The silhouette I could see at the door wasn't distinct. All I could tell for sure was that they had to be a kid or a really short adult. I sat on the edge of the bed and waited for them to speak.

"Are you just going to sit there?" The voice, like the figure, wasn't unique to any one person in the village.

"Are you just going to stand there?" I remarked. They had approached me first.

"Is that how you greet someone who saved you?"

The way this person expected me to acknowledge them had thoughts of Kankuro drifting across my mind. Surely not, though...why would he be here?

I felt my heartrate increase as I held my hand out towards the boy.

"I'm not going to hold your hand if that's what you're aiming for," the boy said rudely.

"Why are you being mean to me now? Didn't you want to see me again?"

"I thought you'd at least show gratitude for me saving your life."

"I am grateful. What's with the attitude?"

"I think you should show me how grateful you are."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You should pretend to be my girlfriend."

"Pretend? To be your girlfriend? What kind of joke is that?"

"I want to get Sakura to stop annoying me. You can help me."

My mood dropped as I realized how stupid I was. It wasn't Kankuro standing just outside my door. It had to be Sasuke.

"Why are you making that face?"

"You're not who I thought you were, that's all."

"You should have known better than to chase someone you don't really know."

"I never chased you, Sasuke. I only have some of my vision back, and I thought you were someone else until you mentioned Sakura."

"Who did you think I was?"

"A boy that saved me when I first came to Konoha. It was foolish for me to think he'd be here."

"Why?"

"He isn't from this land. He came from the Land of Wind."

"What was a kid from the Land of Wind doing here?"

"His father had business here."

"Oh. So does he still live in the Land of Wind?"

"I don't think the Kazekage or his children would have relocated."

"Why did you think I was this friend of yours? Don't you know his voice?"

"I haven't seen him since he had to leave three years ago."

After a couple more minutes of awkward silence, Sasuke spoke again, "Will you pretend to be my girlfriend so Sakura will stop nagging me?"

"No. That's not the sort of thing you pretend. You should just tell her plainly you want her to stop. She was in here the other day trying to insist we had a relationship and that she was going to destroy me for it. Didn't believe me no matter how many times I told her I don't know you. You're the only one she's going to listen to."

"Why did she think that?"

"You saved me. In her mind, the only reason someone would save another person's life is if they liked them. Completely ridiculous."

"You needed help. I didn't see anyone else doing anything."

"Thanks for saving me."

"Naruto has been visiting you a lot, hasn't he?" he abruptly switched topics.

"He's just trying to help me recover in his own way. Naruto actually makes a pretty good friend. He's the first one I've made since the Hokage entered me to the Academy."

"Who did you play with at the Academy?"

"No one. With my natural hair color, I was a misfit for looking different. When I dyed it, I was overlooked, completely forgotten."

"Did you ever write to your friend?"

"Yes, but he never answered. Neither did his brother or sister."

"Just one time, or more?"

"A lot during my first year here. The last two years, I've only sent two, each time on the date of the storm. I've been debating whether or not to write one this year. It's only about a month away."

"That seems cruel to yourself."

"I wish I knew why he started ignoring me."

"What if you could find out?"

"I'd have to talk to him. It's not like I'll be going to the Land of Wind in the near future though."

"Sasuke, where are you?" Naruto called.

I could see Sasuke lift his arm to draw Naruto's attention. When Naruto got close enough to realize where he was he asked, "What are you doing at Ayami's room?"

"We were talking about her only friend before you started visiting her this week."

"Who is your friend?" Naruto directed at me.

"A boy from the Land of Wind named Kankuro. He's the Kazekage's son. I haven't spoken to him since his family went home after saving me."

"Why don't you go see him?"

"Naruto, you idiot. Didn't you pay attention in class at all? The truce between the Land of Fire and Land of Wind is rocky at best. Travel between the two is limited. Ayami hasn't gotten any response to her letters, either," Sasuke chastised.

"There's gotta be something we can do. What if he hasn't gotten any of her letters? Ayami is in a bad way right now. Hearing from him would cheer her up."

"Naruto, we aren't any more likely to be sent there than Ayami is. There's nothing to be done."

"But she might be lonely while she recovers. We're supposed to go back to training tomorrow. Shikamaru hasn't been able to get a break to visit, and I'll bet Kakashi Sensei will be even worse with us."

I couldn't see either boy's expression, so I didn't have a hope in guessing their thoughts.

"This conversation is pointless. I'm hungry. Why don't you stay and visit for a while?"

"Don't you want me to go with you?"

"Ayami needs you more than I do right now."

The quieter boy walked away, and Naruto took the seat by my bed.

"What happened to your toe? You've got a cut," Naruto informed me.

"I was trying to walk around the room and stubbed it on a table."

"Sasuke should have gotten you a bandage."

"He might not have noticed while we were talking. It's not a big deal."

Naruto got up and opened a cabinet, looked through a drawer, shifted things on a shelf, then found what he was looking for on the counter by the sink. When he sat down next to me, he started messing with my foot, wiping my big toe off and wrapping a bandage around it. His hands were rough from training, but warm and comforting.

"You don't have to be nice to me because of what Kakashi Sensei said, you know."

"We're friends, aren't we?"

"Are we friends because you want to be or because of Kakashi Sensei?"

"A little of both. You're nice, and you know what I am but it didn't bother you even before you knew you were the same. That's a pretty big deal to me. Sasuke can be intimidating and rude and annoying, but he never cared about the monster inside me, either. We used to be closer before the rest of his clan was wiped out."

"Has that gotten better with you guys being on the same team?"

"I'm not real sure yet. Since you brought up teams, what happened the other day, anyway? It looked like you attacked your teammate."

"Niyana Sensei sounded like she got hurt, but Miyugi wouldn't end his jutsu so we could check on her. She didn't respond to me calling her, so I figured I'd try to make Miyugi stop. You saw how that went."

"Why wouldn't he stop?"

"He was insulted because he thought I used him and Trigyoko to make myself seem clever in front of your team when I tricked Niyana. He seems jealous of my strength, too."

"What do you think will happen to your team once you've recovered?"

"I'm not sure. There isn't anything I can do about it right now. I just have to focus on healing."

"I know the other kid, I guess he'd be Miyugi, left the hospital last night. Niyana Sensei is supposed to be able to leave some time today. Maybe she'll come tell you what happens before she goes home."

"What happens to ninjas that mess up?"

"Normally, they die," another voice interrupted.

In the door was a much more feminine figure to match the voice. It could only be Niyana Sensei.

"I need a moment alone with my student, Naruto."

"Yes, ma'am."

Once the door had clicked shut behind Naruto, I bowed my head sincerely. "I'm sorry, Sensei."

"Just a minute, now. Why are you apologizing?"

"I attacked a comrade. That goes directly against the teamwork you wanted us to demonstrate to earn our place as your genin team."

"Kakashi already discussed your reasoning with me. I may be your teacher, but I am also part of the team. Ensuring the safety of all team members, particularly in training when no one should be sustaining serious injury, should be a top priority in any mission. While there was an issue in working as a team, this did not stem from you. I appreciate that you were concerned for my well-being."

"So...I'm not in trouble?"

"No."

"Do we have to go back to the Academy?"

"No. Miyugi will face disciplinary action, and should a similar incident occur, he will be facing a return to the Academy or removal from the training program entirely, but you and Trigyoko will not be made to face consequences for another's actions."

"What about the test? We didn't pass."

"You and Trigyoko did, and as I said, neither of you are going to face consequences for Miyugi's poor decisions, especially this early in your careers. It was the first time the three of you were grouped together. As the two of you passed, Miyugi gets to ride on your coattails and be on the team. He should count himself very lucky, as that was not my choice. Had it been left to me, Miyugi would go back to the Academy and someone else would take his place on our squad."

"I thought all the Academy graduates had been placed on squads already. Who would fill in?"

"Hopefully, you'll never need to find out. Enough about the incident itself. How is your recovery going?"

"I can see silhouettes, outlines. Nothing more than that. Everything is grey."

"Kakashi said it may take as long as a month for your vision to be what it was."

"That's so long to not train. We'll fall behind if we have to wait that long."

"Time will tell. I need to fetch Miyugi and take him before the Hokage. Do you want me to come back after?"

"You should rest at home. You just got released from the hospital yourself."

"Won't you be lonely?"

"I'll be okay for a couple days at least. I've had almost too many people coming to see me."

Niyana Sensei laughed. "Alright then. I'll come back on the weekend to ask about your progress. If you need anything, send a nurse for me."

"Thank you, Sensei."

Naruto left not long after to get dinner. He insisted on bringing me sushi after. I must have worn myself out, because I fell asleep before I'd finished.