Dying Inside

If I owned Naruto I wouldn't be sewing my own costumes together, and living off of dollar store food.

So, in simple terms, I do not own Naruto now, and I doubt I ever will. ^.^

Dying Inside

Chapter Six: Danced with the Sun

"Kyuubi? What's going on?" Naruto asked, looking around the shimmering room. He was sure he'd be dead by now, but, instead, he seemed to feel healthier than he had in years.

"We're not dead yet, that's what's going on," the demon panted, exhausted by the never ending find she was engaged in.

"If I destroyed the seal, you could escape, as long as you promised not to hurt Konohagakure," Naruto smiled weakly, waving his hands at the bars of the iron cage, "It would only be fair payment for having to deal with being inside of me all these years."

"You stupid brat, don't you think I wouldn't have found a way to escape after being captive for so many years!? I'm not leaving you to die alone like this!" Kyuubi roared, Naruto smiling and closing his eyes.

"Thank you, Kyuubi, you're my best friend," the blonde whispered, falling into a deep sleep.

"And you're my only cub," the demon replied, cuddling his shaking form closer to herself.

.

"Sasuke, get back here, Kakashi-sensei told us not to run off on our own!" Sakura shouted, dashing after the bobbing head of black hair exhaustedly.

Almost immediately after Kakashi's departure the teenager had taken it upon himself to run after his teacher, leaving Sakura to hurriedly pack up camp and follow after. He could only hope that they wouldn't run into their teacher burying their teammate half way home.

"Sasuke!" Sakura shouted, her voice echoing angrily through the woods.

"I thought I told you to stay back at camp," Kakashi growled, grabbing the boy viciously by the back of the neck, and hauling him off the ground, Sakura appearing behind him, panting heavily.

"Where's Naruto, how is he!?" Sasuke demanded immediately, ignoring the anger flaring through his teacher's eye.

"I have some things to explain before I let you see your teammate," Kakashi sighed, putting the boy down. It would be better that he get the how and why questions out of the way now, before they got to the hospital. It would give them more time to say good bye.

"He's not dead yet, is he?" Sakura asked meekly, tears coming to her eyes as she collapsed to her knees, exhausted.

"You have to understand, Naruto has been very sick for most of his life," Kakashi began, "And it's been a miracle that he lasted as long as he has. Just be happy that you two were able to be his friends when an entire Village refused that honor."

"If he's been so sick then why did the Hokage let him become a ninja!?" Sasuke demanded, wiping away the tears that were springing to his eyes.

"Because it was what he wanted. All his life he wanted to become a ninja, to save others from his fate, to keep them from suffering like he had," the jounin smiled sadly, kneeling down and handing Sakura a handkerchief, "You see, when Naruto was very young, he was... attacked. That's how he became sick, he has Hepatitis B. Afterwards, he swore that he would become a ninja, and become strong enough to stop other people from hurting children like they had hurt him."

"Hepatitis!? But that's a sexually... oh god, Naruto!" Sakura sobbed, realizing what the blonde must have endured the entire time, what pain he must be suffering now.

"Can't we at least say good bye?" Sasuke asked, finding it very hard to talk and control his emotions at once.

"Follow me, we're only a few hours away from the hospital," Kakashi whispered, jumping into the trees overhead.

.

"Iruka-sensei?" Naruto wheezed, looking up at the ceiling above him, his eyes cloudy and unfocussed.

"Shh, Naruto, save your strength for getting better," Iruka whispered, wiping tears out of his eyes as he clutched the boy's hand tighter, trying to reassure him that he was not alone.

"That's okay, sensei, I'm not afraid of dying anymore," Naruto smiled, turning toward his teacher.

"No, that's not true! You're going to get better, you're going to beat this, and become Hokage, and be the most infamous ninja ever to exist!" Iruka sobbed, shaking his head, stroking the blonde's soft hair.

"Don't worry, Iruka-sensei, it doesn't hurt anymore," Naruto whispered, his eyes closing peacefully as he began to struggle for every breath.

"Naruto, please, wake up! Don't die, please, don't die!" Iruka screamed, squeezing the boy's pale, cold hand as he begged and sobbed, doctors rushing into the room as the heart monitor began flat lining.

.

"Don't worry, Kyuubi, you can go now," the blonde whispered, stroking the demon's soft fur, "Thank you for being my friend."

"Don't worry, kit, it won't hurt, I promise," Kyuubi cried, nudging the boy's silent form with her nose as the walls that had held her captive for so long caved in around her, freeing her from the prison that had kept her trapped for twelve long, all too short years.

.

"Iruka, what's wrong?" Kakashi asked, coming to a stop suddenly in front of Naruto's room, looking over the sobbing man.

"He, he," Iruka sobbed, shaking his head as the tears escaped his eyes, making him completely incapable of speech.

But he didn't need to speak for the silver haired jounin to know what was wrong. The only reason his lover would be sobbing outside of his student's room would be if it was too painful to be sobbing inside of the room.

Because that would have to mean Naruto was dead.

"Iruka-sensei?" Sakura asked, looking between the two men questioningly, "Is Naruto okay?"

"I'm sorry, Sakura, but it seems we arrived too late," Kakashi whispered, placing a hand gently on her and Sasuke's shoulders, even as the pink haired girl collapsed in tears.

"Naruto?" Sasuke asked, his eyes wide as his body began to shake, "He's just playing a bad joke on us, he can't be dead. He can't die before he achieves his dream," Sasuke muttered under his breath, his body going pale as a thin layer of sweat began to form.

"Sasuke, are you okay?" Kakashi asked, kneeling at eye level with the boy, letting Iruka take the sobbing girl.

"He's probably just playing a bad joke," Sasuke explained, looking at his teacher, "He's always playing bad joke on everyone, you know. He's a dobe that way," the Uchiha insisted.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke, but this isn't a joke. He's dead," Kakashi insisted, knowing that the boy must be going into shock, "You have to accept that."

"But why did he have to die?" Sasuke asked, looking through his teacher, tears streaming down his face as he collapsed under the strain of the past three days.

.

The weather was sunny, so much like the small boy that they were lowering into the ground, the few people attending the graveside ceremony weeping openly. The gathering, a small collection of the infamous rookie nine, and a few teachers attending as well, but the opinion of the villagers had remained the same the entire time.

The village did not mourn, the weather did not cry, only a few young children would remember the sunny disposition of the blonde.

"... and we all mourn for such a boy, who's candle burned so brightly for so long," Tsunade whispered, tears streaming down her face as she tossed a white carnation onto the casket.

Kakashi was there, supporting a sobbing, inconsolable Iruka. Sakura beside him, crying as well. But Sasuke was unable to attend the funeral. He had been asleep since he had collapsed outside of Naruto's hospital room three days before, the doctors claiming the stress of losing yet another person close to him overwhelming his mind.

But they assured everyone that he would be fine, given some time to rest. Just as they had assured everyone that Naruto would be fine.

.

Sasuke tossed and turned in his bed, sobbing and crying out in his sleep for his family, screaming for his mother as the darkness turned a shade more sinister. But it was in vain, his family was dead, and no one would come to his call, or light a candle to stave off his nightmares.

"Naruto, please, no!" Sasuke shrieked, bolting up in bed, his eyes open and unseeing.

The smiling blonde stuck out his tongue in front of Sasuke, calling him names and threatening to defeat him in combat. And, as much as Sasuke tried, he could not reach the boy. His best friend was always just out of reach, always taunting from an unending distance.

"Please, Naruto, please, come back," Sasuke sobbed, falling out of the hospital bed, limping across the floor toward the door, and the haunting illusion.

But the blonde just laughed, danced, and taunted out of range. Always smiling, grinning, and happy.

"Teme, you sure are stupid!" the illusion Naruto grinned, pointing at his rival, "Dead people don't come back!"

"You're not dead! You can't be dead!" Sasuke sobbed, collapsing to his knees, tears streaming down his face, "I don't want you to be dead!"

"What you want doesn't matter," Naruto whispered softly, sitting down across from the Uchiha, "I am dead, and lying in a bed all day insisting otherwise isn't going to change anything."

"No, you're not dead, and you're just playing a joke, and that's all this is," Sasuke insisted, shaking his head and covering his ears as Naruto sighed.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke, I didn't mean to die," Naruto smiled weakly, "Really, I didn't. But some things just can't be avoided."

"But you were my best friend," Sasuke sobbed, rubbing the tears from his eyes as they came even faster, blurring his sight of the room, and Naruto.

"Name your first kid after me then?" Naruto chuckled, "Remember to visit my grave on my birthday, please?"

"Always," Sasuke hiccuped, a weak smile on his face, "But if the kid turns out like you, I know who to blame."

The ghostly form of Naruto laughed, and grinned, giving Sasuke the peace sign as he began to fade into nothingness before his best friend's eyes. But Sasuke didn't scream this time, he just cried.

But he vowed to remember his best friend, and cherish his fleeting memory.

.

Owari.

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Authoress' Note:

Yay, it's finally over!

I know many of you have noticed by the end of this that it was different than the ff.net version of the story. The reasoning: I didn't really like the ff.net ending. I thought it too sappy and annoying.

But, since I wrote the story, I get to change the ending. That's the great thing about being the author, you get to change the story to how you really want it to be. ^.^

Hope you liked it. Reviews are always welcome. ^.^

And no, there won't be any sequels about some kid name Naruto Uchiha. So don't even bother to bug me about it. :P