Whumptober, Day 7 - KakaSaku (mostly Sakura)

Prompt:My spidey-sense is tingling (helplessness, numbness, blindness)
Fandom:Naruto
Pairing/Characters:Kakashi, Sakura, and Tsunade
Words:918
Rating:T
Notes:This was requested by @birkastan2018 and it’s already spawned a full 3,000 word story. I couldn’t have the whole thing done by today sadly, so he’s the blip that started it.

Something surrounded Sakura, denser than water yet lighter than air at the same time. She was floating, a feather caught in the breeze or a leaf in a river. It would be simple to be carried away, easier than fighting the current. A familiar voice called Sakura’s name, but it came from a long distance. For a second, she considered ignoring it. The submersion was comfortable, familiar even. Still, she knew she didn’t belong here. Sakura stretched toward the sound, but she couldn’t brush the surface.

The call came again, annoying in its insistence. Sakura struggled to burst through the bubble of unconsciousness. Awareness returned in gentle waves, sense by sense. Sakura would have laughed at the irony if she’d had control of her voice; she’d always hated the sound of the heart rate monitor, but it was the first concrete link to the real world that she had. Her eyes were too heavy to open, but the machine maintained a steady thrum beside her. That was enough for now, the rest would come.

Focusing all of her energy, Sakura drew a breath into her tender lungs. It was shallow and weak, but it was real. She felt, rather than saw, someone shift from her bedside. The machine behind her picked up in rhythm, increasing with the beat of her heart. A door opened to her left. Sakura turned toward the sound, anxiety stirring in her stomach.

A hand touched Sakura’s shoulder, then caught her wrist to check her pulse. “Sakura? Do you know where you are?”

“The hospital,” Sakura answered. Fear rose like bile in the back of her throat. She recognized Tsunade’s voice, but she couldn’t see the woman. Trembling hands rose toward her face, but someone pulled her arms down. “I can’t see anything,” she whispered.

Tsunade hummed from an alarmingly close distance, and Sakura shied away from the sound. “Do you remember what happened?”

“I,” Sakura opened her mouth to answer, then realized that she didn’t. She shook her head, trying to stop the overwhelming panic that threatened her consciousness. “What’s wrong with my eyes?”

“There was an explosion and your eyes were injured, from the container, the substance inside, or maybe the smoke. I don’t know yet, but chakra doesn’t seem to help. I’ve bandaged them for now.” Tsunade rested a hand on top of Sakura’s head, smoothing her hair. “Now that you’re awake, we can take them off.”

The relief that washed through Sakura’s stomach was so powerful that it almost made her sick. She nodded, then stilled as Tsunade unwrapped the gauze around her head. The process seemed to stretch for hours, but eventually cool air caressed the overheated skin. Sakura exhaled as Tsunade spoke in soft, careful tones. “I’m going to remove the patches now. Take your time, and open them whenever you feel ready.”

Not trusting her voice, Sakura nodded. The medic removed the final barrier with a tug of tape against Sakura’s eyebrow. For two heartbeats, Sakura didn’t move. Then, she opened her eyes. Frowning, she tried a second time. By the third, terror gripped her lungs. A pen light clicked to life by her ear, but she never saw it. “I can’t see anything,” she exhaled, voice trembling.

Panic rose in Sakura’s throat, hot and rancid. She swallowed the taste of vomit. Tsunade was talking, her voice rambling through medical terminology that might as well be a foreign language for all that Sakura took in. I’ll never practice medicine again, she realized with a start. I’ll never go on another mission. I’ll never watch the sun rise over the training fields. I’ll never see—

“That’s enough,” Kakashi rumbled from Sakura’s right. She turned blindly toward the sound as a second wave of pain locked her lungs. His hand touched hers, an anchor in the sudden sea of unfamiliarity. “Take a breath. You’re okay.”

“I am not okay.” Sakura bit off the words as the scenarios in her mind spun out of control. She’d never see Ino’s wedding dress or watch Naruto don the Hokage robes. She’d never have a normal life. “It would have been better if I died.”

Kakashi’s hand squeezed hers with an intensity that was almost painful. “Stop it,” he growled.

“We don’t know that this is permanent”

“He’s right.” When Tsunade thumbed Sakura’s left eye open, there was no change to the darkness that surrounded her. “It’s early, still. I didn’t want to intervene before we knew the extent of the damage.”

Sakura laughed, the sound sharp enough to slice her throat. “And, now you do.” She jerked her hand away from Kakashi. “Can both of you leave, please?”

Tsunade started to speak, but Kakashi said something too soft for Sakura to hear and the woman fell silent. She couldn’t see what he did, and her stomach clenched when she realized that this was what the rest of her life would look like. Tears stung her eyes, and she wanted to laugh at the irony of feeling the liquid on her skin. After a moment, two pairs of footsteps retreated, and the heavy door clicked into place like the sound of a coffin lid closing

Sakura rolled onto her side and knew a moment of terror when her arm met open air. Her stomach lurched with the dizzying sensation of falling, and she realized that she wouldn’t be able to move without assistance again. Tears welled against her lashes as Sakura curled into a fetal position. In the darkness, Sakura sobbed into her pillow.

Whumptober, Day 6 - SaiIno

Prompt:Touch and Go (bruises, touch starved, hunger)
Fandom:Naruto
Pairing:Sai/Ino
Rating:T
Words:941
Notes:This wasn’t a request, but I wanted to write these two. This is a background piece from Healing Hands (a YamaSaku story that’s in progress)

Candlelight danced on the wall, throwing the room in shades of shadow and soft light. The highlights on Ino’s cheek bones were lovely, shifting as she continued to tell her story. Sai tried to focus on the words, but the sound of her voice was like a lullabye. She was talking about her day, and he only managed to make snippets of the conversation fit into his memory. There was something about Sakura, but that wasn’t unusual. The women had become friends in the past few weeks.

After a minute, Sai sat up straighter and forced his mind back to the task at hand. “Wait, what was that about Anbu?”

“Sakura said she’d referred a couple to T&I for counseling,” Ino continued, tipping her head to the side. She caught her crimson lip between perfect white teeth, then managed a weak laugh. “I was afraid that you were one of them since you hadn’t been around in a while.”

“It’s been two weeks,” Sai amended with a shake of his head. “I’ve been on a mission.”

Ino hummed and took a sip of the wine that she’d poured them hours ago. Sai’s remained untouched on the table beside him. “I know,’ Ino sighed, placing her glass next to his. “But, it could have been you.”

“Unlikely, Sakura didn’t say anything at my physical,” Sai reasoned. He shifted position and kept his face carefully impassive. “I’m sure she would have said something, if she was worried.”

Another soft hum left Ino’s throat, but the woman didn’t seem aware of it. Her head was tipped to the side, studying Sai through the fall of blond hair that covered one eye. “You’re right, but I was worried all the same.”

Something warm and foreign opened in Sai’s chest, a light feeling of giddiness that he’d never experienced. “I’m sor—” Sai lost his words in the soft brush of Ino’s lips against his. He sat stunned for half a second, then his mind caught up with his body. Oh. Ohhhh.

Sai let out a shallow breath, suddenly aware of Ino in a way that he’d never been cognizant before. Her hands splayed on each side of his hips, and her pale eyes inches from his, waiting for a response. He exhaled in a nervous chuckle and continued his earlier thought. “I’m sorry to worry you. It wasn’t me.”

“But, it could have been,” Ino countered without moving away.

The woman’s presence made it difficult to think of a response, but Sai wasn’t sure that Ino wanted one. The expression on her face was foreign and dizzying. He found himself wishing he’d drank the wine without knowing why. The second kiss lasted longer, trapping Sai’s breath in his lung to the point of pain. When they broke apart, he realized that Ino had moved closer. One hand rested against his chest when she blew out a soft breath. “I don’t want to lose you too.”

Sai wanted to assure Ino that she wouldn’t lose him, that he was right there, but the words tasted false. He’d seen enough people die to know that tomorrow wasn’t promised, especially in his line of work. Ino knew that too; she’d lost more than most. Carefully, Sai raised one hand to brush across Ino’s cheek. “You won’t,” he answered, suddenly understanding why people lied.

Weight settled on Sai’s thighs and his arms closed around Ino’s back with a familiarity that left him reeling. If her mouth was warm against his, her body felt like an inferno. He lost track of time, of anything but the flutter light kisses that brushed over his jaw. It could have been seconds or hours when Ino shifted and pain exploded from Sai’s side. He grit his teeth and tried to smooth his features, but he wasn’t fast enough.

Ino pulled away, chest rising and falling distractingly as she caught her breath. “What is it?”

“Nothing,” Sai answered, a heartbeat too fast to be honest.

Ino’s lips slid into a frown, brought her hand back to the position it had been moments before, and pressed. Sai hissed through clenched teeth. Frowning, Ino sat back and undid the first four buttons of his shirt. She pulled the fabric aside and his name left her mouth in a chiding gasp. “You’re hurt.”

“I’m fine. It’ll heal in a few days.” Sai watched the horror dawning on Ino’s face with a sort of morbid fascination.

Ino traced across the bare skin with more tenderness than desire, following the angry red and black marks on Sai’s pale skin. The bruise covered almost the entire left side of his chest, a deep purple blotch that centered just below the pectoral muscle. Angry streaks sprayed across the skin in every direction, fading the further away from the point of impact. Ino traced one that wrapped around his back. “Have you been to the hospital?”

“I’m fine,” Sai repeated, catching Ino’s hand and guiding it away from the mark. “In a week or two, you won’t even know that it happened.”

The woman frowned and moved to sit beside Sai on the couch. The loss of her weight and warmth left him feeling disoriented. “You should still get it checked out.”

“I will,” he said, and was surprised to find that he meant it.

Ino brushed her hair behind one ear, then nodded toward the movie that they’d been planning to watch. “It’s getting late, we better get started.”

The woman spoke as if the past fifteen minutes hadn’t changed everything between them. Sai didn’t know what to say, so he nodded and tried to figure out what happened and why.

Whumptober, Day 5 (take two) - Tenzo and Anko

Prompt: I’ve got red in my ledger(betrayal, misunderstanding, broken nose)

Fandom: Naruto

Pairing/Characters:Tenzo, Anko, and Orochimaru

Words:657

Rating:T

Notes:This pairing was requested by @cinlat and this may or may not be the right prompt, but we’re going to pretend that never happened lol

“You cannot be serious,” Tenzo growled, struggling to hold the mokuton bonds around his captive while dodging to the side. Sweat dripped from his chin, turning clammy in the chill of the underground hideout when he landed in a crouch.

Anko ran her tongue across red lips. At some point during the scuffle, Tenzo’s elbow had connected with her nose and mouth, breaking the former and bloodying the latter. The woman hardly seemed to notice, spitting pink saliva to the side. “Don’t make me choose,” she hissed.

The words were enough to stun Tenzo. He shook his head as if he could shake off the insanity unfurling before him. Fury swelled hot and sudden in his chest; that was easier to focus on than the betrayal that lurked beneath the surface. They had known who would be waiting at the end of this mission. It made no sense for her to back out now. “You know what he did, to both of us.”

“That was a long time ago,” Anko countered, circling toward the left with kunai drawn. Tenzo held his weapon at the ready as well, but he wasn’t certain that he could convince himself to kill her if it came down to it. “You have to stop living in the past.”

“He destroyed our lives.” Tenzo bit off the words and wished that he’d never allowed himself to grow close to Anko in the fist place. He had known that she’d been damaged by someone, but he hadn’t known the full extent until recently. Discovering her past had only made them closer; they were broken in the same ways, by the same hand. But now, Tenzo saw a stranger.

Anko shook her head, flipping a kunai halfheartedly. “He didn’t destroy us. He made us stronger, into something we never could have been otherwise.”

Tenzo stumbled and dropped to one knee. He’d lost more blood then he thought, or maybe the poison from Anko’s serpent attack had finally worked its way into his bloodstream. He stared at the woman in stunned silence fpr a moment. “You can’t actually believe that.”

Anko opened her mouth to respond, but a polite cough interrupted her. Orochimaru stood immobilized by thick vines on the side of the cave. “If you two are done squabbling, I have places to be.”

“A prison cell in Konoha to pay for your crimes,” Tenzo supplied, glaring over his shoulder at Orochimaru. The man had committed unspeakable acts against the village and its inhabitants. He couldn’t imagine how anyone could pardon him, much less believe that it was better to let him go, especially Anko.

“I owe him,” Anko whispered, almost too soft to hear.

Tenzo heard the undercurrent of iron in Anko’s voice, though. He saw the decision in her eyes and lunged, hoping to catch her off guard. He couldn’t let her compromise their mission. Thick snakes wrapped his legs almost instantly, immobilizing him. Tenzo watched in horror as the woman squared her shoulders and faced Orochimaru. “This is the last time, I mean it. ”

Sinuous white bodies wrapped around Tenzo’s wrist like a vice, preventing him from making hand signs. The strength flowed out of Tenzo’s body like blood from a wound, and chakra fell from his grasp. The mokuton around Orochimaru disappeared, and the man straightened, dusting off his shirt as if the capture had merely been an inconvenience. Tenzo snarled when the corpse white hand came up to caress Anko’s cheek. “You always were such an obedient little—”

Orochimaru hissed and jerked back as a snake latched onto his wrist. Anko nodded toward the door. “You have an hour, and that’s more than you deserve.”

“You said the same thing last time, but you will always owe me,” Orochimaru tipped his head to study Anko, a smile curling his lip. Tenzo blinked, trying to cling to consciousness. The scene doubled, tripled, then went dark as the poison pulled him under.