2. Truth

Look who's ba-ack! Seriously, I'm sorry I've been so inactive! I've so much shit going on in my life I could barely find the time to come up with something. Not only that, I had writer's block again but thankfully that's gone now! Anyways, GOMEN GOMEN GOMEN!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto...or else...well...Hinata wouldn't have died so stupidly.

"You heard me. He'd never accept your feelings."

I tapped my foot impatiently in the hallway, making loud echoes in the silent hospital. Tsunade wouldn't let me in to see Naruto or Sasuke; it bothered the hell out of me. Every day, since they've come back, I've been going in as their nurse. But when I went in today, Tsunade ordered me out.

"Sorry Sakura. You've gotta pass on this one. Go outside and wait for me." Tsunade ordered, flicking her hand at me. "Go!"

I sighed, and twiddled my thumbs. Naruto still hadn't told me all that happened during his battle. He'd promise, and if anyone knew how well he kept those, it was me. My mind always raced, trying to deduce the puzzle. I came up with three possibilities.

Option one, the one that seemed most probable. Naruto had defeated Sasuke, but would not take him back here until they had talked for a while. It would solve all the injuries they had, their close relationship, the length of time, but not what was said. That was something I would have to get from either Naruto or Sasuke themselves.

Option two, the one that I didn't want to accept. Sasuke had defeated Naruto, but something that happened during the fight made him not finish him off. Something that made it not 'on a whim' like last time. And then, again, they talked and came back. It would explain the injuries, their close relationship, length of time, but it didn't answer what happened during the fight or what was said. Again, something I would have to obtain through investigating.

Option three, the least plausible out of all of them. They had begun to fight, but stopped and tried to talk it out like civilized humans. Either that or they talked during the fight. Still, they stopped fighting which was probably impossible. It would answer their close relationship, length of time, but not what happened during the fight, what was said, nor their injuries. Surely if they had stopped, Naruto would not have needed Kyuubi or his senjutsu. I'd never seen him use it in battle even (A/N: OBVIOUSLY, THE PEIN vs. NARUTO BATTLE DID NOT OCCUR). I don't think Naruto actually went far enough to use senjutsu. There was a lot of preparation needed in order to use it from what I've read, and so it would've been difficult.

There was a soft click in front of me, and I nearly flew out of my chair. I stared up at Tsunade standing in the doorway, my eyes wide. "Sakura, you look like you've seen a ghost." She laughed at me, and I glared at her.

I stood up and brushed myself off, and quickly running my fingers threw my now tangled up hair. "Skip small talk. How are they?" I rushed, flustered. I just wanted to know how Naruto was.

"Sasuke's healing just fine. He should be up and about in two to three days. Naruto will be out in a week though…" she said, her brown eyes fading out, as if looking into a far off distance. I knew that look; something was bothering her.

"Shishou," I began, waving my hands. "Why so late?"

Tsunade shook her head, and just waved her hand at me. "We just have to do a few tests on him, that's all. He'll be fine, there's just something we need to look at."

"And what is this thing?" I pressed on.

"None of your busin-"

"The hell it's not! He's my teammate! My friend! I have a right to know what's going on with hi-"

Tsunade's glare cut me off. "Are you his mother? Are you his guardian? No!" she snapped, a fire in her eyes. She flipped around, her fists clenched tightly. I felt cold sweat beginning to form on my head, and I waited for her to finish. "Sakura, I know you care about them both now. But…" she flipped back around to me. Her eyes were now dimmed, calmer. But they had a sad glimmer to them. "You aren't connected to him in anyway. Only by teammates. If you'd never been on the same team, you never would've been this close. You're not his mother, not his guardian, and not his girlfriend." I flinched internally at the last point. "By hospital rule, only family is allowed to know what is going on with those two."

I felt a wetness slide down my cheek. Realizing I was crying, I hid my face and nodded slowly. "I understand." My voice hitched at the end. "Just…make sure he heals okay."

I walked slowly out of the hallway, and waited until I got outside before I took a dead on sprint out into the forest. I just blazed past Izumo and Kotetsu, ignoring their plights of my sudden rush. The tears began to blind me, and before I knew it my head collided with something hard, and everything went black as my head hit the rough ground.

"Who are you to judge?! You're not his girlfriend, not his mother, and not his master! Your words mean nothing!"

It was very cold. My body was entirely numb; I couldn't move any of my limbs. I wanted to open my mouth and call out, but my lips seemed frozen shut. My eyelids pulled to open, but they refused to budge and the pain from the exertion cried throughout my head. My head was spinning, and I could feel a large bump on my forehead.

After a few minutes of trying to recollect my thoughts, I realized something. I wasn't having a headache; someone was carrying me. It could've been anyone too! A ninja from another village, someone from ours, or maybe just a rogue! Whoever it was I wanted to punch the lights out of them, make them cry in pain.

Then, I could hear other voices. "Is she okay?" someone said in a worried tone.

"Just a bump on the head. Nothing serious." The voices seemed familiar, but I couldn't place them.

"She just shot out of nowhere." The first voice said.

"Yeah, I wonder what she was running from."

"I was running away from Tsunade." I wanted to say, but I still couldn't talk.

"Well, we'll take her back to her house."

"Her parents are out of town, remember? They left this morning."

There was a moment of silence, before the first voice talked again. "We could take her back to his house…?"

More silence. Then I heard a sigh and I slight "Hai" in response. I decided they weren't going to talk again, so I drifted back off into slumber, my dreams filled with nightmares of my questions.

I awoke in the morning with the sun piercing through the blinds onto my face. I rolled over, and to my surprise fell off the bed. I nearly jumped through the roof as my heart raced, and then my eyes widened as I took in the scenery around me.

There was a small bed, and a very dirty room. There was one lone poster on the wall of the Konoha symbol, and on the nightstand next to the bed lay the picture frame of Team 7. They—whoever they were—had taken me to Naruto's home?! While I was also furious, at the same time, I was quite happy. I could get to know Naruto better…even if it is stalker like.

But first…this room would have to be clean.

Who would've thought it'd take an hour just to clean one room? One! Well, needless to say, I could walk now, but I had found something interesting. While picking up all the ramen bowls that were left lying about, I found a folder, with what seemed to be tons of papers in it. As I opened it, I could only stare at what I saw.

Papers, mountains of papers, on the locations, studies, and various other topics about "forbidden jutsu" and what could be found on the Forbidden Scroll. Now, I knew about Naruto stealing that scroll when he was back in the Academy, but I never knew, or even thought, that he would be looking in on it now years later. The first page consisted of details about the Kanshi no Jutsu, a jutsu that allows one self to become invisible. It was mostly used for spying missions, but they made it forbidden due to its high risk of cellular dissolution. Why would Naruto want to be looking this up?

I shut the folder and put it neatly on the bed, not wanting to invade his privacy. But yet…it was so tempting, because I knew it was wrong, and I wanted to know why. I felt like a scientist, always asking why without ever paying attention to the consequences.

I jumped at a sudden rapping on the door, and quickly I smoothed out my skirt and walked over to answer it. Upon opening the door, there stood Tsunade with a strange look on her face. I could only look away. "Sakura, look…"

I turned my back from her and walked over to the counter. "What do you want, Tsunade-shishou?" I asked, acid covering my tone, my bitterness still not receding.

"Kotetsu and Izumo told me what happened yesterday. And I know it was my fault, so I wanted to apologize. What I said was uncalled for yesterday." I could hear the words spoken being genuine, and I felt a pang of unease in my chest. "If you want…I can get you in to see him."

My eyes flashed wide, and I flipped around harshly. "You better! I need to know what's going on with him!" I yelled. "Now, would be nice."

Tsunade averted my gaze, and nodded. "Follow me." She merely said, and began walking off. I followed by, my thoughts in a whirl. There were so many questions needed to be asked, and so many were still undecided. The first question, what had happened between them? That was my first priority.

It seemed to have only been a few minutes before I found myself staring at the door of Naruto's room. He had a separate one from Sasuke (something I am just cheering to the heavens right now), so I knew I could ask freely about anything. I took a deep breath and stepped into the room.

Naruto was lying on his bed, wrapped up yet again from head to toe. He had probably ten needles stuck in him, and the heart monitor was doing a slow, but rhythmic beat. I went over to sit next to him, leaning down close to his ear as soon as I heard Tsunade leave the room. "Hey…Naruto…" I whispered, and watched as he slowly stirred from his slumber.

"Eh?" he mumbled, eyes opening drearily. "Sakura-chan? That you?"

I smiled, and almost ruffled his hair if not for the bandages. "The one and only. How're they treating you?" I laughed.

"Like a fucking prisoner. I wanna leave!" he cried, smiling playfully. "So, what can I do you for?"

Nervously, I stroked my hair, playing with a few strands. "I wanted to ask you…about what happened between you and Sasuke-kun." I said cautiously.

I could tell it was a touchy subject as Naruto's eyes dimmed and they turned away from my gaze. "I don't think now is a good time, Sakura-chan." He murmured, and I could see another thing troubling him.

"Tell me. I want to know." I pleaded, and when he didn't answer and placed my hand on his. Momentarily, I blushed at the contact, and I could tell Naruto jumped when my fingers brushed his skin. "Did…did Kyuubi come out?" I asked softly.

I didn't need any words to come from him from his reactions. I saw every little detail. The way his throat tightened, how his eyes squinted slightly, and how his hand twitched. Slowly, and I swear he was going to start crying, he nodded.

I sighed, and now I clasped his hand in mine. "How many?"

"Five." He said gravely, and I saw tears come from his sad sapphire gaze. "I…I thought…"

I didn't want to see him cry, or to be sad. I embraced him softly, to be careful of his injuries, and eventually I heard his soft whimpers as his tears finally reached their peak. His arms snaked around me, and all I could do for him was hold him close. "It's okay. It's over now."

"I thought…I was going to kill him, Sakura-chan. I thought I was never going to see him again with my own eyes." He cried, and I slowly patted his head. "It was so scary…"

"But you didn't, did you?" I told him softly. "So there's no need to fret about it now."

Naruto's tears began to slow down, though he still hiccupped slightly. "You…will never know…what it's like to think you've killed someone you cherished." He coughed. "It's already happened twice where I almost did."

I tried to push the memory out of my head about that day years ago. "Still, the point remains. You didn't, and that's all that matters."

I probably stood there like there for a few minutes before I heard a soft snore come from under me. I peered down to see Naruto's eye shut, lost in the sea of slumber. Softly, I kissed him on the head and laid him onto his bed before walking out of the room. Before I stepped out of the room though, I stole one more glance before leaving him.

Tsunade was there waiting for me to leave, and I just smiled awkwardly. "He doesn't like it much here, does he?" I laughed in a feeble attempt to brighten up the mood. The Godaime just stood there staring at me with a crest-fallen expression. "I'll…be going now."

"Don't you want to visit Sasu-" Tsunade began.

I didn't even have to hear the rest of the question before I shot out my clear, sharp "No". I could feel her eyes on me, so I sighed and looked into Tsunade's chocolate irises. "Right now, I don't think it'd be best for me to see Sasuke-kun. I don't presume you want more work on him, do you?" I challenged.

Finally, I got a smile out of Tsunade. "True that, true that." She chuckled. "I'll see you again later I'm guessing?"

"Yep. Until he's all better." I answered with a smile, and skipped passed her down to the main centre. Well, I got some of the story. I guess that would be good enough. My eyes were closed as I almost glided away to the nearby park, when I ran into something.

"Oh, sor-"

The sentence was not finished by my obstacle before I hit him far into the nearest wall. "What the hell are you doing out of the hospital?!" I screeched and grabbed his collar. "Just why are you out here?!"

Sasuke tried to release himself gently, but my knuckles were clearly white with the exertion I was pulling out onto the cloth. "Sakura, please understand. I was…trying to find you."

"Why?" I repeated in an even harsher tone.

Sasuke looked me dead in the eye, his coal irises cold, serious. "You want to know what happened between Naruto and I, right?" his eyes narrowed with his accusing tone. "Just how bad do you want to know?"

My teeth grinded together, making a terrible scratching noise inside my head, and I let go of him. "I need…to know." I said my words carefully, trying to keep my temper under control. "Something happened made you two…" I let my question drift away.

"Sakura, during the battle, Naruto didn't fight in the beginning." Sasuke began, sitting down on the grass. "I…attacked him nevertheless. I mean, what was I supposed to do? He was in my way."

"You're way of what, exactly?" I challenged him.

Sasuke looked at me with the strangest expression. "I…was coming to destroy Konoha." Apparently he saw my hand clench and slightly pull back, because he moved a bit farther away. "Let me finish. Anyways, so he refused, and so I had no choice but to paralyze him from the waist down. But, I never would have guessed he would get so fast! I almost thought I'd lose my sword they way he was moving!" he chuckled a little, his cheeks getting some more color to them. "Then I was almost pulled to the ground by him. But I managed to get some current into his body through his side. He acted like nothing had hurt him though.

"He started screaming at me, asking why I wouldn't return, why I hated him. I had just shaken my head and said 'I don't hate you. I just can't…stand being around you.' Now, as weird as this sounds, I felt in danger every time I was in his very presence. I tried to hide it from you, and it worked thank God, but I never knew why until you guys came looking for me; Kyuubi. Thanks to Itachi's little gift, I was able to control Kyuubi for a little until Naruto's clones attacked my with kunai from the back. I hadn't even sensed them because of the concentration it took on the genjutsu!

"So, instead of two, which is the last I remember seeing him with—Orochimaru said he'd seen four—but this time he skipped straight to five. With Kyuubi's speed, plus his own, it was nearly impossible to keep an eye on him. I only got about thirty hits in, and most didn't even do any damage! Finally, he passed out, but only after I did. Before I lost consciousness, I could hear him crying, afraid he had killed me. I could only mutter, but it was enough for him to hear me. 'So, you finally beat me, dobe…' I sighed. 'Next time though, just taijutsu, eh? Your power without Kyuubi is strong enough. You don't need him.' After that, I passed out. And apparently, he did too."

I sat there, twiddling my thumbs. "That's it? That's what happened?"

Sasuke blushed a little, and looked away. "No…not everything. But, those things are something that it would be best for you to bring up with Naruto. They are none of my business."

I nodded my head, and stood up. "Thanks, Sasuke-kun," I said, stretching. "I'll be seeing you…but before that…" He looked at me like a deer in headlights. "Oh Tsunade-shishou!" I called, and the Godaime came flying out of the trees.

"Uchiha Sasuke. Get. In. The. Hospital. Now." She growled, cracking her knuckles.

"Yes ma'am!" he shouted in a high voice and ran off.

I smiled at Tsunade, who smiled back. "So, did you get your answer?"

"Yeah…" I replied, and looked up to the horizon.

"But…those things are something that it would be best for you to bring up with Naruto. They are none of my business."

I laughed at myself at Sasuke's words. There was a lot more I needed to talk to him about.

"I may mean nothing, but I'm not chicken-shit like you! I can admit my feelings and take rejection!"

I could feel the tears come down my face at her words. "Then why did you let him go?!"

She glared at me hotly with her pale eyes. "Because…I was not the one he loved. And I want to hurt the one he did…I'm just being…"

I gulped. "Selfish."

Yeah, again. FORGIVE MEH! I'll try to be more active. Oh and guess whaty? I GOTS A NEW COMPUTER! ^^ It runs so much faster. Anyways, please review! ...I bet I lost a lot of people over my...what...four month break?

Yamahato Yokimoko-san