at times." she said as she flipped threw the pages.
"October 10th," she read the date. "It's my birthday again. Worst day of the year. I'm not going to leave. The villagers and ninja scare the shit out of me today. I'm jumpy. Flinching at everything. A normal 13th birthday would be amazing. I'll celebrate with a bowl of instant ramen. It's going to be a long day."
There was silence as Tsunade finished reading.
"I found out what he spent his day doing. Naruto grew restless." she chuckled. "He's not one to just sit around. Naruto went out to train and was later surprised by his friends who all helped plan a sort of party for him. And I have a clip here.." she trailed off. She held up a thumbs up and on the screen behind her, the video clip they shot that day started to play.
Naruto was training his ass off as usual. There were giggles and leaved rustled.
"What do you think he'll do?" thirteen year old Kida asked.
"Shit himself" Neji said.
"Alright on three... One...Two...Three"
Everybody jumped out of the bushed and yelled surprise, successfully scaring the poor blond boy making him pass out.
The clip cut off leaving a laughing crowd. Tsunade flipped the pages again and everyone was silent once more.
"I have failed." she read. "And in the process of my failure, I let him come close to killing me. He could aim to kill me that easily, but I was a coward. I was weak. I couldn't kill a friend. Sure he might be psycho and hell bent on revenge, but... okay yeah even I don't know why he is a friend. Everyone is out of the hospital now. I am still stuck here, but if I leave baa-chan would beat me into the next century. Something about having a hole blown threw your chest makes you need to stay a super long time. God I hate hospitals."
The crowd erupted in laughter.
"Ino came to visit me. She stayed for a while, and comes almost everyday, which is strange because we never really talked a whole lot. It's nice though. Sakura visited one time to make sure Sasuke wasn't under a jutzu or anything. Other then that, Shikamaru. Lee, Ino, Neji, Choji, and Kiba are the ones that come the most. Thank god because I'm going to go insane in here."
There was a murmur in the crowd. They quieted however when Tsunade started reading again
"I walk threw the gates. At first no one seemed to notice. Then I get tackled from behind. Ino freakin attacked me! After that it was just like dog pile on Naruto. When they all got up and said hey they left except for her. We had become close friends, all the times she came to visit, and we had been writing. I was trying to build up confidence. When we walked it just... came out. I asked her if she would go out with me. Embarrassed, I figured she would laugh at the thought but she surprised me by hugging me and saying yes."
Someone thought it would be funny to do a cat call. Ino blushed as people chuckled.
"He, Pein is gone. But I know this is far from over. With the Akatski gone. I know things are going to be a lot better now. The only thing left is the snake and his bitch. The Akatski member with the swirl, orange mask, something was off about him. Tobi was his name and he is gone too. I killed him in my rage. When I went back to his body, I knew his face. I had seen it before. Turns out Tobi was Mandra Uchiha. Kohan, one of the akatski that seemed good, came and burned his body, telling me that he was the true mastermind. I get back to the village and found the entire village waiting for me. I had finally been acknowledged. The thing that I wanted since I was little."
Tsunade flipped the pages.
"Last entry." she mumbled. "This is that last entry Naruto wrote." she said. A silence fell over the crowd.
"I can't help myself. I keep pacing. People laugh and clap me on the back. Wedding day. Today the girl I love will become my wife. This will no doubt be the best day of my life."
There were aws from the crowd. Everyone knew Naruto worshiped the ground Ino walked on. He loved her so much and would do anything for her. Ino chocked back a sob as she smiled.
"But I have a sinking feeling. A feeling in the pit of my stomach. I have a feeling something is going to go wrong. Shikamaru, who just left to talk to Temari doesn't seem to notice. I don't think anyone else does. I'm going to take a deep breath, go get married, and hope this feeling goes away."
Tsunade looked up. Ino sobbed into her hands. The older blond looked back down at the journal. The hastily written words at the bottom. The small drop of blood.
"We can only guess he was attacked as he finished writing this. At the bottom of the page, Naruto left one last note that I would like to share."
Tsunade's throat was closing. She cleared it willing it not to break while she said her 'sons' last words.
"I do."
((End Flashback))
Ino's dam burst as the tears started to flow freely.
"I do." she managed to get out. "I do."
She stood, and wobbled for a moment. She couldn't get herself to move. Fireworks were going off in the background, taunting her. She slowly made her legs move to take her home. Her legs must have refused her mind because when she awoke from her depressed stupor, she found herself not outside her now lonely apartment, but in the middle of a meadow, with fireflies that seemed to dance in the air. It was their meadow. It was all she had left of him besides boxes in an empty room. Her fingers brushed against the bark of one of the outlining trees and when she felt deep cuts and scratches, she looked back. She brushed away some of the dirt and found initials N.U & I.Y. Forever and always. She traced it with her fingertip and moved further into the clearing. There is where they had a picnic. There is where she found him when the weight of the world was crushing his shoulders. That is where he proposed. 'I will always be here Ino...' "That's a lie." Ino said, "You aren't here. I'm afraid Naruto. Afraid I will never see your smiling face. Hear your comforting voice. Feel your strong arms around me." Ino said hugging her sides. "You aren't really gone are you? I have held on to long to let go of you now. I... I won't... I WON'T! NARUTO UZUMAKI I KNOW YOU'RE ALIVE SO I SWEAR TO KAMI IF YOU DON'T GET YOUR ASS BACK TO KONOHA SOON... FOXY IS GOING TO BE IN A DEEEEP LOAD OF SHIT!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. She wiped her eyes.
