Naruto sat on the edge of this bed, head stuffed in his hands. Excruciating pain raced its way up his entire being, and he bit his lip to keep from screaming in pain. Something had happened, he knew. Whatever was wrong with him, the strange marks, wounds and what else, had gotten worse. Naruto didn't want to accept that he was running out of time, but knew in his head that he was. He grew weaker by the day, and was beginning to think he knew why this was happening. And Tobi had all the answers.
There was a knock on the door and Naruto straightened in time to face the person who opened the door. He sighed in relief when he realized it was Hinata. He took comfort in her presence and dropped the false smile he'd placed on his lips, thinking it would be Shizune. He watched her brows furrow, and lips turn to a frown. 

"What's wrong?" she asked gently. She sat beside him and felt his forehead. "You're warm. Are you okay? Should I get Shizune?" She withdrew her hand and stood up. Naruto quickly reached up and grabbed her hand, pulling her back down.
"I'm fine," Naruto answered, though his voice was hoarse. "I've seen enough of Shizune, believe me. Just sit beside me and keep me company."
Hinata obeyed and rested her head on his shoulder. They sat comfortably for a time, and then Hinata made the mistake of rubbing his back. His back arched forward and he hissed in pain, instinct taking in and moving from the source of the cause of pain. Hinata stared wide eyed at him and stood up, directing an accusatory look at him.
"You're not all right! What's wrong?" She knelt in front of him. "Please tell me." Naruto was weak to those pleading eyes. He grunted and removed his jacket and shirt, which covered his arms and neck. Hinata gasped, and her mouth fell open. It had definitely gotten worse. Veins stuck out, pumping in a frantic manner. Blood dripped through bandages, but oddly didn't soak his shirt. Naruto touched his chest and pulled his hand back, the blood dripping down. What he didn't understand was why his shirt was unaffected. He remembered the sudden pain...surely this hadn't just happened. There was too much blood for that, wasn't there? The once purple splotches and wounds were now black and green. Green with infection, Naruto recognized with a groan. Puss oozed from the wounds, mixing with the blood. Black, angry lines wound around his body. It could have been pretty if only the lines were there.
"I'm running out of time," Naruto admitted quietly. "But I think I know why this is happening." He pulled his shirt back on, then his jacket, wincing every time his shirt material rubbed against him. He pulled a piece of paper out of his jacket. "Lately, I've been feeling like I've been watched. Yesterday, I received a note. It was from Tobi. Some things he said made me think he knows what is happening."
"But you can't go back to him," Hinata said, her tone almost daring him to argue with her. Naruto didn't take the bait. He put a hand on her shoulder and smiled.
"I'm not going back to him. Yet, at least. Nobody would allow me to leave anyway. They all know about Tobi, don't they?" Naruto sat back, watching her reaction. She looked torn.
"Some know what happened. While you were unconscious, stuff happened, and people who didn't perhaps already know of your situation now do." She stopped for a moment. "Shizune wasn't the one that treated you."
"What?" Naruto asked, brows furrowing.
"Laurie treated you. I told her no one knew of your...condition, and that Shizune shouldn't see. Just thought you should know."
"I figured something had happened. I've never been awake while I've been treated; I thought it was weird Shizune wasn't as worried as one should be. She's a good doctor, and she doesn't like people taking her patients. How did you keep her from checking for further injuries?"
"You're not her patient anymore," Hinata said strangely. "You became Laurie's when you left. Shizune didn't have the right to check on you."
"And yet she's the one forcing me to stay in bed?" Naruto questioned, feeling like something else was going on. Hinata frowned.
"I didn't think too much about that before," Hinata said thoughtfully. Naruto gasped in pain at the moment, momentarily unable to breathe in. Hinata glared at him and stood and ran out of the room. Understanding blossomed in his mind only when the pain subsided a little, and he ran out after her. He was too late.
"Shizune, you have to help," Hinata gasped out, turning to glare at Naruto. "You have to help Naruto. He'll kill himself if this keeps up."
"Hinata, stop!" Naruto yelled, staring with wide eyes. Something inside him wanted her to continue. Tell everyone what was going on, because he was going to die. But the stupid part of himself, that came from who knows where, felt like a failure for it, for his condition. It was like it was his fault. Guilt. That was his stupid reason for not telling anyone.
"What's wrong with him?" Sasuke asked. For the first time, Naruto realized the raven, Kiba and Jiraiya were there too. He groaned, recognizing he wasn't going to get away from showing them.
Naruto caught Jiraiya's eye and saw something that resembled hurt. Naruto hadn't told him, like he said he would. The blond immediately felt guilty and turned to Hinata.
"I'll tell them," he told her quietly. Hinata nodded and smiled encouragingly. Naruto stepped up to Jiraiya. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you beforehand."
"Thank you for wanting to be the one to tell me, though," Jiraiya said, smiling lightly. Shizune, Sasuke and Kiba gathered around him, watching as he lifted an arm to unzip his jacket. Naruto groaned lightly.
"Hinata, I need help. Unzip it for me?" She ran over and unzipped in, helping to ease it off him. Naruto reached to remove his shirt and found it stuck to his body, soaked with his blood. "My shirt is wet." Hinata paled visibly, and reached down to lift it up for him. Naruto watched the four before him as his stomach was uncovered. Kiba's mouth dropped open, Shizune covered her mouth as she gasped, and Sasuke and Jiraiya looked pained. Hinata slipped the shirt up over his head, careful not to let the offending material touch his face and leave a streak of blood.
"I didn't lose my memory from hitting a rock," Naruto said, eyes on the floor. "I only remembered earlier. I researched for years, trying to find anything similar to this, but never found any. I've only seen one other person like this, and he died six years after it happened. Six years will be my birthday, in two weeks."
"You never told me this," Hinata said, eyes mirroring the worry in everyone else's eyes.
"No, I didn't. I didn't remember till recently. It feels like my mind was in a fog. That man I saw with this worked with me for Tobi. We both went on a mission for him. This was only after I first started working for Tobi, and this man was my partner. I was only ten at the time. He was fifteen, and our mission was to kill a traitor. Neither of us wanted to kill the man, because we wanted to get away too. We understood. But I didn't know the punishment for it." Naruto paused and furrowed his brows.
"He didn't deserve it. Takeshi was kind, and didn't deserve this pain. When we got back from the mission, he told me to hide in my room. Two days later, I learned he'd taken my punishment too. He received what I have now. I was with him every day until his death four years ago. He was only twenty-one. You lose your memory slowly. You forget things that used to be important to you, and then one day, forget everything but what happened the day before. If you were with someone, you'll remember that one person, but everything else will be gone. You remember, and forget, on and on, and every day the pain is excruciating. I didn't know the punishment, and I refused to kill an innocent man. That's how I got mine. Tobi said Takeshi influenced me too much, and I didn't know what he meant by that. I suppose I felt guilty, and that's why I never told. Because I felt guilty for Takeshi's death."
Naruto sighed when he finished. No one spoke, all silently contemplating what he'd said. The only voice heard was one Naruto never wanted to hear again. He cringed. 

Hey all! I know I always say this, but really,thank you soooo much for being patient with me. I just updated that I'm back yesterday, and I already have 90 something views on it, which is awesome. Thank you all for staying with me throughout this story. And really, believe me, I am so grateful that all of you are still reading this, and that you were so patient with me. Love you all!