Sasuke's eyes widened at the broken look in Naruto's face. He frowned and reached a hand out and Naruto winced and held up his own and stopped him.

"I'm fine. Really I am. You're probably tired from traveling. You should spend time with Sakura and your kid and rest up." Naruto smiled at Sasuke.

"Naruto, y-you. Are you mentally, u-uh, mentally sound?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah, I've never been this completely calm and relaxed. I'm fine really." Naruto smiled kindly. "Speaking of rest, I'm very tired Sasuke. It's been a long day and I'm deeply upset about Jirayah. I would love it if I had some peace and quiet."

"I'm going to keep quiet then, I won't leave this room." Sasuke spoke.

"You sure? It could get pretty boring." Naruto hummed.

"I'm tolerant." Sasuke gave a shrug.

"Okay, your choice duck head." Naruto chuckled and he closed his eyes, almost immidiatly falling asleep.

Sasuke stared wide eyed and surprised at Naruto's now sleeping body. He didn't expect him to be so calm. He was expecting a meltdown or an all out sobbing fit. But that just didn't seem to happen. It was actually unsettling to see him calm and normal, unlike him and his reactions at all. Sakura was right. Naruto was different in everyway.

When the morning came Naruto came too, waking to meet the glare of the sun. He looked at it and smiled gently and he sat up not really feeling much pain and stretched, rubbing his eyes.

"Looks like someone healed me overnight." Naruto spoke.

"Sakura came in here late as I pretended to sleep and she healed your body to the best of her abilities. However you won't be able to walk at all for a few days." Sasuke replied, looking at him.

Naruto looked down at his legs and then back at Sasuke and laid back. He looked at the ceiling a smiled. He looked over at Sasuke and hummed.

"Sasuke? Can you get some things to do?" Naruto asked.

"Alright Naruto." Sasuke huffed.

The black haired 21 year old stood up and walked out of the room. Naruto smiled at him until he left. He then closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

******

Kakashi was signing and filling paperwork. He looked at the pages with no mood for anything. He signed the pages without complaint, without bickering here and there. Kakashi's pen suddenly stopped moving. He looked at the white with a blank and saddened expression.

He lost Minato, Kushina, Tsunade and now Jirayah. This hurt his heart more then anything. He was a dad, but not even that cheered up his heart. Nothing did. He prayed that Naruto was taking it alright. He hoped his husband wasn't farther gone then he already was.

"Lord Sixth?" A knock echoed through the room, snapping Kakashi from thought.

"Come in." Kakashi sat up straight and placed his pen down, folding you hands together and looking towards the door.

The door opened and walking in his office was Ten Ten. Kakashi raised a brow as to what she wanted.

"I heard about Jirayah. When will his funeral be?" Ten Ten asked.

"I don't know. They people I put in charge of his body are working on cleaning his corpse up a bit. They only found him two days ago." Kakashi replied plainly.

"KAAAAKAAASSHHIIII!" An all to familair voice yelled.

Kakashi jumped as the door fell to the ground, broken off of it's hinges. There at the door who had punched it down was Guy Sensei, in his wheelchair, Lee pushing it behind him. The two entered the room and Kakashi inwardly thanked whatever good their was that saved him from mourning.

"Hello Guy." Kakashi sighed outwardly.

"It has come to my attention that our youth is slipping through our fingers. Even though your only 26 years old and I'm 28. I want us all to go out! And eat!" Guy proposed.

"I think it will be good for our minds. We invited others, they are downstairs waiting on you. Naruto would be here but sadly he is still in the hospital. But we heard he finally woke up!" Ten Ten clapped her hands together.

"Guys, I don't really know if I should. I have stacks of paperwork I need to get done." Kakashi pointed to the space around his desk.

The small little wolf pup in the cage by his desk yapped at him and Kakashi seemed unamused.

"You aren't helping little guy." Kakashi frowned.

"KAKASHI SENSEI! YOU ARE COMING!" Lee boomed.

Lee grabbed him and yanked him up and over his desk. Kakashi yelled in surprised as he was being rushed downstairs. Ten ten took Guy downstairs through the elevator and everyone there was waiting. Choji, Shikamaru, Ino and sai. Kakashi smiled weakly at them. And then he looked over to the corner and saw Orochimaru there, looking at him. He hasn't seen Orochimaru in forever. Kakashi walked over to Orochimaru and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, Orochimaru. You doing okay?" Kakashi asked.

"..." Orochimaru looked at him." People die all the time. Let's go eat." He spoke and walked past him with a dead look in his eyes.

Everyone left the building and went to the barbaque place, the new and remodeled one. Everyone was going to split the bill. There they all joked, had fun and ate, trying their best to forget the death of Jirayah. But throughout the entire get together, Orochimaru remained almost completely silent. Everyone did their best to try and cheer the mourning man up but it was almost pointless to try. He grew up around Tsunade and Jirayah, and now they were gone.

And it was all his fault. That's what he thought. Because he created Meare. He brought that monster to life. And even though she was defeated by Naruto he ended up in a coma and only just recently woke. After a month and a week. Orochimaru was regretting everything. Becoming rogue for his own experiments. His own desires to unlock every Jutsu. Just for fun and to fuel his evil intentions after he lost his parents. He was thinking about extracting Shima out of Naruto, but he had no idea if Naruto would live through it or not. After all, if you extract a Jinchuriki's tailed beast they die.

"Orochimaru?" Ino looked at him.

Orochimaru looked at her and gave her a very small amount of his attention.

"Do you want to help plan the funeral for Jirayah sense you knew him the best?" She asked.

Orochimaru looked at her and actually thought on that topic. He considered the upside and downsides of that opportunity. But who would want him there? Everyone still hated him. He was untrusted and they all had a good reason to be.

"N-no. In fact I'll take my leave." He put a wad of cash on the table and left before anyone got the chance to protest.

******

The sun set over the horizon, painting the village and the sky a multiple of colors ranging from pink to orange and to red. Naruto was in his room drawing, he had gotten loads of things to do that Sasuke brought him. He wasn't allowed to stand and walk around so he decided to ask for books and coloring things and amoung other stuff. But one thing he requested was his picture of Minato, and Kushina, smiling, holding hands as there picture was taken. The photo he had his entire life. It meant the world to him. Naruto glanced up from his page, that he was sketching on and to the photo. He smiled happily and placed a hand on it.

"Hey mom, hey Dad. I finally woke up. I'm sorry I missed your funeral. I probably wouldn't have been able to stand going anyways. I was in a coma for four weeks but I'm fine now. I avenged you and killed Meare. But Jirayah, he died. Committed Suicide sense your death broke him I guess. I hope you all are having fun... without me there...", He looked down and kept that soft smile on his face. "I miss you, and I love you."Naruto finished.

Just as he stopped talking the door opened and Naruto looked up in surprise sense whoever walked in didn't knock. He was surprised as to who he saw.

Orochimaru.

The snake like man walked over and looked down at Naruto. He looked into his eyes, and only saw a broken boy in front of him. He knew Naruto was gone by seeing that smile. His eyes were so empty and alone. It was painful to look at. Yet those eyes mirrored his own. They were both identical. Not in the coloration, but the tone, emotion, just the overall look.

"Do you want Shima gone?"Orochimaru broke the silence.

Naruto was taken back by the question and his smile faded and he looked surprise. His eyes flickered but he then thought on it.

"Won't I die?" Naruto asked.

"There is a chance. But what's life without risk?" Orochimaru questioned.

"What will happen to her?" Naruto asked.

"I'm getting rid of her. Perminantly setting her free from the world and the burdens she has had to live through." Orochimaru spoke.

"Oh..." Naruto gripped his fabric of his shirt where his chest was and looked down.

"What is your call? Yes or no?" Orochimaru asked.

"..." Naruto went into thought. "Fine."

"Alright." Orochimaru nodded

He took Naruto's shirt off and laid him flat down. He then held his hand to Naruto's chest and markings formed. He grabbed a scroll, a big one and draped it over him like a blanket. He looked at Naruto and received a determined nod from him. Orochimaru nodded back and his hand sign signalled the start of the extraction.

Pain surged through Naruto and he confined his yells from escaping his mouth. He didn't want to draw the attention of the whole hospital. He winced and sweated badly as she was being extracted. Naruto felt his body weaken as she was drawn out of his body and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. The markings coursed up through his body and into the scroll, spiralling into a seal.

Just when Naruto felt like he was slipping from consiousness she was out. The Extraction was completed. He was still breathing. Shima was gone.

Naruto looked up at Orochimaru as he closed the scroll and he was sweating from that little ordeal. He saw the look on Orochimaru's face and he gently smiled at him.

"Thanks Orochimaru. See you around." Naruto hummed.

"No, you won't. I'm going away. It is time for old legends to die into history." Orochimaru walekdbtoeards the door.

"Wait, does that me-"

"Yes." Orochimaru inturrupted Naruto. "It does."

Naruto went silent and he suddenly smiled happily. His eyes however said a different story. They expressed pain, major amounts of pain yet understanding of Orochimaru's choice, so after Orochimaru said yes he remained silent and let the Sanin leave.

Orochimaru walked towards the stone heads, wanting to gaze out into the village one last time before he rejoined his comrades. This was his way of apologizing to everyone for his sins he couldn't make up for. With him gone things would be better off anyways.

He traveled through the streets of Konoha. He closed his eyes listening to the bustling streets and the sounds of the trains going across the railroads, finally onto the testing part of their creation. He felt the calm of the gentle cool breeze against his skin and hair, that danced in it's presence. He even partly saw the orange that the sun painted everything in through his shut eyes. His mind was completely at ease and a soft, sorrowful smile grazed his lips after a short period of time.

His foot made contact with the stairs. So when he met them, he went up and up and up and up, higher and closer towards the flat cliff. He made it to the top after a relaxing walk up stairs and he walked across the cliff, making it to Tsunade's stone head. He peered over the edge and found a clear path next to her head to end his life. He nodded in approvement and sighed loudly. He lifted his body straight and moved his eyes over the Village. The Village Hidden In The Leaves. Named by it's past Villan, made by it's first Hokage.

"This Village is forever growing Tsunade." Orochimaru hummed. "And growing prettier by the second. Heh, everyone is going to miss those pervy books Jirayah. Hnhnhn." Orochimaru laughed calmly with a smile.

Orochimaru walked to the very edge of the cliff and his toes were over it. He looked out at the sunset and he swore he hasn't seen one as beautiful as the one he would go down to. He hummed gently, a tune he remembered his parents singing him when he was very very young. He held his arms out at both sides, them reaching calmly at nothing has if wanting to grasp anything they could. His body relaxed and went limp and as he finished the final deep hum, his body leaned forwards and fell.

Thank you for everything

His final thought rang in his head. He drew near the ground, and never once opened his eyes, better off not knowing when his body would strike the ground.

And like that...he was greeted with no pain.

Only a sweet Bliss

a sweet releif.

and two old friends in the skies above.