Better Left Unknown
: Sasuke neared the wide open gates of Konoha, clasping his hand to the excruciating pain in his chest. He could barely move, and now that the wound beneath his ribcage had re-opened, he was better off dead. Sasuke spotted a shock of sunny yellow spiked hair as he passed through the gate. The guards looked panicked; he didn't care.
"Shit." He pressed against his bleeding chest even harder, hissing at the 'tinge' that came with it. Sad, wasn't it, he thought. Maybe this was his divine punishment for killing all those innocent humans and raising a hand against his own comrades.
He chuckled bitterly at that, then he collapsed into unconsciousness.
--
"What is it, Naruto?" Tsunade groaned, looking rather pissed that the Kyuubi vessel had once again interrupted her private talk with the three jounin who had supposedly lost a valuable teammate.
Naruto was panting and already breathing with his shoulders. "It's..-really important!He-Sasuke-came back!- Hospital!" Exhausted from his long run but still having the energy, he dashed to the hospital, with Tsunade teleporting away with Sakura. Neji was about to do the same, until he spotted Tenten's dazed expression.
"Oozo-I mean Tenten-we have to get to the hospital." He shook her drooping shoulders lightly, until she nodded.
--
"One, Two, Three. Clear!" The loud beep from the defibrillator echoed through the white walls of the emergency room. Several medic-nin were crowded around the Uchiha, eyes in panic at losing one of their best mission specialists. Among them were a frantic Sakura and a determined Hinata were giving their all for the quickly fading. A loud and astringent beep was heard, filling both with fear.
"He's flat-lining! Use the defibrillator!" Shizune looked concerned.
"Tsunade-sama! His wound has only started to heal! The defibrillator could-- Never mind!" She saw the intensified look in the Hokage's eyes. Shizune pressed the two paddles to the heavily wounded chest, waiting for a few moments. Sasuke's torso twitched abruptly and extensively. One beat, then a flatline again.
"Again!" Fortunately, there was no longer any use for the defibrillator. Sasuke's vitals stayed below the cleared area, dangerously close to flat-lining again. Several of his wounds were already healed, but the chest wound he obtained had been far from easy to heal. It was almost as if it exploded from the inside…
--
Neji and Tenten scrunched up their noses in disgust at the bloodied clothing that had been discarded before. Pools of fresh blood trailed from the sleeves and chest area of Sasuke's shirt, trailing into the cardboard box. Luckily, he had been able to keep his pants on. Tsunade emerged from the operating room, hands drenched in blood as she washed them in a nearby heat-sink.
"His vitals and body are in critical condition. He received heavy damage to his chest, though I'm mystified as to how." The Hokage turned to them sternly.
"Did you see any explosives in the area? Anything that can immediately combust?" Neji looked confused.
"No. I didn't see anything like that." He replied. Tenten was silent, calculating all the details in her head. Sasuke was in the forest, apparently training himself with cutting down trees. Then, apparently something exploded…
"I see. It seems to me there was some kind of explosive. In the x-ray, it seems Sasuke-his chest, specifically-was blown up from the inside." Tenten's head snapped up in surprise at that. "Do you know anything about it?" Tenten shook her head side to side, and Tsunade found no reason to push it any further. "I'm rather stunned, if not amazed, how something could plant its way into someone and blow up without destroying up the heart, only sending it into shocks-cardiac arrest."
At that moment, Tenten felt sick.
--
Preview: "Whatever you do Neji, do not get caught with Tenten." Neji's head snapped up at that, and he could only answer dumbly.
"What?" He asked incredulously. Were these words actually coming out of the Uchiha's mouth?