Chapter 15: Work

After a week the doctor had determined that Sasuke would be able to go home, but was basically put on bed rest for the next month. While Sasuke generally preferred to be home, but the fact that he was instructed not to go anywhere was driving him crazy. Itachi had told him to take all of the time he needed, that he would be able to handle things at the office, and Naruto had taken an extended leave from work to take care of Sasuke. He just wanted to go back to work and his normal life. The doctor had told him it would be best to take a month off from work to physically recover and not to go back to his normal physical activity until cleared by a doctor. In short, it would be a long recovery process.

He started down at his broken leg, which was the reason for an even longer recovery period. The need for crutches to move around on his own meant that they wanted him to rest longer to make sure his body could handle using crutches. Until then he'd need someone to help him get around to do the normal day to day things he should be able to do on his own. They gave him ointment to help with the healing of the scars left by Orochimaru and the surgery and instructed Naruto on how to help him change the bandages. "We could have just hired someone to be here, you didn't have to take off work," Sasuke told the blond as he changed Sasuke's bandages.

"If you think I'm leaving you alone with anyone else any time soon then you're crazy," he responded, shaking his head at the idea. Naruto was already protective by nature and what had happened had made him even more protective over the other man. "Even if they don't want to pay me, it's not like we couldn't afford it," he told him. His work was paying him for his time off, likely giving him more leeway than they would other people due to it being Sasuke he was taking care of. The power of the Uchiha name never ceased to amaze Naruto. It was like being royalty in their country.

"But you love what you do," Sasuke argued. "I'm sure it'd be better than being forced to stay in and do nothing all day," he huffed.

"Well, I love you more and I need time to process, too," he told him. "Between almost losing you and almost getting shot, my mind keeps playing all the different scenarios of what could have happened, "he admitted. "You won't even tell me exactly what happened, so my mind is just imaging the worst possible things."

Sasuke lowered his head, "All because I was too weak not to fight back that night."

"Hey, look at me," he demanded, gently placing his fingers under Sasuke's chin to make the other man look up at him. "You are one of the strongest people I know and none of this is your fault," he told him, though he could tell Sasuke didn't agree. "So many other people would have broken a long time ago," he said softly.

"I told him to just kill me and get it over with," Sasuke looked away again, not wanting to see Naruto's reaction.

"I think everyone would, you were put in a horrible situation that no one deserves," he responded. "And a lot of people would have tried to kill themselves years ago with everything you've been through," he added, trying to make Sasuke see just how strong he was for even surviving.

"I wasn't strong enough," Sasuke closed his eyes. Naruto was happy that Dr. Tanaka was already on her way for their session. Dr. Tanaka had agreed to home appointments for both men, knowing it would be unlikely that the blond would leave Sasuke alone and they both needed therapy more than ever after what happened. "My weakness made it so Suigetsu got shot and you almost did, too," he held back tears as he thought of what happened. "That was because of me."

"No, it wasn't," Naruto assured him. "That was because of Orochimaru and no one else." The doorbell rang, interrupting their conversation. "That should be Dr. Tanaka," he informed him as he helped him put on his shirt. With his injuries it was easier for him to wear button-ups so Naruto had made Suigetsu go out and buy as many comfortable, pajama button-ups he could find.

When Naruto opened the door Dr. Tanaka greeted him, "How are you, Naruto?"

"I'm okay, come on in," he moved aside to allow her access to the house. "How have you been?" he asked. It had only been a week since they'd last seen each other. Naruto had wanted to have appointments at least twice a week for at least the first month, but Sasuke refused and they compromised on once.

"Good," she told him. "Anything new I should know?" she asked, knowing Sasuke sometimes didn't tell her everything he should.

Naruto sighed, "He's just doing his usual blaming himself. I really wish he'd stop."

Dr. Tanaka frowned, "Naruto, I need you to be honest with me." He looked confused, he was always honest with her, especially when it came to Sasuke's mental wellbeing. "Sasuke may never be the same, are you going to be able to handle it if he keeps blaming himself and becomes closed off more than he was before? His healing process is going to be long and he will probably never fully recover even back to the point where he was before," she told him bluntly. "He went through a lot and I know you don't know everything, I'm still trying to get him to tell me what actually happened," she said.

"Are you asking me if I'm going to leave him because of this?" he asked in disbelief.

She sighed, "I've seen people leave for a lot less," she told him. "I just need you to understand what you're getting into," she explained. "It is going to be a long road and you can't get frustrated with him every time he blames himself or closes himself off. You need to encourage him to open up and try to help him, not get mad at him. He might find ways to numb his pain, but those memories aren't going to just go away."

"I know, we've talked a little about this last time," he reminded her. The week before had been their first discussion since the incident. She had come to see Sasuke in the hospital and talk to Naruto afterwards.

"We'll talk about it more during our session," she told him before indicating for Naruto to bring her to Sasuke. "Hello, Sasuke," she greeted when they walked into the living room. "Do you have somewhere more private we can talk?" she asked, not wanting Sasuke to hold back because he thought Naruto might be listening.

"You can use the office," Naruto told her. "There's a couch and few chairs in there," he helped Sasuke get to the office, placing him on the small couch that Naruto had often laid on when trying to get Sasuke to stop working and come to bed in the past.

"I'm not ready to talk about it," Sasuke said immediately after Naruto shut the door.

Dr. Tanaka expected him to say that, "You'll never be truly ready, but you need to talk about it." She sat across from him, "At least just tell me the basics, you don't need to go into details right now."

He remained silent for a moment, "Fine." She didn't say anything, just let him work up the ability to talk. "I could feel something was wrong when Soma said Jona had gone home sick," he started. "I'm so stupid for going with him," he closed his eyes. "So fucking stupid." She didn't interrupt, not wanting him to stop telling her what happened. "I just remember walking down to my car and the next thing I know I was waking up in some room with my feet and hands bound," he tried not to cry, feeling he'd shown enough weakness already. "He had this chest full of what he called his toys. I don't know exactly what all was in it. He used a whip first, then a knife, and his fists. He held a gun to my head when the police came." She just nodded, encouraging him to continue. "He," Sasuke paused, trying to collect himself. "He threatened to rape me, but he didn't actually do it. I think he was just trying to completely break me first and just didn't have enough time to actually do it." He whipped away a tear that rolled down his cheek, "I don't remember exactly what happened the night the police came, it's all just a blur. The next thing I knew I woke up in the hospital." He closed his eyes, trying not to think too much about it as he took deep breaths.

"You're not stupid, Sasuke," she told him. It wasn't the first time she'd seen a victim blame themself, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. "You had no way of knowing what would happen and you survived."

"Did I?" he asked. "Because I just feel like a shell of myself," he admitted. "He did it, he broke me for good this time."

"You've been through a traumatic event, but you're not broken," she said, knowing better than to try to make physical contact to comfort him. Not only would that be unprofessional, but in his current state of mind he'd probably try to lash out. She didn't want to tell him everything would be fine, but she hoped that in the end he could come out stronger. "He's gone now."

"Not in my mind he's not," he told her. "I hate not being to work. It just gives me time to sit here and think about it and relive it and I hate it. I hate him and I hate myself for all of this."

She knew it would take a long time to get him to stop blaming himself. Some victims never stopped, it was difficult for them to grasp that they didn't do something to cause it to happen. "I have an exercise I want you to try," she told him. "Every time these thoughts of self hate come, I want you to write down at least one thing good about yourself."

"So you want me to be writing all day every day?" he asked. "I can't even think of one good thing about myself anymore," he couldn't make eye contact. He hated being so open and honest.

"It doesn't have to be big things yet. Just little things. Something you've done that you're proud of or something good you learned," she told him. "Something Naruto has told you to remind yourself how he sees you," she suggested. "It doesn't have to be about you, just something that makes you happy if that's easier." She was trying to slowly get him into a better state of mind, to find self love in some way.

"I'll try," he promised, though he'd find it hard to keep it.

After talking with Sasuke for a while, she talked to Naruto. "So, tell me how you're really doing," she said, knowing she didn't have to be as cautious with Naruto as she did with Sasuke. Naruto was generally honest with no issue, while Sasuke's mental state made him withdraw if he felt a line was crossed.

"It's difficult, I mean I almost got shot and Sasuke was seriously injured," Naruto answered honestly.

"I want to continue our conversation from earlier now that I've talked to Sasuke," she told him. "As you know, I can't tell you what we talked about, but I have more of a sense of what he's feeling now," she explained. "You need to know his mental state is not good. As you know, he's blaming himself a lot and I'm worried it will take a toll on your relationship."

"We'll be fine," he told her, certain that they wouldn't let this come between them.

"Naruto, listen very carefully to what I'm going to say," she instructed. "He's holding a lot of things in and when it bursts, it may not be pretty. He may say things he doesn't mean to try to push you away," she told him. "He didn't say it, but I'm pretty sure he doesn't think he deserves you."

"I know," Naruto told her. "It wouldn't be the first time he tried to push me away, but I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to help him through this." He was worried about the fights they might have when it got hard, but he knew they'd work through it no matter what. "I know it'll be difficult and we'll fight, but I'm not going to leave him."

"Is that because you feel obligated to help him?" she asked.

He shook his head, "No, it's because I love him. I'll help him move forward, no matter how hard it gets."

She nodded before moving on to discussing what he'd been through and how he felt. She could tell that he was remaining strong for everyone else. Trauma effected everyone differently. For Naruto, he seemed to be using it as a motivation to move forward and help Sasuke. She was a little worried that one day it'd really hit him and he'd blame Sasuke for what happened, but was hopeful that wouldn't happen.

NS

Itachi was ready to pull his hair out. He'd taken days off when Sasuke was in the hospital and it was catching up to him. The work was piled up and with Sasuke unable to work and Kisame quitting, he had no one to help him. To top it off he knew that Shukaku was planning on quitting, it was just a matter of time before he got a new job and left.

"You look like shit," Kurama said from the doorway.

"What are you doing here?" he asked before looking back down at the documents.

Kurama walked up to him, pulling the paper out of his hands, "I'm here to force you out of this office. It's lunch time, you can take a break and come have lunch with me." He wasn't going to take no for an answer. "Come on, let's go," he demanded, crossing his arms.

Itachi wanted to argue, but his stomach growled, making the other man chuckle. "Fine," he huffed as he got him. "Something quick though, I have a lot of work," he told him, making the red head roll his eyes. "I'm serious."

"Sure," he brushed him off as they walked out of the office. He paused when he came face to face with Shukaku, "Hey."

The other man looked at the two of them and shook his head. He didn't bother responding to Kurama. "Are you going to lunch?" he asked Itachi, not even hiding the distain in his voice.

Itachi nodded, "I'll be quick. I know I have a lot to catch up on."

"I'll just leave this on your desk then," he held up a file. Itachi assumed it was the new deal they were working on. "Make sure to look at it first when you get back."

Itachi sighed when the other man walked away, "Not going to lie, it might be his letter of resignation in that file."

"Has it been like this for long?" Kurama asked as they walked out of the building.

"What do you think?" Itachi responded with a raised eyebrow. The man had been distant and cold ever since the break up. "I know he's looking for a different job, it's been awkward since you two broke up," he told him.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.

"Why do you think I've been so busy?" Itachi sighed. "Kisame quit so I can't have him help me and Sasuke has enough going on, I'm not going to even ask him to work from home. I've been having interviews for new assistants and someone to replace Kisame."

"What about me?" Kurama asked as they walked towards their usual lunch spot.

"What about you?" Itachi responded.

"I could replace Kisame. I'm more than qualified," he explained. "We've already worked on multiple projects together."

"Do you really think that's the best idea?" Itachi asked, hesitant to once again mix business and pleasure. "Your boss might never work with me again if I poach his best employee," he tried to make it seem more about business.

Kurama rolled his eyes, "You and I both know they can't afford to turn down opportunities to work with you, so tell me the real reason you don't want to work together."

"If we're going to explore whatever this is between us, then I don't think it's a good idea to also work together. It gets too messy," he explained as he thought about Kisame.

"But the office sex would be fantastic," Kurama teased.

Itachi shook his head, "If you play your cards right it could still happen, but I don't think working together is a good idea. Too much time together is never a good idea and then I'd be your boss and that can just make things weird."

"Fine," Kurama respected and understood his decision. Itachi didn't have the best luck with working with someone he was involved with romantically and he rather have a relationship with the man rather than work for him. "Just know I will still make it my mission to get you out of the office every now and then for lunch," he told him.

Itachi nodded, happy there wasn't going to be an argument about it. He didn't seem to have any hard feelings over Itachi not wanting him to work with him. "I know you will," Itachi told him, having no doubt that they would still see each other plenty.

"So, you do want to explore this then?" Kurama asked. Now that they had found Sasuke, things were a little different from the last time they talked.

Itachi looked at him, "Hm, you caught that."

"Of course I did," Kurama smirked. "Seriously though, what are we doing?" he asked. "I'll respect your decision either way."

Itachi thought for a moment, "You know I'm difficult to date, right?"

"You're difficult to be friends with," Kurama retorted with a small laugh.

"Well then multiple that by ten when dating me," Itachi responded with out missing a beat. "I will put work and Sasuke first," he told him bluntly.

"Yet here you are at lunch with me rather than at work," he pointed out.

Itachi blinked, not having expected that response. "I'll still put Sasuke before you," he told him.

"You're so dramatic. I'd expect nothing less," he told him.

"I work long hours," he said, thinking of everything that went wrong with Kisame.

Kurama shook his head, "So do I. If you don't want to date me then just say it."

"I'm just telling you that it won't be easy to date me. We're good friends, I don't want to ruin that," he told him. "Plus, we're about to be family, isn't hat a little weird to you?"

"Nothing weird about it, it's not like we're actually related just because they get married. We certainly wouldn't be the first set of siblings to date," he shrugged. "Any other excuses?"

"Saying set of siblings makes it sound incestuous," he told him.

"How else should I say it?" he shrugged. "Either way, it wouldn't be incest and it isn't all that weird," he told him. "Just keeping it in the family," he joked.

"Now you're trying to make it sound weird," Itachi said.

"Maybe a little," Kurama shrugged. "Be honest, do you want to try or not?"

"Okay, we can try," Itachi agreed. "But, we're going to take it slow," he told him. "I have a lot going on right now so going on dates might have to wait."

"Fine with me," Kurama agreed. "Though, we could consider our lunches dates," he pointed out.

"I suppose we could," Itachi appreciated his persistence.

They arrived at the restaurant. Though they had agreed to try dating, nothing else really seemed to change. The banter was the same, as both of them had always been a little flirtatious at times. Kurama helped him relax a little, take his mind off of all of the things he had to do at work. It was odd for Itachi, no one else had ever really been able to take this mind off work that way. All they could do was try and hope everything would work out.