A/N: The Hashirama Cell and Sakura, from the moment I had this idea the mutation was going to be painful, that's just how I see altering the cellular make up of the body. Her hospital stay won't be an easy one.
"You don't have to come with me you know." Sakura offered calmly.
"What? You are doing this for me so you can perform the nine tails sealing jutsu; why wouldn't I come with you." Naruto dismissed instantly.
"I know you don't like being bored." She said, smiling at him.
"I'll just worry if I'm not there with you." He admitted quietly.
"Okay, and again thanks for letting me borrow some of your clothes." Sakura kissed him briefly. "And for keeping my parents off my back by transforming a shadow clone." She added with a relieved sigh. "I'd never hear the end of it from them if they knew what I was doing anyway."
"Sure thing, Sakura." He squeezed her hand, smiling affectionately.
"We should go; I don't want to be late; Lady Tsunade insists her time isn't wasted," Sakura said as she put her bag on her back.
"Are you nervous?" He asked gently.
"A little, but I'll be okay." She said confidently as they left Naruto's apartment.
Arriving at the leaf hospital, Sakura walked up to the reception desk, greeted by a woman a few years older than her.
"How can I help you?" She asked.
"I'm here to receive Hashirama cell injections," Sakura said.
"Name please?" She said.
"Sakura Haruno."
"Ah yes, please go to the inpatient and quarantine floor. Once you check-in; a medic will show you how to a long term care room and take pre-procedure data for the hospital's records. If you have anyone staying with you until the procedure begins, they must get a visitor ID at the associated check-in desk." She sounded highly professional.
Checking in on the inpatient floor, Sakura was called and led to a room.
Sakura followed the sound of a familiar voice, "No way, Ino!"
"Come on, Billboard Brow, maybe you can explain what you're doing checking in for a long-term hospital stay!" Her blond friend was too caught by surprise to be professional.
"What are you doing here?" She asked bluntly.
"I was hoping to get more hands-on hospital experience, but I'm not skilled enough at medical ninjutsu to operate, so they have me prepping patients." She explained as she led Sakura into the last room on the right side of the hall. "But never mind me, what gives Sakura, if Naruto came with you I know it's serious, are you seriously sick, or are you going under the knife either way I'm mad you didn't tell me, we're best friends!" She looked offended and hurt.
"It's not anything like that. Haven't you looked at the description on the schedule?"
"It just says long-term hospital stay due to injections," Ino said, folding her arms.
"It makes sense Lady Tsunade would keep it quiet." Sakura muttered quietly.
"Keep what quiet!" Ino asked expectantly.
Sakura told Ino that she was getting Hashirama cells, leaving her best friend quite shocked and speechless, which was rare.
"Sakura, that's crazy," Ino said anxiously.
"Naruto means too much to me to leave taming the nine-tailed fox to anyone else." Sakura said with fiery conviction.
"I've heard of doing anything for love, but I wouldn't do that." Ino admitted with a heavy shrug. "No offense Naruto, but you're lucky." She added quickly.
"I know, I tried to talk her out of it, but she's determined to do this for me." Naruto said, squeezing Sakura's hand.
Ino seemed to realize the time for personal conversation was over. "Well, let's get all your necessary information and vitals, Sakura. Then you can change into a hospital gown; Lady Tsunade will be in shortly after I'm done." She said evenly.
Ino became professional, preparing machines and reviewing Sakura's personal and medical information.
"Thanks, Ino," Sakura told her when she was finished.
"Lady Tsunade normally likes to rotate medics with long-term patients, so I'll get to check on you at least twice every day you're in here." Ino's face split into a wide grin. "You can tell me how your date went!" She glanced knowingly at Naruto. "I'll assume it went well since you came in wearing clothes I know are not yours." She teased softly, making them both blush before she left the room.
Tsunade came in not long after, with Sizuane and Captain Yamato following behind her.
"Good morning Sakura, I hope you are prepared to stay in the hospital for at least a week. Maybe more, you are taking foreign cells into your body, and I need to remind you that Hashirama cells have a great deal of unpredictability," Tsunade said seriously. "I've asked Yamato to come and help monitor your symptoms, seeing as he received Hashirama cells as a child test subject." She said, glancing at Yamato. "I need you to give final verbal consent, Sakura," Tsunade said plainly.
"Do it." She said calmly.
"Okay, Naruto you can stay, but don't get in the way." She told Naruto sternly, who agreed.
Sakura had always been healthy so being hooked up to various monitors, let alone being naked except for a hospital gown, was extremely awkward for her. There were two injections, neither hurt much and at first no symptoms appeared, but that changed an hour later as Sakura started feeling heavy soreness and fatigue…
"Why am I so tired and sore suddenly?" She asked in a drained voice.
"It is the most prominent symptom that appears when people experience after being injected with Hashirama cells, I remember it all," Yamato explained calmly.
"We will bring you food, and there is a restroom when you need it. You're not to leave your bed otherwise." Tsunade said sternly.
"I'm not getting out of bed with so much muscle soreness," Sakura assured her master, very subdued.
"That will get worse, Sakura, to the point where you feel like a boulder hit you, and worse than even that eventually." Yamato warned seriously.
"I can handle it." She said adamantly.
By the end of the day, Sakura felt more than just annoyance from her body aches; she felt considerably weak even though the pain itself was minimal.
"I could stay with you overnight." Naruto said anxiously as he held her hand.
"As much as I would love that, it's against hospital policy to stay past visiting hours." Sakura said in a heavy whisper.
"I'll bring ramen when I come back so you don't have to eat the hospital food." Naruto said softly.
"Thanks, Naruto." She said with a yawn.
"Get your rest," Naruto told her as he kissed her forehead.
"I'll try," Sakura said with a small smile.
Once alone, sleep came quickly, but staying asleep, turned out to be impossible. Sakura woke up sweating a few hours before dawn.
"Dammit," She felt the sweat on her forehead. "Fever, they'll want to keep track of it." The button on the middle of the wall allowed her to call a medic; a few minutes later, Shizune was taking her temperature.
"Yup two degrees higher than normal, we're going to have to monitor this closely and make sure it doesn't get any worse." She told the young Kunoichi, I'll be back in a minute to cool you down. Hopefully, you'll be able to go back to sleep that way." Shizune said gently.
"Thank you, Shizune…" Sakura said quietly.
The next time Sakura woke up, it was light outside again, and a familiar scent greeted her nose…
"You brought ramen," Sakura said drowsily.
"I promised I would," he told her softly. Sakura smiled. "They told me you have a fever."
"You're such a great boyfriend," Sakura told him, sitting upright in her bed. "It isn't going to go away before getting worse, my fever." She sighed.
"Well then, I'm staying with you, just in case. I'll make sure you keep your strength," he said quietly.
"I can't do anything except stay here until Lady Tsunade says otherwise. She felt guilty for disrupting his days, though she appreciated his willingness to stay by her side. "I love you for that, but you can't spend every day here…I couldn't live with myself if I'm the reason your skills as a ninja start to rust before the war." Sakura said imploringly. "I'll make sure people get you back here if things get more interesting." She assured him bluntly.
"Okay…" He kissed her forehead tenderly and gave one last smile.
It was the following day that things became more unpredictable; Sakura woke up from an afternoon nap experiencing extreme nerve pain…
"Ouch!" She inhaled sharply feeling as though her injected arm was strangely on fire inside. "What's happening? My arm…hurts so bad-all the sudden!" She said in an anxious labored voice.
Using the arm that wasn't hurting she jammed the call button, this time Ino entered after a few minutes, immediate concern as Sakura was fighting the pain in her arm.
"What's wrong Sakura!" She said quickly.
"My arm…it's like it's on fire!" She said sharply.
"How long has it felt that way?" Ino asked.
"I woke up a few minutes ago and it came out of nowhere!" She said through gritted teeth.
"Is it constant?" Ino asked anxiously.
"You're telling me you don't already know that, I'm writhing so obviously it's constant!" She said angrily.
"Um, right, I better grab Lady Tsunade and Captain Yamato!" She said with a quick nod.
"Gee, you think!" Sakura said sharply as she forcibly fell back in her bed, from the increasing pain. "Tell them it's spreading!"
Sakura was grateful to be alone for the moment as she could no longer suppress the urge to scream from the intense nerve pain she was feeling, which was in both arms now… When the others arrived a short time later, it had spread to all her limbs, and she kept her eyes closed, fighting back the tears from the increasing intensity.
"I'm relying on your diagnosis here, Captain Yamato; what's going on at this point?" Tsunade said, looking over Sakura as all four limbs were now reacting, writhing involuntarily.
One look at Sakura told him all he needed to know. "The cellular mutation is starting." He addressed Sakura empathetically over her audible distress. "Sakura, I know it feels like you're on fire, you have to remember to breathe, or you'll be in agony by the time it spreads to the rest of your body."
"There has to be something we can do to lessen the pain!" Tsunade said bluntly trying to keep her composure.
Yamato shook his head apologetically. "We can't give her anything for the pain; it could interact badly with the ongoing cellular mutation!"
"When might things go from accepting to rejection of the cells?" Tsunade asked seriously.
Yamato sighed and spoke bluntly. "As long as she stays conscious, it points to her body eventually stabilizing. If she falls unconscious, then that's when things could turn life-threatening."
"No way-that's going to happen-dammit!" Sakura shouted determinedly, though she continued to sound extremely labored from her pain.
"Don't exert yourself further trying to talk unless necessary!" Tsunade scolded Sakura sternly. She pulled Captain Yamato away. "How long will she be in pain like this?" She whispered with urgency.
"It hasn't even spread to her entire body yet, wood release hasn't spontaneously started either." He sighed. "Several days, but since everyone is different, we won't know exactly."
"Well then, we need to pay extra attention to her heart rate and other vital signs, Ino, you are on shift tonight; let me know if she reaches a dangerous threshold!" Tsunade told the tall blonde before exiting the room.
"Wait…Lady Tsunade." Sakura said anxiously.
"What is it, Sakura?" She asked.
"My hundred healings seal-that chakra maintains the yang seal I created to fortify the seal used on the nine-tailed fox and placed within Naruto-" She paused while the pain in her extremities peaked again. "Will this deplete those reserves?"
"No, that chakra is stored independently for when you reach full capacity and manifest the seal, at which point you can call upon it freely. As long as you are alive that is." Then she was gone from the room.
Sakura laid back in bed and closed her eyes to try and rest, it was dark out by the time she woke up again…
"It's night already," Sakura said before remembering that her limbs felt on fire as pain shocked her completely awake. "Ouch…"
"Yeah, it is. I'll check your vitals now." Ino said gently. "I know you're in pain, so I'll carry the conversation." She added, trying to help distract Sakura from the nerve pain that persisted.
"And they say I'm supposed to try to stay calm," Sakura said dryly, but she was smiling at her friend. They both laughed, but Sakura's quickly turned into a subdued grimace. "Dammit, this is like being on fire."
There was an extended silence while Ino measured and took record of Sakura's vitals…
"Well, your heart rate is a little high, but nothing dangerous; your oxygen is great, and your sinus rhythm is normal," Ino said calmly. "At least so far, your body is handling the mutation."
"Are you sure because my arms and legs feel like hot lead?" Sakura said weakly.
"Yup, so do you want something, like food?" She asked.
"I can't eat; I barely have full control of my arms," Sakura said with frustration.
Ino was rhetorical now. "I'll help you eat this shift. That's why you have a rotation of medics. Lady Tsunade anticipated that you wouldn't have the necessary control over your arms and legs indefinitely."
"That's not humiliating at all; if I didn't need to eat, I would refuse," Sakura said with an impatient grin.
"If you didn't rely on your best friend for help while you're in here, I would be personally offended," Ino said sternly, Sakura gave a relenting sigh.
With Ino's help, she ate a bowl of ramen from all Naruto had brought the previous day; then Sakura returned to a more comfortable position in bed...
"I guess I should tell you how my date with Naruto was," Sakura said quietly. "Consider it a thank you. Besides-I need the distraction."
"Just nod to save the strain on your body okay." Sakura nodded to show she understood. "Good, now… You checked into the hospital in clothes you have never worn in your life, and I know you well enough to know you wore a dress on your date with Naruto, so do I need to guess why you didn't have a change of clothes that night." Sakura blushed, making Ino whisper sharply. "You never went home after your date, did you billboard brow." Sakura silently shook her head. Ino smirked. "I knew it!" She raised her eyebrows. "Sakura, you're blushing so hard you can't look at me. Hold on… Did you and Naruto have sex?" It was a quiet exclamation; Sakura appreciated the discretion from her best friend.
Sakura spoke this time, rather emotional. "Waiting felt pointless. I could die if my body rejects these cells or during the war once it starts. The thought of having not been with Naruto, given all I couldn't handle that kind of regret."
"That's so sappy that it's romantic." Ino swooned softly. "How was it?" She asked abruptly.
"I'm in more than enough-pain without making this conversation-even more awkward, Ino…" Sakura said through gritted teeth, still in frequent pain as fatigue caught up with her.
"Okay," She relented sympathetically. "I'll save it for after you've stabilized from the mutation and are fully recovered." Her tone was much softer as she continued speaking. "I'll watch you like a hawk; tonight's my shift anyway, so you just try to sleep, alright." She told her consolingly.
Sakura nodded slowly, smiling despite the obvious pain she felt now. "Ino… Thank you." She muttered softly; then, her eyes closed automatically for another night of restless sleep.
"You better survive this craziness you insisted on putting yourself through just for that knucklehead Naruto, or I'll kick your ass," Ino whispered as she watched her best friend fall into an uneasy sleep.
Naruto returned to the hospital on Friday, Sakura's pain having reached a level that made it impossible to use the toilet without the help of whatever medic was on shift. If Sakura had any say, she would have asked for Ino permanently, given that they were best friends, they had walked in on each other in the bathroom enough times since puberty that it didn't bother Sakura when she needed to use the bathroom for whatever reason. Sometimes she had the urge to vomit and other times she sweat toed to such a degree that a fresh hospital gown was needed… She was understandably much more resistant to personal help from the other medics when they were on shift with her. In fact, she would trade all of them for Naruto if she were allowed. That's why when he was back that afternoon, it made her very happy.
"I missed you." Sakura said emotionally.
"You ate all the ramen I brought a few days ago. He said cheerfully.
"It's growing on me." She admitted, hardly louder than a whisper.
He grinned. "It works wonders."
"It beats hospital food by miles." She laugh, which quickly became a grimace of pain. "Dammit..."
"I know you're in a lot of pain most of the time." He said sympathetically. "I still wish you wouldn't have done this; it sounds awful from what Ino's told me."
"It'll take more than cellular mutation to get the best of me." Sakura said, trying to keep the pain she felt out of her voice. "I insisted they let you know what's going on, something the hospital didn't like because you're not blood." She added, watching the anxious look on his face.
"Thanks, Sakura," Naruto said with a grateful smile.
"Speaking of blood, my parents— "
"I'm keeping up with the transformed shadow clone, so they still have no idea you're doing," Naruto said quickly.
"Good… They would never stop yelling at me." Sakura said with a long and pained sigh.
"How are you doing, Sakura?" Naruto asked seriously.
"I wish I could have pain meds and a catheter, but we can not risk a reaction or infection." She fought through more nerve pain. "Damn, this basically holds the muscular system hostage."
"Is there anything I can do?" He asked in concern.
"Yes, I have to pee; help me in the bathroom." She said.
"Alright, but I'm not letting you walk." He said.
"I know." She said.
"I'm guessing you are not comfortable with strangers helping you." He said.
"Not going to the bathroom, no." She said, her voice rather dull.
"Good thing I'm here." He said.
Naruto helped Sakura to the bathroom and back, trying to keep her distracted with news of his training which she was happy to hear kept him from worrying about her too much. Sakura remained in good spirits even with the pain she was dealing with. It was late afternoon when both these things were put to the test.
"My arm, it's so much worse than it is been, it feels like it's getting ripped apart from the inside!" She said angrily. "Get Lady Tsunade and Captain Yamato, I think— " But her words were drowned by a long scream of pain.
Naruto to his credit did not panic and did exactly what she said to do, but as it turned out Sakura'a scream was loud enough that both were in the room in what seemed like moments.
"Is this what I think it is." Tsunade said over Sakura's suddenly agonizing screams.
"Yes, it's the next part of the cellular mutation. Her body has triggered wood release; it will morph back and forth and spread to the rest of her body until it stabilizes." Yamato said, looking serious.
"So her body is still handling the mutation?" Tsunade asked, watching Sakura nervously as she grunted and writhed more than ever from the pain in her injected arm.
"Yeah, but from here on out is the hard part; the morphology of what's happening to her body is incredibly painful," Yamato said sympathetically.
"I knew what I was in for the moment I decided to do this, I'll be alright!" She said, though the pain and struggle was all over her face. "I'm sorry you were forced into this mutation as a child Captain Yamato!"
Yamato smiled, feeling a surge of pride. "Your will of fire is far stronger than mine, Sakura. You will need that and your physical will over the next few days. As you can already tell the Hashirama cellular mutation will keep trying to stabilize as spontaneous wood release steadily starts morphing your entire body." He warned her calmly.
"Do you know of any way to help with the pain while the wood release is mutating my body?" She asked hastily.
"My Chakra control was nowhere close to yours, remember to maintain that, and you should have an easier time as the mutation continues trying to stabilize." He told her optimistically.
Tsunade, who was deep in thought, finally broke her silence. "You will be monitored 24 hours a day from now until the mutation stabilizes."
"No, I'm not dealing with a parade of medics, Shizune Ino and you, no more than that. Naruto stays whenever he wants." Sakura insisted sharply.
Sakura's pained shouts cut off Tsunade's protest as her injected arm morphed entirety to wood then moments later it was human flesh again, this continued, each time more excruciating than the last…
"I can't let her heart rate rise for too much longer, it's dangerous." Tsunade said anxiously.
"You can't medically do anything, why do you think so few people are capable of surviving the Hashirama cell mutation." Yamato warned bluntly.
"Dammit, how many times is her arm going to morph into wood and back!" She said in frustration.
"This…is…nothing." Sakura was quite labored now, pain accompanied every word she breathed,
Sakura felt like her arm was constantly being destroyed and rebuilt. Despite what she said out loud Sakura knew that this was the worst physical pain she had ever experienced in her life. It left Sakura bracing herself for what it would feel like when the rest of her body started morphing back and forth.
"You can do this Sakura, chakra control has always been effortless for you, you can gain control of the mutation." Naruto said intensely.
"I didn't know that." Tsunade said, "I thought my training brought that out of her.
"You can't take credit for that grandma Tsunade; it took Sasuke and me more than a day to master even basic chakra control; Sakura climbed the tree on her first try." He bragged nostalgically.
Tsunade was blunt. "I should have guessed; I'll give her what she wants, but I'm going to form a barrier around the rest of this floor. If her spontaneous wood release goes entirely out of control, I can't have other patients or medics getting hurt. I'll make sure they can come and go every day."
"Thank you…Lady Tsunade." Sakura said, flooded with relief, despite the immense pain she was in now that her body was beginning to morph back and forth.
Over the next few days, Other parts of her body started to shift between wood and flesh spontaneously. By the beginning of the next week, Sakura's other arm and one leg started to morph, too; it made the constant sensation of being ripped apart much more intense, and she no longer suppressed the urge to scream whenever the pain hit its peaks. All this meant Sakura was unable to do everyday things herself. She was thankful that Tsunade agreed to the trio of people she requested to help her function due to her body's instability. Shizune was on shift the first Wednesday.
"Did you get any sleep?" She asked.
"I'll get sleep when my body is stable." She let out a loud series of intense grunts feeling more pain than ever from her ongoing mutation.
"That could be several days yet. Still, it's a good sign that all four of your limbs are mutating at this point." She continued with concern. "Your continually elevated heart rate is worrisome but not unexpected with all that's happening to your body."
"Labor will be easy if I have kids someday..." Sakura mused through heavy breaths.
"You've got a present to focus on that is more pressing than the future." She cautioned. "What you're risking for Naruto is brave." She said calmly.
"I don't feel brave right now, just tired, but Naruto is worth anything, including my life." Sakura readily admitted.
"He's lucky to have you." She said rhetorically.
"No…" Sakura looked at Naruto sleeping in a chair by the foot of her bed and smiled wide. "I'm the one...lucky to have him."
The mutation reached a new level of pain two days later, on Friday night after almost two wee, when Sakura's entire body felt like it was getting pulled, or more accurately—ripped apart... She didn't bother to suppress a gu-wrenching scream as she morphed into pure wood from head to foot-Naruto, having stayed overnight, was shocked from his sleep.
"Sakura!" He said hastily.
"Naruto…GET BACK!" She screamed.
The warning barely left Sakura's mouth when both of her arms stretched like wooden missiles and smashed the far wall. The commotion brought Tsunade, Yamato, and others into Sakura's room. The barrier protecting the rest of the ward was visible through the hole in the wall.
"The mutation is in its final stages!" Yamato said anxiously.
Dammit! It's so hard to control!" Sakura shouted in frustration.
"There has to be something we can do for her," Shizune said with exasperation. "What if this spontaneous wood release becomes completely uncontrollable," Shizune said, watching Sakura anxiously.
"I'll control it!" Sakura said equal parts determined and frustrated.
"Sakura your stubbornness is normally a good thing, but I knew this was always a bad idea, and for what, it's foolish what you're doing— "
"Then I guess I'm a fool!"
"Sakura, protecting Naruto isn't your— "
Naruto knew Sakura would explode now… Uh oh, she hates when her parents tell her what to do…This is going to be loud…
"NO! YOU'VE NEVER SEEN WHAT THAT FOX SPIRIT DOES! BACK OFF!" Sakura yelled harshly.
"Sakura, calm down, your heart rate will rise too fast if you don't." She said anxiously.
"Then stop judging my decisions! I can do whatever the hell I want, it's my life!" She said angrily. "UGH!" Suddenly her arms were once again wood, stretching uncontrollably as Sakura let out an agonizingly shout, they hit another wall—Sakura managed to jerk both arms away from the already damaged section.
"Lady Tsunade, you can't guarantee the barrier we placed around the ward will hold." Shizune said imploringly.
"I know Shizune, but lecturing Sakura about her choice won't help anything! If anyone knows that it's Naruto. Now follow his lead and show Sakura some faith and respect!" Tsunade said sharply.
"Oh, I didn't mean…it's just medics aren't supposed to be unable to do anything." She said.
"What if I use my mind transfer jutsu?" Ino said suddenly. "I usually take full control, but if I work with Sakura, could that help her stabilize?" She asked hopefully.
"Does your mind transfer affect the chakra of the person whose mind you enter?" Yamato asked. Ino shook his head. "Alright then, but your going to feel her pain, how much I don't know." He warned her bluntly.
"I can handle it!" She said fiercely.
"Ino…don't, you have no idea…how much this hurts…you shouldn't have to suffer like that…" She gave her friend an imploring look.
Ino smiled dismissively. "Sorry, Sakura, but this is my choice, not yours." She took a deep breath and formed the necessary hand sign, pointing at Sakura. "Mind Transfer Jutsu!" She shouted.
Even with being her best friend since childhood—aside from their falling out over Sasuke—Ino never thought she would be inside Sakura's head. Right away she knew the tremendous pain Sakura was trying to cope with.
"I should have guessed there's an inner you." Ino said seriously to her friend.
"You…had…to be…stubborn…" Inner Sakura said, breathing extremely heavy.
"Says the girl putting herself through hell for complete knucklehead." Ino shook her head. "But I'm not here to lecture you. I'm here to share the burden; you are exhausted, and that doesn't take a genius to see." She looked full of concern.
"I've seen better days, I'm so tired…" Sakura's inner self said.
"If you focus on controlling the mutation, I'll ease the pain, I've never used mind transfer like this but I can see how stretched thin your mind is." Ino said sternly.
Inner Sakura begrudgingly agreed. "Fine…but don't think this is an excuse…to look around inside my head."
"Wouldn't bother. I'm just hoping to help you with the pain from this crazy mutation." She insisted.
"Thank you…Ino."
"The things I'm willing to do for you and Naruto." She said very nonchalantly.
It was immediately strange letting Ino stay within her mind, like it was a bit heavier, but actual pain was definitely less than the last several days.
"Sakura, do you feel any better?" Naruto asked uncertainly.
"Yup, but she wasn't kidding this is painful." The voice was a combined echo.
"Ino?" He blankly said.
"It's both of us, Naruto." They said together.
"Can you speak one at a time?" He asked.
"I could stay quiet most of the time but that's not the point of doing this, the pain would be no less than it already was." They echoed again.
"Ino's body it's vulnerable isn't it?" Tsunade asked bluntly.
"No, it's fine, unless someone in here plans on attacking it." They said jokingly. "When sleeping we will separate again, during the day we will return to this state until the mutation is stable." They quickly added.
"Ino, can you honestly stay in my mind all day?" Inner Sakura asked.
"Normally, when I enter someone's mind, they're immediately trying to push me out; you are not doing that, so I'll be fine but if the mutation starts affecting my concentration, I will have to leave yours." She said bluntly.
"I'm not thrilled we're sharing space in my mind but I do need the pain relief." Inner Sakura admitted with annoyance.
The mutation progressed over the weekend, Sakura was able to function with Ino occupying her mind, the pain was at least bearable. Not that Sakura knew why or how. Still, it allowed Sakura to focus on controlling the mutation, which had calmed down somewhat. It was Sunday evening when the spontaneous wood release reached an unprecedented level of pain. There was a prolonged drawn out scream from Sakura and Ino's mind was forced back into her own body.
"I'm sorry…Sakura, how you can handle that I have no idea." Ino said breathlessly. "Keep breathing!" She told her friend urgently.
"DAMNIT… UGGGGGGH!" It sounded like agony and saw a lot of people enter Sakura's room watching with bated breath…
"You'll be fine, Sakura." Naruto kept his voice even and his face showed no signs of worry, but inside panic rose in his chest.
"THESE CELLS, UGH, IM IN CONTROL, UGGGGGGH, YOU STUPID MUTATION, THIS IS MY BODY…I SWEAR TO KAMI!" Sakura shouted through the binding pain.
Sakura's entire body was now turning into wood, which was like being punctured over and over with a needle and then it morphed from flesh to wood, back and forth again and again, until abruptly the pain was gone.
Yamato was smiling in relief. "Sakura, you did it; your body is finally stable." He looked genuinely shocked.
"I did?" She said blankly.
"Yes, you'll need to stay overnight to rest, so we can ensure you have control over wood release." He told her, cautiously optimistic.
Naruto looked apologetically at Sakura. "Bad time for my shadow clone pretending to be you to disappear." He scratched his head nervously.
"It will be quite a while before my parents notice I'm not in my bed." She exhaled laying down in the bed.
"How could you not tell them— "
"They never stopped treating me like a child and I wasn't interested in letting them guilt me into making the choices they want." She gave a tiresome shrug. "Right now, I'm so damn tired." She said weakly.'
"Get your rest." Tsunade encouraged calmly. "We'll proceed when you feel up to it."
"Lady Tsunade can— "
"Naruto can stay overnight. You don't try to force yourself to do anything, the amount of stress your body went through, I insist that you don't so much as walk to the bathroom without his help for the next 48 hours or so." She said sternly.
"Yes mam." Sakura nodded.
Everyone left except for Naruto who pulled his chair as close to the bed as possible, taking her hand.
"Lady Tsunade, are you sure it's wise to leave them alone? We need to examine Sakura now that the mutation stabilized in her body.
"We can do that starting tomorrow. The only thing she needs now is rest without so many medical ninjas and other fussy old adults coming in and out of her room." She crossed her arms with finality.
"I-yes of course Lady Tsunade." Shizune bowed in understanding.
Now alone, Sakura broke down crying silently. Naruto rose from his chair and snuggled into the bed beside her without a single word…
Outside in the hall, Yamato was the first to break the silence standing with the others. "If you had told me back when she came to us, that the girl without any clan linage would survive the Hashirama Cell mutation, if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes…" He sounded as though he witnessed a miracle.
"There is no logic to explain the enduring nature of ninjas; I'd forgotten that. It's something the rest of the ninja world will have to remember if we want to survive the coming war." Tsunade said seriously.
A/N: Hospital stays suck, I was in for double spinal fusion surgery twelve years ago for three months, so maybe I inserted just grain of my personal experience here.