Never Let You Go [Zabuza Momochi]

Chapter 20

There was a lot of yelling in the hospital halls as nurses wheeled a bed through the doors. The medical personnel attached an oxygen mask to Lacey's face, her unconscious form lying on the sheets.

Immediately, a doctor entered the room to check her vitals. "Who brought her in?" the man asked.

"We do not know," a nurse answered. A staff member found her when they went on break, alone with only a note attached saying she swallowed too much water in the ocean. "But it looks like she was in a fight." There were cuts and bruises in various places.

He nodded in agreement. "Bring in the equipment. We have to make sure the water on the lungs doesn't give our patient here more issues down the road. We'll have to keep a close eye on her condition..."

While the man rattled of further instructions to the staff members all of them failed to notice the figure lingering by the door. They listened discreetly, dressed as a resident and wearing a surgical mask to hide their identity. Once the stranger heard enough, he left the hospital and disappeared into the surrounding forest.

"Well?" a rough voice questioned.

Haku removed the surgical mask. "Lacey's in good hands." The teen then began to pull off the scrubs, his uniform on underneath. "They are worried about water on the lungs, but other than that I'm certain she'll make a full recovery."

Zabuza huffed and gave a nod. His eyes flickered in the direction of the hospital barely visible between the thick trees. Neither of them knew why the individual hunting rogues went after Lacey. The two wouldn't ever know either without her recollection and neither would be crossing paths with her again anytime soon. Or what became of their enemy. There'd been no attempts against their life since hauling the young woman out of the ocean.

"Where do we go from here?"

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Lacey's eyes snapped open in alarm. Her brain screamed danger from the memories that came flooding back and she sat upright so quickly it brought on a headrush. Her chest continued to burn a bit from the effects of the salt water. And it ached from the chest compressions that were performed, though the dancer was unaware of it. A nurse in the room jumped from her unpredicted movement only to rush forward to calm the frantic patient. Lacey nearly lashed out at the woman when her hand touched the young woman's shoulder. She quickly realized it wasn't Akine and the stranger wore scrubs.

"Where am I?" Lacey croaked out.

"The hospital," the nurse answered. "I'll go get the doctor."

The dancer waited, resting back against the now propped up pillows and her eyes wandered the room. Her head throbbed from a headache. She couldn't remember what happened. After losing consciousness in the water. Obviously Zabuza and Haku got the message. They saved her life once again. But where were they? This setting wasn't exactly the young man's style, but she expected to see the teen.

The door opened again and a tall, lanky man walked in. His glasses sat on the bridge of his nose. "How are you feeling, Miss?" he questioned.

"Okay, I guess."

"What is your name?"

"Lacey."

"I'm Dr. Ingrosso. I would like to ask you some questions in regards to how you sustained your injuries."

"Where are... my friends?"

"One of the nurses found you outside the ER doors. Alone. Who are your friends? Maybe we could contact them for you?"