Warnings: This chapter contains subjects of death including mourning, coarse language, slight incest, slight yaoi, references to rape, references to violence, talk of suicide, talk of homicide, OOC, and the canon is not a main player in this game. There are also quite a few errors in here, sorry about that.
Pairings: References to ItaSasu, some SasuSaku, references to KakaIta, slight KakaIru
"Is he alright?" a voice called out. "He's been unconscious for two whole days. I'm starting to think that he's dead."
"Come on Chouji, he's not dead, he has a pulse," another voice called out, clearly female. "Besides, did you see all of the blood? There's no way that he was going to stand back up after that much of a beating."
Slowly the darkness started to dissipate, the sound of an EKG filling his ears. He could feel all sorts of wires running through him, his body shaking as he felt the needles digging into his skin. It was all reminded him of the day that Itachi had raped him, leaving him bleeding on the ground. Then it hit him, maybe this was the same incident. Maybe he was going to wake up to the world that he thought had died months ago. His eyes started to open as he was met with the faces of Team 10.
"Sasuke," Ino stated with a smile. "You're awake, how do you feel?"
Sasuke looked around him to see nothing but a blurry room, his whole body shaking as his head reeled with absolute pain. "Where am I?"
"You're in the hospital," Shikamaru answered flatly. "You took a bit of a hit back there in the woods. When Kakashi found you everyone thought you were dead, you barely had a pulse," he sat on the corner of the bed. "It seems that you needed another blood transfusion," he pointed to the IV. "We really thought we lost you this time, it took longer than it should have to get you breathing again…"
Sasuke looked over at the bed in the corner, seeing another body lying in the sheets, his eyes trying to adjust to see who it was. Ino's blue eyes trailed into the direction that the Uchiha was looking, finally revealing the person's identity.
"Sasuke," Ino breathed. "There wasn't enough room in the hospital so you had to share a room. It shouldn't be a problem since you know each other. The doctors said your vision will be blurry for a while and it will hard for you to focus your eyes, but that's Sakura…"
Sasuke swallowed hard, his throat burning as he did so. "S-Sakura?" this wasn't a dream, the whole thing happened, down to the death of Naruto. Everything that he had wished was a bad dream had all come true.
"She got one hell of a beating, don't you remember?" Shikamaru asked.
Sasuke swallowed hard again, his eyes closing as tears started to form behind his eyelids. "So Naruto," he took a deep breath. "Is he really…? Is he…? Did he die?"
"Sasuke," Shikamaru sighed.
"Don't cry… when you cry it k-kills… m-me."
Sasuke let one tear fall down his cheek as he remembered holding Naruto in his arms as he died, feeling the last beats of his heart, the last breaths. It was real as he watched him drift to the other side of the gate of life. He was taken away by the same force that Sasuke had grown to fear after all of this time. This had turned to the opposite direction that it had before, he thought that he was going to die and Naruto was going to die. Once again he was wrong.
"The funeral's soon," Shikamaru continued. "I know that it's difficult for you to take in…"
Sasuke closed his eyes tightly as he shook his head. "Get out of here…"
"Sasuke," Ino started trying to comfort him.
"Get out!" Sasuke yelled as he closed his eyes tightly, tears rolling down his cheeks, his whole body shaking. Three sets of eyes gazed upon him as he took a deep breath, trying the hardest to understand his pain. There was nothing that could be done about this as the Uchiha started to cry harder, burying his face in his hands, his fingers shaking as he tried to absorb that this was all real.
Team 10 left him, his tears running more hurriedly as he let out low whimpers, his whole body shaking. After all of this time, all of the moments that he went through, it was all just a waste of time. Naruto was gone; there was no bringing him back now. He felt sick, his heart racing faster, the beeps from the EKG filling his ears. These damn wires, the damn tubes, these damn walls, it all brought back memories of the times before this mess started, that night when it could have gone either way. What if he hadn't tried to fight Itachi off? Would it have turned out like this? Would Naruto be dead?
Sasuke closed his eyes tightly as he took a deep breath, Itachi was gone too. He had abandoned him in the woods. Even though a part of him wanted to blame the older ninja for the situation, he was currently in, he knew he could never fully do that. There was no way in Hell that Itachi would purposely leave Sasuke in the middle of the fight that he had brought him in. Was there something going on with Sasuke that he didn't remember?
Then it hit him, the blood that was running from his eyes, Itachi was scared that he wouldn't be able to control that power. He regretted that he made this happen to him. That power was the power that almost killed Itachi, the power that he had been having nightmares of every time he tried to go to sleep. Closing his eyes, he continued to cry. This was his life now; this was how he was going to live.
"Sasuke?" Sakura's voice called out as she looked over at him. "Is it true… is Naruto really gone?"
"Yeah," Sasuke answered lightly, he wasn't able to look at Sakura. She was covered with bandages, her arm in a sling.
He was reminded of what Itachi had done to him; the wounds that were plaguing her were the same wounds that he had grown to hate while he was in this prison. She was now the one who was in pain; she was the one who almost died out there. Sasuke thought that none of them were going to make it out alive, he was wrong; two of them lived while one died.
"I guess I should take some blame," Sakura closed her eyes, trying to fight the tears. "If I hadn't gone off with Kabuto…"
"Don't blame it all on yourself," Sasuke breathed, trying to focus his vision on her. "I was there when he died, I could have healed him, but like a fool I stood there and did nothing. I stood there and watched as he died. I heard him say his last words."
Sakura's voice was shaking as her EKG sped up, contrasting with Sasuke's. "What were they? What was the last thing that he ever said to you?"
Sasuke closed his eyes as he remembered the blood, as he remembered the pain that he had gone through right before he left him alone by the rivers edge. The peaceful look in his blue eyes was always going to haunt his dreams as was that smile across his face. The words echoed, every syllable piercing through his heart as he tried to remember.
"Don't cry," Sasuke took a deep breath as he looked over at Sakura, his eyes starting to water violently. "When you cry it kills me…"
She closed her eyes as she started to sob, her sore body shaking violently. "You know what the last thing that he said to me was?" she tried to mask her pain as she took a deep breath. "Fuck you, I don't give a damn about your Orochimaru, nor do I give a damn about Kabuto Yakushi or Itachi Uchiha. You make me sick, Sakura… you make me sick…" she laughed once. "I never thought that he was going to die, I never thought that anyone was going to hurt him…"
Sasuke shook his head. "He took his own life, I was there when he ran the dagger through his chest," his hand moved to grasp the cloth that was over his beating heart, his eyes closing tightly, his breathing starting to develop hitches in the pattern. "I remember everything that he said to me as he lay dying, even if I tried to forget, I never could. He loved you so much, you know what he said after that?" he asked trying to make Sakura feel some guilt about what happened to take some off of himself.
"What?" she asked, wiping the tears from her eyes with her good hand.
He took a deep breath. "She doesn't love me… she never has. No matter how hard I tried, she was only going to care about you. She only came closer to me for the last few days because she felt sorry for me. I don't want her pity, nor do I need it. I wanted so much out of life, to become Hokage that was my dream. To be Hokage, if that means that you turn your back on all of your comrades, then I don't want it. If to be alive means that you have to live alone and sad for the rest of your days, then I wish that I could have died sooner than I'm going to."
He shook his head as he heard silence from the other side of the room, the rustling of the hospital sheets filling his ears. He couldn't look at her now as her face twisted into the most sorrow that he had ever seen, her once innocent green eyes becoming filled with self-hate and sorrow. He couldn't even begin to feel how she was feeling, he didn't want to feel the feeling that she was going through. To have Naruto die in his arms was enough for him, he didn't need anything else.
"Naruto," she breathed, tightening her hand into a fist, her eyes closing painfully. "Why? Why did you do it?" she shook her head. "I love you, Naruto," she started to cry harder. "I love you so much, more than anything…"
He closed his eyes as he remembered Itachi, his own eyes watering as he thought what had become of his older brother. Did he take his own life after what he thought was Sasuke's death? Or did Kakashi chase him out of the village for the crimes that he had committed?
Tears fell from his eyes as he recalled those lips pressed passionately against his the last time they had sex, no, made love. He remembered the pain that Itachi was going through as he was slowly losing Sasuke with every step that he took, he was slowly losing him. That last time was the time that Sasuke needed to show that his brother would be lost without him. How he wished he could feel that reassuring touch once more, to kiss those lips, to tell him that he loved him. He would give anything for those moments that he had cursed for so long. He would give anything to hold him.
"Naruto knew that Sakura, that's why he did it," Sasuke breathe gently. "He didn't want us to get caught up in the war that the Akatsuki was planning so by killing himself, he was killing the spirit of the nine-tailed fox. Now there is no way they can complete their mission, we're safe."
"He was always crazy about us," she whimpered quietly. "He's so annoying…" she smiled lightly as she tried to hide the sorrow. "He's a bother…"
Sasuke closed his eyes as he realized what was going to happen now; they were never going to be Team 7 again. Sakura would never want to fight; he was scared of just the mention of blood, Kakashi was slowly dying on them, and Naruto had died. The team that was once called Team 7 was no more, nothing more than a memory of a far off past. This was the end of them.
After all that they had been through, this is what it had come down to. Sasuke was going to be forced to practice on his own, staying at the rank of genin for the rest of his life. It was fine back when he had Itachi by his side, the days that he had taken for granted. All of that was gone now, nothing was left of him, Sasuke couldn't even smell his scent on his clothes.
"Itachi," he whispered almost inaudibly, as Sakura continued to sob about Naruto. They were broken beyond repair.
Naruto said that he didn't want to hurt them anymore, now that he was gone, all that remained was the pain that they had been trying to avoid. Naruto's death was in vain, Sasuke was still going to go through pain, if not more. He hated this Hell that he had initiated into. He would give anything for the light of Itachi's grace, but he could never get that. The light had faded, and Sasuke was to be forever lost.
-----
Another day passed, he had finally escaped the walls of the hospital room, but the pain was still deep within him as he thought back to all of the pain that he had been through. Itachi was gone; he wasn't going to come back to him. There was something that told him that Itachi might have forgotten him by now. His fist curled tightly as he remembered Itachi yelling for him to take care of Naruto. He could still see the struggle that his brother was going through. He took a kunai for him in that fight; he had shed his blood to ensure the safety of his younger brother. He cared too much about him.
Now Sasuke would give anything to hold him as he was lead down these halls to where he was to be punished. They were taking him to the Hokage, he knew what that meant. Everyone knew that he was involved with Itachi, they were going to question him and then he would be punished, most likely killed for conspiring against the village. Knowing that, he was unafraid, he was going to die for Itachi's dream, he was going to give everything up for the cause that they had fought so hard for.
He continued to follow Gai and Kakashi down the hall, the two jounin not looking at each other as they made their way there, not looking back at Sasuke either. They knew the questions that he was going to ask, and they knew that they would never be able to answer any of them. This had to be done quickly; they had been putting this off for too long.
"Kakashi," Sasuke breathed, trying to ignore the fact that they had chosen not to answer any questions. "Where did Itachi go?"
The younger jounin sighed as he continued to walk. "He's gone…" he looked over at his shoulder at the young genin. "I let him go, I couldn't stand to cause any harm to him after what happened to you. When he saw your body…"
"He came looking for me?" Sasuke asked his eyes wide with shock. He could imagine the look on Itachi's face as he saw the blood rolling down his cheeks. It would be just like the memory of his own manifestation the night Shisui died.
"Did you think he was going to leave you?" Kakashi asked. "Eventually he did, but it was for different reasons, reasons that I can't even begin to explain to you. Your brother is a complex person, I don't know what possessed him to leave you behind, he told me how much he loves you…"
Sasuke closed his eyes. "I know that he loves me…"
They walked closer to the door, as Asuma and Kurenai walked closer with Sakura walking with them. She had been pulled into this situation as well. The nightmare was coming true as he watched the jounin all look at each other with solemn faces. There was something that was going on, they all knew what this meeting was about, it did have to do with punishment. His whole body shook as he thought about what they were going to do to him. Secretly, he wished that he had died in the woods.
"They're just children," Kurenai said as the two genin walked through the door. "They didn't know what they did…"
"You know the laws," Gai countered quietly. "They went against the village."
"Sasuke saved us," Asuma continued. "Don't you think that should be a way to get them out of this punishment? They could have died in the woods. If we make them go through this, they're going to wish they had."
Sakura looked over at Sasuke, he eyes watering. She knew what this was about too. Unlike Sasuke, she didn't save anyone. She went off with Kabuto Yakushi, she went off with the problem while Sasuke went off with the solution. Both parties only brought bloodshed to the village, both parties being punished. Yet deep in his heart, Sasuke knew that Sakura's punishment was going to be lighter than his, the man that forced her to do all of this was in their prisons, Itachi was still at large, he would have to be punished for both of them.
The group walked through the door to see the Hokage at his desk, Iruka by his side. The chuunin had a sad look in his eyes as he looked at Sasuke, he could remember when Itachi had saved his life. That would mean nothing before the Hokage; all he could see when he looked at Sasuke was the blade that was running through his son's body, all he could see were those cold red eyes looking straight at him. No one could see Sasuke anymore, all they could see was Itachi.
"We brought them to you, Lord Hokage," Gai introduced. "You wanted to talk to them."
The Hokage looked up at the young genin. "Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, I want to ask you a single question," he stood up. "What were you thinking? Did you even consider the damage you could have caused?" he watched as both sets of eyes closed. "You two did the most reckless thing you could, siding with the enemy and then trying to hide it from us."
Sakura looked up into the old man's eyes. "Lord Hokage…"
"You Sakura did more damage than Sasuke did," he looked at the Uchiha. "Sasuke, Itachi tortured you and still you let him take control of you. Do you know how much damage you have helped him cause throughout all of this?"
"I take some responsibility. I'm not going to stand here and drag his name through the mud like you think I am," he opened his eyes to look at the standing man. "I will take some responsibility for the good that he did for you as well. He saved the village, he stopped Konoha from being invaded by the Sound Village, and he saved Iruka when he didn't even have to…"
The old man sat back down again, the chuunin at his side looking away from him. The room was dead silent as all eyes fell on Sasuke. Was he out of his mind talking back to the Hokage like that? He was already in trouble, why did he need to get himself into more. Itachi wasn't going to come back to save him from his dark fate, he was on his own if this was going to end in his death. This was the decision he wanted to make.
"If you want to punish someone for what Itachi did, then blame me. I could have stopped it all from happening, I could have stopped all of the pain that we have gone through, but I didn't. I let all of this happen," Sasuke argued, his eyes filled with determination, freezing everyone who was gazing at him right where they stood. "I was the reason why he even came back in the first place; please punish me if someone must be punished."
Sakura looked over at him. "Are you crazy, Sasuke? You can't possibly want to do your brother's time. Do you know how many crimes he had committed since he came here? Rape, murder, assault, disguising as an officer, kidnapping, and many more on top of that, you could get out with plotting against the village."
Sasuke closed his eyes as he placed his hands on the desk. "Lord Hokage, with all due respect, it wasn't solely Itachi's fault for the assault on the village. Kabuto Yakushi was the one who had taken Naruto to the woods; he was the reason why he took his own life. Itachi was trying to save him."
The old man sighed as he watched the young genin's hands shake against the desk. "Why are you protecting him? Why now do you still wish to go one his side even though he is no longer here to control you?"
"Because," Sasuke answered quickly, looking into his leader's eyes. "He didn't force me into doing anything; everything that I do is of my own free will. I could have told him to leave, and he would have listened. You see, you all didn't know it, but I could have bent the situation, I was just too blind to see where it was going. I could have stopped him front hurting all of you, but I was too late. Don't blame him, blame me."
There was a silence as the rain started to hit the window, everyone was still looking at Sasuke, wondering when he was going to break down. When was he going to fall to his knees and beg the Hokage for forgiveness? He didn't even move to start to make their request. His eyes looked straight into those of the old man, his hands still pressed against the desk.
"The punishment for all of the crimes that Itachi committed is death, you know that," the Hokage looked up at the young genin. "Are you going to throw your life away for a man that abandoned you? For a man who did nothing but abuse you throughout your whole life? Are you going to stand before me and tell me that your life no longer matters because of him?"
Sasuke closed his eyes tightly. "I won't let you go after him; I won't let you hurt him. If you want to punish him for the crimes, take my life. Once you kill me, he will never be able to find the strength to attack you again."
Kakashi stepped forward. "Lord Hokage…"
"Stay out of this, Kakashi," Sasuke snapped, looking back at him. "This doesn't concern you. This is between the Hokage and me. Stand back…"
The jounin looked up at the Hokage. "Do you honestly think that killing this boy is going to save the village from Itachi? He's going to remember you as the one who killed his little brother, and he'll seek revenge and burn this whole village to the ground."
Sasuke looked up at the Hokage. "If we must be punished for our crimes, then punish me for Itachi as well. Unlike Sakura, I was fully aware of what I was doing; he didn't coerce me into it, I went of my own free will. To know that because I was this clueless that Naruto died," he closed his eyes as he fought the tremors of fear that were rolling through his body, "for that I am truly sorry. Please, kill me…"
"Hokage!" Kakashi cried out, stepping in between his students. "Sakura and Sasuke didn't do anything that is worth their lives. Sakura was forced into what she did and Sasuke was seduced into it, whether he wants to believe it or not. We also have to take into consideration that Itachi did save Iruka in his time of need," he looked up at the chuunin. "They weren't fully aware of the violence it caused them. I take full responsibility for Itachi's violence as well as Sakura's confusion. If any lives need to be taken, it's mine."
"Kakashi!" Gai cried out. "What the hell are you saying?"
Kakashi looked into the Hokage's eyes. "Who better to kill than the one who was in charge of the team? I was the one who should have been taking care of Sasuke the night when Itachi came back, I should have kept closer watch on Sakura, and I should have helped guard Naruto. I failed them during all of this; I should be punished for this."
Iruka looked over at him. "Kakashi, don't do this."
The Hokage looked up at the jounin, noticing the two genin looking straight at him, the other jounin asking themselves why he was doing something like this. What was he trying to prove? That he was strong? That he could take anything? He was throwing his life away for his students, not because he solely wanted to protect them, but he blamed himself for Naruto's death as well.
"Naruto is dead," Kakashi breathed. "We all know that. We all know that it was Kabuto Yakushi who had brought him to this decision. Itachi was after him to destroy Kabuto and bring the boy back to us. In order to foil the Akatsuki's plan he would either have to kill him or keep him safe while he finishes off the organization. He chose the latter of the two choices. Due to complications during the mission, Naruto took his own life to save the situation. If I had gotten there earlier…"
The Hokage looked over at Asuma and then back at the children. "You two had no right doing what you did. You could have gotten yourself killed throughout all of this. Sakura, Sasuke, I hope you realize what you done," he turned away from them. "I hope the loss of your teammate makes you understand what you did. Anymore punishment would just be cruel."
Everyone turned around to leave, the chunnin still standing by the Hokage's side. "Kakashi, Lord Hokage would like to have a word with you."
The jounin turned away from everyone else who was leaving the room. "Yes."
"Kakashi," the old man started. "I only did that because I trust your judgment. I know no one knows Itachi Uchiha better than you. I remember a few years back, you two were inseparable. You were like a father to him."
The jounin snickered. "I was hardly a father…"
"It's because of you that those children got off easy, and it was because of your guidance that they all got out of there alive," the Hokage looked out the window. "You may be dismissed."
As Kakashi was leaving the room, Iruka followed him out the door, trying to catch up with him. "Kakashi! Wait!"
The jounin stopped as he looked back at Iruka, the chuunin had a look of sorrow on his face as he looked at the cane that was in Kakashi's hand. Ever since the stress from the last mission he hadn't been able to walk properly, his legs weaker than they were before, his heart not receiving proper nerve responses.
"Why do you risk your life until you're in pain?" Iruka asked, walking closer. "You aren't in the right condition to be going after people; you could die at any minute. That was the strongest blast of Tsukuyomi that I have ever heard of, he was able to upset the way that your brain works," he looked up at his shaking body. "How much more time do you have to live?"
Kakashi's body shuddered as he heard those words. "What do you mean?"
"Your body is starting to die on you, I can see it," Iruka answered, taking a few steps forward. "How long do you have until you give into the pain that you are trying to hide so horribly?"
"So you think I'm going to die?" Kakashi asked.
"Why else would you want to give your life for them that quickly? Lord Hokage wasn't going to take any lives until Sasuke said that he wanted to be killed. We all know why the kid wanted to die; he can't go on without his brother, but your reason is because you already have a limit to your life."
"Everyone has a limit," Kakashi breathed as he looked back at Iruka.
"But you know how long you have left, don't you?" the chuunin asked. "How long, Kakashi?"
Kakashi sighed as he turned around to face the chuunin. "One year, that's the estimation when I went to go get myself checked out a few days ago. But with that one year left, I'm not going to sit around and wait for death to take me, nor do I want to tell Gai about this, no one has to know, no one but you…"
He continued to walk away; Itachi had done this to him. Itachi was the one who killed him, but he always knew that he would be the death of him. Being with that child was a taboo all together, and taboos killed people. The last sight that he would ever see was Itachi; he was all he could think of. Everything was about Itachi, he could see him everywhere, feel how soft his skin was, how silky the strands of his hair were, his scent still rolling through his nostrils. If he was going to die, he was going to do it with Itachi on his mind, to see that smile one last time in his life.
Itachi, I hope that you can finally admit that you were wrong about people. Not everyone is waiting for the moment where they're going to run away from you. They aren't all like me. I hope that you find the happiness that you always wanted. I hope that you can finally look at yourself and not see an insect, but see what you really are: a vision. He closed his eye as he clutched his temple, the pains were getting closer and harder, he knew that if he was granted a year, he was lucky. His time was of the essence, it was all going to be over.
-----
He snuggled deeper into the pillows, remembering the times that he had spent with his brother. All of the security was gone, there was nothing left of the times where he would wake up to Itachi's face, hearing his voice greet him kindly, traces of a smile on his face. That had all abandoned him, even his memories were gone.
"What I would give," he breathed, holding onto the Akatsuki robe that he left behind tightly. "What I would give just to have you back for one more night, just one more moment so I can say goodbye."
The rain had stopped, the sky darkening outside as he thought about where he had to be. Tonight was Naruto's funeral. He had been dreading this moment since he left the Hokage's office. How could he go to a funeral when he had unlocked power due to that death? He felt like he killed him every time he vomited, every time he felt light-headed. With every drop of blood that he saw, he only thought of the blood running from his eyes. He couldn't see the happiness that he and Naruto once had; it was all fading away just like the clouds above.
To see his smile, to feel his embrace one more time, he would give anything. He tried so hard to save his teammates from all of this, but it was worth nothing, now he knew that he was wrong. When he saw Sakura again, he knew that she was hurting, to see her at the funeral would be too much. To see the look in her eyes as they buried Naruto Uzumaki would be enough to make him cry.
A knock came at the front door as he stood up; it was probably Shikamaru and Chouji bringing him to the funeral. Team 10 had been great support through all of this trouble, they were the only ones who had survived the wrath and had gone untainted, although their sensei was hurt throughout all of this.
He walked to the door, opening it to see Shikamaru and Chouji standing there with straight faces. They could feel Sasuke's pain; they could see the tears that he wanted to cry. To lose your best friend was the hardest pain that anyone ever had to go through.
"Hey Sasuke," Shikamaru said softly, testing to see if Sasuke still talked.
"Hey," Sasuke answered softly, starting to walk alongside them, his eyes looking down at the ground. He always thought that his funeral was going to be first, he thought that he was going to be the one to die on this mission. There were several times he could have, but Itachi save him. Naruto didn't have an Itachi to save him, Sasuke didn't have enough chakra and thanks to that he was now laying in a casket.
The wind blew swiftly as he thought about the times that he had with Naruto before the Itachi incident, all of their constant dueling, all of the constant fighting, all of that was gone now. He rarely saw him smile after that, he rarely heard his laugh, all he saw was the look of sadness in his eyes as he called himself one word: abomination. Sasuke cringed at that word now, that's why Naruto killed himself, because he thought himself to be an abomination. Sasuke never thought of him like that.
People gathered into the place where the funeral was being held, everyone's eyes watering dramatically. In the casket in from of them was Naruto Uzumaki, a twelve-year-old genin. He couldn't listen to the words that the people were saying, he couldn't believe that this was really happening. The speeches were all blocked out in his mind; all he could hear was the sound of Naruto's voice.
"Don't die… promise me that you're going to come out of this all alive. If you think about dying before I do… if you even think about it, I'll… I'll hate you more than I already do you bastard."
"Naruto," he breathed, closing his eyes, hearing Sakura cry. "Why? Why now? Out of all times, why now?"
Sakura cried softly on Ino's shoulder. "Naruto…"
"Because… I'm losing everything that I thought was important to me, I've already lost my best friend. You're the last thing that I have left, but then again there's a difference between you and Sasuke. I love you, Sakura, but I'm going to let you go, no matter how hard it is."
"Why?" she cried as she buried her face in Ino's shoulder. "Why did you do this to yourself," her whole body was shaking as she tried to stop her crying. "I love you too, but by the time that I found that out, it was already too late. You're gone."
Sasuke moved over to touch Sakura's shoulder, his eyes closing as he tried to fight the tears. "This is what he wanted. Don't think that he did this to hurt us; he did this to himself to save our lives, Sakura. He did it for you and me."
Sakura looked up into Sasuke's dark eyes, watching the tears form in the corners. "Sasuke, you're crying," she wiped one of the tears away. "It's going to be alright," she moved her body from Ino's to his. "Tell me it's going to be alright."
He returned the embrace as he watched Iruka start to cry over in the corner. He could see the other jounin with their heads bowed, trying to hide the fact that they were feeling sorrow, abiding by the twenty-fifth principle. Team 10 was looking at Sasuke and Sakura, their eyes watering as they did so. All he could hear was Sakura's crying as he looked over at the casket, his whole body shaking as he tried to shake the sadness. Naruto was gone; he was never coming back to them.
They separated as Sakura grasped a flower that she had purchased at Ino's flower shop, walking up to the casket to put it on top. Her tears touched the porcelain petals as he she looked down at where Naruto was enclosed, her hand moving to her lips, trying to muffle her sobs.
"Sakura," Kakashi breathed. "Don't cry, would Naruto was you to cry for him? He did this to save you, not to hurt you," he looked over at his other student. "You too Sasuke. Naruto thought that giving up his own life would ensure that the two of you would get out of that battle that you were thrown into alive. He was only thinking about the outcome of the battle, he didn't want to think about your farewell."
"Naruto gave his life to save the village from Kabuto and the Akatsuki, he didn't want to see anyone else get hurt," Iruka sighed, with a weak smile. "You would have made an excellent Hokage, Naruto."
"To stand by your comrades in battle and think about them in front of your own well being, is one of the greatest qualities of being a ninja. No one is a true ninja until they have someone to protect," Asuma looked at the casket. "That boy was a real ninja, he cared about you selflessly, giving his own life as if it was worthless compared to what you were to him."
"To have someone to love, to have someone to fight for is not only key to fighting, it's the most important thing," Gai stated, his eyes glancing gently at Kakashi. "Even if you aren't sure if you're going to make it, if you aren't sure of the outcome, when you have someone to care about you take a chance…"
Kurenai placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "And you will fight until the end for that person; you will stand by that person and not only care about them, but care about yourself to. To save someone and to sacrifice yourself, that it not only love and respect, it's almost like he took you two and made him a permanent part of himself."
"You guys will be fine," Ino stated with a smile. "He gave you all a chance at life again. Don't waste his sacrifice, don't let him die in vain."
Chouji smiled. "That's right, friends are hard to come by, especially friends that will give everything for you, and even if you aren't together anymore you will always remember him."
There was a silence before Shikamaru took a deep breath. "He will forever be in your heart. Every smile, every laugh that passed your lips will remind you of him. The tears will remind you of how much he cared. The smiles of how much he loved you. The laughs of all of the good times that you had," he shook his head. "This isn't your farewell. This isn't goodbye. This is nothing more than his physical form leaving you, but he will be alive in your memories and that's where you will treasure him."
Sakura nodded as she looked back at the grave. "I will always remember you, Naruto. No matter what happens…"
Sasuke smiled gently as he looked at everyone, mouthing a thank you. He then moved to wrap his arm around Sakura. "We have to live our lives to the fullest, not change them; we have to stay the same way that Naruto remembered. He wouldn't want us to try to become better people. He wants you to stay his beautiful Sakura and me to stay that bastard Sasuke, and that's what I'm going to do."
She smiled as she kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, Sasuke…"
He closed his eyes tightly as he thought about one more person: Itachi. How can he forget him? He knew that he never would. There was no way that he was going to forget the passion and love that he and Itachi had. He wasn't going to forget the moments that they had shared. This wasn't their farewell either; he knew that one he would be back. He just had to wait.
"I'm going to take Sakura home," Ino announced as she started to pull Sakura away. "Come on, you'll feel better after you get some sleep. We can come back here tomorrow with flowers, would you like that?"
"Would you come with me?" Sakura asked.
Ino smiled as tears formed in her eyes. "Of course, you're my best friend after all. I will come here with you everyday if you want me to."
Sakura smiled as she started to walk away. "Thank you, Ino."
Everyone was starting to leave, Sasuke standing behind as Iruka's hand was placed on his shoulder. "Take as long as you want Sasuke," he patted him on the head as he walked away. "Take as long as you want."
As everyone left, Sasuke touched the casket gently. "I didn't want this. I never asked you to do this for me," he closed his eyes as the tears started to fall. "I didn't want you to die…"
"I'm not going to suffer anymore. You gave me a choice once, you told me… you told me that I could either die or live in fear, I made my choice… I want to die…"
"I'll never forget you," he breathed as he rubbed the casket. "I'm always going to remember you," he took a deep breath. "This is not our farewell; you'll be in my heart."
He stood up and started to walk back home, the wind blowing fiercely against him. This was not the path that he wanted Naruto to walk, but now there was no turning back. He risked everything for him. He was never going to change; he was going to be the same Sasuke that Naruto wanted him to be. He wasn't going to let him die in vain.
"Naruto… I miss you…"
Author's Note: I know that this chapter was kind of short and semi rushed, but I thought that I should have a chapter about Naruto even though he is no longer part of the cast in this story. I'm also sorry about Kakashi, I know that it's mean that his time is running out, but he has had a good run even if he dies as well. The question that everyone is probably asking is what happened to Itachi? The answer will be in the next and final chapter (one chapter left, I'm so happy and sad at the same time). So what did you think? Good? Bad? Think that I shouldn't have killed Naruto? I love honesty, even as the story comes to a close.