It appears that Chapter 2 has arrived sooner than I expected. ^^
Thanks to everyone who decided to read, follow and/or review! You're all awesome!
Disclaimer: I do not own "Naruto" or any affiliated characters; all such belong to Masashi Kishimoto.
Chapter Two
"Haruno-san, Haruno-san!" called a frantic voice, seemingly far off. Sakura groaned and lifted her head from her office desk, having once again fallen asleep after another of her late night paperwork sessions. Rubbing her face to get the blood flowing, as well as succeeding in wiping away some smudged ink, Sakura attempted to focus blurry eyes on the subject before her. The nurse was fidgeting, obviously upset and anxious, shifting from foot to foot and wringing her hands as she waited for her superior to awaken enough to take in her next words.
"Yes, what is it?" Sakura sighed, pushing herself from the desk and stretching, smiling in satisfaction at the various pops resounding from her cramped muscles. As she lowered her arms, the nurse stated hurriedly, "We have a Genin squad of patients being emitted as we speak; there was a horrible accident and two are in critical condition."
Sakura's eyes widened briefly before she sprang into action, hurrying around her desk and grabbing her lab jacket as she inquired, "What sort of accident?" The two left the office in a rush as the nurse explained what she knew, as well as where each of the Genin were being treated and the extent of their injuries. Sakura's eyes narrowed as she listened to the seriousness of the situation before she barked out orders for the nurse to follow, she herself hurrying down towards ICU to do what she could for the most critical patient.
XxXxXxX
"I'm here to report, Granny."
Tsunade snorted softly and waved her hand at Naruto for him to continue. He handed her his paperwork detailing his most recent mission while quickly going over the events that had taken place. All in all, he described a successful mission and once he was finished, Tsunade nodded in satisfaction.
"Good, I'm glad it was a relatively quick and easy mission for you." She leaned back in her seat, crossing her arms under her bosom and letting out a deep sigh. Naruto raised a brow at the woman and waited, knowing she was likely about to give him a new mission. He'd been gone for a few days now, the majority of his mission consisting of excessive traveling. He was itching to get home, shower, eat some Itchiraku's ramen, and then go back home to sleep.
"I have a...new mission, of sorts, for you." Tsunade finally told him, her eyes adverted from his as she pretended to gaze out the window over the village. Naruto's brows shot up in surprise at her tone; she seemed tired, exhausted really. Her eyes were sad, which was likely why she didn't want to look at him directly. Naruto's own blue eyes narrowed; what would this new mission entail?
"A new mission? Already?" he asked in a whiney voice, just to attempt to bring Tsunade back to her old self. Her gaze flickered to his, amusement evident. She knew as well as he that he rarely complained about having missions back to back, especially if they were potentially difficult. Unable to help himself, Naruto grinned, pleased to see the sadness drain from her gaze, if only briefly.
"Yes, and it could be rather difficult in its own way." Tsunade continued, placing her elbows on her desk, her chin on her hands, as she watched him. "Really, I suppose it's more of a favor..." She trailed off, frowning and rubbing a hand over her eyes in agitation.
Naruto's grin faded, a frown replacing it as he stepped forward cautiously and asked, "Granny? What's wrong?"
"While you were gone, there was an accident during one of the Genin squad's Chunin Exam testing. Sakura was the head physician at the hospital and had to rush to tend to the emergency. All three Genin were injured, though only two were in critical condition," Tsunade glanced back up to him, her eyes meeting his, though this time they refused to sway.
"She lost one of the children, Naruto."
XxXxXxX
'I can't believe Sakura-chan has been holing herself up in her apartment all this time,' Naruto thought in concern as he stepped up to Sakura's door, knocking. No answer met his request at entrance, so he knocked again, a bit louder, just to be polite. He figured she wouldn't answer, however; Tsunade had said she refused to speak with anyone and became violent if they pressed too hard, having literally thrown some of her friends out of her home when they came to check on her.
"I've sent some of her closest colleagues and friends to check on her, but she either won't answer the door or kicks them out. I haven't had time to check on her myself yet, but I knew you were coming home soon so I thought maybe you could talk some sense into her. I've had Shizune take over Sakura's role at the hospital, but she'll be needed back soon. Do what you can to straighten her out; if you fail, I'll have to make a personal visit."
Naruto grimaced as he recalled Tsunade's words, disliking the ideas that came to mind at how her 'personal visit' to Sakura could play out. Their lady-Hokage wasn't exactly known for her patience. Deciding it was time to check on his teammate, he turned the doorknob, sending a bit of chakra into the lock when it refused to open. Once having successfully broken in, he stepped through the threshold and into darkness.
"Sakura-chan?" he called quietly, blindly feeling the wall for a light-switch. Finding none, he waited until his vision adjusted before walking forward, searching for the pink-haired kunoichi. He called out for her again, reaching the middle of the living room and glancing around him in order to familiarize himself as best he could in the dark, listening intently for any sign of Sakura's response. Silence continued to greet him.
"Sakura-chan, it's me, Naruto..." he trailed off, feeling stupid for announcing who he was. Obviously she would know his voice...
Something shifted in a room to his right and he turned, approaching a dark doorway, cautiously peeking around the entrance to investigate its belongings. The curtains had been drawn tightly across the window that occupied the opposite wall, blocking any light that might have managed to sneak its way inside. Naruto squinted but was finally forced to admit he was unable to see anything in the deep darkness. The sun had set not long after he'd visited the Hokage Tower, so even had the curtains been open, there would have been little light to see by.
Stepping quietly and quickly into the room, he hurried over to the curtains and pulled them apart, allowing moonlight to fill the room with its silvery rays. Satisfied, Naruto turned to survey the room, realizing it was Sakura's bedroom; said female was laying in a fetal position under a pile of blankets on her bed.
Naruto grimaced at how sickly she looked; her skin was pale, made more prominently so by the moonlight and the dark circles under her eyes. Her usually shiny, trademark pink hair was lank from sweat and lack of washings. He spotted a multitude of sake bottles littered across her floor and bedside table. Sighing, he approached her bedside, the bed dipping inward as he sat beside her still form. Gulping a bit, he reached out and shook her shoulder to wake her.
"Sakura-chan, you need to get up." No response. Naruto shook her again, a little more forcefully. Sakura groaned and rolled over onto her back, bleary eyes cracking open to find out who was disturbing her. Naruto gave her a small, hesitant smile and said softly, "Hey, Sakura-chan."
"Naruto...?" she squinted at him a moment before frowning, anger and anguish overcoming her features. She pushed his hand away from her and turned back onto her side, facing away from him. "Go away," she mumbled, burying her face into her pillow.
"Sorry, no can do. Granny Tsunade sent me to check on you." His blue eyes studied her sadly. He'd never seen Sakura like this and it didn't settle well with him. Determined, he grabbed the blankets and yanked them off of her. Her body convulsed with the sudden change of temperature and a low growl emitted from her throat. Muscles tense, Naruto waited for her to attempt to kick him out.
"Leave me alone," she growled, groping blindly for her blankets. Naruto tossed them to the end of the bed so that they drooped over the edge, out of her reach. Another growl, longer and louder this time, was heard but he ignored her by standing and finding his way to her bathroom. Flipping on the light, he proceeded to start the shower, setting the temperature until it suited him before returning to Sakura's bed.
She had sat up, her head in her hands, unkempt hair falling around her face, blocking her expression from him. From the various growls and groans coming her way, though, he could tell she was quite unhappy with him. Sighing, he picked his way across the minefield of sake bottles on the floor until he once again stood next to her bed, hands on his hips impatiently.
"C'mon, time to come back to reality," he murmured, reaching out to help her up. Her hand blurred as it smacked his away forcefully; he winced, jerking back and cradling the bruised limb. Sakura let her own hand drop before growling at him, "Go away. I don't need you here."
"Looks like the opposite, if you ask me." He replied, thinking he was seriously insane to be reaching out to her again. This time he managed to grab hold of her wrist and tug gently, though she refused to move. Huffing with impatience, Naruto tugged again more forcefully before Sakura yanked away, batting at his hand again. He jerked back in time to avoid having his hand abused yet again, replacing both on his hips as he glared at his teammate.
"I didn't ask you," she murmured, finally looking up at him. Naruto sucked in a breath; her usually bright eyes were dull, almost unseeing. His heart clenched; he hated seeing that look in her eyes, the look of loss and hopelessness. Biting the inside of his lip, he reached out once more and grabbed both of her wrists, hauling her up until she was on her knees, her eyes level with his chin. He ducked his head so that their eyes could meet evenly and stared hard into her dull jade orbs, waiting until she finally met his gaze.
"Whether you want me to be or not, I'm here. Get up. You need to pull yourself together. The hospital needs you." He told her, tone hard and broking no argument. Sakura's eyes narrowed, anger and grief flashing at his tenor and words; however, it was better than the dull nothingness than before, Naruto thought. They stared each other down a few more moments before Sakura bit out, "Let go of me. I can do it on my own."
Naruto grunted but waited until she planted her feet on the floor before he released her fully. She sneered at him and started forward a few steps before stopping, hunching at the waist and groaning. Naruto was by her side in an instant, asking what was wrong.
"Too...much...sake..." she gasped, her features paling even more, sweat beading on her forehead. Her cheeks puffed out as she gagged, trying to quickly swallow the bile that threatened to make itself a new decorative part of her floor. Naruto wrapped his arms around her, helped her straighten as much as possible and rushed her to the restroom only seconds before she dropped to the tiles, spilling the contents of her stomach into the toilet.
Naruto held her hair back from her face in silence, rubbing soothing circles on her back as she continued to dispose the alcohol from her system. When her retching finally subsided, she slumped against him, drained of strength. He grabbed a washcloth from the edge of the bathtub, allowed it to get wet from the shower spray before wiping her face and neck gently. She lay against him as he did so, eyes closed and body limp from exhaustion. When he was done Naruto tossed the washcloth into the sink and stood, pulling Sakura up with him.
"Do you think you can shower?" he asked quietly, arm wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her close to support her. At her nod, he helped her support herself against the sink before slipping out of the bathroom to wait until she was done, closing the door behind him.
Finally finding the light-switch, he proceeded to occupy time by gathering and disposing of the many sake bottles littering her room, as well as making the bed and setting out a clean shirt and pajama pants for her, flushing at the thought of trying to locate a pair of panties...
Shaking the thought from his head, he left the bedroom to find the kitchen; it took a few moments to locate the switch for the light, but once he did he set about finding some food that wouldn't further upset Sakura's already sensitive stomach. Slightly out of date crackers and barely a glass of ginger ale completed that task; he set the items on the small table, running a hand through his hair as he wondered what to do next.
'She'll probably have a killer headache after all that sake,' he thought, already beginning to rummage through her cabinets for the appropriate medication. He had just found the pill bottle when there was a dull thump from the bathroom. Setting the bottle on the table next to the ale, he hurried back into Sakura's bedroom and knocked on the bathroom door.
"You okay, Sakura-chan?" he called, concern evident in his voice. When the kunoichi didn't respond he debated with himself on the safety of entering the bathroom while she was still in there. A few seconds later he cautiously entered the steamy bathroom, focusing his eyes on his feet as he inquired, "Sakura-chan?"
Quiet sobs reached his ears and he momentarily forgot to be respectful, hurrying to the shower stall; he stopped just short of yanking back the shower curtain, remembering himself just in time. He sat on the toilet instead, sighing, and said quietly, "Let's talk about it."
"There's nothing to talk about!" she cried, sniffling. By the shadow behind the shower curtain he could tell she sat in the tub, knees drawn to her chest. Her head tilted towards him and he listened to her sniffle some more before prying again, "Sakura-chan...you've got to get this off your chest. C'mon, you know you can talk to me about it."
A few more moments he endured his own kind of agony as he listened to her sob before finally she murmured brokenly, "A squad of Genin were emitted to the hospital after a rockslide injured them during the Chunin Exams' second part in the Forrest of Death; it put two in critical condition. A Chunin who was routinely scouting the area heard the less injured crying out for help and found them before hurrying to bring them in for treatment." Her voice had taken on an empty tone, as though she were reciting a well-memorized speech. Naruto kept quiet, listening intently as she continued, "I was able to save one of the critically injured, but the other...she was just..." Sakura burst into a new fit of sobs, the sound sending chills down Naruto's spine. He waited for her new bought of sobs to lessen before he decided to speak.
"I'm sure you did all you could, Sakura-chan. It would be impossible for you to be able to save everyone who came into your care," he murmured, knowing it wasn't the most comforting thing to say, but the truth nonetheless. Sakura sniffled from behind the curtain, but her sobs had stopped.
"I know...but Naruto..." she paused as if her next words were too difficult to utter. A shaky breath later, Naruto's heart just about stopped as heard her say, "It was Moegi...from Konohamaru's squad."
Yeah...uhm...maybe I should mention a few things about me, if you're a new reader.
1.) I kill off characters. Frequently. ^^;;
2.) I think that this fic is going to be on the...darker side than what was originally planned. That said, Naruto won't always be the goofball and Sakura will have issues of her own. I feel like it makes them more relatable/real.
3.) I realized-belatedly-that I mentioned Sakura's diamond seal in the first chapter . That was an accident; when I first started writing this, it wasn't intended as a story, and I typically write these two in a future setting, after Sakura's seal is basically common knowledge. I've fixed it now, so please think of them as being set in a time period before Chapter 493 (that's the chapter we discover Dark Naruto). I'm not even sure when exactly I've set this ^^;; Before Pein's attack, for certain, though. Maybe a point in time relatively close to Sai's addition to their team? I don't know. It's some AU-ish thing! Roll with it! :D
Anyway, thanks for reading; R&R is always loved and appreciated! :D
~Miah-Chan