Blank

"The drum is noisy, but is empty inside" – Barão de Itararé.

Sticks and stones never really hurt. Okay, maybe ached – momentarily. The fox would heal him and, then, his scar would disappear, as well as his muscles and bones would go back on active duty.

Words also didn't affect much. Even if Kyuubi no Youko couldn't heal his psychological, he did not encountered many problems to ignore people and their evil words. The truth was: even if he wanted to be acknowledged by all, he didn't know any of them. So, it didn't really hurt.

Naruto had no problems with pain – any type of it. This was probably the reason that he could keep going. He wasn't a good ninja, not at the beginning, at least. The only thing that made him good was his determination.

Part of his stubbornness and determination came from the desire to be better than Sasuke. And, really? It worked. Someone would have to be a fool to not notice that he had improved.

Kakashi-sensei noticed. Sakura-chan noticed. This made Naruto so happy. Initially, the lazy sensei wouldn't even glance at his direction (or would, with a bored eye), devoting all his time to the "prodigy" that was Uchiha Sasuke. Sakura, his small crush, was the annoying fangirl that stalked the raven-haired boy in all places he'd go – even when he was a bastard.

Knowing that both of them had recognized him warmed Naruto's inside. It might even that the blond was becoming as good as Sasuke-teme.

Naruto, however, learned the truth when he woke up at the hospital a few weeks later. A Chidori had passed through his chest, he knew it. The blond knew that he had lost, he knew that he broke a promise, he knew that he hadn't proved to Kakashi-sensei, Ero-sennin and Baa-chan that he was as good as the bastard prodigy.

And this wasn't the worst. No. The worst thing was that this time, it was hurting. Hurting so much. Too much. Not even Kyuubi could heal him, or his determination to keep going and believing. Not when the reason of both things was gone.

And it only left a blank.

Naruto had finally discovered what hurt.