Pain

Open your eyes!

Rain had begun to fall, extinguishing any flames that may have lingered when the building exploded. Charred pieces of wood hissed and cracked as the water made contact with them. Lightening bolts flashed through the clouds lighting up the sky before loud claps of thunder echoed through the many trees. The clouds began to open more, causing a heavier down pour of rain.

Among the rubble a body laid unmoving in the oncoming storm, the rain mixed with the blood that seeped from the many wounds from the figure. The color red stained the forest floor before being washed away. Another clap of thunder shook the man from his comatose state. His eyes cracked open but clenched shut once a wave of pain shot through his body.

"Ah," He screamed in protest as he tried to push himself up but to no avail.

His heart rate increased from the strain that he was putting on his wounded body. "I can't die out here." He turned onto his side and lay limp for a moment before forcing himself back onto his stomach here he pushed himself up to his knees. "Come on Sasuke, you can do this."

He knew he had to find help, his was already growing weak from the blood loss, he knew that much. The bullet wounds pulled and stretched when he he forced himself to this feet. Placing an arm across his chest, he walked unsteadily hoping somehow, somewhere, there was someone looking for him. But that was a long shot, he had told Sakura to leave him and there was no telling if anyone had stayed behind to search for him.

He came to a ledge, but lost his footing and ended up tumbling down the side of it and landing harshly on his back. His breathed left him in an instant. "Ah fuck." He choked out and looked up into the sky.

"Sakura..." He muttered as his eyelids became heavy. The pain was numbing, his body was burned out. There was nothing left for him to fight with.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted as he ran through the forest of endless trees.

He had two others had stayed behind while Sakura and the others were taken back to the hospital. Sakura had cried in protest when Kakashi wouldn't allow her to stay and aid in the search. But she was too emotionally distraught to help out the team here.

"I have to find him." He promised himself and Sakura. "I can't return without him."

He continued to run as the rain pelted his face but that didn't stop him even as Kakashi called out to him on his communicator. Naruto ignored his commanding officer, his duty was to his best friend right now. Nothing else mattered to him, no one else mattered in that moment.

"Sasuke!" He called out again before something caught his foot and sent him flying to the ground. He hit the ground with anger and stood up and was prepared to run again.

"Son of a-" He stopped when he turned and saw a full figure lying on the forest floor. "Sasuke?"

He scrambled on his feet and ran over before sliding to a stop on his knees. "Oh god." He ripped the jacket from his own torso and placed it on the worst of Sasuke's injuries. But the blood was already soaking through the material. "Shit."

"Kakashi, come in, I need an emergency evacuation!" He yelled into his communicator.

"What happened?" Kakashi questioned worriedly.

"I found him. And he's hurt bad Kakashi, like really bad."

"We're on our way."

"Please hurry." Naruto stated with a cracked voice.

He glanced down to Sasuke as the male's eyes cracked open slightly. "Naruto?" Sasuke whispered.

"Hold on okay." Naruto grabbed his friends hand, surprised to see him awake. "We're going to get you out of here." He looked to the sky hoping and praying Kakashi and the pilot got here soon. "Where is that damn helicopter." He looked back down to his friend, Sasuke squeezed his hand before attempting to speak.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't start this now."

"For everything." Sasuke sputtered out as blood leaked from his mouth.

Naruto shook his head as tears mixed with the rain that fell against his cheeks. "Sasuke stop." He squeezed Sasuke's hand tighter. "Just stop talking okay, please save your strength."

"There's nothing left to save Naruto."

"Shut up!" Naruto yelled to silence his friend.

"Naruto... tell Sakura I love her." He smiled gently. "Even if I don't deserve her."

His eyes drifted shut and his body once again went limp as Naruto panicked and shook him. "Sasuke!"

My eyes were open but I couldn't make sense of much around me. I saw lights on the ceiling whizzing by as if I were flying. I felt hands grabbing me and touching my wounds. They hurt, I wish someone would make them stop.

"Sasuke." I heard her voice but I couldn't answer her back no matter how much I wanted to.

I'm sorry Sakura.

"We need a room right now." A nurse yelled as she and two other pushed the gurney down the hallway.

"I need blood transfusions and I need the operating room to be prepared immediately."

The doctor hovered above him, taking in the male's condition, there was so much blood, it was a miracle he still had a pulse when he was brought in. Tsunade shook away her thoughts as they came to the operating room. She immediately grabbed the IV and found his vein before quickly maneuvering around the nurses to get to his shirt. She cut the material from his body and removed it to gain access to the bullet wounds. There was no telling if there were any of them still in his chest.

"Damn it, his heart rate his going haywire." Tsunade stated just when the heart monitor began going off.

"Shit." She knew she had to move faster, if she was going to save him she needed to be quick.

His heart flat-lined and she immediately grabbed the heart defibrillator. "Clear."

There was no change as she continued. "Come on Sasuke!"

Naruto sat in the waiting room with his head in his hands. He was still a bit dirty and soaked from the mission he hadn't bothered to go home, not when his friend was in that room fighting for his life. His hands were shaking uncontrollably as he sat there minute after minute with no word about how his best friend was doing.

"Naruto!" He heard his name.

He turned and spotted Sakura running towards him Hinata right on her heels. Sasuke's parents weren't that far behind her. He could see her hair was thrown into a messy pony tail and here clothes were in disarray.

"Have you heard anything," She asked as she stopped in front of him.

"No, he's been in there for an hour already but they haven't been out to let me know anything yet."

"Naruto?" She called him. "Be honest with me...how bad are his wounds."

"To be honest?" He asked again as she nodded. "I don't know." He sighed and looked to her and Sasuke's parents. "When I found him, he was bleeding pretty badly, he woke up for a few minutes but he lost consciousness soon after."

"Did he...say anything to you?" She looked to him with pleading eyes.

"Yes."

"What did he say?"

"He said he was sorry for everything and that he loves you. Even if he didn't deserve to have you."

"He said that?" She had tears come to her eyes.

"I'm sorry Sakura. I wish he had said more." Naruto glanced to the ground just as Tsunade appeared before them with a soft smile.

"How is he?" Sakura asked almost afraid of what she would say.

"He is stable for the moment, but he will be under our watch until he wakes up."

"Just tell me what I want to know and you might come out of this alive."

Not being able to do anything else, Sasuke spit on the man before him. "Fuck you." He gritted through his teeth.

Sakon tsked. "You are strong. But I'll break you, you won't be able to stand what I have in store."

He walked over to the wall and grabbed the thick black whip before yanking it forcefully off the wall. Sakon walked around to Sasuke where his exposed back was completely untainted with scars. Sakon smirked and tsked again.

"You have been able to keep yourself pretty clean of scars, that was until you got involved with my boss. No one will be able to stand to look at your back when I'm through." Sakon unraveled the whip and brought back his arm, before using all of his strength to crack the whip against Sasuke's bare flesh.

As soon as the whip made contact with his skin, Sasuke screamed out from the unbearable pain.

Sasuke jolted awake from the nightmare and sat up, he immediately regretted it when waves of pain shot through his body. He clutched his chest as his heart sped up setting of the monitor. Tsunade immediately burst through the door but her eyes widened when she saw him sitting there clutching his chest. She walked over quickly and shut off the monitor.

"Well that's what happens when you are supposed to stay lying down."

"Tsunade?" He questioned as she forced him to lie back on the bed.

"I'm glad to see you are awake."

"How did I get here?"

"You can thank Naruto for that. He was the one that found you."

Sasuke glanced down at his hands and noticed there were bandages wrapped all the way to his elbows. He couldn't believe it, he was alive. His chest was covered in the same wrapping as his arm but hints of blood lingered on these. He touched his chest softly and sighed. How am I even still alive. Anyone else would have died from these same wounds.

"Sakura-" She was cut off when he forced himself up again. "Wait what happened is she and the others okay, did they make it out."

"She is fine," As she pushed him down again, "Everyone went through medical examinations but right now she went to join her parents and yours for a bite to eat." Tsunade smiled softly. "She wouldn't go so I had to make her. She hasn't left your side in the last three weeks."

"Three weeks?"

"Yes." She nodded. "You've been out for quite awhile."

"How was she during that time?" He inquired.

"I don't know, I do know that she has basically cried herself dry." Tsunade turned to him with a serious expression. "I don't like seeing her that way. Sasuke we almost lost you."

Tsunade sighed and and touched his shoulder. "Sasuke, please don't make her go through this again." Her expression changed to one of sadness. "I'm afraid her heart can't take much more."

Sasuke felt himself relax uncomfortably, she was right. Sakura was a very sensitive person when it comes down to the ones she loves. "I'll be back in a bit, I'm going to let everyone know you are awake."

She left Sasuke alone and now he suddenly wished that she hadn't his mind began to wonder to all the recent events. A pain shot through his head as all the memories came rushing to his head, memories of things he had done to Naruto and the others. His mind was running wild he couldn't make it stop. He grasped his head in his hands and tried to shake it off.

"Ah," He hissed, "Why won't this stop!"

He was shaking as his eyes widened, his memories were on rewind through his head, he can't make sense of anything as flashes of pictures came and went. He could have sworn he heard someone come in through the door but his screams drowned out the noises of anything else around him.

"Sasuke!"

Sakura?

"He's having a seizure, hold him down."

He felt weight be placed on his arms and on his chest and legs. "Sasuke hang on!" He felt a familiar touch holding his head and he knew who it was.

Sakura help me!

His body went limp, Tsunade and the other nurses immediately started injecting him with medicine and IV's.

"Tsunade, what happened?"

His breathing is stable for the moment. Earlier he had a seizure, sending all of his vital signs out of whack. God please let him make it through this.

She wiped a tear from his eye as she glanced to the man on the bed. She felt he wouldn't wake up this time, even Tsunade didn't know what had caused the seizure to come on. He never had a history of it in his family and neither in his medical history. She thinks it may have had something to do with Orochimaru's meddling with his head during surgery. The scar on his head was a constant reminder every time she ran a hand through his hair.

A low moan caught her ears and she stood from the chair she was sitting in and stared at him. He flinched a few times and moved his head a little before settling back into a slumber.

"Damn it." Sakura's hopes were crushed. "Come on babe, I need you to wake up." Tears formed in her eyes before forming into a glare.. "Orochimaru will pay for this. This is his doing. You didn't deserve this Sasuke and I'm sorry I couldn't save you from the beginning."

I can hear her. But I can't see her. Her voice is everywhere. She's begging me to wake up, but how am I supposed to do that when I don't even know where I am. I need answers! I need help! I don't know how I am supposed to free myself from this comatose state.

Sakura...

I'm sorry.

I'll find a way back to you...I promise.

I will not bow
I will not break

A/N: Sorry its a little short, but its updated yay!