His breath was heavy, but the rhythm of his breathing was fast. Too quick for comfort. His eyelids felt heavy and his eyes themselves felt weary. He felt numb. His skin tingled, uncomfortably. A blanket of warmth covered him from, almost, head to toe. Only the bridge of his nose and above were left open to view. Tight sensations wrapped around his body, restricting his movements. Not that he wanted to move, since even lifting one of his fingers sent a wave of shocking pain through his bodies.

Kakashi grunted as he resigned himself to his position, completely still.

"So you're finally awake, huh?" a familiar voice spoke out from somewhere close beside him.

He opened his eyes, flicking them to the corner of his blurred vision. When they focused, he tried his best for a smirk. "I do like a lie in, you knew that already Guy" he grimaced as even the small amount of effort it took to speak, caused too much pain to make it seem worth it.

His best friend sat at the bedside. A book rested on his thighs. This detail was odd to Kakashi, then his vision cleared and his pupils focused on the cover that he could just make out the images of dumbbells, bands and other heavy looking plates and everything clicked. He looked as if he had been there a while, as the blanket over Guy's thighs looked as if it had been given to him by one of the nurses. Wait, nurses?

Kakashi scanned his surroundings and noted all the odd details of what he thought was his room. Pristine whites and light blues covered the walls and floors, shining with the recent and regular deep cleans that were mandated by the hospital. Kakashi's was the only bed in the room, making him thank whoever he could for his gifted privacy. It even looked as if they had been taking care of Guy, as the rims of his wheelchair shined with a new wash. From his recent trips to the hospital, Kakashi knew that the staff always enjoyed Guy's visits as he never failed to bring a renewed positive energy to both the doctors and nurses, as well as the other patients.

"How are you feeling, Kakashi?" His rival gave him a concerned look.

Kakashi sat up, groaning as his eyes widened in pain, against the fluffy pillows at the head of the bed. "Not the greatest I've ever been, but I'll manage" he replied.

"Good, Shizune will be happy that her efforts weren't in vain then" Guy beamed at him.

Piecing together his words, scenes of the Hokage's assistant herself working to help repair his wounds. He would have to go thank her whenever he had the time. "So what… exactly happened?" Kakashi scratched his head, trying to puzzle together what he remembered, but all he got was the terrifying image of a dragon flying directly at him. Sweat beaded down his brow as he tried even harder to remember the past few days.

"Relax Kakashi, Lee already told pretty much everything" Guy's face turned sombre, an emotion that was always foreign to the Leaf's Noble Green Beast. "The poor boy was completely distraught when he got back"

Kakashi tried his hardest to imagine what could have been so terrible that both Lee and Guy could end up being so disheartened. They were the epitome of joy as they relentlessly trained, even with Guy being resigned to his wheelchair. The only other time that they had both been so down, was at Neji's funeral. Then it dawned on Kakashi, a thought so heart-wrenching that he desperately wanted to dismiss it. He frustratingly hoped that it couldn't have been the same emotion that had haunted him for most of his life. Loss. Memories, of all those who had been taken from him, seared into the back of his mind and threatened to spill out in a flood of tears.

"And the others? Are they okay?" he asked, the undertone of worry noticeable to even the Might Guy.

Guy closed his book, putting it back on the bedside table. His, now, free hands clasped together, fidgeting distractingly. "Sai came back completely unscathed, Shino's back had to be looked at but it was nothing major whereas Kiba's wounds were a little worse so he needed a few lengthy stitches. Your wounds were the worst, life-threatening to be honest but luckily enough, Lee brought you back before you had no chance of survival" he explained.

In his head, Kakashi ticked off everyone he had on his list of who he had brought with him on the dangerous mission. He thought he managed to get everyone, but then his mind was pulled back to one name that he had missed. "And what about Tenten? Is she… okay?" he knew his answer as soon as the words left his lips.

His friend frowned, an unnatural movement for the usually enthusiastic shinobi. "She…uh… she didn't make it back with the others" his lips quivered. The poor guy looked like he was on the verge of breaking down. Guy couldn't even bare to look Kakashi in the eyes when he revealed his student's fate to Kakashi. Losing not one but two of his pupils would no doubt have left an inescapable hole of despair in any teacher's chest. Kakashi couldn't even fathom how Lee was right now, losing his only teammate left, to two people who he had considered to be his rivals.

Clenching his fist, Kakashi swore he'd get her back from Naruto and Sasuke's clutches. He cursed himself for getting himself injured recklessly and putting the others in an impossible situation. When he opened his hand, he stared at his bare palm. He couldn't believe that he had been so naïve to think that his new jutsu would miraculously be better than what Sasuke managed to produce. An incredible dragon, made up only of arcing lightning. That must have been the Kirin that they had heard about from Karin when they had her prisoner after Sasuke killed Danzo. The way she had described it back then made it sound so impossible, but after trying to fight it with his Purple Lightning technique, Kakashi understood how much more powerful Sasuke's jutsu truly was.

Their shared misery was interrupted by the whoosh of the sliding door. Clopping along on her heels, a raven-haired woman strutted in with clipboard in hand. Her determined face scared Kakashi, especially when that expression was directed straight at him. Her onyx irises pierced his skin as she looked over his bare chest. Kakashi raised an eyebrow at her actions and when she noticed she looked away. Yet Kakashi could still see her sneaking glances at him from the corner of her eyes. When she finally made to his bedside, the woman had clearly reconstructed her mask of seriousness.

"Nice to finally see you awake, Kakashi" she said.

Kakashi did his best to bear through the pain as he tried for a smile. "Nice to see you too, Shizune" he tried to reply but he couldn't help but grimace as his face ached.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Not too ba—"

She jabbed a thumb in his face, her expression almost downright murderous. "And don't lie to me, I'm your doctor, remember?" Kakashi recoiled at her words, not wanting to risk pissing of the medical kunoichi.

And so he relented, telling her everything that he felt. All the pains and stiffness that affected his body were revealed to Shizune. She took her time noting all the information down and coming to her own conclusions. She even poked at his stiff muscles with her pen, stifling the urge to snicker at Kakashi's groans as his muscles ached.

Deciding to tease her a little, Kakashi flexed his chest and arms. His pained efforts earned him a reddening set of cheeks and a hitch in Shizune's breath. He grinned when she couldn't take it anymore and pulled away.

"So the damage to your body shouldn't be anything permanent" she explained. "But if you do still feel this aching pain after a week or two, then you need to come straight back to the hospital so Lady Tsunade can take a look. Understood?"

Kakashi nodded. Then Shizune sighed, seeming to relax slightly. Yet her shoulders were still hunched. Kakashi wondered how stressful all the work at the Hokage's office had become lately. He definitely did not envy Lady Fifth's position, having once been forced into almost accepting the role before. "Are you okay?" he asked Shizune, worried about her wellbeing.

She waved his question of offhandedly. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that there's still a lot of work that needs to be done before the summit"

"Wait, the summit" Kakashi gestured for a timeout. "As in the Five Kage Summit"

Shizune and Guy both nodded. "Lady Tsunade called for it, the main topic is discuss strategies for how to deal with… the Akatsuki" she hesitated, clearly intending to say 'Naruto and Sasuke' but then remembering that they were Kakashi's students last second.

His face dropped and with it so did the mood of the room.

"Look Mommy! He's awake" a childish voice screamed in the doorway. The three shinobi turned towards the source, confused at the sight before them. A little girl, no older than two years old, ran into the room. She wore her caramel locks in a cute ponytail and her face beamed with a brilliant smile plastered across it.

Another voice followed the girl as she rushed into the room. "Mirai! Don't run in the hospital! Come back here, young lady!" a woman strutted into the room, hands out ready to grab the girl she was chasing.

The girl giggled as she hid behind Guy's wheelchair. The woman finally relented and looked at Guy apologetically.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt" she scratched the back of her head at her daughter's mischievous antics.

Guy ruffled the little girl's hair. "Don't worry about it Kurenai" he reflected the girl's smile with his own pearly white teeth.

Grateful for his response, Kurenai turned towards the bed ridden Kakashi. She averted her eyes slightly when she noticed his bare chest and unmasked face. "We just came to see how you were doing" she explained.

"No worries, it's always nice to see the both of you" Kakashi lifted Mirai onto the bed.

Kurenai shifted her weight from one foot to the other. Her face gave away her ponderous thoughts. "Kiba and Shino mentioned that you and the others ran into Shikamaru on your mission… is that true?" she asked.

"You saw Big Bro Shika" Mirai cocked her head at Kakashi, with a confused frown. Kakashi knew that she had missed spending time with Shikamaru, who had been watching out for her and her mother ever since she was born. And as far as Kakashi knew, Kurenai hadn't had the heart to explain why he hadn't come back yet.

Then, out from nowhere, Guy picked her up and placed her on his lap. "Come on Mirai! Let's go exploring!" Guy beamed enthusiastically.

"Yay! Exploring!" she screamed as Guy wheeled his way out of the room. On the way out, Kurenai sent a thankful glance to Guy. She turned back to Kakashi whose smile at his friend's childish behaviour now began to fade. And what was left could only be described as a grim expression.

"Yeah, it's true" he answered Kurenai's previous question.

She gasped. So what Kiba and Shino had told her had been true. It wasn't that Kurenai didn't trust them to not tell the truth, but it was more that she couldn't believe their story. Shikamaru was there, in front of them. Kakashi had him practically cornered. But the worst part about their report, was the detail about Shikamaru's choice of apparel. He had allegedly been wearing the signature robe of the Akatsuki. 'Oh Shikamaru! Why are you doing this?' she thought.

Kakashi noticed her pained expression. "I kno—"

"So why didn't you bring him back?" Kurenai demanded, cutting him off mid-sentence. Her face was a fierce mask of desperation.

Kakashi stared back at her in shock. When he looked in her crimson eyes, he saw that they were glossy as she came closer to breaking down and letting her tears flow freely. "Kurenai, he… he said it was better that he remained where he was" he admitted, feeling as if a weight had been let off his shoulders.

"What?" she asked, incredulously.

Kakashi thought about how best to explain it. "I think that Shikamaru is still trying his best to protect the Hidden Leaf Village and… to protect all of us; he told me about the Land of Waves" Kakashi let a hopeful smile blossom on Kurenai's face.

"Or he could just be lying to you, playing your desire to trust in him. Remember, we did just lose Tenten in the Land of Waves and you yourself almost got killed by Sasuke" Shizune responded.

Kurenai turned to her, shocked that she would even suggest such a thing. "He would never do that!" she angrily pressed towards the medical kunoichi, getting right in her face.

"Wouldn't he? Shikamaru was one of, if not, the best strategists that the Hidden Leaf Village has ever had. The only two people in the entire village who could compete with him tactically are Lady Tsunade herself and Kakashi" she pointed directly at the Copy Ninja. "You know, the guy currently confined to a hospital bed after fighting Sasuke Uchiha, all because Shikamaru told him where to find them!"

Both Kakashi and Kurenai looked as if they had just been slapped in the face as they recoiled from Shizune's rant. Kakashi frowned. He looked down at his palms, tracing soft circles around the skin. Could Shikamaru really have pulled a trick on him that easily? He shivered at the thought. He hated the idea that Shikamaru had led him like a puppet on strings, especially if it meant putting him and Lee in the position to lose Tenten. But if anyone could, it was Shikamaru. He had heard enough stories about Asuma's games of Shogi against Shikamaru, which usually ended in a crushing defeat. But the way his old comrade had described it, it was as if he couldn't realise that he had lost ten, or even twenty moves before it was too late.

"I think it would be better if we didn't rely on any help from Shikamaru for the time being" Kakashi admitted, making both kunoichi turn towards him with their eyebrows raised.

"Bu—" Kurenai tried to protest, only to be stopped by Kakashi's outstretched palm in her face.

"Just until we can be certain of his allegiances" Kakashi cut her off. his tone made clear that his decision was final.

"I can't… why… it makes no… ah!" Kurenai face scrunched in rapidly increasing frustration. Her unfinished sentences all accumulated into her spinning on her heels and storming off to find her daughter.

Shizune turned back, glaring at Kakashi. "Nicely done" she mimed her sarcastic applause.

His only response was to make a childish face back at her. Shizune broke out into a cute giggle as she twirled her hair between her fingers. She went back to checking her clipboard, humming a dreamy tune as she looked over the paper. Her melody went on for more than a minute, to the point that Kakashi was considering saying something so it wouldn't become awkward. As he went to speak, her eyes narrowed. She grimaced as she read the messy font of the report.

"I should go" she said, out of the blue.

Kakashi was taken aback by her bluntness. "Oh, uh… okay" he scratched the back of his head.

When she saw his reaction, Shizune panicked. "Oh, no… I didn't mean it like that! It's just that I read Choji's most recent report, so I thought I'd go check on how he's doing" she blurted out. Then she immediately regretted saying anything as Kakashi's expression turned serious.

"Is he doing any better?" Kakashi asked.

The medical kunoichi nodded, but she still seemed slightly unsure of the matter. "Lady Tsunade believes she may have found a method to help heal the damage done to Choji's chakra network"

Kakashi grew curious. "Really? How has she done that?"

"The… Nara clan kindly offered us their manuscripts" she answered warily. Reaching behind her, Shizune fumbled with one of her belt's pouches. Her fingers curled around the ominous object she'd been carrying ever since Kakashi had come back to the Hidden Leaf in his life-threatening state. "Oh, and… I found this in one of your pouches when Lee brought you back the other day" she placed the tubular glass onto Kakashi's bedside table.

His eyes widened when he recognised the container. And more specifically, what floated inside it. "That's… umm… tha—"

"Don't bother, it's none of my business" Shizune cut him off. "But I'll still ask you to be careful Kakashi" she said as she shut the door behind her, leaving him with her grave demand.

Now left all alone, Kakashi thought he should have been relaxing. He had always enjoyed his time by himself. Ever since he'd grown up in his childhood home without any company, Kakashi had gotten so used to the silence that he could always just relax. But now, every time Kakashi tried to rearrange his pillows and switch his position lying down, he couldn't shake off the pressure of the object. The itching sensation made his skin-crawl as he tried so desperately to ignore the tube of clear glass. Bubbling sounds reached his ears even after he covered them with his pillow over his head, cutting off his air supply.

'Ignore it! Ignore it! Ignore it!' the mantra rattled through his head. He groaned. He just couldn't take it anymore. Pushing himself off the mattress, he grabbed the object harshly. He turned it in his hand and thumbed over the glass.

He threw his head back in exasperation. His eyelids shut tight as he mentally chastised himself for giving in to the temptation of just looking at the container. He risked a peek of what was inside, gritting his teeth when he realised that it was the same as always.

A crimson eye lay there, weightless inside the solution-filled container. The unique pattern, similar to the shape of a shuriken, stared back at Kakashi. Flashes of battle rang throughout his mind. He slowly slipped into the traumatic experiences of the past that he had tried so hard to bury all his life. The pained grimace of Obito screamed in the back of his head. Rin's lifeless gasp as her heart was crushed by his electrified hand had seared itself into his mind along with the plethora of deaths he had had to witness first-hand.

Sasuke's cruel demeanour haunted his thoughts. The moment before he would have landed his attack, Sasuke grinned as his Kirin retaliated. The pain that followed was indescribable. Constant spasming wracked his body as thousands of volts of pure lightning were discharged. Sasuke's jutsu completely overpowered his own. Kakashi knew he would have to become stronger. But could he really do it by whatever means necessary? The question irritated him to no end.

His train of thought then brought up the fact that he was defeated by Sasuke, all whilst Naruto toyed with his comrades. Kakashi knew deep down that Lee would have had to use the Eight Inner Gates to their fullest extent to really compete against Naruto and all his power. He wasn't sure why both Naruto and Sasuke weren't using their strongest techniques. The only conclusion that Kakashi could come up with was that the two of them didn't really think much of their opponents and didn't see fit to waste their incredible powers on foes such as Tenten and Rock Lee.

'When did I fall so far behind?' Kakashi thought to himself.

He glimpsed at the eye in the glass. The Sharingan. With the Kekkai Genkai of the Uchiha clan, Kakashi would definitely have a higher chance of beating Sasuke. Even if Sasuke possessed the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan, a shinobi wielding a simple three-Tomoe Sharingan could still defeat him. All that mattered was who had higher skill with the infamous eye. But the added factor of the Kamui could really tip the scales if Kakashi were to ever face Sasuke again. No. There was no doubt that Kakashi would meet Sasuke on the field of battle once more. And next time, Kakashi would defeat him.

Kakashi unscrewed the cap. Plunging his fingers into the tube, they tried to grasp the slippery sensory organ. He carefully brought it out, doing his best not to drop it. Discarding the container, he brought his other hand to his left eye. He'd lost it once before, so what was there to be afraid of now? Still, his heart pounded, and the blood rushed in his ears, almost deafening him.

"What do you think you're doing?" an angered voice reverberated off the walls.

Kakashi turned. And standing in the doorway was the curvy figure of a proud woman. But hunched shoulders revealed an enormous number of pressures that weighed on her. Her heels clopped as she strutted to his bedside. She stared down at him, arms crossed underneath her giant bust.

Recognising his visitor, Kakashi scrambled to hide the object in his hand. "Lady Tsunade! I was just… uh… checking somethi—"

"Were you really planning on gouging your own eye out?" she glared at him expectantly.

He looked down at the eye in his hand. "I just thought that it might help" he said.

Tsunade sighed. "You don't need the power of that Sharingan; you are perfectly strong enough without it"

Something about her statement irked Kakashi. But when he went to raise his objections, Tsunade's expression deterred him from doing so. She turned and sat on the edge of his bed, which Kakashi thought was strange but he didn't say anything. From the look in her eyes, the Hokage was hiding just how stressful her job truly was. Or so Kakashi could guess.

Giving it one last glance, he placed the eye back into its container on his bedside. "So is there any particular reason why you've paid me a visit? I can't imagine that you have much spare time these days" he joked.

Tsunade scoffed. "I just wanted to ask you one thing"

"And that is?" Kakashi asked.

His eyes widened when she turned towards him. He met her desperate gaze, noticing a glossy look to her brown eyes. "Do we… actually have a chance of winning?"

The question hung in the silence. Moments passed as Kakashi thought about what the best way to go about answering such a question would be. He saw the pain behind her warm, coffee irises. She had been one of Naruto's biggest believers. Her faith in him had only increased after Jiraiya was killed in the Land of Rain, on a mission Tsunade had let him leave on.

Kakashi took a deep breath. "That depends" he said. "What would you say if I told you that we didn't?"

Letting a small smile tug at the corners of her lips, Tsunade stood back up. She massaged her neck as she stretched, turning away as she yawned. Kakashi watched as the confident sway of her hips returned whilst she walked to the door, sliding it open. She hesitated at the opening.

"No matter what, we still have to try" she said without turning back to Kakashi. Walking out, she gave him no chance to respond as the door slid shut behind her.

Yet Kakashi felt as if he didn't need a response. His heart rate settled as a new sense of invigoration filled his body. He set his jaw as his face hardened. If they were going to fight, then he would have to be prepared. Kakashi took one last look at the Sharingan.

"It looks like I won't be joining you two anytime soon, sorry guys"

A/N- What's up everybody? How are you doing? As always, I hope you've had a good week. So I'm thinking about writing another scene very similar to ch17-18 except instead of Hinata, it would be Temari involved. Let me know if you like that idea. I think I'm gonna write it but I just wanted to ask anyways. I guess I'm done with revealing my plans for now, so I'll see you next week

Yours truly,

Signing off