Chapter 13 – You Will Be Part Of Me

"I don't know."

Gods, why had he said that to her? The look on her face… It was like his lack of faith in her, and his giving up on her, broke her heart – she just didn't know that it did. Oh, she experienced the pain and from the look of things, it was intense. She simply couldn't understand why she was in pain and it made her angry.

But what was he supposed to do? Lie to her? Pretend like everything was okay when it wasn't? When he truly believed it never would be okay?

Watching his hand intensely, he shifted his fingers, changing his grip on a single kunai to several. It happened within the blink of an eye, much too fast for anyone to keep up with.

Resuming his training was now his top priority. He had to become stronger. Had to sharpen his skills. No muscles on his features shifted as the kunai from his hand disappeared, the sounds of them becoming embedded deeply into his makeshift targets being the only indicator of his practice.

He was further into the hideout than what any of the others had been previously – as far as he could tell, at least. Each section of the hideout they'd been living in held some form of evidence of their being there. The part he trained in, however, did not. It hadn't been touched in decades, possibly longer. Didn't they know it was there?

Before each training session, Shisui would start by lighting the torches on the wall with a fire style jutsu. It was imperative to keep it tame. His chakra control had to be precise. Otherwise, he would damage the hideout. If the flame was truly uncontrollable, he could even hurt Sa–

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Frustratingly, his kunai never landed on the bulls-eye. His sight wasn't one hundred percent without his Sharingan, but despite that, he continued to train without it. He didn't want to rely so heavily on it again, especially if he ended up losing his sight once more. No, this time, if he was to lose his sight, he would not lose his abilities also. It would take time to adjust, no doubt, but it wouldn't keep him down for the same excruciating amount of time.

He would surpass his previous strength.

He would make Danzo pay for all he'd taken from him.

Restlessness was a common emotion amongst the shinobi at the hideout. They'd come from back-to-back missions where their lives were constantly on the line, where they were being of use to their village and helping protect it, to sitting around, barely even able to provide for the civilians. Even he – the man who'd refused to leave his home most days after returning – was growing restless. Was it because of his strained relationship with Sakura? Was it her presence at the hideout? Did he merely want space from her to ease the aching of his heart?

What was he supposed to do? Avoiding her was impossible. No matter how hard he tried – no matter how hard the others tried – to keep them separated, they always ended up in each other's paths. Fate was such a cruel thing.

Before losing his sight, Shisui would have dealt with the issue by taking missions – something all shinobi did when their personal lives became too stressful. It was a poor attempt to separate himself from the problem. At the hideout, he obviously couldn't do that. He was at a loss. Trapped. Now that he was back within arm's reach, Itachi wasn't going to allow him the freedom to wander off. Not while he was so vulnerable and Danzo so livid. He would never risk his closest friend's life.

Was it selfish for Shisui to wish he would?

Gods, he sounded so whiny.

"Mama?" There was a horrendous coughing fit that followed the weak voice, one that seemed to drain the person of their energy as they slumped back into their sleeping bag. "M-Mama."

Speaking of whiny…

Shisui glanced in the direction of the young boy, concealing his worry as he watched how weak he'd become. When he first arrived, it'd been obvious he was sick. Unable to get out of bed, unable to eat much. Only capable of drinking water, really. Now, he was throwing up anything that he ate or drank. He couldn't even sit up by himself. Some days he could barely keep his eyes open. The yet to be diagnosed illness was freaking many of the other refugees out.

"Your mother is gathering clean clothing and a washcloth," came a soothing reply.

It wasn't a foreign sight seeing Itachi acting so caring – well, it wasn't acting, for he'd felt the same way towards Sasuke, but that was why it was a little strange. Previously, he'd only cared for Sasuke in such an open way. Was he possibly reminiscing the days when his brother wasn't trapped in the Curse of Hatred?

The coughing fit from moments before still caused his body to spasm, his breathing raspy and uneven. In the dim lighting of the hideout, they could see the faint sheen of sweat coating his body and Shisui sighed, standing from his own sleeping bag to join the two.

"M-Mama…"

He'd started to cry, whimpering his mother's name pitifully. It wasn't that Shisui didn't pity the boy – he did, greatly, as he understood the suffering of being somewhere unknown while so vulnerable. However, Itachi was handling the situation incorrectly.

"We have a perfectly good medical room," he mentioned, raising an eyebrow when Itachi glanced up at him. He was in the middle of wiping down the boy's forehead, his own features puckering somewhat with concern.

"Which is in use," replied Itachi quietly, turning back to his task. Then, he said to the boy, "Quiet, now. Your mother won't be too long, I promise."

"Itachi," Shisui said with clear exasperation, surprising his friend enough for him to look back at him. "Hyuuga-san is capable of joining the rest of us in here – like myself, she is only partially blind. She can care for herself."

"And Sakura?" came his demand. Although it was spoken quietly, there was a clear weight behind his words. Almost an accusation. Itachi was no longer looking at him, like he was dismissing his presence completely. Shisui knew that wasn't the case, though. He knew that Itachi was experiencing confusion and perhaps even betrayal for the way things had turned out between himself and Sakura. "Do you think it wise to place a young, defenceless child in the same small room as a woman who, in your own words, we no longer know?"

Oh, that was a dig. One that actually hurt. "Sakura would never hurt a child."

There was a quiet hum of dry amusement. "If you are so certain about that, then why do you continue to claim you don't know who she is anymore?"

"I-" He couldn't argue with that, could he? Not when Shisui couldn't understand why he was sure about the child's safety in her care. He simply… He couldn't see her ever hurting an innocent person, no matter how out of her mind she was.

"Sakura would never hurt a child," he repeated firmly, narrowing his eyes on Itachi for good measure. "I'm surprised you think that she would."

"I don't," he murmured. "But she is not ready to become a medic again. She must first learn to find herself and-"

"And in the meantime this child is suffering," Shisui cut in, glaring openly at his friend's back. "At the very least give him some privacy, Itachi. Away from all these prying eyes – from these people who are more concerned with contracting whatever sickness he has, rather than offering any form of comfort or comradery." Glare deepening as he looked around himself, he couldn't help but feel sickened when the civilians instantly averted their gazes, when the shinobi stared him down for a few mere moments before copying them. "Do not worsen the boy's suffering simply because you want to give Sakura all the time in the world to recover. Face facts that she will never recover from this."

His words silenced Itachi. They ceased his movements. For a split second, Shisui worried that he'd gone too far. That he'd pushed a hidden button that was never supposed to be pressed. Itachi was a dangerous guy and many made the assumption that he had limitless patience. Then, he reached out to the boy and tucked his arms beneath his back and knees, standing effortlessly and holding him close. There was no signs of worry about catching the illness, but there was a clear defiance as he stood to his full height, staring Shisui down seriously, almost coldly.

"Sakura will do more than just recover," he stated tonelessly. "She will bounce back from this with a vengeance because that's who she is." Turning his back on him, Itachi said over his shoulder, "Gather the boy's belongings and follow me. If you wish to move him to another room so badly, you will help with the process of settling him in."

Wait, that meant–

"Itachi-"

"Stop believing Sakura is weak when she is far from it," came his cold voice, one that further silenced the hideout as the two most powerful Uchiha stood their ground in their arguments. "She will overcome this."

Standing outside of the medical room, leaning back against the wall, stood an irate Sasuke, who merely huffed with annoyance at their questioning gazes. He'd been there for a while from the looks of things and from his defensive stance, he didn't plan on moving any time soon. The sight made Shisui inwardly frown, for he'd thought he and Sasuke were on the same page. Was he caving? Was he slowly believing in Itachi's words?

"I wouldn't," Sasuke muttered when they continued to walk towards the room with the young boy. "She's having a bad day."

"What do you mean?" Shisui found himself asking, despite his earlier decision to distance himself.

"I mean," he stated more seriously, his voice growing harder. "If you take that kid in there while she's so restless, there's no telling what will happen."

That fool hadn't known Sakura at all, had he? And if he did, then how the hell could he forget what kind of person she was so easily? To truly believe that she would have it in her heart to harm an innocent child was ludicrous. It didn't matter how badly her head was screwed with, because deep in her heart, she would always be–

No. They were right to question how safe the child was around her and he was a hypocrite for thinking differently after all he'd been saying. She was no longer the woman they once knew and loved. Haruno Sakura was a stranger now, meaning they had to treat her cautiously.

Still…

"I have an idea."

She wasn't lounging around when they entered the medical room – Sakura was sitting upright against the wall her futon was against, her bright green eyes wide and calculating. She made sure not to miss a single movement, always watching. Always aware. Then, once she took in the child cradled in Itachi's arms, she frowned minutely, clearly unsure about how to handle the situation.

The others were scattered around the room, making it seem smaller and it had Shisui biting back an order to make them all leave. There was no reason to have six people with her. Crowding Sakura wouldn't do any good. It would undoubtedly cause irritation. Then again, three of those six were probably with Hinata. They would find out in a few moments.

"Hinata-san, how are you feeling?" asked Itachi, his voice as gentle as it always was.

She gave a small smile, her single eye darting to Sakura, then to the child in Itachi's arms. Oh? Was she catching on already? "Better."

"I'm glad," he said before asking, "I'm sorry if this feels sudden, but we need a bed for Botan-kun and-"

"No, no, it's fine," she assured him with a smile, already on her feet. "I was wondering what would happen with the boy."

The way Sakura's eyes widened and fixated on Hinata made Shisui shift his weight to his left foot uneasily. They hadn't taken into consideration the bond that was forged between the two. Would Sakura manage without the Hyuuga in the room? After all, it was she who comforted her. Whenever Sakura was in a bad way after a torture session, it was allegedly Hinata who held her, doing all she could to soothe the pain through comfort alone. They were basically taking a safety blanket from a child.

"Thank you." Stepping around her, he nodded in thanks as she pulled back the covers, allowing Itachi to lay Botan down. His dark bangs were stuck to his forehead, but his shaking made it appear as though he was cold. They used that to try and get her attention, covering the boy with a thick quilt. "We might be able to warm him up now."

There was a scoff behind them. Fortunately, the others seemed to understand what they were trying to trigger, for they didn't argue with their poor decision to add more layers. If she didn't respond, they would treat him properly before there were any ill effects.

Turning, he grabbed a spare blanket. Perhaps she needed a push? "Here, Itachi. Use this."

Before it could be passed on, it was snatched from his hand and his heart seemed to skip a beat as he locked eyes with the angry woman stood in front of him. Up close, he could see how green they were and they seemed to hit him at full force, no matter how hard Shisui tried to resist them. Gods, they were beautiful eyes. Like the green never ended, merely allowing a few specks of amber and brown to mingle with its vividness, somehow brightening the colour. Even while so obviously angry, it was hard to look away.

"You're all idiots," she muttered darkly. Brushing past the two Uchiha men, she tugged the thicker cover from the boy's trembling body, her eyebrows knitting together. "You're doing it wrong," she said irritably. "He's too warm, not shaking because he's cold. It's called a fever."

"You remember?" asked Naruto excitedly.

She frowned at her hands, then over to him. "Remember what? I'm only doing what Tsunade-sama tells me to do."

What? "Tsunade-sama?"

Green eyes rolled, like the question was ridiculous, but she didn't elaborate. It had many watching her warily, their minds revolving around a single question: how deep did her madness run? When speaking of her deceased shishou, she'd used the present tense. That alone set off alarm bells in Shisui's head.

He couldn't keep his distance from her, could he? The realisation had him zoning out of the conversation going on around him, had his eyes glued to Sakura as she returned to her seat on her futon. Once she noticed his staring, she stared back, those green eyes standing out hauntingly in contrast to the bruises surrounding her eyes, her skin still worryingly pale from the amount of blood she'd lost.

As much as he wanted to spare himself from the agony of being around her, of further breaking his own heart by watching her descent into madness, he had no other option because behind all the anger and distrust in her eyes, there was also confusion and fear. She truly was struggling to understand all that was happening around her. He couldn't leave her to endure that alone. Not after all she'd done for him. Not when she looked so scared and alone. Not when he loved her so much.

"Help me, then." Many stared at him in shock when he stepped towards Sakura, holding out his hand. "Help me care for him."

Green eyes narrowed. "I told you already. I don't know the first thing about-"

"Then we'll learn together."

"You don't-"

"Please, Sakura."

She fell silent, the wariness in her eyes doubling. It was clear she didn't trust him. That she feared him. Whatever Danzo had done to her head wasn't letting up for a second. It was continuously playing with her mind. One moment she could trust them, the next she couldn't. It was all one big mind game.

He wanted to avoid her. He wanted distance.

But she needed him.

And with those big green eyes staring at him so helplessly, so unknowingly desperate for his help…

Sakura stood without taking his hand, gazing at him suspiciously until she nodded once, slowly, unsurely.

He'd always been a sucker for pretty eyes.

A/N - They've got a long way to go, but Shisui is finally coming to realise what we all already know. Finally.