Despite everything, I'm still not giving up on this story. I'm going to finish it no matter what.

'Thinking'

'Kyuubi_talking'

"Talking"

/Naruto Talking to Kyuubi/

"Jutsu's"

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. The plot idea is my own and the OC's as well.

Chapter 32

The journey home was cruel and quiet. The sun shined every day, the sky a clear and beautiful blue with white puffy clouds roaming the great open. Birds were chirping and squirrels were chasing one another around. Deer would appear on the sides of the road, munching slowly on the green grass and would just gaze lazily at the ninja walking by. Butterflies would fly by all the time as well as dragonflies. Even rabbits would hop by and not care. Not until Naruto threw a kunai at a bunny that looked too happy. Luckily the bunny escaped the sloppy throw and ran for cover in the woods.

The three Sand siblings glanced at one another but had said nothing. They continued to walk in silence.

Not a single word was said the entire way home. No one had the heart to speak. Not after what had happened to their sister. All of their minds lingered on the little girl who had impacted their lives in so many ways. Why say anything and upset the group further?

The days quickly passed and soon enough, the group of four arrived at their destination. Within a mile of the gate, the group were met by a patrolling squad and were escorted back to the village. Gaara was in a deep discussion with the lead ninja of the squad with Temari and Kankuro listening and adding their input when necessary while Naruto continued to zone out. He didn't even notice the squad give him looks of pity when they asked about the missing younger ninja who they loved as well.

"Would you like us to spread the word, Kazekage?" The lead ninja asked, his eyes flickering back and forth between the red head and the blond.

Gaara shook his head. "Word will get around soon enough." Was all he said just as they reached the gates. Without anything being said, the group stopped except for one who continued to walk. The shinobi and the siblings all watched him go but no one made any movement to stop him.

"What are we going to do about him?" Temari asked as she felt an empty pit form in her stomach at having to watch her step-brother struggle with the loss. She would never be able to understand what it was like to lose a sibling; she could only image what would happen if she lost Kankuro or Gaara. How Naruto was keeping so calm was beyond her. She would be crying the whole time.

Gaara watched his brother go but said nothing. Kankuro watched as well and answered his sister, "We do nothing." He said even though it hurt him to say it. They watched in curiosity as a certain young boy ran up to Naruto, who had stopped. The blond got down on one knee and then put a hand on the boy's shoulder. They exchanged words and before the boy could speak, Naruto stood up and walked away. "He's going to be taking it the hardest since he was with her the whole time. As much as we're hurting, his pain goes way beyond so all we can do is to leave him alone and let him come to us. No matter how long it takes." The boy watched after Naruto before turning his gaze to the three of them. Tears were running down his face.

Temari nodded her head. "No matter how long it takes, we'll be here for him when he's ready." Ending her statement, she walked over to the heartbroken boy to try to help him.

But how long will that take was the question on all of their minds.

XxxxX

Several Months Later…

The scent of blood hung heavily in the air after the recent battle. The dark crimson liquid dripped off of lifeless bodies from where they laid or hung in the air. No matter where they were, the blood seemed to all end up in the same place, at the feet of one ninja who just stared at the battleground with a blank look.

Without a word, he turned on his heel and walked away, not bothering to wipe the blood off of his face. After walking a couple of yards away, he pushed off of the ground and landed on a tree branch high up in the trees. He didn't even bother to take a slight break before he began his journey to his next destination. It didn't matter where, just as long as it wasn't here.

The sky was clear and a bright blue and the sun shone at its brightest. Birds were flying and singing happy songs and squirrels were looking for nuts to store for later. Every few minutes, a few people were here and there, gathering fire wood deep in the forest, or picking fresh fruit for their families. It was just a typical beautiful day.

After getting a few miles away from the massacre, our favorite ninja jumped down from a tree into the village he was staying with. But instead of stopping in the middle of the entrance, he ran past it at a blur and went straight to his hotel room to take a shower. He was covered in blood and body parts. He would scare the villagers away and then he wouldn't get paid. So might as well wash up and look decent.

Within minutes after entering the village, Naruto arrived at his room and opened it, walking inside before closing and locking the door right after him. Inside, the room was bare minus the typical household items all hotels seem to have. The only thing that stuck out was the unmade bed and a few things scattered on the table.

Walking straight to the table, the ninja poured out the contents of him pockets onto the surface and let them mix with the rest of his belongings. Knives and paper bombs now came to a rest next to sharpening tools, more knives and other dangerous equipment. As Naruto was pulling out the last item, he hesitated for a split second, his eyes watering slightly, but then he shook his head and placed the gold heart-shape necklace on the table. He turned around and walked to the bathroom, stripping as he went. Somehow, the clothes ended up in the washer and began its normal wash.

In the shower, the blonde turned the water to hot, letting the steam seep into his aching and tired muscles. He tilted his head back and closed his eyes, enjoying the sensation for a few seconds. He thought back to his mission. It was a simple and easy one, just getting rid of the bandits that were terrorizing the village. The bandits were completely stupid and lacked the fighting experience. They were pathetic and the battle only lasted five minutes. Five minutes… Well, he made it last a little longer, making the bandits suffer. He didn't need to, but he did it anyways. He could already hear his sister scolding him about playing with their lives. He had taught her to kill them in a swift kill, no matter how bad they fucked up in life. Let them end their life quick and then let whatever else is after life deal with them. On more than one occasion, she would turn those words back on him.

But, she wasn't here anymore. She wasn't here to keep him sane and in check. She died… in his arms and there was nothing he could do about it except watch.

His eyes flash open and he slammed his closed fist against the wall of the shower. He could feel the tears spring to his eyes but they quickly mixed in with the water as they slipped out. Sana… his sister. It had been nearly six months since she left him to go on to a better place, but to him, it felt like just yesterday, every day. His heart ached and nothing he did helped him. He only knew fighting. And he always went for the kill. That was the only thing that helped him to release the anger that built up inside him. He thought about talking to someone about it. Gaara maybe. But he always threw the idea away. That would mean going back to the Sand Village and then he would be smothered by everyone who wantied to help. But he didn't want any one's help! He wanted someone's help, but whom? He hasn't been to his home, the Sand for six months. He hasn't seen his friends or siblings for six months. He couldn't. They all reminded him of her…

The tears finally stopped and Naruto straightened up, rubbing his eyes with his fists. He quickly washed himself and turned the water off. Grabbing a towel from the closet, he dried himself off and then wrapped the towel around his waist before leaving to throw his clothes in the dryer from the washer.

Once the machine started, he walked over to the bed and plopped down. He was exhausted and barely slept anymore. There was a reason for that but right now he didn't care. He didn't sleep last night because he had been watching the moves of the bandits so all he wanted was to sleep. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was out.

Dreams:

The landscape was familiar. Lots of trees and buildings and shops. Surprisingly there were no people. But, that was weird. This was a village; surely there were people in it. And it was sunny, not night time. So there should be people walking around going on about their daily lives. The village should be bustling. But, it was almost a ghost town.

Thinking nothing of it, he called out "Hello?" He flinched when his voice echoed around the empty village. After a minute or so, the echo finally stopped and he looked around himself to see if his voice had alerted anyone.

The streets remained empty and he looked forward again and began to walk. But, as he began to walk, his surroundings flickered. He stopped and slightly titled his head, curious as to what was happening. But his curiosity was short lived when the scenery changed and he found himself in a battle scene.

His throat closed up on him when he realized where he was and he opened his mouth to yell out but nothing was heard. He tried again but this time, he felt as if something was inside his throat, preventing him to speak. Instead, he had to watch the scene replay before him. He tried to turn his head away so he wouldn't have to watch the heart-wrenching scene, but he was unable to move and his eyes focused on the young teenage girl standing off to the side of the grounds. As if in slow motion, a sword went flying through the air and in a blink of an eye, the blade pierced the girl. There was no sound. It was as if someone had pushed the mute button on a controller. He watched in horror and his eyes filled up with tears.

He felt his legs get shaky and before he knew it, he was on the ground, his legs under him and his eyes glued to the scene.

"Sana." He was able to whisper. "I'm… I'm so sorry." He bowed his head and cried.

Naruto woke with a start and sat straight up in his bed. The room was filling up with light and when he turned his head towards the little window, he saw a swirl of colors that ranged from red to yellow. He blinked his eyes, realizing it was morning and pulled his legs out from the covers and placed them on the floor. Before he stood up, he closed his eyes again and could still feel his heart pound against his chest from his dream.

"Always this dream," He whispered to himself and pulled his hand up to wipe the tears from his face.

'You okay, kit?' Kyuubi gently asked and almost like a cat, pawed at the ground in her opened cage. Her ears were low, nearly flat against her skull and she was curled into a tight ball.

Naruto nodded his head and stood up, only to walk over to the dryer which had stopped some time during the night, and pulled his clothes out, slowly pulling them on as he went. As he dressed rather slowly, his thoughts led him back to the battle at the Leaf village.

Before Sana had died, he had full contact with his fox, even though she was fully out of her cage during the battle. She was fighting alongside him and they work wonders. But, the minute Sana had died, something changed. Something changed with him. He had turned into a different form. He couldn't even remember what had happened. Gaara was the one to fill him in on how he changed, what he looked like. Gaara had told him he turned into a monster. But, that wasn't the only thing. As soon as the transformation reverted back into his original self, he came to note something that was off. Something that was missing. Kyuubi.

For about two months, he couldn't hear from his fox companion. Naruto thought he had lost her too, in the battle to save the Leaf village. He almost went crazy. He couldn't feel her presence, her chakra or hear her voice. He was just him. As original as they came. For those two months, he didn't do much. He drank nearly a bottle of Sake a night, every night to drown away his pain. He didn't only lose his sister but he lost someone who had been with him since birth. The Sand siblings tried everything they could to cheer him up, but Naruto had left to get away from it all. He came back a few a few days later and no one commented on his absence.

When Kyuubi had finally come back, Naruto had been lying on the couch listening to his adopted siblings bicker about their day. Her voice had startled him but then caused him pain. He had jumped up off of the couch and screamed, grabbing him head in agony. Temari tried to comfort him but nothing worked. All he felt was the pain and then her voice, screaming at him as if she was blind and in pain as well. It took a couple of minutes for the pain to go away and when it did, leaving Naruto with a slight head ache, he felt as if he was whole again. One of the empty feelings he had felt was gone and in its place was Kyuubi.

But, as soon as he felt her, Gaara had him at arm's length, and by the looks of things, the red head had been yelling at him. But, before he could make anything out, Naruto had passed out.

Whenever Naruto had woken back up, he was alone in his room with his blankets on top of him. And the first thing he heard was Kyuubi. As soon as she noticed her host awake, she had an attitude and was chewing his ear off. Apparently, whatever had happened after the battle, she had lost all contact with him. Like him, she couldn't feel him, communicate with him. She explained it that she was in a total isolation in a dark, endless tunnel. She knew nothing of what was happening and even though it had been two months for Naruto, it lasted what felt like a few days for her.

They talked for a few minutes. Mostly just to catch up on things, but it didn't last too long. Kyuubi had receded away from him as soon as he explained Sana's death. He left her alone, giving her space to mourn the loss.

It took a couple of days, but Kyuubi began to talk to him again and the two never talked about Sana much after that. Which was fine to the both of them. Occasionally, they could feel each other's mood and they'd open up about it but mostly just stayed silent.

Even to this day, neither said much about the girl that found a place into both of their hearts.

Blinking in the soft daylight, Naruto emerged from the hotel with all of his belongings in tow. He looked to the sky and stared at the rising sun as it barely peaked over the treetops in the early morning. He stared for a few minutes, lost in thought before shaking his head and looked away. He walked over to a tavern to pick up his money and then he was off.

The next town, the next mission, the next paycheck, the next meal. This was life and there was nothing in the world that could change it.

Except for him…

XxxxX

Until next time!