Authors Notes 1) I don't own Naruto or its characters

2) Please review this story, as it is the first one I have written, feedback would greatly help me improve.

3) Constructive criticism is perfectly fine, compliments are also nice.

4) Thank you to my friend Alex for his help.

Thoughts in a Hospital Room

It was quiet. Even by the standards of hospital rooms, it was still quiet. The only noise came from the machines connected to the patient. There was the steady beep of the heart rate monitor as well as the continual hissing sound of respirator that was forcing air into the ninja's lungs, keeping him alive. The walls of the room were bare, as was the ceiling. The only hints of colour came from the single red rose which rested in a glass of water on the bedside table, and from the pink haired kunoichi who kept a vigil in the one chair in the room.

Haruno Sakura gazed at the man lying in the bed. It had been five years since Sasuke had fled to Orochimaru. Naruto had promised her, as she cried, that he would bring Sasuke back for her, but even he had failed. Now, five years later, he had indeed managed to return the Uchiha ninja to the village that he had fled from. However, looking at the remains of the one lying in the hospital bed, Sakura decided that it would be better if Sasuke had never returned.

The door to the room crept open and two figures stepped inside, quietly shutting it behind them. Looking at the new figures, Sakura managed a small smile to greet her teammate and the girl that he loved. "Hello Naruto, Hinata, what brings you here today?"

The blue-haired girl holding Naruto's hand answered quietly, although she did not stutter. While still shy, she had managed to gain some confidence over the years. "I came because both Naruto-kun and Neji ni-san say they respect and admire his determination," she spoke while glancing towards the one lying on the bed. "I may not know him well myself, but if both of them feel that way about him then, I am sure that he must indeed be a great person." She walked over to the bed and bent down to give the fallen warrior a kiss on the forehead. "I hope he wakes up and comes back to his friends soon."

Naruto fidgeted nervously. He was indeed more mature than he had been as a child, but he was still uncomfortable with both the quiet, and the seriousness of the situation. However, his worry for his friends easily won over his own feelings of awkwardness; and so here he was.

"How is he doing, Sakura-chan?"

"The doctors say that he has stabilized, and that he'll wake up at some point. After that they're going to need to wait and see how much movement he has before they can decide anything."

Naruto nodded grimly. He hadn't expected to hear anything better, but he had still hoped. "What about you, are you doing alright?"

"I don't know, Naruto. I'm so angry at myself. I spent all these years hoping that Sasuke would come back, and now that he has, I can't even bring myself to look at him. I hate him. I hate him, and I'll never forgive him for what he has done."

Naruto tried to think of something to add to that, but found nothing that would fit. Still, it was up to him to say something, so he grabbed the first phrase that came to mind. "I can't believe that he would actually try to kill you." As soon as the words left his mouth he grimaced. 'Oh that's just great man, way to pick the worst possible thing to say.'

Tears began to well up in the corners of Sakura's eyes. "No one did. When we heard he was in the area again, Tsunada assigned me to one of the search teams in the hopes I could talk him into surrendering. The scenario we expected was that he would just run off and leave my team alone, but she figured it was worth a shot. When I talked to him, he just laughed and powered up a chidori." The pink-haired teen now had tears running down her cheeks, but was still trying not to cry. Launching herself off the chair, she threw herself into her former teammate's arms.

Naruto gave a nervous glance to the side, uncertainty written across his face. Hinata merely gave a sad smile and a nod before backing away and quietly exiting the room. Tentatively wrapping his arms around her, he did his best to try and sooth his friend. "Don't cry, Sakura-chan. I know he's going to wake up, and everything will be okay."

"But it won't be, Naruto. I brushed his affection away all these years, dreaming of Sasuke. Then he does return, and he tries to kill me." Her entire body was shaking now, and Naruto could feel the tears soaking through the fabric on his shoulder. He was starting to panic. He had never seen Sakura so upset and he had no idea of how to calm her down. Sakura continued on, oblivious to her comforter's growing unease. "He threw himself at Sasuke, even though he knew he couldn't win. He did it on that stupid promise he made me as a child. He's going to hate me when he wakes up, Naruto. He'll hate me for not loving him, and for somehow making him love me. And," her voice cracked, the last words emerging as a pained whisper, "I'll never be able to change that now."

Naruto walked back to the bedside, placing Sakura back in her chair. He then knelt down beside her and looked into her eyes. "Sakura-chan, listen to me. When I got there, Sasuke told me to look him over before we fought, to see his handiwork. He had used a jutsu that is usually reserved for torture. It keeps you conscious no matter how much pain you are in, allowing them to be tortured beyond the limit of human endurance. I couldn't believe he was still alive after all Sasuke did to him. He smiled before I dispelled the jutsu. He told me, 'I never thought I'd buy her this much time.'"

At that, Naruto looked directly into Sakura's eyes and calmly stated, "He is going to wake up, and he will not hate you. No matter what happens, he will never hate you."

Naruto stood and left, leaving Sakura sitting beside the bed. Sitting beside the bed and holding the hand of Rock Lee.

This story was meant as a one-shot, although it can become multi chaptered if readers wish. Please let me know if you want me to continue.