Leaving Her Alone

*Chapter 3*

The sound of his hospital room door being opened in a less-than-gentle manner pulled Naruto from the abyss of sleep. With some effort, he slid his coral blue eyes open and turned over toward the door; a small smile breached his sleep-hazed expression upon the sight of Kakashi.

"Back so soon, sensei?" he asked, sounding more groggy this time around.

Kakashi simply nodded as he walked over and sat down at the edge of Naruto's bed.

"...So...I can go home?"

"No."

Naruto frowned, averting his gaze elsewhere and mumbling under his breath about not needing to be in the hospital in the first place.

"What happened today, Naruto?" Kakashi asked suddenly.

Caught completely off guard by the question, Naruto found himself looking back at his sensei before he even knew his gaze had shifted.

"What are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Tell me what happened."

Naruto's gaze shifted to his lap in a futile attempt to hide the pain that flashed over his expression.

"I already told you what happened." he mumbled quietly.

Kakashi sighed as he folded his arms across his chest. "I know when you're lying to me, Naruto...and I know that you lied to me when I asked you what happened earlier."

He paused, and turned his gaze onto the blonde boy. A vague look of surprise shone in his eyes, as if he hadn't expected the man to see through him like that. It steeled his resolve even more; his visible brow furrowed, and he fixed the boy with a glare that let him know he wasn't getting out of this conversation.

"Now, tell me the truth. The WHOLE truth, Naruto. I want to know what happened."

Releasing a defeated sigh, Naruto dropped his gaze back into his lap.

"I'd decided...that maybe it'd be best if I stopped pursuing Sakura...romantically...and just try to be her friend instead." he began hesitantly. "I figured that, if I did that, our teamwork would improve, and...and Sakura wouldn't see a need to be so abrasive and rude toward me...we'd actually, you know, get along better..."

He paused, releasing a slightly quivering breath that he didn't realize he was holding as his fists clenched around the blankets just above his knees.

"Turns out I was wrong." he half-whispered, swallowing against the rapidly forming lump in his throat. "She refused to even hear what I had to say today. Couldn't even finish my thought before she was tearing into me...like always..."

Kakashi unfolded his arms and turned in his seated position so that he was fully facing his student. "Naruto..."

"Tch...who was I kidding?" the blonde boy spoke up again. "I mean seriously...like what the hell was I even thinking? Why would I ever assume that Sakura would want to be friends with me when she's made it crystal clear that she can't stand me? It was a dumb idea to begin with..."

"No...you're wrong about that." Kakashi said. "That idea was a great one, and very mature on your part I have to say. I'm proud of you for thinking of ways to make your team better."

Naruto's gaze lifted from his lap and found his sensei once more, a small smile working its way onto his lips.

"It makes me super happy to hear you say that, Kakashi-sensei." he stated genuinely; he paused for just a moment, however, contemplating his next words. "Even so, though...I think...that I'm done with this whole..."Sakura" thing..."

Slight shock overtook Kakashi's visible features then. "Done?" he repeated dumbly.

Naruto exhaled deeply before nodding resolutely. "Yeah." he replied. "I do still love her, believe it...but, for the sake of our team becoming the absolute best ever, I'll back off and leave her alone."

The Copy Ninja sat up straighter as his mind absorbed the boy's words. "Well then, alright. That is...if you're sure this is something you can do..."

Naruto's smile broadened then, and this time, it reached his eyes. "I can do it, sensei, believe it! I know that it won't be easy, but I will make this work!"

Kakashi returned the blonde's smile with one of his own. "Of course you will."

The sound of the hospital room door opening drew both their attentions to the doctor entering the room.

"Your condition appears to be improving rather well, Mr. Uzumaki." he stated as he walked over and proceeded to check the boy's vitals. "If all remains well, then you'll be out of here by early evening."

Naruto immediately began cheering excitedly at the news, at which point the doctor began scolding the boy, bidding him to calm down. Kakashi couldn't help the quiet laughter that bubbled up within him, as it was undoubtedly drawn from the relief he felt at seeing the blonde finally acting like himself again.