Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!
Sad beginning, but it'll get better, promise!
Three days later, he arrived in Sunagakure no Sato, presenting the village guards his mission scroll before heading to the Kazekage tower. As he was about to enter the Kazekage's office, he was met with Kankuro and Temari.
"Hey look, we have ourselves an Uchiha we've never seen before, Temari," Kankuro sing-songed, grinning.
Temari looked Ryo over, before asking, "What have you done to yourself, kid? You look like the walking dead."
"I haven't been feeling well for several months and am only just recovering," he answered vaguely. "I'm here on a mission from Konohagakure no Sato."
"The Hokage sent you on a mission when you're clearly not fit to be outside of your own home, punk?" Kankuro mocked. "I clearly question the nature of this mission."
"Most of my abilities aren't based on physical attributes, Kankuro-san," Ryo countered. "I'm the strongest medical ninja next to the Hokage."
Temari scoffed, "In your condition, I think your chakra has been cut in half. There's no way you'd be able to teach our medical ninjas for more than a few hours before getting chakra exhaustion." She turned away and opened the door to the Kazekage's office and shouted, "Gaara! Some sickly kid your age is saying he's going to teach our medical ninjas! Why didn't you send for Sakura specifically?"
Gaara raised his eyes to his older sister. "I did, but there must be something keeping her in Konohagakure no Sato if Tsunade-sama has sent a replacement. Kankuro, bring him in so he can inform me of the details."
Kankuro grabbed Ryo around the upper arm before pulling him in, and Ryo bowed to Gaara before meeting his eyes. Gaara stared at him for a moment then asked, "Your name?"
"Uchiha Ryo."
"Uchiha Ryo…I recall you participating in my first Chunin Exams. It wasn't seen if you were successful or not. What rank are you?"
"ANBU captain."
"Very good, do you know what happened to Haruno Sakura?"
Ryo dropped his head a little as he stared at his hands, which were locked together in front of him. "Uchiha Sakura was murdered several months ago by a rogue ninja from Kumogakure."
Temari gasped, eyes watering as she tried to keep her shock and sadness in. Kankuro clenched his fists and growled, while Gaara closed his eyes.
"That is a tragedy that will affect both our villages. If she was Uchiha Sakura, I take it she was married to you, since there are no other Uchiha left. Will this have an effect on your work, Ryo-san?"
Ryo shook his head. "No, Kazekage-sama."
"After you unpack at your room at the inn, you may rest and tomorrow you'll begin your duties at the hospital. Temari, I want you to be his guide during his stay here."
Temari nodded. "Sure, Gaara."
Ryo followed her out onto the streets, before she stopped and pulled him into an alley. He blinked in surprise before she cornered him and demanded, "What happened to Sakura that she couldn't heal herself?"
He diverted his eyes and muttered, "Temari-san, this isn't a comfortable subject for me."
She grabbed his chin and turned him to face her. "I can tell that it's killing you, but talking about it might help you so you don't keep it bottled up inside."
"You expect me to confide in you?"
"Is there someone here that's better? I was Sakura's friend before she died, so please, I want to know if she suffered."
He gritted his teeth before slumping over in defeat. "Karin, one of my—close friends, was attacked and Sakura, in a self-sacrificing move, threw herself in the way and was stabbed through her stomach. I chased off the ninja and came back, trying to heal her, but the wound was too extreme and the bleeding wouldn't stop…" His eyes quivered as he lowered his head, his body quivering as he tried to hold in his sorrow.
"No, don't suppress it, I can tell you've been doing that too much, Ryo-san. Please, let it out, on me if you have to."
"I…I failed her, along with the unborn child she carried. My firstborn son."
With that, the dam broke and he was sobbing into her shoulder, while she held him close, murmuring reassuring words into his ear. After a while she began stroking his hair, shushing him as she rocked him a little, like she was trying to calm a child instead of nineteen-year-old man.
"These hands, they only seem strong enough to cause death instead of sustaining life. Why am I so weak?"
"I don't think you're weak, she was just too late to save. There was nothing you could've done."
"I loved her so much, now she's gone…I never thought it would hurt so much…"
"So these past several months you've been mourning for her, but you need to move on, live a happy life that she would want you to have. Maybe I can help you while you're fulfilling your mission here."
He nodded. "Thank you, Temari-san."
She smiled and patted his back before wiping his tears away. "Now, do you think you can make it to your room before collapsing?"
"I think I can manage."
Short but sweet and I think Ryo needed the pick me up.
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