.: HOWLING LOVE :.
Chapter Seven xx Awake
He was just as perfect as she remembered.
Perhaps even better.
The moment passed in slow motion, like a fluttering wisp of a dream. The now very human figure that lay unmoving amongst the throng of sheets and blankets seemed completely unreal to the Haruno, like if she were to reach out a tentative hand to touch his silken cheek that it would waver and fade from existance. The slumbing figure next to her was fragile, and that if she made any sudden movement or noise that it would completely disappear.
Was it wrong that she wished not to wake him? Was it wrong that she didn't shake him to tell him the good news? Was it wrong that she purposely put it off so that she could enjoy a few simple moments of tranquility with him before he woke up and... She felt the back of her neck tingle her memories flickered to the last time they'd met, both as humans.
Naruto, as strong as he always tried to be, had never really recovered from the incident. It had hurt both of them to be so painfully rejected from their old team mate, and it hadn't helped that the prodigy had paralyzed Sai and Naruto, tried to kill Sakura, stabbed Yamato, broken through a solid wall, tried to kill them all using a new jutsu of his, then teleported away using a strange forbidden fire jutsu...
Her train of thought meandered off to the side as she hesitated, feeling a twisting dread roiling about in the pit of her stomach, and she wrapped her arms protectively about her middle to qualm them. Why was she doing this for him? She should just leave him behind, or better yet, knock him out and drag him to Konoha where the interrogation and torture squad could do as they saw fit...
That was almost too cruel.
She returned her focus to the unconscious individual before her, tracing invisible lines over the contours of his porcelain face with her glimmering viridian hues.
He was like some sort of angel. His face was like a masterpiece that an artist might chisel from marble; it was completely and utterly flawless. His skin was such so white and pale that it seemed to almost melt into the sheets nestled around it. His closed eyes seemed to just drip with a defined sort of beauty and grace, like even in sleep he still had the ability to emanate whatever mood he wished. His brow was perfectly serene and straight, for for once he seemed not to have a care in the world. His nose was long and straight, then down to the thin line of his lips where a soft breath would occasionally escape along with the gentle rise and fall of his chest. The curve of his jaw was sharp, very masculine, and ended with his dignified chin.
The thick, raven-black hair suddenly fluttered as another breath passed his lips, leading her ears to linger on the thick bangs that framed the portrait of his face so perfectly. The spikes that had always been in a complete disarray behind his head were even more tousled than they'd been the last time she'd seen him, and it took great deal away from his intimidation factor.
His rumpled white yukata had fallen from where it would normally lay upon his shoulders down towards it elbows so that the bulk of his torso was completely exposed to the elements of the room. The Haruno found her expression contorting into one of distraught as she noticed the complicated maze of scars, cuts, and bruises that covered the majority of his chest.
Her eyes lingered on a particular bruise that was a deep, flushed violet and red, and knew immediately, due to her extensive medic training, that beneath were several torn muscles and tendons. Her expression turned to one of defiance as she pulled his shirt up to cover the bruise without receiving a response, and she silently decided that she would heal the wound.
I will no longer be a hindrance.
So the Haruno moved away from the bedside, slipped into her pajamas, laid out her sleeping roll on the leather couch, turned off the lights, and snuggled right in.
She fell asleep with a smug grin plastered onto the corners of her gleeful face.
The morning was unusually quiet. The harsh chatter of the townspeople outside was inaudible, no dogs barked, and only a few sparce birds sung out their longing melodies.
The pinkette wasn't at all aware of her surroundings as she mumbled something low and incorherent before she rolled over on the couch, burying her sleeping face into her pillow. Her little cocoon of blankets fit snugly around the curves of her body, and she dared not move away from the the perfect temperature that was now completely enveloping her skin. She was still blissfully unaware of the world, smiling stupidly into her pillow, when she felt the inexplicable feeling of someone watching, which instantly pulled her reluctantly from her slumber.
She turned her head grudgingly, now laying on her stomach so that the side of her face was somewhat mashed in a discontent frown against her pillow as she glared at the hotel room. Her eyes traveled from the empty king-sized bed, to the nightstand, to the TV, and then to the hazy figure of a person framing the doorway.
Sakura rubbed her eyes to clear the wary blur that had formed over her eyes from sleep.
And then she really saw him. His eyes were wide open now; flickering and dancing with a pent up fire that yearned to break lose from within the seething midsts. The onyx cores were so loomingly deep that they seemed to truly be just endless pits of roiling and tossing emotion... She felt butterflies tremor through her stomach as she gazed into them, feeling oddly exposed and vulnerable.
The liquid obsidians narrowed slightly, a hint of suppressed suspicion flickering through them in the form of a gleam before quickly passing, leaving behind only an annoyingly-smug smirk.
Sakura frowned at him, raising an inquisitive eyebrow.
Though she managed to keep her expression steady, a flurry of emotions and questions were whisking dejectedly through her mind: When did he wake up? How long as he been watching me? How long have I been out? What was his reaction? What will he say? What should I say? What should I do?!
It was all rather confusing, at any rate.
So to ease the wanderings of her baffled mind she chose to study the infinite beauty of this boy's entire being as she had the night before. This calmed her considerably.
The prodigy's pale, porcelain skin almost glowed in the dark, unlit space between rooms, contrasting against the overwhelmingly fierce, obsidian gems that gazed down at her. His face was so perfectly symmetrical, so perfectly unmarred and smooth, with those jutting cheekbones and his arching brow. His raven bangs hung in a wet, disheveled frame about his alabaster face, spiking to an end just before the angular jut of his jaw slanted away towards his chin.
She assumed he'd taken a shower before continuing her scrutiny.
His eyebrows were pointed slightly downward, almost in an critical fashion, though they instantly loosened into an ever-more amused expression when their eyes made sparking contact.
He wasn't wearing anything resembling a shirt, and the perfectly toned muscles of his torso almost rippled as he shifted his weight to lean on the door-frame. Again his bruise came into view, and she held back a shudder as the muscles there refused to flex when moved and instead twisted into a painful looking knot beneath the skin. He didn't seem to notice.
She felt her cheeks flush scarlet as she realized that she must have been staring at younger Uchiha for at least five whole minutes.
The thick sinews of his tricep tensed slightly as he rested a fair amount of weight onto his elbow, bending his forearm back so that the back of his hand rested nimbly on his forward, palm facing out. His fingers were long, delicate, yet at the same time they seemed rough and powerful, capable of killing with just a simple flick. He seemed at ease, completely unaware that she was analyzing every move, watching the stunning brilliance of his every breath..
And he was still staring at her.
The kunoichi worked her tongue around behind her lips, grappling for something to say. But really, what was there to say? Her old team mate, her close friend, the man whom she had been so madly in love with for so long, the guy who had given up his entire life in search for greater power... He was right here.
The young prodigy was right in front of her, just standing nonchalantly across the room, completely human and relatively healthy. She inhaled sharply, struggling for a moment as she found all breath escaping her.
Sakura sat up slowly, holding half of her warm blanket around her shoulders as she hugged the rest to her chest. He threw a questioning glance at her movements, his liquid-onyx hues contracting slightly as they examined her and then expanding once more after seeing what she was doing.
Her heart was hammering against her chest as she finally mustered up her strength and spoke.
"I honestly didn't think it would work..." Her voice fluttered out in soft chimes, full of a far-off wonder. She pulled out Sasuke's necklace slowly and held it out to him before continuing, "It's in the necklace; the jutsu, I mean. You just had to take it off." She said it simply, like it was a matter of fact.
The prodigy watched her closely, obviously deciding whether or not to approach her and take a look at the chain for himself. His eyes finally narrowed in defeat to his curiosity before he swiftly glided across the room, and then every so gently removed the trinket from her outstretched palm.
He stared at it for a moment in his hand, his brow knit together in concentration as he rolled it about with his fingers.
"Hn."
He continued to study it until his expression hardened into a dark stone, and his fist closed harshly around the silver, blocking it from view. He stowed it silently and quickly into a pocket in his baggy sweats, his eyes now completely unreadable.
The Haruno didn't say anything, hoping that giving him time to think would make him warm up. She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin atop them, her glittering emerald eyes watching him cautiously.
The silence was intiminating, and she felt incredibly out of place just by sitting there. His expression hadn't much changed either.
"You okay?" Her voice was soft as she watched his eyes alighted with a fiery rage of fury. She felt awkward saying it, breaking the uncomfortable silence as she had, and did she really have a right to know anyway? It was his own business. The necklace must have more to him than she'd originally assumed, and she felt a large amount of guilt welling up in her gut because of it.
His eyes flicked over to observe her, glinting like steel as they took in the sight of the kunoichi curled up protectively on the couch. He said nothing in reply, and instead turned slowly sat upon the already-made bed across the room. He kneaded his forehead with his knuckles dryly, exhaling roughly.
Seeing that the Uchiha wasn't planning on saying anything, the Haruno slowly slid from the couch, grudgingly extracted her regular kunoichi apparel from her bag on the floor, then continued towards the other room.
She stopped in the doorframe and turned to him, finding his eyes inquisitively staring into her own.
"I'm going to clean up..." She gestured towards the bathroom before flitting towards it.
Once inside she quickly closed the door and then locked it for safe measure. She slipped out of her pajamas wordlessly, then hopped into the shower. She rinsed down for a while, enjoying the steamy warmth of the water. She stepped out momentarily, dried off with one of the profided towels, and slipped on her normal attire. Her loose red tank-top felt so natural on her skin as she pulled it on over her bra and bindings, and the jet-black spandex that she had on beneath her fluttering tan skirt fit snuggly against her legs. Next she slipped on her elbow bracers, laced up her boots, and tied her red Konoha headband neatly over her head.
She examined herself for a time in the mirror, feeling quite herself in her usual garb. Her reflection smiled confidently at her before she turned away and exited.
Whatever the day would bring, she would meet it head on. She would bring her old teammate back to Konoha no matter what, this she was sure of.
:D
That was a pretty fast update, for my standards at least. Sasuke-kun isn't much of a talker, but he may warm up. :
I hope you like it. :3
As for the completion of this fanfic, I've decided to continue it. After a long-winded conversation with a couple friends of mine about my new muses we devised a way to sneakily incorporate some of the new ideas with the old ones, so overall this fanfic is going to be a whole lot better. So prepare yourself for an intense couple chapters, coming up soon. ;B
And on a random note: DID YOU GUYS WATCH HEROES?? Older Peter looked a bit ominous with the whole scar-face thing going on, and Claire was totally badass when she tried to shoot him in the beginning, and Mohinder's got some problems now, don't he? Hah, can't wait for next episode. ;D
Please REVIEW and thanks SO MUCH for reading!
-- xxIndigo