Window, a naruto fanfic

Window

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters portrayed in this piece of fanfiction. Thank you.

For CentennialSky, avid Sasuke-fangirl (for some unearthly reason of which my Anti-Sasuke brain can't comprehend) and dear friend.
You know I can't grant all your wishes.

"Ohayo, Sasuke-kun!" The door slid open seamlessly as Haruno Sakura stepped through the doorway, clipboard clenched under one arm against her side. In her hands she steadily held a tray carrying two pills and a glass of water. The occupant in the bed tilted his head towards her, but made no other acknowledgement. Placing the tray on his bedside table, Sakura drew out a pen from the front pocket of her white uniform and sat on the edge of his bed, clipboard on her lap.

"Are you feeling any better?" She asked. "Do your eyes still hurt?"

Sasuke lifted his hand and traced the familiar contours of her face, letting his fingers stroke the soft skin of her cheek. "Not as much as…" He stopped and his eyebrows knit together as he felt a thin scar about two inches above her jaw line.

"It's nothing to worry about," Sakura answered for him, placing her hand on his. "I was visiting the academy yesterday and a kid threw a stray shuriken while I wasn't paying attention. I'm fine; it'll heal in two or three days." She was touched by how much he cared for her. If this had been six years ago, neither of them would have even been in this situation. Brushing a rose-colored lock away from her eyes and tucking it behind her ear, the young woman remembered the events that led to this moment in time.

"You asked for me, Tsunade-sama?" A sixteen-year-old Sakura closed the door quietly and turned to face her mentor, the Godaime Hokage. Tsunade nodded and flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder, gesturing for the kunoichi to sit down.

"Did something happen?" Sakura asked, and Tsunade nodded. "Is it serious? What happened?"

"It's about Uzumaki Naruto," The Hokage began, and her protégé's eyes widened. "Please wait until I finish speaking, Sakura." Tsunade said as Sakura's mouth opened. "Naruto has returned to Konoha once again…and he's brought Uchiha Sasuke. They are both alive, but…"

"…But?"

"But I'm afraid that Sasuke is in a deep comatose state. Even I cannot bring him out of it. Chances are slim that he will ever revive, and even if he does, he'll be severely handicapped for the rest of his life. Would you still like to see him?"

Sakura nodded mutely. Tsunade sighed. "Follow me, Sakura. I will take you to him, but you will not like what you see."

He was thin…horribly thin. Hooked up to countless different tubes and devices, there was little of him that seemed human at all. Most of his face was swathed in yellowed bandages, and what wasn't covered was either bruised a livid greenish-purple tint or stitched together with stiff, black thread. A wet towel was placed over his eyes, splattered with the faintest traces of blood. Sakura suddenly felt slightly nauseous.

"What happened to him?" She whispered hoarsely.

"We don't know any details," said Tsunade, placing a hand on her shoulder and squeezing it gently. "But through what Naruto told me, he was little better than this when they found him. There was no resistance at all at the mention of bringing him back to Konoha. We've managed to clean up most of it; he's just come out of the Intensive Care Unit. Though he'll eventually recover, there's a chance that he'll never wake up."

"Do Naruto and Kakashi-sensei know?" asked Sakura, and Tsunade shook her head.

"Kakashi's on a mission and won't be back for several weeks, at best. As for Naruto…I'm not sure where he's gone off to. He was gone right after we had put Sasuke in ICU."

"Oh."

"Were you hoping to talk to him?"

"No, no, I think…I just want to stay with him for a little while. Is that alright?"

"Of course, but you'll alert us if there's any change in his physical or mental state."

Sakura nodded, licking her lips, which had suddenly become very dry. "I'll tell you." She agreed.

"Sakura?"

He had noticed her lack of response. During the time they had spent together, he had learned to interpret her mood and movement.

"I was just remembering…" Absently, she brushes his bangs away from his eyes. A lot had changed in the last two years. The stitches had been removed. The bandages were eventually unwrapped. Most of the scars had faded. The pain had remained.

"Anyway," She said, allowing herself to come back to reality. "It's a nice day. Do you want me to open the windows?" He nodded with the barest tilt of his head, and she smiled, straightening up and going to the window, throwing open the curtains and letting the spring sunshine send dancing sun-shadows onto the opposite wall. "It's nice, isn't it?" She asked, glancing back at him.

"Sakura…"

"Yes?" replied said kunoichi.

"I can't see it, you know." Her smile faltered for the briefest moment.

"…I know." She answers, looking down. "But…Sasuke-kun?" Walking back to his bedside, she bent down and pressed her lips to his forehead. "It doesn't matter to me. It doesn't matter to me at all. I'll be your eyes."

Fin

I honestly have no idea why I decided to end it right there, but I did, so...neh. Anyway, I wrote this as a gift for one of my best friends, Alli-san (Allison, Alli-san...hah, get it?), who asked that I write a SasuSaku which doesn't involve Sasuke dying. Quite hard to do, but I managed it...I guess. But I couldn't resist putting him in mortal danger. And rendering him blind. And confining him to a hospital bed for the rest of his life (Don't worry, Alli; his Neutrogena-commerically-smooth skin is intact). ...Which is going to be difficult if he and Sakura decide to make babies. Ahem. Let's move on, shall we?

Originally, there was a section about Sasuke talking about how Sakura was the sunshine in his life, but I cut that out because not only was the dialogue really sappy and out of character, but it made me think that Sasuke took drugs. So Sasuke does not utter the word at all now.

So I hope I made Alli happy, as well as any of you chaps who happened to stumble upon this small trifle.

Love it? Hate it? I'll never know unless you review!