Sorry for the long wait but I've been really busy

Disclaimer: still in place…

"" talking

'' thinking

Bold dream state or flashback

A Blond Lady sighed as she sipped some of her coffee from her cup in the hospital's lounge room. "To bad they don't allow alcohol here." She said.

"Dr. Tsunade how could you even say that. You're a doctor you should know the full affects of alcohol very well."

"Doesn't stop anyone here from drinking it, Shizune." Tsunade said finishing her bitter coffee.

Standing up she threw away the styrofoam cup and walked past Shizune to the door. "All right, breaks over, as much as I hate it, let's get back to work."

Sighing in exhaustion due to the blonde's behavior, Shizune soon followed the chief of medicine after grabbing a coffee for herself.

Tsunade made her way quickly to the front desk easily dodging other doctors, nurses, patients, equipment, and anything else heading her way due to years of practice. Shizune though wasn't so lucky and it took her awhile.

"All right what do we have?" Tsunade asked as she leaned on the reception desk looking around at the nurses on duty.

"One needs a heart valve and another needs fluid removed from his lungs." One answered handing her two folders to look over.

Setting the folders down beside her, Tsunade's head hit the counter. "Why does everyday seem like the same problems?" She complained.

"Because everyday you come up with something else to do beside these." Shizune scolded as she finally caught up with Tsunade.

"Well a surgeon should take care of the heart valve and can't another doctor take care of the fluid, it doesn't take a genius to do that." Tsunade complained.

"That's your excuse for everything, but right now all the other doctors are busy so you're going to have to remove the fluid." Shizune said sighing.

"Right…" Tsunade said, laughing nervously. "Uh…" she said looking around for a way out.

She found her answer when she heard the sound of the sliding doors opening. Turning around her excitement for an excuse soon turned into worry as she saw who came in.

A panting Uchiha, who they had just released yesterday, stood there looking straight at her with glaring eyes. In his arms was an unconscious blond boy.

"Shizune get me a stretcher now!" she yelled to the black-haired intern. Nodding her head, she quickly dashed off to find one.

Meanwhile Tsunade walked hastily up to the Uchiha. "What happened." She more like demanded than asked.

"Will it matter if he dies so why are we just standing here!" the raven yelled; panic obviously controlling him now that the blond had fallen unconscious

Ignoring the raven's attitude she ushered him to follow her. Soon they met up with Shizune who was wheeling a stretch towards them.

"Place him down here." Shizune instructed.

Nodding, Sasuke placed Naruto gently on the stretched.

"Before we do anything else tell us was this intentional or a wrong place wrong time situation?" Tsunade asked.

Sasuke thought about it for a moment. "I don't know, there was someone home who left not too long before I found him, he could have done it but then again Naruto was next to a knife…" Sasuke explained.

"Maybe he did it because of them. Naruto is that what happened?" she asked looking thoughtfully and sadly down at the boy who'd she known since he was a boy.

Sasuke looked at her curious. "What do you mean them?" he asked.

"Now's not the time to explain. Go out in the waiting room and do as it implies." Tsuande said before she and Shizune left, the head of medicine telling nurses who came over to help things they would need.

Sasuke was too tired but didn't sleep, he was too worried to eat, and too far into grief to here good news. Just like the blond boy did when he was in the hospital, Sasuke spent every moment he could by the boy's side. However, Naruto didn't seem to get any visitors like he did, why was that?

For a week the blond laid asleep in the hospital with very little signs of recovery. Most of the bruises and minor cuts have healed but the major bruises, the stab wound, and head showed no obvious healing.

There were times when it looked like Naruto was waking up but it was just due to his lack of sleep. Sasuke really hated false hope.

There were also multiple times when Tsunade, with Shizune close behind, would com in to check the blonde's progress. In the beginning, Sasuke would constantly ask about what she meant by 'them' but Tsunade refused to say without Naruto's consent.

At first he ignored her until the same answer over and over again became annoying, so he stopped and remained silent.

Sasuke sighed as he came into the room after school. In a sense, Sasuke had turned into Naruto, he stayed day after day and night after night by the blonde's side.

'At least it's stopped raining for the week. Is the world happy that Naruto almost died?' The raven thought bitterly. Looking at his watch he noticed that it was a little after four. Tsunade and Shizune didn't show up till another hour.

Grabbing the remote, Sasuke turned on the television; changing the channel to one of those comedic news shows. He found the jokes child-ish and lacking any form of maturity but it was the best thing on.

Placing the remote back on a near-by table, the Uchiha looked back down at the sleeping boy. "Is this what you felt like when you were watching me?" Sasuke asked though he knew he wasn't going to get answer.

"I….gu….uess…" Or so he thought. Sasuke watched as dull pink lips parted slightly to whisper out those words; his eye lids staying lightly closed over those azure eyes.

"Naruto you're awake!" Sasuke yelled jumping out of the chair in excitement which was soon replaced by his regular superior face. The raven got no response just soft yet calm breathing.

Sasuke growled like an animal in annoyance and sat back down. "I hate false hope." He said to no one then went back to watching the television show.

"So how's everything going?" asked Tsunade she walked in for a daily check-up.

"He woke up for a little bit." Sasuke informed her. Her chocolate eyes widened in surprise. She usually got no answer from the raven but also because it was still a bit early for the blond to be coming in and out of consciousness.

"For how long?" the blond doctor asked.

"At least 30 seconds." Sasuke said knowing that Naruto had to be up when he heard the raven talking to himself. 'Hospitals make you do weird things like talk to yourself. I'm never going to one ever again.' He thought.

Turning his gaze to Tsunade and Shizune he gave her a questioning glare. After a minute or two, Tsunade gave in and sighed. "What now Uchiha?" she asked annoyed.

"He's woken up now tell me. What drove Naruto to do this or someone to do this to him?!" he asked still glaring.

"Mr. Uchiha we still haven't gotten Mr. Uzumaki's consent." Shizune said, her too getting annoyed but she tried not to show it in her voice.

"It doesn't matter; I have a right to know why I bought a battered dobe here all of a sudden. You said it might have been because of them. So out with it…" Sasuke stated trying his best to control his anger.

For Tsuande though, she didn't have that kind of self-control. "For the last time I won't tell without the brat's here word. It's what he wants to tell you not what you want to know!" Tsuande yelled furious.

"What's with…a-all the y-yelling?" Naruto wheezed out, his voice sore from not using it in a week. Using what strength he had, he hauled himself up, wincing from the burning in his arms and the pain in his chest. The pain causing him to cough; when he opened his eyes, which he closed when coughing, he found three pairs of eyes checking over him.

"Breathing space, breathi…" He said before starting to cough again but was able to push the faces away from his before falling back down onto his back.

"Mr. Uzumaki you should really get some sleep and please do not move for awhile. You're in n…"

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Naruto interrupted Shizune, smiling in reassurance. The truth was though, was he felt like shit. He head was pounding, he felt like he had one hell of a hangover; his chest felt like it was in a vice-grip that was constantly being anchored shut.

His smile soon flattered when he saw the other people in the room send piercing glares his way. He would have asked what but he was frozen stiff from them. One he could deal with but three.

"What happened?!" Sasuke and Tsuande both gritted out of their mouths, their glares challenging the blond to just go a head and try to lie.

"W-What do you mean?" Naruto asked not fully understanding the question.

"What are you an idiot!? How the hell did you get that crappy looking?" Sasuke yelled, his self-control finally snapping.

Naruto visibly flinched as Sasuke yelled, remembering that they didn't exactly part on good terms last time. Blue eyes moved to look down at white hospital bed sheets as the owner of zed eyes remained silent.

"Naruto, as a doctor, tell me what happened!" Tsunade demanded, her patience already wasted due to the Uchiha. Even thought her tone could get anyone to say anything, the blond remained silent.

"Naruto…!" Tsuande yelled!

"I…fell…"

"Shut-up right now, whatever you're going to say is going to be bull shit!" Sasuke yelled slamming his fist down onto the nearest table. Naruto looked up, shocked at the angry man who glared right through the blond.

"Mr. Uchiha found you at you apartment with a knife and blood all around you." Shizune explained.

"Not to mention the stab wound in your chest." Tsunade added. "I highly doubt that that deep of a wound can be caused by a clumsy fall."

"But…"

"Just shut-up already with the lies and tell us the fricken truth!" Sasuke yelled now completely furious.

Naruto's stare at the bed sheets intensified as each silent second went by. Finally Tsunade sighed in understanding.

"Uchiha, out…!" She said not even looking at him but kept her gaze on Naruto.

"What…?" He yelled in disbelief. "But…"

"Now!"

Glaring at the head doctor than at the silent blond boy, Sasuke stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. All three occupants of them room flinching at the sound, but Naruto flinched the most.

Taking a sip of her coffee Tsuande asked again, "what happened?" Naruto still remained silent, the now uncharacteristic behavior from the blond getting annoying. 'He wasn't this shaken up since he saw his mother's death.' She thought.

"If we ask questions will you answer them?" Shizune asked quietly.

"D-depends…" Naruto finally said.

"Fine, was it intentional?" Tsunade asked, keeping the questions short.

Hesitantly the blond shook his head no, bit it was hard to decipher.

"No…huh….?" Tsuande repeated.

"Then someone did this to you….who?" Shizune asked.

Naruto didn't answer; instead he closed his eyes and kept them shut for awhile before reopening them.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed as Naruto didn't rat out right then and there the person who did this to him. This really wasn't like him, not at all, and then it hit her.

"Your step father did this to you am I right?" the doctor asked.

Shizune gasped at the explanation but then thought it through. Even after Naruto saw his mother's death and after they had told him about his father's death, not once did he intentionally hurt himself. In fact, Naruto didn't start entering the hospital till he was under the care of his adoptive father.

Naruto quickly looked up at Tsuande and shook his head 'no' repeated times. He felt panic rise up in him. 'If they find out, they'll call the police then next time he'll really kill me!' he thought. "N-no!" he yelled.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed even more as she walked up next to Naruto. "You were never good at lying." She told him.

"I'm not lying!" Naruto said this time sounding more confident but still, Tsunade wasn't fooled.

Tsuande finally stopped next to him as Shizune voiced her thoughts. "So, what you did was intentional."

"No, of course not!" Naruto yelled, this time telling the truth.

"Then how did this happen?"

Naruto opened his mouth to speak but then shut it realizing that no matter what he said, they would find out the truth.

"I see." Tsuande said as she raised up her hand, blue eyes watching her every movement. The doctor then made it look like she was about to slap him.

The blonde's eyes instantly filled with fear as he squeaked and raised his arms around his head in defense, all on instincts. He waited for the hit but it never came, he then gasped in surprise as he figured out what happened.

Tsuande would have smirked in triumph but this was not something to laugh about. "So he does abuse you."

"No…!"

"Why are you defending that bastard?"

Naruto, Tsunade, and Shizune's eyes widened as their heads snapped around to look at an angry Sasuke in the doorway. No, he wasn't angry, he was fuming furious.

"But…" Naruto tried but failed in finishing his defenses, looking at anywhere but the people in the room.

"How long have you been there?" asked Tsuande though she already knew the answer. The silence she received from the raven already told her that he knew she knew. He had been listening through the door he whole time, catching every single word they spoke.

"Shizune call the police." She said. Nodding, her assistant left the room.

"W-wait, w-why?!" Naruto questioned in alarm.

"AS a doctor it is my duty to report this kind of situation to the authorities." She explained not looking at the blond but the still fuming.

"No you…"

"Shut-up brat, this is no longer your problem. You now have no say in the matter." Tsuande said, not having to look at Naruto to know what he was thinking. If this guy wasn't caught soon, Naruto was going to die.

"But why, no one will care!" Naruto randomly yelled as fresh tears streamed down his face.

Tsuande ignored him; instead walked up to Sasuke who glared at her invading his personal space.

"Look, you think you could have the brat stay at your house to heal. It will only be till his step father is caught which won't be long?" she asked.

Sasuke glared daggers at the doctor but nodded his head none the less. He had to have a talk with that idiot and it wasn't going to be something little kids and grown adults should heard.

Naruto just felt as if he didn't exist. It was like Tsuande said, he had no say in the matter.

"All right, since it looks like you can move to a certain degree, you'll leave tonight understood." She said then left, leaving the two teens a lone.

Not long after Shizune appeared telling the boys that the police would go hold Sieto under custody. After which both him and Naruto would appear in court for a hearing. Soon after that she disappeared as fast as she came.

Both Naruto and Sasuke remained quiet for awhile. One trying to get his anger under control, another, afraid that if he did anything the other's anger would explode.

Eventually, Sasuke got his anger down to a simmer, finally chancing a glance at the blond. "Get dressed." He ordered only to see the silent boy sluggishly obey them.

When Naruto was finally dressed in a pair of denim jeans and a white t-shirt, they left. Just like in school, Sasuke ignored him most of the way. Every so often he looked back to see if the dobe was still there.

The car ride to Sasuke's apartment was uneventful and completely silent. Not even the breathing of the two boys could be heard.

As they arrived at Sasuke's apartment they remained in the car for a minute, both thinking.

'Why didn't that dobe tell anyone before? That….that…!' Sasuke slammed clenched fist down onto the steering wheel with all his power also fueled by his anger. "Fuck!" he yelled, obviously not taking the news lightly.

Naruto jumped in surprise as azure eyes widened in fear. 'Sasuke!' he thought. His body relied on instincts like back in the hospital as his hand shot for the door handle but froze as Sasuke's cold gaze.

Sasuke glared at a frozen Naruto but only for a few seconds before he too went to grab for the door handle. Getting out from the car he was soon followed by the blond.

Wandering through his pocket, Sasuke found his keys and unlocked the door. Walking inside, he heard Naruto shut the door behind them.

Going into a room, Sasuke reappeared with a dark green towel in hand. "Go take a shower; it's down the hall first door on the right." He said then disappeared into another room.

Nodding to no one, Naruto went down the hall, keeping his eyes forward; not focusing on their surroundings. Opening the first door on the right, he walked in and closed it then proceeded to take a shower.

Sasuke sighed and not long after the phone rang. Slowly he went over and picked it up.

"Hello." It was Tsunade's voice on the other end.

"Uchiha how the brat, is he in the same room as you?" Her voice asked sounding worried.

"No." he quickly reassured her, he wanted her to quickly say what she needed to say.

"We have a problem."