So yeah, I watched the recent episode on Toonami (7/28). It was so sad. ;; I swear, I almost cried when Tsunade broke the news to Rock Lee and Guy-sensei. It only makes me wonder if Lee will go through with that operation or if he'll continue the way he is, working hard to make up for it. :/
Oh well. This is a one-shot. I might continue it, I dunno. Probably not, seeing as the ending's too .. weird to continue with. XP Anyways, enjoy
It was another normal day for the Konoha Village. Every Shinobi was training to the fullest in order to become stronger for the swarm of new missions. Ever since the 4th Hokage had passed away, more and more Shinobi have been dying during their missions, thus creating a problem for the low number of Shinobi remaining. They needed a new Hokage, and it was Naruto's mission to search for Lady Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sanin.
Naruto returned months after searching for Lady Tsunade, with another Legendary Sanin named Jiraiya. The two went through countless towns searching for the woman and found it rather hard getting her to accompany them back to the Konoha Village. Once she finally agreed not only to become Hokage of the village, but to also perform a healing technique on three fallen Shinobi of the Konoha Village, Naruto was more than happy to lead the way back home.
With the Hokage now making her first entrance into the Konoha village after many long years of being separated from it, Lady Tsunade and her apprentice, Shizune, made their way into the meeting room with the Elders. Naruto, now making his way up the countless stairs towards the Hokage's room, is searching for Tsunade to remind her of her promise to help his friends.
"Lee-kun? Lee-kun, are you in here?" a rather curious voice called. Saiyura, a Shinobi of the Konoha Village and Rock Lee's best friend, poked her head into his room to see if he was laying down to rest. To her surprise, he was up and about somewhere inside the Medical House. Her curiosity now more piqued than ever, she left the room in search of him.
Sasuke …, Sakura bellowed in her mind. She stared at the near dead Shinobi with hurt in her eyes. Tears began to well up in them, but she quickly shook her head. No ninja should have to resort to this, she thought again. It's too unbearable. However, despite her tried efforts, the tears began to slowly creep their way down her cheeks.
"You're lying, Naruto!!" Konohamaru cried, running out of the room and down the swirl of stairs. "There's no way she's the 5th Hokage!" He disappeared beyond the corner and made his way down to the streets of the Village, leaving a dumbfounded Naruto alone. Soon, Lady Tsunade walked past him, babbling on about rest and a cup of tea to her accomplice, Shizune. Naruto immediately recognized her and stopped her in her tracks.
"Hold it right there, Grandma Tsunade! You still have to fulfill your promise!" he screeched, obviously agitated.
Tsunade stared at him, not knowing exactly what he was talking about. "Oh, that's right. I have to go help your friends, don't I? Guess I forgot," she remarked snidely. With that, she continued to walk along her way, and called out to the Orange Ninja, "Well, c'mon. I'm not gonna be waiting all day, you know." Naruto beamed with pride and ran ahead of the new Hokage, sure to lead her towards the Medical House.
Saiyura walked along the corridors, keeping sure to be quiet with her steps as other patients were sleeping. She found a door that was open and peeked inside out of curiosity. Kakashi-sensei lay in the hospital bed, definitely in pain. She looked at him with sympathy then closed her eyes for a small prayer, only to turn and walk away from the room shortly after.
"Hey, Sakura! Look! I brought Lady Tsunade! She's gonna make everything better," Naruto cried happily as he walked into the room containing the kunoichi and ninja. Sakura looked up swiftly after wiping away the tears in her eyes and stared at the Sanin.
She's beautiful, Sakura thought.
Tsunade smiled at the girl and walked over to the bedside of Sasuke. A vase of flowers caught her attention and her smile faded. Those flowers are far more than a day old. She's been here longer than just today, she pondered. Casting a glance towards Sakura, she noticed that her eyes, as well as her heart, were only fixed on Sasuke. Tsunade smiled once more and placed her hand on Sasuke's forehead. A light consisting of Chakra surrounded the Sanin's hand and remained for only a few seconds. Soon, the hopeful eyes of the ninja around burst with color and happiness as Sasuke began to slightly move around.
He opened his eyes slowly and squinted as they adjusted to the lighting. Finding the strength to sit up, he removed the blankets from him and placed his elbows on his knees. Looking around, he saw smiles on every face, especially Sakura's. Before he knew it, she was already engulfing him in a tight embrace, her eyes bursting with tears and her cries filled with ecstatic happiness.
Naruto's eyes softened, and he turned to walk out of the room. Once out, he stuck his finger back in and beckoned for Tsunade and Shizune to follow him. "You've still got two others to work on, Grandma Tsunade."
"Lee-kun!" Saiyura called, an unbound pleasure rising in her voice. She ran to him and smiled brightly at her accomplishment. "Lee-kun, I'm so happy I found you. I've got great news." Rock Lee didn't really pay any mind to her, it was off elsewhere. However, he flinched and looked into her eyes when he felt warmth on his hand as she clasped her own around it. "Lee-kun, Lady Tsunade has come. She's going to help you, Lee-kun. She's going to make you feel better. …Huh? Lee-kun, what is it?"
Rock Lee, after hearing those words, turned his face away from her and looked to the ground. He felt ashamed to be in this predicament – unable to fight to his fullest and complete his dream of being the greatest Taijutsu Master in the world. He could feel his pride slowly slipping away, and he had to find some way to bring it back to its rightful place.
"I do not need her, Saiyura-chan," he answered indifferently. "I am fine the way I am. I can fight just as well as any other Shinobi in the Konoha Village." His eyes twittered with loss and failure, and Saiyura took pity.
"Lee-kun ... It is true that you can train, but without your leg, you can't complete a mission. The Shinobi here have to accomplish these missions or else we'll be considered a weak Village. Do you really want to put your family and friends in danger like that…?" Saiyura squeezed his hand and shifted herself so she was looking at him in the face. "Please, Lee-kun … Please, let Lady Tsunade try to help you."
"Lee! There you are. How's it lookin', my boy?" an overly friendly voice called. The two turned to see Guy-sensei, though neither broke a smile. Accompanied with him were Lady Tsunade, Shizune and Naruto. "We brought Lady Tsunade here, so you'll be fixed up in no time!"
"Naruto, don't you have somewhere to be?" Tsunade questioned after looking at Rock Lee peculiarly.
"Oh, yeah! I forgot - I've got to meet Iruka-sensei by the ramen shop! I'll see you guys later. Take care, Lee!" Naruto cried, fleeing from the scene to his destination.
Tsunade looked at Rock Lee again. Up and down, she inspected his current situation with short flickering movements of her eyes. This doesn't look good, she thought to herself. Saiyura tightened her grip on Rock Lee's hand and cast a fearful glance towards him. He didn't look at the Hokage, only stared at the ground with unimaginable hurt in his eyes.
Removing her hand from the bare back of the Taijutsu Genin, Tsunade stared at the back of his head sensing his hurt pollute the air around him. Softly, she replied, "No one will hate you from retiring as a Shinobi." The eyes of Guy-sensei, Saiyura and Rock Lee widened with fear. "It's an understandable fate."
"Wait, you're joking right? You're just playing a trick on us, right Lady Tsunade?" Guy-sensei asked hastily. He swallowed hard and continued. "You aren't the real Lady Tsunade. You're just a fake! Don't believe anything she says, Lee! Don't believe her!"
"I understand your hurt, Guy-sensei," Tsunade replied coolly. "But I'm telling the truth. His spine has too many fractures within it that it's even hard to believe he's able to move around. He is very strong, yes, but that won't save him from any sort of operation."
Saiyura felt her knees grow weak. She sharply took in a shallow breath and stared at the Legendary Sanin. Surely, she jests? There was no way Rock Lee was going to give up his dream that easily. He had been fine up until now – until Lady Tsunade gives her unruly report of him having to stop being what he wants to be.
"No, you're lying!" Saiyura cried, pain bellowing through the depths of her throat. "Stop shouting about these false accusations! Lee-kun is strong; he can deal with any sort of operation. Don't say he has to give up because he doesn't! He can still go on being a Shinobi; he just has to have that operation!"
"The chances of the operation going along fine are fifty-fifty. There is a chance he could come out all right, but even with my techniques and knowledge of this operation, I don't know if I could perform it correctly. Thus, the boy dies," Tsunade inquired.
She lost it. Saiyura fell to her knees and hugged herself, crying out in pain and disgust. She couldn't help to hear those words. They were forbidden to her mind and heart; forbidden to the world itself. Those words didn't deserve to exist.
"Lady Tsunade, surely there's something else you can do--!" Guy-sensei began to retort, but Shizune laid a hand on his shoulder causing him to retaliate.
"I'm sorry, but that's all I can afford," she replied.
Rock Lee slowly put the torso of his jumpsuit back on and stood up, grabbed his crutch, and began to walk out of the room. As he limped, Saiyura lifted her head to watch him, then stood as well and followed him out the door. The two slowly made their way down the hall towards the exit of the Medical House, neither saying a word to each other. The only sound that broke the silence was the click of the crutch and the sniffling Saiyura tried to contain. She rubbed her nose with her sleeve and took her glasses off to clean them, then looked at Rock Lee who had stopped in the middle of the hall.
"Saiyura-chan," he called gently.
"…Yes, Lee-kun?" she answered, walking beside him and glancing up at his face.
His eyes were closed and his face was stern. He lifted his head from its hanging position and looked at the door ahead of him. "No matter what, I will always be a Taijutsu Specialist, and someday, the world's greatest Taijutsu Master. There is nothing that will stand in my way." He turned his body to look at her with a face full of pride and happiness. "This is just another obstacle I must accomplish in order to fulfill my duty as a distinct follower in the Taijutsu ways."
Saiyura looked at him with awe. The terrible news had just been broken to him, yet he still had the same determination as he always had. Now, more than ever, it seemed as though his determination was never going to fade, and she felt like she needed to help him. So, with a smile on her face and an understanding nod, she ordered,
"Give me 500 laps around the Village, Lee-kun."