Here it is! Chapter four, I believe. I'm excited!

Day 1: Naruto

Noon

Right After Nori Was Found

"What do you mean, Nii-san is in a coma?!" Yelled Naruto angrily.

Sakura dropped to her knees, her eyes blank, and Sasuke leaned against the wall in
shock. They were standing in front of an ICU, and Nori had just been taken out of it and up to a room. Naruto was demanding to know what had happened.

"She's in a coma. How long she'll be in it is up to her. I'm very sorry, but we're extremely busy right now. Your questions will have to wait."

"This is fucking ridiculous!" Screamed Naruto as the other med-nin went inside.

"Naruto-" started Sakura.

"I won't calm down! This is gay, Sakura!"

"Shut up, dumbass, this is a hospital." Sasuke said.

Naruto looked angrily at him and then ran out of the hospital, leaving behind a saddened Sakura and a Sasuke with a very tired expression on his face.

Naruto, on the other hand, was headed towards the training grounds. He beat the hell out of the training mats, forgetting in his anger to use kage bunshin to train. 'Damn it!' He thought angrily. 'Nori can't be in a coma! This is total bullshit! The first person to ever really understand what I feel like...she can't! This is fucking gay!'

Day Two: Sasuke

Late Night

Sasuke entered Nori's hospital room quietly. It was nighttime, and visiting hours were over, but it was simple for a ninja to slip into the unguarded hospital. He sat down silently beside Nori's bed.

"Nii-san." He whispered. "Tell me what to do. I'm so confused...you killed Itachi, but I'm nowhere near that strong, and I'll never know if I was strong enough to do it unless I'd manage to kill you. But I'd never want to kill you, so...agh, I don't know. I'm thinking about going to that Orochimaru guy. He bears a strong resemblance to Michael Jackson--and I don't mean just by behavior; they look alike, too--but he IS stronger than I am right now, and he could probably train me. I mean...if I didn't kill anybody, maybe the village would take me back. What do you think, nii-san?"

But Nori was deathly silent.

That was when Uchiha Sasuke made up his mind. As he slid back out of the window, he didn't notice Nori twitch her hand (the most movement she had made in two days) as if to call him back.

Day Three: Kakashi

Early Morning

"Well, Nori..." Kakashi eased himself into a chair. "Iruka's on a mission, and he asked me to come keep an eye on you, so here I am."

He sat back and looked at her still, silent form, so quiet, yet so beautiful. He studied the hair spread all over the pillow, the way her chest rose and fell with her quiet breathing, and he sighed. "God...you're gorgeous. Iruka's lucky he made his move so quickly...I was going to ask you on a date after Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke left, but I saw that you and Iruka were blushing, so I figured that I was too late. I guess I was right, huh? You're a married woman now. It's been a month or so since you killed Itachi, and everyone thinks you and Iruka rushed things a bit, but that's what being a ninja is about, isn't it? You never know if the next mission you accept will be your last, so you live your life to the fullest and with all of your heart." He sighed once more. "It's too bad Iruka got there first. You...you're not just another one-night stand. You would've been different." He thought for a second.

"Damn. I hope you don't remember this when you wake up."

Day Four: Sakura

Mid-Afternoon

"Nii-san!" Sakura cried, her tears speckling Nori's blanket. Sakura buried her head in her arms against her sister's arm. "Nii-san, Sarutobi-sama is dead, and Sasuke is gone! H-he left to Orochimaru! Nii-san, I tried to do what you told me to...I tried to keep him from Itachi's path, but...I failed! I tried so hard, Nori, but I still wasn't good enough! Why can't I be like you?! You're so good at everything...why?! WHY?!"

Nori's arm twitched slightly, and Sakura saw that her fingers were twitching even worse. Slowly and uncertainly, she put her hand in Nori's, and the twitching fingers closed around it. Sakura burst into tears again. "Nii-san...that's it! I will become a medical ninja! No matter what! If I can't help with strength...I'll help by healing! I'm not going to be a burden any more!"

Sakura was never completely sure, but she thought that she saw a small smile twitch onto Nori's face.

Day Five: Iruka
Mid-morning

"Nori! Ah, finally!" He exclaimed, skidding into her room. "I just got back from my mission. I didn't even go home to shower!" He sniffed the air. "...Although maybe I should have...whatever. Anyway, the point is, I'm back. I'm so sorry I had to leave you, but my team needed me. I don't know if you can hear me or not, but...I'm going to talk to you anyway. Nori...honey, you need to come back to us. We all miss you so much...me most of all. Sasuke's gone, Nori, and Sarutobi-sama is dead. Tsunade-sama is the fifth Hokage. She'll be a great leader...but none of that matters to me as much as your condition. I miss you, Haruno Noriko. Actually..." Here, he smiled.

"I mean...Umino Noriko."

Day Six: Nori

All Day

'Ah...what the hell is this? Why can't I move or open my eyes? Oh, god...' The memories of what she had heard the past few days swept over her. 'Oh...oh god...Sasuke...Sarutobi-sama...this is unbelievable. Sakura and Iruka need me, and Kakashi...well...oh dear, this will be troublesome.' She shook her head. 'Never mind. He was so casual when he was saying all of that...it seems like he's over it by now. Whatever. That's not the important thing. Naruto, Sakura, Iruka, and Kakashi are probably in pain about my condition, and Sasuke...well...'

She remembered a day a little while after she had killed Itachi, when Sasuke had finally told her what had been bothering him.

"Well, Nii-san...it's just...I mean...you killed him so easily! And I...I couldn't even hold my own against him. Now I'll never have the change to revenge our clan, or to prove to myself that I'm stronger than he thinks I am!"

"Sasuke...listen. You're not weak. Itachi was wrong. You see, Sasuke...when Itachi was your age...yes, he was physically stronger than you are right now, but than can change. When Itachi was your age, I was his only friend. You've got so many more friends than he ever did. He had no one to look up to. You've got Kakashi and Iruka. Itachi's mental health, too...yours is much stronger, Sasuke. Your will is stronger than his was, and so is your emotional health." She saw that Sasuke still looked unconvinced. Then, she smiled and took off her necklace. "See this?" She held it up so it sparkled in the light. It was a circle about the size of a half-dollar. In the middle was the kanji that meant 'aspire'. Small green stones called peridots surrounded the raised kanji.

Sasuke nodded, puzzled.

"This was given to me by my mother when I passed the Jounin exam. She was so proud of me...and do you know what she said?"

He shook his head.

"She said, 'Nori, honey, I'm so proud of you. This necklace is for you. I want you to be the best you can be, and more than anything, I want you to know how proud I am already.' Then, she gave me the necklace." She dropped the chain around Sasuke's neck. "It's yours now, kid."

He looked down at her necklace, then up at her. "What? Why are you giving this to me?"

"Someone close to me gave this to me because she was proud of me, and because she wanted me to know that I'm strong. I'm giving this to you because I'm proud of you, and so you'll know that you are strong."

He looked up at her with glassy eyes. "Nii-san..."

She smiled and rested a hand on his head. "Come on, kid. Let's head to the training fields. I bet Naruto and Sakura are wondering where you are."

She began to walk away. Sasuke stood for a second. Then, he tucked the necklace into his shirt and ran after her.

Iruka looked up to see a single small tear rolling down Nori's face. He got to his feet, bent over her, and kissed the tear away softly off of his bride's cheek with his mouth. "Nori..." He whispered softly. "It's okay, darling. I'm here."

'Iruka...' Nori wanted to cry even more now. 'I'm a prisoner in my own body. This is the most fucking retarded thing ever! I've got to heal myself!"

She set to work, circulating her healing chakra throughout her body. She didn't know the problem exactly, and she didn't know how to fix the problem since she didn't know what it was, but she figured if she sent chakra to all areas of her body, it should work.

'Please work...'

About an hour later, she passed out. Iruka didn't notice anything, though, because she had already seemed unconscious.

Day Seven: Nori

Early Morning

"Nori." Iruka said her name from over at the window, looking out at the sky and not really expecting an answer. "How are you doing this morning?"

"I'm fine, thanks. You?"

He jumped a mile, and she laughed good-naturedly at him. He ran to her side. "Nori!"

She smiled. "Morning."

He leaned down over her and hugged her tightly. She slid her arms around his back and hugged him back just as tightly, loving the feeling of her husband's arms around her. Before she could fully enjoy the hug, however, he pulled back. "Nori, you're awake! This...this is amazing! I don't believe it!"

Ecstatic, he leaned down again and pressed his lips against hers tenderly. She smiled as they kissed. 'I like this better than a hug anyway.'

He pulled back after a second. "What...how...what...Nori, what-?"

She interrupted him by laughing. "I woke up yesterday; I just couldn't move my body at all. I didn't know what was wrong, so I did a full body circulation heal, and it fixed it, but I used up too much chakra and passed out." She stood and was pleasantly surprised to see that she was still in her clothes. "Hey, that's great! Let's go home."

"Nori, hey! Nori! You can't--well, I guess you can." Iruka shrugged and jumped out of the window after Nori.

"Hey!"

Far off down the road, she finally paused. He grinned.

"Wait up!"

There goes chapter four! WOOOOOO! It makes me a little sad though...it's bringing me closer to the part of the story you guys will kill me for --;;

BD333, out.