Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Twist of Time ❯ Waking Up ( Chapter 2 )

Naruto groaned softly, squinting his closed eyes. Around him, he could hear hushed movement suddenly stop. Cracking open one eye, he winced at the bright white light that flooded his vision.

"Boy?" came a soft voice from beside him. Turning his head, he squinted to see a brown and white blur beside him. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he opened his eyes more and more to see a young woman with shoulder length brown hair peering worriedly at him. "Are you all right boy?"

"What… what happened?" Naruto asked, struggling to sit up.

"Oh no you don't," the woman said, pushing him back down. "You got a good-sized knock on the head - I wouldn't be surprised it you were still bleeding."

"'Bleeding'? 'Knock on the head'? That can't… I don't remember…"

The woman ignored his mumblings and gently reached up to the bandage that wrapped around his head. Removing the dressing, she smirked and nodded.

"Just as I thought - still bleeding." Tossing the dirtied gauze, she took the roll of bandages from beside her and rewrapped Naruto's head. "Now you just lay here and heal, all right?"

The blonde mumbled something before his eyes closed and he fell into darkness again.

~*~

This time, when Naruto awoke, the woman who was there before was gone and two ten-year-olds were chattering at the door. The boy, with dark brown hair and eyes, glanced away from the girl, with light blonde hair and soft aqua eyes that looked so familiar, when he heard Naruto shifting and sitting up.

"Hey, are you all right?" he asked, a touch of worry in his voice.

"Where am I?" Naruto asked before blinking. Was something wrong with his voice?

"You're in the Konoha Hospital," the boy explained. "Me 'n' Em found you outside. You looked pretty bad."

"Out… side?" He closed his eyes and lightly shook his head, stopping when the movement dizzied him. When did he get outside?

"You were hit on the head and bleeding," the girl spoke. "The nurse says that it would do well for you to stay here for the next few days. She wants to make sure there's nothing wrong with your head."

"So, what's your name?" the boy asked suddenly. "I don't remember seeing you around the Academy before and you were wearing a Leaf hitai-ate when we found you."

"My name?" Naruto asked, still kind of dazed and wondering what was different with his voice. "It's Uzumaki Naruto."

"Well, Naruto, I'm U-"

"All right," came the sudden voice of the nurse. "You two get out. This young man needs his rest and he was sleeping when I left. There's no doubt why he is awake now." She leered at the boy who grinned sheepishly before smiling herself. "Now, out."

"Bye, Naruto," the ten-year-olds called, leaving the room. "We'll come back," the boy promised as the nurse shut the door.

"All right, then, boy, let's check your head again."

The woman walked towards him and bent over slightly to reach down and take his head in her hands and he frowned. Something about this wasn't right… The nurse was very tall.

"There we go, boy," she smiled, tossing the bandages.

"Why do you keep calling me boy?" Naruto asked, as the nurse began to rewrap his head.

"Well, I can't go and call you 'girl,' now can I?"

"But, I…" Her tallness was really getting to him. He could remember being short when he was a child, but when he finally came of age he was taller than Sasuke - and Sasuke was almost six foot! How could this nurse be taller than him? And what was with the "boy"?

The woman smiled at him as she finished up with the bandages and gently patted him on the top of the head.

"All right, boy. Now you just get more rest - I'll be back in about an hour to get you dinner, ok?" Smiling, she stood up straight and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Watching the closed door for a moment, Naruto sighed and fell back onto the stacked pillows that kept him upright, glancing around the room. The walls were the usual hospital white, and there were two chairs up against the wall next to the door. The bed he was in seemed a little big for some reason that he couldn't place and was the standard white. Next to his bed was a small white table and opposite the door, on the wall his bed was pressed against, was a window with steel bars on the outside.

Naruto sighed, bored, and continued to watch the eastern sky outside his barred window as it darkened, the clouds becoming dyed soft pink as the sky washed over with violet, light at first, but darkening quickly.

It was only after the nurse had come and gone again and the sun had left the sky completely that Naruto noticed that he could see his reflection - however faint - in the window. Peering closely, he saw his usual wild blonde hair, now dirty with lack of washing. A white bandage was wrapped around his head where his hitai-ate once was, but he had seen it on the table, so he wasn't worried about it. His eyes were the same blue and he still had the six whisker markings on his cheeks. He was dressed in the usual hospital gown and had no idea where his clothes were quite yet.

Suddenly, he blinked and sat up to peer closer at his fuzzy reflection. His eyes seemed… wider, than he could remember. And he was very, very…

Short.

His eyes widened and he suddenly fell back heavily, paling slightly.

He was ten!

~*~

~*~

~*~

Second chapter done! ^^

Nine: You seem to be getting on quickly with this one.

Angel: Yeah, well, I have a bunch of other stuff to get typed and this is the only one I don't have written down on paper somewhere so I need it out when I can get it.

Nine: Ah. So you'll be working on your others now?

Angel: -nod-

Nine: Then you're leaving us?

Angel: Temporarily.

Nine: Yay!

Angel: -throws stuff at Nine; suddenly runs out and kidnaps Yondaime and Itachi; glomps them and sits in Kakashi's lap- They are mine, neesan! You shall never get any of them! Yar-har! ^^

Kakashi, Yondaime, Itachi: -roll eyes-

Naruto: -deadpan- Oh, joy. More people. -points- That bathroom is getting really crowded, you know!

Angel: -jumps up and points- Ha! So you do live in my bathroom!

Nine: -smacks Naruto- Idiot! You just told her!

Angel: -proud- I don't own Naruto, so, till next time! ^^