Five days later, Konoha Hospital.
In the quiet hospital room, Sasuke lay with his eyes closed, breathing faintly only once in a long while.
"Sasuke still hasn't woken up!"
Glancing at Sasuke's still-pale face, Haruno Sakura frowned in frustration.
"Yeah, it's been five days!"
Naruto nodded. Sasuke's injuries seemed pretty serious.
After all, Haruno Sakura and Naruto had also been badly injured this time, but after receiving treatment and spending two days in the hospital, they'd been discharged.
"Never mind. Let's go outside and not disturb Sasuke's rest."
Kakashi shook his head helplessly and said softly, then led Haruno Sakura and Naruto out.
Not long after the door closed, Sasuke's fingers suddenly twitched faintly, a sign that he was waking up.
As his fingers twitched, Sasuke's faint breathing grew a little stronger. A moment later, his eyelids struggled open and shut before his eyes finally opened slowly.
"Where am I?"
The bright light stung his eyes a little. After looking around the room, Sasuke asked himself groggily.
He took a few shallow breaths. Once his mind cleared, memories surged up from deep within, bringing some things back to him.
"I wonder how Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, and Sakura are doing..."
Remembering his battle with Iwayano, Sasuke murmured to himself.
"Sasuke, you're finally awake!"
As Sasuke was talking to himself, the door opened. A familiar voice rang out, and Haruno Sakura quickly came to his side, her face beaming with joy.
"Sakura, I'm glad you're okay!"
Sasuke smiled at Haruno Sakura, genuinely happy.
As long as Haruno Sakura was all right, that meant their whole team was safe. The worry he'd felt earlier had finally lifted.
"Haha, Sasuke, you're such a loser. You slept in the hospital for five whole days!"
"If it were me, I'd have been up and moving around the same day!"
Just then, Kakashi and Naruto came in, and Naruto teased Sasuke.
"Heh, I admit my recovery isn't as good as yours!"
Sasuke replied with a smile.
He wasn't saying that casually. The Nine-Tails was sealed inside Naruto, giving him an incredibly tough body, as if he couldn't be killed. Naturally, his ability to recover was absurdly strong too.
"By the way, what happened in the end? How did we get out of danger?"
Looking at Kakashi, Sasuke suddenly remembered this important question and quickly asked him.
"Thanks to your signal flare, a team of Konoha Anbu nearby came to reinforce us. One of them knew Medical Ninjutsu, and that's what saved your lives." Kakashi smiled. Seeing the relief on Sasuke's face, he added, "Itachi was with that Anbu team, too."
Sasuke froze, then asked in astonishment, "It really was my brother?"
Sasuke could vaguely remember the moment he'd collapsed. He thought he'd seen Itachi through his fading consciousness, but had assumed it was a hallucination. He hadn't expected it to really be Itachi. What a coincidence.
Kakashi nodded slightly and said with a smile, "You have Itachi to thank for making it back from the brink of death. If he hadn't carried you all the way back to Konoha without stopping, the consequences would've been unimaginable."
Kakashi wasn't exaggerating. Sasuke had been on the verge of death. Although the Anbu member had used Medical Ninjutsu to treat him, it had only kept him alive temporarily. Sasuke was eventually taken to Ninja Hospital, where it took several hours of emergency treatment before he was out of danger.
"Brother..."
Thinking of Itachi carrying him at a run the whole way, Sasuke's eyes instantly reddened.
Even without Kakashi telling him more, Sasuke knew how hard it must have been for Itachi to carry him back to Konoha.
Even an ordinary person would feel exhausted after carrying something light for several hours, let alone Itachi, who had carried Sasuke without resting and maintained a fast pace the whole way. No one else could have managed it.
"Sasuke, once you're better, let's have a spar! I've been learning a new ninjutsu from Kakashi-sensei lately!"
"With my new ninjutsu, I'll definitely beat you!"
As Sasuke sat quietly thinking about Itachi, Naruto suddenly clenched his fist and shouted excitedly.
"Heh, what new ninjutsu are you learning?"
Sasuke looked at Naruto and asked with interest.
"Kakashi-sensei is teaching me the Rasengan. I heard the Fourth Hokage spent three years developing it, and it's an A-rank ninjutsu."
Naruto explained, shrugging.
"The Rasengan, huh? Then I hope you learn it soon!"
Sasuke was slightly surprised, then smiled. He wasn't particularly surprised by the answer.
Naruto was the kind of ninja who hated using Hand Seals, so clever Kakashi would naturally have him practice a ninjutsu like the Rasengan, which could be used with chakra alone. That was also why Jiraiya taught Naruto the Rasengan in the anime.
"Yeah!"
Naruto nodded, confident that he'd master the Rasengan soon.
They chatted a little longer. When Kakashi saw that Sasuke was getting tired, he left with Naruto and Haruno Sakura.
Sasuke hadn't fully recovered. He was already exhausted after chatting for a little while, and as soon as Kakashi and the others left, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.
It wasn't until noon, when Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto arrived, that Sasuke woke up again.
Just like Kakashi and the others, Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto came to see Sasuke every day. But Sasuke had shown no signs of waking for three or four days, which had made them quite worried. Fortunately, he'd woken up today, and they could finally relax.
They'd already learned about Sasuke's ordeal from Itachi. Uchiha Fugaku was extremely proud that Sasuke had defeated a rogue ninja with Jonin-level strength, and he smiled throughout their entire conversation.
Uchiha Mikoto wasn't as talkative as Uchiha Fugaku. She'd made Sasuke all kinds of delicious, nutritious food, hoping he'd eat more and recover as quickly as possible.
Sasuke was naturally very happy that his father and mother had come, but it was a shame that Itachi couldn't join them because he was away on a mission. Still, Sasuke was a ninja himself, so he understood.
Perhaps because they were worried Sasuke might get bored, Uchiha Fugaku stayed with him for nearly two hours before leaving with Uchiha Mikoto.
Watching his father and mother leave, Sasuke immediately grew bored again. He was just about to go back to sleep and recover when a figure suddenly appeared beside him.
"Body Flicker Shisui's reputation is well deserved. If you'd come to assassinate me, you'd have succeeded!"
Looking at the figure before him, Sasuke teased.
"Heh, Sasuke, you were unconscious for five whole days. It seems Itachi was right—you were willing to throw your life away to protect your teammates!"
Shisui paid no heed to Sasuke's teasing and chuckled.