Naruto sighed as he looked at the building before him. He didn't know why he was here; the person he had come for had left him in the dust and forgot all about this yearly ritual.
Looking around, he realized that the doctors would have his hide if they knew he'd escaped the hospital. Most of them were surprised that he even still remained on this side of the surface of the Earth, in fact only Tsunade wasn't surprised that he woke up after only a night's sleep, ready to go. True his leg was still in a cast, his arm wasn't in any usable shape, and he was fairly sure that hole in his stomach hadn't fully healed yet. But this was more important than all that, if he was on the verge of death, he would have clawed his way here to be present on this day.
Limping along he entered the darkened entryway, maintaining a respectful silence the entire time, until he reached his goal. There in the middle of the compound, stood a single rounded stone. He would always stop by between missions, making this the only place people could never find him. After all, who would believe him to be here?
As he began cleaning the stone, removing the weeds and making sure each of the letters were still sharp and fresh as the day they'd been carved, he thought back to when he first came. It had been mere chance that he'd wandered past the old Uchiha compound on this day ten years ago. On that day he had heard something he'd never thought he'd hear, and so he followed the sound to its source.
There was his friend Sasuke, he had been cleaning this stone with tears rolling down his cheeks. The blonde boy had remained silent for a few minutes, before walking over and helping the last of the Uchiha clean the stone. Together the boys had honored dead that Naruto had never met formally, or could he honestly say had ever been nice to him. Something about that day struck an accord between the two boys as they prayed and Naruto helped Sasuke with the rest of his tasks. As they parted late that night, neither said a word, but the next year both were back, silently paying their respects to the Uchiha dead.
Looking at the now clean stone he gulped as he saw only one blank spot left on the stone. He knew this day would come shortly after he had carved Itachi's name in for Sasuke. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a sealed envelope of wax paper. Unfolding it slowly, he looked down at the few strands of hair he had been able to take from Sasuke's body before the hunter nins burned his corpse. He had killed him, and as Sasuke drew his final breaths, the old Sasuke had returned. Their eyes met, Sasuke's Sharingan faded, and in place those same dark eyes that had been worn every time they met to pay honor to the dead.
He let out a faint chuckle and spoke softly. "Tomorrow's the day isn't it?"
Naruto didn't even need to ask what he meant; instead he just cradled the dying man on his lap. "Yeah... I was going to stop by after this mission..."
Sasuke's breath hitched as tears came unbidden to his eyes. Closing them he sighed and grabbed Naruto's arm gently. "I know I don't deserve any request from you... not after all I've done... but could you leave me with my family?"
Naruto hadn't said a word, instead reaching up with Sasuke's weakening grip on his good arm, and pulled out a few strands of hair. Sasuke hadn't even flinched, instead he just smiled. "Thanks... Naruto..." he stated calmly before death took him, rolling his eyes up in his skull, and causing his muscles to slacken completely.
The hunter nins had arrived about an hour later, to see Naruto still crying over the cold body of the man he had once called friend. They'd carried him to the awaiting medi-nin, who did something that knocked him out. The next thing he knew, it was morning and he had a mission to complete.
Picking up the kunai he began carving Sasuke's name into the stone. Once it was in place, he used that same kunai to dig a small trench and dump the hair into. Covering up the hair, he sniffed and closed his hands together in prayer, hoping that the young and innocent boy Sasuke had been would once again see his parents. On this day, the twelveth anniversary of the Uchiha massacre, the final one was laid to rest.
As the sun set, Naruto finally got up from his spot, heading towards his apartment. It wasn't until he turned around did he notice that the rest of the rookie nine, the surviving teachers, Team Baki, and Team Gai were there with him. He couldn't pick who did it first, but suddenly several arms were hugging him tightly.
This was something he'd longed to experience ever since he was born. Warmth, acceptance, and love; this was something he wished Sasuke could realize he had the whole time.