Becoming

Part 29

 "Suppose he doesn't?" someone said, sounding irritatingly loud in the quiet room. Naruto didn't know what conversation he'd just woken up to, but there had been a few moments of silence before, and Naruto had thought he'd been alone.

"Don't think about that," another voice said. Naruto felt they both sounded familiar but couldn't place their voices. If only he could open his eyes...

"I can't stop, though!" the first voice yelled. Both were girls, Naruto realized, and thought back to what he remembered last. He was with Sai, Tenten and them all. So it was Tenten and Laurie?

"There's no use worrying about it. He will wake up, and he will be okay." The second voice was forceful, as if trying to convince herself that he would be fine. "Shizune said he would wake up, so he will."

"He's been unconscious for five days now! He hasn't so much as stirred since he came here," again, the first voice. Naruto racked his brain, trying to remember this Shizune. The name sounded familiar. How did he know it? His brain felt like it was in a fog. Only so many memories filtered through, and none helped. He was on Sai's back, with Tenten, Lee, Shino and Laurie. They were running. From what, though?

Naruto groaned. Trying to remember something just made his head hurt. What had happened to him? He didn't remember hitting his head.

"Naruto?" the first voice asked, and soon he felt a hand in his, and one on his forehead. "Are you awake? Can you open your eyes? Can you hear me?"

"Calm down, don't rush him," the second voice said quietly. "Naruto, are you awake? Can you move?"

Naruto apprciated the second's calmness, and tried moving his hand. He heard the first suck in a breath and wondered if he'd been successful.

"Okay, good job, Naruto. Now, can you open your eyes?" The second one again. And he knew that voice. He'd just heard it. Laurie! His eyes flew open at remembering something, and he squinted when light fell upon his unsuspecting eyes. He closed them, then opened again. It was too bright.

"That's great," Laurie said patiently. "Slowly. Let your eyes adjust. It's going to hurt for a few minutes, but keep at it."

Naruto did as he was told, and finally, he was able to look around the room and take in his surroundings.

"Where are we, Laurie?" he asked, throat croaky from disuse. His eyes fell upon another girl, most likely the first voice. She stared at him, breath held, looking afraid of something. Not him necessarily, but of his reaction to her. Her dark hair fell upon her shoulders, and she had the palest eyes Naruto had ever seen.

A memory flashed. He saw himself holding hands with the same girl before him. Then another, and he saw her lying in a pool of blood. Still yet another, and he was kissing her forehead. Before he could even place her, happiness bubbled up in him and he remembered her finally. Hinata. How could he ever forget her?

"Hinata," he said, in the same awful voice, but she didn't look as if she noticed. Tears slipped down her cheeks and her smile grew wide. Naruto lifted a hand up and brushed the tears away, then cupped her chin. He studied her face, trying to see if she was real or not. It could, after all, just be some cruel dream.

"Naruto," Laurie said softly. "We're in Konoha." Naruto's eyes flew to her and saw she had several wounds, wounds he didn't remember seeing on her before he'd fallen asleep on Sai's back.

"What happened?" Naruto asked, eyes accessing the damage. Then he noticed his own arm, and saw a jagged cut running from wrist to elbow. He touched his head and found a bandage wrapped around it, then felt another cut, this time on his chest. He looked up at Laurie, alarmed.

"You'll know soon enough," Laurie said, looking worriedly at Hinata. Naruto supposed he'd been awake when whatever it was had happened, and that he should remember. But his mind was a fog, and he couldn't remember anything. "Sasuke and Kiba wanted to see you. Can I show them in?"

"Sasuke and Kiba?" Naruto asked. Those names...He knew them, yet again. Sasuke...Kiba...Haru! "Yeah, show them in. But don't tell them I'm up yet. Could you get Shizune, too?" Naruto didn't remember her, but she sounded as if she might be a doctor, and he wanted to know the condition he was in.

He shut his eyes, a headache that was trying to get snug in his head bothering him. Hinata didn't say anything, just clutched his hand in a death grip. Naruto knew Konoha. And Sai, Tenten, Lee, Shino and Laurie. Sasuke, Kiba and Haru, too. But he knew he was forgetting some people. Flashes of red and white came and went, pink and blond, and Naruto desperately tried to grasp them.

"How is he?" a voice asked, breaking Naruto from his thoughts. He hadn't even heard them come in.

"Well I'm not dead," Naruto said, voice straining. He opened his eyes and focused on the two. He nearly smiled at their shocked expressions, but really did smile when shock melted away to happiness and both faces lit up. Naruto wanted to stay awake and talk to them, but he felt his consciousness slipping. He let out a small sorry and goodnight and slipped into an uneasy sleep, seeing faces he didn't yet remember. 

Okay, just saying, I'm fond of this part. I don't know why, but I had a super fun time writing this. I missed writing Naruto in Konoha and with Hinata. Anyway, I might have made a mistake when I said this was gonna end soon. I mean, yeah, it is gonna, but it might actually be another ten parts. 
And, I'm sorry to say, I'm going on another trip. (Well, I'm not sorry I'm going on the trip, because I love trips, just sorry I won't be able to update for you) I may be able to update one more time before I leave, depends on how easy it is to write. I leave the day after my bday, on the first (yep, born on Halloween). I don't even remember what day I'll be coming back...Thursday? Friday? Anywho, I'll update as soon as I can when I get back as well. I love you all and hope you enjoyed! (because I did)