The Jinchuuriki Alliance || REWRITE ||

STATUS: QUIESCENT

I DO NOT OWN NARUTO

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Sasuke cracked open his eyes, and the first thing he saw was a blur of red and pink hanging over him.

"Sasuke? You finally back to the land of the living, dum-dum?"

The Uchiha closed his eyes and opened them again, forcing his vision to focus. "Sa...kura...?" he groaned out. His throat was so dry. As if reading his mind, his medic friend helped him sit up and handed him a glass of thankfully-cold water.

"Where's Naruko?" he asked, handing the empty cup back to her. Sakura smiled in amusement, and made a point of looking down at his other side. Sasuke followed her line of sight; his eyes widened when he saw his other teammate's head resting on the bed, her head just touching the side of his blanket-covered thigh.

"She and Jiraiya-sama went to find Tsunade Senju of the Legendary Sannin," Sakura explained softly. "She had to battle with Kabuto Yakushi — you remember him? She's a little tired, but she refused to leave until you woke up."

Sasuke tentatively reached out to finger the blonde locks that were spilling all over the hospital sheets. 'She looks peaceful.' He narrowed his eyes a little at her worn-down features, and more than once he had to watch closely for the minute rise and fall of her back that indicated she was breathing. Sasuke couldn't help smiling a little in helpless, yet fond, exasperation. 'She must've pushed herself to the point of knocking herself out... idiot. I always tell her not to overexert herself. Guess she never really listens after all.' He gently untangled his fingers from her hair and brushed his knuckles against the whisker-like marks on her face.

Sakura couldn't help smiling. 'I wonder if he's even aware of how he's acting.' The pinkette said at last, "I should go — you still need your rest. Do you mind if I leave her there?"

"It's fine," Sasuke murmured. "I don't mind."

Sakura smiled. 'I know you don't.' She hesitated before leaning over to press a chaste kiss to his temple in a sisterly fashion. Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at her, but said nothing. "Take care of her for me," the pinkette winked at him as she slipped out of the room and practically skipped over to Rock Lee's room.

Sasuke's pale cheeks flushed a deep red at the implications. He hastily turned his head away from the doorway, focusing intently on the window beside his hospital bed. Unconsciously, his lips turned down into a frown. 'Itachi... so Naruko was right. But that's not enough... I need to talk to you. I need to—'

"Oh, you're awake."

His head jerked up to the doorway, and saw a young blonde woman with brown eyes and a lilac diamond on her forehead. A pale flush rose to Sasuke's cheeks and he had to struggle more than he'd ever admit to stop his eyes from drifting down to her overly-generous bust. "Who are you?"

"Tsunade Senju," the woman replied simply, before her eyes landed on Naruko. Sasuke watched curiously as her eyes visibly softened, and she quietly walked around the bed to shake Naruko's shoulder. "Hey shrimp, wakey-wakey... don't you want to be there when I wake up your idiot of a brother?"

"You're unnecessarily mean, baa-chan," Naruko mumbled, swatting the Sannin's hand away as she sat up, rubbing her eye. "Oh, you're back from visiting Jiji already?"

"I've heard that one before," Tsunade answered with an indulgent smile. She tilted her head at the bed's occupant, seeing that Sasuke was patiently waiting for his teammate to come out her sleep-induced haze of mind.