Sakura arranged the flowers in the vase and sat down quietly in the chair beside the bed. Her eyes swept from the sleeping jounin to her blond team mate standing on the other side of the bed.
“Naruto?”
“How did it ever end up like this, Sakura?” The Kyuubi’s vessel mumbled bitterly. “It’s all my fault. If I had kept a tighter control over my emotions, the Kyuubi wouldn’t have been unleashed. Then I wouldn’t have been out of it most of the time and Kakashi-sensei wouldn’t have to face the enemies on his own.”
“Naruto, it’s not your fault. Nobody wanted this.” Sakura wasn’t sure if that really comforted the upset boy.
“But still, if it hadn’t been for me, Kakashi-sensei wouldn’t be lying here. I knew it. I’m still too weak. I can’t even protect the people important to me.”
“Naruto, don’t say that.”
“It’s already been three weeks and Kakashi-sensei is still out of it. We don’t even know when he will wake up or if he ever will.” Naruto’s eyes brimmed with unshed tears.
“But at least he’s out of danger. At least it’s more reassuring than a week ago when his life is practically clinging on a thread. Doesn’t this show that there are some improvements to his condition?”
Naruto sighed and looked away. “You are right.” Sakura smiled.
“I’m sure he will wake up soon enough. After being around us for so long, he won’t be able to stand being in a quiet place for too long.” Sakura chuckled. Naruto smiled and the atmosphere lightened up a little.
The sound of the door sliding open broke the serene of their little session. The two teens look up to see a familiar figure entering the room.
“Iruka-sensei.” Naruto and Sakura acknowledged the tanned man and the pink-haired kunoichi stood from her seat.
“The two of you are early today.” Iruka smiled.
“Yes. We just finished training. So we thought we will drop by before going for dinner.” Sakura looked at the academy teacher sympathetically. For three weeks, she had seen the chunin coming in to tend to Kakashi everyday without fail. Sometimes, she met him when she was visiting Kakashi with her team members and other times, she saw him when she was on duty at the hospital.
She felt her heart going out to him when she noted the tired face and leaned body. Her sensei had lost quite a fair bit of weight in these three weeks. And she was sure he hadn’t been sleeping properly either.
“Iruka-sensei, you look tired. Haven’t you been sleeping?” Naruto peered closely at his former teacher’s face.
“I’m fine, Naruto.” Iruka’s eyes had a far-away look in them. Sakura shook her head.
“Naruto, let’s go. I still need to go and help Tsunade-sama later. We will see you around, Iruka-sensei.”
“Goodbye, Iruka-sensei. Take care.” Naruto turned and trotted out of the room after Sakura.
Iruka watched as the two teens walked out of the room. He shrugged and dropped his things in the chair beside the bed and headed to the adjoining bathroom. He came out a while later, with a half-filled wash basin and a wet wash cloth.
Carefully, he set the basin on the bedside table and pulled the covers aside. He mentally noted that most of the wounds were almost healed as he wrung the wet wash cloth. He sat down on the bed and slowly wiped the arms of the pale jounin with the wet cloth as he told him about the day’s events.
“Konohamaru came by today to the academy with Moegi and Udon. He was prying around the room while I was having my class and he got me really irritated.” Iruka laughed as he washed the cloth and wrung it dry again. “It wasn’t until after I almost shouted at him that he confessed he was looking for a lost cat for his mission.”
Iruka continued talking to Kakashi as he finished cleaning up the unconscious jounin. When he was done, he cleared away the wash basin and cloth and returned to the room. Tenderly, he held Kakashi’s limp hand in his and held it against his cheek as he sat down on the bed.
“Kashi, you have slept long enough. When are you going to wake up? We still have issues to sort out and I still have things to tell you. Don’t leave me hanging on the edge like that. I don’t want a break up, do you hear me? Wake up and we will talk things through.” Iruka couldn’t help the tears that flow from his eyes, staining his cheeks and running down the pale hands he was holding on to.
“They always say that perseverance will yield results. But I don’t see any results from my perseverance in you. Kashi, don’t do this to me. Please.”
Iruka buried his face in the sleeping man’s shoulders and wept. He couldn’t remember how many times he had cried in the jounin’s shoulders, begging him to wake up. He was just hoping that someday, the jounin will hear him and return to join reality.
When Iruka felt calmer after crying his heart out, he lifted his head a little and placed a chaste kiss on Kakashi’s forehead. The tears, which had not ceased to flow, rolled down his cheeks and onto the face of the man beneath him. Iruka sighed deeply and leaned his head against the older man’s chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.
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