Obviously Naruto doesn't belong to me, so please don't eat me! Read and rate please. Eventually, it will have more Naruto characters in it, I promise.
Like a Flame, Hope Shines Brightest in the Darkness
Day 1
Naruto wasn't thinking about Sakura as he walked through the nearly empty hospital halls. He wanted to be gone from this quiet place as soon as he possibly could because, much as the teen hated to admit it, the place creeped him out. Still, he smiled and forced himself to go on, through the double doors and towards the large desk at the very end of the hall. Nervously, he ran a hand through his shoulder length blond curls.
He approached the desk and said cheerfully to a nurse, "I'm here as the new part-time volunteer on the order of Tsunade-sama."
The woman nodded and called out for Iruka, who emerged moments later from one of the many doors marked 'staff only'. The older man with short brown hair and a scar across his nose smiled ever so politely and offered Naruto a seat in one of the chairs in the waiting area just left of the desk. Iruka had this job for no better reason than that he liked people and enjoyed helping. He wore a typical medic's uniform.
Swallowing back nervousness, Naruto took a seat on one of the plastic chairs and looked at Iruka with simple sincerity written all over his face. Naruto was dressed in a pair of black jeans and an orange shirt that seemed to somehow match his golden hair. Eyes as blue as the sky, seemed to be perpetually smiling as he licked his lips and smiled uncertainly.
"I take it the hokage told you to come," Iruka said after a moment.
Naruto nodded and replied, "Yeah, she insisted. Because of him, I guess."
At nearly seventeen, Naruto was no child. He had grown used to being treated funny by adults, and while his dreams had not abated, he understood more now than he had as a child. He still wanted to be the leader of the leaf village when he grew up, but now he wanted to do so because he loved its people and because he had learned to forgive rather than hold grudges.
"I have to ask this, Naruto, but are you sure about this?" Iruka asked. "I know that he was your friend before, but things have changed since those days. He has changed"
Naruto slipped his hands into his pockets and stood up. "I'm sure, more than ever now. Sakura was very adamant that she wouldn't come, and maybe she was right. Maybe sensei was right. I don't know. All I know for sure is that I can't just ignore the fact that Sasuke is back. Nor can I simply abandon him after going to such lengths to find him!"
"A lot has happened, as you can probably guess," Iruka said. "First, thus far, he hasn't spoken, so don't expect much there. As well, it has been decided by the counsil that should he fell up to an explanation, he will not be judged."
Naruto nodded. "I've been informed."
"Then come with me," Iruka said quietly.
Together, the two made their way further into the hospital, to the more heavily guarded wing of the building. Like most hospitals, this one was divided into different wards, and they were heading straight for the one where the worst of the worst were held. Several shinobi stood guard around that part of the facility day and night, and Naruto couldn't help but frown more when he saw them. He had no illusions about Sasuke, but at the same time, he remembered the thirteen year old boy when neither of them were that young anymore.
After five minutes worth of brisk walking, Iruka stopped and pointed to a door on his right. Naruto saw the number hanging neatly beside the thick, heavy door itself. Stepping close to the bulletproof window, he looked inside, both terrified and exhilarated. Iruka stepped back to give the younger boy some privacy and because he wanted to speak to the guards. Naruto could take care of himself, but his teacher would rather not have any excess trouble.
Sasuke lay on a rather comfortable bed, dark hair spilling all over the pillow. A blue blindfold covered his eyes and he was restrained with a straightjacket, and he looked like it really bothered him. He kept struggling against the tough fabric and writhing on the bed. Considering his legs were handcuffed to the base of the bed, the struggles were useless. Sasuke wore only a pair of gray, hospital pants and his blanket lay on the floor by the bed in a tangled mess.
"Can I go in?" Naruto asked softly.
"Sure," the doctor replied, unlocking the door. "You have an hour."
Quietly as he could, Naruto opened the door and slipped inside. For a moment, he just stood there, hands still on the doorframe, watching Sasuke. The black-haired young man had bee nscreaming before, but hearing someone enter, he stopped, knowing with some certainty who the visitor actually was. After a few moments, Naruto shook is head, clearing it, and stepped closer to his friend. He knelt by the bed, biting his lip a little uncertainly, and watched Sasuke for a moment.
"Hi," he said after a few moments of silence. "It's Naruto."
Sasuke remained silent, just as Naruto had expected. He'd been briefed before coming to the hospital, so he had no unfair expectations towards what would happen, but still he felt the need to come. Swallowing his own terror, Naruto sat down on the bed before Sasuke and picked up the blanket. Gently, he draped it over the other teen. Whereas Naruto looked strong and healthy, Sasuke looked like a malnourished, pale ghost of a person.
"And now that I'm here, I have nothing to say," Naruto said with a nervous laugh.
"Sorry…" Sasuke whispered.
Blinking in surprise, Naruto asked, "Don't be, on any account. The past cannot be changed."
Sasuke nodded once and sank back into the pillow. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
Naruto nodded, then said, "Yeah, it has. Four years is quite a bit of time to be away"
He wanted to say more, but what good would it do now? Sakura has already shed all her tears and moved on. The rest of ninja from the same year had moved on to become the best of the best, including Naruto. Life kept right on going even when Sasuke had been away, and even now it was still moving past them all. Biting his lips, Naruto thought about the past and knew for a fact that things would never be the same.
"Will you stay now?" Naruto asked.
"Hai," Sasuke replied. "Living in the past is terrible."
Naruto raised an eyebrow and asked, "What do you mean by that?"
Sasuke replied slowly, "What happened in those four years was terrible, and in the end, nothing was accomplished."
"Power tends to do that from what I've seen, but this is no different from what happened between the great Three. The only difference is that you came back where the snake did not." Naruto reached out and took off Sasuke blindfold. "If you want to talk, I'll listen."
The raven-haired boy nodded and smiled a little, obviously sleepy. "Tomorrow, will you come back?"
And Naruto replied, "Yeah, I will."
As soon as he left, Sasuke closed his eyes and slept peacefully for the first time in weeks.