Waves of boiling red sea were crashing over him, the foam stinging his eyes and filling his mouth and nose with water. He struggled against the tide with all his strength, but his strength was ebbing and he soon found himself being pulled further and further from the shore. Each cry for help was quickly stifled by the water rushing to his lungs, and soon he gave up on breathing altogether. He tried to remember why he was stranded in this red ocean, but his memories were sluggish and took a long time to surface. There had been a battle. With the acceptance of this simple fact came the realisation that the water surrounding and filling him was not cool and peaceful, but hot and cloying. It was blood that he sank through, an ocean of scarlet blood.
He clamped down on the urge to panic, instead forcing his hazy mind to realise the impossibility of his situation. He must be caught in somebody's genjutsu, for oceans of blood were not part of his world. Instead, he forced himself to think on the things that were. They started simple; his mask, his country. And they finished with the people he knew and fought alongside. Surely one of them would be coming to break him free of this illusory prison soon? Thin, white-hot threads of agony were shooting thought his optic nerve and the pain was becoming unbearable. There was a building pressure in his chest, as though the blood were forcing its way down his throat. He couldn't breathe, his thoughts were little more than white noise, and his eye was definitely on fire. He could feel the surrounding flesh melting away from it like candle wax from the wick.
He had forgotten that help was supposed to be coming. He had forgotten the relatively peaceful life beyond this torture. He had forgotten his own name.
"Kakashi."
With a jolt, Kakashi was flung back into consciousness. Suddenly he was able to feel the coarse, heavy sheets someone had placed over him, and smell the horrible scent of antiseptic and misery. He could hear far-off voices and the occasional beep of an instrument. It was clear that he was in a hospital of some sort; but he couldn't tell where. The last thing he could force himself to remember was fighting back a surge of rogue ninja bent on destroying one of the Fire Country's smaller villages. Was that where he was now? What about his team? Were they hospitalised too, or worse? The need to confirm his situation grew too much and he sat up, opening his eyes.
At least he tried to.
His eyelids didn't seem to be responding, and the harder he tried to wrench them apart, the more they stung. The blackness persisted and he lifted a heavy hand to feel his face. The entire top half was wrapped in thick, gauzy bandages. It explained why his eyes wouldn't open, but left him unsure what he would see if he could. Was he blind? Had he lost the sharingan? The very thought of losing something so precious, the last lifeline to his old teammates, sliced into his shock like a kunai. He could feel himself thrashing, hear the trill of an alarm as the drone of voices grew closer. He had to get the bandages off and test his eyesight. Then he had to get away from this place as quickly as his strength would allow.
Part of him, the controlled, professional part of him, tried to calm his terror and make him see reason. But if this blindness were permanent, there would be little need for professionalism. For most ninja, such an injury meant instant retirement. For Kakashi, that would be akin to a death sentence. He tugged at the bandages, trying to find a loose end to unravel. But his hands were clumsy and he seemed to be doing more harm than good. He snarled in a mixture of pain and frustration, groping around blindly for something sharp to aid him.
A hand closed over his, and his instinctive reaction was to strike out at the unseen danger. There was a sharp cry as his free hand made contact with the stranger's jaw. But instead of letting go the person increased their grip, forcing Kakashi back down on the bed.
"Tsunade's on her way," someone said over the top of the machines. He wasn't sure if they were talking to him or not, but at the mention of the Hokage's name his terror abated slightly. He must have made it back to Konoha then, which meant he was among allies. After a moment Kakashi could hear the signature click of heeled feet and the hand holding his slid away.
"Hatake Kakashi," In response to the Hokage's booming voice, the jounin went still.
"You're in Konoha, and you're perfectly safe," she reassured him, and he inclined his head slightly to show that he understood.
"Your squad was assisting the Brick Village when it was ambushed by an additional squad of rogue-nin. Though you overpowered them eventually, some of you sustained injuries. You, in particular, are lucky to be alive."
"And the Sharingan?" Kakashi pressed, annoyed at how slowly Tsunade was getting to the point. "What's wrong with my eyes?"
"You overused your Sharingan to the point of damaging your chakra vessel and surrounding optic nerve. The team medic was able to reverse most of the damage on the way back to Konoha, but mostly it needs rest and time to heal."
"But it will heal?"
Tsunade paused for a moment, and Kakashi bit his lip in frustration. Finally she answered him. "The Sharingan is intact, but still very weak. If it had continued to build pressure on your chakra vessel, it might have killed you. At the very least you would have permanently destroyed your optic nerves and lost your sight completely. Luckily, you were in good hands." Kakashi heard someone's feet shift slightly near the side of his bed.
"I'm telling you all this now because I want you to properly understand the delicacy of your situation before we remove the bandages." At this, Kakashi's head snapped up eagerly.
"You mean I can take the bandages off straightaway? Will I be able to see?" He slid forward eagerly.
"Hey! I told you all that so you'd take it easy!" Kakashi didn't need his vision to know that Tsunade was pissed-off, and he tried to look apologetic. "Sorry Hokage-sama. I promise to take it easy, just as soon as I have these bandages off."
A few minutes later and the pressure around his head had subsided greatly. There was still a great deal of gauze packed around his left eye, but his normal one was free at last. Slowly, he tested his vision. The curtains had been drawn and the lights switched off, yet it still felt like staring at the sun. Everything was blurry and over-bright, but it was improving every second. Finally one yellow-and-green shape became discernible as the Hokage, who seemed to be watching him intently. Then she grinned, and the other blurry figures sighed in apparent relief.
"Thank you," Kakashi told her, equally relieved.
"Oh don't thank me," she told him, waving her hand dismissively, "Without your field medic you'd be dead long before you reached me." She nodded to someone on Kakashi's right, who stepped very slightly closer. The person was mostly just a pale cream blur like the rest of the hospital, but he recognised the shock of pink hair easily enough.
"Sakura," he acknowledged. The pink blur twitched.
"Correct. She saved your life out there, and risked her own to do it. Funny way to repay her," she added, "giving her a black eye."
"What?" Kakashi yelped at the absurd accusation. "I never-"
"It was when you first woke up, Kakashi-sensei," the pink-haired girl stepped forward now, explaining hurriedly. "You were disoriented and panicked. You didn't know who I was. It wasn't your fault, it was mine," she placed a hand on his arm, and the familiar gesture triggered a flash of realisation.
"Oh kami, I hit someone before, didn't I? I hit- I hit you, Sakura."
Tsunade huffed. "Finally the penny drops. Now, do you think you're going to be able to control these violent urges, or do I have to find you a private room?"
Kakashi glanced to his side, but of course the other hospital bed was just a distant smudge of cream and silver. "Who's in here with me?"
Tsunade placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, who looked decidedly sheepish. "This idiot, who broke practically every rule as a medic trying to save your sorry ass."