A/N: I technically don't know hospital terms/protocol, so don't hurt me!

I do not own Naruto or any of the characters, but this story is my own original!

When Naruto awoke, he was blinded by the bright lights and their reflections from numerous objects in the room. He lay beneath thin sheets, and when he attempted to move his head, he found it immobile. Panic flowed through him. He tried moving the rest of his body and found an arm and leg also unmoving, but the others did. "Orochimaru," He growled and continued to struggle. "What the-" That's when he felt something around his throat that kept him from moving. Using is working arm, he poked around to find his arm and leg in casts, and numerous bandages all over his body, including around his skull where his headband should be. Now that he thought about it, where was his headband? Where were his clothes?

"So you're awake?" Came a female voice from the doorway.

"If I didn't have this thing around my neck, I'd look at you," Naruto sneered, recognizing another familiar voice from his past. "Granny Tsunade."

"Oh, so we have a smart mouth in our hospital." She walked forward and the young ninja stared into a pair of fierce brown eyes. "But you don't really seem that smart," Tsunade walked to the side of the bed and pushed a button that lifted Naruto into a sitting position.

She walked to a side counter and picked up a folder, pulling out a few x-rays. She hung them up on a light body and flicked it on. "Actually, it's obvious that you aren't very smart when you look at your x-rays. You have a fractured skull, wrist, and ankle. Not to mention the cracked ribs, concussion, and other various cuts and bruises. What did you do? Fall down ten flights of stairs?"

"N-not exactly," Naruto stuttered, eyes flashing fear. What would she say if he told her the truth?

"Well, what did you do then?" Tsunade cocked a hip, placing a fist on it expectantly.

"I, er, got into a fight."

"That explains some," She bent over, opening a cabinet, pulled out a paper sack, and dug out Naruto's old clothed. The sight of his blood-soaked shirt made him cringe away. "But it doesn't explain how this much blood got on you. Your injuries weren't sever enough to have this much blood on your clothes, and the amount of blood that must have drained out would kill you."

Naruto winced, seeing Sakura's cold face and the blood stain on the cave floor again in his mind. "It was my friend," His voice was barely above a whisper and he refused to look at Tsunade.

"Excuse me?" She walked over, pulling a chair up next to his bed.

"It was my friend," Naruto repeated. "She got hurt and I held her." He looked down at the palms of his hands, remembering the feel of her limp body in his grasp.

"I take it she isn't here anymore?" Her voice was gently and she lightly touched his shoulder, trying to be comforting.

Naruto flinched, and then nodded. "I didn't kill her, if that's what you're thinking." He finally looked at her, eyes flashing, daring her to accuse him.

"I know," Tsunade suddenly embraced him in a tight hug. "I know."

Without knowing why, tears filled his eyes and he buried his face in her neck, weeping, truly weeping, for the first time in a thousand years. He wept for Sakura, for Kakashi-sensei, even for Sasuke. Images of his lost friends flooded his mind and his quiet weeping turned into sobs. There was Hinata, always blushing, Shino in his stoic silence and Kiba with a smart smirk on his face. There was also Ino, always shouting, Shikamaru standing lazily, half asleep, and Choji, as usual, stuffing his face. He also saw Lee with his fierce determination, Neji standing resolutely with TenTen. Tsunade hugged him tighter and eventually, tears of her own appeared, but didn't fall.

They stayed that way for a long time until Naruto's sobs choked back and he couldn't cry anymore tears. Tsunade slowly pulled away, her shoulder soaked and blinked a few times, rubbing her eyes.

"I'm sorry," Naruto croaked, wiping his wet cheeks of the last traces of his tears. His eyes were red and aching and there was a knot in his throat that he couldn't swallow, but he felt better.

"Don't be," Tsunade whispered, flashing a quivering smile. "I needed that as much as you obviously did." She pressed another button that lay Naruto back down. He breathed slowly, completely exhausted. "Go to sleep, I'll wake you up later to ask more questions for our records." She gently stroked his cheek as he nodded. Slowly, his eyes began to close until he was finally asleep.

Tsunade sat there for a few moments longer until a nurse stuck her head into the room.

"Doctor, you have other patients to tend to."

"Yes, I know, Shizune, I'm coming." She stood and moved to the door, taking one last look at the sleeping boy, dimmed the lights, and slipped out.