Popping into the hospital inconspicuously is something Sakura mastered long ago, but it didn't mean her guard was down as she heard the bustling outside Kakashi's room. She didn't want to run into anyone; the nurses who worked under her, her shishou, or perhaps worst of all, Naruto. She just wasn't ready to face him, not until she knew all she could about Kakashi's condition. Knowing Tsunade would give her the mission details later put her tactical mind at ease, but the part of her that loved her friends, her family, the only family she had left to claim, was pacing back and forth within her.
The anxiety wouldn't lessen at all until she had her chakra through his system, so she crept to his bedside slowly; heart tearing slightly as she watched his chest rise and fall, shallow and shaky. Kotetsu said months ago. How many? Two? More? She never should have stopped using the messenger. Once the medics in Snow had the gist of her basic techniques for survival and revival, she should have left. Dammit! I fucking knew it. I never should have let myself let up, not even for a goddamn day. What good was she if she was countries away? What good would her training do her loved ones if she was out repairing broken arms and teaching civilian doctors the importance of herbs and basic poultices?
Shaking herself to rid the negative thoughts threatening to consume her, she schooled her features back into the blank slate she started with and raised her hands to his chest. A couple years before, she had gracefully surpassed her shishou, with a chakra control of just under 99%. Her hands barely glowed anymore; she was able to use the barest amounts in almost every situation. Threading and flowing through Kakashi's organs, circulatory system, and brain, she sighed. She didn't even need to sneak his file from the head nurse. All his injuries, almost the battle itself was laid out before her mind's eye.
Broken ribs, shattered in some places, cracked sternum, he's lucky he survived that one. One fragment and it's a body brought back instead of a person. Broken clavicle, humerus, almost every metacarpal, skull cracked in three different places, shattered eardrums, snapped femur, shattered tibia, severed arteries, numerous gashes and..tearing? He was torn? Just what was he up against this time? So strong that both he and Naruto couldn't have prevented these injuries? If he and Naruto were together on that mission, what happened to him? God Kakashi…I'm surprised your heart is even still beating, weakly as it is. She let out a great sigh as she flowed her chakra across his neurons, watching them light up and fire behind his eyelids.
No brain damage. She smirked, only you Kakashi, can take 3 hits to the skull and still be able to slouch around and read porn. Her smirk faded as she sobered, thinking that, no, he wasn't doing those things. Creeping through his frontal lobe, she noted his neurons firing, his pupils responding. All the injuries she mentally catalogued; healed. Blood transfused, antibodies fought all lingering infection, even his superficial scrapes had been duly seen to. He really has been here a while, she mused. So why, why aren't you waking up Kakashi? We aren't through with you yet, we need you to wake up.
"We need you Kakashi. Where are you hiding in there?" she murmured, pushing her chakra deeper into his brain, combing over it on a nearly cellular level. Something was there, pulsing out from behind his optical nerve, almost…leaking out from the sharingan he was gifted. It felt sinister, harsh and unyielding. Backing off for the moment, Sakura finished her search of his brain realizing that the center for his dreams was being stimulated by the dangerous chakra that had been implanted into his sharingan.
What kind of nightmare has he been subjected to? That must be the goal of whatever jutsu or seal was holding this chakra, keeping his brain and subconscious captive, and more than likely, judging by the killing intent she could sense, trapped in an endless nightmare. She was no expert at fuinjutsu, and the greatest seal master she knew of died in Rain at the hands of a former student. As a matter of fact, the only two in Konoha that were even remotely efficient in research and application of fuinjutsu were Kakashi himself, and Yamato-taichou.
If this really is the cause of his coma, has he been under the same nightmarish genjutsu the whole time? For months? Just why, WHY have they let this go on so long? Why did no one send for me? There are fuinjutsu masters at the various temples in Fire and Wind country, did Tsunade reach out to any of them?
Spiraling was getting her nowhere, so she forced the water in her eyes to dry, removing her hands from Kakashi's silver mane and chest. Sakura lowered herself into the chair next to his bed, staring towards the covered window. Wondering how it all went sideways wasn't worth anything, she mused. I guess its finally time to visit Shishou. Hopefully, I won't run into Naruto before then, he always pulls my emotions back to the surface and I just can't afford that right now.
I can't afford to be weak again.