Chapter 6 - Song of bitter water
Tsunade went over her medicine bag, and cycled through medications taking note of the Quantities she had. Disregarding Sasuke' reckless actions, his body was clearly in decline. The medication Hinata had given him would suffice for now, yet she wanted to buy Sasuke some time. Sasuke's current condition had left zero chance her original plan to combat the cancer would be effective enough to keep him alive. So she had to adapt. She began forming a plan to combat Sasuke's condition effectively with the least amount of strain on his weakened form. Taking over three hours she buried herself in her work. This left Hinata to watch over Sasuke, sometimes bringing wet towels to cool his fever. Tsunade doubted she could do anything but slow it down but that was a start. When he awakened she would reveal what information she had for Sasuke regarding the train system.
Hinata watched silently as Tsunade worked using her "Mystical Palm Technique" to great effect. Further While asleep Tsunade administered 3 different medications designed to target Sasuke's cancer cells. They weren't cures but they would suppress the cancer eating at him momentarily. Like chemo his body would not be able to undergo its effects in a prolonged sense. 16 hours after administering the shot of Augmentin into sasuke he opened both eyes, and began throwing up. This followed with a cycle of him waking up , releasing his stomach contents , falling asleep, and repeating. Three cycles more happened before it stopped altogether followed by lengthy sleep. This left Sasuke asleep for another 72 hours.
Tsunade carried him over her shoulders while they traveled. Hinata followed behind until the edge of the land of fire territory where they stopped. Hinata as usual had remained quiet but had kept her eyes on Sasuke. They reached a small village and settled there for the night. As Sasuke was placed in his own room, Tsunade pulled Hinata aside away from prying eyes. In front of Sasuke's room she gave strict directions. Tsunade's eyes were serious yet no malice emitted from them. She just stared at Hinata eyes who immediately flinched.
"I need you to stay with Sasuke whenever we set camp from this point onward, his body is weakening and his pride is too big to admit how vulnerable he is." Tsunade stated bluntly
Hinata's face turned pink as she took in her request.
"Pretend you're married to him, where he sleeps you will sleep…obviously not in the same bed". Tsunade pressed on
Meekly Hinata replied, her body shaking and her face becoming redder.
"Don't worry he has no interest in you, and you have no interest in him" Tsunade clarified
This did not confort Hinata at all, she squirmed at the thought. Tsunade would have never dared ask this of Ino, Tenten and Especially not of Sakura. But Hinata was different and there was no need to worry.
"But lady Tsunade…..Why can't he stay with you?" Hinata asked humbly
Tsunade looked down to the floor for a moment, as her mind immediately returned to the memory of her drunken slip.
"I can trust you with Sasuke's Life Hinata" Tsunade replied firmly
"But don't you trust yourself to watch Sasuke?" Hinata replied quickly
It was more of a sudden burst of words rather than a coherent thought. Still Tsunade felt it jab at her heart. Her face turned to a frown before normalizing after a moment.
"Hinata, that is a direct order, I requested you before the mission started because I knew you wouldn't have any issues with Sasuke and vice versa." Tsunade stated in a matter of fact tone. Tsunade returned to her room and walked past her dresser. Her sake bottle was a quarter full stationed above it . She gave it a single once over and headed for the showers.
Hinata gave a single nod confirming her acknowledgement. She entered the room they had left Sasuke in and closed the door. She slid down the door and rested on the floor. Her fingers currassed her headband. She could hear Sasuke's shallow breathing and looked over to him. A single thought ran through her mind. What would Naruto think when he heard she had shared a room with Sasuke the entire mission?
Sasuke sprung up from his bed as if waking from a terrible nightmare, only to feel pain in his midsection. He had forgotten the many sessions of him releasing the contents of his stomach. He turned towards the corner of his room when he spotted Hinata. She had been reading a book in the corner. She looked surprised to see him up. Her eyes widened and a soft smile formed on her lips. It was a friendly smile. Sasuke gave a single nod and pulled the covers off of himself. He immediately felt the difference in temperature. It was absolutely chilling, and he knew it due to his weakened state more than the actual temperature.
"I need to change," Sasuke said in a matter of fact tone.
Hinata without thinking placed the book down and walked towards him. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at this. But before he could say anything Hinata recovered from her momentary stupor. And paused mid step suddenly aware of the moment . Her face turned bright red and she turned away.
"Morning Sasuke kun, i thought you might have needed help but then i remember you don't need help….so i will tell Tsunade you're awake and ready" Hinata blurted out in a flurry of words. She couldn't get out of the room faster if she tried.
Before Sasuke could mount a reply she wobbled her way out the door. She thanked the heavens she didn't faint there from embarrassment. She found herself running half way to Tsuande before she calmly stopped herself and walked.
Tsunade found herself staring at the empty bottle of Sake above her dresser before Hinata knocked on her door. Tsunade left her room and along with Hinata walked towards the final member of their trio. Sasuke was found by the two outside waiting for them. Sasuke looked at Hinata over once before his eyes turned to Tsunade. Hinata blushed at this but didn't say a word. The incident was very fresh in her mind. Tsunade raised an eyebrow at this but didn't comment. They ended up deciding to eat breakfast at a local restaurant. Once seated away from others in a private section Tsunade began her briefing.
There was no point in inquiring over Sasuke's health as he was far too private to give any useful information to ordered food and Tsunade ordered Sake for herself along with drinks for the others. When their food arrived and they didn't expect anymore interruptions Tsunade began her debriefing.
"Before we met in the bunker I had the elders look over all of Danzo documents again, anything that stood out". Tsunade began
"Danzo" Sasuke muttered to himself. His mind remembering Danzo death.
Tsunade reached for her drink, her hand caressed the cup before she even lifted it. Hinata watched her hand twitch a bit as she gripped the cup. Then her eyes slid over to Sasuke who was so intently focused on Tsunade. She noticed he had even eaten anything yet, which meant he had no chance of recovering his strength. She knew he hadn't eaten in more than three days. She didn't comment on it.
"Many of his subordinates were given curse marks to prevent them from speaking, while the elders I suspect were given limited information for their own safety". Tsunade said in a bitter tone.
"But you found something right?" Sasuke asked in a neutral tone
Tsunade gave a single nod before she gave a quick survey around them. Her hand which hovered around her cup began pressing down. As her fingers pressed against the ceramic cup she looked down. She had already poured herself another cup of sake.
Hinata found herself impatiently wanting to tell Sasuke to eat to keep his strength up but found it difficult. They weren't friends and she didn't want to bring attention to herself. She balled up her hands into fists as she mulled over the issue in her mind. Sasuke, noticing the movement, turned his eyes to her.
Tsunade' eyes widened , and she pushed the cup away from her, nearly knocking it down. This brought attention back to her. But she quickly decided to keep the conversation going.
"The elders found a mention of two words consistently in all the documents Danzo left behind" Tsunade stated
Sasuke looked back towards Tsunade. Tsunade began picking at her food trying to keep herself occupied.
"Chimera and Jorogumo" Tsuande said as she took a mouthful of food into her mouth.
Hinata realized if Sasuke became ill again it would prolong the mission. He needed to eat for his health and for the good of the mission. Hinata decided finally to bluff her way.
She placed her hand on the table and was soon met with Sasuke' eyes. She wanted to buckle immediately but pressed on. Trying not to think about it.
"Both Chimera and Jorogumo were found in the medical reference book they found in the train in the tunneling system" Hinata stated in a small weak voice.
Sasuke turned his eyes to Tsunade to confirm it. Tsunade gave a single nod before turning to Hinata.
"How did you know that?" Tsunade asked a bit amused
Hinata turned to her thankful not to look at Sasuke anymore.
"But its probably not a good idea to tell Sasuke anymore until he has something in his stomach….he hasn't eaten in more than three days". Hinata stated
As she glanced at Sasuke. She wasn't met with anger but instead amusement.
"You want me to eat?" Sasuke asked curiously.
"I know more i can tell you" Hinata insisted
"Tell me?" Sasuke replied
"Eat first" Hinata replied
Sasuke with a smirk took a mouthful of food before eating a second. His eyes watching Hinata in amusement.
Tsunade while they had been speaking felt her chest well up. As if she was holding her breath. She was becoming obsessed, it hadn't been an issue but now that she was trying to withhold it from herself. It became problematic. She exhaled a bit flustered , as she became anxious not because of their situation but because she wanted to drink. It was a deep craving and it disgusted her.
"Well what do you know?" Sasuke asked, calling her bluff.
"The medical reference book my clan recovered listed them as viruses" Hinata replied back. This was the extent of her knowledge.
"Its not just that they are viruses, they are two branches of an original virus created with the purpose of recreating the genetic mutations needed for the sharingan". Tsunade commented
Sasuke began to become irritated as his clan's faces returned to him vividly. Itachi in particular and his sacrifice made his blood start to boil. The idea that they could recreate his clan's greatest treasure in the lab was infuriating .
"It didn't work" Hinata stated confidently
Sasuke turned his eyes to her. Hinata didn't buckle at his gaze. She knew the value both their eyes held. Sasuke on some level understood this because instead of meeting her with fury he met her eyes and then turned back to Tsunade.
Tsunade ran a finger over the rim of her sake cup round and round. She didn't look down but focused on the feeling of the cold rim of the cup. How it felt smooth on her finger.
"The reference book does list it as viruses, but it doesn't elaborate on what kinds of virus they were" Tsunade started with a low tone.
"…but one thing is for certain if Danzo went himself with backup to kill everyone on that train ….then they must have succeeded in some way shape or form". Hinata commented
Sasuke gave a single in agreement.
Tsunade pressed the cup to her lips, her throat was dry she told herself. Her red cherry lips pressed firmly against the cup and awaited the sweet sake to drench the thirst she had.
She met eyes with Hinata and looked away. Like a child caught stealing she felt a sense of shame revive in her.
She looked at Sasuke then.
"Hinata right, you should eat….finish the plate and i will tell you the worst part of all of it"
Sasuke gave her an irritated look. He wasn't about to get bossed around. He was down right irritated and steamed by her comment. But stopped himself mid thought when he saw Hinata lean in to whisper something.
"Lady Tsunade feels guilty about something, I think its something she wants to get off her chest….might be your only chance to make her talk". Hinata whispered.
Sasuke begrudgingly began to eat . He couldn't deny how much it made sense to him.
Tsunade pulled the bottle of sake towards her and poured another drink before doing it again. Three Shots filled her waiting stomach before she stopped. Seeing Sasuke and Hinata staring at her she finally spilled.
"The train system branches out in three areas, excluding the longest train track that goes from the hidden sound village to the hidden rain village". Tsunade pointed out
"So was this intentional or a hidden setup from Orochimaru?" Sasuke asked.
"Can't say for sure but I am certain two of the branches are most likely devoted to the viruses and the third who can say?" Tsunade replied.
"We have a lot of land to cover" Hinata stated as she became concerned over the time needed to cover the land.
"We are close to one of the entrances of the tunnels, aren't we?" Sasuke asked.
"We are near the hidden rain village". Hinata replied.
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