Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Don't Let Her Hear ❯ Don't Let Her Hear ( One-Shot )

“How could I have done that?” he thought as he stared at the short sword sitting in his lap. “I should have known better than to think she would suddenly change her mind and accept me. I'm just a freak that should have never been born. Now I can fix the mistake that was made all those years ago.” His decision had been made as he picked the sword up, twisted it to point at his heart and shoved it clean through to the hilt.

 

*****

 

“It didn't even have a chance to heal him because the blade stayed right there to stop the process.” Tsunade said as she looked at the report that had been written for her. “I just don't understand how he couldn't come to me and ask for help… he needed me and he wouldn't come here too…”

 

“You know better than that Tsunade-sama; he always tried to carry the world on his shoulders just to make things easier and to ask for help would be to place burden on somebody else. I wish it hadn't happened, but on the other hand I am surprised it didn't happen sooner.” Kakashi said as he stared at the floor in front of his feet with his one visible eye. “I should have been there to stop him. I should have known it was going to happen what with…”

 

“…with her.” Tsunade finished for him. “I guess she never did figure it out like I knew she should have. I'm starting to think that this was all a mistake and that I should have never let the brat talk me into this.” she mumbled.

 

Kakashi sighed at hearing the Hokage actually talk about quitting. “Given what seems to have happened to the only team I ever kept I'm tempted to join you.”

 

*****

 

“Forensics proved it was a suicide. I don't know why you think it might have been a murder, but we went over everything with a fine-toothed comb and there was nothing to indicate that there was even another ninja in the room.” the ANBU captain said as he looked at the young woman sitting across from him. “I can't say what was in the recording since it was labeled for the Hokage, but I guess she would have said something if it had really been murder.”

 

Sakura couldn't believe her ears; after everything that happened to them he was dead and they are saying that he hadn't even fallen at an enemy's hands. “How could he… what do you mean a recording?”

 

The ANBU captain was becoming slightly annoyed at the small chuunin asking him questions but decided that if he humored her she was likely to go away faster. “It is exactly as I said before; there was a recording with blood on the buttons. I am assuming it was his last words but since it was labeled for the Hokage we passed it on to her. If there had been anything important she would have told us to put it in the report.”

 

Sakura was surprised at hearing about the recording from the ANBU captain and not from Tsunade herself; it had been four days since the `suicide' which meant that Tsunade had the recording with the answers and hadn't said anything. “Thank you for your time.” Sakura said before turning and jumping to the nearest roof to run to the Hokage tower.

 

*****

 

“You don't want to know what that recording says Sakura and I am only looking out for you.” Tsunade told the stubborn pink haired kunoichi for the fourth time in less than an hour. “The recording was from Naruto to me and his dieing words will not be heard by you just to make you feel better. He entrusted the information he wanted me to know in that recording and made only one request about it that I will honor.” Tsunade was getting tired of this argument that only went in circles; Sakura just wouldn't leave the recording alone and now it was threatening his one last request. “I do not want to keep this from you Sakura and if it were not for his request I would let you hear that recording.”

 

Sakura was only that much closer to trying to hit her mentor as she continued to request the recording. “If you think I should hear it then why not let me hear it. I was his teammate you know and I'm sure he would have wanted me to…”

 

“He said your name Sakura.” Tsunade snapped at her apprentice. “He specifically said that he didn't want you to hear this recording and all that it meant. Now, act like a kunoichi, accept his suicide and move on.”

 

Sakura glared at her mentor across the desk. “I will not let this go Tsunade-sama. He was my teammate and I want to know what the hell happened.” she said until she was nearly shouting the end.

 

Tsunade dropped her head until her forehead finally struck the desk and obscured her whole face. “I hope Naruto will forgive me for this, but I think that you have a right to know, and since you won't give up I'm going to let you hear the recording.” Tsunade said as she sat up to open a drawer and pull out the still bloody recorder. “Just know this Sakura: this will not be anything happy and I assure you that it will do nothing but bring sorrow to all that hear it.”

 

*****

 

Sakura stared at the recorder in her hands as she sat on her teammate's bed. She had been asked to close up his apartment by the ANBU since she was his only remaining teammate and now she figured that she might be able to understand if she were in the place it happened. Looking around the room she let her finger click on the play button…

 

*****

 

“I finally talked to Sakura-chan today. I was finally able to ask her why she couldn't love me. She tried to be nice about it but I have heard the words so many times that I knew exactly what she was saying even as she changed the words.

 

“She told me that I was just me and that for some reason she would never be able to think of him as anything more than that. I know the truth though because the villagers have yelled it to me my whole life; I'm a demon bastard and nobody would ever want something like me around.

 

“I guess Sasuke was right in the end; Kyuubi was the only thing that I ever had going for me because he made me so powerful. Now I am going to do the one thing I was meant to do from the day I was born and that is to end Kyuubi.

 

“It isn't as though I will ever be loved by the one person I want to love me the most anyway, so why not do the one thing ensure that she will never have to face the horror I carry inside me. Baa-chan, please don't tell Sakura-chan that I did this for her. I don't want her to think that I did this because of her. She should find the happiness I could never have given her. Please make sure that she doesn't know the whole truth.

 

“I should have known better than to think she would suddenly change her mind and accept me. I'm just a freak that should have never been born. Now I can fix the mistake that was made all those years ago.

 

“I did this for her love Baa-chan. Maybe she can remember me as a hero now and think of me as more than the monster I was. Goodbye…”

 

*****

 

Sakura cried as she stared at the small dried puddle of blood on the floor where he had ended his own life. She thought about the day he had killed himself and the conversation he had talked about in his last words. With the tears streaming down her face and onto her lap where she held the recording she whispered, “Why couldn't I have told you the truth Naruto? Why couldn't I tell you I loved you too?”