Until The Day After Forever – Chapter 2: Kind of Busy

A/N: Wow, it has been a long time since the first chapter was posted. But fear not, this wasn't just some random part one of a fic that will never be written, because I'm writing it. I am literally in the process of writing more of this fic now. I have just been very busy lately. My main fic is very, very, very nearly finished (like, as of the original post date of this chapter, I have only one more chapter and the epilogue to write) so I'm starting to think more seriously on this fic. I am pretty sure it won't be as long as 'The Greatest Thing You'll Ever Learn', but it's going to be over fifty thousand words, if everything goes according to plan. And yes, there is a plan. I like to plan. I planned out TGTYEL, and I have planned out this fic, and I will plan out whatever future fics I write because that's just how my creative process works. But yeah, I'm not going to even predict an update schedule because my life is incredibly unpredictable at the moment, but I doubt there will be any updates until August. I need to finish TGTYEL before I can think about polishing up chapter three, and then I can start on this seriously. I am, however, working throughout all of August, so I will write when I can. Work, as I'm sure you know, is tiring and at times stressful, which is not conducive to writing. Then I'm back to school for my final year in September, when all hell breaks loose and I have even more shit to do that I do normally. So yeah, no update schedule for a while, because I'm lazy and busy, no matter how much of a paradox that may be. Anyway, song of the chapter is 'Telephone' by Lady GaGa. Somehow.

This is thinking/dreaming.

"Anything in italics and quotes is written stuff."

This is regular story.

This is author's note.

This is title.

Warnings: Nothing, really to warn you for here. No sex, no real language warnings – though I suppose I should warn you about my British spellings and my occasional British swearing, because I prefer 'bloody hell' over a lot of other profanities. So yeah, if the characters go all British of a sudden, it's my fault.

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of Masashi Kishimoto, I have no affiliation or claim to the anime, manga or any associated products, and I make no money from this fanfiction. As per the agreement I clicked on upon uploading this story, I can't claim anything bla bla bla you know the drill, I'm sure.

oO..Oo..oO..Oo

Stop calling, stop calling

I don't wanna think anymore

I left my head and my heart on the dance floor

Stop calling, stop calling

I don't wanna talk anymore

I left my head and my heart on the dance floor.

oO..Oo..oO..Oo

The length of the corridor seemed to inexplicably and exponentially shorten, the door to the Hokage's office coming closer and closer. I virtually marched the whole way there in an immature attempt to stay ahead of Kakashi, but no matter how quickly I walked he managed to keep up while maintaining an infuriatingly casual gait, shoulders slumped and hands in pockets. I fixed my eyes on the door.

I reached it first, much to my childish pleasure. Before I could raise a fist to knock, it swung inwards, revealing the Hokage, eyes narrowed and a sour expression painting her face. My stomach instantly dropped; whatever she wanted us for, it couldn't be good.

"You're both here? Both in one piece? Good," she said briskly. She turned on her heel and walked further into the room, striding towards a door set in one of the side walls. Her fist collided with it three times, each very loud bang making me wince. "What I'm about to reveal is classified as well as highly sensitive, so I expect appropriate behaviour from both of you. Naruto!"

I frowned at her implications; we weren't children. But I didn't say anything. I wasn't about to argue back, partly out of respect, partly out of a desire to get home as soon as possible. I could feel my head begin to throb. I inwardly groaned at the oncoming headache; yet another irritation to deal with.

"Yeah?" a familiar voice replied. My ears perked up; Naruto was back?

"Get out here now, brat!" Tsunade yelled, banging on the door again.

"I'm not leaving him!"

One of my eyebrows rose; leave who? What was behind that door? I stepped forward again, moving closer to the door in the hopes of hearing something, anything that might give me a clue. I couldn't help but feel happier, more alive again knowing Naruto was back. That was just a part of what he did when he was around; it was almost impossible to be gloomy in his presence.

Then I reminded myself that the reason I was in this office with a yelling Hokage, a silently bored Kakashi and a mysterious door probably wasn't anything to be happy about. My spirits dropped a little.

"That's an order from your Hokage!" Tsunade ordered, still rapping on the door. "I want you to speak to Kakashi and Iruka!"

"Kakashi-sensei and Iruka-sensei are here? Why don't you just send them in?" The door cracked open, and Naruto's head appeared around it. Tousled blond hair and bright blue eyes greeted me, a wide grin splitting his face, though I didn't miss the tell-tale signs of tiredness around his eyes.

"You know why, and you could explain it if you came out here! He's not going to die if you leave him for two seconds!" The Hokage responded. She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at Naruto, though her tone softened.

"Yeah, but he might wake up if I leave him for two seconds!" Naruto pouted.

"Why don't we just go to him instead?" A drawl came from behind me. I almost jumped. I hadn't realised Kakashi had been so close behind me, though it was testament to how exhausted and fed up I was feeling. I should have noticed him. Internally, I kicked myself for being so unacceptably off my guard.

"Follow me," she faced us again, tired command in her voice. My brow creased as I wondered how long she had been up here, dealing with a petulant Naruto and whoever else. The very thought sent shivers down my spine; it made my job look calm and stress-free in comparison. "Don't do anything rash. Don't make any loud noises, don't make any sudden movements, don't provoke Naruto, and don't argue. We're trying to keep everything as calm and quiet as possible,"

"Why?" I asked, stepping forward.

"You'll see. Don't do anything stupid, either," she opened the door and walked through. We both followed her, moving into a brightly lit room. Two beds occupied the cramped space, a table of medical supplies wedged between them. A few chairs were stacked at the side, blocking a bookcase, a vase of flowers perched precariously on top to make way for the makeshift hospital room.

"Naruto? What happened? Did you-" What drew my eyes instantly was the figure lying still in the far bed. Dark spines of hair spilled like ink over the pristinely white pillow beneath it. Skin almost as white as the sheets, marred in places with cuts and purple bruising, only served to make the bed's occupant look sick and fragile. I wanted to feel sympathy for the boy lying in the bed, but it was very difficult to. Sasuke Uchiha was back. "Oh,"

"I brought him back!" Naruto beamed, casting sunny smiles at the three of us, then at the sleeping boy in the bed. It was hard not to return the bright smile. He practically radiated happiness, and it was catching. I wasn't sure whether I should smile in return, or if I should stay as blank as I could until I knew more about the situation.

I opted for smiling. Whatever made Naruto happy couldn't be that bad. There had to be some explanation for all this.

"I think 'beat him half to death and then dragged him back' is more applicable," Tsunade corrected him with a smile of her own.

"He isn't that bad," Naruto protested, then paused. A hint of regret tinged his expression as his eyes fixed on Sasuke's unmoving form. The sheet covered most of his body, so it was hard to judge how badly injured he was, but judging by his face alone it looked like he had taken a real beating. "I didn't want to hurt him, but he wouldn't stop…"

"Naruto was in worse condition when they arrived three days ago," my head snapped towards Tsunade, who spoke softly. Naruto didn't appear to hear. His fingers twitched once, like he was unsure what to do with his hands, but his eyes remained locked on Sasuke.

"Three days ago? Why wasn't I told about this earlier?" I repeated incredulously, words finally filtering through my tired mind. My head throbbed just a little harder.

"They were both unconscious until a few hours ago. Now Naruto's awake and remarkably perkier, I thought it might be a good idea to-"

"Three days? It took you three days to regain consciousness? And since when was rescuing Sasuke a major priority of Konoha?" I yelped. How had I missed this? Guilt tore at my mind; I hadn't once checked up on Naruto or even asked about him. What if he had woken up alone and confused – he didn't really like hospitals, no one did, but I should have been there. It wasn't right that-

"Since he was spotted near the border a week ago-" Tsunade began again, only for me to interrupt her.

"A week ago? Why wasn't anyone told about this?" My voice rose and octave in disbelief. Okay, this was getting ridiculous. How the hell had I managed to miss so much?

"I was," Kakashi pitched in. I threw a dirty look towards him.

"You don't count-"

"Both of you shut up! I didn't bring you here to bicker; I brought us all together to discuss what we're going to do with Sasuke when he wakes up," Tsunade's voice rose above both of ours. I focused on her again, trying to calm myself. It wouldn't help anyone if I was angry.

"Huh? What do you mean, what will we do?" Naruto said, scratching his head.

"Since he didn't come willingly-" Naruto began to say something, but she raised her hand to stop him. "-and no, unconscious on your back is not willingly, I'm putting him on temporary probation. That means I want him under constant supervision, which where these two come in. For the next two months, they're going to be watching Sasuke's every move,"

"Then they'll be watching mine too, since I'm not leaving him for a second!" Naruto said loudly. He still stood protectively between us and the bed Sasuke lay on, one hand tangled in the sterile white bedding. It wasn't clear what he was protecting the other boy from, exactly, but the gesture was clearly subconscious.

"Fine! I don't care, as long as the Uchiha is being watched by Kakashi or Iruka! See, I'm being nice here, letting your favourite teachers watch over you instead of some faceless ANBU, so be grateful!"

"Thanks, Tsunade-baa-chan!" Naruto chirped, grinning impossibly wildly. He glanced behind him, blue eyes tracing the sleeping form tucked under the blankets. It would have been sweet, if Sasuke wasn't, well, Sasuke.

"Don't we get any say in this?" I said shortly.

"Nope," Kakashi replied. I shot him a glare, trying to project as much sort-of-unwarranted hostility towards him as possible without actually saying anything. I wasn't going to dig myself into a hole that way.

"Think of it as a mission, Iruka," Tsunade's hands found her hips, her tone of voice unquestionable. "Which is basically is, since I'm ordering you to do it,"

"So what are the specifics? Do you want to take the days while I take nights, or would you prefer shorter shifts?" Kakashi spoke up.

"I can manage long shifts-" I huffed, annoyed that he thought I needed shorter shifts. Just because he was more accomplished didn't mean that I needed special dispensation for routine things that I could cope with perfectly well. There was no way I was going to accept something like-

"Actually, you'll be sleeping here, Kakashi, at least until Sasuke wakes up," "Naruto's going to live temporarily with you, Iruka. I don't trust the brat not to try and sneak off with his little boyfriend the second your backs are turned, so separating them at night should reduce the probability of that happening,"

"He's not my boyfriend," a sleepy voice mumbled. All eyes snapped to Sasuke's prone form, yet no one quite managed to look him in the eye. Although I couldn't help but feel anger and resentment towards him for what he put Naruto through, I still felt happiness rising in my chest that he was okay.

"Sasuke? Sasuke!" Naruto cried excitedly, jumping onto the bed and tackle-hugging Sasuke.

"You're – squashing me – idiot!" Sasuke protested, limply flailing an arm, although it seemed a little half-hearted. Naruto didn't stop; instead, he buried his face in Sasuke's neck, wrapping his arms around the other boy's torso and squeezing tightly. Sasuke winced in pain, refusing to vocalise any discomfort.

I couldn't help but smile at the display of affection; no matter what had happened, Naruto was still Naruto.

"Hey, hey, you've already injured him enough. Calm down," Kakashi said. He hooked his fingers under the collar of Naruto's jacket, tugging him none too gently off the other boy, depositing him on the floor.

"Shut up and let me go back to sleep," grumbled Sasuke, glaring pointedly at Naruto.

"But they're talking about us! Just stay awake for a couple more minutes!"

"I don't really want to hear the details of my execution, so-" Sasuke started, but Tsunade quickly cut him off.

"We aren't executing you. Instead, you've been assigned two supervisors for the next two months to watch you both night and day," she explained briefly, before turning to us. "Go home and get some rest. You've got a busy two months ahead of you,"

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A/N: So um I think this chapter was pretty shit. Next one will be better, I promise. Although it tells you basically the plot of the entire first part of this fic – oh, did I mention that? It's in two parts. Part one, where [spoiler spoiler spoiler] happens, then part two where [spoiler spoiler spoiler] happens. And oh my god this is late and I'm sorry. I promise it won't be two months until the next update. I'm not normally this slow. Um…read and review!