Chapter 20: The Missing Piece
Tap tap tap tap tap.
"Ugh," Sakura groaned. Whatever the source of that wretched noise, it needed to meet its end. Ignoring her demands, the tapping sound not only persisted, but also sped up its pace. As minutes passed, it seemed to grow impatient.
Slowly, Sakura lifted her head from her arms and realized in horror that she had fallen asleep while attending to Naruto. Her stomach began to sink, but before she had time to seriously scorn herself for such an expensive misstep, the tapping grew louder in a way that demanded her immediate attention. Her head snapped toward the noise with the intentions to seek and destroy.
All of her agitation froze upon seeing a raven pecking away at the hospital room window. She had hallucinated many times in this room before and seeing the raven sitting upon the window's ledge made her wonder if the hallucinations had decided to return. Though, Sakura had thought that about Sasuke when she first saw him, too—so she would have to trust her eyes for now.
She lifted herself from Naruto's side and wearily made her way to the window. With a cautious glance over her shoulder, she checked to make sure that the door remained closed. Upon confirming her privacy, she turned her attention to the raven that no longer pecked the window's glass, but now stared at her with a depth of expression that exceeded some humans she knew.
Sakura quietly opened the window and brought the bird inside. It made no fuss in response to her contact, but instead relaxed like a creature whose nest had been in her arms all along. As Sakura suspected she would, she found a note attached to the raven's left foot. At this, her stomach clenched—if a message came to her by raven, the culprit was undoubtedly Itachi. And, if Itachi were sending her messages, then the news was likely worse than bad.
Still, she found herself trembling in a way totally unassociated with fear. When she and Itachi went separate ways, she had not expected to hear from him again unless it was on the battlefield as enemies. Yet, only two days later, he was sending her messages by bird.
The raven hopped up to her right shoulder and stuck out its left leg as if gesturing for her to take the message. After taking in a calming breath, she obliged the creature and untied the note from its thin appendage.
In lovely cursive scrawl, the note read:
Sakura—
You're in danger. Danzo is suspicious. Trust no one but Tsunade and sleep with both eyes open.
There was no signature, but one would be unnecessary, anyway. Only one person knew that there was reason for Danzo's suspicion and that one person had an affinity for ravens. The only thing that seemed out of place was his concern for her wellbeing. If he took the time and the risk to send her a warning, it meant that somewhere under his stony mask, he cared. He put himself and his operations in jeopardy for her sake.
Suddenly, the days they spent together both fighting and healing did not seem like an inconsequential blip in time. She knew that they had affected her, but now she knew that they had affected him, too. Even though burning it might be safer, Sakura tucked the note inside of her pocket in order to save it in a secure place later—it might be the only tangible reminder of his humanity she would ever get.
The raven blinked at her with curious eyes as if studying her reaction. Sakura could not help but smile at the innocent bird. It had delivered her a bit of happiness amidst the chaos, after all. She wanted to feed it some leftover crumbs as a sign of gratitude, but she knew that neither of them was likely to live long if the wrong person spotted her with a signature raven.
She petted its soft head and whispered, "Message received, little bird. Return safely to your master so he can reward you for a job well done."
Her heart paused as she heard footsteps echoing in the hallway. Quickly, she picked up the raven and ushered it to fly out the window. After sending her one last look, it obeyed her wishes. The bird disappeared from sight just in time for the door to open to a young man toting coffee.
"It seems unlike you to be distracted, Miss Sakura," he spoke. Her eyes narrowed undiscernibly in response.
She smiled and replied, "I was just opening the window to get some fresh air. It's important to take brief breaks so that I can stay creative while working."
He nodded. "Ah, that makes sense. Well, I'll leave your coffee on the nightstand here. Please let me know if there's anything I can do to assist you." Then, he turned to leave.
"I haven't seen you around the hospital before. What's your name?" Sakura inquired. New faces were not rare, but she had recognized all the other nurses who had attended to her.
"Yes, we haven't met before. My name's Jun. I'm a new member of the staff here, taken on while you were away," he clarified. Even though he sounded confident and steady, Sakura felt suspicious.
"Oh, is that so? Well, it's nice to meet you. Welcome to the hospital—we can use all the help we can get around here. I think that it's best if I'm left alone for the rest of the time I work on Naruto, though. I'll call you if I need anything, but please dedicate your time to the other patients," Sakura urged gently.
He paused at her request just long enough to confirm her suspicions. Any regular hospital employee was overworked enough to be grateful for relief from duties unrelated to human mortality.
"As you wish, Miss Sakura. But please be sure to drink your last coffee while it's still hot. It would be wasteful to let it get cold," Jun insisted. He left before she had time to respond and that was fine because the only other sound she was interested in hearing from him was the click of the door closing at his back.
She strode over the stand next to Naruto's bed and picked up the coffee. She thought about smelling it, but knew that the brew's natural odor would mask any hidden treats her friend Jun might have slipped inside. With a sneer crinkling her nose, she strode over to the open window, took a brief glance to make sure that the area was vacant, and dumped the contents of the coffee cup to the ground below.
It seemed that Danzo was not one to sit by idly on his suspicions. Even if he lacked proof of her knowledge, his concern appeared to be enough for him to take action. Sakura knew he was ruthless from what he did to the Uchiha clan, but she had not expected him to attack the Hokage's old apprentice based on a hunch. Moreover, if she was already in his sights, then Itachi might be in danger, too. Danzo would probably treat Itachi with leniency because of his usefulness to the village, but that was a luxury not afforded to Sakura.
The situation with Jun was problematic regardless of her response. If she drank the coffee, she would likely be sedated or worse. If she did not drink the coffee, then he knew that she was aware of his suspicions and he might interpret this as confirmation for his concerns. For Sakura, it was a lose-lose situation, but at least refusing the coffee left her as a player on the game board rather than a hostage in a Root cell.
Forcing herself to focus on the present reality of Naruto's health, Sakura shook off the implications of Jun's visit. Fortunately, her short-lived nap had given her the creative spark she needed to escape her functional fixedness—she was awake and, thanks to Itachi's note, she had a new idea. Her plan was risky, but everything was a matter of risk right now.
Sakura would attempt to communicate with the Kyuubi. Tsunade had told her that the Kyuubi's chakra might be the thing sustaining Naruto, so maybe the creature would be able to guide her to a solution. The Kyuubi was not known for its tameness, though, and she did not expect an easy reception. Her only relief came from knowing that her impromptu confrontation with the Kyuubi would be less life threatening than her scheduled meeting with Danzo.
Using chakra channeled through her index finger, Sakura sliced open the front of Naruto's hospital gown and revealed his seal. This was the first time she had seen it in person, although she had read reports on what it looked like and how it worked in the past. It was a lovely spectacle in itself, but it was even lovelier with the knowledge that its swirling design held substantial power.
She wiggled the leather glove off of her right hand and rested her freshly bare palm atop Naruto's stomach. His stomach was warm, which felt strangely intimate between two platonic teammates, but she was grateful because it meant that he was not ready to leave her just yet.
Furrowing her brow, she placed pressure on the seal and surged her chakra through its design. Fortunately, she was prepared for the recoil and braced herself enough to stay steady. At first, nothing happened—his seal did not glow and she felt no connection. However, Sakura remained patient; she would not give up so easily on her most lucrative prospect.
When Naruto's seal began to glow a pale blue, Sakura decided that her patience had proven itself worthwhile. As she began to close her eyes to concentrate on the ebb and flow of her charka in its conflict with that of the Kyuubi, she felt herself drawn into a vortex and ejected into a flooded room.
She flopped gracelessly in the cold water and coughed in an attempt to expel it from her unsuspecting lungs. She could not even begin to understand what had happened or where she had ended up. After regaining her orientation, Sakura lifted herself from the wet ground and scanned her surroundings.
The room was lit by a dim glow with no apparent source. While the mysterious light was eerie enough in itself, she found herself facing what looked like oversized cell bars. They towered so high that she could not tell whether she was inside or outside of their intended confines.
As she studied the area, a glow emanated from the other side of the bars and an enormous fox lumbered into view from the depths of the shadows.
While Sakura gazed upon him with primal fear gripping her heart, the fox's voice boomed, "Why are you here, Sakura?"
Her eyes widened upon hearing her own name. How did he know who she was?
"I've looked out of Naruto's eyes for a long time, kunoichi. I'd be a moron if I couldn't recognize one of his teammates—even if it has been five years."
The fox showed no apparent hostility toward her, so her trepidation slowly began to melt away.
"I'm here because I'm trying to save Naruto. I was hoping that you might be able to help."
The nine-tails let out a hearty laugh. "You were always the smart one of the three."
Sakura stood up straight and decided that it was time to get the information she needed.
"Do you know if it's possible for someone to fix him from the outside? I know that you've been protecting him during his coma, but we're not sure what triggered his sudden decline. Do you have any ideas? I feel like I've run every test there is." She sounded confident, but underlying her message brewed panicking desperation to help her best friend.
The enormous creature slouched a little at her request. "I don't know what caused his sudden decline, either. All I know is that it started with a sort of shockwave through his chakra system that cut off my access to sustaining him."
Sakura pressed her lips together as she sifted through alternatives.
"Well, if you don't know what caused his decline, is there any chance you know what caused his coma to begin with?" She began to slowly pace atop the watery floor.
The nine-tails straightened again. "It happened immediately after he and Sasuke went in for the final blow. Before Sasuke could suffer the full damage, Naruto ripped out a chunk of his own chakra and forced it into Sasuke's system. When the Uchiha's blow took full force, he fell into a coma. I've been alive a long time, but I've never seen anything like it."
As Sakura flashed back to Grandma Chiyo saving Gaara's life, she gasped with the realization of what Naruto had done—while giving Sasuke a chunk of his charka, he also gave him part of his life. That was why Naruto's coma gripped him; that was why she and Tsunade could not find the source of his sickness.
He did not have an underlying disease. All this time he had been lacking greater something, instead.
"Thank you!" Sakura stopped her pacing and looked into the eyes of the nine-tails. "You've told me everything I need to know. Now how do I get out of here?"
"I'll make this as fast as possible," he smirked. "Just do what you need to do to save the blond idiot. He's been looking pretty pathetic lately."
Without warning, the Kyuubi let out a roar fierce enough to knock her off of her feet and send her flying through the air, which became darker as she flew. Sakura blinked only to find herself back in the hospital room upon opening her eyes.
Before she had enough time to draw in her next breath, someone knocked on the door. Sakura covered Naruto's stomach and straightened herself in a panic.
"Come in." Her heart rate skyrocketed upon recognizing Jun.
"Miss Sakura, I was afraid that you'd fallen asleep. I came to remind you that your meeting with Tsunade and the elders is in an hour."
Sakura's eyes narrowed as she hissed, "That's highly qualified information for a nurse to know about—especially one who just recently joined the staff. Is there something you're not telling me, Jun?"
"No, Miss. Tsunade sent me to tell you."
"Tsunade? Or do you mean Danzo? And you weren't here to tell me anything—you were here to see if your coffee trick knocked me out like he'd been hoping. I'm not sure what Danzo's problem with me is, but I haven't done anything worth spiking my coffee." She had lied with less substantial reasoning than preserving her mortality over the past two months—with her life on the line, these prevarications came easily.
"I'll let Danzo decide that." Then, Jun turned around and left the room.
Sakura mumbled to herself, "Well, the cat's out of the bag—and it's already spitting up hairballs. Whatever that means."
Once she knew that she was alone and absorbed that she had a meeting with Danzo within the hour, Sakura promptly panicked.
Authoress's Note:
Props to the reader zenbon zakura for guessing what was going on with Naruto! :) Now that she knows what's going on with Naruto, can she save him?
Thank you all so much for reading with special thanks to those who take the time to review. You are all lovely.
Have a frabjous evening,
A
