Disclaimer: Well, that took a grim turn. But if you guys are willing to stick around, I've got plenty of new stuff to churn out. I just hope the latest chapters don't drive you guys away… and by the way, I am taking Japanese, currently entering my AP year.

Author's Note: Nope. Not a damned thing.

Chapter Sixteen: Infinite Patience

"B-but," said Sakura, trying to hold back tears, "What about the Kyuubi chakra? It should heal him, shouldn't it?"

"The Kyuubi's being drawn out so fully during the battle has caused the chakra to now focus on healing the damage done by that, so very little is left to actually heal Naruto. If I were to guess, I'd say that's the only thing keeping him alive right now."

"But there's a chance, right?" asked Hinata.

"Excuse me?"

"There's a chance Naruto-kun will wake up, isn't there?"

Sighing, Tsunade answered, "Yes… there is a slight chance Naruto will wake up. But it's a very slim chance, and-"

"Then he will wake up," Hinata responded, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Naruto-kun wouldn't let himself be beaten after winning a battle like that. So I'll be here with him when he does wake up."

Tsunade nodded. "Okay. I'll take you to the room where we transferred him and have some orderlies set up a nice arrangement for you."

Getting up ever so gently as to not exacerbate her wounds, Hinata whispered, "Thank you, Tsunade-sama."

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"Naruto-kun…" Hinata had been sitting in Naruto's room, holding and gently stroking his limp hand. "I can't believe you might not… No, wait, I can't think like that. I can't, I shouldn't, and I won't!" She shook her head trying to dispel pessimistic thoughts.

"You should talk to him, you know," said Sakura as she stepped through the doorway.

"Huh? Sakura-chan, should you be walking about?" asked Hinata.

"I'm okay… my injuries weren't so bad, not nearly as bad as yours, anyway. I'm just here to deliver your food, actually." She placed the covered bowl in front of Hinata.

"Is that really a job for the assistant Chief of Medicine?"

"No," said Sakura, smiling, "But I thought you might like something special."

"Special…?" Hinata looked down at the top of the bowl where in small writing was written "Ichiraku." She almost immediately started crying as she tore off the lid, picked up her chopsticks and said, "Thank you very much, Sakura-chan. Itadakimasu."

"Don't worry about it," she replied. "As I was saying, you should talk to Naruto… comatose people seem to respond well to voices, especially those of people they love."

"… Really?" she said, uncharacteristically speaking through a mouthful of ramen.

"She's picked up some habits of yours, hasn't she, Naruto?" "Yes."

Swallowing with a sniffle, Hinata said, "You know… I really admire you, Sakura-chan."

"Huh?"

Tears were now flowing down her cheeks. "I just… I'm sitting here and I haven't stopped crying for more than five minutes. Just the sight of him makes me weep uncontrollably, but you, you, Sakura-chan, you're still up and about, doing your job, no less!" She sighed. "I wish I could be half as strong as you."

"No," said Sakura, shaking her head. "It must be harder on you than it is on me… Sure, he's my best friend, but he's… he's your fiancé. And I'm not so strong." She gulped and said, "I'm sorry, but I h-have to get going. Good bye, Hinata-chan." With that, she ran out of the room and down the hall, where she found Sasuke leaning against the wall.

"It's okay," he said, holding her with his good arm. "She can't hear you." Sakura nodded and broke down, crying a flood of tears into Sasuke's chest. Sasuke responded by gently stroking her pink locks. "Don't do this to her," thought Sasuke, "Don't do this to me, your best friend, either. But most of all, don't do this to that girl in there."

"I'm scared, Sasuke-kun," Sakura sobbed. "I can't believe he could be killed… he was always so strong."

"I know," he said, laying a kiss on her forehead. "I know."

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"Should we go to your bed, Kakashi?"

"I'd prefer to wheel around a bit more, if you can."

"No problem, my shift doesn't start for another few hours anyway. But, Kakashi… you seem to be taking little Naruto's coma pretty well."

"Oh, you know me, Rin. I don't show much emotion. But the left side of my mask is pretty wet…"

She gave a sad smile. "Of course…"

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"What do you mean, 'Naruto's in a coma'?" yelled Jiraiya, smashing both hands onto Tsunade's desk.

"That's just it, Jiraiya," she replied. "While you were away, the founder of Akatsuki came and Naruto… he fought with everything he had; he even killed the bastard with a Rasengan that used every single element.

Jiraiya stood dazed for a moment. "… What? An omni-elemental Rasengan? But that's…"

"Impossible?" finished Tsunade. "That's what I thought. But Sasuke and Kakashi both saw it with their Sharingan. It created some sort of… vacuum in at the center of the blast that utterly annihilated the Akatsuki Leader. Amazingly, it did no damage to Naruto. By all reason, he should have no right arm anymore."

"But now he's… in a coma."

Tsunade's expression grew grim. "He probably won't wake up, either. We're keeping him on life support, but… no one else could live with wounds that severe."

Fist clenched, he thought, "Damn it. If only I had been there, I could have…"

"Don't blame yourself," said Tsunade as if she'd read his thoughts. "Your presence would not have done anything. He defeated me, Jiraiya, the Hokage of this village… you couldn't have done a single thing about it."

"And that's supposed to make me feel better?"

She sighed. "I'm just saying… Naruto came into this situation because of who he was and what he was… and if he weren't either, he wouldn't be in a coma. He'd be dead. …Where are you going?" she asked, seeing Jiraiya leave.

He paused. "I'm… going to go think about things."

As he left the room, she called, "Don't drink too much!" "Geez… as if I didn't enough to worry about."

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"So that's what it comes down to, doesn't it?" Jiraiya thought, entering the bar. "I'm just a weak old man in the end." "Some sake, please," he told the server.

"Right away, Jiraiya-sama."

"Hey," he said, turning to see Sasuke making his way through a bottle himself, "Aren't you underage?"

Sasuke glared at him, Sharingan active. "What are you going to do about it?"

"No need to threaten," Jiraiya responded calmly, taking a sip of alcohol. "I won't turn you in. I just never knew you drank."

"Sorry," Sasuke said, disengaging his eye technique. "I never used to drink. Never saw the appeal. But now… I just can't stand the idea of waiting for something to happen. I'm not sure I want something to happen… the odds are against anything good happening."

"Well then," Jiraiya said, lifting a sake bottle, "Here's to Naruto's health."

After a moment, Sasuke lifted his bottle too. Clinking them together, he said, "I'll drink to that."

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"Sasuke-kun said he'd be gone a while… I should check up on Hinata-chan and Naruto," Sakura thought, stepping through the halls of the hospital. Eventually, she arrived at the room the two of them had been staying in. She knew that no matter how painful it would be for her, she had to walk in. Nothing had changed, from what Sakura could see, except now the bowl of ramen was empty. Hinata was muttering things to Naruto, mainly things about love and faith. "Hinata-chan? Are you alright?"

"No," came the small reply.

"I mean… are you alright, other than this?"

"Yes… I suppose so."

"At least you've stopped crying. That's good, right?"

"That's… not quite right," she said, and then turned her face to Sakura, revealing the recently dried stains of sorrow on her cheeks. "I've just run out of tears to cry."

Sakura struggled for words for a second. She clapped a hand on Hinata's shoulder and said, "He'll get better. I know he will."

"Yes. He definitely will," she said, and returned to talking to her comatose love.

Quietly, Sakura left the room and felt the familiar pain of tears welling up. She only let a few pass the threshold as he thought, "Hinata-chan's being strong… I have to be strong too."

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Time, it seemed, acted especially cruelly on the denizens of Konoha, for it slowed down to such an extent that the days seemed like months and the weeks like years. That's why when it reached a month, everyone had grown extremely anxious about Naruto's condition. Sasuke's arm had healed, Kakashi had left his wheelchair, and Hinata's bandages were removed. Yet still, she remained by his side nearly every second of the day.

That's why Tsunade knew where to find her on this day.

"Hinata, I have Naruto's latest test results, if I may show you."

Not moving from her position, she replied, "Go ahead." She'd grown accustomed to Tsunade, Sakura, Shizune, or any other medical personnel telling her that nothing had changed.

Tsunade opened the folder and began reading the chart within. As she finished, she clenched her fist, thinking, "Damn it all." "I'm… sorry, Hinata. Naruto isn't responding to the treatment anymore… we have to pull the plug."

Hinata bolted from the chair and immediately grasped Tsunade's collar, Byakugan active. "How can you say that?" she demanded. "How can you tell me we can't do anything about this? You're supposedly the medical genius, right? You are the one who could fix him! So fix him, damn it!"

Tsunade merely stared down at Hinata, a mournful expression covering her features. "The most painful sentence for a medic to say is the one I must say now. I'm sorry, but there's nothing more we can do. Now, I understand if you want to be away when this happens, so I can-"

"No," said Hinata, releasing Tsunade's collar, eyes reverted, and sitting back down in her chair. "I want to be with him in his… his…" she gulped, gathering the courage to say those heart wrenching words. "His last m-moments," she choked out.

"You're a brave girl," said Tsunade. "And you would have made a good wife." To Hinata, it seemed Tsunade was moving in slow motion as she reached over and with a simple button-press, turned off the machine that was keeping Naruto alive.

Having shed so many tears recently, Hinata didn't notice they were flowing once more. "What happens now…?" she whispered.

"He's still technically alive," said Tsunade. "But… now we wait for his body to give up. Either it does, or he starves to death. Whichever way he chooses… it will be painless. I take it you want to stay with him?" Hinata nodded. "Alright. I won't disturb you."

Shizune stepped in, Tonton in her arms. "You wanted to see me, Tsunade-sama?"

"Yes," said Tsunade. "I want you to gather up a team to alert whoever would want to know that… that Uzumaki Naruto has been taken off of life support."

For a moment, Shizune's eyes widened in horror, but then she gathered herself immediately. "Right away, Tsunade-sama. But why would we need a team?"

"Because there are a lot of people who will want to know this."

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When the news arrived, it was as though a storm had been placed over Konoha. Sasuke and Sakura had been walking the streets together when they were informed. Sakura's knees gave out and a stonily silent Sasuke was forced to carry her.

Likewise, Kakashi and Rin had been talking to Obito when they were told. Kakashi had asked Rin at the time for a favor: To place an order for Naruto's name to be inscribed on the memorial of fallen heroes. She agreed without hesitation.

Kiba and Shino, while saddened by Naruto, tried to imagine the pain Hinata was going through… yet they couldn't even begin to fathom it.

Team Ten, Temari, and Sai were given the news while they were eating lunch. Once the messenger left, Shikamaru picked up his bowl and threw it at the wall, shattering it.

"Shikamaru-kun?" asked Temari, worriedly.

"What's the point?" Shikamaru asked angrily. "What the hell is the goddamned point? Some maniac defeated the strongest shinobi in the village. What does that say about our futures? What's to stop another maniac from entering and killing us all? I can't take this. I'm out of here." With that, he left, a concerned Temari following him.

When Team Guy was told, there were mixed reactions. Neji was extremely pained due to both Naruto's condition and the condition his dear cousin would be in. He had to hold a sorrowful Tenten while Lee stood silent, back towards his teammates. "Lee?" said Neji, "Are you okay?"

"No," said Lee. "I'm not okay. Naruto-kun is going to die and there's nothing I can do about it. He never, ever got to reach his dreams… so close, yet so far." He clenched his powerful fist so tightly that he began to bleed. "So… very far."

Tsunade and Jiraiya watched the village from the top of the Hokage building. "It seems that with Naruto, the hope of Konoha dies," said Jiraiya.

"Amazing how one person, not even the Hokage, can influence so many in such a short time, isn't it?" said Tsunade.

"That's his special power. Without even knowing them for long, he can make a friend out of nearly anyone."

"Indeed… he certainly did that for us."

Lightning crackled and thunder crashed in the skies above. "We should get going," Jiraiya said, motioning towards the door. "The storm's coming."

"No," responded Tsunade. "The storm is already here."

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Two days passed. Naruto's body still hadn't technically died. Hinata hadn't left her position and was beginning to forget what daylight felt like. Oddly enough, she'd gotten used to the utter silence of the room. The only sound was the soft beeping of Naruto's pulse on the machine. Each beat was more painful than the last to Hinata, as she knew that for every beat that wasn't the final one, the closer it came to it being the end. Suddenly, she felt extreme palpitations in her heart. As her breathing got more labored, she barely managed to reach the call button before blacking out.

"Hinata…?" said a voice in the darkness, a long while later. "Hinata, can you hear me?"

"Unh…" she replied, opening her eyes. "Where am I?"

"You're in a hospital bed," said the voice, now recognized as Tsunade's. "You passed out in Naruto's room."

"Why…?"

"According to our tests… it's heart failure. But you're a perfectly healthy kunoichi with no history of heart problems and no viruses present in your body."

"Then… why is my heart failing?"

"It's called Tokatsubo Cardiomyopathy, or 'Broken Heart Syndrome.' As the name sounds, when someone's emotional pain becomes too great, the heart physically begins to be damaged. And with the amount of emotional pain you've suffered from Naruto's… condition, I'd say it was more than likely you'd suffer this. I'm sorry, I should have caught it earlier."

"Wait…" she said, realizing she was missing something. "I need to be near Naruto-kun! Please, take me to him!"

"Shh," Tsunade whispered. "Take a look to your left."

Doing as she was told, Hinata spotted Naruto's still limp form next to her own bed.

"We've never done this for anyone, Hinata. But I made an exception in this case."

Hinata sighed in relief. "Thank you," she said, leaning back in her bed.

"Don't worry about it. Now, there's going to be a dinner held in honor of Naruto by all his friends. Do you want to come?"

"No. I'd rather be here," she said. Tsunade nodded and left the room, allowing Hinata to gather her thoughts. It was then that she recalled Naruto's words to her a long time ago. He'd said them while they were lying together in his bedroom.

"Hinata-chan, there's something I want to tell you."

"What is it?"

"I love you."

"I know, and I love you too."

"But there's more," he said, shifting his position to look directly at her. "I want you to know that no matter what happens to me, to you, to both of us… you have my heart. Always."

When he'd said that, she felt so happy… and now, she knew what he truly meant. "… Even if you leave this world, Naruto-kun… I can live on, because… I have your heart." As she turned to give in to her tremendous fatigue, she thought she heard something stir. But when she looked at Naruto, he was still… comatose. Not even her Byakugan could tell any difference. "I must be going crazy… not a surprise, all things considered. But… that sounded so real." And so, with the thought that her heart and mind were failing her, she drifted off to sleep, remembering a promise he'd made her long ago:

"If you need me, I will be there for you. No matter how close or far I am, if you call, I will arrive in an instant."

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Everyone had gathered in one of the finest restaurants in Konoha for the memorial dinner. They had been reminiscing about good times they'd had with Naruto. They figured that he wouldn't want them to be sad when thinking about his life.

" Naruto-kun showed me that even as a failure, working hard will let you succeed in life!" said Lee. "He is proof that there are no limits in life!"

"Indeed," said Neji. "Naruto… he made me realize that you can break free of destiny. You can change your fate. For that, I will never forget him."

Shikamaru stood up. "He's the reason I'm not a coward anymore. It's totally out of my character, but… somehow, with his faith, I was able to break free."

Everyone looked at Sasuke, expecting his own recollection. Sasuke had remained silent the entire dinner and didn't plan on changing that. One look from Sakura, however, and he said, "Naruto is… was… the best friend I could have asked for. Even when I was pushing everyone away, he stood by and saved me from my darkest time… but I couldn't save him. He taught me what life was really about."

"It's not your fault, Sasuke-kun," Sakura said, a hand on his shoulder. "Naruto was definitely a good friend… he would always talk about his ninja way, and how he kept promises because of that… but he did keep those promises. He never strayed from his path." She peered at the empty seat reserved for Hinata. "And I'm sure he would have made an incredible husband."

Kakashi, who had stayed in the corner talking to Guy most of the meal, stepped forward, drink raised. "To Naruto; a great friend, a great warrior, and a great man."

A resounding "To Naruto!" erupted from the entire table.

"Hey," said a voice from the doorway, "Are you guys talking about me?"

All eyes darted towards the origin of the voice. "No… No way," said Sasuke.

"It can't be!" gasped Sakura.

"It is…" said Neji, staring with his Byakugan.

At that moment, Naruto stepped through the threshold, arm around an ecstatic Hinata who was practically hanging off of him. Smiling at the open-mouthed, wide-eyed, pale faces, he said, "What? You think a measly little thing like death could stop me?"

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This chapter took kind of a dark turn. But it ended up nicely, didn't it? By the way, Tokatsubo Cardiomyopathy or Broken Heart Syndrome is a real illness. You can actually die of a broken heart. Also, "Itadakimasu," for those who don't know, is the word used in Japan before you eat. It's an extra-modest expression, from the verbs meaning to eat and to drink, which essentially means, "I will (humbly) eat."

Thank you for the multitude of reviews, guys! Keep up that reviewing pace!

Did you honestly think I'd kill off Naruto? This is fanfiction of Shonen manga! Good guys win, hero gets girl, etc.!