Last time:

"By the time we reach Naruto it could be too late. If we get there and he is already too sick to turn the tables around and get better, we'd have signed his death warrant. I say we go in, and get what we came for" He started pacing again. Something he did when he was thinking. Said his body was like a machine, in that if it stood still it wasn't producing anything.

"It's not worth it" I was furious that Sai would even say such a thing, but he quickly corrected himself "Not in and of itself. Just to get some medicine would be a waste of bloody time. One person's life versus three. It would be a waste. Like Sasuke says, it's not worth it… However "We listened while he spoke once again "If we were to get more than just the medicine, then maybe… We'd all benefit. You've told me countless times about how tiresome it is to make gauze out of old clothing" He pointed to Sasuke "And you" he said as he turned to me "You said you've always wanted to learn more about the medical field. Maybe now you can. We could go searching for books on the matters. What do you say? Are you in?"

So once again, we stood with our hands in our pockets, contemplating on what to do.

A heavy silence coated the room, as it had done so many times before. We had somebody else's life in our hands now. The stakes were higher, but the reward was greater.

And so, while the snow started falling we came to a decision.

"We leave at dawn"

And now…

We had been walking for hours before we finally reached our destination. The tall building stood before us, towering us with its existence. Its white facade shining in the morning sun. Its huge windows no longer see through.

True to our words, we had set out at dawn, prepared to get what we had come for. The snow had fallen considerably during the night, so much so that it had been a challenge to open the door to the shed this morning. But with a little extra effort it had swung open.

Thanks to the cold weather, zombies actually preferred the outdoors temperature. It had dropped just below zero last night according to the thermometer we had installed last time we had visited the shed. Because of this it had been a challenge moving around without attracting too much attention.

Luckily we had all brought two or more weapons each to ensure that if the ammo were to run out, we had a backup. Around the hospital however, it was quiet. Too quiet. Eerily so. It was as if they were waiting to attack like that had done so many other times. But nothing came.

"Alright" Sai broke the silence "Do we know the general layabout? Where the infirmary is located? The labs? The OR:S?" I shook my head. I had no idea at all.

"I know where all of the public areas are though. And the ICU. It's on the second floor." They didn't bother asking how I knew. They just went along with it.

"Maybe we should wing it?" Joking at a time like this wasn't a particularly good idea from Sai's part. While I was busy reloading and checking my ammo, the others went their own separate ways to check out points of ingress and egress. There are usually boards up in the front lobby. Directions or whatnot.

"We need to see her. She should be somewhere around here!" He grabbed my arm, playing the part of concerned husband all too well. But I could feel his hand gripping tighter around my limb. And it hurt too.

"Sir I am really sorry but right now is not a good ti-" Clint slammed his closed fist straight into the counter. He was demanding to see her. I didn't care. I just kept staring into space.

My mother was in here, and it was all his fault.

"Saki! Saki! I think we might have found something!" Sasuke's voice snapped me out of my memories. Memories of a broken childhood. Of a monster.

My feet started moving before my brain could even register where I was heading. I just followed his voice to a small entrance off the side of the building.

"Do you think we'll be able to get through here? I bet there's an alarm or something. You know I don't do great with alarms." Sai tinkered a little bit with the circuit board before pulling out a screwdriver. He jammed it in between the wall and the pad and gave it a hard knock. It came off easier than he anticipated because in the moment he was clutching his hand.

"Fuck!" I didn't hear him curse all that often. He usually only did it when it was absolutely necessary. "That hurt a lot. So, now that the alarm is gone, how about we go inside?"

"Let's go. Saki, you're in the rear, I'll take the front. Sai you cover the sides. Clear?" Before long we found ourselves walking through the door into a deadzone. There was nothing there. It was so quiet, I could hear my own heart beating. Though to be fair I could have sworn the others heard it too.

The only thing that could be heard was the occasional shuffle of feet through the dirty and ruined floor. Pieces of the ceiling was scattered all over, and the plants had all but rotted in their pots. And while you could smell the rotten flesh all over, no walkers could be seen at all. It's as if they'd vanished into thin air.

I was stumped. Sasuke knew better. He was cautious. Making every move as if though someone was watching. It didn't take long to find an elevator, but since there was no power, it was useless. We had to take the stairs.

The stairs were made out of a shiny kind of stone. Well at least it used to be when I was here the last time. Now they were so broken and dirty I started to question whether or not it had all been my imagination.

We steadily climbed the stairs, careful not to miss a step, or God forbid; break it even further. Of course there is always that possibility that no matter how careful you are, you get thrown an unlucky card.

One moment my foot stood steady on the step, the next it didn't. And I fell straight through the flooring. Thanks to Sai's quick reflexes, he managed to grab ahold of me fast enough. I was thanking some God I didn't believe in right now.

"Help me pull her up." Sasuke grabbed my other arm, and with a gathered force I was standing again. After some brushing off, and checking for injuries we charged ahead.

"Are you sure you're not already pregnant? You're getting to be really heavy." I slapped him, quite hard I might add. It could surely be heard from a mile away.

"Are you serious? Keep it down! We don't wanna get caught in some shitstorm. They could be lurking around every fucking corner and you're bickering. I told both of you this is a really stupid idea." Of course, he was right. In hindsight this may have been one of the stupidest ideas I had had in a long time. But the payoff was worth taking the risk.

Along the corridors we saw the hospital rooms. They were all barred up. No wonder there were no zombies around. They were all locked in there, just rotting. I almost crawled out of my skin when one of those fuckers threw themselves at the window. Luckily I wasn't the only one.

I could feel that both of them wanted to turn around and get as far away from this place as possible. But they both pressed on. With the passing time, I realized that they were not staying for Naruto's sake. They were staying because of me. Because they trusted me.

"Honey… are you alright? I'm so sorry. I never meant for this to happen. I just lost my temper, I promise I'll be better next time. I promise honey!"

I couldn't stop thinking about it. About what had happened before all of this. If I had just stood up to him more often, would my mother be dead? Or would we have survived? Nowadays it felt as if I was simply surviving. I wasn't living at all. Of course there was Sasuke, and my friends. But something was missing.

Some key part of my life. Something more.

Two minutes. Two minutes we spent in silence, walking from open door to open door looking for something. But it was in the hall that we found salvation.

"Look. Crash Cart! They leave them unlocked for emergencies!" I ran ahead, but failed to see how this might have been some kind of trap. And sure enough, the moment I put my foot around the corner…

Someone stepped into my way.

With a gun pointed straight at me.

"Don't move… You two" The person gestured towards Sasuke and Sai. "Throw your weapons over there. NOW!" They did as told… Because they knew the consequences if they didn't.

Wild animal, is the only thing I could think of while looking into that person's eyes.

Well… I guess there is only one thing left to say.

Welcome to the jungle.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Well, not the longest chapter I've written, but I did have a reason to end it so soon. Next chapter will hopefully be out next week or the week after that.

As always, thanks for your feedback, it means a lot to me! Don't be shy, drop a favorite and leave a review :) It's always appreciated.

Until next time, JA NE XD