I really have no excuse. I mean, the end of Chapter Eleven could be seen as the end of the story, and I was content to leave it like that for a while, but I already had the first bit of this written. So I just kind of want to give closure to this piece. A little bit more than what I had given. Sorry for this ending. It's kind of cliché, but it is what I have to offer. It's also lots of OOC, but I don't give a damn.

Live to Hate, Hate to Live
Chapter Twelve: The Other Side of This Life

Sasuke looked at the sleeping form of Naruto. The boy had literally cried himself to sleep, and was cuddling with Sasuke. The Uchiha didn't want to disturb his friend, so he didn't move from his spot. Naruto didn't want him too, and the boy was sleeping peacefully, so there was nothing Sasuke could do, anyway.

He softly brushed the blond hair away from his eyes, running his fingers lightly over the whisker-like scars that had always been there… but now, now they weren't from the Kyuubi no Kitsune. These were vile marks from his brother. These were torment and punishment that his brother had to die for. Yet, something was seriously lacking in his conviction to kill Itachi. His best friend was laying here, slowly dying. He had to give up his dreams for some asshole of an Uchiha. He had to give up everything. Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose, rubbing his eyes slowly. He couldn't break.

Not when Naruto needed him. Naruto was what was important at the moment. He didn't know how he would have made it this far if not for the boy beside him. He didn't know if he could go farther. The two had been rivals since the academy. Ever since they had met. He could remember seeing Naruto – the blonde was always alone on the old wooden swing at the edge of the schoolyard. He was always swinging there, watching as the other kids played. Sometimes, he would have a large grin on his face, but there was always a kind of sadness in those blue eyes. Sometimes, he would be staring wistfully, not even bothering to mask what he felt.

Why hadn't Sasuke gone over? The boy obviously had always wanted just one person to acknowledge him. Why did it take this much for Sasuke to realize what the boy had always wanted?

If only I had known before, he thought to himself, gritting his teeth. He was so stupid. Naruto – what would his life be without Naruto?

I have to stop thinking about him, Sasuke growled in his head. However, he soon realized just how hard this could be with the boy of his thoughts plastered to his side, snuggling up on his lap, gripping his pants with one hand as he slept on. The Uchiha blushed. Damn it! No blushing! No! You are an Uchiha! Uchiha do not blush!

However, no matter how he thought and tried to tell himself not to blush, a faint redness settled over his cheeks. Naruto murmured something in his sleep, rubbing against Sasuke's thigh with his cheek.

Sasuke nearly growled in his throat. Did the boy have to be so damn sexy without realizing it?

No. Not sexy. Never sexy! He didn't think sexy! Annoying! That was the word. Annoying!

"Sasuke?" a voice startled him out of his reverie.

"What?" the Uchiha asked.

"Thank you," the blonde murmured softly.

Sasuke was startled. Thanking him? What was that about? He hadn't done anything. In fact, he was indirectly the cause of all of this. And he said so.

Naruto smiled at him, carefully sitting up. It hurt to move some of his joints, but he ignored it. No matter what, he was still Uzumaki Naruto. He was still strong. He didn't have to be a ninja to be strong.

The blonde leaned his head on Sasuke's shoulder, wondering if the boy would push him away or not. After a moment of not being shoved a way, he let a wistful sigh escape his lips.

"Because you've always been there," he told the other truthfully. "No matter what… you've always been there."

"Have I?" Sasuke wondered aloud, not realizing he did so.

Naruto smiled. "Yeah. You have."

It wasn't long before the blonde fell asleep again. Sasuke was awake for much longer than he had intended to be, mulling over what the blonde had said and his feelings about it.

------

The days passed quickly, each day bringing something new to Sasuke's life. He couldn't help how he felt about Naruto. The boy was a very large part of his life and he would never be able to forget him. Still, even as this mysterious fondness grew, so did the pain that pierced his heart. Every day was showing exactly how much Naruto was fading. Every day was telling Sasuke that he didn't have much time left.

And he didn't like that.

Naruto was slowly disappearing. At first, it was just the small things. He couldn't walk as far and he tired easily. Then came the coughing. There were times when he couldn't stop coughing for a good while. It scared Sasuke. He never knew what to do in those instances. As the days wore on, Naruto would have to fight harder to stay conscious. He would often have dizzy spells and was forced to sit for a long time.

It was a slow sickness… and Sasuke felt useless day in and day out. He would sit vigil by Naruto's bedside when the nights became too much for the blonde, although the Uzumaki never asked him to.

It was perhaps a week before his death that Sasuke knew what he had to do.

It was a lazy day. The sun was shining and fluffy white clouds were passing through the sky unhindered by any earthly objects. They were lounging beneath the shade of a tree when Sasuke realized exactly what he felt for Naruto.

Love. It was a silly notion. One that he had never thought he would believe in, yet here it was. Staring him in the face. He couldn't fight it and he had no willpower to do so. He couldn't push it away. It had grown too much. It had become too much.

And it hurt.

Because he knew that it couldn't last.

Something told him to act on it, though, and when he would look back in the years to come, Sasuke would thank that something more than anything else.

He leaned over Naruto. The boy stared at him, confused, but not altogether unhappy. With no preamble of words or motions, Sasuke swept in to take a kiss from the boy's lips.

He pulled back, expecting some type of anger, or hatred, or disgust.

Instead, he found Naruto smiling.

"I was wondering when you were going to do that," the boy told him with a Cheshire grin.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Whatever, dobe," he said.

Naruto just laughed. Sasuke allowed himself to smile back as he gathered the boy in his arms, holding him tightly. Naruto grinned, content. They fell asleep like that.

Time wore on. Each day was better and grander for Sasuke. Naruto had permeated his apartment, had found a way to get into every nook of Sasuke's heart. He had somehow managed to make it so that when he was in the room, Sasuke found it hard to focus on anything else. He knew what was happening, and he couldn't stop it. He didn't want to stop it.

It was love.

And it hurt, because Sasuke could see that their time together would not last for long.

-----

The day Naruto died was a beautiful day. The sun was shining. The gentle breeze from the mountain washed everyone in a feeling of happiness, softly beckoning the children to come and chase it. Birds were chirping. Animals ran around, gathering what they would need for the day.

The world kept spinning, kept on going.

But to Sasuke, the world had stopped.

It was early afternoon when it happened. They had been cuddling on the couch. Naruto's breath had quickened. Sasuke held him tighter, feeling the boy's sweat soak through the shirt. He moved to get up, but Naruto held him back, looking at him with feverish eyes.

"Sasuke… please…" the boy whispered. He coughed. The sound nearly broke Sasuke's heart. "Can you… take me outside?"

Sasuke couldn't bring himself to speak as he nodded dumbly. He helped Naruto to his feet and the two made their way out of the apartment building. By the time they made it to the park that Naruto loved, Sasuke had to carry him. His limbs had lost the ability to move well.

Sasuke didn't mind, surprisingly. He just felt the sadness stab him, wounding him more than he could find himself to bear.

Naruto smiled at Sasuke. "Thanks, bastard," the boy grunted out, rubbing at his eyes. "It's a nice day, ne?"

Sasuke swallowed the lump in his throat harshly and nodded. "Aah, it is, dobe," Sasuke replied.

Those were the last words that they ever spoke to each other. They sat, bathed in sunshine and caressed by the mountain wind, as the seconds ticked by – as Naruto's life ticked away.

And then he was gone.

The only way that Sasuke could tell he had gone was the small spasm of his body. The muscles had lost control. He looked down at his love. Naruto's eyes were open, staring at the sky with a small smile on his lips.

Not able to stop the tears, Sasuke carefully reached up and closed those cerulean depths before hugging the body tightly to him and sobbing quietly into the shirt.

That was how he was found by Kakashi a short while later.

-------

The funeral was wonderful. People that Naruto had touched in his life, people who remembered his smile, his laugh, his stubbornness, and his nature attended. Even though many of the villagers did not attend, the numbers of the attendants were large. People journeyed from the other villages to pay their respects.

Gaara and his family were there.

Inari and all of the workers of the Great Naruto Bridge came.

The remaining of the Rookie Nine were there.

Gai-sensei's team appeared as well.

Iruka, Kakashi, Ibiki, Anko, and several of the teachers made an appearance.

The owner of Ichiraku closed his shop for the day in order to attend.

And many more.

Sasuke did not go.

He did not see the point of remembering Naruto. He would never forget the teenager that he had known since they were young. He had known him far too long to forget anything.

And so he mourned in peace, by himself, holding onto the memories that would plague him, comfort him and haunt him until his dying day.

He looked up at the brilliant sky and smiled. Somehow, he still felt as though Naruto were with him, even though he couldn't see him.

----

My whole world's in an uproar, my whole world's upside down,
Don't know what I'm doin' here, but I'm always hangin' round.

And that's another side to this life, I've been leadin',
And that's another side to this life.

Would you like to know a secret, just between you and me.
Don't know where I'm goin' next, don't know where I'm gonna be.

And that's the other side to this life, I've been leadin',
And that's the other side of this life.

Peter, Paul and Mary – The Other Side of This Life
----

Kyuubi-kun's Korner!

I apologise for the hiatus that I put on all of my fics, without a real reason. I just haven't had the urge to write lately. So I'm back, for how long, I do not know. However, while I'm back, I'm doing my best to finish as many of those stories that I left hanging.

This story, for instance, is now… complete. (smiles)

I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed this story. It means a lot to me that you would do so. And I can only say I'm sorry for leaving you all hanging for so long, if indeed there are people who still read this story. If there are, I thank you for not giving up on me.