26: The Visit

Konoha Hospital.

“Open wide.”

“…”

Hana stood at the bedside holding a bowl of porridge, looking at Shin with the patient, implacable expression of someone who had been waiting long enough.

“Come on. Be good. Open wide.” She moved the spoon toward his mouth.

“Hana…” Shin turned his head away—stiff, faintly miserable about it. “I can do it myself.”

“Open—wide—” She said it again exactly as if he hadn’t spoken.

“…”

“Open. Wide.“

He gave up. He always gave up eventually. The porridge went down warm, and Hana’s face did what it always did when she got her way.

“Good boy.”

By the time the bowl was empty—despite Shin’s continuous low-grade squirming—Hana set it on the side table with the serenity of someone who had won.

“Kiba. Wash this.”

In the corner, Kiba looked up from where he’d been sitting on the floor with Akamaru in his lap.

“…Why?”

“Because I said so.”

“That’s not— I didn’t even get any. I want some too—”

“This was made especially for Shin. He needs his strength back.”

“Tch.” Kiba looked away.

“And don’t think I can’t tell what you’re doing,” Hana added mildly. “You’re using ‘visiting Shin’ as an excuse to skip class, aren’t you.”

“…No I’m not.”

“Then go wash the bowl.”

Kiba didn’t have anything to say to that. He gathered himself off the floor, accepted the bowl with a defeated expression, and trudged toward the door.

……

Knock knock knock.

“Come in,” Hana called.

The door opened to a girl about Shin’s age. She took one look at Hana and immediately locked up.

“H—hello…”

Then she looked at Shin in the hospital bed and went red all the way to her ears.

“Oh, you’re one of Shin’s classmates?” Hana rose from her chair, smiling. “You came to visit?”

“It’s Uegawa.” Shin lifted a hand in greeting from the bed.

“Y—yes—” The girl gripped the square box in both hands. Her face was still crimson. “Shin—Shin-kun—I heard you were sick, so I—I made chocolate, I wanted to give you—to bring—I—”

Her words were coming out in the wrong order. The more she tried to fix it, the worse it got.

“That’s so kind of you,” Hana said, stepping forward and accepting the box before Shin could respond. “Shin is very grateful, I know he is.”

“Your hands are so steady.” Hana turned the box over with genuine admiration. “You made this yourself?”

“N—nowhere near as good as—it’s nothing—”

Aoi looked at Shin one more time. She took a breath. Some private decision was made.

“Shin-kun.” Her voice came out steadier than the rest of her had managed. “I hope you get better soon.”

Then she turned and fled.

“…”

Hana carried the gift back to the side table and set it with the others. The stack was getting impressive.

“Fourth one this morning.” She couldn’t quite hide her smile. “There were quite a few yesterday too.”

“You are very popular with the girls, Shin.”

Shin gave her a tired smile that said he knew.

“Chocolate.” Hana looked at the box she’d just placed down. “Every single one brings chocolate. Has any of them thought about whether you’re actually allowed to eat chocolate right now?”

A pause.

“Do all your classmates just skip class whenever they feel like it?”

---

The Academy.

Iruka stared at his classroom—which contained maybe a third of its usual population, and nearly all of them boys—and felt a very specific muscle twitch near his left eye.

These little—

The chalk in his hand quietly crumbled to dust.

“Iruka-sensei?”

“…”

“Iruka-sensei, um. I was thinking—I might need the morning off. I’m not feeling well, my stomach’s been a little—it’s not that I want to go to the hospital or anything, I just—”

“No.”

“Huh?”

“No. Sit down. Your stomach can suffer in silence.”

The sound that came out of Iruka could charitably be called a voice.

---

Shino arrived at noon, carrying a thermal container.

“Shino.” Hana stood to greet him. “Come in.”

He nodded and crossed the room to hand her the container with both hands. “My mother made soup. For Shin’s lunch.”

“She really didn’t have to.” Hana accepted it, warmth in her voice. “Tell her thank you.”

Shino turned toward the bed. “Shin. You’ve recovered?”

His father had told him this morning—almost off-hand, as his father told most things—that Shin was awake and doing better. Shino hadn’t quite believed it. Yesterday Shin had looked worse than he’d ever seen anyone look.

“Getting there,” Shin said. “They might let me out soon.”

“No,” Hana said, without turning around. “They won’t. You’re staying until you’re properly recovered, and that’s final.”

The author’s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Shin exhaled.

“Didn’t Tsume-san come?” Shino asked.

“She went out early this morning.” Hana thought about it. “She was already gone by the time I got home to make breakfast. No idea where.”

My father left early too, Shino noted privately.

……

Kiba came back with the washed bowl around the same time.

“Shino.” He dropped back into his chair. “Iruka-sensei’s going to be furious.”

“We should both go back,” Shino said.

“He’s always furious, it’s fine—”

“Kiba.” Hana’s voice was pleasant and absolute. “Both of you. There’s nothing you can do here, and you’re going back to class.”

“What—“

“Should I call Mom and have her convince you?”

Kiba shut his mouth.

“…Fine.” It came out like something being dragged.

Shin laughed. Properly this time.

“Hey!” Kiba pointed at him. “What are you laughing at? You get to just lie there while people bring you things and Hana-nee takes care of you—”

“Shin is a patient,” Hana said, and gently knocked the back of Kiba’s head.

“…”

Knock knock knock.

“Another admirer, probably,” Hana said with amusement.

“Hana-nee,” Shin said.

“Tch.” Kiba crossed his arms and looked at the ceiling.

“Come in!”

The door opened—and everyone stopped.

“Naruto?” Kiba blinked. “What are you doing here?”

Naruto Uzumaki stood in the doorway. One hand held a round box. His goggles were pushed up on his forehead. He was scratching the back of his head with the other hand, wearing a grin that was working slightly harder than his usual ones.

“I—uh—heard Shin was in the hospital, so—I wanted to come see him—” He glanced at Hana and visibly stiffened.

“You must be one of Shin’s classmates.” Hana smiled. “That was thoughtful of you.”

“Naruto.” Shin raised a hand.

Naruto’s whole expression eased.

“Hey.” The grin became a real one—bright and slightly gap-toothed. “You okay?”

“Better. Thanks for coming.”

“Of course!” He laughed, back to himself. “I knew you’d be fine. You’re Shin.”

“Tch.” Kiba was already eyeing the box. “What’d you bring?”

“Oh—uh—it’s—hmm—” Naruto shifted it behind his back.

“Let me see.” Kiba was up and across the room in two steps.

“Kiba,” Hana said.

He was already holding the box up, turning it over, squinting at it. Naruto had gone very still.

“This is…”

“Instant ramen?!“

Shin: “…”

Hana: “…”

Shino: “…”

“Kiba.” Hana lifted the box from his hands before he could say another word and turned to Naruto with the same warm expression she’d used on every visitor. “Thank you so much, Naruto-kun. That was very thoughtful.”

“I—yeah—sorry, I—” Naruto was somewhere between sheepish and mortified.

“Who brings instant ramen to a hospital,” Kiba muttered, just loud enough.

“Kiba,” Hana said. There was an edge in it this time.

“Naruto,” Shin said.

“…”

“Thank you.”

Naruto blinked. Looked at him. Looked at the floor.

“…Oh.”