Lady Tsunade was sitting next to Kakashi's bed with her head in her hands, a deep frown set on the visible, lower portion of her face. When she'd found Kakashi in Shizune's room, collapsed on the ground in Gai's lap, she had quickly gone into survival mode, completely focused on stabilizing him.

The hokage had moved him back to his room and immediately ran bloodwork to test for his kidney function, having found that his GFR, or the rate at which his kidneys were processing water and waste, was alarmingly low, and that there were high levels of creatinine and albumin in his urine.

In lay terms, his kidneys had suddenly started failing, and in the days following the incident, she'd had no choice but to put him on a hemodialysis machine, in order to keep him alive.

He'd been somewhat lucid after she'd found him with Dr. Suzuki, occasionally asking how Shizune was, or why she wasn't waking up, ignoring the unimaginable strain of his own painful ailments. Eventually though, over the course of several hours, he'd deteriorated to the point of being deeply unconscious and unresponsive.

It had been a few days since he'd started dialysis, and he still showed no signs of waking up.

Finding that he wasn't gaining consciousness, Tsunade had run a battery of tests, including an EEG to check for his brain health, as she'd been highly concerned about Kakashi failing to wake up, and the stress that the delicate organ had undertaken since the operation.

The results had shown that he had significantly reduced brain activity, which meant it was likely that he would never grow conscious. If he hadn't been in a coma before, he definitely was now.

It felt as if she had to bear the burden alone, because Shizune wasn't there.

The stress of Kakashi's deteriorating condition, and her apprentice's failure to improve, weighed on the hokage heavily, to the point where she seriously wondered if she had high blood pressure.

Tsunade rubbed her burning eyes and looked up, removing her hands from her face. As she gazed at Kakashi's sleeping visage, and all of the big machines attached to his body, she felt herself losing control of her tightly wound emotions. Her bottom lip quivered, eyes spontaneously beginning to water with salty tears as she came to terms with the fact that she had lost him.

Kakashi wasn't going to make it.

A big part of her couldn't help but blame herself; perhaps if she had done something differently, this wouldn't have happened.

She would have to live with losing Kakashi, and also with how she'd chosen to ignore his final wishes to just go home, and stop everything. Tsunade would be constantly forced to remember how much pain she'd put him through at the end of his life.

Now that she'd done everything she could, and her time to save him was resoundingly over, she had to sit with deep, almost unbearable guilt.

"Kakashi..." she began softly with a scratchy voice, tenderly grasping one of his hands, "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry..."

With drawn eyebrows that openly displayed her emotional torment, Tsunade clasped his limp hand in both of her own and brought it to her mouth, kissing it lightly and closing her eyes. She released a shaky breath, a tear slipping down her cheek.

This is my fault.

At that moment, Jiraiya opened the door and entered the room, a sympathetic expression becoming apparent on his face as he noticed his old friend's depressed mood. Catching sight of the liquid glistening underneath her shut eyes, he padded closer to her side, placing a hand on her shoulder to let her know that he was there.

"Tsunade," Jiraiya started somberly, already aware of the Hatake's irreparable state, as he'd been the first one that the hokage had told,"You should get some rest. God knows you need it."

Sniffling, she shook her head, gently setting Kakashi's cold hand back onto the mattress, and quickly wiping her eyes of any signs of crying.

"No," she told him hastily, standing up and brushing his palm off of her shoulder, "I have work to do. Shizune...h-hasn't been there to help me, so I have piles of work waiting for me in my office."

Jiraiya's eyes softened when he heard the slight quiver in her voice upon saying Shizune's name. He also knew about how the young kunoichi had put her life on the line to use a self-created jutsu on Kakashi, and had been admitted to the hospital ever since.

"Tsunade," he said seriously, grasping her wrist when she began to walk towards the door, pulling her body towards himself, "Just give yourself a minute, please...Let yourself process all of this."

He grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look him in the eyes, his brows furrowing sadly upon observing the deep anguish in her downcast gaze.

"None of any of this is your fault...You know that, right?"

At this, a deep frown tugged down on her lips, as he'd hit a soft spot with his words. She shook her head sadly, clutching the front of her shirt with trembling fingers, and looking down at her feet with burning, watery eyes.

"It is my fault..." she whispered shakily, her breath catching on her words as she tentatively looked back at him, "My fault...I put Kakashi through this...I'm the one who forced him to let me operate."

"It's my fault that he isn't waking up."

Feeling a painful lump in her throat, she gulped and leaned her head onto Jiraiya's broad chest, her shoulders beginning to shake with silent sobs. He quickly closed the distance between them and wrapped his strong arms around her, silently encouraging her to feel her suppressed grief. With the simple, but necessary hug, she began to cry audibly, feeling uncontrollable, heaving wails slip past her lips.

The hokage didn't even know she could cry that hard, but now that she was, it was the only thing that felt right.

"You didn't do this to him, Tsunade," Jiraiya reassured her with a gentle tone, stroking her tangled, blonde hair, "You did everything you could to save Kakashi's life. And this? This was out of your hands, okay?"

"You need to remember that, or else it'll eat away at you for the rest of your life."


"Shizune?"

"…wake…up..."

"Please…wake up…"

Slowly, her eyes opened and took in the glaring lights above her, tightly squinted after being closed for so long. Exhaling lightly, she looked to her side and caught sight of Lady Tsunade, who was sitting next to her, gazing at her with a wide, shocked look.

"S-Shizune?!" The hokage began unsurely, with an excited tone to her voice, as it had been a week since the kunoichi had last been awake.

"Lady…Tsunade," Shizune responded hoarsely, glancing over at the IV bag on her right, and the needle going into her arm, "How long have I been out? How is Kakashi?"

Shizune turned to her side with a tired grunt, her back feeling stiff and sore from her prolonged hospitalization. She stared at the hokage with an expectant, confused gaze, memories from when she'd used her intense jutsu beginning to fill her thoughts. She wondered if there had been any complications, or if the procedure she'd used on him had actually worked.

"Shizune, you're awake!" Tsunade exclaimed intensely, placing her hand on her shoulder in concern, the other one moving forward to cup her cheek.

The kunoichi leaned into the comforting touch with a soft sigh, observing how Tsunade's gaze had become somewhat downcast at her questions about the Hatake, shifting from a look of worry to one of fear and guilt.

"Shizune," Tsunade said finally, looking back up at her with a frustrated, stern expression, "What were you thinking? You could've died! You put both your life and Kakashi's life in grave danger—even if your jutsu worked, it's completely unethical to use some experimental technique on an actual patient!"

While Tsunade was angry that Shizune had put herself at so much risk, a greater part of her was also just heartbroken at how things were going for Kakashi, and how there was practically no change in his condition—he wasn't waking up and she didn't know how she was going to tell Shizune.

The hokage felt like she couldn't tell her apprentice, as she had a feeling that Shizune would blame Kakashi's comatose condition on the jutsu she had performed.

"I-I'm sorry, Lady Tsunade…" Shizune said softly, although she didn't regret her actions at all, "How's Kakashi?"

Tsunade parted her lips, and then closed them again, not knowing what to say. Her face became anxious and drawn, and there was a distinct sadness in her eyes.

"What…What is it? Did something happen?" Shizune asked hesitantly upon noticing the sudden drop in her mood, gulping and nervously moving to sit up in the bed.

The hokage sighed wearily, pinching the bridge of her nose and squinting her eyes shut.

"After you used your jutsu, Kakashi woke up a few days later…" she began cautiously, locking eyes with her visibly worried student, "Upon gaining consciousness, he had a seizure, and then went into cardiac arrest shortly after. We stabilized him…but within the same day, he began to vomit excessively, and his urine output became abnormal—which I'm sure you know are signs of acute kidney failure."

Shizune turned away from Tsunade and looked blankly at the wall in front of her, collapsing back against the pillows with furrowed brows. She exhaled unevenly, shaking her head, and biting her lip as tears began to well in her eyes.

"Shizune…" the sannin spoke quietly, placing a hand over her trembling fingers, "Kakashi didn't wake up after that day…I-I started him on dialysis, and put him back on a ventilator. But there's not much left to do. He's in a coma…and his EEG didn't show much brain activity."

"We did everything we could, and now we're just trying to keep him as comfortable as possible."

Shizune clasped her hands together, glancing down at her lap and then back up at Tsunade. "H-he's not going to wake up?"

Tsunade shook her head slowly, her gaze misting over. She adjusted her grasp on Shizune's trembling hand, squeezing it tightly.

"No. He's not going to wake up."

Shaking her head furiously at the confident proclamation, Shizune yanked her fingers out of Tsunade's hold, a serious expression painted on her pale face. She felt the sudden urge to get out of bed and go check the situation herself—she refused to believe that he was gone.

Guilt swelled up within her as she wondered if her jutsu had anything to do with his sudden demise; so many terrible things had happened after she'd used it. How could she have been so reckless?

Inhaling sharply, she threw the blankets off of herself and moved to get out of bed, only to be pushed back by Tsunade's firm touch.

"No, please…" she argued stubbornly, struggling against her, "I have to run some tests!"

"Shizune, stay in bed!" the hokage told her sternly, a thin line knit between her eyebrows, "You didn't cause this! In fact, this doesn't concern you at all—you're off of his case!"

At this, Shizune glowered at her with watery eyes, feeling shocked and betrayed. She had worked tirelessly to help Kakashi, and had spent months studying his disease, but now, she was off the case?

"Don't look at me like that…you should be glad you didn't lose your medical license after using an unauthorized jutsu," Tsunade told her firmly, an underlying disappointment lacing her sharp tone.

She stood up from her chair and adjusted her green coat, starting to walk towards the door, before pausing and turning around to glance back at Shizune.

"Don't leave this bed. I'll know if you do."

With that, she left, leaving Shizune alone with her thoughts.


Gai's head rested on the mattress space next to Kakashi's side, his hand tightly gripping his rival's hand, even in his sleep. His loud snores filled the room, contrasting greatly with the Hatake's silent inhales and exhales. A stream of drool made its way out of his open mouth, making a wet stain on the white sheets.

There was a bed placed next to Kakashi's so that Gai could stay overnight, and although it was approaching evening, and he was clearly sleepy, he preferred to stay next to his unconscious friend. It had been around 4 weeks since Kakashi had been asleep, and about two months since the surgery, and Gai had never become used to it. Everyday, he hoped, with the same energy and passion, that he would wake up.

He couldn't afford to think that Kakashi wouldn't regain consciousness.

When Jiraiya walked in, he caught sight of Kakashi in the bed, and Gai by his side, having become accustomed to the latter's near constant presence in the room. He himself didn't visit more than a few times a week, as he didn't exactly like to see Sakumo's son in a comatose state.

It didn't help that he was in charge of deciding Kakashi's fate—before the operation, the Hatake had told Tsunade that he wanted Jiraiya to be his proxy and decide what to do, as he trusted the old man to put his emotions aside and make the right choice.

More specifically, he'd said that if he were to survive the surgery and not wake up, which was a risk that he'd been well aware of, then he wanted all life support to be terminated after a few weeks. 21 days, to be exact.

Kakashi had made it clear that he had no interest in prolonging his pain, and had hardly any trust in Tsunade's methods. To some extent, Jiraiya understood his readiness to die; the old man had seen how he'd been forced to keep going, well past his physical and mental breaking point, which didn't seem exactly fair. Kakashi had the right to a choice, and Tsunade had taken that away from him. At the same time, he understood her reasons, too.

It had already been more than 3 weeks since he'd last woken up, but ultimately, as Kakashi's proxy, the decision was all up to Jiraiya, and he'd decided to make the quota longer. The truth was, he didn't know if he was as unemotional as Kakashi had made him out to be—his heart ached every time he even thought about pulling the plug.

Sighing obnoxiously, he remembered that he'd brought a blanket with him that he'd purchased at the store before coming, a dark blue one that was thick and fuzzy, and would be sure to keep Kakashi warm.

Looking at the bed, however, and seeing the multiple blankets settled over his body, Jiraiya clicked his tongue and realized that everyone had thought to bring the same present. Probably because it was common knowledge now amongst Kakashi's friends that he was rather sensitive to temperature, and grew cold easily.

Nevertheless, the old man took it out from the bag in his hands and slowly drew it over Kakashi's thin form, pulling it all the way up to his collarbones. He let his hand rest on the Hatake's bony shoulder, rubbing across it with a calloused thumb as he gazed at his calm, sleeping expression.

"Hang in there, kid…" Jiraiya said solemnly, furrowing his brows as he gazed at the man, before blinking and retracting his hand.

Upon hearing his voice, Gai shot up into a sitting position, his eyes instantly becoming wide.

"Kakashi?!" he exclaimed explosively, standing up and scanning his friend for any signs of consciousness, becoming confused when he didn't see any.

"It's just me, Gai," Jiraiya told him coolly, crossing his arms, and leaning back against the wall next to the window, "He didn't wake up."

Gai slumped back into his seat with a defeated expression on his tired visage, his unblinking eyes glossing over. He didn't know how much more he could take without losing hope.

Tsunade had told him that there was no guarantee that Kakashi would ever wake up, and that his brain activity was significantly reduced—at first, the news had angered him deeply, as Kakashi could've had more time with him, or at least another single moment where they could've talked to each other. Although he knew it wasn't fair to blame her, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of resentment.

On top of that, she'd also told him that Jiraiya was the one to decide if all extraordinary measures to save Kakashi's life would be stopped, meaning that the old man got to decide when he would die.

It hurt Gai that Kakashi hadn't chosen him as his proxy, however he figured it was probably because the Hatake knew that he wouldn't be able to make an unbiased decision.

Nevertheless, Jiraiya's presence made him anxious, in that he couldn't tell what the man had decided.

"How long now?" Jiraiya asked absentmindedly, his eyes fixed on Kakashi's motionless form.

Gai looked up from his thoughts, making hesitant eye contact with him. "53 days, 7 hours and 53 minutes since the surgery"

"8 weeks, huh…that's too long…" Jiraiya mumbled under his breath, a deep frown on his face that only pronounced his wrinkles. That meant that it had been around three weeks since Kakashi had briefly woken up, and then suddenly seized and went into cardiac arrest.

The sannin knew that being unconscious for that long, with hardly any chance of waking up, would not be what Kakashi wanted.

It saddened him to think about giving signed consent to take Kakashi off of the machines that were helping him survive, but it was something he seriously needed to start considering. At this point, it seemed to him that keeping Kakashi alive was unfair, and based upon an irrational hope.

"What are you thinking about?" Gai asked suspiciously, observing Jiraiya's intense, thousand yard gaze with a suspicious, fearful look, "Please don't say what I think you're about to say…"

"Gai, I think it's time—"

"NO!" he interrupted, jolting up onto his feet, "Kakashi needs more time! Can't you see that?!"

Jiraiya sighed deeply, closing his eyes tiredly, and pinching the bridge of his nose. This wasn't easy for him either.

"Look, Tsunade said that after everything that's happened, his EEG showed that he doesn't have much brain activity, which means that he could have irreversible trauma, and probably isn't going to wake up…and besides, it's very likely that he can't breathe without the ventilator, and I doubt he'll have functioning kidneys without the dialysis machine," the old man told him bluntly, feeling extremely guilty at what he was suggesting, "I know this situation is hard to accept…but this is not what Kakashi would want. You, of all people, should know that, Gai, as his best friend."

"Kakashi personally told me to make sure that they stop all extraordinary measures after 21 days if he ended up in a coma, because he knew this might happen," Jiraiya continued intently, "It's been 25 days, Gai…He would've wanted this to end 4 days ago."

"We're talking about ending his life here!" Gai responded vehemently, gesticulating wildly with his hands, as if that would make the old man understand, "He needs more time, Master Jiraiya! To stop after 3 measly weeks would be giving up WAY too early! We can't lose hope!"

Jiraiya remained silent, his eyes fixed on the ground. There was nothing he could say to a man that was set on his opinions, and unable to see any other perspective.

"I don't know what to tell you, then… because I'm going to sign the papers soon. You can paint me as the bad guy here, but all I'm really doing is honoring Kakashi's wishes. He's had enough."

Though his eyes were glistening with guilt, Gai cleared his throat and stood up straighter, balling his hands into fists.

"Then I'm going to stay here everyday, and make sure that doesn't happen! If I have to stay awake forever, then I will! I won't let Kakashi die!"


Kakashi looked around himself and saw nothing but white, noticing fluffy clouds above him, and sparkling glimmers floating in the air. He waved his hand through the seemingly endless, uniform space around him, parting the glittering orbs.

Looking down at his body, he found that he was much younger, wearing clothes he'd worn when he was on Team Minato. There was no pain, and moving felt much easier than he ever could've imagined.

"Kakashi? What are you doing here?" he heard a familiar voice say, immediately turning around with wide eyes that glinted with recognition.

To his great surprise, Obito was standing right in front of him.

"I don't know…what are you doing here?" Kakashi responded with genuine confusion, wondering if this meant he was dead. His voice was somewhat high-pitched, lacking the depth and baritone that he'd possessed as an adult.

"Well, after I found out about your current situation, you know, the cancer and all, they sent me to get you," Obito said with a slight smirk, adjusting his orange goggles, "I'm sorry you got sick, Kakashi…we all wanted you to live longer..."

"Who's we? Why are you here?" Kakashi asked curiously, his eyes narrowing as he tried to make sense of his current reality, "Am I dead?"

"Rin and sensei, of course. And no, you're not dead yet. Just in a coma. But you're at a point where you could choose to cross over—that's why you're able to see me."

"But…But this doesn't exist…There is no crossing over. People just die. I'm dying right now, aren't I? And these are just chemical surges that are making me see dead people…"

Obito reached out his hand, giving Kakashi a warm, encouraging smile. The Hatake looked up from his thoughts, his furrowed brows relaxing at the reassuring gesture.

"It's up to you," his dead friend told him, "Are you ready? Or do you want to stay? You have to decide, before it's too late for you…You can still go back."

Kakashi gazed at his open palm thoughtfully, doubtful of what the right choice was, or if there even was one. Slowly, he reached out his hand, the tips of his fingers brushing against Obito's. Deep down, he knew what he wanted.

"Let's go. Rin's been asking about you a lot."

Maybe he could finally be at peace.

Before he could fully grasp onto death, he felt a strong force pulling him away, causing him to let go of his friend's hand, and get sucked backwards into a void.

"O-Obito!" he gasped in surprise, struggling to maintain his balance against the seemingly magnetic force. He caught sight of how his friend didn't look concerned in the slightest, given that he was making no move to grab his arm to prevent him from falling.

As he fell downward, he relaxed his rigid limbs and looked above himself with blank eyes that held no fear, his gaze fixed on Obito's smile, and his outstretched hand.