Chapter 15

Sasuke groggily opened his eyes. For a moment, he thought he was still in Tsunade's garden with the blasted fountain. He could still smell flowers. Staring up at the white ceiling, he realized the smell was coming from the flowers positioned around the room. The steady beeping of the heart monitor was quickly getting on his nerves. He was in a hospital.

The last thing he remembered before winding up in Tsunade's garden, was Naruto kneeling down next to him, begging him to stay alive. He had no doubt Naruto was now mourning over his dead dog body, if there was one. He remembered when he first turned into a dog and his family reported him missing. He could just imagine Naruto's reaction if he body faded in his arms.

He tried to take a deep breath, and winced at the pain in his chest. He reached up and grabbed his chest with a groan. He hadn't felt this much pain since Naruto hit him with the car.

He stopped and held up his hand. He had a hand! After ten years of paws and tails, he finally had his hand back! He was human again.

"You're awake."

Sasuke turned his head and saw Neji sitting on a chair in the corner of the room. He had a book in his lap, but Sasuke knew Neji could read a book, watch everyone in the room, and calculate the speed of a car at the same time. Not as smart as Shikamaru, but he gave a lot of people a run for their money.

Neji pushed a button on a table next to him and turned to Sasuke.

"Where am I?" asked Sasuke.

"A private wing in the hospital," said Neji turning a page. "Konoha Medical."

"How long?"

"Three days."

Three days. Three days of Naruto mourning him. Briefly, Sasuke wondered what Naruto was doing right now. Probably burying him in the precinct K-9 cemetery. The police department had a cemetery for retired dogs or dogs that died in the line of duty. Of course it wasn't uncommon for them to have their dogs cremated as well.

He hoped Naruto cremated him instead of burial.

"Why are you here?" he finally asked after a minute.

"I'm watching you," said Neji. "Itachi was afraid that those vultures would try to interrogate you before you were ready."

"You my bodyguard now?"

"For a about six hours a night."

"So you work for your uncle now?" asked Sasuke. Neji uncle, Hiashi, Hinata's father, owned a security firm where they provided bodyguards for anyone who needed it.

"No, Vice," said Neji. "Itachi called in a favor and I owed him."

The door opened and a woman walked in wearing a white lab coat. She had brown hair cropped to the nape of her neck and brown eyes. She carried a clipboard and looked up from it as she walked in.

"You're awake," she said. "Good. You have us a scare there. Almost didn't make it." She turned to Neji. "You may go now. You're replacement is here.

Neji closes his book and stood. He walked over to Sasuke's bed and grasped the other man's hand.

"It's good to have you back, cousin," he said sincerely. Sasuke weakly gripped it back. The Hyuga's and Uchiha's could trace their family to the same bloodline, so they had always been close. There had even been talk of uniting the family between him and Hinata, but his disappearance put him out of secession. Since Hinata had married Kiba Inuzuka, Itachi had somehow gotten out of it as well.

"Same."

Neji walked out as the doctor walked toward Sasuke's bed and checked the monitors.

"I'm Shizune, your doctor," she said. "Do you feel any pain, dizziness?"

"No," said Sasuke. "Did you operate on me?"

"No, that would be the head of the department," said Shizune. "But she's too busy running said department to look in on a single patient, so she assigned you to me."

"How did I get here?"

"You got shot, that's how you got here."

"I mean, how did I get here?"

Shizune glanced at him, who gave her a questioning look.

"You don't remember, do you?" she asked and he shook his head. "You were found by two EMTs by the side of the building. It's what saved your life. The bullet chipped your rib and grazed your heart. You were drowning in your own blood. Died twice on the table. If you hadn't been outside our door, you'd be dead for real."

"Thank you," said Sasuke.

"How did you get shot anyway?"

"I got in front of the wrong end of a gun, obviously," said Sasuke.

"By who, Uchiha-san?" Sasuke kept silent. Shizune gave him a look, but Sasuke didn't say a word. "The police will be asking the same question, Uchiha-san, and they expect an answer."

"That doesn't mean I'll give them one."

Shizune looked at him like a cop would a suspect, but didn't say anything more. She turned back to his monitors and started writing on the clipboard.

"How about the scar on your leg?" she asked.

"Got hit by a car. Does my brother know I'm awake?"

"I informed him as soon as Hyuga-san did," she said. "I expect he'll be here in a half hour, which will be enough time to comprise a story, I expect."

"When can I get out of here?" asked Sasuke.

"Tomorrow, but I still want you to take it easy. You did get shot in the chest."

After spending ten years as a dog, and a month in a kennel, Sasuke learned to not go against orders when it comes to his life. He just nods and settled down in his bed to rest until his brother came.

The half hour seemed to be mere seconds when he suddenly woke from his nap and found his brother sitting next to his bed,

"How long this time?" he asked.

"Hour from my reckoning," said Itachi. "Doctor said to let you continue to rest. Your body seems to need it."

"Next time I see her, I'll thank her for the accomodation, but I suggest better sleeping arrangements. This mattress feels like a board."

Itachi laughed.

"I'll let her know."

Sasuke studied his brother and could immediately see the relief on his face. Sasuke could only guess what Itachi had gone through since Sasuke disappearance. For the first few years after his transformation, Sasuke didn't think much about his family. He thought that they were glad that he was gone, but by the look on Itachi's face, he saw that it was the opposite.

"There's Mom?" he asked.

"On her way," said Itachi. "She was on a cruise when you were found. A helicoptor picked her up and is taking her to the nearest airport."

"A cruise?"

Itachi nodded.

"For a few years, she refused to leave the city in case you were found. It was Kanon who finally convinced her that she needed time to relax or else she would have collapsed."

"Kanon?" asked Sasuke.

Itachi flinched a bit and looked sheepish.

"Yes," he said hesitantly. "My wife. I got married five years ago, and my son Yahiko was born last year."

"Congratulations," said Sasuke sincerely. "I can't wait to meet them."

"Thanks. We thought it would be a good idea for them to be here when you woke. Kanon is anxious to meet you too."

"You've moved on," said Sasuke. "You and Mom."

"But we never stopped looking for you," said Itachi earnestly. "We looked everywhere. Missing posters, rewards. What happened to you, Sasuke?"

Sasuke pauses for a second. He wanted to tell Itachi the truth, but knew how impossible it sounded. Even he couldn't believe it, and he was had lived it.

"Itachi, just believe me when I say, I learned a lesson," said Sasuke. "I'm not perfect, but I want to be a better person."

Itachi smiled, stood and hugged Sasuke. Sasuke gratefully returned to hug.

"Welcome back, little brother."

XXXXXX

In the end, it had taken another two days for Sasuke to leave the hospital. When he had attempted to stand to reach the bathroom, his legs gave out from under him and his head nearly connected to the tray. The physical therapists couldn't determine why his legs were so weak since they weren't atrophied. Sasuke guess it was because he had spent the last ten years as a dog. He spent the day after Itachi's first visit reminding his legs on how to walk upright.

Neji visited a couple times after that when his work allowed it. He spoke what had happened in the last ten years, his marriage to TenTen and their son Hitoshi. His uncle was surprisingly all right with Neji and Hinata diverting from the family business. Sasuke guessed it was because Hinata's little sister Hanabi had joined the security firm and was now one of the toughest women there.

"Mother is planning a party," said Itachi as Neji wheeled Sasuke out of the hospital. "She's hoping you have a list of guests she can invite."

"I don't know," said Sasuke. "I'm a bit out of touch with my friends."

"Juugo and Suigetsu helped out for the first couple of years, but college and their careers got in the way," said Itachi. "Karin tried cozying up to me not long after your disappearance. I told her that I had no interest in gold digging whores who go from one brother to the other in a matter of six weeks."

Sasuke laughed softly at his brother's story.

"So where is she now?" he asked.

"Just buried her first husband and looking for a second," said Itachi. "He was a heart surgeon."

"How did he die?"

"Most common ailment to all men over sixty. Heart attack."

Sasuke laughed softly at the thought of Karin married to a man old enough to be her grandfather. He knew the girl was ambitious and would do anything in the pursuit of her own comfort, but he didn't think she would go that far.

"I'd say she was off the list," he said.

Both men readily agreed.

"I still hang out with some friends from high school," suggest Neji. "I could invite them."

"Excellent idea," said Itachi. "Send the list to Mother and she'll take it from there."

"What about Naruto," asked Sasuke, he hoped innocently. Itachi gave him an inquiring look. Even Neji was surprised by Sasuke question.

"He's a cop now," he said. "But I don't know if he'll come. He just recently lost his partner."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," said Sasuke.

Neji noticed the sad look on his friend's face and smiled softly. It seemed that Sasuke really wanted to reconnect with his old friends and what kind of cousin would he be to deny him that.

"I'll ask him," he said.

Sasuke smiled softly. Hopefully, things will be different now.

TBC