Dear Cherry Blossom a.k.a Sweet Serenity
Summary: See chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4.
Recap: More information is learned about this "mysterious ninja", Sasuke got his ear licked and rear end touched by two males, Naruto's got a warped sense of humor, and I know for a fact that I got a least SOME people to talk crazy for a day.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. But I, Dawn Equinoccio Sky, have a chocolate chip cookie problem.
All: Hi Dawn!
CHAPTER FIVE: Eavesdroppers 'r' us
A gentle breeze swirled around a few flower petals in the vicinity of where Sakura was walking. It was an unusually hot morning, but the beauty of the area and the relative calmness made everything bearable. It was very quiet; more than likely because it was still morning and everyone hadn't gotten up to start their daily routines yet. The pink haired kunoichi slowed down and savored the serenity that surrounded her. Sakura would have loved more than anything to just aimlessly walk around for the next few hours, but instead she broke out of her stroll and started to walk faster.
"Okay. I don't have much time," Sakura chanted. "I have to hurry if I'm going to help my best friend. She should be up and ready by now."
Sakura was still in high spirits when she reached Ino's house. It was exactly the same as she remembered it, although the few weeks she spent away really shouldn't have brought too many changes. Nevertheless, she hadn't been there in a while and it felt kind of strange. This was the house that the man she loved and his wife were living in. It had been weeks since she had actually spoken to him. He was out on the "Special Mission", so he wouldn't be home. Just as well. Seeing him would only remind her that had no choice but to desire him from afar. But she wanted to see him. If only she could speak to him again: hear his voice…what would she do? Probably completely cave in on herself as is her skeleton had suddenly disintegrated. There was only one way to find out. If only she could get him alone…
Sakura went up to the front door and pressed her finger against the doorbell. She waited for a few seconds but got no answer. She was positive Ino hadn't left yet so she rang it again. Ino, curled up in the comfortable blankets covering her nude body, was asleep on the couch when Sakura first rang the doorbell and didn't even react to the new sound that was trying to break her out of her heavy sleep. She heard the second ringing but in her drowsy state, she could barely make out what the noise was. She just moaned, rolled over, and covered her head with her blanket. Sakura gave the doorbell a few more rings, causing Ino to sit up and move her tousled hair out of her eyes. When Ino realized that someone was at her door she quickly jumped off the couch, threw on her bathrobe, and ran to answer it. She opened the door to see Sakura standing with a wide grin on her face. Ino was also happy to see her best friend in front of her.
"Good morning, Ino- pig." Sakura said with absolutely no evidence of her past misery.
"Good morning, Cherry Blossom." Ino answered back, stretching her arms high above her head with a yawn.
"You're looking rough." Sakura grabbed a lock of Ino's hair and twisted it in between her fingers. "I thought you had an important meeting today. Don't tell me you forgot." Sakura let Ino's hair go and stepped into the house.
"Oh no, I overslept!" Ino gasped. She snapped out of her sleepiness and frantically ran around the house trying to get herself ready. "I can't go out with my hair like this! I need a shower! I can't find my hairbrush! Damn it, Sasuke!"
"What happened between you two this time?" Sakura asked in a here we go again tone.
"I gave into that jerk, that's what!" Ino stopped running and began shaking her hands in frustration. "I have to eat something. But I can't eat or I'll get sick. That's what will happen; I'll eat something, get sick, and throw up all over him. OOOHHH why am I thinking like this!"
"Calm down. Serenity remember?" Sakura held onto Ino's hands in an effort to stop them from shaking. "You're going to be just fine. You get ready, and I'll make you something that you can eat quickly. And don't worry, you won't get sick."
"Serenity…right. I'm okay." Ino said as she rushed up the stairs. "I'm taking a shower. I won't be long."
Sakura went into the kitchen and searched through the refrigerator. There wasn't much of a selection save for the many different varieties of rice balls. As one of Sasuke's favorite foods, they were almost analogous with Naruto and his ramen. She reached in and grabbed one. "Ino probably made them." The growling in Sakura's stomach made her remember that she didn't eat anything that morning, so she took a bite of it. "Hmph…not bad. But I've had better."
She searched around the kitchen some more until she found some instant ramen. Usually when it came to making something fast and easy, ramen was miracle food that only took three minutes to make… truly a gift from the gods. But there came a time when just the mere sight of it could ruin one's entire day. All it took was one thought of Naruto and his addiction to make her remember that she'd probably be seeing him before the day was over. (So much for her happy mood.) Too bad it had someone like Naruto to give it a bad name. She put those negative thoughts aside and got the electric teapot ready to heat up the water.
"Where are you, Sakura?" In a record breaking twenty minutes Ino was able to take a shower and get dressed. She ran back down the stairs raking a brush through her hair in a futile attempt to tame the unruly mass.
"In here." Sakura called from the kitchen. "Your ramen's ready." When she saw Ino come into the kitchen, still struggling with her hair, she grabbed the brush out of her hand. "Let me take care of that. You need to eat something." Ino sat down to eat and Sakura gently used the brush to smooth out her hair. "This brings back memories doesn't it?"
"Yeah." Ino responded. "Only this time the tables are turned." Ino ate a little then halted briefly. "It's strange how you picked ramen. Great minds think alike, huh Mrs. Uzumaki…OW!" (Sakura gave Ino's hair a hard yank.)
"Sorry." Sakura said disdainfully. "It was a huge tangle." Aside from Ino giggling between each bite of her ramen, the next few minutes were spent in silence.
When Sakura was done, Ino stood up in front of her and smoothed a wrinkle in the front of her shirt flat against her stomach. "How to I look?" she asked spinning around a few times.
"Fat."
Ino's eyes shifted to glare at her smart alec friend- soon to be rival. "Please don't joke with me, Forehead. This guy's real selective with his clients. He says only beautiful people can grow beautiful flowers."
"Okay then, you look nice." Sakura scanned Ino up and down. "But you're still fat."
"This is just perfect." Ino sighed going back into the living room and falling backward onto the couch. "This endorsement will put the flower shop on the map. My family's counting on me, but I'll never be able to convince this guy."
"Don't be so hard on yourself." Sakura grabbed onto Ino's hand and helped her back off the couch. "You're a beautiful person inside and out. But you're also-- you know…fat."
Ino was about to reply to Sakura's derogatory comment but was cut off by her telephone ringing. The two females looked at each other, then towards the ringing sound in the next room. It was unusual for someone to be calling this time of the morning. Sakura released Ino's hand and Ino quickly walked into the next room to answer it. The next thing Sakura heard Ino say was a loud "What!" and then an "I'll be right there" before she ran back to where Sakura was sitting. "Sasuke's been injured during the mission and now he's in the hospital! I have to get there right now!"
Sakura's eyes widened with the same amount of surprise that Ino's had. "You're going to the hospital? But what about your client?"
"Screw him. I have to make sure Sasuke's alright." Ino said and headed for the door.
This was the chance Sakura had been hoping for. Fate was on her side…HELL YEAH! Sakura grasped Ino by the arm to stop her from leaving the house. "You can't afford to lose this client. I'll take care of Sasuke."
Ino briefly gave Sakura a dissatisfied look and prepared to counter argue but then she calmed herself down. "Tell him I'll be there as soon as I can."
Ino hated the uncomfortable position she was in. She wasn't sure if she was making the right decision. Her husband needed her, but her family was counting on her. It was like he was being forced to tear herself in two. These kinds of decisions were the worst kind. Either way, someone was going to be very unhappy. She could only hope Sasuke would be understanding.
On the bright side, Sakura said she'd take care of him. It would definitely be a little more comforting to have his former teammate and friend by his side for a little while. She was grateful to have such a good friend, but for some reason, she was feeling a little edgy. Why DID Sakura tell her to choose her client over her husband? Sakura still had feelings for Sasuke that could not just be turned off like a light by flipping a switch. Ino knew this. But the feelings couldn't be anywhere as strong as they use to be…could they?
"Why am I stressing?" Ino clasped her hand around the opposite wrist and squeezed it hard. "Sakura's my friend and she would never betray me. If she did I'd kill her. Damn it! I can't believe I just said that! I'm so sorry, Sakura." It must be this whole thing with her client. It's driving her crazy.
Something else bothered her on the way to the flower shop. It struck her as odd that Sasuke would end up badly injured and in the hospital, especially after participating in a special mission that was meant for the genin on his training squad. Sasuke really shouldn't have gotten involved at all. But somehow he did, somehow he ended up in the hospital, and somehow she's going to have to end her business meeting early so that she could get to him.
Ino was so focused on getting to the shop on time that she didn't notice a girl standing in her path and almost ran into her. "Good morning, Ino -sensei" The girl greeted Ino as she came closer. "Are you in a hurry?" She was the only female member of Ino's squad and one of the oldest genin in the village.
"I can't talk now." Ino left the girl without another word.
The girl evilly narrowed her eyelids. "I wonder what's with the big rush. Isn't she headed in the wrong direction? I'm sure Ino- sensei wouldn't mind if I tagged along…as long as she doesn't see me." Once Ino was out of sight, she followed far behind Ino until she arrived at the shop. She then went around to the back and kept herself well hidden.
According to her watch, Ino was only two minutes late when she arrived. She noticed her father standing next to a dignified looking man outside. That's the guy: the super selective tycoon who takes all or nothing. And if he couldn't have it all, then no one else can have anything either. Ino took a deep breath and approached the two men.
"Ah here she is." Inoichi extended his arm and put his hand on Ino's shoulder and brought her closer to him. "This is my beautiful daughter Ino. She'll be showing you all of her ideas for your daughter's wedding."
"Nice to meet you." Ino extended her hand to the man. He lightly took her fingers in the same manner someone would a child with her hand covered in a sticky substance that he did not want to touch.
"You're late." The man said staring harshly at Ino. "I hope you don't exhibit such unsatisfactory service with all of your customers. My name is Iwao Hiro. Call me Iwao."
"She's one of the best flower arrangers in the village." Inoichi informed. "She'll-"
"I'll be the judge of that." The man rudely interrupted. "Only beautiful people can grow beautiful flowers." The man raised Ino's arm around her head and forced her to turn around so that he could inspect her. Inoichi didn't approve of this and rapidly intervened by grabbing the man's wrist. No matter what the outcome of this meeting would be, Inoichi would not tolerate anyone handling his daughter in that manner. "I guess you're good enough. Let's get this over with, Yamanaka. I don't have time to waste." He called her by her father's name. Did he not know she was married?
"It's Uchiha actually." Inoichi corrected.
"But you may call me Ino." Ino said when she saw the disgruntled expression on the man's face.
The man gave his coat a hitch against his mistake. "The wife of that well known member of the Uchiha clan" he grunted. "I guess he's a better match than the worthless bastard my daughter's throwing her life away for."
Ino was experiencing a combination of feelings that threatened to turn her into a ticking time bomb. This guy was a wealthy snob and only some fatherly advice would keep her from igniting. "I would like to have a word with my father. You may go in and look around. I'll be right there in a few minutes."
"You have one minute" the man said holding up his index finger and pretentiously walking into the flower shop.
"Please don't make me go in there alone. I might end up hurting him." Ino pleaded to her father. Before he could say anything, Ino spoke up again. "There's something else I need to tell you. It's about Sasuke."
"Yamanka!" The man called from the inside.
"Tell me about Sasuke later. I promised to here wait for his daughter, so just go in and try to relax. You'll do just fine." Inoichi advised.
The man was prodding through some of the flowers and grumbling something negative about each one he saw. He picked up some of the pots and uncaringly dropped them back down when he found a flaw. Ino followed closely behind, impatiently twisting the lock of hair that hung freely on the side of her head. She desperately wanted to be with Sasuke but this man was taking his sweet time inspecting every leaf and petal on the flowers.
She kept thinking of ways to hurry up and get rid of this man so that she could get to the hospital. Apparently, she was too busy daydreaming to hear the man talking to her because she was suddenly pulled out of her trance by the man gently shaking her shoulder.
"Yamanaka! Are you listening to me? I said I want this in blue!" The man shoved a pot in front of Ino's face.
"I'm sorry. Those are daffodils and don't grow in blue. I'll show you what I think will be fine for the wedding." Ino lead his to the front of the shop and pulled out a book from behind the counter. "I gathered this together a few days ago. Just look and see if you like anything in here."
"I said I want those in blue! This service is terrible…" The man began to ramble on. Ino found his words slowly becoming incoherent as she drifted back off into daydreaming. "Wake up girl! Did you hear a word I said?"
Ino snapped out of her trance for a second time. "I'm sorry. I can't really concentrate because my husband-"
"I don't care about your smut life! Such a tragedy to be beautiful with no brains and no eye for business!" The man shouted some more complaints. Ino tapped the fingers on one hand against the counter and twirled her hair with the fingers on the other. She wasn't use to many people not instantly falling into a hypnotic spell from her beauty and treating her this way. On top of that she couldn't get Sasuke out of her mind. It was only in a matter seconds before she was going to pick up the book and bring it down hard onto the man's head. Lucky for him, she was distracted by the sound of a woman talking to Ino's father as they walked in.
"Your daughter's here." Inoichi gestured and led the woman inside.
"Thank goodness. Now maybe I can get some decisions made around here." They went through the pages of the book with Inoichi pointing at some of the pictures and explaining some things with him. Seeing how upset Ino was, the woman pulled Ino away from the two men.
"I hope my father didn't give you a terribly hard time. I can tell that you were almost ready to kill him." She turned to the direction of her father and looked at him unapologetically. "The only reason he got so successful is because people threw money at him just to shut him up and keep him away." Ino continued to twist her hair and stare at the floor. "Is something else is bothering you?"
"Anymore complaints from your father and he's fertilizer," Ino thought while trying to avoid eye contact with the woman. "I can't stay. My husband's in the hospital."
"Then what are you doing here? I'm surprised you came in the first place. Go be with him and don't worry about my father." It sure was a good thing this woman came in when she did… smut life? Ino ran back to the front with her father.
Ino's genin was still hiding in the back and heard everything that was going on. "Score! This is gold!" She cheered inwardly. She continued to listen in on everyone's conversation.
"Sasuke's in the hospital and I'm going to check on him." Ino explained to her father. "Do you think you can pick up were I left off?"
"What she means is can we begin?" The man said smugly. "I'm surprised you let this girl handle your business. So the wife of the great Uchiha heir has to visit her husband in the hospital. I guess the famous Uchihas aren't all that they say they are."
"I'll take it from here." He assured her. Ino left, but not before "accidentally" knocking a watering can onto the man's pants. He uttered a few not so appropriate words as Inoichi tried to find something for the man to dry himself off with. "My daughter was about to hurt this guy." Inoichi thought rolling up his sleeves. "I'll pick up were she left off all right."
Since Ino's genin was well hidden, Ino didn't notice when she ran passed her. The genin smiled deviously. "The 'Great Uchiha Heir' really was badly injured and had to go to the medic's. I think a certain someone would like to know about this." The girl got up to leave. "This ought to get me some extra brownie points."
Sakura's feet had wings that carried her faster than the speed of light to the hospital. Upon her arrival, she found out all of the details about what happened to everyone involved in the mission and where Sasuke was staying. Her heart pounded the whole length of her trip until she found his room. When she entered and got her first glimpse of her former teammate in a long time, all of her past feelings for him raced through her head. He was sitting up in his bed and staring out the window, apparently too upset about something to detect her walking in.
He didn't have his shirt on and Sakura took the time to admire his chiseled body as the light from the window reflected against his skin in all the right angles. Even the sun knew that Sasuke was an exceptionally beautiful creature and he had to be presented in a certain way at all times. It was the body that she always imagined putting her hands on, the body that she desperately wanted to be pushed up against hers, the body that she would give her right arm to stare at for as little as five minutes a day. It would have been flawless if it weren't for the bruises and the thick strips of fabric wrapped around his shoulder. There also appeared to be minor burn scars that covered his skin. She observed a little more and zeroed in on his bandaged foot. It soon dawned on her why he was so upset: The Great Uchiha heir had lost a battle.
"Uchiha Sasuke?" She managed to say, but with a feeling of stupidity for saying his first and last name as if she had never met him before.
Sasuke turned his head sharply. "Sakura." They stared at each other for a few seconds, but to Sakura it seemed like hours. She stood there, trembling and almost choking on her own breath until Sasuke spoke. "How is the boy?"
"Matsushita Michio?" Sakura said, nervously fingering through the papers on the clipboard she carried with her. "He put up quite a fight before he was stabbed in the stomach. They're checking him now."
"Stabbed in the front…that means he didn't run away. He's without a doubt a true shinobi."Sasuke glanced at his injured foot. "Where's Ino? I know she's heard what happened."
"She went to see her client. She said she'd be here as soon as she could." Sakura's heart was now viciously drumming inside of her, banging hard and trying to burst right through the confines of her chest.
"I'm injured in a hospital bed and she's more worried about a client?" Sasuke drew his eyebrows together and his face burned with anger. "I shouldn't even be here!" With one violent swipe of his hand, a tray containing a pitcher of water that was resting on a stand next to the bed went flying through the air.
"She's been looking forward to this meeting for a while and her family is counting on her to not to blow it. You shouldn't get too mad at her." Sakura picked up the pitcher and set it back onto the stand. She could have said that it was she who told Ino to go see her client, but what was the point? Ino could have said "no". Oh wait…she did.
Sasuke exhaled a hard gust of air and turned his head back to the window. "I need to know if he's going recover."
"I'll go check on him for you if you'd like." Sasuke didn't answer her. Knowing that it would be a waste of her breath if she tried to say anything else to him, Sakura left and proceeded to where Michio was getting looked at. She was just a few feet away when she was stopped by Tsunade.
"Sakura, I'm glad I found you." Tsunade motioned for Sakura to follow her. "You're needed on the training grounds. Some of the genin were injured."
"I was on my way to take care of Sasuke."
"We'll check on him later. This is more important." Tsunade had just thrown a wrench in Sakura's plan. She wanted to argue and come up with a quick excuse but she knew better than to show any disrespect to Tsunade by showing her true feelings. Especially since they were based on her own self-interest. Sakura reluctantly agreed and left with Tsunade to the training grounds. On the way, She passed Ino running towards Sasuke's room.
"Well," she thought. "I guess I won't be alone with him today... Shit."
Ino hysterically burst through the door and threw her arms around her husband's neck. "Sasuke, I was so worried about you! I came here as fast as I could!"
"Get off me, Ino. I'm alright." Sasuke flinched in the pain of Ino's body pressing against his bruises.
"No! Never!" Ino said through her tears and buried her face in the crook of his neck. Sasuke put his arm on her back and held her in a one-armed embrace. Her actions made him remember the first time she clung onto him in a panic and refused to let go. It all happened shortly after he was freed from Orochimaru's clutches.
(A/N: We're gonna flashback a little)
After Orochimaru was killed by Itachi, Sasuke was left lying on the ground all by himself. He was incredibly weak and pain was shooting throughout entire body. What was he supposed to do now? His trainer was dead, he was considered a villain by his entire village, and his evil older brother was still on the loose. He was seventeen years old with nowhere else to go and he felt that suicide might have been his only option. He didn't know what to do next, let alone what he was going to do for the rest of his life, so what did he have left to live for? The problem with suicide was he didn't want to die until his lifelong mission of killing his brother had been accomplished.
Since Itachi defeated the super powerful Orochimaru, Sasuke knew for a fact that he was not strong enough to take on his brother just yet. He had to finish his training but there was no one that could give him the power that he desired for years. Soon he realized that he had no other alternative but to go back to the village: that quaint village that he had turned his back on all those years ago.
He wasn't very excited about going back, but he started his journey shortly after he recovered. On his way, constant thoughts of how in the world could Itachi have defeated Orochimaru plagued his mind. He also wondered how everyone would react to him once they saw him again since he did recruit to the enemy. HE knew that he would no longer be a threat, but did the village know? Sure they did. He's the Great Uchiha heir. They loved him then. There was no doubt they still loved him now…right? A few days later he was back at the village; only he did not receive the open armed welcome that he was hoping for.
As soon as he was discovered he was attacked and dragged into a secluded area, where he received the worst thrashing of his life and thrown in an isolated chamber. (Wild guess, but it could have had something to do with the fact that he betrayed the village and tried to kill some of them a few years earlier. Who would have thought they'd take it so personally?) From beyond his confinements, he kept hearing the word "traitor". He eventually came to despise that word and dreaded it so much that the words "death penalty" would have been much more pleasant to hear.
Kakashi was one of the few people that were allowed to visit him and he came in once with Naruto and Sakura. They never said a word to him- just stared at him in disbelief. It must have been extremely difficult to see their former teammate--the once greatest genin in the village-- sitting in a shoddy prison-like cell with his wrists and ankles bound in steel shackles. It's not like they would have been able to start hugging reunion style and engage in a casual "long time no see" conversation. They were enemies now. Whether or not that would change, only time would tell.
Ino had actually risked severe punishment to visit him a few days after the word got out that he had returned. He didn't know why he still had a hold on her for so many years. Surely she had moved on from him by now. Even if she did move on, she hadn't moved far enough. Whenever she was able to sneak in, she would come to see him. Regardless, he didn't want to get to close to her and would never speak to her no matter how hard she tried to speak with him. That was until she uttered the words that to this day echo through his mind…
"Sasuke, I don't think you are a traitor."
Little by little he could feel his body weaken because he had completely lost his appetite and refused to eat anything for days. One day, he noticed a small beam of sunlight shine through the tiny window in his cell. He looked into it and spoke."My family, the great members of the Uchiha clan, I am sorry." His vow to kill his brother would be broken. At least he tried. That should be enough to satisfy his family when he joined them on the other side. Sasuke smirked a little. "Heh. So this is how it's going to end. I'm going to die at the hands of those I once called my friends in the place I once called my home."
After spending days in solitary confinement, a group of Jounin came into his cell and unlocked his shackles. He didn't have the strength to fight back because he had become so thin and frail with his chakra almost completely depleted. He was dragged out by the arms like a rag doll and tied to a tree. He was left there for hours with a strict order for no one to go near him until his fate was decided. Sasuke never forgot a detail of what happened later that day when Ino ran up to him with tears in her eyes. She didn't tell him why she was crying but he figured it out. That was the night it was decided that he should be executed for treason.
"Get away from me." he said calmly. Those were the first words he ever spoke to her since he returned. He knew that they would be coming for him soon and he didn't want the sight of his execution to traumatize her for life. Her response shocked the hell out of him.
"Never!" She shouted as she threw her arms around him. "I'll never let you go! Never!" Seconds later, they heard voices coming closer and saw a small group of ninja marching towards them.
(End Flashback)
"Will you stop getting so dramatic?" Sasuke said, gently pushing Ino's body off of him. "I'm fine. Let me prove it." Ino gazed into Sasuke's eyes. "Right here, right now."
Ino gave Sasuke a stunned look. "Right here? In a hospital bed?"
"Right now." Sasuke said with his usual lack of expression in his voice.
"I'll be right back." Ino hurriedly left the room.
Sasuke reached under his sheets and started to rub the head of his member in order to prepare himself for Ino's return. He didn't know where she was going, but she sure as hell had better get back quickly. A few minutes later she came back with a small square shaped object in her hand. "It's strange how easy it is to find one of these things in a hospital." She pressed it into his hand. "You know the deal."
"Damn it! Not this again! I hate these things." He unenthusiastically did as he was told. "Now lock the door and move the chair in front of it. And for goodness sakes hurry up, woman!"
"Just wait a minute." Ino pushed a chair in front of the door and jumped into the bed next to Sasuke. He hastily pulled up her shirt grabbed one of her breast.
Sakura took a break from her patients and went back to where Sasuke's room was, although she wasn't as eager about getting there. She knew that Ino was in there and she wouldn't have her chance be alone with him that day. She slowly walked up to the room and tried to open his door but there was something in the way keeping it from budging. Channeling some chakra into her ear, she pressed it against the cold metal and listened. Ino's voice could almost be heard clearly.
"Come on! Why do you always have to be on top first?"
Sasuke's voice wasn't as loud, but Sakura could just make out what he was saying. "I shouldn't have to remind you. Now stop trying to resist, you're bending it!"
Sakura wanted to get away from the door, but for some reason she couldn't pull her ear off of it. It was like some kind of glue sticking her ear to the surface. (A/N: Nosey Glue I would call it! Mass produced by every human body! Especially the bodies of snooty teenagers with camera phones and elderly women with binoculars. Um...yeah.)
"Why are you doing that?" Ino shouted. "I can't get my leg up that high!"
"Will you stop complaining!"
The last thing Sakura heard was "How many times do I have to tell you that you need to use both hands?" though she wasn't quite sure who said this.
"It's definitely broken leg." Tsunade said while walking up to Sakura. "With any luck we'll be able to help the injuries on his shoulder and his bruises, but we'll have work on his leg over the next few days. Hopefully we'll be able to fit him with a walking cast soon. Naruto got banged up pretty badly, so after you finish with the Genin, you can come help me with him. I'm going to see him in a few minutes." When she saw that Sakura had her ear up against the door, Tsunade did the same. (It's strange how something like that can make a man forget about his pain.)
"Why are you going so slow?" They heard Ino ask.
"Do you want it fast or do you want it good?" Sasuke answered back.
Tsunade gave Sakura an expression that told her that she was aware of what was going on and smiled. "May just speed up his recovery."
Sakura grimaced. "I think I'm going to hurl."
Neji didn't have any injuries worth getting examined, but he went with the others to the medic's anyway to make sure Tenten was doing okay. He hoped that her injures weren't too serious after arriving in such bad shape. He was worried to the point of near madness over her and he vowed that no matter how long it took for the team of medic-nin to work on her, he'd stay there until she came out. He waited outside next to a bench and paced in circles around the area until he found a copy of the Konoha Nin News lying on the ground. He grabbed the paper, too anxious to sit down and stay in one place; he kept walking in circles as he searched through for the Cherry Blossom articles. He found the section and read one of the articles to himself:
Dear Cherry Blossom,
Should I consider myself opposition or an ally? I've done bad things, but I've done good things too. People tend to be confused because I've acted as a spy and as an informant for both sides. I could go back to being a shifty bastard, but I don't think there would be any point. But then again, I want to be bad...REALLY bad. I could be bad and make it look good...but then that would be stupid, right? I'm exceptionally confused now because the one that I used to serve is now dead… (A/N: 5 bucks goes to anyone who can figure out who wrote this letter …heehee just kidding!)
Neji didn't bother to finish the letter. "And I thought I had problems. These people are getting more and more deplorable each day." He would have stood there lost in the article for the next number of minutes if it weren't for a white orb flying around the corner and hovering over his head. "Oh no" He said under his breath, gritting his teeth. The last thing he needed was a surprise visit from Mr. "I can do freaky things with my eyeballs."
"Hello." A dark voice spoke up from the other side of him. The short redheaded male that greeted Neji almost caught him by surprise. "I hope you've fared well today." Gaara approached Neji with a slightly wilted flower in his hand and an obviously forced smile.
"We just got back from a grueling mission. None of us had fared well." Neji said refusing to look at Gaara straight on. He made no attempt at disguising his rudeness, though he knew that he should have. "You here to see Tenten?"
"I came as soon as I heard what happened." Gaara stepped a little closer to Neji. "What would it look like if I didn't make sure the woman I am to marry was alright?"
"She hasn't come out yet." Neji stepped back to the original distance between them and looked at Gaara sternly. Did he always have to carry that gourd on his back? He needs to just crawl into a hole and bury himself with its contents. Just then, Tenten was cleared to leave.
"Everything's alright, Neji! And I have very important to tell you!" She said happily to Neji before noticing the Kazekage. "Gaara…" She timidly pulled her just below the shoulder length hair behind her ear. It had to be taken down from its usual odango style so that the medics could better see the degree of her injury. "You---You didn't have to come."
"Of course I did." Gaara handed her the flower. "This is for you." Her nervous fingers trembled as she accepted her unexpected gift. The little flower drooped in her hand as if to be relieved that it was finally free to die after the initial torture of being picked and handled by the likes of the Sand nin. "Come with me." Gaara said, putting his hand on the small of Tenten's back and leading her away. "We're needed back at my village."
Neji watched as Tenten looked back at him while she walked down the road with Gaara. "She's way taller than he is. They look so odd together." Neji threw his head to the side. "Naruto was right. What he lacks in eyebrows he cannot make up for in height." He was about to leave, but stayed put when he saw Hinata approaching from the opposite end of the area.
"Neji?" her soft voice reached his ears. "Were you and Tenten hurt badly?"
"She already left with Gaara." He said pointing to the two figures shrinking in the distance. "You just missed them both."
"That's too bad." Hinata shyly dropped her head to hide the fact that she was blushing. Neji ran his fingers through her back length hair.
"Your hair's getting too long. You have to cut it." he informed, absently twirling it around his finger.
"I don't want to go through this again." Hinata pulled her hair out of his fingers.
"Are you still mad at me?" Neji asked, putting his fingertips under her chin and lifting her head up.
"How long until we can finally--" Hinata couldn't finish her sentence because Neji put is fingers up to her lips. She moved his hand away from her mouth. "Come on," she said pulling on Neji's arm. "Let's go home."
Naruto was in a nearby room impatiently waiting for Tsunade to come check on him. Kakashi was sitting in the chair next to him, trying- unsuccessfully- to explain what had just happened in a way that Naruto could understand. Kakashi's explanations where reasonable, but they did not set to well with Naruto. Naruto couldn't believe the ghastly details describing the true purpose of the "Special Mission".
"What your trying to tell me is that you've been using the Genin as bait!" Naruto exclaimed.
"Listen." Kakashi answered. "The whole thing was set up as a ploy to lure the enemy into a trap disguised as a pre-Chuunin exam. Recently we've been hearing about some Akatsuki members trying to invade the village, although we're not quite sure why. We think it may be somehow linked to Sasuke's brother Itachi."
"Ah yeah, the invalid." Naruto scratched his head, slowly but surely taking in and processing the information.
"We couldn't tell of you right away because there may have been a spy close to where we were sitting." Kakashi watched the slight changes in Naruto's facial expression and body language. Naruto wasn't liking what he was hearing, but Kakashi kept going with his explanations. "We managed to make this 'mysterious person' think that he was able to trick us by disguising himself as a jutsu created ninja. He then unknowingly became almost like an ally and helped us to formulate another plan to use against himself and the others by leading us to where they were staging their ambush. He also unknowingly led us right to where they had established a temporary hideout. Unfortunately, he got away."
"You endangered the lives of the Genin." Naruto reminded with a hostile look on his face.
Kakashi tried to sugar coat his next explanation as much as possible. "They're the top of the class and were able to handle it. After they got out of the building and other Jounin had arrived they all fought well side by side. What happened to Michio was a misfortune."
"You weren't counting on the Genin to run away were you? The whole plan was dumb." Naruto gripped the sheets on his bed and angrily twisted the section of cloth in his fists. There was no right way to tell him about the real intentions of the mission because he flat out disagreed with it. "I have a better way to handle the situation."
The sound of a familiar man's voice caught Kakashi's attention. He stuck his head into the hallway noticed Gai flirting with a nurse a few feet away. "Excuse me for a second, Naruto. I've got something I need to take care of." Kakashi unknowingly left his book behind and Naruto picked it up and skimmed through it before slamming it shut.
"This is sick! The two lovers in this book are cousins!" Naruto rapidly shook his head, trying to keep the images from implanting in his brain. "I can only imagine where the old pervert got that idea." Naruto dropped the book and rested his head back against his pillow, listening to the happenings going on a few feet away from his room.
"Hey there." Gai said lustfully. "I was here checking on some former students, but I couldn't help but notice you admiring my manly features." Gai leaned his forearm against the wall above the blushing nurse.
Kakashi chuckled lightly at his own mischievous idea and leisurely snuck up closer to him. "Hey, Gai!" Kakashi said in the most feminine he could make, glomping Gai from behind. "Why haven't you returned my calls?"
Gai's muscles tightened and a large bead of sweat ran down the side of Gai's head. "Don't do this, Kakashi!" He implored embarrassingly. Gai fidgeted a little, but Kakashi was either not taking the hint or he was simply ignoring it.
"Uh, I have to go now." The nurse slid from underneath Gai's arm and walked away from the two men. When she looked back and saw the copy ninja clinging onto Gai's shoulders, she broke into a run.
"A little payback for the itching powder in the mask trick." Kakashi said triumphantly.
"I would be mad…" Gai said putting his fingers up to his chin, "if Iruka wasn't over there watching the whole thing." Kakashi looked over his shoulder to see Iruka grinning and seductively waving his fingers at him.
"Ah damn it!" Kakashi darted in the opposite direction with Iruka following closely behind.
The two ninja ran past Naruto's room, ending his entertainment for the moment. He was beginning to get bored with waiting for Tsunade, so he decided to kill some time by sneaking out of his room and wandering the halls. He struggled to make sense of what he had been told, but the more he thought about it, the more he hated the fact that he was a part of it.
The events that happened that morning were discouraging. It all took him back to the terrible lessons that he had learned growing up. The life of a ninja by far was not easy. What's worse, it's not even guaranteed. One day, you're spending time with friends and joking happily because you don't have a care in the world. The next day, you're dead. It wasn't exactly an unwritten rule, but it wasn't exactly written in bold type on the "Ninja's guide to Life" manual either. Something still did not seem right. Why did the Genin run away? That wasn't exactly top of the class behavior. That was something Naruto would have to ponder a little later.
The only thing interesting about hospitals were the patients. There would be no need for anyone to read through all of the files in the records room because anyone was able to gather the same amount of information just by walking past a few medic-nins interacting with their patients. He walked up to one room just in time to see his former teammate Sai leaving with a doctor.
"I'm optimistic that medicine I prescribed will take care of that vomiting problem." Naruto heard the medic-nin tell him.
"But what about my other problem?" Sai asked the medic-nin.
Brief pause. "Let's talk for a few minutes." The medic-nin said, leading Sai down the hall.
"I wonder what that was all about." Naruto contemplated to himself. "Sasuke's room is over here. I should go see how he's doing." Naruto knocked on Sasuke's door but got no answer. The handle was locked and Naruto couldn't get the door open, but his highly developed sense of hearing allowed him to listen to everything that was going on:
"Don't put that in there!" (A/N: Gama Su! Heehee!)
"Where else am I going to put it?"
"It goes here."
"Don't pull so hard, I can fix it myself!"
"I guess he's doing better." Naruto concluded. He snooped past a few more rooms and heard a few more interesting medic/patient conversations until he saw Tsunade walking down the hall. He speedily ran back into his room before she could catch him wandering about. He jumped on the lumpy spring mattress in time to hear the footsteps getting louder.
"One thousand eight hundred and fifty." Tsunade said after she entered Naruto's room a few seconds later with a chart in her hands.
"What? The amount you lost gambling last night or are you finally admitting your real age?" Naruto said jokingly.
"It's the number of times you've visited me since we first met…though not always for medical reasons." Before Tsunade could close the door Kakashi was spotted running past them. He was moving pretty fast despite the fact that Iruka had a death grip on Kakashi's arms and legs.
"Wow, I didn't know anyone could run like that!" Naruto said as Tsunade freed the handle an allowed the door to swing shut.
"What were you doing out there anyway?" Tsunade asked. "The 'Special Mission' was for the Jounin and their Genin."
"Did you forget that I AM I Jounin now?" Here it comes…
Tsunade smirked. "I know, but weren't you placed the in suicide squad, or as we call it 'the squad that we can't find any other use for?'"
"Gah! Much like you, Tsunade-baa-chan, that joke's really getting old." There was a pause as Tsunade rummaged through some things in a cupboard over the sink. "How could you let the Genin be used as bait?" Naruto finally asked.
"The enemy wouldn't have attacked if they knew we had a squad of Jounin waiting for them." She muttered, almost to her medical instruments. "We had to disguise our counter attack as a 'Special Mission'. That's one reason why the top Genin were chosen."
Naruto was flabbergasted. Tsunade was in on it too. He frowned went back to twisting the sheets. There was something else he had to find out. "What about this mysterious person?"
"We don't know yet." The way Tsunade answered made Naruto believe that she was upset because she could not provide any more answers for him.
"I think I have an idea." Naruto said assertively. This time, Naruto was going to make sure that his idea was heard.
"You can explain your idea while I take your temperature." Tsunade said, pulling out a rather oddly shaped thermometer attached to a thick mechanism by a spiraling cord.
"How can I talk while you're taking my temperature?" Naruto asked curiously.
"I assure you… you'll be able to talk just fine." Tsunade answered over the beeping noise that came from her pressing a button on the thick end of the puzzling device.
He drew his eyebrows together and tried to decipher how the thermometer could possibly be able to allow him to talk. Then he shrugged. "If you say so." Naruto opened his mouth and lifted his tongue.
"Guess again." Tsunade said while tapping the thermometer against the palm of her gloved hand. "I think I should do another type of examination while I'm at it." Naruto could feel his stomach churning. His jaw hit the ground and his eyes widened when he saw Tsunade coming closer to him with a devious grin on her face.
Sakura slowly made her rounds while trying to forget why she was extremely upset. She tried to accept that she would not be able to spend some time alone with Sasuke that day and erase the memories of listening to him get pleasured by another woman, but it would not leave her mind. Her concentration was interrupted when she felt the vibrations of heavy footsteps caused by Kakashi getting chased down the hall by Iruka.
"Get away from me, Iruka!" Kakashi shouted trying to push Iruka off of him.
"I just need to ask you something!" Iruka tightened his grip.
Kakashi managed to push Iruka away and turned to face him. "Spying mission in the Land of Water?"
"There was land, there was water, and there was spying. Hey, where are you going?" he asked when Kakashi started walked towards the end of the hall.
"You're an idiot and I'm going to go get on all fours on the ground and try to forget this whole incident by banging my head against a large rock." Kakashi slowly backed away from his amorous opponent.
Iruka grabbed onto Kakachi again. "We can do that too!"
Sakura watched as Kakashi darted off with Iruka still holding onto him. "Wow." She whispered to herself "I didn't know anyone could run like that." After that incident, everything was quiet until…
"AAIIIEE! IT'S COLD! IT'S COLD! IT'S COLD! IT'S COLD!"
Sakura looked toward the direction that screams were coming from. "I wonder if Tsunade-sama actually made good on her threats to stick the thermometer in the freezer. When will Naruto learn not to mess with Godaime?" She walked to Naruto's room and pressed her ear against the door.
"That thing is way too big!" Sakura could hear Naruto sob.
"You can handle it." Tsunade responded. Sakura could tell Tsunade was enjoying her brief moment of revenge against Naruto's constant barrage of age jokes and name-calling.
"Okay, this is how things should be done." Naruto said through clenched teeth. "AAAH! Why'd you have to pull it out so fast?"
"Keep going." Tsunade said. Sakura could ear everything clearly this time and couldn't help but laugh a little at the thought of the strange conclusions she would be jumping to if she had no idea what was going on from the other side of the door.
"We need to focus on Itachi." Naruto continued, pulling his pants back up. "There's no telling what the Akatsuki will do in order to get to him. He needs to be guarded all day, everyday. Since we know where they are based, we should keep it secretly blockaded, mainly to keep them from gathering other members or slowly getting into the village. They shouldn't be able to attack the center of the village were if we put up an effective guard around the edges. I'm sure the ANBU goons can take care of any member that tries to get though."
"Not bad." Tsunade acknowledged. "So what would you do if they did attack from the middle of the village?"
"That would mean they've already got members hidden in the village. I think we should keep an eye on the medic's taking care of Sasuke's brother as well. We'll need another plan in case they actually do have spies in the village."
"I'll leave that up to you." Tsunade said confidently. "According to your files you're overdue for you next injection. I can do that for you today." She picked up a syringe and stuck the needle into the top of a tiny bottle to withdraw some of the fluid.
"Sweet." Naruto said, rolling up his sleeve.
"Guess again." Tsunade held up the needle and squirted some of the fluid out.
BANG! BANG!
Even though Tsunade was lightly plucking the side of the syringe the sound reached Naruto's ears as a series of loud bangs. She grinned and slowly walked towards Naruto, who was sweating from every pore on his head.
"Oh crap…"
For the next few seconds, the halls of the hospital echoed with the painful yelp of the aspiring Hokage getting a needle in the butt.
Tsunade nearly knocked Sakura over when she opened the door to leave Naruto's room. "You're really making this a habit aren't you?"
"Uh, how's he doing?" Sakura asked with her skin burning from embarrassment.
"Other than his sore…pride, he's perfectly fine. Although he's upset about the plan concerning the Genin."
"I figured he would be. I'll go talk to him." Sakura smiled sheepishly.
"I think he'd like that." Tsunade walked a few steps then stopped. "Before I forget. I'm going to need you to do a huge favor for me. I'll get back to you about it." Sakura gave a nod and went into Naruto's room.
Naruto was lying belly flat on his bed with his bare bottom exposed because it was still too painful for him to pull his pants up over it. He stared out the window, but other than an occasional insect flying by, there wasn't anything very interesting going on outside. Naruto sighed to himself, "I wish it were dark enough for me to see the moon. It would be kind of nice to see something that could still smile during a time like this."
"It looks like a FULL moon from where I'm standing." Naruto shot his head around to see Sakura standing in front of his closed door. She had entered Naruto's room so quietly that he didn't hear her.
"DAAAHHH! What are you doing here!" Naruto scrambled to get his pants up.
"I see you had fun with Tsuande- sama. I knew the day would come when she'd use her frozen thermometer on you." Sakura helped herself to a good laugh at Naruto's expense. " I just wanted to let you know that you are free to go whenever you want."
"Why would I want to leave when the hospital is a place of total entertainment?"
"What are you talking about?" Sakura asked, sounding a little confused.
"I just saw Sai. Do you know why he's vomiting so much? I also heard that Shino has to come here often because of his allergic reactions to insect bites. Do you find that ironic?" Naruto gazed at his love interest, hoping that he had used the word "ironic" in the right way.
"Perhaps." Sakura shrugged. "Why were you spying on all the patients? You're worse than the gossip columnists."
"I don't think anything's worse than the gossip columnists." Naruto's faced changed from mortified to serious. He found himself in an awkward situation. Apparently, Sakura knew about the "Special Mission" but didn't object to it. How could she go along with something like that? He had to find out. "Do you agree with the way they handled things? One of the Genin almost got killed."
"But he didn't die. You of all people should know that the life of a ninja involves a lot of hazards and life threatening situations. We all made sure that he's going to make a full recovery within a few days." Sakura sat on the bed next to Naruto. "I heard about what you did. It was so sweet of you to keep everyone in high spirits, although I don't think Sasuke was too fond of being carried all the way here."
Naruto rested his cheek on his balled fist. "We had to do it. He kept trying to walk on that leg."
"True." Sakura agreed. "But did you really have to carry him to the front of the group, start shouting 'all hail princess Sasuke' when you came in, and then demand that everyone kiss is foot?"
"Honest. We had no idea that Iruka- sensei would actually do it." Naruto said defensively and raised his head.
"I've never seen so many people fall out of their wheelchairs and start rolling around the floor with laughter until then. That was kind of funny-funny wasn't it?" Sakura had never forgotten how much of a sweetheart Naruto was when he's not annoying the heck out of everyone. From as far back as she could remember, he was always putting the well-being of others before his own. She wanted to return the favor, but her efforts to joke with Naruto were falling on deaf ears. She looked at her feet, then she looked at Naruto. "Sweet Serenity."
"What?"
"That's what I tell patients who are experiencing an exceptional amount of pain. Picture yourself in a quiet happy place and don't even think about the bad stuff...you seem to have a natural ability to help others find their own Sweet Serenity." This comment didn't make Naruto feel any better, so she gave him some more news in an effort to cheer him up. "I hear you've been put in charge of coming up with a new plan. I have a lot of faith that whatever you come up with will work."
"Really?" Naruto perked up.
"She's soft again. Now's your chance. Stay calm" Naruto could almost hear the tiny voice of his conscious in his head tell him. Or was it Kyuubi? "Did you hear me, brat?"…it was Kyuubi.
"You know," he spoke up, "if you ever want to get together sometime and help me perfect it…or if you just want to take some time off from your work-" Sakura knew where this was going.
"Thanks, but I don't think so." Sakura said as she got up to leave. "I know you'll be able to come up with a good plan. From what I remember, you always have."
"'Picture yourself in a happy place'That's what she told me." Naruto said to himself after Sakura left. For the past few minutes, he didn't have to picture it. As long as he was with Sakura, any place was a happy place. Naruto grinned and breathed deeply. "I'll come up with a good plan."
"Don't worry." Ino said quietly as she lay next to Sasuke in the hospital bed. He opened his dark eyes slowly and looked up at the ceiling. Don't worry. That's all everyone ever says when bad things happen. He wasn't in the mood to hear that phrase. That's what everyone had been telling him since he left the area where the battle took place. Don't worry...he had to worry. At the same time had to feel guilty. His youngest and most powerful student could be on the verge of death and there he was, fooling around just down the hall. He needed to see him. He shifted his hips to the very edge of the bed and made an attempt to get up. His effort was hindered when Ino sat up and pulled him back down. "Stop moving." She commanded. "You need to wait here until they come in and work on you."
"I can check on Michio and be back before anyone gets here." Sasuke once again tried to get up but Ino got off the bed first and pushed him back down. She must have forgotten about his injures because she was not very gentle when she pushed him.
"I said you're not going anywhere. If you try to move again I'll get Tsunade-sama to strap you to the bed." Ino stood at the front of him with her arms folded. "Why do you insist on trying to walk on that leg? You wouldn't even believe it was broken if it wasn't for the damn x-ray!"
"This isn't about my foot is it?" Sasuke stood up on his good leg and placed his hand on the bed's railing for support. "You've taken so much from me. Can't you a least let me have this?"
"Why the hell are you still holding that against me? I've made up my mind and nothing you say is going to change it." Ino exhaled deeply. "I'll go see what's going on with him and come back in a little while. You better be here when I get back, or else I'll come looking for you." Ino tried to fix herself up to get rid of any evidence of what she had been doing before she left.
Ino walked with her head hanging low because Sasuke tried to bring up that painful subject again. He could really be a jerk sometimes.
"Ino! Over here!" Sakura called out from down the hall, waving her hand to get Ino's attention. She was on her way out for a lunch break and made a last minute decision to see if Shizune would to join her. When she saw Ino, Sakura opted to ask her instead.
Ino whipped her head around, long ponytail smacking the other side of her face as a result. "Sakura. Thank goodness."
"Did you know that almost all of your buttons are in the wrong holes?" Since Sakura was well aware of what happened in Sasuke's room a few minutes ago, it wasn't much of a surprise to see Ino looking like she had slept in a closet. But she pretended to look surprised.
"Oops. I really don't have an explanation for this. Now I have to go find a mirror. " Ino sighed with her face flushed and her arms crossed in front of her chest in an effort to cover up her buttons. "I need to ask you something. Is there any way that Sasuke's Genin will make a full recovery? Sasuke's worried sick and has been trying to sneak out so that he could see him."
Sakura smiled warmly. "Everyone's positive that he's going to recover."
"Please promise me that you'll make sure he recovers" Ino pleaded. "I'd feel better if you were the one taking care of him."
"Alright. I promise." Deep down Sakura knew that her promise was more for winning favor with Sasuke than appealing to her best friend.
"Thank you so much." Ino wrapped her arms around Sakura's shoulders. Sakura did the same but could not hold that position for long. It may have just been her imagination but Ino reeked of Sasuke. Not that it was a bad smell. It just wasn't something that Sakura wanted wafting into her nostrils; unless it was coming from her own body of course.
"Tsunade-sama is on her way to see him. He's not indecent is he?" Sakura asked with a raised eyebrow.
Ino put both of her hands on her face and shook her head. "You know don't you? This is really embarrassing."
"I'll say. I bet you're more of an inspiration to Jiraiya's dirty novels than Hinata and Neji." (It took Sakura a while to admit that she liked all of the latest smut fests that lined the shelves of Kakashi's apartment.)
"So that's where he got that idea. Only he can portray incest so tastefully." Ino said with a hint of disgust in her voice.
"Today was a trying day for the both of us. How about we go somewhere for my lunch break? This will be one of the few times I'll be able to take a break without Naruto wandering nearby." Sakura took Ino by the hand. "But first, let's fix you up."
"There's something else I need to ask you." Ino hesitated. She had been longing to ask Sakura something for the longest, but could never gather enough courage. "I guess you know how Sasuke and I are having problems."
"Problems? You two make the Chuunin exam look like a mere water balloon fight." Sakura looked deep into her friend's blue eyes, carefully fighting the grin that was threatening to spread across her face. "EVERYBODY knows."
"Since you're so good with advice and this whole Serenity thing, I was wondering if you might be able to help us." Ino nervously waited for Sakura's answer.
Inner Sakura emerged from her dwellings. "She can't be serious. She is! Hell yeah! This gives me an idea!" "I'd be glad to help you two. The thing is you have to know the differences between males and females…personality wise I mean."
"I'm all ears." Ino said, relived to have confirmed that Sakura was over Sasuke and was willing to be supportive.
"First of all," Sakura began, "males are human. We women are not. We're higher forms of life."
Ino drew her eyebrows together. "I'm not sure I follow you."
"Okay, bad example." This was going to be tougher than Sakura thought. After years of stalking, she knew Sasuke's personality inside and out. The trouble was, Ino knew his personality as well. She had to find some way give "bad good" advice and create a not so obviously planned personality clash between them. "I guess what I'm trying to say is…you don't want him to think that he's got the upper hand when it comes to you both."
Ino slightly jerked her head back in confusion. "I still don't get it."
"C'mon. I'll explain it to you along the way…"
Later that night, Sasuke hobbled down the dimly lit halls of the hospital. He wasn't fitted with his special walking cast yet and had to rely on two crutches to get around. Ino followed closely behind him as he slowly walked up to the door of Michio's room.
Ino stepped in front of Sasuke to block him from reaching the handle. "Why don't you check on him tomorrow? He needs his rest."
"He should already be asleep at this time."
"You'll only wake him up. He's a kid. He'll recover quickly." Sasuke put his weight on his crutches and tried to guide Ino away from the door with his hand. She brushed it away and continued. "Plus, Sakura's been taking care of him. She's one of the best medic-nins in the village."
"Wait here," he told her, "I won't be long." She stepped aside and waited in the hall for Sasuke to return.
Michio's room was dark except for a small night-light that was plugged into a wall next to his bed. It wasn't easy for Sasuke to quietly approach Michio's bed because the crutches clicked whenever they hit the floor. On the other end of the room a woman, more than likely the boy's mother, was sitting motionless in an armchair. It was impossible to see her face in the dark: impossible to see her peering through semi-open eyelids at the gorgeous masculine entity that had just sauntered into the room.
Just as suspected, Michio was fast asleep. There was just enough light for Sasuke to examine the Genin's body and see that the medic- nins had done a good job healing him. Sasuke was confident that there was a very good chance that he would be back on his feet and training within the next few days. He traced his finger on the warm skin along the sides of Michio's hairline and listened to his heavy breathing. He looked so innocent--not at all like an aggressive fighter.
Sasuke tried to comprehend why he liked Michio so much. By no means did he give his student special treatment. If anything, Sasuke wished that he could push him harder than his older teammates. He did understand that Michio was a lonely little boy who craved attention and at times would act obnoxious just so someone would notice him. But at the same time he valued his training and put his all into everything that he did. His chakra control's first rate, he was a brilliant tactician, and he's highly intelligent. Maybe that's why Sasuke liked him. He was almost like a combination of both him and Naruto--along with a little bit of Sakura…Sakura. Sasuke's train of thought was broken when the lights suddenly flickered on.
"You must be Uchiha Sasuke," a female voice addressed from behind him. "I'm Michio's mother." Sasuke turned around and faced her. The woman appeared to be young. She was more than likely in her mid to late-twenties. He watched her eyes; they were looking him up and down. "Yes, you're definitely Uchiha Sasuke."
"I'll leave now." Sasuke was about to leave but the woman stopped him by standing in front of him.
"He's always talking about you. But I've known about you for years. I've even seen you around the village a and I must say that I'm a fan." She moved her body even closer to his. "He's gotten so confident these past number of months. His father had always wanted him to be a great ninja like he was."
"He will be." Sasuke said softly. He tried to subtly move away from her but she was persistent.
"When his father died, Michio's whole life revolved around training. Even though he had inherited his father's advanced bloodline, sometimes I fear for his life. He's still so young." The woman was now getting dangerously close to where Sasuke was standing. He could now feel the woman's warm breath blowing on his neck. "He's all I have. I really get scared sometimes."
"He's highly advanced and his teammates are the best in the village." Sasuke nearly stumbled on his crutches. He didn't know the woman personally, but he had seen her during Michio's Genin graduation. He also recognized her as one of the many women who would gawk at him whenever he crossed her path.
"I'm so glad that the famous Uchiha heir is training my son. Since there is no man in my life, I have to depend on him." She said, slowly sliding his hand up Sasuke's back up to his shoulder. Sasuke didn't move as the woman's breath continued to blow against the sensitive skin on his neck. She had little effect on him, but he didn't know how to get away from her without giving himself the appearance of unease. Her fingers caressed his neck and around his chin. Her hand was soft, almost soothing. He wanted her to keep going, but he could not allow her to entangle him in her web of…oh yeah, that's the spot...AARRGGHH! He jerked away. There's no telling what the woman would do next if he became like putty as a result of her touch…her very smooth touch…putty.
Snap back to reality.
He wasn't going to let a woman get the better of him. How was he going to get out of this? The solution to Sasuke's problem would be revealed in a matter of seconds.
"I thought you said you weren't going to be long." Ino stood behind them with her arms folded. Only a woman who's trying to catch her husband in the act could have done a better job than a ninja trained in espionage at entering a room without making a sound. (A combination of the two is just deadly.) "What's going on here?" Before Sasuke could answer, the woman threw herself on his chest and started crying. Oh great, all he needed was something to cause Ino's jealousy to flare up.
And flare up it did. "What are you doing, Sasuke?" Ino growled.
"She's upset because of her son." Sasuke's knees buckled under the pressure of the woman's weight on his chest. Ino could see this, but if she understood why Sasuke was getting weak in the knees was yet to be established.
"Don't worry," Ino said to the woman in a surprisingly calm tone but with her eyelid twitching. "He'll be alright." Ino tried to gently pull the woman away, but she wouldn't budge. "Okaaaay, I'll help you get to the chair now." Ino tried a little harder, but the woman still wouldn't budge. Now Ino was fuming and proceeded to tug hard at the woman. "Will you get off of my husband!" Ino bore her fangs. Even though she was a highly skilled ninja and well-trained fighter, she was a woman first and had no qualms about engaging in a good old-fashioned catfight and scratch out the eyes of another woman who had the audacity to touch her husband.
Michio woke up in all of the commotion that was happening before him. What a bazaar sight it must have been for the poor little Genin to wake up to. Among the chorus of "Why aren't you letting him go!" and "I'm so scared" and "Stop pulling! You're both stepping on my foot!" Michio was completely confused as to what was going on with these adults acting so strangely.
"Sasuke- sensei?" Michio said as he rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes. "What are you doing with my mom? Are you giving her some?"
Everyone froze in place. "What does he mean by that?" Ino practically snarled that question. The woman let Sasuke go and went to her son. Sasuke knew he would be getting chewed out tonight and there would be no make up sex for at least a week. He may even be camped out on the couch. But that was nothing new.
"Go back to sleep, Michio. I'll see you tomorrow." Sasuke said, making his way out with Ino in toe.
Ino walked ahead of Sasuke without slowing her strides so that he could catch up with her. (Not that he was making an effort to anyway.) "You want to tell me what the problem is?" he asked her.
"Don't talk to me." She hissed. She stopped and turned around with flames roaring behind her. "I saw you get weak in the knees over that woman! AND I saw how you let her put her hands all over you! Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
Sasuke stood still, careful not to touch his bad foot on the floor. "Have you failed to remember that I only have one leg?"
"I said don't talk to me!" Ino stormed even further ahead of him. He was certainly going to get an earful.
"Lovely." He said sarcastically. "I can't wait to get home."
A/N: This chap was an ass kicker! Well, that's one mystery solved. But more are popping up. (When will the madness end!) Until chapter 6, everyone!
P.S.: Check out my bio!
-Dawn E. Sky-