Author's notes: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! It's the last chapter sobs. This is unbelievable, this is the end of the story, OMG OMG OMG! :(. But alas, I can't do anything about it but let you hear the end of it. You guys guessed that the last fox belonged to Jiraiya, or Tsunade even, but you're wrong points and laughs, nah, kidding. Unfortunately it is neither of our Legendary Sannin, but you'll find out who our next fox is and who owns it :P. Hope you enjoy this final chapter. See ya on the other end .
CHAPTER THIRTY THREE: SO HARD TO FORGET
"Can you believe it?" Sakura asked incredulously as she paced around her bedroom, arms folded and being watched by a bored Kitsune, who was lazily sitting on the medic's bed and yawned as her reply.
"Nine foxes…" she had said for the nth time in that hour.
Sakura had parted ways with Kakashi to recover, hoping to get some well deserved rest, but Sakura had other things on her mind and couldn't get herself to sleep, so she decided trying to discuss it with her fox would be easier than to not say a thing at all.
She flared around the room wearing her silky purple pyjama pants with a low-cut tank top with a cherry on it with Yummy written in fancy calligraphy under the fruit of her top. Tapping her chin in thought, Sakura was trying to figure out for the past hour and a half what all those foxes were meaning.
Then it hit her, "Naruto…" she muttered and stopped frozen in her steps, staring at the floor as if she had seen a ghost.
Kitsune nodded her head under a squeak of her meow and squinted again, "the foxes appearing all over Konoha must have some connection with Naruto and the Kyuubi," Sakura continued to no one in particular. Again Kitsune meowed in agreement; obviously she knew more than what Sakura had anticipated.
The pink haired medic sighed in hopelessness and plopped down onto the bed next to the brown fox, who was purring a little now. Glancing at the pile of mail on her bedside table, she noticed one in particular with a Sand symbol on it, "from Suna?" she mused, picking out the beige coloured letter from the others.
With a puzzled expression on her face, Sakura flipped open the tab of the envelope and pulled out the letter. It was obviously signed by the Kazekage by the noticeable insignia of the sand symbol with his signature on it.
Sakura began reading through the text of the letter:
Dear Haruno Sakura,
I know this is late as I have anticipated but I never got around to writing this letter, seen is that I am the Kazekage. I am writing this letter to you personally because of the connection between you and these foxes that have been appearing…
Sakura's eyes widened; how did Gaara know about the foxes? She continued reading.
…After hearing of Naruto's death, I didn't know what to do at first, but I felt a ceremony was in order of his heroic deeds as a Shinobi. Everyone honoured your friend, but that wasn't all I wanted to say. Naruto left us something to remember him by, and a fox was to prove of that. A few days after Naruto's death, a fox showed up in my office in the late hours of the evening. Kankurou insisted on getting rid of the fox, but I refused to allow it when I discovered the powers he possessed.
I named him Midori; and he spoke to me when his chakra turned to the colour of blood and the atmosphere around him had changed. He told me about the Nine Tails of the Kyuubi, and how each related to Naruto. All nine foxes were sent to a particular person that was close to Naruto and best related to their ability. I realised he knew his death was nigh.
Midori has the ability of sand, and can do almost anything I do with the sand. His ability doesn't match to mine, but recent tests in combat have shown he grows bigger over experience in battle and learns quicker and adapts to his nature. I take it you know of this yourself, and if you don't…then now you know.
Naruto was a hero and a great man. He never gave up and his heart was passed down through all of us. I pray you good luck in happiness and hope you shall never forget him.
Sincerely, Kazekage, Gaara.
Sakura stared at the epistle a while longer, aimlessly rereading the words to let them sink in. Gaara referred Naruto as a man? Well…Sakura should have expected that from the Kage of Suna, but he was right. Naruto had become a man after several gruelling years together as teammates and friends.
A small smile graced her features and she was up on her feet in a heartbeat. Glancing down at Kitsune, who lay sleepily on the bed sheets, wanting to rest after a long day. Sakura tossed on a jacket and slipped into her ninja shoes and leapt out the window by her bed; not bothered to use the proper exit of her apartment.
From rooftop to rooftop, Sakura jumped to the next, watching the late night goers make their way home after a long night of drinking. She caught the glimpse of the familiar, tightening her grip on the letter from Gaara.
'Hope I'm not too late,' she thought to herself, as she stopped on the highest point of a building, gazing at the twilight below.
Hesitantly, Sakura approached the building down the street, avoiding the eye contact from the drunk people slowly making their way home. Once in front of his door, Sakura took a breath to knock on the door, but got a better idea.
She ditched the front door and jumped into the garden on her left, climbing the hedge next to the building until she reached her destination: the bedroom window. She gazed through the window; it was dark, but she could make out the outline of the Copy Nin, sleeping peacefully, or so she thought.
Frowning only for a split second, Sakura tapped on the window, "Kakashi…" she whispered through the glass, hoping he'd hear her. There was a muffled moan from the bed, before an arm came up and made a shooing motion with his hand, "…nother few mints and I'll…be…" damn, Sakura didn't try hard enough.
She tapped on the glass again, this time a little louder, "Kakashi, wake up, I need to talk to you about something," she didn't really care if Kakashi was awake or not, but she had to try something.
There was a sudden, "huh?" and a flinch of a leg and Kakashi's arm flailed again. Sakura rolled her eyes with a sigh, but was brought back to reality when a hand lazily tapped on the window next to his bed where the pink haired medic waited patiently.
The hand flipped the latch that kept the window locked and his arm dropped back down, "what now…?" he groaned as he sat up with a kunai in hand, thinking it might've been someone who would try and kill him.
He noticed the pink hair under the moonlit sky and lowered his guard, allowing Sakura to enter through his window. Once inside, Sakura sat down in front of him with a huff and remained silent. As if she would get into trouble, Sakura glanced around the room innocently and handed the Copy Nin the letter.
"What's this?" Kakashi asked, furrowing his eyebrows at the paper as he read it.
"It's a letter from Gaara-kun," Sakura stated blandly, watching the Copy Nin read over the letter a few more times.
Kakashi's eyes widened, "so there are nine foxes in total; all under the summoning of Naruto," he paused, leaning closer to the text as if it was too small to read, "and Gaara has the last one on our list?" Sakura nodded, watching Kakashi rub his face tiredly and slid down his mask to rub his chin more comfortably.
"So why didn't you just tell me this in the morning?" Kakashi groaned under a loud yawn and slouched again.
Sakura huffed incredulously, thinking how he could be so calm about all this. And not only that, but Sakura didn't know how to answer his question. Her gaze shifted around Kakashi's bedroom before locking it with the man's mismatched eyes, "because I read this only minutes ago and I had the vague idea that this was the best time to tell you," she finally said, though still unsure of her reply.
Kakashi cocked an eyebrow, "so you decide to tell me this in the dark, at two in the morning? Great…oh well, at least now I know," he gave the medic a genuine smile before stroking her cheek; tracing her jaw line until he reached her lips.
Sakura smiled softly in return before looking uncertain once again. Kakashi frowned and placed his hand on the medic's shoulder, "listen, Naruto died knowing what was to come; it wasn't your fault or anyone's, this was all an accident that Naruto seemed to know about," he paused to sigh deeply and grinned, "the only thing Naruto could do to remember him by was to leave behind a fox for all those closest to him,"
The pink haired Kunoichi met the mismatched eyes of the Copy Nin and softened a little. She sighed in defeat, "I'm sorry…" she muttered and looked away in near disgrace.
An eyebrow rose, "don't be," the Copy Nin interjected before Sakura could say anything further, "you shouldn't blame yourself for these things…" he paused there, having nothing more to say. He tilted his head a little and leaned closer to the girl and planted a soft kiss on her cheek, letting his lips linger longer than necessary before pulling her close to him in his well toned arms.
He lay back with Sakura rested against him, sighing deeply and inhaling his scent. She relaxed herself in the man's arms, not caring that her tears had rolled down her cheeks and stained Kakashi's dark undershirt.
Kakashi rest his hand on the back of Sakura's head and hushed her into silence, "it's alright, stop crying already," he whispered almost harshly to the medic, but neither cared.
Sakura's crying turned to sobs and then there was silence between them; both holding onto one another like there was no tomorrow. Sakura gazed off to her left, her tears now dried and her body feeling rather limp. The Copy Nin quietly made circular motions with his fingers along the back of Sakura's neck, comforting her in his lazy manner.
"Who knew this would be so hard to let go," Kakashi said to no one in particular.
Sakura smiled meekly at his statement and closed her eyes to sigh deeply, "no, it's not…" she began calmly and tightened her embrace around the older Jounin a little, "it's just so hard to forget…" she trailed off when the signs of sleep took over her body from that moment on until the first strike of dawn.
Kakashi smiled sweetly at the now sleeping medic in his arms and allowed his also tired state to rest properly; dreaming peacefully with the Kunoichi in his arms and with a smile on his face.
Sakura woke up feeling refreshed and well rested, but there was something she knew she would regret out of everything that had happened the night prior. She grumbled a little and tried to stretch out an arm or two but they wouldn't budge. She heard the steady beat of a heart as she rose up and down from every breath.
Sakura realised she had fallen asleep in Kakashi's arms and her arms were wrapped firmly around the Copy Nin and wasn't quite able to move them out of place. With a small grunt, she lifted her bed-head and found the Copy Nin staring happily at her, as if she was the most interesting thing to observe.
"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," he managed to say with a wide grin plastered on his face.
The medic pouted sleepily and grunted yet again as she let her head fall back down, "what time is it…" she mumbled in the man's chest and sighed deeply.
A chuckled escaped the man's lips, "it's 10:30 am, why?" he made it seem so innocent, but Sakura wasn't about to smile and call it a morning. She shot bolt upright and glared in sheer horror at the other Jounin.
"Fuck!" she spat, and rolled off the Jounin whilst grumbling incoherent words even Kakashi couldn't understand.
He merely gave a laugh and sighed in bliss, "what's the hurry all of a sudden?" he mused with a grin and sat up on the bed and watched as Sakura raced around his room, cursing several times to herself, Kakashi and the world.
"We were supposed to have a briefing with Tsunade-shisou three hours ago; do you have any idea how much she's gonna hate us at this point?" she folded her arms across her chest and tapped her foot on the ground continuously, giving Kakashi a scornful glare.
Kakashi's face fell, "oops," was all he managed to come up with within that minute and a half. Sakura was fuming with irritation, her frustration practically radiating off her body and almost contagious to all those who were near her.
"Oops? How can you say that at a time like this?" she quipped, eye twitching already.
Kakashi raised his hands up in defence and said, "relax Sakura-chan, I'm sure Tsunade-sama will accept the report even if we're late," Sakura calmed down after that, though something was still troubling her.
A sigh escaped the man's lips as he stood up, "go back to your apartment and get dressed; Tsunade-sama probably will hate us if we are any later," he gave Sakura a gentle push to the door and smiled, "I'll meet you there, I promise," with that, he shoved the medic not-so subtly out of his room.
Sakura huffed in annoyance but let it slide and hurried to her apartment to change into her normal clothes.
Fifteen minutes later, Sakura was running to the Hokage tower, still trying to fix her hair a bit along the way. At the main door, she found Kakashi already there, making the medic raise an eyebrow in surprise.
"Okay…who are you and what happened to Kakashi?" she asked with a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
Kakashi returned the grin and chuckled sheepishly, "I told you, I promised I'd meet you at the Hokage tower; so here I am, waiting for you. So what took you so long?" his grin merely widened at the sight of Sakura's pout and waltzed right past the man to enter the building, with him following suit.
On the way up, Kakashi thought it was time to ask the bold question of the morning, "what's bothering you Sakura?" he asked. Sakura sighed and answered, "what do you think Tsunade-shisou will say about our relationship? Will she let us be together?" she began to fidget with her fingers and stared at the floor while she walked.
"I don't know Sakura, but we'll just have to be patient and hope for the best," a smile reassured the medic as they finally approached the Hokage's office door.
"Have you any idea how late you are?" screeched the annoyed Hokage as she slammed her fist down on the table, making both Shinobi flinch at her thrashing against the poor defenceless desk.
Kakashi shrugged, "sorry, there was a group of orphaned children who wanted us to buy them some food and we just couldn't turn them down," Tsunade rolled her eyes and sighed, "save me the lame excuses for later, Hatake; so where's the report?" she eyeballed the two Jounins sceptically before Kakashi tossed her the scroll.
"Thank you," she deadpanned and set it aside along with the rest of her scrolls to read later.
The blonde woman glared at the couple while deep in thought. Sakura and Kakashi knew this was the moment of truth. The silver haired Jounin grabbed Sakura's hand for comfort, letting her know he was there for her.
"I'm guessing you won't be leaving without an answer," Tsunade trailed off, leaning back on her big chair.
Silence.
The hazel-eyes woman leaned forward again and rest her head on her hands, "I have come up with a decision about your relationship," a sigh was let out from the Hokage as she looked off to the side, trying to find the best and easiest way to describe this.
Sakura frowned and almost trembled in anticipation. Kakashi saw this and gave her hand a light squeeze to keep her calm. The silence was murderous and Kakashi too was feeling the need to shout something at Tsunade or say something like, 'GET ON WITH IT WOMAN!' but he was patient enough to wait for the Hokage's answer.
The busty blonde cleared her throat, making both Shinobi snap back into reality. Sweat-dropping already to hear the answer.
"I have decided that…" she trailed off for a bit, looking disappointed.
What was she going to say? The frown on Tsunade's face seemed to give Kakashi and Sakura a hint of what she might say, but they only hoped they would be wrong on their thoughts.
Time seemed to stand still for them. Tsunade was silent for almost every waking moment, and it was frustrating to see her most loyal ninja fall apart just waiting for a damn answer. She finally said it.
"I have decided to let you be together, even after the several yells at the Council about your relationship, but I gave them the birdy and told them to stuff it," a grin spread across her face.
Mouths agape, Kakashi and Sakura couldn't believe what they were hearing. Tsunade allowed it! By Kami this was the most happiest moment in Sakura's dear life, and all she wanted to do about it was…cry? This obviously didn't go unnoticed by the Copy Nin. He smiled genuinely at the Hokage before turning to face the now sobbing medic beside him.
She was crying in utter joy. She was so happy that all she could do was shed tears. Kakashi scooped her up in a hug and nuzzled his masked face into the side of Sakura's neck. All Sakura could do was cry and cry as she desperately hold onto her lover.
Tsunade gave the two love-birds a moment to pull themselves together and for Sakura to stop crying.
"Thank you, Tsunade-shisou," the medic said weakly as she wiped the tears from her eyes and took a deep breath and smiled gratefully.
The hazel-eyed woman raised a hand and said, "don't worry about it; I noticed how happy the two of you were together and couldn't help but leave you be," her smile remained glued on her face as she saw the near physical reaction to her words.
"Now leave me alone now, I have a lot of work to do," the Hokage waved a hand and gestured at her struggling desk containing near mountains of papers and in fact a whole tree, as if to prove her point.
Kakashi chuckled in happiness, "don't worry Tsunade-sama, we'll leave now," he pulled the oh so happy medic out the door.
Many, many weeks later…
The happy couple strolled their way through Konoha holding hands, often receiving smiles and waves from both strangers and their friends. Now a days, Sakura and Kakashi were well known as a famous couple together. The Copy Nin was leading the way, avoiding the public eye as much as he could; not that he cared about people seeing him and his former student together anymore, it was more like trying to avoid crowds and the loud areas of the village, such as the market that was open at this hour.
Sakura was curious to know where they were going, but she wasn't paying all that much attention to their path and was too busy watching Kuro and Kitsune run around before them.
No longer were they considered as small and weak, but in fact that they grew so much that their size and weight was too great to hold on a shoulder such as Sakura's. They had gotten to the same size as Sasuke's fox Aku when they last saw him. Of course those were the dark days and Sakura still wished it never happened.
"Here we are…" Sakura was pulled out from her reverie after hearing Kakashi's deep voice.
Sakura's eyes widened when she realised the two of them were standing in front of a very familiar grave stone, one right in between the Third's and the Fourth's grave. She felt her stomach churn again like the last time she was here.
Kakashi remained completely silent and just stared at the stone before sighing deeply, "three months…" he reminded, though Sakura didn't want to know at all. She sighed audibly and leaned against the Copy Nin beside her, resting her head on the man's shoulder while keeping her gaze fixed on the headstone.
It was quiet there; no one to hear or a crowd to get away from. Just the two of them staring at the gravestones for as long as time could tell. The silver haired Jounin kneeled down while holding a white flower. When he got a white flower, Sakura did not know. She plainly watched Kakashi place the flower on top of the headstone and stood up straight.
Sakura watched Kakashi as he gazed at the gravestone a moment more before glancing at all the other headstones of other great Shinobi of Konoha. The First, Second and Third Hokage, all long gone yet their spirits remain alive and well. Naruto's father, the Fourth Hokage. The Hokages all died trying to save Konoha and all of them succeeded but paid the price with their own lives. Jiraiya of the three Legendary Sannin, died trying to defeat Pein, leader of the Akatsuki, but alas he failed. Sarutobi Asuma, risked his life defending Konoha from Akatsuki, but he too failed. Then came Naruto himself, the one who was going to be the next Hokage.
"Uzumaki Naruto, a great Shinobi of Konoha. Killed trying to protect Konoha and his friends, we shall remember him always," was what was stated on the gravestone where Naruto lay six feet under.
Kuro and Kitsune waited patiently for their masters to finish their mourning and mulling over the loss of friends. Kakashi sighed with a small smile on his face, "we'll remember him no doubt…always," he said to no one in particular and gazed up at the clear blue sky.
Sakura smirked at what he said, "well no duh, he's not hard to remember; just think 'orange' and you'll remember him clearly," she giggled at her words, making Kakashi laugh as well.
"True," he mused as he turned to face the medic and pulled her close; his aloof manner still in play, "but where are my manners. Karin-chan, I never knew our love could be so perfect; I only wish for our love to last an eternity…" not only was his aloof manner in play, but so was his imagination.
Sakura raised an eyebrow, "in 'loving' memory of Jiraiya-sama?" she wondered before too going into play mode and turned dramatic.
"But Junko, you know love is never perfect…" she placed the back of her hand to her forehead and tipped her head back in a theatrical pose.
Kakashi took this opportunity as an opening and wrapped an arm around the medic and pulled her close until Sakura was flushed against him. Kakashi slipped his mask down and locked lips with the medic in his arms, "that's true, but at least we should make the most of it," he said after pulling away to catch his breath.
With a sly grin, Kakashi gave Sakura another passionate kiss. The medic felt that making out in front of a memorial place was probably a little dishonouring. She broke the kiss by nuzzling into the crook of the other Jounin's neck and closed her eyes, taking in the scent of her lover.
Kakashi smiled sweetly, resting his arms around the pink haired Kunoichi and gazed at the gravestones one last time, 'memories last, but pain fades…indeed a wonder to behold…' he inwardly said to himself.
Sakura looked off to her right and watched as Kuro and Kitsune stared at Naruto's headstone, purring lightly and letting their tails cross paths and wrap around one another. Kitsune turned around to look at Sakura and smiled her foxy grin, reminding Sakura of what Naruto looked like.
The whiskers, the squinted eyes and childish look, made Sakura smile all the more. No longer was she cursed with the thought of ending her best friend's life, but instead she was blessed with the sweet memories of Naruto and all they went through together.
She smiled in Kakashi's arms, 'we shall remember him…always,'
THE END
Author's notes: sobs this is the end at last :(. It probably ended a little corny like, but let me know how I did. Didn't expect the last fox to belong to Gaara did you? Correct me if I'm wrong, but Jiraiya was killed by the Akatsuki leader in the manga, so that's why I didn't make the last fox belong to him, nor was he alive and talking in the story in general. Yes, of course I'll be writing more stories, but it'll take a while. I managed to work on this story since January I think; earlier even O.o. Anyways, I'd like to thank EVERYONE for reviewing and sticking with me for so many damn months, and I really hoped you enjoyed this chapter and...wait...strike that last! I hope you liked the whole fanfic itself XD. I loved writing this, and in due time I will start me a new story that you guys can have a giggle over :P.
Love ya, and sayonara ;D
Yanny88