empathy (rewritten 2019)

chapter twenty-eight

On March Thirteen, the second day of the festival in celebration of Naruto Namikaze-Uzumaki's appointment as the Seventh Hokage began. The day began with the village, tired from the other night's celebration, pausing between their morning walk and market visits to stop by the Hokage tower and laying flowers on the steps to the office, a flower trail akin to a red path to honor the new Hokage. The afternoon progressed with the new Hokage taking to the streets for lunch at Teuchi's ramen stand while each passersby watched from their windows and seats and homes.

Then night arrived, and the festival reached its height when the rest of the Rookie Nine planned for a stage in the town square, where musicians and dancers would perform in respect of the Hokage. Once the performances started, visitors from other villages arrived to partake in the celebration, such as the Sand Siblings.

Although this two-day festival was all to honor him, the avid savior of the village, Naruto was already tired of it. In the seven days he was appointed (the festival was celebrated a week after his appointment), he was locked in his room with piles of paperwork left for him and each problem arising in the village. This festival was the freest he could be for the next ten years of his life as Hokage.

And despite his lifelong dream of sitting in that chair, smiling down on those people, standing higher than the Uzumaki boy failing each test--he'd rather much be out there, past those gates, in the breeze and holding a kunai in one hand and grasping the wind in the other, with his hand--his real hand, not the plastic one that couldn't tell him what his wife's hair felt like and what the sun could be anymore. There came so much change in the last few years and he, amongst everyone else, was losing his footing.

But it was the festival and you should just relax today Hinata said and he got fifteen presents from fifteen people on the streets and he walked up the office through a path of lilies and daisies this morning so why be so frustrated Naruto-kun? Take it easy now. And so he went to the evening festival with eyebags and a slump in his shoulders but drank seven in five minutes and ate Yakiniku Q's once more with the Rookie Nine.

It was an hour past when Naruto was grabbing dessert from the street stands and he bumped into Sakura, clad in her work uniform. "Sakura," he smiled and swayed. "How are you?"

"How am I? I should be asking you!" She leaned in for a hug. "How's it like being Hokage?" And as they pulled apart, the wind filled the space between them.

"Oh, like a dream come true." He rubbed his eyes. "But, there's no time for ramen breaks at all, I don't know how Kakashi did it!" The two of them laughed.

"A dream come true," Sakura murmured, staring at the stone carved miles and miles away. In a few days, Naruto would be added to the list of honorable ones. A dream of his, only a few days away.

And Sakura looked upon the festival, finding the remnants of the Rookie Nine in their final happiness--Sasuke and his new family, Hinata and her husband, Naruto and his dream; everyone found the time and the chance after the war to finish their life and fulfill their very last dreams and here Sakura was, still hungry, still young and still unsatisfied.

Sakura spotted Ino in the midst, hands intertwined with another stranger, and looked to Naruto as he ordered another dango stick. The two of them hadn't stopped and talked ever since their last argument years ago. Ino had her last stoplight those years ago and never looked back, never stopped and just kept looking forward, as she did the night of March Thirteen when she passed Sakura and kept looking forward.

And even then, Sakura could hear Ino that one night all those years ago, words slurred and jabbing and angry. Sakura had been out on a walk that night, bored out of her mind after Tsunade made her go off on an early shift. And it was only a coincidence that as Sakura passed the restaurant two blocks from her apartment, Ino came stumbling out, laughing and giggling and swaying in her silver dress.