claire_ity
in
damned
Dayshift 22: Chapel
Claire woke up in her room just like before, with little idea of how she actually got there. This time, though, she noticed something different about the room. There was another young woman, a blond, sleeping in a bed across from her. Before questioning that, though, she made sure to hide the items she'd gotten that night in her closet, shutting
( Read more... )
He was alone when he woke up, dressed in a fresh, gray outfit sans blood stains, chest and stomach properly bandaged underneath his shirt. How? Who? Naruto touched the areas where wounds still existed curiously, one eyebrow raising up into his forehead, wrinkling it. Aching and soreness still, from just a few, deep gashes. So weird. Thankfully, he still had the bat acquired last night and was quick in stashing it in the closet closest to his bed.
Predictably, his nurse was there soon and ushering him to new places. It didn't seem to make a difference how vulgar or rude he acted toward her, and he only grunted when she asked him where he wanted to go. She led him, then, to the Chapel, something "important" apparently impending there.
Naruto would have certainly noticed Gaara and Sasuke, had another familiar face not caught his attention. It was chance that his gaze fell upon Haku first. A surge of disbelief, but the shock wasn't as bad as it would've been had he not already been told that the dead walked in Landel's. That Haku was indeed among them.
The memories surged back like a strong tide. Naruto's short trot toward the already close back pew was too animated to be appropriate for church, but Naruto himself was probably, as a whole entity, inappropriate for church. He was stifled only by an unexpected pain surging through his joints, but grimaced and ignored it.
"Haku?" The name was blurted loudly in his shock. Naruto stopped at the edge of the bench, clutching with one hand onto the back of it. He blinked, surprise only becoming more evident when he saw the bandages covering part of the other ninja's face. Some concern fell into his eyes. As strange as their battle had been, Naruto remembered the grief that accompanied the outcome, remembered regret for the circumstances and a weird sense of nostalgia for his brief encounters with Haku.
"You-- how-- what happened?"
Reply
"Naruto-kun!" Haku seemed honestly pleased to see him. "I was told you were here as well. I'm so happy to see that you're alive and well." He moved over on the pew and gestured to the spot beside him.
"Please, sit. Try to keep your voice down, people are here for the quiet after all."
Nothing of the pain he felt upon seeing Naruto and again being forced to remember not that he could have forgotten, no that he was a failure and that Zabuza-san was dead showed on his face.
"What do you mean, 'what happened?'," Haku asked, a hand going up to touch the bandages. "This? Or my being here at all?" He smiled again. "After all, I should be dead, right?"
Reply
He plopped down on the bench next to Haku. "But I thought I'd never see you again. It doesn't make a lot of sense, but..."
Thoughtfully he glanced at Haku, who was as outwardly pleasant and polite as he remembered. Even during battle, that demeanor seemed to barely waver. After a few seconds, the blond genuinely smiled.
"I'm grateful! I'm really glad we got to meet again." He decided brightly, thinking back on his words; the friendship that might have developed under different circumstances. Maybe this was a second chance, in that sense. Naruto thought uncomfortably of Zabuza, and assumed logically that Haku wouldn't yet know. It would be cruel to just blurt it out.
"Except it sucks to end up in a place like this, huh? You were attacked last night?"
Reply
"It doesn't make a lot of sense. I was rather confused to wake up at all let alone a place like this." Haku kept his voice soft out of respect for the other people here. "But I am glad I get to meet you again," he smiled happily. The young boy he'd met in the forest and again on that bridge had grown up wonderfully, and Haku was pleased that he'd survived so long.
"Yes," he admitted, "I was attacked last night. Two... creatures came at me while I was looking for medical supplies." He frowned slightly. "How long have you been here, Naruto? What do you know about this place?"
Reply
His grin widened. It made him happy, to think that Haku had a second chance at life. Only more reasons to find a way out of Landel's: Gaara needed to return to his Kazekage post, Sasuke needed to come home, and Haku deserved not only his life back, but to live it outside of this setting.
"We won't be here for long," Naruto insisted with the utmost of confidence. "I'll find a way out of here for sure."
His features softened when Haku confirmed what the bandages implied. "Not very long, and not very much. I've only been here just a little over a full day. I got attacked too last night," his fingers brushed lightly over his stomach, feeling the bandages under the shirt-material. "Damn, it's so irritating to be without chakra."
"Haku, will you be alright?" Naruto tilted his head, a worried and lop-sided frown on his face. That one of the other shinobi's eyes was partly obscured by bandages was not comforting.
Reply
Still... he wouldn't want to damper the other boy's enthusiasm.
"You don't have any chakra too?" This was good to know. It relieved him to find out that he was not the only one working at less than one hundred percent.
Haku nodded and smiled again, visible eye closing. "Of course, I'll be fine. Thank you." Haku then tilted his head and regarded Naruto. "But you're injured?" He didn't like to know that other people were hurt as well. "You need to find a way to safe healthy during the night Naruto..."
Reply
Haku brushed off his injury like it wasn't a serious one, which wasn't entirely believable, but Naruto figured that needling him about it wasn't going to accomplish much. That patients woke up taken care of was probably as lucky as they were going to get.
"Nothing too serious. Just some scratches, really. It was worth it, I found a weapon." Naruto couldn't fight off a mischievous grin, pride in the accomplishment obvious. Sure, the bat was no shuriken or set of kunai, but it was definitely something.
Reply
When they came to fall upon a certain, spiky, blond head, the apprehension and fear melted away for a moment, replaced with recognition and a bright smile. Pushing people out of the way, Sakura made a beeline for Naruto, calling out to him when she drew near. It had been... It had to have been almost two years!
"Naruto! Hey!"
Reply
Haku only vaguely recognized the bright pink hair and the girl whom it belonged to. But he couldn't put a name to the face. He couldn't recall ever actually hearing it before.
Sitting back in the pew, Haku simply waited for the girl to get a bit closer and greet Naruto. It would be rude of him to interrupt.
Reply
Reply
Leave a comment