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The Darkness That Binds Him	By : XxKageTenshixX Category: Naruto > General Views: 4337 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 7
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of it's characters. Nor do I gain any profit from this story or the anime itself. I own just the plot of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
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Chapter 7
"How is he?"
Inoichi looked up from his spot next to the bed and shook his head at the Godaime. Ino was on the other side of the bed, her eyes closed in concentration. Turning to observe the scene before her, Tsunade sighed.
She had called in Inoichi and Ino to try and bring Naruto out of his current state. It had been the only thing Tsunade could think of to help Naruto. She thought that the Yamanaka family, with their mind walking abilities, might be able to draw the blonde out of his unresponsive state. However, not even that seemed to be working.
It seemed that Naruto's physical body had healed greatly over the past three weeks, all without the help of the Kyūbi. However, his mind had shown no progress. Of course, Tsunade hadn't expected otherwise. The mind was a tricky organ and damage done to it, both physical and emotional, was problematic to put it simply. She could only take comfort in the fact that most of the broken bones and factures had healed completely and the bruises were gone. She still worried about the damage that the concussions and internal bleeding had caused but that could only be dealt with once Naruto awoke from his catatonia. Right now, she had to focus on the stability of his mind before she could heal it.
"There still isn't a change in his psyche," Inoichi reported to the Hokage. Tsunade nodded absently and waited for him to continue. "It's…strange. Usually I am able to locate a person's consciousness, even one that's regressed due to severe trauma. This…I can't seem to get through into his consciousness at all. It's almost as if he wasn't in there at all."
Tsunade's eyebrows knitted together. "What do you mean?"
Inoichi leaned back against the wall and focused his eyes on the blonde Hokage. "Someone who has gone through any kind of trauma can block out the world around them and draw into themselves. If that trauma is too much for that person, they can, in a sense, put up a mental barrier to protect themselves from the outside world. You mostly find it in those subjected to torture on a massive and prolonged scale. Their consciousness, no matter how deeply buried, still leaves traces that it had once been there. Sometimes the consciousness takes the shape of whatever is the cause of its current withdrawn state. With Naruto," Inoichi's somber eyes found Naruto's blank ones. "There isn't a single trace of him whatsoever. A body without a soul is the first thing that comes to mind."
Tsunade's eyes widened at this alarming news. "Do you think the Kyūbi is the cause of it?"
Inoichi ran a hand through his bangs and sighed. "I don't know. I have no experience with the minds of those who contain a Bijuu, so I cannot say for sure. So, there is a possibility that the Kyūbi is responsible."
Tsunade nodded and turned her attention to the blonde patient. She vaguely wondered how Jiraiya would have acted if he was still alive. Tsunade smiled sadly. He would have been furious if he had known what had become of his godson after he left. He definitely would have been disappointed in her for her actions.
A small grunt pulled her from her thoughts. Looking up, Ino collapsed in the chair behind her, a tired expression on her face. One look at the young Yamanaka's face gave Tsunade as answer to her question before she even asked it.
"I take it you didn't have any luck either."
Ino shook her head, never looking up at Tsunade. "No. Whatever is keeping us out isn't wavering at all."
Tsunade sighed and looked out one of the windows. "Both of you have done enough for today. You can go home." She turned to leave when Ino stopped her.
"If I could, Lady Tsunade, I would like to stay. Maybe there is something I can figure out," Ino stated, determination showing clearly in her voice.
Tsunade smiled a little at the underlying message. Most of Naruto's friends were taking turns watching over him. She guessed they were blaming themselves as much as she was blaming herself. With a nod at the younger Yamanaka, she took her leave. Inoichi patted his daughter's head in sympathy and followed Tsunade out the door.
"Do you think it is wise to let them get their hopes up?"
"Even in the worst of times, it is good for them to hold up their hopes." Tsunade said without hesitation.
Inoichi looked warily at the Hokage. "I understand that, but I don't want my daughter to suffer any more than she already has if things don't work out. There is only a very small chance that he will even regain consciousness, much less fully recover."
Tsunade looked through an open doorway at a family that was in one of the hospital rooms. A small smile crept onto her face when she saw a father lying in a bed holding his children.
"She will hurt more if she doesn't keep her hopes up. All of us want to redeem ourselves for what we've done to Naruto. Though that idea is virtually impossible, this is the only way we can do that, at least for now." She paused and looked at Inoichi from the corner of her eye. "You would too if he was a friend of yours."
Inoichi looked at Tsunade, his face serious. "It doesn't matter if he was a friend of mine. Though I may not have been violent towards Naruto when he was growing up, I didn't help him when he needed it either. I should have been more caring to the son of one of my deceased friends and leader."
Tsunade came to an abrupt stop and turned to look at the older Yamanaka in shock. "How do you—"
Inoichi raised an eyebrow. "Please don't group me in with the villagers. I might not be as smart as Shikaku, but even I can see the resemblance between Naruto and his parents. I was good friends with both Minato and Kushina before they passed away." His voice was so low that only she could hear it.
Tsunade stared at him. "How many others know of this?"
Inoichi shrugged. "Besides Shikaku and Chōza? I have no idea. However, rest assured that if no one has figured it out by now, they never will."
Tsunade nodded hesitantly and turned back around.
Inoichi watched her as she walked away. "Lady Hokage." Tsunade stopped but didn't turn to face him. "I can't help but wonder how things would have been if everyone had known the truth."
Everyone around them had stopped to look at the two. A few people inside the room were even peeking out to see what was going on. Inoichi watched Tsunade stand there for a moment before her shoulders lifted slightly then slumped down slightly when she sighed.
"I guess we'll never know." Inoichi watched Tsunade as she continued walking down the hall until she turned a corner and left his sight. The people around him lingered for a few seconds out of curiosity before moving on. Taking one last look back at Naruto's hospital room, Inoichi left.
XxXxXxXxTDTBHxXxXxXxX
Hinata entered the room shyly. Her eyes never left the tiled floor and never looked at the boy in the bed. Ino looked up slowly before giving her a pained smile. The dark haired girl could only give a nod of her head in return.
"Has there been any change?" Hinata's voice was soft but oddly steady instead of the stuttering that was usually present.
Ino shook her head sadly. "No, no change."
Pupiless eyes finally moved upwards to look at the blonde in the bed. She couldn't help the tears that came to her eyes. She couldn't see the extent of his injuries, and for that she was glad. How would she react if she knew the hell that her crush had suffered?
It was no secret that Hinata held a crush on Naruto, so when he had been…locked up, she had been depressed for weeks. At first, she couldn't believe it. How could her Naruto have done such a thing? Yes, she was aware of his crush on his teammate Sakura, but the blonde was honorable, sweet, and determined to make people see him for who he was. Never would he do something like that. For weeks she denied it. For weeks she stepped out of her shy shell to speak up against people who thought otherwise. She didn't care if they had DNA evidence, or if the chakra signature belonged to him. It just couldn't have been him that had done those heinous things!
But like a fool she let others push their thoughts on her. One day her father had said some vile things about Naruto and she quickly told him how she thought of the blonde; that he was an honorable shinobi that had been accused of a wrong. Needless to say, her father didn't approve. Since then, she hadn't stepped up and defended Naruto like she used to, but she never once believed what people thought of him.
And she had regretted that decision more than anything. Maybe if she had kept pressing Naruto's innocence, like Iruka and Teuchi had, things would have worked out better. The day she, Shino, and TenTen had come back from a mission in one of the bordering villages had returned just to find out that all they thought they knew about what had happened that horrible day was a lie. That it was all the Uchiha's doing.
That stung more than anything. What the village had done to him could never be forgiven. But what she had failed to do was even more unforgivable. No matter how hard they tried, Naruto would never forgive them. And she…if she couldn't even stand by him when everyone was against him, she didn't think she deserved to forgiven.
Walking slowly towards the bed, she gently touched Naruto's hand. His hand was so pale and cold, it made her heart hurt. Slowly she knelt by his bed and poured her heart out. Sorrow and regret laced her cries as she wept over her once friend and crush.
Ino watched with teary eyes of her own. Without any conscious thought, she stood and positioned her hand in the Ram sign. Closing her eyes, she pushed her consciousness into the mind of the catatonic blonde. She had failed to get a result before, but the sight of Hinata crying made her even more determined. Everyone wanted Naruto returned to them and she wouldn't fail them.
"Release!" her voice sounded out before her body collapsed into the chair behind her.
XxXxXxXxTDTBHxXxXxXxX
Opening her eyes slowly, Ino looked around her at her "surroundings". The familiar darkness told her that the jutsu had worked. She was once again inside Naruto's mind. Waiting patiently, she finally spotted the cracked walkway as it materialized in front of her. Every mind had a pathway that led to different parts of the subject's mind. She had never been in Naruto's mind before the incident, but she knew that his walkway shouldn't be as dull and fading as it was.
Carefully she took a step onto the walkway, making sure not to step on the large cracks that ran across the walkway. She had seen them before, but they still hurt her. Cracks in a person's mental walkway meant a moment of great trauma. The bigger and more numerous the cracks, the less repairable the person's mind. With mounting distress, Ino noted that the cracks seemed to have gotten bigger than her last attempted mind walk.
Pale blue eyes searched for any sign of the blonde's soul. Seeing none, she continued on the path. She stopped when she came to the barrier that had previously kept both her and her father out. Placing her hands on the barrier hurt, but it wasn't anything that she hadn't felt before. Focusing her chakra into her palms, she once again tried pushing her way inside. As before, nothing happened. She tried again with the same results. Tears of frustration clouded her eyes. Banging her fists against the barrier, she gave an angry cry.
"WHY WON'T YOU OPEN!?"
Although she hoped for some answer or sign, as expected nothing happened.
Dropping her hands, she lowered her eyes to stare at the cracks. She didn't get it. She couldn't get in and she couldn't sense any other presence in here. She refused to believe that the blonde had had such a mental breakdown that he just didn't exist anymore in his own mind. It wasn't possible…
Suddenly, Ino heard a sharp "CRACK" sound above her. Jumping in surprise, Ino looked up to see a crack in the barrier. Her eyes narrowed in confusion until another crack appeared near the first one. Then another…and another…and another.
Pieces fell from the barrier until there was nothing left. Her heart skipped a beat in excitement. The barrier was gone! She could finally get through and search for her friend. Carefully she took a step forward, searching the new area with cautious eyes.
She didn't see any difference. "Maybe…maybe Naruto's consciousness just doesn't exist anymore. Maybe it was all too much for him. Maybe we were too late and he's gone." Ino thought to herself in a panic. Wiping away the tears that clouded her eyes, Ino trudged onwards, further and further into the abyss. She refused to think like that! She was going to find him, no matter what.
Suddenly, the sound of laughter ahead of her in the darkness.
Ino stopped, unsure of the laughter's meaning. "Hello?"
More laughter met her ears. An orange blur appeared to her left but when she turned, there was nothing there.
"…N-N-Naruto? Are you there?" she called out. The darkness and the laughter were beginning to unnerve her. How could one exist with the other? Suddenly the orange blur shone in front of her, the light from it blinding her. When she opened her eyes again, she sucked in a startled breath.
A boy was in front of her. He looked young, maybe around 5 years old. His white shirt and orange shorts were torn in several places and he was covered in dirt. What shook Ino the most was his dirtied blonde hair and curious sky blue eyes. The boy stared at her, almost as if he was considering whether or not she was a threat.
"Who are you?" His voice was cold, but his eyes still held that childish curiosity.
"Naruto? Is that you?" Ino took a step forward. The boy's eyes widened in alarm before he turned around and ran back into the darkness. "Wait!" she called, desperate to stop him from fleeing. She ran after him as fast as she could. She still couldn't believe that she had found him, she had finally found him!
"Naruto!"
He wouldn't stop and she pushed her legs harder to catch him. If she didn't catch him now, she might lose him forever! She was so focused on catching the child version of her friend that Ino never noticed the red eyes that peered at her from the inky darkness.
Suddenly, the blonde haired child turned towards her. The curiosity in his eyes gone, the color turned from azure sky to icy blue. Malice seemed to radiate off the child. A shiver went down Ino's spine. She realized that something else was here with them.
Looking around herself, Ino realized that she had strayed from the mental pathway. Her stomach twisted when she looked back at the child in front of her. A cruel but empty smile appeared on his lips. Her vision began to fade and blur into the blackness that surrounded her.
"You have no right being here!" His voice was just as cold as his eyes and his smile, but it held an undertone to it…almost as if it wasn't Naruto that was speaking to her.
"Wha—?"
Her legs gave out and she sank to her knees. Everything was turning black. She looked back up and saw red eyes peering at her from behind the blonde. The last thing she saw was both pairs of eyes glaring down at her.
XxXxXxXxTDTBHxXxXxXxX
"Ino!"
Ino sat up, gasping for breath. Looking around frantically, she realized that she was back in Naruto's hospital room and her own body. Holding her head in her hands, she tried to calm her racing heartbeat. What the hell was that?
"I-Ino? Are you okay?" Ino looked up to see Hinata hovering over her worriedly. Nodding her head, Ino stood on shaky legs and looked at the blonde in the bed. He was still staring blankly out the window, like he had been doing ever since he had woken up.
"What the hell was that?" Ino whispered to herself. She had never felt such a suffocating presence before. Another shiver went down her spine. Whatever it was, she hoped she never had to face it again.
XxXxXxXxTDTBHxXxXxXxX
Tsunade looked at the chart in her hands and sighed. Sakura stood near the door, never going near her teammate's bed. The guilt kept her from approaching him. Kakashi and Shikamaru waited patiently behind their Hokage, each of them wondering why their leader had called them there.
"I've decided that Naruto is to be released from the hospital," she said slowly.
Kakashi was the first to speak. "Is that wise? In his condition…" He trailed off, hoping she would understand.
"His condition isn't improving with him sitting in this damn room! Maybe a change of scenery will help. Frankly, I don't know what else to do." Tsunade's frustration was obvious to all. It was the same frustration they all felt.
It was quiet for a while before Shikamaru cautiously voiced his question.
"Why have you called us here?"
Tsunade didn't say anything at first. "Iruka came to me when Naruto was first admitted…he wanted to adopt Naruto and oversee his care personally." She could see the blunt surprise on their faces. "I thought you'd want to know."
They could understand that. Iruka had made it perfectly clear that he despised them all for what they had done to Naruto. If Naruto was going to be put into his care, they doubted they would be able to see the blonde anytime soon, if at all.
"Sensei, are you sure that's a good idea?" Sakura spoke for the first time since they had arrived in the room. Her voice was soft and hesitant.
Tsunade looked at them. "Iruka is the best person for the job. I don't want to hear another word about it." Her voice held a finality that kept them from arguing further. They were so busy with their own thoughts, none of them noticed the person in the window until it was too late.
"I think I would make a great babysitter for the dobe..."
Sakura, Kakashi, and Shikamaru tensed for a moment before quickly taking a protective stance around the bed. Tsunade spun around towards the window, her eyes hard and full of rage when she recognized the owner of that voice.
There was Sasuke, crouched down in the windowsill. He observed them coldly, a smirk forming on his pale face when he saw Naruto. Swiftly, he stepped into the room.
"Don't you think?"
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The Darkness That Binds Him