Sasuke woke up several hours later, feeling groggy and sore.
`“Sleeping beauty awakens.” Itachi’s voice filled Sasuke’s ears and Sasuke groaned.
“How did the surgery go?” Sasuke mumbled.
“It was a success and you are now the owner of perfectly healthy kidneys.” Itachi told him. “You don’t have to worry about dialysis again unless something goes wrong with these.”
“Don’t borrow trouble.” Sasuke mumbled. “I don’t want to go through that hell again.”
“Can’t say I blame you there.” A gentle voice said and Sasuke struggled to force his eyes open again, he was happy to see both his mother and father sitting beside Itachi.
You’re here.” Sasuke mumbled. “I didn’t think you would be here.”
“Itachi called us and saying you were getting a new pair of kidneys.” Fugaku said. “That’s pretty important and your mother and I wanted to be here.”
“I’m glad you are here,” Sasuke mumbled. “I’ve missed you guys.”
“I hate that we have to be gone so much.” Mikoto said quietly. “I’m glad we were able to be here for this though.”
“You should probably get some more rest, you’ve been through an ordeal with the transplant.”
“I wish I could go home.” Sasuke mumbled. “My own bed is more comfortable.”
“I’m sure it is.” Fugaku said chuckling, “But the doctors need to make sure that you don’t reject the kidneys. If you start to while you are here they can reverse it, but not so much if you are at home.”
“I hope I don’t reject them, I don’t think I can go through that hell again.” Sasuke mumbled.
“With any luck you won’t have too.” Itachi told his brother. “You’re in for a long recovery, but you aren’t going to be alone the entire time.”
“You might want to give me some privacy.” Sasuke mumbled. “Somethings I don’t think you want to be around for.”
“You’re probably right about that.” Itachi said after thinking for a moment. “I guess I can leave you alone for a little while.”
“I don’t think you are going to have to worry about him feeling like getting up to those sorts of activities for a little while.” Fugaku said. “He’s probably not going to be leaving that bed for a bit.”
“I don’t feel like doing anything but sleeping,” Sasuke mumbled.
“That’s a good thing, you need as much rest as possible,” Mikoto said gently before bending down and gently pressing her lips to his forehead. She’d been scared that something would go wrong during the transplant, but it turns out those fears were unfounded. The surgeon had taken care of her boy and ensured that he had made it through the operation.
“I think we should send Shizune a gift basket for taking such good care of Sasuke,” Mikoto said. “Her and Tsunade both have done a great job with him even though Tsunade didn’t give him much hope when he was first diagnosed with cancer.”
“She was going by what the test results were showing,” Fugaku said. “You must admit it didn’t look good for him for a while. I’m just glad that he beat the odds.”
“Me too. I don’t know what I would do without my kids.” Mikoto murmured walking over to Itachi and putting a hand on his shoulder.
“I’m proud that you’ve stepped up to take care of him when we couldn’t be there,” Mikoto said.
“That wasn’t any problem. I love my little brother and there’s nothing that I wouldn’t do for him.” Itachi replied. “It’s called being a good big brother.”
“Yes, but not everyone has such a good brother.” Fugaku pointed out. “We really do appreciate everything that you’ve done to help out with him. It’s been a tough situation.”
“They say tough times don’t last forever.” Itachi said. “Things were bound to improve for him sooner or later.”
“They might not have, he might never have gotten new kidneys.” Mikoto said. “My heart hurts just thinking about the possibility of losing him.”
“Hopefully, that’s a thing of the past.” Fugaku said. “He’s got a new pair of healthy kidney’s, and his blood work remains cancer free. I think he’s has a pretty good outlook.”
“I agree.” Itachi said. “I don’t think we need to worry anymore.”
“The cancer can always come back, I’m hoping and praying that it doesn’t, but we can never know the future.” Mikoto replied.
“You’re right, we can’t predict the future, but we can hope for a better one.” Fugaku told his wife. “Right now, it looks pretty bright.”
“I know that’s what I need to focus on, but I can’t help but worry. I don’t want Sasuke to have to deal with any more cancer.” Mikoto said sighing. “I think that’s just part of our job as parents, constantly worrying about our kids health.”
“Unfortunately, that’s going to happen whether or not your kids are healthy or not.” Fugaku replied. “I hate for any parent to have gone through the kind of hell that we’ve been through with Sasuke.”
“One day there will be no sickness.” Itachi said quietly. “You won’t ever have to worry about Sasuke getting sick again.”
“That day feels like forever away from today,” Mikoto said. “I just hope that he doesn’t reject these kidneys.”
“I wonder who they came from.” Itachi said quietly. “He was concerned about it because it they came from someone his age.”
“It’s not likely anyone he knows. They probably came from another city completely.” Fugaku said. “Still it shows that he has a pure heart to be concerned about such a thing.”
“Yes, Sasuke is a good kid. I wish he didn’t have to worry about half the things that he’s had to worry about.” Mikoto said as she reached out and gently brushed the hair out of Sasuke’s face. She had spent how many nights crying over the situation with Sasuke, feeling helpless because there wasn’t anything that she could have done to make things better for him.
“Things are looking up for him now. He can only go up from here.” Fugaku told his wife. “Sasuke has beaten everything that’s been tossed his way, this isn’t going to be any different.”
“I hope you are right,” Mikoto told him. “But I can’t help but be afraid. He could reject those kidneys at any time and then what will happen next? Does he go back on the transplant list? Who knows if he’ll get another pair.”
“No need to worry about that bridge until we come to it,” Fugaku said. “Sasuke is under the best of care, and his doctors aren’t going to allow him to reject these kidneys.”
“I just don’t want to bury my baby,” Mikoto said. “That’s always been my greatest fear since he was diagnosed with cancer, that I would end up outliving him.”
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“I think the cancer is a thing of the past,” Fugaku told her. “I’m not going to worry about that until we get bloodwork back saying that the cancer is back.”
“I know you are right,” Mikoto said quietly. “But I feel the way I feel and there isn’t any way to change that.”
“It’s okay to feel that way,” Fugaku said. “I think you’ve earned the right to feel that way, but you can’t let those feelings drag you down.” Putting his hands on his knees, Fugaku pushed himself to his feet and started towards Mikoto.
“Let’s go get some coffee, I’m sure Itachi won’t mind staying here with Sasuke.”
“Not at all,” Itachi replied. “I would like to make sure that he recovers the way he should. I don’t want him to be alone.”
“We won’t be gone too long,” Fugaku said. “Chances are Sasuke will probably sleep the entire time, but I don’t want him to wake up alone either.”
“I’ll take care of him, go take a break,” Itachi said nodding towards the door. He would be just fine keeping an eye on his sleeping brother.
2.2
Opening his eyes Sasuke blinked slowly, he felt more aware this time than the last time he’d been awake. Yawning, Sasuke turned his head towards the viewing window and blinked slowly when he saw Naruto standing in front of the window watching him.
“Itachi?” Sasuke asked, turning his head to look at his brother.
“Yes?” Itachi asked. “Do you need some pain medication?”
“No. I’m not hurting that badly surprisingly.” Sasuke replied. “I do want to know why Naruto is here though?”
“Where did you see him?” Itachi asked, a surprised tone to his voice, Sasuke nodded towards the window where the blonde-haired teenager had disappeared.
“He was standing right there,” Sasuke mumbled. “Now, I feel like I’m going crazy.”
“Could be a side effect of the anesthesia,” Itachi said. “Or maybe you just need to go back to sleep.”
“I feel like I’ve gotten enough sleep to last me a lifetime,” Sasuke told his brother. “I don’t feel like I need any more rest.”
“Your body just went through a kidney transplant.” Itachi reminded Sasuke. “You won’t be doing anything but resting for quite a while.”
“I know. But I want to know how Naruto knows that I ended up here.” Sasuke said. “I only told Sakura, and I know she won’t run her mouth unless I tell her she can.”
“I don’t know,” Itachi said. “Didn’t you say you saw him in the ER too?”
“I did, I thought he was there for family or something, but why would he be following me around?” Sasuke wondered.
“Maybe he was just curious,” Itachi said. “But if it bothers you that much that he’s hanging around, I can tell him to back off.”
“I know how you would do that,” Sasuke said. “I don’t want any violence used.”
“If he’s stalking you, violence may be the only way to get my point across.”
“I don’t think he’s stalking me, he could just be curious,” Sasuke said. “I don’t have the energy to give a damn right now.”
“That’s right, you need to focus on getting better, that’s all that matters,” Itachi said. “Chances are pretty high that you will try to reject the kidney but the doctors are going to do everything in their power to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
“I don’t want to reject the kidneys,” Sasuke mumbled. “I just want to feel better.”
“And you will,” Itachi replied. “As long as you don’t stress yourself out.”
“Easier said than done,” Sasuke mumbled.
“I know it is, but right now you need to put yourself first. Your health is more important than anything right now. I don’t want to see you have any more health issues.” Itachi said. “Which means I’ll make sure that you stay in bed if I have to clue you to it.”
“I could see you doing that,” Sasuke mumbled. “You’re just a tad stubborn.”
“Someone needs to be to keep you on the straight and narrow,” Itachi replied. “And I intend to do just that.”
“I’m not that much trouble and you know it. If anyone could use a little action in their life it’s you.” Sasuke told his brother.
“Are you saying that I am boring?” Itachi asked, Sasuke shrugged.
“All you do is babysit me, it doesn’t leave you much time to do much else with your life.” Sasuke replied.
“I have plenty of time to date once I know that you are healthy again.” Itachi replied. “It’s not been much of a concern of mine here lately.”
“Mom and Dad are going to want grandkids eventually. I highly doubt that I’ll be the one giving them to them. I’m pretty sure the chemo left me sterile.” Sasuke said and Itachi shrugged.
“Even if it did, you could always adopt I know it’s not the same thing as having a kid of your own but it gives you the chance to give a kid a home that they might not have had before,” Itachi explained.
“I’m thirteen, I hardly think having kids is something that I need to be planning on right now.” Sasuke replied. “Besides I’m not entirely sure that I want to have any. I don’t want to risk any having to go through the hell that I’ve went through.”
“It might not happen to a kid of yours.” Itachi pointed out. “Sometimes bad shit happens to good people and there isn’t any explanation for it. I wouldn’t count on any child of yours getting sick.” Sasuke sighed, he wished he could believe that, but he wasn’t so sure that he did. He felt like he was nothing but bad luck to those around him.
“Have you heard from Sakura?” Sasuke asked suddenly.
“I have been in communication with her.” Itachi replied. “She knows everything about your current condition. Give it another few hours she might be able to come in and see you for a few minutes.”
“I don’t know if I feel like it right now.” Sasuke admitted. “I’m still pretty tired, and I think I want to go back to sleep.”
“That’s okay, I’m sure she’ll understand.” Itachi replied. “She has a pretty good head on her shoulders.”
“Don’t let her hear you say that, she has one hell of a temper when you piss her off.” Sasuke replied.
“You should see her and Naruto agrue, it’s a miracle he doesn’t leave school with a concussion sometimes.” Sasuke said. “She tends to take her anger out on him, whether he did anything or not.”
“Sounds like he should stay away from her then,” Itachi commented. “I know I wouldn’t mess around with a girl that wasn’t afraid to hit me.”
“Naruto has a crush on her, and he refuses to give up on her going on a date with him,” Sasuke replied. “He doesn’t know how to take no for an answer.”
“At his age he should. Being stubborn about someone not wanting to date you is a scary sign.” Itachi said frowning. “It makes me wonder how his parents raised him if he won’t take no for an answer.”
“They probably never told him no,” Sasuke replied. “They are powerful people.”
“That doesn’t give them the right to not teach their kid how to be a decent person,” Itachi replied. “If he keeps refusing to take no for an answer he’s going to end up hurting someone because he can’t handle rejection. If that happens his parents need to be held responsible as well.”
“I agree with that,” Sasuke murmured. “But I don’t ever see that happening. Is his brother any better behaved?”
“Kurama? Yeah, he’s always been pretty well-mannered.” Itachi replied. “Of course, I’m not around him that much.”
“So how did he turn out to be better behaved than Naruto?” Sasuke wondered. “He was born first, he should probably be worse than Naruto.”
“I don’t know. Maybe they weren’t so busy then.” Itachi answered. “But there is no excuse for Naruto’s behavior.” Sasuke sighed and turned his head to look at the viewing window, Naruto had disappeared and it made Sasuke wonder where the teenager had gone too.
“Don’t worry about him,” Itachi said quietly. “If Naruto gets to be a problem, I’ll take care of it.”
“Talk to Kurama first and see if he can’t get his brother under control,” Sasuke said. “If that doesn’t work then you can talk to him.”
“You’re a good kid,” Itachi murmured. “It sounds like Naruto needs a healthy dose of trouble to straighten him out, and you care too much about him getting into trouble.” Sasuke shrugged, he couldn’t help it, Naruto wasn’t bothering him, so there was no need for him to get into trouble any less Naruto took things further than what he had.
“He’s not doing anything to hurt anyone just yet.” Sasuke pointed out. “If he does end up hurting someone that’s when he needs to face the consequences.”
“We’ll see what happens, I can’t make any promises,” Itachi told him. “I don’t like that you are seeing him everywhere you are.”
“Could be a side effect of the anesthesia.” Sasuke pointed out.
“Not really because you saw him in the ER before you even had any anesthesia.” Itachi pointed out.
“Don’t do anything right now. I don’t want to worry about him getting into trouble right now.” Sasuke told his brother. “I have bigger issues to worry about at the moment.”
“I do want you to focus on your health, but you can’t do that if you have a stalker,” Itachi said.
“I wouldn’t say that he’s a stalker,” Sasuke said. “I might try to find out what he wants when I feel a little more rested.”
“I’m not leaving you alone with him,” Itachi said. “I don’t trust him not to say or do anything to upset you.”
“He probably wants me to talk to Sakura,” Sasuke said shrugging. “As if I could convince her to date him. She has her own mind after all.”
“Maybe I should talk to her.” Itachi said thoughtfully. “Naruto isn’t someone that she wants to date.”
“As long as you leave him alone until he does something wrong.” Sasuke replied. “Do what you want. But he’s probably not going to be very happy with me if you talk to her.”
“I would rather Sakura be safe rather than sorry when he ends up taking something from her that can’t be replaced.” Itachi pointed out.
“Are you saying that he would rape her?” Sasuke asked. “He’s thirteen, I don’t think sex is on his mind.”
“Maybe not at the moment it’s not.” Itachi replied. “But eventually it will be, and he needs to know that he can’t just take what he wants because he wants it.”
“Something tells me he’ll learn that lesson in his own time.” Sasuke replied, yawning.
“The only way he is going to learn is if he ends up in jail.” Itachi replied. “He’s not making very smart choices right now.”
“There’s always hope that he can change the direction he’s going.” Sasuke told his brother. Itachi snorted and shook his head, leave it to Sasuke to want to believe the best about people even when they were showing him his true colors.