"Naruto! Dammit boy, WAKE UP!"

Naruto finally stirred himself awake, and when he did, the first thing he became aware of was the slamming headache he had. As his eyes slowly opened, his vision became very blurry and he noticed a distant ringing sound in his ear.

"Kurama?"

"Jeez, kid! You sleep like a rock!"

"What the hell happened?"

"I don't know for sure, but Hinata took you to a hospital. You've been out cold for a while now."

Naruto tried to look around and examine his surroundings, only to have another throbbing wave of pain course through his skull.

"Ow... fuck, my head..." He said aloud.

"Naruto? You're awake!" A comfortingly familiar voice said.

"Hinata? Is that you?"

"Yes, it's me, I'm here."

"What happened? W-Where are we?"

"We're in the hospital. My father was going to be home soon so I tried to wake you up, but I couldn't even get you to move. I started shaking you and yelling, but you just laid there completely limp. I didn't know what to do so I brought you here."

"W-What? I don't remember any of that! That doesn't make any sense... would I be so out of it?"

"The doctors took some bloodwork, they're trying to figure it out as we speak. Oh Naruto, I'm so happy you're awake! I was starting to think-"

Just then, a nurse opened the door and walked into the room.

"Oh good, you're awake! How are you feeling, Naruto?"

"Like shit." He said with a groan. His vision was slowly becoming clearer but his head still felt like someone beat it with a club.

"I can't say I'm surprised."

"Did you find out what's wrong?" Hinata asked with worry in her voice.

"Yes, I believe we know exactly what's going on with him."

The nurse then turned to look at Naruto.

"That cut on your hand, Lady Hinata said it came from a bandit's kunai?"

Naruto looked down at his hand and saw that his cut had been bandaged. "That's right."

"Well, it appears that the blade was coated in a new type of narcoleptic poison, which seems to have made its way into your bloodstream. The kunai merely grazed your hand, certainly mitigating and even delaying the effects of the poison, but still... you've been asleep for a few hours now."

A few hours? It felt like he had just fallen asleep next to Hinata in her bed! He glanced over to the window and noticed that it was much darker outside now, almost nighttime.

"So, basically, I got tranquilized?" He said with an eyebrow raised.

"In a way, yes. That's the bad news, well, part of it. The good news is: it's not lethal, and it has no lasting effects, meaning you should soon make a full recovery. It's really not that serious, but it can be quite frightening before it's figured out and diagnosed."

"What's the other part of the bad news?"

"Ah, yes, the other part. You see, this particular poison has only recently been discovered and used... which means it has no antidote yet. It just has to work its way through your system. That wouldn't be so bad... if not for the side effects."

"What kind of side effects are we talking about?"

"Possible symptoms include nausea, fatigue, body aches, disorientation, and as I'm sure you're already experiencing, intense migraines.

As if on cue, Naruto's head throbbed again as he sat upright in his bed.

"Ow... yeah, I'm experiencing that alright. But wait, I don't understand. That cut happened earlier this morning. Why did it take so long to knock me out?"

"Until it actually kicks in, it stores itself in the bloodstream completely undetectable. The poison is chemically designed to react when the heart rate is very high, which usually happens during combat, or otherwise anything that gets you excited."

"After I got that cut, the bandit was dealt with quickly. From there, it was a smooth journey the rest of the way home."

"Exactly why it didn't react until now, along with the fact that the cut wasn't deep. We've only seen a few instances of this poison, but some of them remained dormant in a person's system for days before it finally took effect. It's nearly impossible to notice until it's too late. It all depends on how bad the wound is and what level of activity it takes to trigger the poison's tranquilizing effect."

Naruto had a look of utter disbelief on his face. How could he have been so clueless? How did he or even Kurama not feel it in his body somehow?

"That being said, before you fell unconscious, did you do anything that might have gotten your blood pumping?" The nurse asked.

Naruto glanced over to Hinata who already had a deep red blush on her face. When he remembered why she seemed so embarrassed, he too found his cheeks becoming hot.

Of course, it all made sense now. He remembered how exhausted he felt after they finished together, and how easily he had fallen asleep next to her. The excitement from their shared intimacy paired with the physical exertion must have activated the poison within him soon after they were done.

"Uh, y-yeah. I was... training... with Hinata."

The nurse didn't seem very convinced. She looked at the two of them, and after putting one and one together, she decided to keep her thoughts to herself.

"I see. That must've been what triggered it. Anyway, I know you're probably wanting to go home, but I highly recommend that you stay the night here and let the symptoms pass. If you try to leave now, you may not even make it to the front door without passing out."

"How long are the side effects supposed to last?"

"For most cases, about twenty-four hours. You have a history of healing very fast, so in your case, I'd estimate about half that. A good night's sleep should definitely help your body fight it off."

"Well... I guess I'll be staying here then."

"Good choice. We'll set your checkout time for 5:00 PM tomorrow as long as you're feeling better by then. Lady Hinata, you're welcome to stay with him as late as you want. A nurse will check in periodically. If you need anything, you can press that green button right there. Is there anything I can do for you before I give you two some space?"

"I think I'm okay for now, thank you." Naruto responded.

"Anytime! Goodnight, you two."

The nurse then turned and exited the room. Naruto looked over and noticed a small remote next to his hospital bed with the green button she had mentioned.

"Hey, free room service? I could get used to this." He joked.

"You better not. I don't like seeing you in the hospital." Hinata replied with a chuckle from the side of his bed.

She looked at him with an expression mixed with both relief and fear, and it didn't take a genius to figure out why. Guilt overwhelmed him as he looked at her puffy eyes and realized that she had recently been crying.

"She must have been terrified." He thought to himself.

"She was."

"You saw?"

"You were asleep, I wasn't. I'm telling you, that girl was really shaken up."

How could he have let this happen to him? He swore to her that he'd never allow this world to take him down, and yet here he was, laying in a hospital bed from something as simple as a bandit attack.

"Hinata, I'm really sorry. I can't imagine how scared you must have been, to see me unresponsive like that."

His tired eyes were heavy and sorrowful. She could look at him and tell that he felt responsible for this, for causing her such fear. But she knew that wasn't the case. No, he couldn't have done anything any different. This... this was just the type of thing that normally happened in the ninja world, and that was what scared Hinata more than anything.

She couldn't let him believe that he had caused this to happen. She knew the guilt would eat him alive, and because of that, she needed him to know that this wasn't his fault.

"You don't have to apologize, my love. You didn't poison yourself."

"Yeah, but, I promised you-"

She gently brought a finger to his lips and silenced him before giving him a teary eyed smile.

"You're here, Naruto. You're here with me. You're alive, and you're gonna be just fine. There's nothing to apologize for."

Naruto smiled happily at her as a tear made its way down his face. It still felt so odd to him, to finally have such a supportive person in his life that wouldn't scold him for the slightest mistakes, or even the big ones. She never changed. She was always as loving and caring as she could be, no matter how much he thought he deserved otherwise.

She continued, "You know, at first I thought you were just pretending to still be asleep, but then... Naruto, you wouldn't move a muscle. It's like you were in a coma. You seemed perfectly fine before, that's what had me so worried."

"That's what's so weird. I was tired but I didn't feel sick or notice anything different at all. It just snuck up on me!"

"I didn't sense anything different either. We're lucky that poison wasn't lethal."

Naruto scoffed and shook his head in disbelief.

"What is it?" Hinata asked.

"Sasuke and I fought and defeated Kaguya, the literal goddess of all chakra, and yet I get hospitalized by a bandit with a kunai."

His voice sounded annoyed, like he was angry at himself for sustaining an injury as trivial as this.

"It could've happened to anyone, you know? There's no way you could have known, and there's no reason to be upset over it. I'm just glad that you're home, and that you're okay. You'll be out of here in no time."

"I guess..."

"She's right, Naruto. Shit happens. It could be worse."

"I knew you liked her."

"I must say, she has a good heart, and I can see that she cares deeply for you. You picked a good one."

Naruto chuckled at Kurama's sudden change of interest in his love life.

"What's so funny?" Hinata asked.

"Nothing, just listening to Kurama's input. He agrees with you."

"I've been meaning to ask you about that. How does that work? You know, communicating with him?"

"Well, he sees and hears everything I do. He also hears everything I think. If I want to talk to him, I just talk in my head. We have conversations all the time. He's like a subconscious I guess."

"Really? That's cool! I imagine you two must be close, since you're pretty much always in the same room together."

"We weren't for a long time, but yeah, I'd say we've grown pretty close. He'll hardly admit it, but I think he likes you too."

Hinata let out a giggle which was music to Naruto's ears. "I'm glad. He's going to have to deal with me for a while."

"You're absolutely right." Naruto replied with a smile.

"Why did I get myself involved..."

Naruto's headache worsened for a moment, resulting in him clutching his head in pain and letting out an agitated groan.

"Agh, my head is killing me! I really hope this doesn't actually last a whole day."

"I can heal physical wounds quickly, but poison? I don't know, Naruto. I'll see what I can do, but you might just have to wait this one out."

Naruto briefly remembered when Sakura had accidentally poisoned him in an attempt to poison Sasuke instead. He had spent the next couple days trying not to throw up. He really hoped this poison wouldn't be as bad.

"I know you just woke up, but, why don't you lay back down and get some rest? Maybe that'll help with your headache." Hinata suggested. He still looked very drowsy, like he might pass out again at any point. She could tell that he really needed some more rest.

"Yeah... maybe you're right. At least, I really hope you are. Are you gonna stay here?" Naruto asked as he laid his head back down.

"Of course, I'll be right here the whole time."

"I was really hoping you'd say that." He said with a smile before he shut his eyes.

"I'm not going anywhere until you're better. Do you need anything?"

No response. After a moment, she heard him start to snore and couldn't help but laugh to herself. She then leaned down and gave him a kiss on his forehead.

"I love you, Naruto."


As Naruto continued to rest, Hinata found herself nodding off from time to time in her chair, that is, until an unexpected visitor entered the room. The sound of the door opening made her jump before she turned and looked to see who had joined them.

It was Sakura.

"Hey. I heard about everything. How is he?" She asked quietly.

"He's okay, just dealing with a bad headache. He's been resting for a while now." Hinata replied with a yawn.

"I'm sure he'll bounce back quick. He usually does. It's getting late, are you heading home soon?" She asked as she sat down beside Hinata.

"No, I'm gonna stay here with him tonight. Oh, and if my father asks... I'm staying at your house tonight."

"Haha, I've got you covered. Oh, how sweet! So, how are you two? Did you have an 'eventful' reunion?"

"S-Sakura!"

It took less than a second for a pink hue to come upon Hinata's face. She had grown quite brazen during her private interactions with Naruto, effortlessly doing things that her ancestors would probably frown upon, but she still stood no chance at discussing it with others without becoming embarrassed. How exactly was she supposed to talk about something so private with anyone other than him?

"Ah, I'll bet you did! So? I wanna hear about it!"

"What? Now? W-What if he hears us?"

They looked over to Naruto sound asleep in the bed, completely out cold and snoring like an old man.

"I doubt it. Now, spill!" Sakura said.

After a moment of hesitation, Hinata decided that a little bit of vague information couldn't hurt.

"We didn't go all the way, and we still haven't yet, but I think we will soon. I mean, we keep teasing each other about it, and we've done pretty much everything else."

"Everything else? You two sure don't waste time. How was it?"

Hinata sighed deeply as she thought of a way to describe the bliss of their intimacy.

"So far it's been... well, amazing."

"How so? What exactly did you two do?"

Hinata's red blush deepened. How much should she tell?

"We've done oral... t-twice." Hinata said quickly before she could change her mind.

"Oh? How was that? Is he, you know... good?"

"I can't even please myself as good as he does."

"Oh, girl, you're lucky. Not that I would know, but I hear guys like that are nearly impossible to find. So, I'm assuming he made you orgasm?"

"Y-Yes... twice the second time."

"Impressive! What exactly did he do to you?"

"Sakura..."

This conversation was slowly getting more awkward for Hinata as the topic at hand got more private.

"Okay, okay. Sorry, I know, not my business."

"What I can say is, it's a whole new level of connection. It's so different, and so intense. I think I'm addicted to him, the way he touches me, the way he talks to me when he..."

"I'm listening."

"Um, I've said too much."

"You're no fun. But, I get it. What's private is private. At least I get to live somewhat vicariously through you. Just keep me updated, okay?"

"Of course. You're the only person I talk to about this stuff."

"If you can even call it 'talking'." Sakura said sarcastically with a playful grin as she stood up from her chair and stretched. "Kidding. Well, I don't know about you, but I'm tired. It's been a long day."

"Me too. I probably won't last much longer."

"I don't doubt it. Hey, before I go, we're all making plans to celebrate Naruto's promotion. Nothing is set in stone yet, but be ready to party sometime soon."

"Okay, sounds fun to me."

"Awesome. Well, I'm off. Goodnight Hinata, keep me updated on Naruto... medical and otherwise." Sakura said with a wink before exiting the room.

"That wasn't so bad..." Hinata thought to herself. She had to admit, it was kinda nice being able to talk to Sakura about this. Sure, it made her a little uncomfortable, but it was still enjoyable to reminisce with someone who didn't exactly know what happened.


After a while, Hinata felt herself slowly dozing off again until she heard Naruto groan softly. She looked over to him and saw that he appeared to be waking up again.

A moment went by until Naruto's eyes slowly opened before he sat upright. He looked over at the time and saw that it was 11:44 PM.

"Hey sleepy head. How are you feeling?" Hinata said as she approached his bed and grabbed his hand.

"Meh, about the same I guess. My head doesn't hurt quite as bad, but my arms and legs ache a good bit. It's pretty late, won't your dad be wanting you home?"

"I might have called him to say that I'm staying at Sakura's house tonight. I want to be right by your side until you're all better. Until then, is there anything I can do for you?"

"I'm starting to think I'm a bad influence on you." Naruto said with a laugh. "I think I'm okay, just gotta use the bathroom."

Naruto started to crawl out of the bed, clearly in discomfort. Every time he tried to move, he would wince a little bit and stop.

"Naruto?"

"My body... I feel so weak. Do you... do you think you could help me walk to the bathroom?"

"Of course! Here, hold on to me."

She grabbed his hands and helped him stand up on his feet before holding him upright and walking him across the room to the small bathroom. Once they got to the door, Naruto stopped.

"Thank you, I think I can handle it from here." He said with a pained chuckle. Hinata could tell that he was in more discomfort than he let on.

She waited outside the door for him for a while, and when he was done, she happily escorted him back to his bed and helped him climb into it.

"Care to join me?" He asked.

"Oh, I'd love to, but what if the nurse sees?"

"What are they gonna do? Kick us out?"

"Hm... good point. Alright then, scoot over!"

Hinata eagerly crawled into the bed with him and laid her head on his shoulder with her arm wrapped around his torso.

"Thanks for helping me, Hinata. I feel like an old man."

"I'll always be here to help you, even when you are an old man. You don't even have to ask."

Naruto pulled her closer and kissed the top of her head.

"I love you. Have I mentioned that before?"

"A few times, I think." Hinata said with a laugh. "I love you too, Naruto, and I'll never get tired of hearing you say that."

They laid there in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the peace and quiet together. Naruto's head still hurt a bit, and the rest of his body wasn't in much better shape, but having Hinata snuggled up to him was more than enough to make light of his situation.

Sure, it had been an unpleasant experience, but her and Kurama were right. It certainly could have been worse. He was home now, and as soon as he was back to one hundred percent, he decided he was going to use his time to its fullest. After all, who knows how soon he would be sent on another mission?

As he laid there next to her, he found himself already making plans for what he wanted to do with her as soon as he got out of here. Campfires, lunch dates, dinner dates, nature walks... as long as he was with her, it really didn't matter.

"You ready to go to sleep, Hinata? You must be tired too."

No response. He carefully leaned forward and looked down at her to see that her eyes were closed, resulting in a quiet chuckle from him.

"You look so beautiful, even when you're sleeping." He whispered quietly. He knew she couldn't hear him, but it felt right to say it aloud. "I love you, Hinata, more than you could ever imagine. And some day... I think I'm going to marry you."

With that, he laid his head back down and let himself fall back asleep, eager to wake up the next day hopefully feeling much better.

He still couldn't quite believe that he had fallen victim to such a cheap and basic attack. However, he also understood that this was a perfect example of one of the most important rules of life...

Shit happens.


I want to quickly thank all of you for your continued support. I can't tell you how much it means to me!

I know what a few of you are probably thinking: Poison? Seriously? I know, I know. I promise, it's all for the sake of keeping the story unique and entertaining. I truly hope you won't find it insulting to Naruto's godlike power. That wasn't my intention.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next one is coming!