Something Precious

Chapter Seventy Five

Because he was an unknown person, they kept Sasuke in a more secure area of the hospital in case he turned out to be an enemy or something. They were at war after all. Naruto had to go through a lot of security before they let him in. He vaguely wondered as he waited for his identification to be processed, if they had him in the secure wing when he was first found. For the life of him, he just couldn't remember. That time seemed so blurred and everything happened so fast. It was quite overwhelming. He wondered if it would be the same for Sasuke? Probably not. Sasuke had always been more collected than Naruto. He was able to process things better than the blonde ever would and figure out their next step while Naruto was still tripping over their first.

When they finally let him into the bland, windowless room and he finally saw him awake and alert, Naruto felt like crying. Sasuke was now clean and shaven and looking a whole lot more like himself than he had previously. He was still thin and the beeping of the heart monitor was sickening. He was awake though. Further, he seemed to have his own wits about him, no foggy eyes or drunken haze.

During the journey back home and the year-long hours he had to endure waiting in the hospital, Naruto couldn't keep the parasitic thoughts of worry from eating at his mind. But now that he could see this was real and that Sasuke was going to be okay, he felt overjoyed and overwhelmed. He was here, infront of him. He wasn't dead. He wasn't dead. He wasn't dead.

Naruto let out a shuttered breath and practically collapsed into the chair at Sasuke's bedside and grasped his hand, as if he needed to make extra sure that he wasn't going to dematerialize. That he was going to stay. He clung to it so tightly it must of hurt, but Sasuke didn't flinch or pull it back. He didn't complain.

"Hey, Sasuke." he said. And he did cry then. But quietly. Just a single tear to express his well of emotion. The more time he spent in this time, the more the memories of his own faded. He felt like he was going to go crazy with just his own mind to attest to the existence of everything he had once known. But now here was a piece of that existence, arguably one of the most critical, sitting right infront of him. Sasuke was his confident. He knew his pain inside and out. He had bore that pain with him; beside him. He was the darkness to his light. He gave him meaning. His best friend. His brother.

Sasuke looked at their hands, seemingly unable to meet his eyes. "I'm sorry." he said, an it was nearly cold it's delivery; it was quiet and someone who knew him less than Naruto may even think judge him to be insincere. He wasn't though. He meant it.

Naruto smiled brightly and wiped the tear from his cheek. "For what?" he asked as if he really had no idea. As if Sasuke's mind wasn't one he knew inside and out.

Sasuke avoided his eyes. He picked at the hospital sheets as he confessed his conscience. "After Sakura we promised no sacrifices. We promised to both get out of the war alive." he elaborated. There was guilt there. He absently rubbed at his torso where Madara's susanoo blade had run him through in a supposedly fatal blow. Naruto frowned, morbidly wondering if there was a scar left behind, if it was even fully healed yet.

Naruto let go of his hand and settled back into his chair and was quiet. The smile had slipped from his lips. A haunted look seeped into his features as recalled such a promise being made. With her loss, they made a pact that they wouldn't die, not out of self-preservation, but to spare the other such a pain as that. Sasuke had broken that promise, and he had done so knowingly. Actively even.

Still, Naruto was only happy to have him back. "It's okay. I think we both knew it wasn't a promise we could keep if it came down to it." Sasuke didn't say anything, he just looked at the blank white wall, as if it was more interesting than the prying blue eyes that was it's alternative. Naruto frowned. "Hey. Sasuke, if you need to hear it; I forgive-"