A/N: Wrote this one a while back, it was supposed to be my first fic to upload, but i never did cause i was nervous, but then i sent in "The Story" and got a few nice reviews, and even a few story alerts for it. thanks guys! by the way, there WILL be a few more chapters for The Story, but itll take some time, that ones..."Complex"
i looked over this one a few times, to me there doesnt seem to be many errors, if you spot any, let me know ill fix it asap.
Summary: Naruto had finally returned Sasuke to Konoha, it was a complete success this time around. but such missions require a few sacrifices, and in this case, it was nearly Sasuke's life. Naruto is wandering around Konoha, an uneasy feeling in his heart. unable to shake this feeling he talks with his sensei about it, and eventually decides to visit Sasuke at the hospital, but somebody is there and they exchange a few words on his behalf, does Naruto find resolve to his dilemma?
Rated: T for Language
It's been a while, that it really has since I walked around Konoha like this...
It was a rather cloudy day, the sky was gray, but it showed no signs of rain, all the same it made the air chilly and unwelcome. Sort of reminded me of my days in the streets, Geez….
I kept my hands warm in my pockets, as I wandered aimlessly around Konoha a few times, passing some of the same buildings a few times over and over again, i had this feeling for a while now, I just had to shake this feeling. But I really didn't know what.
From the corner of my eye, I spied Sakura-chan's house. I wanted to knock on her door, maybe see if she wanted to get some ramen or something, but I decided against it without any debate. She was probably still at the hospital, either resting or with Sasuke…
Geez, Sasuke… you put up one hell of a fight a few months ago…
"I did it by the way…" I said to myself. I brought him back… yeah… He's back safe and sound, with Sakura-chan. But man, that fight… it will haunt me for years to come. I can still see his fire red eyes piercing my own, his dark skin and that… hands for wings shit… nasty…
"Naruto?" a familiar voice said behind me, shaking me from my personal thoughts.
I turned, but before I could see my follower, I knew who it was… that lazy tone is something you never forget. "Ah, Kakashi-sensei… how are ya?" I said trying to hide my gloomy mood.
"I've seen you pass by here three times now, its not like you to be like this… what's wrong?" he asked approaching me closer.
I didn't know what to say to him, what was wrong? Why am I acting all depressed? I really didn't know. And if I told him that, he would question more and more and bother me about it. "I... Don't know, really…" I said using one of my warmer hands to warm up my cold ear.
"Hmmm… Is it about Sasuke?" he asked without hesitation. I swear, sometimes he reads me like a book, cause when he said that, something sparked…
"Y-yeah, well, no… I dunno." I stuttered stupidly looking down.
"It is… it's written on your face." He said calming my trouble soul down a bit. "What you did, it was the only way to bring him back… and you made the right choice in doing so."
I snapped, "What the fuck!" I yelled surprising myself. "I nearly fucking killed him! Hell! He's still on the verge of death!" i yelled looking back up to him.
Maybe that's what was bothering me. A few months ago, that day that I would never forget, me and Sasuke fought… and he was winning. His sword in one hand, a Chidori in the other… if I had blocked either of them, then the other one would have gotten me…loosing was not an option, I had to end the fight quickly…
"Maybe I was better off just letting him go running off with those other guys! That way he wouldn't be breathing through a god damn tube!"
"Naruto!" he yelled firmly.
I zipped it right there, his voice had that, "Old man" tone, something you had to obey…
"Don't be so hard on yourself." He said lowering his tone. "If you let Sasuke go, he would have died."
What? "What?" I said repeating my thoughts.
"If you had let him g off with Hebi to hunt Itachi, then he would have undoubtedly found his brother. And in doing so, he would have been killed for sure."
He just called Sasuke weak, what the hell! "Are you saying he would have died because he was weak?"
"Are you saying you would have let his brother kill him?"
He had me there, I couldn't respond. he was right though, Itachi was no man to mess with, and if i had let Sasuke just go and get his revenge, rage and hate blinding him... he really would have lost...Damn Kakashi-sensei, he definitely had a way with words. "But," I stammered. "I didn't want to nearly kill him." I said choking on my words feeling a lump in my throat. "If he died from my hands, I would die there with him…"
It was the truth, sometimes I hated the guy, but I never wanted to kill him. If I did, then everything I stood for would be meaningless, and… I think I would go insane.
"Naruto… you need to calm down…" he said putting his hand on my shoulder.
Good god did he speak the truth. "Yeah, you're right… Sorry…" I turned around and walked the opposite direction breaking free of his hand without another word. I could still feel Kakashi-sensei's eyes piercing the back of my neck as I walked away. But I didn't pay to much mind to it, I was heading for the hospital. I think ill find my resolve in front of Sasuke.
-
Room 304… Room 304… I said mentally looking for the right room.
"303, and… 304… here we go." I said to myself stopping in front of the room.
I turned the doorknob slowly, I didn't want to disturb Sasuke in his sleep. The door made a rebellious screech as I opened it, damn old doors, Tsunade-baachan needs to get these fixed.
I expected to see the lights out when I walked in, but instead they were on. Weird…
I entered fully, and there, a bed with a Sasuke in it, and a Sakura-chan standing next to it, Beauty and everything, just like she always did… she turned to see me walk in she looked tired, I guess she was standing by his bedside throughout the night.
She was wearing a hospital gown, I thought she was fine to be discharged, but I was no medical ninja, so I didn't argue. She looked like she needed a few nights at the hospital anyway. "Naruto…" she said in her sweet voice.
"Hey, Sakura-chan…" I said greeting her and joining her next to Sasuke's bed.
We didn't say anything when I stood next to her, the air was thick and awkward. I focused myself on Sasuke, Tubes and all these, wires and stuff tagged to his body keeping his heartbeat in check. It disgusted me to see him like this, cause of me he was like this.
"Naruto…" Sakura-chan said finally breaking the long silence. "What happened?"
Her question was a mystery to me at first. But then it all fell into place, of course she wanted to know, she was knocked out cold during the battle, and stayed that way for a month and a half… and the rest was history, when she regained consciousness she spent all her time with this guy, almost never leaving him. i haven't really seen her since…
"What do you mean…Sakura-chan?" I said stupidly, trying to confirm her question.
"Sasuke-kun… what really happened to him?" she said not letting her eyes escape Sasuke.
"Well… umm…" I stuttered. I really didn't want to tell her, I was scared she would hate me if I told her, I was scared she might cry, I was scared she would start screaming at me… I didn't want to break her heart anymore than it already was… "Sakura-chan…he-"
"Kakashi-sensei visited me a few weeks ago. He told me he had to use Raikiri after you had kept him occupied in hand to hand combat… that's why he's in such critical condition right now…"
Why would Kakashi-sensei tell Sakura-chan that? did he tell her that lie to protect her from the truth? Or to protect me?
"I think he was lying to Me." she said shortly.
"What do you mean?"
"I remember Me, Sai, Yamato-taichou, Hinata and her team and especially Kakashi-sensei were in no condition to continue after we battled with Hebi… and that it was you and Sasuke-kun fighting viciously while we fought our own battles… after that, I don't remember anything else."
Sakura-chan… smart as always…
"Besides, Kakashi-sensei has a tendency to lie a lot…" she added
I was awed by how smart she was… I guess it was one of the things I liked about her.
I stuttered under my breath. What could I say? Should I tell her? But what if she gets angry or sad?
"Naruto… is what Kakashi-sensei told me the truth?" she said nearly demanding an answer.
I looked at her. "Y…. No…" I finally cracked, she deserved to know the truth. "Sakura-chan, it wasn't Kakashi-sensei who did this to Sasuke…"
She finally broke away from Sasuke and lifted her eyes to mine. Those beautiful green eyes, I can't put them into words how pretty they were. I melted in them… "The truth is," I wanted to add a pretty lie right there, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. She had to know… "It was me…" there I finally said it… what now? Will she cry? Will she kill me?
"Oh" she said simply and returned her pretty green eyes back to Sasuke, re-inspecting the wounds through out Sasuke's body.
"I had to Use, Fuuton Rasengan to stop him… that's why he's in this condition… that's why he's almost-"
"But, you said you wouldn't use that technique anymore… you told me you wouldn't… I even told you, when I was healing your arm, to not use it stupidly…" she said cutting me off in a different tone from before.
"Sakura-chan, listen to me, if I hadn't done it then-" I wanted to use Kakashi-sensei's logic but I didn't have a chance to.
"Do you know why I told you not to use it so much?" she said, a shaky tone in her voice.
I only looked at her, I was at a loss for words. I carefully looked at her, ready to memorize the words she was about to say to me.
"That technique…" she said sharply "I told you that, because I didn't want you to use it against Sasuke-kun…"
"What?"
"Did you really thing I cared about your damn arm?!" she said raising her voice. "Do you think I ENJOY healing you every God Damn time you get hurt badly?!"
"Sakura-chan…"
"Don't call me Sakura-chan… your still fucking annoying and stupid… just look at what you did to Sasuke-kun, you and that… that thing in you!" she said nearly screaming.
I stood there silently… I did what she told me, I looked at Sasuke, those tubes and wires on him… because of me… and the thing inside me?
"Because of you! I almost lost Sasuke-kun completely!" she screamed making two fists at her sides.
Because… of me?
"Get out… don't come back here again…" she said without any remorse…
I stood there, broken and destroyed… I left without another word, I closed the door behind me, behind it I could hear Sakura-cha…Sakura, crying… I knew it… she would cry… because of me…
I left the hospital shortly after… in front of the hospital, I really didn't know where to go. So I headed home…
-
I walked down the cold street, people on the sides taking cover from the falling rain… I guess I was wrong about the rain… like I was about using Rasengan…
It poured relentlessly, each bead of water hitting the back of my neck and shoulders, almost like the sky itself hated me, just like she hated me. But that wasn't all… it never is… the people… on the sides of the road. They whispered in hushed tones about me, apparently, they heard rumors about me and Sasuke… I didn't know if they were good ones or bad ones… no… they were bad ones, otherwise they wouldn't be trying to hide them from me…
I… I wanted to cry… in just one day, everybody basically turned their backs on me… that's why I didn't cry though, I knew this feeling. But what I did do, I ran… I ran from the whispers, I ran from the people, I ran from Konoha, I ran from Sakura … pretty soon, I wasn't anywhere near any of them… the only thing with me in the wet forest, a godamn beast, a fucking beast that has put me through nothing but misery and depression…
I fucking give up… there… I said it… I fucking give up…
thats it for this chapter. let me know what you think, positive flames welcome..
