Set towards the end of the prequel. So technically, a spoiler for the prequel of The Color Blue, but not for The Color Blue itself.
34. Grave
The ceremony had been short. There were so many others to be buried, they didn't have time for long eulogies, even for the most beloved of the fallen.
Naruto had stayed behind when Tigerdragon and the mourners had moved on to lay the next body to rest. His entire being was shaking with grief and confusion. He couldn't understand in the slightest what Aelu had done, why she'd chosen to interfere in the fight. So what if he would have lost? It would have been worth it to see her smiling again.
He watched the smooth grave unceasingly for several hours, the dim sounds of quick funereal rites echoing in the background. He heard mourners come and go. He felt the sun rise high into the sky and sink low into the earth. He registered the time by how well he could still read her name on the small gravestone, and he knew the moon would be rising soon.
Shaken, only half conscious, he turned his eyes to the sky.
He watched the stars come twinkling out of their beds, shimmering brightly despite the death of his friend. With his eyes he traced the heart he'd made with Aelu so long ago, when he'd first confessed. A small, sharp pain lanced his heart for every twinkling ball he counted in the small constellation.
His heart closed off, slammed shut on his feelings to stop the pain.
It would be the last time he would look at the stars for a very long time.