Just one more chapter to go everyone! Hopefully the epilogue won't take too long and be out before the end of the year.

Chapter 17

When Naruto awoke it was to the steady beep of a heart monitor. The teenager groaned as he forced his heavy eyes to open; his head felt fuzzy and his memory of the night before was a blur of colour, sound, and emotions he was too numb to feel. The only sensations he was able to register at that moment were those of light-headedness and exhaustion. Slumber beckoned and he felt inclined to follow.

"Naruto?"

Said teenager's head flopped to the side as he trained his gaze on the speaker. "Haku?"

A smile broke across the dark haired boy's face as he cried, "You're awake! Oh, thank God; we were so worried about you! The doctors said you were going to be fine, but you looked so close to death's door that we thought..."

Sitting beside Haku, Sasuke looked as if he'd been crying. "You're an idiot," he spat, which earned him a punch in the arm from his friend.

Naruto was too exhausted and under the influence of morphine to take any real delight in Sasuke's pain. "What happened?"

Uncertainty flashed across Haku's face as he glanced at Sasuke. "We're not really sure. My father was on-call at the hospital when you were brought in. He sent me a message when he got out of surgery, said a stranger had found you and then disappeared once he'd handed you over to the nurses. He didn't leave a name, just said that he thought you'd been tortured and that the doctors should check for poison. Zabuza texted me this morning to say he'd explain everything tonight, so I'm guessing it was one of them who saved you."

Haku and Sasuke shared another uncertain glance, clearly debating how much more they should reveal. "Guys, please, I want to know everything," Naruto pleaded weakly.

Looking distinctly uncomfortable, Sasuke growled, "The police want to talk to you. They found Iruka's body at your apartment last night, and until you were brought in half-dead you were their top suspect. After finding the Hunter's fake FBI credentials they're now thinking it was a gang-related attack, and are trying to get in touch with the Bureau to find out what case their agent was working on. The Hunter's going to be surprised when he wakes up and finds out he's been arrested for impersonating an agent."

A part of Naruto's brain reminded him that Sasuke possessed numerous family members of varying rank in the police force. The majority of the teenager's attention, however, was focused on one particular detail of Sasuke's tale. "Iruka's really dead then?"

"You didn't know?" Sasuke snapped, a look of guilt briefly flashing across his face.

"It happened so fast; I was hoping he was just hurt not, you know..." Naruto trailed off as his chest contracted painfully. He shook his head and forced himself to ask, "Is Kakashi alright?"

"He came out of surgery before you did," answered Haku. "He's stable, but the doctors are keeping him under close observation. My father mentioned that there was something strange about his condition, but didn't elaborate."

"I'm glad he's alright," Naruto muttered. "He tried to save us, you know, but there were too many vampires. He was outnumbered and I was useless."

"This isn't your fault Naruto," Haku interjected. "They took you by surprise, they invaded your home – they made it so that you wouldn't be able to fight back. This isn't your fault."

"They came after me. Iruka died because I was there and they wanted to hurt me. If it wasn't for me-"

Sasuke stood abruptly and said, "I'm not interested in attending your pity party. This wasn't your fault so don't say that it was. Those bastards were insane; they were sick and twisted and they had no reason to come after you. They're the only ones you need to blame for this. I'm not saying this to make you feel better, I'm saying it because it's the truth. So are you going to keep whining or are you going to grow a pair?"

"You have a terrible bedside manner," Haku murmured. He too rose to his feet and said, "We're going to let you get some sleep. We'll be back soon." Haku tugged on Sasuke's arm, dragging the scowling boy away from Naruto's bedside. The dark haired teenager looked back over his shoulder and added softly, "Sasuke's right: we're not lying to make you feel better. This really isn't your fault." The teenager forced a smile before leading Sasuke out of Naruto's sight.

Alone at last, Naruto closed his eyes. His friends said this wasn't his fault and part of him believed them, but another part couldn't stop feeling guilty. Iruka was dead because he'd been there when they came for Naruto. If Naruto hadn't been there... If he hadn't been there they'd have tortured Iruka for his location, just like they'd tortured Naruto for the sheer fun of it. They'd held a grudge against his dad and taken it out on Naruto and the people he cared about.

It was then that Naruto realised that Iruka wasn't the only innocent victim in this. Kakashi had said that Naruto's mother had not hunted vampires, had even been sympathetic towards them, and yet they had killed her just as they'd killed Iruka. They had killed her to hurt his dad, and yet the deaths of Naruto's parents had not been enough for those monsters. They'd needed to come after the son too, and to hurt the people he surrounded himself with. They'd wanted to cause as much pain as possible, to shed as much blood as possible, and hadn't given a damn that they were killing people who knew nothing of vampires. Such reckless malice made Naruto understand why Kakashi hated vampires. If these had been the vampires he'd been first introduced to, Naruto was sure he would have also viewed all vampires as monsters. Luckily, he'd found a few good vampires to teach him not to be so narrow-minded; Kakashi hadn't been nearly so lucky.

Thinking about Gaara made Naruto wish that the vampire was there with him. He understood why he wasn't – it was daytime and Gaara had gone to ground to avoid the sun. As soon as night fell Naruto had no doubts that the vampire would come to the hospital to check on him and reassure him that he was alright.

The thought made Naruto smile and allowed him to relax. His mind began to drift, and his thoughts turned away from the image of Gaara watching over him as he slept towards that of Iruka's body going limp as his neck was snapped. Naruto shuddered and desperately pushed away the memories of the previous night that were marching insistently towards his consciousness. Instead he cuddled close to older memories, happier memories, of time spent with his guardian. The reminiscing helped to lull him back to sleep, to shed a few silent tears for Iruka. In repose he found the time to begin his mourning of a man he had loved like a father and who he would sorely miss.

Naruto was roughly dragged from his dreams by an insistent hand on his shoulder. He yelped and tried to scramble away from the man bathed in the shadows of the hospital's night lights, but the stranger's grip held him still. Flashing back to the previous night, Naruto opened his mouth to scream. The man's free hand shot forward to block the cry for help, sending Naruto deeper into the depths of panic. Only the sound of an annoyingly familiar voice was able to drag the blond back to the firm ground of calm rationality.

"Naruto, it's me."

The teenager ceased struggling and looked hard at the blood-red eyes of the man pinning him to the bed. "Kakashi?" he murmured against the hand still covering his mouth.

The hand was removed, and a small light beside the teenager's bed was switched on. The added illumination revealed that it was indeed the Hunter hovering above him. Seeing that the blond teen was no longer panicking, Kakashi carefully released his hold on Naruto's shoulder and took a seat on the edge of his bed. The Hunter then gave Naruto a wan smile that revealed a single pearly white fang. Naruto's eyes widened dramatically.

"Holy shit, you're a vampire."

A hint of amusement entered the Hunter's smile at that. "A parting gift from the vampires who took you."

For a long moment Naruto just stared at him.

"You're bleeding."

Kakashi glanced down at his gradually darkening bandages. "I am."

"Shouldn't you be in bed?"

"I should," Kakashi replied with his usual ironic smile. "However, the FBI has informed the local police force that they have no active agents in the area, and are at present sending a team to investigate me. I need to leave before they arrive in the morning. I might be able to temporarily incapacitate the night guard who never thought I'd be able to break out of my handcuffs, but there's no way I'll be able to deal with a whole team of professionals, especially if they decide to shine a little sunlight on my situation. It's best I leave now before I inadvertently inform a government agency of the existence of vampires."

"If you need to leave why are you here talking to me?"

"I wanted to say goodbye. And to apologise. I might not know what happened last night after I lost consciousness, but I can guess. Gaara saved your life; I was wrong about him."

Naruto raised a sceptical eyebrow. "Is this a hallucination? You're actually apologising? You're not going to say that this is all some elaborate scheme and he only saved me so that he can have his wicked way with me later?"

Kakashi's ironic smile was back. "I suppose it might be a scheme. However, I'm not sure if I'm the right person to speculate on such things. Despite all my efforts to keep Gaara away, he was the one who saved you. I still might not like him, but I can't help but respect him. I know that he'll keep you safe while I disappear for a bit; and when I come back hopefully my parting gift will put me in better standing with the both of you."

"Gift?"

"Last night, when Iruka said that your parents entrusted you into the care of someone else, and that that person refused to accept the responsibility of raising you...I was that person." Kakashi sighed regretfully and ran his fingers through the wilderness of his hair. "I know it's not really an excuse, but I had recently lost my old mentor and my closest friends to vampires. I was filled with loathing and the desire for vengeance. I knew that I could never avenge those I had cared about if I was saddled with a child. I justified not stepping up to care for you by saying that someone else was sure to take you in. I had met Iruka at your parent's funeral and I thought he would make a better parent than I ever would. I convinced myself that Minato would have preferred me to become a protector of innocents rather than a replacement father to his son. I gave you up so that I could seek out the man who had trained Minato, and learn from him how to destroy the murderers of the people I'd loved... I suppose that's another thing I should apologise to you for." Kakashi offered him a rueful smile before continuing. "Which brings me back to my gift. The courts still have me on file as being the one your parents entrusted with your care. After Iruka's death they're likely to call and ask if I've changed my mind about adopting you. You're still underage, after all, and need a guardian. If you like, I could tell the courts that I'm willing to be your guardian, but that I have a few affairs to order before I can take you off their hands. In the meantime, I have a close friend in the area whose custody you should be temporarily released into until I arrive. As he's a lawyer they should be willing to trust him and, if not, I'm sure he will be able to argue his case successfully."

It took Naruto a moment to make the connection. "You're talking about Gaara aren't you?"

Kakashi nodded. "If he thinks his history will hold up to scrutiny then I'm willing to offer up the suggestion. I feel you'll be safer with him than in some unknown foster home."

Slowly, a wide grin broke across Naruto's face. "Thanks Kakashi. That's an amazing gift."

"I know," Kakashi replied with a lop-sided grin.

Naruto's grin turned into a frown as he further considered the proposal. "Why are you doing it though? Why do you suddenly feel that me being with Gaara is safer than being somewhere else?"

"I suppose becoming a vampire has offered me a change in perspective," was Kakashi's thoughtful reply. "Admittedly, placing you in Gaara's care is not a decision that gives me any pleasure, but considering the circumstances I feel it to be the safest option. Your vampire has proven himself capable of protecting you, at least to a greater degree than I could, and at this point in time I feel more comfortable relying on the devil I know. I don't have time to investigate whether vampires have infiltrated the foster care system in this city; I'd rather let a vampire I know wants to keep you alive watch over you than risk giving access to one that would much rather see you dead."

"I could always stay with my friends. Haku's parents like me and would be willing to let me stay until something was arranged. Why go to all this trouble to give Gaara temporary custody?"

"Again, devil I know. And I don't know how long I'll need to disappear for; are you sure your friend's parents will want you to stay there for a year or longer?"

"Probably not," Naruto admitted.

Kakashi nodded as if that proved his point. He then checked his watch and said, "I need to go. I'll leave you to offer my proposal to Gaara. I'll send you the number of my new phone, when I buy it, in case you need to contact me."

Naruto nodded. "Any idea where you're going to go?"

Kakashi paused. "The vampire who sired me indicated that it was something he'd done before. After your parents' funeral two of my friends went looking to avenge our teacher's death. About a week later the police found Rin's body. She'd been tortured, murdered, and left for the crows to eat. However, they were never able to locate Obito. I'm starting to suspect that means he was sired too after being forced to watch as they hurt Rin. I think I'm going to use this time to try and locate him. If he is alive then we have a lot of catching up to do."

Naruto smiled, glad that Kakashi had a goal to aim for that didn't involve murdering every vampire he encountered. "Good luck Kakashi. I hope you find your friend."

"Thank you, Naruto; I wish you the same."

With that the Hunter stood and disappeared into the night. Alone again, Naruto considered going back to sleep. He'd spent most of the day sleeping, however, and after his conversation with Kakashi he felt wide awake. Moving his bed into an upright position, Naruto took stock of the small hospital room. It was white, sterile, and bare but for the handful of cards on his bedside table. Even in the dim lighting of the room Naruto recognised Haku's almost feminine handwriting and Sasuke's uptight scrawl. The sight made him smile and wish his friends were there with him.

A sharp knock at the door made Naruto jump. The teenager spun round to face his visitor and saw Gaara hovering at the entrance to his room, a frown marring his face. "What did the Hunter want?" the vampire growled without coming in.

Naruto released a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding and ordered his heart to stop hammering against his ribs. "He wanted to apologise for being an ass and to tell me that he's planning on taking a break from interfering with my love life."

A look of curiosity crossed Gaara's visage as the vampire silently entered the room and took a seat on Naruto's bed. "And what did he claim had prompted this unexpected change of heart?"

"Becoming a vampire, getting shown up by you, needing to disappear so that the feds don't arrest him, wanting to find a friend he thought was dead but might actually be a vampire, and a realisation that he really doesn't know how to handle young people. He's got a proposition for you as well, by the way, but we can talk about that later." Naruto took Gaara's hand in his own and interlaced their fingers. "Thank you, for saving me. I'm trying not to remember what happened but I know it was bad. Thank you for getting me out of there."

"You would have done the same for me."

Naruto smiled weakly. "I would have tried to, but I don't think the story would have had a happy ending."

His brow creased in consternation, Gaara reached out and gently cupped Naruto's cheek. With his thumb he gently traced one of Naruto's new scars and murmured, "I do not think any less of you because you lack my power."

Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but instead of words it was a broken sob that escaped his throat. Gaara's frown deepened as tears began to spill from the teenager's eyes. He pulled the blond into a hug and held him there as Naruto continued to weep.

"Look at me," Naruto half laughed, half sobbed. "I'm crying like a girl on the shoulder of the guy who saved me from the big bad vampires. I guess I am a damsel in distress after all."

"Naruto," Gaara sighed, clearly uncertain what he was supposed to say to make things better.

"Sorry," the teenager mumbled. "It's just that...it was a really shitty night." The blond was quiet for a moment before asking, "It's over though right? I don't have to worry about losing anyone else do I?"

"It's over," Gaara confirmed. "You and your friends are safe. You don't need to live in fear anymore."

Naruto released a noiseless sigh of relief. He closed his eyes and savoured the warmth and security that came from being held in Gaara's arms. As long as Gaara was there he knew that he would be protected. He hadn't realised how much he'd needed that feeling of safety until just now. The trauma of the night before was still fresh in his mind and he hadn't realised how tense it had made him until he was actually able to relax. Naruto told Gaara this and tried not to wince at how pathetic he thought he sounded.

Gaara released his hold on Naruto, and for a second the blond thought perhaps he had sounded so pathetic that Gaara was leaving in disgust. Those thoughts were quickly dispelled as Gaara simply shifted his position so that he was properly situated on the hospital bed. He then pulled Naruto back into a hug and gave no indication that he was planning on letting go anytime soon. Naruto smiled and once again cuddled close to the vampire.

Please Review!

And if there are any questions you think I haven't answered please say so and I will do so in the epilogue.