Hello, everyone, and thanks for clicking here! This story may be slightly obscure to the reader, so please check out my author's notes at the end.
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Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
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Carpe Diem
by McGrady
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The feared Black Army had little trouble wiping the Hidden Cloud Village off the map. Like the Villages of the Hidden Grass and Hidden Rain, the Hidden Cloud offered little resistance and much blood. The weak died painfully; the strong died unluckily.
Shinobi of the Black Army seemed inhuman, the way they razed villages, slaughtered civilizations, ravished innocent women. Their cold-blooded hearts never skipped a beat. Merciless, carnal, efficient. Inhuman.
Their next target was the Hidden Leaf Village.
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NOTICE TO ALL SHINOBI OF THE HIDDEN LEAF VILLAGE
By the order of the Fifth Hokage:
There will be a MANDATORY emergency gathering at Hokage Tower Square, tomorrow. All shinobi must be present by dawn. The issue of homeland security will be addressed.
Tsunade
Fifth Hokage
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The eighteen-year-old Naruto Uzumaki and Shikamaru Nara stood on either side of Tsunade at the podium, a few steps behind her. Standard issue ANBU animal masks and subtle hooded cloaks shrouded each as the sun rose in the east.
Before her, all the shinobi of the Hidden Leaf had obediently squeezed into Hokage Tower Square and fell silent at dawn's soft rays. Tsunade saw both the anxious faces of young genin and callous faces of experienced jonin.
"Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village!" rang the Hokage's voice through the Square. "As you know, the Black Army is hungry for our blood. The genocide of the Grass, Rain, and Cloud, the components of one of the strongest shinobi village alliances in our history, is a good indicator as to the Black Army's power. Now, the Army heads in our direction!"
Tense whispers among the listening shinobi, sprinkled with worried expressions. Everyone thought that Tsunade had negotiated an agreement between their village and the Army. They thought their peace was ensured. They were obviously mistaken.
Tsunade sensed she was losing her audience's attention and growled to herself. "Order! We will have order! Our village's days are not numbered!"
The crowd fell into eerie silence. No one believed her.
Tsunade continued, "Our allies from the Hidden Sand and Mist are joining our cause to defend and fight. The Black Army is hastily making its way here with the intention to catch us off guard. With the Sand and Mist, the element of surprise becomes obsolete, and we have a chance. We have the rest of today to rest before we fight. The Army will be knocking on our gates by this time tomorrow!"
Helpless groans, and more whispers and worried expressions. Cries of being too young to fight and die. Young, naïve genin began growing up, perhaps a bit too soon.
"Order!" demanded Tsunade. "The Grass, Rain, and Cloud alliance fell only because they were unprepared and overconfident. Tomorrow, we exchange blows with the Black Army!"
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Mid-morning, Naruto and Shikamaru shed their ANBU garb and ate breakfast together at the Ichiraku Ramen Bar. The sun disappeared, hidden by dark ominous clouds, and wind gushed rudely through the village. The air was thick with sticky humidity, but Naruto and Shikamaru smelled only ramen.
"Shikamaru, what do you think our chances of success are for tomorrow?" asked Naruto as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He was on his second bowl already, Shikamaru still on his first.
Shikamaru frowned. "Not much better than the Cloud's chances. The Hidden Cloud Village was prepared, albeit undermanned. It was demolished. The only plus side we have is that we have our allies."
"So you think we could be dead tomorrow?"
"Yes. I believe we will die in less than twenty-four hours. This is the Black Army we're talking about. I think everyone agrees, even the Hokage."
Naruto nodded, and promptly ordered more ramen.
"Naruto, you're eating more than usual," said Shikamaru, stirring his noodles thoughtfully.
With his ramen hanging from his mouth, Naruto mumbled the affirmative. He slurped the noodles into his mouth, chews appreciatively. "You know," he said with his mouth full, "this is my last day alive. I want to fully enjoy my favorite food while I still can!" Naruto finally swallowed. "You know, seize the day."
As Naruto raised the bowl to his lips to finish the soup, Shikamaru hung onto those last words. "Seize the day…" he muttered. With his chopsticks, he picked out a large shrimp and delicately placed it in his mouth. He chewed, thinking.
Naruto downed the soup and reached for a large beef ramen bowl. He loaded it with bean sprouts, bok choy, hot sauce, and vinegar.
"Seize the day," repeated Shikamaru to himself. He shook his head incredulously. "Naruto, that's the most profound thing I've ever heard you say!"
Naruto actually stopped eating to look Shikamaru in the eye. He grinned broadly. "I have my moments!" And right back to the ramen he went.
From the corner of his eye, Shikamaru spotted Temari of the Desert walking the streets with other kunoichi. He sighed longingly. "Should I go for it, Naruto?"
With ramen in his mouth, "Hm?"
Shikamaru nodded in Temari's direction.
Naruto's eyes lit with recognition. "Ah! Of course! Now's not the time to second-guess yourself. Remember: seize the day!"
Temari and the kunoichi walked further down the street, disappearing from view. Shikamaru took in a deep breath, mustering courage. "Wish me luck," he said to Naruto, paying for his portion of the tab and rushing after Temari.
Shouting a salutation over his shoulder, Naruto gladly finished Shikamaru's leftover ramen.
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When Naruto finally finished his ramen, he wasted not a moment of the precious last day. He found Konohamaru Sarutobi and shared a last Sexy Jutsu battle. He and Kiba Inuzuka wreaked havoc mounted on Akamaru's back. He was unintentionally embarrassed by Sai once more, in the presence of many pretty girls. He had a friendly wrestling match with Rock Lee. He had a shuriken target practice with Neji Hyuga and Tenten. He returned to the Ichiraku Ramen Bar with Choji Akimichi for lunch.
He even tricked Kakashi Hatake into removing his mask.
By the time he was done laughing at his former sensei's misfortune of finally being thwarted, Naruto received the news of a wedding. Shikamaru had offered Temari his hand, and she accepted joyously.
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Although it was a last-second arrangement, the wedding was completed in traditional fashion. It was held in front of the Hokage Monument, and the heavy clouds were merciful enough to wait until the wedding's conclusion to begin dropping rain. Later, in the cozy Nara household, Naruto joined the Rookie Nine and congratulated the newlyweds. He extended more personal congratulations to Shikamaru.
"Thank you, Naruto," Shikamaru said, his arm wrapped affectionately around Temari's shoulders.
"So," said Temari, "it was you who finally got this lazy bum to propose to me! I can't thank you enough for all that you have done, Naruto."
Naruto bowed with uncharacteristic grace. "All in the days work of the future Hokage!" he said jovially.
"Yes," cut in Shikamaru, "but I don't think your days work is done just yet." He nodded pointedly at Sakura Haruno, deep in conversation with Ino Yamanaka.
Naruto's smile fleeted from his face. He once again noted to himself how beautiful she was. "I don't know, Shikamaru… maybe…" Naruto sighed. "I'll approach her later, I guess."
Shikamaru shook his head firmly. "You can't do that! There is no later. Seize the day, Naruto!"
That's right, thought Naruto to himself. Tomorrow, we will all be dead.
Naruto approached Sakura and Ino, asked feebly if he could speak to Sakura in private. Sakura's immediate response was one of shock, while Ino's was one of knowing gleefulness.
Naruto led Sakura around the Nara household until they found an empty hallway. He turned to face Sakura, and began regretting his decision.
"Naruto," Sakura said, "what is it?"
His chest twisted itself into knots. His knees were weak, his palms sweaty, his breathing ragged. His usually strong eyes wavered. Seize the day, he told himself. He closed his eyes, leaning forward to kiss her.
He heard her gasp, felt her jump, but his lips softly caressed hers. He cupped one of his hands on her cheek, the other hand in her hair.
Sakura requited none of his gentle ministrations. She only stood as still as a statue.
Naruto withdrew. He muttered a barely intelligible apology as he hastily fled the Nara household. He left without telling anyone, and ran out into the rain.
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For the past hour now, Naruto lay on his back in the rain on the Hokage Monument. It was his favorite place, here on the Fourth's head. He had removed his shirt and folded it neatly under his head as a pillow. His sandals and forehead protector were off, somewhere else on the stone head. The rain was heavy, but windless and warm.
Naruto rested there with his eyes closed. The warm water permeated his every bone. The steady moan of the rain sang lullabies to him.
He couldn't count the hours he spent on the Fourth's head like this. He might have been thinking to himself, enjoying a midnight bowl of ramen, or simply enjoying a book. He might have been lying in the rain, wasting time. But whatever the reason he was there, he could count on enjoying his own peaceful solitude. Here, on the head of the Fourth, was his private sanctuary. His utopia. His own corner of personal paradise.
"Are you asleep, Naruto?"
His stomach leapt up his throat. Naruto never sensed another presence. Apparently, his private sanctuary wasn't so private anymore. He opened one eye and peered at the intruder to find a pink haired body lying in the rain, next to him. She too was lying on her back, her eyes closed, soaked.
Naruto dropped his head back and shut his eyes again. "Sakura?" he said, slightly incredulously. "How long were you here?"
"Maybe thirty minutes? It's hard to say. I've lost track of time since I came here."
"Why are you here?"
Sakura paused. Her spirits fell.
"Am I not welcome?"
"No, no, no!" interjected Naruto hastily. "I just wanted to know why you'd want to be around me… after…"
Sakura sighed. She took a moment to listen to the rain's steady beat and feel the rain's warmth. "Naruto, even though I've known you since forever, you're still a mystery to me."
Naruto chuckled to himself. He marveled at the mutuality of Sakura's last comment. "You know, Sakura, I'm never going to get to see my dream complete."
"You mean become Hokage?"
"Yeah."
"Naruto, your accomplishments are Hokage-worthy. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise."
"... Thanks, Sakura. That means a lot to me." Especially coming from you, he thought.
A comfortable silence.
"Naruto? Why?"
A good question, he thought. He knew exactly to what she was referring. "I guess because this is our last day. I've always wanted to do that, you know?"
"I thought you got over me after you were gone with Jiraiya."
"I thought so, too. I was wrong. I've wanted to do that since before we graduated from the academy. Maybe since we started in the academy. That's since more than ten years ago."
As Naruto paused, the rain's density doubled. The cloud's tears were akin to a waterfall. Yet the water was as warm and gentle as ever.
Naruto groaned and smiled at the warmth before continuing, "After I came back with that pervert, I've always wanted to seriously ask you out. I was never too nervous to do anything else but ask you out. I always told myself, 'There's no way Sakura would want to date me. I should get over it and learn from my mistakes.' But like I said, I didn't get over it.
"So I tried to ignore my feelings and hoped that time would heal my wounds. Time wasn't healing.
"I wanted so desperately to find out what you would say to me if I kissed you. I was just too much of a coward to take any initiative until today, with death in our faces."
Sakura wiped from her face water, from either the sky or her eyes. "I hope you're not disappointed in me."
Naruto chose his words carefully and honestly. "I'm definitely disappointed… but I'm not disappointed in you, just myself. I might even be more satisfied than disappointed. Now, I don't have to wonder how you would react. Wondering 'what if' without knowing an answer is one of the worst pains I've felt. I hope you're not disappointed in me."
Sakura smiled meekly, although Naruto didn't see. "I'm like you: not disappointed in the other, just in myself. What if I were thinking rationally when you kissed me? What if you left your lips on mine just long enough for me to reciprocate? What if I found the voice to tell you to wait for me as you ran away?"
The rain was warm. The air was windless. The sky was getting darker as dusk approached.
"It took me a while to find you here," said Sakura, "but somehow I knew all along where I'd find you."
"Why did you go through the trouble?"
"Because this is our last day, and I wanted to seize it."
Sakura's words hung in Naruto's mind. "Seize the day," Shikamaru had told him, just as he had told Shikamaru. He seized the day with Sakura, and although he was disappointed, he was satisfied. He no longer was waiting for something that would never come.
Unexpectedly, Naruto was covered by a lithe warmth in the form of a thin body. Legs wrapped themselves around his own. A chest pressed against his stomach. Arms wrapped themselves around his neck.
Shocked, Naruto picked up his head to look at the sight below him. Sakura, embracing him for all he was worth, refusing to release her hold.
"You were always an important friend of mine, Naruto," she muttered into his bare chest. She shyly looked up to make eye contact with him, blushing. She pulled herself up to his level. "I think it's time," she said as her lips descended upon his, "I returned what I've waited to return since you left me at Shikamaru's house."
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The feared Black Army reached the gates of the Hidden Leaf Village at dawn the next day. The rain hadn't ceased.
The Black Army General gazed upon the large Hidden Leaf emblem on the large wooden gates. "I hope these pitiful people enjoyed their day yesterday," he said to himself, "because it was their last."
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This story was a story about taking your chances while they were still there. Through this story, I hope my readers understand the essense of Carpe Diem.
Now, after getting a little bit of feedback, I've gotten a few common responses that I feel I must address:
1.) So does everyone die? Answer: Well, that's up to the interpretation of the reader. The outcome I do not know.
2.) Would the Hidden Leaf Village in reality fear this dubious Black Army? Answer: In reality, probably not. But this a "Black Army," a blunt allusion to death. Whether the Hidden Leaf would fall to this completely nonexistent army is irrelevant; only the characters of Naruto's reactions hold substance in this story.
3.) What about the battle? Answer: Well, now that you know that the Black Army is death, I guess you know that a battle is irrelevant.
Please give me feedback in the form of a review! Did you like it? Did you learn anything? Was it written well?
Thanks!