In Time of Need

Nine

Naruto looked up through his pain with a frustrated expression. I chuckled before forcing him to lay back down on the bed as I cut off his shirt. I knew when I knocked him away from that ninja that I had broken bones but the severity I was still unsure of. I gasped to myself as I saw a large purple circular bruise on his ribcage where my arm had hit him. I didn't want him to see the mark I had left on him so I made sure he stayed laying flat. I felt along his ribs until I came across where I felt the ribs were missing and immediately panic rose in my mind. I had thoughts that I may have lodged his bones down into his lungs which would make healing him impossible as I would end up creating new rib and leaving the old ones in a very dangerous location. Naruto could see the worry on my face as I looked down at his side and tried to sit up. I immediately pushed him back to the bed as to make sure he didn't cause the bone to puncture before I could remove it.

"Listen to me closely Naruto, I have broken your ribs, several of them to be honest, and I believe they may be lodged next to your lungs. If you move even slightly too far to either side they may puncture your lungs and you'll bleed out before I can save you. There is a way to fix it but I need your permission before I can do it." I tried my best to keep calm as I saw the fear in his eyes.

"Wh-What are you going to do?" His voice shook as he spoke.

"I have to make an incision along your rib cage to carefully remove the bones. I won't be able to numb you so this will hurt quite a bit and you'll need to stay still through the whole procedure. Do I have your permission to do it?" I asked.

"Y-Yes, but, I'm scared you'll kill me if I make you mad during it." That. That one phrase broke my heart. I looked away from him without saying another word as I rose from the bed and walked out of the room. I kept my head down as I passed the other Akatsuki members and went into Sasori's room. I looked up finally with a cold expressionless face and cleared my throat.

"Can I borrow a scalpel from you? I need to perform immediate surgery on Naruto." He nodded without looking at me and handed me the scalpel. I took it and quickly made my way back to my room where Naruto was waiting. He tried to speak but I held up my hand to silence him as I wrapped a kunai in a sheet. I shoved it in his mouth so he could bite down on it when I started the procedure. I disinfected the scalpel with a lighter before grabbing a towel and climbing back on the bed so I could see Naruto's chest more clearly. I gently rolled Naruto onto his back and began the incision from his collarbone to the seal on his stomach. He bit down on the kunai but I could still hear the occasional scream escape from his mouth. I ignored them as I cut through the layers and opened his chest so I could see his rib cage.

I made haste removing the bones and closing his skin while cleaning up the blood as I went. I took a needle and sanitized it before threading it with stitches and began stitching his chest closed as he cried in agony. I discarded the bones to the side when I was finished and looked down to see his skin had paled and his lips were turning blue. He was fainting from shock but I couldn't afford him to faint. I gently pat his face to keep him conscious. He opened his eyes and looked up at me in such pain that I just wanted to stop and hold him, but, I had to heal his ribs and the incision I had made for the surgery.

I dropped the scalpel to the floor as I made the handsigns for the medical jutsu I was about to perform. I held my hands gently over where I wanted to heal him and a green orb came from the palm of my hand. I could see it was working as I looked back up at Naruto's face to see that his color had returned and he didn't look to be in so much pain anymore. Once I was finished I laid my hands down by his sides and helped myself off the bed. I stumbled and Naruto quickly got up to help me stand straight. He held onto me as I looked up at him and laid a bloody hand on his cheek.

"Naruto, I love you...too." I smiled weakly from chakra drainage and closed my eyes. Naruto sat down on the floor and put me in his lap with my hand on his shoulder. I breathed a sigh of contentment as I closed my eyes and started to fall asleep.

"Goodbye, Matsuko."

I gasped.