Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Road to Recovery ❯ Chapter 14

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

“Are you guys all right?” Naruto asked, wondering if he should fetch Sakura. “Is there anything you need?”“I’m gonna pass out if I don’t get any sleep soon.” Kiba complained.

“The village isn’t completely rebuilt yet,” Naruto reported. “But we do have apartments. Let’s get going. The village is waiting for you.”With a heavy heart, Naruto and the others made their way back to the village.

“-else doing?”“Hm?”“How is everybody else doing?” Hinata repeated patiently.

“Oh, they’re fine. Kurenai had a baby boy not too long ago.”“That’s wonderful. What is his name?”“Ryou.”

“Hinata!” Hanabi yelled, running up to her. “Are you okay?”“Yes, I’m perfectly fine. A little tired, but fine.”The villagers all began to gather around their long lost friends and family members.

“I cannot express how grateful I am of you for bringing back my daughter and nephew.” Hiashi thanked Naruto.

“You’re very welcome, Hyuuga-san.”After speaking with the rest of the families, Naruto quietly slipped out of the crowd to return to his apartment. The last thing he wanted to do was to socialize among those bright and happy faces.

It was for the good of the village that you did this, he reminded himself.

But what could he do for Sasuke now? He was as good as gone once Naruto told the village about the Akatsuki’s deal. Even if he, Uzumaki Naruto, did manage to steal Sasuke back, the villagers still wouldn‘t be willing to accept him.

After all, Sasuke did injure Kakashi…

Kakashi!

Cursing himself for acting like a selfish crybaby, Naruto turned around and went to search for Sakura.

“Sakura! There you are!”“Hey, Naruto! I was looking for you. I thought you would be visiting Kakashi as soon as you came back.”“How is Kakashi doing? Will he be okay?”“He was beaten up pretty badly. He had quite a bit of internal bleeding, a broken leg, broken ribs, and a broken arm. He’s still unconscious.”

“Can I see him?”“Yeah, he’s in the hospital. I’ll take you to his room.”A wave of guilt washed through his being as they walked to the hospital. After everything that had happened, and all he could think about was Sasuke?

Why do I feel this way? He killed Tsunade, Danzou, the council elders, and he injured Kakashi, so why…?

Frustrated, Naruto shook Sasuke from his thoughts and focused on Kakashi’s well-being.

“Here it is. I have to check on my other patients, so I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Holding his breath, Naruto turned the doorknob and entered the room. He had to blink a few times before his eyes could fully adjust to the lighting. The entire room, including its sparse furnishing, was painted white, and the afternoon sun flooded through the window, making the already white tiled floor even brighter.

Kakashi was laying peacefully in a simple, white bed in the corner of the room. He was also dressed in a white gown, and wore a sling on his left shoulder.

Feeling that he should respect the serene silence of the room, Naruto slowly brought a nearby chair to the grey-haired man’s bedside.

He sat down, rested his chin upon his kneaded fingers, and studied Kakashi’s calm expression.

“How can you look so relaxed in this situation?” Naruto asked in a low whisper.

Although it was Sasuke’s fault that Kakashi was like this, Naruto felt as if he had a hand in causing his former sensei’s injuries. After all, it was he who decided to trust the raven and allow him to live in their apartment.

But I thought he had changed for the better! He told me his plans for the future and everything…

“I swear to you Kakashi that I will make it up to you. It was wrong of me to carelessly endanger my friends like that, and I am so sorry…”

“Naruto?”Looking up, he finally felt the hot tears rolling down his face.

“Oh, Naruto.” Sakura walked swiftly across the room and cautiously wrapped her arms around him.

“What’s wrong? Do you want to talk about it, or…?”“I’m sorry for breaking down like this,” The blonde apologized, fiercely wiping his eyes with his sleeve. “It’s just that Kakashi is hurt, Sasuke is gone, Hinata’s back, and I don’t know what to do…”

“Well, maybe you should do something about Sasuke once things are settled down here. I hate to say this, but you need to toughen up and remember that it isn’t the end of the world. It’s your job to put on a brave face and move on for the sake of the village.”

“Thank you, Sakura. You’re right. There’s a lot to be done before I can worry about Sasuke.”

“That’s the spirit! Now go out there and show Konoha who’s boss! However, I need to stay here. I’ll be back home sometime by tonight.”

“All right. I’ll see you later, then.”

Naruto thought about what should be built next while he exited Kakashi’s room.

We definitely need a grocery store. There aren’t enough produce stands around to feed the entire village. We also need more supplies…

To Naruto’s surprise, there weren’t any villagers gathered outside of the hospital waiting to ambush him. Instead, they were carrying out their daily tasks like they did before the village was destroyed. It was quite pleasant for Naruto to see that he had finally done something right for once.

I wonder where Yamato is…

For the rest of the afternoon, Naruto and the other volunteers continued to rebuild the village. By the end of the day, they had successfully built a large grocery store and a couple hundred more beds.

“Good work, guys! I’ll see you all tomorrow morning.”

“See ya, Naruto.”

“Bye, Naruto-sama.”

For the first time in what seemed like forever, Naruto was in a pretty good mood. They were finally making some real progress, and soon enough, he would be able to relax a little. He was definitely looking forward to taking on the traditional Hokage duties and seeing his village prosper once more.

Once he arrived at his apartment, he looked through the kitchen cabinets and grabbed a few cups of ramen. While he was preparing the water, he heard the front door open and close.

“Hey Sai!” The blonde greeted cheerfully.

“Hi Naruto,” Sai greeted back with a cautious smile. “How are you?”

“Great,” He replied a little warily. “I’m making some ramen for dinner. Do you know when Sakura will be back?”“I just saw her speaking with Kurenai a few minutes ago.”

“Cool.”Not willing to break the awkward silence, Naruto continued to cook their dinner. By the time he placed the cups of ramen on the table, Sakura finally arrived.

“Hey, Sakura-chan! I made ramen for dinner, if you don’t mind.”“That’s okay with me. I had a long day at the hospital and I’m starving.”

The tense atmosphere melted away once they began to eat and chat among each other. At the end of dinner, Sakura suggested that they play a card game. It was nearly 11:30 by the time they decided to go to bed.

“I don’t believe you, Sai! Your ‘luck’ was way too good. Admit it, you were cheating.”“It’s not my fault you’re horrible at card games.”“You guys can bicker about it tomorrow. Now go to bed!”“Fine, good night, mother.”

“Tch, I might as well be your mother. What would the village do if I didn’t take the time out of my busy schedule to wake you up every morning?”

“Night.”Although things aren’t exactly back to normal, it’s not so bad, now is it? A voice pointed out.

Yeah, I see what you mean. Maybe things will get even better tomorrow.

With a satisfied sigh, Naruto shut the lights off and slipped into his cot. Because he was so exhausted from the physical labors that day, it only took him a few minutes to fall asleep.

“Hey, Naruto!” A villager approached, sweat glistening on his forehead. “We’ve run out of wood here.”

“No problem. I’ll go get some. How many more beds are you guys planning to make?”“Just ten more.”

“Cool. I’ll be right back.”

As Naruto entered the forest, he heard an odd noise coming from a distance. Curious, he stopped in his tracks. It sounded like somebody crying. Now why did this sound so familiar…?

“No, but it couldn’t be…”He swiftly ran through the woods and stood frozen at what he saw in the clearing where Gaara’s handmade prison was placed.

“Sasuke?”

He was surprised to see the raven sleeping fitfully, curled up under the shade of a large tree.

“I’m so sorry, Naruto…” Sasuke mumbled.

Naruto’s heart welled up in joy at hearing those words come from Sasuke’s mouth. At that moment, it didn’t matter why the raven was back. All that mattered was the fact that he was truly back!

Feeling the urge to comfort the crying teen, Naruto sat by his side and tried to wake him up.

“Sasuke? Wake up. It’s me, Naruto.”

“Naruto?” He replied groggily.
“Yeah, it’s me. Are you okay? Did you escape from the Akatsuki?”“I missed you so much. Please don’t ever give me up to them again.”

“Don’t worry, Sasuke,” The blonde cooed, protectively wrapping his arms around the raven’s shivering figure. “I’ll never allow anybody to take you away from here ever again.”

After sobbing quietly into Naruto’s shoulder for a few more minutes, Sasuke wiped away the last of his tears.

“I’m so…” The raven sniffed.

“Hm?”Naruto leaned in closer to hear what he was saying.

“I’m so lucky for having such a gullible friend,” Sasuke whispered in Naruto’s ear. “It just makes my job that much easier.”

Before Naruto had time to react, Sasuke shoved a kunai blade through the blonde’s chest.

“What? But-”

“You were always a pathetic excuse for a ninja, Naruto,” Sasuke said with a smirk. “Allowing yourself to be blinded by your emotions…”Naruto tried to say something, but only blood poured from his mouth. A violent cough wracked through his entire body as Sasuke pulled his bloody arm back.

“I pierced through your heart, so you will die before anyone else notices you’re gone. Really, Naruto. Did you think I’d allow myself to be captured like that? I just came back to kill you. Madara has no more use for you, and needed you gone so he could take over Konoha. Goodbye, Uzumaki Naruto.”

A surge of hurt, shock, and anger welled up in Naruto’s being before his vision faded away. Sasuke gave him one last smirk before walking over the blonde’s chest.

“No!” Naruto yelled, jolting up to a sitting position.

The sweat from his brow trickled down to his already wet eyes, stinging them. Still dazed, he clutched his shirt and found that his heart was still intact.

“Christ…”
Although Naruto knew he was far from danger, his heart continued to thump loudly in his chest. Looking through his window, he noticed that it was still pitch black outside.

“Naruto?” Sakura opened the door and turned the lights on. “What happened?”“Nothing,” Naruto shook his head. “I’m okay. I just woke up from a nightmare.”

“It’s really late…or is it early? Whatever it is, I’m dead tired. Would you mind if I went back to bed?”“Of course not. Go back to bed, I’ll be fine.”

“Night.”“Night.”

Onc e she snapped the lights off and left, Naruto laid back down and stared up at the ceiling with his eyes still stinging with tears.

“What were you thinking, Sasuke?” He whispered to himself.