Title: When Papa Comes Home
Rating: K+
Summary: When Sasuke comes home feverishly sick and injured, and Sarada finds herself caring for her dad during his vulnerability. (Implied SasuSaku)
Hello~~~ I know, it's been FOREVER since I've wrote anything. Truth is, I've written a couple one shots, but I trashed them at the end because they were awful. Well, don't worry guys, I'm not gone for good quite yet. And just so everyone knows, I am NOT a SasuSaku shipper. I simply LOVE Papa!Sasuke and I love Sarada and Boruto. Therefore, in order to achieve daddy-daughter moments between the two, I have to put Sakura in the picture. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy!
Quick note: It's late and I am super anxious to post this. If I do not post it now, I know it will not be up for DAYS due to my two demanding jobs. So please forgive any mistakes you may see. I will go back in and edit when I have time! Thanks ~S.U.G
Sarada could hear the clanging of metal from her mom's metal medical tray and the soft creaks of her parent's bed from behind the closed wooden door, which seemed to antagonize her as her worry and concern grew for her father. It was just passed nine, and the village grew particularly quiet during the night, which made it impossible for her keen senses not to detect the familiar chakra that flared outside of the house. She had leapt from her bed in eagerness as the front door opened, but could feel her heart race as the unmistakable smell of blood hit her nose. She could hear her mom rushing to him, and chose to cautiously peek around the corner instead.
Fear and confusion hit her as she saw her dad nearly collapsed into her mother's arms as she approached him at the door. Sarada examined him closely, tears pricking at her eyes as she could see large tears and gashes in his tattered cloak, some of them ripped through the layers of clothing down to the skin, which would be covered in crimson blood. He was bleeding in various areas, some of which Sarada could not locate the source. He struggled to stand, and as Sakura brushed the hair from his face, she could see the grime that caked his skin - a mixture of dried blood and dirt. Sarada could not help but wonder what was out there powerful enough to hurt her dad like this.
Her horrifying thoughts were disrupted by a quick snap from her mom. "Sarada, go into the kitchen and fill a large plastic bowl with hot water and grab some hand towels!" She ordered.
Sarada did not hesitate and rushed through the hallway to reach the kitchen. She whipped the faucet on and grabbed a bowl while she waited for the water to heat, listening to her parents as they noisily made their way to the bedroom. As the steaming water slowly filled the bowl, she could hear the clanging of her mom's metal medical tray, and she knew her father's condition was serious. She didn't bother turning the tap off and rushed back to her mother. She caught her right outside of the bedroom, and lifted the bowl up to set on the tray beside her mom's medical tools and medicines.
"I know you're worried, but I need you out so I can concentrate." Was all her mom said to her before she stepped into her bedroom and shut the door with her foot behind her. There was a loud thud as the door shut into place, and Sarada was left alone outside of the entrance to the bedroom.
She stared hard at the wood in front of her. She could hear her mom's voice muffled through the door, although impossible to make out the words, she could hear the concern in it. She had to strain to hear her dad's husky voice, which would be interrupted by hoarse coughing as he spoke, not that Sarada could hear what he was saying.
Minutes felt like hours to her as she worried about her father's condition. She didn't doubt her mother's medical skills, but she had never seen her dad in such bad shape before. She had always assumed he was too powerful to be injured. He seemed so strong whenever he came home from his missions.
Sarada's legs felt weak the more she thought about it, and she forced herself to sit in front of the door. Her thoughts drifted to Boruto. She wondered if he had ever seen his sensei like this before, or how we would deal with the situation. Was she being overly paranoid because it was her father? She could imagine Boruto crashing through the door regardless of orders to make sure his sensei was okay. After all, her teammate considered him to be like an uncle.
She looked up at the knob on the door. It wasn't locked. She could open the door whenever she wanted, although it would probably earn her a very long scolding from her mother. Still, she was very anxious about her dad's condition, and knowing the door was unlocked felt very tempting. Could her mom really blame her for that?
She shook her head and sighed. The last thing she wanted to do was distract her mother from taking care of her dad. She had to trust that she knew what she was doing. She was the best healer in the entire village after all. Her dad would be okay in her mother's hands.
Finally, after what seemed like ages, the door finally creaked open. Sarada leapt to her feet in anticipation as her mother slipped out through the crack. She gave a sigh of relief and wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead.
"Mama?" Sarada looked up at her with uncertainty. "Is Papa okay?"
She gave an exhausted smile and bent down to pat Sarada's head. "Papa is alright. He was hurt during a mission and got sick. He's all better now, but he still has a fever. He's resting now, so be quiet, alright?"
Sarada did not realize she was holding her breath until she sighed in relief. She watched her mother walk towards the bathroom, presumably to wash the blood off of her hands and freshen back up. She had spent the last forty minutes tending to her husband, and it was not hard for Sarada to tell she was already exhausted.
She glanced back at the door, which was now cracked open. She peeked through the entrance and found the room illuminated only by a dim light. She could barely make out the figure of her father in the bed, so she slipped through the doorway, careful to both not let the light from the other side in, and to not disturb her father.
She quietly approached the bed, her eyes beginning to adjust to the dimmer light. She could see her dad clearly now, and sighed in relief. Her mom had done well, as always. The grime that once coated his face was gone, his pale skin and relaxed features finally visible. There was not as much as a scar left, and Sarada assumed that beneath the blanket, all of the other injuries were gone as well. Now he slept peacefully in his bed, not a mark on his body. Now, a moderate fever was the only thing keeping him from perfect health. Sarada crawled up on the bed carefully beside her father, and gently placed her open palm on his forehead. He was warm to the touch, as she expected. She sighed sadly and sat beside him, glancing over the medical tray her mother left on the bedside table. The bowl of water she had brought no longed steamed, and beside it lay multiple bloody cloths. Disorganized metal tools told her they were used. She noted there were a couple of pills missing out of the bottles of medicine her mother used for injured patients.
Her gaze drifted back to her father again, and she noted how clammy his pale skin was. Taking a dry cloth, she used it to wipe some of the sweat away, comforting herself by knowing she could help her father as well. She regretted her thoughts she had the day before about wanting her Papa to come home as soon as possible no matter the reason why. If she knew he would have come home like this, she would never have wished such things. She once again wondered how Boruto would react to this situation as she wiped more sweat from her father's brow.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a low moan. She looked down to see her father's face contorted as if he were in pain. He let out what sounded like a pained whine and turned his head as his body began twitching. Sarada slowly shifted off of the bed. 'A dream?' She thought to herself. She made her way closer to the door, debating on whether she should leave or not. Her mother wasn't done washing up, but she wasn't even sure if she wanted Sarada in the room in the first place. She didn't have time to debate it however as her dad suddenly jerked in his sleep, muttering incoherently. It was obvious her father was not resting peacefully, but she was not sure if she should wake him up or not.
His breath suddenly hitched, and he tossed and turned in the blanket as feverish nightmares took hold of him. Sarada heard him whimper again, turning his head away from her as his breathing became heavier. His rustling and caused the blanket to fall to the floor. He visibly flinched and his face contorted again and he rolled his head again towards her. She slowly approached her father, her eyes gazed at him sorrowfully as she pained to comfort her dad through his feverish dreams.
She reached the side of the bed and watched her father grimace, his body trembling as cold sweat rolled down his face. She hesitantly reached out, gently taking hold of his outstretched hand and squeezing it gently. She felt her father jump, and then relax into the bed, breathing a soft sigh as his breath evened out. Sarada looked at him warmly and grabbed the white cloth again. She cleaned up the sweat one last time, and leaned in to give him a gentle kiss on the forehead. As she did, she heard the door creak open. Her mother was back.
She turned around to see her mom smiling lovingly at her. She walked in the room and patted Sarada's back and she turned to face her husband. "Thank you for taking care of him for me." She whispered with a smile. Sarada turned to the floor so her mother wouldn't see the happy tears coming out of her eyes as she beamed. Her wish had come true - her Papa was back, and he'd be alright. Her mom gently lead her to her side of the bed, and Sarada was more than willing to snuggle into bed beside her father, as her mother slipped in behind her. She pressed into her Papa's warmth and sighed heavily, as she drifted off into what she knew would be the best dreams she could ever have.
Papa came home.
End! That was SUPER sappy I know. Although I personally do not like SasuSaku, I am pro-Sasuke's happiness - so if he is happy, I'm happy! And I absolutely CANNOT get over Sasuke having a daughter! Besides, I love Sarada and Boruto. So I am willing to force myself to write SasuSaku in order to achieve a cute daddy-and-daughter oneshot.
I hope you enjoyed! Until next time~
~SasukeUchihasGuardian