Well, finally, here it is. I really do apologize for cutting you guys off in that last chapter. I hope you understand. Enjoy. I can only hope it lives up to your expectations. REVIEW! I'm still learning how to weave story jutsu! Oh, and there's at least one more chapter coming, so stay tuned...

Inoichi and his daughter pushed past Naruto, taking their places beside the head of the dying kunoichi. Everyone scurried to where they knew they were supposed to be, their roles already defined. Everyone, that is, except for Naruto. He stood stone still just outside the war zone filled with medics, barely even daring to breathe. It wasn't just that he realized he had no active role in Hinata's rescue, it was also that he was so frightened of the event taking place before him that he was virtually paralyzed.

The events unfolding around him suddenly seemed surreal, like a craftily woven genjutsu. But this was no illusion, no fabricated dream meant to disable or delay an adversary. This was real life, raw and harsh and mesmerizing, like a brutal car wreck. For all the bloodshed, death and loss Naruto had witnessed, and yes, been responsible for in his life, nothing he had experienced had prepared him for this type of event. Though he had been bracing himself for weeks for what ,even to him, appeared to be inevitable, he found it to be cold comfort at this moment.

He watched, as Tsunade barked out orders to her team, as Sakura and Shizune monitored screens and dutifully notified the Hokage the status and vital signs of her patient. His gaze shifted briefly to the two Yamanakas, perched like sleeping sentinels at Hinata's head, patrolling her mindscape without pause in order to find the first breach in the spell's prison. And yet, though he watched, with eyes as unblinking as Hinata's had been, the movements and noises of the people in front of him held no meaning whatsoever. The entire scene had become eerily alien in his panic as his mind continued to blank out from the adrenaline, exhaustion, and sensory overload he was currently experiencing.

As the stress settled slightly, he was able to focus, in a small way. He focused on her, looking at her face intently, attempting to will her with the strength of his soul to come back to him. Even though he wasn't the one dying, life flashed before his eyes, but it was not just his own. He saw flashes in his memory of his girlfriend, first of her when they were young and barely friends. He noticed, this time around, how she looked at him, how her demeanor changed when he was near her, how her strength grew in the smattering of moments they spent together back then. Then he flashed on their blooming relationship, the covert smiles when no one was looking, the tell-tale blush when he reached for her hand as he made his decision to attempt to pursue their relationship, and then another round of their time on the bridge in the midst of the golden sunset. Next, he remembered their silly fun and tickle fights, the dates after missions, the holidays and birthdays, the passionate kisses and soft caresses, her beautiful opal eyes pouring love into his once-empty spirit every moment they were together. She was the sun that he gratefully revolved around, pouring light and warmth into his life. Without her, his already dim little world would be snuffed into eternal frigid darkness.

His melancholy reverie was shattered by the suddenly slowing cadence of the heart monitor next to Sakura. Her heart's decline was sharp and steadily decreasing. Each beat he held his breath tighter, begging for another one to come. Each subsequent beep was exponentially slower than its predecessor. Naruto's eyes widened in terror, the pallor of his skin faded to stark white as he listened to her fading, slowly but surely to the end of her existence.

Then, as he said her name in a breathless whisper, the monitor flat-lined.

Before anyone else in the room knew what was happening, Naruto had dove toward his girlfriend, almost turning over the gurney she was on. He was clamoring toward her, screaming her name in such a furor that it was nearly unintelligible. He scrambled up on the wobbly surface with Hinata, grabbing at her like a rabid animal, screaming and sobbing, with his hands finally grasping at her limp shoulders. He accidentally kicked Shizune in the face, knocking her backwards.

"Naruto, get back dammit!" Tsunade demanded, shoving at him, and yet trying not to hurt her patient at the same time. "Sakura! Get him out of here!"

Sakura hurtled the gurney, turned and wrestled her arms through Naruto's from behind, eventually putting him in a full nelson hold. She had noticed his eyes had turned red and his fangs had sprouted. " OH NO YOU DON'T," she bellowed at him. "You put that thing away RIGHT now! We can do this, Naruto. Please, stop. We can bring her back if you just let us! Stop being a jackass and CALM DOWN!" During the final two words, she literally flung him through the open door. He skidded to a stop and crashed against the nurse's station, with limbs flailing in all directions. She turned and rushed back to her spot amongst the ninja healers. Tsunade was stimulating Hinata's heart with chakra at certain intervals to keep it viable, but not yet revive the dying woman.

"Yamanaka, what is her status?" the Hokage asked quickly. "Her brain waves are failing, Hokage-sama," Inoichi answered. "We should be seeing a collapse in the prison...just about...NOW." He smiled triumphantly, continuing to monitor the unraveling of the evil spell.

"I want all traces of the magic to dissipate before we revive," Tsunade commanded. "I don't want this thing to suddenly make a repeat performance. Shizune, ready the epinephrine, Sakura, you restore her liver and kidneys, Ino and Inoichi, you repair any damage to her brain and fulfill Naruto's request when you feel we're ready."

Ino and her father sat and watched the spell unravel like a poorly knit sweater. As it unwound around Hinata's mind, the strings of magic dissolved into nothingness. When the prison was about a third dissolved, the images and illusions that plagued Hinata escaped and started to dissolve, as well. Ino gasped in horror at the few she saw. Her father forced her out of the Hyuuga's mind, in order to spare his daughter the nightmares she would surely have. He would have to endure, unfortunately, in order to monitor the spell's destruction.

Ino opened her eyes, shaking and crying at the images still burned into her memory. Shizune reached out for her with a shocked look, but Ino shook her head to dissuade the Hokage's assistant from asking her any questions about what she saw. The look on her face told Shizune to back off, and she turned her attention back to her duties. The elder mental ninja suddenly started to gag and wretch at the current vision he was being subjected to. Ino instinctively retrieved a bedpan just in time for Inoichi to vomit. " Kami, how did she live this long, having to deal with this all these months? It's unbearable" he wailed. He maintained his connection through sheer will, because every fiber of his being demanded he break it for the sake of his sanity.

Naruto had silently re-joined them, warm tears flowing from his tired blue eyes. Sakura had turned down the irritating pitch of the flat-lined heart monitor, but it continued in the background, reminding him that Hinata was technically dead, no matter how the medics wanted to spin it. Thinking on the mentalist's reactions and words about the spell's visions, his heart ached for the woman he loved. He hunched over, leaning on the wall for much-needed support. He wished he would just go numb already. He didn't want to feel anything anymore.

Inoichi suddenly let out a sigh of relief. "The spell is completely gone from her mind. Ino, hurry and come back in, let's repair the damage and start cleaning up her memory. Tsunade-sama, it's time."

"Good, let's do this, ladies," she rallied. "Shizune, the epi, quick!" Scrunching her face in distaste, Shizune did as instructed and plunged the epinephrine hypodermic firmly into Hinata's still heart. Naruto turned his head sharply, disturbed by the horrifying treatment being administered.

Sakura turned the heart monitor back up, and worriedly announced, "No change, master. Should I assist you at the heart and lungs?"

"Yes, Sakura, I need you to hit her with a large chakra burst at five second intervals until I say to stop," the Godaime instructed. The younger kunoichi did as instructed, Nartuo flinching at every burst of chakra, and soon a few blips were heard on the monitor, though they were erratic and spaced too far apart. Sakura tried another round, and this time she got the desired effect. Hinata's heartbeat, though not as strong as normal, became fairly steady. A few moments went by, and then they started to slightly falter again. Everyone held their breath in the room, but a natural rhythm finally resumed.

"Naruto," Tsunade called gently, "come over here and try to call to her. It may help. Just don't touch her while we're working, or you'll be getting a charge, too, if we have to resume the shocks." The weary man walked over quietly, and looked down at the slack and lifeless face of his love. "H-h-h-ina," he began. He stopped short and cleared his throat. He was slightly embarrassed at his behavior in the heat of the moment earlier, as well as having still been crying just a while ago. He tried again, louder and stronger, "Hinata-chan, wake up, angel. Hinata! I have fresh cinnamon rolls for you! Would you like some?"

"Keep it up, Naruto," Ino interrupted. She's recovering, it's just there was a lot of damage to her consciousness. Daddy's almost done sorting through and discarding the bad memories, she'll be awake in just a few moments, I would think."

Hinata's heartbeat had grown stronger, so Sakura had abandoned the chakra pulses and went back to repairing the woman's degraded internal systems. Knowing this, Naruto took Hinata's hand in his and held it to his warm lips, kissing away the cold of death. Then he moved it to his cheek, and holding it there, wound his fingers through hers. He remained in that position while softly calling her name and tempting her with her favorite pastry. Shizune ran to and from the nurse's station, returning with a scented jar candle in her grip. She snapped her fingers over the wick, releasing a small amount of fire jutsu, and not long after, the warm, earthy smell of cinnamon filled the room.

"I'm finally finished," Inoichi announced with relief. "Her mind is in order and working well. From what I saw in there, she will eventually make a full recovery. Just give her time and love, and you'll see the old Hinata again, I'm certain of it." Naruto nodded to the elder Yamanaka, and smiled warmly, gratitude written all over his face.

Suddenly, the revived woman stirred, and she lightly squeezed Naruto's hand. "Mmmmm," she hummed, though her voice was gravelly and weak from months of disuse. "Naruto, did you make breakfast?"

"No, angel, it's just a candle, but I can get you some later, if you like," he answered, trying not to let his voice waver with the emotion that was overflowing him. He bent down and gently kissed her cheek. It was so warm, compared to what it was, and he sighed at the heavenly feel of her skin.

She opened her eyes slightly, and looked at him with concern. "Sweetie, what's wrong? Are you alright? "You've been crying..." she trailed off, weakened by the effort to speak.

"Don't worry, babe, I'm alright, I promise," he answered at her ear this time. "It's just been a crazy day. I"ll tell you all about it later. You go back to sleep."

"Mmm-kay," she answered weakly. He put her hand down on her chest, taking care not to disturb her. He started to turn to walk out and get some desperately needed fresh air, when she called out quietly, "Naruto?"

"I'm here, angel, what is it?" he answered quickly.

"I love you."

He choked back more tears, using all of his strength not to emotionally collapse. " Love you, too, Hinata. So, so much." His hands clenched his heaving chest, his eyes smiling with his mouth for the first time in months.

She grinned dreamily to herself, and her chest rose and fell with a contented sigh as she easily drifted back to sleep and much-deserved pleasant dreams.