By the time they reached Kakashi's house, it was getting a little late.

"Kakashi!" Naruto ran up the porch. He pounded on the door.

No answer.

"Hel-lo?!" Naruto was getting annoyed now. Sasuke could tell.

"Kakashi, if you don't get your a--" He was rudely interrupted by the door slamming directly into his face.

Kakashi appeared at the porch, looking angry. "If you damn kids don't-- Naruto?" He noticed Naruto lying on his back on the ground, holding his nose.

He also noticed Sasuke standing a few feet away from him. "Sasuke? What are you-- Sakura?!" Kakashi shouted, just THEN noticing Sasuke was holding Sakura in his arms.

"Is she...?" He said, looking worried, making his way over to where Sasuke was.

"That's not her blood, Kakashi." His face was grim.

"It's her parent's blood." Naruto had gotten up, and was walking towards them.

"What?" was all Kakashi could muster.

Naruto proceeded to explain. "Well, me and Sasuke were walking--" Kakashi raised an eyebrow. Sasuke merely scowled. "--and we found Sakura like this. Sasuke went to inspect her house and we found her parents dead." And he looked a little scared, too...

As if reading Naruto's mind, Kakashi glanced sideways at Sasuke.

Naruto put his hands in his pockets, casting his eyes downward. He felt kind of sorry for Sasuke. Seeing that must have awakened something in his mind...

Breaking the silence, Kakashi's voice suddenly turned very businesslike. "What are we waiting for? We gotta get to the hospital, pronto."

Naruto and Sasuke just nodded. The three of them sped off into the direction of the hospital.

--

Naruto stared at Sakura, lying in a hospital bed. Kakashi had gone to get the bodies, and Sasuke had left to get food.

The white sheets, the white walls, the white ceiling, and Sakura's pale, almost white face. Dammit, the whole frigging building was white.

I never really liked white.

Naruto didn't really like white because... because it was just boring. He, Naruto, was an energetic kind of person, and not at all the quiet type, or, as a matter of fact, a good listener either. He was a more talk, AND more action person. He had the tendency to do a lot of things at the same time. That was usually why he messed up a lot.

He gazed down at Sakura, feeling bad. He wondered how she had reacted when she found her parents.

Speaking of parents... Naruto felt really bad for them. Despite the fact that they hated him, he wasn't the type of person to be glad someone died, unless they were evil. And he knew very well Mr. and Mrs. Haruno were anything but evil.

It stings whenever someone pushes me around or calls me demon or treats me like dirt, they just don't understand. They don't know the pain I've gone through, the life I've had to live alone... They think I am Kyuubi, and they do not recognize that I sacrificed m future and childhood for them...

Naruto felt tears welling up in his eyes. He wiped them away. C'mon Naruto, no time to feel sorry for yourself... remember what happened to Sakura...

Naruto used have a crush on Sakura. He fell for her, and he fell hard. But after being directly rejected, he had given up hope.

"Sakura?" Naruto asked nervously.

"Yes?" Sakura turned to him. She noticed the flower in his hands. She also noticed him looking straight at her. A determined look, undermined by anxiousness.

She realized what was going to happen. "Oh."

"Sakura, I've... I've... always really... liked you..." Naruto began, looking hopeful. Sakura had her eyes cast down, toward the ground. "Will... you go... on a-a... date with me?"

Sakura looked up at him. "Sorry Naruto... I just... don't feel the same way." She looked truly, sincerely sorry.

Naruto turned away from her. "Yeah. I was kind of expecting that."

He stiffened when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "We can always be friends, right?" came her voice.

Despite the fact he was heartbroken, his ears perked up at this. No one's ever asked me to be their friend!

"I'd like that, Sakura."

She beamed.

But that was all in the past. What he felt now towards her was nothing but brotherly love and concern. After all, she was the closet thing to a mother he ever had.

          As he looked down at Sakura's pale form, he observed the white.

          The endless, colorless white. It made him feel a little depressed.

Until he remembered a certain girl with white eyes. He smiled a little.

Maybe all white isn't so bad.

The door to Sakura's room slammed open, interrupting Naruto's thoughts.

Naruto was annoyed at this. "Hey you! Why are you barging in here disturbing the--" It was a few seconds before he realized who was standing there.

"Hinata?!"

----------

Hehe. I thought I'd leave you with a cliffhanger. Next chapter, you find out how Sakura's parents died. One question-- are either of Sakura's parents ninjas?