A Burning Love
(Third Person.)
Golden eyes shifted, hands twisting in to the fabric of the sheets, ears listening intently to the steady beeping of the monitor. He looked back her, this beautiful adoptive grandson of hers with hair as golden as the sun, and smile as bright as the laughter that now left him. The black festering mounds of flesh that resided in his sockets hadn't granted him sight yet, Tsunades heart growing heavier and heavier as the days went on, her worry for said vison increasing. She didn't know if his body was accepting them, turning these human eyes into his own, or if her hopes were far beyond his body's capabilities. She'd never be able to gaze upon the blue gems that would watch her with either annoyance or a great admiration and appreciation. The same eyes as the little boy she raised to be this fine young man.
His laugh died down, voice chiming as he told her to listen to his heart. She couldn't help but smile back, warmth filling her from her heart and out to her delicate fingertips.
"Lets just hope it stays that way" hands lifted from the cotton sheets, the smell making her all kinds of sick. The room stunk of nothing but cleaning agents, not even narutos skin smelled like him. His body had been stripped of everything he once was, burn scars covering him entirely, hair just starting to grow back, nails ceasing to exist entirely.
The blonde woman covered her mouth, once again thinking of what the boy must have had to experience. He'd arrived in a smoking shrivelled heap, and yet he pulled through. Naruto fought for life, lungs sucking in air even though they'd already been practically reduced to ash.
"Common, i'm strong enough to go outside now right!?"
Despite everything that's happened to him he still sounded as cheerful as ever, grinning up at her, eyes crinkling even as swollen as they were.
"Not a chance" she spoke from behind her palm, voice firm. She swallowed her sadness. Naruto could get over it, so why hadn't she? She wanted to feel it for him perhaps, cry for the boy who just couldn't, but what was the point. He would only be worried about her if he could see, so as she pulled herself together, her hands reached for his face, lips puckering as she leaned to press a kiss against his forehead "You're still not strong enough"
Naruto turned his head away, bottom lip jutting in a pout "That's totally not fair, I can make it out there fine you know" His arms raised from the examination table, IV's pulling as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"Really" Tsunade stared down at him with a cold expression "And how would you know that Naruto?"
He looked guilty, Tsunade thought to herself, but if she had tried to insist that he didn't look guilty all the time, then she'd be lying. His cheeks flushed, discoloured skin staining a light pink. Then again, if a perpetually guilty child could pull off looking more suspicious, Naruto definitely fit the bill.
"Have something to tell me?" She tapped her foot, the blonde before her seizing up, flush crawling down his neck at an alarming rate, fingers clenching his gown. the kid really needed to work on his lying. How the hell did he survive in that Vampire coven so long? Was Sasuke dense or what? And to think the raven had been so bright in his studies. What a shame.
"N-no" His toes curled, unseeing eyes darting away from tsunades general direction, teeth gnawing at his bottom lip as he squirmed, obviously hiding something.
The woman stared ahead of her, as if watching all of Narutos honesty running away into the far distance, lungs expelling all air within them in a short snort.
"Just be careful out there" the resident doctor reached up to rub her temples, groaning as the blonde practically threw himself off the cool metal, IV's tearing from his arms and chest, pulling her into a crushing embrace. Normally she wouldn't be able to breath, but given Narutos current state of weakness she was still pretty impressed with what power he did possess.
"Take Gaara with you" Tsunade muttered, hugging the shorter boy back, holding him in her own gentle embrace.
"Always" Naruto pushed away, grinning from ear to ear, holding his hands out for the older woman to give him his clothes back.
Although hesitant, she did reach behind her, picking up the black T-shirt and sweatpants from on top of her keyboard, placing the material in the owners presented palms.
He couldn't have looked more pleased, turning to dash for the closed door with practiced footsteps, reforming muscles rippling under his skin as he pulled the shirt over his head, hand smoothing over his stomach. Tsunade watched after him, sighing as the mark resting on his hip being the last thing she saw before he yanked his pants up, giving her a short wave before opening the door and disappearing down the hall.
That boy would be the death of her before he ever managed to kill himself. Why she was so worried, she'd never know.
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Even though he'd kind of given himself away, she seemed to be okay with it, naruto feeling a bit guilty as his running turned into a slow jog, then a brisk walk. She'd been so worried about him lately even though he was getting stronger, and it just didn't make sense to him. Admittedly, he had been acting a bit weird these past few weeks, afraid of being caught as gaara smuggled him out of the clan like some sort of prisoner, and being confronted out of the blue hadn't made things any better. He choked up, and now there was no doubt in her mind that he was leaving his room.
He was always sure to take extra long showers, washing and rinsing every part of him at least twice. He couldn't see so there was no telling of he had dirt on him somewhere, or he was better safe than sorry, right?
Now she knew though, and he kind of wished he'd told her earlier, because if she was going to be so calm about everything, then he could have been doing this shit in the daylight! Feeling the warm sun on his face, and smelling the fresh air! maybe trying his hand at blind hunting!
That sounded actually kind of fun. Maybe he'd suggest it to Gaara.
"Naruto!" A thin pair of arms wrapped around his leg, Konohamaru he assumed being the culprit "Naruto you can go outside now?!"
The taller of the two blinked, staring down at the boy with what the brunette assumed was confusion "I just finished my physical, how'd you find out so fast…"
He could feel the boys face press against his hip, toothy smile pressing through the fabric of his jeans "I was eavesdropping"
Naruto nodded slowly, making an 'o' with his mouth as he looked back into the nothingness ahead of him. There goes his idea of blind hunting. there was no way he could do something that dangerous around the kid, especially if he wouldn't be able to take visual cues to snap himself out of whatever trance halfbreeds went under when they fed. He didn't even think gaara would want to come for a stroll now, given he wasn't too fond of the little brat beside him.
"Well i've got no choice then…" the blond sighed, reaching up to scratch his head, frowning in frustration as he then remembered he had no nails and opted for roughly rubbing his scalp "We gunna play outside or what?" he replaced the annoyance on his face with amusement in a flash, motioning for Konohamaru to lead the way.
He could only guess the boy was smiling, listening to his laugh as he ran ahead, feeling the vibrations of their feet in order to follow close behind. It wasn't so bad being blind he supposed, he could still get a pretty good general sense of where everything and everyone was. He would definitely have to try blind hunting. this opportunity was too good to pass up. Gaara would probably want to go out at night anyway.
He didn't even think of tsunades request, asking him to bring gaara along as a safeguard just in case something did happen. The redhead was with him every other time, and nothing happened; not even once. naruto was pretty confident of his mental map, not really planning to wander far off from the clan entrance when he was with Konohamaru anyway. What was the worst that could happen?
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What he assumed to be a golden aura surrounded him, warming his face as his smile rose to meet the occasion. It'd been so long since he'd stood under daylight, the smell of morning dew still lingering in the air, the sound of animals moving within the trees and wandering on the forest floor, their heart beats becoming his own. He closed his eyes, becoming in tune with his surroundings, feeling everything around him. he ceased his breathing, heart stuttering painfully in his chest.
"Naruto!" he could hear Konohamaru calling for him, air filling his lungs once again before he moved forward. He didn't wear any shoes, being able to 'see' better when his feet could feel the earth beneath him, tracking his path, and where he walked.
"I'm coming!" The blonde called following the other boys voice.
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It wasn't like he was his fucking babysitter or anything, infact Gaara wasn't so sure why the old hag had been so mad about it. Naruto didn't drag him outside to an area just outside the clan, a totally safe and monitored area, and in the SUNLIGHT no less-so fucking what? The bitch didn't have to yell at him so loud. She didn't have to do it for so long either. If she was so worried about the idiot then she should have just sent him on his way right away instead of sitting him down and chewing him out for a good 15 minutes.
'Naruto this, and Naruto that', he was all she was concerned with nowadays. Harping on him and telling him over and over how important it was to protect him and keep a close eye on him.
It wasn't his fault the blonde hadn't come to get him! Why the hell did he get in trouble.
"What a pain in the ass" Gaara muttered, reaching above his head to stretch his arms. The fox would probably be back soon anyway.
"I saw Konohamaru run off with him, if that makes you feel any better" Temari smirked as she walked alongside her 'brother', fingers twisted together behind her back "I'm sure the kid can babysit that moron"
"I'm not the one who's worried" Gaara mumbled, glancing with annoyance at the taller woman "Tsunades been a royal bitch lately if you haven't noticed" his voice dripped with venom, Temari simply laughing, not at all scared by the the others menacing gaze "And it's not funny. If you were stuck with having to look after his sorry ass, you'd be pretty pissed too…"
"Yeah i probably would, but you know, it's not gonna happen" She said haughtily, gloved hands being placed on her hips, yoga pants scratching against the rough material of the worn leather on her fingers "You're the only one she really trusts to keep him in check"
Gaara rolled his shoulders, finding no further value in continuing this conversation. The predicament he was faced with was completely different from a situation like keeping Naruto under control. This was a mere babysitting job. Boring, tedious, and time consuming. He hated it.
"I think i should be paid or something…."
His sister laughed again.
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(First person; Narutos' POV)
I couldn't remember just how long i'd been standing there, arms loose and dangling at my sides, head tilted back so the sun could bathe me in the light i missed for so long. It surrounded me, warmth filling my body, spreading from the top of my head to the tips of my toes. I couldn't feel the sting that one would get normally if they looked directly at the sun, but i knew it was there; i knew i was staring at it. I wanted the bright orange glow to force me to turn my head, to make me raise my hands to my face, shielding my gaze as i tried to blink away the multi-colored dots that painted my vision. It wouldn't happen though, for months i'd been stuck like this, black film coating my eyes, my body rotting away anything and everything that was human about them. I'm sure tsunade was thinking about it too, worrying just as i am, wondering if i'd ever get my vision back, or if these useless mounds of tissue would just fester and rot right out of my skull. I wasn't all that concerned though, i was just thankful i was alive.
Without sight i relied on all my other senses; Taste, touch, and sound. If I held my breathe for a second, in that one moment, i'd become apart of my surroundings.
My toes curled into the dirt, the ambiance consuming me; bathing me an a blanket of sound. It was like I was connected to each and every living thing around me; They were all extensions of myself; Apart of my very being. I didn't even need my eyes, i could look through them; I could made structures out of the sound returned to me after bouncing off of opposing objects, I could use my imagination and memory to recreate everything in my head.
"Naruto?"
The voice brought me out of my trance, the connection to the trees and animals being severed in an instant, my senses screaming for them to come back. I felt sad and lost when they weren't apart of me, and I apart of them. I'd grown so attached to breathing and living through other beings, that returning to nothing but this battered and broken shell of my body was more than a bit depressing.
I turned to konohamaru smiling as his footsteps grew closer, the ground vibrating every time his shoe met dirt, trampling the grass into the earth from which it came..
"You okay?" The brunette sounded concerned, thin heated fingers grabbing my own, gently tugging on my arm in what i assumed to be anxiousness "You've been standing there for a really long time you know…"
I didn't know what to tell him at first, but as i stood there curling my fingers back around his, the answer hit me. It was like a bag of rocks had dropped in to my stomach, weighing me down to earth. I wasn't 'sneaking out' anymore, no, i was outside with this little pipsqueak because i was getting stronger. Tsunade knew now, and it was like not just my body was free now, but something in my heart.
"Just enjoying my second chance"
A second chance at life.
"You're so depressing" The kids tune changed dramatically, he went from sounding worried to just being his bratty self, yanking on my arm impatiently like he'd usually do "Lets go back inside already! It's so boring out here!"
I disagreed with his childish whining, finding the outside much more exciting than those stuffy hallways, but if i had eyes i'm sure i would rather play Halo too so i couldn't really blame him..
"Yeah okay' i grinned pulling my hand free, turning slowly as i got my bearings back "I'll race you there!"
"You know you're just gunna lose Naruto!"
"Yeah? You've run in to more trees than i have today!"
"Once!"
"That's still one more than me~!"
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Going outside was a regular occurrence now, and with every passing day i was getting stronger, my body healing at a more rapid pace now. I could kind of see, though everything was just fuzzy blobs, it was still better than nothing in my opinion. Sometimes i'd wake up and my eyelids would be stuck together, and i'd have to go rinse out this disgusting slimy tissue gunk...Konohamaru said it one of the grossest things he'd ever seen. If i could see what was on my fingers every morning i'd probably fucking agree with him. I mean, it FELT gross, i could only imagine what colour it would be…
When i ran my hands over my torso and arms, spreading the salve that Tsunande gave me for my scar tissue, i could feel it peel away. It stuck to my palms, like thin rubbery sheets of plastic wrap. Konohamaru said that part was cool. I was shedding like a snake.
I didn't really get why he stuck around while i went through my daily routine, but it's not like i was going to kick him out, I enjoyed the company. It was warm and friendly being home, and as annoying the brunette could get i really didn't have the heart to tell him that i wanted to be alone. I didn't really, want to be alone i mean, it was almost calming having him babbling about what dreams he had the night before.
"Hey, you know where Tsunade is?" I cut in, his relentless storytelling ceasing for a moment, giving me a chance to pop my head through the collar of my T-shirt before responding.
"I think i saw her in the lab earlier?" he sounded unsure, words laced with a nervous quiver.
"Yeah?" I smiled a little reaching down to button up the jeans i'd pulled on at some point this morning "She's been avoiding me for weeks now. Kinda sounds like you know something about that" I couldn't help but grin at the deep intake of breath.
I knew it. The old hag was ignoring me, and any time i tried to get a hold of her she was either 'conveniently missing', or too busy to talk to anyone. It was really getting on my nerves that no one would tell me what was going on. Not even Gaara! That ass hole stayed silent when ever i spoke to him, just walking away without any warning. He knew something. And apparently so did the squirt.
"W-what are you talking about, that's crazy. She's busy tha-"
"Konohamaru…"
"No, i swear, i don't know anything"
He was in a rush to speak, voice cracking as he became panicked. He definitely knew something, and I wanted to know what it was. Sure he'd probably get talking if i threatened him, but he made one step outside that door or called for help, then i'd be screwed. Everyone around here was in on it.
I guess i'd just have to find out for myself.
"Alright i'll just go ask myself" I chirped, heading in the direction of the door.
It was seconds before i felt his hand on my back, pulling at the smooth 'under armor-like' material, his heartbeat a little faster than before.
"You-She's really busy"
"Too bad" I laughed shoving his face away with my open palm, listening as his ass hit the floor, my other hand reaching for the door.
He didn't get back up to stop me, thank god, but he did call my name. A call which i completely ignored, shutting the door behind me before setting off down the hall. It wasn't as difficult as it had first been to dodge the few people in the halls, and now they were also watching out for me when i came along, moving out of my way and such. Of course it kind of helped that i could sort of see them now. I watched as their blurry grey forms vanished from my line of sight, fuzing with the foggy blackness that still surrounded the small tunnel of vision that i'd developed. It was like everything was in negative, the blurs that were their faces, blotched with white indicating where their eyes and mouth were.
I almost got distracted, watching the few shapeshifters walk by me, but as i approached one of the few metal doors at the end of the hall my task at hand became my focus. I needed to talk to tsunade, and i wanted to know what was going on. It was almost a month now that she hasn't properly talked to me, just turning her back and walking away, or just not being where people would say she'd be.
I could hear her talking inside, her voice heated, words blurring together. A smirk had formed on my lips, fingers touching the cold handle before wrapping around the metal bar. I was about to rip the door open, yelling something like "Ah-HA" or "CAUGHT YOU", but my body froze in place. It was like everything inside me ignited, blood heating, my brain working a million miles a minute.
"No, I can't keep him from going anywhere! He's anxious that's all. It's not my problem if you can't keep your brother on a leash"
The air just wouldn't come in to my lung, chest burning, begging me to breath; but i couldn't. If she was talking about who i thought she was talking about, then it'd only get worse from here on. I had this need to go in and rip the phone from her hands, and demand to know what was going. I didn't trust that words would come out of my mouth though. I'd probably just end up choking the poor woman.
"I'd just keep him inside then. Yeah i'll go tell him that i need to do a check up or something. Just get him out of here"
He was here.
The footsteps that started inside the room were fading out as the sound of my heart beat thumped in my ear. I could feel the pulse of my veins, forcing blood with no oxygen through them, my chest aching with a terrible pain. The world around me came to a complete halt, a deep longing rising within me, legs quivering in anticipation. If i left right now i could make it. I could see him, figuratively speaking.
And like that i was ripped out of my senseless trance, the door was pulled away from me, and tsunades blurred form was standing inches away.
Before she could even speak my name i was gone.
My bare feet smacked on the floor, hair blowing behind me, teeth grinding as i willed myself to run faster. It wasn't until now that i'd realised just how injured i was, my entire body aching, my heart stuttering as it tried to keep up with what i demanded of it. I needed it to work faster, i needed my legs to move faster, i needed the pain in my entire body to just stop. But nothing listened to me. My pulse was growing weaker, my head starting to grow faint, and my legs threatened to give out at any second now. This wasn't some stupid race with Konohamaru, I couldn't just stop because i needed to. What i needed was to get out of here. Up the hall and left, there was the main entrance, and once i was passed that nothing could stop me from reaching him.
"Naruto!"
I could hear Gaara call from behind me, the the redheads footsteps almost deafening, a heavy feeling growing inside me. Of course this would happen. A fated meeting of two separated lovers, their chance to be reunited ruined just moments before either could call the others name. Some real chick flick bullshit right there.
"Naruto!" I heard him again, voice louder, closer. I didn't want him to reach me. I couldn't let it happen. Everything started to close in when i realised it wasn't just Gaara behind me. Like a sudden wave the sound around me came rushing in, more than ten pairs of feet thumping against the hardwood. Why didn't i notice them before?
"Naruto stop!" It was Tsunade now, a scream for me to stop, pleading cry as i skidded around the corner, my hand gripping the edge of the wall so i wouldn't slip.
She couldn't stop me now, no one could. In my opinion they were all shitting their pants before they got to the toilet, if you catch my drift. They were all getting so worked up about this! They could have just fucking told me from the start that Sasuke was around here looking for me, it wasn't that big of a deal!
Yeah, okay, i was kind of a big deal. But what did they think he was going to do though? By the sounds of it he knew where they were already, and Itachi was in contact with Tsunade, so the raven somehow must have found out about this clans general location. This was all so fucking ridiculous. He just wanted to see me! RIght!? It's not like he'd murder my only family! At least i hoped he wouldn't.
"You idiot!" Gaaras voice was beside my ear now, strong arms wrapping around my torso just as my hand grabbed at the large steel handles. I stood there, his breath washing over neck, a shiver going down my spine as he spoke "You open that door now and i'll kill him" My heart skipped a beat, and not from overexertion, from the very real possibility that Gaara would tear the ravens head clean off his shoulders.
My shoulders slumped, the light feeling in my head growing stronger, my body slowly sputtering to a stop. I wasn't sure if it was from the utter disappointment, or me pushing myself beyond my current limits, but i was shutting down. My arms dropped lifelessly, fingers slipping from the cool metal, Gaara pulling me to stand a few steps back from the door. I couldn't stop the helpless cry that bubbled up my throat, hot tears leaking down my face, seeping under the palm that now covered my mouth.
"What is wrong with you naruto" Tsunade gasped, gulping down air as she came to stand beside me, hand grabbing my shoulder roughly "if you opened that door…."
I meant to ask 'What would have happened' but my voice was muffled, and even then i hadn't even tried to form words. My chest heaved, broken sobs trying to escape between Gaaras fingers, my vision getting blurrier by the second. Unlike so many times before where i'd felt this primal need to protect Sasuke, the animalistic instinct to tear apart anyone who threatened him, now all i could do was cry. If i opened that door the clan, gaara, they would have all attacked him. They would have tried to protect me from someone i wanted so desperately to be close to. He was just on the other side, and i couldn't even reach him.
I hadn't even realised before how bad i wanted to see him.
"Shh" tsunades hand pushed under gaaras, pushing the redhead away before she pulled my face towards her "Naruto calm down..." I was blinking away the tears, trying to see the distinction of her eyes, searching for those dark grey indents in a sea of static. I was coaxed into resting my head on her shoulder all too soon however, soft voices coming from the clan members standing only a few feet away, their judgemental tone slowly surfacing.
How dare I try and put the clan in danger. Just to see someone who'd tried to kill me. Someone who hurt me over and over just for the fun of it. Yeah sure i kind of got their point, but I had too. I have to see Sasuke. It's this pulling on my heart, like some sick wiring that twists and winds around it, tying me to him.
Any time I thought about that bastard the mark left on my hip throbbed. The mark left behind from the first time he bit me. The bite that Sasuke left that unknown to him was his brand on me that marked me as his mate.
Tsunade explained the whole thing. Really boring, super sappy and romantic, total bore-fest.
When me and him had sex, and i finally bit him back, it kind of sealed the deal. Go me. Animal instincts suck.
Her body was warm, the soft cotton of her sweater soaking up my tears as i turned my head towards the door. My breathing was shallow, close to stopping even, my brows raised high on my forehead.
"Calm down….we need to talk"
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WELL...Naruto ended folks.
I hated it. Not because of ships but because i feel cheated...like Kishimoto just rushed that end in an attempt to apease people.
Me and a friend are redrawing it.
We're making a new end.
Sorry i haven't updated, this has been sitting in a google doc for years and thought i may as well post it. I'll write you all an ending, don't worry.
Christ. Bless every single on of you that liked this story...I read it now and I just wanna cry at how horrible i was. The last chapter or few will be memorable.