It was a sunny day in the village of Konoha on October 10th just like it always was everyone was celebrating running in the streets, playing games, and talking with friends just like they do every year, but this year something was different but no one could figure out what it was because everything went the exact same way it did every year.
The Rookie 9, Team Gai, Tsunade, Iruka, Jiraya, and Kakashi were all hiding in Naruto's apartment waiting for the blonde to come home suddenly, the lights were thrown on when, "Happy birthday, Naruto!" several voices chorused out Naruto’s eyes adjusted to the change in lighting, he recognized all his comrades crowded into his small apartment, Sakura and Sasuke in the front holding a birthday cake in between them, Kiba an armful of presents, and Kakashi dropped a party hat onto Naruto's head, and they all celebrated Naruto's birthday when the party was over and they all walked out of the apartment walking through the village everything just seemed so much brighter with Konoha’s own sunshine walking around.
They headed to the training grounds and they ended up in front of the memorial stone and a depressing mood suddenly crashed down on them all like a wave and that’s when it happened he suddenly started fading away just like he did every year. And just like every year before they all told themselves that they needed to stop this but they never did and so the never ending cycle continued and they never could forgot what had happened. As the cycle continued the memories of him became clearer and clearer until everywhere they went was a constant reminder of him, and he got his wish he had been recognized but the price for recognition was just to high.
The whole of Konoha was filled with the screams of those who had realized exactly what was different that year…Kakashi, Sakura, and Sasuke were the first people to find out exactly why everyone in the village felt like they should curl up with a box full of tissues…because Naruto Uzumaki, age 17, was dead.
Kakashi did what he always did when he lost someone close to him he mourned, ate, mourned, slept, mourned, drowned himself in missions and mourned some more. He always kept a piece of everyone who he loved that had died with him and so he kept the birthday present Naruto had given him with him it was a necklace with a silver wolf with mismatched eyes, one black and one red, and like his mask he was never seen without it.
It was rather fitting that the three people who had pretty much killed him were the ones to find him dead looking more peaceful than he ever had when he was alive with a soft smile on his face.
Sakura took it harder than expected…the second she saw Naruto she ran over to him tears glistening in emerald eyes and she grabbed onto his shoulders and shook him back and forth all the while crying and screaming for him to wake up. That night she cried herself to sleep with a tub of ice cream in one hand and a picture in another…it was a picture of Team 7. She fell into a routine slightly similar to Kakashi’s, get up, eat, work at the hospital, go home, eat dinner, and cry herself to sleep each night with a tub of Naruto's favorite ice cream and a different photo of him.
It seemed rather fitting that those same three people who nearly broke him and nearly killed him were the ones that probably loved him most and were the ones who were the most effected by his death not that everyone else wasn’t but they seemed helpless without him? Like they would break the second he wasn’t there but the horribly ironic thing was...they did break.
Sasuke took it horribly he became a second Kakashi! He even followed the same routine as Kakashi did...well almost the same it was a little different he got up, ate, went to Naruto's grave, stayed for at least two hours, drowned himself in missions, went to the grave, stayed for three hours, went home, ate, and went to sleep.
It also was rather fitting that they all were the first to see all the pain behind the mask Naruto wore to hide it because when they looked at his eyes they could see what he was no what he had been and what they had been. It nearly broke them more then they already were but they hadn’t broken more at least not until his funeral when it was made final that he was actually dead…
...and for once Kakashi wasn’t late…
Tsunade took it horribly she gambled more than ever for the first few weeks after his death and every time someone would ask why she would say, “I’ve got nothing else to lose...” but then she remembered how Naruto would be so mad at her for gambling again and she quit gambling forever and never slacked off on paperwork.
...she stopped gambling but she never stopped going out with Jiraya getting drunk and talking all about Naruto...they would both be in tears before the night was over.
Jiraiya became the hermit he claimed to be, he never took on another student and he never wrote another Icha Icha Paradise book ever again. Jiraiya would quietly go hide himself away for a month... or two... maybe even three reliving every single memory he had of the boy. In the end he’d cry for what he’d never once appreciated. What he’d only wished would go away and leave him to his research…well now the boy had gone away. He’d gone as far away as it was possible to go. He’d never again show up and ruin a good afternoon of peeping by telling the girls he was there. The Gaki wouldn’t interrupt and somehow just knowing that took some of the sunshine out of the hobby.
Chouji went without food for a week except for what he absolutely had to have to stay alive while Ino forgot to take care of herself. She forgot about tending to her make-up and hair and didn’t care about her clothes. The two met up on a hill where the found Shikamaru cloud-watching they walked over and laid by him in the grass. They both turned to look at their lazy fried and noticed he was crying, “What’s wrong Shikamaru?” Ino asked. “The sky...” he replied. “What?” Ino and Chouji asked. “I-It reminds m-me of his e-eyes...” he choked out between a sob, the other two looked up into the sky and slowly the tears started to fall, “You’re right...it does look like his eyes...” Chouji whispered. “Yeah it does...” Ino whispered, “but it’ll never be the same ‘cause his eyes aren’t just like the sky they’re also like the sea…” and the two boys agreed with her.
Neji accepted his farewell with hidden pain that was quickly pushed aside only to be shown the light of day when he was totally alone and none could ever say they’d ever seen him cry. Hinata had broken down crying but luckily she had Neji, Kiba, and Shino to comfort her and help her through her pain even when they were suffering from the loss as well.
When Lee received the news tears immediately flooded their way down his cheeks as his grief knew no bounds. He stood shaking at the gate, too frozen to move as the memories of his friend and training partner flashed through his mind. Desperately he looked for the one person he knew beyond any shadow of a doubt he could find comfort with as his brain processed his tremendous loss. He and Naruto might have been complete opposites in abilities or potential but they were so very alike in all the ways that counted. Lee's world had just taken a devastating blow. He also realized that one of the only people he could always seek comfort and support in was gone.
Iruka...Iruka took the news harshly the boy he loved as his son was...gone? That one fact seemed like it was about to suffocate him...
The never ending cycle continued they went to his house on his birthday celebrated, walked around arrived at the memorial stone and reality would crash down on them as he…faded…away…just…like…every…year…
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Chapter notes: I'M BACK!!!!!!
I'M ALIVE!!!
Sorry about that but I have been suffereing from writers block for months I've been dying to write again and I finally have!!! but I will admit this one-shot is kinda depresing...oh well...at least I finally wrote something!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto...
Chapter end notes: So what'd ya think good? bad? horrible? okay? I need to know! So Review!
Prue: Please...please...just review sh's going to go insane and I don't want to see insanitys wrath anytime soon so please review damnit!
Insanitys Wrath: Hi guys!
Prue:...SHIT!!! HELP ME PLEASE AND JUST REVIEW!!! *being chased around by Isanitywhile I sit and watch with popcorn*