This was originally published years ago, I think the original file was pre-2009 at latest seeing as I was in high school at the time... I decided spur of the moment to delete and rework it a bit. Just a quick one-shot Sasu/Naru that I hope you will enjoy. R&R if you like, I love getting comments of any sort from readers.

The sun was shining brightly as the young man approached the simply carved stone; the wind seeming to laugh as it ran beneath the bright blue sky. The color always seemed to pull at Sasuke's heart, the bright, endless color bringing up memories of the one he loved. Sunny days always seemed to hurt all the more because He always seemed so close, even after all the intervening years.

"Hey, Dobe," Sasuke said quietly, his lips quirking to one side slightly in a feeble attempt at a smile; it was as close as he ever came now, the only person who had been able to truly draw the expression from him no longer there to coax it into existence. "I can't believe it's been ten years already." The raven ran his hand over the rough, cold surface of the gravestone, "I miss you so much," he said, emotions which were normally so well controlled beginning to slip into his voice as he stood in front of his friends final resting place.

A gentle gust of wind brushed across his face and Sasuke closed his eyes against the image that rose, unbidden, in his mind of tanned fingers caressing his cheek. He shook his head sadly, his eyes opening to trace the familiar name carved deep into the simple, grey stone. "Why did you have to leave so soon? We were just kids, if it hadn't been for Itachi-," he cut himself off bitterly, turning his head away to gaze over the empty expanse of grass in silence. "Everywhere I look I can still see you, feel you… I know it might sound strange, but looking at the sky on days like today makes you seem so close; it always did remind me of your eyes…"

The raven sighed and lowered himself to the ground, leaning his back against the grave with his arms resting across his drawn up knees. He tipped his head back, eyes taking in the expanse of blue above him, edged with leaf filled branches casting dappled light across the ground around him. "I can't help but wonder what you would be like now if you were still here," he whispered to the open air, the sound almost lost amidst the rustle of leaves from the surrounding trees.

"It just doesn't seem right that you should have died so young; you had so much life left in you. Would you still be chasing after the title of Hokage? Would you have kids?" He laughed sadly, knowing he would never have the answers. He fell silent once again, thinking over those final moments he had spent with the blond before the surge of battle had torn them apart and the chilling moment which had reunited them so briefly before Naruto had slipped firmly beyond his grasp. He could still feel the warmth of the others blood against his limbs, each painful detail as clear now as they had been at the moment it happened.

"It hurt so much right after you died. After everything that's happened to me, losing another person that I loved…" his voice faded and a hollow mockery of a laugh escaped his lips. "The only reason I didn't end it right then and there was because I knew that you would want me to live." A warm breeze picked up around him, carding through his hair and seeming to murmur words of comfort against the shell of his ear. The relative silence stretched, the sun moving unchecked across the slowly darkening sky.

"I know I'm just repeating myself, Dobe, but you'll just have to deal with that I suppose," the ghost of his old smirk graced his features for a moment before the blank expression so common for him since That Day regained its place. "No one will ever take your place, Naruto. I hope that when my time comes I'll be able to see you again… and finally tell you how I felt- how I still feel- about you." Without another sound Sasuke rose to his feet, gently tracing a hand over the name and dates engraved upon the marker in a long familiar gesture. The raven stood for a moment longer, hands shoved deep into his pockets, and simply looked at the now rose tinted sky. "I know I'll see you again someday," he whispered, looking once more to the stone before turning and walking away without a backwards glance

Unseen by the retreating brunet the form of a young blond remained alone beside the grave. The teen smiled sadly, azure eyes shining with innumerable emotions. "I'll be waiting, Sasuke. I love you." The young man's words were carried away on the wind as his form faded into the air.

End