Wow. You guys sure know how to make my day! Thanks for all your reviews; you have no clue how much it means to me. But if you don't feel like reviewing, you don't have to. Just know it makes me happy if you do. Hehe. Another angst filled chapter coming right up!

Naruto watched as Konohamaru left, sighing. His usually sharp blue eyes were still in thought as Konohamaru disappeared from view. Of course his thoughts focused in on emerald eyed girl instead of his younger friend, and they were somber with these thoughts. Last night had certainly changed him, to say the least. He felt like it was a sin to laugh, or even to smile. It felt filthy, unclean. Whenever he did smile, it felt forced. Why did she have such an effect on him? She was horrible, sly; a girl with no cares except for herself and Sasuke. He felt like he would explode if he stood still and thought about this at the same time. Slowly he straightened to turn around and walk back home.

The noise made right when he turned around himself and started walking nearly escaped his notice. Had it been a little quieter, or more subtle, the blonde would have missed it altogether. It sounded like a shuffling and a sliding sound as if someone was standing up. His eyes narrowed in tense readiness, his ninja skills not waning in the least despite his tormented feelings, before widening in shock. He saw a few strands of pink hair before they disappeared behind the wall again.

"Sakura?" Naruto was hardly aware of how dumbfounded his voice sounded. His mind was blank; he couldn't think properly. The only thing he could feel was a slow strangling feeling on his throat and chest. A dark hand of grieving love seized him, and the grip wouldn't slacken. If the kunoichi had strangled him with her bare hands, it would have felt better than this. His chest tightened at the thought that he was within the same radius as her.

Sakura stepped out from behind the wall. Her back was facing towards him, and she obviously didn't want him to see her. Naruto felt like a knife was stabbing through his heart and twisting. He was a fool to think one day could have changed anything. She still wanted nothing to do with him. She still couldn't see him as a thinking, feeling person. The blue eyed ninja felt like he could die from the pain.

"Sakura." The word slipped out like sliding on ice, but he couldn't even form a sentence. It felt like his voice was frozen in his throat. She still refused to look at him; her shoulders were shaking in what seemed to be fear… and sadness. And Naruto couldn't bear it.

"Sakura, look at me. Please." Naruto's voice was cracking, but it seemed to do the trick. Slowly, the pink haired girl turned around, her feet shuffling and dragging on the ground as she did so, and Naruto gasped in shock at the sight.

Sakura obviously stopped taking very good care of herself since the previous day. Her eyes were still bloodshot from crying, suggesting she did a fair amount the whole day. The kunoichi unconsciously brushed her tussled bright hair behind her ear, and her emerald eyes flashed dully. The dark circles that had formed under her eyes made her look less human than ever. Naruto could only stand and stare in sheer horror at first, drinking in the effect everything had on her.

"What have I done to her?"

Naruto had no idea that all this could have shaken up Sakura this badly. She was trembling now, and Naruto wanted to just hug her. He just wanted to comfort the kunoichi in every way he knew how. In every way he practiced over so many years. Tell her it was okay, that she could go after Sasuke if she really wanted to. That she and him could work together, bring him back, and have them live happily ever after and all that nonsense.

But the sick part was that, for the first time, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He just couldn't do it this time around.

It felt like that showdown between him and Sasuke years ago all over again, except this time, it was him that was trapped and him that couldn't break free. It was him that was locked in this twisted place. And the one person that could free him was too broken herself to unlock and open the cage.

But, he had to do something, right? So he forced a smile. A smile that reflected pain and happiness at the same time. A smile that was so fake and so idiotic that it hurt to act on it. A smile that couldn't possibly work.

And it felt like something shattered.

Sakura's face almost immediately crumpled. He heard her emotions letting loose out of her mouth in a loud sob, and she turned on a dime and started running. Her pink haired flowed behind her, and the sound of feet hitting the dirt path made all the blood drain from Naruto's face.

"Sakura!" Naruto called after her. He was running after her now, trying to stop her. "Sakura!"

But she wouldn't stop. Her speed grew at an exponential rate before she grabbed a wall and flung herself around the corner. She was gone once more.

It didn't take long for Naruto's own mouth to twist and for tears to form in his eyes. He sank down to the floor where he was standing during that whole confrontation. Then he did something that he hadn't done since he was about ten years old:

He cried.

But he couldn't do it in public. Naruto's sobs were quiet at first, and he managed to stand up and try to make his way back to the house. He muffled his tears in his sleeve as he walked the rocky path. Luckily it was too dark to have anyone see him. He kept walking at a brisk pace until he showed up at his little apartment. Throwing open the door, staggering through it, and quickly closing the door behind him, he let out the torrent of frustration and hurt he just couldn't let go.

Naruto banged his fist on the wall before collapsing a little on it, but this time, he didn't try to hold back the tears that were coming. He just let it all out; something he should have done years ago.

Sasuke and Sakura were taking over his mind; they wouldn't let go and he couldn't let go of them in turn. It felt like a ring of fire: he couldn't escape from the burning pain. But crying… it seemed to weaken these flames.

He buried his face into his hands before turning around to slump against the wall, his back leaning heavily against it. The front of his jacket and his hands were soaking wet now, and for once, he finally felt spent. He slowly staggered to his feet before taking off the jacket and throwing it across the room. It hit the wall and sagged to the ground, but no matter what he did, the blonde couldn't extinguish what he felt inside.

He finally stood up, feeling absolutely defeated. There was never a fight he thought he had no chance of winning. He always thought there was always a hope, always a chance. Even against Sasuke, Naruto had never felt so hopeless.

The blonde was so wrapped up in his feelings that he almost didn't hear the knock on his door. Rolling his eyes, he stood up to fling open the door. Wasn't it obvious enough he wanted no company? His lights were off, and the door was locked. Didn't the little squirt ever hear of privacy?

"Konohamaru, leave me-" he immediately cut himself off and flushed a scarlet red when he found himself face to face with wide emerald eyes, opalescent skin, and candy pink hair.

Sakura's fist was still raised to knock once more on his door; as if she was half-hoping he really wouldn't be there. She cleaned herself up quite a bit. She shook her damp hair to clear some stray strands out of her face; she must have just taken a shower. Her eyes were still slightly red, but her green eyes showed more life. Naruto watched as her mouth went taut with determination.

"Are you going to make me stay out here, or do you feel like letting me in?" asked Sakura, and for the first time in a while, a slight smile showed her vague amusement. Naruto had no idea what thoughts she had could make her change in attitude and appearance so quickly, but he shook his head to clear his mind. It didn't matter, right? All that mattered was that he didn't make a complete fool out of himself while he was at it. He smiled back, hoping this time, it was somewhat realistic.

"Um, sure." Naruto hastily let her in. Sakura walked in hesitantly, and looked around; as if this was the first time she ever visited his house. Due to Sakura's change of attitude and appearance, his confusion overcame any pain he once felt. It was a bit of a relief, but there was one thing he wanted to know.

"Sakura, what are you doing here?"

Sakura ignored him for a few seconds. However, that was fine with Naruto. He was content to just watch her. When she was like this… carefree, actually did some work to improve her looks, and bold as ever, it made everything he felt worth it.

Finally, she turned to face him. Her eyes flashed with a feeling he couldn't identify, before turning back into that girl full of spunk.

"I came to say I'm sorry," Sakura said at last.

Naruto stared at her in surprise. Sakura stood right in front of him, so it was a face to face encounter. "What? Why?"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for running away, and I'm sorry for fooling myself." Sakura's tone was fierce. "For thinking that I could get exactly what I wanted. If you want…" She trailed off, only to start up again. "If you want you could stop waiting. I don't want to hurt you anymore. I don't…"

Naruto cut her off. He took a few steps forward and engulfed her in a fierce hug, and he buried his head in her shoulder. The blonde could feel her flinch in surprise, before she whispered, "Naruto… what…?"

"What did I say to you?" asked Naruto quietly, his voice slightly muffled. "What did I say to you before you left yesterday?"

He felt Sakura stiffen in his grasp.

"It's my decision at this point, not yours, Sakura-chan." His back-to-normal use of the honorific after her name made the girl relax. "I'm going to wait. It's just how I am. I'm going to wait, unless you don't want me to."

There was a pause, before Sakura whispered, "Baka." Her voice shook, before a small choking noise told Naruto she was crying again. She took hold of either side of his jacket, burying her face in his chest. Naruto tightened his grip on her, now resting his chin on the top of her head.

"Yeah, I know," Naruto whispered, rocking her back and forth. "I know."

Naruto let her cry for a long, long time, not even moving to make himself more comfortable. She had a lot to let loose, he could tell. Her frail shoulders shook so much that he found it amazing the pink haired girl could hold so much bottled inside. He slowly kept up the steady motion of rocking Sakura back and forth, trying to comfort her in the best way Naruto knew how.

"Why?" Sakura asked at last, her voice slightly nasal and raspy. "Why would you do something like that?"

"Because we're the same."

Naruto felt her start with surprise before she lapsed back into tears again. She demanded no explanation, no words of encouragement. She had changed so much from a single night, because her selfishness had already waned significantly.

"Naruto…?" The young ninja heard Sakura sniffle at last, and she pushed herself away from him only slightly. Pinkish azure orbs locked with bloodshot emerald ones as Sakura looked up at him.

"Yeah?" Naruto found he absolutely could not look away.

"Arigatou…"

Naruto nodded, and gave her a final squeeze before letting go. "Do you want to stay the night? I'll sleep on the couch…"

Sakura grinned up at him. "All right, but I'll be the one sleeping on the couch."

"Whatever you say, Sakura-chan."

----

Naruto shot up from his bed, a strange feeling of discomfort overcoming of him. Something hurt, and it was physical. It felt like his lungs were on fire, and his heart was frozen. But it wasn't because of Sakura. No, something was wrong. He collapsed out of his bed, his hand clasped over his chest. Naruto's breathing was labored, and he was panting for every last inhale and exhale.

He couldn't wake up Sakura, though. Despite her being a medical ninja, they just got on reasonable terms. He couldn't worry her… he just couldn't. Indecision tore through him, but it was immediately drowned out by another shot of pain. He nearly screamed from it. This wasn't heartburn. This was far, far worse.

But as soon as it came, the pain vanished. Naruto went limp on the floor, gasping for air. His body still ached from the sudden spasm of pain, but it was far more bearable. His throat was now constricting, and he covered his mouth as coughing overcame him. He fell over into the bed. As soon as the coughing stopped, he drew away his hand.

Something wasn't right. He staggered to his feet, and flicked on the lights to his bathroom. He collapsed on the sink before he finally looked at his hand.

It was covered in warm, sticky blood.

I'm sorry if this chapter absolutely sucked, but I had the worst writer's block. But I wanted to get you a chapter before the month was up. I'm so sorry, just bear with me. Feel free to point out how I can improve though, I greatly appreciate it.