You're the Answer to a Guy Like Me

Rated: M for mature language and sexual content. Viewer discretion is advised.

Author's Note: I can't believe I'm actually posting a story. I am a die hard fan of the Naruto series and love anything to do with our favorite masked ninja. Thanks to those who clicked onto the link and are giving this story a chance. Please Read & Review.

Also major thanks to meelomango for being the most amazing beta in the whole wide world. If you didn't put that gun to my head I wouldn't be writing. =)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter 1: As Fate Would Have It

Heavy breaths echoed through the quiet forest that was beautifully painted with red. The scent of death lingered. The moon lit the scene like a spot light. Silver hair was dulled down by dirt; blood could be seen, it belonged to the main character of this play.

The sound of hissing from burnt flesh could be heard quietly and smoke could be seen at his finger tips. Chest heaving as he dropped to his knee, he pulled his right arm out of the other man's chest cavity. With a heavy thud the body fell over on top of other countless bodies.

The silver haired man fell backward, out of breath and out of energy. Dark blood red eyes stared at the moon above. Who knows how long he had been fighting for. Most of his muscles seem to have been torn from excess chakra usage.

He attempted to wipe the blood from his eyes. He didn't have the strength or ability to lift a finger. A shredded piece of cloth covered the lower part of his face. His mask was mostly destroyed during the battle, revealing to the world an amount of his face that it had never seen. The remains covered parts of his face except for his mouth and chin. He was glad for that, he didn't need something covering his mouth while he was suffocating. His breath was leaving him behind and he knew he would never be able to catch up.

His left front torso had a huge gaping wound. A collapsed lung was probably the cause for his suffocation. He suffered from many other wounds and splatters of blood covered him. There he laid alone in a puddle of fresh scarlet-red blood that was a coagulation of his and others. His heart was beating in his ear, thumping a slow, lethargic pace. Too slow.

Kakashi knew something was wrong. Maybe this was finally the end for him. The pool of blood he laid in was growing. There was no way he could apply pressure to his wounds to stop the bleeding. At this rate, he would die of a hemorrhage before anything. He was sure that this was it.

This battle scene developed from a mission gone awry. It was a S-rank quick infiltration mission to steal a very important scroll. A group of rogue nin developed after the war and were less than pleased to stay in alliance with everyone . The substance of the scroll had the rogue nin future plans of attack. Konoha had to have confirmation that they were indeed a threat. It turned out that this specific mission was a trap. They were expecting someone to come after this important scroll. However, no one expected that Konoha would send a shinobi of such caliber.

Due to a certain infamous Copy Ninja they had met their demise. Though successful in destroying this threatening group, Kakashi believed he had over done it.

Hatake Kakashi was known world-wide for being an extremely talented shinobi. Known for copying over a thousand jutsu, he was not someone to be taken lightly. He was one of the last few in this world who possessed a Sharingan. After the Fourth Shinobi War, talk of his prowess had increased. He was one of the main reason the war was so successful in the first place.

Kakashi, albeit a formidable adversary, taking on twenty plus ninjas all at once, alone, was extremely taxing even for the Copy Nin. These men weren't weaklings either, most of them could be found in the bingo book.

He coughed out in pain, spewing blood. The silence of the forest was welcoming. He could relax now that there were no more threats.

He breathed in the smell of burnt flesh mixed with the deep scent of the earth and strangely was overcome with a sense of comfort. Finally, he allowed his tired, overused eyes to close, his stiff, clenched muscles lax, his breathing slowed.

In an instant, a disconcerting pain shot up through his eyes, a pain he had never felt before. His eyes shot open in shock. Still, he was not able to move his hands or feet, extreme exhaustion had taken over his beaten body. His eyes could barely stay open and...that pain.

What an excruciating pain. His vision was blurry and the white moonlight and trees were colored red, probably from the blood staining his vision.

It was so bizarre, his vision was flickering on and off, like static from a lost connection. The bright red moon in his vision began to swirl with black and grey. What he saw was an abstract painting of the sky a mixture of black, grey and red, with the moon being the focal point. The world before him was losing its life in color and began to crumble. It was like looking through an unfocused lens with the outer edge blurring. The pain felt like it was slicing through his head. Every dizzying bout brought on a throbbing, burning pain behind his left eye. With every blink, the world seem to dissipate before him.

He decided to close his eyes for the last time. Almost welcoming the end. Almost. Yes, he was tired, but as the faces of all his dearest friends flashed before him, he decided that he needed to live just a little while longer. But he knew it was all in fate's hands now as he slowly slipped out of conscious.

Beep. Beep. Whoosh...Beep. Beep. Whoosh. What was this horrible sound?

His eardrums were vibrating as a headache began to develop. Where was he, the last memory he had was a red moon disappearing before his eyes, the smell of blood and rotting flesh and pain...excruciating pain behind his eyes.

How could he ever forget the smell of bleach and other various cleaning supplies? The hospital. It was amazing that he had survived that. He had thought he was done for.

His eyes began twitching as his body began to awaken, but something was wrong. Kakashi's eyes flung open.

Nothing.

Were his eyes even open or was this just an extra dark room with no windows? It was pitch black. As Kakashi tried to take a breath he felt an obstruction; there was a tube down his throat. With every breath he tried to take he began to suffocate. Not again. He tried to pull out the obstruction in his throat, but no matter how much his mind pushed, his arms would not move.

No sight, no movement. Panic set in.

The beeping sounds began to speed up intensely as he gasped for air. Kakashi felt the door swing open, where was the door? Where was the light? He couldn't see anything and, on the brighter side, he couldn't breathe. Great. Kami sure did love to play games. What a shitty situation to wake up to.

Suddenly, he felt someone put a hand to his chest and a gentle voice told him he needed to calm down.

"Sensei, you are on a ventilator, you need to calm down and breathe with the ventilator until we remove the tubing."

The voice sounded so familiar as it echoed around Kakashi. That voice, the smell of strawberries filled his nostrils. It was Sakura. From the sound of her voice, Kakashi's panic dispersed.

Sakura's voice was calm while she repeated her instructions, "One, two, breathe."

Finally he was able to match the ventilator's breaths. He could not speak and the stress from his suffocation had worn him out completely. He felt her small hands tighten around his, but still a face was not seen. He can hear her calling out to him, but her voice seemed further away now. Then he was out again.

Beep. Beep. Again, Kakashi awoken to the sound of the hospital monitors. Waking up this time was more pleasant than the last, that was for sure. He laid there processing all the events that lead up to this moment. Slowly he assessed himself.

All his organs seemed to be mostly intact and functioning. But there seemed to be one thing that stood out to him when he first opened his eyes, that didn't quite work up to his standards.

Okay...I'm blind. Kakashi thought to himself.

He knew his eyes were open, but he couldn't see a damn thing. Kakashi felt strips of warmth on his face, sun rays gently beaming down on him from where he laid.

His sense of hearing and smell seem to have heightened. He can hear the hustle and bustle of the hospital workers in the hallway, the breeze outside his window over the annoying noise from his monitor. His nose caught the whiff of fresh flowers, approximately two feet to his right. Daffodils to be exact. The clothes he wore felt soft, he could feel every thread. He felt his left eye pulsating in it's socket, a heavy pain spreading from it.

How long had he been here?

His throat felt raw but the obstruction from the tube had disappeared. He hadn't noticed earlier that his face was being covered by a loose cloth in place of his normal mask. He was glad that someone considered his privacy.

Being in a hospital brought an uneasiness to Kakashi. He knew he needed to get out of there.

Move. A look of concentration swept over his face as he continued to will his finger to move. Nothing.

Yup, no doubt about it. I can't move either, thought Kakashi. He let out a sigh. He slowly closed his eyes enjoying the sunlight.

There was nothing he could do but wait.

Sakura cradled her cup of hot coffee as she took in its deep aroma. She really needed to wake up. She had pull an all nighter at work just to keep a close eye on Kakashi. Just in case.

For four months, she had been an insomniac, thanks to her sensei. Everyone had been worried sick over the Copy Nin. The memories of from the night Kakashi was brought in was fresh in her mind. His body was torn apart and covered in blood. He was in extreme critical condition when they had brought him in.

Luckily, fate allowed Sakura to be there when Kakashi was brought in. Sakura normally would refuse the grave yard shift, but she thought it was about time she deserved some "me" time. After living in the hospitals for year she knew it was for the best. But Shizune had begged her endlessly that she needed just this one night off and thank Kami she was there or Kakashi would've been a goner.

When the reconnaissance team brought him in, Sakura was sure he was already dead. In matter of seconds Kakashi would've slipped right out of her fingers if she didn't keep fighting for his life. It was obvious that Kakashi had been found many hours later after he suffered from extreme blood loss. He was at the brink of death and Sakura felt powerless. Regardless, she gave it her all and pushed to save him. It took approximately six hours for his stabilization. Due to multiple blood transfusion and of course Sakura's skillful medic hands, she was able to put his organs back together and Kakashi lived, though as a vegetable.

The waiting game began. Brain wave activities assured everyone that he was not brain dead.

Sakura had never seen Kakashi in such a weakened state. His normally powerful presence was nowhere to be seen. All she saw was a lifeless, almost frail, body as she watched over him for months. Towards the end of Kakashi's coma, his normally muscular form had become mildly soft due to the lack of exercise and being fed by a tube daily. She was sure he wouldn't be too happy with being gaunt and weak for the first in his life..

He laid there day in and day out on a ventilator for four whole months and finally, he woke up. Even though his awakening wasn't pleasant, but he was conscious now and Sakura couldn't thank Kami anymore than she already had.

"How is he?" Asked Naruto, with a yawn, as he leaned over the counter of the nurses station. Naruto came to the hospital immediately after hearing news of Kakashi's waking. He looked tired, his blonde hair disheveled and dark shadows were forming below his eyes. He hadn't slept after returning from his mission earlier this morning.

Sakura began explaining the early morning events to Naruto. "He woke up." she said with a sad smile, "He fought the ventilator for a bit, but we were able to calm him down. He's been out since."

Sakura could see the sadness and relief in Naruto's eyes. They both had been worried sick over their old sensei. Naruto came by as often as he could over the past four months. Sakura and Naruto wouldn't know what to do if they had lost him.

Sakura hastily looked at her clock and began gathering up her files. She noticed the worry in Naruto's eyes.

"Cheer up Naruto, he's back. I'm about to go check up on him right now. Want to come?" asked Sakura beginning to walk towards Kakashi's room.

Naruto gave her a little smile and a nod and fell into steps with Sakura as they made their way down the hall.

They both quietly entered the room. It was a beautiful morning, the sun was shining through the window. The room was lit up with natural light, encasing Kakashi.

As soon as they walked in, they noticed Kakashi's opened eyes. Naruto lunged onto Kakashi with a big hug, tears at the corner of his eyes. A tiny smile was on his lips at Naruto's affection. Sakura was so happy, she had to fight her tears as well.

"Welcome back Kakashi-sensei. How are you feeling?" asked Sakura.

"I'm blind," Kakashi's raspy voice said casually. "Oh, and paralyzed."

Kakashi wondered what went through his students head when he told them he was blind and paralyzed. He was sure their facial expressions were priceless. After a moment of silence and a ton of questions and exams following, Sakura and Naruto had left him to rest.

Laying there under a stream of sunlight, Kakashi was awaiting the result of their examination. At least he was still able to feel things like the sun ray on his face. His mind mulled over the current situation.

Blind.

Paralyzed.

Luckily whatever was wrong with him it didn't affect him from the neck up.

He never really thought about the consequence of using the Sharingan. Kakashi knew what a toll it took on his body and he knew it was even more debilitating to him since he was not built like an Uchiha. Power comes with a price. The Sharingan was a gift and a burden.

Kakashi's Sharingan represented just that. A gift given by a friend.

Obito. Another sad memory.

Kakashi had lived a life full of experiences. Experiences, most were sins. He wasn't sure how he would cope with the reality of Obito, his best friend and hero. He based his entire life on Obito and wanted to live according to his way. Yet there was Obito, cynical and pessimistic. He had lost hope for the world, his bright-eyed dreams were no longer there and all that was left was this entity of darkness. And that darkness became a threat to all of Kakashi's precious friends and comrades.

It had been six years since the Fourth Shinobi World War. That war had brought on a peace that the world had never experienced before. But this war did not leave Kakashi unscathed. Kakashi knew this war had broken something within. It may be because he realized all those years he spent at the memorial site, the place where he spoke to Obito everyday, had all been in vain.

The person who taught him the principle of being a good human being, to value his friends and live to protect them, became the bad guy. And that did not sit too well with Kakashi. He would never admit it, but his heart was indeed broken.

Though broken up inside, Kakashi's principles did not change. He was still devout to protecting his village. So he gave himself to protecting Konoha and the peace that was gained by so many lost lives.

Though peace was here, there were still many people against it. Of course these rogue forces weren't that big of a threat when they were going against an allied shinobi force.

Kakashi decided to rejoin ANBU. Countless S-rank missions were needed to keep him busy and it allowed him to avoid wallowing in his thoughts.

Life was difficult for Kakashi. All the hardships he had endured during his thirty-six years of life had definitely made it a little hard to cope with. But he would never die on purpose. He would leave it in the hands of fate as per usual.

He didn't consider himself depress or suicidal, but deep down inside somewhere, mainly during life threatening situations, Kakashi hoped Kami would answer his prayers and put him out of his misery.

Kami wasn't listening. Maybe that was a good thing.

Here he was, not dead, but blind and unable to use his body. It was almost a laugh out loud kind of situation. He wondered where fate was taking him now. Obviously, Kakashi couldn't live his life the way he use to.

He knew he should've taken heed of Tsunade's warning before he left for this particular mission.

Tsunade had been lecturing him about overworking and she expressed that he had been very careless lately with his own life. Kakashi didn't really view it as being careless, he wanted to complete his missions and destroy any threat to Konoha. He made that his personal duty and he would always risk his life for it.

Kakashi was aware that people were worried about him, but to Kakashi, he was just doing what he does best, being a ninja. Avoiding reality was another strength of his but that didn't lead him to a good place either.

Here he laid awake to reality; a paralyzed, blind reality.

Sakura sat outside Kakashi's room waiting for Tsunade to finish with her Sensei. She had been out here for about half an hour, listening to her Shishou lecturing Kakashi for being reckless. With a sigh, she continued looking through Kakashi's medical chart.

Kakashi's Sharingan had gone out of control, sucking away all or most of his chakra. The Sharingan started malfunctioning causing a disruption and the little amount of chakra left is his life force energy, supplying his vital organs. Thus explaining why he was unable to move and why his sight had gone. It's amazing that he was conscious at the moment and coherent.

"How can we fix this?" Sakura asked out loud, speaking to no one in particular. She was chewing on the tip of her pen trying to wrap her mind around Kakashi's situation. Suddenly a thought popped into her mind as she was about to take note of it the door beside her flung open. Out walked the Hokage arms crossed, eyes closed and brows furrowed.

"Sakura, see me after you do a check up on your useless Sensei." Tsunade stated, annoyance written all over her face. With that she left, her jacket flowing behind her. Staring at her Shishou's back she grabbed all of her paperwork and peaked into Kakashi's room. She wasn't sure why she felt so nervous.

He was laying there with eyes closed sunbathing in a ray of sunshine. Maybe she should come back later.

"Sakura?" Kakashi's voice called out with a rasp.

"Kakashi-sensei, sorry to wake you, I'm just here to do a check up." Sakura replied brightly though it sounded forced. She wished she had the ability to cheer him up. He gave her a little nod giving her the okay to begin.

She began a basic physical assessment. Using her pen light, she checked his pupils to make sure they didn't show any signs of more damage. She did her neuromuscular checks to see if he may have gained some movement. Negative, he was still immobile.

Pulling out her stethoscope. "Okay after listening to your lungs I'll be done. Let's make sure they have healed properly." She placed the bell of the stethoscope on his chest and began listening to his breath sounds.

They couldn't deny the uncomfortable aura that surrounded them. Throughout the exam Kakashi was silent. His silence was unnerving to Sakura. He felt tense. She felt tense.

It was overall a very unnatural check-up.

Her eyes studied him once again, wondering if the carefree expression on his face was just an act.

Sakura couldn't remember the last time she actually saw Kakashi. If she recalled correctly, it was close to a year before he was brought in that night, almost dead. And even before that, they were only mere acquaintances.

She shook her head slightly, trying to shake the unnerving feeling she had towards Kakashi. It was better to ponder on the current situation, mainly what Tsunade had in plan for the man before her.

Finally, he broke the uncomfortable silence, "I'm a civilian now." The sound of his voice was low, rumbling within his chest. Sakura pulled off her stethoscope a look of shock covered her face. She studied his face, his eyes were still closed and his shoulders were slumped. He looked like he was sunbathing. If he was bothered by this he didn't show it.

"What?" Sakura didn't know what to say. Kakashi, one of the most powerful shinobi she knew is now a civilian? That didn't sound plausible whatsoever.

"Hokage-sama believes I've been too reckless and decided that the only way I can appreciate my life is to live as a civilian from now on." he leisurely stated, obviously reiterating the Hokage's words. He was always so hard to read. Kakashi always had his guard up, even now when he was so enfeebled. But she knew this idea did not sit too well with him, he couldn't be okay with this...right?

Her thoughts...her Shishou had lost her mind.

"Let me talk to her. I already began coming up with ideas on how we can fix this. Rest and let me clear things up." Sakura abruptly stated. She leaned in about to give him a hug but she awkwardly veered her hands to his shoulders giving both an uneasy squeeze.

Did I just... She violently shook her head scolding herself inwardly for being so strange yet again.

Without another word she walked out leaving him to his thoughts.

Kakashi let out a dejected sigh. He had to admit, he was feeling a little depressed. He wasn't sure how to proceed with the idea and with Sakura acting strange it made him feel unsettled. He knew that squeeze on his shoulders were suppose to be a comfort measure, but Sakura was being quite awkward. Her awkwardness and Tsunade's decision left him in a strange state.

One word bothered him from Tsunade's scolding...happiness.

Basically the Hokage told him even if by some miracle he is completely cured, without happiness he will remain a civilian.

Yes, it was difficult to process the idea of being just a civilian, but happiness sounded even worse. Kakashi was fully content with his life prior to this mishap, though he may not describe it as being happy.

Happiness had always seemed out of reach. He would never deny happiness if it came to him, but he never strived for it either. Actually, he didn't know how or where to seek it.

His frustration was growing quickly as he tried to think of what makes him happy. He didn't understand why the Hokage thought he was missing something in his life. He had everything he needed in the world. His books made him happy. His friends were a positive in his life.

Where do I begin? Thought Kakashi, releasing another dispirited sigh. At that moment, he really wished he had his greatest companion, Icha Icha Paradise. Daydreaming about his books enhanced his depression, now realizing that he wouldn't be able to read them even if he wanted to.

Boredom set in as he laid there pensive. Suddenly a knock was heard.

"Shishou!" Sakura swung the door of the Hokage's office open. Shutting it behind her quickly she turned to face the Hokage. Tsunade was sitting at her desk, her head resting on her left hand as she swirled her shot of sake with the other. Piles of paperwork were stacked around messily on her desk

"Yes, Sakura? How was Kakashi's check up?" she stated with boredom.

"A civilian, Shishou? Kakashi-sensei is one of the top shinobi in Konoha. How can you strip him of his title as a ninja? We can fix this. I know there is a way for him to recover." stated Sakura trying to hold back her anger.

"That man has been so reckless lately. I'm sorry, but I don't want him to be found dead in a ditch somewhere just because he decided to sacrifice his life for Konoha." Tsunade calmly stated taking her shot.

She looked up at Sakura as she began pouring another drink, obviously tired from her workload, "Sakura you should be the most worried about your Sensei's well-being. What you said is true, he is one of the most elite shinobi in this world. That is why I need him to fix himself before I can ever think to send him out on another mission. I cannot afford to lose him."

That silenced Sakura. This is the first time the Hokage had ever outwardly expressed her concern for Kakashi. Tsunade was very careful about letting on that she cared about certain people more than others. She was the Hokage after all and she definitely couldn't play favorites. But as her apprentice and close companion, Sakura knew Tsunade had a soft spot for those she cared about

The Hokage's statement made her see Kakashi in a whole new light. Fix himself? Sakura was aware that Kakashi had experienced much misfortune throughout his life, but she never really saw him as someone who gave in to the sufferings of depression and definitely never being careless with his life.

Maybe it was a little naïve of her to see Kakashi as someone who could never be brought down by the pains that life gave, but he had never once allowed her to see that side of him. She realized that she had been living in obliviousness to the fact that Kakashi was indeed human.

"I'll take your silence as an agreement to my decision. Now, I've been doing some research on Kakashi's condition." said Tsunade.

"The problem here is the Sharingan." stated Sakura.

"Exactly. The Sharingan is in tatters." said Tsunade. She began digging through a pile of scrolls to her right. She pulled one out and tossed it to Sakura.

"I've been thinking about it for awhile now. I believe once the Sharingan is healed it'll put a stop to the chakra drainage." said Sakura staring at the scroll in her hand.

Tsunade wasn't shock that Sakura figured this all out, she was after all her apprentice for a reason.

"My thoughts exactly. That's why you'll be in charge of him. The scroll I just gave to you holds most of the village's documentation about the Sharingan. Familiarize yourself with it and develop a game plan for his recovery."

With a nod Sakura placed the scroll in her front pocket.

"Treat it like a babysitting gig Sakura. We all know how hard he pushes himself. Your role in this is to watch him, ensuring that he will follow all instructions without any resistance. We both know how he likes to over do things, he wouldn't be in this situation in the first place if he listened." stated Tsunade.

"So make sure he listens! And if he opposes, let him know that I'll deal with him myself and it won't be a pretty." threatened the Hokage.

Sakura was very familiar with how Tsunade dealt with people who didn't follow her instructions and it was definitely unpleasant.

"Shishou does Kakashi-sensei really need me to... babysit him?" asked Sakura, confused.

"Yes Sakura, you're in charge of anything and everything that has to do with Hatake Kakashi. Now get out of here. I have a lot of things to catch up on." said Tsunade, glaring at the pile of paper work on her desk.

Sakura politely bowed to her Shishou and left without another word.

The term babysit didn't sit too well with Sakura. She didn't know how to go about babysitting Kakashi. She was very well aware of how stubborn her old sensei was when it came to being a patient. He didn't like following medical advice and was always determine to do things on his own. Sakura knew she had to take it upon herself to make sure he followed her plans accordingly.

Her mind was reeling with ideas on how to begin treatment. She knew that the Sharingan was very intricate, unlike healing a normal eye, it would most likely be more complicated on her part. She needed to have precise control over her chakra while working with the Sharingan. Since this was her first time treating a kekkei genkai like the Sharingan she knew she had to do some intense studying and research.

"Sakura-san?" A voice interrupted her thoughts. She turned to see the nurse in charge of Kakashi.

"Is everything alright with Kakashi-sensei?" asked Sakura. She hoped he didn't fall into another coma.

"No, he is doing fine, it's just that...um...we've been getting many complaints about the noise level coming from his room. Since he's just woken up none of us wanted to interrupt. We were hoping that you would be able to tell them to quiet down a little." said the nurse with an uncomfortable laugh.

"Them?" Sakura asked. She didn't need to wait for an answer since she already knew who they were. With an annoyed frown she headed towards the unit Kakashi was in.

Kakashi let out a little chuckle, something he hadn't done in awhile. It was nice to have some company to take his mind off of all the serious stuff he had been dealing with.

Gai, Naruto and Sai had come to visit. If he remembered correctly, according to Sakura, Gai had been coming in basically everyday to keep him company. Though Gai is...well Gai, he was one of Kakashi's closest friend. They've been friends or as Gai would say rivals, since their childhood years.

At the moment Gai was bawling at the sight of Kakashi alive and awake. He had been crying the moment he entered the room. Naruto and Sai had gotten into another one of their routine arguments.

It was nice to see that everything was still the same even though in reality it was all so different.

"Sai! I swear if you make a joke about my junk one more time I am going to kill you!" yelled Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, I was only being honest. I thought that was how friends were suppose to interact?" stated Sai in his same calm and cool demeanor.

"MY ETERNAL RIVAL!" shouted Gai, finally ending his tears of happiness. This startled everyone in the room, ending both Naruto and Sai's bickering.

Kakashi felt Gai grasp his hands tightly. They were wet from all his tears. "I will be by your side every hour, every minute, every second, day and night. I will not leave you alone until you are better. I will feed you, bathe you, clothe you! I'll do everything for my eternal rival. I will be there to make sure you are okay! You can count on it." Kakashi was positive Gai was in his usual thumbs-up pose.

Kakashi shivered inwardly at the thought of Gai being with him at every waking moment. He felt drops of tears and a hot breath blew against his face. Gai must be mere inches from his face.

Damn it.

There was no other choice. He needed to let him down nicely, "Gai...I don't want you aroun-"

"What are you guys doing in here!?"

It was Sakura and she didn't sound too happy. The room was silent, Kakashi could tell by the cold, dense atmosphere that the boys were afraid. That Sakura always knew how to instill fear in these guys mainly when she had a powerful punch to back her up.

"Do you have any idea what a ruckus you guys have been making? This is a hospital for sick people and they need peace and quiet!"

"Sorry, Sakura-chan." pouted Naruto, staring at the floor with his hands behind his back. Sai was silent, with a feint, eerie smile curved upwards with closed eyes, as he innocently faced her way.

"And look at poor Kakashi-sensei. Why is he all wet?" asked Sakura. The upper half of his hospital gown and the cloth covering the lower half of his face was drenched. She can feel the vein in her head throbbing. "I swear, if you guys are not out of my sigh-"

"Oh no! Look at the time! Kaka-sensei we have to go! Rest-up and we'll visit you tomorrow." interrupted Naruto immediately. He knew when Sakura was ticked off it was best to give her some space. Nervously scratching the back of his head he made a gesture to Gai and Sai to follow along. The three men exited the room in a prompt fashion.

Sakura squeezed the bridge of her nose. Those boys were always causing a disturbance everywhere they went. She wasn't surprise they didn't refrain themselves even if they were in the hospital.

"Sensei, you must be exhausted." asked Sakura as she headed toward the cupboard that held all of the clean hospital gowns.

"Hmm, since I'm stuck in bed all I do is sleep, I'm, in fact, pretty wide awake." Kakashi lightly stated. Sakura smiled, he was beginning to sound like his normal self again. Maybe company was all he needed.

"Is it alright if I change your gown and mask?" She asked.

"That would be nice, I didn't expect Gai to cry that much." chuckled Kakashi.

Sakura placed the clean gown and mask at the foot of his bed. For some odd reason she felt hesitant when she reached to untie the tie at the front of his gown. She told herself to stop being silly and act professional. She continued while holding her breath.

"Sakura, are you afraid to see your old sensei naked?" smiled Kakashi, his eyes were crinkled, the sure tell sign he was smiling.

"What?! Of course not!" Laughed Sakura nervously. She couldn't believe how immature she was being, she had seen enough of Kakashi's bare skin over the past four months. But then again, he wasn't conscious the entire time and he was never fully naked.

Sakura wished she didn't feel so nervous over something as normal as changing a patient's gown. She realized that the nurses were the ones responsible for this part of a patients care. But it was Kakashi-sensei, she had healed him from head to toe countless of times since she became a medic. She let out a steady breath so Kakashi didn't catch on to her strange behavior.

She pushed pass her awkwardness and undid the tie. Making sure the blanket covered his bottom half securely she pulled the gown off. She was being very professional silently examining the huge wound on his front torso, making sure it was healed. With eyes concentrated on his mask, she grabbed his new gown and began maneuvering it onto his body.

"I hope you didn't mind a cloth as your mask." Sakura stated trying to break the silence and make him more comfortable. "Since you had a bunch of tubes down your throat your mask would've gotten in the way." She said.

"I don't mind, I guess it is nice to breathe some fresh air once in a while." said Kakashi. He seemed more relax with a fresh clean gown.

"Okay, I promise I won't look." said Sakura she reached for the cloth covering Kakashi's face.

"Are you telling me you didn't take advantage of the chance to see my face?" Kakashi asked a little surprised.

Of course Sakura caught glimpses of his face, a straight nose and a strong jaw line. Nothing she couldn't see when his mask was on. It was an emergency situation and she knew he wouldn't appreciate her gawking at his face during such a crisis. Soon after he was stabilized a cloth was already covering the bottom half of his face. She took a moment trying to recall some of his feature and was annoyed when she realized she didn't really see anything at all.

Damn, she missed her chance.

"Of course I didn't see your face, I was kind of busy saving your life." laughed Sakura. "Okay, my eyes are closed."

Kakashi let out a chuckle. He was glad that she respected his privacy. He wouldn't have mind if she had seen his face, he was sure other people took a peek, but not Sakura. It was apparent that she wouldn't look at him unless he gave the okay and that was why Sakura was so trustworthy.

She removed the old mask and placed the new one on his face. Her fingers gingerly moved about his masked face. Once she confirmed his face was covered she opened her eyes again.

"Feel better?" asked Sakura, straightening out his blanket and pillow.

"Much better." yawned Kakashi, his eyes felt a little heavy. He couldn't believe he was sleepy yet again.

"The reason I came was to tell you that I'm going to be in charge of your recovery. I just wanted to discuss the situation with you." said Sakura, pulling a chair next to his bed. She sat down pulling out her notebook and pen.

"So...how are you feeling?" asked Sakura.

"Better?" replied Kakashi, not really having a better response.

"Today was a really long day wasn't it? How are you coping with all of your...disabilities?" Sakura was trying to choose her words carefully, but she failed miserably. She was trying to approach him like any other patient, but he wasn't another patient. He was Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensei, a lot has happened today. Waking up from a coma, the news Tsunade-shishou gave you. You can always talk to me if you need to." offered Sakura. Though he was foreign territory to her in this aspect, she wanted to let him know she would be there no matter what.

"Thanks Sakura," he stated quietly, "... for everything." At this moment, he wanted to avoid any discussions that had to do with feelings or his mental state. Even if he wanted to he wouldn't know how to go about it. The idea of sharing his feelings with Sakura added to his discomfort.

She responded with a sad smile. He had never spoken with that kind of tone directed at her before. She knew it was difficult for Kakashi even if he didn't say it out loud. Sakura didn't know how to respond to his thanks, she could hear the uncomfortableness in his voice.

"You know what, I'll come back in the morning." she said not wanting to force him into a conversation he obviously wanted to avoid. "As I said before, today was a long day and you must be exhausted." she added.

Kakashi felt her stand up beside him, suddenly he felt a quick peck on his forehead. He didn't know what to say to that. Sakura had never shown such affections towards him. He felt all of the stress she suffered from due to him. That little peck was all it took to stir up even more appreciation for all she's done for a good-for-nothing guy like him.

"I'm really glad you came back to us." said Sakura softly and with that she said goodnight and left.

A slight frown formed on Kakashi's face. He felt apologetic towards Sakura, he must have put her through hell. This new life was going to be hard to adapt to. With another yawn, he decided these uneasy thoughts could still be avoided until tomorrow. Sleep sounded more important at the moment.