Naruto sighed as he stared at the shiny black knife before him. He just couldn't, couldn't bring himself to take his own life. He was too afraid. He was a coward, all the big talk narrowed down to this: Secretly, Naruto still wanted to live, still wanted to believe that he could be happy, truly happy, not this mask he wore every day that he now despised. He picked up the knife with shacking hands. He brought it to his wrist and… nothing. He still didn't have the guts. All his life, no one had even tried to comfort him.

Sure, Iruka seemed to like him, but he just acted like it because he was requested to do so from the Yondaime. Kakashi thought of him as a spoiled brat that didn't deserve the title of ninja. Sakura thought he was annoying. Sasuke was disgusted by his… everything! He hated his smile, his clothes, his face, even the air around him.And Naruto knew this. But he still hid behind a sliver of false hope, still clinging to the life that he didn't deserve. Oh, how he wished that someone would just kill him already, seeing that he couldn't do it himself. With a silent tear, he walked out of his shoddy apartment.

If he could not bring himself to end his life, then the villagers would gladly comply. He walked among them blank faced. To the team 7 meeting spot, where he would give his final goodbyes upon unwanted ears.

Oh, great! It's Naruto… Thought Sakura. Sometthing seemed wrong though. He didn't have that smug, all-too-confident air about him and he looked… sad. In all of her years with putting up with Naruto, she never once was ever sad… at least, on the outside. But why should she care? He probably ran out of ramen or something! Sniggered Sakura to herself.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow when Naruto didn't scream out for Sakura's love and ask her on a date. Stupid dobe. I wish he didn't show up. I wanted to train today. Sasuke scorned, that is to say scorned worse than usual. He was slightly shocked when Naruto didn't have his defiant grin on his face. He was even more surprised at his next words, and this shock was clear on his face.

"Goodbye everyone, Even though I know you hate me, I still wanted to be friends. But I guess that things never change, huh? Oh well. I'll never see you again… I just wanted to tell you that I will always hold you dear to me." With that, he spun on his heel and swiftly walked away before his former team mates could even exchange shocked glances.

As he walked thorugh the crowd, he noticed the ever present scorns of hate eminate around him, clouding his mind like some kind of poisonous gas. Scared, he ran into an alley and smiled slightly at the fact that his death would come soon.

Sure enough, he was slowly surrounded by thirteen angry men. They all brought out various weapons like rusted pipes and hatchets and moved in for the kill. As they beat the life out of him, Naruto smiled as he saw the warm light that he had searched for all of his life. Death would be the key out of his prison. A smug looking Kakashi smiled when he saw that his paid goons had finally killed that damn fox. The horror of Konoha was finally dead, they were all finally free.

No one cried. No one shed a tear, No one even had a solemn thought as the cats and dogs picked his bones clean. Naruto was unwanted at birth, unwanted in life, and even unwanted in death. He had been refused at the gates, both the white ones and the black. He became a wandering spirit and sometimes if you listen close enough, on the wind you can hear a quiet sobbing sound of an unwanted fox-boy.