Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Starting Over... ❯ Healing ( Chapter 5 )

 

 

 

Sakura shivered in her wet clothes, she'd never been in the Uchiha complex before, but she could understand why Sasuke hadn't lived there since the infamous murders. Even the neighborhood around it seemed unnaturally quiet. It was cold too, and a number of the lights were burned out, but the thermostat was running, and the master bedroom had enough light for her to work on healing her friend.

 

Naruto helped her ease Sasuke down on the bed on his stomach but she noticed he still refused to let himself look at the damage. “Would it help if I went to see if there is some aspirin or something here?”

 

Sakura nodded even though she knew it would take more than that to get ahead of this kind of pain and Sasuke would probably be asleep before he came back with it anyway. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail and washed her hands before putting on a pair of medical gloves.

 

She smiled as she looked through the tray of items that Tsunade had ordered sent here for her to work with. No doubt Shizune had packed it and delivered it herself. Sasuke's breathing was becoming deeper and more even, that made her smile because it meant he was falling asleep.

 

Naruto burst back into the room, but before he could say anything, she shushed him. “He can take them later,” she whispered. “Get his shoes off, please.”

 

He did and then he sat down on the opposite side of the bed to watch her. She focused on her task again, forcing herself to block out everything else. She couldn't let anything distract her, and Naruto was content to just watch her- at least for now.

 

She'd seen battle wounds before, but this was just cruel, she thought, allowing herself to take in the damage as a whole for the first time. The pale skin of Sasuke's back was tattered beyond all recognition, there was blood everywhere. The scorches were just evil looking and the deep gashes randomly carved right into his broad, powerful muscles might impair his movement for the rest of his life. Many of the scorched areas were bad enough that they'd cauterized themselves like a branding iron immediately but others were still bleeding.

 

As a whole, he'd lost a lot of blood and the pain would have to have been terrible. His dark, untamable spirit and iron will were all that had kept him alive. After all, this sort of a chakra whip was meant to permanently damage the body and disrupt the bond between the Ki of the victim's body and the spirit's ability to manipulate it into expendable chakra. Time would tell if Danzou's hired torturer had succeeded or not.

 

She took a small squeeze bottle of sterile water and broke off the tip, allowing the fluid to run down his back, soothing and cleansing the area as gently as possible. She smoothed the dangling strips of skin back into place, while they were wet and tried to keep them as even and flat as possible. She blotted them dry with gauze 4x4's as she finished each small area. It was like putting together a jigsaw puzzle- but one she didn't find enjoyable.

 

Most pieces were just plain missing, torn loose and- well, it was better not to think about that. She wrinkled up her nose in disgust, but when she was done with that, Sakura took off her gloves and washed her hands again. She went to her basket of supplies and pulled out a broad, shallow jar of cream. With a fresh pair of medical gloves, she smeared the cream onto the skin she'd managed to save, making sure to use enough that the pale ribbons would not stick to her gloves.

 

“Naruto? Naruto-kun, could you…” She looked up when he didn't answer and smiled when she realized he was asleep, right next to Sasuke. The situation as a whole wasn't funny, but she was wishing she had a camera which made her blush.

 

Her eyes wandered to the clock nearby and she took a moment to stretch after removing her gloves and washing her hands. No wonder Naruto had zonked out. She'd been working on this for almost three hours. She was tired too; this week had left both of them emotionally exhausted. She still had a lot to do though.

 

With a sigh, she found the burn cream Shizune had packed for her and applied the slimy yellow goop to the worst of the scorches first, working her way along slowly and gently. This was the most likely step to wake Sasuke, but he didn't stir, and most of them were centered in the middle of his back. The scarring would be the worst there, simply because that was where he was missing the most skin.

 

For the damaged muscles that weren't badly burned, she smoothed a large amount of clear salve on them. Then she took out a pinch of delicate special fibers that had always looked to her like pale yellow cotton balls and tucked them up into the gashes, making sure they stuck to the gooey salve. When she finished with all of that, Sakura draped a clean sheet over him. Bandages would have to wait for the next time she had to put the creams and lotions on him. As long as he was comfortable enough to rest this peacefully, she wanted to let him.

 

Then, she went into the bathroom and took a long, hot shower, scrubbing away all the blood on her felt like heaven. The bottles in the shower were dusty, but she managed to find some shampoo and conditioner and washed her hair too. After that, she threw an old robe around herself and came out to check on her patient.

 

Naruto had scooted a bit closer, and was lying curled up with his back up against Sasuke's arm. Sasuke hadn't moved though, so she crept to the closet and pulled out something that wasn't bloody to wear. The only thing that caught her eye was a simple, dark dress, but the material was soft and comfortable, even if it was a little musty. She slipped it on and curled up into the recliner in the corner; using the bathrobe for a blanket, she was asleep in minutes.

 

**

 

Sasuke growled, as he started to wake up.

 

What the hell…

 

The sensation that his chin was lying in something cold and wet was just gross and that was why he never slept on his stomach. About that same time, he also felt pain- lots of it- all in his back.

 

He stirred slowly, unable to figure out why both of his arms felt like lead weights at his sides and why one was quite a bit warmer than the other.

 

The room was near dark, golden light poured in along the edges of the curtains indicating the sun was setting, but he could see enough of the furniture to know that it looked a lot like his parent's room…

 

A shape stirred in the overstuffed recliner to his left and he realized this was his parent's old bedroom. The small figure curled up in the chair turned out to be Sakura; her pale hair shone softly in the waning light. She looked like an angel; with the sun's glow giving her its warm, ethereal beauty. She was loyal, brave, determined and beautiful, but he didn't love her.

 

No, that isn't quite true...

 

During his absence he'd thought of her often at first- especially her stunning green eyes when times were hard. But in the end, he needed a stronger anchor to keep resisting Orochimaru's cruelty. Sakura was still a friend, a teammate and a precious person, but when he thought of her now, he saw the sister he wished he could have had.

 

Ironically, the bond with Naruto that he'd tried so hard to break, was the one that kept the embers of hope alive inside him; hope that someday he would beat the snake at his own game and kill Itachi himself…

 

Something shifted on his other side and suddenly the edge of a ridiculous orange sleeve and a tanned hand were dangling awkwardly in front of his face.

 

Sasuke growled trying not to flinch when the arm moved again, lower this time, across his back. “Get off of me, Dobe…”

 

“Dobe? Sasuke? H-Hey!” Naruto jumped up off of the bed and then appeared in front of him, holding several small white pills and a glass of water. “Here, take these! I got them for you!”

 

Since it still hurt too much to move his arms much less sit up, Sasuke found it ridiculous that the hyperactive blonde was starting to look so disappointed.

 

“S-Sasuke? You're awake?”

 

He found himself glaring at Sakura too, who stifled a giggle. “I guess you weren't quite ready to wake up yet, huh? Well, too late now, but you must feel horribly stiff and sore. Your muscles won't feel as cramped if you take a bath or a shower before I doctor you up again. Which would you prefer?”

 

“A shower.”

 

Sakura giggled again. “Okay, Naruto can help you with that. I'll go make us all something to eat, and then-”

 

“What?”

 

Naruto stared at her in disbelief.

 

“Yes, I've already had my shower, and he'll need your help to wash his hair because I don't want him lifting his hands any higher than his shoulders.”

 

“Why?” Both boys asked at the same time.

 

“Because if you move too much I'll have to spend another hour or two putting your remaining skin back where it belongs, Sasuke-kun. That and it will hurt like crazy- so the less you move the better right now. Also, you were burned pretty badly, so be careful not to get the water too hot- in fact I think cold showers would be best for now.”

 

That was an explanation that Sasuke could live with, so he was a bit surprised when Naruto squawked at her yet again. “What?”

 

“Honestly Naruto, you're both guys- he's seen one before, you know, and the water will be cold anyway so what are you worried about?”

 

“But-”

 

“Just get him in there and help him get cleaned up and wash his hair and then you can both come out and eat. Just try not to rinse off too much of the stuff I used on his back.”

 

“But…” It was more of a whimper than a protest this time, Sasuke noticed.

 

“Is this about all those creepy things Sai said back when we first met him, Naruto?”

 

“N-No, but I can't just-”

 

“What did Sai say anyway?” Judging by the way Sakura had worded her question Sasuke found his curiosity getting the better of him.

 

“He said-”

 

“S-Sakura-chan! Don't you dare!” Naruto grabbed his arm and yanked him toward the edge of the bed- without letting him try to get up first.

 

“At least try not to pull his arms out of their sockets,” Sakura growled. “Honestly, you get on that side of him, I'll get over here. Sorry, Sasuke, maybe I should have awakened you to take something for pain, but I knew plain old aspirin wasn't going to cut it.”

 

“Hn,” Was Sasuke's only reply, he was actually glad they'd let him sleep for such a long time and aspirin tended to bother his stomach anyway.

 

With help from both sides, he found he could sit up, and while movement of any kind hurt like crazy, at least he wasn't still stuck to his pillow. Sakura stayed while he was standing up too, even though he insisted he wasn't dizzy.

 

Once they were in the bathroom though, Sakura headed for the kitchen, leaving them on their own. “Try not to kill each other!”

 

“Girls…” Sasuke grunted, they both ginned and he looked at Naruto. “So, what did Sai say to you?”

 

“Why do you want to know?”

 

“It's obviously bothering you if you won't tell me. That isn't like you.”

 

“It doesn't matter, let's get this over with, I'm starving and it looks like you are too. Didn't they feed you while you were locked up?”

 

“Hn,” Sasuke turned his back on him and stepped out of his clothes before moving to turn on the shower. “You really don't have to do this, you know.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“I've taken showers all by myself for years, Dobe.”

 

“Shut up, Teme. If I let you hurt yourself, Sakura will kill me!”

 

“I doubt it,”

 

“No really- Granny Tsunade's been training her and she's really changed- she probably could...”

 

“That's good to hear, but I can do this myself.”

 

“Sure you could, if you had to, but… you're not alone anymore.”

 

Sasuke smirked at Naruto when he said that. “Well then get in here, this water is cold.”

 

“Holy shit! Even my toes are freezing! How can you just stand there like that?”

 

“Quit jumping around, how old are we now?”

 

“Can't you be nice?” Naruto looked down.

 

“Look, let's just get this over with.” That was all he could say. As much as part of him wanted to, Sasuke couldn't just kiss him again. He felt too vulnerable; he was in unending pain, and the only two people in the world that had ever really cared about him- not his money, not his name or his power or his birthright- already had more reason than anyone else, to just leave him like that. He looked down. “Please…”

 

**

 

Naruto was starting to get mad; he was already flustered and confused, but Sasuke hadn't seen him blushing.

 

“Look, let's just get this over with.”

 

He still couldn't believe he was standing in a cold shower with his best friend who'd tried to kill him twice and then given him the sweetest kiss of his whole life- which was just as random in its own way… Sasuke turned away, but not fast enough to hide the shame and guilt in his eyes.

 

Naruto saw that and was startled.

 

“Please…”

 

Sasuke was stubborn, self confident and cold- he wasn't supposed to look like that- ever. He also wasn't supposed to sound like that either…

 

It seemed so strange to see Sasuke looking so uncertain that he couldn't react for a moment- instead he just stared at him curiously. His face was hauntingly beautiful; no wonder he'd never been able to forget him or any of their arguments. Naruto drank in the sight of him- a little surprised that he felt like he was looking at him for the first time. The fine, elegant bone structure, his pale skin was flawless porcelain and his aristocratic profile was almost as sharp as his dark eyes.

 

Sasuke turned to look at the bottles on the shelves though and Naruto snapped out of his trance, grabbed the bottle he chose away from him. “I'll do it, Teme.”

 

The Teme seemed far less than thrilled when Naruto squeezed the bottle and slopped a big glob of the creamy white soap on his head and began to push it through the fine, dark strands in every imaginable direction.

 

“There!” Naruto grinned at him proudly once he thought he had it all mixed around. Sasuke rolled his eyes as he let it rinse out.

 

“Wonderful, Dobe. Now can we try it with shampoo- preferably one that doesn't smell like roses and vanilla?”

 

“Wha-” Naruto grinned sheepishly when he realized he was holding conditioner. His grin turned mischievous though. “Oh well, it smells nice, Teme- and your hair is already really soft and silky.”

 

“Whatever.” Sasuke turned off the water and grabbed a dry pair of towels, out of the closet next to the shower.

 

One of the fresh linens hit Naruto in the face. “Well, I guess that wasn't so bad… Uh- hey Teme- I mean Sasuke, I have to ask you something...”

 

Sasuke turned toward him immediately, his expression was guarded- but his eyes held a spark of challenge in them. That was enough to warn Naruto that the Teme knew exactly what he was wanted to ask him.

 

Naruto was startled at the unspoken challenge.

 

Did he kiss me as a joke?

 

Naruto scowled, and blushed uncomfortably. The others hadn't arrived yet- they'd still been alone, so why would he choose that moment to get a rise out of him- especially like that? It didn't make sense.

 

He looked down. Is he still just trying to push me away? He suddenly felt even more nervous than before. His heart ached because he wanted that kiss to mean more than just one more way the jerk could mess with his head.

 

It took Naruto a few seconds to realize the door was open. “There wasn't anything to cook with so I made the ANBU go get us some take out and they pissed about-”

 

He and Sasuke were a good two feet apart, but Naruto knew what Sakura was thinking and he grinned. For a half second, her eyes got big and then she shut the door. She sounded flustered as she yelled at them. “Will you two idiots put some clothes on and come to the table?”

 

“Shh, I'll tell you later.” Naruto said quietly, grinning at Sasuke. “Aww come on Sakura-chan you know you love it. And I won't even tell Konohamoru that you were spying on us.”

 

“Naruto! Don't you dare tell that perverted little shrimp anything unless you want me to throw your supper- your Ramen in the garbage! How was I supposed to know you two were just standing there staring at each other like idiots wearing bath towels?”

 

He laughed as he heard her stomp back down the hall fuming.

 

“Something's different about her…” Sasuke sounded more annoyed than intrigued.

 

That made Naruto laugh even harder. “You have no idea, but I promise I'll tell you everything later.” Then he had an idea. How about a little payback for kissing me as a joke, Sasuke? “So you still don't like girls?”

 

“Women in general are fine, Dobe. I prefer to be the one doing the hunting.” Sasuke shrugged, digging through his father's side of the enormous closet.

 

“That sounds so old fashioned,” He sighed. Even after being tortured it was still hard to find the cracks in the armor around Sasuke's heart.

 

Naruto noticed Sasuke still hadn't picked anything out anything clean to wear yet; he just kept sighing and wrinkling up his nose.

 

“You're under house arrest; no one is going to care that you're having takeout in a pair of sweats, Teme.”

 

“I want a button down shirt, that way I can put it on and take it off without needing to move very much, Dobe.”

 

Naruto winced at that, Sasuke was handling the pain so well that he'd forgotten why they'd had to shower together in the first place, Sasuke didn't notice though. He moved to the large dressers across the room, then to another huge closet that Naruto hadn't even noticed before. “There they are.”

 

“How come they took you so long to find? I mean you grew up here, right?”

 

“My father was a very busy man- but he was never too busy to make up another stupid rule that applied only to me. `Don't play with the stuff in Itachi's room. Sit quietly at the dinner table. Stay out of Mom and Dad's room. Don't catapult vegetables at your brother even if he went back on his word-'”

 

“Wait! You actually-”

 

Sasuke nodded, his expression was wistful as he loosely tucked in the front of the short sleeved black shirt he'd chosen after buttoning it up halfway. “I only did it once, believe me. I still remember the look in Itachi's eyes when that pod of snow peas dripped off of his forehead and landed on his plate. Hey, Dead Last, have you learned to eat vegetables that don't need to be re-hydrated yet?”

 

“Gross! Why would I want to do that?”

 

Sasuke smirked as he walked away. “No reason I guess. I'll just keep enjoying being taller than you.”

 

“Shut up, Teme. You're not that much taller.”

 

“Why does everything have to end up a contest between you two rival Dobes?” Sakura growled at them from the kitchen.

 

Naruto slumped onto a random cushion at the dining room table. “It's because he's such a Teme.”

 

“Hn.” Naruto glanced at the other boy curiously, noticing at once that there was mischief in the sound and for a second, it was also reflected in Sasuke's dark eyes as he looked at her. So that really means, “You're the ones who missed me.”

 

Naruto couldn't help grinning at the other boy while Sakura continued her fuming attempts at ignoring their antics, as she passed around the takeout boxes. She never had been able to read Sasuke like he could; it made him strangely happy to see that hadn't really changed.