A/N: This is my last chapter of this story. Sniff Sniff. It's been fun writing this story, but at last, it's over. You've guys have been great! I tried to give everyone a little bit of what they wanted in this last chapter, but I know I couldn't do some. I hope you guys enjoy! I'm off to work on my next story F&A! Later! (oh and PLEASE let me know if you liked it!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

The Strength of Love

Chapter 10: The Strength of Love

Sakura ran into her room and flung herself into her pillow tears streaming down her face. She couldn't face everything that had happened tonight. It was all just too painful. She knew she shouldn't have invited herself over to fix him dinner, but she had convinced herself that she could handle it. She was the Hokage's personal apprentice! She could handle anything! She could handle everything, everything but her own feelings.

No, that was the one thing she couldn't handle nor could she face. Sakura could remember everything- the closeness of Sasuke's face to her own, the feel of his warm breath against the smooth skin of her cheek. Her memories all came flooding back in that single instance. She remembered the first date, the first kiss, his proposal, the image of him kissing Ino only minutes after their break up, the look on his face when she admitted to kissing Neji not too long after . . . All of those memories were all too hard to face. They were all just hurtful reminders of her past happiness- the happiness she had destroyed.

Sakura had avoided confronting her own feelings, but tonight, she no longer had the choice. After leaving Sasuke's, her memories of them just continued to plague her mind. She wiped away her tears as she walked over to her desk drawer. She pulled out a small album and placed it on her bed. She flipped through the first couple of pages as she slowly began to stare at each picture longer and longer.

Each picture contained a former Sasuke and Sakura back when they were still a couple. There were pictures of them on dates together, just goofing around, and even one of them kissing. Sakura struggled to fight back the tears as she looked at each picture more carefully. Each of them shared one common thread that connected them all. The smile she wore in each picture was one of pure happiness. It was a smile Sakura was sure she would never wear again.

When she reached the final page, the tears she had been struggling to hold back came flooding from her eyes. She picked up the tear stained paper and began to read every word of it. 'You are cordially invited to witness the joining of both Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura in matrimony.' It was the wedding invitations that they had decided on. It was printed on a crisp, white paper using both light pink and dark blue ink. It contained other information such as the date and time the wedding would have taken place. She would have never thought a simple piece of paper would cause her to break in such a way that she had.

It was depressing to have everything she ever wanted dangling in front of her face knowing that she could never have him. It was depressing to know exactly how great it would feel to have him because she had been with him before. It was depressing to know that she was the reason he was gone and that she would she would never have him back again. Sakura threw the album across the room and buried her face into her pillow. She had avoided crying for the past couple of months, but tonight, she finally was going to cry.

Sasuke stood outside of Sakura's apartment. It had been hours since Sakura had left, or rather, ran away from his house. He would have knocked on the door, but by the looks of it, it still needed to be fixed as the door looked as if it would fall if the tiniest bit of pressure was to be applied. He waited for a few more minutes as he drew up the courage to enter the apartment of the girl he still loved. He finally picked the door up and set it aside making a small 'thump' as it hit the ground.

Sakura's head shot up out of her pillow upon hearing the sound. "Could it be?" She asked herself hoping it was Sasuke. 'No, it couldn't . . . ' She thought answering her own question. She slowly gathered herself by straightening her hair and her clothing. She slowly made her way down the stairs with a kunai in hand ready to harm the intruder if they were at all dangerous or threatening.

Sasuke was about ready to call for Sakura when a kunai came whizzing by his ear. To say he was surprised would be a drastic understatement.

"Sakura!" He shouted as his eyes fell upon the pink haired kunoichi who was already holding another kunai in her hand.

"I don't know who you are or what you know about me," She hissed, "But I suggest you get out." She flung the other kunai after finishing which Sasuke barely dodged.

"Sakura, it's me! Sasuke!" He shouted as he tried to approach the distressed kunoichi.

"No, the Sasuke I know wouldn't ever have come chasing after me, not after everything I've done. I only made things even more awkward after tonight!" She shouted as Sasuke enclosed on her.

"Sakura," He said firmly as he grasped her bare shoulders, "It's me, Sasuke. I proposed to you on my birthday and got mad because Shikamaru interrupted us."

"Everyone knows that now! Tell me something only the real Sasuke would know," She shouted as tears began to roll down her face. She reached for another kunai.

Sasuke bit his lip. He really didn't want to say this, not now, not ever again. "I kissed Ino only minutes after we broke up. And you, you kissed Neji not too long after witnessing Ino's and my kiss at Ichirukia's ramen stand." Sasuke looked down. He remembered the look on her face when she found them kissing. He then remembered the pain he felt as she told him that she had kissed Neji. He had realized then it had already been too late.

Sakura released her grip on the kunai she had been grasping causing it to fall to the ground. "Sasuke-kun," She muttered as she buried her face into his chest.

He placed his arm around Sakura to comfort her. He stroked her soft pink hair for the next few moments until he was sure that she had stopped crying. "Care to go for a walk?" He asked as Sakura lifter her head ready to ask a question.

"Sure..." She stated as Sasuke released his grip on her.

Sasuke escorted her out of the door, and stopped. "I'm really going to have to fix that," He laughed trying to brighten the mood some. Sakura merely narrowed her eyes and dropped her head not wanting to meet Sasuke's gaze.

Sasuke in turn dropped his head as well. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. He had been sure that Sakura still felt the same way about him, but now he wasn't so confident about that. She didn't seem too excited or happy about him being there either. He sighed inwardly. He still had to give it a try. After all, Sakura was the one person who was worth it.

It was a relatively bright night. The snow had stopped falling and now covered the ground with a bright, white blanket. The moon was full, and the stars covered the sky. The snow only reflected the light causing the two's path to be brightly lit.

As they continued down the street, the night air began to get to Sakura causing her to shiver. Sasuke pulled her close hoping to shield her from the bitter air. Sakura sighed as her feeling of guilt only grew more.

Suddenly, Sakura came to a halt. "Sasuke-kun," She whispered in a barely audible tone.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked somewhat startled at Sakura's sudden halt.

"Here, this is yours," She whispered even more quietly than before as she reached around her neck and took off the necklace that contained the ring Sasuke had given her what seemed so long ago.

"You keep it," He stated as he tried to hand it back to her.

"No," She stated firmly but with a hint of weakness in her tone. It was all she could do to fight back the tears. She turned to runaway but Sasuke grabbed her by the wrist.

"Sakura..."

"Sasuke let me go!" She screamed as the tears continued to fall from her emerald green eyes.

"No," He stated fiercely. He was not going to let her go so easily. He picked her up and carried her continuing on his path despite Sakura's protest.

"Let me down!" She shouted once again, and to her surprise, he did.

"Sakura, I don't want to let you go."

"Too bad!" She didn't really want to say that, but irregardless, she did.

"Sakura," Sasuke said frankly, "I'm not going to let you go so easily again."

"It's the best for the both of us Sasuke-kun!" Her voice weakened at the end of the sentence. It was a lie, but she knew part of it was true. Sasuke would indeed be better off without her. She didn't deserve him.

"You can't tell me you don't feel the same way about me as I feel about you!" He shouted.

"Yes, Sasuke-kun, I can." She bit her lip. It was a lie. She knew it was a lie, and so did Sasuke. It was easy to tell when Sakura was lying because she couldn't keep a straight face. She would either fidget uncontrollably or, as in this case, bite her lip.

"You're lying Sakura," He said as a smirk grew on his face.

"What was that?" Sakura asked as her eyes narrowed. Even though she knew she was indeed lying, it still offended her to be called out on it.

"You heard me. You're lying." He said simply as his smirk continued to grow. He was confident now. He knew that Sakura did feel the same way about him. He had be unsure of it, but now he was certain.

"Sasuke-kun, "She whimpered. Tears were flowing uncontrollably from her eyes now. "You don't deserve someone like me..." She turned away trying not to meet Sasuke's gaze.

"What?"

"You deserve so much better than me! I'm nothing- a speck on your shoe at best! I faulted you for Ino and turned around and did the same exact thing! I don't deserve you..."

"But Sakura, I want to give you everything you've ever wanted."

"No, you don't..." She said still trying to convince him to leave her.

"Sakura, look-" He started to say something but Sakura interrupted him.

"You don't really care about me Sasuke-kun. You just think you do. None of this is real-"

Sasuke returned the favor and cut Sakura off, but this time, with his lips. "Was that real enough for you?"

Sakura just looked away. It felt so good, the feeling of his lips against hers once again. She had missed it so much, but felt as if she didn't deserve it.

"And if I didn't really care about you, would I do all this?" He asked as he turned Sakura around.

Sakura's jaw dropped. She was standing right in front of a trellis covered in white Christmas lights. There were also little floor lamps that led up to the trellis that made an aisle way. She was shocked that she hadn't noticed them before. There was also a few vines one the trellis making it look even more beautiful than she imagined.

"Sasuke-kun, this is what-"

"You imagined our wedding would be like right?"

She quietly nodded still in shock and awe of the scene before her. It was exactly what she had imagined, only more beautiful and without the guests.

"I told you I was listening," He laughed.

Sakura let out a small chuckle before a lone tear slid down her face.

Sasuke immediately wiped it away and placed his hand against her soft chin bringing her head up to meet his eyes.

"Sakura, I know you think I would be better off without you. I've spent the last few months trying to convince myself of that. I've thought the same about you- that you would be better off without me, and even though that may be true, I won't believe it. I couldn't ever convince myself that my life would be better without you. I've spent numerous nights plagued with the feeling of loneliness just as I used too. I thought I could handle that loneliness, and maybe I can, but I don't want to."

Sakura's eyes became watery. She was going to cry again.

"My life isn't the same without you. I don't ever want to let you go. I want to be with you and only you. You're the only person that's worth all this." Sasuke finished firmly as he let go of her chin.

"But Sasuke-kun, why?" She muttered almost out of breath.

"Why Sakura?" He asked as his eyes softened, "Because I love you."

"Oh Sasuke-kun," She exclaimed for the first time with happiness in her voice, "I love you too!" She threw her arms around him and began to kiss him passionately before quickly drawing back again. Her eyes halfway closed. "Sasuke-kun, I'm sor-"

He cut her off, "What part of 'I love you' don't you understand?"

She smiled, "Love means never having to say you're sorry,"

And with that, they entered a long passionate kiss they both had been longing for. The world around them seemed to stop as the two were just enjoying the love they always had shared with each other. The undying love that would never end.

Finally, after the two had to break apart to gasp for air, Sasuke smirked. "So I'm thinking about a Spring wedding,"

-----------

Music was being played. It was the slow familiar beat the couple had come to love. "This really is our song now, isn't it Sasuke-kun?" She asked with a whisper in his ear sending tingles up his spine. She was wearing a long, flowing white gown. It was rather simple but made her look more radiant than ever.

"It always was," He replied as he pulled her even closer. He would never have to let her go now.

"Remember when you first told me you thought this song described us?" She whispered as she ran her fingers through his raven black hair.

"Yeah, and I meant every word of it,"

"Well," She said as she pulled her back to look him in the eye, "You're mine too."

Sasuke lips twisted into a smile, and he put his forehead against hers before entering a passionate kiss in the middle of the dance floor.

"Hey! You two break it up! This is a public place. You act like you're married or something!" Naruto said obnoxiously with his signature grin on his face as he pushed in between the couple.

"Naruto," Sakura said warningly, "We are married. This is our reception."

"Oh really? Hehe," He laughed already knowing everything Sakura had just told him.

"Dobe," Sasuke muttered.

"Sasuke-kun," She stated warningly again.

"What? He is a interruption."

"Oh and about our honeymoon," Sakura said with a seductive smile on her face.

Sasuke perked up immediately, "What?"

"There will be no interruptions," Sakura smiled as she reached down to her ankle and pulled out her cellphone. She tossed it over her shoulder and someone almost immediately stepped on it breaking it to pieces.

Sasuke smiled. "I wouldn't want it any other way," He stated before entering another kiss with Sakura.

Ding Ding Ding Ding Ding!

"Naruto..." Sasuke stated as his eyes flashed to his Sharingan.

"It's time for the best man's speech! So if you all would take your seats, and that means you too Sasuke-teme."

"I thought he wasn't doing a speech," Sasuke whispered to Sakura before taking their seats.

Sakura gave him a confused look. "Maybe Hinata helped him with one anyway,"

"But first, there's a matter of business that needs to be taken care of," Naruto said giving Sakura a wink. She gave him a thumb's up. Now she knew what was going on.

Naruto slowly walked over to Hinata and dropped to one knee. "Hinata-chan, will you marry me?"

She turned about 7 shades of red and tears came flowing from her eyes. "Yes!" She exclaimed throwing her arms around his neck initiating a passionate kiss that he gladly returned. Everyone in the room clapped and cheered.

"Anyways," Naruto continued rather flustered after breaking away from Hinata, "I do have a speech to make so you all better listen up. It's the best best man speech ever! Believe it!"

Kiba shouted from the back of the room, "Just get on with the speech!"

Naruto started to growl, but decided to move on with his speech as he caught a glimpse of Sakura's and Sasuke's glare. "Anyways, we all knew that Sakura-chan would always love Sasuke-teme, but her love was always unrequited. Then, with the help of Shikamaru, Sasuke finally came to his senses and fell in love with Sakura-chan. Their love was obvious to the world around them. I think we all can admit that their obvious love for each other affected us in some kind of way. Some of us became insecure about our own relationships," He gave Hinata a quick glance and a smile.

"Others became jealous of the love they shared and thought that someone else would give them the same love only to be proven wrong," Naruto continued. Shikamaru glanced over to Ino. Temari and Shikamaru had broken up. He always said that it was because she was more troublesome than Ino, but everyone knew it was because Ino had always had his heart. He leaned over and gave Ino a peck on the cheek who blushed and smiled back at him.

"Even some of us thought that they would share the same love if they had one of them- Sasuke or Sakura," Naruto stopped. Neji looked over to Tenten who was sitting beside him. They hadn't talked since their break up. They shared a glance before blushing, and looking away. Neji slid his hand over on Tenten's. She squeezed it a little and gave him a smile.

"But in the end, it was obvious that none of the above was true. Sasuke and Sakura, I like to think, always shared this love and had only grown with the years. Their love is passionate, subtle, and consummate- a love that made us all envious. Their love has undergone a many of obstacles- both faulting at one point or another- but in the end they always made it through only causing the bond between them to grow."

Sasuke glanced at Sakura who smiled back at him teary eyed. He placed his hand on her smooth cheek. They both mouthed 'I love you' to each other and entered a passionate kiss oblivious to the world around them.

"And the fact that we're here today for their wedding is only proof of the strength of love."