4. Funeral…

It was rainy. A drizzle has began to fall and would soon become a full out storm, but at the moment this didn't trouble the citizens of the hidden leave village that have gathered together on this day. They had come to morn the death of their fellow ninja, Naruto Uzumaki. A lot more people have come than at first anticipated. Most of the rooky-nine were there, all but Hinata, who hadn't been seen leaving her house in days. Then there was also Kakashi sensei, Might Guy along with Rock Lee, Konohamaru (and friends), Iruka sensei, lady Tsunade, Shizune and even Teuchi and his daughter Ayame (the owners of the Ramen Ichiraku stand).

It was hard to believe lady Tsunade had come. She hadn't talked to anyone since she had heard the news and had slacked out on her duties as hokage. She had refused to do any paperwork at all and her desk had by now been piled with stacks of paper. Even Shizune hadn't been allowed into her office. Most of the days that had passed she had spent sitting at her desk, staring at the empty pages that lay in front of her as if she could let her sorrow flow out of her fingertips, fill them with words, and then she would watch as they slowly faded away, leaving her free of all bad feelings and opening a new place in her hart, ready to be filled with the love of her friends. But instead of a new opening, her hart refused to let the chamber filled with all the memories and feelings for Naruto become lost. It was impossible for her to let go.

The ceremony wasn't something you could call "big". All they basically did was have a moment of silence and had Naruto's name engraved on the Memorial Stone. A few tears escaped Sakura's eyes as she remembered the first time Kakashi had told them what is was for.

Flashback:

Kakashi was walking up to the strangely shaped stone. "Did you look at this stone, the names engraved on it?" He had asked coming to a still stand in front of it. "They are all ninja who are honored as heroes in our village" He continued. "That's it! That's it! That's it! Now I know. I've decided I'm going to have my name engraved on that stone. I'm not gonna live and die for nothing like a dog, I'm gonna be a hero, a HERO!" Naruto yelled from the back where he was still tied to the stake for trying to eat his food earlier than they were allowed. "They are, a special kind of hero." Kakashi informed the three of them, turning his head slightly to look back at them. "Uh? What kind of heroes are they? Come on tell us." Naruto had a curious grin across his face. Kakashi didn't answer. "Well? Well?" Naruto continued to urge him on. "They are all K.I.A." Kakashi answered, a slight hint of sadness in his voice. "Oooo... That sounds cool." Naruto continued, having no idea what K.I.A. meant. "It means "killed in action", they all died." Sakura, who was standing almost at his side, informed him. Naruto's smile faded and was replaced by a sorrowful look. He had definitely changed his mind…

(Flashback ends) Back to the present:

The ceremony hadn't lasted long and by now most of the people that had came were now heading home or seeking shelter from the rain, which was now shooting down from the heavens like a trigger-happy machinegun. Sakura was the last to leave. She had been staring at the Memorial Stone when she suddenly realized was the only person still there, and that her clothes had been drenched to the skin. Shivering with cold, she decided to head home as well. As she slowly walked forward the howling of the wind in the trees and the sound of the falling rain brought back painful memories of that fateful night. For some reason she suddenly grew worried about Hinata. She knew Naruto meant a lot to her, though she tried to hide it, and the fact that she hadn't left her house made Sakura anxious. Not knowing way exactly, she changed direction and started heading towards Hinata's house. By the time the house came into sight the wind was blowing so hard it felt like hurricane Katrina could have been just a light breeze. Luckily it only felt that way and wasn't truly that bad. As she came closer, Sakura realized the front door of Hinata's house was wide open. Could somebody be here already? She thought, approaching the front door. Stepping into the building the wind subsided a little. Water dripped from her wet clothes onto the wooden floor. Taking off her shoes to prevent them from leaving a muddy trail through the house, she heard voices coming from down the hall. Slowly she followed them, listening at how they became louder and more clear the closer she came. She could identify them by now and as she turned around a corner she saw the owners.

Kiba (along with Akamaru hiding in his jacket), Shino and Shikamaru were gathered around a bedroom door. "Please Hinata. You can't stay in there forever." Shikamaru called out towards the door. "Yes I can." Hinata's muffled voice came from the other side. "What's going on?" Sakura asked as she joined them. "We were worried about Hinata so we came to check on her. Turns out she jammed the door from the inside and we can't open it without breaking it down." Shino informed her. "Hey, that's an idea. How about Akamaru and I blow a hole in the door." Kida tried his luck. Akamaru barked, agreeing with his master. "We can't do that, not unless one of you is willing to pay for the damage." Shikamaru told him with a sigh. "This is such a drag." Shikamaru muttered to himself. "Please just come out." Shino pleaded. They could hear the sound of Hinata crying softly through the door. "No! I'd rather die of starvation than leave this room again!" Her voice came more sharply this time. It felt strange, hearing Hinata yell like that. To be honest Sakura couldn't remember having ever heard her yell before. "Let me try." She offered, stepping towards the door.

"Hinata." She called softly. No reply. "Hinata look, I'm not going to ask you to come out, I'm just asking that you listen to what I say." Again no reply, but at least the crying faded a little. Now Sakura had to think fast. "Look, I know how you feel. It's hard to lose someone you care for. I have never met anyone in my entire life that hasn't been touched by the death of a loved one. I don't think someone like that even exists." Tears started pricking her eyes again. "But… But it's what we do about it that makes us who we are, and what gives us the chance (slight pause) to become who we hope to be. And we're not alone; we have friends who help us through times like these." Tears were now streaming down her face two. The others stared at her, not sure if they should say something or not. "It's those friends who remind us why we are here… What our purpose in live is. And…" She put her head against the wooden door. Tears that have trickled down to her chin dripped onto the floor, mixing in with the puddle of water that had dripped from her wet clothes. As she spoke, memories of the times Naruto had been there for her had filled her mind. She had never realized, in till now, how hard he had tried to gain her attention. And she had pushed him away, always focusing her attention on Sasuke, when Naruto had been there for her all along. "And it's those friends we should cherish." She finished. The wind could be heard howling around the corners of the house. A sound of furniture being moved came from behind the door. Hinata opened it and, moving forward, hugged Sakura. "I'm sorry." Is all she could say. Sakura hugged her back and the two of them cried on each other's shoulders. "I'm so sorry…"