THE NEXT GENERATION
VII. Unable to forget
He didn't remember when he fell asleep, but he was supposed to be hospitalized so it was pretty reasonable that fatigue reached him.
He was awoken by a soft pain on his side and he knew the way he was holding her was the cause of it. He wasn't fully recovered either, probably not even allowed to leave his room. The walk to Sakura's room was tiresome and it didn't bring him any good. A foolish decision indeed.
He looked outside the window and realized it was still night. He looked back at the woman in his arms and noticed that she was ok, for now.
He gritted his teeth as the pain throbbed again and if he stood like that any longer, he was sure it would become unbearable.
He moved Sakura's body a little so that he could stand up. He had to move slowly, to ease his pain and to not disturb her. When he was able to stand on his feet he still had to support himself on the bed, as he placed his hands on it. He looked at her face again. It was almost unrecognizable...the way she looked more dead than alive.
The dilemma in his mind was growing bigger by the minute. He didn't know what to do next. He needed rest. He knew it all too well, as he breathed heavily. He, somehow, didn't want to leave her side, afraid that she might leave forever in his absence...afraid that death might claim her if no one was guarding her.
But every time he was about to stay, the fatigue and pain reminded him that he, too, needed a bed. Sakura's was only for one person and he won't be able to hold her in his arms without the pain increasing. And, also, what would the others think if they found out he left his own hospital room, to stay with her.
It wasn't for his pride...just that he won't be able to stand them. He was a bit afraid to show his deep feelings for Sakura. He admitted that to himself. He won't be able to explain why he did such an affectionate gesture, as he wasn't the type of person to do things like this, neither showing them.
He remembered what the last thought he had before he fell asleep was. He trusted her. He knew that even if he stood here he won't be of any use in her battle against death. It was simply pointless. If he stood with her, just so that he will be with her, it will be pointless too, as she was unconscious.
Sasuke had made his decision.
He looked at her and slowly leaned forward, as he kissed her forehead. After one last caress on her cheek, he left her room and headed towards his, with heavy steps. Once in a while he had to take a break and lean on the nearest wall as he felt his knees melting.
Only 2-3 nurses passed by him and he had to act like he was not in pain. When he reached his room he felt relief but in the same time, he felt a bit of guilt for leaving her side. Even if it was of no use for her if he stood there, it was definitely of a great use for him. Although he trusted her, he simply couldn't help but feel bad. Pointless or not, a part of him wanted to stay with her.
But he felt himself succumb to sleep even as he stood on his feet, so he decided to wait no longer, as he collapsed on his bed, barely even covering himself with the blanket. It was a bad choice to move this soon but now that there was no coming back, all he hoped was that it will end up good.
He was awoken again in the afternoon, by the looks of it. Someone was checking on him and for a second he actually believed it might have been Sakura who was in his room. But she wasn't there. It was just Tsunade.
"You were a bit naughty last night, judging by your state..." she said. He didn't look at her.
"When can I leave?"
"You'll have to stay one more day thanks to your adventure from last night...I don't want to know what were you doing but you should reconsider the fact that if I still held you in a hospital bed it must have been for a pretty good reason...next time think about it and don't spoil the medics' efforts to bring you back on the line." She continued to scold him as if he were a five year child.
"How is the situation with Earth Country?"
"It's better by the day...they admitted their defeat and I expect them to propose us a peace treaty one of these days...that, if they aren't foolish enough to keep considering themselves higher than us..." the blonde said with a smirk.
"We'll have to hope that no more tricks will be pulled against us, won't we?" Sasuke asked.
"Betrayal will always be part of the shinobi world if that's what you mean..."
He flinched a bit at her words that brought memories not so pleasant.
"I know."
"You know better than anyone else."
"Probably..."
"You do and if I was able to forget about your past I hope you managed to do it too."
"I will never forget what happened."
Tsunade looked at him with a saddened expression.
"But at least I feel better that he somehow paid for what he did."
"When you did it...how did you feel?"
She continued to look at him as he remained silent.
"Amazed...grieved...but satisfied."
"You know...I'm very pleased that you opened up a bit for me...but think about what I am going to tell you...you may not have anyone from your family but you have friends that care for you a lot and Konoha managed to love you once again after the forgiveness was given to you."
Tsunade wanted to say these words for while. Even if Sasuke was back to his normal state, she somehow felt the need to remind him that Konoha loved him and he always had a place to stay in there.
After one last check on him she turned to leave.
"You can leave tomorrow morning."
"Thank you." She looked at him over her shoulder and he knew that too as he looked back at her with a small smile on his face. She smiled too before she got out of the room. He was definitely the old Sasuke everybody knew...no...it was a better version on him, that didn't base his life on sorrow and revenge. He was clean and she knew he was like that for a long while.
The next morning Sasuke was feeling much better as if the pain on his said never bothered him. He appreciated Tsunade's work and he was glad he was able to move now without any pain or effort.
Outside his room, Naruto was quickly approaching him.
"Hey Sasuke...glad you're out."
"Yeah...what do we do now?"
"Maybe a little training." He answered grinning. Sasuke just smirked.
"What about the others?"
"Kakashi had a little business to do and he told me to get you to the training grounds."
"And...?"
"And Sakura is still the same." Naruto continued, this time the grin disappearing, only to be replaced by a sad expression. Sasuke noticed that too and he realized once again how much he cared for her. Unlike him, Naruto did not hide his emotions. If he was feeling down because of Sakura's condition he wasn't afraid to show it. Sasuke did not know if to envy him or not.
They began walking outside the hospital in complete silence as all the topics for a little chat seemed to have vanished completely after the mention of her condition.
Naruto also knew that Sasuke was attached to the team once again. He was always attached to them but after leaving Konoha he tried his best to severe those ties, but he couldn't do it.
And after he came back to Konoha he reinforced those ties. Naruto did not know how, but he noticed that Sasuke was caring more for Sakura. If it was love or simply friendship, he did not know, for Sasuke's feelings were hard to distinguish in this matter. He didn't know what to think about Sakura neither.
While she was showing her care for Sasuke as a friend and teammate, he did not know if it was wise to say that she loved him as woman would love her husband. Judging by the way she behaved around him in past years he was no longer sure if she was still in love with him; she probably managed to get over it.
Naruto was brought back from his thoughts when they arrived at the training grounds and Sasuke was standing in front of him looking at him curiously.
Naruto put a sheepish smile which turned into a nervous laugh as he rubbed the back of his head. He was probably spacing out for a long time as Sasuke appeared to be quite amused about this whole situation.
"Hehe...sorry about that..."
"Ever since we left the hospital you kinda spaced out completely..." Sasuke said as if inquiring an explanation about what was Naruto thinking so deeply.
"Well...you know the recent events are a bit surprising and I was just thinking about them."
"Hm..."
With that being said, Sasuke went in the center of the training grounds.
"I'm worried about Sakura." Naruto confessed. Sasuke looked up at him.
"She's been like this for almost a week and she does not show any signs of recovery...even Tsunade is afraid for her..."
Sasuke stood there unable to say anything. He was hoping he will forget for a few moments about her precarious health but his plans were obviously ruined.
"Why won't you say anything?" Naruto almost yelled through gritted teeth "Don't tell me you're back to your emotionless and careless state...after all we did for you...after all she did for you..."
This time Sasuke looked up at Naruto, eyes turning angry.
"Who told you I don't care?" Naruto seemed to be taken aback by what he heard. "But we can't do anything right? So stop worrying so much and have a little faith in her." He almost yelled as he headed back toward his home, leaving Naruto a little too confused.
He couldn't believe his ears. Sasuke was trusting Sakura more than he did, and he had to admit that the Uchiha said a wise thing. The blond couldn't help but smile at this. That wasn't his intention but he managed to make him show a part of his affection for Sakura and it was so great to see him like this.
Meanwhile, Sasuke continued his walk back home, quite angered by Naruto.
He thought that by training with the blond will make him let aside his fears but in fact it only brought him worse. He was frightened again. He knew that Naruto had all the rights in the world to be worried but he was slightly annoyed that he didn't seem to trust Sakura.
The trust was brought once again in discussion.
But he knew that if Sakura didn't wake up any time sooner, they will lose all hopes for her to ever wake up. He mentally cursed Naruto, for now he couldn't get Sakura out of his mind no matter how much he tried.
A/N: So here was the seventh chapter of this story...
