Chapter 34 - Building a new life together

                                    

                                          


                          
Author's note: (*) Baa-chan = old lady, granny
                          
The first thing the remaining villagers and shinobi from Konohagakure had to build was sadly enough, a graveyard. Nagato had resurrected as many of the victims as he possibly could with his remaining chakra before dying of chakra depletion, but it hadn't been enough. The first victims, the ones who had been dead the longest, or the ones who died afterward due to fatal wounds or blood loss weren't so lucky. It went without saying, that all victims needed to be remembered. It wasn't long before all the people decided to work together on building an amazingly beautiful graveyard and a commemorative monument. The grounds were encircled with scenic trees which carried dark purple leaves on a small stem. The walking paths, which existed out of white gravel, were enclosed by beautiful wildflowers. The graves themselves were placed side by side in bright green trimmed grass. All carried a white marble stone stating information on the victims.
                          
Naruto had been reading one such stone over and over again. He had memorized every little detail it carried. Each dimple, each line, the way each letter was written. He sighed deeply as he laid a single white rose onto his godfather's grave.
                          
At first, Kakashi had joined his lover in visiting the beloved Sannin. But soon enough, Kakashi figured out that the young man needed some time alone. He came to that conclusion when Naruto started disappearing from time to time for several hours. He often then found the teen sitting by his deceased godfather's grave. Sometimes he would just talk, sometimes he would read chapters from an Icha Icha book, and at one time, he had even seen the teen breaking a popsicle in two and eating only half. Kakashi understood though. He has had his own share of grief before, so he knew Naruto only needed time. The pain wouldn't go away, not really anyhow. But it became easier to live with as time moved on. Nonetheless, he always made sure he was there for Naruto when the young man returned to him, sometimes with tried-up tears still lingering on his cheeks.
                          
A lot of positive changes had taken place as well. The villagers and the shinobi from Konoha now showed the utmost respect for Naruto Uzumaki. At first, the teen had some troubles getting used to the changes. Before, people would scold him for his pranks, call him names, and talk behind his back. Now they all want to shake his hand and buy him a drink. Entire hordes of teenage girls started flirting with him, and several young children had asked for his autograph and some advice on how to become an amazing shinobi. He went from the most shunned person to the most praised and popular one. Luckily, Naruto was still Naruto. His success and fame didn't cloud his mind. He remained the same kind, humble, and positive-minded person as always. He didn't even hold a grudge to the villagers who had treated him badly, and now suddenly acted as if he was their best customer or friend. He just thanked them for their kindness and moved on.
                          
Some people would still talk behind his back, but solely about his relationship with the Copy-Nin. The speculations people made about their relationship made him chuckle more than once. After his little stunt during his speech, their relationship had become the most discussed issue in town. Apparently, the juicy piece of gossip was even more important to talk about than the attacks that had recently taken place. Naruto didn't mind though. The people needed a good distraction.
                          
Kakashi on the other hand had to work his hardest to ignore even more people now as he sauntered through Konoha in his lazy aloof manner. Then again, a lot of his older shinobi friends had been teasing him a little. Naruto snickered as he thought back to that one time when he and Kakashi were eating together with their friends and Gai-sensei had made a remark about Kakashi finally enjoying his 'springtime of youth', and about how he had suspected that the Jonin's youthful vigor was yet to be awakened by the blond hero's vitality. Kakashi nearly choked on a piece of carrot after that.