So, this may be a little short, but the choice was short to update or super duper long. Well, after you read, i'll let you decided. Feel free to comment and let me know if this chapter...well... what it did for ya :)
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The pain ripped through his temples like lightening. He couldn't speak, couldn't see, as the rippling waves of pain slammed through his head, against the walls and down his back. He threw his hands up to the sides of his face, his mouth falling open into a silent scream with his eyes pinched shut. His legs buckled from the torment as he dropped to his knees into the damp cool grass, his jeans soaking in the moisture and turning the material a darker blue.
His back arched backwards, but he didn't even feel it as his mind was a scramble of chaos as his human side tried to panic. His body fell to the side onto the grass, his hands still holding and squeezing his head as it tried to decipher the pain that rippled through his mind. His muscles held their rigid form as he thought he saw a form deep within the recess of his mind, could almost make it out as his mind was encased in a fog of darkness, but a sliver of light poking through and landing on the dark form.
He felt his mental hand reach out, trying to grasp the form, as it began to grow in size but still out of focus. The mental screams of anguish flew through the small space like radio waves that burst against the walls and vibrated his mind with pain. He realized it wasn't himself calling out the wails of agony, but it was the form, just out of his reach. He could feel his body shaking as his hand reached again, as if he could feel the pull, if he could only touch it, somehow he knew the pain would stop…though he didn't know how he knew…he reached… he was almost there as he swam against the continuous invisible waves of pain that tried to push him back.
The shadowed form suddenly flew towards him in his mind and as wide alarming jaws appeared to grab at his outstretched hand. The shock of seeing a muzzle, large teeth and glowing yellow eyes left him breathless with surprise. The pull he felt was a solid slam on his subconscious when the muzzle grabbed his mental hand and swung his mental self forward with such force, he swore his arm was ripped off. He could hear himself cry out as his body flew through the fog and the waves of pain as he kept falling through layers of water, that wasn't really there. With each layer he felt himself splash through, the fog would lift and suddenly, all came into focus and he understood completely.
Naruto opened his eyes suddenly gasping in breaths, finding himself on the ground of the campus, only a few feet from where he had just turned away… 'Sasuke…'. His arms still wrapped around his head, but the pain had instantly vanished, and the realization was clear. He mentally praised his wolf for the help, bringing forth the clarity that he needed.
He whipped his head over to see Sai practically carrying a near limp Sasuke through the two buildings and making their way around the corner. Naruto slammed his fists into the damp grass and grit his teeth as he realized his mistake. His wolf slammed into him hard, bringing the reality of the situation to the fore front of his mind. He growled as he launched himself off the ground and sprinted off, determined to break something, his hopes, that it would be Sai.
"STOP! Asshole!" Naruto barked out as he ran around the corner of the building, to see Sai half learning against a black car and dragging Sasuke with him, who still appeared completely out of it as his head flopped helplessly about. Naruto skidded to a sudden stop as Sai slipped his arm out quickly from behind himself and held a gun to Sasuke's chin.
"I told you, this was not your concern," Sai snarled at Naruto, his eyes flickering with annoyance as he held the gun steady. "You don't want Sasuke to get hurt now do you?" Sai trailed the gun down Sasuke's neck. Sasuke's eyes were glazed and half lidded, his body barely standing on its own, leaning heavy against Sai, not even aware of the danger that was presented at him.
Naruto's eyes began to flicker their yellow gleam. "Bastard! What did you do to him?!" Naruto's fist clenched as he hunched slightly over, his wolf clawing at the bit, wanting to be released and rip this other alpha apart.
"Tsk, manners!" Sai snarled again, with a smirk, he leaned his lips closer to Sasuke's cheek, his eyes not leaving Naruto. He continued to drag the end of the gun across Sasuke's collar bones and across his chest. Sai licked Sasuke's cheek, his eyes not leaving Naruto as he smirked a sneer. "Sasuke is my mate, and we are leaving. Leave, now, or I cannot atone for what may happen," Sai wiggled the gun slightly, showing his threat.
Naruto growled low. "Fucking, god damn, ass…I swear, if you hurt him…"
Sai gave Naruto a tsk as he began to maneuver Sasuke towards the back door of the car. Sasuke's body helplessly being manipulated in whichever direction Sai pushed it. His eyes still half lidded and glazed, face still flushed red and his breaths were heavy and panting.
Naruto's eyes followed every movement Sai did, his wolf still clawing helplessly within his mind, not understanding why Naruto had not moved yet. Naruto's mind was a scramble. He felt useless and angry, as he was left with the feeling of helplessness. A gun could still kill werewolves, if hit in the right area, just like humans. Worse though, if the bullet was laced with silver. Yes, those fairytales of silver killing werewolves, was true. Naruto's mind was frantically trying to determine a way to get Sasuke out of this situation and maybe kill Sai on the sidelines. Naruto panted through his clenched teeth, his muscles twitching with anticipation on the next move.
Sasuke's mind was fogged, but he felt something. His mind was heavy, his wolf was confused and he could almost feel it walking into walls. Sasuke squinted through his glazed eyes…'what is that? Is that…it looks bright, like…warm too.' He forced his body to steady, as he felt his head fall slightly forward, he managed to lift his chin and squinted harder at the warm light in the distance. '…looks like?'
"Come now Sasuke, time to go," Sai squeezed Sasuke's midsection hard.
'S-sai…no! I don't w-want…' Sasuke felt himself trying to resist. He tried to step towards the warm light again but could feel something holding him back. Sasuke shook his head no, but instantly felt dizzy and off balance. He felt hot, but not a good hot, an uncomfortable need to find shade type of hot. He felt his body quiver slightly as he tried to steady himself and move towards that light again. 'N-no Sai, let me g—go!' Sasuke heard himself say but wasn't sure if his lips moved.
"Sasuke! Can you hear me!?" Naruto called out as he for sure saw Sasuke struggle against Sai's advances.
Sasuke blinked hard. 'N-naru-to?' his mind called out. Damn his body for feeling this way, what the fuck was wrong with it? Sasuke tried to make his muscles do what he wanted, but it felt he was in a pit of mud and his limbs were weighted down. He squinted towards he light, as it became more focused, yellow shades began to come out as the unmistakable spiked hair came into focus. 'Naruto!' Sasuke felt his heart rate quicken as he tried to pull away from Sai, fighting the dazed and wobbly feeling in his mind. His mind couldn't register what was holding him back but be damned if he was going with him!
Sai grunted as Sasuke tried to pull away from him. Though Sasuke's arms were still weak as thin willow sticks, Sasuke continued to struggle with trying to push him off. Sasuke managed to lift his head again and see Sai straight in the eyes. Sai could see the glazed eyes trying to focus on him and he gave a wide smile. He pulled Sasuke's head in close to his, so his forehead was resting on Sasuke's temple, while his lips hovered near Sasuke's ear. He held Sasuke's hair hard, so he couldn't move his head and whispered, "I told you, you and I are mates, we are destined." He licked the shell of Sasuke's ear and gave a peck on his cheek. "No more interruptions," he hissed and then grinned as he turned Sasuke's head to look towards Naruto. Sai held the gun up towards Naruto and Sasuke's eyes focused in panic as Sai pulled the trigger, the gun blast echoing through his ears.
Sasuke's unfocused eyes watched as the gun was fired, the seemingly slow motion he saw Naruto's body propel to the side as if it was hit by an invisible force and then collapse to the ground. He didn't know if he cried out, though he felt his wolf's agony throughout his body and his muscles began to spasm out of control. His mind couldn't handle the onslaught of sudden turmoil that his wolf released and he instantly felt nauseous and weak. His body was already not responding, but this new development had his lungs deflating, his muscles continuously seizure and he felt his body begin to fall to the ground. He found himself welcoming the darkness that appeared to be overtaking his mentality, as he heard his wolf's cries from the distance and seen the continuous replay of the vision of Naruto's body falling hard to the ground. It was too painful, he felt better off in the dark.
Sai grasped Sasuke hard as he collapsed. Sai snickered to himself as he readjusted to open the car door and get Sasuke into the car. 'Not quite as smoothly as I like, but meh…' Sai smiled to himself, hoisting Sasuke's limp form into the back of the car and quickly closing the door. He glanced at the still blond body, gave a snort and headed to the driver's seat. He slipped the keys into the ignition, the car coming to life easily as he quickly checked the back seat to ensure his prize was still there, then drove off. A puff of exhaust quickly dissipating and settling on the still form lying on the ground.
-intermission-
Sasuke felt his self-conscious coming too slowly and instantly regretted it. His muscles were screaming out in discomfort. His head was pounding with a headache and his skin felt like it had been caked in a weeks worth of sweat and grime. He arms and legs felt heavy as he struggled to bring a hand to his face.
He stopped suddenly as his mind overwhelmed him the last few memories. His eyes stung instantly as his memory replayed the slow motion action of the gun, the thunderous noise, and Naruto falling to the ground. Sasuke's could feel the build up of anguish in his sinus', his heart slapping painfully in his chest and bile suddenly coming up from his stomach. Sasuke immediately rolled to his side and vomited. He brought a fist to his lips as he clenched his teeth, stuttering in breaths as his mind replayed over and over. He didn't want to open his eyes, this couldn't be real, he was living in a permanent nightmare for sure that he needed to wake. He bit into his fist and when the pain reeled his mentality into the realization that this was real, he wailed out his agony, allowing his voice to release his pain, for he didn't care who heard. The pain was real, he didn't want to feel, but he needed the release. He could not fathom what else he could do but to release his pain through a scream. He then chocked on his sobs as he rolled into himself, grabbing at his hair and pulling, as if the slight discomfort would elevate his torment. The vision of Naruto being slammed hard, his body falling heavy to the ground, already lifeless, had Sasuke chocking and hiccupping out sobs. It wouldn't stop, he couldn't stop it, it was real, the pain ripping through his wolf and his heart, was all real.
Sasuke lay still after his brief release of pain, realizing he still was somewhere he didn't want to be. He refused to open his eyes. If he opened his eyes, he would be faced with a different reality that he wasn't ready for. He knew he wasn't home, his senses told him that long ago. He didn't care at the moment. Behind his closed eyes he could envision a smiling blond alpha, who glowed like the sun with strong arms and legs, tanned skin kissed evenly by the sun. He recalled the pearl, the fork and spoon. A sharp stab at his heart, reminded him of the lifeless body that fell to the ground and he swallowed the sob that threatened to surface again.
He focused on listening carefully to his surroundings, but silently continued to mourn with his wolf, who could not let the vision go. Though his sobbing ceased a while ago, his heart was heavy and he felt empty. His wolf howled in darkness and Sasuke let it flow over him with ease. It was easier to feel blank and empty and sit within the dark.
Sasuke heard the distinct footsteps growing louder from a distance. He didn't know if he was in a room, or dungeon or in a cardboard box. He still didn't care. He listened as the steps came closer to him, he knew those steps, he was familiar with them having heard them sometime ago in his past. He wasn't surprised and he kept his eyes closed, because he still didn't care.
A door opened and clicked shut, as Sasuke listened to the shuffled feet that walked closer towards him. He felt his wolf's hackles rise and low growling develop deep from the darkness. His wolf was not pleased with the visitor obviously, and Sasuke continued to lie still with his eyes closed. He felt the visitor stop at the side of the bed and the eyes trail his body.
"Good to see you again Sasuke-kun," a deep voice whispered out. "How I've missed your presence around here. It had gotten dreadfully boring without you around. I trust you found what you were seeking in your absence?" The voice questioned with a slight sound of humour to it. "We have so much to discuss when you are fully rested."
Sasuke heard more shuffling and flinched slightly as a sharp prick entered his arm. He still refused to open his eyes, knowing that it was just a matter of time before he was subjected to something he had no care to see. It didn't matter, he was settled in his state of darkness, comfortable even.
"Just something to help you sleep more soundly Sasuke-kun," the voice responded when seeing Sasuke's eyes twitch slightly from the pinch. "You should be well rested enough to attend dinner," the voice gave a tone of formality to it as the steps turned away and shuffled towards the door.
Sasuke listened to the door click shut and drew in a deep shuddering breath. He let his mind settle into blissfully blank darkness, his exhaustion suddenly overwhelming him that he didn't know existed. He felt his mind numb and relax as his body shut down into sleep.
-intermission-
"Tsunade-sama?" a voice whispered through the crack of a slightly opened door, "someone here to see you."
The busty older woman looked up from a clipboard towards the door. She let out a breath of annoyance. "I'll be right out," she responded curtly and noted the woman's slight nod of a head before closing the door. She turned to look at her patient, lying still on the bed, an IV drip going down into the covers, a heart monitor blinking silently on the other side of the bed. Another machine monitored the blood flow and oxygen levels, and another recorded the brain waves. The room was dark, with a small corner lamp giving off a soft glow, enough to make out the areas in the room. She hung the clipboard back on the end of the bed and moved towards the door heading out of the room. She took a deep breath before opening and stepping out, she knew who was waiting.
Tsunade made her way down the narrow dimly lit hallway towards a small waiting area, tucked to the side, so as to not allow any of the public access to the room. She stepped inside to see several members of her once lively pack, looking pale, worried and downright pathetic. She stopped and put her hands on her hips as her eyes roamed over the pack members, giving them all a stern look. The look didn't hinder the pack, as they all watched with baited breaths for Tsunade to speak.
"He's stable, but in a coma," she bluntly spoke out, but with a softness to it.
Sakura began to cry softly, Hinata right beside her wiping at her own tears. Kiba and Kyuubi stood still, their eyes wide and red rimmed, though their faces held shock as their lips quivered slightly as they leaned into each other.
"Before you ask," Tsunade held up her hand to enforce silence, "I don't know when he will wake, nor do I know what type of mental trauma he may have or have not developed until he wakes up." She took a deep breath before bringing her hand down and quickly scanned the pack members before continuing. "He was lucky that the bullet went through his left side under his rib cage and out through the back, miraculously missing his kidneys, stomach and lungs. The bad news is, that the bullet was silver, therefore poisoning areas as it went through." She heard the gasps and sobbing of the pack members when she mentioned the silver. She knew they would respond that way, just as she did when Naruto was brought to her and he discovered the poison seeping through his blood and tissues.
"H-has the poison…" it was Kyuubi, trying to choke out the question. "Has the poison been removed Tsunade-sama?" Kyuubi harshly spoke out, trying to portray a steady face but his eyes failed that illusion.
"The poison, we believe that we got it all removed." Many breaths released in relief, "but he isn't out of the woods yet. There could be ongoing complications on where the poison had breached." All eyes continued to watch Tsunade as she continued to explain. "He's under constant surveillance in the hopes that we got all the silver out of his system. We can only watch and wait. Should something come up, our team will be available immediately. That's, that's all I can say for now." She brought her hand up to the bridge of her nose, rubbing the area hard, as she tried to control her emotions.
Sakura and Hinata hugged each other as they comforted each other. Kiba sat down hard on a chair, laying his face into his hands as he took deep breaths. Kyuubi placed a hand on Kiba's shoulder and gave it a squeeze.
"I suggest you all go home and get some rest. I'll inform Kakashi should any change occur," she nodded her head towards Kakashi who was standing near a corner of the room, "and Naruto is still in intensive care. He cannot have visitors until I inform you of any different." She nodded towards the pack and turned to take her leave. She stopped at the door before turning back to look at Kakashi, "Kakashi, a word in my office please." She nodded and headed out the door when Kakashi gave her a nod of understanding.
Kakashi moved towards the door, "you all should do as she says, get home and get some rest. There isn't anything you can do for Naruto hanging around here."
"I wanna find who did this and murder the fucker!" Kyuubi growled loudly as he brought a fist up and slammed into his other hand. "Like what the FUCK! Who would do this? Why would this happen? What has Naruto ever…!" Kyuubi began to get louder as he spewed out his anger.
"Kyuubi!" Kakashi raised his voice. Kyuubi snarled as he looked straight into Kakashi's eyes. "I get it. This is… it's hard, but you need to think smart and think about the others, the territory and keeping the pack intact!" He focused on Kyuubi as he walked towards him. Placing a hand on Kyuubi's shoulder, giving a small squeeze, "be strong, for the pack, yourself…" he whispered as he held his hand out towards the pack members, "and for Naruto. When he comes home, show him he had nothing to worry about while he was away. You got this." Kakashi patted Kyuubi's shoulder again before turning to leave. He looked around at the red rimmed eyes and sorrowful faces of the rest of them. "The rest of you, take care of business while Naruto rests. He depends on you and trusts you all to do what's right for yourself and the pack. I'll keep you updated." With that he smiled briefly at them, that didn't reach his eyes and made his way out the door.
Kyuubi growled again, he continually pounded his hand with his fist. "Fucker… fucker… I can't fucking believe this!" He began to pace, his breaths coming out in hot pants as his eyes flickered in change. He released a suffocating scent of anger and violence.
"Kyuubi please calm down," Hinata spoke out. "This attitude isn't helping anything right now." She wiped at her eyes again, her lips firm in a frown as she stood to stand in front of Kyuubi. "I want to know who dared do this too, but we need to plan. We can't all just go barreling in out of anger," she spit out as quickly as she could, in hopes to have Kyuubi settle. "You all know what happens when we charge in without thinking—N-Naruto has done that enough times and…and has left us several messes to clean up…" She quietly let out a sobbed snicker, as she remembered some of the antics that Naruto got himself into.
Kyuubi let out a helpless sigh as he watched Hinata's eyes lower after that comment. He grabbed her and hugged her in close, as her shoulders shook slightly. "I'm sorry Hinata, I'm sorry…" he consoled her as he hugged her tight, breathing in her scent as she hiccupped sobs into his shoulder. Sakura stood up and came to Kyuubi's side, Kyuubi lifting one of his other arms and pulling Sakura in as she hugged them both. She sniffled as she held them, and then felt Kiba join in behind Hinata and herself, his arms wrapping around all of them as well. The four stood there, comforting each other while they allowed their tears to fall again quietly.
-intermission-
"Time for you to explain Kakashi, and don't you dare leave anything out," Tsunade barked out at Kakashi as soon as he walked into her office. She was standing with her back to the door, looking out the window of her office, peering into the city night, her hands clasped behind her back.
Kakashi could see her hands were clenched tight, for her fingertips were bright red where her knuckles were white where blood flow had been restricted. He hummed his approval and went to sit at an arm chair located in front of her desk.
"I got a call from my partner, Iruka, who found him unconscious on the campus grass behind one of the buildings," Kakashi began, his voice cracked slightly. "He thought he heard a gunshot, so he went outside to look around. He could smell the gun powder and it lead him to…" Kakashi trailed off. He took a shuddering breath in and cleared his throat to continue. "The only thing he could see was there were tire tracks leading away from where Naruto was. Iruka did not hear nor see any vehicle. He called me immediately when he found him."
"Kakashi! Kakashi! It's Naruto!" Iruka frantically spat out through the phone line.
"Whoa, calm down Iruka, what about him?" Kakashi asked calmly, as he waited for Iruka to answer.
"He…he…oh my god! There's so much blood! Kakashi! I think—I think Naruto's been shot! Oh my god!" Iruka began to speak out hysterically, the fear echoed in his voice.
Kakashi's eyes widened as soon as he heard it. "Where are you? Where is Naruto?" Kakashi stopped walking as he waited for Iruka to respond. His mind begging that he had heard wrong.
"Behind the engineering building….oh please… Kakashi, he won't wake up, I—I can't stop the bleeding…hurry hurry!"
Kakashi heard shuffling of the phone, Iruka's voice calling out to Naruto, Iruka obviously dropped the phone onto the grass or something. "I'm coming!" Kakashi bolted for his car, luckily he wasn't too far from the university. As he ran he called Tsunade before sliding into the seat of his car and speeding off towards the university.
He arrived in minutes, screeching to a stop behind the engineering building on campus. A handful of students had gathered, trying to see what happened.
"Iruka!" Kakashi called out as he sprinted towards him. He saw Iruka bent over and only a pair of jeaned legs could be seen. Iruka was rocking and blubbering out words through tears and sobs. Kakashi dropped to his knees as he took in the site.
Naruto was almost white in colour, a far cry from his healthy glow of tanned skin. His breathing was light pants and almost nonexistent. His lips were a tint of blue. A small trickle of blood appeared to be coming from beneath him. His body was so lifeless, Kakashi almost thought he was too late.
"Oh Ka-kashi!" Iruka wailed as he continued to hold a soaked in blood garment on Naruto. Iruka continued to sob, rock back and forth as he held the bloody cloth.
"Okay Iruka, okay…I'm here," Kakashi tried to stay calm for Iruka's sake. "Did you call an ambulance?" Iruka managed to nod as he hiccupped through blubbered words. "Okay, good, good, let me see now," Kakashi put his hands on Iruka's blood covered hands to see the wound. Iruka lifted his hands and quickly grabbed Naruto's one hand, squeezing it while rocking, tears continued down his cheeks. Kakashi lifted the soaked garment and saw a burn hole in Naruto's jacket, soaked in blood and more was trying to pour out. Kakashi pulled back the jacket slightly to see the wound, but it was no use, there was to much blood. He glanced at the puddle forming, "shit…" He knew what it meant and he went to move Naruto onto his side. 'Please be wrong….please be wrong,' he chanted to himself, but he knew he wasn't. As he managed to gently turn Naruto, the trickle of blood lead to a large puddle that had already soaked the majority of Naruto's back. Kakashi quickly grabbed the already blood soaked rag and placed it over the exit hole from the bullet and held it.
Iruka quickly took off his jacket and applied to the wound on the front of Naruto as Kakashi held pressure to the wound in the back.
"Hold on Naruto, I'm here, we got you. Hold on," Kakashi whispered repeatedly as he heard sirens in the distance.
"I knew there was an issue when I saw the wound not healing like it should," Kakashi whispered harshly in the still quiet room. Tsunade continued to stare out the window, back to Kakashi, but Kakashi watched as her hands flexed several times, as he told the story what he knew.
Tsunade turned, stepped to her desk and leaned against it, her hands gripping the side. Her bosom on full display at Kakashi, her lips pinched tight in a frown and her eyes glaring angrily at the top of her desk. Her hands squeezed the table as she appeared to be focusing on her next plan of action.
"Obviously, whoever did this, is familiar with us. Question is, who." She looked up to Kakashi, "who was Naruto involved with that lead to this situation?" She eyed Kakashi in question.
Kakashi brought a hand up to his forehead, rubbing at it before running his fingers through his hair. "He may not be involved with any particular persons that I know of or seen as of late—hunters in the area perhaps? I haven't heard anything, but maybe…?" He returned Tsunade's stare, but his eyes were softer. "Naruto isn't one to have any enemies that I'm aware of and I'm pretty sure hunters are not aware of his existence."
Tsunade huffed. "See if you can't find out who or what's been around as of late," she barked out. "I want to know details of where he's been, who he has seen, what side of the bed he sleeps on for fucks sake!" She squeezed the edges of her desk, an audible cracking nose released.
"Hai Tsunade-sama," Kakashi spoke out as he stood and headed out the door.
Tsunade flopped into her desk chair, releasing a loud sigh as soon as the door closed. She rested her head into her hands and let out a sob in the seclusion of her office.
-intermission-
Sasuke began to stir awake to something touching his skin. His nose wrinkled up and his brows furrowed as he tried to flinch away from whatever was touching him. His body was still groggy, not responding as quickly as it should and Sasuke felt that something brushing against his skin again, along and up the inside of his arm. The sensation burned at his skin and he struggled again to move away from it. He mentally cursed as his body again was still slow to respond. He swept through his mind, searching for his inner wolf, only to find it eerily silent. The sensation continued up his arm and was now moving across his chest. 'The fuck?' He turned his head towards the sensation, lifting his eyes to see what was there. His eyes suddenly grew wide and he took in a breath of surprise.
"N-Naru-to?" Sasuke whispered out, his voice cracked as he struggled to pull his hand up towards the blond alpha. The blond alpha's sapphire eyes twinkled as he gave Sasuke a brilliant smile. The marks on his cheeks curved with his smile and Sasuke thought that this was most beautiful smile he had ever seen. "W-what…" Sasuke began to speak. He was sitting on the bed beside him and Sasuke could feel the heat radiating off of him.
"Hey," Naruto whispered, his hand still tracing Sasuke's chest with his fingers lightly, "it's time for supper." He tilted his head at Sasuke, his eyes glowed with warmth.
Sasuke felt himself smiling lightly and his heart fluttering. "Oh, did I sleep to long?" he responded with a yawn. "I could use something to eat." He tried to bring his hands up, but they still felt so heavy. "I don't know why I'm so tired still." Sasuke frowned as he held a hand to his face and flexed the fingers, testing their ability and control.
"Probably need some fuel. You haven't eaten for a while, need to get your protein levels up!" He gave Sasuke another smile as he shook at Sasuke's chest teasingly. "Come on sleepy head, up and at em!" Naruto slid back slightly on the bed, holding out a hand for Sasuke to grasp, indicating that he would assist Sasuke in sitting up.
"Hn, dobe," Sasuke grunted out, but it held no spite. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly into a smile as he reached for Naruto's hand, grasping it with as much grip as he could. His head felt light as he felt himself suddenly being hoisted up and then suddenly stopped, his face inches from Naruto's. The blue sapphires glowed brightly as they bore down on onyx eyes. Sasuke felt his heart fluttering wildly in his chest as he found himself hypnotized and frozen on the spot. Naruto's eyes were warm and inviting, like an onsen, warm and steaming with heavy mineral scents. Sasuke could feel the heat pulsing from Naruto's hand that still had a firm hold on his. Sasuke felt Naruto's other hand run up his arm and stop lightly behind his neck, his blue eyes never wavering from his own. Sasuke unconsciously licked his lips and Naruto's eyes dropped to watch the movement and back up. "N-Nar…" Sasuke heard himself saying as he felt his head tilt slightly and move closer to Naruto's face. His eyelids began to flutter closed as he held his breath. He could feel his heart bursting behind his chest, his arm muscles tremor slightly and a soft push was given behind his neck. "Sas'ke…" He heard Naruto whisper as he allowed the hand on his neck to guide him closer towards Naruto's warm lips.
Sasuke opened his eyes and found himself staring at a dulled yellow ceiling in a dimly lit room. The scent of rot invaded his nose, the air was damp and cool and only muffled sounds of machinery and pipes could be heard. As his dream began to dispel, it was replaced with the etched memory of a gunshot sound followed by Naruto's body falling hard to the ground, still and lifeless. Sasuke remained still and silent as he continued to stare upwards, a single tear escaping his dulled eye, leaving a trail down and dropping silently into the material of the bed. He squeezed his eyes shut to suppress the tears that threatened to breach and reached out mentally for his wolf, only to find it eerily silent. He fisted his hands at his side, fighting to keep calm as he continued to mentally reach out, calling to his wolf. His calls were left unanswered and for the first time in his life, Sasuke couldn't feel the essence of the wolf and he had never felt so utterly alone.