thegodfather2450

Tsunade looked sorrowfully at her student who stood crying before her in her office. “I’m sorry, Sakura… We’ve done everything we can, there’s nothing left we can do.” Sakura squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stop the tears from flowing.

“There has to be something! Anything!” She bit her lip to keep a cry of despair from escaping her lips. Tsunade walked over to her student and put a consoling hand on her shoulder.

“I’m sorry… I know-” She broke off and clenched her fists. “I know you wanted him to return… but he isn’t going to.” Tsunade lowered her eyes and stepped back, letting her hand fall to her side. “You put all of your heart into healing him, I know. But he went too far… it’s irreversible.”

“I’m not going to give up! He wouldn’t have given up on me…” Sakura clenched her hand into a fist. “I won’t let him go!” She wheeled around and pulled open the door, slamming it shut behind her as she left the room.

She ran down the hallway until she reached a room. His room. She dried her tears as best as she could and pushed open the door. The room was a standard hospital room- A large wooden dresser stood against the right wall, and on the left there were several chairs for guests. Directly opposite of where Sakura stood, there was a bed with a window behind it. On the bed the patient slept, facing her.

She picked up a chair and quietly placed it beside the bed so she could watch him. She sat down and studied his sleeping form. His chest rose and fell peacefully, and Sakura could feel tears burning her eyes. He looked just like before, but she knew he wasn’t the same. He never would be again.

A tear slid down her face, and she shut her eyes. She could remember him… it seemed so long ago he had been… himself.

“Sakura-san... why are you crying?” Sakura opened her eyes to look at her patient, his azure eyes met hers and for a moment they locked gazes. He studied her worriedly, and she quickly looked away. Embarrassed, she wiped her tears away.

“I-it’s nothing….” The boy sat up and frowned. “And please… call me ‘Sakura-chan’ or just ‘Sakura.’” He let a shy smile escape his lips.

“I owe you my life, Sakura-san! You helped me, even though we were complete strangers!” She smiled politely, and tried to hide the sorrow that overcame her. His smile…

Her thoughts were interrupted as her patient spoke again. “Please Sakura-san, what’s wrong?” He peered at her with nervous blue eyes, the color a nice compliment to his bright yellow hair. Sakura didn’t respond, her eyes glazed over and she stared into nothingness. “Sakura-san…?” She squeezed her eyes shut. His voice…

She bit her lip to stop tears. “It’s just… I was thinking about the past…” She said.

The boy cocked his head to the side. “What happened?” She looked out the window and smiled as memories flooded back to her.

“…I lost someone very dear to me… a teammate…” Her patient lowered his head. “I’m so sorry… what was her name?”

“His name was Naruto…” She trailed off, and watched as the boy realized his mistake. “Oh, sorry…” He blushed lightly then paused. “Wait… I remember that name…” The boy looked at her blankly for a moment, and then shook his head. “It sounds so familiar, but I can’t remember…”

“You knew him… he was outgoing and made friends with everyone he met.” The boy blinked then looked embarrassed at the floor.

“If you knew me before…...this…...Why don’t you tell me who I am?”

“I can’t… You don’t know how much I want to… but Tsunade said it would be best if you remembered yourself… something about it being too frustrating…” The boy narrowed his eyes and looked away.

“I’m already frustrated… It wouldn’t change anything…” He twisted his sheets angrily then stopped, seeing as he had upset Sakura further.

“It doesn’t matter….” The amnesiac spoke uncertainly, “So… what was Naruto like?” Sakura set an even gaze at her patient, and began describing him…

“He was always there for me… sweet, and willing to do anything for me at all. He did everything he could for me….” She paused and closed her eyes, trying to remember every last detail. She giggled as some certain memories came back- specifically the memories with him and Sai.

The boy was taken aback from her sudden burst of laughter- wondering if maybe she had just lost it. But no, he could see her eyes were glassed with tears. But something was different- her eyes had a spark of emotion in them as she spoke of Naruto. He smiled to himself; her teammate was lucky.

Sakura continued, “He had a big crush on me… always tried to ask me out….” Her wide smile faded to a sad one. “But… I always told him only if he’d pay. And I knew- he was broke….” She lifted her green eyes to the window. “I regret it.”

Her patient sighed, “It must be hard… having lost him.” He was silent for a moment then asked awkwardly, “...What happened to him…?” As the memories flooded back to her- the bad memories… no longer the good, Sakura looked blankly at the boy in his bed.

“We…. We lost a teammate before Naruto died… but he left us by choice. When he had just left… I didn’t know what to do… And Naruto…. he…. He sacrificed himself to bring him back. His name was Sas-”

“Sasuke.” The boy interrupted. He shook his head. “I wish I knew why that name seems important…” Sakura paused then slowly nodded. “Yes. His name was Sasuke.”

“Why did Sasuke leave?” The boy cocked his head to the side innocently and waited for Sakura’s answer.

“Revenge on his brother; he killed his whole clan. That’s all he was ever concerned with… I just wish… I had seen it earlier. So instead of spending so much time trying to meet his standards… I could have opened my eyes to the one who was always helping me up when I fell.”

“Naruto?” The boy asked, intrigued. Sakura nodded, smiling. “Yes. He always wanted to get my attention. I should have let him have it earlier.” She sighed. “It was always there…. But I never told him how I felt… Instead, I just scolded him for his naïve behavior… I didn’t know, back then anyway, that I truly did like him.” She frowned as she thought back. “I remember one time… we were in a castle; we had gotten a hint that Sasuke was there. Each of the corridors was rigged with traps, and I think we triggered every one of them.” She smiled slightly. “There were two in particular I remember- the first one was gates of iron that fell from the ceiling, for the purpose of impaling any intruding nin. I remember… Naruto accidentally stepped on the trigger… And,” She giggled lightly, “He pushed me out of the range of the trap. But he didn’t make it out in time.” The boy’s eyes grew large.

“And you laugh at that?!” Sakura shook her head and laughed. “When I turned around, all I saw was a silhouette of him, the iron bars running him through. That was one of the scariest moments. And when I ran to him, as I drew near, I saw him more clearly.” She laughed through light tears. “He had gotten his head stuck in one of the grates, and he hadn’t been hurt at all. And he was quick to point out that I was crying, after believing he was dead. He was so desperate…” The boy smiled. “I bet you were relieved to see he was ok… what happened the second time?”

“Well, the second trap was a pit that opened and I fell through. But just before I was hurt, Naruto grabbed me and pulled me up. And then… he slipped. And for another moment of my life, I thought he had died, and pure terror surged through me. But… he always had a way of surprising me.” She giggled. “He had caught himself and actually escaped without a scratch. And then when we met up a bit later, I, for the third time that day, thought Naruto was dead. Most of it’s a blur, but I remember that somehow I ended up crying over him; Only to hear him comment on how amazed he was that I was so close to him.” She smiled, remembering how she had promptly pummeled him upon discovering he was still breathing. But relief washed over her as she saw him writhe in pain from the intense force she put into her punch.

“So… did you ever get Sasuke to come back to the village?” Sakura’s smile faded as he mentioned Sasuke.

“No.” She said, narrowing her eyes with fury. “And after what he’s done, he’s not welcome here any more.”

“…But weren’t you trying to get him back when Naruto…” He tried to sort things out, then promptly shut his mouth, guessing at what had happened. “I…. I’m sorry…. I didn’t realize…” Sakura shook her head distantly, her eyes glassing over with tears.

‘It’s ok… you didn’t know…” For the first time in almost an hour, there was complete silence. Neither of them spoke; both focused their attention on the stormy clouds building in the East.

“How…..how did he…. You know…” The amnesiac asked, mumbling softly. Sakura looked at him clearly for the first time. She actually saw him, studied him, rather than staring into something only she could see.

“He and I… were on a mission... the mission we thought… would finally bring Sasuke back…” Sakura said. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that the images would not return to her mind; But they did. “Naruto… was different... He was a jinchuuriki, a container of one of the nine legendary demons of Konoha… He was the container of Kyuubi… the most powerful.” The boy’s eyes stretched with amazement.

“He was Kyuubi?” Sakura fiercely shook her head. “That’s what everyone always thought. But he wasn’t! He was a human… people just assumed, and after so many years of being called a monster… He began to think of himself as a monster, when in truth, he was no more a monster than those who hated him.”

“I can only imagine… he must have gone through so much pain….” The boy lowered is eyes, fumbling with the necklace that he wore. “But… you said… he was outgoing?”

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thegodfather2450

“Yeah… And I still can’t figure out how he managed to smile. Hated by everyone, and yet… you would never see him without a smile…” A soft and fragile smile passed Sakura’s lips. “Kyuubi caused him so much pain… it didn’t seem fair that people hated him for something that hurt him so much.” The smile faded as she said this, remembering Naruto’s transformation into the four tailed demon. “Every time he let anger take over… he… he lost control of himself... and Kyuubi… took over.”

The boy looked at her, seeing the pain in her eyes as she spoke. “Did Kyuubi…” He trailed off, not wanting to finish his question. Sakura nodded.

“Sasuke refused to come back… he said…. He had to be defeated before he returned…” She said. “And of course… Naruto pushed himself past his limits…and let him take over…” Her tears which had stopped now returned, and as she spoke, Sakura choked on sobs. “He…. He fought and fought…. And then, before I could stop him… he was gone….” She sobbed, burying her face into her hands. She could remember the blood that dripped from Naruto’s torn body; A body that did not even look human. “He lost everything, and I….. I lost….. him….” She said, her voice trembling. “I….. I didn’t even get to say goodbye!” The boy watched her cry. He felt something… something familiar… but what?

Sakura’s shoulders shook and her body trembled. There was no use trying… he wasn’t coming back. She wept into her hands, her eyes shut.

And then suddenly, she was being pulled into a warm body. At first she wanted to pull back, but then gave in, letting him comfort her. She cried into him, and he placed his chin on her shoulder, so his mouth was beside her ear.

“Sakura-chan… I’m sorry…” His arms were wrapped around her shaking body and she felt safe. “I promise you… I’ll never lose you again…”

Sakura pulled back, her glassy eyes wide. “Y-you remember?!” He nodded solemnly, and she felt a happiness unlike anything she had ever felt envelop her.

“Sakura-chan…. I’m sorry…. I’d be such an idiot for losing you… I-” Before he could say anything else, Sakura had thrown herself on him. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him to her
“Naruto! Oh, Naruto…. I love you!” Naruto returned her embrace, and smiled. “I love you, too, Sakura-chan,” He whispered. Sakura nestled herself into him and listen to his heart beat steadily in his chest. “I….I thought I had lost you forever…”

Naruto closed his azure eyes and smiled. “I promise you, Sakura….. I will never let go of you… You will never be forgotten.”

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