Chapter 13: Everything and Nothing
The knocking had stopped. The people at the door were inside the house now.
Sasuke was holding her back.
Yelling at her not to get in the way.
It was the ANBU.
Her heart stopped beating.
There was no time for questions.
It all happened so fast. The ANBU moved with deadly precision.
There was yelling, and screaming.
And there was blood. A lot of it.
All she remembered was the pain then nothing.
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'Get up.'
'Do something.'
'Move!'
There was a buzzing noise. It filled her head entirely.
She could taste the blood in her mouth, and smell the scent of something putrid.
Her eyes wouldn't open. All her muscles were numb. She had to get up. She had to do something. Any minute and they'd be dead.
Her head was throbbing.
The buzzing started to fade until she could hear what was happening around her.
She heard herself breathing. It sounded weird and louder than it should be. There was something on her face and a faint beeping in the background.
But there was no shouting, the sound of weapons clashing or jutsus being completed. She couldn't hear Sasuke or the ANBU.
She struggled to open her eyes to see what was going on. Slowly, and with effort, her eyelids fluttered open. The fluorescent lighting stung her eyes and made them water.
There was light. Did that mean she was…?
No, she couldn't be. She blinked furiously until her vision cleared and she could see around the room she was in.
She was lying in a hospital bed, under white linen sheets. She was covered mostly in bandages, from which she noticed must have been put over the putrid smelling medicine.
The medicine was normally used to stop deep wounds from bleeding. There were bandages under her bangs as well that wrapped around her head. The beeping was coming from the heart monitor to the left of her bed.
Her loud breathing was caused by the breathing mask on her face. There were tubes stuck into her wrist.
A medic-nin came in, minutes later, and found her awake. She stopped in the doorway, looked surprised and dropped what she had been carrying. She turned and ran back down the hallway. Most likely to notify someone higher-up.
Seconds later, she returned, but this time with Tsunade.
There had never been a more confusing time in Sakura's life than this very moment.
Tsunade approached Sakura's bed; a small, gentle smile appeared on her lips.
"Welcome back, Sakura…" She whispered.
Sakura attempted to sit up. She had so many questions; she didn't even know where to begin.
That's when she noticed she was still attached to all the monitors. The medic-nin rushed to her side and told her to lie down.
"You're in no shape to move around, Sakura." Tsunade told her, still speaking quietly. There was something different about her.
Sakura looked at her questioningly, and before she knew it, Tsunade was hugging her and…crying.
"I'm so glad y-you're alright…" Tsunade managed to choke out between sobs.
All the while Sakura was becoming more and more confused.
What happened?
The medic-nin put a hand on Tsunade's arm and informed the Hokage that she'd have to let Sakura rest. Tsunade nodded, wiped the tears from her cheeks, and they headed for the door.
Sakura tried frantically to tell them somehow that she didn't want to rest. She didn't want Tsunade to leave. She wanted answers. She wanted these stupid tubes off of her. She wanted out of here.
Her mind was screaming for answers, but her body protested. There was no way she had strength enough to move about.
Defeated, she lay back and continued to listen to her breathing and the heart monitor. Her eyes closed, painfully; they blocked out the fluorescent light.
Her breathing became slower, as one's breathing normally did when they slept.
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The next time her eyes opened, it was dark outside.
There were voices coming from outside the door.
She noticed the breathing mask and the tubes had been removed, though the bandages remained.
"..when do you think she'll wake again…?"
"…I'm not sure…we haven't had any response from her for two days…"
She couldn't recognize who the voices belonged to. They were speaking very low, and she only caught bits and pieces of what they were saying.
"…her body…it's healing then?"
"…yes…her breathing…it's returned to normal…she no longer needs life support…"
"…not many could have…"
The voices were getting farther and farther away until she couldn't hear anymore.
She attempted to sit up. She had to do something. She had to find out what happened.
It was horrible…having to lie in a hospital bed for who knows how long…not knowing if everything was alright…if everyone was…alive.
She swung her legs over the side of the bed and placed her feet on the floor.
Using her arms, she pushed off the bed and tried to stand.
Her muscles seemed not to respond, and she lost balance. She fell into the machines beside her bed, causing a loud crashing sound.
She attempted to move, shaking with the effort.
She put her hand to her head, it still hurt. Her legs felt like jell-o.
How long had she been bed-ridden?
Her muscles hadn't been used for so long that…now…they were practically useless.
She could here footsteps coming down the hall. The door slid open.
A couple medic-nin, Tsunade and Kakashi-sensei entered.
The medic-nin rushed to her side, lifted her up, and sat her back down on the hospital bed.
Immediately her head began to spin.
The medic-nin started to interrogate her, and though there were only two of them, they sounded like ten.
"Are you hurt?"
"Are you bleeding anywhere?"
"Can you remember your name?"
"Are you well enough to talk?"
"Are you breathing ok?"
"Do you need anything?"
"How about some more rest?"
They kept firing questions at her, getting faster and louder. Sakura put a hand to her head as it began to pound.
She was almost certain they would have asked her if she was getting a headache were it not for Tsunade ordering them to leave the room and stop pestering the patient.
Now, alone with the two people she knew would tell her everything she needed to know, Sakura didn't know where to start.
"Uh…" Sakura started. Her voice, like her muscles, were out of use so it sounded rather hoarse.
"I'm sure you're probably bursting with questions, Sakura, but I assure you we will tell you everything you need to know. I think it's best for you to say as little as possible. You're still recovering." Tsunade informed her. Both she and Kakashi took up two chairs and sat beside the kunoichi's bed.
"First of all, I need to know if you can remember what happened before you arrived here…" She asked.
Sakura nodded, and told her she remembered the ANBU coming into the house then being knocked out.
Tsunade then nodded in return, having all her suspicions cleared up.
"It has come to my attention that there has been quite a great misunderstanding," Tsunade began.
"Several days ago, I was coming back from an important mission when I found out that there had been quite a few incidents while I was away. It seemed that during an ANBU mission, three Chuunin broke into my office to not only find the location of one extremely dangerous prisoner, but to rescue her as well. These Chuunin were none other than Uzumaki Naruto, Inuzuka Kiba and Uchiha Sasuke."
Sakura made to interrupt her, but Kakashi quieted her.
"What surprised me the most," Tsunade continued, "was that these children of mere Chuunin rank succeeded in helping the prisoner escape. That evening, I decided to find how the mission to retrieve the missing prisoner was coming along. Of course, the ANBU, having finally learned the identities of the three Chuunin, had been dispatched to each of the Chuunin's homes. Their orders were to find and destroy the prisoner, but wait until I returned to question the Chuunin. I immediately investigated the mission further, knowing that something was wrong. Why would three Leaf Village Chuunin attempt to save a dangerous prisoner they had probably never met?"
"By the time I had found out that the prisoner was Yuri Juna, the ANBU had already searched the Inuzuka residence and Kiba was on his way to tell Naruto about the ANBU investigations before they found him. It was extremely bad luck that Yuri Juna could almost be your twin sister, but it was even more misfortunate that the ANBU should take up this case while I was away…You see, Yuri Juna has been dead for some time now…"
Sakura sat quietly, listening very carefully to what the Hokage was saying. She was in a state between curiosity and shock.
"I headed straight away for the Uchiha residence, hoping against hope that nothing…irreversible had taken place. The ANBU and I had messed up greatly. I could have never forgiven myself if any of you had died. I had arrived at the house to find blood everywhere, your bodies…and the house a wreck. The ANBU were close to burning you all, if I had come even a second later you'd be dead."
There was silence, for a time, until Kakashi spoke.
"You also owe Naruto a thank you, Sakura. Once Kiba had told him what the ANBU were doing, he raced to Sasuke's as well. Both him and Sasuke fought them off until, as the Hokage said, she found all three of you unconscious."
"Yes…Even though he acted impulsively, in the end, he was the reason you lasted so long. You owe him your life Sakura." Tsunade said.
Sakura, astonished by how things worked out, made a mental note to thank Naruto the next time she saw him.
"Y-you said this was several days ago…" Sakura started. "Does that mean I've…"
"Yes. You've been here for a while…The ANBU did not hold back. Even though I stopped them from killing you, you were all severely wounded. The weapons and jutsus they used against you were intended for criminals and rogue ninja. You were in a coma for five days until you woke up two nights ago. You fell asleep and rested for two days after that. So in all, you've been here for a week."
Sakura looked around the room, absorbing everything she had learned. Everything was just so…complicated.
One whole week…She had lost so much time. All she could think was the month was almost over. She could not, at this very moment, decide if that was a good thing or bad.
"The others…N-Naruto and Sasuke…They're alright, aren't they?" She asked both her sensei and the Hokage.
"Naruto's wounds healed fast, as usual, but Sasuke…He took the most damage and still hasn't woken up. Though the medic-nin are sure he'll recover in no time." Tsunade assured her.
"Now, do you have any more questions?" Kakashi asked her.
She shook her head, though she had many more questions, she'd keep them to herself for now.
"Good. Now I know this is probably the last thing you want to hear right now, but…get some rest Sakura." Kakashi told her, as both he and the Hokage stood to leave.
Sakura, knowing that she had little choice, nodded and lay back down.
"A medic-nin will come in to check up on you later. I'm sure you'll be able to leave here soon." Tsunade said, as they walked out the door.
Sakura listened to the sound of their retreating footsteps and stared at the white ceiling.
Out of all the times that this had to happen to her, it had to happen while she was trying to do a very important job.
A whole week was wasted, that plus the time she had spent in captivity…
She sighed, and spoke to thin air, "I guess you can't help everyone…"
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The next day Sakura was informed that she was reasonably better and she could leave the hospital whenever she liked.
On her way out, she was escorted by the Hokage herself and Naruto. He had been released from the hospital a day after the incident and was waiting impatiently to tell Sakura all about it.
They walked down the hospital corridors. Tsunade walked in front of the two, as Naruto constantly babbled on and on about every little technique he used on the ANBU, not even missing the tiniest detail.
Sakura wasn't listening though; she was looking into each and every room they passed. Tsunade noticed this odd behavior and stopped to turn around.
"Sakura?" She asked.
Naruto slammed full force into her and nearly fell down.
"Hey-!" He shouted.
"Hm?" Sakura asked Tsunade as if her mind was elsewhere. The only bandages that remained were the ones that covered her arms.
"Sasuke is on the next floor." The Hokage said; Sakura blushed.
"I-I wasn't …" She started to deny.
"I'll take you to him." Tsunade said as she turned and headed for the stairs to the next level.
Sakura and Naruto followed.
Though she didn't want to admit it, Sakura was worried. And she had every right to be. They had told her that he hadn't woken up yet and no one had said anything since then.
They walked down a long white corridor and stopped at a very interesting hospital room. The room was rather large and circular and from the hallway, they could see inside for there was a long window looking in.
In the center of the room was a large white bed upon which Sasuke lay under white sheets much like Sakura's. He also had a breathing mask and was attached to a heart monitor like Sakura had been. From what they could tell, he had bandages all over his body.
"Stay out here while I go see if it's alright to let you two in," Tsunade whispered to them. There was no apparent reason to keep her voice down, but at the sight of Sasuke it just felt appropriate.
They nodded and watched her enter the room and speak to the medic-nin who was checking all the machines and monitors.
They saw her indicate the two standing outside the window and the medic-nin stop to think before nodding her approval.
Tsunade made her way back to the door and waved them in.
Inside the room, Sakura noticed more medic-nin were standing by. She knew this sort of behavior was odd and it could only mean that Sasuke's condition was worse than they were letting on.
Both she and Naruto walked closer to the bed, and before Naruto could walk right up to the bed along with Sakura, Tsunade put her hand on his shoulder. She wanted to let Sakura have room.
Sakura looked down on the boy she had come to hate and her eyes betrayed no emotion. How was she supposed to feel?
How was anyone supposed to feel after everything that happened?
Of course she was worried, but that was only human. Anyone would worry about the well-being of others when they look upon someone in Sasuke's condition.
Had she looked as pathetic as he did now?
He seemed so defenseless, lying there like that. She was so used to him walking around with his hands stuffed in his pockets with his sunglasses on and arguing with her that now it was like she was looking at an entirely different person.
Was this going to be one of those earth-shattering experiences that change the way you look at life?
Or was everything going to resume it's natural pace as if nothing had happened once he recovered?
He was going to recover, wasn't he?
She looked up and turned towards the medic-nin closest to her.
"How is he doing?" She asked like a close friend would ask a mother about her injured child's condition.
"His condition is stable, but we're not sure how long it will take to heal him." The medic-nin replied, almost as if she had memorized that line for everyone who asked her that question.
Sakura nodded as if she knew that would be the reply.
"And you're doing everything you can, right?" Sakura asked as her gaze fell back upon Sasuke's face which was covered by his onyx hair and breathing mask.
"Of course."
"That's good." Sakura continued and she realized they were talking about Sasuke's life as anyone would discuss the weather on a nice day.
It was sad really.
Emotions swam inside of Sakura and she couldn't decide which one should be surfacing at that moment in time.
Maybe if she…
She reached out her hand and touched his gently. It was stone cold. She carefully held his hand in hers and squeezed slightly as if trying to put a little of her energy into him.
She closed her eyes, fearing that she'd cry. Naruto approached her, breaking out of Tsunade's grasp. He stood by her and placed a hand on her shoulder in an understanding way. That was Naruto for you, just like a brother.
All eyes in the room were on them now and they could all feel what it must have been like for two team members to watch the third member of their team suffer.
Suddenly, the faint beeping that had been going off at a constant pace stopped and all they could hear was a constant beep indicating Sasuke's heart had stopped.
Everything was happening so fast again.
The medic-nin jumped into action, some of them rushing to the machines and to Sasuke, while some others told Tsunade to take Naruto and Sakura outside.
Both of them had entered a sort of daze, both realizing that Sasuke was dying.
As Tsunade pulled them away from the blind boy's bed, Sakura watched helplessly as his hand slipped from hers.
This couldn't be happening.
Before either of them knew it, Naruto and Sakura were outside in the hall, watching through the window at the medic-nin who were working to get Sasuke's heart beating again.
Naruto snapped out of it first and started yelling, asking Tsunade what was happening and why everyone was suddenly rushing around and shouting orders inside the circular room though he already knew the answer. He just didn't want to believe what was happening. After all, hope is the denial for reality and that was all they could do at that moment, according to Tsunade. She told them to just stand there and hope that everything turned out ok.
And Sakura wanted to scream at her for making her feel so helpless, but Tsunade had already gone back into the room to help.
Naruto was still panicking and wanted to go back into the room and help too even if he'd just be in the way. How could he just stand back and watch his teammate die?
Sakura just stood there, blocking out the noise around her and focusing on the dark haired boy. It couldn't be happening.
This couldn't be happening.
That sentence repeated itself over and over.
This was a dream, it had to be. It was one of those nightmares you get where you wake up in the middle of the night covered in sweat and shivering.
But what would happen if…?
No she wouldn't even think about that right now. He would not die. They would save him. She was sure of it.
But after minutes of watching the medic-nin try to revive him without success, Sakura's certainty was slipping.
Slowly, the medic-nin began to show signs giving up.
And after a while, even Tsunade stopped operating.
By now, Naruto was shaking with sobs and Sakura was banging on the window screaming at them to keep trying, that there was still hope.
She could hardly see one of the medic-nin shake her head indicating they had lost him through her tears.
Sasuke had died.
And there was nothing Sakura or anyone could do to change that.
It seemed all too surreal and unfair. Why was it only Sasuke who had died?
"No…no…t-this isn't right!" Sakura was choking out.
Naruto yelled and slammed his fist into the opposite wall creating a large hole.
"Why was it him!" He was exclaiming. "It should have been me…"
Tsunade came out and looked at the two of them, eyes filled with sorrow.
"I'm so…so sorry." She said to them. But it didn't quite seem to cut it.
The door to the room opened and some medic-nin were leaving. As they walked out, they heard them saying: "Time of death: 2:51 p.m."
That really made it final. There was nothing to say they had made a mistake and he really was alive now…There was no way of getting him back…
"We tried the best we could but his body just gave up the will to live." Tsunade whispered trying to calm them down. Apparently, it had the opposite effect.
"NO!" Screamed Sakura as she ran and pushed Tsunade out of the way and into the room.
Naruto and Tsunade ran after her, but stopped in the doorway.
The medic-nin who remained in the room had given up trying to hold the sobbing girl back.
She was pounding furiously on Sasuke's bed yelling at him as if he could hear her and wake up.
Feeling weak and helpless, she calmed and slumped to the floor.
Naruto's tears flowed more freely at the sight before him.
Sakura was still shaking and gasping for breath as she cried her heart out.
It wasn't just sadness that was making her cry, it was also anger.
She shakily stood up and faced Tsunade.
"I-I never meant to tell him I hated him!" She blurted out.
Naruto looked up and looked just as shocked as Tsunade did at Sakura's confession.
"W-what are you talking about Sakura?" Tsunade was asking.
The medic-nin left, knowing that it was not their place to hear these people's tragedies.
Sakura's eyes were jaded. She was remembering something from long ago.
"I'm going to be your new tutor." She stated bluntly. There was no point delaying the inevitable. As she expected, he didn't show any emotions.
"Get out." He said more viciously than Sakura had expected.
"He never wanted me there in the first place!" She was shouting now, letting all her anger and frustration out.
After all, it was her fault.
"Sakura…" Naruto whispered, still understanding the pain she must have been going through.
"What the hell just happened?" She asked. "Why did he just-just storm off like that! It was just a suggestion!" She continued. She looked ready to cry with the frustration surging through her.
"I tried to tell you." Naruto said defensively.
"Tell me what!" She screamed.
"He was on the way to the Cherry Blossom Festival when the accident happened. It's probably one of the worst places in the world for him. I'm sorry; I really did try to tell you." With that, Naruto walked back down the stairs and reached the front door.
She was remembering everything now…All the mistakes she had made…
"I-I was always arguing with him!" She was still crying as she spoke.
"It's alright Sakura…" Tsunade tried to calm her down again.
"No! No, it's not! Don't you get it? It-it was because of me! All because o-of me! If he had never known me he wouldn't be d-" She couldn't say it. Never.
"Just leave." He finally said.
"What? No! I won't." She started to shake with frustration.
"Why not?" he turned to her direction. His sunglasses were off, and his stunningly beautiful eyes made her heart skip a beat.
"Because, I want to help you." She said quietly. This was stupid. Why was she crying?
"I-I had wanted to h-help him! That's all…I…just wanted to…"
More memories…
"What the hell are you doing out here? Go inside." He growls.
"I'm not leaving until you do." She says. She couldn't help but smile. She knew that no matter what he would be a jerk. She should have known better than to think that he wasn't going to say something rude like that.
They kept re-playing in her mind like someone had rewound the past month and was playing it over again.
Sakura trembled near the side of the room. It had become so cold, she shivered. She even felt cold inside. She was about to give up all hope, she was about to give in to the darkness, when she heard a loud explosion coming from the door.
Next thing she knew she felt a warm hand grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. She was stunned.
He came for her; she never thought she would be so happy to see him.
Uchiha Sasuke.
"Hurry," he whispered.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room, and out of the darkness. He saved her.
He pulled her all the way down the hall and up the stairs and finally outside. He let go of her hand.
"He was the one who came and s-saved me…He risked his life..." She shivered violently as the thought that he really was dead finally started to sink in.
"H-he didn't deserve it!" She cried out…
Naruto and Tsunade could only just stand there and cry with her…There were no comforting words to say at a time like this…
"He w-was just alone! That's all…All he needed was…He wasn't a jerk or a bastard…he was worried and...And I sh-shouldn't have been the way I was…" Sakura was drowning in despair.
"Why didn't you answer?" He repeated again, more anger in his voice.
"I couldn't hear you over the rain…What's the big deal anyways?" Sakura asked.
"…" No response.
"Were you worried?" she asked. She knew she shouldn't have pushed it, but he needed to be more open and this might help.
"No…Why would I be worried about something I didn't want in the first place?" He said.
"I…I thought I hated him…But h-how could I when…" She continued
The silence weighed down on them like the calm after a storm. It pressed down on Sakura's ears, slowly driving her mad. If someone didn't say something soon she would go crazy.
"I know." He said just like that. Those two words broke the silence saving her from her madness.
"Know what?" She questioned, a little worried this conversation might turn out into another disastrous argument.
"That I'm a coward." He stated simply. Then he turned and headed out the back door.
"Sakura, it's too late. There's no point in-" Naruto tried to stop Sakura from breaking down completely.
"I loved him!" She shouted as if her life depended on it. And again she fell to her knees, wrapping her arms around herself to try and stop the shaking. The tears marked the floor, as Naruto, stunned, came over to her and put his hands on her shoulders.
Tsunade's eyes were wide.
"Sakura…" She whispered.
He lifted his hand and slowly slid it up her arm. He continued on to her neck, then he felt the outline of her jaw and finally he pulled closer to her. He heard her call out to him, with what sounded vaguely of his name, but all sound was soon lost. In a split second decision, the space between the two was gone as Sasuke closed in and crushed his lips against hers.
"I loved him…" she whispered to herself.
She had always known. Despite everything that happened…
But even though she had finally found that place inside her with those emotions she thought would scare her…it was too late…
"A-and he'll never know…" she added.
Her heart clenched painfully and she realized it hurt more than any physical pain.
In the background, something had changed. They had all been too upset to notice…but there was a faint beeping.
A heart monitor.
The medic-nin, who had stepped out to give them some time, ran back inside in a blink of an eye.
Naruto and Sakura seemed to be frozen in time as they realized something impossible was happening.
Sasuke's heart was beating.
It was 3:04 p.m. It had been 13 minutes…
Someone said: "I-it's impossible!"
Another said: "How can this be right?"
And then a familiar voice spoke:
"Sakura?"
Sasuke was sitting up; he had removed his breathing mask.
Naruto and Sakura stood slowly and faced their teammate.
"S-Sasuke…h-how are you…?"
"You're making too much noise, leave." He said to her as he focused on her aura.
And then, the most unexpected thing happened.
Sakura laughed.
She laughed through her tears and said:
"I'll leave when you do."
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.:. TBC .:.
A/N: I know it's been months since I last updated and I'm soooo incredibly sorry! And I know that this chapter was extremely dramatic…maybe a little too much? But I'm so happy because Sakura FINALLY realized she always had feelings for him! (I'll go deeper into her thoughts on that next chapter) AND considering she just blurted it out like that…I don't know somehow I pictured her "realization" differently. But I guess after something as traumatic of having Sasuke die is enough to make anyone lose their senses…I wonder when she'll tell him that he kissed her?...and did he hear her say she loved him? ….hmmm….Well then you'll just have to read and find out n'est-ce pas? Lol. I will try extremely harder to write faster and update sooner because I feel horrible for letting a story hang like I did last chapter... Well I hope this made up for it…Thanks to everyone who reviewed! You're all amazing!
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