Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
Unknown
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"What did Shisui tell you?"
With that simple question all the red that had finally vanished engulfed her cheeks once more.
On day seven, it finally ended. Itachi had woken from his coma at last.
Shisui arrived back at the complex with a flicker and took to a full sprint towards the main house. He knocked on the door twice and heard the feminine voice of Mikoto as she made her way towards the door say, "Just a moment, please." True to her word Mikoto opened the door just a few seconds later with an apron tied around her frame.
"Lady Mikoto."
"Shisui! What is it?"
"Itachi… he's woken."
Mikoto's hands covered her mouth, partly in shock of how sudden it happened, partly in relief after a week's wait. "He has?! Oh, this is so good to hear! Thank you, Shisui. I'll let Fugaku know right away!"
Mikoto left the door open for Shisui to enter as she ran to the screen door on the backside of the house. Suddenly Shisui called out to her. Shisui entered after her following out to the back "What about Sasuke?"
"I thought he was with you?"
"No, I haven't seen him all day."
"Then perhaps he's down by the lake?" she thought allowed, with a worried expression.
"Right, I'll go check right away."
Mikoto stopped in her tracks just before the screen door leading out back. In a motherly fashion, Mikoto's hand extended and rested on Shisui's collarbone, gently extended and wrapped lightly behind the back of Shisui's head. "Always such a dear, Shisui. Your father would be so proud of you." Mikoto smiled sincerely with a hint of sorrow, knowing very well the tragedy that had caused Shisui to awaken his Mangekyō Sharingan early on in his life. "Please know that I appreciate all you've given and done for both my sons."
Somewhere within him, Shisui's heart began to ache at the mention of his father. His throat constricted slightly, but he swallowed back the weakness that planned to consume his voice. "Please, you're too kind Lady Mikoto."
"Well take myself and multiply it by three and you have yourself," she remarked with another smile accompanying her words. A brief moment of silence passed as Shisui returned the gesture.
Within the next moment, Mikoto slid the screen door open and after spotting her husband out back attending to one of the clan elders, she gave him a brief wave in the air accompanied with the mention of his name. "Fugaku! I've news of our son." While the door remained open, Shisui took the opportunity to sneak by and headed out back, passing by the patriarch of the clan swiftly as the latter hurriedly made way towards his wife.
"Mikoto… what is it?" he said as tears formed at the corner of his eyes. At first he wasn't sure whether to take this as a good sign or a bad omen, but when an overjoyed and relieved smile graced her features he knew very well he was not to worry.
"Shisui just notified me that Itachi's awoken."
"I'm glad to hear this. Let's head over to him now then," Fugaku responded with an air of elation.
"W-wait, but if we're to see him now, let me pack him some of the lunch I was just making now. I'm sure he's hungry!"
"Well then, let's be quick to it."
"Of course!"
The hospital room was awfully quiet, save for the flipping of pages coming from Sakura's spot in the room as she fanned through the medical file in her hands. After Itachi's question she couldn't bear the thought of being in the same room much longer without feeling the heat of one hundred suns beating down on her. With the extreme embarrassment she'd begun feel, she excused herself if only momentarily to make a run down to the reception counter and then the cafeteria, fetching Itachi's medical records along with a light lunch for him.
To say Itachi was slightly perplexed by the abruptness of her leave was an understatement. Surely what he asked wasn't wrong in any way, right? Slowly he was beginning to doubt himself. And Itachi, well, he never doubted himself, but then again wherever Shisui was involved he seemed to find himself doing so more oft. While no harm was ever intended, Itachi knew full well that Shisui's words had a knack for arousing discomfort in those around him. Perhaps it was because he was too kind, or too honest, or too well-intentioned—often times seen when he constructively criticized members of his fellow clan, sending them into periods of sulking because he was just "too good" for them, they claimed—or simply because he was too friendly.
Whatever the case, before Sakura stumbled out of the room tripping over thin air once or twice, he noticed her face seemed quite flushed—a bit too flushed, honestly.
"You seem a little uncomfortable if I'm not mistaken? Was this Shisui's doing?," Itachi finally spoke, treading the waters lightly. He squinted at her in a studious manner as she paused in her page flipping.
Sakura's emerald orbs drifted to the corners of her eyes as she spared a quick side glance towards Itachi. Sakura's mouth opened in an 'o' shape as if to say something before she promptly closed it again, redirecting looked away for a moment. After slight hesitation, a strange and forced smile formed on her lips. Somewhere in her, Sakura mustered up enough strength to look back at him curiously, hoping her discomfort wasn't truly that obvious. "Why would you think that?"
The next second her gaze redirected itself once again to the papers in her in hands. Once again she began skimming through them quickly. Itachi tilted his head slightly to the left. She's easy to read… "No reason."
The silence that once existed returned in moments. Itachi glanced over at the tray of food Sakura placed by his bedside on table that also held a small vase with a daisy. The flower looked fresh and beautiful, as if it'd only been there overnight, but the food on the other hand, well, it was a creamy beige goop that looked less than favorable for even a fly. He inhaled deeply through his nose to and crinkled it slightly as he eyed the bowl of "food" down. Unimpressed and struck with a feeling of loss of appetite, Itachi forced his attention elsewhere.
That said, Itachi decided to keep his eyes locked on Sakura and her current activity over the slob, and found himself intrigued by how expressive her face was in comparison to the expressionless face that was common among the Uchiha. He noticed how she furrowed her eye brows occasionally when going through the files and how she bit her lip peeling off an old layer of skin and how she licked her lips afterwards to moisten them. So that was how bewilderment looked like on the girl… bewilderment… confusion as she flipped through his files… wait.
"Is everything all right?" Itachi asked. Sakura shook her head in a slightly choppy manner. She turned her head towards Itachi before she spoke.
"Actually, Itachi, when was the last time you were seen at this hospital?"
"It was around the time when Lord Orochimaru attacked the village."
"And the most recent time just before that?"
"During your team's encounter with the swordsman from the Mist Village," he answered promptly.
"Okay, thank you. Hmm," she hummed aloud as she combed her bangs away from her eye. "How often do you typically come by? Your medical record is much smaller in size comparison to others I've seen at your age."
"Our clan has its own medical facility."
"Really?"
He nodded. "They tend to the basic care for all immediate members of the clan."
"So things like physicals, exams, mediocre wounds, and such?"
"Yes."
"I'm curious… why do they do that when the village has its facilities open to everyone?"
"I'm sure you are capable of figuring this out without me telling you. Recall, only Lady Tsunade was entrusted to my care primarily by my parents. Not just anyone is allowed to deal with the Uchiha."
"…the Sharingan, then. They won't trust anyone who isn't a clan elder or a renowned medic like Lady Tsunade to deal with the care of a sensitive power like that."
"Hn."
"So if that's the case, then they were the ones who diagnosed whatever I'm now working to cure?"
"That is correct."
"Well then that clears up a bit for me now. I was wondering how you were getting your periodic check-ups or if you were even getting them at all." Sakura bit down on her bottom lip. "Well then this leaves only one thing unclear to me at the moment…"
"And that may be..?"
"You see, it's just that the earlier visit—the one when me and the rest of team seven were in the Land of Waves—was filed without the sign-off of your physician."
"Is that so?"
She nodded affirmatively. "But don't worry, I'll deal with this accordingly," she said with a wry smile.
"Hn."
Quickly Sakura jumped to her feet. "Be back in a few! Oh and Itachi," Sakura paused, flicking her wrist towards the tray of food that lay untouched, "food is made to eat, not to stare at."
"So it's actually edible..."
Sakura smirked amused at the statement.
"Do tell, what is it exactly?"
Her smirk was quick to reside as she actually considered the question. In the end she found herself unable to answer.
"So you don't know either, I presume. Well, reassuring as that may be," he drawled sarcastically, "I'm almost reluctant to tell you I have no interest in eating it," Itachi finished just as sarcastic in tone as he'd begun.
"There isn't much of an option at the moment. Whether or not it tastes halfway decent isn't exactly the point. You just woke up from a coma; your body needs to be replenished of its nutrient. Look, it's—"
"Evidently hazardous..?"
"—not that bad, actually. You're just as stubborn as he is," she said with a light-hearted chuckle. "Alright, give me a few minutes. I'll be back with tea and some fruit for you, but don't think you're getting out of eating that in front of you."
As suggested by Mikoto, Shisui found Sasuke down by the lake. He sat at the ledge of the dock tossing the occasional stone across the surface of the water, skipping them, eager to see one reach the other end. Perhaps it was wishful thinking on Sasuke's part… the lake extended plenty of meters across.
All that came to mind as he skipped stones was how much longer Sasuke was wait before he'd see his brother awaken before his very eyes. As Sasuke skipped another stone, he heard the light footsteps approaching where he rested. Sparing a glance into the water below him, he made out the rippled figure of Shisui towering over him.
"What is it, Shisui?" he responded laconically. Still staring into the water, blessed with a bright blue hue much like the sky above, Sasuke watched as a smirk slid onto Shisui's face. Seeing it, Sasuke craned his head over his shoulder glancing at Shisui from the corners of his eyes.
"I don't think now's the time to be sounding so sulky, little 'Tachi. There's a surprise waiting for you down at the—". A swift wind blew by Shisui's side. "… well that was quick. Heh, I didn't even get to finish what I was saying," he murmured to himself as Sasuke's figure sprinted away, leaving Shisui in the dust… for now.
The clinking dull sound of a rock hitting another hard surface resonated in the air, and entered Shisui's ear. Looking towards the direction of the sound, a lone stone fumbled over many of its kind at the opposite end of the lake.
Perhaps it was merely wishful thinking on Sasuke's part.
But when wishful thinking became reality, perhaps it was elevated to something more—a sign of reassurance… a sign of hope.
Sakura returned in just under five minutes with tray in hand. On it was a cup of tea as well as a small assortment of berries and a few red apples.
During her trip, Sakura stopped by reception once more and left the file up front to see to it that the doctor who'd seen Itachi that day—which in Sakura's mind was most likely the one who'd seen him during Orochimaru's attack—signed off on the visit. It was irresponsible that something like this occurred in the first place, but back then Lady Tsunade was yet to be in charge. Since then, the hospital had gained more order to avoid issues such as this.
Sakura peeled the skin from the apples as Itachi sat silent on the bed drinking the tea she brought back with her. Slowly he brought the teacup down from his lips with a pleased sigh.
"How was it?" Sakura inquired.
"Good," he replied.
"That's a relief. I made it for you. If it were my father he'd say something like, "it's tealightful, Sakura!" Hopefully you won't ever have to witness his horrendous puns though."
"Aa."
"…"
"…"
"Oh, here are the apples slices if you'd like some."
"Thank you, but I'll pass."
Sakura frowned at his response. "Itachi, you have to eat something. Here, just have a slice or two," Sakura said, holding the plate out in front of her.
"Was the IV truly not enough?"
"Of course it wasn't, Itachi. Listen to me, you have to have something in your stomach so that you don't go passing out on me before your parents get here and you can't be eating anything heavy right now."
"It's alright, I'm—". Itachi's right hand lifted to pinch the bridge of his nose as he was overcome with a slightly dizzy feeling.
"Itachi, are you alright?"
There was a period of silence before Itachi groaned. The next second, his hand swung down as he mumbled the word, "yes", accidentally knocking the plate of sliced apples from her hand. Sakura gasped as the plate slammed against the ground, shattering into pieces as the apples lay on the ground. Regaining focus again, Itachi stared at the ground through blurred vision realizing what happened. "I apologize; that wasn't my—"
For a moment Sakura sat silently with a hand covering her mouth in shock as she recalled a situation similar to this. Shaking the thoughts away, she responded quietly. "You're fine, Itachi. Don't worry about it."
"…"
"This does prove to show that you need something in your stomach though and well, the only thing left now is that over there." Sakura nodded her headed in direction of the beige glob still resting on the end table.
"You can't be serious."
"I'm dead serious, Itachi. I don't need any more reasons for your family to doubt me either. If you don't start eating, you'll leave me no choice but to end up feeding you."
Itachi tilted his head to the side as if challenging her. "You'll do what now?"
"You heard me right the first time. I've done it before. Don't think this doesn't apply to you and your Uchiha pride."
"Hn." Itachi positioned himself more comfortable on his bed and slowly brought his left leg up to cross it over his right. He proceeded to lock his gaze on Sakura's who hardened hers, determined to prove she was a woman of word.
The ticks of the clock echoed in the room as seconds passed by. Twenty seconds. Thirty seconds. Forty-five seconds…
Sakura jumped up to her feet and took a step toward the end table. "Well I didn't think it'd come down to this, but you leave me no choice." She took the spoon that rested on the tray into her hand scooped up the stiff, gritty-textured mess. Itachi's eyes narrowed as she did so. Sakura huffed disappointedly as she slowly turned towards Itachi. In just a few steps, she stood affront Itachi with one of her hands placed firmly at his right side. "Remember this though, I warned you." As Sakura inched the spoon closer to Itachi's face, the door violently swung open slamming the wall and startling Sakura just enough too jab the spoon at Itachi's mouth, smearing its contests over his smooth face.
"Little brother alert in five, four…" Shisui's voice began.
Sakura backed away cautiously as Itachi brushed the back of his hand against his face, wiping off the gritty substance.
"Three, two…"
"Itachi."
At his name, Itachi shifted his gaze up at his brother as he finished wiping the contents from his face. Sasuke panted aloud while he stood bent over, his hands resting on both knees. Both Mikoto and Fugaku appeared in the next instant. Mikoto, overjoyed to see her eldest son made her way forward with arms open for an embrace. In one hand she held a bento as she wrapped her free arm around him.
"Oh Itachi, you have no idea how happy I am to see you awake again! I brought you something light to eat. I've included your favorite dish, onigiri!"
Willingly Itachi accepted the bento from her. "Thank you, mother. Father, Sasuke, I hope I haven't caused you too much worry."
With a sly look in Sakura's direction, Itachi opened the bento and began eating. So what if he was uncooperative at this instance? Sakura crossed her arms. It certainly wasn't going to be like this again. In her mind, she decided that this would be the last time—
"Haruno Sakura?"
Sakura's mind had snapped out of her thoughts. Immediately her attention turned to the medic-nin who stood by the door to her patient's room. Realizing who it was, Sakura excused herself from the room. As she exited she shut the door behind her, but only after the medic-nin snuck a peek at who was in the room.
"Yes, Doctor Yokaze?"
"Was that Uchiha Itachi?"
"Yes it was, but that aside. You came to see me?"
"Ah, yes that's right. You see, I regret to inform you that although I was the doctor who last attended to… Itachi, it was not me who saw him the time before that. As for who it could have been, unfortunately I am unsure."
"Well then this could be a problem…"
A/N: Hello again! I do apologize for how late this chapter was. I am feeling much better than I was last chapter. Just last week we were finally able to settle down in the new home. School started for me a little over a month ago and my classes have kept my hands tied up along with getting my room and myself in order.
I want to again thank all of new followers and favorites, as well as the returnees. I hope this story continues to interest you and thank you so much for reaching one-hundred! I appreciate all the reviews I've received and all the positive encouragement received from you guys. If there are any typos or grammar fails, I sincerely apologize. Please let me know and I'll fix it.
So… a mysterious figure has shown. I wonder who it could be (heheh). Well, reviews are always appreciated. Follow/favorite if you'd like to see where this goes. Until next time!
