Ugh...

"Talking"

Thinking

"Kyuubi talking"

Chapter 11: Time

Tsunade thought for a minute before answering Naruto. "Anytime. Sooner would be much better than later, so hurry up and decide," she firmly told the other blonde.

"I'll do it!" he decided before his stomach rumbled. "But first," he asked with a large smile on his face, "can I get some ramen?" Jiraiya laughed at the look on Naruto's face and then looked over at Tsunade.

"Well, I'm not paying for you," Jiraiya said as he remembered the last time he had to pay. Naruto laughed lightly and Tsunade raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not paying either. Shizune, you don't want to," she told her apprentice. Naruto's grin fell a little at the statement.

"I can pay for myself!" he claimed while he struggled against the ropes.

Tsunade thought for a minute and watched Naruto. "Actually, I think it would be healthier if Naruto didn't eat before being placed into a coma."

"Ahhhh! You have to be kidding me!" Naruto whined.

"Shut up! Geez, I can only stay quiet for so long when you whine." Naruto mentally twitched; the damned fox hadn't spoken for nearly an hour.

What's your problem? Malice was present in Naruto's thoughts, but the Kyuubi didn't really care.

"My problem is you! All you ever do is whine and complain. Geez, if this stupid gate," Naruto was startled when he heard the fox slam himself against the bars, "wasn't in my way I'd be free."

Well I'm going to be happy that you're still stuck behind there, the blonde smirked.

"Naruto? What's wrong?" Tsunade placed her hand on Naruto's forehead to check for a fever. "Well, nothing seems to be wrong," she muttered but Naruto didn't reply in any way. He had his eyes closed tight and it looked like he was trying to concentrate. The look on Naruto's face was easily recognized by Jiraiya. In the two and a half years that Jiraiya had been training Naruto, he had come to know him better than anyone else.

"Naruto, it's not the right time nor place to be doing that," Jiraiya warned him. Naruto peeked an eye open and glanced over at his teacher.

"But, Ero-Sennin…" Naruto whined again. Jiraiya just shook his head which produced a sigh from Naruto. "Fine," he muttered and broke his concentration.

"See brat?! I can always outwit you," the fox laughed which just managed to piss Naruto off even more.

"Why you… I'll get you!" Naruto muttered ferociously.

The fox laughed deeply for a minute before finally answering. "Baka, I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Huh?" a genuine clueless look passed over Naruto's face. "Why?" he asked in a whisper.

"Geez, I have to say it again?! Baka, they will think that you're insane and not fit to go under this medical procedure." Naruto's eyes widened a bit and he sighed out.

"Fine, I guess I don't really need to eat before I do this. Besides, it shouldn't be too long before I wake up, right?" he asked while laughing. Tsunade smiled and nodded, even though it was a fake smile. She looked over at Shizune who just nodded; it was obvious what Tsunade wanted. The door slid open and both medics stepped out to gather the needed medicinal supplies.

Naruto, having forgotten that Jiraiya was still in the room, let his mask slip completely. A frown filled with concentration among other emotions was shown and his head dropped so that his eyes were covered by his hair. Jiraiya stood back quietly and watched, careful not to give away the fact that he was there.

"Is this really wh—" Jiraiya heard Naruto mumble until the air conditioner kicked in. It was an old system that managed to block out all other noises so no longer could Jiraiya hear Naruto. However, being the pervert he was, he had learned to read lips. The skill had become quite handy. However, Naruto was barely moving his lips, so it was harder to put together words.

What…Jiraiya pieced one word together and several followed that he couldn't recognize. Shut up became an easily placed phrase several times in the next few minutes. Finally, the obnoxious noises stopped and once again Naruto's mumbling could be heard much easier.

"I understand what you're trying to say, and I agree. I don't want to save this guy that much," the blonde muttered almost silently. Yet again the toad sage was happy that his 'skills' could be used somewhere other than the girls' bath. "No, I'm not letting you—" the jinchuuriki mumbled before cutting himself off. "Quit doing that, it's not helping anybody's situation." Jiraiya's legs were starting to get tired but he ignored that fact and continued to eavesdrop on his student's one way conversation. "No, I'm doing it so you will leave." The toad sage now felt his body swaying a little bit, but he refused to move. So far Naruto had yet to notice him and he wanted to keep it that way.

A sharp intake of breath was barely heard by Jiraiya before Naruto looked up and glanced in his direction. "Dammit," they both murmured before respectively returning to normal. Naruto placed his mask back on quickly and tried to laugh the incident off, while Jiraiya stared at his student. After Naruto realized that his normal approach to this problem wouldn't work, he let out a sigh and his mask dropped again.

"I'm sure you'll want an explanation, just like the Sadaime did when he found out, huh?" Naruto asked, sure to keep his voice down. He only wanted Jiraiya to hear what he had to say. To his surprise, Jiraiya shook his head.

"I don't need an explanation. While teaching you I've learned enough about your past. Listen, the only way you'll be able to come back from being half dead," Jiraiya said while walking to a nearby chair, "is to actually want to find yo—the Yodaime and bring him back for yourself, not just for other people." Naruto sighed and nodded.

"Why would I want that guy back? He sealed the fox into me, and what did I get for it?! Everybody despised me, just because of that," Naruto was surprising himself; he had only told a select few what he really thought and this time it was rushing out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

Jiraiya sighed out and hoped that he wouldn't have to revile everything to Naruto before the day ended. "Naruto, he never meant to do that to you. He wanted everyone to look upon you as a hero."

"But that's not how it worked! Why me, of all people? It was probably because I was an orphan that nobody would have cared about regardless."

"Naruto! You had just been born." Naruto's eyes widened at Jiraiya's statement but it made sense.

Naruto hung his head to hide his eyes again; the familiar stinging was bothering him. "Then why?" he asked more to himself to anyone else.

"There were a few reasons, but I think you should find the Yodaime and ask him yourself," Jiraiya answered. The door slid open and Jiraiya looked immediately at Naruto; he had already put his mask back into place. A distinctive clack came from Tsunade putting down a few medical supplies on a metal tray. However, Jiraiya wasn't ready for her to start just yet. "Tsunade," Jiraiya mumbled, "can I talk to you for a minute?"

Tsunade placed the rest of the supplies down gently and walked out after Jiraiya. The door slid shut and Tsunade looked at Jiraiya. "What is it?"

"I'm worried."

"And so am I. He could never wake up," Tsunade said sternly.

"Not about that," he surprised Tsunade. When she stared at him questioningly he realized she wanted an explanation. "Well, has anyone with two souls ever been placed into a coma?"

After a moment of thinking, Tsunade answered, "No, not that I'm aware of. Why? You don't actually think that—"

"I do," Jiraiya interrupted. "It is plausible. Without a soul to control his body, Kyuubi could very well escape from his subconscious and control his body."

"…" Tsunade was silent for a few moments until Jiraiya grabbed both of her shoulders. "Should I put him through this?" she murmured to herself.

Jiraiya placed a finger under her chin and made her look at him. "I think it'll be good for him. But with only a few people aware of his condition, we wouldn't be able to stop him if he would happen to rampage."

"It would be best to try and fix the seal first by ourselves, wouldn't it?"

"No, we wouldn't know what we were doing. The Yodaime created the seal himself; let him fix it." The hallway had nearly cleared, but there were still several people present within a good hearing distance. Jiraiya wondered if anyone had overheard their conversation but that thought was thrown aside when he felt Tsunade's shoulders start to quiver. He wasn't sure if it was because she was cold or what, but what he did know was that she needed him to comfort her.

When Tsunade found herself in the pervert's embrace, she wasn't sure what to think or what to do. So, she naturally took her normal approach to such a thing. "You pervert!" she yelled before punching him away. It wasn't the hardest punch she could muster, but it wasn't gentle either.

"Man, you sure are hard to comfort," Jiraiya muttered as he pulled himself out of the wreckage that was previously known as a cart. Several onlookers scooted away fearful for their own lives, and a few others stayed back with wide eyes. Only Shizune sighed and walked away; this was a pretty normal day for her.

"Please don't kill him, Tsunade-sama!" She yelled over her shoulder before she turned a corner. Tsunade stood up and brushed off her clothes, completely disregarding Jiraiya's new need for medical attention. She slid open the door to Naruto's room yet again but this time saw a very surprised and guilty looking Naruto.

Glancing around the room, Tsunade easily placed that Naruto had moved his bed, grabbed a sharp object from the tray of medical supplies, and had started trying to cut himself out of the rope. "Dammit, that was sterile."

Naruto smiled sheepishly and looked out the door. "What was that just now?" he asked regarding the loud crash he had heard after a muffled shout. Tsunade shrugged.

"Coulda been anything. Now then," she mumbled while picking up a large tube, "do you want me to place these uncomfortably into your body before or after I place you into the coma?"

Naruto gulped. "After?" Tsunade placed the tube gingerly back onto the table and grabbed a large amount of pills.

"Welcome to your medicine induced coma," she said after placing the pills in front of Naruto. He looked down at his hands and then up at the rope tying him down. Tsunade turned around to stare at him. "Well?" she asked sternly. Naruto glanced past her to see Jiraiya hanging onto the door sill for dear life.

"Tsunade, dammit, you broke my leg."

"Please. It's nothing more than a fracture. Maybe a pulled muscle."

"You punched me into a metal cart!"

"Doesn't mean your leg's broken."

"You're an evil medic."

"I get that sometimes."

"Damn Tsunade…"

"Why the hell did you hug me anyway?"

"You were shaking!"

"It's freaking cold in here! Have you heard that ancient AC?"

"Who can't?"

Naruto tried to stifle a laugh while the two Sannin fought. It even reminded him of Sakura and himself a little bit. "Hey, Tsunade," Naruto asked. He was surprised when both adults stopped mid-sentence to listen to him. "I can't take the pills at this rate."

"Why not?" Tsunade snapped.

"I'm tied down to the freaking bed!" Tsunade laughed a little and then untied the poor blonde so he could take the pills.

An urge to run filled Naruto, but he forced it away. "Kit, don't do it! You don't have a reason for yourself to find this guy, so you won't come back."

You obviously missed out on a very important conversation, Naruto replied but he set the pills down for a minute. The two Sannin didn't notice as they were back to arguing. Why do you care anyway? I probably won't end up dying. Well, my body won't anyway.

"I do not know what will happen with this procedure. I may be pulled into the plane between living and dead with you, which would be quite troublesome," he mumbled before clawing at the cage.

Tsunade looked over at Naruto and noticed that he was either distracted or deep in thought. It was probably the first, but she didn't know his true potential. "Naruto, do you want to think it over for a day before trying this?" The blonde didn't respond. Worrying, Tsunade gently placed a hand on his shoulder and he immediately straightened up and blinked.

"Huh?" he asked groggily, almost as if he was just asleep.

Tsunade sighed deeply and repeated herself. "We don't need to do this so quickly. We could try other ways of fix—"

"No, I'm fine," Naruto smiled at her. "I just don't know if I should do this just yet," he murmured. "Maybe I'm just over thinking this situation." Tsunade was puzzled by Naruto's words.

"I never thought I'd hear Uzumaki Naruto utter those words. You always act on your gut instinct, don't you?" Naruto nodded in response. "Then just do that," she smiled.

Naruto nodded and looked down at the small pills. "Is this all it takes to put me into a coma?" Tsunade shook her head.

"No. Those just knock you out hard enough so that I can put tubes into you and then place the drugs directly into your bloodstream that will put you into the coma," Tsunade explained. With each new piece of information, Naruto winced for himself.

"Sounds painful, but my gut says to do it!" he smiled before swallowing the pills hard. "How long until they start working?" Jiraiya stared at Naruto and instantly had regrets for his student.

"Give them a minute or—" Tsunade stopped mid-sentence when she heard the bed nearly jump off of the floor. "That was fast," she muttered before glancing over at Jiraiya. "Unless you feel like helping, get out."

"I'm leaving," Jiraiya said quickly before limping out of the room.

"I could've used the help," she muttered to herself, "but he wouldn't have enjoyed it at all." With that, Tsunade set to work.

Note: Yeah. Sorry if my writing kind of goes a little crappy from now. I have caught an illness. Anyway, the plot will start moving soon and I hope it'll grab people's attentions. Well, hope you enjoyed! Thank you to the people that have reviewed and such. R&R please.

Till next week, Elizabet639.