Author's note: Alright guys... This is a very dramatic point in the story. Take it or leave it...
Chapter Twelve: Irritation We're Pretending Not to Show
"You sure...?
Hinata nodded, the slight pulse growing weaker. "We need to reseal that wound..." she muttered softly. Iwa didn't allow her to learn any medical jutsu. She cursed. Any sort of training might be enough to save him. As lighting flashed outside, she looked at Kiba. "Take off your shirt!"
Kiba stared at her, blinking. "Hinata? I didn't know you were like that!"
Hinata glared at him with a look of disgust and annoyance. "Now, Kiba! We don't have time for this!"
Kiba groaned softly and took off his jacket and then his shirt. Hinata ignored the vest, going straight for the shirt. She carefully began tearing it to make a large bandage. "Hey! What are you doing?" Kiba snapped, obviously angry about his shirt being torn. "Are you tearing it up for my fan club?"
Hinata rolled her eyes and carefully stripped Kabuto of the rest of his torn shirt. "Yeah... Your fan club of one..."
"Hey! At least I have one member!" Kiba retorted.
"Yes, Kiba-kun... And that one member is you," Hinata muttered.
"Aw!" Kiba whined softly. "Then why did you have to tear up my shirt if you were just going to give it back to me?"
Hinata let out a loud sigh. "You're hopeless..." She knew that her team mate was just as scared as she was, but he dealt with emotions differently than she did. In tight situations like this, he often tried to joke his way out. She knew he knew exactly why she was tearing his shirt up... And she knew he didn't care... But he was scared, just like she was... And he had no idea how to really deal with it.
The villagers of Ishi didn't know situations like this... They were taught that when they were trapped enemy territory, they were to kill themselves to protect Ishi's secrets... So there was no training for this... They had no idea what to do... And as Hinata turned to Kiba in the dim firelight, she could see him petting Akamaru, his face set in a deep frown and his eyes staring at the door, both alert and terrified, praying that nothing opened it. "Kiba-kun...?" Hinata whispered.
Kiba jumped and turned to his partner. His frown turned into a big smile, but Hinata could see behind it. "We'll be fine, Hinata!" he said.
Hinata sighed and turned to look at Kabuto. He was so pale... And Kiba's shirt was already soaked with blood. A soft moan from a few feet away informed Hinata that Lee too needed medical treatment... Treatment that she couldn't provide. "Kiba... They're not going to make it... Not without real help!"
Kiba shook his head. "We can't go back to the village..." he whispered. "Where else can we go?"
"The Sand..." Hinata suggested just as quietly.
Naruto turned around, panting hard. His chest was on fire and his leg throbbed intensely. He looked around the building to see the two guards still chasing after him. His hands were stained crimson and his clothing looked no better. The boy was trying to control his breathing. They didn't notice exactly who he was, so maybe he would get away with this... but he doubted it somehow.
"I didn't even do it!" He screamed, his voice being drowned out by a loud clack of thunder. He rubbed his head, trying to sort his mind out. He blinked slowly and turned to the sky. He had gone for a walk... Much to Kakashi's dismay, but of course, the Jinchuuriki had no say-so in the matter. Naruto hadn't been out long before his ankle had started acting up, so he seating himself in a dark corner. And that's when he heard a loud scream...
He figured it was another Ishi villager caught outside after curfew, but he also heard hissing. He had closed his eyes and tried to block out the dying screams, only listening for the hissing as it faded away... A summoner talking to their summons. When the hissing died, Naruto made his move. The rain had already washed away the foot prints, but he knew the killer. And the murdered... The main guard of Iwa, Nade... Naruto had spun around to leave, but his ankle twisted again, leaving himself on the dead guard, the man's freshly poured blood seeping into Naruto's clothing just as the rain began to lighten up.
And that's where he was now. Some guards had come to investigate and had spotted Naruto fleeing the scene. Naruto looked up at the sky as the last hint of rain stopped. He looked down at his bloodstained clothes and hands and shook his head. He couldn't be seen like this... The boy growled softly and took off running again, fear welling up in his chest.
He made it to Kakashi's house before getting spotted and ran inside. Kakashi was waiting for him. "Where have you been?" he snapped like an angry father. Naruto looked at him.
"Who are you...my dad?" Naruto snapped back.
Kakashi narrowed his eyes. "No, but you sure treat me better than you treat him!" he retorted angrily. Naruto kept fidgeting. "What's wrong with you?" Kakashi snapped. Naruto finally showed him his bloodied hands. "What did you do?" Kakashi gasped.
"Nothing!" Naruto snapped. "I did nothing!"
"That's not 'nothing,' Naruto!" Kakashi growled.
"Why are you so angry?"
"Why? Because you think that my only reason for existing is to keep you safe! You have no idea what I'm going through!"
"Don't I?" Naruto yelled. "I know exactly what you're going through!" Kakashi narrowed his eyes dangerously.
"Don't talk to me like that, boy!" he growled.
"The difference between you and me is that I can control it!" Naruto hissed. Kakashi raised his hand to slap the child, but slowly lowered it, trying to keep his anger in check. He took a deep breath. "I don't have to take this," Naruto hissed softly and spun around.
"Where are you going?" Kakashi called after him.
"Anywhere but here!" Naruto returned before sprinting off, Kakashi hot on his heels. Naruto shook his head and ran faster, unable to control himself any longer. Kakashi wasn't even trying to get them home! He didn't want to be here! He didn't want to live here. Kakashi had no right to keep Naruto trapped here!
Naruto kept running as the rain picked up again, more violently than last time. Naruto didn't let that or the pain in his ankle stop him. He just kept going until he reached the gates. As he did so, he jumped, sending chakra to his feet so he would stick. He ran up the large wall and stood at the top, staring down at the dark forest being soaked in the rain.
He hardly heard Kakashi sneak up on him. "You idiot!" he screamed, needed to do so to be heard over the rain. "You know you shouldn't be out here after hours!"
"So what?" Naruto yelled back. "It's not like you care!"
"What makes you think I don't care?"
"Maybe the fact that we're still here!"
"I'm trying!" Kakashi shouted.
"No you're not!" Naruto growled. Kakashi raised his hand again, and this time he didn't stop. Naruto stumbled back at the force of the blow, finally realizing the subtle, but deadly changes in his sensei. A faint orange glow surrounded his teacher and the man's eyes were blood red and bloodthirsty. Naruto shook his head. "Sensei...?" he whispered, but Kakashi wasn't done. Another blow came.
"I'm trying, you little brat! I'm trying my best to make you happy and this is how you repay me? By shunning me and treating me like the enemy when you go and treat the enemy like a friend!"
"What are you-?"
"Kabuto!" Kakashi screamed, the glow intensifying. "You befriended him and treated your own father like trash!"
"I wasn't ready..."
"Ready for what?" Kakashi shouted. Naruto had never seen Kakashi so angry. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew it was the Fox. Iruka had mentioned something about the Kyuubi having more control and influence in this world, but Naruto didn't know it could do this! Not even he had succumbed to the Fox's influence this badly or this quickly, but it was the stress... And the fact that Kakashi really did care for Naruto... The Kyuubi's version of tough love.
"I wasn't ready for a father..." Naruto muttered.
"I thought that's what you wanted! Didn't you want a family your whole life? Do you realize the pain you're causing that man? Do you know how badly you're hurting him by ignoring him? Do you know the guilt he feels for trapping the Fox inside of you? Of course you don't! Because you're the one that doesn't care!"
Naruto felt his whole body shaking. It wasn't that... It was more of a fear of his father... A fear of becoming too attached when he knew that this wasn't his world, and that when they had to leave, he would lose Minato again. "I…I'm scared..." Naruto whispered, barely audible above the rain.
"Of what?" Kakashi snapped.
"Right now...of you..." Naruto responded. He didn't even have time to regret the phrase. Another blow came. Naruto could no longer back up. His back was plastered against a tower, stuck between that, Kakashi, and two deadly drops.. The fist came again and Naruto slipped underneath the protective railing. A loud crack of thunder made the boy jump, and his ankle gave way.
"Naruto!" Kakashi shouted as the boy slipped. Naruto grabbed the wall and dangled there, not bothering to look down at the drop. Naruto's feet flailed, but he was too panicked to concentrate his chakra to get a foot hold. Kakashi was instantly on his knees, holding out his hand. Naruto grabbed it. "You have to give me your other hand, Naruto..." Naruto shook his head vigorously. He wasn't about to forget the blows he had received, and the reason he was dangling there. "You have to trust me!" Kakashi shouted over another thunder clap. Naruto shook his head. "Please! I can't hold you much longer!"
Naruto nodded slowly and released his hand and grabbed onto Kakashi's arm. He looked up at his teacher's face and jumped at the look in his eyes. He blinked slowly and everything seemed to slow. The rain lightened up and Kakashi leaned forward, his eyes burning with hatred, and in a voice unlike any Naruto had ever heard outside of his own visits with the Kyuubi, he heard two words that echoed in his mind as Kakashi let go, a loud roll of thunder tearing the sky open, making the downpour almost impossible to see through, pulling the child down with it. Naruto felt nothing as he impacted the ground with a wet "smack" and as he faded into darkness, he heard the words again...
"Die brat..."
"NARUTO!" Kakashi screamed as he looked down at the broken body at the bottom of the gates.
"What have you done?" Kakashi screamed at the Fox.
"I was trying to help you rid yourself of such a nuisance!" The Fox responded
"I didn't want to rid myself of him!" Kakashi snapped, staring down at Naruto's body. "He shouldn't have gone like that!"
"I was only trying to help you, Vessel!" Kyuubi growled
"Well stop trying!" Kakashi retorted as he prepared to vault himself off the gates. There was no answer from the Fox and Kakashi nodded. When he landed on the ground, he sprinted towards Naruto, cutting his thumb. He summoned a dog with glasses. "Akino! Go get Minato!" The dog nodded. "And a medic!" He called after the summon.
Kakashi then turned his gaze to Naruto. The boy looked like a mess. One leg was folded underneath his body with the bone sticking out. Blood oozed from a head wound only to be quickly washed away by the rain. He was laying in an awkward position, his back most likely snapped, but hopefully not shattered. Kakashi knelt beside his student. Blood soaked the boy's pants at his hip and Kakashi could only infer that there was at least one hip bone jutting out of the skin.
Kakashi reached out his hand to check for a pulse. "Don't touch him!"
Kakashi jumped and turned around. "Se-sensei..." he stuttered.
"Get away from him!" Minato growled. Kakashi did just that. He backed away from his student's broken and bleeding body. "What did you do?" Minato screamed as he replaced Kakashi beside his son. Kakashi couldn't see, but he could hear the tears in his teacher's voice.
"I... The Fox..." Kakashi stammered, completely flustered and scared. He wanted nothing more than to curl up and die.
"You wanted him to listen to you..." The Fox reminded him silently.
"Shut up! Just shut up! Haven't you done enough?" Kakashi snapped back angrily.
"It was you that wanted him to heed your words, not I!" Kyuubi hissed back.
"This isn't what I wanted!"
"Are you listening to me?" Minato shouted, breaking Kakashi out of his trance and conversation with the Fox.
"So-sorry, Minato-sama..." Kakashi muttered, feeling like a child again. He blinked slowly and looked up at the sky.
"Sorry isn't going to bring him back!"
Kakashi jumped. "He's...?"
"Not yet!" Minato yelled.
"What's going on here?" Kakashi sighed. Not another person. He turned around to spot Hiruzen, Iruka and a team of medics, along with Akino, who sat proudly and solemnly beside the former Hokage.
"I..." Kakashi started. Iruka looked down at Naruto and then to Kakashi putting two and two together. The man walked quietly over to Kakashi and began leading him away. "Where are we going?" Kakashi asked. Iruka shook his head and slowly continued walking away. Kakashi noticed the hostile glares from everyone around and the shame rose. He allowed himself to be led away.
"Iruka! I don't want you going with him!" Hiruzen shouted. Iruka waved, but continued. "Iruka!" the Hokage yelled, but Iruka didn't stop. His face was set in a terrible frown and his eyes were downcast, but he continued. "It's not safe! Get back here!" Iruka didn't heed the Hokage's calls. He just continued walking, Kakashi following without feeling the rain on his skin. Iruka made no sound as he led Kakashi into the gates and to Iruka's house.
"You'll stay here tonight..." Iruka whispered quietly, taking off his soaked vest. Kakashi stared, dumbfounded at the man.
"Why...?" Kakashi whispered.
"Because... Minato's staying with you and..."
"No... Why are you offering me a place to stay...?"
Iruka sighed deeply and stared out the window. He took a deep breath and patted Kakashi on the shoulder. "I've been looking out for you ever since Rin died..." he explained quietly. "I'm not about to stop now..."
The rain had stopped. Kakashi paced silently in Iruka's house, his eyes staring out the window every few seconds. "Calm down..." Iruka muttered. The sun was coming up and the teacher was becoming nervous as his friend paced back and forth. "It's not helping anything." Kakashi turned to look at the teacher, his eyes haunted and blood shot. He hadn't slept, no matter how hard Iruka had tried to get him to sleep.
He sighed deeply and stood up. "You want to go to the hospital...?" he asked softly. Kakashi turned to him, nodding slowly. Iruka hadn't managed to get what had happened out of Kakashi. He got most of the details. A broken body at the base of the gates, a confused and scared Kakashi and a very angry father... The Kyuubi had taken the man again.
"I-I was mad..." Kakashi whispered. Iruka looked up at him. "I didn't know... He just started talking..." Iruka didn't need an explanation. He was talking about the Kyuubi. He took a deep breath and settled to listen. "And... I was frightened... For Naruto. He never listens... And then we started arguing. The Fox kept talking and I just wanted it all to stop... The yelling... The arguing. Then Naruto tripped. I knew I couldn't get Kyuubi to shut up... So I listened... I-I didn't want to... I care for him... It's not that I don't... But... I was too confused. I'm not used to something being there! Something there to talk to me... And give me orders! I didn't even know I had done anything until after Naruto hit the ground! What if..."
Iruka stood up and walked over to his friend. "Don't think about 'What if's...' Let's go to the hospital..."
Kakashi nodded slowly and allowed himself to be led. Iruka had never seen his friend so distraught... Not even after he and Rin went at it, leaving the poor girl dead. He gently rubbed Kakashi's back as they walked towards the hospital. He didn't know a lot about the boy known as Naruto. He didn't know about the Kakashi that he was now forced to hang out with... All he knew was that if he wanted to get to know these people...
He sighed as they entered the hospital. Minato was sitting with his head in his hands, seemingly crying. Sakumo was sitting beside him, carefully rubbing his back and trying his best to comfort him. Mizuki and Hiruzen both sat on the other side of the waiting room. "Any news...?" Iruka muttered softly. Minato's head snapped up instantly. His glazed over eyes suddenly became full of life.
A loud shout tore through the man's throat the instant his eyes fell on Kakashi. Sakumo was up in a flash, holding Minato as the man struggled to get his hands around Kakashi's throat. Iruka stood protectively in front of his Jinchuuriki friend. Mizuki was up too, grabbing Minato on the other side, both him and Sakumo holding back the man.
"Get out!" Minato screamed. Iruka looked back. Kakashi was frozen, not in terror, but in shock. "Haven't you done enough!"
"Minato! Calm down!" Sakumo snapped, pushing the man back into his chair. "He has every right to be here!"
Minato glared, but calmed down. Iruka sighed deeply. "Maybe you should go..." Hiruzen whispered. Kakashi shook his head and seated himself on the far end, his eyes glazed over with shock. Iruka went to sit beside the man, but Mizuki walked over to him.
"Why did you bring him here?" he snapped.
"Why are you here?" Iruka bit back.
Mizuki narrowed his eyes. "Hiruzen called me..." he muttered. "He didn't want to try to deal with you. I don't understand why you insist Kakashi can be changed and is your friend. "
Iruka sighed. "You wouldn't get it..." He muttered softly and turned towards Kakashi.
Mizuki grabbed his arm. "I just don't want you to get hurt, Iruka..." he insisted.
Iruka nodded, pulling his arm out of Mizuki's grip. "I know... But I can take care of myself, Mizu... I'm not the same clumsy kid I used to be..." Iruka walked over to Kakashi and sat down while Mizuki excused himself and left the building.
The wait seemed like forever. The sun rose, but still no doctor. No one talked, except for Sakumo, who walked between Kakashi and Minato, trying to get either of them to explain what happened, but no one else wanted to talk as much as he did. Iruka felt bad for all of them... Not wanting to really get involved in this drama, but since he saw himself as Kakashi's babysitter, he believed he had to be here...
Finally, a doctor walked out. Minato and Kakashi were on their feet instantly, the rest rising slower. The man fidgeted and Iruka felt his stomach hit the floor. "Well...?" Minato muttered.
The doctor sighed. "His condition is stable..." There was a collective sigh from the gathered ninja. "He's just gone through some major reconstruction surgery..."
"All night...?" Iruka asked. The doctor nodded. "So... How is he...?"
The doctor sighed again. "He'll live..." he muttered.
"What about his back...?" Kakashi whispered.
"We were able to save the spine and nerves in the upper back... And repair some of the damage to the nerves on his lower back. His hip was almost shattered... We were able to reconstruct the majority of his bones, but..." Kakashi shook his head.
"Will he walk again...?" Minato asked, probably echoing Kakashi's question.
"Well... Not exactly..." Minato's eyes began to water. "Now, hold on... He will walk... Eventually. For now, he will be outfitted with braces, and he will never walk again without some sort of pain, but years of therapy and more surgeries, and he will regain most of his walking ability."
"So, he's not paralyzed...?" Sakumo asked.
"No, he's not. Like I said, he won't walk unassisted for a very long time... But there is a physical therapist in a neighboring town in the Land of Fire that can come and help him... I have to get permission for the import of the therapist, but I believe I can gain the warrant."
"What about Tsunade...?" Kakashi asked. "Can't she do the reconstruction surgery...?"
The doctor shook his head. "No one's seen her since the Fox attack..." he answered quickly. "It's not as hopeless as you guys believe. We can have the therapist in a few days. He'll be okay, I promise. He probably won't like it at first, but he'll learn to live with it. He's not disabled... Or crippled. He'll be okay."
"Can I see him...?" Minato asked quietly.
The doctor sighed. "He's sleeping. He just came out of major surgery... But you can go in there... Just don't wake him up..." Minato nodded and followed the doctor into the room. Kakashi watched them and Iruka shook his head.
Sakumo walked over to his son and wrapped him in a hug. Iruka watched as Kakashi at first didn't except the embrace. But as Iruka looked on, he saw something he never thought he'd see Kakashi do... The man leaned on his father and hugged him back. "I'm sorry, Dad..." He whispered. Iruka turned to Hiruzen. The elder ninja nodded slowly and held out his arm. Iruka sighed and walked over to the Hokage, who put his arm over his shoulder and began leading him away from the Hatake family. Iruka looked back as they walked out the door. "I'm so sorry..."
Author's note: Alright... There you go! Major plot development there! We may all feel bad for Kakashi now... Or hate him... which you wish! ^.^
Editor's note: Hey, guys! I'm back! Sorry, I didn't get to edit last chapter 'cause I was out of town… . But, I'm back now, so yay! =D So much drama in this chapter… Poor Naruto-kun. T.T
