Ah, I know! I know! I should be updating other stories! I'm sorry, but writers block is KILLING me! Really! But I wrote this story now that I had some form of inspiration!

WARNING: Character death!

I do not own Naruto. Or any of its characters!

He stared. And stared.

Yet, the fact didn't seem to completely register in his head, as though his mind was simply rejecting the whole idea.

So he just stared at the limp, pale form on the dry ground, earth and fire jutsus having left nothing but dry sand and ashes in their wake, as well as corpses. So MANY corpses that littered the war-zone...and yet, none of them mattered right now. None of these brave, selfless, FACELESS people would ever matter to him. Not now. Maybe, after everything he's been through and now this, they never would.

A sharp autumn wind blew, cold biting at the exposed skin of his face and arms. He shivered, although the cold had no effect on him, as his eyes rested on the small, unmoving figure on the ground, willing her to stand up or to move or to ANYTHING. Her pale skin, flawless and glowing in the radiance of the full moon, was stained crimson - a deep rose colour that, in all its terrifying presence, was almost gorgeous. She looked so unnatural...ethereal, like something from a beautiful nightmare or a terrible illusion. Something straight out of a sick fairytale.

He trembled as her took a step in her direction. The battlefield was completely silent, only the dead were left in his company, as to be expected after their flawless performance just mere minutes ago. Strangely, that very same battle felt like years, centuries away. It was like he had fought along side her a lifetime ago. But all the proof was there - the fresh blood stains on ground and grass, pale bodies scattered across the field, all bloodied and battered...and then there was her. She was among that category too, his mind reminded him. Her short locks were splayed around her head, like a crown delicately woven out of the finest cherry blossoms Konoha had to offer. In his mind it somehow, in a twisted sense, resembled the halo she so deserved for everything she had done not only for him, but everyone around her. He knew that she had the strangest ability to touch hearts. Not even the coldest, foulest and cruelest person in the world would ever be able to resist the kindness and comfort she offered. No one was immune to her charms, not even him.

There we're a million stars glittering in the sky and of course the moon was doing its job of illuminating the area. But he wished for darkness. He didn't want to look at her anymore, didn't want to see her anymore, but it was almost impossible to tear his eyes away from her. Her own eyes were closed, she looked so peaceful. He inched closer again, closing the space between them slowly, because maybe if he waited long enough, maybe if he stalled, then by some miracle, he would wake up and it would only be a dream. Just a dream. But the gash between his shoulder blades told him otherwise, the stinging burn revealed the terrible truth and left him without hope. He felt so, SO hopeless. She was gone for real.

A patch of grass was smoking, likely from one of his fires, far off in the distance. The crackling sound seemed to be the only noise he could hear now, almost deafeningly loud to him. The silence was withering away, much like she was, and in its wake was only mass chaos that made his head hurt. The noises of someone calling out for help, someone cheering in victory, people crying, screaming. He could hear the wind whip across the fields of grass, only for it to get tangled up in the tree tops and caught like a fly in a web. He could hear the nearby stream rushing downhill, leading to wherever it lead, moving so quickly. One drop of water being pushed down stream only to be replaced by another. There was no time to stop, no time to waste. That's how this world of theirs worked also. With each shinobi the fell, two more were ready to fight and take his place without question or issue.

They, the two of them, took the place of not one, but twenty brave men and women today...yet who would take her place? The battle was over. No one could take her place. No one. Not in his mind and he just KNEW that no one could replace her in anyone else's mind.

His head was aching, from behind his forehead straight down to his eyes. Almost like a blinding pain, but still he couldn't close his eyes. The pain, from the stress of battle on from the few hits to the head he took, wouldn't leave him. It only burned sharper and he wished he could close his eyes and rest, let her place a cool hand on his forehead and just ease the pain away so effortlessly, like she always had. But she couldn't take the pain away. He couldn't close his eyes or tear them away from her body, lying crumpled up in a heap in a pool of her own blood. Things couldn't be they way they always were. Even when he returned to Konoha, things were different. None of the Rookie Twelve seemed to hate him, but none of them trusted him wholly either. Except for her and Naruto. They always trusted him, always believed in him. Even when he doubted himself, lost himself to the darkness and hatred, they always believed.

He finally reached her. He crouched beside her silently as he moved his hand to touch her face, clammy fingers brushing ever so gently against the forehead she had always been so sensitive about. The faint smell of cherry blossoms, one that he automatically recognized as her nowadays, seemed to suffocate him along with the coppery scent of blood. Maybe it was from all the other corpses, maybe not, but in his mind he could only register it as her blood. No one else's. He cupped one cheek, still slightly lukewarm beneath his warm palm.

"Sakura..."

"Yes...?" Those pale eyelids fluttered weakly to reveal those green orbs he was now so accustomed to. She smiled a small smile at him before soothing him with, "Don't worry... It doesn't hurt...at all..."

He swallowed as he carefully picked her up off her side and held her gently to his chest, staring at the sword protruding so grotesquely from her abdomen all the while. She was just barely breathing. Was she even? Was his mind playing tricks on him now?

"S-Sasuke..."

He shifted his eyes back to her.

"I'm sorry, okay?" she muttered softly as she rested her head on his shoulder. "We all tried our best, but...we didn't try hard enough to prevent you from... I'm sorry for that. But it's all behind you...now, so please don't live a life of regrets...like you always have."

She stared up at him with those eyes, dying like a flame in the wind. "Smile...for me? Please?"

And he did. He let a painful smile tug at his lips as his eyes started to sting.

"You have a nice smile, Sasuke...please, smile more often...even after this...smile for me...p-promise?"

He almost thought he felt his heart stop at those words. It was like she knew, like she was admitting defeat. She wasn't scared or sad or angered...not a trace of regret in those eyes at all. And he already knew. He knew that whether he said it or not, he would make and keep this promise. He already knew his answer. So he cradled her small body against him. He buried his face into her short pink locks and rocked her gently back and forth. His lips trembled...and yet...

"I promise."