"Baa-chan why won't they speak?" once more he voiced his question out loud.
The four Senju clan members stopping momentarily when they were going to pick up the final lid of the coffins with the Senju clan insignia embossed upon them as soon as his soft voice rang in the clearings once again.
...
Sakumo glanced worriedly at his best friend. Just seeing him standing in the back all alone with shadowed eyes, it killed him at not knowing whatever it was that Naruto was feeling right now.
He knew he was quite close with the fallen family members, having heard of many great things from his lips on countless occasions up until now. He himself had been over to Tsunade's house quite a few times, but wasn't as close to them as Naruto was.
Over the years, the blonde was almost considered family in the Senju head households and the silver haired boy knew how much his friend cherished anyone who he considered close to him.
But most of all how much he adored Tsunade.
He knew the blonde Uchiha would most likely tear apart anyone who so much as looked at her the wrong way, to think what his thoughts would be on thinking how broken she might be because of this and what was most likely going on within his mind...
It unnerved him…
But he was quite worried for his friend due to plenty more reasons, but one being the most prominent of them all.
Seeing her in pain, it must have been killing him right now.
He put on a strained understanding smile, Duy smiling sadly upon seeing what his friend was trying to do and urged him to go on with a subtle nudge of his shoulder.
Sakumo clasped the spaced out boy's shoulder gently, and just like he had expected to his friend's neck snapped straight to attention at him.
But the expression plastered over his face wasn't one he was expecting…
Instead of sad and sheen less azure eyes as he was expecting, he was met with blazing crimson eyes that had their three tomoes circling slowly, almost menacingly within them.
"Don't." his cold voice whispered menacingly, devoid of any emotions whatsoever and it almost made his teammates take a step back in sheer fright from their friend's strange and sudden change of demeanor.
The blonde boy in question, was finding it quite hard to contain the deep rage that was starting to bubble up within his heart along with an emotion that he hadn't felt so strongly ever in his life.
Not since his younger years that is…
Hatred.
Sakumo gulped softly, nodding timidly and trying all as he might to keep his strained and sympathetic smile up for his friend.
He didn't know…or even wanted to for that matter,what had come over his usually happy go lucky friend. But this was one side he had never witnessed before in all the years he had known him for since their childhoods.
And Kami knew he didn't want those eyes directed back upon him again.
Ever.
The last thing the young Uchiha needed right now was pity from anyone, not even Tsunade needed it for now in the young Uchiha's mind.
He still remembered it quite vividly how painful it had been for him when he had lost his mother. The few people who had been kind to him back then, offered him those looks each time they had laid eyes on him during the time his mother had passed away.
In an attempt to console him, but it did the polar opposite of their intentions every damn time!
Reminding him each time of what he had lost with those Kami damned looks of the thing he despised the most in this world.
Pity.
It was a pathetic, useless emotion in his mind that did anything but help the one who was suffering. Instead it spurred on all the pain they were trying to bury by reminding them of what the victims had lost in the first place, and were trying as they might to forget it altogether.
He clenched his lower jaw tightly seeing Mito's bitten lip from the back which was quite clear even from his scarce viewing angle of her,due in part to his unconsciously activated Sharingan.
He couldn't see Tsunade from where he stood in the back, but he knew how emotional the girl could be in troubled times like these unlike the strong knucklehead she always made herself out to be.
She must be a mess right now...
But his troubled thoughts were once more broken by the little voice that let out a shout once more as soon as the coffins were raised by the four Senju clan members to be put in their final resting places.
"Baa-chan why won't you answer me? Why don't they speak?" once more Nawaki asked, and this time Mito gathered up all her courage and gave him a gentle smile.
"They are sleeping sweetie." she whispered, feeling as if someone had placed a block of lead on her chest at lying to the little innocent one in her arms.
But for the life of her, how was she supposed to tell a child that his parents and her own children were…
Dead?!
Nawaki though, being the three-year-old he was, nodded innocently.
He could accept her answer, since it did make a little sense to him.
"When are they waking up?" Mito's eyes widened upon hearing the simple question and her stomach dropped a couple of pounds as realization struck her heart.
One that she was trying to avoid with all her might, only to keep up a strong front for her little ones.
"They…" she choked on her words, twin streams flowing down her eyes when Nawaki's eyes snapped to his back upon hearing a couple of soft thumps from that direction.
"What are you doing?" he asked the four Senjus who had just put down the coffins within the dug up graves and looked away from his innocent eyes that were piercing almost every heart within the grounds right now.
They turned their eyes back to the graves and picked up the shovels, digging into the dirt and starting to fill up the graves with it.
"Hey why are you putting dirt on my parents?" the little brown haired boy wriggled within Mito's arms who was keeping him firm while sniffling to herself and praying for the funeral to end once and for all.
Each moment was killing her on the inside right now…
"Baa-chan they are putting dirt on them…" he spoke innocently to his grandmother, who pulled his face in her neck and hugged the wriggling little boy for dear life.
"Nawaki stop it…." Mito sniffled out, but the boy paid her no heed. His entire attention was plastered on his parents who were being buried right in front of his eyes.
"They will have trouble breathing, don't put dirt on them…" he called out to the four who just resumed their task of burying the duly deceased as quickly as they could.
Nawaki wriggled wildly in Mito's arms, not understanding why those people were putting dirt on his parents and why no one was answering him properly.
"Stop putting dirt on my parents…" he spoke out loud, the four men stopping for a moment before digging their shovels back in the dirt heaps and covering half the depth of the graves right at that moment.
"They'll be angry when they wake up…" he struggled on, almost leaping out of Mito's arms who was crying her heart out now.
"STOP PUTTING DIRT ON MY PARENTS!" he screamed this time, and it was all that the Uzumaki heiress could take before she fell down onto her knees and started wailing for her life.
"Nawaki… they are not waking up…." she sobbed out, while Hiruzen rushed to her side to console the crying mother and the child who himself was now crying softly in pure confusion and a little fright.
"But why not? You're lying Baa-chan…" he trailed off with shimmering eyes when no one answered him and he sobbed thickly. "…aren't you Obaa-chan?" he sobbed out and she hugged the little boy for dear life.
"They won't wake up honey…they are… like Hashirama Jiji sweetie…" she stuttered, not having the heart to say the dreaded words that threatened to escape her lips.
"Dead." Tsunade whispered in an almost dead tone, standing still as a statue and not a single sign of a tear or sadness on her face. Her face was just…
Blank.
Mito held the boy tightly, whose sobs increased each passing second while he struggled in her arms to stop the men from burying his parents.
Naruto clenched his fists so tight, a couple of nerves became visible on his forearms while a couple of crimson droplets fell down from his knuckles upon hearing the little screeching shouts of the boy he loved and adored so much, crying his heart out for his deceased parents.
It reminded him of the time he had screamed the same way in Kagami's arms, pleading him with all his heart to just let him have one last look at his deceased mother…
His wish hadn't been granted in the end…
Everyone started gathering around Mito and Nawaki, consoling the two crying ones or the stone-still Tsunade who was yet to show any signs of life on her face.
Naruto didn't quite know how long he stood there, or if he was standing alone or with someone for that matter.
His mind had just turned into a state of oblivion, and the only thing his mind registered was the soft sobbing sounds that came up front while he stared on lifelessly at the newly dug headstones in the graves which became the only signs of their existence like many others before them.
His mother being one of them.
Several dark thoughts ran through his mind, the mindless bloodshed he had witnessed a few days being one of them.
How fragile the human life really was? How much did it's sudden disappearance affect several others who were connected to them…
But most of all, why did they have to hurt her…?
...
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