Chapter Text
Hinata nervously fidgeted with her light purple blouse, adjusting it to make it not overly revealing yet also not awkwardly uneven. She let out a loud sigh, her heart was beating so fast it felt like it was shaking the elevator floor beneath her.
She watched the elevator lights blink as it took her from the ground floor up to the 1st floor.
She closed her eyes and held her breath...how did she get herself into this mess?
~Earlier that day at the Hokage’s Mansion~
“YOU CAN’T DO THAT TO HIM!”
She flinched from the sudden loudness, Naruto’s voice could be heard from miles away, Shizune was sure of it.
Naruto slammed his fist on Tsunade’s desk, and she angrily stood up.
“ENOUGH!” Tsunade matched his tone of voice, their stare down was definitely intense.
Naruto calmed down slightly, but he still had a displeased look on his face.
“But...why, Tsunade? Why would you just let him go so easily?” Naruto said in a much lower tone.
Tsunade sighed, and took a seat back in her chair.
Sakura had tears running down her cheeks, but she stood strong in front of her teacher. “I...understand, Lady Tsunade” Sakura managed to speak, her voice quivering.
“I’ve had Sasuke locked in prison for a whole year, Naruto...trust me when I say that my decision did not come easily. The guards tell me that Sasuke has not improved, in fact, he’s becoming more and more out of hand. He’s been trying to fight the guards, and every day he tells them that he’s going to destroy this village.” Tsunade closed her eyes as she said this, and Naruto sighed and bowed his head in defeat.
He knew that his best friend hadn’t changed...when he went to visit him in prison, he witnessed with his own two eyes everything Tsunade was saying.
He had suspected his best friend would be put on death row...he just wanted to do everything in his power to stop it.
Tsunade opened her eyes and gave them both a look, “you know, the only reason I haven’t done this sooner is because I knew how this would make you two feel.” Tsunade sighed heavily.
The room was silent for a moment, then Naruto’s voice broke the quiet.
“What can we do to stop this?” Naruto clenched his fists, he choked back his tears as much as he could.
Tsunade gave him a caring look, as if she were looking at her son. But she snapped back to her Hokage gaze, she had to be professional for this.
“Well...there is one way, but...it’s nearly impossible.” Naruto and Sakura perked their heads up at Tsunade at even the slightest chance of hope.
“What is it?!” Naruto asked, anxiously waiting for her reply.
“If Sasuke Uchiha can somehow change and be cooperative, I’ll cancel his execution date. And, if he continues to show improvement and be stable enough, I’ll grant him his freedom and he can become a citizen of Kohona once more.” Tsunade observed them carefully, she saw the sparkle in both of their eyes. “I would suggest hiring a psychiatrist to help you.”
Naruto grinned, “don’t worry, I know the best one! Sasuke will be out in no time!”
“Remember, I said IF he cooperates. I’m giving you thirty days for his redemption.” Tsunade waved her hands at them, “you’re dismissed.”
Naruto gave her a thumbs up, and a cheeky smile, “don’t worry, grandma, we won’t let you down!”
Tsunade rolled her eyes, but when they turned to leave, she grinned.
“Do you really think they can change Sasuke, Milady?” Shizune asked curiously to the Fifth Hokage.
Tsunade’s face lost its grin, for now she was in deep thought.
“I hope so, Shizune.”
~Hinata’s Apartment~
Hinata heard loud rapping on her door, “c-coming!” She yelled out to whoever was at the door, she finished taking her cookies out of the oven and onto her stove.
She opened the door and greeted whoever was there with a smile, only to be frozen in place by the man she saw.
“N-N-Naruto-kun?! Sakura-Chan? W-What are you t-two doing here?” Ugh. She was a stuttering mess.
“Hinata-Chan! Can we come in?!” Naruto asked, even though he already had one foot in the door.
She gulped, “s-sure, uhm, p-please make yourselves at home”, even with her saying this, Naruto was barging his way in, Sakura shook her head and sighed. “Sorry, Hinata” Sakura apologized, and Hinata smiled politely, “it’s fine, y-you two are always w-welcome here”
“Hinata, me and Sakura-chan need to talk to you” Naruto told her with urgency in his voice, and Hinata nodded.
“L-Let’s go talk in the kitchen” Hinata offered and the three of them headed there.
Hinata got a plate of cookies and set it on her table, which Naruto immediately began devouring.
“We nemh ah fav or” Naruto spoke with a mouth full of cookies, and Sakura slapped his head.
“Don’t talk with your mouth full, baka!” Sakura scolded him like they were an old married couple, yet they’d only been engaged for a few months.
Naruto rubbed his head and made a pouty face to Sakura, and Hinata watched them in silent agony.
Even if Naruto and Sakura were engaged, Hinata still couldn’t get rid of this crush she had for Naruto, and it aggravated her.
“W-What favor did you need from me?” Hinata asked curiously, and they both seemed surprised that she even understood what he was saying.
Naruto gulped his cookies down and had a more serious expression now.
“Sasuke is set to be executed next month.” Naruto spoke in a serious tone.
Hinata placed a hand to her mouth, “o-oh no...”
“Yea...it sucks. But there is a way to stop it from happening.” Naruto had a hopeful glisten in his eye.
“If we can change Sasuke before the thirty day deadline, his execution will be canceled. He even has chance to be freed from prison.”
Hinata nodded, “t-that’s good, N-Naruto-kun. S-So how are you going to change him?”
Naruto and Sakura gave each other a look that left Hinata curious.
“That’s what we came to talk with you about.” Sakura spoke softly to Hinata, which made Hinata puzzled, but still curious.
“We were wondering if you could be Sasuke’s psychiatrist for the next thirty days.” Sakura asked Hinata with desperate eyes, and Hinata instantly drew back.
“U-Uhm...I-I...I’m sorry I-I don’t mean to disappoint you guys b-but I’m busy enough with my own patients..I-I just can’t do it” Hinata was lying. She was busy with her other patients, but she just didn’t want to be involved in this. It was too emotional for Naruto and Sakura, and she didn’t want to have to hurt their feelings in case things don’t go the way they want. Besides, there were plenty of other psychiatrists they could ask to help them.
“Hinata, please!” Naruto got down on his knees, his hands clasping her wrists.
Hinata held her breath as her heart beat stopped from his touch.
“Hinata, you’re the best psychiatrist in Kohona, and you’re the only person we trust to help Sasuke. Please...” Naruto begged her, and Hinata knew she was going to say yes.
“O-Oh...” Hinata let out a breath she had been holding in, “o-ok”
“Thank you!” Naruto said gratefully, giving her a big hug, Sakura gave her a hug as well.
“Ok, let’s go to grandma Tsunade and tell her the plan!” Naruto made a goofy smile, and they all followed suit to the Hokage’s mansion.
~Back at the Hokage’s mansion~
“Hinata, do you agree to being Sasuke Uchiha’s psychiatrist for the next thirty days?” Tsunade asked in a strong tone.
“Yes, Lady Tsunade” Hinata nodded.
“And do you also agree to perform a mental evaluation of Sasuke Uchiha and report to me your final professional conclusion of his mental stability by the end of the thirty day period to determine if he is able to function normally as a citizen of Kohona?”
“Yes, Lady Tsunade”
Tsunade gave Hinata a small nod of approval. “Very well. Naruto! Sakura!”
They both stood tall, waiting for what she was going to say.
“Nobody is allowed to know of Sasuke Uchiha’s possible execution except for you three. Also, Hinata is the only person allowed to visit Sasuke Uchiha during this thirty day probation.”
Naruto looked harshly at Tsunade, “w-what?! Why can’t we see him??” Naruto threw his hands up in defiance.
Tsunade scolded him, “you two knowing now about this new intel might possibly tempt you two to help him escape confinement. And with him being a threat to our village, I can’t take any chances. So, NO ONE is allowed to visit Sasuke Uchiha except his psychiatrist. Understood?”
Naruto was about to open his mouth in defiance, how could she do this to them?? If Sasuke didn’t get better and would be sentenced, how would they be able to see him? After all, it may very well be the last time. But Sakura held his hand firmly, causing him to look at her.
Sakura did a small nod and smiled, letting him know that she understood how he felt, and that everything was going to be okay.
Sakura nodded confidently, “we understand, Lady Tsunade”
Naruto watched in adoration of his fiancé, she never ceased to amaze him.
“...very well.” Tsunade closed her eyes, “Hinata, I’ll have one of the ANBU escort you to Sasuke Uchiha’s cell. Naruto and Sakura, you’re dismissed.”
All three of them bowed their heads, saying in unison, “yes, ma’am!”
And from there, they all departed their separate ways.
~Back at the Kohona prison elevator~
Hinata snapped back to reality after recalling the incidents that led her to the predicament she was currently in.
She closed her eyes and tried to breathe normally, she didn’t really know what to expect from this whole experience, but she was going to walk out of the elevator strong.
The light dinged as the elevator doors opened, the ANBU said softly, “this way, ma’am”
Hinata nodded, and walked in with her back straight and head held high.
She grimaced at the sound of the inmates clanging on the bars, yelling and making loud noises. She looked around her surroundings, observing how the inmates looked like they were violating her with their eyes. However, she didn’t lose her strong stance, even though mentally she wanted to cower back into the elevator and run straight home to her bed.
The ANBU led her further down the hallway, to a towering, steel door that was probably thicker than she was. They entered their secret passcode and the door opened, and they let her walk in first as they shut the door behind them.
Hinata scanned the room, this room was drastically different from the other one.
There were fewer cells, however, it seemed like the few people that were in here were kept in extreme confinement.
There were no bars for the inmates to see out of, just a solid metal door with a tiny window slot, that could only be opened if the ANBU or guards on the other side opened it.
It was also extremely quiet. Hinata felt her ears ringing as they adjusted to the silence.
Their footsteps echoed in the room as they walked a couple of cells down until they stopped at one.
They opened the window slot and observed the inside, then closed it. They grabbed their key and opened the door wide for Hinata to walk in through.
“Here’s the patient, Dr. Hyuga. Just knock whenever you’re finished” Hinata nodded and walked through, she hadn’t heard someone call her by her professional name in quite some time.
She looked up expecting to see her patient looking right back at her, however it was quite the opposite.
Hinata almost gasped at the sight, he looked like something out of a scary movie.
Sasuke was wrapped in a straight jacket and there were chains attached to the wall and holding him in place. As if the straight jacket wasn’t enough, Hinata thought.
He had a strange cloth wrapped over his eyes, with a seal mark embedded on the cloth.
She instantly activated her byakugan, trying to make sense of the contraption he was in.
She noticed that the chains were reducing his flow of chakra to nearly zero, and the seal that was placed over his eyes was cutting off his chakra flow and his vision.
From further observation, Hinata noticed that it was a temporary seal. It was probably placed over his eyes by one of the ANBU. She pondered what he could’ve done to get himself tangled up in this mess.
“Sasuke, you have a visitor” the ANBU said to him, and Sasuke responded with silence.
The ANBU shut the door on them, and now it was just her and Sasuke.
There was a long pause of silence as both of them didn’t move a muscle or even take a deep breath.
Hinata looked around the room and saw a chair by the wall, which she walked over to sit on.
The silence of the room was broken by the soft cling noise of his chains moving from Sasuke moving his head up slightly.
“Why are you here?” Sasuke asked in a blunt and bad-mannered tone.
Hinata was taken aback by his direct approach, she had to collect her thoughts since she wasn’t expecting him to cut to the chase.
She cleared her throat and began to speak, “w-wouldn’t it be better t-to introduce ourselves first?” Her tone was as sweet and harmless as a jar of honey.
Sasuke wasn’t phased by her niceness, “I don’t care who you are” he said bitterly, “I just want to know why you’re here.”
Hinata bit her lip, she tried to put herself in his shoes, excusing his harsh words by telling herself that he was probably just stressed with the situation he was in.
“O-Ok, well I-I’ll just tell you my name anyways. M-My name is Hinata Hyuga, and I’ll be your therapist” she smiled even though he could not see her, it just came naturally to her. She didn’t want to tell him she was his psychiatrist and make him feel crazy, and she didn’t want to tell him the thirty day limit to make him worried.
“Oh yeah...I remember you. You’re that stuttering girl that always followed Naruto around. So, tell me...you still have that crush on him?” Sasuke grinned in a devious way, and Hinata opened her mouth to respond, yet no words came to her mind.
“Oh, yea, you do. They may have taken my vision but they’re still things that I can see.” He chuckled the way a bully would laugh at his victim, “I know that I was sentenced thirty days to live. I didn’t think they’d send a damn shrink in here though.”
Hinata finally found words to speak, “y-you w-weren’t...no one w-was supposed to k-know about that...”
“Word spreads fast in prison.” Sasuke still had his devious grin, “I’m surprised that any shrink would want to deal with me. I’m guessing Naruto put you up to this?”
Hinata just stared at him, she didn’t understand how someone who barely met another person could be so vicious with their words.
Sasuke chuckled sinisterly, “hm. Doing a favor for your crush because you’re still in love with him, yet he’s marrying another woman. You’re pathetic.“
She felt the tears swelling in her eyes as she did her best to restrain herself from breaking down in to tears right there in the chair.
Hinata stood up and went to knock on the cell door, but before she did she turned back to talk to him, “I-I’m here because I-I was told by Lady Tsunade to do a mental evaluation on you after the thirty day period is over, and if I find that you’re mentally stable to be a citizen of Kohona again she will cancel your execution and possibly grant y-you you’re freedom if you show excellent improvement. And, yes...I-I agreed to this job because of Naruto-kun...” She closed her eyes, “h-however, after today, I’m reconsidering helping him.”
And with that, she knocked on the door and was escorted out of the prison, silent tears rolling down her cheeks.