2

Believe it!

There are two ways of dying.

One way of dying is that your body dies. Sometimes people would prefer that way rather than the other one. Although your body can bear many things, there is a line, which you mustn't cross. If you do, cross it, your body gives in and you stop existing physically.

The other way of dying is when your heart and soul dies. When that happens, everything what will remain is a lifeless pall. Are you wondering why it is lifeless even if it is alive? You see, there is nothing in the world, which seems to make sense to you anymore if your heart is gone. The moment you are consumed by emptiness, you stop existing emotionally and become a lifeless pall of yourself.

As I just said, most people would prefer the first way of dying, but those who ended up with the second way simply didn't care about anything anymore. There was only sadness and emptiness left for them in the world and the way they handled it was different.

After the Kyuubi had been defeated by a pink haired heroine, the villagers of Konoha were brought back from Waterfall. There was another funeral for those who wanted to say goodbye to their beloved ones one last time, since many ninjas had died, when the Kyuubi had attacked Konoha. And although all of this happened three weeks ago, you could still feel the sorrow throughout Konoha.

"Minato?" A feminine voice asked.

With that, the Fourth was brought back to reality and looked up into the eyes of his girlfriend.

"Kushina," he sighed getting up from his chair behind the desk in the Hokage office and stepped around it in order to reach out for her.

"You were so deep in thoughts that you didn't even hear me knocking on your door, so I just entered," she said while he was giving her a soft hug, so that he didn't crash what lied in Kushina's arms sleeping.

"How is he?" Minato asked looking down lovingly at his son.

"Sound asleep as you can see," she answered smiling brightly.

Slowly the Yondaime touched his son's cheek and caressed it so very lightly that Kushina wondered if he knew that his son wasn't made of glass. But the baby could feel the soft caress of his father nonetheless, as he slowly opened his eyes.

"Did you sleep well, Naruto?" Minato asked playfully, before making some funny faces in order to get his son laughing at him.

"You know, Naruto is just three weeks old. There is a high possibility of you scaring him with those faces you pull," Kushina said chuckling.

"My son isn't scared of anything. Am I right, Naruto?" The Hokage said proudly and started to tickle his son lightly, but Naruto only looked around the room as if it was the most interesting thing he had ever seen.

After a few seconds, Minato straightened up and was immediately in Hokage mode again. Before Kushina could ask what was wrong, the Yondaime said, "Come in."

In that moment, two Anbus appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the room only two meters away from the family. They both were on their knees with their heads down.

"Hokage-sama, the autopsy has been finished for a few minutes. We are awaiting further orders," a woman's voice said behind the mask.

Minato nodded, "Good. I want you to escort Fugaku-san to the morgue. And make sure nobody sees you go there. And don't bring anyone else except for him, do you understand?"

The Anbus only nodded and after Minato dismissed them, they disappeared the same way as they had appeared a minute ago. Kushina looked at her boyfriend with a questioning look in her eyes.

"It has been confirmed that the man behind the attack and whom I killed is Uchiha Madara. Now I want to induct Fugaku-san into all that. Maybe I can prevent the Coup d'État the Uchiha Clan will be plotting, before they even know anything about it. Just like Sakura -," Minato stopped the explanation and Kushina knew why.

She knew that Minato had felt guilty because of what happened to Sakura. He had believed her, when she had told him that she would survive the attack, but he had thought that she had meant it literally. He hadn't thought at that time that her younger self would survive the attack and that the older Sakura had meant that by saying she would survive it. Now Sakura was gone and Minato didn't know if the younger version of her would ever remember what she had done to save the village or if she would ever remember her relationship with Kakashi. But Minato doubted it since the younger and older Sakura were two different people.

"You know, this is actually the reason why I came by," Kushina said looking into Minato's eyes. "Have you seen Kakashi lately?"

The Hokage only shook his head slowly.

"I am really worried about him, Minato," she continued, "His behavior is anything but normal. When I last saw him at the funeral he was like a living corpse," she sighed.

"Yes, I know. I'll visit him after the issue with Fugaku is solved," he promised her.

Minato turned around, went to his chair behind the desk, and sat down again leaning back.

"Maybe you should try to tell Kakashi the truth. He would surely feel better, if he knew Sakura was still alive," the red haired woman in front of him said not quite believing it herself, but the Hokage only nodded.

At the morgue

When Minato arrived at the morgue, Fugaku was already waiting for him there. Now that they both stood in front of a room, where Madara's corpse had been examined, Fugaku asked in a slightly annoyed tone, "I hope this is important, Hokage-sama, because I don't like it if I am escorted by an Anbu squad as if I am a convict."

"I am sorry for the trouble I caused, Fugaku-san, but the circumstances called for strict secrecy," the Hokage told him calmly.

"Which circumstances? Considering where we are at the moment, I suspect that these circumstances aren't positive in any way," the Uchiha said with narrowed eyes.

"You are right," Minato said before dismissing the Anbu squad who was still waiting behind Fugaku, "Please, follow me."

The Hokage turned towards the room, which they were standing in front of, and entered it with the Uchiha policeman following him inside. As they were standing on each side of the table, where a corpse was lying under a blanket, Fugaku looked at Minato expecting an explanation from the Yondaime.

"In front of you, lies the man who was behind the Kyuubi attack three weeks ago, Fugaku-san. I want to know if you recognize him," Minato explained removing the blanket from the corpse's head revealing the uncovered face of Uchiha Madara.

Fugaku's eyes widened as soon as he saw the man lying in front of him. Of course, he recognized him! He was the founder of the Uchiha Clan after all!

"That can't be!" Fugaku gasped in horror, "He should be long dead! He couldn't possibly live that long!"

Minato covered Madara's face with the blanket again.

"The medics aren't sure how he managed to live that long, but they suspect that he used some kind of forbidden jutsu," he explained.

"And you seriously tell me that he was behind the attack of the Kyuubi? So he was the one you were talking about, when you told us about Jiraya's mission with that little brat. Madara was the one who was controlling the Kyuubi?"

Although Fugaku asked all these questions, Minato was sure that he knew the answers already and even believed him. The Hokage could sense the Uchiha's rage, but there was also something else, which he sensed.

Shame.

"Fugaku-san, let me tell you that I have no intention to tell anyone about all this," the Hokage promised.

"Then why did you tell me? Why not just hiding the fact that it was an Uchiha who betrayed the village?" The black haired Jonin asked incredulously.

"I think we both know that something has to change in Konoha, so that the Uchiha Clan and the Elders and I can get along with each other. And this is the first step I made in order to accomplish a new system."

"A new system?"

"Yes. I have decided that from next week onwards decisions won't be made by only me and the elders. I want that each Clan in Konoha elects two representatives who will have to help me in political issues. I think that will be the best way that there is a good communication between me and the Clans themselves," Minato smiled at the man in front of him.

Fugaku just bowed his head in gratitude without saying a word, but the Yondaime understood him even without words.

The first step to a new and hopefully better era has been made that day and Minato was confident that the future of Konoha would be a brighter one than Sakura had come from. Now there was only one thing left to do for Minato. To make the future of his own student brighter.

At Kakashi's

Kakashi lied in his bed wide-awake and still wearing his ninja clothes, he put on one day ago. While he was lying there, he noticed something. Something which made his heart hurt even more than it already was. His tears rolled down his cheeks silently. Kakashi even wondered how it was possible for him to have tears left he could shed for his loss, since he has been crying everyday for three weeks now.

"Kakashi?" A male voice asked from the bedroom door.

As Kakashi faced the opposite direction in his bed, he didn't recognize the person who just entered his bedroom at once. But slowly he noticed the familiar chakra of his teacher.

"Sorry to intrude, Kakashi, but since you didn't open the door, I just let myself in," Minato smiled at Kakashi's back which the Copy Ninja, of course, didn't see.

The Copy Ninja didn't even hear someone knocking on his door - not that he intended to open it if he had, but this only proved that he didn't give a damn about what happened around him anymore.

Minato crossed the room, as he didn't get any reaction out of Kakashi and sat down on the bed beside him. Sighing the Hokage began to talk calmly again as if he was smoothing Kakashi.

"Listen, son. I won't lie to you by saying that I know what you are going through right now. Hell, I don't have the slightest idea how you must feel after such a loss. Considering it wasn't the first time for you to lose someone dear to you makes it only worse, I think. But you must know that you'll kill yourself if you continue -"

Before Minato could finish that sentence, Kakashi interrupted him.

"Sensei," he mumbled, "It is gone."

"What's gone?" Minato asked.

Without turning around Kakashi continued mumbling in his pillow.

"Her scent is gone. And I can't remember it. I - I can't," he lost his voice.

Minato sighed quietly. He couldn't bear to lose Kakashi to his agony.

"Kakashi, what would you say if I told you that Sakura is alive?" The Hokage asked noticing that Kakashi went completely still. It was like a déjà vu for the Hokage since he said something like that to Kakashi, when Sakura had defeated the Kyuubi.

The Copy Ninja didn't move nor did it seem like he was even breathing. That's why the Yondaime was surprised, when Kakashi actually answered, although he didn't turn around to face his teacher.

"Minato," another surprise for the Hokage. It was extremely unusual for Kakashi to address his mentor without any suffix.

"I held her in my arms, when she drew her last breath. I held her to my chest, when her heartbeat slowed down until it ended completely. I held her, when her warmth left her body," Kakashi slowly sat up and was finally facing his sensei with a teary and yet angry gaze, "I fucking held her, when she died! Now tell me again that she is alive!"

Minato knew that the last sentence was only rhetorical, but he still dared to say it.

"Sakura is still alive, Kakashi," Minato knew that he was playing with fire at that moment, but he simply had to try it with the truth.

Kakashi laughed quietly, but it wasn't at all amused. For a second Minato thought that Kakashi was losing his mind, but he didn't want to believe that. For crying out loud! This was Kakashi in front of him - the fourteen-year-old jonin who managed to get through his father's death, when he was four and he even got through his teammates' death over a year ago.

"Out"

At first Minato thought that he had just imagined that Kakashi had said something, but when he looked at his student, he knew that Kakashi had just told him to get lost.

"Believe it or not, Kakashi, but I want you to know that I tell the truth and that Sakura is indeed alive. When you are ready to talk to me about it properly, then you know where to find me," Minato said calmly.

"Out! Now" Kakashi threatened again lightening forming in his right hand.

Minato turned around and went to the door, but stopped for a second.

"You know, Kakashi, your life would be so much easier for you to bear, if you just believed," the Hokage told him without turning around, but he could hear the growl from Kakashi's throat.

Minato closed his eyes and thought that maybe he had already lost his student to his agony. Maybe it was already too late for him to turn back now.

After the Hokage had left, Kakashi exploded - figurative of course. His rage was there again and he snapped like he did three weeks ago. His Chidori, which was already formed in his hand pierced through his bed with one stroke. There was nothing of her left in his damn apartment. And he wasn't even able to remember her fucking scent!

This time nothing could stop Kakashi. Hell, he couldn't even stop himself. But now that there was nothing left in his home, he didn't see any sense in keeping anything whole.

And he fucking didn't see any sense in believing! Minato let him choose to believe him or not and Kakashi decided to not believe anything. That was how Kakashi wanted it. This was how it was supposed to be, wasn't it?