Hello readers! This is my very first attempt at a Naruto Fanfic, so please be gentle!
I've tried my best to stick to the manga and the real facts as much as possible, but everyone makes mistakes. So, feel free to point out where I've screwed up at and please, please, please, more than anything, leave a comment! THANK YOU!!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, b/c if I did, Sasuke would be MINE!!
Prologue
Everything in this prologue takes place BEFORE the end of the first Naruto manga. The actual story starts right after the manga ends. Enjoy!
In all the years it had been around, Konoha hospital had never seen a busier day. Anyone available, be it an apprentice or medic, was called on to help. Amidst all the chaos, no one noticed a single kunoichi sitting nervously outside an operation room.
Her hands wrung nervously in her lap; her legs wouldn't stop shaking. It wasn't too hard to tell she was weak from lack of sleep. Her light brown hair, usually neat and tidy, now hung in two loose buns. She hadn't bothered to push aside her bangs, which were now sprawled out across her face, partially covering one eye.
Despite the state she was in, the young genin remained determined to stay where she was.
Why?
It was simple, really. Her teammate, and probably the person she admired the most, although she would never admit it, was lying behind those closed doors, unconscious. She shuddered at the sight of him she'd seen earlier, right when he had been carried through the large gates of Konoha.
She had only caught a glimpse of him, since he was surrounded by medic-nins, but one glimpse had been enough. She had seen him lying unconscious on a stretcher, his clothes bloody and torn.
The first thing that caught her eye had been the holes.
Not just the ones in his clothes, lightly tearing the fabric, but the ones that had been ripped through his body, shredding bits of flesh. Her trained eye told her they were clean shots; one weapon per hole.
She had been given no time to think about his wounds, for a nearby medic-nin had yelled at her to get out of the way. Still in shock, she had absentmindedly moved to clear a path for the medic team, then followed them into Konoha hospital.
And here she was now, 13-year-old Tenten, sitting anxiously outside the room that belonged to Hyugga Neji. Tsunade had been by a few minutes ago and had informed her that Neji would be allowed visitors that afternoon. She'd also advised Tenten to go home, get some rest, and come back later.
But she was not one to follow directions. Tenten had sat firmly outside those doors, determined to stay a few more hours until she could finally see her teammate.
Her mind was fuzzy and there was no way for her to count the number of hours she'd been up. A day? Two? Probably more, but it didn't matter. She'd never sleep again if only Neji would be ok.
Approaching footsteps caused Tenten's head to snap up, and she saw a blur of pink, followed by blonde, rushing down the hall. Sakura and Ino, no doubt. Tenten knew at once that the two younger girls were on their way to visit injured teammates as well. She'd heard two nurses discussing Chouji's condition and Naruto's return.
There was no time to ponder upon these thoughts, for at that very moment, the doors opened and two serious-faced medics emerged, followed by Shizune. Ignoring her fatigue, Tenten jumped up and quickly approached the trio, her eyes wide with anticipation.
Without needing to be asked, Shizune nodded and Tenten quickly thanked her before rushing into the room.
It was dark inside.
Not just darkness without light, but a tangible darkness that made it seem like the world was over.
Tenten stiffened as she slowly approached where she guessed the bed would be. Unfortunately, it was wrong. She winced as her knee came in contact with the bed's metal leg, and she quickly reached out her arms before taking another step. Her fingers brushed against a metal pole, telling her that it was the foot of the bed. She traced the bars around to the other side and paused, gently placing a palm on the bed sheets. They were soft and comforting, and the mattress sank under her fingers.
Eyes still unadjusted, Tenten blindly felt her way toward the other end of the bed, only to bang into the bedside table. She hissed as the edge of the table sank into her stomach, then silently scolded herself for being so clumsy. She was tainting the very definition of being a shinobi.
"You're noisy", a quiet voice spoke up, the owner obviously amused. Tenten froze at these words and turned her head in the direction they'd come from, only to realize that she couldn't see in the dark.
"Neji?"
"Here", Neji replied, his voice returning to its usual stoic tone. Tenten slowly let out the breath she'd been holding and closed her eyes.
Well, at least he could talk.
She was thankful that in the darkness, she couldn't see the extent of Neji's injuries, though the pain in his voice, however he tried to hide it, was apparent.
"I'm just glad you're finally conscious", Tenten finally said. There was no reply and a wave of fear washed over the kunoichi. Had she spoken too soon?
"Neji? Are you still -"
"Yeah, I'm thinking".
Tenten frowned as she was abruptly cut off, a mix of indignation and terrible disappointment swirling inside her. It was ridiculous, really, that even when he was lying in a hospital bed after a near-death incident, Neji could still make her feel like the biggest idiot in the world.
At the same time, just the thought of her teammate even being in a hospital at all brought Tenten near tears. She'd grown up in the academy alongside Neji, believing him to be near invincible. He had graduated as the top rookie, after all. But now, after she'd seen him in that terrible condition while being carried through the Konoha gates, Tenten felt fear. If Neji, the Hyugga genius, had been reduced to this state, what hope was there for her?
She quickly pushed aside the negative thoughts and snapped back to the present, only to realize that it was pointless to do so. In fact, Tenten realized that her entire wait at the hospital had been, needless to say, wasted. Really, now that Neji's condition had improved, what did she expect to happen? It wasn't like he was going anywhere soon, and she obviously didn't expect him to jump up and hug her. That was something Lee would do.
You didn't even think about it. A voice chided in her head. You forget everything just so you can rush over here, and now what? He's completely ignoring you, just like always.
Tenten narrowed her eyes at the annoying voice and tried to make it go away. She failed. It continued to nag at her, until Tenten fully believed she had absolutely no reason to stay any longer. She reached out an arm to find the bed's railing, but stopped when she heard her name called out so quietly, she thought she'd imagined it. Nope, there it was again.
"Do you need something?" she asked.
"Where are you going?" It wasn't really a question, but more of a demand.
"Anywhere. I'm allowing you to think", sarcasm laced her words. As unprecedented as it was, Tenten wanted to, for lack of better word, "piss" Neji off. He'd done it to her so often, she couldn't help but jump at the chance, even if it meant taking advantage of the fact that he was bandaged from head to toe.
She waited to see if he would respond, but Neji had fallen silent. With gritted teeth and a sinking heart, Tenten blindly made her way out of the room.
Despite the warm sunshine and soft singing of birds that filled the sky with joy, the young shinobi could not bring himself to enjoy it. He was still stuck in the hospital bed, the white sheets tangled between a pair of bandaged legs. His blond spiky hair fell into his eyes, but he made no move to push them aside. It wasn't like he needed his vision right now anyways.
His hands gripped his knees tightly, knuckles turning white form the pressure. His shoulder shuddered from the silent tears that refused to fall. He had failed. He had promised Sakura, but he had failed.
Naruto sniffed quietly as his mind remembered the events of the previous days. Everything was a blur, but amidst the fuzzy pictures and sounds, he could clearly remember every detail of what his former teammate, no, friend,, had transformed into. The image of Sasuke with gray skin and those huge wings was burned into his memory.
I Will bring him back. He thought.
A sudden gust of wind entered the room and his head snapped up just in time to see Jiraiya seated comfortably along the windowsill. Naruto felt a sudden surge of energy run through his body and immediately demanded another change to go after Sasuke, but the renowned Sannin shook his head.
He filled Naruto in on the rules of body transferring, assuring him that Sasuke's body would not be in danger until after another three years.
Somewhat reassured by this information, Naruto dropped the subject of Sasuke and demanded that "Ero-sennin had to train him". The older man nodded, knowing that even if the kid had not asked, he would have trained him anyways. Now, feeling hopeful again, Naruto laid his head back on the pillow and watched as Jiraiya floated away from the window. His eyelids felt heavy and before he was aware of it, Naruto fell asleep, exhausted.
As days merged into weeks, the occupants of Konoha hospital began leaving. They healed, they graciously thanked the medics, and they went home.
For a while, things seemed to return to normal. Naruto was back to visiting the Ichiraku Ramen shop everyday, and Hinata was back to stalking him. Sakura, whose initial shock had faded away, began her apprenticeship under the Godaime. Ino continued working at the Yamanaka flower shop, taking breaks in between to go on missions or have lunch with Chouji and Shikamaru. Kiba and Shino often went training with Kurenai, and Lee bonded with Gai-sensei even more by attempting their first A-rank mission. Needless to say, they returned home beaten and battered, but with a triumphant "spring-time of youth" look on their faces.
As for Neji and Tenten, the tensions between them faded and they returned to the normal routine of training by day and eating out at night. Although neither dared to bring up the subject of Sasuke, or anything related to the incident, Tenten was unable to calm her mind.
Night after night, as she watched Neji walk off toward the Hyugga estate after dinner, she'd have a moment of panic, during which all sorts of violent scenes crossed her mind. She only relaxed when she saw that Neji had safely entered the gates of his home.
Then, shakily, Tenten would return to her own house for another nightmare-filled five or six hours of sleep. Her paranoia and jumpiness worsened over time, but Tenten kept it all to herself. She didn't have anyone to tell, and besides, anyone she told would simply say she was overreacting. As long as nothing happened during the day to give her away, everything would be fine.
So, things settled down and returned to normal, until Jiraiya returned from one of his infamous "research" trips and found Naruto hanging out in Tsunade's office, beggin to see his "Sakura-chan".
He approached the young genin and, with a mysterious smile, announced it was time to leave. Naruto perked up immediately at the word "training" and rushed home to pack. In all his life, Jiraiya had only seen one person move faster, and that was Tsunade, when she attacked him after discovering that he had been hiding in her bathroom.
As the last rays of sunlight disappeared from the peaceful Konoha sky, Naruto and Jiraiya set off beyond the gates and into the forest. They would be absent for almost three years, and during this time the hidden village of Konoha, despite its small size, would experience the greatest changes of all.