"Do you want to try again?"

"Yes", Ringo snapped, hunched, sitting on the side of the hotel bed and far too obviously in pain. She grunted as she braced herself and tried once more to push herself up. Immediately, Shizune stepped forward, ready to aid however she could in getting her patient standing, only to be swatted away, just narrowly stepping back quick enough to evade Ringo's swinging hand.

"Don't touch me!", she ground out, voice rough like grout, teeth clenched and trying once more to push herself upwards. Quickly, her knees buckled beneath her and she landed back onto the mattress with a grunt of discomfort, followed by a growl of anger. "Dammit! Dammit, dammit, dammit!"

Shizune sighed, hands raised in a placating gesture to the angry girl in front of her.

It had only been a week of recovery. At this point Shizune had expected that Ringo might be able to stand with assistance, and maybe after another week of healing, on her own, though walking would still be out of the question. She'd sworn up and down that not only was that a remarkable timeframe considering the state of Ringo's body, but that she was healing better than expected overall.

Ringo, however, had started seeing thing differently.

As the days rolled on with only mild progress to show for it, her temper returned quickly, outpacing her health by far, every day in need of assistance only making the matter worse.

The girl's hands clutched at her abdomen, squeezing in an attempt to dull the pain along the still healing incisions.

"Ringo-san, please refrain from touching the healing areas! You're only going to lengthen your recovery this way!"

Her patient grumbled something under her breath, too quiet to hear, and very likely an insult, before trying to stand once more, only to fall forward to her knees, nearly collapsing entirely if not for Shizune moving forward to hook an arm under her shoulder.

"Don't touch m-", Ringo began coarsely yelling once more, only to break into another coughing fit, spattering blood on to the inside of her sleeve.

"Ringo-san, you need to calm down. Let me help you back onto the bed."

A moment passed as Ringo's cough subsided, and after a silent moment she roared gravilly, the back of her fist flying towards shizune in a swipe. Immediately, her wrist was caught in a vice grip, Shizune holding it firmly in place with her free hand. It was all Ringo could do to meet her glare, panting manically before Shizune spoke again with a tone of absolute finality.

"Get back onto the bed."

Ringo felt herself starting to break down. Both of her arms were immobilized; caught like a child throwing a tantrum who had dared to swing at their better. She couldn't even stand if she wanted to. Had she ever been this weak?

She looked down, eyeing the floor, and still breathing heavily, making no further movements of resistance. Her doctor took what she could get, giving a small countdown before hoisting her up, Ringo struggling to provide what little energy she could to assist in the endeavor, and dropping back heavily onto the bed.

Shizune watched her for a moment, likely to ensure she didn't try to move once again. It was only after Ringo begrudgingly laid back once more that she backed off, breathing out heavily as she ran a hand through her hair.

"You're only going to make it worse if you push yourself like that. If you want to recover quicker, you absolutely need to listen to what I tell you is and isn't okay."

Yet again, Ringo refused to respond. Same as the past few days, she's been difficult to work with, even moreso to get any compliant words from. Eventually, Shizune sighed, retreating to the far corner of the room, back to her desk to work on some medicinal ingredient sheet.

It wasn't until another five minutes had passed that Ringo had calmed enough to think without feeling furious.

This place was like a prison. There was no way to escape it, nothing that could be done but wait until her sentence was served. Caged like an animal, unable to free itself under its own weakness. Ringo was weak. It was enough to make her want to scream, even if it would only serve to worsen the pain in her throat.

She had to get out of here. Every day, every pill, every failed attempt to so much as stand was going to drive her mad.

But what could she do? She couldn't walk, talking was a recipe for pain, and Shizune kept a watchful eye on every single thing she did.

A soft clink caught her attention, drawing her focus to Shizune's table. The medic had just set down a vial, filled with small tablets.

Ringo scowled.

Those pills. Without question the most damning result of her recovery. However long it might take, she'd walk again. She would fight again. But she would never shake off the damn pills.

She blew out her breath along with her frustration, running a hand through her hair. It was time to think, not...not...not do whatever the hell she'd been doing! A whole week with virtually no progress. When did she become so incompetent? When did she give up control of her life to someone else?

It wasn't when she was first diagnosed in Mist, no. Thinking back, it was in leaving Kiri that she could truly say she took matters into her own hands for the first time. Was it when she was searching? When she confronted Tsunade? Or...

When she arrived here. When Shizune came for her. When there was no other option, and it was all she could do but surrender herself to this. Her eyes narrowed at the realization. The very moment Shizune arrived, Ringo had lost everything. She'd given up. She was absolutely desperate, practically begging for the girl's help, pleading, crying, making promises...

Time passed and Ringo stewed in contemplating, doing her utmost to ignore Shizune's presence and shrugging off whatever questions she asks. Eventually, enough time had passed for the sun to begin setting, and for her doctor to bring another plate of food to her bedside.

Relenting to her hunger, Ringo ate in quiet solitude, Shizune having retired to her own hotel room for the night after mentioning something about her healing progress.

Ringo found herself deep in thought. Most of the past week had passed by in a haze; a blur of anger and burning pain, fuelling each other like a volatile dispute that only made Ringo suffer. This was the first time she was calm enough and her head clear enough to think rationally.

She'd been out of it this past week. She could concede that much. Uncooperative, angry, volatile...all true. She was still angry. She needed better than this. She could argue with Shizune like a cornered animal all she wanted; it wouldn't do her any good other than leaving her exhausted and without progress. She needed more. She needed something better than this pathetic tug of war with the medic over her progress.

Ringo needed a plan. She had a fairly good track record with plans. She'd always been good at instinctual fighting, at thinking on her feet and coming up with tactics on the fly. This was, once again, uncharted territory, but it was one she could overcome, wasn't it? She'd dealt with worse, after all. The disease, the surgery, the damn recovery...So she could deal with a damn faux-hospital room, and she could sure as hell deal with Shizune. But what could she do?

Shizune held every card in the deck. The medicine, the healing jutsu, the extra hands for recovery that Ringo couldn't seem to do without no matter how hard she tried. Ringo held nothing. Though...something began to dawn on her, striking through her mind like buzzing lightning, screaming a solution in her ears.

Cards could change hands.

They did all the time; a valuable lesson that had to be learned in Mist if you wanted to keep strong. Slowly, a strange confidence began to fill her as she mulled over the different ways to go about this. She felt the grin on her lips, and a spark of fire coming to life in her eyes.

If she truly had surrendered her life to this medic, then fine. She was sick then. But now? Now she could take it back.

Ringo groaned as she woke. The morning sun still pained her, and she swore under her breath as her eyes slowly adjusted to the blinding light. In terms of rude wake-ups, she'd almost prefer Fuguki's unannounced early morning training, if only because it was a rare occurrence. The consistent and blaring cruelty of leaf village sunlight almost made her wish she never left Mist. Damn land of fire...

"Morning," someone spoke.

"Mm...?" Ringo squinted, tiredly trying to decipher the blurred shapes in front of her, veiled by the morning sun.

"Slept long enough? Honestly, how long did you stay up last night? You know you should be resting earlier, staying up won't-"

Ah. It's Shizune. Of course.

Ringo pressed her face back to her pillow, ignoring the veritable avalanche of nitpicks being thrown at her.

"Right, fine, ignore me," Shizune grumbled, setting down a plate of food and making her way to her desk. "Not like I'm trying to help you or anything, right? Right. Jeez..."

Ringo barely resisted the urge to scream her lungs out. Shizune just got harder and harder to drown out every day, didn't she?

'At least the food is good', Ringo bitterly thought, turning her head to look at the plate. Rice, beans, and fruit. She'll never begrudge the land of fire's fruit. With a quick glance to ensure Shizune's back was turned, she grabbed at the plate quietly ate.

There was a routine to this; Shizune liked her structure. Food, healing, a couple hours where the medic left so she wouldn't have to put up with Ringo for a while, physical therapy, more food, more healing, more therapy. It was a routine she knew well, since there wasn't much to do but lay and listen to her doctor work.

But today would be different. Ringo had spent most of last night thinking it over.

She had to get out of here. Staying would drive her crazy. So...all she had to do was make use of the things here while she could.

Her gaze drifted to her medic. The cardholder. She sighed, running her hand lightly across her stitches. If she was going to do this, she might as well start now...

"Shizune..." she ground out, catching her doctor's attention. The scrutinizing look she received told her clearly what the medic expected; Ringo hadn't spoken unprompted without including an insult at all in the past week. It always ended with Shizune chiding her about overusing her voice while her throat was still healing.

"What is it?"

"Help me stand."

"...you want my help?" Shizune blandly asked, obviously doubtful.

"Yes."

"...and you won't argue."

"No."

"You won't struggle? Or overexert yourself, or throw a fit, or-"

"No!" Ringo nearly shouted, interrupting Shizune's line of questions and fighting back the urge to cough. "Now...help me!"

For a moment, Shizune didn't move, judging how serious Ringo was. Eventually, she relented, sighing and standing up, stepping to the bedside.

"Alright. Fine. But if I think you're getting exhausted, you stop. Got it?"

"Yeah, alright, sure..." Ringo said, ignoring the way her medic rolled her eyes at the response. She sat up as much as she could, grabbing at Shizune's offered arm and hooking it under her shoulder.

"Remember, this is just an exercise for your body. The goal isn't to walk, it's just-"

"Alright!" She interrupted. "I got it, I understand, let's go!"

Shizune began the countdown with a huff, pulling upwards. Ringo rose, grunting, onto shakey feet, stumbling against Shizune's chest. She was leaning, heavily, onto her caretaker, and before now this is where she would fall, pushing away.

This time was different. She clutched the fabric of the medic's sleeves, trying to hold herself steady. Her breathing was haggered, but as Shizune readjusted her hold, Ringo's legs shook less. Moments passed, the only sound in the room that of Ringo's pained grunts as she steadied herself against her helper.

Ringo stayed standing.

Shizune's queries about how she felt were drowned out by the realization that finally, after so long, after so much, she could stand again. She could overlook that she was only capable of this with help, because it was something, when all previous attempts had given her nothing. This was progress.

The thought brought a smirk to her lips.

Shizune sighed, pressing her face to her bed and groaning. She'd dealt with a lot under Tsunade's tutelage; so much so that she thought herself ready for anything.

She was WRONG.

When she first took on Ringo's case, she was certain the worst of it had passed after the surgery. That night was a nightmare, and everything had seemed to come under control when it had finally passed. Even Ringo herself seemed happier! And then came the week of healing. Her patience had been worn through, then, but eventually Ringo settled herself. The girl pushed through her fears of what the recovery would mean, pushed through the pain she felt during healing sessions, and, eventually, pushed through that damn ego that had been holding her back. So why? Why was it turning out like this not even a week after she could stand again?

Why had Ringo become such an asshole!?

The consistent, unending demands and criticisms from her patient were going to drive her mad. Every single thing she did was met with difficulty of some sort, no matter what it was.

'The foods not good enough!' 'You're being too loud!' 'Can't you do better than that?'

Kami's sake, she'd thought a throat injury that made talking painful would dissuade nagging to this degree, not encourage it! And if there wasn't any problem? It was like Ringo would make one up just to have something to complain about! And whenever Shizune started getting frustrated, that girl would get this smirk on her face like she was enjoying every last moment of whatever irritation she could cause. What happened to make her this way!? What was her PROBLEM!?

"Oink!"

Tonton's tiny feet padded across Shizune's back, walking to her head and nudging against her neck.

"...Tontonnnnnn!" Shizune groaned, flipping herself over and up and collecting the little piglet into her arms, pulling the squealing baby to her chest and snuggling her. The tiny thing calmed down quick, nuzzling into her neck. "At least you're here for me..."

And wasn't that a thought! Where the hell was Lady Tsunade!? When Shizune had initially kicked her out of the Hotel, it was so that she would do something besides sit and brood. She found a nice little class, and sent her off. As it turned out, she never had kick Lady Tsunade out again. Very quickly, that hour a day outside turned into two hours. Then three. Then five. And now? Now Shizune wasn't even sure when she would see her mentor anymore. What had Tsunade found to do that could keep her entertained that long?

...Shizune should probably look into that. No doubt it was something horribly unhealthy. Tsunade had been acting...secretive...lately.

"Ugh..." she whined, laying down onto her back and idly scratching behind Tonton's ears. "I have a difficult patient. My sensei's no better. The two of them are going to drive me crazy, and I still have about a month and a half of healing left before Ringo's fully recovered." She groaned, grabbing ahold of the little piglet and lifting her into the air. "What do I do, Tonton...?"

"Oink!"

"Yeah..." she sighed, setting the piglet back down on her chest. "That's what I thought...What do you think's wrong with her, anyways?" she ponders, staring up at the ceiling. "What happened to get her so...so..."

"Oink."

"Tonton, don't say that about her."

"Oink!"

Shizune's stare dropped down to her little piglet. Was it sad to pretend your pet was talking to you? Was that a thing that lonely people did?

"Oink, oink..."

"I mean, that's a possibility, but..."

Whatever. Shizune had met many people who dealt with stress in much worse ways than this.

"Oink."

"Hah...born that way..."

Shizune's eyes widened.

"Ringo was born that way...?"

The startling thought that perhaps, just maybe, this was how Ringo actually was struck her mind like a gong. When her life wasn't in danger and she was sound of mind, perhaps she was just an inexplicably unpleasant person. Mist would likely have encouraged such attitudes, wouldn't it? It wasn't impossible to say that Ringo was only nice to be around when she was quite literally too weak to be anything else. But Ringo was part of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, wasn't she? A junior member, if the reports were correct. There's no way an attitude like this would've been tolerated there, right? Unless she just annoyed them into leaving her alone; a skill she seemed quite talented in right now.

...That Ringo might be the worst personality in Kiri was a thought as terrifying as it was entertaining.

Shizune spent a silent moment praying that Ringo wasn't actually as terrible as she was starting to seem. As domestically entertaining as the implications of Ringo's assholery were, there was more to it. Shizune had only healed Ringo on the promise that she wouldn't harm anyone in the Land of Fire. What if she just...lied? What if a lie such as that was no big deal to her?

What would Shizune have to do then...?

She closed her eyes, trying to will away her growing headache. Shizune had a long road ahead of her still...

Ringo was in a good mood. She laid her head back against the grass, feeling the sun on her skin, running her fingertips across the dirt. Her eyes closed, and she let herself bask, for once, in the powerful sun of the region. It felt so good to be outside again! She might even come to like Land of Fire sun if this is how it could feel...

The weeks after her successful standing attempt had treated her well. Currently, with a month of healing and therapy, she could walk. She could walk unsupervised, making her way out of the hotel to the roadside clearing. Her health was far from perfect; Shizune made sure to remind her as much at every opportunity, but she could feel her faded strength returning little by little, even if her breathing still felt a bit shallow compared to what she remembered.

It was something to get used to. She knew she could.

The click of wooden sandals snapped her out of her musings, slowly opening her eyes to reveal Shizune, standing right above her, crossed arms and angry frown.

Everyday Shizune.

"So this is where you got to, huh?"

"So it would seem." Ringo smirked. Not even the rough grating in her throat when she spoke could keep her from these little annoyances. The medic's exasperation was the only real entertainment she had here.

Shizune didn't look amused. "I've told you, you can't do things like this. You incisions might be mostly healed, but that doesn't mean it's no risk! What if you collapsed out here?"

"I'm fine."

"Are you?" Shizune persisted. "Can you even stand up on your own?"

"Yes," Ringo answered immediately. Without even an attempt, she amended it; "Maybe. Probably."

Shizune dropped her face in her hands. Ringo chuckled, thinking how it looked as if her doctor was about to scream.

"...Let's get you up," Shizune sighs, dropping to her knees by Ringo's shoulder. "And then you need actual bed rest. In a bed."

"Yeah sure. Help me up now."

The angry twitch of Shizune's eye was just nearly enough to make her burst out laughing.

Oddly enough, she felt pensive. She was just as excited as she expected; the sun had set and Shizune had left for her own room, but now that this was upon her it felt...larger than she had thought. Enough to make her nervous.

Maybe it was her morals. What a bizarre thought that was.

Shizune had taken care of her; she had truly saved her life, and Ringo was about to do a bit more than piss her off. Perhaps Ringo did owe her a life debt, but she couldn't stay here for another month like the medic wanted, and it's not like she promised to stay…

She was VERY careful not to make any more promises.

With a groan, Ringo pushed herself off the bed, standing still for a moment to quell the dizziness that still swirled in her head when she moved too quickly. A moment passed, and she took a deep breath, flexing her hands and rolling her shoulders.

The night was oddly silent; normally the cricket's keep her from sleeping easy, but tonight the world felt drowned out, snuffed beneath the weight of her next choice. She moved methodically, kicking the Kiba up into her hands and tying them secure to her sash.

She couldn't keep from smiling; the familiar weight at her sides struck through her like the lightning they made, and all at once every trace of doubt she held was dashed from her mind. This felt good. This felt right. She needed out, and she could get it now, in the breaks of Shizune's watch.

The medic's table in the corner of Ringo's room was organized as always, and Ringo found herself incredibly thankful, since it meant a bit of familiarity. Watching your doctor muck with a set of medical supplies for a month can give you an idea of what goes on in it, and she needed a couple things before she could leave…

It only took a moment of rooting through the desk's scattered supplies. Two small vials, containing the pills now affixed to her permanently. And underneath those…

The recipe. In many ways, this was even more important. She couldn't hope to make sense of it, true, but that she'd have it...a doctor. Any doctor worth their training could do something with this. She could keep to the outskirts; flit about the mainland while avoiding the major villages.

But she could leave the thinking until she got far enough away from Shizune to stop fearing the woman's potential divine retribution. Tucking the viles and paper to the fold in her robe, she turned to the door.

It was more difficult to walk quietly than she remembered; her steps felt heavier than they should be still, and every breath she took resulted in a barely audible wheeze. It was to her great relief that the stairs didn't squeak. If Shizune caught her, she could play it off, probably...but that would be pushing her luck. Somehow, even after proving to herself that she could make it outside unbothered, Shizune was leaving her unattended all through the night. She'd take that chance while she had it.

Peering around the corner to the entrance revealed...the desk girl, asleep, head dropped heavy in her arms. She was snoring.

They should honestly pay her less.

Though she knew she had little to fear here, her heart was beating fast. Technically speaking, this was her first time in action since fleeing Kiri. Sure, this was a hotel, but...she was still evading a Sannin-trained shinobi in the process.

Still, as the door clicked shut behind her, she felt a burst of adrenaline course through her.

This was HER life.

No more laying around. She was stronger, now. She tamed her illness, and she could fight it as long as she needed to.

Nothing could hold her back. There was a whole world out there; a world beyond the Mist just waiting to be discovered, her legacy waiting to be carved across the earth.

She prepared herself, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes; however much she could push through, she knew this was still going to be painful. Her weapons were tied secure, and her clothing cleaned and sewed (perhaps she should thank Shizune for that as well if she ever saw her again...she sincerely hoped, however, that she would never see Shizune again).

She stepped forward into the cold night air, shaking her legs. Another deep breath, and once more, by the light of the moon, Ringo ran.

AN: Hey dudes! Your fav lesbian's back at it again with another goddamn naruto chapter!

Holy shit y'all, a lots happened since last chapter, huh? TDOV, easter, i made my course schedule for next semester, day, the equinox, essay after essay after essay, etc etc etc. Lots of good good shit. Hope you all had a good time. Can you believe it's still snowing here? End of April and we're still getting snowstorms in Philly.

NOW! Let's talk Naruto like the nerds we are: Oh damn Ringo ditched! Yep. Oddly enough, I never planned for anything like this to happen at first. This chapter's been completely rewritten, twice. One of my biggest problems as a writer is that I have a very bad tendency to have everything settle into this perfect land where everyone is happy and gay and nothing bad ever happens.

Now there are places for that kind of writing...this story is not one of those places. The original chapter, when i really took a look at it, was boring as hell. It just glided by with absolutely nothing happening; everything was resolved immediately and without problem, and Shizune and Ringo separated on fantastic terms. Sure as hell couldn't leave it like that.

So I thought, "well how could i POSSIBLY have conflict here…?"

Then I remembered. Ringo's still an asshole! In fact, not only is she an asshole, she's an asshole who nearly died 4 times in a week, felt her life draining away from her, went through surgery while awake, is currently in a foreign country, and is having her life ripped out from under her feet as bits of her are pulled to pieces never to be returned, and has completely lost control of everything around her. There's...quite a lot of ways conflict can be established.

Ringo's still Ringo, basically. That's the change I made, lmao.

Honestly, I'm STILL not quite happy with this chapter, but at this point i really just needed to get it out and get to a new point in the story. Restoration is now complete! Time to move forward. Also, this chapter broke 50k for the fic! That's pretty damn neat.

So! Ringo's on the lam. Where will she go? Shit dude, i have no idea. Guess I gotta write it.

See you all next chapter! Thanks for reading!