Outside the world slept peacefully, oblivious to the two beings that remained awake in the darkest hour, sat alone together with only each other for company. The feeling was not new to Naruto, often he had felt that he and Sakura were the only two people in the world and that life itself was meant for just these small moments together. She looked towards him, the worry in her face masked only by the pained smile she wore. It had become habitual now for them both; Sakura would wake early in the morning to see Naruto at her door, coffee set upon the table ready for when he should enter and the two would then talk. However today was different, she didn't ask him why he had come, already knowing the reason, she didn't ask about his dream, she simply engaged in generic conversation. At first he was happy to reply, maintaining the conversation which focused on the insignificant but soon he grew weary and wanted only to talk of his nightmare which had developed to form a more ominous scenario. Once he conveyed to Sakura how the dream had progressed and the sight of his dead parents and master she seemed to edge forward, leaning into her hands as he spoke.
"Then, at the end…" He trailed off, muttering under his breath the name of the final corpse that had lined his path. Sakura felt disturbed by what she had heard and was convinced that her friend was undergoing an aspect of psychological trauma but did not press further in fear that he may slip back into his nightmares despite being awake. Once the identity of the final body was revealed to her she felt as if she understood the situation a little better, suggesting that it was just a stage of grieving.
"But why with the others," he whimpered, "haven't I had enough time to grieve?" His eyes displayed what he felt inside and the desperation he harboured for answers. It was true that it had been some good years since the death of his master and parents, her only explanation being that the final death of Neji Hyuga had reopened some wounds and that her friend had never received much closure on the matter.
"It's much harder when you see someone die right in front of your very eyes." She sighed, thinking back to the war that they both longed to forget. Naruto, despite her attempts to make clear of the situation, found it impossible to believe that that was the sole reason for his nightmares. Though the sacrifice of his friend had certainly left a mental scar within both his heart and mind he could not see it being the sole cause for such discomfort, especially when the deaths themselves held very little connection in comparison to one another and any links he were to make seemed tenuous at best. As he thought long and hard, his coffee growing cold, the creaking of the stairs behind alerted him to another presence. Sakura's expression suddenly changed as she left her set, crossing the kitchen floor towards the landing where her daughter stood, her dark eyes staring intently at Naruto past the rims of her thick glasses.
Sakura apologised for waking her daughter before sending her off, planting her hued lips gently against the girl's forehead. With little complaint the child soon left, quietly making her way back to her room.
"She misses him." She stated as she resumed her seat, sending Naruto a discouraged smile. He knew that she meant Sasuke. Thoughts of Sarada filled his silent thoughts as a pain numbed his consciousness although he shook the feeling from himself as if it were an infected limb in need of removal. It was the only way he could ever look at such feelings, nothing more than irrelevant, jealous sentiments that he should have buried long ago. Sakura on the other hand could see the corner of his lips curl not so much as to smile but more to grimace at the fact that Sasuke was not here, or so she believed. Both seemed oblivious to one another's true intentions but both were already aware that over time a rift had emerged between them.
"Do you remember when we were all together." Sakura then mused, running a slender finger along the rim of her mug, her eyes heavy with nostalgia. Naruto reminisced with her, remembering their time together, when they could almost undoubtedly connect on a higher plain that the one they were currently trapped within. As the two lingered on their past times together the atmosphere within the kitchenette shifted, stimulating a leaden feeling to eclipse the two's chests as if it were difficult to breath. Naruto suggested opening a window to which Sakura agreed. He stood by the casement for a moment, listening to the birds in the nearby trees wake and begin their usual morning tune.