Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters that appear in the anime/manga series. I like cake.
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A box. Two thousand four hundred centimeters. Cubed. Light, made of Ash wood. Specifically done so. He always did love ash trees.
You couldn't possibly imagine how great an effect this box has on a person. On me. You couldn't possibly step into my shoes and just understand exactly why I've dreaded seeing this box, I've always dreaded one day having to see a box like this.
I'll tell you the reason why this box came into my possession. I was an idiot. I was too proud, and too stubborn, and now the price is paid. The guilt is quite overwhelming. Hana always did remind me to think with the right head, and what do I do? Blow her off and assume everything will work out in the end.
I was angry. I didn't have a right to be, but at the time, I believed I did. They were holding me back, I reasoned. I had more power than both the ANBU that were sent to 'assist' me on the mission. Probably more battle experience than the two rookies put together, as well. It was a simple assassination mission. How could it go wrong? Where would I possibly need the assistance of these two greenhorns?
I told them to back off. Stand aside and watch as the hotshot jounin went and cut himself a head right off the shoulders of Lightning-hands Suzuhara, leader of the Steel bandits of Thunder Country. He'd avoided hunter-nin for five years before leaving Thunder country, nobody knows why. Just that he's finally within Konoha's jurisdiction, and all Konoha wanted was the bandit dead, so that it can deal another blow to the nearly-bankrupt Cloud Village. Of course, the two ANBU objected. They were under orders to assist me in killing Suzuhara. So obviously I had to ditch them in the middle of the night. Just as easily done as said, by the way. Evidently anyone with a Leaf forehead protector was automatically not a threat. Apply some sleeping gas and they're out like a light.
Tracking down Suzuhara was easier for me than for most others. The smell of electrical burns on flesh is not one that easily goes away. He had just killed. I found him, still in the process of looting what he could from the caravan he had just taken down, apparently single-handedly.
How he detected my presence, I don't know. But he spun around and before I fully comprehended the situation was all over me with quick taijutsu punches to the gut and a flurry of kicks designed to damage my knees and ankles. I never had a chance. He grabbed me and threw me into a tree, and I felt lightning course through my body. I could barely drop a few smoke bombs before Scrambling a few feet away. My head was spinning. I faintly recall him saying something, but his words didn't register. His tone, however, was more than enough. Gloating, mocking, and surely victorious. Had he found me already? The smoke hadn't even begun to show signs of fading yet.
All of a sudden I experienced pain, beyond that of physical barriers. It was as if someone had put their hand directly through my heart, I felt it. Yet I instantly knew something had gone wrong. I was not injured at all. There was no arm protruding from my chest. But I smelled blood. It took me seconds to realize what it was.
The bastard killed Akamaru. Moments after I had dropped the smoke bombs, Akamaru must have transformed into me, and acted as a decoy, hoping to buy me some time. He was dead now. Hate as I'd never felt before surged through my body. I went insane, I wanted to kill, and charged Suzuhara. He never even saw me.
His head went first. I twisted his head in practically a full circle, and tore it clean from his body. He died on the spot. That wasn't enough for me. His arms went next, and then the legs. I separated every limb from his body. Then I flooded his torso with chakra. I threw every last drop I had in there until it exploded. Finally, the stench of blood and death overwhelmed my adrenalin rush, and I collapsed, sobbing.
The rest is all a blur. Reporting the mission, getting chewed out by the Hokage, Handcrafting the coffin for Akamaru, and finally burying him. It still hasn't gotten easier to deal with his death, but it doesn't have to be.
Akamaru, wherever you are, I know you'll be watching over me. I'll make you proud. I'll make sure another friend never has to sacrifice his life the way you did, to save me. I just hope you'll forgive me one day. May you rest in peace.