I apologize for the extreme delay ( that's an understatement) its been a really busy summer for me! Anyways I'm back now so enjoy!
"I need a vile of anti-venom and sterile towels, and someone rush a mixture of hibiscus, dandelion root and mugwort!" Tsunade focused intensely as she barked out orders.
"M'Lady….. the nursing staff is complaining that they are running dangerously low on chakra, they wont be able to keep up with this pace for much longer." Shizune seemed hesitant.
I briefly shifted my eyes to glance at the condition of the nurses, scowling at my observation.
Not a single nurse was breaking a sweat as Tsunade and I stood here drenched and exhausted.
Too focused on the situation at hand, I turned my attention back on the patient.
"Sensei—"
"I know Sakura."
If I wasn't so focused on saving his life I would have single handedly pulverized Tsunade-Sama's nursing staff for their ignorance.
"Shizune! Do me a favor and please escort the nursing staff to the door."
"M,Lady?"
"If you think for one second that I believe an entire staff of nurses is incapable of providing enough chakra support to endure emergency surgery, you are mistaken. Despite his identity he is a patient in MY hospital and we will do everything to save his life. You all are sworn under oath."
Out of the corner of my eye I could see Shizune physically flinch at the menace in Tsunade sama's voice.
"However, it seems to me most of you have decided to abandon that oath. Shizune will escort you to the exit, and don't bother showing up for your shifts tomorrow, or for the rest of the week."
Reluctantly Shizune opened the doors to the operating room, avoiding eye contact.
"Shizune, summon Ino and Hinata immediately and get me that anti venom and herbal mixture now!"
"Hai!" Shizune responded as she left the room hastily.
I was trying my best to maintain steady chakra flow despite the fact that I had been at this surgery for over 12 hours. How I managed to keep my emotions in tact for that amount of time was beyond me. Perhaps it was because I refused to let myself see him for who he truly was and instead treated him as any other patient I would have on a daily basis. I couldn't…I wouldn't allow myself to make this personal. Id worked to hard to get over that weakness only to have it resurface during a time like this.
Beads of sweat rolled down my forehead into my eyes causing me to lower my head so I could wipe it on my sleeve.
That was a mistake.
I caught a glimpse of his face and couldn't bring myself to look away.
For the first time in three years I was actually looking at him in the flesh.
His hair had grown longer and more unruly than I remember, his skin was a bit more tan rather than the smooth ivory it was before, and judging by his perfectly chiseled abs and muscles he had definitely bulked up…a lot…
Really? Ogling over his body at a time like this?
Mortified at where my train of thoughts had gone I blinked in an attempt to put them back on the right path.
"Sakura."
I did notice something though….one thing still remained the same. That indifferent, boyish, expression still graced his face even as he lay here unconscious.
"Sakura."
Unless Naruto pissed him off well enough, getting Sasuke to display any type of emotion on his face was near impossible.
"Sakura….."
My heart tugged a little at the memories.
"SAKURA!"
Whack!
"Pay attention and focus! This isn't the time for your personal feelings to interfere with the outcome of this surgery! I taught you better than that!" Tsunade snapped narrowing her honey golden orbs in my direction.
"I apologize sensei" I felt the lump in the back of my throat.
I wasn't sure if it was the glance I stole from him, or the combination of exhaustion and a trip down memory lane in that messed up head of mine that caused the threat of an emotional breakdown. Whatever the cause, it was coming and I had absolutely no control over it.
"Take me with you, please! I'm so in love with you I can barely stand it!"
The tears burned my eyes as I tried my hardest not to let them fall.
"Sakura…..Thank you….for everything…"
I physically shook my head back and forth refusing to relapse back into that girl. I had come to far to fall apart like this. I was an elite medical ninja, the prized student of the Godamine Hokage herself. I would not let this take that away from me. I would not go back to being that weak, love sick, little girl!
"NO!"
Did I say that aloud?
Tsunade raised a questioning brow.
Before I could come up with an excuse Ino and Hinata burst through the doors.
"Lady Hokage, Shizune said you needed-holy shit! Is that Sasuke?!" Ino looked as if she'd seen a three headed dog.
Hinata quietly observed the situation, looking as though she already knew Sasuke was going to be here.
"Probably her Byankugan.." I thought.
"Lord Hokage?" Hinata asked softly.
"Hinata fetch some sanitized, towels please. Ino, lend me some support chakra, the surgery is nearly done I just need a bit of a boost."
Ino stood there rigidly, her gazed locked on Sasukes's unconscious form.
Suddenly her eyes shifted from Sasuke to me, resulting in an awkward silence.
"Ino please….he's still my teammate." I sounded desperate.
Before Ino could respond Hinata came speed walking into the room handing Tsunade a sanitized towel.
"Lord Hokage, I will lend you support chakra, I have much more chakra than Ino, plus she just finished some vigorous training not too long ago. I would awful if she became sick from excessive chakra use."
Ino nodded at Hinata, her way of saying thank you before briskly exiting the room.
Hinata smiled apologetically at me before turning around to place her glowing palms to Tsunade's back.
I knew Ino was angry with Sasuke for leaving and hurting Naruto and I. She ( and everyone else in the village) spent months trying to snap me out of my depression. I was so far gone before M'lady started training me Ino swore that if Sasuke ever returned she'd beat him into next year. But it had been three years and I was happy now, I never thought she hated him so much she rather see him die than help. I started to wonder…
Should I be angry? Was I really over what he did?
I glanced down at Sasuke's still form.
His nose twitched.
"He's waking up!" I blurted out.
I watched as Senei's honey brown orbs widened for a fraction of a second in panic.
"The anesthesia is wearing off. How?! He should be unconscious until tomorrow night!"
"The curse mark.." Hinata pointed out.
"Oh no….he's broken the seal Kakashi Sensei put on his curse mark. M'Lady! When Sasuke is unconscious or in extreme pain and running low on chakra sometimes the curse mark takes over on its own. It's like a built in defense mechanism. Its chakra is overpowering the anesthesia!"
Before Tsuande could react Sasuke's Onyx s eyes shot open making direct contact with mine.
Not a single one of us moved, uncertain what the other might do.
After a long pregnant pause, unable to bear the tension anymore I spoke softly.
"Sasuke…."
His expression seemed as if he was looking through me rather than looking at me. A few seconds went by before he sat up abruptly and placed both of his hands around my throat, startling me so bad I stumbled back a few steps, landing on my back as Tsunade stumbled into a nearby wall.
"S-s-s-sasuke!" I choked.
"You think I'm stupid enough to fall for genjutsu!? My eyes see through every disguise!" he snarled, his nose mere inches from mine.
"Sasuke,please! It's really me!" I managed to levitate some of the weight his grip had on my throat.
"Fool! As if my sharigan cant see!" he removed one his hands from around my throat pulling me up off the floor by the collar of my shirt.
"Surrender now while you can." He warned me.
"I'm not an enemy."
His face scrunched up in disgust as he lifted his foot kicking me in the gut. I crashed into one of the prep tables.
I blinked vigorously trying to dispel the black spots in front of my eyes. I was certain he had given me a concussion.
"Sasuke I don't want to hurt you please."
The sound of his twisted laughter made my stomach churn.
"You don't stand a chance, and even if you were the real Sakura, she has an even lesser chance than you do of laying a single finger on me." He smirked.
The familiar sound of chirping birds rang throughout the air accompanied by a vibrant blue glow.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at me.
"Sakura!" Hinata sent several kunai flying into Sasuke's direction in an attempt to distract him but he side stepped them easily.
Tsunade struggled to pick herself up off of the floor. Her chakra was almost completely drained and she no longer had the support of Hinata's chakra.
He was too fast and we were too tired and too slow. All I could do was watch in horror as the heat from the chidori grew hotter as came towards my face.
I threw my hands up in a pathetic attempt to weaken the blow.
A flash of orange crossed my vision as someone grabbed me by the waist pulling me out of the line of fire.
"Naruto." I said breathlessly.
"Why didn't you defend yourself?" he asked, his attention still on Sasuke.
"The surgery…..it took most of my chakra." That sounded pathetic.
"Sakura he would have killed you." Naruto could see right through me.
"I know…I just…couldn't…"
For a brief moment he turned his attention away from Sasuke and looked down at me; his blue eyes were full of both anger and sorrow.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
From the look on his face I could tell Naruto was having a full out emotional battle inside of his head. The last thing he needed was to be worried about my condition. I decided to downplay the severity of my injures.
"I've had worse." I winced as I rubbed my sore throat.
Reluctantly he unwrapped his arms from around my waist and helped me stand.
"Stay behind me." He motioned for me to stay back as he turned his attention back to Sasuke.
"Teme….she's our teammate. This is Skura we are talking about. Are you that far gone?" Naruto was trembling with anger.
Before Sasuke had a chance to respond, Kakashi appeared literally out of nowhere putting his palm at the back of Sasuke's neck rendering him unconscious
"What in the hell happened?" Jiriyah asked as he also appeared out of thin air.
"Kakashi sensei? Pervy Sage?! What are you doing here?" Naruto frowned in confusion.
"I was in the neighborhood and heard a commotion amongst the nursing staff as I was walking by the hospital so I came to check things out. By the way, why is your nursing staff out there and not in here?" Kakashi asked lazily.
Yea, likely story Kakakshi Sensei.
"It's a long story." Tsunade rolled her eyes.
"Well I had just got back from a mission and felt some oddly familiar chakra. I couldn't quite put my finger on whose it was so I traced it back to here. " Jiriyah explained.
"Well whatever the reason, im glad you two showed up." Tsunade sighed. "Now someone help me get the Uchiha back onto the operating table to I can seal his wounds and go home."
Kakashi and Jiriyah effortlessly lifted Sasuke's body onto the table.
I summoned chakra to my hands ready to continue the surgery, but the green hue was faint.
"Sakura, Hinata will stay here and lend me a hand while I finish this off. Go home and rest. You've done well."
"But ….M'lady…I—"
"Sakura. You are dismissed. Go home, that's an order form your Hokage." She said sternly.
"Yes M'Lady…." I reluctantly suppressed my chakra and lowered my hands to my sides
A sudden heaviness fell over me. I felt as if I could lie down on the floor right then and there and sleep for days.
"Come on Sakura-chan I'll walk you back to your apartment." Naruto flashed his usual cheesy grin.
"Thanks Naruto." I forced a small smile.
I took one step and my legs instantly collapsed under the weight of my body. Naruto's hands were around my stomach holding me up before I had a chance to hit the ground.
"Your chakra depletion is bad, I'll carry you."
"Naruto don't—" before I could protest he scooped me up bridal style and walked out of the operating room.
The walk back to my apartment was quiet. Neither one of us said a word as we remained lost in our own thoughts. Why was Sasuke beaten so badly? Who had he been fighting? Where was the person or people he was fighting at now? Why did he think I was disguised in genjutsu? More importantly why was his body dumped in Konoha?
My thoughts were interrupted by the sudden touch of Naruto's hand on my shoulder.
"We're at your apartment, are you sure you're okay?' he asked as he gently set ne down on my feet.
"Oh yeah yeah! Im fine I promise!" I said a little too cheerfully.
He gave me "that look" letting me know he could see right through my façade.
"Sakura…" he warned.
"Naruto really I'm fine. You don't have to worry." I lied.
He took one of my hands into his giving it a reassuring squeeze.
"It's okay to cry Sakura."
My lip quivered, threatening to allow the tears to fall. I had managed to hold it together during the operation but now that I was home and Sasuke was stable, I was too exhausted to try and keep my emotions in tact anymore.
" I thought I was over this." I cried.
"Sakura no one expects you to get over this, no one is asking you to hide how you feel." He reassured me.
"I am! I don't want anyone to see me like this! I've worked to hard to get where I am only for one glance at Sasuke to make it all come crashing down!"
My stomach clenched.
"It's not about my feelings for him anymore, it's about the fact that he left us without any explanation and without so much as a goodbye to you! And his version of saying goodbye to me was leaving me unconscious on a bench! And on top of that he tries to kill me while I'm trying to save his life! Sasuke's been back for less than a day and he's already causing more pain!" I huffed out of breath.
"We still don't know exactly what happened and why he's here. Everything is just a mess right now. Things will make more sense tomorrow so try and get some rest." He smiled.
As he turned to walk around my arm reached out for him before I could stop myself from desperately grabbing Naruto's jacket.
"Stay a little while, please?"
"What?! You're asking me to stay instead of kicking me out? Do you have a fever?" he joked.
I tried to laugh but tears escaped my eyes instead.
Naruto pulled me in by my shoulders holding me to his chest.
"It's going to be okay. We will get through this." He spoke softly.
"It feels like the rescue mission all over again. I don't know how to get through to him. He's so far gone." I sobbed.
"I don't believe that. But forget about that right now, you need to sleep." He slung my arm over his shoulder supporting my weight as we walked into my apartment. Gently setting me down on my sofa he headed towards the bathroom.
"I'll run you some bath water. Then im hitting the hay." Disappeared around the corner giving me a thumbs up.
A few moments later he came back around the corner.
"Bath is all ready. I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight."
"Goodnight Baka-chan and thank you" I smirked
When I got into the bathroom it slowly removed my clothes wincing at every single movement my limbs had to make. I slowly eased by bruised body into the steaming water submerging myself neck deep. Man did the hot water feel good against my tired frame. Resting my head on the back of the tub I drifted off into an accidental sleep.
"Take me with you! I'll help you I'll do whatever you want, just please don't leave me!"
"I'm on a different path than you and Naruto."
"I'm so in love with you I can barely stand it! Please Sasuke…don't go…"
"You're so annoying."
"Sasuke NO!"
"NO!" I shot up straight in the bathtub startled by my own scream.
The bathroom door flew open.
"Sakura-chan! What happened!?" Naruto blinked sleepily before settling his eyes on my naked frame.'
"Naruto don't just stand there get out!" I screamed in horror.
"Oh my God! My eyes! My poor eyes! Oh no!" he screamed as he turned to run out of the bathroom but instead ran face first into the door frame.
"What is that supposed to mean!?" I grabbed a nearby towel and wrapped it around myself.
"No I didn't mean it like that….its just….you…I mean you're Sakura….but I mean don't get me wrong your body is awesome! I mean…not like that …I ….uh….."
"Just get out moron!"
After the unexpected bathroom catastrophe I was still exhausted but couldn't seem to fall asleep in fear that I might have some more trips down memory lane in my sleep.
I walked out the bedroom in an oversized shirt and some pajama shorts, my pink locks still hanging wet just above my shoulders.
I spotted Naruto just about to doze off on the couch.
"Hey Naruto…do you think you could…lay with me? Just for a bit until I fall asleep. Bad dreams you…know.." I awkwardly twiddled my thumbs.
"As long as you don't make any moves like you tried to in the bathroom earlier, I know I'm irresistible and all but you have to learn to control yourself."
"Do you want to lose a couple of teeth?" I warned.
"Okay, okay" he held up his hands defensively.
As I climbed into bed it felt as if my mattress was hugging my body, welcoming it back with open arms. I let out a long content sigh.
Naruto climbed in on the other side putting his back towards me.
"Goodnight Sakura chan."
It wasn't until he turned over due to my lack of response that I realized I was crying again.
Without asking questions, Naruto rolled over embracing me into a hug against his chest and began stroking my hair.
"Close your eyes." He ordered.
Obeying I closed my eyes and let the tears fall. I felt like such a baby for all the tears I had shed in one day. I mean seriously how much a can one person cry? Confused and utterly exhausted I relaxed my body letting it succumb to the sleep Naruto's head rub was encouraging.