Naruto Uzumaki- of the Land of Fire

Little Brother

Screaming. He was screaming.

My legs moved on their own and found their way into his room. There he was, thrashing on the bed, the covers thrown off, breathing heavily, and sweating as if the room had caught fire.

Three days since my arrival and the old routine had set in. Same time early in the morning, just after three, I'd wake up to Naruto. Normally, he woke himself up quickly and I wouldn't have time to react before he was up and out of the house. He'd run for a good hour or two and then set into work, either on the lumber or at the Hiori household, stopping at seven to join me for breakfast.  This morning was different. He wasn't waking up.

I was on top of him now, folding one arm around his torso and the other around his head. Rocking him back and forth, slowly running my fingers through his hair, quietly saying his name over and over in his ear. He still screamed and screamed, but slowly his body stopped thrashing. After some time, those screams became whimpers, his breathing levelled out, and he stopped crying. I lowered him back onto the bed, got off of him, and laid back down on the other side of the bed. I watched him until he stopped shaking, stopped muttering, and started breathing deeply... I watched him until I fell asleep.

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The bridge was looking good, almost done. Granted, between four men working almost around the clock and the help of a few of the younger boys, it wasn't a surprise. Between Quinn, Shima, and myself, someone was always watching Naruto. I hadn't had to say anything, they'd already noticed his arms by the time I'd come into town. I hadn't told them about the nightmares yet, Naruto kept us too busy on the bridge to really talk about anything else and either way this wasn't a conversation to have with him around.

As far as I could tell, he wasn't acting any differently. Aside from giving orders, he didn't talk unless someone spoke first, he kept his eyes down, and he worked... and worked... and worked. Shima stayed close, always within an arms length away while Quinn and I watched from a distance. Perhaps, aside from the nightmares, we were being paranoid.

"Almost time to go back, huh?"

"Yep, you joining us this year?" Quinn was a reserve, hadn't seen any real action in a couple of years, but I could hope that he'd finally gotten tired of this hole and was heading out with us again.

"Nah, dad is sick again. Shima might be joining you at some point though."

"He finally going for some real medical training?"

"He needs some emergency experience before applying for his license... he isn't gonna get that here in the sticks." Quinn chuckled, "Plus I think he's worried about blondie."

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"Took you fucking long enough!"

"What happened!?" Shima stood at the bathroom door looking down at us, a mixture of shock, nausea, and horror spread across his face.

"Just do something, goddamn it!"

He didn't deserve to be shouted at, this wasn't his doing, but I was only panicking too. After all, I was sitting on a bathroom floor struggling to hold onto a bleeding, hallucinating blonde stuck in one of his episodes. Shima was searching through a bag, Naruto continued to struggle and shout. I almost lost my grip on him when he threw his head back and caught me in the nose... now he wasn't the only one bleeding.

Moments later, I was holding Naruto tighter as Shima pushed a syringe into his neck. Three or four minutes later, I was placing a sleeping, medically calm idiot back into bed. I locked him in the room and led Shima into the kitchen, where I grabbed an ice-pack from the freezer for my nose.

"It's probably not broken, but it'll bruise." I could only grunt in reply. "What happened?"

"I honestly don't know, everything was fine when we went to sleep. Then that damn fox is waking me up and Naruto is... I sent Kurama to find you while I tried to handle Naruto until you got here."

"I didn't think things were this bad. Usually there are signs."

"His nightmares are back. And his furniture was moved around when I first got here."

"And you didn't think to tell us!" Now Shima was yelling... of course, he had the right to. "Damn it, Yuu! He moves the furniture, fine, he's trying to cope. He starts having the nightmares and its time to start being proactive! Otherwise, next thing you know, he's scrubbing himself raw, refusing to eat, incommunicable, and restless! You know this, dumbass!"

"I didn't think it was this bad!"

"You're his brother, you're to close to decide that shit! I'm his doctor, this is my job!"

"There's no point in fighting, what's done is done." Quinn stood in the doorway, the front door still open from when Shima arrived. There was a look of anger in his eyes when he looked at me, but he didn't say anything more. Instead, he turned and walked to Naruto's room.

He didn't bother asking before unlocking the door and walking inside. Shima and I followed him, but stayed in the doorway, only watching. Quinn sighed when he caught sight of Naruto's newly wrapped arms, curtesy of Shima, but removed the covers to look over Naruto completely. Shima's attention was caught when Quinn grunted angrily and motioned him forward.

"His feet. This time he started with his feet."

I couldn't help but step forward. Quinn was right, much like his arms and hands... only worse, Naruto had scrubbed at his feet and ankles until they were raw, covered with open and bleeding sores... even the covers were damp with the red liquid. With all the blood in the bathroom, the bloody footprints had eluded our notice. Quinn backed away as Shima moved in to wrap and clean Naruto's feet, a look of worry and slight nausea appearing on both boy's faces.

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"It's worse. We can't wait two weeks, we need to leave now."

Shima, Quinn, and I sat at the kitchen table. It was almost noon, Naruto was still asleep, and the three of us were finally starting to settle down. Shima, of course, was right... but rushing.

"We have time, right now he's sedated and asleep, he'll be manageable when he wakes up and then we can prep and leave accordingly."

"Are you crazy!"

"Shima calm down, Yuu is right. This is only the first episode, it'll be some time before there's another one... time enough to get Naruto back on base and evaluated." Logical, just as expected of Quinn.

"Easy enough for you to say, you're staying here! Snug in your home, you don't have to watch him!"

"I'll be on base by the end of the month, I can help once I get there. That'll give me enough to time to finish the bridge with some of the boys, and to set some of my other affairs in order."

"What about your dad?"

"My brother returns from the Guard in two weeks, he can take care of the old man... my friends need me right now, that's the priority."

I couldn't help but smile. Quinn was always reassuringly responsible, while Shima worried and doted over the other two. My brother had found himself a good set of friends.

"We'll leave in the morning, once Naruto wakes up and has said his goodbyes."

With that Shima and Quinn left. I stood in Naruto's doorway, watching my little brother breathe slowly in and out, watching as his eyelids moved from left to right as he dreamed, watching as his body fidgeted and shook. Watching my little brother, as his bandages slowly died themselves pink.