#even if he didn’t make that promise to Obito to keep her safe he’s too devoted to his loved ones

[sinnbaddie]

To say that Kakashi and Gai’s relationship (talking solely platonic rn) was mostly about him helping Kakashi cope with the loss of Obito is disingenuous to Kakashi and all of his relationships.

Any person is going to be traumatized after seeing someone — much less their teammate — be crushed to death under a rock. Kakashi is shown to be someone susceptible to depression due to 1. His environment 2. His initial beliefs and 3. His genetic line. Of course his life is going to be centered around one of the most traumatic experiences of his life, romanticizing it is so hurtful to his character because it destroyed him - and if Kishimoto actually cared about expanding other character relationships instead of making a “generational duo that falls apart” + wasn’t a misogynistic writer, Rin’s death would be the bigger influence on his life than Obito’s.

Yes, Gai had to help him numerous times in his grief but it wasn’t solely or even mainly about Obito. Rin was an absolute vital point in Kakashi’s downfall into chaos. The self harm he inflicted upon himself, the self hatred, the self shame. He became a whole different person after he was forced to kill her. I would say Kakashi’s father Sakumo is by far the biggest influence on him. He wouldn’t have needed any speech of “your father was a hero” by Obito if it wasn’t for Sakumo. His personality of today is thanks to his father’s own death.

Gai and Kakashi’s friendship is almost entirely about them when they’re in scenes together. Look at the chunin exams, look at any scene in the land of steam arc, look at their race, etc. naturally there will be grief the two bring to the relationship and it’s on them to work it out separately, together and with other people which did happen.

You’re actively ignoring every other character that has shaped and formed who Kakashi is by saying Obito is the biggest and only reason he is who he is. Gai is one of the strongest reasons why Kakashi is as motivated and strong as he is. Kakashi would’ve absolutely died at some point in (general) anbu if Gai didn’t pull him out and he was slipping so far when he was in it because of Rin and Minato.

Kakashi’s heart does not “belong” to Obito because he’s in love with Obito and can’t get over him, his heart belongs to the people he loves because that’s who Kakashi is at his core - a lover. He’s a person who cares so deeply, even for people he doesn’t necessarily like or get along with.

Kakashi is a person who is shaped by everybody in his life, that’s why he is one of the best written Naruto characters. He feels like a real person because real people are influenced by everyone in their life, in every way. It’s unfortunate to see those who call themselves Kakashi fans only to mischaracterize, limit and erase the bonds he was written to have to prop up one single bond for your ship.

Do you care for this character? His themes, parallels, relationships and writing? or is he just a placeholder / self insert for shipping content?

[themidnightguardian]

Day 1: Panic Attack & Race Against the Clock -- Kakashi (ft. Team 7)

gen | AU of the hospital rooftop fight | Warnings: panic attacks, hints of PTSD, referenced childhood trauma, referenced child deaths, canon-typical violence, Kakashi's guilt complex, brief suicide idealization (specifically with Kakashi feeling he can only be redeemed in dying)

Whumptober 2024 Masterlist

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Kakashi knew something was wrong by the increasingly familiar trickle of dread down his spine that he had come to associate with his students’ lives being in danger. It wasn’t anything tangible, nothing he had proof of. It was just a gut feeling, but nothing good had ever come of ignoring his instincts.

(He might have managed to save Obito if he’d learned to listen sooner. Might have been able to stop Itachi from slaughtering his clan. Might have fought harder to keep Naruto from going to an orphanage, instead of into Kakashi’s care, like Minato-sensei would have wanted.)

Instinctively, he changed his course from the Memorial Stone back towards the hospital. He’d just been discharged half an hour ago, and he’d left Naruto and Sakura at Sasuke’s bedside where he was still recovering from Tsukuyomi. He’d thought they’d be safe there.

Had something gone wrong medically? It wasn’t like Tsunade to make mistakes, and besides, Sasuke seemed fine when Kakashi left, if grumpier than usual.

What if Orochimaru is making another play for the sharingan? he thought, picking up the pace. His own chakra reserves were still drained from his last fight with Itachi and the weeks he’d spent in a coma, but he pushed himself faster, using shunshin to cross rooftops in the span of seconds. What if the Akatsuki have sent someone else to collect the kyuubi?

Another twenty seconds—so slow, too slow, why couldn’t he move faster—and the hospital was finally in view. The hospital, which had a lumpy mass of orange on its roof.

Naruto’s shadow clones. Fuck.

Faster. His gut had been right; there was a problem. Some kind of fight was happening on the hospital rooftop, and Naruto was involved. And if Naruto was involved, then Sasuke would have followed him, too determined to not get left behind. And if Sasuke had gone, then Sakura would be there, and if they were facing down an S-rank nin—hell, even an A-rank or B-rank nin—then they were all going to get wiped out.

Kakashi refused to let that happen. He’d made a promise to himself when Sarutobi made him take on Team 7 that he wouldn’t fail them the same way he’d failed his own genin teammates. That he would do anything to keep them alive.

(It was a promise he couldn’t hope to keep, not in the world they lived in. But he knew if he lost any of the kids, it would destroy him in a way none of the other deaths of his precious people had managed. His father’s death had been crushing. Obito’s had ripped him in half. Rin’s had shattered him into a million pieces, and Minato’s had left him a shell of a person.

But if Naruto or Sasuke or Sakura died, Kakashi didn’t think he had any pieces of himself left to lose to grief.

If the kids died, Kakashi was certain he would follow them one way or another.)

He was one building away when the clones dispersed rapidly, and the crackling chirp of chidori filled the air. He launched himself forward. If Sasuke needed to pull out an attack of that caliber, then they were in danger, they needed him, they—

Kakashi landed on the edge of the hospital rooftop, momentarily frozen in place.

On one end of the roof, Sasuke ran forward, chidori a bright burst of lightning in his palm. On the other end, Naruto, racing towards him, arm outstretched with a swirling rasengan.

Aimed at each other.

And Rin Sakura—always forced to play peacemaker between the boys—was trying to step between. As if she could stop them. As if they might stop for her.

(Brown hair. Purple marks on her cheeks. A smile. Blood on his hand, warm and wet. Blood, spilling from her mouth. Dead. Dead, dead, dead.

Everyone was always dying, and it was always his fault.)

He was moving before the image in his head fully faded. He was faster than Sakura, faster than Naruto or Sasuke. Faster and stronger, and he would stop them, he had to, he had to—

It was easy. They were inexperienced, and they were too focused on each other to see him coming. He wrapped his hands around their wrists, wrenched them apart just as Sakura went stumbling past.

(Too close. Too close. Too close.)

The rooftop fell silent, but Kakashi could hear his own heartbeat thundering in his ears, smelled the lingering singe of lightning, and he suddenly he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t—his lungs wouldn’t work, too heavy, weighed down, like they were being crushed, crushed like Obito—

Black creeped in at the edge of his vision, and suddenly the heaviness in his lungs felt less like crushing and more like stabbing, like they’d been torn through, like Rin—

(God, like Rin, when Kakashi killed her.

He killed her.

He killed her. He killed her. He killed her.)

“Ka—”

He tried to breathe in, but it didn’t work, or maybe it did but it didn’t matter, and the dark creeped closer anyway, and maybe that was what he deserved. Yes. It was what he deserved, and when he died, maybe then Rin and Obito could forgive him. When he died, maybe that would be enough.

“Kakashi—”

It would never be enough, but it would be a start. And he was dying—he had to be dying, because he couldn’t breathe and he couldn’t see past the darkness, and everything was heavy, and his body must finally be quitting on him. He’d known it would, one day.

“Kakashi-sensei, please!”

There was a sharp slap to his face, and the shock of it yanked him abruptly back to the rooftop. For a moment, all he could see was pink-orange—the sunset, he thought, until something blue-black edged in, and no…those were his students leaning over him. Sakura, face wet. Naruto, eyes wide and frantic. Sasuke, white-knuckled grip on Kakashi’s vest.

Kakashi inhaled, and the air in his lungs hurt, but it was there. He became aware of the pavement under him. Somehow, he’d ended up on the ground. He must have collapsed.

“Sensei?” Sakura asked, voice wobbling.

“Hm?” He couldn’t manage more than that, his throat still tight enough he worried a single word would be enough to choke him.

But instead of asking a question, she let out a sob and all but tackled him, Naruto following a second after. It was a good thing he was already on the ground, or else they’d have knocked him over.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” Naruto said, and now he sounded like he was crying too, face half-buried in Kakashi’s shoulder.

Slowly, carefully, and with his arm still feeling like it weighed a hundred pounds, Kakashi lifted a hand and patted the top of Naruto’s head. Then Sakura’s. And then, because Sasuke had always been pricklier about that sort of thing, even if he needed the same reassurances the others did, Kakashi reached out and clasped his shoulder.

“Me, too,” Sasuke said, much more quietly and without the tears. But there was a heaviness to it. Shame, Kakashi thought. “I’m…sorry.”

Kakashi nodded as much as he was able, and then let his head thunk back down on the pavement.

(Later, when the crying finally stopped and Kakashi was back in the damned hospital again—because apparently he’d re-drained his chakra reserves and also passed out, and that required inpatient care—he’d tear them all a new one, Sakura included. The boys were in the most trouble for fighting each other like that, but to get between two deadly jutsus? It was suicidal.)

(And if, when Kakashi was done lecturing from his hospital bed—and Tsunade was done yelling, twice as loud and with significantly more swearing thrown in—the kids refused to budge from the hospital room, clustering around Kakashi’s bed and taking turns maintaining a point of contact like they thought he would disappear if they let him go for even a second…well.

This wasn’t the way Kakashi had wanted to make them all act like a proper team, but he wasn’t about to argue with the results.)

[whynoteswhispered]

Tales of a Loved Ninja (pt 1)

Idk; I’ve been in such a Jiraiya mood recently that this was bound to happen. 

(Very fluffy, uhhh idk)

word count: 4,930 (oops)

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The warm sun beamed on to your skin as you walked down the path to Icharuku. You couldn’t help but emptily smile at each person you came by; waving and speaking to most as they passed by.

Minato didn’t allow you much time for lunch, so grabbing ramen to go was the most reasonable way to go – plus you had a phone call to make before lunch was over.

“(y/n) Sensei.” You felt a hand tap the back of your shoulder. Swiftly turning around, you looked down to see Kakashi. Every time you saw him you couldn’t help but feel proud; you had watched him grow into an incredible shinobi – and though against your wishes, he made a great ANBU member as well.

“Hey, Kashi!” You patted the top of his head - watching the small amount of cheek above his mask turn red.

“Can I eat ramen with you today?” He reached up to the counter grabbing his to-go bowl of ramen, and then swiftly turned back to you.

You heard your name called as well so you quickly grabbed your container, looking over at the clock to see how much longer you had on lunch.

Fifteen minutes. It took at least five minutes to walk back to the academy which then only gave you ten minutes on the phone; if he answers.

“Sensei?” Kakashi was waving his hands in front of your face, you finally snapped back to reality and smiled at him, “So?” he questioned.

“You know I have to make a phone call; you can hang out in my classroom while I make that call if you would like.” You turned around and started the trek back to the academy, you could hear Kakashi’s feet trek quietly behind you.

“He isn’t worth your worry.” You kept your eyes forward – this wasn’t the first time he’s tried to start an argument over him.

“Kashi, don’t you think it’s wildly inappropriate for you to meddle into my personal life?” Sadly, you knew the answer to this – he cared about you as if the two of you were family.

“Don’t you think it’s wildly inappropriate to be throwing yourself at someone who is nearly double your age.” His voice was annoyed; making fun of you with each word that came out of his mouth.

Was it wildly inappropriate? You didn’t think so. Sure there was a large age difference, but meeting Jiraiya was one of the best things that had happened to you.

“How has ANBU been?” You switched the subject, knowing that there was no winning the conversation about Jiriaya “Are you still having nightmares?”

“Shh,” He hushed you; you could hear the embarrassment in his voice. “ANBU has been fine; yes, the nightmares still happen.” His voice was defeated. He sounded as though he was an old man who had lost everything, instead he was just fifteen and had lost everything.

“Kashi,” you turned around meeting his glance, you could tell he was uncomfortable. “I can talk to Minato about letting you out. You have to take care of yourself too.”

He shook his head, “I’m fine (y/n) Sensei.”

“You haven’t been acting fine.” You turned back towards the academy, “Guy came and spoke to me the other day – Kashi, he’s worried about you. He says you’re reading books about honorable death, that you won’t speak to any of them, and that you just aren’t acting like yourself.”

You had been worried about him for a few years now, but he never let you talk to him about his problems. He always acted like everything was fine; but you could see the subtle differences: the bags under his eyes, the way he would throw himself in front of danger regardless of circumstances, you’ve caught him crying to himself several times. He didn’t tell you about the nightmares until you went to check on him one day and walked in on him washing his hands and sobbing over the sink; saying Rin’s name repeatedly, staring at his hands as if he was witnessing that moment happening on repeat. After that, Kakashi opened up to you a bit – and you checked on him more often, buying him groceries and occasionally bringing him dinner to ensure he was eating.

When Minato told you he was going to suggest ANBU to Kakashi you begged Minato to listen to your concerns, but as his Sensei he thought what he was doing was the best way for Kakashi to deal with the death of his teammates. The following months after he joined you watched him break down further and further; he is a mere shell of the person he was just a few years prior.

“I could be doing better.” Kakashi’s words shocked you, but you kept your eyes forward knowing that looking back at him would likely embarrass him. “I just, I can’t shake it (y/n) Sensei. Every time I close my eyes I see Rin’s face looking back at me in shock? Anger? I could never understand the emotion she gave me and it haunts me in every passing moment. I deserve it though, I killed her. I couldn’t keep my promise to Obito – I couldn’t keep her safe.”

Everything in you wanted you to turn around and hug him; to hold him and tell him that everything was going to be okay. “Kashi, it wasn’t your fault. No one blames you for that incident. Not even Obito would see it as your fault.”

You could hear him start to sniffle, but you were certain he was holding back tears – regardless of how broken he was, he was still one of the strongest shinobi you had been around

“I, I know.” He stumbled over his words, letting out a large exhale once he finished speaking.

You opened the door into the academy, letting Kakashi walk in front of you.

As soon as he got in front of you, you placed your hand atop his head, rustling his hair.

“You can always talk to me; my door is always open – you know that.” You patted his head as the two of you began to ascend the stairs. “And if you don’t want to talk to that’s fine as well – but just know you aren’t alone, okay?”

Kakashi stopped outside of your door, turning around to meet your eyes; through his mask, you could see a small smile coming across his face. “Thank you (y/n) Sensei.”

“Mhm.” You nodded, unlocking the door so he could immediately run in to sit on the beanbag beside your desk.

Looking over at the clock you realized that you only had about five minutes left of lunch to call Jiriaya and eat. You couldn’t help but look over at Kakashi and wonder if he would be okay for those five minutes. Even though he gave you a hard time, you knew he enjoyed seeing you happy. He was like a younger brother to you, and he looked to you as an older sister.

“Do you mind?” You pointed towards your closet; which is where the phone was kept, “He hasn’t answered in the last few days – so I at least want to attempt to check on him.” You gave him a slight smile – waiting for him to inevitably roll his eyes at you.

“Go ahead.” And as you started walking towards the closet you watched him roll his eyes at you just slightly; you couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

The closet was small but you had found comfort in its existence when you started to call Jiraiya during lunch. He would forever be considered a Legendary Sannin of the Leaf, but he was rarely ever in the village itself. Most people speculated what he was up to; but you knew the truth – that he was constantly watching and keeping track of Orichumaru’s movements and writing. He also tended to drink a bit too much when he was out, but you couldn’t blame him considering all he puts on himself.

You grabbed the phone and began dialing the only number you had memorized. Placing the phone up to your ear, you took a deep breath in – fully expecting him to not answer once again. And though you knew he was safe, it was hard not to worry about him when you never got to see him.

You listened to the phone ring. Once, twice, three times; you were almost certain that he was probably once again too busy to answer. Then you heard the click of the phone.

“Jiraiya?” You questioned.

“Hey (y/n).” You immediately felt a smile come across your face; you hadn’t heard his voice in several weeks – you only told Kakashi a few days so that he wouldn’t worry for you.

“Where are you? Are you okay??” You couldn’t help but immediately overload him with questions. The feeling of tears beginning to form in the corners of your eyes made you immediately wipe them away, knowing if Kakashi heard you crying he would only think the worse.

“I’m fine, but hmmm where am I? That’s a good question, isn’t it? Want to take a guess?” His tone was playful; oh how you had missed his voice.

“Are you in the Sand village?” You knew you had no option but to play the game with him or he wouldn’t tell you.

“Think closer.” His voice was giddier this time.

Closer? “Are you in the Land of Fire?” You didn’t want to be hopeful, but you couldn’t help but hope that he would be swinging through for a visit.

“I’m in the office.”

“The office?” Your mind began to run at max speed. Did he mean the Hokage office?

“Mhm, the office.” You could hear him let out a light chuckle.

Without thinking you immediately hung up the phone, nearly dropping it from excitement. As you opened the door, Kakashi’s eyes immediately turned to you; curiosity filling his eyes.

“He’s back?” He questioned as you placed your ramen on the desk.

Turning to answer him, you couldn’t help but let a huge smile spread across your face. “Yes, he’s with Minato.”

“And you’re going? Isn’t lunch almost over?” he went back to eating his ramen; he knew your answer before he even asked it.

“I don’t have a class after lunch and I’ll be back before the next class; you can hang out in here if you want.” You started to turn towards the door but stopped yourself, “Will you be okay? I can stay if I need to?” You loved Jiraiya and had no idea how long he would be in the village, but Kakashi needed someone to be there for him and you couldn’t take that away from him.

You immediately felt your heart warm as you watched a smile spread across his face, his eyes never leaving his bowl of ramen. “I wouldn’t stop you from seeing him; even if I don’t like him. But if you aren’t back by the time your class gets here I’m going to make them go to the training grounds.”

“Okay Kashi, you can torture my students if I’m not back in time.” You let out a laugh as you started to make your way out the door. “You’re sure you’re okay?” you couldn’t help but question him again.

“You better get going before I change my mind.” He threw his hand in the air, gesturing for you to leave.

As soon as you stepped out of the classroom, your pace quickened tremendously. You couldn’t help but nearly run out of the academy.

It had been nearly a year since Jiraiya had been in the village; and you had only been talking to him for a few weeks at that point. You had met him at a bar after the Chunin exams; he hit on you instantly. But you weren’t interested – at least not interested in what he was interested in. Both of you drank quite a few drinks, and he attempted to invite you back to his place but you couldn’t help but laugh in his face. You’ll never forget his face when you did that; he looked shocked as if he had never been turned down in his life. Before leaving the bar you gave him your phone number and told him to call you the next morning if he was still interested. To your surprise, he called you shortly after you woke up the next morning. The most shocking part was that the phone call wasn’t awkward – it felt as though you were talking to a friend you had had your entire life. You both laughed and told jokes, he talked about Orichumaru and you talked about the death of your parents; it was like talking to someone who understood everything even if they hadn’t been through it. He listened when you talked, and you hadn’t had someone listen to you in what had felt like years. The two of you stayed talking on the phone for hours, it was dark outside before the two of you decided it was time to hang up but before that Jiraiya initiated setting up a date to Icharuku.

You couldn’t help but feel your smile growing bigger with each passing step towards the Hokage building.

You had never been to Icharuku before Jiraiya took you; ramen just wasn’t something you ever thought about when looking for restaurants to eat at – plus your parents weren’t the biggest ramen fans so it wasn’t something you were used to eating.

As soon as you got to Icharuku, Jiraiya was waiting outside the curtain for you. As soon as his eyes met yours, his face filled with a smile. The two of you went in and ordered ramen; you let him pick out what you were going to eat since you had no clue what to order – and it did not disappoint. The two of you drank and ate ramen as you talked just as you did the day prior on the phone; this time with more emotion. The booth filled with the noise of the two of you laughing for hours. He walked you home that night; he never tried to do anything funny – he stopped outside your apartment door and kissed the top of your head. As soon as you unlocked your door he began to descend back down the stairwell.

You opened the door and began to sprint up the stairs to get to the Hokage office. Several visitors gave you awkward glances as you passed by them with a huge smile spread across your face.

There were two ANBU members stationed outside of the office, but they didn’t even give you a second glance as you walked up to the door. Without much thought, you pushed the doors open without even knocking. As soon as the doors creaked open, your eyes met Jiraiya’s and you couldn’t help but move quickly. You could feel Minato watching you, but not an ounce of you cared. You opened your arms and threw yourself around him as soon as he got in touching distance.

In a blur, the two of you fell backward onto the ground – Jiraiya immediately holding you tightly to ensure you wouldn’t get hurt.

You both busted out laughing; you could even hear Minato let out a chuckle.

“I’m sorry.” You said softly as you pushed your head deep into his shoulders; his arms pulling you tightly against him.

“You know, Minato and I could’ve been talking about information that you didn’t need to hear.” You could hear the teasing tone in his voice.

You pushed yourself up so that you could look at him, his hand immediately moving up to your face to push the hair away from your eyes. “Oh shit, I’m sorry.” You hadn’t thought much when coming in, your only thought was seeing Jiraiya.

“You know you’re kind of cute when you miss me.” His arms wrapped around you again, pulling you tight against him once again.

Before he left, the two of you held each other for hours in bed; talking about how you were going to stay in contact, you listened to his worries for the missions he was out to complete, he listened to your worries about him going out on missions by himself. Though the two of you mostly just stayed silent – enjoying each other’s presence while you could. When you dozed off in his arms, you woke up to him having already left. A note rested upon the pillow where his head was laid up hours prior.

You could feel the tears well up against your eyes; you hadn’t realized how much you had needed this hug.

“Jiraiya.” Minato’s soft voice echoed through the room.

Jiraiya laughed as he picked you up off of him; placing you back on to the ground as he stood up to address Minato.

“Sorry Minato.” Jiraiya smiled at him. “Am I good to leave?”

You began to stand up and Minato laughed, “Get out of here you two; what has it been a little over a year?” you shook your head. “Go.” He gestured towards the door and Jiraiya immediately grabbed your hand in his, nearly tugging you behind him.

“You’re still coming over later though, right? I’ve already told Kushina the two of you would be there for dinner.” You looked back at Minato who was smiling ear-to-ear at the two of you.

“We will be there.” Jiraiya never turned around, instead he kept tugging you forward out the door; Minato waved at you as made your way through the door.

You managed to find your pace in his, and instead of being tugged behind him, you were happily walking in stride with him. His large hand completely wrapped around yours; his thumb rubbing small circles on the back of your hand as the two of you walked down the stairs.

“I missed hearing your voice.” As you made your way to the bottom of the stairs he wrapped his arm around your shoulders, pulling you in towards him. The people around you watched the two of you; it wasn’t as if people didn’t know who Jiraiya was – he was a hero of the village, and people knew who you were because you were a teacher at the academy; most though weren’t aware of your relationship.

You could feel the judgment through most people’s eyes; it was to be expected. Jiraiya had himself sold around the village as a pervert and you were sure most people were likely imagining that you were just his next prey. But honestly, he had never made those types of advances towards you – you set up boundaries and he respected them. He would occasionally make a dirty joke, but it was nothing more than a way to make you laugh.

“You were the one who wasn’t answering the phone.” You gripped his hand tighter. Those few weeks without hearing from him were rough; you could only imagine the terrible things that could’ve possibly happened to him – but you kept your hopes up, thinking if something had happened to him that the village would eventually find out.

He pulled your hand into the air, spinning you in a circle and pulling you into a hug. “I’m sorry.” His hands moved from yours and he placed them gently against your face, pulling you towards him.

You could feel your heart rate accelerate as he guided your face to his; his lips opened slightly and you couldn’t help but smile as your lips crashed onto his.

Before he left you hadn’t even kissed him yet; your relationship wasn’t much of a physical one. He was used to one-night stands and he didn’t want your relationship to be the same as the others.

His cologne lingered on you; the smell of oak and musk; as he slowly released his hands from your face, letting his lips fall off of yours. As you met his eyes you could see a smile spread across his face.

“I’ve wanted to do that for quite some time now.” He pulled you back under his arm, your face turning red with embarrassment as you notice the several onlookers the two of you had.

“How long are you here for?” You couldn’t bring yourself to look at him; the rush of euphoria that you experienced from your lips meeting his vanished and was replaced with panic – this could be his only day in the village.

“I’m back for a while.” He looks over at you, wiping the singular tear that you weren’t able to keep held in, “Minato needs me here for some things, so don’t worry about me leaving quite yet.”

The two of you continued walking hand-in-hand until you got to the riverfront. Jiraiya took his time stretching and then sat beside you on the grass; watching the currents in the water.

“I can’t stay out here for long, I have to get back to my class- “

He cut you off before you were even able to finish your thought, “Don’t worry about your class – Minato got it covered for you.” He laid back onto the grass, stretching his arms behind you and staring up at the clouds moving through the sky.

“Sorry again for interrupting in the office earlier; I just, I wasn’t thinking.” You shook your head in frustration at yourself when you heard Jiraiya chuckle behind you. His large hands wrapping around your waist and pulling you down to lie beside him.

“(y/n), Minato knew as soon as I answered your phone call that our conversation was over; really, he knew as soon as your lunch break started that our conversation was as good as over.” You couldn’t help but laugh with him.

“Wait,” it finally hit you that Minato knew of your relationship – “did you tell Minato?”

Jiraiya cocked his head slightly to look at you, his face calm. “Well, I knew you would be calling me; and considering I was there on official orders I felt it was best to let him know. I wouldn’t worry about him though, he’s just happy to see me happy.” His hand found yours, his fingers interlacing with yours. “Should it be a secret that we are together?” he seemed to be slightly upset at the idea of this.

“I, I just haven’t told anyone.” You pondered this thought for a moment, “Well, expect for Kakashi.”

“White Fang’s kid?” Jiraiya perched himself up a bit; curiosity was written across his face.

“Mhm,” You smiled as you let your gaze leave him and you returned to looking at the clouds. “I’ve watched over him since he died; he’s like a brother to me. He eats in my classroom nearly every day so he’s known since the beginning.” Laughing, you couldn’t help but continue, “He doesn’t like you much though, especially with your reputation.” Jiraiya knew you were only joking; though he did have quite a reputation in the village.

“Ahh, I see.” You could hear him lie back on the grass, “How is he after the incident with Rin?”

You were taken aback by this question. He was rarely in the village, and though that incident was quite horrific you didn’t imagine that he had heard about it. “He, uh –” You tried to think of a way to answer this question without completely disrespecting Kakashi, “He’s as good as you could be after losing one teammate and accidentally killing the other.”

“So, not too good?”

“No, not so great at all.” You pondered if you should drop the conversation, but you had at least one more thing you wanted to bring up, “Minato put him in ANBU after Rin.”

“Yeah, I recall him telling me about that.” You could tell by the tone of his voice that he must have also disagreed with that decision.

“It’s made him worse; they call him ‘Cold-Blooded Kakashi,’ he won’t talk to anyone, well except me – but I have to force it out of him most of the time. But, he won’t leave ANBU.” You could only hope that Kakashi was okay; you had left him in your classroom – but hopefully, he had left and gone on home. Maybe Kushina would have leftovers you could take him.

“I can’t do anything about what Minato does, even if I was his Sensei, he won’t listen to me – especially when it comes to his team. He’s gone through the same losses as Kakashi; he didn’t take any of those events easily. I’m sure he imagines himself in Kakashi’s position, and for him maybe ANBU sounded like the best healing mechanism.” He paused for a moment, “I’m sorry I can’t help him (y/n).”

You shook your head, “It’s fine; I didn’t expect you to able to, but I had to at least try.” His hand tightened around yours.

“I could talk to him though; I won’t tell him I know anything – “

You cut him off before he could even go any further with that thought, “No, you can’t do that. He would immediately know I told you something. He’s incredibly smart; I would go as far as to say that he’s the best shinobi the Leaf has ever had.”

That piqued his interest, he sat up beside you, watching your face. “The best shinobi of the Leaf, huh?”

“Maybe I’m biased, but I’m almost certain Minato would agree.”

Jiraiya laughed, shaking his head in agreement. “I would say I know for certain he agrees.”

The two of you stay by the riverfront for hours; talking about the past year as if you hadn’t talked on the phone for a good majority of it. He told you that he finished his book; Tales of a Gutsy Ninja. He didn’t have a copy on him, but he promised he would give one to you. You told him about your class this year. You had told him about Shisui Uchiha; the most promising student you had. He was years above his class; he would likely be allowed to graduate early if he kept at the pace he was going. You both couldn’t help but get lost in conversation with each other. He continued, telling you about what it was like training Minato, he brought up the three kids he taught from Amegakure; Konan, Nagato, and Yahiko. He talked about them frequently, even during your phone calls. He couldn’t help but wonder what they were doing and if they were still alive; surviving the war-stricken land. Jiraiya talked about them as if they were his children; it made you upset that he wouldn’t go visit them.

“When need to get going,” he stood up beside you, offering his hand to aid in helping you up. He lifted you from the ground with ease. “Kushina will get upset if we are late.” He patted down his legs to remove the dirt that was spread across them; you did the same to yourself.

“Are you sure it’s okay if I go?” you reached out for his hand; you didn’t want to be a burden on Minato and Kushina.

“Trust me (y/n), if you didn’t show up Kushina would not be pleasant to deal with – plus, she’s excited to have another woman to share the evening with since it’s normally just myself.” He grabbed onto your hand.

You shook your head, still nervous at the idea.

The two of you walked as the sky began to turn orange and the sun began to make its descent for the evening. The air was brisk, but Jiraiya kept his arm wrapped around your shoulders; laughing and making jokes through the entire walk.

As you arrived at the walk path to their door, you could feel your heart rate quicken; but as if he could tell, he wrapped his hand tightly around yours, squeezing it with comfort.

This was the first time the two of you were going out as a couple – at least a known couple; your first outing had to of course be at the Hokage’s residence.

“It’ll be fun.” Jiraiya pulled you along with him, stopping at the door, he turned to you and kissed the top of your head.  

His knuckles hit the door with several loud strikes and you could hear Kushina yell at Minato to go answer the door; within seconds you could hear the door being unlocked. Minato immediately glanced over at you, as if to ensure that you had indeed come with Jiraiya; a smile spread across his face.

“Hi!” he opened the door up for the door of you, “Come on in!” he exclaimed.

You took a deep breath; hand still wrapped tightly in Jiraiya’s. The two of you followed in-behind Minato, who seemed happier than normal – which was saying something considering how bubbly his personality was.

As soon as you made it into their living area, you could hear Kushina moving around in the kitchen.

“I’ll be there in a moment!” She exclaimed as you heard the sounds of dishes being tossed about.

Jiraiya had let go of your hand to walk over to Minato; the two of them deep in conversation. Both of them with smiles spread across their faces; Minato occasionally blushing. You could only begin to imagine the things that Jiraiya could be saying to him.

“Oh!” you looked up to see Jiraiya staring at the doorway; your eyes naturally following his.

“Oh!” You couldn’t help but let out a sound a surprise.

Kushina was standing in the doorway; her belly round with child and her face bright with joy.

[pain-somnia]

Away From Home

Pairing: SasuSaku Rating: M (for sexual content) Prompt: time travel w/smut. (for those worried that it’s an adult with a teen, it’s not. That’s all I’m giving away) Disclaimer Day’s Notes: This was a piece that was commissioned through Patreon back in April. It wasn’t originally exclusive so I decided that it’s been 9 months so I will share this with you all.

Away From Home

There is a soreness in his lower back and a crick in his neck that has him worried to open his eyes.

He dreams often of home when on his mission, but the smile on his daughter’s face and the feel of his wife’s hands as they eased the kinks and knots of his muscles had been so real. He had smelled the fabric softener and felt the softness of the white bed sheets with the scalloped trim that Sakura favors. The detailed stitching brushing against his cheek is a sensation so strongly imprinted in his mind that it feels as though he had felt it only a mere hours ago not months.

Reaching to adjust his cloak to ward of the cold, he tucks his face into the collar and sighs. He detests being away but he is duty bound. Sasuke knows the dreams will only haunt him when he is idle for too long.

A crackle of a flame has his eyes opening wide. He never uses a fire at night when traveling alone. More alert now he recognizes the scent of smoke wafting about and absorbed into the material of his black cloak.

And he notices the way his hair brushes alongside his cheeks instead of resting against one side and brushing against the lashes of his left eye.

Sasuke has to blink excessively before he is able to focus on his surroundings. The clarity he usually had is gone and he has as much difficulty seeing as when—

No.

The blurry trio of sleeping bags and the long red hair poking out over the top of one is a sight he hasn’t seen in almost two decades.

It’s as he’s flexing fingers on a hand that he hasn’t had in over fifteen years that he recognizes that his chest is rising and falling at an alarming speed.

When was it that he last had a panic attack? When was it that he last had a panic attack without being able to turn and hold on to the small, soft body of his pink haired wife to ground him to reality?

Inhaling and holding his breath, Sasuke lets out his next exhale long and slow.

Oddities in his life are rare but nothing new, but suddenly finding himself in his teenage body is far more outside his realm of normality than rabbit goddesses and eye snatchers from the moon.

.

.

Settling into the flow of Team Taka is easier than it should be, but Sasuke was never much of a talker and it helps him pretend he isn’t a thirty-two year old man trapped in the body of a seventeen year old.

These versions of his former underlings haven’t noticed anything off about him yet but he knows it’s only time before he slips up.

It would be better to separate.

By the red clouds on his cloak and his blindness he can pinpoint when in time he’s supposed to be. Team Taka is meant to hunt down the Hachibi but Sasuke isn’t his young self lost in the darkness. He not only doesn’t want to hunt down the Hachibi but he also knows how it all plays out and doesn’t care to repeat history.

He will have to walk a path parallel to the one of his past so that he doesn’t disrupt the course of events that lead up to his future. As much as he would rather abandon everything and return home, there may be consequences to that decision.

There is one decision he must make to change the course of events. It will buy him time as he avoids hunting the Hachibi and it would be best for himself and to prevent an outsider from taking what belongs to his brother.

The order was wrong, but it was time to claim his inheritance.

.

.

Having the procedure done a second time, Sasuke was more alert this time around during his healing process. There are no dark thoughts clouding the corners of his mind as he plans.

This is another moment he wishes Sakura were with him. His brilliant wife would have healed him and fixed any errors left behind by the crude surgery. She would be able to come up with theories as to how he found himself in such a predicament. He can only hope that she is safe with their daughter in the distant future and that he hasn’t had any missteps that would erase their family’s future.

As much as he doesn’t want to hunt down the Hachibi there is still one man he will have to take care of again. Sasuke will have to be smarter this time around, less controlled by the hatred that had consumed him in his old life.

Loud voices and hissed insults outside of his bedroom has him snuggling into his futon until only the spikes of his hair can be seen poking from the top of his blankets. He doesn’t wish to know what it is Karin is doing that has her fighting with their comrades.

Sasuke longs for the quiet of his home even more during his recovery. Aches for the breeze drifting in through the open windows of his house and the smell of garlic and shallots filling the air as Sarada and Sakura’s chatter wraps a soothing buzz around his brain and down his spine.

He can’t afford a single misstep. He’ll find his way to Sakura again in the future—of this he’s confident—but he can’t lose their Sarada.

He drifts into a troubled sleep and dreams of hues of pink and red and of a girl’s distant laughter, always cutting away when he’s just within reach.

.

.

It’s a color he could never mistake and a voice he yearns for on quiet nights after days of of inaction.

There are others with her but who they are he doesn’t care. It’s always been like this. He hears her, sees her, before all others. Once that had been something he would vehemently deny, keeping those stray thoughts encased in the deep recesses of his mind, but he isn’t his seventeen year old self━no matter his appearance━and home is a flash step away.

“Konoha shinobi,” Karin warns. “Three klicks but heading west in the opposite direction. Easily avoidable.”

“You couldn’t have said something earlier?” Suigetsu scoffs. “You have one job and you can’t even do that right.”

“Shut up!” Karin seethes. “Sasuke-kun knows I would have said something if I was told to keep alert for them.”

With just a glance, Sasuke has them silencing. He nods his head in the direction he wants them to take and the three of them take off without him.

Home is running in the opposite direction. Three kilometers turns into four which turns into five and then six. And so on she keeps running, not even knowing how much he wants to be running to her.

.

.

He can hear them whispering. Even Jūgo is becoming skeptical of his plans. They have been moving and moving, constantly moving without making any effort to hunt down the Hachibi despite the orders given from his elder cousin Obito masquerading as their ancestor.

“Are you sure?” He hears Suigetsu muttering to Karin from his spot above them all in the forest canopy.

“I’m positive. We’re going in circles. Just as we’re getting closer I can feel him leading us away and…”

“And?”

“Something’s...different about Sasuke-kun. He doesn’t feel the same. His chakra is different. It’s like it’s not the Sasuke-kun we know.”

“Is it because of that surgery?”

“No...it’s been like that since before...just one day he woke up and he was different.”

Whatever Suigetsu responded with was lost to Sasuke as he closed his eyes and shut their voices out.

He didn’t necessarily need them anymore but the three of them had nowhere to go currently. In the future they crawled back to Orochimaru but at the moment he is still dead. And with the war approaching they would need as many allies and Taka did their part in assisting in his old life.

Sasuke will have to find a reason to get away from his team to avoid anymore suspicion.

.

.

He’s on his own for a bit. Sasuke always needs his space from his teammates and before they used to be wary of him, but now they’re wary for another reason all together.

He’s Sasuke but he’s not their Sasuke. He’s a Sasuke only a select few know and Team Taka never had this Sasuke. Karin has witnessed small increments but this Karin isn’t the Karin that was covered to her elbows in blood, cradling his premature daughter to her chest. This Karin doesn’t know it yet, but he is in debt to her for helping his wife and child.

He owes her more than she knows. But that hasn’t happened yet and he just wants distance, space away from her calculating eyes. She can see the way his chakra moves, feel the missing heaviness of how imposing it once was.

And he can’t allow that to be his undoing. He could handle it if Karin were to confront him but he couldn’t handle it if the confrontation led him to losing his future.

So Sasuke runs.

He takes the first chance he gets to split from the rest of Taka. Makes an excuse so that they split ways for a period. They have Karin and she can track him when they need to meet up again.

Being on his own again, Sasuke is reminded of the time during his redemption journey. Although he stands shorter than when he stepped out alone for the first time, he is seeing the world through clearer eyes and a free heart.

Sasuke finds himself sleeping often, a habit from when he went searching for himself. When the warm breeze rustled through the grass and the scent of the oak trees traveled with the wind, Sasuke was reminded of home and his thoughts would become muddled. Sleep was a reprieve from the confusing ache in his chest.

Now sleep is a curse. The weariness of his eyes as they drooped haunts him. For sleep cannot give him what he wants.

A promise that when he wakes up everything would have been just a dream. And that he would be home again.

.

.

It takes Sasuke a moment to remember to breathe.

It was already a coincidence that they had crossed paths once before, that he had caught a glimpse of her so soon before…

Before the time he had seen her in his timeline━his real timeline━and almost lost the future he is missing now.

His eyes are wide open and he is seeing the world with such clarity. How many times did he miss her before? How many times did he miss her when his vision was clouded with his hunt for justice?

He draws in the breath his lungs have been screaming for and it’s with that inhale that Sakura skids to a stop.

Eyes so green, so seafoam green, narrow and scan the perimeter. Short, choppy hair rustles with the slight movement of her head as she searches in his general direction. Sasuke can almost see the calculations circling in her mind.

She knows someone’s there. He can make a run for it, use his greater speed as an advantage. It would be the wise thing to do. The strong thing to do, for he knows that the gravitational pull his wife has on him even━before she’s aware she has any pull on him at all━is something he is weak against.

It is why he left home at twelve. It is why he stayed away.

Sasuke is very good at doing his duty. It’s what kept him on his mission for so long, it’s what had him on his mission without coming back home until it was done.

But he is tired and sleep has been bad and all he wants is that look━the look that Sakura gets on her face when she sees him, eyes wide and lips parting as if she’s seeing something splendid for the first time.

It’s greedy and selfish, but he’s sacrificed years in one lifetime and weeks in another. The universe can forgive him for a few seconds.

Purposefully he takes a step on a twig on the forest floor, one that alerts Sakura to his exact location. He just needs to wait for that look, that one look of astonishment, and he’ll take off.

“Sasuke-kun!” Sakura gasps, but before he can pivot and flee, she’s already taking a step back.

Curious, he halts his movements and watches as she digs her teeth into her lower lip and her eyes drift from him to the direction she had been heading toward before he had distracted her.

That’s...peculiar.

He is right in front of her—not moving now that he’s observing her—and she isn’t pleading with him to go back home with her.

Sasuke understands that she may be wary of him, unsure of how he would react, but Sakura isn’t one to shy away when it comes to her feelings so her silence is unnerving. He had been expecting her to shout out, not to act with trepidation.

Sasuke edges forward, sliding one foot along the soil, moving slowly as if approaching a doe. He waits for a reaction but Sakura just stares and stares.

He takes off, using a sequence of flash steps to create distance. He didn’t expect Sakura to be able to predict his movements but a tugging at the rope belt he uses to tie his cloak to his body has him skidding to a stop and redirecting his path.

“Sasuke-kun!”

He can’t look back. If he looks back he’ll break and forget that he has a responsibility to keep the timeline on its course. There is no telling if he will wake up back at home and face consequences for any disruptions he may have caused.

“Sasuke-kun,” Sakura continues to cry after him, trailing closer after him than he anticipated her sixteen year old self to be able to.

His mind offers a flash of Sakura dodging quick attacks during the fourth great war and then of her sucker punching Shin with his body covered with activated mangekyou sharingan, despite her off roster status due to being the director of the hospital.

“Anata!”

Fumbling a flash step, Sasuke trips up and skids across the forest floor, catching himself with his hands digging into the earth. Sakura catches herself on the trunk of a tree, using chakra to anchor herself instead of skidding along the forest floor like Sasuke. Green eyes go wide in fear as she continues to watch him, body poised and ready to make a run for it. Her body is tense as she anticipates a violent reaction from him.

Activating his sharingan, Sasuke scans every inch of her and looks for a sign, any sign that she could be━

“Tsuma?”

The endearment has barely left his tongue when Sakura throws her body at him, tackling him to the ground in one of her strong embraces.

“It’s you, it’s you!” She sobs into his chest, soaking his top with her tears.

Sasuke places a hand on her back and rubs soothing circles, letting her find comfort in releasing weeks worth of stress.

.

.

Sasuke doesn’t need to hear the lecture. It’s in his wife’s scowl as she sends pulses of her soothing chakra to his temple, healing the scarring from the surgery his cousin had performed to implant Itachi’s eyes. It’s the same scars she healed for him while he was in the hospital after his battle with Naruto.

She doesn’t reprimand him as he pulls her closer to straddle his lap. The closer she is, the more real it feels that she’s really with him.

Sakura had been in her sixteen year old body for the same amount of time he had been back in his seventeen year old body. She had told him of how she woke up one morning convinced she had dreamt he had returned for good, only to realize she was in a smaller body, in a much smaller bed, back in her bedroom in her parents’ house.

Sasuke scoffed at the comment of a smaller body. She had only grown a few more centimeters by the time she had reached adulthood. It is true though that she is no longer fuller at the hips and had lost the bust she developed after pregnancy━even the one she developed toward the end of puberty, but he isn’t going to mention that he had been watching her more closely than he should.

He remembered the shock of standing up and realizing he had lost over half a foot of his own height and although he was still muscular it was nowhere near the muscle mass of his adult body.

And then there was the issue of balance since he no longer needed to compensate for the missing limb.

“Do you think anyone else was sent back in time?” Sakura asks him as she examines him further, unzipping his top and brushing the pads of her fingers along still healing scars.

“Definitely not Naruto. He wouldn’t have the sense to keep it a secret.” Sasuke drags his nose up the line of Sakura’s throat. She smells mostly of sweat, dirt, and grass, but just underneath is her own unique scent.

Sasuke slides his hands under her medic apron, fingers edging along the hem of her tight shorts.

“What—,” Sakura narrows her eyes at him, cutting off her flow of chakra, “—what are you doing?”

“Nothing,” Sasuke answers as he cups her pert backside with both hands.

“We’re in a forest,” Sakura protests.

“That wouldn’t be new for us,” Sasuke counters.

“We’re in a forest, I’m sixteen, and you’re a missing nin,” is Sakura’s rebuttal. Despite her protests, she reaches for his rope belt and tugs it undone.

“Physically,” Sasuke continues to counter, “but spiritually we are━”

“Oh, just shut up and kiss me, you opportunist.”

Sakura holds his face in her small hands and initiates their first kiss━a minor change from their original timeline. Sasuke sits her in his lap and bites on her lower lip, pulling it into his own mouth as he proceeds to deepen the kiss.

Sasuke isn’t ignorant of the fact that he now has the advantage of two hands. He can touch his wife without the assistance of any jutsu. Although the observation doesn’t stop him from using his teeth to unzip her top. His hands are too busy pulling off her shorts and underwear.

As close as they are, they’re not close enough and he needs to correct that.

“Don’t rip through my shorts,” Sakura warns him, clutching his shoulders with enough force he’s sure she added chakra to her hold, a promise of repercussions if he damages her clothing.

Sakura’s gasp is barely heard over the sound of her mesh tank top being torn in half with only the use of Sasuke’s teeth. No one ever sees her undergarments so it’s an article of clothing that has no import, something that Sasuke is aware of and pays no mind to her grumbling as he drags his tongue up her sternum.

Her irritation melts into a soft sighs as he presses open mouth kisses to her clavicle. He grabs her waist with his hands, distracted by how tiny it is as he brushes his thumbs lightly around her belly button.

“Sasuke-kun…” Sakura murmurs as he sinks his fingers into her warm, wet center. He gets to work on stroking her with one hand and helping her remove her shorts and underwear with the other.

Two hands really were more efficient.

Sakura’s moans roll into his mouth as she grinds her hips against his hand. She had been too engrossed in the feeling of his fingers thrusting in and out of her core to worry about removing her medic-nin apron. Sasuke wants it on during their encounter.

Barely covering anything at all, Sasuke didn’t get a chance to appreciate her little apron when he really was seventeen. It is short enough and the slit just high enough that he can watch the way Sakura’s pink curls brush against the heel of his palm.

As Sakura grinds her hips against his hand, she braces herself by gripping his shoulders. The position they’re in makes it easy for Sasuke to wrap his lips around a pebbled nipple. He uses his other hand to press against her lower back in order to support her as she bucks against him, legs trembling.

As her inner muscles start to spasm around his fingers, Sasuke pulls them out. Sakura cries out at the loss and throws a glare at him, eyes watering from the frustration.

“I was close!”

“Yeah, I know.”

Sakura pouts so cutely he should feel bad about depriving her the release she was edging toward but he doesn’t. He just pulls his cloak out from under him and spreads it out on the forest floor.

“Come here,” Sasuke murmurs, tugging at her wrists to draw her closer. “And take off your shirt.”

Sakura barely shrugs her red top off and Sasuke is already pushing her down on to the cloak. He wastes no time in pushing her thighs apart and opening her folds once again. He’s careful to avoid the bundle of nerves that would throw her over the edge now that she is sensitive from the earlier stimulation.

“You’re doing it again,” Sakura whines, wiggling her hips in an attempt to get him where she wants him.

“What am I doing?” Sasuke feigns ignorance, pretending to be too concentrated on his task.

“Sasuke-kun. I’m not going to be the only one naked outside again.”

Sasuke frowns at the statement but doesn’t refute it. Their encounters outdoors usually ended up with Sakura losing every article of clothing while he only tugged his pants low enough to free himself from the confines.

Sasuke shrugs but in a gesture of mock solidarity he removes his shirt and tosses it to the side. He quirks an eyebrow at her and hesitantly she relaxes underneath him.

Now that she’s more willing to be compliant, losing the tension in her body, Sasuke swipes at her clit. He rubs at it with his thumb as he strokes her folds and places kisses down the valley between her small breasts and lower until he reaches her navel.

Dipping his tongue in her belly button, he sucks at the flesh there before making his way down lower and lower, past the thatch of pink curls, and flattens his tongue against where she’s hottest and drags it nice and slow before flicking Sakura’s hardened nub with the tip of his tongue.

A sharp pain at his scalp alerts him to Sakura’s fingers clutching at his hair and yanking it as he pulls the nub between his lips and rolls his tongue around it, alternating between soft suckles and hard suction that has her thighs trembling around his head.

Sasuke groans against her folds and Sakura’s body tenses up as his name tumbles weakly out of her mouth in a soft cry of relief.

Sasuke continues to lap at her core, flicking her clit in the upstroke. When Sakura tries to sit up he hooks his arms around her thighs and place his hands on her hips to keep her still. Using her sensitivity from the last orgasm he guides her into a second one and then rolls it into a third.

Sakura’s pulling his hair so hard at this point he’s glad that she is unable to concentrate on anything else but the feel of his tongue. If she could focus she would gather her chakra and attempt to pull him off of her. With the way she was yanking she could probably scalp him with her bare hands in her flustered state with the use of chakra.

By the time he’s done teasing her, Sakura is struggling to fill her lungs, unable to catch her breath through her pants. As she’s coming down, chest slowing down in its rising, Sasuke sits up on his knees and pulls her lower half so that her legs are spread across his lap.

“Are you okay?” He asks as he strokes her thigh soothingly as her eyes blink back into focus. She nods and grasps his hand, interlocking their fingers.

“I want to touch you too.”

Sakura pulls his hand up and presses kisses to the pads of his fingers, drawing them into her mouth. Sasuke’ mouth runs dry as she sucks on them. With a mischievous glint in her eyes, she slides his index and middle fingers in and out of her mouth, her tongue wrapping around them.

“Next time,” Sasuke chokes out, reluctantly removing his hand from her hold as he pulls himself out of his pants. He gives himself two quick strokes, using the slickness from Sakura’s sucking to lubricate himself before guiding his cock into her entrance.

Slow and steady, Sasuke pushes in, groaning as he sinks deeper into Sakura’s slick heat. Looking up at Sakura’s face he cocks his head to the side, not sure why her lips are parted and eyes glimmering in awe.

“So that’s what you would have looked like…” she says softly.

Smirking down at his wife, Sasuke groans again purposely as he pulls out and thrusts back in as deeply as he can fill her.

The awestruck expression falls from Sakura’s face as she gasps from the sudden fullness. Sasuke stills inside her, feeling her inner muscles contracting around him as she adjusts to his size. As soon as she lifts her hips to move underneath him, Sasuke begins a steady pace of thrusts, gripping her hips with both hands to anchor her to him.

As familiar as he is with what his wife likes, his young body isn’t accustomed to being inside her and he is hypersensitive to the sensation. He can feel his release rapidly approaching, much sooner than he’d like.

Pulling out, he maneuvers Sakura’s body so she’s on her stomach. Following his lead, Sakura braces herself on her hands and knees and spreads her legs for him. Sasuke sinks back in and Sakura cries out, feeling him even deeper than before.

It’s a position Sakura prefers and that he gladly puts her in due to the increase in her sensitivity. He settles himself into the even pace from before, not trying to cum before he’s ready. Sasuke takes a finger and drags it down the curve of Sakura’s spine, feeling her flutter around him from the act.

Sasuke drops his head in the crook of her neck and drags his nose across her nape. Dropping kisses between her shoulder blades, Sasuke bites down on her shoulder and Sakura cums again, squeezing him tight and forcing his release out of him. Sasuke pulls her hips tight against his and grinds into her as spills himself inside of her. He collapses on top of her, chin resting on her shoulder. Sakura slowly drops to the ground and nudges him gently off of her as they sprawl out on the cloak.

Sasuke takes a deep breath and pulls Sakura closer so that her back is pressed against his chest. He hooks his arm around her waist and pillows her head with his other arm. Pressing his nose against the top of her head, he breathes in the smell of home. Sweaty and hidden behind the smell of earth, it lies there in the strands of Sakura’s hair.

.

.

Sakura had shrugged on his shirt when they gathered their things and relocated to a bank of a stream to wash up. The sight of their crest on her back is a small comfort but the news Sakura gave him as they laid on the forest floor had put a damper on his mood.

“Sasuke-kun,” his wife calls back his attention as she hangs up the newly washed cloak to dry. “What are you going to do now?”

Sakura was on her way to rendezvous with her team when she had ran into him. Luckily she was ahead of schedule due to already having the information she needed from the mission in the past. Sasuke hadn’t sidetracked her as she was using the extra time to be on her own. She had found it unsettling and tiring when she was with people. The stress of pretending and trying not to disrupt the timeline had been getting to her.

She was just as stuck as Sasuke and the only theory she could come up with was the rinnegan which was ruled out as soon as the thought crossed her mind. The rinnegan traveled dimensions not time.

Waiting around and playing out the rest of the events wasn’t something Sasuke wanted to do. There were other ways to get what he wanted.

“And I really don’t wanna celebrate Naruto’s birthday this time with the two of you blowing each other’s arms off,” Sakura jokes as he drags a hand down his face in embarrassment.

“That’s not happening this time.”

“Then what is happening this time?” Sakura slides her hand down his left wrist, settling her palm against his until he takes hold of it and interlocks their fingers.

“This time,” Sasuke breathes before granting her a soft smile, “this time, I come home. And stay.”

“And you stay.” Sakura nods, beaming up at him. Her smile fades and her brows furrow. “And Sarada?”

“We can be careful, do some calculations…” Sasuke rubs his thumb on the back of her hand. “She was ours once. She can be again. We’ll try.”

“We can try,” Sakura agrees.

“But for now,” Sasuke tugs on her hand, drawing her closer, “let’s go home.”

[ayamashie]

okay so, i have been contemplating whether i should upload this or not for a real long time and FINALLYYYY here you go. a little KAKASAKU inspired from lily and snape [after all this time; always]  it is slightly dark and contains suicidal attempt sooo pleaseee be advised so. love you alll

Kakashi’s throat felt dry as he drew a breath from the cold night air standing in front of the house. Her house, that she shared with her husband. his breaths came out as deep pants as he pushed the wooden fence door making his way through the stony pathway that lead to the door of the house. The usually lit up and lively house was dark tonight. Darkness and loneliness had wrapped itself around the house and suddenly kakashi felt as if the air surrounding him was too thick to breath in. he felt cold. with a trembling hand he reached to the hem of his mask pulling it down in a quick swift motion opening his mouth taking a deep intake of air to ease the burning of his lungs. He lost count of the times that he gulped his saliva down his throat to moist the dry walls but still it stayed painfully dry.  

“Sakura.” A small cracked voice came out of him as he looked up to the window and the light flickered again. so did the light of hope in his heart. A feeling of relief washed over him as a small smile appeared on his lips. gulping in an effort to wet his throat again he ran-walked to the door as his heart thumped against his ribcage almost painfully as if it could break his ribs.

“Pl..please be safe.” He pushed the door open as his fingers trembled against the knob of the door. The hall way was dark. Stepping inside he called out the name of his lover and desperately waited for a response. The response never came. Suddenly the whole place was lit by a bright light as a lighting soared across the sky warning the deafening thunder that will be followed by it. the light entered the hall way showing him path filled with broken glasses, china, photo frames and…

As soon as the light came it went away. next, came the loud deafening sound of thunder and with that kakashi felt a tight squeeze in his heart. something inside him, broke in to pieces. a body laid across the broken shreds of glasses. Eyes wide open. Blood trickling from his gaped mouth. Lifeless body of sasuke uchiha laid in a pool of blood that flowed out of his own body. A small whimper erupted from kakashi’s mouth as he struggled to walk towards the dead body of his former student. Kneeling down before sasuke’s body, he ran his trembling hand on his face closing the lifeless eyes as tears stung corner of his eyes.

The lightening came again, and this time with that a small cooing of a baby was brought to his ears. Kakashi’s head shot up towards the stair case as the sound of the baby was engulfed by the sound of the thunder that roared. Mustering the courage to stand up he grabbed the cupboard beside him, forcing him to stand up. His body felt extremely heavy as he felt the ray of hope he found flickering away.

“Sakura.” He called out for her loudly. His voice shook as his body trembled too. With a heavy heart and a heavy body, kakashi pulled himself up on each step. with the help of the railing he Pushed himself towards the flickering light that he sees.  He stopped midway as his knees shook, grabbing the steel railing to keep himself from falling. the soothing sound of the baby reached his ears again acting like a motivation to pull himself up the stairs and reach to the open door.

“Sarada chan.” His shaky voice managed to let out her name as he finally pulled himself up and walked to the door as the light flickered again.

The lightening came again. and the light in his heart died. His trembling knees gave up and kakashi grabbed the edge of the door before he fell on his knees as he saw the woman he loves. Two swords were plunged into her as she sat by the crib. Her clothes were bloody. Her eyes were wide open. A loud shaky sob erupted from his mouth when his whole body gave in and he fell to his feet. He sat there and watched her as tears cascaded down his face and weeps escaped his mouth. Her beautiful short pink hair that ruled his fantasies was messed up and the blood stained. Her radiant green eyes that never failed to make him smile with true happiness had the light torn away from them. They were cloudy and dull as they stared into space.

“Sakura!!” A loud whimper left his mouth again as he grasped on the fabric of his sweatshirt over his chest, bowing down until his forehead came in contact with the blood stained carpet in front of the dead body of woman he loves. Tears flowed from his eyes and he didn’t try stop them as they flowed on to the carpet.

 “I am sorry. I am sorry I wasn’t here on time.” his voice trembled as the sob shook his body.

“Sorry. I am sorry”

He raised his head up staring at her before he managed to move his body to crawl towards her body. Tears flowed from his eyes and his body trembled. His heart was broken he felt the pain mount through him as he lifted a hand to wipe some blood off her cheek. His hand retreated back as he felt her cold lifeless skin under his fingertips. Biting his lower lip, he cupped her cheek in his hand brushing the blood stained strands off her face pulling her body to his chest. The strong taste of blood engulfed his taste buds as he dug his teeth into his lips only to release them in a loud wail. Kakashi clutched sakura’s lifeless body in to chest as he cried loudly dipping his nose into her pink hair sniffing in any smell of life left on her. Instead his nose welcomed the disturbing smell of blood that shook him to his core again.

From beginning to this day, he kept losing everyone that ever mattered for him. It left him hallow and cold. The void in his chest was never filled. No amount of sake and no amount of women ever helped him with his depression and loneliness. Until those three came around. Sakura sasuke and Naruto. After a long time, he was happy and he promised himself that he will protect them no matter what. When he lost his father, he promised he won’t be weak. When he lost Obito he promised himself that he will become stronger. When he lost Rin, he promised he will protect his comrades no matter what. Then he lost his sensei. His will broke that night. As he sat on front of his father’s grave gulping the warm bitter liquid down his throat he wondered what the use of his power was if he can’t even protect his loved ones. What was the use of being on bingo book under “flee at sight” if he can’t even push himself to save his teammates? He saw himself drowning in darkness until those hands pulled himself up from the deep depths of his own darkness. And before he had noticed, they had grown up and they weren’t his students. Naruto begin training to earn the title of the Hokage and sasuke left the village again. And once again he found himself in a familiar darkness until a hand reached for him. And with help of her bright smile, he found reason to live again. He stopped surviving and started living again...  

“I am sorry I am sorry.” His wails submerged into the loud roars of the thunder as he closed his eyes moaning her name in agony grappling her lifeless body against his. He shook her body as if he could shake her back to life. But she was dead. She was gone from his life. Forever. And he didn’t even get a chance to tell him how much he loved her. How much he wanted her in his life. How she was his lifeline and the reason and his will to live. And now that she was gone, so was his will to live. Tears stopped flowing from his eyes as he pulled away from her.

 He kept her body on the floor and reached to a broken shred of glass with a trembling hand. grasping the shred tightly in to his hand, Kakashi felt the sharp edges cutting into his skin as he pushed the shred against the skin of his wrist closing his eyes tightly. Without sakura, Kakashi didn’t have a reason to live for. His life would be colorless and everyday would be a struggle. He wanted see her smile again. He wanted to feel her warm skin again. So desperately that he was ready to welcome death just so he could see her in afterlife. With his resolve done Kakashi pushed the shred into his wrist groaning at it pierced into skin drawing blood.

And suddenly a small whimper reached his ears. His closed eyes shot open as the shred of glass fell from his trembling fingers. The drop of blood that was gathered on his wrist moved down his wrist and fell on the carpet. The whimper grew loud and turned into a loud wailing and Kakashi forced himself to turn and look at the crib.

Dark eyes stared at him behind the wooden bars of the crib as tears flowed from those large eyes too. Her mouth was contorted as she cried and wailed loudly lifting her small short hands up as if she was trying to reach out for Kakashi. Straights strands of her black hair was splayed across her face as her small fist opened and closed in a quick motion as if she was calling out for Kakashi to come to her. The tears that had stop flowing from his eyes, gathered in his eyes again and cascaded down his cheek.

“Ohh Sarada chan.” With a newly found strength Kakashi grabbed the wooden poles of the crib and pulled himself into standing position before grasping the baby under her lifted arms and rising her to hug her closer.

“I am so sorry Sarada. So sorry.” Tears cascaded down his face was absorbed by the soft fabric of her bodysuit. Sarada’s whimpers calmed down as soon as Kakashi held her close. She cooed gently as Kakashi pulled away to look at her face that held a smile disregard of their bloody surrounding. In return, a corner of Kakashi’s lips rose too despite of the tears flowing from his eyes.

“I will protect you I promise.” Voice still shaky, Kakashi pulled the small baby against his chest hugging her tightly. Sarada, the closest thing to sakura Kakashi had, grasped his sweatshirt cooing against him in a soothing tone. A warm feeling of happiness washed over him. And he knew he was not going to let go of that child. No matter what.

[evil-overlord-scriptology]

But I Don’t Want to be a Sensei! Pt 3 (ARCHIVED)

Chapters 11, 12, & 13

Chapter 11: Training, Yanagi-Style!

Demon of the Mist. Master of the silent killing technique.

 So why didn't he kill silently?

 Why did he make his presence known and draw me into a long battle instead of killing Tazuna before any of us could suspect something.

 Tazuna went off on the little brat, but Naruto ignored him by exclaiming that people were hiding around in the bushes all around us. I was about to hit him for being stupid when I felt a surge of chakra behind me.

 Naruto seemed to follow my instincts and aimed another kunai knife at the spot I felt the chakra surge. Tazuna smacked Naruto upside the head and the brat and drunk had yet another yelling match while I went to investigate. Just below the kunai that Naruto had thrown a white rabbit was having a heart attack.

 A white snow rabbit.

 Curse my cursed damn luck. The karma demons must really loath me.

 I stepped away from Naruto's sobbing apologies to casually inspect the clearing, searching for chakra signatures. I wasn't a very good sensory nin, most of it was just pure natural skill since I had spent most of my training on my sharingan and attacks, so I wouldn't be able to sense anyone who was suppressing their chakra at a jounin level.

 Considering that I couldn't sense anyone meant that my suspicions were right and our next attacker was a jounin skilled opponent.

 I hadn't been able to sense Zabuza until he wanted me to.

 So why did he want me to?

 And that kid with him, he was also able to suppress his chakra enough that I didn't sense him until he felt like it too.

 Why?

 Why didn't the false hunter-nin attack me? We both knew that he could easily take me out as weak as I was. Towards the end of the fight, I had been putting on a front. That hunter-nin knew that, I could feel it in his gaze. But he only retrieved Zabuza. Did he want us to be surprised when Zabuza came back to attack us? No. That false hunter-nin would know that I'd be able to figure it out. People like Zabuza and his allies wouldn't underestimate anyone.

 Zabuza was hired by Gatou, I know that. Which meant he was in it for money... or was he? Gatou would want Tazuna dead quickly, so Zabuza should have killed him quickly. Instead he went after me. That meant that Zabuza didn't care for money as much as it would seem. So why? What did Zabuza really want?

 Something to do with Gatou. He had money–Zabuza could be hired by anyone else for that. He could offer protection–Zabuza didn't need it, he was capable of protecting himself and he had an ally. Gatou practically ruled over the Land of Waves–I doubted Zabuza was interested in that. Gatou had a shipping company...

 “Obito-nii! You said you were going to teach me something cool! This is geography!” A younger me whined.

 My older brother laughed, “Just you wait, imoto, you'll see this is cool!” I gave my brother a skeptical look. Obito often lied to me for the heck of it. Nii-san, seeing my expression, reached over to ruffle my curly hair, “That's a promise!” He said cheerfully. I automatically smiled. Whenever Obito-nii said those words, that meant whatever he was saying was true!

 Turns out he was right. It was very interesting learning about rebels often hiding in secluded areas like small islands. Obito was going to teach me about smuggling too, but then Kakashi-baka-nii-san came and interrupted everything.

 Rebels. Smuggling. Zabuza.

 My mind recalled Zabuza's page in the Bingo Book. He attempted a coup d'état on Kiri because he disagreed with the government. It was rumored that he had joined the Mist Rebels, but it was never proven.

 Could working for Gatou be a cover up?

 ...

 “Frizzy-sensei, I know you're awake!”

 “Idiot, don't yell!”

 “Shut up, Teme! I know Frizzy-sensei is awake! She keeps twitching.”

 “N-Naruto, p-p-plea-please q-quiet down. S-sensei is try-trying to r-r-rest.”

 My eyes snapped open and I immediately glared at Naruto, “You call me that again and I'll kick your ass.” I growled threateningly. I tried to sit up and immediately groaned as my chakra system convulsed painfully causing my muscles to spasm and freeze up as well.

 A woman I didn't know was by my side in an instant, “You shouldn't move.” She said in a mothering tone. I eyed her, she looked a lot like Mikoto-oba except her face was a lot plainer than my aunt's. She even acted like Mikoto. “Until you're feeling better you should just lay down.” I gave in with a sigh and laid back down. If this woman was anything like Mikoto-oba, she wouldn't take no for an answer. It'd be in my best interest to just listen to her.

 “S-sensei, are you al-alright?” Hinata asked, coming to kneel beside my futon.

 “Hn.” I responded with the Uchiha general answer for everything.

 Naruto, of course, wasn't going to take that for an answer though, “What happened anyway, sensei? You were fine one minute and the next you were passing out! What gives?”

 Sasuke bopped Naruto upside the head, “Idiot, Yanagi-itoko used too much chakra.” I gave Sasuke a strange look, since when did he call me 'itoko'?!

 Tazuna spoke up from behind Hinata, “Well you did take down a powerful ninja, so I guess you've got an excuse.”

 “He's not dead.” I said, turning my gaze to the ceiling.

 I think everyone had a miniature heart attack.

 “W-what?! What do you mean he's not dead?” Tazuna practically screeched like a girl.

 I closed my eyes and struggled to sit up again. It tore at my pride that Hinata had to help me, but at least I wasn't laying down like some helpless invalid anymore, “Hunter-nins destroy the body where they make the kill. So why did that boy take Zabuza away?”

 Silence permeated the air as that information sunk in.

 Hinata gasped a little, “T-those needles he-he used...” She said under her breath. Everyone looked at the shy heiress and she blushed. “S-sorry!” She squeaked, ducking her head and twiddling her fingers.

 I reached out and pushed her hands down, “No, what were you saying?” I asked. Now wasn't the time for shyness. If Hinata had information, then she should share it.

 The girl nibbled at her lip in nervousness and, after a long silence, finally stuttered out, “W-where he h-h-h-hit... i-it was a pres-pressure p-p-poi-point... that c-ca-causes d-death if hit h-hard e-e-en-enough.” Of course Hinata would know. The Hyuuga fighting style specialized in pressure points, hitting them with chakra to cut off the chakra flow.

 Sasuke stiffened, “The senbon needles. They don't have a high casualty rate.” He said, mostly to himself.

 I nodded, “Exactly. Unless hitting a vital organ, senbon needles don't kill. My guess is that the hunter-nin used the pressure points on Zabuza's neck to create a temporary death. A hunter-nin is an expert in human anatomy, causing the heart to stop temporarily is child's play to them. Also, the fact that the hunter-nin we ran into took Zabuza's body away instead of taking care of him on the spot and using senbon needles for a weapon points to one fact: that boy was trying to save Peaches... not kill him.”

 Tazuna tried to reason with us, “Come on, you're over thinking things!” By the tone of his voice, I could tell that Tazuna really want us to be paranoid and not right.

 I gave the man a serious look, “An Uchiha does not over think things.” I said, a little more harshly than intended. Tazuna cleared his throat awkwardly and looked away. More calmly I recited a rule from the Shinobi Handbook, “The Shinobi Handbook states: 'Encountering suspicion, the ninja prepares quickly. Hesitation leads to disaster.'” I narrowed my eyes at Tazuna, daring him to comment again. I should thank Kakashi for being a ninja robot when I first met him; because of him I memorized the entire handbook by the time I was seven.

 Involuntarily, of course.

 I glanced at my genin to gauge their reaction. Naruto was grinning a little psychotic grin and Hinata looked extremely pale. Sasuke wasn't showing any emotion.

 Naruto stood up, his hand still clenched in a fist, “Alright! Let's prepare then!”

 Blinking, I looked at my dumbest student with surprise. Honestly I had expected him to start yelling about going and hunting Zabuza down, not training.

 Even more surprising was when Hinata gave Naruto a look that could have been called a glare... if she wasn't blushing, “B-but Naruto, Y-yanagi-sensei is hurt!” Hinata wasn't even stuttering as much, and she was talking to Naruto! Normally she couldn't say one word completely when talking to her crush.

 “Uh... Sensei?” I blinked and shook my head a little before focusing on a confused Naruto, “What's with the funny look?” The blonde asked, the dread in his voice apparent. Mildly I wondered if he though I was going to whip out another Uchiha-style training session like I did when they bothered me too much.

 I smiled kindly at them, “I'm just impressed by how much all of you have grown. Especially you Naruto.” Naruto squinted at me. I grinned wider until my eyes closed, “You've grown the most.”

 Should have known the praise would go straight to his head, “So you noticed, huh? Things are going to get even better, believe it!” Naruto exclaimed.

 “I don't believe it!” A childish voice, not so different from Naruto's actually, shouted behind the blonde. I looked past Naruto to the doorway where a small child in green overalls stood. He glared at us from under his hat with eyes so filled with hate and... loneliness.

 “Who are you!?” Naruto enunciated each word loudly, pointing an accusing finger at the kid.

 Tazuna spoke before the kid could, “Ah, Inari, where have you been?” My eyes went from Tazuna to Inari, so this was the kid that would cry and cry if we hadn't taken the mission to protect Tazuna after we found out how dangerous it was.

 He sure didn't seem the type.

 Inari, ignoring the rest of us, ran for his grandfather, his voice suddenly happy and eager, “Welcome back, Grandpa!”

 “Inari! That was very rude, these ninja helped your grandfather and brought him here safely.” The woman who I had yet been introduced to scolded. No doubt she was Inari's mother and Tazuna's daughter. Seemed to me that she wouldn't resent Konoha if Tazuna was killed.

 Grandpa Drunk was a dirty blackmailer.

 Tazuna waved off Inari's mother, “Ah, it's okay. I'm rude to them too.” He chuckled.

 I shot him a nasty glare, “Same to you, Grandpa Drunk.” I snapped. Tazuna tried to glare at me, but he didn't hold a candle to any Uchiha. Not even Ibo.

 Inari gave us all a blank look before turning to his mother, “Mom, don't you see, all these people are going to die! Gatou is going to kill them all!”

 Naruto had the right idea when he yelled, “What did you say brat?!” He gave a cocky grin, “Listen up, you know what a super ninja is? Well that's me, only I'm going to be better.” Contradictory much? “I'm going to be Hokage!” Oh dear kami, not this again, “This Gatou or Blatou or whatever he's called is no match for a real hero like me!”

 The brat scoffed, “There's no such thing as a real hero. You're just full of stupid ideas!” Inari snapped, looking very much like a miniature Uchiha in appalling fashion at that moment. Yeesh, talk about dramatic.

 There was a brief moment of silence before Naruto started for him, “WHAT'D YOU SAY?!” Sasuke luckily leapt up to grab the blonde idiot before he could murder Inari. I almost felt sorry for my cousin for having to be so close the that blaring mouth. No doubt Sasuke would be deaf by the time he was twenty.

 “If you wanna stay alive you should go back where you came from.” Inari said snobbishly then started walking away.

 Finally, finally, Tazuna scolded him, somewhat, “Inari, where are you going?”

 “To look at the ocean!” Inari snapped as he opened the doors and left, slamming the door behind him.

 I sighed, “That boy is going to have a bad attitude when he's a teenager...” I commented to no one.

 Tazuna looked at Naruto after a moment, “Sorry about that.” He said in a 'not so sorry' tone. I should know, I used it all the time.

 Inari's mother took over then and shooed everyone else out of my room, saying I was still supposed to be resting. I sighed when I was alone and wondered what everyone else was up to. Not that I cared, I was just bored. I nearly cried when I realized that if Obito found out about this he was going to murder me for getting hurt! Kakashi would be right behind him. And Shisui would never let me live it down.

 Still moaning about my morbid future, I closed my eyes to rest and plan ahead.

 vvv

 I flicked three small squares at my genin. Being ninjas, even miniature ones, all three snatched the paper out of the air without thinking. They looked at the chakra paper confused, then at me. I leaned against the tree I sat under, “That's chakra paper. When you channel your chakra into the paper it will react according to your chakra nature. For instance,” I held up a fourth slip of paper and channeled my chakra into it. The paper split in two. “That's the sign that I have Fūton nature.” I waved my hand at Sasuke, “Go, Duckass.”

 My cousin gave me a small glare before concentrating on the bluish paper in his hand. As we watched the paper began to crinkle. Sasuke looked at me for explanation. I nodded once, “Seems you have a Lightning affinity. Being an Uchiha you also have Katon nature, correct?” Sasuke nodded silently. Of course he did. The Uchiha clan was born with fire affinity, no two ways about it. There was a reason why we were famous for it after all.

 Naruto went ahead and channeled his chakra into his paper without my say-so. The paper cut in two, “Cool! We have the same... uh... katra nature, Sensei!” He exclaimed.

 “Chakra” I stressed before mentally running through all my wind ninjutsus. I didn't have that many that were low level, and those that I did weren't really battle-oriented.  Anything I taught him would be useless in the inevitable battle against Zabuza. Maybe I should start him on a higher level ninjutsu. With his large chakra stores, Naruto shouldn't be in too much danger.

 But it was Naruto we were talking about.

 Shaking off my dilemma for now, I nodded to Hinata for her to go. She channeled her chakra into the slip of paper and watched as it turned damp with water.

 I tsked, “Well, I don't know any water ninjutsus. It goes against my fire chakra nature.” I said, feeling slightly sorry for Hinata especially with her pulling that disappointed look. She was the one who needed training the most and I couldn't help her at all. Not many people could, really. Unless... I snapped my fingers, startling my three genin, “I can teach you some stealth techniques for now, I noticed you're good at that. And I'll try to find you someone someone to teach you Suiton jutsus later.” Already my mind was going through a mental file of everyone I had seen using Suiton techniques.

 All three of my genin were giving me strange looks. I raised an eyebrow in question, but I already knew what was going on in their tiny little minds. “Why... why are you being so helpful?” Sasuke finally asked.

 I gave them a smirk, “What, you miss the surly sensei? Because I can easily go back into that.” Cue a quick head shake from all my precious genin. I rolled my eyes and explained, “We're going against a S-ranked criminal and his unknown ally. I was barely able to defeat Peach-boy last time-”

 Naruto interrupted me before I could continue, “But that's the point!” I was mildly surprised at his outburst, “If you were unable to beat Zabuza then what makes you think we can?!” Was Naruto... admitting that he wasn't strong? “You passed out last time after that battle, and that weird guy in the mask will also be there this time, so what makes you think we're ready for that kind of-”

 Being the awesome sensei that I am, I smacked him in the head with one of my crutches to shut him up.

 “Didn't I just say that you're getting stronger?” I asked hotly, irritated that my rare praise wasn't warming their sorry little hearts. First time I ever praised Naruto and he was whining about not being strong enough! “Look, I wouldn't have been able to do anything during that fight if you three hadn't done something.” I think the genin were a little shell shocked.

 Naruto, stupidly, tried to speak again. I grabbed him by his collar and pulled him down until we were inches apart. “Look here, Obito Mini-me, you're going to shut up and learn a jutsu because if you don't that little promise you made back when we fought those chunnin will go to waste!” Naruto clammed up after that. I let him go and struggled to a stand, “Good. Now, lets start training. Sasuke, heel.”

 My cousin's right eye twitched at being treated like a dog but came forward anyway. I stared at him intently, trying to figure out what jutsu I could teach him. I already knew he could to the Grand Fireball–it had been a big thing around the clan when Sasuke mastered the technique when he was seven, making him yet another prodigy.

 I swear the Uchiha clan spat out either prodigies or total losers.

 “Do you know the Phoenix Sage Technique?” I asked suddenly, looking down to the duckass haired boy for his answer.

 Sasuke added a slight frown to his otherwise emotionless face, “Aniki says that's a Katon technique.”

 “I know that. I have Katon and Fūton chakra, I can't teach you any Lightning jutsus. Yes or no, did Itachi-san or anyone else teach you the Phoenix Sage?” I said testily. Damn this little brat and his need to question everything!

 Sasuke shook his head 'no'.

 I grinned sadistically. “Good. Now I get to apply Uchiha-style training on you.” I said then chuckled evilly. It might have been my imagination, but Sasuke seemed to turn three shades paler than his normal pasty self. But first, “Sit, while I deal with the others.” I commanded my cousin before pushing down on his shoulder, forcing him to sit.

 Naruto was over his gloom and doom attitude already, “Oh oh! Sensei, me next! Me next!” He yelled eagerly, waving his hand in the air like a child eagerly wanting to impress the teacher.

 Ignoring him, I turned to Hinata. “You're training is simple to explain. Go out deep into the woods and try to sneak back here. Try to suppress both your chakra and the noise you make. If you make it back here before the boys can hear you, then you pass. Got it?” Another nod. “Shoo then.” I said, waving my hand towards her. Hinata hesitated for only a moment before disappearing.

 As soon as Hinata was gone, my vision was filled with yellow and orange, “Yanagi-sensei! Teach me next! I want to learn a kickass jutsu!” I was kind of starting to miss the 'doom and gloom' Naruto...

 Picking up a leaf that laid at my feet I gave it to the blonde brat, “Here.”

 Naruto squinted at the leaf in confusion, “Huh?”

 I picked up another leaf and held it in my right palm, “To master any Fūton jutsu, you need excellent control, even more than the control required for tree walking. Use your chakra to cut the the leaf; it'll be harder than cutting the chakra paper since you must consciously cut, not just channel chakra.” I focused my chakra to cut the leaf I was holding and did just as I told him, “Do that and I'll teach you the Wind Blade.” The Wind Blade was a B-rank jutsu. But since Naruto already knew the shadow clone jutsu, which was forbidden, I doubted he'd have too much trouble.

 “WHAAT?! You said you were going to teach me a cool jutsu!”

 “I will. After you learn to control your chakra better.”

 “I already know how to do that! Teach me the jutsu!”

 “Don't make demands, kid, or I'll do nothing. Shut up and train with your leaf.”

 Naruto pouted, predictably. He crossed his arms and turned his nose into the air like a child. Rolling my eyes I leaned over and pinched his nose between my index finger and thumb. Naruto screeched and tried to swat me off, but I didn't let go, “Look, if you don't learn this then you'll never get any of the wind jutsus I'm going to teach you.” A complete lie, but what's a little white lie if Naruto never found out about it? I let go of Naruto's nose and straightened up, “Unless you want to be defenseless when Zabuza comes back, I suggest you don't question my methods. Get to work.”

 Before Naruto could say another word, I grabbed Sasuke by his ridiculous Uchiha collar and bodily dragged him away, ignoring all his protests along the way. I only let go when we reached a clearing well enough away from Naruto and made Sasuke sit again.

 I sat down across from him, staring intently at my cousin. There was a long moment of silence as we stared at each other. Eventually Sasuke wilted under my gaze and shifted nervously. Finally he looked away.

 Quickly before he knew what was happening, I shunshined further away and made the appropriate hand signs, “Katon: Phoenix Sage Jutsu!” I intoned and several fireballs flew towards Sasuke.

 My cousin's eyes widened as the fireballs roared towards him. I watched in amusement as he dodged the first five before creating a Grand Fireball to cancel out the last of my jutsu. When the fire died away, Sasuke was glaring at me. I smirked and did the same hand signs, “Katon: Phoenix Sage Jutsu!”

 Repeat.

 By the time I did the third Phoenix Sage jutsu, Sasuke was pissed. He snatched a kunai from his weapons pouch and charged me. I laughed at his puny attempts to attack and backflipped away. “Katon: Phoenix Sage Jutsu!”

 “Katon: Grand Fireball Jutsu!”

 I shunshined behind Sasuke to avoid his fireball and recreated the hand signs, “Katon: Phoenix Sage Jutsu!” Sasuke turned around, his eyes wide and filled with horror as he saw the several mini fireballs flying towards him. There was no way he could avoid them in time. I watched passively as Sasuke managed to dodge the first and second fireball. The third skimmed his right forearm, making the brat cry out in agony. He leapt away from the others, getting out of the fire zone and crouching down to cradle his injured arm.

 “What the hell is wrong with you?!” He shouted at me. I was impressed that he wasn't crying from the burn. The Phoenix Sage Jutsu was hot enough that if the fire grazed you, it would result in a second degree burn. When Obito first taught me the jutsu I was bawling my eyes out when I got burned.

 Instead of answering his question, I started making the hand signs again. Sasuke, finally catching on, leapt away. I kept following him, spitting out fireballs, but every time I did Sasuke only leapt back again. He looked good and riled now. My mouth twitched upwards in a smirk, time to throw in insults.

 “You know for being a prodigy, you're a pretty lousy one.” I drawled casually. Sasuke straightened up from his crouched position, his brows drawn low over his nose. I nodded as if he had said something, “Even my brother, the famed 'dead last of the Uchiha', was chūnin at eleven and had unlocked his sharingan at age thirteen. And let's not get into Shisui and Itachi.”

 “What's your point?” Sasuke snapped angrily.

 I sneered as I made the hand signs again, “My point is that you're going to have a hell of a time learning without that sharingan. Katon: Phoenix Sage Jutsu!”

 vvv

 “Ouch!” Sasuke actually yelped later that night as I applied salve to his burns.

 I rolled my eyes, “Hush up, you big baby! I'm not even hurting you.” I swatted the brat over the head for good measure.

 Tazuna snorted, “Now you are.” He chuckled then made a squeaking noise in the back of his throat when Sasuke and I glared at him.

 Naruto seemed torn between laughing at Sasuke and being jealous that he got to learn a jutsu while Naruto only got to practice more chakra controlling exercises. By mid afternoon he had mastered the leaf exercise to I gave him another, when he master that one I gave him another and another. Sasuke seemed grateful every time Naruto showed up saying that he mastered the exercise, since it was a break from my torturous training methods.

 I tied a knot in the last bandage and pulled it tight, causing my cousin to wince. Sasuke glared at me as he rubbed his arm. I smirked, “If you tell Itachi-san, he'll only tell you to train more. You know he will.” I teased, reading exactly what was on my younger cousin's mind. Well Itachi would probably kill me too, but I'd leave that part out.

 No need to give Sasuke any funny ideas.

 Feeling an evil look staring at me I looked up to see Tsunami glaring at me hotly, “Yanagi-san, you overdid it today. If you keep this up you won't be able to protect us when that man comes back!” Tazuna's daughter snapped at me.

 I waved a flippant hand, “Eh, I'm a jounin, I've been dealt with chakra exhaustion before.” I said dismissively. Granted when the last time I had been on an A-rank with chakra exhaustion I had other jounin to back me up, not fresh genin. Not that I was telling any of them that.

 Tsunami just continued to glare at me.

 Giving in I stood up with a sigh, “Fine. I'm going to bed. Hinata, since you already mastered your training I'm putting you in charge of guarding Tazuna tomorrow. See you two boys in the morning.” I said deviously. Sasuke paled a fraction while Naruto cheered happily. With that I hobbled off for another night's rest.

 vvv

 “Uh... Sensei, what are we doing...?” Naruto asked. Sasuke was off in a little corner of the clearing, practicing the Phoenix Sage jutsu–he had finally memorized the hand signs I had used for the jutsu–while the Kyuubi brat and I sat in a meditative pose in the center of the clearing. It was mid-morning and so far had been peaceful except for Naruto's consent nagging.

 I opened an eye, “Right now? I'm enjoying the morning. Shut up and meditate.”

 “But-”

 “No.”

 “Sensei-”

 “Meditate.”

 “What does-”

 “Shut up.”

 “Hmph!” Naruto pouted, but at least he fell silent. I relaxed and let my mind drift over my musings on Zabuza and his ally again. I needed to figure out what they wanted before they attacked again. Maybe... maybe if they're intentions weren't as evil as I originally thought I could talk them out of their job and thus save bloodshed. Gatou, he would have to go. I didn't need the drug lord around and trying to control the Land of Waves. This whole mission was just a tangled mess. I had to worry about my genin and Tazuna. I had to figure out how to get rid of Gatou. I had to do something about Zabuza and his ally.

 Why didn't I have Itachi's insane ability to plan years in advance?!

 Bamf!

 I opened my eyes to see Naruto had fallen over, asleep. I sighed. This kid was a long way from being Hokage, that much was for sure.

 “Hey, idiot! Wake up or I won't teach you the Wind Blade!” I yelled in Naruto's ear. From his shriek of pain, I guessed that I probably burst his eardrum.

 ...Oops...

 vvv

 “Come on...” I groaned to myself as I dragged the unconscious Naruto back into the house. For a kid, he felt like he weighed a ton! I dumped him at the table and dusted my hands off.

 In the meantime, Tsunami was gaping at Naruto's crumbled state, then at me, “What happened?!” She asked shocked. After a moment the older woman's eyes narrowed as if she blamed me for Naruto's sorry state. Though, it kinda was my fault...

 I gave her a raised eyebrow, “He fell unconscious. He'll be fine tomorrow.” Normal kids took months months to recover from near chakra exhaustion; but Naruto was the Kyuubi container, a little chakra exhaustion wouldn't bother him too much.

 “What's the use? You're just going to die!” Three guess who the doomsayer was, and the first two didn't count.

 It turned out that Naruto wasn't as unconscious as I thought, he was just being extremely lazy, “What do you mean?! We're training very hard to protect you, and you just-”

 Inari cut him off, “It doesn't matter how hard you try, there's no such thing as a hero!” With that the little brat ran out of the room, slamming the door shut. Tsunami ran after her son, calling out his name. I looked at Tazuna, knowing that he had answers.

 Grandpa Drunk sighed and set his tea cup down. He nodded towards a torn picture hanging on the wall, one that showed his family there smiling. I squinted at the picture, along the edges that had been torn, I could barely make out part of a masculine torso behind Tsunami. There was a story behind this family's strange behavior, I could practically smell it.

 “He wasn't Inari's real father, he came into our family later...” Tazuna started. I sat back and laced my fingers behind my head, I knew I was in for a treat.

  Chapter 12: Bitter Taste of Reality

I nudged Naruto's side with the toe of my sandal. He didn't even twitch. Squatting down I poked the brat's cheek with a rigid finger, “Hey, dumbass...” I said loudly, knowing that a knucklehead like Naruto would react if I called him names. He still didn't move. “Obito Mini-me. Brat. Idiot. Dumb blonde. Dead last. Coward.” When the brat didn't react at all I stood back up with a sigh and turned to the others standing in the doorway.

 “Well either he's dead or out like a light post.” I told them, scratching the back of my head. Hinata gasped a little, her hands going to her mouth as she no doubt thought that her precious 'Naruto-kun' was dead.

 Tsunami looked as equally worried as the little Hyuuga heiress, “You don't think he overdid it in training, do you? He was looking pretty exhausted last night.

 “Hn. He was passed out in the forest yesterday morning.” Sasuke commented thoughtfully.

 I groaned and hung my head, I really didn't need this at the moment, “Fine, Sasuke will be on guard duty today and Hinata will train.” I said defeated. I hated it when people screwed up my schedule! “Hinata you know the rules. If anyone suspicious shows up, head for the bridge and warn everyone.”

 “H-Hai.”

 Sasuke frowned, “But that was the rotation yesterday.” I glared at him. Like I didn't know that already, idiot.

 “Hinata still needs to train in her stealth and since Naruto is stealing your rest day, you can take his spot on guard duty. Don't complain, Duckass, true shinobi don't protest orders.” Like I predicted, Sasuke snapped his jaw shut and didn't make another sound.

 Really, it was insulting how predictable that kid was.

 “Look, if it makes you feel better, I'll go with you that way you can relax at the bridge.” Everyone but Inari gave me strange looks. I returned their gaze with an unamused look, “Stop staring like calves at a new gate. I'm bored.” I snapped, perhaps just a little too defensively. By Sasuke's sudden smug look I was guessing he knew why I really was going.

 I was worried about the brat.

 With good reason though. There was no such thing as a jounin who didn't have a sixth sense for danger; and I felt more jittery than when Obito accidentally released those rabid squirrels in the house.

 I mentally shuddered at the memory.

 I moved past the miniature crowd and lead them outside. Turning to Tsunami I began issuing orders, “When Naruto wakes up, just tell him to practice his taijutsu; you also have permission to send him on any errands you have. Hinata, I want you to try and sneak up on as many woodland creatures as you can. If you catch five animals in a row then join Sasuke and I on the bridge. Duckass, Grandpa Dunk, let's go.” I turned on my heel and immediately started for the bridge without waiting for the two idiot males catch up to me.

 “Geez, for a woman you walk pretty fast.” Tazuna panted when he and my cousin finally caught up. It was really pathetic that we were almost to the bridge by that point.

 I gave the old drunk an unimpressed look, “Not all women are geishas or civilians who don't have anywhere important to be. The success of a mission could rely on fast feet, I could possibly save a life that would otherwise be lost if I arrive quicker than my enemies anticipate.”

 Tazuna pulled a face, “Hey kid, are all shinobi like this one or is it just her?” He asked Sasuke.

 Sasuke just shrugged and didn't comment. He practically had to jog to keep up with us adults; I couldn't tell if he wasn't answering because he didn't want to or because he was too focused on not falling behind. I was guessing it was a little bit of both.

 “Tazuna, how long do you have before the bridge is finished?” I asked the old man. Now wasn't the time for fun and games. That sense of dread I had been feeling all morning was getting worse the closer we got to the bridge.

 Grandpa Drunk shrugged, “Depends. If I have a full roster of workers, it should only be a few weeks. But with Gatou controlling everything and scaring the people, I keep losing my workers. Just yesterday I had one of my foremen quiet! I don't even have half of a roster now, it could take months with the amount of workers I got.”

 Grimacing, I halted at the entrance to the bridge, “That's what I feared.” I muttered.

 Tazuna gaped at his unconscious employees littering the bridge. I could tell by their chakra levels that the men were still alive, but only just. “What tha-?!” Tazuna exclaimed, his face twitching in horror. I glanced at him then at Sasuke. Sasuke looked back at me, his eyes gleaming with an odd shine of excitement. He was ready.

 A sudden mist blew in from the ocean. I snarled in frustration and stepped in front of Tazuna, “Stay behind me.” I said sharply. Tazuna didn't say anything, but he didn't move.

 That stupid creepy chuckle drifted out from the fog, “Sorry to keep you waiting, Uchiha. I see you still got that brat with you, but what happened with the other two? Did they run off?” I heard a slight clicking behind me, but didn't glance towards my cousin. I knew he wasn't doing something stupid. Of all my genin I trusted Sasuke the most in a fight, even if he had bouts of cowardice when I least expected it.

 Peaches chuckled again, “Oh look, he's shaking again. Pathetic.” The nuke-nin laughed mockingly.

 There was a small intake of air from Sasuke and I felt Zabuza's chakra spike as water clones surrounded the three of us. I tensed and palmed a kunai, ready to throw it at the clone's head that was in front of me if he so much as blinked in a way I didn't like.

 Sasuke scoffed, “I'm trembling with... excitement.”

 The Zabuza water clones seemed surprised at the admission and I only rolled my eyes. Why couldn't the need for dramatics skip Sasuke? It skipped Itachi and me, why not one more generation?! I had enough drama from Naruto, I didn't need Sasuke filling in for that little brat too.

 Speaking of brats...

 I glanced at my cousin out of the corner of my eye, “Play nice.” I said teasingly. That was all the permission Sasuke needed. He twirled the kunai in his hand around a finger so that the blade was pointing at the clone in front of him. With a delightful smirk that reminded me a little too much of Obito's sadistic grin, my baby cousin pounced at the water clones.

 While Peach-boy's clones were busy trying to defeat an Uchiha brat, I ran through the signs for a summoning and slammed my hand to the bridge's surface, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” I heard Zabuza growl angrily as a swarm of normal sized hawks flew up from the seal, spiraling into a twister of feathers and harsh cries that surrounded me like a moving wall. I held up my right arm and one of the hawks detached itself from it's flock. “Fly to Hyuuga Hinata and inform her to come as back up.” The hawk dipped its head at my command and took off to the sky, flying out of sight before turning in the direction of Hinata. No need to tell our enemies where an ally was after all. The rest of the hawks dispersed among the cables of the bridge, their sharp yellow eyes watching.

 While I was busy with my summonings, Sasuke finished up his little spar with the water clones. He looked about as cocky as a true Uchiha when he returned to his spot beside me. I mentally whimpered and hoped that I didn't get an arrogant little brat who thought he was God's gift to man. If so, I was going to beat that out of him and suffer Itachi's wrath with a smile on my face.

 “Ooooo, the brat's improving.” Peach-boy said from my right. All three of us turned to see the man with horrible fashion sense giving us a leer. At least I thought it was a leer, it was kind of hard to tell when the lower half of his face was bandaged up. His ally stood beside him, still wearing that false hunter-nin mask. “Looks like you've got competition... Haku.” Zabuza continued.

 “So it seems.” The boy, Haku, murmured quietly.

 Trolling time.

 “Oi oi. Peachy's ally, or whatever the hell your name is, are you a boy or a girl? Because honestly, you're a very androgynous individual.” I asked, intentionally playing the ignorant idiot. Tazuna and Sasuke were giving me looks that could only be described as 'way to ruin the suspense, dummy'.

 Haku and Zabuza exchanged looks and I took my chance to continue, “You know what? It doesn't matter anyway, I think I'll just call you Zabuza's Bitch.” I said with a smirk. Both nuke-nins snapped their heads around to glare at me–well I assume Haku glared, it was hard to tell with the mask–while I cackled in delight of pissing my enemy off.

 “Take care of the brat. I'll take the bitch.” Zabuza growled.

 Haku turned his gaze on Sasuke, “Right.” The kid murmured again. Then he moved. Startled I opened my mouth to shout a warning to Sasuke, but Zabuza was on me before I could utter a single syllable.

 I back flipped away from Tazuna, distancing myself from the client and the man trying to kill him. At the moment Zabuza seemed pretty focused on me, so I didn't have to worry. I smirked as I kicked Kubikiribōchō away from me. “Don't tell me I struck a nerve.” I cooed as I deflected another swing with my kunai. Zabuza snarled like an angry animal and charged at me again. I snorted and ducked under his swing. If I had know pissing Peaches off would make him attack like a predictable wild animal, I would have done it a long time ago.

 Kicking off the ground, I gave myself enough time to spare a glance at Sasuke. My eyes widened as I saw Haku performing hand signs with only one hand. That wasn't something you saw everyday. I wonder if the sharingan could somehow pick it up.

 Before I could activate my sharingan to see if I could, Zabuza attacked again, “You're opponent is me! Let's leave the kids to their game.”

 I shot Zabuza a nasty glare, “Oh, go drown in your own water ninjutsu! I didn't come all this way with a bunch of brats and a drunk old man to hear you blowing steam, ya old windbag.” I snapped, getting irritated. I knew Zabuza wasn't taking this fight seriously. He was just trying to keep me from Sasuke and Haku's fight.

 Peachy paused, “A bunch of brats, eh?” He quoted, sounding oddly interested. “So you don't think that those genin are worth anything either.”

 “Oh I think they're worth a lot of things, I just like calling them brats. They're my brats and I'm the only one allowed to call them that and get away with it.” I snapped back and flung my kunai at Peachy-boy's head to emphasize my point. He easily ducked under the kunai and charged at me, his sword back and ready for a strong strike to my legs. I leaped into the air over his blade and put my hands down on Zabuza's back, flipping over him to land between him and the kids.

 I smirked, “Ya know, some people would think you were compensating for something with that big blade of yours.” I commented sweetly.

 “You're letting that big mouth get away again, Uchiha.” Peachy growled.

 I shrugged, “Well at least I'm not trying to prank you as well as fight you like my brother does. That's just annoying.” I said coolly. From the look in Zabuza's eyes, he thought my inappropriate remarks were a hell of a lot more annoying.

 “Argh!” Both of us whipped around to see Sasuke kicking Haku away.

 Sasuke stood in his spot, smirking, “Seems you're not as fast as you think you are.” He said, idly spinning his kunai around his index finger. Cocky little git, I was definitely beating that arrogance out of his system.

 Zabuza glared at his ally, “Haku. Stop messing around and letting a brat beat you, get on with it!” He ordered.

 The masked boy stood back up easily, “Yes.” He responded in an almost robotic voice.

 Frowning I turned my back on Zabuza to watch what the masked brat was doing. Icy blue strands of chakra haloed Haku and he bowed his head, “I'm sorry it's come to this.” The boy said softly and made a strange sign. The temperature dropped drastically and I uttered a curse under my breath as I automatically regulated my chakra to keep myself warm. Of course our newest enemy would have some kind of tie to cold weather. It wouldn't be hell if he didn't.

 Stupid karma demons and their stupid agenda against me.

 The water around Sasuke and Haku suddenly leaped up into the air to form flat frozen surfaces. Haku stepped into the mirrors, senbon needles in his hands. Meanwhile I gaped in surprise, it was not cold enough to form ice like that. Even the most powerful shinobi with water nature had a hard time creating ice even in temperatures where it was easy to form. That only meant one thing.

 Kekke Genkai.

 Peaches chuckled behind me, “Seems you figured it out.”

 Growling I ran for the ice mirrors, but Peach-boy flash stepped in front of me. “If you're going to fight, you will fight me.” He snapped.

 I glared at him. “Bastard.” I spat out.

 The peachy nuke-nin chuckled creepily, “Oh? Out of your witty comments? I'm crushed.” I could practically taste the sarcasm in the air.

 “You have three seconds to step aside before I really crush you.”

 “How cute. You think you can defeat me. You weren't able to before, what makes you think you can now that we're surrounded by even more water than before?” My eyes widened a fraction and I flung my kunai at the water clone that I thought was Zabuza and leaping away before the real Zabuza could cut me down. He didn't look all that happy when he turned to face me. He scoffed when he saw my sharingan, “That again? Are all the Uchiha so weak that they rely on that silly Kekke Genkai of theirs? How pathetic.”

 Sasuke yelped and I looked over Peaches shoulder to see Haku raining senbon down on my cousin like a vengeful thunderstorm. Anger washed over me, hot and heady, when I landed my gaze back on Zabuza. “Two seconds to move.”

 Peaches sneered.

 “One.”

 He didn't move.

 I held my right arm above my head and brought my left to my mouth. Curling my index and thumb around my tongue I whistled loudly, using a small wind ninjutsu to amplify the sound. My hawk summons, having been sitting on the sidelines forgotten, all took flight. They flew in circles like a roiling thundercloud of brown and black, using my upraised arm as the pivot point.

 “Last chance to move.” I said. Zabuza stubbornly stayed where he was. My mouth twisted in an ugly grimace and I lowered my right arm to point at the Mist nuke-nin. The hawks gave one last turn before following my finger and shooting straight towards Peach-boy.

 He smirked.

 My eyes widened.

 “Hha!” I felt water douse my back and I spun around to see Hinata standing in a puddle of water, formerly a water clone, panting slightly. She gave me a shaky grin, “I-I'm sorry Y-Yanagi-sensei. I c-came as fast as I c-c-c-could.” She stuttered slightly, a blush forming on her cheeks. I didn't blame her, Hinata had suddenly become the center of attention after pulling a stunt like that. Even Haku stopped torturing my poor cousin to stare at her.

 I grinned, “Hey, I'm not complaining. You just saved me from being skewered like a roast pig.” I joked before turning serious, “Guard Tazuna, don't leave his side for any reason.” I ordered. Hinata gave a firm nod and leaped sideways until she was in front of Tazuna, in a Gentle Fist stance. When I turned to face Zabuza again, he did not look amused.

 “Oh... did she ruin your little scheme?” I asked innocently, pressing an index finger to the corner of my mouth like a slut trying to act cute.

 That did it, I could practically hear Peachy's patience snap. He snarled and charged at me, “Shut up!”

 I laughed as I jumped away from him, “Looks like you underestimated my brats, Peach-boy. Sasuke and Hinata are clan kids and having been training with their families since they could hold a kunai right.” I ducked under Peachy's swing and shot my left leg out for a round house kick. Zabuza launched into the air to avoid my leg and I pulled back before he could land on it. “Sasuke is the best in his class and no one can defeat Hinata in taijutsu. She's a Hyuuga after all, it's in her blood.” I taunted as I back flipped away from the Kubikiribōchō.

 Skidding to a halt a few feet away from Peaches I smirked, “And what have you got? A coward with a nice Kekke Genkai. Well, I've got two brats with Kekke Genkai and neither of them are cowards!”

 Zabuza's face twisted unpleasantly, “Haku, stop goofing around and kill that pest!” He barked out, his gaze darting over his shoulder to where the ice mirrors stood. Haku didn't respond, but only started throwing more senbons at Sasuke at a more rapid pace than before; I tried not to flinch when I heard Sasuke cry out. Peachy looked back at me, his gaze deadlier than before, “That big mouth of yours is going to get your brats killed, Uchiha.”

 I only smiled, “I'm confident they can handle one little brat, even one as powerful as yours. Besides, you forgot something.” Peach-boy stiffened as it dawned on him that Naruto had yet to appear. My smile twisted into a sneer, “You know, I think my last student deserves to be called the 'Stupidly Brave Shinobi of Konoha' more than I do. After all, not many genin are brave enough to fight someone like you, Peach-boy, let alone get the better of you.”

 As if planned there was a puff of smoke to the right of Haku's mirrors. Naruto's voice drifted from the white billowing vapors, “I resent that, Frizzy-sensei! Call me the 'Fearless Shinobi of Konoha'! That's right, Uzumaki Naruto is here!” My eye only twitched a little at the nickname. I'd let it slide this one time.

 Peach-boy blinked slowly at Naruto then looked at me, “You think some brat like him can do anything?”

 I shrugged, “Why not? It was a dead-last like Naruto who helped turn the last shinobi war back in Konoha's favor.” I responded coolly. I should know, Obito was the idiot I was talking about. “I feel Naruto can do the same with this little spat we have. Dead-last shinobi have a tendency to surprise people.” Naruto took a second to gawk at me, not use to my free praise. All I could say was he had better back up my claims or I was going to murder the little sucker.

 Naruto got a really big grin on his face, “You know how the hero always shows up at the last minute and kicks butt? Well that's what I'm going to do, right now! So don't you worry sensei, you can just sit back and watch me beat these guys!”

 I facepalmed.

 The blonde idiot ignored me, “Alright, you're history!” He formed a sign, “Shadow Clone Jutsu!” But before Naruto could form a single clone, Zabuza twisted around and threw a handful of shuriken at him. Like with the Demon Brothers, Naruto's first reaction was the freeze in fear.

 “Move Naruto!” I yelled, my heart in my throat as I watched the throwing stars head for my frozen student. I wouldn't be able to get there in time to stop them, not even my hawks surrounding the bridge would be able to grab the shuriken in time.

 Out of no where, senbon needles collided with the shuriken and knocked them off course. I jerked in surprise and twisted to stare at Haku half leaning out of his mirrors, still in the position of someone who had just thrown something. Zabuza narrowed his eyes at his ally.

 Now that he was out of danger, I felt it safe to yell at Naruto, “You imbecile! This is a real battle not a stupid spar; a shinobi's lifestyle is deception, not a damn talent show! Always keep your enemy guessing, be unpredictable so they can't figure out how to defeat you. So get your head outta your ass and think before someone makes a dartboard out of you!”

 Naruto turned about as red as Hinata did when Naruto got within ten feet of her. He started yelling apologies, but I ignored him to glance at Haku. Everyone else seemed to think that Haku had thrown senbon at Naruto at the same time Zabuza did and their attacks ended up colliding; but I knew better. One look at my cousin-turned-porcupine told me that Haku did not miss his targets. Which could only mean... he meant to throw those shuriken off track.

 The question was why.

 Peach-boy seemed to be thinking the same thing I was, “Haku, what are you doing?” Peachy demanded. His tone was dangerous and angry, he was pissed at Haku for disturbing his attack. In Zabuza's state of mind at the moment, I wouldn't be entirely surprised if he attacked his own ally out of anger.

 One could only hope.

 Haku straightened out of his position and dipped his head towards Peaches, “Zabuza-sama, let me fight this boy in my own way... please.” The brat rasped. Mildly I wondered if all Kiri nins had that smoker rasp, or if it was just these two idiots.

 Naruto glared at the masked boy, “Bring. It. On.” He challenged before I could tell him to not be stupid. I suppressed the urge to hang my head in defeat at the stupidity of the blonde brat and wondered if he knew how powerful Haku was. Sasuke was hardly a match for the nuke-nin, what chance did Naruto have against him?!

 Zabuza chuckled, “As usual you're too soft, Haku. Fine, if that is what you wish.” Soft? What part of that masked brat was...

 I glanced at Sasuke. He was injured but not too bad, nothing that would cause any lasting damage. So either Haku was very sadistic and liked to play with his enemies; or he was soft as Zabuza said and wasn't trying to hurt Sasuke, just stall him. Still, knowing Naruto, he'd piss Haku off enough that the nuke-nin would tear him to shreds. I started to take a step forward to intervene before things got worse, but Peaches blocked my path.

 “Don't even think about it.” Oddly enough, Peachy sounded amused. “You know what will happen if you take on Haku. I'll go after the bridge builder and that little girl.” I stiffened and looked to the left where Tazuna and Hinata stood. There was no way that I would be able to end Haku and protect those two at the same time. Against a long sword like the Kubikiribōchō, Hinata's taijutsu was useless; and without me guiding my hawk summons they couldn't do shit but sit there and look pretty. I supposed I could summon a larger hawk to deal with Zabuza while I took out Haku, but that would cut down on my chakra and possibly put me in a dangerous position.

 Damn.

 Zabuza seemed to know I was in a bind, he smirked underneath those bandages, “Relax, Uchiha. Lets see how our students do... one on one.” I gave him an Uchiha Glare, but he wasn't even paying attention to me. I didn't dare attack, he might not be looking at me, but I know the Peach Bastard was still prepared to fight me. Only an idiot would think otherwise.

 Apparently Sasuke was an idiot.

 While Haku was talking to Naruto, a kunai came flying out of the ice prison that held Sasuke. Haku easily dodged the knife and looked at my cousin, “Don't think I forgot about you, not for an instant.” The masked nuke-nin tilted his head a little, “Some warriors accept defeat gracefully, they know when they are beaten...” Oh great, know I was going to have two idiots who couldn't think straight, “Others do not. So be it, let us finish our battle then.”

 I couldn't help but groan quietly as Haku reentered his mirrors. Zabuza actually snorted and gave me an amused look as if we weren't enemies fighting to the death but two people just watching our students spar. I shot him a brief glare and looked away. I refused to think Peaches was anyone else but my enemy.

 It was torture having to watch my cousin practically being torn to shreds by multiple attacks coming from all the mirrors. With my sharingan I could pick up the real Haku and how he jumped from mirror to mirror to keep the element of surprise. The little pest was fast, even with my sharingan I could just barely pick up his movements as he flashed between the mirrors. But I still didn't know how the mirrors worked.

 “Sasuke, Naruto think! You have to attack the mirrors from the inside and outside at the same time to figure out how they work!” I yelled. Naruto's face brightened with an idea and there was a poof and...

 He was gone.

 It was only when Sasuke started yelling did I realize where he went. My eye twitched and I glanced at Zabuza. The nuke-nin looked like he was on the verge of laughing, I was almost tempted to tell him that I was disowning Naruto as my student after a stunt like that.

 “Katon: Phoenix Sage Jutsu!” Sasuke yelled out and there was a brief glow of orange that surrounded the multiple mirrors at various angles, but none of them melted.

 I could hear the amusement in Haku's voice when he said, “You'll need more firepower than that to melt this ice.” I stiffened slightly. More firepower? I could easily do that, but...

 Peaches smirked at me, easily reading my mind, “If you melt the mirrors you'll incinerate your students. Doesn't that defeat the purpose?” He asked. I shot him a nasty look and mildly wondered why he hadn't attacked yet. Peach-boy didn't have a problem earlier, was he just stalling then to get to this point and showcase his student? He had been hired to take out my client, not show off his student's prowess.

 Once again my suspicions of his involvement with the Mist Rebels surfaced. I eyed the man, trying to figure out his game. I doubted that he was ever fighting me seriously. All he had done was send water clones and swing that big ass sword around. Zabuza had been part of the Seven Swordsmen of Kirigakure, he had gotten the position by being a master of kenjutsu. So far Zabuza had been attacking as if the Kubikiribōchō was just a piece of metal to be swung around and not a great sword.

 Of course it was always possible that he was downplaying his abilities to keep the element of surprise; I had been doing the same by only dodging Zabuza's sword and tossing kunai around when I got the opening. But it just didn't fit Peachy's personality to use deception when he had the opportunity to strike. I glanced at the ice prison as Haku bounded from mirror to mirror, raining senbon down on Sasuke and Naruto. Haku was the same. I knew that that jutsu was meant to trap and destroy an opponent. The positioning of the mirrors and the pure speed of Haku proved that point easily enough. So why weren't my students dead yet? From what I had gathered on Haku, I knew he wasn't the sick twisted kind of shinobi that enjoyed toying with their victims. Not even Zabuza was that way. Zabuza's way of killing was quick, painless, and silent; leaving any survivors baffled and frightened of the Demon of the Mist.

 Naruto's yelling stopped my musing, “I won't quit! Not ever, I'm going to survive and become Hokage because that is my dream!” I didn't know if I should be proud that he still wasn't giving up even after that downpour of needles or still embarrassed that he had gotten himself into that mess.

 What Haku responded with surprised me, “I didn't want to be a shinobi, it's painful. I don't want to kill you, but if you come closer I will have no choice.” What? “I will kill the kindness in my own heart and fully embrace the shinobi way. This bridge will the battlefield where our dreams collide. I will fight for my dream, just as you fight for yours. Please do not blame me, I fight for someone who is precious to me. I live for him and I will face death for him so that his dream will become reality. That is my dream, and for the sake of that dream, if I must I will act as a shinobi and take your lives!”

 I bowed my head and glanced at the silent Zabuza. It was obvious that Haku was referring to Peach-boy, but why? What did Zabuza do that made the kid so loyal to him? And furthermore, just what was Zabuza's dream? The more I listened to Haku, the more reluctant I was to kill the kid, but if he got in the way of my mission then I would cut him and Zabuza down.

 Peaches shot me a haughty glance, “Tell me Uchiha, does that wimpy village of yours still avoid the most important rule of being a shinobi?” He asked as if he were genuinely curious.

 I only started at him in silence. It was a loaded question, so I saw no need in wasting my breath with an answer that was already obvious.

 Peach-boy cackled like a madman, “I wonder what your precious little Hokage will say when you come back with two bodies instead of three live genin... if you survive that is.” I heard Tazuna inhale sharply as it dawned on him just how outnumbered the genin truly were. I glanced out of the corner of my eye to see how Hinata was holding up to the news of her possible death.

 Not too well.

 Zabuza followed my gaze, “She's going to faint.” He observed in a tone that could only be amusement. He looked back at me, “How is it that you ended up with three incompetent brats? You're supposed to be an A-class kunoichi, and yet here you are... babysitting.”

 “Hn.” I grunted. That insult was so pathetic I knew I would lose brain cells just by answering it. One would think that the Bloody Mist would pencil in a trash talk class right after their academy students learned how to gut a helpless victim. At least so they wouldn't kill their opponents from the lame insults flying around.

 Unless... that was their stupid plan all along.

 The damn man didn't shut up though, “Falling back on the Uchiha customary response? How unlike you.” Great now he was adding sarcasm to the list. My eye twitched and I came close to planting my fist in his stupid, bandaged face if only to shut him up; but I somehow refrained... for now. “It must goad you that your precious Hokage would dump a bunch of brats on you. It's such a waste of your skills, chasing after three brats like you're their nanny while shinobi weaker than you take over your missions.” Peachy continued on, not even bothering to see if he was really insulting me or not.

 Finally I got fed up, “Your insults are pathetic. Even my pacifist cousin can talk trash better than you.” I deadpanned. Peachy didn't even have the decency to look offended. He only smirked at me from underneath his bandages.

 I reached into my weapons pouch and brought out a fan. Snapping it open I began lightly fanning myself like a geisha would. I even fluttered my eyelashes at Peaches, “Let's get this over with, ne? I want to leave by dusk.” I simpered like a primping airhead and reactivated my sharingan, having had deactivated it once I realized I would never figure out Haku's jutsu with my eyes.

 Zabuza jerked his gaze away from my sharingan and he reached back into his own kunai pouch. As he charged at me, I made a sweeping motion with my arm so that my fan cut through the air like a blade. When he came into my range, I thumbed the little lever on the handle and fourteen senbon needles shot out of the fan's ribs. Unfortunately due to the large curve of the fan's edge, only five senbons were heading directly at Peaches. He easily knocked them away with his two bladed kunai and jumped back.

 I snapped the fan shut and pointed it at him, “Lesson number one of kunoichi tactics: Everything can be a weapon.” I depressed another button on the bamboo frame of the fan and a three inch blade shot out of the little slot that was embedded into the fan, just to prove my point. Zabuza did not looked very pleased with my Fan of Wonders–as Obito called it.

 In fact, I could swear he was pouting.

 “This won't be like last time, Peach-boy.” I promised him, my smirk melting away to be replaced with the expressionless mask every shinobi seemed to have.

 The bandaged nuke-nin seemed to have stolen my smirk, “You're correct, because this time even if you do defeat me, you have no chance against Haku. When I found him he was just a street rat, but I trained him in the most advanced techniques. I taught him everything I know, and with that Kekke Genkai of his, soon he was able to take on dangerous enemies. Even outnumbered and in total darkness, he could strike with perfect accuracy. He cared nothing for his own life, or the lives of others. Haku became a unique fighting machine, a shinobi. In the end even he surpassed me, with that Kekke Genkai of his nothing can defeat it! I've created a tool that can destroy anyone who stands in my way, unlike those useless brats that follow you around like little lost puppies!”

 I grimaced in disgust at the man before me. Then I glanced over his shoulder at the prison of ice mirrors where the shouts of pain from Naruto and Sasuke were still originating. When I head heard Haku's speech I was ready to put an end to the battle peacefully, just to save the kid the pain of losing his precious person. Now I was ready to roast the fool who dared take advantage of loyalty like that.

 Zabuza laughed as he looked back at the ice mirrors with a crazed look in his eyes, “You think those punks can defeat Haku? He's the ultimate battle tool of destruction!”

 “Would ya shut up already? Geez you sound worse than my uncle when he's talking about Itachi!” I snapped, getting irritated with this 'Haku is so great! You can never defeat him!' bullshit. Was Zabuza Haku's fangirl or senpai?!

 Zabuza didn't understand the reference, so he wasn't offended. Though I had now doubt he would be throwing a temper tantrum if he knew how Fugaku was when he was bragging about my cousin. “Fine, but there is one more thing you should know.” I raised an eyebrow and decided to humor him, not that he needed any encouragement, “Did you really think our last battle was just win or lose? Haku had been watching the whole time, watching every move your made with that sharingan of yours. Haku can see a move once and immediately devise a counterattack; it's one of his... gifts. I've been waiting to see the look on your pretty face when you realize that your sharingan has become worthless!”

 I kept my face blank just to annoy him.

 Zabuza held up two fingers, “Suiton: Hidden Mist Jutsu!”

 Deja vu, anyone?

 The thin mist that had already layered the air thickened to the point of no visibility. I cursed, my sharingan eyes darting to pick up the slighted movement in the mist; but all I could see was Hinata and Tazuna fidgeting around, looking left and right for a thin spot in the thick mist. I pinned Hinata with a look. She was twitching nervously and shaking in fear, “Hinata, stay with Tazuna. Don't leave his side for any reason.” I ordered her in a sharp tone. The Hyuuga girl seemed to get over her fear at the order and nodded firmly before shifting from an offensive to a defensive taijutsu stance. I had noticed over the weeks that she seemed to lose her cowardice when given a direct order. Hopefully she would stand by it even if I went down.

 Shuriken came out of no where and I easily batted them away with my closed fan. I took a cautious step in the direction the throwing stars had come from but stopped and twisted around when I felt Zabuza's chakra behind me. I blinked when I saw that his eyes were closed. Was he trying to prevent looking into my sharingan or was it another reason entirely? I frowned when he started to speak.

 “Next time you see me, will be the last time you see anything.” Okay, for Peach-boy, that wasn't a half bad attempt to be intimidating; but still... even goofy Shisui still beat him by a mile. Of course, goofy Shisui happened to be pretty terrifying when someone did the impossible and actually pissed him off, but that was irrelevant. “Without your sharingan, you're nothing.” Zabuza rasped and then disappeared again before I could attack. I twitched in annoyance. If this was just going to be a hit-and-run tactic I was going to murder someone.

 Preferably Peaches; but I would take Tazuna for putting me in this mess in the first place too.

 Fine. If he wanted to play this game, then I would just pull and Uchiha Tactic straight from the Book of Bullshit and own his sorry ass before he could sneeze. I ran through the appropriate hand signs and slammed my palms together with a loud clap, “Fūton: Gale Palm!” In a large ejection of wind oriented chakra, I managed to disperse most of the mist thinning it out enough that I could see Zabuza's faint outline several paces to my right. I turned to face the outline and began a new set of hand signs, “Katon: Great Fireball Jutsu!” I shouted and sent a steady stream of fire at Zabuza.

 I grinned when Zabuza had to leap out of the mist and into my sight, just like I wanted, “I'm sorry, I didn't catch that last part. You left to quickly. Something about me being without my sharingan...?” I said teasingly. Boy, did Peaches look pissed off.

 Somehow that set off a monologue of how Peach-boy had figured out the secret behind the sharingan. I almost started nodding off when he started explaining the piercing eye and the hypnotic eye and how I had used them in battle. Seriously, what was with this guy and explaining things to invisible audiences? Was he so enamored with his own smoker voice that he liked making long winded speeches over obvious things?!

 That would explain a lot of things, actually.

 After he finished lecturing me about things I had grown up knowing, he started talking about his 'ultimate plan to win the day'. Finally I gave up pretending to listen and groaned loudly, “Oh. My. Kami. SHUT UP! At least try to make it harder on me by not explaining your stupid little plan. Dear Lord, do I need to give you the 'a shinobi's lifestyle is deception' lecture I gave Naruto too?!”

 There was a beat of silence when even Haku stopped fighting Naruto and Sasuke, before Zabuza's annoying raspy voice spoke again, “Fine. I just won't give you a sporting chance.” If that was what he called a 'sporting chance' I would gladly go without, if only to keep my ears from bleeding.

 In the back of my mind I wondered who could out talk the other: the Hokage or Peaches.

 The fighting between the three boys resumed with vigor, but something was different about it. I could hear Sasuke using the fireball jutsu as well, which was strange. Didn't he already try to melt the ice and figure out that it didn't work? What could those two idiots possibly be up to? I risked a glance in their direction, hoping that it might shed some light on their plan.

 “Pay attention to your own fight!” Zabuza roared and I snapped my head around with a gasp just in time to feel his foot connect with my jawline. There was a dull crunch and I tasted the sharp coppery twang of blood flooding my mouth; seconds later a wave of pain bloomed from my jaw, momentarily causing my mind to blank. I landed in a heap on the ground, my jaw throbbing painfully. I reached up to cradle it and winced when my hand grazed against the bruising area. The bone was cracked at the very least.

 High killer intent brought my head up and my eyes widened when I saw Zabuza descending from the air, the Kubikiribōchō raised over his head and positioned to bisect me at the waist. Scrambling, I twisted to the side and got my feet under me just as the long blade dug into the ground almost three inches deep. I winced and tried not to imagine what would have happened to be had I been any slower.

 I was really starting to regret pissing Peaches off.

 The Kiri nuke-nin yanked his big ass sword out of the ground and turned towards me, a deranged look in his eyes. “Seems I finally succeeded in shutting up the Uchiha with the runaway mouth. Now to make it permanent.” I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the lame trash talk. This guy was truly pathetic when it came to being intimidating. I was starting to think that awkward Iruka could be more terrifying than this guy. The chunnin might be terrifying to kids, but he was just a socially awkward wimp when it came to adults.

 Peachy disappeared.

 I stiffened and looked around, trying to discern any chakra signal with either my sharingan or my sensory abilities. I swallowed a mouthful of blood, trying not to gag at the overbearing taste of copper, and ran through my options. While the wind jutsu had momentarily cleared the mist, it was back in full force, once again hindering my line of vision. Sight was out, I could deal with that. Peaches was a master of the silent killing technique; he could enter a crowd full of people, kill one person, and be gone before that person even hit the ground–all the while not making a smidgen of noise. That mean I could not hear Zabuza's attacks either and if I did it was probably a distraction. Still I could manage without hearing too.

 That left my sensing abilities and scent. I wasn't a tracker and I was no where near as good at olfactory perception as Kakashi or the Inuzuka clan, but I still had a sharp nose. However, the problem with that was my sense of smell was being overridden by the smell of my blood still filling my mouth. My chances of predicting Peaches next attack were starting to slim down. My chakra sensing abilities weren't the best, it was mostly just raw talent, but I still should be able to pick out Zabuza's large chakra source in the thick mist he had created. It would be like trying to pick out the early morning sun in a thick fog, but it was still doable. Unless Peach-boy suppressed his chakra, I should be able to sense him.

 I closed my eyes and concentrated on spanning my awareness about the bridge. I could feel the chakra of the three boys flitting around inside the ice prison, which appeared to be a thin dome of Haku's chakra, and I could pick out Hinata's still relatively high chakra reserves right in front of Tazuna's stunted civilian level chakra. Wait.

 Hinata.

 Damn it! I had a Hyuuga with me the whole time and I was too caught up in my ego to even think about asking her for help. There wasn't anything that could hide from the Byakugan! And now, I couldn't talk because of my cracked jawbone. Growling deep in my throat I was about to shunshin to Hinata and signal what I needed in my rusty genin hand signs, when the object I was looking for appeared.

 Right where I didn't want it.

  Chapter 13: Reassuring Brats is Such a Drag

“W-where's N-N-N-Na-Naruto-kun?” Hinata asked the next day as she came down for breakfast. I ignored the conversation as I absentmindedly went over my supply of weapons. My instincts were telling me that the final battle between my team and Zabuza was approaching fast. I wouldn't be unprepared this time, I was going to make sure I was as prepared as I could be with my limited resources. I sighed through my nose and wished that the Land of Waves had a weapons shop of some sort. I had gone as far as whittling down sticks I gathered in the woods into makeshift senbon needles.

 There was no way in hell I was going to lose this fight.

 Tsunami's worried voice brought me back to reality, “Well I hope he's alright. A child shouldn't spend the night out in the woods alone.” I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as I reattached my weapons pouch to my hip. Civilians would forever think that a child was a child and not a ninja, no matter what we did to convince them otherwise.

 “I wouldn't worry.” Everyone turned to look at me. I found it amusing that there were sparks of anger in the eyes of the two genin present. It was especially funny coming from Hinata. I shrugged, “Naruto is an immature brat, but he's still a genin. He'll be fine...” A smirk crawled up the corner of my mouth, “Although, he could be dead from chakra exhaustion. He's an idiot for practicing that jutsu day in and day out.”

 Hinata squeaked in fear and daintily covered her mouth with her hands. “S-sensei, you d-d-don't th-think that he–” She didn't finish her thought, as if she was afraid that if she said Naruto was dead it would be true.

 Sasuke hummed to himself, “Sensei is probably right. That dobe is probably dead somewhere.” I mentally grinned evilly as I filed away the quote for future blackmail against Sasuke. If Mikoto ever found out that Sasuke was being rude to Kushina-san's child, my aunt would hang Sasuke by his toenails and proceed to skin him alive.

 Duckass stood suddenly and started to walk away, “I'm going for a walk.” He said nonchalantly as he stuffed his hands into his shorts' pockets.

 I grinned at my cousin as he passed me, “Say hi to your boyfriend for me when you find him!” I called teasingly. Sasuke actually snarled when he glared at me and I laughed with true delight. I swear teasing Sasuke was almost as fun as it had was to tease Kakashi-nii.

 Actually teasing the duckass was more fun because he didn't throw kunais at me.

 Or tell Shisui where I was at any given time.

 The door clicked shut behind Sasuke and I immediately stood up, “Let's go Hinata, you're turn for practice.” I didn't miss Hinata's flinch, but I ignored it. Now was not the time for personal issues, we were about to have a fight on our hands.

 Hinata followed me quietly until we reached the clearing I had in mind to use as Hinata's training ground. I sat down in the middle of the clearing and closed my eyes, “Alright, go out in the woods for a bit and try to sneak back here. I'll tell you if I hear you or not.”

 She didn't move.

 I waited for a moment longer before cracking an eye open. Hinata stood there, still in her strangely defiant mood. If not for the blush on her cheeks or the nervous way she twiddled her fingers, I would have said she was glaring at me. I guess I wasn't getting out of this easily.

 “Look,” I started as I leaned back on my hands and closed my eye again, “it's my job as your sensei to prepare you for the world. I won't apologize for seeming a little harsh; to me Naruto, Sasuke and you are all adults so I won't coddle you. If you can't handle it, then resign from your career as a kunoichi and find a less stressful job.” I opened my other eye to pin the quiet Hyuuga heiress with a serious look, “Otherwise, start practicing.”

 Hinata was quiet for a long time. She just stood in her place, staring at me. I held her gaze. Hinata may be a shy child who stuttered a lot, but I could tell by her eyes that gaining her respect would be a challenge for anyone, and once the had it she would never stop respecting them no matter what they did. I knew that her philosophy came from her clan, so I would respect her beliefs, however much they differed from the Uchiha clan.

 Finally the little girl bowed deeply, as one would to a highly respected elder, and ran off into the woods. I smiled, I was actually starting to enjoy this jounin sensei gig... well at least with Hinata.

 The two boys were still annoying.

 When I was could no longer feel Hinata's chakra signature, I pulled a blank scroll out of my weapons pouch and opened it. Setting it down in front of me, the tip of my foot resting on the edge to keep the scroll from rolling back up, I took out my fan I used for wind ninjutsu and unfurled it. I felt along the fan's edge for the rib that was just slightly larger than the others. Hooking my fingernail under the tiny lip at the top, I pulled out my field brush then I flipped the fan over so I could feel along the base for the compartment that held a block of compressed and died ink.

 With all my supplies laid out I proceeded to make the ink. Scratching off a good bit of the powdered ink into the large thumb indent on my fan that doubled as an ink pot, I spat saliva until the ink was smooth and thin enough for writing. Carefully, to avoid spilling my hard won ink, I set the fan down by my leg and dipped the brush into the ink. Leaning closer to the blank scroll I began the emergency report.

 'Red Update

 Mission status: C-rank updated to A-rank

 Team: Genin Team 7

 Report: Three days out of Konohagakure, Team had encountered two chunnin level nuke-nin known as the 'Demon Brothers'. Minimal injuries. The nuke-nin were taken out by Team Leader with a minor AoE genjutsu. Client confessed to requesting a B-rank level Mission under the rank C. Team decision made to deliver Client safely to Destination and abort the Mission. En route to Destination, Team encountered A-class nuke-nin known as Momochi Zabuza. Presumed Alive with Unknown Ally. Team Leader mildly injured: Chakra Exhaustion. Political tension. Gang trouble caused by man named Gatou. Team has made unanimous decision to remain at Destination until problems are resolved.'

 After the ink dried I rolled the scroll back up and drew three bands around the outside, marking the information as High Priority information. Setting aside the scroll I twirled my brush around and used the sharp end of it to stab my thumb. Quickly I made the hand signs and slammed my palm to the ground, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!”

 A small puff of smoke and a small brown hawk stood there, her head cocked to the side as she stared at me with one sharp yellow eye, “Yanagi-sama? You have use of me?” The hawk summon questioned in her smooth silky voice.

 I picked up the scroll and presented it to her, “Take this to the Hokage in Konohagakure, fast.” The hawk jumped into the air and grabbed the scroll in her talons. I bowed my head in thanks and the hawk was gone so quickly she was nothing but a speck in the sky within a minute. Breathing in relief I knew the scroll would reach Konoha withing two days. All my hawk summons were naturally fast; but Izon was the fastest of the group, I could rely on her.

 As I finished wiping the ink out of my fan's thumb imprint, I called out, “I know you're there. Go back and try again.” There was a moment of silence before I could feel Hinata's chakra starting to move away from me again. For her to get within 50 meters of me without my noticing was a feat; maybe I underestimated the Hyuuga girl.

 vvv 3rd Person~ Sasuke vvv

 Sasuke found Naruto alright, talking to some weird androgynous boy. The Uchiha boy didn't know if he should be amused that Naruto thought the boy was a girl, or annoyed that the loser was blabbing to a complete stranger about shinobi matters. He was leaning towards annoyed. Sasuke wasn't dumb, that boy down there with Naruto wasn't some innocent civilian boy. Having grown up in a ninja clan, Sasuke could spot the small telltale signs of a trained shinobi and that boy was definitely a shinobi of some sort. Why he was bothering Naruto... that was the question.

 Sasuke knew enough espionage to know that one should never be discovered loitering around. When it was clear that the strange boy was getting ready to leave, Sasuke ducked back a few yards and began slowly walking back towards the pair. He tucked his hands in his pockets and made a casual show of looking around; when the boy turned around Sasuke pretended that the movement caught his attention and picked up his pace, his dark eyes solely on Naruto. Sasuke glanced up at the strange boy passed him, just a false curious glance, before returning his gaze on the confused blonde.

 Only when the boy was far behind him did Sasuke pause and glance back. He knew that subtle tension anywhere, he had seen it in his father, Itachi-nii, Shisui, even Kaa-chan. Almost every adult he had ever come across in the clan had that same invisible aura of caution that seemed to run in their blood. There was no mistaking it now: that boy was a shinobi. And from his careful avoidance of Sasuke, the navy haired Uchiha  also knew that the boy wasn't an ally.

 Yanagi-sensei was going to be pissed if she knew there was a possible third-party of ill intent; but she would be even more pissed off if Sasuke didn't warn her of the possibility. Sasuke couldn't help but sigh a little, never had he understood why Shikamaru was always babbling about troublesome women until now.

 To take out his frustration, Sasuke bashed Naruto on the head. The loser automatically started snapping at Sasuke, both his hands raising to cradle his poor abused head, “Hey what was that for?!”

 Sasuke crossed his arms, “Hey, loser, did you forget about breakfast?”

 The blonde idiot blinked a few times before giving Sasuke his signature cheesy grin and chuckling obnoxiously. Sasuke made a disgusted sound and pulled a face, knowing he wouldn't like whatever this idiot just did. He was starting to understand why Yanagi was always so grouchy; if Naruto was anything like Obito-itoko then Sasuke's respect for his female cousin just raised a few pegs.

 Naruto's grin grew until it took up one-third of his face and he jerked his thumb towards him with a large wink, “Just wait til you see what I mastered last night! Frizzy-sensei is going to be so impressed!” With that the blonde idiot leapt to his feet and took out the much battered fan that Yanagi-sensei had loaned to him.

 Sasuke mentally groaned. Yanagi was going to murder his teammate for destroying one of her weapons.

 vvv Normal POV vvv

 Bam!

 “Jounin-san! Don't do that!” Tsunami squeaked in alarm when I banged my head against the table. I only responded by repeating my action, just to annoy her. Damn it damn it damn it! I didn't need any more complications! I needed a nice, straight-forward battle to the death with the Demon of the Mist; I didn't need some secretive little bastard trying to throw a stupid plot twist into this! Especially not with three genin to watch over. I was going to have a hard enough time keeping the brats alive while fighting Peaches, having a secondary opponent was going to be next to impossible!

 Just kill me now, please.

 “Er... Yanagi-sensei...” My head snapped up and I pinned Naruto with a deadly glare. He immediately went white and visibly shivered. Both Hinata and Sasuke edged away from the little brat, knowing that all hell was about to break loose.

 I lifted a hand and jabbed my index finger in Naruto's direction, “You.” I hissed, my voice so cold I was almost surprised that I couldn't see my breath, “You had better start recalling that conversation you had with that bastard. Every. Word. Or. Else.”

 Naruto chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his neck, “Uh... Okay... I woke up and I saw this guy sitting there, only I thought she was a girl and-” He fell silent. The Kyuubi brat's breathing started to quicken. It was obvious that he couldn't recall the conversation to save his life, which was truly on the line at the moment. His blue eyes darted to Sasuke in a panic, trying to seek out help. My cousin only looked away from his teammate, obviously not wanting to get in the crossfire.

 My eyes landed on Sasuke, he wasn't going to get out of this. “If you have information, share. Don't withhold information simply because you're too scared of your own sensei.” I snapped.

 I might not have interacted much with my cousin before I became his sensei, but I knew how to push his buttons long before I met him. I made a point in knowing ever single weak point in all my clansmen, both physical and mental. Sasuke wasn't one of the only Uchiha who didn't like being called a coward, but he was the most irrational when someone did. Sasuke was very easy to manipulate. Having a father like Fugaku did wonders; you would either end up as unbreakable and unpredictable like Itachi or basically a pawn like Sasuke.

 As predicted, Sasuke stiffened and turned to glare at me. I kept my expression blank so he wouldn't see the victory in my onyx eyes. This boy was even more easy to manipulate than Obito, which was saying something.

 I closed my eyes, “Stop glaring and start blabbing.” I said to both the boys. Leaning back against the wall by the doorway, I closed my eyes as I began memorizing whatever came out of their mouths. Both were amateurs when it came to relaying information, but I could work with that. In the back of my mind, I added reporting in a concise manner and memorization at the blink of an eye to the already long list of what I needed to teach my brats.

 If we survived this stupid mission that is.

 “What does it matter?!” All conversation stopped when Inari screeched in that whiny voice of his. My eyebrow twitched in irritation, this kid was really pushing it. My already endless patience was coming to an end and someone was going to get hurt soon.

 Everyone looked to see the littlest brat standing at the doorway beside me, his childish eyes wet with unshed tears, “You're all going to die anyway! Gatou has a whole army, they'll just beat you and kill you. You're only wasting your-OW!” Inari fell over on his butt with his strange little hat flying off.

 Everyone twisted to give me various looks of surprise and anger. I only cracked my knuckles and shook my hand, “Such a hard head, that actually hurt.” I grumbled to myself. And I thought Naruto had a hard head, but he had nothing on Inari.

 “Jounin-san!” Tsunami cried out in alarm and anger. I had punched her child after all, any decent mother would be upset; even if her brat was asking for it. I wouldn't be surprised if she kicked the team out because of what I did.

 Still, I had to set this doom and gloom brat right. I set a cold gaze on Inari, who shivered and whimpered. The little coward. I hit Naruto harder than that and he never acted any different. “Never tell a ninja that their career is a wasted time. And stop sniveling, it's silly and childish.”

 Inari was very close to tears by then, “You don't know anything!” He wailed, “You don't know anything about this country, you're just butting in! All of you are just laughing and playing around, you don't know what it's like to be treated like trash!” I was positive that every member of Team 7 stiffened at that comment. We all had sob stories that were worse than Inari's and we knew it.

 Naruto cut in before I could even open my mouth, “Oh yeah? Listen to yourself whining like some sorry little victim.” I glanced at Naruto as my expressionless mask fell over my face, concealing any trace of emotion. First I would see how the kiddies handled it, then step in and finish up whatever was left. Naruto glared at Inari, his blue eyes full of anger and self-righteousness, “You're nothing but a coward!”

 “N-Naruto!” Hinata squeaked in a tiny voice, her pearl eyes wide with surprise. I doubt she had ever seen him so serious. Even I hadn't, and I had been put on his watch many times while I was part of the military police.

 Naruto stood up and stomped away with a growl of frustration. I watched him go silently, keeping an eye of the reactions of my other two genin brats. Hinata looked as if she wanted to go after him, but she stayed in her seat, her Hyuuga eyes trailing after Naruto's appalling orange jumpsuit. Sasuke had retreated into his own mind, keeping his expressions to himself like I was doing, but I could tell by the way his eyes followed Naruto that he was mildly concerned for his teammate. I returned my gaze to Inari to find the little brat sobbing, thick trails of tears coursing down his cheeks. He sat there for a moment, his head bowed so no one could see his eyes, before fleeing from the room like the coward he was.

 Time for me to step in.

 I waited until everyone had gone to bed before searching out the gloomy brat. Even though Inari was a civilian, he still had a chakra signal, albeit an extremely weak one, so finding him on the back porch was a piece of cake. I smirked when I found him sitting at the porch's edge, his knees up to his chest.

 “Hey twerp, got a minute?” I asked, bopping the kid on the back of the head lightly.

 Inari flinched away from me, his hands going to hold his hat in place, as his black eyes stared at me with nervous anticipation. Seeing how I nearly tried to brain him at dinner, I didn't really blame the brat. Inari quickly covered up his fear with a sharp glare that didn't belong on his young face, “What do you want?” He asked, his bravado only breaking when his question ended in a high pitched squeak.

 I took that as an invitation to sit down beside the brat, “You asked what do any of us know about suffering. It came to my attention that Naruto never answered your question, so I thought I would.” I said conversationally. Inari shifted away from me a little. I scoffed at his blatant fear of me and leaned back on my hands, my feet dangling inches above the water, “Where do I begin? Hm... well, I was raised by my brother, whom I don't really like, because my parents died before I even turned three; during the Third Shinobi War. Both Nii-san and I are practically outcasts from the clan because of some stupid reason, too. Sasuke's father constantly belittles him and says he should be more like his older brother Itachi. Hinata's father... yeesh, that guy is worse that Sasuke's dad. He actually thinks that Hinata is a waste of space because she's not the strongest in the clan. Even worse, she's the Hyuuga heiress so the expectations put on her are doubly high.”

 Inari looked more and more surprised at each passing sentence. His young face began to lighten with understanding that he wasn't the only one suffered. I met his gaze and turned serious, “Then there's Naruto. He grew up without knowing his parents too; even worse, he didn't even have friends or anyone who cared about him. At least I had my brother and his team, Naruto had no one ever. Still...” I trailed off and looked up at the low hanging moon, “I never saw him cry or give up. Not even when he completely screws over a mission, he'll still try his best to make amends. That brat wants to be respected, and he'll do anything to get it.”

 I smiled kindly at Inari, “My whole team has a bunch of sob stories and we all reacted in our own way. It's part of what makes us who we are and not your everyday idiot walking around on the streets. I guess you can cope through your losses by crying too... but won't you get tired of crying after a while? Isn't it better to be happy all the time, and loud and obnoxious?” Inari looked down at his feet, contemplating. I chuckled and laid a hand on the boy's shoulder. He didn't flinch, “If there's anyone who can possibly understand what you're going through, it's Team 7. We're here to protect your grandfather and make sure your home stays safe from Gatou. And, if I have to die for that to be a reality, then so be it. I'll gladly give my life.”

 The little boy stared at me, awe buried deep within the obsidian orbs. I snorted at his expression and moved my hand from his shoulder to wrap his neck in a playful choke hold. With my free hand I ground my knuckles into his scalp, “Eh, don't give me that look. I may be a grouchy kunoichi, but I still have a heart. I just like confusing people!” I said teasingly and for the first time since my team had arrived, I heard Inari laugh. I grinned in response as I let the kid free from my grip and leaned back again. In truth, I didn't know how to talk to people unless I was yelling at them, but for some reason this little brat managed to break the ice.

 I snorted as I closed my eyes. If Nii-san could see me know, I was sure he would die laughing.

  VVV^^^OMAKE^^^VVV

 The Curse of the Uchiha

 vvv 3rd Person vvv

 “Man, why are we always the ones called off on stupid S-ranked missions?” Obito complained as Team Minato checked in at Konoha's gate. Kakashi shot Obito an irritated look while the two chunnin guards snickered. The Uchiha gave them a sideways glance, they seemed familiar, but Obito couldn't remember their names to save his life.

 Rin giggled behind one hand and smiled fondly at Obito, “Because, Obito-kun, we're the only full team outside of the ANBU Corp that is cleared for S-ranks missions.” She explained happily. It wasn't often that Rin got called out on missions, but she loved every chance she got.

 Obito beamed at his childhood crush, “Oh yeah! I guess it's awesome to be so powerful. But still, I wish they'd give Team Minato some off time. Between the police force and missions for Konoha, I'm being worn out.”

 “Yet you somehow still manage to run your mouth.” Kakashi interjected drily.

 Immediately Obito glared at his rival/friend, “Got something to say, Baka-Kashi?!”

 “I just said it.”

 Obito pointed at Kakashi, “Stop being so cool! We're not little kids anymore!”

 Kakashi pulled out his book and opened it to his place, “You could have fooled me.” He commented. Kakashi smirked under his mask when he heard Obito gritting his teeth. Mentally he made another tally. While he refused to participate in that silly rivalry with Gai, Kakashi saw no qualms in annoying Obito.

 Both men jerked forward a little when someone hit them upside the head, and turned to Rin, who was standing behind them looking annoyed, “You're both children, now grow up and march! We've gotta report to the Hokage.” The little woman ordered. Before Kakashi or Obito could do what she asked, she grabbed her teammates by the fronts of their jounin vests and dragged them along behind her.

 Obito pouted as he struggled halfheartedly to escape Rin-chan's grip. “Rin-chaaaan! We can walk on our own, ya know!”

 “It's not the walking that's the problem, it's your bickering! Honestly, you two never quit.”

 Kakashi didn't seem all too bothered about being dragged around by a woman half his height and weight. “You don't care when it's Obito and Yanagi fighting.” He commented, still not looking up from his porn.

 Rin and Obito both shot their teammate nasty looks, but Rin was the one who spoke, “That's because they're siblings and it's none of my business. Besides I'm not constantly around Yanagi-chan. It's you two idiots I've got to deal with.”

 Kakashi muttered something under his breath that Rin couldn't catch. Obito, however, seemed to understand him and snorted in amusement. The Uchiha quickly ducked his head in shame and sheepishly looked at Rin, proving that whatever Kakashi had said wasn't very kind about her.

 Rin could sometimes understand why Yanagi was so short tempered, if these goons were the ones who raised her. Luckily for Rin, they had arrived at the Missions Office and could give their stupid report and disperse. While Rin loved her teammates like her own family, she could only take so much of them in one sitting.

 vvv

 Hiruzen groaned and rubbed his temples after the rowdy team left. He would never understand how Minato-kun stayed sane around them, especially after all the drama that had happened between the three kids during the Third Shinobi War. It was one thing to have a student supposedly die and come back months later alive and well–that happened a lot in war; but it was entirely another thing to have another student be captured by Kiri-nins and forced to be the jinchuuriki of the Sanbi.

 It was because of Team Minato that people said having an Uchiha on the team was asking for trouble. What was alarming was most of the time they were right; Team Minato, Team Shisui, ANBU Team Ro, and now apparently Team 7 all had horrible luck when it came to missions.

 Hiruzen looked at the emergency mission report he had received from Uchiha Yanagi only moments before Team Minato came barging in the Missions Assignment Office. How on earth did Team 7 manage to somehow go from a normal C-rank mission to A-rank was beyond the Hokage's understanding, even with the explanation Yanagi had given him.

 Frustrated, Hiruzen took a long drag on his pipe and read over the report again. This put him in a bind, he knew that he should send reinforcements to aid Uchiha Yanagi, but he doubted they would be reached in time. His only hope was the pray that Yanagi had the situation under control, she didn't request reinforcements which meant she could handle it.

 Hiruzen paled at the very thought of how many people would be after his hide if Yanagi's team failed to return. At the top of that list would be Obito and Kakashi. Hiruzen shuddered at the thought of facing the two top shinobi in the village.

[writer-and-artist27]

The Future

My take on how things went immediately after Obito’s confession as written by Lang. First times always come with some bumps in the road that truly determine whether a relationship lasts. At least, that’s my experience with them.

Think everyone’s 16-18, for the sake of my own sanity.

Song to listen to, right here.

-------------------------------

Obito could have died and went to heaven in that very moment. 

“I-I do like you, Obi. I just don’t know how much I do compared to you. But, um, I’m willing to find out more with you by my side.” Tomo-chan was blushing that cute pink that made her Tomo-chan, barely able to meet his eyes, but she was smiling at him. Her hands were soft and warm and they were holding his hands. “If that’s okay?”

He could have kissed her. Damn it, he wanted to kiss her. “Definitely,” he said instead, because there’s no way he could kiss her in front of the entire café. Kei would never let him hear the end of it. Hell, Kakashi would have blackmail material for months. Not to mention Judai-jichan and Hikari-bachan, who had been silent the entire time Obito had fumbled with his confession.

Obito did not want to look behind him because he could already hear Wataru-san and Hayate cheering like goofballs.

It didn’t change how Tomo-chan was smiling at him and him alone. “Aye,” she said faintly, barely audible over the bouquet of roses nestled in her arms. “Thankie, Obi.”

“I should be the one thanking you, Tomo-chan,” he breathed, feeling dust in his eyes. “I-I thought you weren’t going to say yes.” Rin-chan was still cute, but she never noticed. Tomo-chan, though… 

Tomo-chan shook her head frantically, her braid — the one he recommended she start wearing — slapping her cheeks. “I-It’s you, Obi, I don’t think I would be able to reject you.”

Scratch out heaven. Put in Nirvana, because Tomo-chan was starting to look more and more like an angel Obito wanted to keep to himself. “T-Tomo-chan…”

“I-I guess that sums it up, huh?” said Tomo-chan, and she ducked her nose into the nearest rose blossom. “Th-There’s a lot of people staring right now, Obi, so, um.” Her cheeks turned a cuter red. “W-Wanna come with me to find a vase for these roses? M-Maybe for some privacy since I kinda don’t see one around the piano right now a-and I don’t think our friends will be helping anytime soon…”

Obito just had to glance around once. Just once, and already he could see the mess of faces consisting of his precious ones and café strangers. Most were smiling, Kei included. But there was that select few in a corner who were giving the loudest catcalls and wolf whistles, so he turned back to Tomo-chan to nod furiously. There was no way he wanted to explain what some of those bastards were saying. “I wasn’t going to say no!” 

“A-Aye,” Tomo-chan said softly, squeezing his hands. “Thankie.” She paused, blue eyes widening, then she raised her head past the roses and Obito’s shoulder. “Mama, Papa, is it okay for me to go?”

Oh shit. The sudden realization that Tomo-chan’s parents were still behind him did not help Obito’s dormant worries and a bead of sweat was already trailing down his cheek. He slowly turned in his seat to see Judai-jichan looking at him from the bar. 

Obito swallowed thickly.

Judai-jichan smiled. “Sure, hime,” he called out casually, but Obito could not shake off the feeling that there was more. Then Judai-jichan turned to him with that same smile. “Make sure not to do anything I wouldn’t do, Obito.” 

Obito exhaled. It was safe. “I-I swear, Judai-jichan!” he yelled still, because this was Judai-jichan. He didn’t know Judai-jichan as much as say, Kei and Kakashi, but he was still Tomo-chan’s dad. Obito didn’t know what a dad could be like until Judai-jichan, and he didn’t want to mess up anything else now. Not when everything was going so well. “I’ll make sure to protect Tomo-chan with my life!”

Tomo-chan jolted. “O-Obi!” 

Nearby, Hikari-bachan startled from serving a customer cake. Like mother, like daughter, he guessed. “Obito!” she echoed in shock.

Judai-jichan laughed heartily. “I’ll count on you for that, Obito!” Without skipping a beat, he lowered his voice. “She’s my only hime. Treasure her.” 

The grin was already on Obito’s face. “Roger that!”

-------------------------------

“Muuuu, I’m sure there was a vase around here somewhere…”

Obito did his best. He really did. 

But it was seriously hard to look at everything but Tomo-chan when she was still wearing that adorable pink and white kimono dress. Sure, she wore it for work, but he couldn’t help it. The blue obi with ribbon accents just cemented her new status of “cutest girl in the whole world” in Obito’s eyes, but. That did not mean looking up her skirt while she was on a stepstool. 

Nope. Nope nope nope nope. 

She needed to get a vase. The least Obito could do was give her space. He didn’t have to be a sensor or a Hyuga to know she was still nervous. 

“U-Um, Obi?” There was more shuffling as Tomo-chan rocked back and forth on her feet in front of the kitchen cabinet. “C-Could I ask you something?”

He gulped before uncrossing his arms and facing her. At least, as much as he could since she was still focused on the cabinet and not meeting his eyes. “What is it, Tomo-chan?”

“Wh-Why did you have to get so many roses? I-I don’t mind, it’s just a lot…” Tomo-chan slowly stepped down from her stool with a large blue vase in her arms, her voice still pitched like a tiny mouse. “O-One rose would have been enough.”

The ten-billion ryō question. Obito took a deep breath before walking forward and taking one of Tomo-chan’s hands in his. He knew his palm was sweaty, but Tomo-chan was blushing as much as he was, so in the end, it didn’t matter. “I didn’t know what would get through to you, Tomo-chan.” Obito hesitated before squeezing her fingers. “Kei said you throw around ‘I love you’ hard enough to concuss people, so…” he trailed off. “But it worked, didn’t it?” 

The blush from before was back on Tomo-chan’s cheeks now. C-Cute. “O-Oh,” she mumbled, putting the vase down on the counter near the roses before raising her other hand to grip his. “O-Okay. That…explains a lot.” 

Obito laughed nervously. Shit, he was already so whipped for her and they hadn’t even gone on a date yet. “Though, uh, I guess that means we’re going out now, huh? Man, it feels weird!” He never believed in his faintest dreams that Tomo-chan would feel the same. She hugged literally everyone, so to accept his confession… 

Tomo-chan swiveled her head to look at him through her bangs, her jaw dropping. “I-Is that a bad thing?!” 

Obito took a step back before shaking his head. Shit. Shit, shit, shit, that’s not what he meant. “N-no, Tomo-chan, no! It’s not bad at all!” 

“Th-Then,” Tomo-chan shivered, her lips puckered anxiously, “wh-what is it?”

Ah, screw it. Obito pulled her in by the hand for a well-needed hug.

“O-Obi?!” she squeaked against his collar. Tomo-chan was shaking but she was soft. She was warm. She was here, in his arms just like he wanted at night. 

Obito exhaled slowly before resting his nose against her hair. Sweet. Tomo-chan smelled sweet. “It’s amazing,” he mumbled, feeling that urge again. He wanted to hold her hand, to hug her like this for so long—to do it now was just… “You have n-no idea how long I wanted this, Tomo-chan. How long I wanted to be with you.”

Fingers were clutching the front of his jacket and Tomo-chan shuddered. “O-Oh,” she said again, quieter. “I-I’m sorry for not noticing sooner, Obi.” She was—she was burying her face in his shoulder again, unintentionally filling Obito’s nose with more of her scent. More of her. “I’m sorry for not replying sooner.” She took a step closer to him, almost cuddling him with how she fit into the hug. “I-I’m still not sure since we just s-started this, but um.” There was a tiny, almost quiet hiccup. “I-I think I’m…um, starting to fall in love with you too…” 

That did it. Obito could die right here and now to ascend to Enlightenment. Or heaven. Or Nirvana. This was great. 

Then again, he couldn’t leave the girl now. 

So instead, he pulled back to look into her blue eyes, arms around her waist to keep her here. “Y-You mean that, Tomo-chan?”

Tomo-chan averted her gaze, raising a hand to cover her lips. Then she nodded. “Th-This is really embarrassing, Obi.” Her cheeks were still that adorable pink as her other hand clutched his jacket. Her grip was shaking. “I don’t know how much more I can take. I-I might melt in your arms at this rate.”

A surprised laugh left his lips. Obito already knew he didn’t want to let Tomo-chan go now, not ever. “Don’t worry. I’d catch you, Tomo-chan.”

Tomo-chan chose that moment to look at him, her eyebrows furrowed from anxiety. “E-Even if I’m falling?”

Obito blinked before nodding. “I promised Judai-jichan, didn’t I?”

For some reason, Tomo-chan’s gaze turned glassy. Wait. Shit. Was she close to— “Obi,” she mumbled through her fingers, snapping him out of any panic, “stars don’t live forever.”

Obito blinked again. Tomo-chan wasn’t Kei. So what was with the riddle—

Without warning, Tomo-chan ducked her head and hid her face against his chest. Obito felt his heart start to pound in time with the barely audible words. “Obi, don’t change.” Her voice was high-pitched but sad. Desperate, almost, like she was begging. “Please.” 

“I-I won’t,” he said instinctively, but the urge to kiss her was growing harder to ignore. He tightened the hug instead, because there was no missing how upset Tomo-chan sounded. If he didn’t know any better, it felt like he was taking the Chūnin Exams all over again, and how Tomo-chan asked everyone not to die. She was still scared. “I plan to be Hokage, Tomo-chan.” He raised a hand to her head and — oh shit, her hair was soft. “And that means not leaving you.”

A tiny gasp echoed in his jacket, enough to make his heart skip a beat. Tomo-chan shivered again, her hand pushing him back slightly while her other still covered her mouth. “O-Oh,” she said. There was a small giggle. “I-I just can’t win, huh…?”

Yep. He was fucked. 

Obito swallowed the sudden lump in his throat before prying his goggles from his eyes, putting them over his headband and allowing him to look at her head-on. Tomo-chan startled once his hands went up to grasp her shoulders, enough of a jolt to move away that hand covering her lips. He still tilted his head to try meeting her gaze. The least he could do was tell her properly. Sensei said he couldn’t do “subtle,” so… “Tomo-chan, I-I want to kiss you.”

“E-Eh?” She flushed a darker pink, her blue eyes darting everywhere but him. It would’ve been funny if not for how she was trying to avoid him. At least she got the message loud and clear this time. “Wh—eh?!” 

Obito gently moved one of his hands to her cheek, tilting her head up. “Tomo-chan.” 

Her squeaks fell silent. Then, she bit her lip. “Y-Yes?”

Obito leaned in, trying not to fumble. This was the perfect moment and he didn’t want to mess it up. She was still here. “Can I kiss you? I r-really really want to.”

Tomo-chan bit her lip a bit more, lowering her head and clutching his jacket tighter. Surprisingly, she looked more kissable with the action, not helped by the furious blush on her face. A funny noise caught between a squeal and a squeak echoed in the back of her throat before there was another hiccup. “O-okay. Just, um.” Tomo-chan raised her head, her lips wet from the biting. “Be gentle?”

Obito smiled. “Aye,” was all he could say. It seemed to be enough because Tomo-chan didn’t back away, merely closing her eyes.

Obito closed his eyes too, placing his other hand to the back of her head before leaning in. 

“O-Ow.”

Shit. He bumped her head. It was his goggles. Shit. Pull back, pull back. “S-Sorry, Tomo-chan. One more try.” And then he tilted his head and leaned in for real.

Tomo-chan’s lips were soft. Chapped from all the biting she did, but they were warm, smooth, and real. He could faintly taste something sweet and even if he couldn’t drink, it felt like he could get drunk off of this. Tomo-chan was melting against him too, relaxing enough for him to pull her closer and extend the contact until they couldn’t breathe. 

It was intoxicating, but it couldn’t last forever.

Once Obito pulled back from the lack of oxygen, there was a soft smack sound and Tomo-chan hiccupped again. Everything felt hot. “O-Obi,” her blue eyes fluttered open, her blush covering her nose and extending to her ears. “Th-That was…wow.” Her shoulders were slack even through her kimono dress. “D-Did you feel that…?”

Obito felt himself laugh again. “Sure did. You…You were amazing, Tomo-chan.” 

“M-Mm.” Tomo-chan’s blush could easily make her a tomato. Or a cherry. Cherries were probably better because they were sweet, just like her. “Obi…” she gulped, her high-pitched voice barely above a stage whisper. “Y-You were my first kiss.”

Well, fuck. He couldn’t stop smiling.

“I-I’m glad. But could…” Obito leaned in once more, inhaling as much as he could through his nose. “Could I do it again, Tomo-chan? I-I want to be your second too.”

Tomo-chan shut her eyes, a hand going up to her lips. Then she nodded, slowly moving her hand away. “I don’t think I want to k-kiss anyone else. Just, um. Y-You’re going to have to catch me when I do melt, Obi…”

“Hehe, that’s fine.” Obito kept his eyes open one second longer to burn Tomo-chan’s face into his mind before leaning in. “I’m the shinobi, so I’ll always catch you.” 

“D-Dork—nn…” 

Their lips met again and Obito could’ve sworn his cheeks were starting to hurt from how much he was grinning.

But just to be sure, he made sure to hug her closer once her hands started to shake. Kissing was apparently a shared weakness. Obito couldn’t be late for this. 

-------------------------------

Kei gave him that knowing look again. Her foot was also really close to his leg under the kotatsu, so Obito made sure to pull back in case she was raring to kick him again. Knowing how much of a jerk she could be, though, better to be safe than sorry. 

“Congrats on the relationship upgrade,” she said bluntly with a grin, shoving a plate of dorayaki in his direction over the kotatsu table. “At least she got it.”

“Thanks, Kei,” he replied cheerily, already feeling a smile at the thought of his new girlfriend. “I’m gonna have to turn down the sweets today, though.”

“Oh?” Kei looked actually curious while leveling that same pointy spatula at him. “That’s rare for you. What’s the occasion?”

Obito reached into his backpack to pull out a bundle and thank god, it wasn’t messed up. He brandished it to her with both hands, and Kei blinked. “I brought lunch!”

Kei snorted through her nose. “Lemme guess. Tomo?”

“Tomo-chan!” Obito agreed, because goddammit, his girlfriend was an angel. “She stopped by earlier today to give it to me!”

“At least it’s just you.” Kei rolled her eyes, flipping another dorayaki onto the rejected plate. “Get a room, seriously.”

“Shut it.” Obito snapped, then untied the cloth around the bundle. The box was normal, but opening the lid—

His heart skipped a beat. “Shit.” 

Kei looked at it too and threw her head back to laugh. “You two are cute together!” 

“Shut it!” 

There was no denying the joy on his face at seeing the onigiri heart in his lunch. His hands shook when picking up the tiny note left at the side of the vegetables. The handwriting was hastily scrawled, but still legible. 

Come by and visit more often! You have a lot of taste-testing to do, Mister! >.<

— Tomo

P.S. Before you say anything. -.- 

...Love you too. <3

[prongsisabadger]

Songs for the Heartbroken: That’s What You Get

AO3

FF.net

Prologue.

What is the scariest thing in the world? If people say whatever first comes to mind, we would probably end up with answers like heights, spiders, or maybe even death; but there are definitively things in this world that are scarier than that. The ones I particularly find most terrifying, are people. Of course there are different types of people that are terrifying in their own particular way, but here, I'll only write about one of them.

People who love. This might sound a little stupid to some but bare with me and allow me to explain. The word 'love' has now lost its essence from the amount of times we've heard it said with astonishing lack of sentiment. But I am not referring to an eleven-year-old's version of love when they first confess to their crush; nor am I speaking about those words guiltily spat between ground teeth or stuttered in the spur of a moment for lack of a better thing to say. I don't mean those many whispered 'I love you's of someone who just cheated on their significant other.

No, what I fear is much more profound, raw, animalistic even. What I feat is a person who disregards their own life in order to whatever or whomever they love. Those people have a purpose and will do anything to see it through. Just like a parent protecting their child, a soldier fighting for a cause they believe in or anything that can inspire such passion in a person's heart that the consequences of their actions go beyond one's imagination. People with a mission and the will to lay down their lives to accomplish it; those are the people who scare me the most. It's men and women with this kind of drive and determination who bring down nations, who are able to destroy anything in their path; capable of building relationships, entire lives and tear through them with savage violence and not an ounce of hesitation.

But the most frightening part of it is not what they are capable of, it's the fact that you never know who they are until its too late. You might have known that person your entire life and never had contemplated the possibility. Anyone can be one of these people, one of those who love too much; and you'll never know until it's too late, not even if that person is you.

That is the moment these people will stun you the most, when you find that you yourself are one of them, unsuspicious even to your own consciousness, until you realize that you would be willing to do the unthinkable to protect what you love. When you realize, that after all, those things that once seemed so terrible are not anymore, and that if it means safety, then you don't mind doing them anymore. Not even if it means you will lose your humanity in the process.

I have only seen such drive in someone other than my brother and me, and it took me quite some time to realize it too. I knew Shisui and I were special in some way other kids in the clan were not, that was at least until I met Itachi. The heir to the Uchiha leadership seemed like nothing special when we had first been introduced, he was serious, pensive even beyond what would be considered normal for a four year old. Even I with the extensive training (it was extensive, ok? Cut me some slack I was four) I had been put through at that tender age, was not as stuck up as he was. Turns out it wasn't because he felt superior to others, as most people outside the clan thought, he was just very insightful and preferred to assess the situation before taking part in it.

His father, the Uchiha clan head Fugaku, was insanely proud of him, and he had reason to. Itachi was a prodigy in every sense of the word, excelling in every ninja art at a very young age and showing more promise than any other child in Konohagakure no Sato. But what no one expected from the quiet prodigy, was the fact that he was one of these people; one of those who love too much.

My childhood had been good enough considering the times we were living in. I had grown up within the safe walls of the Uchiha compound, caging me in for six years until I would be allowed to enroll in the academy, keeping me from seeing much of the village and even less of the world. Not that this was uncommon, after all I was a child; but it was at that young age that life started shaping itself around me, and events that would be shaping my future, started taking place.

"But onii-chan, I already practiced shuriken jutsu and kunai this morning! Why can't you teach me more taijutsu?"

Ah, the innocent, peaceful days when my only concerns were regarding my training. For some reason, even if I was a spoilt brat most times, my brother managed to somehow keep his cool; he was good with children like that, even if he was only two years older.

"Akane, your taijutsu is nearly perfect; you're the only one who could give Fugaku-sama's son a run for his money. Your other skills need honing too, you know?" I pouted. I used to do that a lot back in the day, so much in fact that Shisui had become immune to its effects, unlike our grandparents.

I took the weapons basket my brother handed me and once again, turned to face the target hung on the sole sakura tree in our garden. It had become a routine with the passing of the years, after our parents died in the war, Shisui had decided to take my training upon himself; since our grandparents were too old (and in my oba-chans case, too reluctant) for the task. So ever since I could stand up straight, Shisui had attempted to give me the knowledge he had acquired over his few years ahead of me. So far, he had been succeeding, and with my upcoming entrance exam in two years and Shisui's eventual graduation, we tried to spend as much time together as possible.

All of this led to a very strict training schedule we followed almost religiously. Before Shisui left for the academy, we would do a series of stretches and warm-ups, followed by our daily morning spar. And when I say spar, I mean a four year old attempting to pose a challenge to her seven year old brother. Anyway, Shisui would leave for class after breakfast and a bath, and I would get stuck with obaa-chan and the chores for the rest of the morning. Cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, doing the futons, I hated it all; but I did it without complaining or slacking off for obaa-chan's sake.

After that, I would help jii-chan at his shop in the Uchiha district market. He was a blacksmith, one of the best among the clan, and I had always loved watching him turn raw iron into the fine pieces of art that were considered his blades. Most customers were members of the clan, but every now and then came people from other parts of the village; and since I rarely stepped out of the compound, these were the most interesting days.

The bell hung on top of the front door chimed, snapping me out of my reading induced trance; I marked the page I was reading and put the book under the counter. Chakra control was a very important part of shinobi lifestyle, and I'd taken to read it's theory after a rather long rant Shisui had gone on after being under graded at the academy. The chunin sensei had obviously been in the wrong, so I was determined to, when the time came, point this person in the right direction and avenge my brother. No one looked down on Uchiha Shisui without facing the wrath of his younger sister, ever.

I let go of my still unborn plan for vengeance as I saw one of my favorite cousins enter the shop.

"Obi-niiiiiiii" I screeched as I jumped down from the stool behind the counter and made my way to him as fast as my short legs allowed me.

I only stopped a few feet away when I saw he wasn't alone. Embarrassing Obito-nii in front of his friends would not do. I would have loved to force the air out of my cousin with all the force a four year old could put into a hug, but apart from embarrassing him, I would put a blemish in the spotless name of the Uchiha with such childish behavior. So before I could give jii-chan a reason to scold me, I bowed down at the waist and tried to put the best impression of 'shinobi Shisui' on my face.

"Obi-chan, Onii-san, Onee-san; welcome to Uchiha Fuko's armory. What can I do for you?"

The girl behind my cousin cooed as silently as she could to try and not hurt my pride; while the silver haired boy simply acknowledged me with a slight bow of his own. Meanwhile, Obito smiled proudly and held his held high, probably showing off, with a light blush on his cheeks.

"Mah, Akane-chan, no need for formalities, this is just my team. This is Rin, and The gloomy bastard is Kakashi, I call him Bakashi though, It's more fun that way." The last part he whispered, shooting me a cheeky grin.

My cousin had always been quite easy to read, but the fact that a four year old could tell he was extremely pleased, spoke volumes. When Obito was pleased about something, he tended to boast, a lot; thus providing me with a semi-reliable information source; one just had to know where to look. That was how I came to know they were due another mission the next day, which delighted me in a way only Shisui knew. I had always been almost morbidly interested in anything shinobi, so this new information summoned a wave of curiosity and enthusiasm that I could only just hide.

"So you need more supplies for your new mission, is that right? Should I get your usual order of kunai, shuriken and fire conducting wire? Or will you need something else? I heard things are getting rough out in the battlefield."

I tried to hide my curiosity as best I could, Obito might have been a bit naïve, but I had heard about a silver haired prodigy before, and didn't want to get caught red handed trying to collect information. Thank goodness, he seemed to think I was interested in the subject, or at least making polite conversation; because he gave no signs of being onto me. Meanwhile both Obito and Rin looked amused by my 'playing adult' and had bright smiles on their faces as well as their full attention on me.

Ever since I had first started speaking, I'd found that different words and expressions, got different reactions out of people. Shisui, being the ideal shinobi trainee, had wasted no time in helping me hone that skill. He said information gathering and manipulation were key abilities for a shinobi to have; but that should only be used on the enemy. Of course, being a four year old, my 'enemy' was whoever happened to have what I wanted. In this case, Obito-nii and his team.

Obito put his hands on his knees and crouched to my height in order to address me. I, on my behalf stood straighter at attention, like my brother had told me when being addressed by a superior.

"That, Akane-chan, is classified information." he said slowly, clearly with the intention of letting my brain take in the new word; but I had been in the same room as my brother when he studied, it wasn't completely foreign to me.

I nodded rapidly and took a step back to address the other two, obaa-chan would have my head if she heard I was impolite to customers; and she would sure flip if she knew said customers were friends and comrades of the Uchiha.

"Rin-san, Kakashi-san, were you two looking for anything in particular? Our shop has quite the reputation for our work with chakra conducting metals." I said and made my way behind the counter to look for my cousin's usual order.

I struggled a bit with my yukata when I tried to climb the ladders and reach the top shelves behind the counter; but I managed to avoid breaking my neck and look at least a bit like I knew what I was doing. Traditional clothes were very restricting, when movement was concerned, but it sure looked good on a shopkeeper.

"That's the reason we are here actually, Uchiha-san. Both Kakashi and me are in need of chakra conducting blades." Answered the girl politely, the gleam of amusement still present in her eyes.

The other boy, on the other hand, who I was now certain, was the last member of the Hatake clan, stood silently to the side. He was eyeing up a tanto that was being displayed on a shelve to the side. He had a good eye, if I was being honest. The blade was not just beautifully decorated, displaying a wolf pack in the hunt on the side; but it was also of the finest quality my jii-chan had ever been able to make.

"I am no expert in that specific area," I said climbing down and placing my cousin's order on the front desk. "Would you please excuse me while I fetch my grandfather?"

When the lone kunoichi nodded, I smiled as sweetly as I could. Turns out Fuko Jii-chan was done with his orders for the day; so when the customers left, with their personal needs satisfied, I was allowed to go home and wait for Shisui.

In the afternoons, my brother would tell me about the lessons he had had that day or even a story if he had one about his classmates or teachers. After that, he would oversee my chakra training for the day. On this special discipline, I struggled more than was considered appropriate for a member of the Uchiha clan. Shisui worked hard to encourage me and hide his concern, but even if I was four, the disappointment whenever the leaf fell from my forehead, was still present in my eyes.

I tried really hard not to get discouraged, my brother was making a huge effort, and giving in to despair would be like throwing it all away. I didn't care if the clan thought of me as a disgrace; I just wanted to make my brother proud, to make him acknowledge me as a capable individual, someone worthy of being his sister.

I panted hard, trying to regain my composure, as my brother sat cross legged in front of me; leaf still firmly chakra-bound to my forehead.

"Nii-san, this isn't working!"

I wasn't trying to be ungrateful, not at all, but there was clearly something I was doing wrong; and it wasn't only compromising my training and hindering my development, it was making me a burden for Shisui. I never wanted to burden my brother, ever.

"Maybe Obaa-chan is right, maybe I'm no good-"

"Nonsense" Shisui never showed his frustration, not when it came to me; but for some reason, whenever I mentioned the issue with Obaa-chan he seemed really bothered by it. "If you want to be a Shinobi; that is what you will become. It makes no difference if you develop slower than everybody else in the clan. You will not be a career bride if you so clearly don't wish to."

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes before standing from his place on the training ground floor.

"I don't care if I have to train you myself. We will make an outstanding kunoichi out of you, Akane-chan." Shisui offered me his hand with a tired smile and waited for me to take it.

I couldn't help but hug him once I was on my feet. I knew he meant every single word he had said, he always did; and the fact that he so clearly had my future in consideration, showed me just how much he cared, and how lucky I was.

"Thank you Nii-chan, you are the best."

Shisui smiled right back at me and crouched, offering me his back. It had become almost a ritual; whenever we would be done with afternoon training, Shisui would give me a piggyback ride back home.

"Everyone deserves to live their own lives the way they want to, to make their own decisions and learn from their mistakes. No one is the same, Akane, and even if you don't agree with them, you should respect the path they have chosen."

The usual buzz surrounding the main road in the Uchiha compound was noticeably absent as we made our way through; it was to be expected since business was a lot less in the evenings. Very few people could be seen roaming around, and the few shop keepers that usually worked late were now closing up their stores.

"what if someone makes a bad decision, Nii-chan?" I asked quietly, noticing that I had no need to raise my voice above a whisper for him to hear me. The atmosphere around us was very calm and gave off a sense of warmth and comfort that I didn't want to break.

"Then you can do nothing but accept that it is the path they have chosen for themselves; and that they will have to face the consequences no matter what. Just make sure you never enforce those consequences out of spite, anger or vengeance, Akane. If someone has to atone for their sins, then let yourself be guided by your sense of justice."

Not entirely sure about what he had just said, I decided to just nod and let my head rest against his shoulder. I would later in life realize what he had meant back then; when friends and family would turn into criminals if only for a series of bad decisions.

[553butterfly553]

Second Chance (An Itachi Uchiha Love Story) 11

Missing

About a week flew by. It went by rather quickly. It was full of laughter and happiness, well as much as the Akatsuki can be happy and laugh. Speaking of them, the Akatsuki members all have grown attached to Serenity and she's gotten attached to them. Even Kakuzu and Hidan eventually began to like the little girl. They all accepted their names and that she was going to be there to stay. It was a little worrisome at first when certain Akatsuki members interacted with Serenity, but everything turned out okay. Currently, Serenity has recruited most of the members to play hide and seek with her. She informed me that she was a big girl now and she could hide on her own, so reluctantly, I allowed her to do so. I was deemed the seeker and was now searching through the mansion for those who decided to play. It was pretty much everyone, except Kakuzu and Sasori. I haven't found a single person yet due to me not using my sensory abilities, but I had a feeling I was coming across someone soon. I was searching every room, other than Kakuzu and Sasori's rooms. No one was allowed to hide in them. So that left me currently in the kitchen heading into the living room. “Where are you people?! This is getting ridiculous! I'm going to start cheating now.” I muttered out loud, however before I could start sensing the people around me, Deidara popped out of a cupboard. “That's not fair, hm!” “Found you!” I called out pointing at Deidara with a laugh. “Now you have to help me find the others.” “Dammit, you really are a bitch, hm!” He realized that I had tricked him into exposing himself. He went along with it anyway though. So now it was Deidara and I searching for the rest of them. The next person to be found was Obito. He'd hidden in the living room behind one of the couches. Not a good hiding spot, but hey at least he was playing. After that was Itachi, who'd hidden in the infirmary, along with Kisame who also hid in there. Neither knew that the other was there though, so it was a surprise for all of us involved. After that, we spit up into two teams and began searching. I was with Itachi and Deidara, Obito and Kisame were together. “Should I just start sensing people? It'd go a lot faster if I did so.” I looked over to Itachi, who thought about it for a moment and then nodded his head. “You might as well, or else we might actually be here all day.” Itachi finally responded simply. I nodded my head and began to sense those around me. It wasn't that large of a radius, but I was now able to find someone. I believe it was Hidan. He managed to worm his way into the ceiling and was crawling around up there. So, I led Itachi to where he currently was and knocked the ceiling tile out of place, causing the religious man to come crashing down. “Ow! You fucking bitch! I swear to Lord Jashin I'm going to fucking sacrifice you!” Hidan yelled out once he recovered from the fall. I helped him stand up but refused to help him brush off all the dust and possible spiders he now had on him. “How did you fucking find me?!” “...I heard you?” I replied more as a question than a statement. He just looked at me and glared. “You bitch, you sensed me, didn't you? Who let the fucking sensory ninja be the seeker?!” Hidan was outraged, but eventually got over it and helped us search for others. Eventually, we met back up with the other group, who now consisted of Nagato and Konan. Meaning all the Akatsuki members were now found. “Wait, no one found Serenity?” I questioned when I realized that she was the only one left now. I tried it sense around to figure out where she was, but I didn't sense her at all. “We need to search for her, all of us.” Itachi had a hint of worry in his voice now. So, we all split up and searched the entire mansion. I sensed around and couldn't find her at all. No matter where I went, I couldn't sense her presence. We all ended up meeting up in the entrance, only to find the ANBU there unconscious. “What the fuck is going on?” Hidan grumbled when he realized that something was up now. We all began to truly worry now. I went over to one of the ANBU and realized there was a note attached to him. “What does it say?” Itachi questioned as he approached me to see what I had in my hand. “It says, 'I have our daughter now. You were foolish to ever let her out of your sight. Tell Mei that if she doesn't step down as Mizukage, I will kill Serenity. You have until tomorrow to decide.'” I responded as my voice and whole body began to shake. My knees went weak and I nearly fell to the floor. However, Itachi kept me standing and took the note from me. He reread it to himself in disbelief. “How could anyone get in here without us knowing?” I mumbled mostly to myself. “We need to report this, but first we need to wake up the ANBU to figure out what exactly happened here.” Itachi took control of the situation. He ordered Kisame to wake up one while Itachi woke up the other. Once awake, the men explained that they were attacked by other ANBU and were easily taken down due to their initial shock. That was all they remembered. “I see...” I couldn't believe it. That must mean that some of the ANBU had defected to Ao's faction. We hadn't considered that before. “I need to go tell the Kage what happened. I'll be back.” My voice was void of emotion as I walked out of the door, ignoring the calls from Itachi and Kisame asking me if I was alright. I couldn't think of myself at that moment anyway. It didn't matter if I was alright or not, I just needed to do my job and notify the Kage of the events that'd taken place. Then we figure out what to do, and only then would I be able to worry about whether I was alright or not. “Oh, Adryn, what's gotten you all worked up?” Lady Mizukage noticed how upset I was immediately as soon as I'd gotten in the room. “Ao has Serenity.” I then explained the situation to them and told them everything that I knew at that moment. “So, what should we do? Obviously, you can't step down as Mizukage. So we need to form a plan of attack.” “We will use the Akatsuki to attack Ao and force him to give Serenity back one way or another.” Lady Mizukage stated instantly. “Do you think the Akatsuki would be alright with that?” Lord Hokage questioned as he doubted her plan. “They love Serenity, so yes, they will. Plus I have their trust, for the most part, so they'll probably do as I say.” I explained to them. “Alright. Tell them about the attack and we will send you out tomorrow.” Lady Mizukage confirmed the plan. “Why tomorrow?” I demanded, instantly angry. “You are too in your emotions right now, you aren't thinking straight.” I wanted to argue with her, but she was right. I was practically vibrating with emotion. So, I just sighed and turned around to head back to the Akatsuki members. “Adryn, we will get Serenity back and take care of Ao for good.” “I know we will.” I agreed with Lady Mizukage and then left the room. I wasn't sure if I even wanted to head back to the mansion, but I knew that I had to, to inform them of the situation. So, that's where I went. “Adryn!” Kisame instantly approached me once I got in the mansion. He and Itachi had been sitting there, waiting for me to return. “Hey Ki,” I muttered as I walked towards him. Itachi was right next to Kisame as the blue man reached me. “What's the plan?” Itachi asked immediately. I looked at him and could see the urgency in his eyes. “Tomorrow we'll all go get Serenity back and deal with Ao.” “Why tomorrow?” Kisame questioned curiously. “I'm too emotional right now.” It was taking everything I had to not break down right now. I wanted to just collapse to the ground and scream or cry or both. “What can we do to help?” Kisame was clearly worried about me. I looked at my very best friend and just blankly looked at him. “I think I should just go home for the day. I don't really feel like being around anyone.” “I don't think that's a good idea. You shouldn't be alone.” Itachi stated instantly as he took hold of one of my hands. He tugged on it, getting me to follow him. He then led me and Kisame to the living room and sat down on the couch, making me sit down with him. “'tachi?” “He's right. You should be with us. We all cared about her too. We all feel how you do.” Kisame spoke up as he sat on a chair across from us. “I am her mother though. It's my job to keep her safe. What if she's going to be hurt or worse?” “I don't think Ao would really hurt her. He's her father, there must be some form of love there, right?” “I know he won't hurt her,” Itachi muttered finally. “I also know we will get her back and she'll be alright.” “If you say so...” I mumbled softly. I just looked at the ground, unsure of what else to say. “You have to think positively, Adryn. Don't you trust us?” Kisame reached over and took my other hand. “We will get her back and she will be just fine.” Having both men I adored tell me such a thing seemed to help bring me out of my darkness. After the darkness began to clear, a wave of exhaustion hit me. I couldn't help but just lean against the couch. “Okay, I believe you, both of you. Now can I get some sleep? I suddenly feel so tired.” “Very well, we'll walk you to your room.” Itachi stood up, causing me to stand up, which then caused Kisame to stand up since we were all linked by our hands still. The three of us walked through the halls linked together. We passed Hidan and Kakuzu, which were both showing clear confusion at the situation, but Kakuzu kept Hidan silent. Once we were at our rooms, Itachi opened up my bedroom door and let go of my hand. “We will explain the plans to everyone else. You just get some rest.” “We'll wake you when everyone is ready in the morning,” Kisame promised as he let go of my other hand. I nodded my head and entered my room. I chose to not lock it this time, as I felt

that everyone in the mansion wouldn't even try to hurt me. I just walked over the bed next, and then fell into it, barely covering myself up as I did. I didn't fall asleep right away. Instead, I dwelled on the situation. My precious daughter was missing and I didn't know where she was, or what was happening to her. I just hoped that nothing bad was going on with her. I hoped that somewhere deep in Ao's heart, he loved our daughter and wouldn't dare hurt a hair on her head. With those thoughts in my mind, I fell asleep. ~ “...Adryn... Adryn! Hey, it's morning, wake up!” I shot up in bed, but the force caused me to tumble out of the bed and hit the floor. “Fuck that hurt...” I grumbled as I slowly picked myself up from the floor. I looked up to see the worried faces of Kisame and Itachi standing over me. Both men instantly went into action and helped me up off the floor. “Are you alright, Adryn?” Itachi questioned as I dusted myself off and fixed my clothing. “I'm just fine,” I muttered, slightly embarrassed. “The Kage have given us the orders to head out with some ANBU when we're ready. So, let's go.” Kisame stated, causing me to snap my head up to look at him. “Really? Now?” “Yes, now, like right now. Everyone is in the entrance hall waiting for us.” “Oh, okay then.” I nodded my head and began to leave the room. I paused to turn around when I realized that they weren't following me. “What's up?” “Are you sure you're ready to fight Ao? It might not end the same way as last time. You might have to kill him.” Itachi questioned as he turned to look at me. I just smiled at him. “If it means getting my daughter back, I'll do anything.” With that, the three of us headed out and made our way to everyone else. “What fucking took you so long?!” Hidan yelled as soon as he saw us. “I literally just woke up a few fucking minutes ago, Hidan. So shut the fuck up.” That seemed to be enough to shut the man up. Also, Kakuzu telling him to shut up seemed to help the situation as well. So, with everyone, including a few ANBU to guide us there, we headed out. I stayed with Itachi and Kisame like last time. No one spoke this time around. Everyone knew the gravity of the situation. They knew that this could very well be life or death for Serenity. So, with silence in the air, we made the hour-long journey to where Ao's hideout was. We never made it there before, but this time we did. He seemed surprised to see us, as it took a minute or two for everyone to exit the hideout and for the fight to begin. The Akatsuki and ANBU all began to fight with me entering the hideout. I had to take out a few men here and there, but nothing serious. No one seemed to pose a threat to me. With the Rinnegan I'd awaken before, normal men weren't a threat to me. It was fairly easy to get to the room where Ao and Serenity were. “I never expected you to come here like this, Adryn,” Ao stated as he held Serenity in his arms with a kunai to her throat. “This was a stupid plan.” “Your plan was the stupid one, Ao. To think that I wouldn't do anything necessary to get my child back. You are the true idiot in this situation.” I growled back instantly. “Mama!” Serenity cried out terrified at the situation. “Is this really my father?” Her voice quaked as she spoke up. “Yes. Serenity, Ao is truly your father. However, he will kill you. So that makes him a terrible father. Just keep thinking of Itachi as your Papa. He'll make a better father to you than Ao ever could.” “Be silent! You think I wouldn't be a good father to our daughter?!” Ao yelled out, immediately angry at my words. “Dude, you're threatening to kill her right now. That makes you a terrible father.” Ao seemed to think about my words, before pulling the kunai away and throwing Serenity off to the side. “Fine, I'll just kill you instead.” That began a fight between Ao and me. Attack for attack, we seemed to be fairly even with each other. That was until he was able to get the drop on me and cut my arm with the kunai. It was only then that I realized that the weapon had poison on it. I was immune to poison, but instantly something felt wrong. I collapsed to the ground and began to cough up blood. “This poison is specially made just for you.” “Mama!” Serenity instantly ran over to me and began to panic. Ao stepped closer to us, and she picked up one of the Kiba blades and held it out in front of her. “Stay back!” That was when Ao and I both realized that her eyes had changed. They were now Sharingan and were filled with anger and fear. “I won't let you hurt Mama!” “Alright, I won't hurt her anymore. She'll die soon enough anyway.” With that, Ao left the room. Moments later, Itachi and Kisame came bursting into the room. They saw me on the floor and Serenity looking at me with fear in her eyes. “What happened?” Itachi demanded immediately. Serenity began to tear up as she explained all that'd happened to me. However, I slowly began to sit up and made it to my knees. “I'll be fine. He forgot something important.” I muttered as the coughing subsided. “Mama?” Serenity looked at me confused, but I just smiled at her. “I regenerate instantly. Any part of me that dies will just come back. My blood will eventually overcome the poison and I'll be fine. I just don't think I'll be able to move for a little while.” “I'll carry her. You carry the kid.” Kisame instructed Itachi as the blue man approached me. Itachi did as he said and went to Serenity. Kisame gently lifted me into his arms, and once Itachi had Serenity, he left the room with Itachi following closely behind. “What all happened while I was gone? Is it all over?” I questioned to Kisame as we made our way through the hideout. “Most of them surrendered. The rest were killed. They will be taken back and locked away for the rest of their lives I guess.” Kisame responded simply to me. I nodded my head and sighed. “What's wrong?” “Ao got away again. I couldn't stop him or even kill him. I failed.” “We got Serenity back, that's all that matter in the end, right?” I thought about Kisame's words for a few moments before nodding my head. “You're right, thank you.” ~ After we made it back to the others, we all headed back to the little town we were living in. The traitors were indeed all locked away and would probably stay there for the rest of their lives. So with that situation finally behind us all, everything went back to normal. With one exception. A few days after the situation with Ao, Itachi called me into his room to have a private conversation with him. I was very nervous, but accepted his invitation and entered his room, with him closing the door behind us. “What did you want to talk about, 'tachi?” I questioned when I finally couldn't take the silence any further. Itachi walked over to his bed and sat down, then motioned for me to sit down next to him. I followed his request and sat down on his bed next to him. I looked over at him, extremely confused. I watched as he took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts before finally speaking to me. “I am growing feelings for you, romantic feelings.” Itachi finally said after a long silence. I just blinked and stared at him for a moment as I processed what he'd said. “I realized my feelings a little while ago, but then things happened and I never got the chance to confess to you. However, after seeing you coughing up blood, it scared me and made me realize that I needed to tell you before anything else happened. I no longer will hide my feelings for you and I would like to continue to grow them with you.” I had to think about all he'd said before I finally spoke up. “I'm glad you told me. You can't imagine how happy hearing all this from you makes me.” “Then what I'm about to say is probably going to make you happier. I would like to officially become your boyfriend. If that is alright with you.” Itachi looked directly at me, causing my heart to skip a beat. This was so strange for the both of us. We had never had this type of conversation before and Itachi had never expressed his true feelings to me before. So this was all new territory for both of us. “I'd like that a lot.” I finally admitted with a smile on my face. Itachi seemed to relax slightly after I spoke showing that he was most likely nervous to have this conversation with me. “Let's take things slowly, it's been... a while since either of us dated anyone.” Saying it's been a while was an exaggeration considering Itachi hadn't been with anyone since before he had to kill his clan, and I hadn't been with anyone since before the war. “You read my mind. I was about to say the same thing.” Itachi spoke up as he looked away from me. He then seemed to think about something. “How will Kisame take this?” Oh boy, that's a good question. “I... hope he'll take it well, but I guess we won't know until we tell him.” “Would you like to tell him now?” “We might as well, but you have to be there too for moral support.” I smiled again at Itachi and he gave me a slight smile back as he nodded his head. So, we both got up from his bed and left his room, with Itachi guiding me to the living room where Kisame was with Kakuzu and Hidan. “You two disappeared and were gone for a fucking long time, what were you two doing?” Hidan demanded as soon as he saw Itachi and I. “Were you fucking?” “Of course not, Itachi isn't that type of guy,” I responded, before realizing that I totally just outed myself as that type of girl. “We were just talking is all.” “You and he finally got together, right? You're dating?” It was Kisame who'd spoken up, stopping Hidan from making any more remarks. Itachi and I both looked over to our friend and studied his face. There was no hint of anger or malice in his face at all, nor his voice. “I'm not angry or upset, don't worry.” “Are you sure you're willing to lose to Itachi?” Kakuzu questioned the blue man, who just smiled over to him. “I'm willing to let her go, to ensure she's happy. Are you okay with this, Kakuzu?” “What a stupid question, all she was to me was a whore.” Kakuzu's answer made me frown, but I didn't say anything back. “Careful, you should talk about Itachi's girlfriend like that. You don't know what he'd do.” Kisame warned with a smirk on his face. I couldn't help but smile at his words as well as I looked over to Itachi, who had nothingness on his face. “You good?” I had to ask Itachi instantly. He just looked at me and gave me a soft smile, however, something was hidden within it. “Everything is just fine.” There was a hint of strain in his voice, but I wrote it off to him just being tired. I had no idea that was the start of everything falling apart.

[angelrider13]

Count the Shifts

TItle: Ripples on the Water Chapters: 2 / ?

Summary: In which Rin becomes a jinchuuriki, Obito gets hit with some hard facts (literally), and Isobu is absolutely done with all this bullshit.

FF | AO3 | Master Fic List

Isobu had vague memories of this.

Ever since the Bijuu had been sealed, he’d been with Kiri.

There was only one instance where his host was from somewhere else. A girl, he remembered, with a crude, flimsy seal that had cracked and crumbled so easily in the face of his fury.

But Isobu was calm now.

There was no mindless rage at being sealed yet again, as being used as a tool yet again.

Not this time.

The girl was of Konoha, she is of Naruto’s village.

And she had died the first time around.

He remembered the lightning, searing, burning, ripping through this girl’s chest as she chose death over setting him on her village.

He remembered the owner of that lightning – the boy with silver hair and one eye of red and the horrified grief on his face. He remembered Naruto’s love for the man who would become his teacher.

He remembered fading, his chakra dissipating as the girl’s life fled her body, remembered the fury that filled the clearing and the appearance of another boy he later became far too familiar with as he pulled his host’s strings.

He remembered all of it and he wasn’t going to let it happen again.

Not again.

If he could change this – this one thing – the ripples would be felt for ages.

He had promised.

So when the seal was completed and the girl released to Kakashi, Isobu turned away from the fragile seal that held him and looked towards the seal over the girl’s heart. The one that prevented her from speaking of him, from warning anyone of Kiri’s – Madara’s – plans. The one that drove her to return to her village, to release him, to destroy her home.

Isobu turned to this seal and threw his might against it instead.

The chakra that made the seal what it was recoiled and hissed, digging its hooks in tighter, coiling, squeezing, strangling.

Isobu growled and pulled at the taint, burning it out, corroding it away.

He could feel the girl’s desperation and knew that he was running out of time.

He reached for that place in his mind where his siblings dwelled, where they were all connected, and he pulled. He showed them what happened Before, felt them understand why this needed to change, why he could not fail.

Saiken and Gyuki surged forward the same moment the girl threw herself onto lightening; they had the best regenerative powers and started repairing flesh the exact moment it was destroyed. Matatabi and Son Goku took the lightning and redirected it – away from vital organs and towards the seal and the tainted chakra screeched as it was burned away. The others funneled chakra to him and Isobu circulated it through the girl’s body to keep it alive, to keep it functioning, long enough to heal.

He felt the girl fading out – not dying, not yet, not again – falling unconscious. He pulled her under and put her to sleep, pushing her consciousness down while his own rose up to take its place, his siblings watching through his eyes.

He’d had enough.

Enough puppets and tools and plots.

He’d made a promise.

For better or worse, this girl was his jinchuuriki.

He would not let her die.

Not again.

Obito was cold.

Before, whenever he was angry, he always, always burned hot. He yelled and he screamed and he hit and he kicked until he was either beaten or calmed down. Before, anger always meant fire. It meant ashes and smoke and hot words and searing pain and seething glares.

That was before.

Before he watched Kakashi put his hand through Rin’s chest.

Before he watched Rin throw herself on Kakashi’s attack.

Before the lightning and the smell of burnt flesh and the blood dripping down Rin’s chin and the horrified tears streaming down Kakashi’s cheeks.

Now anger meant something different.

Now it meant ice.

Now it meant cold and unfeeling and numb.

Now it meant single-minded, blind, unending fury that froze his heart and blood.

When the Kiri nin broke into the clearing, Obito didn’t hesitate. His chakra surged, exploding outward in wooden spikes and roots and branches – piercing, strangling, tearing.

Rin was dead.

Rin was deaddeaddead.

They killed her.

They killed her so he slaughtered them.

Their blood was like everyone else’s. It was warm and sticky and redredred and he didn’t care.

Rin was dead.

His eye burned but he barely felt it. He barely felt anything besides cold. He was numb.

Rin was dead.

Rin was dead.

Rin was dead.

Rin was…sitting up.

Rin was dead but she was sitting up and looking at him.

Guruguru gasped. “She was dead, we saw,” he said, puzzled, “But now she’s not.”

“Rin,” he croaked, reaching out to cup her cheek, wrenching back in surprise when his fingertips passed through her.

Right, that had happened. He’d noticed that nothing touched him, not since he’d started attaching. But this was Rin. Rin was different. Rin was safe. Rin was not dead.

Rin who was watching him with gold on red ringed eyes.

Rin who was healing so quickly, he could see the wound in her chest closing.

Concentrating, he reached out again and this time, his hand met skin.

Rin smiled at him, bright and happy, just like always.

And then she put her hand through his chest.

Obito stared at her, eye wide, lips parted in shock. “What?”

“Relax,” Rin said, and that was not Rin’s voice; it was too deep, too rough, not right, “This won’t kill you – I just need to get rid of that annoying seal on your heart.”

And then he saw Rin’s chakra flow change, the color was wrong. He remembered it even though he’d only seen it once before (lavender, soft, bright, the perfect color for her, shhhh, don’t cry Rin) and this was something different. Something else, something greater was seeping into Rin’s chakra coils. It poured out of her body, forming a cloak around her, flowing up her arm and –

It burned.

Guruguru screamed and unraveled, releasing him and without him there to hold him up, Obito fell. Not-Rin caught him, cradled him and the searing chakra gentled as she withdrew her hand from his chest.

Obito didn’t understand.

“I don’t – what are you –?”

“Hush, boy,” Not-Rin said, strange-wrong eyes watching the way Guruguru wreathed on the ground as if in pain, “I will explain in a moment. First, I must deal with the creature.”

She laid him down carefully and Obito watched the chakra that cloaked her surge and then she was on Guruguru. He could do nothing but watch in shock as she cut into his friend, his companion these long months, over and over until there was nothing left.

It was easy to call forth chakra.

The girl’s body reacted to it automatically, channeling it into the hands and sharpening it so that it can cut through flesh with ease. Not how he would normally do things, but Isobu was very satisfied by the feeling of sinking the chakra scalpels into White Zestu’s flesh.

Logically, he knew that White Zetsu is just one of many – a victim of Kaguya, a minion, easily replicable.

But emotions were not logical and Isobu still remembered the exhaustion in Naruto’s face when he smiled at them that last time, the way his entire body seemed to sag under the weight that only he was left to bear. All nine of them knew that Naruto had died. Died to free them, to save them, to give them this second chance. But he still died.

And that made Isobu burn.

He channeled all of that rage and grief and pain into his host’s hands and used it to crush White Zetsu until he was nothing but dust.

Only then did he turn away.

Only then did he return to Obito’s side.

The boy was looking up at him, wide eyed and horrified. Isobu sank to the ground next to him, checking over the hole in his chest and was pleased to see that it was almost healed.

He had mixed feelings on Obito – they all did.

The man they knew had caused them nothing but pain. Sought them out and ripped them from their hosts one by one to create a weapon that would give him a false world. A lie. He saw them as tools, had treated them as such. Thought them mindless and emotionless and nothing but things to be used.

But then he turned away from the lie and gave them to Naruto. Gave them to Naruto and shielded him and protected him until it killed him.

The man Obito was had been the enemy, the enslaver, the monster in the dark.

But he had also been the ally, the shield, the spark that starts an inferno.

Isobu knew the man that Obito was.

He did not know this boy.

“Rin?” Obito asked, voice soft and creaked and broken.

Hm, so that was the name of his host.

“Rin is sleeping,” he said.

Obito’s eye narrowed, Mangekyō Sharingan spinning slowly. “Who are you?” he demanded, struggling to sit up.

“The Sanbi,” Isobu said because working with the humans was one thing, he was not going to start handing out his name to everyone. No, the first to get his name was going to be his host and until then he would be nameless.

Obito paled. “What – how – ?”

Isobu sighed and gestured to the boy’s chest. “The same man who put that seal on your heart had me sealed into this girl,” he explained, because he remembered this, remembered how wrong it was, remembered how it didn’t make sense, even if he was only distantly aware of it the first time around, remembered the man that Obito was screaming at Madara as they clashed, “They put the same seal on her heart and controlled her so that she would release me in your village. She chose to take another way out,” he said gesturing to the mostly healed wound in Rin’s chest.

Obito frowned. “But…you saved her,” he said, though it sounded like a question.

“I did,” Isobu answered, “You may make of that what you will.”

Obito eyed him, licking his lips before carefully asking. “What did you mean about the seal on my heart?”

“It allows the person who placed it to control you, perhaps not your mind, but it can control everything else.”

“He set me up,” Obito whispered, eye narrowed, anger flickering across his face but not surprise.

Isobu snorted. “Of course he did. Madara has been lost in the thrall of your clan’s curse since the moment he took his brother’s eyes.”

Obito’s gaze snapped over to him in surprise.  “You know about that? That’s part of the clan’s most closely guarded history!”

Isobu gave him a flat look. “I am a millennia old being; you think your clan can stop me from knowing something?” he said dryly.

“Ah,” Obito said sheepishly, “Right.”

Isobu rolled his eyes and pushed up to his feet, frowning as he wavered slightly. He would have to rest soon. His host’s body was already far past its limit. Still, Isobu didn’t like how spread out they were right now. He walked over to Kakashi, scooping up the unconscious boy into his arms as best he could and all but dragged him over to Obito.

“Is he alright?” the boy asked.

“You didn’t seem to care before,” Isobu said flatly, making Obito flinch, “He’s fine, just chakra exhaustion.”

He knelt down, curling up between the two boys who he’d known as men, who Naruto had fought with in that distant future-past, Rin’s hands taking each of theirs in hers in a way that felt so natural, Isobu had to wonder at this girl.

“What are you doing?” Obito asked warily as the chakra cloak receded.

“I am going to sleep,” he said simply, “Rin has reached her limit and if I push her much longer, I could damage her. She needs rest. Reinforcements will be here soon.”

With that, Isobu closed his eyes and retreated.

Obito stared down at his teammates.

Rin was alive.

She was alive because of the demon inside her.

The demon that Madara put there.

To hurt his village. His home.

To hurt Rin.

Because of him.

Obito wasn’t stupid for all that he might seem like it. He knew exactly what he was thinking when he thought Rin was dead. He would have remade the world for her, would have gone with Madara’s plan because it would give him Rin back.

Just like Madara wanted.

Guruguru had let him out of the cave so that he would see Rin die. So that he would lose faith in the world.

And it would have worked if the Sanbi hadn’t interfered.

Obito had no idea how to even comprehend that. He’d just had a conversation with a bijuu sealed inside the girl he loved. A bijuu who was apparently far more than then mindless chakra monsters they were made out to be.

His eye drifted over to Kakashi.

“You didn’t seem to care before.”

Obito felt his stomach churn. He’d completely ignored Kakashi, hadn’t even spared him a single thought. The boy looked exhausted and worn down, bags under his eyes and a gray pallor to his skin. He remembered the way Kakashi had put himself between Rin and the Kiri nin, how he worked himself to this point to keep Rin safe, to keep his promise. He remembered the way Kakashi had screamed after Rin had thrown herself onto his jutsu. Remembered seeing Rin’s bloody smile and the way her lips formed the word ‘sorry’ through the eye he’d given to his teammate.

His teammates.

He released a shuddering sigh. “So much for never abandoning my comrades,” he muttered, bitterly.

Never again.

Never again.

He looked up as multiple chakra signatures entered the clearing.

He met their stunned eyes with a weak smile.

“Obito?!”

Ah, Genma. He’d gotten pretty tall these past few months.

He waved sheepishly at the older boy even as the Konoha nin swarmed him and his team, speaking to him, but he was beyond caring. He ached all over and his head hurt and it was kind of freaking him out that he no longer had a hole in his chest. Their words washed over him, not registering at all. They checked over Kakashi and Rin and he was only able to clench his hand weakly around Rin’s as they tugged them apart.

Genma zeroed in on him when he started listing to the side, hauling him up and throwing Obito’s arm over his shoulders.

“You’re not going anywhere,” Genma growled, “Kakashi would kill me if I let you get away now.”

For some reason, the very thought made him grin like an idiot. “Would he?”

“Yes,” Genma hissed, “Fuck Obito, you haven’t seen him. Him or Rin. God, and your sensei. No, you are coming home. You are six months late, asshole.”

And Obito laughed, perhaps a little hysterically, but relief settled deep into his bones.

He was going home.

His host was sleeping, no longer in danger of fading.

His host was young but now had the chance to grow older. She’d been gifted a second chance just as they had.

His siblings had retreated now, content in the knowledge that they had succeeded. They had dropped a stone in the pond and now they must wait to see how the ripples spread.

He was old, older than most humans understood and he knew what it was to be patient.

His host slept.

Isobu waited.

[mummapaintstheblues]

From A Bench In Konoha

3AM prompt! Week 3 Day 3 KakaSaku month! This is a very weird and out of my comfort zone kind of thing. I mean... I wrote a whole fic from the point of view of a bench... You know that one that Obito and Rin sit on, and Kakashi hangs out around? That one. I hope it isn’t too weird for you but I AM TRYING TO EVOLVE DAMMIT. (I can’t answer any questions about why the bench is thinking, sorry, I might be going insane)

Also, I read some intense smut today that ruined me. So 2k of FLUFF.

Despite the temperature of the night and the first flecks of snow beginning to fall upon its back, there was no lack of warmth.

Not that a bench could feel warmth to begin with. But this was not the kind that provided mere heat. This was the warmth one felt in the presence of loved ones, a comforting kind that dispelled goosebumps elicited by the darkness of the night. Not physical by any means but no less a force of nature.

While benches didn't have any concept of time it was aware that this was an out of the ordinary occurrence.

All the busy ones (which is what it referred to them as, how was a bench to have any concept of names after all?) had long since retreated to wherever they went. The bench liked to think that they were constantly moving, as they appeared to be during the day, until the moment they saw a special place to sit.

But when the pinpricks of light speckled in the distance the people seemed to have no time to sit here. They gravitated to that light and stayed away until the warmth of the sun reappeared, leaving a lonely bench waiting toward the gates of the village for its next special person to stop. And it certainly had its favourites.

One was currently seated in the trees above. The casual rustling of pages was usually his giveaway, but it was very dark so there was no way he could be staring fixed at the bound papers he always carried. Instead he just simply sat, completely still, sighing every so often and murmuring to himself or to the carved mountainside.

This was one of the all time favourites as far as people went. The one that made regular visits throughout the year. Long ago he sat with others on the bench, but now he was very alone. Or with that overly energetic one.

That was how the bench managed to tell them apart. The noisy one, the one that stuttered around the noisy one, the one that never smiled.

The favourite person in the trees had always been the lonely one. All his people had come and gone, sometimes the bench considered itself the only constant. Something horrible must have happened again for him to be visiting at this hour.

With delight the bench registered another warmth, a very familiar one too. Not as regular a visitor as the other special person, but still a favourite nonetheless.

Not many people spent a whole night sleeping on a bench outside after all, and it wasn't likely to forget that.

She sighed as she sat, shuddering a little at the cold, or something else. A lone tear fell upon the seat. The crying one. That's right, she'd been crying that night as well.

“Sakura?”

“Kakashi sensei… sorry I didn't see you. What are you doing up there?”

They knew each other. Interesting. The lonely one jumped down to stand just in front of the crying one. What the hell was a Sakura anyway?

“Oh, you know. Normal night time activities.”

“Sitting in trees?”

“Yup.”

“It's 3am?”

The Kakashi shuffled in a gesture that made the crying one huff in a sort of way that might have been a laugh. But it didn't entirely stop her flow of tears, they broke through the brave facade tumbling onto the concrete.

“Hey, what's going on? It's been awhile since I've seen you like this.”

She sobbed, he sat beside her. The bench registered the tentative and reluctant way he put a hand over top of hers.

It became difficult to discern the words she sputtered out after that. 'Nothing we could do’ seemed to be the punchline before her entire being crumpled into misery.

“I guess you don't lose a lot of patients, being so good at what you do.” The lonely one was obviously at a loss for words, and it was easy to tell, it wasn’t as if he’d ever spoken much to anyone else. He seemed to be more comfortable talking to inanimate objects than people. “I can’t promise you it will ever get easier Sakura, or if time will lessen the burden. Time has a funny way of bringing that pain back to the surface sometimes, even years later when you don’t expect it. But I can guarantee one thing…”

“What’s that?”

It was a rarity to have the lonely one smiling as he spoke.

“Well, a lot of good things will happen. Maybe not today, or tomorrow, or next week even. But they will happen, and keep happening too, you can’t stop them. Bit by bit it will allow you to breathe again and then it won’t all be so bad. Trust me.”

The crying one had stopped crying. Wiping the water marks left by tears with her free hand before patting the larger one of his that still enveloped hers. With a nod, and an almost smile, she sniffled before she spoke.

“I think that’s the best compliment you’ve ever given me sensei.”

“That would be about right.” He sounded mildly irritated and her smile faded. “It’s true, you are very good at what you do. The best, so I’ve heard.”

A grin. The bench felt warmer.

“You really know how to sweet talk a girl huh?”

The smirk at her words faded quickly. He was still displeased at something unspoken, though she seemed to be much happier. Whatever it was caused him to shift, and tense, almost taking his hand away from hers. But she seemed to understand how this one worked, intertwining her fingers with his in such a way it was impossible for any escape. They were looking at each other now in a way a bench would probably never fathom.

“Sakura, I’m sorry…”

It was difficult to tell exactly what he was sorry for by the sombre tone in which he spoke. The girl shook her head.

“It’s alright. You never need to apologize to me sensei, for anything.” A nod of understanding passed between them. Obviously he had been apologizing for more than one thing. “Besides, I’m not that girl who needs to fish for compliments anymore. I’m all grown up.”

“I noticed.”

A soft chuckle from the both of them as she leant over to nudge his shoulder. Then there was silence for a while. Comfortable and quiet. The bench revelled in having its people so close during what was usually a cold and lonely time of night, it wondered if they both felt that way too.

“You never said what you were doing out here, in a tree at 3am?”

“You never told me why you came here either.”

There was another look that passed between them and an exasperated sigh escaped the girl.

“Fine. I’ll go first.” A nod of agreement. “I just... come here sometimes. Not often, just when everything seems hopeless and rockbottom. Like that night Sasuke left me here on this bench.”

“The first time or the second time?”

“Ha ha, very funny.” It did not sound funny in the slightest but the bench never claimed to fully understand humans. “The first time, to be exact. It reminds me of how far I’ve come. Makes me feel a little less hopeless, I was hoping for that tonight. That second time was a mutual understanding, by the way…”

“Oh really? Understanding huh?”

“Yes. He understands that should he even attempt to breathe too closely to me again, I’ll punch him so hard they’ll have to find the atoms of his stupid pretty face before they reconstruct it…”

Laughter, from the both of them. A small shuffle closer. It was a cold night after all. Their arms were touching now and there was a new kind of warmth.

“So.”

“So…?”

No words, but Sakura (so he kept calling her) made a face at him.

“Oh right. Why I’m here. Well, I could make some excuse about falling asleep on that branch this afternoon, but truthfully…” It seemed difficult again for him to form words. A shuddering sigh, a swallow. “Honestly, I couldn’t really tell you. I find myself here a lot when…”

He trailed off. She finished the sentence for him.

“Things come back to the surface?”

A nod.

There was silence again for a moment. Broken by a voice that was in a completely unfamiliar tone from the lonely one. At least unfamiliar for the bench.

“Back in the day, before… well. I used to spend a lot of time here with my old team. One of us was always never far away from this spot. We used to fight to get here first some days.”

“You mean Obito?”

A nod, and another pause.

“I forget sometimes that you actually met him. The Obito I remember was quite different to the one you met though.”

She smiles again. It doesn’t falter as she speaks.

“Would you tell me about him? The Obito that you knew?”

For some reason it feels like a heavy request, especially in the nervous way she grips her knee with her free hand and the heavy exhale from Kakashi. A longer pause. This girl seems to know to be patient with the lonely one, sympathy from a fellow lone wanderer perhaps. But she had always been the most loving and caring of the favourite people, highlighted that night she begged the dark and lost one to take her with him. The bench was glad that he had left her behind on its safe surface.

Kakashi appeared to be thinking. His words bubbling out at first as if they had been carefully weighed and measured before breaking.

“I don’t know what to tell you. He was certainly one of a kind. If I had to go into detail, I’d say he was more like Naruto in our early Team 7 days, but now that I think about it he was a little like you as well.”

“What, a crybaby know-it-all?”

He laughed.

“Crybaby definitely. And a know-it-all too I suppose, as in he thought he knew everything but, like Naruto, was wrong about ninety percent of the time. His enthusiasm was flawless though.”

There was more laughter. Their knees were now brushing against each other as the lonely one kept talking. He talked so much it was too hard for the bench to follow what was happening. But it didn’t need the words to understand the communication between them.

He spoke, of funny things judging by the way the girl laughed, it was nice not to see her not crying for a change. He babbled about other things that seemed to be quite serious or frightening in the way she gripped his hand tighter and gasped a fraction. Then it turned to sadness, at some particularly painful part he had just stopped talking, unable to continue. He sat hunched over as if the words deflated him, escaping without his express permission rendering his body useless.

Sakura leant into his shoulder, it almost caused him to startle at the contact, just the smallest of jerks could be felt.

“Your Obito sounds like a good person.”

“Mmm.”

“Thank you for telling me about him.”

A small nod. There seemed to be no words left in the lonely one to speak anymore. Sakura knew exactly how to ease him and break the tension.

“Just a small query. How is that lady still allowed to own cats? We were looking the damned things for her ten years after you and your team!”

A small chuckle. This was obviously to do with the funny thing from earlier that had been hard to follow.

“Now Sakura, that’s no reason to give up on the entire species. Even if all cats are terrible creatures.”

“Oh, right. Dog person. I forgot. Still, I guess some people have more money than sense.”

“There’s that too. I think it’s more that people just shouldn’t own cats.” Another chuckle from the both of them. “Well it’s true isn’t it? There’s no loyalty, you get nothing in return for the partnership, they keep trying to leave you…”

“Like Sasuke?”

Dead silence. It was getting hard to follow again, she shifted her head off his shoulder to look him in the eye.

“Did you… just compare him to a cat?”

A nod.

Suddenly there was lots of laughs. Proper eye watering laughter, the kind that would have made the bench laugh too if it had any inclination or understanding on what was going on. Or what laughter was to begin with. It seemed happy though.

It continued for a bit, until it began to peeter out. Sakura nudging his shoulder again, they were pretty much lined up next to each other on that bench now. When he nudged her back and caught her eye something changed. It was palpable. Even to the bench.

The last few shakes of laughter disappeared as their faces now inched ever closer together, until they too were touching.

There was a muffled kind of silence that was not unfamiliar, people had been known to commit this kind of thing while sitting here on occasion. It was an action that seemed to be pleasant for both parties, even if it was a complete mystery.

A sigh, a muffled moan, the shuffling of clothes and bodies. Like they were devouring each other. When their lips parted they still kept their faces close, touching everywhere else. It was a heavy pause as they panted together from the activity.

“What was that?”

He spoke so quietly in between breaths, like he wanted her to be the only one to hear his voice. Like he was terrified of anyone else overhearing, a ludicrous concept at this time of night. She pretended to look thoughtful with a smile that didn’t seem likely to disappear, her arms were wrapped around his neck.

“Well, you did warn me something good would happen. Figured I should give it a head start.”

He was now smiling too, in a different way than ever before. In an open way.

“Thank god. I’ve been waiting for months to…”

He was cut off mid sentence by her lips. They appeared to be melting into each other. It was that bright and comforting warmth again, but tenfold. None of them felt the cold of the snow falling, felt the cold of loneliness or the night air, none of it. There was only warmth and happiness. After minutes of this shuffling and electric silence, Sakura abruptly stood, there was a questioning stare.

“Kakashi, it’s 3am.”

There was a begrudging nod and he stood too. Then she leant on her toes to whisper something in his ear.

“Come home with me?”

It was a question. A grin graced his features before he nodded and pulled the mask back to its usual spot. Stealing her hand they disappeared into the darkness, towards one of those little specks of light, a bench back to its regular night time solitude.

It was pleased that the lonely one now was not so lonely, someone was with him. And the crying one was no longer crying either. Huh.

It would need another way to tell them apart now.

Kakashi and Sakura. That would do.

[majesty-madness]

Kakashi’s Family: Book 2 (Kakashi’s fate)

7-Promise

The next day Karen and Kakashi were followed everywhere by the Anbu black ops Lord Hiruzen assigned to protect them, the Anbu were ,of course, hidden in plain sight but Kana and Kakashi could sense their presence which somehow added to the pressure they were already feeling with everything going on. Kana continuously worried and stressed over the baby, she wished she knew exactly when the baby was coming but she wasn't a psychic. Kana began thinking about everything too much and too hard, she never gave herself time to relax. Since Kana wouldn't relax other wise, Kakashi stayed with Kana. He had been excused from all his missions so that he could be with Kana at all times, he never left Kana's side and when he did, he would always go straight back to her. He was paranoid about protecting her and his unborn child, he did everything he could to keep them safe from harm.

It was late afternoon and Kana was still fast asleep in her bed. Kakashi sat out in the living room, reading his make-out paradise. He kept their bedroom door open so he could keep an eye on Kana from the living room while she slept. For Kana to sleep into the late afternoon was almost a daily occurrence, Kakashi was worried at first but knew that it was just Kana trying to rest for herself and for the baby and simply thought that a little extra sleep would do her some good. Not to mention, several nights in a row, Kana would wake up in the middle of the night to only rush into the bathroom and throw up, so sleep is what she really needed now.

Anyway, everything was completely silent when someone knocked at the front door. Kakashi set his book down onto the coffee table and headed over to the front door to open it. Kakashi with his unusually high levels of paranoia, pulled a kunai knife from his carry on bag and held it behind his back while cautiously approaching the door. He grasped the doorknob in his hand and hesitantly opened the door only to find Kana's little brother, Sumo. "Oh Sumo, what are you doing here?" Kakashi asked with a breath of relief.

"I wanted to see Kana and how's she'd doing" Sumo replied nervously afraid that he might have intruded.

Kakashi stepped to the side and gestured for Sumo to come, he happily smiled while he walked through the doorway and into the living room but his smile waned when he didn't see Kana right away "Where is she?" Sumo asked, disappointment filling his voice.

Kakashi tapped Sumo on the shoulder, drawing his attention then silently pushed his index against his own lips to signifying that Sumo needed to be quiet. Sumo suddenly covered his mouth with his hand and whispered into his hand "Where is she?"

"In our room sleeping" Kakashi whispered back pointing into the bedroom right across from them.

Sumo looked into the room to see Kana peacefully sleeping in her bed "Can I go in?" he whispered again.

Kakashi nodded "If you're quiet, Kana really needs her sleep"

"I will be" Sumo whispered back as he slowly made his way towards Kana's bed. There she was sleeping soundly, both Kakashi and Sumo could hear the light but consistent breaths Kana took with each passing second. "She okay?" Sumo suddenly asked in the silent atmosphere.

"Yeah, she's just tired. She's been waking up in the middle of the night more frequently lately" Kakashi quietly responded, making sure to keep his voice down as not to wake up his sleeping angel.

"Mom and dad told me about the guy who attacked the village yesterday, he's after Kana right?"

It took Kakashi a minute to respond but he finally answered with a nod. "I can't believe it. He's actually going to come back and try to hurt her" Sumo felt his eyes tear up a little when he thought about Kana getting seriously hurt, he loved his sister so much and he would do anything for her. He was very close with Kana and even though he didn't remember too much of Obito, he felt a deep love for his older brother. He somehow held onto the only memories he had of Obito and when Obito died he felt so sad.

"That's not going to happen. I'm going to protect her no matter" Kakashi added keeping his eyes on Kana.

Sumo looked to Kakashi with tears scrolling down his cheeks, he now looked up to Kakashi and he was very thankful to him. He'd made Kana happier than he had ever seen her and Sumo hoped for the day where she would be this happy but now there was a man who was trying to change that. "She lucky to have you" Sumo wiped his eyes so that Kakashi wouldn't see him crying, he didn't want to look weak.

Kakashi now listened to what Sumo had to say. "She'd happier with you, I haven't ever seen her this happy since before...." Sumo paused and took a deep breath as he prepared himself for what he was about to say "Since before Obito died".

Kakashi flinched to the word Obito, it reminded him of the mistakes he had made. He thought he failed Obito and he broke his promise to protect Rin, he wished that he could take it all back but that wasn't ever going to be possible.

"But now that I'm older, I'm not going to let anything happen to her either. I'm going to protect her with my life" Sumo proclaimed strongly, he was older and was stronger and hoped that he would be able to protect his sister. He believed in himself, Kana always told him to believe in himself since he always had doubts but now he was going to choose to believe in his power, for Kana's sake.

"That's very brave of you" Kakashi smiled, patting Sumo on the head. Which caused Sumo to smile not only from the pat to the head but from his comment. He was definitely hold true to his words.

"Would you promise me one thing?" Sumo's smile waned just a bit.

"Of course"

"If the time comes, don't die. If you die , she would be devastated. I can't see her go through that again. Not ever" Sumo felt his tears return again but this time he controlled himself.

With a soft smile, Kakashi nodded "I won't, I'll live for her" he promised once again admiring the angel that was wrapped in the soft blanket of the bed. With another silence filling the air, Kakashi put his hand to Sumo's back to draw his attention "We should probably get out of here before we wake her up." Kakashi suggested gently pushing Sumo's towards the door but before Kakashi could get to the door, he felt something latch onto his hand. His head snapped to the side to catch who had grabbed him, he quickly broke into a smile.

"Don't leave" A groggily voice said from the bed.

Sumo and Kakashi turned back around and made their way back to the side of the bed, Kakashi took Kana's hand in his "I thought you were asleep" Kakashi chuckled but then kissed Kana's forehead while easing himself down on to the side of the bed.

"I was, until a few minutes ago" Kana groaned while keeping her eyes shut.

Sumo sat down next to Kana and smiled "Hey, sis"

Kana barely managed to open her weary eyes to take a glance at her little brother "Hey, Sumo." Kana pulled her hand away from Kakashi's and stuck her arms out toward Sumo, signaling him for a hug. Sumo obliged and hugged Kana tightly. "I missed you, Kana." Sumo finally said.

Kana smiled "I missed you too, Sumo."

Kana then took a hold of Kakashi's hand again, and held it tenderly. Kana couldn't help from smiling, she enjoyed the peace with her family. She wished this could last forever and that she wouldn't have to worry about the man who attacked the village but she knew that was naive of her, she knew that eventually and probably sooner rather than later that the man would attack again but at this moment she was going to make this tender moment last for as long as she could. For her and her family's sake.

[writer-and-artist27]

After Snow Comes Spring

Theme is here. Or here’s a piano alternative. The song’s what gave this oneshot thingie its name, really. 

This was originally written as a way to help better utilize my social anxiety in a productive manner, and now that it’s here, I’m going with it. Studying can suck, but it’s necessary and to be honest, I’d rather not sulk all day. So, writing. Here you go. Briefly inspired by Shell Game Chapter 25 from Lang and Silent Feathers Chapter 18 from Os.  

Very distant sequel to this thingie, I suppose. Everyone’s 18. It makes the post-writing embarrassment more bearable.

--------------------------------------------

Crane would sometimes stop by the Nagareboshi Café and find himself peering past the veranda a bit longer than he should. Even if Crane couldn’t be his Uchiha self right now, he still kept that part of him around, as miniscule as it was when the mask was on, just for one person.

Someone would probably call this activity “stalking,” but to be honest, Crane couldn’t care less.

Especially when it came to her. 

The rain was cold and unbearable, but Hoshino Tomoko was still standing underneath the patio of Nagareboshi Café to stare up at the cloudy sky with darkened eyes. Even after half an hour of being alone, away from all the hubbub of her home, she hadn’t twitched aside from the usual heaves of her chest telling of breathing. Even when her café had already announced its closing time, she still stood there, watching the rain and barely moving from her spot near one of the windows.

In fact, even from his vantage point, Crane could see how her blue eyes were uncharacteristically dim to match the silence. The red hoodie on her black kimono dress helped with the cold, not to mention the veranda, but it still seemed like she was close to crying.

Something was screaming inside him as he continued to watch.

Tomoko continued to stay silent the entire time he sat there on his electric pole watching. Her eyebrows then furrowed as she gently brought her hands to her mouth, breathing warm air onto her whitened fingers. “Another day,” she exhaled softly, shaking her head. Her gaze was sad as she glanced back towards the dark clouds. “It’s been years.”

Years since what? 

“…What would you think of me now, Ty? Have I become ‘worthy’ in your eyes? Or am I still pathetic to you?” 

Crane froze.

A chilling, sad, and broken laugh reached his ears even through the rain. It was hard to believe that it was Tomoko’s voice. “Who am I to know? You’re gone. Yet why do I miss you?” She shook her head again, bitterly. “There’s no way to get an answer now. Not after so long.” Then there was a sniffle. Tomoko wiped at one of her eyes with her kimono sleeve, the black cloth coming back wet. “I’m horrible, huh, Ty?”

Crane’s fingers twitched through his armor.

“Crane,” the voice echoed forebodingly into his ear from his neckpiece. 

Crane paused, barely noticing his voice having deepened from the lack of breathing and the sudden surge of anger flowing through his veins until he spoke. “Yeah?”

“We have to go soon.”

Crane sighed, adjusting the volume of his voice with a turn of the dial around his choker. The mission. Right. “I know, Turtle, give me a minute.” His heart was pounding again, like his Uchiha self. The self that was yearning to be at Tomoko’s side, to hold her hand and hug her and tell her she wasn’t alone. “…She’s out in the cold again.”

“She’s what?” A pause. Turtle inhaled. “Again, huh?” A sigh then rang through his eardrums. “Star’s sads are horrible.” 

“K—Turtle. Can’t we do anything?” 

“Crane—”

“Listen to yourself, Crane.” Wolf’s voice this time crackled through his other ear. Jackass professional. “You know we don’t have time. As much as you want to, Hokage-sama’s orders are absolute. Dry up and get going.” 

“Do you even hear yourself?” Crane snapped, trying to hold back an exasperated huff to not alert anyone nearby of his presence. “It’s Star. She doesn’t stand out in the cold as fuck rain unless something’s wrong. And Moon’s on hospital shift today. For all that we know, Star’s alone.”

A pause followed again.

“She was talking about that guy again, Turtle,” Crane pleaded. “We have to do something.”

“…Wolf,” Turtle said finally, a tiny hitch in her voice, “I think we can spare a few minutes.”

There was a clicking of a tongue. “Five minutes,” Wolf acquiesced quietly, rustling over the line. “No more than that, Crane.”

“Thank you,” Crane huffed irritably, and his hands twitched while fumbling with his mask. Darn the rain for making everything slippery. “At least you’re not a total jackass.”

“I have my priorities straight,” Wolf interjected dryly, more rustling to signal a shake of his head. He paused, exhaling before admitting, “but you’re right. When the mission is done, we can all comfort Star if she needs it.”

“Good,” Turtle finished, a bit of pride leaking into her voice, “Crane, do your thing.”

The single crackle over his headset signaled the end of that conversation and Crane was left by himself on top of the electric pole again.

Tomoko sighed softly, closing her eyes and he took his chance. 

A single leap was all it took to stand in front of her, shielded from the rain by the awning, and years of chakra control training softened his step enough for her to not notice him. Instead, Tomoko kept her eyes closed as she pressed her hands together in front of her chest. 

“Mirror,” she sang quietly to herself, “tell me something. Tell me who’s the loneliest of them all.” 

The last bit of Crane’s reasoning finally snapped. 

He nearly threw off his mask when stepping forward, but he clasped onto whatever common sense was left inside to speak. “You’re not the loneliest of all.”

Tomoko’s eyes flew open and those soft pink lips opened to gape. Her big blue eyes were wide enough to reflect his image in the irises. “E-Eh?!” her voice shook, echoing in the quiet with that familiar high pitch of hers that spoke of her turbulent emotions. And indeed, there was no mistaking the hint of fear lacing her words. Of course. She hadn’t recognized him. “A-ANBU-san? When did you—” 

Crane shook his head, cutting her off while loosening the straps of his mask. “I’ve been here the entire time. And normally, I’d be Operative Crane, a ninja who can’t even talk with civilians. But I would’ve thought you’d know who it is behind the facade, considering you’re not running away.” 

Once the straps were off, he let the darn thing fall to the ground and Tomoko’s cheeks flushed pink from surprise. 

With Crane gone, Uchiha Obito grinned wryly in his place. “You make it really hard to go without worrying about you, Tomo-chan.”

“O-Obi?!” 

Obito couldn’t help himself. He only had five minutes after all. 

A single squeak was the last thing left between them as Obito lurched forward and captured Tomoko’s lips in a searing kiss. He didn’t even care that his armor was soaked through, that the wind was cold and that people could be staring. All that mattered was pushing that scum’s name out of his girlfriend’s mind, to erase whatever scars Tai left, even if it meant compromising his security. 

Obito had a promise to keep and he couldn’t do it as Crane. 

A moment passed and once the oxygen was running low, Obito gently nipped at Tomo-chan’s bottom lip in a quiet reprimand. It was enough to startle another, smaller squeak from her mouth as he pulled back. 

“O…Obito?” Tomo-chan inhaled shakily, cheeks flushed and lips now somewhat swollen from the kiss. Her red hoodie had long since fallen back to rest against her neck, probably from the force Obito used to push her back. Oops. He got too into it. “Don’t you have to go on a mission?” 

Awwww. Wait, no. 

She yelped once he leaned back in for a quick peck, her resolve wavering as fast as it came. “H-Hey!” 

Obito could faintly hear his headset crackle from microphone static in the back of his mind. Probably Turtle or Wolf. But that was Crane’s responsibility. Right now… 

“I do have to go, probably in the next minute or so,” he mumbled, a smile barely hanging onto his face. But Tomo-chan was still in his line of sight, looking up at him with those cute big blue eyes of hers, so Obito couldn’t help himself. He pressed a hand against the window to lean in, pressing a softer kiss to her forehead. “But don’t think you’re ever unworthy and horrible, Tomo-chan. You’re cute and I love you, so at least remember me before Tai.”

“Oh.” Tomoko’s eyes narrowed weakly at him in spite of the dark red staining her cheeks, her breath coming out in shaky puffs. “Y-You’re not going to bother remembering his name, are you?”

Obito grinned. “Nope!” He pressed one last lingering kiss to her lips. “I love you, Tomo-chan. Not him. He doesn’t deserve anything. And if you believe otherwise, I’ll come back and make sure you remember that.”

Tomoko could have easily resembled a tomato with how red she had turned in the span of a moment. She opened her mouth, letting out a funny noise akin to a small horse before nodding to herself and taking a breath. “G-Got it. Okay.” 

“Crane.” Wolf’s voice interrupted him through the intercom. “It’s time to go.”

Of course. Goddammit.

The moment Tomoko took to reorient herself was enough to give Obito time to take a step back to pick up his mask, snapping the straps back onto his head. Once he did, Tomoko raised her hand to gently wave at him. “I-I love you too, Mr. Crane.” Her smile was definitely exasperated but still all the more real. “Be safe.”

“The same to you, Ms. Star,” Crane said in Obito’s place, hiding his matching smile behind the white mask as he stepped out and back into the cold downpour. “Expect a visitor in the near future.”

A single leap and the pole was back underneath the soles of his sandals. Crane inhaled.

Obito could still feel his lips tingle from the moment.

“Mr. Crane?”

Crane paused. He swiveled his head back, and Tomoko was still smiling. “Do you and your guest like the piano?”

Crane tilted his head at her. “What do you think, Ms. Star?”

With that line said, he leapt away and the moment was over. It was time to get to work again.

By the time he reached the village gates where Wolf and Turtle were, Crane could’ve sworn he saw a twinkle in the sky. 

[myaekingheart]

The Hazards of Love

Part 7: The End

@naruto-fantasy-week Day 7: Free Day [Kakashi Hatake x Rei Natsuki (OC)] Sometimes fate has a funny way of bringing people together. And sometimes Mother Nature has a funny way of ripping them apart. [Inspired by the Hazards of Love by The Decemberists] read on AO3

               Once he got his bearings, Kakashi surged forward to create space between Obito and Rei. He wrapped his arms around his lover, drawing her to her feet, and in her relief she automatically crumpled in his embrace. She knew she could depend on him. She knew he would rescue her no matter the cost.

               “Are you alright? Are you hurt?” he asked, checking her all over. Rei opened her mouth to speak, to tell him that she was fine, but the words caught in her throat. Instead, all she could manage was a pathetic croak before breaking down in monstrous tears.

               Obito watched as he regained his balance, sneering. This was not the way things were supposed to be. He cursed himself for ever getting distracted or else he never would’ve lost his focus. But of course Kakashi had to come in and ruin everything like always. Rei had no idea of the animosity between them, the tragic history and their shared grief. Kakashi would’ve preferred to keep it that way but it seemed fate had other plans. He would have to deal with his past transgressions before redeeming the future’s rewards.

               Kakashi could tell things were going to get much, much worse before they got better. Turning to Rei, he brushed the hair out of her face and implored her, “Go find someplace safe. Get out of here. Now.”

               Rei shook her head, growing frantic in response. “Kakashi, no, I-I’m not leaving you. Come on, let’s just get out of here. Together. We can get away from everything, we can be happy and safe, it’ll be—”

               “Rei, no” Kakashi interrupted. There was a darkness in his eyes then that she had never seen before. “I need to take care of this. Just please…get to safety. I’ll find you when it’s all over.” Her anxiety skyrocketed, squeezing his hands and searching his face for any sign that he might change his mind. Instead, he cupped her cheek and kissed her hard, as if it might be the last time, and promised her, “Everything is going to be fine.” Without wasting another moment, he urged her toward the door and she ran on autopilot away from the impending destruction. Tears poured down her face as she departed and she prayed Kakashi would return to her safe and alive. She couldn’t afford to lose him. She needed him. This baby needed him. They were supposed to be happy.

               Once he was sure Rei was gone, Kakashi was finally given the space to fully comprehend the situation at hand. “Obito…” the name spilled from his lips, staring at the man he once knew. Nothing about this made sense. Obito was dead. He had watched him die. His left eye was firmly planted into Kakashi’s socket. This man before him, the man claiming to be Obito, had to be an imposter. “I don’t understand” Kakashi murmured. “How are you alive? How could you have fallen so far from the Obito I once knew?”

               Obito smirked, wiping the blood from his lips. If anything, Rei had a killer kick. “I got lucky” he began. “I was given a second chance by Kaguya. When I was given the opportunity for revenge, I couldn’t say no.”

               Revenge. Kakashi hated that word. There was truly no point in revenge. You waste nothing but time and energy chasing a high that never even amounts to anything. And when you finally succeed, you’re left with nothing. Emptiness. It was a hollow endeavor.

               “Don’t get so high and mighty” Obito sneered. “You could never understand. You don’t know the pain of losing someone. The pain that you’ve put me through.” Here, he ripped the portrait of Rin off the mantle and shoved it in Kakashi’s face. “Did you really think I would pass up the opportunity to destroy something so valuable to you after what you had done to me? To her?”

               Just the mere sight of Rin sent Kakashi shivering. It had been so long since he had seen her face, he had begun to forget the details. Looking at her now, every curve and line as sharp and vivid as they were fifteen years ago, he was almost reduced to that regretful little child he had been the day it happened. The day he killed Rin.

               “Obito…” Kakashi whispered, averting his eyes. He couldn’t stand to look at her. He needed to remain focused. He could not let the pain of the past influence his present and therefore destroy his future. “It doesn’t need to be this way.”

               Obito scoffed, throwing the photograph across the room. The glass of the frame shattered and dispersed across the floor like tiny ice crystals glistening in the firelight. “This is the only way!” he insisted. He revealed that one red eye, Kakashi’s twin. Locking eyes with one another felt so surreal, so unnatural. Two eyes, equally horrible, finally reunited. Across Obito’s face grew a malicious grin. “An eye for an eye, if you will.”

               Kakashi clenched his fists and tried to remain strong. He glanced to the portrait of Rin, the photograph torn on the corners and flopping over in what was left of the frame. The way Obito had destroyed it with no regard for the sentiment proved to Kakashi that perhaps it wasn’t Rin he really cared about. He was power hungry and drunk on making other people suffer. “Rin would never want this” Kakashi whispered. “She would never have wanted you to turn down this dark path.”

               “As if any of that matters!” Obito shouted. “What good is Rin’s opinion if she’s not here? Let her come and stop me! She has no say in the matter and never will because she’s dead.”

               This was growing tiresome and pointless. Kakashi sucked in a deep breath. He was standing at a crossroads now. There was a fateful decision to be made. “It seems there’s nothing I can do to change you” Kakashi resolved. “Right now, all I can give you…is death.”

               From down below, on the castle’s porch, Rei could hear their battle commence. She curled up behind the ramshackle fencing, trying to make herself as small and insignificant as possible. She understood the sick irony of this in her current state but she attempted anyway. All around her, she felt the eyes of the forest staring down at her. There was truly no privacy in the woods but she had accepted this and decided not to care. Right now, her focus was Kakashi. With each crack and smack, she wondered who was winning, how bloody the battle was, and if she had made the right decision. The tiny kick of her unborn child reminded her, however, that this was bigger than herself. That there was no longer room to be selfish. Her top priority was her child and whatever was happening up there was no place for a child to be.

               Rei pressed her hand against her belly and a sob broke past her lips. “Kakashi” she whispered, “Please come home safe. We need you.” A crack of lightning flashed across the sky and suddenly everything fell silent.

               The door creaked open as a steady rain began to fall. Rei squinted into the darkness as a figure emerged, tall and lean. When she recognized him as Kakashi, her heart leapt into her throat. He searched the castle grounds for her and rushed to her side once he spotted her by the fencing. She hoisted herself to her feet, laughing through her tears, as he ran towards her. He cupped her cheek in his hand, whispered, “It’s finished.”

               “I thought I’d never see you again” Rei cried, holding his face and touching his chest and running her fingers through his hair. She needed to touch him so she could verify that he was real. Kakashi tucked her long bangs back behind her ear and pressed his lips to hers, a solid confirmation of his tangibility.

               “I’m so sorry to have gotten you involved in this mess” he whispered. “Maybe you would’ve been better off leaving me for dead after all.”

               “Kakashi, don’t say that” Rei insisted, her voice cracking. “I love you. I need you. I can’t imagine my life without you. Please.”

               A small smile touched Kakashi’s lips. “Well…then I’m sorry for saying that, too” he whispered. He pressed his forehead against hers, held her close, before instructing her to climb onto his back. “Come on, let’s go home” he said. It didn’t matter that he had no clue where home was, exactly. They would create their own home someplace safe and warm. Someplace where they could raise their child—and any others that might come along—and be truly, unashamedly happy. A gust of wind whipped against them as they approached the raging river. Rei nestled into Kakashi’s arms as he waded into the river, holding on tight—a prayer for safe crossing. A flash of lightning struck the sky, Kaguya’s furious face appearing in the negative. The battle was not yet over. There was still one more fight to face. The air screeched like the oncoming of a tornado and then everything suddenly went black.

               A bright, blinding heat dampened Rei’s face as she furrowed her brow and blinked awake. She couldn’t quite recall what had happened the night before. Beneath her was a patch of scratchy, dry grass. She slowly sat up and surveyed her surroundings but nothing seemed familiar. Once she had rubbed the sleep from her eyes and the horror of the night before resurfaced in her memory, she had only one frantic, fearful thought: where is Kakashi?

               Rei scrambled to her feet and searched the surrounding area only to find a wounded wolf lying limp at the base of a tree at the base of a shallow decline. Her worst fears were no doubt being realized. She raced down the hill toward him praying that he was not, in fact, dead. He was beaten and bruised and when she pressed her ear to his chest, she couldn’t make out a heartbeat. But she refused to let things end this way. Through her tears, she tried every possible method to resuscitate him. He was not going to die. Not if she could help it. No, they were supposed to be a happy family. They were supposed to get everything they ever wanted. It was not going to end this way.

               Nothing seemed to work. Try as she might, Kakashi was gone. “Fuck!” she screamed, pounding her fist against the trunk of the tree. She buried her face in his fur as she wailed, hugging him tightly. Everything was numb.

               A panic rose up into her throat then as she felt a light surround them, a fresh air. Something wasn’t right. She was suddenly envisioning something akin to an alien abduction: watching his corpse float up into some unidentified ship in the sky. She was terrified she was going to lose custody of him, so she hugged him ever tighter. If she was going to lose his spirit, she refused to let his body be taken away, too. And then she felt it: a hand stroking the back of her head. His hand. She looked up and somehow…there he was. Kakashi.

               There were dark circles around his eyes and a pallor to his skin that for a moment made her question whether he was a ghost. But no, she pressed her hand to his chest and felt that symphonic beat of his heart. He was alive. Somehow, miraculously, alive. “Y-you idiot!” she shouted through her tears, slapping him hard on the arm. “You had me worried sick!”

               “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry” he whispered, brushing the hair out of her face and kissing her nose, her lips, her cheeks, her eyelids. “It’s alright, Rei, I’m here now. I didn’t mean to scare you. You saved me again. We’re alright. Everything is alright.”

               He held her close as she wailed, allowing her to release her emotions in full. He wiped her tears and rubbed her belly both as a sign of love to the child as well as a sign of comfort to her. Once she had finally calmed down, he lifted her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her. She wiped her blurry eyes and surveyed the forest with newfound focus. “Where are we?” she asked. There was so much light and color, as if autumn had been completely replaced by the fresh spring. “Is this paradise? Or are we dead?”

               Kakashi shook his head. “I don’t think we’re dead” he replied. He held her hand as he guided her toward the edge of a cliff. From where they stood, the entire forest stretching all the way to the village was visible, small and distant as a child’s model train set. Every tree had been charred bare and the smell of smoke still lingered.

               Rei could never truly know what had happened that night between Kakashi and Kaguya but when she asked, all he said was that he was finally free. The past, the forest, the curse no longer shackled him. Rei had saved him in every way in which he could be saved, and he to her. Together, gazing out at the destroyed forest, they stood on the precipice of a new life together. Kakashi intertwined his hand with hers, a soft smile on his face. He was truly at peace. “Rei…” he murmured, “This is only the beginning.” He turned to her then, pressing his forehead against hers, and caressed her belly, the promise of new life beneath his hands. The promise of a new beginning and a bright future. For the rest of her days, Rei would think back on this moment and remember what Kakashi said, the way it resonated with her and filled her with hope and faith and love and light. The beginning of their future, the epilogue of a tragedy that bridged the gap between the prologue of their fortune.

               These hazards of love nevermore will trouble us.

[kuriquinn]

Penthesilea [3/?]

Cover & Disclaimer

Chapter Summary: For a week Sasuke wrestles with himself, knowing that they need a more advanced healer—knowing exactly who would be the most competent person to seek out. But certainly, she wouldn’t be so foolish as to heal the leader of the enemy forces. Sasuke doubts even Uzumaki could shrug off that as anything but treason, not to say what Senju Tsunade would think of it.

Chapter Beta: Sakura’s Unicorn

戦国時代

Sasuke is constantly exhausted and yet, sleep eludes him every night.

For months, he occupies himself with battle strategy in the bleak, restless hours before dawn. He runs numbers in his head and tries to outthink the plans of his rival. Uzumaki is a bit of an idiot, but Nara Shikamaru is at his side, and the shadow manipulator is known to be a genius. Itachi could keep up with his ploys with ease, but Sasuke struggles. He’s not an anticipatory thinker, preferring to react to problems as they present themselves. That kind of approach is fine when it’s only himself, but with so many lives dependant on him now, he can’t rely on such personal tactics.

As time goes on, however, Sasuke’s ruminations change in a bothersome way. Offensive strategies and possible promotions give way to imaginings of brilliant green eyes and a mouth curved into an impish smile. This, more than battle tactics, keeps him awake at night, and he hates himself for being so weak and fallible as to be distracted by a woman of all things.

There’s little point in spending hours staring at the canvas ceiling of his tent, and so most nights, he will get up and walk. It’s a simple thing to slip away from the constant din of the army camp and into the forest, far enough away that he can’t hear people. It is easier to pretend…something. He isn’t sure what.

Tonight, Sasuke sits at the base of a large oak, staring up into the sky at the giant moon hovering above the tree line. He wonders if there are people there and if they, too, are embroiled in an endless battle.

He begins to understand why Itachi always yearns for silence.

“Do you know the story of how this war got started?”

Sasuke’s muscles tense, fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword, but as he touches it, the voice registers and he pauses.

“There are few people who can sneak up on me,” he points out, refraining from turning to her. However, out of the corner of his eye, he can see her ensconced in the branches of the tree, eyes on the moon, legs swinging idly back and forth.

Sakura, he thinks, as if remembering it for the first time, even though her name has been burned into his brain since he learned it.

“My perfect chakra control has allowed me to mask my presence since I was twelve,” she states matter-of-factly. It’s not a boast or a challenge or even said to impress him—just an answer to an unspoken question.

“That would be a useful skill for a spy,” he remarks.

“Yes, it would.”

“Is that why we’ve never seen you before?”

“Among other things,” she replies, a bit of a teasing note in her voice. “So, do you know it?”

“Do I know what?”

“How all this started.”

She’s avoiding the question, but he allows it for now, if only to spend time getting a clearer picture of this woman. “I do.”

The stories were told to him in his cradle, passed down by grandparents, parents, aunts, and uncles. No Uchiha is brought into this world without knowing the story of Indra and Asura—the two brothers who were the progenitors of the Uchiha and the Senju, and the stolen birthright which started everything.

“The Senju have been selfish opportunists from the beginning,” he goes on. “They take what does not belong to them—credit, power, control—and then blame others for their failures.”

“And the Uchiha have been perfect examples of restraint?” Sakura counters dryly. “Your people spent decades slaughtering each other and everyone else.”

He can’t exactly argue with that. Those dark days are literally written in stone.

“Senju Hashirama,” Sasuke offers quietly. “Your beloved leader’s grandfather is the reason for the conflict.”

“You would say that,” she sighs. “I suppose you never heard the story that he and Uchiha Madara were friends. A lot like you and Naruto.”

Sasuke splutters and glares up at her. “I am not friends with Uzumaki. In case you’ve failed to notice, we spend most days trying to kill each other.”

“And I’m having a conversation with the man who stabbed me,” she shrugs. “Humans tend to do things that make no sense.”

He has no idea what to say to that, but he suspects offering any argument will lead to more of her twisted logic.

“People say they tried to find peace,” she continues, as if she didn’t just make the most ridiculous accusation. “Hashirama and Madara tried to build a village together, to stop all the fighting. But it didn’t work.” She snorts. “Which version did you get growing up?”

“Version?” he echoes, looking up this time.

“You really think we all know the same story?” Sakura asks, amused, gazing down at him. The moonlight makes her hair look silver. “If that were the case, I doubt there would still be fighting.”

Sasuke doesn’t answer, wondering if she’s right and suspecting she’s not. He knows that as long as there are humans, there will always be needless battles and wars.

“My parents used to say it was because of the daimyō,” she goes on, as if they’re having a conversation about the weather. “They were worried about the shinobi becoming more powerful because they were united now. And so, they engineered a war to bring down their numbers. Only it backfired because the Senju and the Uchiha could not work together.”

Sasuke thinks on this.

He is familiar with the theory that the daimyō were worried about a centralised shinobi power arising. But the story his family always told was that Senju Hashirama betrayed Uchiha Madara in the worst way possible. No one knows exactly what the betrayal was—the specifics vary according to who tells the story. Sasuke’s father told him Hashirama tricked Madara out of the leadership of their utopian village. His mother said that it was all down to a woman they both loved, and who ultimately chose Hashirama. Sasuke always found Mother’s tale to be completely unlikely. He’s never had a use for such emotional drivel. No one woman could inspire such a change in ideals, to cause a war where countless lives have been lost and lands torn apart by deep-rooted hatred.

And even if one could…

His thoughts trail off as he stares up at Sakura as she gazes at the moon. A second later, Sasuke shakes his head.

Even if he survived long enough to meet such a woman, it would mean nothing. He will marry Hyūga Hinata to strengthen his bloodline and finally wipe out the Senju and Uzumaki threat. There will be no sentiment involved, no confusion. He won’t have to worry about his future wife making him question himself with irrational flights of fancy.

And yet, he can’t find it in himself to reach for his blade and attack, or to raise the alarm for the watchmen to come running. Trying to cover his own confusion, Sasuke turns his back on the tree and the woman in it.

“The next time I see you on our borders, I will kill you,” he hisses as he walks away. He refuses to look back to see if Sakura has left, or if she’s still perched in the branches like a tree spirit.

戦国時代

Within weeks, it becomes clear that Itachi’s preference for solitude has never been just about needing momentary solace.

Sasuke learns that his brother’s blindness is not the result of an enemy jutsu, but a symptom of the disease Itachi has hidden for years—a sickness that weakens him every day, sapping his strength and mobility. Before Sasuke’s eyes, his brother grows thinner and weaker, coughing up blood and fighting just to raise a hand.

“Put it out of your mind, little brother,” he says, smiling gently whenever Sasuke visits him at the end of the day. “There’s still more than enough time.”

But when he reaches to tap Sasuke’s forehead in affectionate reprimand, the gesture is as feeble as the graze of a butterfly’s wings.

This stark reality adds to Sasuke’s wakeful nights and keeps him preoccupied by day. He tells his clansmen and their vassals that Itachi has caught an aggressive pneumonia—the damp conditions in the trenches make this a believable lie.

In secret, he seeks out help.

Through the course of months, Sasuke quietly brings in every medic among their forces, every village healer and hedge witch, but no one has an answer or hope to give. Even Obito’s wife, Rin, a talented healer in her own right, is mystified.

For a week, Sasuke wrestles with himself, knowing that they need a more advanced healer—knowing exactly who would be the most competent person to seek out. But certainly, she wouldn’t be so foolish as to heal the leader of the enemy forces. Sasuke doubts even Uzumaki could shrug off that as anything but treason, not to say what Senju Tsunade would think of it.  

He tries to ignore the naïve part of him that believes she would agree if he asked. For the most part, Sasuke succeeds in this until one night when Itachi’s condition worsens.

A coughing fit sends Itachi into a seizure, and when he emerges, he can barely speak. His usually keen eyes are dull with pain and confusion, and Sasuke decides right then that he will take whatever chance is necessary to help his brother.

He slips away from the camp by night, extracting from Hyūga a promise that he will keep Itachi safe before setting off to find the one woman who can help. It’s a mission that could get him killed if he gets caught—might get her killed, too—but it’s a price he’s willing to pay. Itachi has been the only constant in his life, a good and peaceful soul trapped in a war he never should’ve been part of. Sasuke will burn down the world if it means saving the man who practically raised him when their parents died.

The current border between Uchiha and Senju land falls along a barren, rocky seashore. Upon reaching it, he hesitates. The moment he steps over the boundary, he is risking not only his personal well-being, but is also handing the enemy a pivotal bargaining chip. More than that, he’ll be asking someone for help—something he hasn’t done since childhood.

It’s a distracting enough conundrum that he doesn’t notice, until it’s too late, that he’s not alone.

Three figures materialise around him, and before he can react, he feels a swift, burning pain lance through him. From the sudden difficulty Sasuke has breathing, he suspects one of his assailants has landed a blow beneath his floating rib.

Turning to face them, blood soaking down his front, Sasuke makes out two men and a woman wearing the mark of Oto—mercenaries with loyalty to the highest bidder. This insult more than anything else infuriates him, and he wastes no time in disposing of them.

Still, the damage is done, and he knows before examining the broad slit in his side that the wound is fatal. His attacker’s blade cut deep, nicking either a kidney or a vein, and his violent disposal of his attackers did not help.

As his knees buckle, it starts to rain.

He lies there in the damp sand, inches from lapping waves, gasping and alone, thinking how this was not how he was supposed to die.

戦国時代

Unconsciousness bring with it a rare peace.

Sasuke dreams of Sakura, imagining her voice and a soothing coolness against the raging pain in his side. He envisions being lifted from the damp ground and cradled against her chest—it must be her chest because he hears a heartbeat, and it’s racing too fast to be his own. For once, any embarrassment or self-repudiation he might feel is blissfully absent.

When he awakens, he’s no longer on the seashore, but in a damp, dimly-lit cave. In the distance, he hears the lap of water and steady rush of rain, suggesting he isn’t far from the shore where he fell.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees his sword propped against a rock, his bloodstained haori and hakama draped across another. A fire has been constructed nearby which casts shadows across the damp walls. It and the unfamiliar haori draped over him keeps him warm and dry.

And of course, it’s Sakura who kneels by his side, her face set in what he assumes is an uncharacteristic frown.

“You almost died,” she whispers.

He coughs. “You should’ve let me.”

Sakura shoots him an unamused look. Her eyes crackle with an anger he hasn’t seen before. “You damned idiot.”

And for some reason, he wants to laugh, but the first dry chuckle hurts too much, and Sakura pokes his shoulder in reprimand.

“Stop it—I healed all of your injuries, but you are still weak.”

Sasuke grimaces at those words. “I am not weak.”

“Poor word choice,” she acknowledges. “Your body will be compensating for the rapid cellular regeneration for a while, so please refrain from making any more stupid decisions.”

“No more moonlit walks through forbidden ground,” he agrees, and he thinks his blood must not be replenished yet because that comes out more as banter than sarcasm. Obviously, he’s still lightheaded.

Sakura reaches for his brow, ostensibly to check his temperature, and Sasuke shivers at the sensation of her palm on his skin. He suspects she’ll find it warmer than it should be, although he’s not entirely sure that’s due to his body fighting off infection.

“What were you even doing there?” she asks softly, and instantly, he remembers his mission.

Itachi.

Sasuke struggles to sit up, not wanting to have this conversation with her while lying on his back. It’s bad enough he’ll have to ask her for help, especially after she just saved his life. It’s incredibly fortuitous that she was close by.

Wait.

He frowns at her. “What were you doing there?”

Sakura’s cheeks flush with colour and she looks away.

“Sometimes, I go there to think. The water is calming and sometimes…sometimes, it’s so quiet along the shore that I can pretend all the rest is just a dream,” she confesses. There’s no need to elaborate on what all the rest means.

“And by some coincidence, you chose tonight to do this?” Sasuke asks, suspicious. “You just happened to arrive right after I was attacked, but not before. And you just happened to be there to help?”

She stares at him now, confused. “Do you think I set you up?”

“Did you?” he challenges. “Because healing the enemy is something no one in this war but you would conceive of. Not without some ulterior motive.”

“You’re…angry at me…because I helped you?”

“We are on opposite sides,” he snaps. “And you’re the only one who refuses to understand that.”

“This did not happen in battle!” Sakura shoots back, gesturing at the newly healed scar in his side. “This was someone—someone not on my side—trying to kill you!”

“No one knew I was there,” he reasons stubbornly. “I took particular care. The only people who would attempt to assassinate me is one of you damned Senju or Uzumaki. Or your hired mercenaries.”

“Those people I found beside you were not ours,” Sakura insists angrily. “Hired or otherwise.”

“You don’t know that—your side counts rabble among your allies,” he dismisses. “Men and women who do not even belong to a reputable shinobi clan.”

“Why does belonging to a clan matter?” Sakura demands, and he can see that he’s insulted her. “It made no difference to them. They almost killed you.”

“Almost.”

“Because I saved you, you ridiculous man!” she snaps. “Do you even hear yourself? Repeating some inane story over and over again until you think it holds truth! That’s insanity! You never answered me before, Sasuke-kun—do you even know why we continue to fight?”

There it is again. That maddening familiarity—as if she has the right to call him by his name.

Sasuke jerks away from her and struggles to his feet. She follows his movements, but it’s a little less impressive given that she’s half a head shorter than he.

“It’s simple—I am Uchiha. You are not my ally. And I should’ve known better than to come looking for you,” he says, turning toward the mouth of the cave. “A fool’s notion. I won’t make it again.”

She’s behind him, steadying him with a gentle, but firm, grasp.

“You were looking for me?” she asks, voice soft and sounding so hopeful that his stomach jumps.

Sasuke scowls and pulls away from her.

“Don’t touch me,” he growls, but there is an edge of panic in his voice. He swallows it down—She can’t notice it!—and adds in a more threatening tone, “My mercy has its limit, and you are testing it.”

Sakura takes a step back, although he’s chagrined to see it’s not in fear, but as if she’s simply acquiescing to his wishes—a medic humouring her patient. The insult rankles, and before he can think better of it, he lashes out at her.

He’s still weak, though, and she pins him with an ease that would embarrass if anyone else saw it. He’s pushed against the rough cave wall, her hands immobilizing his wrists. She stops him from sweeping her feet out from under her by pressing close to him, bracketing his leg between her thighs. Her hair is in his face and she smells like firewood, rain, and something floral. It makes it hard to concentrate on her words, which are angry and frustrated.

“What’s the matter with you?” she demands. “Why are you like this? Do you even know what gratitude is? If I wanted to kill you, I could have so many times already, but I didn’t!”

“Because you want something,” he bites out.

“I want nothing!” she snaps. “At least…not in the way you think. I have no interest in enemy secrets or battle plans or…or anything to do with this damned war! I just want to help the people who are hurting, and that’s all I’ve ever wanted!”

Sakura’s cheeks are flushed with colour and there are tears in her eyes, but he senses they’re angry instead of sad.

“If that were true, you would’ve left this land and found somewhere untouched by the war,” he tells her coolly. “Your idealism means nothing here—it doesn’t differ from a child’s.”

Her fingers tighten painfully around his wrists, and he tries to hold back any visible wince.

“Do you never dream of something more?” she asks, searching his face desperately. “Do you ever want more? Or do you just want to keep fighting like this? Keep distrusting everyone you meet for the rest of your life?” He remains silent. “Is there a single place in your heart, no matter how small, that doesn’t see an enemy when you look at me? Or has this war completely destroyed that?” When he continues to glare in silence, she sighs. “Never mind.”

Sakura loosens her grip on him and pulls away. Sasuke immediately turns the tables, grabbing her and shoving her back against the cave wall, one hand around her neck.

“I doubt your abilities can heal you if I break your neck,” he growls at her, leaning in until they are inches apart. He feels the hard ridge of her oesophagus against his palm, knows the exact amount of force it would take to crush it, and silently dares her to give him an excuse.

“Doesn’t…really matter, does it?” she rasps in reply, her polite speech evaporating in the face of impending death. “My…childish ideas mean nothing here…you said it yourself. You’d be…doing me a favour…right?”

Sasuke tightens his grip incrementally, staring into her eyes and watching the flash of alarm as her oxygen is cut off a little more. It would really only be the matter of adjusting his position slightly…

When he moves, it’s not the way either of them expect.

Instead of crushing her windpipe, his hand slides from her throat to the collar of her kosode, fastening onto the fabric there and hauling her toward him. Crushing his mouth against hers, he feels the startled, oxygen-deprived gasp against his lips, and senses the flail of her hands as they try to find purchase somewhere. One lands on his bare shoulder and it’s as if a current has been run through him—the hairs on the back of his neck rise and a shiver creeps down his spine.

Sense forces its way past impulse and Sasuke pulls back, shocked and appalled by his loss of control. Of all the ways he’s been trained to deal with an enemy, this is certainly not one of them.

In the flickering dimness of the cave, he catches sight of something dark and hungry in those damned green eyes of hers. Then she’s the one to shove forward and kiss him, just as furious and angry as he was moments ago. Her hands are in his hair, teeth tugging hard enough at his lower lip that he tastes blood.

This is not how it’s supposed to go—not an intelligent course of action in any way. But as she wraps one leg around his hip to draw him in closer, he finds he doesn’t care.

In fact, it’s worryingly easy to give in.

 つづく

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クリ

Next Chapter

[myaekingheart]

The Hazards of Love

Part 5: The Abduction

@naruto-fantasy-week Day 5: Thieves and Outlaws [Kakashi Hatake x Rei Natsuki (OC)] Sometimes fate has a funny way of bringing people together. And sometimes Mother Nature has a funny way of ripping them apart. [Inspired by the Hazards of Love by The Decemberists] read on AO3 CW for a kidnapping

               It was abundantly clear to Kaguya that Kakashi could not be trusted. And truthfully, she expected nothing less from him. Of course he would be fawning over the woman who cared for him and was carrying his child. After seeing her up close, however, Kaguya was even more determined to right her son’s wrongs. If he was not going to come willingly, then she would have to lure him back to her by force. She would have to take matters into her own hands. There was really no other option. Luckily, she knew just whose help to enlist.

               Across the river, Kaguya approached a ramshackle castle otherwise believed to be abandoned. Inside, however, lived a dangerous ally. The door creaked open and he poked his head out. Despite the spiral mask concealing his face, Kaguya could tell he was smiling.

               “I have a proposition for you” she greeted. The man stepped aside and welcomed her inside.

               The interior of the castle was brooding and dark. Cobwebs lined the stairs and hung from the chandeliers and the floorboards creaked with the ghosts of his sins. “It’s been a long time, Kaguya” the man said as he guided his guest to the parlor. He motioned for her to sit upon a plush chaise. She politely obliged. “What can I help you with?” he asked.

               “I need some help with an extermination” Kaguya began. “I think you’ll find this particular assignment fairly irresistible.”

               “Is that so?” the man asked. He sat down in a large armchair facing her, lounging confidently like a millionaire amid his gold. “What kind of extermination are we talking about?”

               A sly smile touched Kaguya’s lips then. “It seems a pest has invaded my garden and is destroying my precious plants” she explained slowly, slyly. The man stroked his chin in intrigue. Her vague explanation had certainly caught his attention. He urged her to tell him more. “If Kakashi will not come to his senses, then we must confiscate whatever it is that is causing him to disobey me. I need you to capture this mistress of his and keep her as far away from him as humanly possible. Keep her under lock and key if you need to.”

               “So Kakashi has fallen in love, hmmm?” the man asked, a certain playful mocking in his tone. This was too rich. Kaguya nodded once, displeased. “How bad is it? How hard has he fallen?”

               With lips taut, she croaked, “She’s pregnant.” The man erupted in hysterical laughter. Kaguya allowed him a few moments of amusement before clearing her throat and bringing him back to center. “So, are you interested?” she asked.

               The man caught his breath before leaning forward and replying, “I’ll help you on one condition: once she’s in my captivity, I can do whatever I want with her. Do we have a deal?”

               With a flourish of her hand, Kaguya replied, “Once she’s your hostage, she’s your problem so you can do as you please.”

               Tenting his fingers, the man grinned wickedly behind his mask. Truly, nothing could be more perfect. The weight of the past pressed into his shoulders, motivating his excitement. His revenge was long overdue. “Excellent.”

               Kaguya watched as he donned a black cape adorned with red clouds, a symbol of his quest for peace. On the mantel, a portrait of a young girl stared after him longingly. Everything was finally falling into place. As he disappeared into the woods, Kaguya called after him. “Don’t fail me, Obito.”

               A thick fog had begun to roll in as the sky lightened overhead. Rei squinted awake, a strange happiness filling her at the sight of Kakashi by her side. He knelt before the campfire, considering breakfast, but the flames had grown weak through the night and much of the kindling was reduced to ash. “Struggling?” she joked tiredly, slowly sitting up. Kakashi whipped around to face her, a grin painting his face. He leaned forward to kiss her hard then planted an additional kiss upon her belly. “You seem awfully happy this morning” she laughed.

               Kakashi’s cheeks burned and he waved off her accusation. It didn’t matter if it was true. “I’ve been up all night thinking” he replied. “We have a lot of things to discuss.”

               The thought of a discussion admittedly spooked Rei. The concept automatically left her fearing that she had done something wrong. “Is everything okay?” she asked cautiously.

               Sensing her fear, Kakashi nodded and reassured her, “Everything should be fine. Something just came up but I have a plan. We’ll talk about it more after I get more firewood.” Rei watched him rise to his feet, her own anxiety rising along with him. She wanted to ask for an elaboration but the words caught in her throat and choked her. By the time she could croak out so much as an incomprehensible cry, he had already disappeared.

               What had happened while she was asleep? Those same terrible thoughts that haunted her earlier returned. It was in times like this that she realized there were so many things about Kakashi that she did not know. She pressed a hand to her belly and wondered what kind of man he even was, if he was even reputable, but then considering him as anything less than humble and goodhearted made her feel guilty and nauseous. Kakashi loved her, she was sure of it. He would never do anything to put her in harm’s way.

               The crack of a twig in the near distance snapped Rei from her overbearing thoughts. Her heart leapt into her throat and her hand immediately flew to the dagger at her thigh. All at once, she felt ridiculous for reacting in such a way. This was just the nature of the woods. It was likely only a squirrel scuttling across the worn path. Nothing to be afraid of.

               And then she heard the voice.

               “No wonder Kakashi has grown so fond of you” he cooed. The presence of an unfamiliar man suddenly grew stronger. Rei whipped around to find him approaching, the spiral design of his mask only furthering her routine nausea.

               “W-who are you?” she asked, and she cursed her voice for quivering. She extended her dagger out in front of her but knew she posed little threat. She wasn’t sure what made her sadder: a felon’s approach or her inability to appear like a formidable opponent. Her pregnancy did not exactly scream “deadly” or “intimidating.” If anything, it rendered her that much more vulnerable and she hated herself for it.

               The man waved a dismissive hand as he replied, “Let’s not bore each other with names.” As he grew nearer, his masked face mere inches from hers, he added sinisterly, “Besides, you likely won’t live long enough for it to be worth it.” Before she could say or do anything else, he scooped her up in his arms and slung her over his shoulder.

               Rei’s screams echoed through the woods, immediately capturing Kakashi’s attention. Without an ounce of hesitation, he dropped the pile of wood he had gathered and raced to her aide, all the while cursing himself for ever thinking he could leave her alone. He had promised to protect her, that she would be safe so long as she was with him, but he had abandoned her and now she was in danger. No matter what, he could not stand to let her get hurt. He would never forgive himself. He could hardly forgive himself for what was happening now.

               Kakashi skidded to a halt at the meadow where they had slept, the fog blotting out much of the trees. Off in the distance, however, he could make out an ominous figure. Over his shoulder, flailing and fighting, was Rei. A somber sense of self-hatred overwhelmed Kakashi in that moment. He begged his legs to move forward, to race after her and save her, but it was no use. He was paralyzed. All he could do was watch as the love of his life and her captor disappeared in the direction of the river.