A Hero's Come Back

Chapter 7: Dog

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. (The picture is of Kōken Uzumaki.)

I woke up feeling like Bushy Brows had just kicked my butt using the Eight Gates. My body was sore, my head hurt, and when I sat up, my surroundings spun around a few times. "Ohhh," I groaned quietly. I got to my feet, somehow not waking up Kiba, Akamaru, or Lee, who I had been sharing a tent with. Stumbling outside, I noticed Kakashi Sensei was up, still on guard duty. He glanced my way and his visible eye widened as he took in my condition.

He jumped to his feet as I tilted forward, too dizzy to keep standing. But before I hit the ground, he caught me and dragged me over to where he had been sitting on a rock. He leaned me against it. "Naruto, is this...." He trailed off. I started to nod, then stopped when it made me want to puke. Huh, I thought, dazed, I guess this is what it feels like to be sick. "Yeah," I croaked. He took his glove off and put his hand to my sweaty forehead. "You're burning up!" He exclaimed quietly, trying not to wake the others. "Where's that medicine you said one of the Uzumaki gave you?" "Doesn't work....that way," I muttered. "Only helps....seizures....first time.....I've felt like this...."

I panted, trying to ignore the pain in my body. During my training with Jiraiya Sensei, I had been put through a lot of stuff that would make this seem like child's play. But man, I'd never been sick before! When I was younger, before I knew about the Nine Tails, I thought it was probably just luck. After I found out about the Nine Tails inside me, I figured it was him, healing me. Now, I knew it was mostly my own natural Uzumaki healing ability, which was only amplified by the Fox's power.

I licked my lips, my mouth and throat feeling as dry as sandpaper. Kakashi Sensei must have seen it, cause immediately, he shoved a water bottle in my hand. I took a big swallow, then started panting again. Kakashi Sensei looked around and sighed. "You have about an hour and a half before they wake up." He looked at me, a question and a warning in his eye. I looked back at him, showing that I understood. If I wasn't better by the time they woke up, I'd have to tell them about the Nine Tails. "Got it...." I muttered, then passed out cold.

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"Hey, Naruto! Wake up!" Someone was shaking me. "Ohhh," I groaned, cracking an eye open. At first, everything was blurry, then my sight evened out and I saw Sakura hovering over me, the others standing behind her. "Well, it took you long enough," she said, shaking her head. "I was starting to think you were never going to wake up." I huffed and got to my feet, thankful that the world had stopped spinning. Though I still had a massive headache and was slightly achy. "Good morning," I muttered.

"Good morning," they chorused. "How did you get out here?" Kiba asked, way too loud for my poor head. "You went to sleep in the tent." I winced. "I woke up to take a whiz and sat down to talk to Kakashi Sensei. Guess I fell asleep, ya know." Sakura gritted her teeth. "You're suppose to be the leader here, Naruto! How are you supposed to lead if you-" "Naruto." I turned to look at Kakashi Sensei, as did everyone else. "Yeah?" I asked. "Come help me with something," he said, waving his hand. I nodded slowly and followed him, grateful for the interruption, since I was pretty sure Sakura had been about to hit me.

We walked for a few minutes until we came to the spring we had found yesterday. Sensei handed me half of our water bottles and we bent down to fill them. "How are you feeling?" He asked. "Better." He cut a look at me. "Don't be vague, Naruto." I sighed, irritated that he could read me so well after so long. "Fine. I have a headache the size of the Land of Wind and my body feels like crap warmed over, ya know?" He reached up and felt my forehead again. "Well, you don't have a fever anymore." He sighed and filled another bottle. "Will you have any problems leading today?" I shook my head, then winced as it made it feel even worse. "As long as I don't drop into a seizure, I'll be fine. Speaking of that-" I reached into my pocket and took out a small pouch. I opened it and shook out a small green pill. It was the color of puke and the color gave away it's taste.