Naruto 1. Chapter 1

With a trembling hand, she reached out to pull back the curtains around his bed. Somehow Yunjia managed to keep from reacting when she saw him. She had been informed of his injuries already, but it did not make the actual sight any easier to bear. She swallowed hard and reached for the small basin of water she was going to use to clean his wounds before bandaging them. Yunjia tried not to think about who it was this time lying before her as though dead. As she did every time she was called to care for someone sick or injured, she fought against her emotions, trying to shut them away so she could work more efficiently.

It was much harder to do this time.

It did help that he didn't appear to be in any pain serious enough to disturb him in his unconsciousness. However, Yunjia felt as thought she was in enough pain for the both of them. She wished for the hundredth time that there was something she could do to protect him, or at least to take some of the pain away.

He had come to her with injuries before, of course, but it had never been anything this serious. He had rarely even been brought to her unconscious – she could only remember two times. This was a much worse case than any of those.

Something had pierced him close to his heart. It had probably only barely missed that vital organ, but whatever the object was, it certainly had still caused a great deal of damage. Yunjia was thankful that it had at least made a clean cut. That way it would be easier to clean and would heal faster. The same could not be said for the wound in his side. Whatever had caused this wound had torn the skin and made such a mess that, at this point at least, it was impossible for her to tell exactly how bad the damage really was. Aside from these two wounds, he had blood still seeping out of the injury on his head that had rendered him unconscious and countless bruises and cuts all over his body.

It seemed to her to take forever to clean his wounds. It would have been much faster with help from someone else, but no one else could be spared. The recent attack on the village had left so many wounded that all the healers had their hands more than full. So she labored alone, leaving the wound on his head for last. She reasoned that she wanted to take care of the ones that looked more serious first. But deep down she knew the real reason she was putting off caring for his head wound.

His mask.

Yunjia had never seen him without his mask on, even in all the times she had patched him up before. He enver took it off and she never asked him to. She didn't know why he wore it, but whatever the reason, she felt it would be violating his privacy if she took it off while he was under her care – especially while he was unconscious and had no ability to grant permission. Or to _not_ grant permission, whatever the case may have been.

Finally she could not avoid his head wound any longer. Still Yunjia put off pulling own his mask, mopping around it for the time being. As she reached toward his forehead, she realized that if he had been wearing his forehead protector, it would not have been possible for him to have this wound on his head – or at least not this badly. She frowned and paused. What had happened? Why had he not been wearing his forehead protector?

The mystery would have to be solved at a later time. While Yunjia hesitated, her patient moved his head slightly and another healer entered the room, both events that interrupted her thoughts. The healer who had just come in smiled faintly at her before turning his attention to the man on the bed. "How is he?" he asked quietly.

Despite the healer's soft tone of voice, Yunjia still jumped slightly. She hadn't heard another human voice since she had entered the room, and so it seemed strange to hear one now.

"Not too well," she replied. As she spoke, she realized how badly she needed a drink of water. "He did just move his head, though."

"Why don't you take a break," the healer suggested. "I can finish up for you here and you should get something to eat. You've been in here for hours and you look exhausted."

As much as she did not want to leave her patient's side, Yunjia could not deny that she desperately needed a break, no matter how short. With a slow nod, she stood and relinquished her basin of water and the cloth she had been using. "I'll be back in no more than an hour," Yunjia muttered, and turned toward the door.

"Take as long as you need," the other healer called after her.

Yunjia just waved one arm halfheartedly and exited the room. As she trudged down the hall, she caught sight of a couch a short distance from her. Yunjia headed for the couch; she just wanted to sit and relax for a few minutes before continuing on her quest for some food and water. She was so emotionally drained that it had begun to take a toll on her body and cause her to be physically tired as well.

With a soft sigh, Yunjia sank onto the couch and leaned her head on the back of it. Closing her eyes, Yunjia allowed her whole body to relax. She hadn't realized how tense she was until now. She breathed deeply and tried to clear her mind; whenever she needed a break from the emotional and physical toll that her job took, Yunjia would find a quiet spot and think of nothing. She could relax her body and her brain at the same time. She did that now.

Within moments, she was asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

"Yunjia, I need you to meet someone

"_Yunjia, I need you to meet someone."_

_At these words, Yunjia looked up from the papers she was filling out. She pushed her long black hair back and laid the papers on the desk. As she stood, she asked, "Who is it, Lu?"_

_With a laugh, Lu beckoned Yunjia to follow her down the hall. As they entered another small room, Yunjia saw a pouting blond haired boy standing by the window. Lu said, "I would like you to meet the village's resident troublemaker, Uzumaki Naruto."_

_Yunjia smiled, but before she could say anything, Naruto spoke up loudly, "Can't I go now, Lu?" He crossed his arms. "My ankle doesn't even hurt anymore."_

_Still smiling, Lu replied, "No, Naruto. Kakashi said that you were to wait here for him to come back." Lu added, for Yunjia's benefit, "Kakashi is his sensei. He often brings Naruto in here because Naruto often injures himself." She spoke mock-strictly with a fond gleam in her eye._

"_It was only a sprained ankle this time," Naruto grouched. "I don't know why he bothered to bring me or why I have to stay and wait."_

"_Perhaps he wanted a break from watching you but did not want to leave you unattended," Lu teased lightly._

_Yunjia laughed. Naruto only huffed._

_A voice spoke up from the doorway behind them. "Lu is closer to the truth than you think, Naruto."_

_Everyone turned to face the direction from which the voice had come. There was a young man leaning against the door frame carelessly. He had white hair, his forehead protector pulled down over one eye, and a mask covering the lower half of his face – all adding up to quite an unusual appearance. It was impossible to see his facial expression. However, Yunjia thought she saw an amused glint in his eye._

_Lue was certainly amused. She giggled girlishly and said, "Kakashi, I didn't even hear you come in. Naruto has been waiting very impatiently for you." Her words were cut off by a very excited blond haired boy launching himself across the room, shouting at the top of his lungs._

"_Can we go now? Please, please, please, please, please?!" Now Naruto was jumping up and down and waving his arms. Clearly he couldn't wait to leave._

_Kakashi straightened and crossed his arms. "You need to thank these ladies, first," he said in a soft voice._

_Naruto calmed slightly and turned around. "Thank you very much, Lu and…what's your name?"_

_Yunjia spoke for the first time since entering the room. "I am Xiao Yunjia. I just started working here." She smiled and added, "I suppose I will be seeing a lot more of you around here."_

_Naruto grinned, but instead of responding to that comment he said, "Thank you, Yunjia." Then he whirled around again. "Can we go _now_, can we, can we, can we?"_

"_Go ahead, I will be right out," Kakashi replied with a nod. After Naruto had bolted, Kakashi turned his attention back to the healers. "Thank you, ladies, for putting up with my young student."_

_Again Lu laughed airily. "He may be a handful, but I really enjoy having him around," she replied warmly. Yunjia thought that part of the reason Lu enjoyed having Naruto around was the opportunity to see his sensei, but she kept those thoughts to herself._

_Kakashi faced Yunjia and extended his hand. "I am pleased to meet you, Yunjia. I expect we will be seeing each other quite often."_

_With an amused smile, Yunjia replied, "Likewise." She met his hand with her own._

_As their hands met, something strange happened. Yunjia felt it, and she could tell that Kakashi felt it, too. It was as thought a little jolt of electricity had run through her arm at his touch. She looked up at him, careful to keep her face blank, and found him staring seriously back at her. It seemed like forever, but was actually only seconds before he dropped her hand and left, Yunjia staring after him and Lu looking bewilderedly back and forth from Yunjia to the empty doorway._


	3. Chapter 3

Yunjia opened her eyes. It was disorienting to find herself sitting in an empty hallway. Her dream had been so vivid that she had almost expected to find herself still standing in the brightly lit room where she had met Kakashi for the first time. She rubbed her hands together; she could almost feel that little jolt of electricity again…

A few moments later, Yunjia remembered what was going on presently. She leaped to her feet and hurried back down the hall to the room she had left an unknown amount of time earlier. The room was empty but for the occupant of the bed. Yunjia didn't bother to turn on the light – the light from the hallway was enough. Slowly she made her way to the side of the bed to examine her patient. She realized she must have been sleeping for a long time, because someone had finished cleaning him up and put bandages on his major wounds and some salve on his minor ones. For whatever reason, the person who had done that – probably the healer who had come to relieve Yunjia earlier – had wrapped a cloth around the patient's face, exactly where his mask would have been if he had been wearing one. Yunjia was glad; it seemed to almost be a matter of honor for him to wear that mask.

She didn't know what to do with herself. Obviously her patient didn't need any care right now, but Yunjia still did not want to leave his side. On the other hand, she hadn't had anything to eat or drink since the morning and it was not early evening. Finally making a decision, Yunjia hurriedly left the room, but returned moments later with a plate of food and a cup of water in her hands. She settled herself in the chair next to his bed and began to eat, hardly tasting what she was eating. All of her thoughts were focused on the man lying before her, perfectly still except for his slow, even breathing.

Strength. That was normally the impression she got from him. Even now, as hurt as he was, the very fact that he was alive showed just how strong he was. She admired his strength, not only physical, but emotional as well. Yunjia knew he had been through a lot, but he remained strong and steady despite that. She thought that he was probably the strongest person she knew – and she needed him.

Yunjia fought hard against the tears and managed to blink them away without any spilling over. _I will be strong_, she thought, raising her chin. She didn't have his strength to lean on right now, so her strength had to come from herself.

A sudden low moan from her patient made her jump and she dropped her almost empty cup of water on the floor. If she hadn't set her plate on the little table next to her, Yunjia would have dropped that, too. Her eyes wide, Yunjia stood p and moved to the side of the bed. Like a mother checking on her sick child, she gently laid her hand on his forehead to check for a fever. He did feel a little warm, but not overly so. He didn't make another sound, but his eyes were moving fast under his eyelids and he turned his head to the side. Yunjia knelt next to the bed and took his hand, holding it gently. Even that innocent little action when he was unconscious made her heart rate speed up. She shook her head at her silliness and rested her free arm on the bed next to him. Yunjia continued to watch him silently, but other than turning his head one more time, he didn't move again. After a long time, Yunjia rested her head on her arm and her eyes slid shut.

Only seconds later, her patient's eyes opened. He didn't seem at all surprised to see her there, and a soft expression came over his face, which he normally guarded so carefully. He lay there watching her sleep for hours before his eyes drifted shut again.


	4. Chapter 4

He would never be able to express it in words

He would never be able to express it in words. His admiration for her was too great. She was such a strong person. Kakashi knew she didn't realize how much he relied on her for strength. She never gave up, no matter how hard something was. Her determination and confidence were just outward expressions of her inward strength and he had been struck by that from the start. As they had grown closer, his admiration for and reliance on her only continued to grow as well. Maybe it had grown into something more, but Kakashi did not allow himself to think of that.

However, his resolve not to think of it was quickly diminishing as he watched her sleep.

Her hair cascaded over she shoulders and Kakashi wished he were able to touch it. Even in her sleep, she seemed to have a small smile on her face. As he studied her, Kakashi closed his fingers tighter around hers and slowly rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand. Even that innocent little action when she was sleeping made his heart rate speed up.

He allowed himself to ponder what it would be like to have her around all the time – forever. He savored the idea of being able to hold her hand whenever he wanted to, of her always being there to care for him when he needed caring for, and of coming home to find her eagerly waiting for him with open arms.

With these happy thoughts, Kakashi slipped back into unconsciousness with a slight smile on his face.

He hadn't even noticed the pain.

For some strange reason, it had been hard for Kakashi to get the girl out of his mind after the day they had met. She always seemed to be lingering just on the edges of his thoughts, and he often found that he was rubbing his right hand without even thinking about it. He couldn't be described as absentminded – Kakashi had never been described that way – but the girl he had met definitely lingered. Without even thinking about it, he began looking for her around the village. He did glimpse her a few times, and each time he remembered the feeling when they had shaken hands. When he had to take his students to the hospital, he always hoped to see her, but it was only Lu that they saw. A couple of weeks passed, and his desire to see the black-haired girl with the sparkles in her eyes only increased.

He was just thinking about that one evening when all of a sudden, there she was standing in front of him. Kakashi stopped, causing Naruto, whom he had been about to treat to ramen, to get a few steps ahead. Yunjia was standing in front of a house, surrounded by several small, laughing children. Yunjia was laughing as well, and holding out her hands to receive the flowers they were presenting to her. He stood and watched her for several seconds, and it took her that long to finally see him. Kakashi knew it as soon as she did. She stopped laughing and the smile faded from her face until only a shadow was left. Her eyes still sparkled, though, and after a few more seconds, she lifted a hand and slowly waved to him.

By now, Naturo had realized that his sensei was no longer beside him, and had turned around and begun calling to him. Before Kakashi could react, Naruto caught sight of Yunjia and yelled, "Look, it's Yunjia!"

Kakashi nodded. As if he hadn't noticed, when it seemed that every fiber of his being was attuned to her presence. Naruto took off in Yunjia's direction and Kakashi followed at a slower pace. By the time he reached them, Yunjia and Naruto were talking animatedly, with frequent interruptions from the children surrounding her.

"…will you com, too?" Naruto was saying, looking up at Yunjia with wide eyes.

"Hello," Kakashi said, also looking at Yunjia.

Yunjia smiled at him. "Good evening – "

"Tell Yunjia to come with us!" Naruto interrupted, turning to Kakashi.

"While Yunjia is most certainly welcome," Kakashi replied, still looking at her, "I will not 'tell' her to do anything. She is fully capable of making her own decisions."

Yunjia laughed. "Thank you, I appreciate that."

"But we really, really hope you will come," Naruto countered. Yunjia patted him on the shoulder in a silent attempt to calm him down and looked at Kakashi as though to verify Naruto's words.

Kakashi, who had yet to take his eyes off her, nodded.

"Well, then, I would be pleased to accompany you gentlemen to dinner," Yunjia consented with a bright smile. "I just need to walk my nieces and nephews home first. They live just a few houses down, so it will not take long."

"We'll go with you!" Naruto exclaimed.

Kakashi walked along with the rest of them and, though he participated in the conversation, he was somewhat in awe of the fact that he was going to be spending the rest of the evening in Yunjia's company.


	5. Chapter 5

How much later it was when she woke up, Yunjia did not know

How much later it was when she woke up, Yunjia did not know. She was stiff from the awkward position she had held for so long, but didn't regret it. She smiled softly as she gently pulled her hand away from Kakashi's. Standing and stretching, Yunjia tried to figure out how long she had been there. She quickly decided that it didn't really matter; regardless of how long it had been, she needed to get home to take a shower and get some real sleep. Yunjia gently laid her hand on her patient's forehead under the pretense of checking for a fever, even though she knew he didn't have much of one if he had one at all. As she brushed his hair back, doing her best not to touch his wound, she heard him sigh and hoped she hadn't inadvertently done something to hurt him. Yunjia pulled her hand away, kissed her fingertips, pressed them softly to his forehead, and then left the room.

She made it through her shower, but fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. She was exhausted, physically and emotionally. Ever since the attack on the village, Yunjia and the other healers had been in high demand, working hard with barely any time for rest. This was her work and she knew she was meant to do it, but at times like these, it could be overwhelming. So many injured; so many dead. And Kakashi being one of those who was seriously injured only made it that much harder for her. She was drained.

It was no surprise when her dreams that night centered on a silver-haired ninja.

That first night Yunjia accompanied Kakashi and Naruto to dinner was far from being the last. Over the following weeks, it was normal for the three of them to visit one restaurant or another three or four times a week. Yunjia felt somewhat uncomfortable at first when Kakashi never took his mask off, and therefore never ate, in her presence. But she quickly got over that and, like Naruto, didn't think much of it. Sometimes one or both of Kakashi's other students would come, and always Naruto was there. Those evenings were Yunjia's favorites.

Whenever Kakashi was sent out on a mission, Yunjia waited not-so-patiently for him to return. Several times he ended up in the hospital and she had to care for him, but most of the time it was nothing serious. The first time he came to the hospital for care was one of the more serious ones and Yunjia never liked to remember it.

She was calmly looking over some patient charts when one of the other healers came running into the office. He stopped in the doorway and motioned for Yunjia to follow him. Everything in his manner screamed for urgency. As she hurried down the halls behind him, he gradually explained.

"I will need your help," the healer, Zhu Meng, said first. He spoke brusquely, conveying even more the tense situation. "A ninja has just come back from a mission and he is badly injured. It looks like a blow to the ribs. He is having trouble breathing and is unconscious. We will need to find out exactly what his injuries are and treat them." Zhu Meng suddenly stopped outside a door with his hand on it and faced Yunjia. "We will have to work fast; he could possibly die from whatever his injuries are if we don't find them and care for them fast enough."

Yunjia nodded briskly before her colleague swung open the door and they both entered the room. When she saw who was lying on the bed, gasping for breath, she blanched. Hey eyes wide in horror and her hand covering her mouth, she stopped just inside the door unnoticed by Zhu Meng. This was her nightmare, the very thing she had feared would happen. Kakashi, injured. She felt utterly helpless.

But she swallowed hard and took a few deep breaths, knowing that she needed to concentrate and do her job in order to help Kakashi. After just a few seconds, she had managed to compose herself and hurried to assist Zhu Meng, her hesitation completely unnoticed by the other healer.

That had been the first time, and the worst time – except for the present. She had firmly berated him when he had recovered. Even though she knew it wasn't his fault that he was injured, she scolded him. Mostly Yunjia told him that he should have let her know he was going on a mission. At least then it wouldn't have been as much of a shock when she saw him lying on the bed in the hospital. Kakashi had taken her lecture with hardly a response, only a slight smirk.

The next time Yunjia opened her eyes, the sun was shining bright right onto her face. She groaned and rolled over onto her side. But then she caught sight of the clock. It was after ten! She bolted out of bed and threw her clothes on. After scarfing down an unbelievably fast breakfast, she took off toward the hospital. She never reached the hospital later than eight thirty. What would people think? Yunjia was angry with herself, and quite eager to check on one patient in particular.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When she finally reached the hospital, Yunjia was both relieved and frustrated that there had been no change in Kakashi's state. She was relieved because that meant he was not any worse, and frustrated because he was not any better. Ignoring the stares that she received from the people who noticed the fact that she was late, Yunjia made her rounds, checking on all her other patients that she felt somewhat guilty for neglecting the previous day. It wasn't entirely her fault – the attack on the village had been so unexpected and so intense that many of the healers were focusing all their attention on those wounded fighting the enemy.

Yunjia managed to calm herself with a few deep breaths before seeing her first patient, and kept her calm composure all through her visits, even though they were a bit rushed. After all, Yunjia was almost startled to remember, there were still wounded being brought it from the battle. Yunjia had almost forgotten that the battle was still raging, so great was her concern for Kakashi. She wondered vaguely how it was faring, but she needed her concentration focused on caring for the injuries.

Another day passed swiftly. Evening had arrived by the time Yunjia was reminded that she hadn't eaten all day again. She pressed her hand to her growling stomach and she finalized some release forms for those who didn't need to be held. _Almost done here_, she thought to herself, writing somewhat faster. She planned to grab some food quickly before going back to Kakashi's room to sit for a while. She hadn't seen him all day and was anxious to see how he looked. There was an almost physical ache in her chest when she thought of him, and she felt it when she was finally able to throw down her pen and hurry to the cafeteria in search of food.

Only a few minutes later, Yunjia rushed into Kakashi's room. She set her food and her glass of water on a table next to the bed and immediately forgot about them. She stood over Kakashi, taking in his appearance. He looked about the same, but there was more color in his face. Yesterday he had been so pale…

With a relieved sigh, Yunjia sank into the chair beside his bed and put her hand on his shoulder, feeling the slow, even rise and fall as he breathed. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting, but she realized now that she had been bracing herself for the worst. She smiled wryly at her own panic.

"Oh, my, Kakashi, you wouldn't believe how my day has gone," she spoke softly, gently smoothing his hair back from his forehead as she did. "I overslept, got here late, and was kept running all day after that." Her stomach growled loudly again and Yunjia actually laughed a little bit. "I haven't even been able to eat." Reluctantly, she leaned back in the chair, away from Kakashi, and reached for her plate and glass. She continued to speak as she ate. "They're still fighting, somewhere. People are still being brought here, but most of the injuries aren't too serious."

She fell silent as she ate. Somehow it didn't seem strange to be talking to Kakashi when he was lying unconscious and unable to respond. It felt right – almost as though Yunjia knew he could hear her. She tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. Maybe he could, who knew?

Utterly relaxed after her meal, Yunjia scooted the chair up next to the bed, the sides of the chair and the bed touching, so that she could sit comfortably and still be able to hold Kakashi's hand. It felt awfully bold to hold his hand, and Yunjia blushed as she slid her fingers around his.

Then she sighed. "Kakashi…I wish you would wake up. I miss you. I miss talking to you."

With another sigh, she closed her eyes. Now, at the end of the day, when the weariness was pressing in, Yunjia felt as though the wall she had built to keep herself strong while she was unable to depend on Kakashi was crumbling. It was hard to deal with so much and not be able to talk it over with her friend, who always seemed to be so much stronger than herself. Life was hard enough on a normal day, but with the recent attack on the village, it was so much worse. Friends were in jeopardy, even the ones who weren't actually fighting. Yunjia knew that Naruto and his friends were probably out there helping in some way or other. It was almost too much for Yunjia to think about.

It took her a few seconds to realize that there were two tears trickling down her cheeks. She sniffed quietly and swiftly wiped them away. It took her a few seconds more before she felt the pressure on her hand. When she did, every muscle in her body tensed and she froze for a second before sitting bolt upright, not releasing her hold on Kakashi's hand.

Yunjia's eyes fixed on Kakashi's face. He didn't look any different. His eyes were closed, not moving under his eyelids. His breathing hadn't changed. He was lying perfectly still on the bed. But Yunjia could feel that he had definitely closed his fingers around her hand. Her heart skipped a few beats and her breath caught when she looked down at their hands. She experimentally loosened her grip. His didn't change. If anything, it got stronger.

Now tears were falling down her face completely unchecked. Yunjia didn't even notice them. "Kakashi, if you can hear me, please wake up," she whispered. She waited for a second, a minute, an hour – who knew how long? He still didn't move, but his grip on her hand did not loosen. That was enough to satisfy her. "I'm here, Kakashi. I'll be here when you are ready to wake up."


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I'm sorry it's been so long on this one. I kind of lost my inspiration for a while. But hopefully I can get this finished before the end of the month. Enjoy! ;-)**

It was like he was dreaming. Kakashi could feel Yunjia's presence. He knew she was in the room and even knew she was holding his hand. But the darkness was too oppressive. He couldn't open his eyes. He couldn't move in any way. He was still unconscious, but Kakashi was so attuned to Yunjia's presence that he could tell she was there even then.

He began to focus all his energy and attention on the hand that Yunjia was holding. He had to let her know somehow that he was okay. He could hear a very quiet sound, what sounded like talking, but it seemed very far away. Kakashi was finally able to make his fingers do his bidding, and he gently closed them around Yunjia's hand. At least, that's what he was trying to do. If he really were dreaming all this, then that probably wasn't what he was doing at all. But it made Kakashi feel better, at least, so he didn't loosen his grip.

Of course, in his unconsciousness Kakashi had no perception of time. He had no idea how long it was before he realized he was fading deeper into unconsciousness again. Kakashi struggled to hold on, not wanting to lose the connection he had with Yunjia and the rest of the world. Eventually it grew to be too much, and Kakashi slipped further into the darkness.

- - - - -

Yunjia did not leave Kakashi's side all night. She fell asleep holding his hand. When she awoke sometime later, his grip had loosened. Yunjia couldn't help feel a sense of disappointment, but the fact that he had responded at all was a great comfort to her. She settled for keeping her own grasp on his hand, and fell back to sleep.

When she awoke the next morning, Yunjia was sore and stiff from sleeping in the chair, but she wouldn't have left Kakashi for anything. She made the best of it that day as she saw to her patients' needs. More people were brought in from the battle, but they had more positive reports to give now, and most of the injuries weren't anything serious. Yunjia's heart was considerably lighter when she returned to Kakashi's room that night.

Another healer was already in the room when she entered and Yunjia greeted him quietly and asked, "How is he doing?"

"He seems to be doing much better," Chong, the healer, replied in a soft voice. He picked up some charts and glanced over them. "He even woke up earlier today and was asking for you," Chong said casually, then looked up at Yunjia with a smile. Before Yunjia could attack Chong for not coming to get her right away, he quickly added, "But he fell asleep again almost right away."

"Is he sleeping now?" Yunjia asked, looking past Chong to the bed.

"Yes. He's really sleeping, meaning you can wake him if you like." Chong wrote some things on the medical charts and then hung the clipboard back up on the wall. "Just remember he's probably extremely tired and may not wake up or stay awake for long," Chong cautioned out of habit – Yunjia knew all of that of course.

Yunjia sank into her chair next to Kakashi's bed and gently touched his hand. She didn't feel brave enough to actually hold his hand again when the chances of him waking were so much greater. Yunjia watched him sleeping for a few moments. The sheet was still pulled up over his face, but the part of his face that she could see looked peaceful. Yunjia put her hand on his shoulder and quietly said his name.

"Kakashi. Kakashi, wake up." Yunjia bit her bottom lip. She felt guilty for waking him, but she wanted to see with her own eyes that he was going to be okay. "Kakashi…wake up."

Kakashi groaned and Yunjia's rapidly beating heart leaped into her throat. He turned his head to the side slowly and his eyes fluttered open, taking only seconds to lock with Yunjia's. As soon as he focused on Yunjia's face, Kakashi managed a tiny smile.

"Oh, Kakashi," Yunjia breathed, "I've been so worried about you."

"How are you?" Kakashi asked in a low voice.

Yunjia laughed quietly. "How am I? I'm fine – I want to know how you are."

"You have the medical charts."

"Kakashi, if you were well I would smack you," Yunjia told him in exasperation, but inwardly she was relieved that he was capable of making a joke. She suddenly became aware of the tears in her eyes and wiped them away before they could spill over.

"Don't cry," Kakashi told her.

"I'm not," Yunjia retorted, but he had already seen her wipe the tears away, and more were pooling in her eyes. She smiled when he blinked sleepily. He wouldn't be awake much longer. "I'm just glad you're okay."

"I will be," Kakashi murmured. He raised his hand, palm up, a few inches above the bed.

Yunjia realized he wanted her to take his hand, so she did – but she couldn't help but blush. Kakashi didn't notice. He had managed to stay awake long enough to wrap his fingers around her hand, but then he had fallen asleep again.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N – Finally, another chapter. *whew* Sorry it's taking so long. I'm running low on inspiration and writing time. I'm going to try to finish this over spring break this week. Thank you a million times to everyone who is reading and reviewing! Keep it up, the reviews are what keep me writing!! :-D**

That evening, Yunjia went home. She ate a proper dinner, showered, and slept in her own bed. It made a considerable difference the next morning. She woke feeling refreshed and much more optimistic than she had in the previous days.

As the day progressed, Yunjia's mood only improved. There were far fewer wounded being brought in now, and reports coming back were positive. The enemy was being defeated, everyone was saying, and the battle would soon be over. Yunjia treated each of her patients with the cheerfulness she usually did, and by the time she made it to Kakashi's room that evening, she was humming.

Yunjia made her way into the room and found that Kakashi was asleep. She smiled and decided not to wake him, but crept over to the window and looked out at the sun that was setting. The sunset had always been one of her favorite sights, and it brought back yet another memory that involved Kakashi. She leaned against the wall next to the window and her smile grew dreamy as the memory flooded her mind.

- - - - -

_The festival was the biggest even of the year in the Leaf Village. Yunjia, who loved anything like a party, was putting on her best clothes and fixing her hair. She was still at the hospital, using the restroom to change and get ready for the evening. Yunjia hadn't even been sure she would get out in time to go to the festival, but she had brought her clothes just in case. If she hurried, she would have just enough time to get out there to see the sunset and then the fireworks._

_She pinned her hair up in a simple, yet elegant, twist and impatiently brushed the few escaped strands behind her ear. Yunjia began to throw her other clothes into the bag to store in her locker, having decided against putting on makeup because it would take too long. She could already hear the crowds gathered outside, talking and laughing loudly. Yunjia couldn't wait to join them._

_Several minutes later, Yunjia was finally walking down the hallway leading to the lobby and the exit. She chafed at the delay – it always seemed to take forever to get ready when she was in a hurry. Her pace quickened when she reached the door to the lobby and she pushed it open hard in her eagerness._

_And ran headlong into someone who had just been preparing to open the door from the other side._

_Completely flustered now, Yunjia took a step back, her eyes wide and her face read. "I'm so sorry," she began, but stuttered to a stop when she saw who it was._

_Kakashi was standing in front of her, holding the door open so that it wouldn't swing back and hit Yunjia while she stood there apologizing. He looked as totally unflustered as Yunjia was flustered, and maybe even a little amused._

"_Hello, Yunjia," he said as if nothing unusual had happened._

"_Um, hi." Yunjia bit her bottom lip and looked to the side. "Sorry about that, I was in a hurry."_

"_I could tell."_

"_Yes, well…" Yunjia wasn't sure what else to say. Her heart rate sped up. Part of the reason she had been in a hurry was to see Kakashi, but she wasn't about to fess up to that. "I just got off work and I didn't want to miss the fireworks."_

"_Shall we go, then?" Kakashi asked. He stepped to the side, still holding the door open for Yunjia, and gestured with his other hand for her to precede him into the lobby. "The fireworks will be starting in a few minutes."_

"_Oh! Yes, thank you." Yunjia stepped into the lobby, using the few seconds that she was in front of Kakashi to take a deep breath and try to regain her composure. By the time he fell into step beside her, she was more or less calm. "Where are Naruto and the others this evening?"_

"_They are around here somewhere," Kakashi replied. They reached the exit and Kakashi reached forward to open that door for her as well. "Probably getting into mischief," he added as they stepped out onto the street._

_Yunjia laughed lightly. "They're good at that." She and Kakashi joined the crowd as they milled about, moving slowly in one great mass of people toward the viewing area set up for the fireworks. Yunjia sighed impatiently and stood on her tiptoes. "We'll never get there at this rate. And even if we do, we won't be able to see very well," she said mournfully. "I wish I had been able to leave earlier."_

"_Come on," Kakashi said, tapping her on the arm and pointing to get her attention. He was gesturing toward a side alley that no one was paying attention to. "I have a solution to your problem," he added, his eyes full of amusement._

"_Oh, okay!" Yunjia smiled even though she didn't know what Kakashi was talking about. She tried to follow Kakashi as he slipped through the crowd, but she wasn't as good at that slipping thing as he was and was soon left behind, barely able to keep him in sight. She huffed in irritation and tried to shove between two people who were, she was sure, standing close together on purpose so she couldn't get through. Yunjia frowned deeply and was trying to think of some choice words to say when Kakashi suddenly appeared in front of her again and offered his hand._

"_Here, I'll save you," Kakashi joked._

_Yunjia slid her own hand into his, blushing as she did so. He didn't see because he had turned around to lead her through the crowd. Strangely enough, Yunjia didn't even notice the crowd anymore._

- - - - -

Yunjia sighed. She never had asked Kakashi what he had been doing at the hospital that evening. She'd never dared to let herself think that he had been coming to see her.

Her mind returned to the present. The sun had dipped below the horizon and the room was growing dark. She turned away from the window, letting the curtain fall into place and cover it again. Kakashi was still sleeping, and Yunjia decided not to wake him.

She slipped silently out of the room.


End file.
