A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing. I didn't think that Forever Brothers would do as well as it is; I thought I had more mistakes than I did. Not much to say here, besides what I did. So here's the next chapter in Forever Brothers.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto franchise or any recognizable content herein. That honor goes to Masashi Kishimoto. This fan fiction is written purely for enjoyment of the audience and no monetary gain is expected to result.

Chapter 1: Awakening and Reunion

The first thing she noticed as she began to regain consciousness was that her whole body hurt. Her back, especially. She then noticed that the bed she was on was not her own. She opened her eyes, only to close them swiftly again, the bright lights assaulting her. Slowly, she tried again, this time allowing her eyes to adjust to the lights. What she saw was white. And a lot of it.

As she tried to sit up, she found that the bed sheets were tucked quite well. At this point the door to her room opened, and a med-nin walked in with a clipboard. When the doctor noticed that his patient was awake, he blinked. "Ah, Mikoto-sama, you're awake."

The young Uchiha matriarch slowly turned to face the doctor, confusion very visible in her eyes. "What happened?" she asked, and came to realize that she was out for some time, if her voice had grown as hoarse as it is. Her doctor looked down to his clipboard, struggling to find the right words.

"... Your son, Itachi, murdered the entire Uchiha clan," Mikoto's eyes widened, "leaving you and his brother as the only survivors." Mikoto shot up into a sitting position, and she winced, her body rewarding her with pain shooting through its entirety.

"Where is he?" she ground out painfully, "Where's Sasuke?" The doctor's face showed a mix of relief and concern.

"Your son is in the pediatric wing of the hospital;" he replied, "he is alright, physically, but it seems that witnessing his own brother kill off his entire family has placed quite a mental strain on him; all he does is lay on the bed in a fetus position, quietly calling out for you and his father."

"Then take me to see him!" she yelled to the man. "I have to see him! You say he's calling out for me, yes? It's only right I answer his calls!" She began to get up, but the doctor rushed over and pushed her gently back into her bed.

"You can't," he said, "you're still healing; if you force yourself, you may reopen your wounds and die of blood loss." Mikoto clenched her eyes, and after a minute, looked back at the doctor with determination.

"Get me a wheelchair, then" she said, her mind set, "I will see my son."

A young boy, barely seven years of age, with bright blonde hair, and whisker marks adorning his cheeks, three to each one, slowly opened his shining blue eyes, focusing them on the aged Hokage sitting on the opposite side of his hospital room, a small smile forming on his lips at the sight. "Hey, old man," he called out softly. The 'Old Man' smiled as he saw the boy wake up. "Hello Naruto," he returned, "feeling better?"

Naruto nodded, grinning. "Yeah," he answered, rubbing the back of his neck, "you know nothing can keep the next Hokage down for long!" he exclaimed, Sarutobi laughing at his enthusiasm. The old man then had a look of remembrance on his face.

"Ah, yes, Naruto," he called, catching the young boy's attention as Hiruzen reached into a bag Naruto now just noticed, "I know how much you dislike the hospital's food, and tend to sneak out to Ichiraku's Ramen from time to time," Naruto's face flushed in embarrassment, which Sarutobi smiled at, "so I figured, that rather than have you sneak out this time, I'd bring the ramen here," he finished, pulling out two large containers, each filled with the broth and noodles that always had Naruto salivating; this time was no exception.

Naruto instantly grabbed the container with his name on it, grinning brightly. "Thanks old man!" he called. He broke his chopsticks, and without any more words to say, dove in with gusto, Sandaime smiling at the display, before turning to his own lunch.

As Mikoto's doctor wheeled her into her son's hospital room, she immediately saw Sasuke, lying on the bed in a curled position, his back towards her. Bringing herself closer to him, she heard him whimpering, occasionally calling out for her or Fugaku; the sight tore at her being. "Sasuke..." she whispered. The young boy slowly turned to face her, eyes gaining focus as he recognized who it was that called him, sitting in a wheelchair not arms-distance away.

"Mom..."

So there it is, Chapter 1. Naruto and Mikoto get their formal introductions, and Sasuke sees his mother for the first time after the massacre. I know I said the rest of the Rookie Nine would be introduced as well in the prologue, but I decided to cut it here. It seemed fitting. I'll bring Chapter 2 when there are some reviews for this. So go ahead and tell me how I did. It helps to know someone would spend their time to do so.