If I did own Naruto – he and Sasuke would be my best friends. I don't own Hikari Aino either.

Sorry for the lateness, I've been preoccupied with a new job, University and loads of homework.

Constructive criticism is warmly welcomed and appreciated. I'm an aspiring writer currently studying at University to write stories and other literary works and I need to know if I'm on the right track or if I need to improve on some aspects. So please, review if you can. Thanks xx (^_~)

WAKE ME UP

"Feeling my way through the darkness
Guided by a beating heart
I can't tell where the journey will end
But I know where to start"

~HIKARI P.O.V~

I woke up to the sound of somebody bustling around the room and quietly humming a bouncy tune to themselves. My first thought was 'who is roaming about in my house?' before remembering that I temporarily relocated to Sasuke's home because my home was currently a crime scene. Immediately, I felt a sharp pang in my chest when I remembered my Mum, and how I wasn't going to be seeing her ever again … at least not until I died - and I hoped to god that was a very, very long time from now.

So I guessed that it was either Sasuke just arriving home, or entertaining Naruto who had become a frequent visitor. My second thought was 'where am I?' and slowly opened my eyes, wincing when I realised the room was blurry. I took this chance to look around the room. I moved to sit up, albeit painfully and groaned when pain hit me like a ton of bricks.

"Hikari?"

I froze, recognising the voice and turned my head to focus on the person sitting beside me that I had failed to see before. Sasuke sat in the chair beside my bed with his usual stoic expression on his face. But I could also see traces of concern there as well. I frowned.

"Sasuke?" I glanced around the room, "Where am I? What are you doing here?" I asked feeling the beginnings of a headache forming. I hissed with pain. Sasuke frowned and stood up, gently pushing me back down into the bed and tucking the blankets more securely around me.

"You're in Konoha Hospital. You were wounded during your preliminary match with Sakura." He explained calmly, before sitting back down in the chair. "And I'm here, because I was concerned about you." He admitted, a slight blush forming on his face. I smiled.

"You are?" Sasuke nodded slightly. I touched his hand and squeezed, not missing him flinching the moment I touched his hand, but seconds after he relaxed and flipped it around so that he could hold my hand properly. "Thanks. I really appreciate it." I said.

The moment was lost a little when the crème coloured curtain surrounding my bed was unceremoniously opened and in stumbled Naruto looking slightly flushed. Clearly, he had run from wherever he had come from. But he also looked slightly depressed as well. I frowned.

"Hey Hikari, are you feeling better?" asked Naruto grinning down at me from the other side not already occupied by Sasuke. I noted that Sasuke had immediately dropped my hand from his the second Naruto appeared. I missed the warmth instantly.

"I've got a little headache, but that's nothing a painkiller can't cure." I reassured him.

There was one thing that I learned very quickly when it came to Naruto. He didn't like it when his friends were hurt or in pain. Naruto grinned, but it bothered me how fake it looked. What the hell happened when I was knocked out?

"Good afternoon, Aino-san," A middle-aged medic ninja had appeared carrying a silver medical tray of syringes - presumably filled with morphine or something similar to take the edge off the pain I was feeling, some alcohol swabs and fresh bandages. "How are you feeling today?" she inquired sweetly. Or at least it was meant to sound sweet, but to my ears it sounded more like she was patronising me.

"Better, but not great." I answered.

The ninja nodded before checking my IV drip and giving Naruto hateful glares and a wide birth when she needed to move past him to check the drip. Sasuke stood up and moved towards the door. I reached out for him.

"Sasuke? W-where are you going?" My aloof friend paused and turned his head slightly in my direction.

"I have some errands to run before my mission tomorrow. I'll come back to visit you soon. Rest well." He said. He raised his hand in farewell before disappearing from the room. I frowned and turned to Naruto for an explanation.

"Mission? What's Sasuke talking about?" I asked feeling a little abandoned and out of the loop. But before Naruto could answer my question, the medic ninja interrupted bluntly.

"It appears that my patient is getting distressed. Perhaps you should leave." She suggested a little forcefully to Naruto - clearly eager to either protect me from him or just eager to get rid of him. Clearly the moment Sasuke left it was apparently an indication for her to bully and restrict Naruto - whom had done absolutely nothing wrong. Typical, and also pathetic. Naruto scowled at her and moved to leave. But I grabbed Naruto's wrist and glowered at her angrily.

"I'm fine. May I please have some time alone with my friend?" I asked, leaving no room for argument. She looked like she was about to protest, but I sharpened my glare. She sighed and nodded, shooting one last glare at Naruto before gathering her stuff and leaving the room. I held onto Naruto's hand, drawing his attention towards me.

"Now can you answer my question, please? What mission was Sasuke talking about?" Naruto looked uncomfortable.

"It's actually a mission me and Sasuke have." I gingerly raised an eyebrow.

"How long will it take?" I asked. Naruto shrugged.

"We don't know."

I sighed. My eyes started feeling heavy and I knew that the morphine that medic ninja had given me must be kicking in. I didn't want to fall asleep, I wanted to find out more about what Naruto and Sasuke were going to be doing for their mission. But my body wasn't cooperating. Naruto noticed my eyes fluttering and let go of my hand.

"I promise I come visit you again before me and Sasuke leave." Naruto whispered in my ear. I smiled.

"You better …" I mumbled.

"Sasuke! No! Come back …!"

I jolted awake feeling no pain, but immense dread. I glanced around the room. The lights were dimmed, but I could see the sunset from my window and a light breeze coming from the window. I sat up, noticing that my IV drip had disappeared and my room was practically deserted. Not feeling tired I pulled back my blanket and slid from the bed, shivering from the coldness of the linoleum floor. I found a pair of slippers and a thick, fuzzy white Hospital dressing gown which I immediately put on and tied the sash.

'Time for a little exploring …' I thought and headed for the doorway. I opened the door and nearly ran straight into somebody's chest. Strong, gloved hands steadied me before letting go.

"You should be resting, not roaming the Hospital corridors." A bored drawling voice scolded me. I glanced up to see Kakashi-sensei looking down at me. I grinned half-heartedly.

"I just woke up." I tried to talk my way out of a lecture. But it appeared that Kakashi wasn't going to give me a lecture.

"That's good. Means I won't have to wake you up." Kakashi said with some relief. I pulled a face.

"Gee, thanks for the consideration." I drawled. Kakashi smirked before turning and indicating for me to follow him. Turns out Sakura's room wasn't too faraway from mine, which begged the question why didn't she come visit me? Kakashi knocked discreetly on Sakura's door. A soft 'come in' was heard before Kakashi turned the doorknob and strode in. Sakura was propped up against the headboard and was reading a book. The moment she saw me, she instantly scowled.

"That's enough of that Sakura." Kakashi said taking a seat in a chair next to Sakura's bed. Sakura nodded, but the vibes I was getting from her were anything but cheerful.

"So what is going on, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Sakura.

"Yeah, and why are Naruto and Sasuke going on this mission?" I added. Sakura looked shocked. It appeared that she hadn't been informed about their mission. Kakashi sighed.

"For me to answer that question, I need to start from the beginning." He explained. I nodded and sat cross-legged on the edge of Sakura's bed, giving him my full attention.

"After your match ended, the scoreboard revealed the next match was to be Uchiha Sasuke vs. Sabaku no Gaara." My eyes widened as did Sakura's. Kakashi continued, glad that we hadn't interrupted.

"Halfway through the fight, it looked like Sasuke was going to win due to the fact that Gaara looked like he was having an inner battle with himself. Suddenly all hell broke loose. Suddenly, Temari and Kunkuro stopped the fight and collected Gaara before fleeing for it. Luckily, Sasuke wasn't too far behind them." Sakura smiled.

"Well, that's good then." Kakashi apparently hadn't finished.

"The Kazekage turned out to be Orochimaru himself - he kidnapped the Hokage."

"What?" Sakura and I exclaimed. Kakashi's face fell slightly and I knew that this story did not have a happy ending. Tears started forming in my eyes.

"He's not …" I began, but Kakashi confirmed it with a small nod. "Oh my God …" Sakura looked confused.

"What?" I struggled to hold back my tears to explain to her what Kakashi had confirmed.

"The Hokage's dead."

Sakura gasped. Kakashi struggled to maintain composure in order to explain the mission Naruto and Sasuke were being sent on.

"The council decided that the person appropriate for the Hokage job is an old student of the Thirds. A woman by the name of Tsunade. Naruto and Sasuke's task is to find her and try and convince her to take on the job of Hokage. However, that isn't the only reason we are seeking her out." Kakashi explained.

"Why else do you require this Tsunade lady?" I asked. Kakashi scratched his head.

"Tsunade is one of three Sannins, Lord Jiraiya being another one. She is known as the Slug Princess because she has power over slugs and has a reputation of being the world's biggest sucker." Sakura and I must have raised eyebrows because Kakashi sweat dropped. "Uh ... she's a compulsive gambler and she always loses. Anyway, the reason why the council wants Tsunade is because she is an accomplished medic ninja and Rock Lee needs urgent healing." He finished explaining.

We were quiet for several minutes afterwards. Finally, I decided that I needed to be alone with my thoughts.

"Well, let's just hope that they can convince her. Otherwise, Konoha is doomed." I prayed before leaving the room. I heard Kakashi mutter to Sakura before hearing him poof into thin air. My heart broke a little when Sakura immediately burst into tears. A silent tear dripped down my face as I walked back to my room, dreading sleep.

I didn't sleep that night.

I don't think Sakura did either - not since we heard that the most powerful man we knew had been killed by that traitor, Orochimaru. But because Sakura wasn't as badly hurt as I was, she was released from the Hospital into the custody of her parents. I, on the other hand wasn't so lucky - so I earned an extra night in the Hospital. By the time I was just about to fall asleep, I was awakened by something warm sitting down behind me. I glanced back to see Naruto sitting there looking solemn and just as sad as I felt. I realised that the Third's death must have hit him hard also. Apart from Iruka-sensei, the Third had been the only other person who accepted that he was not the Kyuubi and treated him like a everyone else should be treated. I sat and wiped away the tears trailing down my face and faced him.

"What are you doing here, Naruto? It's after hours, you'll be caught." I told him. Naruto shrugged.

"I don't care." More tears welled up in my eyes and I rested my head against Naruto's shoulder as tears escaped his eyes and fell down his face as he wrapped me up in his arms.

"Shouldn't you be resting up for your mission tomorrow?" I reminded him. We both sensed another chakra source and Naruto brandished a kunai to protect us. However, we relaxed when Sasuke stepped from the shadows with a blank expression on his face.

"Not bad, dobe. But you need more practise." Sasuke drawled, earning a glare from Naruto. I sniffed and glanced out of the window, the moonlight reflecting on the tear tracks on my face.

"You both should be resting up for your mission tomorrow, not visiting me. I'm fine." I protested. Sasuke didn't reply, instead he came over and removed his sandals.

"Why aren't you listening to me?" I demanded. Sasuke ignored my question in favour of pulling me into his arms and laying my head on his chest. I could hear his heart beating steadily, as he stroked my hair gently with his slender pale fingers.

"Go to sleep, Hikari." Sasuke ordered.

I wanted to protest, but the grief I was feeling made me want nothing more than to fall asleep. So I did. I felt somebody curling up beside me, and realised that it was Naruto who reached forward and grabbed my hand. So that's their plan? To fall asleep beside me, comforting me, until their mission the next morning to make me feel at ease?

'It makes sense … they're the only family I have in this world left. What better way to feel better, than in the presence of the people I truly love and trust with all my heart?' I smiled and made myself comfortable lying against my pillow and against both Naruto and Sasuke's warmth. When I woke up the next morning, both Naruto and Sasuke had already left. On the bedside table, there was a note from the both of them.

Back in two weeks. Don't worry about us, we'll be safe.
Things will get better.

Sasuke and Naruto

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