Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Telling Eyes ❯ Pain ( Chapter 2 )

I'm quite happy with the reaction I got to my first chapter. Obviously, this wasn't a one-shot. Is Naruto really dead? Read to find out.

--Wrath

Insert useless disclaimer here.

Shouts came from behind the door but she didn't really notice. She knew why they were shouting, but it was hopeless. No matter what they did, he would still be dead and she would still be alone. Trudging sullenly up the hall, she saw Tsunade running towards her, probably heading for Naruto's room. "It's useless," she whispered, not knowing or caring whether the Hokage had heard her or not. The statement came from the bottomless pit of grief currently housed in her heart, what little pieces of it that remained.

Tsunade did, however, hear Sakura's anguished utterance and made a not to check on the girl later. She didn't like the look in Sakura's eyes. It was a look she knew all too well. She wore the same expression when Dan was killed and she had worn it for years afterward. His death drove her into her gambling and wandering ways, nearly costing Tsunade her life on more than one occasion when the grief became too much. If that girl believed Naruto was dead, there was no telling what she'd do.

There would be time to worry about that later though. Now, at this moment, Naruto needed her help most. She didn't know if there was anything she could do to help but she had to try. She burst through the doors of his room and was greeted by the sight of three doctors frantically trying to save the life of the boy that lay still without a heartbeat on the bed. She shoved them away without a second thought and placed both of her hands over his chest, funneling her own chakra into the boy's body the same as she had when they fought Kabuto. This time, it was harder. The boy was all but dead and his chakra was leaking faster than she could replace it. Even the Kyuubi's energy was drained and useless. He must have used every last ounce of strength against Sasuke. There was only one thing left to do. She had to use her trump card.

"Ninpou-Souzousaisei!" she yelled and the diamond seal on Tsunade's forehead began to pulse softly as black, tattoo-like tendrils spread out from it to cover her forehead first, then her entire body. Her hands began to glow with the massive amount of chakra let out from the seal, pumping it fiercely into Nartuo's battered body. The amount of chakra she channeled was enough to cause the doctors to back away slowly in awe but it looked as if it wouldn't be enough to perform a miracle. Tsunade's own chakra began to wane, the glow surrounding her hands dulling quickly. Soon, the Hokage lacked even enough power to remain on her feet and she fell to her knees next to the bed, resting her head on her arms and sobbing, knowing she'd failed to save a precious person yet again. "I shoulder have never given him that necklace." The moment she caught her breath, she stood with determined eyes and forced even more chakra from her body. "You can't die yet."

((so, do you all hate me yet?))

<*>

Sakura stood before the stone memorial, staring at the names listed on its surface. The very same stone memorial Kakashi used to teach them about teamwork. Soon enough, she would see `Uzumaki Naruto' listed among all the others. He had declared that he would get his name on that list some day before he'd known that it was a memorial. It looked like he would live up to that promise at least. The pink haired girl sank to her knees before the onyx slab, looking at her reflection in its glossy surface. The face that looked back was one that scared her. Her hair was askew and face was covered in dried tears but what frightened her most were the cold, dead eyes that stared back. Her jade eyes, once so full of life and hope were now dull and lifeless. They were the same eyes Sasuke had.

She wanted to recoil in horror. She wanted to beat her reflection until it showed her something different but she knew it was the truth. She was dead inside now. There was nothing to even sustain her so in that respect, she was nothing like Sasuke. He had hatred to keep him going. What did she have? Loneliness, despair and self-pity weren't enough to look forward to. She could hate Sasuke, in fact, she was sure that she did, but she could never take on the role of the avenger as he had. She'd never make the mistakes he did and betray her village and friends. She wouldn't try to kill her best friend.

With Sasuke gone, Naruto was all she had left. She had long ago left her relationship with Ino behind in favor of chasing Sasuke. She still considered her a friend but they were hardly close anymore. As teammates, she, Sasuke and Naruto had grown close in the time they were together and she considered them friends, even family. Now, her little family was in ruins and there was nothing she could do. She couldn't be an avenger; she couldn't move on, she couldn't do anything.

She sat back on her heels and stared straight ahead without seeing anything. If Naruto were here, he would no doubt be trying to cheer her up somehow. Be it with his silly grin or his indomitable attitude, he could cheer anyone up just by being near. When times were at their worst, he always had something to say, some trick to pull, or some action that would raise spirits and erase doubts. That had always been one of the things that Sakura respected most about him. He never gave up and never let anyone else give up. By example alone, he forced everyone around him to dig deeper and try harder. Inari, Hinata, Neji, even Sakura herself had changed all because of him. They were all better for knowing him.

But now…now he was dead. She looked up at the dull, grey sky. It looked as if it would open up and cry for the fallen boy at any moment. It was only fitting. The village had lost its spirit, the world had lost a hero and Sakura had lost the last person who really cared for her. If he were alive now, things would be different. She would treat him so much better than she had. She would show him just how much she meant to her. She would…what was the use of thinking about what she would do? He was dead now and none of those things could ever happen. He could never comfort her, make her laugh or even make her scream in annoyance again and she could never keep the promise she had just made him. No matter what happens, I will be by your side from now on. Her words echoed around in her head and the tears once again rolled down her cheeks, "I want to be with you, Naruto. I don't want to be alone. I don't want you to be alone." She felt the emotions trying to overwhelm her again but she held them back letting out no more than a sniffle. She didn't have to break that promise. She could be with him.

With trembling hands, she reached into her weapon satchel and pulled out a kunai. "I'll see you soon, Naruto."

<*>

In an almost pitch black room, a growling voice rang out, "The light's fading again. Is he dying? I can't believe that weakling still lost after using so much of my power. Now I don't have enough left to save myself."

A spark of light broke through the darkness for an instant almost blinding the kyuubi in his cage. "What the hell was that?" he asked the darkness as if it would respond. The spark came again, this time streaming through the bars of his cage like a bolt of lightning. It came again and again in rapid succession, leaving just as quickly and after the fifth flash, Kyuubi finally understood. Someone was pumping chakra into the boy and it wasn't working. The boy was too far gone to grab it himself. "So, it's up to me again."

The Kyuubi rose from inside the cage and pressed itself against the bars, letting the chakra strike his gargantuan form. Whoever was aiding this boy was very powerful. He could feel his energy returning at an impressive rate. Soon, he would have enough to save his warden and thus, save himself. The chakra being infused into his prison began to slow and eventually faded once again leaving the Kyuubi in darkness but he was no longer concerned. He could now use the energy to save his warden, this boy he had been imprisoned within. "The things I do for this brat," he muttered. The darkness began to recede slowly as the demon began to feed energy back into the boy.

<*>

Tsunade pumped more and more chakra into the boy, her own consciousness threatening to leave her if she didn't save some for herself. She had been at it for almost ten minutes now and there was still no response from the boy. At one point, the doctors had tried to pull her away from the boy but she threw them across the room, screaming, "He's not dead yet! He'll wake up any second now!" They just watched on in misery, the scene breaking their hearts. Here was the village's most powerful woman, falling apart and unwilling to accept the truth that the boy had died.

Slowly, Tsunade's power began to fade and she slumped next to the bed, crying in anguish. Another boy, another dream that she couldn't save and it hurt so badly she just wanted to die.

Beep.

Tsunade looked up at the monitor in disbelief as it beeped again and again in a steady rhythm. She blinked several times to make sure she wasn't imagining things but the line on the monitor that had been straight moments ago was now jagged in time with Naruto's heartbeats. The little brat was alive. Tears still streamed down Tsunade's cheeks but these tears were the only kind Naruto would accept. These were tears of joy.

A thought struck Tsunade and she stood straight and looked around the room. Unfortunately, the only ones near were the doctors who were currently rushing to Naruto to once again fuss over him. She, however, paid them no mind. Her mind was on Sakura.

She remembered the look in the girl's eyes and she knew what could happen. She had been there herself. Her wrists bore the proof of that. Quickly, she raced out of the room only to nearly run smack into the chest of Kakashi who happened to be carrying an unconscious Sakura in his arms. Unfortunately, her fears were confirmed when she saw one limp arm dangling with a blood soaked bandage wrapped around her wrist.

"Oh no… Is she…?" She couldn't even finish the question.

"No. I found her just after she did it and gave her a soldier pill." He looked down sadly at the girl in his arms, "She was so sad about his death, I guess she couldn't handle it."

"It's a good thing you found her then, because Naruto isn't dead." Tsunade allowed herself a brief smile and nodded at Kakashi's amazed look. As if reading his mind, she spoke again, "It's true, but she may not live to see it if we don't get the bleeding to stop. Take her into his room and put her on the spare bed. I'll be in, in a moment."

Still dumbstruck at the news of his student's survival, Kakashi did as he was told and took Sakura into Naruto's room. As soon as she was safely in the bed, Kakashi turned and watched Naruto breathe slowly without help from the respirators. It seemed as if his unusual healing had taken effect already. His most minor cuts and scrapes were nothing more than slight discolorations on his skin now and even those were fading fast. He couldn't help but smile at the sight. Things were finally looking up.

Tsunade returned to the room moments later with Shizune in tow. She barked orders at her subordinate nonstop, most of it about anatomy which made little sense to Kakashi so he just tuned it out and gave them a polite nod as he left. He didn't need to be here right now. He needed to go think for a while.

With so little chakra left, Tsunade left the healing to Shizune and just observed. The soldier pill had done its work and now, all that was left was closing the wounds which Shizune began without delay. She used her chakra to induce the cells in her muscle tissue and skin to regenerate at an accelerated rate. In fact, since Sakura had cut across her wrists instead of down, there would be very little scarring. When she finished, Shizune turned to Tsunade and smiled with a tired look, "It's done, Tsunade-sama. I think she just needs rest and maybe another blood pill."

Tsunade nodded as she headed for the door of the small hospital room, "Good job, Shizune. Let's go get some sleep for now. I'm exhausted."

Shizune draped Tsunade's green jacket over her shoulders and smiled at the Hokage, "You did very well today, Hokage-sama."