Fact Vs. Fiction
Summary: Life continues on for Kirei and the Naruto Gang in the Sequel. All seems so very well with life, until things take turn for the worse and it becomes hard to tell Fact from Fiction.
Disclaimer: I own the plot and my character, nothing less, nothing more. I wish I did own more.
Notes: I feel like I'm always apologizing to you guys for making you wait so long xD This time, though, the wait was a bit intentional, and something unexpected happened. I recentely got a new laptop and spent quite a few FULL days transfering all of my files, music, pictures, documents, etc. over to this new laptop and I also had to get used to Windows 7 and the new keypad. Anyway, I did finish Fact Vs. Fiction, and for now, this will be my last Naruto fanfiction. Don't worry, I'll always keep writing, but now I've got to do something new. Sometimes, change is good. :)
Thank you for reading and supporting me!! :D
Chapter 21 – Hideaway
Tsunade let out a very tired and depressed sigh as she walked down the white hallway of Konoha Hospital, going to see her first patient for the day. She was tired because she'd spent all night talking with her grandson about how his father was slowly, very slowly getting better and sad because of the other person they had talked about: Kirei.
Her heels clicked against the tile, brown eyes meeting the very blonde she was just thinking about. "Good morning, Kirei." She greeted her granddaughter, a saddened smile on her face, voice very soft.
As with every morning for the past two weeks, Kirei was seated right across from her first patient's room, sitting on the floor with her right arm laced around her new crutch.
This morning was no different. She looked up to her grandmother, blue eyes clearly exhausted, her voice soft. "Morning, Granny." As soon as she'd responded, her eyes closed and head lowered, as if she was trying to sleep.
Another sigh escaped the older blonde's lips, not upset with her granddaughter, but upset with how she'd been living and acting. Every day for the past two weeks, ever since he arrived here, she would be right there, refusing to go into his room, but sitting outside, waiting. She'd be there first thing in the morning and until the last minute of visiting hours, when Naruto came to pick her up, never moving from that spot but refusing to do anything otherwise.
"Honey," She began, concern in her voice as she knelt before Kirei, trying to catch her eyesight. "You don't have to come here every day and wait for hi – "
The blonde's eyes didn't open, nor did she pick up her head. Only her hand moved, raising and stopping her grandmother. "Yes I do." She answered, softly but adamantly. "Waiting for him is the least I can do."
There was a certain tone in her dear granddaughter's voice that made Tsunade let it go. Her words convinced her, but that manner in which she said it made her completely drop it. "Okay, sweetie." She caved, still trying to catch blue eyes. "If you need anything at all, let me know." She knew she'd get nothing out of the blonde, but felt a little better in saying it.
Kirei remained silent, breathing even as she lowered her hand and nodded.
With another, more defeated sigh, Tsunade stood and walked away from her granddaughter, quietly going into the room to allow some sleep to come to the tired blonde. Before speaking to the raven who'd been awake for only a day, she grabbed the chart hanging on the back of the door that was left by the nurse during the night.
Looking it over and flipping the first page back, she began to walk further into the room, brown eyes glancing up to see Sasuke sitting up in his bed. She offered a small smile as she stopped by the corner of the bed. "Feels good to be back, doesn't it?" She asked, looking back down at the chart.
Letting his eyes slip shut for a moment, he nodded, small smile on his face. "Yes, it certainly does." He raised his hand to run his hand through his bangs in instinct, but very quickly winced in pain and returned it to his side. "Damnit," He mumbled, face scrunched up in pain. "I keep forgetting I can't do that…"
Brown eyes swiftly returned to the raven, eyebrow raising. "You're feeling pain?" She asked incredulously, knowing just how many painkillers the Uchiha was taking.
He nodded if only slightly. "Just a little here and there." He answered honestly, not minding the pricks and tinges he felt on his chest. "It's just the meds taking effect, that's all." He assured. "I don't mind it."
Tsunade's eyebrow lowered, but the skepticism remained in her eyes. She was certain, almost completely certain he wasn't feeling pricks and tingles but jabs and stinging instead. Although, if he really wanted to deal with the pain, so be it. She didn't mind if he wanted to appear strong for everyone who had worried about him. "You know," She began, thinking about a particular blonde who was still worried about him. "she's out there again today."
Sasuke didn't need to ask who Tsunade was talking about. He already knew. "Yeah, I figured she was." He answered, having already been told that his beloved Princess had been coming to the hospital every day since he'd arrived and would stay the entire day, sitting outside.
"You need to do something about it, Sasuke." The worried grandmother spoke rather sternly, flipping another page on the chart and examining it. "She's completely exhausted. I don't think she's slept a day since you've been here."
The Uchiha sighed heavily, resisting the urge to raise his hand and run it through his bangs again. "I honestly don't doubt that, Tsunade." He agreed, remaining silent for a few moments afterward to gather his thoughts. "If I hadn't been in a coma, I wouldn't've slept either. I know she's worried about me," He spoke softly. "but, I know how hard it is for her to see someone she loves in the hospital. I don't want her to force herself to come see me, especially when I couldn't assure her that everything's going to be okay." Black eyes darted away to the floor, before quickly returning to brown eyes. "I only want to see her when I can walk out of this room, hold her as tight as possible and tell her with my own voice that everything is going to be all right from now on."
It was really odd to the Uchiha, not to say those words, but to say such passionate words about Kirei to someone – especially a family member's face – and not look away from them. He had always done that before when he spoke about how much he loved her, as if he were embarrassed and shy to speak something that made him seem soft. Now, after he'd proposed and gotten an answer, he didn't feel that way at all. It was as if Kirei's answer gave him the confidence to not worry about what others thought about him; all he had to worry about was what his Princess thought about him and her answer gave him that.
Tsunade was looking at the chart below her, but she certainly wasn't reading it. Her ears had heard the love and conviction in the Uchiha's words, bringing a smile to her face and a warm feeling to her heart. When she had heard that he demanded Kirei not be let into the room, she was furious with him; the reason why she acted so cold. But to know this, to know it was simply Sasuke wanting to relieve her granddaughter of extra pain and stress she didn't need out of love made all of her frigidness disappear.
Doing her best to hold back a huge grin to tip him off, she returned the papers to their original position on the chart and set it back in the bin at the end of the bed. She then looked to the Uchiha, who watched her movements. "I'll make this short and simple, Sasuke." She said, leaning on the edge of the bed and taking a deep breath. "You still need to be monitored by a doctor regularly, even though the wound has healed over. There's still a small amount of venom in your system that can cause that thin layer of skin to diminish and send you right back here, to square one."
Sasuke watched her, ruffling his eyebrows in confusion. Send him back to the hospital? But he hadn't been cleared to leave his bed for at least another week! ….Unless….
"You'll still need painkillers for a good while, so I suggest you come see me whenever you run out." Her smile still remained small, she doing her hardest to hold it back. "You lost a lot in that attack, Sasuke. Muscle included. No heavy lifting, no missions, nothing strenuous, do you understand?"
The raven blinked first, trying to make sure his doctor was completely and totally serious about letting him leave weeks before he was supposed to. When it became apparent that she was, he nodded in understand.
"Good." She grinned, crossing her arms in an almost playful mood. "Now get your ass out of bed and go see my granddaughter."
For almost the fifth time in the last four minutes, Kirei slightly opened her tired blue eyes in some effort to stay awake. It wasn't easy, seeing as how she hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in a long, very long time, but she didn't want to sleep.
Falling asleep meant that if Sasuke were to walk out, she'd miss it. She'd miss seeing her beloved for the first, real time since last August, nearly a year ago. It wasn't that he'd just go home – no, he'd surely wake her up – but she wanted to show him that she could wait for him. That she could do something as selfless, as loving as he did two weeks ago.
But it wasn't as easy as she first thought.
When she moved back into the Manor for the time being and first begun to visit him outside of his room, the plan seemed easy enough. Stay at the hospital every day, all day, staying awake to not miss him. However, she didn't even realize she wouldn't be sleeping at night either, and that was the major flaw. Without sleeping at all, night or day, she found that it was harder and harder for her to stay awake.
However, even if she was falling asleep, she would return to the Hospital every day. Kirei could not sit around – or even sleep – and wait anywhere that wasn't close to Sasuke. It would drive her insane, knowing he was just a few blocks away from her.
Blue eyes opening once more, they focused on nothing in particular, her thoughts slow thanks to a tired mind. She could hear all the usual sounds of a hospital; the voices of the nurses over the intercom calling doctors, the sound of gurneys being driven passed her and the sounds of heart monitors and oxygen tanks from the other rooms had all become droning to Kirei.
She was still afraid of Hospitals, still quite afraid to see her loved one's in the hospital, but somehow found it in her to come every day. She wasn't sure if it was her love or her want for Sasuke driving her, but she didn't care. So long as in the end she got to see him, she was happy.
Eyes closing once again – and for the final time that day, possibly – her mind became blank of all thoughts, her breathing deep and even. Kirei was being lulled to sleep by the sounds she once feared.
Just as she thought she'd drifted off to sleep, the blonde very suddenly picked up her head, body tensing slightly as her eyes opened, looking to the door across from her.
In the midst of the monotonous sounds around her, there was a soft, but noticeable click. A click of a door being opened and, if she heard correctly, her grandmother wasn't the one opening the door.
Blue eyes watched the handle fall like a hawk, heart hoping with all she had left it was Sasuke who was opening the door. She knew she shouldn't get her hopes up; it had only been two weeks and he was nearly dead when he arrived. It would be a good month before he was even walking. But she continued to hope, since, well, she could, couldn't she?
The door opened with an exaggerated slowness, not revealing who exactly was opening it until it was already a fourth of the way opened.
Blue eyes met with black immediately, as if he already knew where she was, her mouth dropping open in a slight smile of disbelief, eyes blinking away tears.
Sasuke beat her to a smile, walking out of the doorway and nodding to her, confirming what he knew she was thinking.
Kirei let out a half sigh, half sob of relief, she doing her best to scramble to her feet, using her right crutch and left leg to push herself to her feet, hand holding the wall behind her just in case. Eyes never leaving his for a moment, smile never fading, she hobbled across the hallway to meet him, going as fast as she could with a crutch and one good leg. But it wasn't fast enough for her, the blonde throwing her crutch to the ground and hopping on one foot to her Sasuke.
After what seemed like forever, she reached him, wrapping her arms around him as tight as she could, burrowing her face into his chest like she always used to do, letting few tears slip from her eyes and stain his shirt.
Closing his arms around her as well, Sasuke nuzzled the top of her head, closing his eyes and wincing as he did so. It felt….so amazing, so right to have her right here, in his arms again. And he was not, under any circumstance, going to let her go for a long, long time.
Sensing his sudden flinch, Kirei stiffened and quickly pulled away from his chest. She wanted to be held so bad, but had gone and forgotten all about his wound and caused him even more pain!
The Uchiha did not let her get very far from him, not even a few inches were spared between them, his grip pulling her right back to him, no matter how much it hurt. He didn't care. So long as she stayed right there, where he could hold her for the rest of time, he didn't care if he was dying the most painful death one could imagine.
Kirei tried once more to pull away, almost setting her hands on him and pushing away, but felt his hands grip her shirt and her hair, arms tight around her frame and realized, he wanted to hold her as much as she wanted to be held. With more gentleness than the last time, she moved closer to him, hands wrapping around and gripping the shirt above his shoulders, face burrowed into his chest.
With a large smile on his face, he nuzzled the crown of her head once more, eyes still closed, taking a deep breath of his Princess, remembering and loving how she smelt, even if it was a little different now.
Many minutes passed before either one moved or spoke, Kirei crying softly against him, Sasuke nearly doing the same.
"I want to go away." The Namikaze spoke with the softest, watery voice she had, making sure only he could hear it. "Just me and you and no one else." Her voice cracked.
The raven held no protest, allowing himself to crouch slightly to bring his lips to her ear so only they could hear. "Where?" He asked, kissing her gold locks.
"I don't care." She cried softly, shaking her head against him. "I just want you there with me."
Sasuke released his beloved only slightly, bringing her dearly missed blue eyes to look into his black eyes, wanting her to believe him when he spoke. "I am never leaving you again."
Tsunade watched from the crack of the open door, smile wide on her face as her granddaughter and soon to be grandson-in-law shared the first kiss they'd had in nine months.
Standing in the kitchen of the loft he once called home, phone in his hand, Sasuke took a moment to think back, to relive everything that had happened within the last day. He had to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
After everything that transpired, all of the torture, sadness, depression and doubt, to have an ending like this…a happy ending, didn't seem all that plausible. Sasuke had brief moments where he believed he was somehow in a coma and just dreaming.
His black eyes blinked back into focus, looking at the hotel reservations in his hands, smile coming onto his face.
He certainly was not dreaming this; a vacation far away from the reaches of Konoha with just his blonde. Just him and Kirei, spending as much time as they wanted together. Sure the hotel was expensive, to the point where, if everything hadn't happened, he would've never spent this much on a vacation, but because it did happen, because he almost lost everything so dear to him, Sasuke didn't care how much he spent.
There wasn't a price on happiness.
"Hey." A soft, sweet voice called from the entrance of the kitchen, a large smile on her face. It was so nice to see him in her kitchen again; let alone just seeing him.
Before dialing the number to confirm the reservations, the raven turned to her voice, smiling as well when he saw her. Just as she thought, it was so nice to see her, home and smiling again. "Good afternoon." He chuckled, walking over to his sleepyhead Princess who had slept well into the afternoon.
Her cheeks beginning to hurt because she honestly hadn't smiled so much in such a long time, Kirei giggled, leaning on the doorframe to relieve her right underarm from her crutch. "I'm gonna go take a shower. Can you finish packing up?"
Setting both the reservations and his phone down on the table, Sasuke walked over to his beloved blonde and took her crutch from under her arm, leaning it against the side of the wall. "Of course I can." He answered her, smiling when she reached her right arm out to him to stabilize herself. With his left hand, he slipped it under her right arm, reaching around her back as he knelt and swept his Princess right off her feet.
Kirei couldn't help but laugh, her arm laced around his broad shoulders, head leaning towards his as he walked out of the kitchen and up the stairs. She would've told him he didn't have to carry her, but knew in her heart that he wanted to carry her since he hadn't in such a long time.
"You don't worry about anything but your shower." Sasuke told her, making sure to be extra gentle as the side against him was her injured side. "I'll finish packing and call to confirm the reservations."
Being carried into once hers, now their bedroom, Kirei huffed, pouting her lip just a little. She didn't find it fair at all that he had to do everything to get them ready to go on vacation and she did nothing, but knew it was futile to protest. Sasuke was dead set on doing everything he could for her.
Kirei honestly believed that if he could, Sasuke would breathe for her. "Okay. I'll be up here." She replied as he walked into the bathroom, being careful as he placed her back on her feet. "You won't mind bringing my crutch back up here, would you?" Since of course, he left it downstairs in the kitchen.
He play pouted at her, tilting his head slightly. "And here I thought I was going to help you instead."
She did her best to stifle her laughter, although she ending up laughing and falling into her Prince. "No…" She continued to laugh, a sigh escaping her mouth when she felt a pair of hands play with her hair. "I'll be okay on my own." She looked up to him, almost laughing once more.
He was pouting again, black eyes rather sad when they met hers.
She resisted laughing as best she could, knowing he was only doing it to make her laugh. "It won't be long, I promise." Doing her best to stand on her tip toes with her weak leg, she kissed him, smiling when he held her waist and picked her up slightly, relieving the stress on her leg.
Sasuke set his forehead against hers when they broke apart, black eyes boring into blue that he'd sorely missed. "I'll hold you to that." He joked, setting her back on her feet gently.
Smiling, she shook her head at him. "Okay, time for you to go." She shooed him from the bathroom, holding onto the sink as she did so.
With extreme slowness he left the small bathroom, glancing back to his Kirei to make sure she was smiling and smiled when he found she was. "I'm going." He replied happily, finding it so odd how just one night, one night with his beloved made him this happy.
Yeah, there were still problems with both of them. There were times when he remembered how he felt back then and he was sure she still had bad memories. He could see it deep within her eyes. He could also see the weird way she acted at times and hoped with all his heart they wouldn't turn into long lasting mental problems for her. But they could deal with all their problems when the time came for it. For now, all that mattered was being together and being happy.
Sasuke continued to walk, almost reaching the bedroom doorway before something his beloved said held him back.
She poked her head out from the doorway, toothless smile on her face, which was extremely unlike her. "Thanks," She spoke, her voice oddly different than he was used to hearing. "Uchiha."
Before his mouth could even drop open, she was gone, the door of the bathroom hiding her from view. Never once, not even when they had first met did Kirei refer to him as "Uchiha". Not even in that tone of voice that sounded…oddly familiar, yet unfamiliar.
Shaking his head to forget about it, the raven tried to erase it from his mind as he walked back downstairs. Maybe this was something she picked up from Orochimaru. That bastard always called him Uchiha and now, since she'd been with him for so long, she was starting to call him that.
It seemed like a plausible reason, but still….as Sasuke continued to walk into the kitchen, eyes landing on the crutch of his Namikaze, a very sure feeling of doubt clouded his heart.
As she began to towel her hair dry, leaning against the wall to do so, Kirei sighed softly. It felt incredible to take a shower after not being able to take one in a very long time and although it felt nice, there was just something off.
She couldn't really explain it, stepping out of the shower gingerly, since it was just a feeling in her stomach. Something…about herself just didn't feel right. It wasn't as if she were sick – no, she felt fine – it was just as if…she wasn't herself.
Shrugging her shoulders as she wrapped up her hair and grabbed another towel for her body, wrapping herself in it, she let the thought slip from her mind. If she couldn't explain it, why should she even think about trying to explain?
It's not like it mattered anyway, since in a few hours, she'd be miles away from here and in paradise with her love.
Hobbling out of the bathroom, the blonde smiled slightly when she found her crutch waiting for her, perched up against the wall beside her. Taking it, she placed it under her arm and continued to walk to her vanity, eyes watching the floor to make sure she wouldn't slip on any of the miscellaneous items on her messy floor.
When she reached her vanity, she leaned her crutch against it and sat down on the stool, making sure she had extra room should her legs need it. As she looked downward, though, her smile slowly faded. Did her legs seem a little…paler? Or was that just her?
Shaking her head to get rid of the thought and effectively shaking loose the towel from her hair, it falling to the floor in a heap, Kirei pegged it as her just being paranoid.
But when she looked up into the mirror in front of her, the Namikaze knew she wasn't paranoid.
Seeing one yellow eye and a streak of black hair against her own, she screamed as loud as she could.
Closing and setting down his phone after confirming the reservation, Sasuke felt pretty accomplished. He'd finished all the packing that needed to be packed and made sure the room he requested would be ready when they arrived at the resort in a few hours.
Everything was going smoother than he could ever hope for.
At least until he heard the scream of his beloved.
The raven wasted no time bolting from the room and up the stairs, bursting into the bedroom with a worried mind, his heart ready to explode. "Ki...rei?" His voice faded rather quickly, eyebrows creasing as his eyes scanned the room quickly.
He found no blonde in the room.
The vanity seat and her crutch were knocked to the floor, which meant that she was out of the shower, but where was she?
"Princess?" He asked softly, heart still beating rather quickly. This didn't have anything to do with her calling him Uchiha, did it? Eyes landing on the closed bathroom door, he certainly hoped not. He wasn't sure if he could deal with yet another depressing moment, especially now that Kirei was back home.
The raven walked over to the bathroom door with a certain urgency and gently rapped on it with his knuckles. "Kirei?" He asked, not wanting to go in and startle her but make sure she was all right. He'd never heard her scream like that before. "Are you all right?"
There was no answer.
If she just couldn't hear him and only screamed because she whacked her leg, he knew opening the door would make her extremely angry with him. Yet, he set his hand on the door and turned the knob. He had to make sure she was okay. He couldn't just let it go and allow his mind to constantly wonder until he saw her again.
As soon as the door was open, he heard the very familiar sobs of his Kirei and almost threw it open, rushing inside. Black eyes landed on her immediately, she still wrapped in only a towel, face buried into her knees, arms wrapped tightly around her legs.
"Kirei," He began softly, confused as to what happened. If she'd gone and whacked her leg, why was she in such a position? "What's wrong?" He knelt beside her, tilting his head in an effort to catch her sight.
She remained silent, backing up into the wall in an effort to get away from him.
He narrowed his eyes at her in confusion, still kneeling. Something wasn't right, especially if she were backing away from him. "Look at me." The raven demanded, feeling his heart beat faster, waiting to see those blue eyes that would tell him everything was okay.
Her sobs died down before she did as he told, lifting her head and opening her eyes to look at him.
His black eyes were not met with blue eyes.
Black streaks of hair framing her almost white face, yellow eyes looked into black, a wicked smile forming on her lips. "I'm back," Kirei's voice was no longer her own. "Sasuke-kun."
Not knowing what else to do, Sasuke quickly had Kirei change while she was still herself and rushed her to the Hospital and the only two people he hoped could help.
Sakura was the first of the two he found and nearly screamed when she saw the blonde turning raven. Before even trying to find Tsunade, she ushered them upstairs, to a more private room. "It's going to be okay," She tried to assure both of them as she made Kirei sit in the only chair in the room. Then, with a small smile and the most comforting eyes she had, she fastened the leather straps on the chair and backed away. "I promise. These are for your own safety, okay, hun?"
Yellow eyes looked square into green, her face an absolute blank before it tilted and her body twitched. Slowly, the blank look on her face turned into a scowl, body continuing to move and jerk against the straps.
Sakura sighed heavily, expecting that much of a reaction. Looking over to Sasuke, her face fell slightly.
He was watching Kirei with wide black eyes, mouth almost dropped completely open in a mix of fear and shock, body stiff and rigid. Sasuke couldn't, he wouldn't, believe that the person he loved most was turning into the person he most feared.
Knowing words wouldn't convince him, Sakura took his arm and pulled him away from her with little effort, taking him into a conjoining room with a one way mirror so they could at least see what was going on. "Sasuke." She began, seeing that he was still watching here with that shocked look. "Sasuke!" She yelled, punching the Uchiha with enough force to wake him up, but not enough to hurt him.
"This can't be happening." He answered her with a very unfamiliar broken voice, his eyes still watching his beloved thrash in the chair. "It's…" The raven's words fell short.
Green eyes closed sadly, her hand reaching out and setting itself on his shoulder as the other paged the only other person who knew what to do.
Second passed before Tsunade appeared on the other side of Sasuke, her eyes tired, voice rather upset. "I'm on my break, Sakura. What do you – " Just like Sasuke's, her voice fell horribly short when her brown eyes saw her granddaughter, her only granddaughter thrashing against the straps of the chair in the other room. "Oh god." She didn't know what else to say, her hands rising to her mouth.
Sasuke knew he shouldn't ask, since he knew he'd regret the answer, but gulped thickly and found it in him to speak. "What's happening to her?" His voice was nothing more than a whisper.
Tsunade sighed just as Sakura had before, one hand lowering to her side, the other rubbing her face and continuing through her hair. "I know it's hard to grasp, Sasuke," She began, feeling horrible for the raven. With everything finally starting to look up, this had to happen. "but…Kirei's….turning into Orochimaru."
Black eyes met with brown in a flash, face alarmed and in denial. "But that…" He began, thinking about how it was impossible, literally, to turn into another person. Sure, Kirei really looked like the Sannin and her voice sounded like his….but she couldn't be turning into him! He looked back to his Princess…or what she used to be. "That's impos – "
"It happened with Karin, too." Sakura cut him off, trying to make him understand. "Orochimaru used some way of infecting them with his DNA….and whenever it would activate, it would take over the body in which it existed." She tried to explain, hoping it made sense to him. "If we don't act now…she'll turn into him completely."
"Sasuke, do we have your permission – " Tsunade began, looking directly at him even though he wasn't looking at her.
"Yes." He answered quickly, nodding to confirm it further. "You have my permission to do whatever you need to do." Sasuke didn't need to know what it was right now, when her life was hanging in the balance. He had enough faith in both Tsunade and Sakura to know that everything would be okay.
Sakura and Tsunade shot a look to each other, both already knowing what they had to do. "We're going to have to shock her, Sasuke." Tsunade told him, setting a hand on his shoulder and looking him in the eye. "Are you sure – "
Black eyes drew away from their beloved to look adamantly into hers. "I'm absolutely sure." He answered, nodding just once. He gave her a look, a knowing look, and turned away from the two Doctors, heading to the door. Without a second look or doubt in his heart, he walked into the room where his beloved once was.
Sakura looked to her mentor first, then to Sasuke and back to Tsunade, worry plain on her face. "Should we really let him – "
The elder blonde took a deep breath, her mind telling her that Sasuke shouldn't be allowed so close, yet her heart telling her that he had to be there. He wanted to be there. "Yes," She nodded, watching as the Uchiha grabbed Kirei's hand and knelt beside her. "He'll be fine. Don't worry so much about him. Let's just get this over with."
She knew, seeing it in his face and knowing how much the Uchiha loved her granddaughter that he was simply sharing what he couldn't before. When Orochimaru was actually alive and Kirei was with him, there was no way Sasuke could share her pain, shoulder some of the burden. Now that she was home, he wasn't going to let her bear it on her own.
No matter what it was, he was going to be there with her every step of the way.
"Go ahead and activate the seals on the chair, Sakura." Tsunade told her, not wanting to electrify her granddaughter, but knew, if she didn't, she wouldn't have a granddaughter anymore.
It took all Sasuke had not to look or shy away from Kirei, let alone kneel there next to the person she was turning into. All his life, ever since that day as a child, he'd feared the Snake Sannin and any snake close to him. He knew it wasn't Orochimaru he was really kneeling next to, but he couldn't help but be afraid, body shaking slightly, eyes shut, head turned downward. Even if he couldn't look at her, he could still hold her hand and go through this with her.
As his muscles tensed, the grip on his hand increasing and few small whimpers escaped his blonde's mouth, he knew they'd begun to shock her. He could feel the electric current through her hand, but it wasn't anything like what he thought it would be.
It wasn't slow, nor was it fast, but the tiny pulses going through his body began to increase along with the grip on his hand, Kirei's whimpers slowly turning to soft cries as she jerked and lashed out against the leather straps.
"…I will not…" Her warped voice spoke through her shrieks, half Orochimaru's, half her own, eyes closed. "…die! I will…" Kirei's voice slowly began to show through, the electricity increasing with every second past. "…return…"
Sasuke's eyes were shut tight, not wanting to see the bastard that did this to his blonde and out of pain. The grip on his hand was painful, but it was nothing like the flow of electricity that currently pulsed through his body, making every muscle and organ sting in pain.
Tsunade and Sakura watched from the one way mirror, keeping a cautious eye on the blonde who thrashed and screamed with each increase of the dial in Sakura's hand. They couldn't let any movement go unnoticed, for if they gave too much electricity, it could permanently harm Kirei. Yet, if they didn't give her enough, Orochimaru would come right back.
And that was something no one needed right now.
Letting out a shaky sigh out of fear and pain, Sasuke kept his eyes closed tight, the grip on the hand that he held even tighter. He didn't know what was happening or if Kirei was able to know he was there, but still held her hand as tight as he could, wanting her to know he was right there beside her.
He didn't care about the pain it caused him. He didn't care how long he'd have to stay there. No matter how long it took, Sasuke was going to stay right beside his beloved to make sure she knew she was okay. It was the least he could do for coming to her rescue so late.
Just as he began to wonder how long this could go on – because he knew better than anyone that Orochimaru wouldn't go down with a fight – the pulses coming through the tiny hand that he held began to weaken and within seconds, stopped. He didn't open his eyes for fear it didn't work, but creased his eyebrows. "It's over?" He asked himself in a soft tone.
Not a minute had passed before the door to the conjoining room opened. "Yes," Tsunade said in a relieved tone, having just seen the Uchiha's question from the mirror. "It's over."
The raven kneeling on the floor looked up to the elder blonde, eyes now open, looking into hers with a look of disbelief. His mouth opened, but he couldn't speak, voice caught in his throat as the hand in his twitched and jerked.
Black eyes finally looked back to his Princess, black hair missing from her head, eyes closed as tight as his had been. She continued to twitch and jerk, still feeling pulses of electricity until they slowly died down and she rested peacefully in the chair. "…What's…" Her head rolled toward the voices she heard, confused as to where she was now, eyes opening just a sliver. Wasn't she at home in her room? "…over?"
His face in further disbelief and now confusion, Sasuke looked back to Tsunade for answers.
The elder Namikaze walked over to her granddaughter in silence, taking her opposite hand and checking her pulse, making sure everything was okay. "Karin didn't remember either…I think it's an effect of the…" Brown eyes looked to black, hoping he would understand.
He looked into those eyes for a moment, trying to think this all out. So Orochimaru at one point or another had done something to Kirei so that whenever he activated it…she would turn into him. That made sense, seeing as how it was almost like a snake shedding its skin; Kirei was just a new skin for him to possess and live on.
The electrifying, obviously enough, had gotten rid of his…possession and hadn't really affected his blonde all that much, but she didn't seem to remember anything. Sasuke could only reason that why she didn't remember was because of the two people fighting for control of one body. The mind was so overloaded, when Orochimaru had begun to take over, she'd forgotten everything from that point on.
But now, it was all over. Everything was over. Orochimaru no longer existed and finally, after nine months apart, he and Kirei could finally move on with their lives.
He smiled just a little bit, loosening the tight grip on her hand and stood, moving to her side and kissing her forehead to reassure her. "It's okay," He began, hoping she wouldn't pursue the subject now or later. "I'm right here with you."
Kirei blinked a few times, allowing her eyes to open more with each blink and looked up to her love, still feeling pricks and pings in her body. "Okay." She smiled softly, trusting her Uchiha with all her heart. If he said it was okay, she believed him.
With a smile as well, Tsunade began to undo the straps that held her granddaughter to the chair, unafraid of Orochimaru coming back. He would've already tried in these few seconds if he existed anymore. After all, she knew from Naruto that the Sannin was officially executed this morning, so now, after a long, very long time, no one had to worry anymore. "Why don't you two head home and get some sleep? I'm sure you're tired."
Kirei looked over to her grandmother, not even sure that's who it was. "Yeah," She mumbled almost incoherently, eyes closing. "I'm…so……..sleepy…" She didn't understand why she was tired. She didn't even understand why her grandmother was in her loft. All she knew was that her body and mind were so very exhausted…as if she'd just finished one of her math finals and ran a marathon.
Smiling at how cute she always was when she was tired, Sasuke didn't bother to move her out of the chair before picking her up. "Thank you," He looked to Tsunade first, eyes portraying how thankful he was to her before flicking off to the now opening door. "Both of you." He found Sakura standing there, a smile placed on her face.
She was smiling, green eyes looking into black. "You're welcome." She answered, able to see that piece of him that had been missing for so long in his eyes. "Now go home and get some sleep. You both need it."
For the first time in a long time, Sasuke smiled, teeth and all. "You can count on it." With a nod to both doctors, he teleported off, ready and willing to take a nice long nap with his Princess.
Also smiling, Tsunade walked over to her apprentice and continued out of the room with her. "Everything's back to normal, I guess."
Walking down the hallway beside the blonde, Sakura half nodded. "Yeah…" She mumbled, knowing that it really wasn't.
Even if Kirei was back and both of them were happy, they still had a lot of problems to deal with. They still had to work with everything that happened and find some way to return to a normal life.
Despite this heavy…almost depressing feeling in her heart, Sakura could feel something in her heart tell her that they'd get through it. Out of anyone she knew, they were the ones strong enough to return to the lives they once had.
Feeling her blonde snuggle into her stomach, as he was using her lap as his pillow, Hinata smiled and resisted giggling, lifting up the book in her hands to look at the Hokage.
The sun had just set on such a wonderful day and because Orochimaru and Kabuto had both been swiftly executed, everyone felt that it was okay to return to their lives. After all, everybody had been living in the Manor since everything had begun almost a year ago.
His forehead completely buried in her stomach, Naruto curled up next to his beloved Hyuuga, mumbling in his sleep. "…love you…Hina…"
Folding down the corner of the page she was currently on, the blue haired closed her book and set it on the armrest beside her, smiling at her blonde. With soft and gentle fingers she played with golden locks, hoping her playing would make him sleep better. It always had that effect and with everything that had happened, everyone deserved some restful sleep. "I love you too, Naruto." She whispered, leaning down and kissing those yellow locks of his.
Sighing softly, the Hyuuga leaned back on the couch, letting her head rest on the back as her eyes closed. It was nice to be back in her home with just her blonde. She never minded spending nights at the manor with all their friends there, but moments like these – with just the two of them – were few and far between.
And it seemed like this would be one of those fleeting moments as Hinata's phone began to vibrate softly against the armrest.
Still caressing blonde locks with one hand, Hinata reached for her phone, first looking at the ID to see who it was. "…Sasuke?" She questioned, eyebrows creasing. Why in the world would Sasuke be calling her? Wouldn't he be spending time with Kirei? Nevertheless, she picked it up and flipped open the phone, holding it to her ear and speaking softly. "Sasuke?"
"Hi, Hinata."
Clear eyes blinked. Sure, Kirei was with Sasuke, but she certainly didn't expect to hear the younger blonde's voice. "Hi, honey." She answered, surprised but happy. It was a good sign if she wasn't afraid to talk to everyone she once knew. "Why are you – "
"We're going away." The blonde suddenly stated, cutting off the Hyuuga. "Well," She chuckled softly. "We're already away."
Hinata figured she meant a vacation of sorts, but creased her eyebrows slightly. "You mean a vacation?"
She couldn't see it, but the Namikaze nodded. "Yeah." There were a few moments of silence. "We don't know when we'll be back, Hinata."
The Hyuuga smiled, not looking to anything in particular. "You take as much time as you need."
There was a small giggle. "We plan on it. But only you know, Hinata. We don't want anyone else to know."
She understood. After last year's vacation and how it almost ruined more than one relationship, Hinata completely understood why Kirei and Sasuke had already left and didn't bother to tell anyone. "Your secret is safe with me."
"Thank you so much." Kirei's smile could be heard through her words. "Go – " The blonde quickly cut herself off, not ever wanting to say that word. "See you eventually."
Hinata shared the blonde's smile. "Enjoy yourselves." When she heard a soft click, the Hyuuga closed her phone and set it aside, letting out a soft sigh.
Hearing his love talking to someone, Naruto nuzzled her tummy, awake if only slightly. "Who was that?" He mumbled, keeping his eyes closed.
Looking down at her blonde, the blue haired knew she couldn't give away anything. "Oh, no one." She answered softly, continuing her caresses and leaning down once more to kiss his forehead. "Go back to sleep."
He held no protest. "…okay..." It would be fairly easy, anyway, what with her touches and kisses slowly lulling him back to sleep.
A firm smile set upon her face, Hinata continued to watch her sleeping blonde, thoughts on another blonde a few hundred miles away from here by now.
It wasn't hard to guess that things wouldn't be regular for a while. Things for everyone, not just them, wouldn't be easy. They wouldn't be normal. But with enough hope, clear eyes set upon her beloved below her, smile on her face, things would go back to what they used to be.