Curled up on the edge of the king sized bed, Hinata was shivering as if having fallen asleep in the snow. It confused Sasuke since the temperature in the room wasn't that low. He put a blanket over her.
Back in 10 minutes with a toothbrush in his mouth, looking for a razor, he could see she was still shaking. If not more now than before. That's when he put a second blanket on her.
The third time around, he was walking towards his nightstand while wiping his wet face with a towel. He needed a shirt. She was still curled up, still shaking. Sasuke put down his towel and placed the third blanket on her. They were big, piled on like that, they seemed like they were crushing her. But as time went on, her body heat must have circled inside and she started to relax.
Tired, he finished placing paper seals on his house, activated the security system and crawled into bed grateful this dreadful day has finally ended.
And just as his thoughts started to fade into oblivion and as his body started to relax, he felt 4 knuckles of a relaxed little hand touching his back. He flinched at the touch uncomfortable and turned to look what Hinata was doing. She seemed to have turned to her other side while sleeping and was now curled up facing him.
This didn't go over well with Sasuke. Sasuke doesn't share. He never had to share. His whole life, he slept in a state of alarm, ready to wake up ready for a fight at the slightest sign he wasn't alone. He couldn't possibly relax with someone glued to his back like this. He moved away towards the edge of his side of the bed, giving her more space.
In 30 seconds or so, he could feel a lot of heat radiating right behind his spine. No she didn't just flip. She was moving. Crawling across the bed looking for a heat source like a bug in the dark. And now she was once again touching his back, this time with both her forehead and the knuckles of her hands. Once again, he moved a few centimetres to the edge, away from Hinata and closed his eyes.
Nope, she followed.
Sasuke exhaled exasperated. He just wanted to sleep. He tried making peace with his position at the edge of the bed and tried to finally sleep.
But even that was too much to ask of the heat parasite behind him. The 3 blankets he has previously put on her, were all on her. He was somewhat cold, but he didn't mind sleeping uncovered. But Hinata did mind. Since she has crawled over to his side of the bed, she has slipped away from under the blankets that were once covering her and they were now only partially on her body. So she was pulling them towards herself and Sasuke. Sasuke turned his head to see what in the world was she doing, when a huge blanket pile, rolled up in a very messy way, found itself on top him and Hinata. She just nuzzled up against him and disappeared under the blanket ball.
Sasuke stared at all this for a few seconds trying to figure out when and how did she do this. He exhaled and decided he had to be smarter than this. She was like a bug, so all he needed was a better heat source to pull her away from him.
He got up, fixed the bed and placed the blankets on her once again, now straitening them. She was shivering again.
He found a little mobile heater that ran on coal. He put it next to the bed, blew fire into it and left it there next to, what was previously his side, that she moved into. He then fell into her spot, happy to finally get some sleep.
15 minutes later something woke him up. The smell of..Burning? Hair! A flashback from one of his fights came before his eyes as he quickly turned around.
That long haired, heat parasite was hanging of the bed, with her face a couple of centimetres away from the burning stove and a few locks of her hair in the fire.
He pulled her back into bed extinguishing her. Cold, she once again started turning towards the stove. Automatically, he grabbed the back collar of her kimono with one hand, staring at her extremely frustrated.
After he got rid of the stove, Sasuke came back into bed lying on his back. But he couldn't sleep. No, Sasuke doesn't sleep on his back. Now, he was just waiting. All she needed was a minute or two and… Yup, there she was. Touching him, bothering, mooching off of him for body heat.
That's when he finally decided he had no way around this. He formed a few hand signs summoning 2 small snakes. They crawled over the bed on Hinata and wrapped themselves around her wrists and ankles, turning into regular rope the next second. Sasuke then rolled her to her other side, having her face away from him, covered both of them with blankets and hugged her pressing his chest against her back, safely immobilizing any future movement.
She was the first living thing to crawl around his sleeping space and not be used as target practice. This included even Orochimaru himself. Maybe I really am kind. He thought smugly, before he finally fell asleep.
-…Uchiha Household; 10 AM…-
Sasuke opened his eyes woken by morning sunlight. He doesn't normally sleep this long after sunrise. It must have been this little monster stopping me from getting to sleep in the first place. He looked at the tied up girl in his arms. More precisely at the top of her head and the messy hair that was sticking up, out of the bandages around her head, uncomfortably tickling his skin. He got up and left for the bathroom, on the way trying to think of any other ways he knew you can immobilise a person, even from crawling. Yet not knock them out. Or kill them... Going back into the room, Sasuke was surprised.
All that was left on the bed were blankets hanging off its side, two torn ropes and a long strand of dark blue hair where Hinata's head once was. He could hear footsteps running towards the back entrance of his house. Realizing what just happened he quickly went after her, following the sound of the old squeaky doors. The rinnegan in his right eye was activated and all of his senses heightened. And he spotted her now. Scared, running through the small forest behind the house.
Luckily for him, he was faster. Much faster. He caught up with her in a matter of seconds and grabbed her wrist. Her byakugan was activated as well. She defended releasing chakra through her arm causing him to let go and stood in front of him in a fighting stance.
"What..?" he was dodging her. "Are you.." She was scared. Scared of stopping with her attacks. Scared, knowing she can't outrun him. "Doing?!"
"Stay back." She warned jumping back after having failed to hit him. But this was a futile attempt from the start and somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew it. In the next second, she has collapsed on the ground.
Next time she opened her eyes, she was back in their bedroom, tied to a small chair facing Sasuke who was sitting on the edge of the bed staring at her.
"Why did you run?"
"You broke your promise." A strong blush broke out on her face as she said it. Still her expression looked scared, sad, even desperate.
"What promise?" Sasuke kept a menacing glare as if he was interrogating a criminal.
Her eyes started filling up with tears. "You said…" She pressed her lips together. "We won't be really married. That we won't…" Now her voice gave out. But there was this particular spite inside her that urged her not to look away.
Sasuke raised his eyebrows replying seriously. "I never touched you."
"You tied me up. Y-You…"
"I tied you up because you wouldn't stop moving and brushing against my back."
"I didn't.." Hinata's eyes widened.
"You seem to stop producing your own body heat as soon as you fall asleep, but I can't have anything crawling behind me. I trained myself to stay on guard and attack whatever comes into contact with me while asleep."
She shook her head turning even more red. "You're lying. I felt it against. Against me... I know you're lying."
Sasuke was visibly confused until the words she couldn't say, finally came to mind. And now he was angry. "I have no control over a morning erection."
She squeezed her eyes as if being physically hurt by his bluntness, her face was completely red. It took a few moments before she protested again. "I know when it happens that.."
"It happens all the time." Then he realised what he said. "I mean it has nothing to do with you." He paused. "It's none of your business we're done talking." He got off the bed refusing to let himself become visibly flustered by this (any more) and stood next to her, forming a hand sign to release the ropes. That's when an idea popped into his head. "Get out of the ropes yourself." He took a step back.
She lifted her head a little hearing him say that, and filtered her chakra through her entire body trying to break her bindings. They didn't budge. They felt like steel wrapped around her. She tried to get some wiggle room, but they only tightened the hold.
"That's the difference between me stopping you from bugging me at night and me strapping you down." He explained while activating the seal. Her ropes fell to the ground.
"I'm sorry." She finally apologized removing the rope off her lap.
He sat down on the bed staring at her, dead serious. "I don't need an apology. I want something far more important. You're not to lie to me, or distrust me ever again."
"I promise." She nodded, on her face a feeling of incredible guilt. So visible, that Sasuke felt as if he should have requested Hiashi's homicide. He couldn't even stay angry like this. She continued looking at her hands again, now fidgeting with her thumbs. "I'm sorry I fell asleep on your bed. I don't remember what happened."
"You fell asleep on the way here. I put you in my bed."
Her eyes widened and she looked up. "Why?"
"You have a father who can see through walls and despite the supposed courtesy he promotes, he doesn't restrain himself from doing so to spy on people.
"Father would never do that!"
"He did just yesterday. He saw Sakura who came here to examine you."
Hinata zoned out for a moment, confused by what she just heard. Despite all things, she never perceived her father as dishonest.
"You'll sleep on my bed until further notice." He got up, took his clothes out of the drawer and walked back into the bathroom.
When she heard the water running, Hinata slowly got up and walked out of the bedroom wandering through the house. With the exception of the dining room, the bedroom, and presumably the bathroom Sasuke occupied, the place was like a haunted house. She could see old abandoned covered up furniture, lots of dust and the coldness indicating certain parts of it haven't been heated since the massacre. It disturbed her to start wondering why would someone move into a house where his parents died. Where, as she was told by her mother a few days ago, Sasuke saw it happen at the tender age of 5.
She finally entered the living room. "What are you doing here?" Sasuke appeared behind her fully dressed, his bangs wet from just having washed his face.
She jumped a little when she heard him. "I'm sorry! I-I was just looking around!"
"I use 3 rooms. The rest of this place is abandoned."
"Yes, I can see." She confirmed looking back at the living room.
"I'll go talk to Naruto. If you're called in later, don't let anyone see you. Officially we're off duty for 3 days."
"Uhm, Sasuke..?"
He turned. "Yes?"
"Would you mind if I...Cleaned them up?"
"Why?"
"Well the house needs to be maintained completely to be healthy. And you could have friends…In here." She observed the room imagining Naruto sitting in it.
"I don't need to give Naruto more excuses not to leave me alone." Sasuke remarked as if having read her mind.
"I see... Ok then." She responded blushing.
"Do what you want. You live here too." He was leaving the room. "Just don't color anything without my permission."
-…hokage office; 11:14 AM…-
Sasuke opened the doors of Naruto's office. When Naruto spotted him, he got out of his chair and declared in glee. "You're in!"
Sasuke just closed the doors with a sceptical look on his face.
"In the council, I swear! Old man Hyuuga was on my side and I quote - If he's good enough for our hokage, and good enough for my son, he's good enough for me." He explained cheerfully.
"Already?"
"You're taking Shimura's place. I demoted him this morning!"
"Can you talk any louder?" Sasuke smiled.
Naruto grinned in response. Shikamaru came in the next moment. "Oy, Sasuke." Sasuke looked at him. He was walking across the room towards Naruto's desk, carrying more paper for the blonde hokage, yet he was seeing him there in utter glee. "I take it he told you?"
"Hell yeah I did!" Naruto responded.
"Did he also tell you I advised against it?"
Sasuke looked at Naruto.
"I refused to gamble with Konoha." Naruto responded grumpily.
Shikamaru continued. "I was tailing Shimura. While he was in the council, he was always the candidate opposing Naruto. If he was the face of the lobbyists renegotiating terms of peace with Kirigakure that's been popping up lately, I had a good chance to catch him in the act.
"Danzo's son?" Sasuke asked.
"You don't have to worry about him. He tried to kill Danzo several times himself. His father spared his life every time, but had him exiled from the village after the third attempt. Until you killed Danzo, he wasn't allowed to return. If anything, he should be thanking you. Well… Ignoring the part where you stole his job."
"Why was he trying to kill him?"
"That's the problem now, isn't it? All we have are rumors. Root was a cult that died with Danzo."
"Tell me." Sasuke insisted.
"The two of them disagreed on the way ANBU and root were run. He wanted his own ideas of change to be implemented and resented his father for everything he did. He called him a traitor in public on several occasions. Again, no more than a rumor."
Behind Shikamaru, a creepy, out of place, Cheshire Cat smile spread across Naruto's face. "I have a present for you."
Sasuke looked at him uncomfortable.
"Enjoy." He blinked adorably and dramatically gestured with both hands towards 3, around 1 meter tall, towers of files.
Sasuke became physically sick for a moment. Shikamaru joined in. "3 days from now, you'll be officially handed control over the ANBU. You'll be able to command them by deferring to Naruto, but since you'll sit on the council, you'll have autonomy on the matters delegated directly to you by either law, Naruto, or the council as a union. In those stacks is everything you need to know starting with people who will be working under you, all the way up to the history of the ANBU, with the exception of Root."
"Alright." Sasuke responded.
Naruto joined in. "I suggest you start with the left one. At the moment we have refugees from the East crossing Fire Country borders. Most are civilians, but until a resolution can be found, we're stuck fighting defected shinobi and our criminals, as well as those from the Rock that are among them. I'm planning on refusing a request for indiscriminate execution of the traveller groups who are nearing the capitol, and will offer 5 team backups for the regular military units that are currently in the capitol in charge of containment. Since we're dealing with the matter of the whole country and the daimyo directly, it's a council session."
"And you want my vote on that?" Sasuke asked.
"Yes." Naruto confirmed without hesitation.
"You'll have it."
"Why?" Shikamaru intervened.
"Unneeded killing for good measure creates as many problems as forgiveness does. It's a waste of effort." Sasuke responded.
Shikamaru tilted his head staring at his papers, leaning against the side of Naruto's desk, half his attention on the paper, half on Sasuke. "What if I told you the crowd was highly suspected to carry a threat that could destroy the capitol, or even Konoha."
"One unit of spies for infiltration, separative kidnappings on 2 units 1 hour ahead, and ten on standby for indiscriminate execution."
Naruto's gaze darkened when he heard Sasuke's response and Shikamaru smirked satisfied. "Now I understand why Naruto trusts you."
"Why?"
"You seem to fit the profile of an ANBU, but you're not a psychopath."
A small period of silence wrapped the room and then…"What's a psychopath?"
"Naruto I gave you that dictionary."
"Well I didn't go and memorize it!" Naruto complained.
"Whatever, I did my work for today. Now I have a genin and an angry girlfriend to avoid." He put down the files and left the room. "See ya."
"Oy Shikamaru!"
"What?" Naruto got a lazy, stretched out response from behind the door.
"Send for Sakura, Shizune and Izumo on your way out."
"Ok, ok."
"Hey Sasuke, no one knows you're here. I can use you too before you touch any of that." Naruto interrupted Sasuke who was reaching for his tower of folders.
-…Uchiha residence, 10:30 am…-
Hinata looked in the bathroom mirror and froze completely shocked. The day before she was sealed, and the skin area of her forehead on which the mark was left was sensitive to infection. For that reason her head was bound by bandages that went over her long hair and under her bangs. After all the walking, carrying, pushing, bed crawling and running, there was a bunch of hair pieces sticking out of her bandages levitating all over the place. She looked like a palm tree. What confused her most of all was Sasuke who has been interacting with her all morning and has not given any indication that something was off about her appearance. As if he didn't even register what he was looking at. Is this how that person sees people? She laughed briefly, staring at her reflexion in the mirror.
30 minutes later, she stood in front at the bathroom door taking a deep breath. This is what most disturbed her about Sasuke's house. It was clean, yet filthy. He put all his things in their proper place in an almost OCD manner. His bed was made, but when one took a closer look, the blankets haven't been washed for over a year. The floors were full of dust and grime, the walls were dark with layers of filth, mostly smoke from the heater during winter, the bathroom was neat and every surface in it was covered in water stains and was partially sticky. His kitchen wasn't used at all besides the stove, yet the entire thing was a mess, filled with neatly stacked up vegetable cans and other, for some reason sorted and kept, trash. Adding her unpacking and the rest of the haunted house filth to her list of chores, she really needed a breath.
-…Uchiha residence, 05:46pm…-
Hinata climbed in the attic of the house looking for a tool she needed to patch up the wall. Her white dress and purple apron were already covered in dust and stains from all the work. The attic was very wide and it had one roof window shaded by the branches of the tree growing outside. The place was spooky enough in and of itself, but she was additionally unnerved by the sounds, she knew something alive must have been making for a while. She wasn't alone. And they weren't just rustle sounds, they were breaths, shallow, rapid, fast.
A human!
She activated her byakugan scanning the room by 350 degrees. Without turning around, she could see him. A child. He tensed up his muscles, stilled for a moment and jumped out of his hiding spot running towards the roof window.
Hinata ran after him instinctively and had him in an arm lock before he even made 2 good steps.
"Please don't kill me! Please don't kill me!" The kid started crying and screaming.
"Who are you?" Hinata asked him.
Hearing her soft, high pitched voice, the child stilled and did his best to turn his head around. When he saw her face he retorted: "Who are YOU?!"
Hinata lowered her eyebrows and pressed her lips together in response to his insolent behaviour. "You are in my house. You should introduce yourself first."
"This is YOUR house?! Aw maaan! I missed the house! I'll be killed for this." The kid hung his head in defeat.
"Who were you looking for?"
"Just let me go, what's it to you?!"
Hinata responded calmly. "I won't until you start answering my questions nicely."
"The red eye monster!" The kid snapped. "The other guys at the academy wouldn't take me to the genin training grounds with them unless I bring them something from the monster! Everyone does it! Ok?! Don't you tell my mum!" He was screeching bellow her hold angrily.
"Red eyed..? You mean Sasuke?" Hinata asked confused.
"You know him?! Where is he?!"
"He's my husband."
The kid turned completely silent and stiff, before he started screaming again. "Ok, you can tell my mum! Pleeeeeaase don't let him eat me! Please! You can tell my mum! Just don't tell the monster!" Little tear drops started to fall on the dusty floor.
Hinata finally released him. He immediately took a step back and turned to face her, wiping his face dry. His nose was running as well. He couldn't stop crying.
"It's ok, he isn't home." She smiled at him, feeling a bit guilty to have upset him so much.
He went quiet for a second when he heard her response, but then continued to cry anyway. "Don't you!" "Dare!" "Te-tell.. Any! Anyone!" He ordered spitefully trough sobs.
He was covered in dust having been rolling around in the attic for who knows how long. He must have heard her walking around while she was cleaning and airing the house, so he concluded Sasuke was home and didn't dare come out. His knees were also torn and dust packed on his bloody wounds. There were also twigs to be found in his messy green hair.
"I'll make you a deal. You come downstairs and help me clean up and I promise I won't tell anyone." She responded with a gentle smile on her face.
The kid kept looking at her then back at his feet. "You won't let him eat me?"
She let out a soft giggle despite herself. "I promise I won't."
"Cross your heart and hope to die and eat your boogers if you lie?"
She couldn't help but to smile even more. "Yes."
"No you have to say it."
"Say what?" She asked him.
"I cross my heart and hope to die and eat my boogers if I lie. Say that." He was staring at her completely serious.
"I cross my heart and hope to die and eat my boogers if I lie." She responded curling her lips at the end.
The kid stared at her narrowing his eyes. "Fine. You promised, so you better not lie to me!" He threatened puffing up his little chest, wiping the last tear drop off his eyelashes.
"I wouldn't dare." Hinata pursed her lips restraining another smile.
She climbed down the ladder first and waited until the child has climbed down enough for her to take him. She lifted him off the ladder, stopping him from touching the, just cleaned, floor.
"Hey what are you doing!? You promised!"
"You're in your shoes." she explained carrying him near the door, for him to take his shoes off.
"Ugh.. It's always thaat." He whined irritated while taking his shoes off.
"So what do I have to clean?"
"Yourself." She responded bringing in towels. "I can't send you home like this."
He took the towels she handed him still pouting and proceeded into the bathroom. "Give me your shirt." He took it off and handed it to Hinata before he closed the bathroom door hiding a little blush.
Walking out of the bathroom, shirtless and with a towel on his head, the kid was drawn by the smell of food. He has in fact been up there since early morning and his stomach was getting the better of him. He found himself. in the kitchen reaching for a bowl of fresh baked cookies.
Hinata suddenly walked in.
"I wasn't stealing!" He screamed in defence.
She smiled putting the scissors in her hand on the counter. "You can have some if you like."
He glared at her completely confused and still unsure about everything she said and did. "You didn't put poison in these so your husband can eat me?"
"No I didn't, cross my heart and hope to die." Hinata giggled.
"And eat your buggers if you lie."
"And eat my buggers if I lie."
He took the towel off his head, threw it on the counter and immediately took the cookie, then another and another… They were gone before Hinata turned around again.
"Hey Mrs. Monster."
"My name is Hinata." she walked out of the kitchen quickly, carrying a bucket she filled with water. The kid jumped off the chair and followed her. "Where's my shirt?"
They went out on the outside porch in the back yard. She spilled the water over the wooden surface washing out the soap. "Over there." She pointed at strings stretched out between the trees and metal poles, with clothes and sheets swinging in the wind.
"Hey it's all wet!"
"It should be dry in a little bit."
He crossed his arms and looked away angry. "Why do all women I know ruin my shirts!?"
"We're sorry." Hinata responded giggling, deciding not to inquire about his odd little protest. She has removed all the water from the back porch, finally leaving it to dry. "Come on, I have something for you."
He looked at her with one eye refusing to turn his head, feigning anger, but when she disappeared again, he ran after her. She brought him in the bedroom and took out the emergency first aid kit she carries to battle, took out two band aids and glued them one on his knee, one below the knee on the other leg.
"Thank you." He finally said.
"You didn't tell me your name."
"Kato."
"So Kato, why do you want to go to the genin training grounds?"
"All the strong people go there! If I don't, I'll never become as strong as the hokage. Hey, you can give me what I need from the red eye monster!"
"He might be back soon, so you can ask him yourself."
He took a step back. "You DO want him to eat me!"
"Sasuke doesn't eat children." Hinata was putting away her kit.
"Yeah right!" He responded.
"He eats normal food like you and me. Cross my heart and hope to die and eat my boogers if I lie." She was slightly laughing again.
"Wow."
"I think you can take your shirt now." She led him out of the room.
"Can you ask him for me? I have to go. My mum will kill me if I don't come home soon."
"I'm sorry. If you want to borrow something, you must ask the person yourself." She handed him his shirt.
"I thought so." He complained and now was putting on his shirt. "Does that mean that I can come back?"
"Of course."
Kato swallowed loudly. "And you're sure he 100% doesn't eat people? Sanada says they saw him do it!"
"100% he doesn't."
He was speaking the whole time as he approached the backyard tree, climbed up, jumped on the fence next to it and fell down on the street on the other side. "I maybe come back. If I feel like it! Maybe tomorrow… I don't know… " Last thing he yelled from the other side. "I maybe come back day after tomorrow, I know! You'll see!"
-…Uchiha residence, 03:05 am (the next day)…-
Hinata woke up to a strong stench of sweat and blood. She could feel it choking her, until it finally forced her eyes open. And now she understood what Sasuke meant when he said she keeps touching him when asleep. She didn't know when he came in and how she got there, but her head was on his arm and under his chin, her hand on his waist and her legs against his. He on the other hand was completely relaxed, not holding her down, or having tied her up this time. He must have hoped she wouldn't move anymore after having adjusted herself against him.
She slowly moved away lifting herself on her elbow, feeling incredibly guilty for burdening him with her weird behaviour. But the moment she moved, she woke him up. And that's not a gradual thing for Sasuke. His eyes spread wide open, with threatening red glistening in the dark.
"I'm sorry!" she whispered.
His sharingan deactivated and he responded in a normal tone of voice. "Why are you whispering?"
"Uhm, I don't know…" She raised her voice as well. "Your clothes..." The moonlight was falling on him through the window, making the large blood stains visible.
He rolled from his side to his back, still lying down. "I was tired so I didn't change."
"Oh, ok."
"What is it?"
"What do you mean?"
"I just got you to stop moving and then you wake up. What is it?"
She looked down nervous slightly blushing. "Nothing."
"You're lying to me."
"I am! I'm sorry! I..! Well you...stink."
Sasuke closed his eyes exhaling, his face blank. He knew he had to get up now. Why couldn't the council expect me to get a cat?!
Hinata felt she was a bother just as much, if not more than Sasuke did. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it in a bad way. I mean… Wait." In the next moment she jumped off the bed and ran around it getting to his side, with the word idea written on her forehead.
"Don't move ok?"
He was slightly surprised, but he obeyed, his eyes only following her movement. She put her knees to the edge of the bed. "This an old chakra regeneration practice in my clan to help shinobi who return from missions. I did this for Hanabi and Neji a lot of times, so don't worry."
She concentrated chakra at the tip of two fingers and pressed them against the nape of Sasuke's neck. He was waiting to see what she was doing, and after 30 seconds, he couldn't feel anything below that spot on his neck. Even his chest started relaxing. He was exhaling and slowly suffocating. She then took the blanket and folded it several times lowering it down to his belly button, opened his flak jacket and pressed her palm in the middle of his chest placing it on the black shirt that was underneath. As if on their own, his lungs immediately inflated and his heart started beating very fast. He knew, because he could hear it in his ears. Feeling was returning to him. "You'll get an energy surge, but you have to let it pass." She warned. And now every inch of his body was almost shaking. His breathing was fast as if he was running, but he wasn't exasperated, he just really wanted to move. Jump was more like it.
"Don't move." She warned gently, seeing his fingers twitch by accident.
Sasuke realised what he got himself into and he didn't like it. The sense of having no control over what was happening to him was extremely torturous. Overwhelmed by this complete lack of trust in her was worse than being attacked by Karin. Maybe the fact that she wasn't his fangirl was that which that made it worse.
He followed her every movement with utmost focus as if she was about to perform surgery on him. As if he had to monitor it, just so he could stop her at any point. The "don't worry" she offered obviously didn't mean jack to Sasuke.
She quickly left the room, returning with a wet cloth that ended up on on his forehead. She pressed it with her palm, infusing it with chakra and incredible cold ran through his whole body. After she removed it, he started to heat back up becoming himself again. And not his tired self at that. He was full of energy.
"You can move now." She announced after about 6 seconds. "And...Uhm… Where are your pyjamas?" She asked.
"Lowest drawer on the left." He sat up on the bed.
She took them out and handed them to him. "You should hurry with these. You'll be tired soon." She took the cloth she removed from his forehead and left him alone closing the door behind her.
While changing his clothes Sasuke noticed something unusual. He was full of fresh cuts, scars, he even had a giant one on his back Sakura patched up in the hospital 2 hours ago. But the pain was gone. He knew they were there, he only couldn't feel the pain anymore. He got dressed and went back into bed. And just as he was wondering how can he possibly go to sleep now, the room started spinning and despite his uneasiness and resistance to falling asleep while losing alertness, he was out cold.
