Chapter 11
Sasuke's POV
Sasuke quickly realized what it meant to be the medical director of the hospital. He had come to the hospital early the next morning with breakfast, but found out that Sakura had already been working for half an hour.
She was looking through some patient files and talking with someone through her earpiece when he had entered her office. He quietly set down the food on top of her desk and took his spot on her couch. She mouthed him a silent thank you and resumed working.
He picked up a book and continued reading from where he left off last night. He had hoped they would be able to work together like last night, but was sorely mistaken. As soon as she got off her call, she started her rounds, leaving him in her office alone. He didn't mind; he knew he was helping her and that's all that mattered to him.
He was making progress through a large book when he heard a knock on the door. He opened to see a young female medic standing with a manila file in her hand. Immediately, he saw so many things out of place with the girl standing in front of him. First of all, her face was painted with makeup fit for a wedding or party. Secondly, it took all of him not to make a face and gag at the scent of her perfume; it was a strong, syrupy vanilla fragrance that burned his nostrils.
She obviously looked surprised to see him, but that didn't stop her from immediately barging in.
"I don't believe we've met. I'm Hana." She said holding out her hand and giving him a seductive smile.
"Sasuke." He said curtly shaking her hand.
"I just came here to give a file to Sakura, but I didn't expect to see a handsome guy like you here." She said taking a step forward towards him.
He took a step back. Wow. She's very forward. He wasn't going to entertain this any longer. Plus, he was about to suffocate from her perfume.
"Sakura's busy at the moment, so I'll be sure to give this to her." He said grabbing the file from her hand. "Thank you for bringing it."
She pouted and stepped out.
Maybe she was hoping for a plea to stay, but that wasn't going to work on him. He shut the door without saying another word.
Sasuke sat down to read again, but it wasn't long before there was another knock. He sighed; he already knew who it would be before he could even open the door. Same girl, another file, but this time she had put on a bright glossy lipstick.
"I forgot to give you this folder too." She said biting the corner of her lip.
He cringed internally. Why me?
"Thanks." He grabbed the file and closed the door again before she could say anything again. He placed the second file with the first on Sakura's desk and sat back down again.
*knock knock knock*
He gripped the book tightly. God damn. It hasn't even been twenty minutes. He didn't get up this time. Maybe she'll just go away.
The knocking continued. He got up and opened the door. This time she had unbuttoned the first few buttons from her shirt and was flashing him her cleavage.
He didn't even try to hide his disgust this time. He took the file and closed the door without saying anything to her.
Was he being mean? Yes. But he wasn't going to give into her stupid antics. She was probably used to always getting what she wanted from men, but she was absolutely fake to him. It pissed him off that there were plenty of sick and dying patients in the hospital, and she chose to waste her time seducing him.
Sasuke knew she had finally left when the scent faded. He was frustrated. He couldn't make much progress with the constant interruptions. Sakura hadn't come back yet which only meant she was exceedingly busy. He was determined to finished reading everything before Sakura came back so she wouldn't have to worry about this. If that girl knocks again, I'm just going to go into the training room to read.
He sat down and opened his book again.
*knock knock knock*
He threw the book down, stormed to the door, and yanked it open.
"WHAT-" he started to yell.
It was Ichiro. His eyes were widened in fear as he took a step back.
"Um…uh…I just wanted to stop by and talk to Dr. Haruno." He stuttered.
Sasuke ran a hand through his hair and sighed.
"I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else." He said walking back to the couch.
"Let me guess, Hana." Ichiro said stepping inside and closing the office door.
He looked up in surprise. "How'd you know?"
"Dude, I can still smell her in the hall."
Both of them chuckled.
"She came knocking three different times trying to talk to me. It was driving me crazy."
"Did she drop something and bend down in front of you?"
"No, she basically had her whole chest out."
Ichiro made a face. "I honestly don't know how she hasn't been written up for breaking dress code."
He walked over and took a book from the stack. "What are you working on?" he asked Sasuke.
"I've been trying to help Sakura create an antidote for those two kids. I can't really help with actually making it, but I can help her research. So I've been reading through and marking spots for her."
The young medic flipped through pages reading through some of Sakura's notes. His face lit up. "This makes so much sense! I didn't even think about creating an antidote that decreases the toxic metabolites. Dr. Haruno is a genius!" He said looking up at Sasuke.
"I'm not really sure what that means, but she is a genius." He agreed.
"Normally, when we create an antidote, we're trying to neutralize the poison before it's absorbed into the blood. But in Shoto and Mai's case, it's already been absorbed; so, Dr. Haruno's trying to create an antidote that prevents their bodies from metabolizing it." He flipped through some more pages. "She has enough data here to start creating the base. We can go to the lab and start." He said excitedly.
"Let's do it." Sasuke said getting up. He gathered up all the books and scrolls and quickly scribbled a note to Sakura. He felt recharged and motivated again. He was going to help Shoto and Mai recover and get back to being normal kids again.
He locked her office door and followed Ichiro into a spacious laboratory and set down everything on a large work table. We've read through these four books already. They should have notes and bookmarks." He said handing them to Ichiro.
Ichiro dragged a white board over to their workstation and began transcribing Sakura's notes. Sasuke began peacefully reading again while the young medic worked.
After a white board full of notes, Ichiro began pulling out sets of glass vials, a mortar and pestle, and an armful of jarred chemical compounds. Sasuke appreciated how respectful Ichiro was of him reading; he made sure not disturb him with any loud noises, but still continued with his work.
A few hours later, Ichiro left to go make his rounds. Sasuke was about halfway through the books and decided he would take a break. There were various vials bubbling under a flame and slowing titrating into a large flask. Sasuke felt happy with the progress they were making today.
He got up to stretch right as the doors swung open. His jaw clenched.
It was Kenji.
Kenji stopped and looked at him with distaste. "You're not supposed to be in here."
"I was trying to help Sakura make an antidote." He replied trying to remain calm.
Kenji looked at the set up of chemicals behind Sasuke. "Are you even qualified?"
Sasuke felt his body starting to boil. "I was in here with Ichiro."
"Great. A medic in training." He said sarcastically. "That dumbass isn't supposed to leave you here alone, much less alone with an open flame. He's as incompetent as you are."
Sasuke did everything in his power to hold himself back. He wanted to beat the shit out of that stupid man, but he wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. He knew if he did fight, he would probably be kicked out of the hospital and that's probably what Kenji wanted.
"Good thing you're here then." Sasuke said blandly and walked out.
He took a couple of deep breaths and slowly unclenched his jaw. The next ten minutes were spent walking around trying to cool off. He made a stop at Sakura's office but saw that everything remained untouched. He quickly relocked the door and decided to go visit Shoto and Mai.
He hoped Sakura was giving herself enough breaks. He worried that she was overworking herself. He stopped in front of the kid's door and put on a relaxed expression. He didn't want to worry or scare them.
He knocked and opened the door. Mai was sitting in bed coloring and Shoto was playing with a foam sword.
"Mr. Sasuke!" they yelled both looking up at him.
He felt his heart warm up instantly as they ran over to him.
"Hey guys." He said crouching down to give them a hug. He frowned internally; they were getting thinner. He could feel their bones through the hospital gowns.
"What have you guys been up to?" he asked sitting in bed with both of them.
"I've been coloring!" Mai said shoving a handful of pages in his hand.
He guessed that each one was a special memory for her. There were many of her and Shoto; one was them eating cookies, another was them playing at a park. Then he got to drawings of him. He stopped at one which depicted Sakura cutting his hair with a large katana.
He gave her a funny look and she giggled.
"Dr. Haruno said she cut your hair."
"Well she did" he paused, "but not with a katana."
"A katana's cooler." Shoto said.
Sasuke nodded. Who was he to argue with that logic.
"What did you do today?" he asked the little boy on his left.
Shoto jumped up and grabbed his sword. "I practiced those skills you taught me." He began demonstrating each one.
Sasuke wasn't surprised at his progress. He was especially good with a sword. He knew Shoto would be an excellent shinobi in the future.
They asked him questions about his life and some of his past missions. Sasuke did his best to omit some of the more harsh and gruesome parts, but they were intrigued. He also made sure to emphasize some of the most important lessons like friendship and teamwork.
Next, he told them about annual festival that would be happening soon in Konoha and they lit up. They had never been to a festival before, so he went into detail describing everything. He had a little harder time describing what a firework was to them.
"It shoots up into the air and explodes into different colors."
"Like a bomb?!" Shoto asked.
Mai whimpered.
"No! No! It doesn't hurt you at all. It's really beautiful." He said trying to calm them down. "Here let me try and draw it out for you." He grabbed a blank sheet of paper and Mai handed him some colored pencils.
He wasn't the best at drawing, especially with one hand, but he drew something that was pretty accurate.
"Does this make sense?" he asked showing them both the picture.
They nodded. Mai took the picture and stuck it with her stack of drawings.
"I want to go to the festival and see the fireworks." She said softly.
"You will. Both of you. We just have to get you all better again." He said giving them a reassuring smile.
He continued telling them about the festival until he heard them both breathing deeply. He looked down to see them both sound asleep nuzzling on either side of him. It took a second, but he silently got up from the bed without waking them. He tucked Shoto in and then softly picked up Mai and carried her into her bed. She started to stir, but he rubbed her back and coaxed her back to sleep.
He was about to tuck her in when he ran his free hand through her curls to push them out of her face.
His breath was cut short. He looked down in dread to see a clump of hair in his hand. He quickly shoved it in his pocket and stood up. Thankfully Mai was still undisturbed. He swiftly tucked her in and left without waking them.
He needed to talk to Sakura immediately. There were layers of worry built up in his chest. He had never felt so anxious like this. He had just met these two kids, but they'd already managed to make their way into his heart.
Sasuke was heading back to Sakura's office when an announcement blared out on the speakers.
CODE BLUE! DR. HARUNO TO THE OPERATING ROOM!
Of course. Of all the times. He promptly changed his direction and headed to the OR.
He must have just missed her because the lights were on above the double doors when he got there. He'd just have to wait till she got out.
He felt so antsy and useless. He wanted to help Shoto and Mai recover, but he had no idea how to create an antidote. At the same time, he also wanted to help Sakura and take a load off her chest, but he was stuck in the same position.
He made his way back to the lab to grab a book to start researching again, but found that it was locked. There was a small note taped to the door.
Trained Employee's Only!
Anger poured through him and he ripped the note off the door. He felt so frustrated. He could see the stack of books lying on the table through the glass panel.
What should I do? Reading through the books was the only thing he could do to help. He wasn't trained in medical ninjutsu. He made his way back to the OR and sat on the benches outside. There was nothing he could do now but wait for Sakura.
After hours of sitting and having his thoughts eat away at him, the doors finally opened. All his thoughts left him as he saw Sakura walk out. Awful was a good way of putting it, because she looked worse than awful. Her skin was pale and sickly as if all the life had been drained out of her. Her eyes were sunken in and her cheeks were hallowed. The pink vibrant hair was usually pulled back was now drooping from a messy bun.
"Sakura!" he ran to her.
"Sasuke. Are you okay?" she asked in worry.
He wanted to smile but couldn't. Only she would ask him that after running around all day.
"Forget about me. Are you okay? Have you taken a break?" he asked already knowing the answer.
"I'm fine. I just finished up for today, so I can take a break now." She said. "Let's head back to the office."
She took a step and stumbled, grabbing his forearm for support.
"Actually, I might have to sit for a second." She said slightly embarrassed.
He wasn't having any of that. He quickly pulled her close to his chest and in an instant, they were in front of her office.
"Thanks." She said softly while he unlocked the door.
He hated seeing her like this. He was used to her being strong and playful. She would normally be making fun of him or making a witty comeback.
She walked to her desk and collapsed in the chair. She noticed the new files and opened them.
"What are these?" she asked.
"Some girl brought those for you earlier." He replied thinking back to before. He felt like he could smell her again.
"What the hell? Two of these are empty." She said giving him a questioning look.
Of course they are. He wanted to slap himself for not checking first.
"Don't worry about them." He said throwing away the two empty files. "Is there anything I can get for you?" he asked.
"No, I just need to rest a little bit." She said smiling weakly. "What have you been up to today?"
He reached into his pocket and felt the wad of hair. He felt conflicted. He wanted to tell her about Mai but he couldn't worry her more at this state. She had been working before the sun rise and now it was almost midnight.
"Not much. We can talk about it later. You should go home and rest." He said.
She nodded. "Yeah, I'm going to pack up my stuff and head home." She said standing up. She looked around for a second.
"Did you lose something?" he asked.
"No, I think I just left my coat with my keys in the OR."
"I'll go get them for you." He said finally glad to be doing something helpful.
"Thanks Sasuke."
He had quickly left her office and made his way down the hall when he saw a familiar figure. He stopped in his tracks.
Every fucking time. He was tired of seeing that stupid prick everywhere.
Kenji was walking toward him with a stack of papers in his hand. He was obviously heading towards Sakura's office.
He blocked the man's path. "Sakura's just about to leave. You can give that to her later."
"Get out of my way. I actually have important things to do." Kenji said pushing past him.
Sasuke wasn't going to let him go that easy. He blocked him again. "She's been running around all day. She's exhausted. You can give it to her tomorrow morning." He said through clenched teeth.
"Don't act like you care for her. I know all about you. Sakura followed you around for years and then you left and betrayed her and Konoha. Everyone knows you're only back here because Kakashi is the hokage." He spat. "Spare her feelings and just leave her alone. I can give her a life that she deserves."
His anger sprang to life and consumed him. Within a second, he had thrown and pinned Kenji to the side of the wall.
"You don't know anything about me. Stop trying to act like you're some big shot. One thing I can promise you is that Sakura can easily see past your fake disguise, so good luck." He said releasing him.
Sasuke stormed off to grab Sakura's keys and walk her home. It had been a while since he had gotten angry like this. He was sure Kenji was in her office trying to sweet talk her. He hated that stupid bastard.
He couldn't fix his face right now; he knew he probably looked like a menace marching through the hospital. He grabbed her stuff from the surgeon's locker rooms and made his way back to her office.
He heard Kenji's stupid voice from outside and his grip tightened on the door handle.
Just calm down. He relaxed his face a little bit and opened the door.
"—Thank you so much Sak!" Kenji said excitedly. "I won't let you down."
Sasuke's heart plummeted down. He didn't say anything as Kenji left giving him a smug look. He was gripping her coat tightly as he looked up to her.
"What was he thanking you for?" he asked slowly.
"Well I offered him the assistant director position because—" she started.
He couldn't hold it in anymore. "Why would you do that?!" He threw her coat on the couch.
"Why's that such a big deal? He told me—"
"He'll tell you whatever you want to hear! He's good at building himself up." Sasuke couldn't stop now. "He just wants you for himself! He's so fake! I thought you were supposed to be good at seeing through fake people!" He screamed.
"SASUKE CAN YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP FOR ONE SECOND! First of all, I only offered the job temporarily to him because I still have my doubts whether he can handle it! Secondly, I'm not dumb! I know he's looking for something more! I can see his intentions from a mile away! IF YOU WEREN'T SO JEALOUS AND LET ME TALK FOR ONE GODDAMN SECOND, THEN YOU WOULD KNOW THAT!" She screamed back.
He went on the defensive. "I'm not—"
"Oh shut up! I know you're jealous, but there's nothing to be jealous about! If you just—"
The office door slammed open as Ichiro ran inside panting. The two of them looked at the young medic.
"It's… it's Mai." He took another breath. "She stopped breathing."
Suddenly their argument seemed like a silly quarrel. Sasuke didn't know how to describe it. He felt like he was moving in slow motion but everything around him was moving fast. He didn't remember them running to the kid's room, but suddenly they were there.
There was too many things happening around him. Sakura, Ichiro, and other medics were surrounding Mai's bed. Someone was doing compressions on her while others were setting up the defibrillator.
He wanted to tell them to stop pushing so hard because her bones would snap, but his voice was gone. There was shouting everywhere and in the middle of it, crying. He turned his head to find the source of the crying, and found Shoto in the corner.
That's all it took for him to snap back to reality. He quickly scooped up the crying boy and left the room. There was nothing he could do to help. At this point, he would just be in the way. Shoto clutched onto his shirt tightly as he walked down the hall.
Sasuke transported them to the roof. Both of them just needed some fresh air. He rubbed the boy's back trying to comfort him. He eventually stopped crying and fell asleep, but his grip never faltered.