[open]|Konoha General Hospital

[not_thedragon]

Where: Konoha General Hospital, Konoha Village
When: January 29th
Notes: Open to all

As much as every training he found himself unexpectedly shoved into reinforced the fact that medical ninjutsu was not his natural talent, Sasuke had to admit that it was a chakra workout, if nothing else. His own reserves were hardly inconsequential and still medical ninjutsu was draining unless he focused every ounce of concentration on maintaining perfect control, using only the exact amount of chakra needed for the task. Too little and the healing was incomplete; too much and he risked overloading his patient.

Not that he'd had an actual patient today. He'd thought he'd been done with resurrecting food and housepets, but the grumpy medic-nin who had somehow been blackmailed by Obito into training an unwilling Uchiha had said, in a tone brooking no argument, that there was no damn way Sasuke was getting anywhere near a spinal injury until he'd proven he could handle more complex vertebrates than a fish, and until then he was to leave suspected spinal injuries the hell alone until a professional could get there.

Which meant he'd been resurrecting snakes for the better part of the morning. Where the medic-nin had located this many snakes was something Sasuke didn't particularly want to examine, but he was still picking sloughed skin out of unexpected parts of his chuunin uniform as he walked through the hospital, heading finally for the freedom of somewhere not a sterile office.

Comments

[dangodragon]

Itachi felt a little furtive. He'd ended up deciding on an older medic, one that didn't do field work anymore but knew what she was doing. She was brisk and efficient and understood the need for privacy. Itachi also didn't think she would blackmail him with this information. Itachi had chosen a medic in the two weeks, but as he'd been dealing with a cold, she'd wanted to wait until he was better to do any conclusive testing. She had given him a general check-up, letting him know he had some inflammation in his joints and lungs. The lung inflammation would be related to the cold, Itachi hoped, and not something else. He was fond of breathing.

That was why he was only now walking through the halls, carrying a file he'd gotten from the ANBU medic on his recent string of colds and other infections that were usually treated when he came in from longer missions. It made Itachi nervous, having someone examine his records from birth to present. It made him nervous watching her try to string all his symptoms together into a cohesive whole. What if they were all just small things happening to him with no relation to each other?

Itachi sighed and shifted the file under his arm. He had a cup of coffee in one hand, sipping on it slowly. He hated the taste of coffee, even heavily doctored with creamer and sugar, but he hadn't been sleeping much with all the medic business going on. Things only got better as Itachi turned a corner and saw Sasuke. Itachi almost froze, then began quickly looking for the best way to avoid Sasuke, hoping his brother wouldn't see him.

He was going to tell his family, but now until after he had some idea of what was going on. He didn't want anyone worrying or fussing over him.

[not_thedragon]

Luck was, of course, not on Itachi's side today. Sasuke spotted the familiar face as soon as Itachi rounded the corner, and instantly forgot about leftover snakeskin and the intricate stitching-together of vertebrae. He'd spent enough time in the hospital by now that it was easy to dash down the hall, avoiding carts and other staff with precision, eyes tracking Itachi's body language for signs of pain or injury in a way that wasn't second-nature yet, but practiced by now.

"You said you weren't hurt when you got back," he said as soon as he was in earshot, expression accusing. "What are you doing in hospital?!"

[dangodragon]

And the dragons descends, Itachi thought wryly at the instant guilt Sasuke made him feel. It wasn't as if he'd planned to not tell Sasuke at all what was going on. He'd just wanted to wait until he had accurate information as not to alarm anyone.

Somehow, Itachi doubted Sasuke would appreciate Itachi's logic. It was a stalling tactic disguised under a fastidious desire to not present false information on a sensitive topic.

"I'm not hurt," Itachi protested. Lying now would only cause serious trouble later with Sasuke, and maybe Sasuke's reaction would be better regulated in public. Itachi motioned to the file he carried.

"Obito sent me to see a medic," Itachi said. Well, that was deceiving. Why was talking about his health so difficult. Itachi examined this question instead of Sasuke.

[not_thedragon]

"If you're not hurt, then why is our cousin -- sensei sending you to a medic?" He folded his arms, ignoring the misstep in his proper labelling of Obito. A closer look did agree with what Itachi said, at least on the outside: he was walking easily, under his own power, and didn't appear to be favouring any one side or hold excessive tension in the body.

At least no more tension than one would expect if he was trying not to explain what he was doing in the hospital. Sasuke's expression turned expectant even as he took in more of the details: coffee, a drink his brother didn't even like, and a file he was tempted to take to look at now.

It might have been true that Itachi was the older brother, but that only meant that what was his business was his -- and also Sasuke's to pry into.

[dangodragon]

Itachi was tempted to clutch the file closer to his chest, unsure what Sasuke's medical knowledge would tell him about the test results Itachi had already received. Would he read too much into them? He would never be satisfied with an "I'm fine." He'd want to know all the details.

In a way that was touching, but Itachi was leery after his "talk" with Obito over his health. Sasuke couldn't order him to see a medic, but he would be there to make sure Itachi took better care of himself. Worse than that, he would worry.

Itachi resisted the urge to sigh. "Obito became concerned that I get sick so often and wanted me to see a medic regularly, as a precaution. No, she hasn't told me much. I'm going back to be stuck with more needles and have another check-up." Itachi sipped his coffee, then realized that would probably effect any tests she did on his heart. He hadn't really thought that through, had he? She had said his heart as fine anyway.

[not_thedragon]

For all that he sometimes seemed like the ditziest sensei they could ask for, Obito paid more attention to detail than he let on and was Hokage beside; Sasuke hadn't known him even after all these years to abuse his position for something trivial. If he had ordered, not just asked, Itachi to see a medic, then things had clearly progressed to a point when he was genuinely concerned.

It begged the question of how they'd missed it at home -- had he not been paying close enough attention? Itachi had always been a little prone to whatever bug was going around, but ...

"Who did you see?" He'd been foisted off on enough of the hospital staff that he had a decent idea of who did what by now, and if Itachi was in for any but the overall full barrage of tests, he could harass the specialists for information. "When are you in next?"

[dangodragon]

"Tsukiko-sensei," Itachi answered. "And I'm going to see her now for the follow-up." Itachi paused. Now he could politely tell Sasuke to go, or he could make an effort to include him. Itachi was resistant, and he didn't exactly know why he was so reluctant to let anyone know his health might not be perfect. Shisui knowing had been uncomfortable and comforting at the some time, but the thought of more people knowing, even Sasuke...

No, especially Sasuke. It wasn't Sasuke's job to take care of his older brother or worry about his well being or any of that.

"Do you want to come with me?" Itachi finally asked.

[not_thedragon]

That name belonged to a general practitioner inasmuch as shinobi hospitals had them, so it was likely that Itachi had just had the usual initial barrage of tests rather than gotten anything conclusive and focused yet. She was also one of the medics at the hospital who had given Obito a supremely unimpressed look at the notion of dealing with an Uchiha student and run him through his paces at a breakneck speed. Sasuke had a healthy respect for Tsukiko's opinions.

He nearly invited himself along before Itachi issued a real invitation, nodding sharply once the question was asked.

"Of course I want to," he said, stepping forward to take his usual position at his brother's side. "You know that already."

[dangodragon]

"Which is why I was polite and invited you," Itachi replied as he sipped his coffee. Also it was better to have Sasuke with him rather than digging around on his own to figure out what was going on.

"You'll probably understand more of what she says than I will," Itachi added. he knew medical terminology, but he only had the most basics of medical training. When it came to complicated functions of the body he wasn't lost, but he couldn't follow the conversation effortlessly or contribute very much to it.

[not_thedragon]

He was far too old to be rolling his eyes, but the urge to do so in response to that reply arose despite the concern. Part of him wanted to rehash the age-old argument that if Itachi was more forthcoming to begin with, there would be fewer issues like this, but ultimately there were more pressing matters at hand than that.

"I've been training mostly in combat medicine," he said, frown creasing his forehead. "Pathology is a different unit."

And one he'd been resisting, even with Obito's consistent attempts to push him further and further into a medic-nin's career path. For the first time, Sasuke found himself regretting not spending more time in the hospital for lessons.

[dangodragon]

"You'll probably still better understand what she means when she goes off about inflammation and T-cell counts." Technically Itachi knew what those things were and how they functioned in the body. The T-cells he's had to go to research on, but fitting everything together was the complicated part.

Itachi looked back at his brother as they reached the correct door. "You should be more willing to accept that in this, even your specialized knowledge is greater than what I know." Itachi, file in one hand, coffee in the other, dipped his head to the door. "Could you get the door, please?" Perversely, now Itachi felt a little relieved Sasuke was here. Maybe he was just relieved to not be keeping secrets anymore.

[not_thedragon]

That brought Sasuke's head up sharply, eyes narrowing as he only narrowly resisted the urge to give Itachi a second inspection with the Sharingan activated for disruptions in chakra. He hadn't seen any blatant unsteady flow when they'd last sparred, but if there was a chronic irregularity then he might very well have mistaken it for a natural quirk.

"Did she talk to you about T-cell counts?" He held the door open with a frown carved deeply into his expression. "What did she say about them?"

[dangodragon]

Itachi paused under the sudden scrutiny. It was just Sasuke, but sudden movements would always make him wary. "She said they were lower than she'd expect in someone with a cold," Itachi responded slowly as he stepped past Sasuke. "You're more than welcome to ask her about it, if you want."

Except she wasn't here yet, so Sasuke had a few more minutes to pester Itachi if he wanted.

[clouded_moon]

Izumo did his best to avoid the hospital, usually. However, he was out of the healing salve the medics liked to give him. It was this herbal stuff that smelled a little funky but worked magic on the small cuts and scrapes he tended to pick up. And since most of the healers knew him for that one time he'd gotten slashed on the hand with a kunai and in five days had managed to turn it into a generalized body-wide raging infection, they always gave him a jar of the stuff when he asked. It saved him a lot of pain and them a lot of trouble. Having a sucky immune system...well, sucked.

He wasn't expecting to run into Uchiha Sasuke.

Granted Izumo only knew that this was Sasuke and not some other random Uchiha (because they all looked damned alike) because Itachi bragged on his little brother and Obito was his teacher. Izumo blinked at the dark-eyed teenager.

"Ah. Sasuke-kun." He abruptly realized the brat had been training today. Excellent! Izumo grinned. "Hey hey, I bet you can help me get a jar of that ointment. Y'know, the greeny-yellow slimy stuff for wounds. I'm out."

[not_thedragon]

Sasuke startled out of a reverie that consisted mostly of wondering why exactly snakes had evolved to have quite so many vertebrae at the sound of his name. The person the voice belonged to was familiar, but in a generic sort of way that meant Sasuke floundered for a moment before placing the face: Obito's secretary or something. An I-name ...

"Izumo-san," he remembered after just a half-beat too long, and then made a bit of a face at the request, remembering just how much it stank to make the slime. "Yeah, I know where that stuff is. Follow me."

[clouded_moon]

"Hey, you remembered my name. Good job," Izumo chuckled.He was familiar with that pause - not many people really remembered him when he was working. He was just another Chuunin desk monkey, and not particularly stand-out when it came to his ninja skills, either. "Thanks, I'm afraid if I tried to get it myself they'd get onto me for stealing."

He shoved his hands in his pockes and followed along after Sasuke. "Been training hard, huh? Itachi mentioned you'd been doing well in your studies the other day, when he was talking to the Hokage."

[not_thedragon]

The tips of Sasuke's ears went red in embarrassment when his awkward pause was called out; he made a mental note to make sure he attached Izumo's name to his face from now on. He'd certainly seen the man often enough, though he'd never seen him do something outstanding enough to stand out in memory.

He lifted one shoulder when Izumo commented on his training, though he blinked over at him in surprise when the man continued: Itachi had mentioned him? And to Obito? Maybe it wasn't so unusual to talk about him to his own sensei, but when he flushed this time it was with pride, shoulders drawing back in an unconscious straightening of his posture.

"Sensei has me here to train in combat medicine," he explained as they turned their way through the warren of hallways that led to the storage rooms. "It'll make me a stronger team member."

The exact words had been a bit more on how much of a team player Sasuke tended not to be, but that wasn't really relevant to Izumo.

[clouded_moon]

"Personally, I think every team needs someone who can work as a combat medic if you need it," Izumo commented. "You're a smart bratling, you'll learn well." He was deeply amused by the sudden rush of pride, the way Sasuke's back straightened when Itachi's praise was mentioned.

Bratling because Itachi was the brat, and Sasuke was the younger. Izumo had his pet names for certain people he worked with, and he kept them. Sasuke didn't have much of a list of monikers yet, but that was only because Izumo hadn't been around him a great deal yet. He knew a lot about him, because Itachi generally had a lot to say about his little brother, be it annoyed ranting or proud boasting. But personal experience? Well. Not a lot of that so far.

[not_thedragon]

For a stranger, inasmuch as there were strangers in a shinobi village, to call him both smart and a brat (of some sort) -- Sasuke blinked at the man, a little nonplussed and still a little pleased, because if Izumo had never seen him fight or train then his impression of Sasuke could only come from another person. Like Itachi, or maybe Obito.

"It's harder training than just learning to fight," he admitted, warmed up to the man by the roundabout mention of Itachi, before stopping in front of the storage room. "I can get you the salve. You may not want to come in. How much do you need?"

[clouded_moon]

"Yeah, stuff reeks. They usually give me a jar about this big?" Izumo sketched out the size with his hands; for someone built stocky, his hands were oddly long-boned and narrow. The left pinky finger was slightly crooked. "Fixing things is always harder than breaking them, Sasuke-kun. That's true in life, not just in fighting."

How well he knew it, but his smile was pleasant and his single dark eye focused. It was much, much easier to break anything - relatonships, reputations, people - than it ever was to put them back together. Izumo mostly specialized in finding how to do the breaking, which was why working as the Hokage's secretary was nearly a pleasant change. He got to build the village up, but Obito was an eccentric person to work for and not always the best at organizing, which drove Izumo nuts.

[not_thedragon]

Reeks didn't begin to describe the storage room where it was kept and the smell had sunk into the wood of the shelves and walls, and Sasuke gave Izumo something of a long-suffering look before ducking into the storeroom and emerging as quickly as possible, breath held, with a jar of the right size. The scent wasn't so bad when not given time to develop, and he screwed the lid on tightly before handing it over.

"What did you do before you got stuck with Obito's paperwork?" Something about that comment before Sasuke had stepped into the storage room had been intriguing, and that hand injury -- though hand injuries were a dime a dozen among shinobi over a certain age.

[clouded_moon]

"Odds and ends. Lots of paperwork, a few Intel missions. Not a lot of people remember me after they meet me." Izumo grinned charmingly as he took the jar. "It's useful, occasionally. Still not sure how I got to be doing Obito's paperwork...I think I screwed up somewhere," he joked, chuckling.

He hefted the jar, then tucked itinto the crook of his arm. "Don't tell your sensei I said that. And thank you, Sasuke-kun, I appreciate the help."

[not_thedragon]

Odds and ends in a shinobi village could have been anything from paper-pushing to assassinations, though Intel cleared up the broken fingers, at least. Those were a favourite target for interrogators, and tended to sit far longer than most injuries did before coming to the attention of a medic-nin.

"Sensei has ways of making you do things you don't want to," he said, voice making it more than clear that he'd been subjected to Obito's unique brand of compulsion-plus-cajoling more than once before. Waving Izumo's thanks off, he snorted at the last request -- "He'll just think it's funny if I tell him."

[clouded_moon]

"He probably would, wouldn't he? Well, I've got to at least try to pretend I'm impressed by our Hokage. He signs my paycheck, an' I'm pretty damn fond of that." Izumo grinned broadly, because if irrenerence meant he wouldn't get paid, well, it would have happened a long time ago. as it was, Obito mostly seemed amused by his sudden outbursts about organization and time schedules. "Good luck with your studies, Sasuke-kun. Do you work with Fujiwara? Kotone-sensei?"

[not_thedragon]

There were definitely times when Obito didn't seem to particularly care whether anyone found him impressive or not, even as the Godaime Hokage of the Leaf, so Sasuke took Izumo's words with a grain of salt and grinned a little ruefully back.

"Both, but only sometimes," he said, then explained: "I'm not formally training to actually be a medic-nin. Sensei just kind of throws me at anyone available to pick up what I can get from what they're willing to teach."