A Shattered Demon Child

Part 19

The night was peaceful, as everyone was asleep, all except for the exhausted gray-haired Sharingan user. He was almost done once again with his book when he hear someone in the room yawn. The jonin looked towards the direction of the noise to see Iruka waking up. The chunin stretched in the chair he'd passed out in the night before and looked towards Naruto and then to Kakashi. Kakashi waved silently at Iruka stiffly rose to his feet. Iruka quietly walked over to him before he leaned down.

"Has he been asleep the whole night?" Iruka whispered.

Kakashi simply nodded in response.

The chunin let out a small sigh of relief. "Good. I'll come back to check in once classes are done for the day. Let me know if anything changes."

Once again, the copy-ninja simply nodded. Iruka looked at Naruto for a moment before he left the room silently. Kakashi looked over at his student, who looked better than he did when they found him the day before. The color had returned to his skin, but the dark circles under his eyes meant he still wasn't resting well despite the sedative they gave him. Kakashi was exhausted, and he wanted to be present when Naruto woke up so they could talk, but it was hard when he had no sleep the entire night.

Before much longer, Yamato was woke up as well. The captain looked towards Kakashi and then to Naruto once he was awake. Yamato got up after a few moment before leaning against the wall right next to Kakashi.

"Been up all night?" Yamato asked quietly.

Kakashi sighed. "Yep."

The former Anbu nodded, not surprised by the fact Kakashi hadn't slept that night. Kakashi did the same thing before after Naruto and Sasuke fought two years earlier. The only reason he was gone at all was because both Jiraiya and Tsunade had promised to look in on Naruto, as well as Sakura and some of Naruto's other friends from the academy. This time, however, it had to be different. Only the inner circle of people who knew about Naruto's condition were going to be allowed to see him, except for Hinata, of course.

After about half an hour, Tsunade quietly entered the room with Sakura. The pink-haired girl looked tired, like she also had lost sleep like her sensei. Kakashi's heart sank a bit, knowing that the sudden revelation was too much of a shock, and she most likely was blaming herself. They'd also have to talk later, once Kakashi was confident leaving Naruto would be fine and not have a bloody ending. Kakashi rose from his seat as he turned to face the two women who entered the room.

Tsunade eyed Kakashi for a moment, but then turned her tired gaze to Naruto. On top of Jiraiya dying in his fight against Pain, she had to be there for the blond despite how mad he was. The Hokage quietly walked over to Naruto's sleeping form before running her hand through his blond hair. The teen didn't move or respond, which worried Kakashi for a moment. Tsunade's face contorted with concern as she leaned down to listen to his breathing. The blond woman motioned towards Sakura to leave the room. The pink-haired girl was hesitant, but left anyways.

Tsunade looked towards Kakashi before she asked quietly, "Has he woken up at any point?"

The gray-haired sensei shook his head. "He's been out all night."

The blond sage nodded before she put her hand over his neck, trying to feel his pulse. Tsunade shook her head quietly.

"Lady Tsunade, is he alright?"

Tsunade replied quietly, "His body is taking longer than it should to heal his injuries. He's suffering from malnutrition, which is slowing down the healing process despite the Nine-Tails working to repair the damage. The sedative is lasting longer as well as a result. We'll be lucky at this rate if he doesn't get an infection before his wounds have healed."

Yamato chimed in, "I'll take it he's not going to wake up for a few more hours then?"

She nodded. "Definitely for two or three more hours at the least."

Kakashi tilted his head to the side. "What about his unrelated injuries? The bruising and the fractures?"

The blond ran a hand through her hair before she admitted, "I honestly have no idea how he got them. From what I could tell, he hit his head pretty hard at some point, and the bruising most likely came from combat of some kind. They were in different stages of healing, but seemed to be from around the time of his last mission."

The gray-haired jonin didn't want to admit it, but he was confident Naruto wasn't that bad off when they got back. Sakura looked over him briefly and confirmed the same thing, as Naruto wasn't complaining about being in pain. Kakashi wanted to have faith in the idea Naruto wasn't literally beating himself up, but all things considered, it was the most likely scenario.

"M'lady," Yamato cut in, breaking the silence. "What's the plan when he wakes up?"

Tsunade shrugged before she answered, "We'll monitor him for a few days after he's released, and we go from there. What matters right now is his recovery. With that being said, Kakashi, you should go home and get some sleep."

Kakashi shook his head. "With all due respect, Lady Tsunade, I'd feel better being here."

"Fine, but you have to sleep. Yamato can wake you up if anything changes."

Reluctantly, Kakashi submitted to her request. Tsunade left, and after a few words with Sakura, the pink-haired teen entered the room as well. She took the chair Iruka had sat in earlier that morning, and she remained silent as she waited with Yamato and Kakashi. Kakashi did his best to eye-smile towards her before he drifted off to sleep.

Naruto would be lying if he'd said he was tired of sleeping, especially considering how dazed he felt when he opened his eyes. His entire torso felt sore, and his head hurt as he blinked at the bright light from the setting sun outside. Once his eyes adjusted, he noticed Sakura, Yamato, and Kakashi all sitting near the foot of his bed. His heart sank once he remembered Sakura was the one who had healed him and stabilized him. There was no way she didn't notice the scars and the fact Naruto drove his nails into his chest practically right in front of her and his entire team. He'd have a lot of explaining to do later. He hadn't moved a bit since he woke up, just enough to open his eyes.

Kakashi was sound asleep, leaning awkwardly in his chair against the wall. Yamato and Sakura were starring out the window, until Sakura looked over at Naruto. His heart stopped as she tapped on Yamato's shoulder, causing the both of them to get out of their seats and walk over to Naruto's bed side.

"Welcome back," Yamato greeted quietly with a soft smile on his face.

Naruto shrugged limply. "Thanks."

Sakura looked at him with a terrified look in her eyes. "How are you feeling?"

Naruto shrugged again before he replied dully, "I'm fine, Sakura. Don't worry about me."

The pink-haired teen flinched before she said quietly, "I think we both know that's not going to happen, given the circumstances."

The blond shuttered as he looked away from her. Naruto couldn't stare at her heartbroken gaze, nor could he try and deflect her words. She was right; if the roles were reversed, Naruto would be worried about her too. They were like siblings, as much as Naruto may've had a crush on her before, he came to terms with the fact Sakura truly loved Sasuke years prior. It was bitter-sweet, but he wanted her to be happy. That was part of the problem, though; he didn't want Sakura to worry about him, he was Naruto, he was always fine. He didn't want to drag her into his problems, and yet, it happened anyways.

"What's up with Kakashi-sensei? Is he alright?" Naruto asked, trying to change the topic.

Yamato sighed before he stated sheepishly, "He's fine, just tired. He hasn't left since we brought you here."

Naruto felt his guilt creeping up on him a bit further. Once again, his sensei was right there waiting on him to wake up. He'd done the same thing before when Sasuke left and nearly killed him, and he remembered Kakashi staying with him last time he slipped up. The blond felt guilty Kakashi bothered with him at all. Granted, Naruto had wished when he was younger his sensei had spent more time training him, but he also understood why Kakashi was working with Sasuke so much. Naruto at least had Iruka and Jiraiya around...

The blond's eyes watered a bit once he remembered the news he got yesterday. Jiraiya wasn't there, and he never would be again. Naruto wished he'd just stayed asleep and never remembered his master died in battle against the Akatsuki.

Sakura moved a bit closer. "What's the matter?"

Naruto shook his head and turned his body away from her and Yamato. "Nothing... I just wanna be alone."

There was a moment of silence before Yamato and Sakura walked around to the other side of the hospital bed. Yamato gave in, as did Sakura.

Yamato stated hesitantly, "Alright. We'll see you later, Naruto."

He didn't respond, he just watched him leave as he starred at the door. Once it shut, the blond put a hand over his mouth as he started to quietly break down. His sobs were silent, but his body did shuttered still. Naruto wasn't fine, and he didn't feel like he could lay there and pretend he was. He wanted to lay there in his misery, all alone, just to let it out of his system. He'd been dreaming of his master before he woke up, remembering the trip they went on and the good times they had together during their travels. Naruto wished he could hate like Sasuke in that moment; it wouldn't hurt nearly as much if he could find it in himself just to use his pain to fuel his hate and numb the pain. Sadly, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find it in himself to let his hate take over. He only felt pain.

Naruto didn't realize there was a hand on his shoulder until he remembered he wasn't actually alone in the room. When he looked up, he saw a familiar jonin sitting on the edge of his bed, looking down at him with a somber look in his eye. Kakashi rubbed circles on the blonds back, causing Naruto to bury his face in his hands. He truly wanted to die, and he wished Sakura had just let him bleed out. Kakashi didn't speak, he just sat there. Naruto broke down again as his body shuttered violent as he held in his sobs of grief.

"It's alright, Naruto," Kakashi muttered calmly.

Naruto shook his head as he stated in a hurt tone, "No, it's not."

The gray-haired sensei sighed in defeat. "I know. I'm sorry, Naruto. Really, I am."

The blond didn't respond, he just laid there in his own misery. He knew Kakashi wasn't going to lie to him and tell him everything's fine when, in reality, it wasn't. Jiraiya was dead; his master was gone at the hands of Pain. Naruto wanted to turn his hurt into hate, but he still couldn't.

"Why can I be like Sasuke?" Naruto asked in a shaky voice. "Why can't I just feel hate?"

Kakashi flinched. "Sasuke has so much hate in his heart because he doesn't want to acknowledge he's in pain and still suffering for what Itachi did. Some people are drawn to hate because it dulls the pain they feel, and there are others much like you who can't find it in themselves to hold hatred in their hearts. The truth is, the longer someone holds onto the hate in their hearts, the more pain they feel in the end when there's nothing left to hate but themselves."

The blond's eyes watered. He'd never thought about it that way; he just wanted Sasuke to be his friend and rival. Naruto knew Sasuke was in pain, hence why he tried so hard to push Sasuke's buttons. It was a distraction for the both of them, and at the end of the day, they never truly hated each other. Naruto knew that deep down, there had to be a piece of Sasuke that didn't want to feel hatred anymore. Naruto did hate himself, but it bothered him that if Kakashi was right, Sasuke would be left alone in his hatred in the end, if they didn't bring him home.

Kakashi thought for a moment before he stated confidently, "Even after all these years, you're still the ball of sunshine that can light up a room just with your smile. You've never hurt anyone outside of battle, no matter how poorly they may've treated you. You change the lives of everyone you meet just by being you and doing what's right. You suffer alone so you don't hurt anyone around you, and still, you try to take care of everyone when you can. Life hasn't been kind to you, and yet, you don't take it out on the world. You're a kind soul, Naruto. You can see hope in the darkest times, and I have no doubt you'll keep doing so, even if it takes a lot of work."

Naruto choked on a sob. Why the hell did he have to say that? Why is he trying to give me hope when I'm just useless? Why is does he have to make it that much harder?

Kakashi continued, "You've already surpassed me and even the Forth Hokage. I know you made Jiraiya proud; he wrote the village during your trip, and he'd always write about how far you've come. We're all proud of you and what you've done."

Naruto blinked a few times before he asked, "Was it this hard for you when your sensei died?"

The jonin thought for a moment. "I was a wreck for a while when my sensei died. My sensei is the reason I'm here, because he believed in me. He was the only family I had for a long time, and now I have Team Seven. I'll always be your sensei."

"What about Sasuke?"

Kakashi nodded. "That's why I believe you can bring him back. You're the only one who can, if that's what you want."

Naruto's gaze fell. "I..."

The gray-haired shinobi paused and stared at Naruto in awe. The blond was conflicted, and as much as he wanted to bring Sasuke back, he knew he couldn't in his present state. He was in pieces, mentally and physically. He wanted to avenge his master, but he also wanted to save his best friend from the darkness he still struggled to fight. The idea of Sasuke being in a darkness anywhere as dark as Naruto's was truly horrifying, and the blond didn't want to think it may've even been worse than his.

"Naruto?" Kakashi asked gently, his eye held a pleading gaze.

Naruto let out a heavy sigh. "I can't bring him back if I'm like this."

The gray-haired jonin let out a small sigh of relief. "Well, you should be free to go in a few days."

"But, Sensei-"

Kakashi shook his head before he stated gently, "I promise, once you're cleared to leave, we'll go see Lady Tsunade and see if the Cipher Core figures out the coded message Jiraiya left."

The blond thought for a moment before he asked abruptly, "Sensei, what did the Forth Hokage look like?"

The sensei tensed up for a moment. "W-Well, he was about the age I am now. He had blond hair and blue eyes. Why do you ask?"

Naruto shrugged. "When the Nine-Tails tried to take over, I thought I saw the Forth Hokage..."

His sensei nodded hesitantly before he said, "He did seal the Nine-Tails inside of you before he died. It's possible some of his chakra was sealed as well along with the Nine-Tails."

The blond silently nodded, trying to process everything despite the fact he was in a little bit of a daze still. His eyelids started to get heavy after a few moments of silence between him and his sensei. So many questions ran through his mind, but Naruto knew they'd have to wait a bit longer to be answered. He had to let his body heal before he got back to training and missions again. For whatever reason, he couldn't get the image out of his mind when he saw the Forth Hokage.

He knew my name, Naruto remembered, fighting his exhaustion the best he could. How did he know my name? Did he know my parents? He stopped the Nine-Tails... But why was he so sad about the situation?

"Did he say anything, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, making Naruto wonder if somehow his Sharingan also allowed him to read minds.

"He said..." Naruto hesitated. "He said he couldn't let me do it, and that he was sorry. After that, he fixed the seal."

Kakashi's gaze fell a bit. "That makes a bit of sense, I guess. Sensei always had a trick up his sleeve."

The blond blinked a few times before he asked in a tired tone, "How did he know my name?"

The gray-haired jonin tensed up before he said cautiously, "I think you should ask him yourself, next time you see him. I'm sure he'd be happy to answer your questions."

Naruto could only nod limply as his eyes slid closed. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei."

He felt Kakashi move his hand from his shoulder, but the jonin didn't get up. The blond let out a small sigh of relief, finally feeling like he could breathe once again. Whether it was the blood loss, sedatives, or mental exhaustion, Naruto felt at ease for once. He had to keep going once again, as he had some unfinished business with the Akatsuki, and Sasuke. His master died trying to stop the Akatsuki, and Naruto would honor him by taking down the bastards who killed his sensei.

Once Naruto was asleep, Kakashi let out a heavy sigh. He rubbed at his visible eye, trying to fight the exhaustion he felt himself. The jonin was relieved Naruto was doing better than the day before. Naruto was a threat to himself, that was obviously true, but the Nine-Tails was still more of a threat to Naruto's well-being than he himself. Kakashi knew that eventually Naruto would have to tame the demon sealed inside him, but he'd hoped it would happen once Naruto's mental state had seriously improved. It seemed that they might have to trust Naruto to tame him with the state he was already in. They were running out of time to take down the Akatsuki, and it would mean they had to take the risk. There were four possible outcomes; the Akatsuki kill Naruto and take the Nine-Tails, the Nine-Tails could take over Naruto's body and kill him, Naruto could die at his own hand before they got a chance, or he could tame the Nine-Tails and take down the Akatsuki.

I have no doubt Naruto will do great things, Jiraiya had told Kakashi when they met up briefly. I believe the future will depend on him to bring peace to the shinobi world. He truly is Minato and Krishna's son; he looks like his father and speaks the same way as his mother. The Third Hokage may've failed him, but we won't. He'll become Hokage one day, and he'll be the key to finding peace and protecting the world from darkness.

Kakashi lowered his head as he remembered what the sage had told him the last time they met. He believed in Naruto, but he also didn't want him to get hurt fighting a losing battle. The gray-haired jonin knew that the power Naruto needed, the training to obtain that power, was far beyond him. The toads wanted to train him to use Sage Mode, and Kakashi knew Naruto would have to go alone with them. Kakashi had to remind himself that Master Fukasaku was the one who could train Naruto in Sage Mode. Regardless, he needed to speak to Tsunade as soon as Yamato or Sakura dropped by. As much as Kakashi wanted to believe Naruto wasn't going to hurt himself, he had to be cautious, especially considering the Nine-Tails assisted in Naruto landing himself in the hospital to begin with.

Kakashi had some working theories, but all-in-all, there were only two possible situations where the Nine-Tails would allow anything to happen to Naruto that might kill him. The first, was that the Nine-Tails wanted Naruto to absorb too much of his chakra and allow the Nine-Tails to take over before the blond could actually kill himself, or, the Nine-Tails was just toying with him for his own amusement. Either way, the gray-haired shinobi was bothered by the fact the Tailed Beast was involved aside from healing Naruto once he was too close to dying for the fox to take control of his body.

After a while, Yamato did return alone. Kakashi was standing by Naruto, relieved the Anbu was back finally after waiting around for about an hour.

"How long has he been out?" the Anbu asked.

Kakashi looked up from the book in his hand before he stated plainly, "Maybe an hour or so. Do you mind taking over for me while I go speak to the Hokage?"

Yamato nodded hesitantly before he answered, "Um, yeah, sure."

The gray-haired jonin started walking towards the Anbu as he said, "Thanks, Yamato."

With that, the gray-haired jonin made his way out of the hospital while cracking his neck. Once he walked out the front doors, he noticed a cluster of teens talking a few yards from the hospital. Kakashi kept his composure as the three teens seemed not to notice his sudden appearance. It was strange for Shikamaru to be with both Hinata and Neji. From what Kakashi could see, Hinata looked concerned, Shikamaru seemed tense, and Neji was stoic as usual. The gray-haired jonin was walking by once they noticed him. All three were not expecting to see Kakashi pass them.

"Kakashi-sensei, wait," Shikamaru called, causing the jonin to stop dead in his tracks.

Kakashi turned to them with a calm expression on his face. "Yes, Shikamaru?"