#tenzou's so ready to take notes!!!!!!

[reineydraws]

"Iruka stands in his classroom, regarding his three students with a careful eye. This is the hardest bunch he has had for tutoring yet. Each of them need specialized training, but maybe putting them together would help the lessons stick."

inspired by a convo that happened over on the @kakairu-discord-server haha :') come join us!

[chestnut-b]

Himawari Chapter 7

“Do you think I could become strong too? Like you and Kakashi-sensei?” 

Iruka couldn’t help but smile. 

To see with the eyes of a child again.

He pressed his forehead to the boy’s own. 

“Stronger than anyone else, for sure.”

Chapter 7 of a Demon Slayer AU.

Two days after he’d left the forest, Kakashi made the admittedly, equally convoluted journey to the slayer headquarters. On his arrival, he was ushered in by the waiting attendants, and was soon joined by another. Before they could exchange words, a pair of young girls dressed in deep purple kimono announced their presence. 

“The master has arrived.” They said in unison, before retreating further back into the room.

The newly arrived figure took a seat before them, and with a calm, warm smile, began to speak.

“Welcome back, Anko. It pleases me to have you with us again after your long journey.”

“You honor me, Oyakata-sama.”

“And you, Kakashi, it’s been more than half a year since you’ve set foot here. I pray you’ve been well. We’re grateful for all your efforts.”

“Thank you, Oyakata-sama.”

As usual, our leader has a way with words, Kakashi mused silently. Lifting his head from his bow, he took in the sight of the man before him. 

Senju Hashirama, head of the clan and current leader of the Demon Slayer Corp. He wasn’t lying when he told Iruka that they shared a striking resemblance, the teacher could have easily passed as a younger doppelgänger, though he lacked the aura and mannerisms of one raised in a great household from birth. 

“It seems we’ve got great weather today. Is that so, Hinata?”

The girl in the back let out a surprised squeak before replying meekly “Y-yes! The sky is a deep, beautiful blue today.” The younger girl beside her stoically confirmed her observations. With their clear-white gazes, the Hyuuga attendants could have easily been mistaken as the unsighted ones here.

His condition’s gotten worse since the last time I was here, Kakashi noted. The Hashira’s thoughts flickered for a moment to a pair of similar, smiling dark eyes, but he quashed it before the unease could settle in his chest. 

“Anko, if you would.”

The woman in question nodded before sitting up at attention. She began to recount the last month of her reconnaissance with Jiraiya. Kakashi gave her a once over in the corner of his eye, and was met with a red, beady-eyed stare, and a flicking, forked tongue peaking out from under the collar of her coat.

For a person who survived the trauma of Orochimaru’s enslavement and subsequent decimation of her clan, Anko was surprisingly fond of snakes, he thought wryly.

“The skin we found was estimated to be about a month old. We also engaged two members of the Lower-Moons in battle on our journey back. The samples have been sent to the medical quarters, as requested.” She concluded.

That caught Kakashi’s attention. It had been a few years since any slayer had encountered even a Lower-Moon ranked demon. The Hashira who’d engaged one had been instructed to collect blood samples. What they were doing with those samples, Kakashi wasn’t privy to. 

The medical quarters were located in the Snail Estate and functioned as a hospital. He knew it used to have a leader, but for as long as he’d been a slayer, that seat had been left empty.

“Thank you, Anko. You’ve done well. Please get some rest before your next assignment.”

“As you wish.” Taking it as her cue to leave, she bowed, turned to wink at Kakashi and, if he knew her at all, left for the nearest dango stand, presumably.

“Kakashi, it’s about time for my walk. Would you care to join me?”

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

They moved, between the seemingly endless lines of grave markers, in silence.

Every member who had perished in service to the corp had a place here. Even those who’d failed the selection. Their predecessors; the ones that had lain here for over a hundred years still saw fresh flowers being placed before them, even now.

Among these, his father’s, Obito’s, Rin’s. 

They stopped in front of one bearing the name ‘Namikaze Minato’. The one beside it bore Kushina’s name.

“Is he growing well, Kakashi?” 

For a moment he wasn’t sure who had asked the question.

“Yes. It’s still too early to judge his strength, but I was able to observe his reaction to the wisteria, it’s promising. He should have no issue participating in the selections, should he choose to take it.” Kakashi turned to his sensei’s marker; there were bright yellow chrysanthemums laid before it. 

“He’s energetic, loud, as much a troublemaker as any other child his age, but also brave.” 

He remembered Iruka gently touching Naruto’s cheek.

“Naruto’s been well taken care of.” Perhaps his sensei would find it reassuring. 

The man beside him smiled somberly.  

“How much time do you think we have?” 

“Patterns indicate five years, if we’re lucky.” 

“Too short.” The older man lamented.

They continued walking for a while, and eventually reached another marker, differentiated from the others only by the wisteria flowers carved into the stone.

Tenzou.

The Senju are famously short lived you know.

He knew. 

Kakashi had been promoted to Hashira merely two years after he’d received the sharingan. The first person he’d addressed as ‘Oyakata-sama’ was not the man standing beside him now, but a boy, not many years younger than he was.

He would have been the same age as Iruka, had he lived.

A gentle soul who loved gardening and plants, who looked at him less like a subordinate and more like an older brother. A boy who stood steadfast as he issued orders to the older Hashira, but cried only in front of Kakashi when the crows delivered news of more losses.

He’d succumbed to his curse before he’d had the chance to have a family.

“It’s a pity. I’m sure Tenzou would have very much liked to meet his cousin.”

He knows I know. Kakashi should have been surprised, but he wasn’t. Instead, he found himself in silent agreement.

You would like him, Tenzou.

“If I may ask, why haven’t you called for him?” 

“Iruka knows he’d be welcomed if he chose to return. I do not wish to trample upon Kohari’s wishes by insisting otherwise.”

Iruka, stubborn as usual.

“‘I’ve heard he’s performing duties as a slayer, Kakashi?”

“To the best of his abilities, Oyakata-sama.”

The elder Senju smiled. “It’s been decades since any of our family have been able to take up a sword. He does us all a great honor. I have to send Hiruzen my thanks.”

Kakashi looked upon the figure before him with a hooded eye.

An anomaly in every sense of the word. When Tenzou had passed, he’d expected another young Senju to replace him as leader. Instead, a man who looked well into his forties had appeared before them. He’d seen that face only once before; among the portraits of clan leaders that hung in the estate, his was amongst the first. The space beside his, that would have normally been reserved for a sibling, was left ominously empty. 

This man, by any calculation, should be well over two hundred years old. 

Jiraiya and Sarutobi had served under him as former Hashira. By now, he should have been just one of the markers amongst hundreds in this garden.

Perhaps there are stranger things than Orochimaru still walking this land.

“I hope you’ll continue to be friends with him.”

The Hyuuga retainers soon appeared before them, and led the man back to the Estate, leaving Kakashi to greet his friends and father before he eventually left the compound.

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

He found Guruko whining pitifully at Anko at a roadside dango house. The hound busied herself staring down the snake that was coiled around Anko’s neck.

“You better not have fed her any dango, Anko. It could kill her.”

“As if I’d give up any for one of your mutts, idiot.” She muttered in between chews. The bandages that normally covered the bottom of her face were nowhere to be seen, leaving the scars that stretched across her mouth as plain as day. 

Kakashi ordered a cup of tea. He’d been feeling strangely deprived. He delved into his pouch for a stick of dried meat, and tossed it to the hound who started gnawing on it gleefully. 

“The old man’s dropping by the Forest Of Death before heading west. Isn’t that where you came from? Something particularly interesting I don’t know about?” 

“I left the manuscript for his new book there.”

Anko rolled her eyes before starting on another stick. 

“Five years huh. The Lower-Moons we fought weren’t exactly pushovers, but they’ll be replaced eventually. Something needs to change, or we’ll just be repeating this over and and over again.”

Kakashi made a nonchalant sound before starting on his tea. Not quite the way he’d become used to liking it, but it would have to do. 

His thoughts turned to Naruto and his guardian. Naruto would be eleven, maybe twelve by the time Orochimaru would prepare for another takeover. If he ever knew about the boy’s immunity to sunlight, it would only fire his determination. 

It was a grim thought. 

“I’ll be heading up north to see if I can pick up a trail.” 

“Well, try not to die. It would be a pain to have to cover for you.” She muttered, with all the concern she could muster. 

Kakashi sighed, looking into his cup, he wondered if Iruka was having tea by himself today. 

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

Iruka looked at his reflection in the mirror and grimaced. 

He only remembered pieces of what had happened the previous night, and was ready to dismiss it as another terrible nightmare, but as soon as he was upright he was struck with pain in his upper body. Parting his yukata, he grew increasingly disturbed to see red patches spread across his arms and chest where he’d held the boy. Not quite burns, but they radiated heat and stung painfully with any extraneous movement. 

Training was going to be more unpleasant than usual.

Steeling himself for another day, he quickly dressed himself and made his way to the main courtyard, where Naruto already stood before his classmates, rambling excitedly.

“Iruka-sensei was soooo cool! The demon was gonna get us but he chopped off his legs in one hit!” With his wooden sword in hand, he slashed the air. 

Iruka cursed inwardly. 

The boy was so caught up in his retelling, he’d failed to realise half his audience was slowly descending into hysterics. Lee was panicking; Sakura looked just about ready to cry. Further in the distance, Mizuki stared coldly.

“NARUTO!” He’d grabbed the arm holding the sword, harder than he would have liked. Combined with the unusual harshness of his voice, it was enough to silence the boy immediately. 

“I-Iruka-sensei?” 

He was looking at Iruka with confused, wide eyes. It was with relief that Iruka saw they were still the sky-blue eyes he loved, but somewhere deep down, it hurt.

“Enough. You’re scaring them.” 

It prompted the boy to look at his classmates. Sakura broke into tears, and it made some of the others do the same. A few were staring at him angrily. He looked back to Iruka with a disquieted, questioning look. 

“We’ll talk later, Naruto.”

He let go of the boy’s arm, and walked towards the distressed children, kneeling before them. 

“It’s all right. The demon was defeated.” He wiped the tears from Sakura’s cheek with the edge of his sleeve. “All of us are here to protect you. Don’t give in to fear.”

His words seemed to help calm things down. It took a while, but with some encouragement, the class finally started, and they were back to practicing their forms. Iruka looked at his children.

Orphans, every single one of them. All because of demons, in one way or the other. How many of them had survived nearly being eaten by their own loved ones? How many of them had their last memories of their family tainted in blood?

They would have all carried those memories here with them. 

Naruto didn’t know that pain, and Iruka was selfishly grateful for it, but it would always be a wall between him and his friends. 

Every year, they took in more children, and every year, they sent off children with sparks on their backs.

Every year, the crows would deliver a short list of names who survived the selections.

Iruka gripped his sword tighter, ignoring the wave of heat that ran down his arm.

Something had to change. 

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

It was night. Under the light of a full moon, they were sitting across each other on their futons. In Iruka’s shadow were two tiny glass vials of freshly drawn blood. A monthly ritual.

He had the boy’s small wrist in his hand, the same one he’d grabbed earlier in the day. With the ball of his thumb, he applied a gentle pressure.

“Do you understand what I just said, Naruto?”

The boy nodded slowly with a somber expression on his face. 

“You’ve also experienced loss, but...not in the same way. Demons used to be people too, and for your friends, they may have been people they loved. It’s hard to imagine, I know. But I hope you’ll see why they reacted that way to you earlier.”

“My mom and dad, weren’t they killed by demons?”

“Yes.” 

“So I should hate them too, right?”

Iruka paused. He had to pick his next words carefully.

“Naruto, most of them didn’t turn by choice, and many of them don’t have free will, but...I think they’re probably suffering, deep inside. They can’t walk under the sun, they can’t appreciate delicious food. They’ll never be able to hold their loved ones again.”

It was hard to admit, but it had taken years for Iruka to reach that conclusion. Even though his mother had tried explaining it to him since he was a child. 

He’d spent years debating this with himself. 

Was compassion going to be a strength or his weakness? Even as the words left his lips, he didn’t know if he was making the right choice.

Iruka placed his free hand on the boy’s head. 

“Not everyone sees it that way, but I think the least we can do, is try to end their suffering. Everyone here who wants to be a slayer, it’s not just to become strong for the sake of it. They don’t want others to feel the same pain they did.”

“Do you think I could become strong too? Like you and Kakashi-sensei?” 

Iruka couldn’t help but smile. 

To see with the eyes of a child again.

He pressed his forehead to the boy’s own. 

“Stronger than anyone else, for sure.”

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

This time it wasn’t Kakashi sitting across him drinking tea, but one retired Hashira.

Jiraiya let out a perplexed sigh as Iruka buttoned his shirt. 

“I’ve never heard anything about this from Kushina. Has it happened again since?”

Iruka shook his head. “It was like a dream. But his eyes...I certainly felt the Kyuubi’s presence.” 

It had been years, but he couldn’t never forget it even if he tried.

“Could be a reaction to meeting a demon for the first time. The old blood’s stirring. I’ll head to Sarutobi’s to see if he knows anything about it.” 

“Please send my regards to him and Konohamaru-kun, Jiraiya-sama.”

Iruka placed a book before the older man. A vulgar, bright orange. It had been Kakashi’s last request of him, annoyingly enough. 

But before it could be taken, a box was placed atop it. Curious, Jiraiya removed its lid.

“This is more than the usual isn’t it. Two of them aren’t even Naruto’s. What’s going on?” He asked, making eye contact with the youth before him.

“I have a request.” he stated simply.

“Hmm?”

“I’d like to speak to Tsunade-sama. Please keep this from Kakashi-san, too.”

“Just what are you hoping for, Iruka?” His gaze suddenly narrowed, but Iruka’s didn’t falter.

For a few long moments, there was only silence between them, but that was soon broken.

“Fine, but I hope you don’t live to regret this.”

Iruka smiled.

Rest assured, I certainly don’t intend to.

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

End of Chapter 7

Author’s Notes:

Thanks for reading! This chapter was another interesting but challenging one to write. :D Do let me know what you think of it! The mystery of the missing portrait, think you can figure it out? (If you read what we know about the character and the thing’s he’s done in Naruto’s canon, it shouldn’t be hard to figure out his role in this story!).

I wanted to try a more ink style for this chapter’s artwork. Hope you like it!

[uchihashisui-kun]

23. KakaYama

23. Family - KakaYama

---

"Senpai, I'm in trouble." That was what greeted Kakashi as soon as he opened the door, silver eye taking in the state of his Kohai before dragging low, at waist-height, were two little boys were standing, silent and waiting, their gazes fized on Kakashi.

Kakashi sighed, a hand coming up to rub at both his eyes, before moving away from ths door and letting Tenzou and the boys come in. "What did you do?"

The brunette seemed troubled, and now that Kakashi looked at him better there was blood smeared on his uniform. Furrowing his eyebrows, the silver-haired man tried to find out if there was some hidden injury, while Tenzou made the two boys sit on the couch.

"We... Attacked Danzou's base." Tenzou said, not finding in himself the will to look at Kakashi's face. "He's dead."

Kakashi had to blink. Once. Twice. But it wasn't a joke. He opened his Sharingan, only briefly to be sure that it wasn't a genjutsu, and then he sighed again. "Why did you attacked Danzou's base, why are you talking like you were not alone and why do you have children with you?"

Tenzou shuffled a bit on his feet, looking at the two very, very silent boys before looking away. "Itachi asked my help when Danzou approached him. We... Didn't know you were back from your mission, otherwise we would have called you."

Kakashi nodded. It made sense, that Itachi would react at Danzou's approach. After Shisui's... No, he didn't want to think about that, now. But after that, Itachi had been miserable. Kakashi could understand, he had lost his fair share of friends.

"We attacked the base to kill him. He had-" Tenzou faltered, and Kakashi noted his skin take a pale tint. "Under the bandages- Shisui's eye-" Kakashi almost felt ill himself, but it wasn't like he expected nothing else from Danzou.

That man was a scumbag, so full of shit that Kakashi often wondered how no one had noticed before.

"And now you have two children with you." Kakashi said, wishing to change subject. Shisui's death was still too raw for all of them, and Tenzou embraced the change with a shy nod.

"They were getting ready to fight each other." He said, and Kakashi's only visible eye narrowed. Tenzou had never been able to tell him about ROOT training, the seal on his tongue blocking him if he tried, but he could guess.

"They still don't have the seal." Kakashi had to take a sharp breath. That meant that these two boys were important. They could talk with the Hokage about everything the knew about Danzou.

Kakashi recovered quickly, looking at the two boys that had been silent all this time, sitting on the couch, hand in hand. "What are your names?" Kakashi asked, and the boy with grey hair piped up, a smile stretching on his lips.

"I'm Shin! And this is my brother Sai." The boy said, gently tugging at the other boy's hand. "Danzou-sama asked us to fight. One of us needed to kill the other in order to kill our emotions." Now that he had started, it seemed that Shin didn't have any problem talking. "But then Tenzou-nii appeared and took us away and told us that we don't need to fight anymore if we don't want to!"

The boy gestured with his only free hand, the other one never leaving Sai's pale hand, and Tenzou smiled. "That's right. No one will ever tell you to fight anymore if you don't want to."

Kakashi watched as Tenzou got on his knees to be at the boys' heights with a small smile on his lips, talking with them, and the Copy-Nin wondered if this was what the brunette needed to finally heal from his time in ROOT.

"We'll need to find them a family." Tenzou's words made Kakashi shake away his thoughts, and he looked at the brunette for a long moment.

Kakashi never told him, but he loved him. Even then, he suspected that Tenzou knew. Kakashi was also not the type of guy to follow his instincts without thinking about the situation before, but this time...

"We could keep them." The words were out of his mouth before he could do something to stop them, and the look on Tenzou's face was almost comical. "You know what it means to be under Danzou, and maybe I have never really been in ROOT but I've seen how you were when you finally escaped Danzou's clutch." Tenzou was still looking at him, and Kakashi wanted to squirm under his gaze.

He was better than that, though, and he was able to keep himself in check.

"You do know that you can't be in ANBU if you legally adopt a kid, right Senpai?" And Kakashi sighed. "I know. We won't be able to stay in ANBU until they are old enough to be ninja themselves." Even Shin, that seemed very talkative, was silent.

"We are already ninja." The other boy said, Sai, the one that still hadn't talked until now, and Kakashi tsked. "No, you're not. You'll start from scratch, you'll go to the academy and you'll take every step as you should." And Tenzou... Tenzou laughed.

"You already sound like a father, Senpai." He said, and Kakashi could feel a faint blush dusting his cheeks in pink. "Yeah, well, wathever." He waved a hand like he wanted to change subject, but the brunette could see the embarassment. "We'll talk about it again tomorrow, now we sleep."

Tenzou nodded, and helped Kakashi tuck in both Shin and Sai. The next day, they'll talk with the Sandaime. Tenzou couldn't wait to raise the two boys, side by side with Kakashi.

[justagirlwithapen32]

Mirror Mirror

This was the only chance they had to fix everything...

"Hey! Is this thing even on?"

Surprised, (understatement) Sarutobi Hiruzen looked around for the source of the voice, which quite frankly sounded like his former pupil, Tsunade, but found nothing.

"Sensei! Can you hear me? Open the damned Kage sealed room! I need to talk to you!"

Brow arched, Hiruzen did indeed get up, signalling to his ANBU to seal the room and leave him alone, which they did immediately. Heading over to where the room that had been installed only three days after the Hokage tower had been built, he slid a painting of the village aside, bit his thumb, then smeared his blood over the seal found there. The wall creaked and groaned, but slid open on command, and Hiruzen stepped in.

The reason he was being so trusting of this, was that no one could get in here without having taken the Hat. There were a lot of dangerous and foreign objects in here, things that not even their own ANBU could be trusted with. And now, Hiruzen stood in front of one he recognised, one that he knew the Shodaime had put in here himself.

There seemed to be nothing special about it, it was an ordinary full length mirror. Except for the fact that, according to the notes attached with it, it had been imbued with all kinds of forbidden and even unknown seals. The end goal? Connecting time and space through one simple portal. And reflected in that mirror was his former student, Tsunade.

"Hey sensei," she greeted him. "What point in time is it right there?"

"…We're a year into a third war," Hiruzen told her. "Tsunade, what are you doing in the mirror?"

"Well… The thing is, we're kinda at an 'end of the world' scenario here," she told him, to his distress. "We're desperate, basically, so we decided that going back in time to end it would be our only option. Thing is, with all the study we did for it, we couldn't open it as far back as we wanted, though we guessed it'd end up around the end of the Second War, or start of the Third. Quite frankly, with everything that happened, we're lucky this thing is even still intact…"

She trailed off, and it was then that Hiruzen noticed that wherever Tsunade was, it wasn't in the sealed room, or even in the Hokage building.

"Where are you right now?" he asked. "I don't recognise that place."

"We're in the last safe place available," Tsunade told him. "We're in Kaminari no Kuni."

"Is that him?" a voice called. "Tsunade! Why are you waffling around? Where's that apprentice of yours, the Hatake, and the rest? Send them through already!"

"Get lost A!" Tsunade snapped at someone (the Third Raikage's son!?) that Hiruzen couldn't see. "I'm handling it!"

"Handle it faster!" A grunted. "They're getting closer!" Then the sound of a door slamming was heard.

"Sorry about that," Tsunade apologised. "That guy's as irascible as ever."

"So it would seem," Hiruzen noted. "What's this about sending your apprentice and a Hatake through?"

Tsunade cleared her throat, then said, "My apprentice, Haruno Sakura, and someone you might know, Hatake Kakashi. Also, two other shinobi who you won't know, Tenzou and Sai. We were going to send two others with Sakura and Kakashi instead, but circumstances dictated that that would be impossible."

There was a frown on Tsunade's face, but before he could ask after it, his former student barked an order to someone else there in the room with her. "Shizune! Go get Sakura, Kakashi, Tenzou and Sai! It's time!"

"Yes, Tsunade-sama!" came Shizune's (presumably) voice, then the door from before opened and then closed, much more gently this time.

"Does this mean, then, that you are currently Hokage?" Hiruzen asked.

"Unfortunately," Tsunade mourned. "I was all ready to give up the Hat, too, but then my successor decided that, instead of taking over from me, he'd rather go back in time instead. Damned Hatake!"

Hiruzen's brow raised at that. He couldn't imagine the Kakashi he knew being a candidate for Hokage-ship.

"What is it your team intends to do?" he asked.

The look on Tsunade's face became serious. "There's a lot to fix," she told him. "I need your promise, sensei, that you won't interfere in their mission. Some of it… There's a couple of missions in particular that I outlined for them that you probably won't like. Especially considering how you handled one of them the time it almost resulted in your assassination."

Now Hiruzen was a little worried. "I would hope that I deal with with attempts on my life quite seriously," he said.

"Depends on who orchestrates it," Tsunade said ominously. "No, sensei, I really need to know that you'll let them complete their mission. Too much rides on it."

"May I know what this mission entails?" he asked.

"They can brief you when they're through," was all Tsunade would say.

Hiruzen sighed. "As long as it doesn't endanger the village, I will not in any way hinder their mission," he told her.

Tsunade's expression softened. "I suppose that's all I can ask," she said.

The sounds of people approaching on Tsunade's end reached them, and Hiruzen braced himself for whatever was coming, hoping that the future these people experienced could be avoided as they all hoped.

[raendown]

This is my one shot at redemption {No pairings, Kakashi-centric} if you may please.

AO3

-

It wasn’t until Kakashi realized that he’d been squinting sohard he’d given himself a headache that he thought to lift his head and checkthe time, startled to discover that the sun had gone down behind him and theroom was dim without any lights on. That would explain why he’d been having somuch trouble seeing his work. Falling back in his chair, he dragged both handsdown his face with a heavy sigh. He knew he should go home and get some rest.There was just always so much to do, enough to make his thoughts wander to thebottle of congratulatory sake Tsunade-sama had left in the hidden drawer forhim. Sometimes he really understood why she’d drank so much on the job.

So caught up in his thoughts was he that when the dooropened he genuinely startled, body jerking hard enough he very nearly upset theinkwell a little too close to the edge of his desk. He very carefully pushed itoff to a safer spot before looking up. Tenzou looked back with crossed arms andone eyebrow raised.

“Another late night?” his friend asked. Kakashi busiedhimself with tidying the desk as though he’d been on the verge of leaving.

“You’re not on duty tonight,” he noted, bringing the rosterup by memory. “What are you doing here?”

“Some of us were headed home from getting drinks and I couldfeel you up here, thought maybe you might have fallen asleep on the desk again.”Tenzou looked around and frowned at the darkness, flicking the light on andsmirking a little when his Hokage swore at the sudden brightness.

Now shielding his eyes, Kakashi cleared his throat. “Maa, Imight have fallen asleep. I was just about to pop home myself.”

“Right. Of course you were.” Clearly his friend didn’tbelieve him.

He was right not to since it was a bold faced lie but it wasstill annoying to be so obvious when there had once been a time when Kakashi hadwrapped himself in such impenetrable armor that others would believe anythinghe said – or accept it, at least, since no one had ever really been sure whenhe was telling the truth. In a way that had been nice. Getting away withanything had been an absolute breeze with no one willing to pull their ownteeth just to get a straight answer from him. It had been lonely though.

“Why do you keep doing this, senpai?” Tenzou asked.

“Doing what?”

“This. Working yourself ragged. You spent so many yearsthumbing your nose at different Hokage for destroying their life in this joband now here you are doing the same. There’s this really neat concept called ‘delegating’and you are allowed to do that.” Hisexpression softened. “You have friends that will always be willing to help you.”

“I know,” Kakashi murmured.

Sometimes it was hard to believe it but he did know that hehad friends. Of the many revelations in his personal journey over the last fewyears that one was perhaps the least surprising and yet the hardest to swallow.

“You know, excellent, so why don’t you let us help?” hisfriend asked.

“Because…this is my one shot at redemption.” This time itwas Tenzou who startled but Kakashi went on without pause, knowing that if hestopped now the words would never come out. “There’s so many things in my lifethat I wish I could go back and change, so many things that I did wrong. And asmuch as I know that no one blames me for them now that doesn’t take away theguilt that I carry around every day. I haveto do this well. I have to be theHokage that Obito and Rin and Sensei and everyone would want me to be. When Ipass on the hat to Naruto I swear this will be a village to be proud of again.”

If Naruto was to be their shining new future then Kakashi wasdetermined that he would do his part to ensure it was such a brilliant futurethe history books would spend entire chapters comparing the difference ingenerations – and that his precious hard working student was the one to takeall the credit. So many of his plans would only come to fruition long afterNaruto had taken the helm and that was just the way he liked it. Credit for thejob had never been something Kakashi needed. As long as the job got done he wassatisfied.

“Senpai,” Tenzou’s quiet tone made him look away.

“Don’t. I know what you’re going to say and–”

“We’re already proud of you.”

Kakashi couldn’t quite stifle the gasp that slipped out.Those hadn’t been the words he was expecting at all. And yet they were exactlywhat he hadn’t even realized that he needed to hear. To his utter embarrassmenthe could feel tears welling up in his eyes as something deep in his chest unraveledfor perhaps the first time since he accepted this position.

“I think I’m ready to go home now,” he murmured.

Without saying anything Tenzou nodded. He understood. That, Kakashisupposed, was just the benefit of a loving friendship.

[rikacain]

the stronger claim

Warnings for dark themes and noncon/dubcon elements.

Many thanks to drel for holding my hand and doing lit analysis on my words when I sure as hell couldn’t, and to magnus for their suggestions.

when someone put down aphrodisiac jutsu as a prompt, i really wonder if they expected this.

(check ao3 notes for the kinkmeme prompt this is based on.)

summary: 

Kidnapping a shinobi is nothing new. It’s what you do to keep them there, that is the question.

read it on: ao3

The kidnapping of a hidden village’s shinobi is not an entirely surprising affair. 

Shinobi or not, wars have been fought with prisoners of war as a bargaining chip - it will be fought the same way for many wars more. There are far too many reasons to capture an enemy: for intelligence, or the prevention of it; for a bargaining chip to leverage against your enemies - especially if the target is significant to someone high on the authority chain. 

(To act as a suicide bomber upon their return to the village, something whispers. Obito’s eye aches like a bitter reminder.)

Nevertheless, the requisite reaction to such actions in peacetime is to pursue the victim. Losses in personnel are bad for morale, and a healthy discouragement of kidnapping Konoha shinobi, in general, is a good deterrent to future kidnapping attempts (up until it isn’t). And even if retrieval ends unsuccessfully, better for those under the banner to believe that an effort would be made rather than none at all.

Of course, a successful rescue attempt is infinitely preferable - and although Kakashi won't admit it to anyone, this attempt will be personal. 

As a shinobi, Umino Iruka is nothing more than a chuunin, a minor gear in the workings of Konoha. As a shinobi of Konoha, he is a teacher in the Academy, a tenant of the Mission Desk, and a regular visitor of the Hokage. Each position affords him information on various affairs, ranging from clan heirs and their abilities to the missions he reviews and accepts. 

Coupled with the weekly visits he makes to the Hokage’s office for no discernibly official purposes and the way Naruto proclaims his love for his adoptive father figure without the slightest bit of reservation, Iruka makes quite an attractive target if there aren't other more compelling and valuable targets to infiltrate Konoha for. 

But as a person... Iruka is more than all of his worth as a shinobi, more than his sharp words and gentle smiles and unrelenting belief in the Will of Fire; Kakashi can only be pulled into his orbit whenever Iruka passes him by.

But now Iruka’s taken (like Rin before he drove a handful of lightning through her chest) - gone. And Kakashi had always thought that there would be a day he would walk up to the teacher and ask him, maybe, for his time and whatever else Iruka would be willing to give - to let the pieces fall as they may. 

It tears more at him than more he ever thinks it would, that there would never be that possibility, soft and warm and entirely his. 

It fuels him to run faster, to track harder, to go to where Iruka had been taken to; it leads him to the hidden village of Nagisa, surrounded by white sands and rolling waves. A potentially idyllic vacation spot, only tainted by the actions that they have taken against Konoha. 

He directs his team to infiltrate the village, to acquire information on their motives and the whereabouts of their captive. After all their efforts - after the seeping fear of finding Iruka bloody and bruised, broken against a cell wall - he finds himself venturing into a cavern with a foreign seal sketched large and wide onto the pristine sand, the sprawling script of symbols glowing a soft gradient between sea-green and ocean-blue.

He finds Iruka, at the center of it all. 

Iruka, bound. Iruka, writhing. Iruka, gasping as a hooded figure bends low over his prone form and seals their mouth over Iruka's own. 

Perhaps if Kakashi were more level-minded,  he would claim that immediate action was a necessity. That he couldn't wait for a diversion Tenzou was creating on the far side of the village, for a better opportunity. That the seal, an unknown factor, seemed far too dangerous to allow it to come to fruition. 

At that very moment, he knows only that Iruka is garbed in a yukata, thin and light and so very easy to remove. Eye-catching, sprawled helpless against the sand. 

Whatever is planned next, Kakashi doesn’t want to know. He drops down onto the central array sketched within the seal. The symbols around them flare as his feet touch the ground, washing the cavern in a brilliant white. 

The hooded figure jerks their head up, eyes flashing in alarm - but Kakashi only has eyes for Iruka, who arches up in their arms. He doesn't give them a chance to raise their voice; he moves in, the grip on his kunai firm and deadly. 

The fight - if it could be called one - doesn't last long.

When the hood is stained red from arterial spray, Kakashi finally lowers his weapon and turns around to check on Iruka. A quip is ready on his tongue, only to dissipate with a sharp breath when he sees Iruka’s reaction - or lack thereof. 

It worries Kakashi, how unaware Iruka is despite being shinobi - how utterly vulnerable he currently is. He approaches Iruka’s prone form and crouches over him. 

“Iruka-sensei,” he says, urgency rushing his words. "Sensei, we’re here to rescue you.”

It does not bode well that Iruka does not even react. He stares up towards the ceiling, eyes glassy and unseeing. A sheen of sweat glistens upon his skin. The drag of his breaths, slow and audible. 

Perhaps a genjutsu. Kakashi attempts to dispel it. 

Nothing happens.

“Sensei,” he says again. He ruthlessly quashes down thoughts of too late once again. Tsunade can be the judge of that and no one else. “We have to go."

He reaches out to slide a hand under Iruka’s neck -

Iruka shudders in his arms, pressing into Kakashi. Reflex makes Kakashi tense; experience makes him shift towards a defensive position. He expects Iruka to swing at him, perhaps compelled by this foreign ritual, and half-expects at the end of all this to relearn that heavy numbness within his hand, the cold weight of a precious person dead at his feet.

He does not expect Iruka to moan.

Long and low and guttural; Iruka’s head falls back, eyelids a-fluttering; mouth open, inviting. He shifts, restless, his thighs twitching against each other, unmistakably rubbing against each other. A flush rises high across his face, accentuating that scar that Kakashi has always longed to trail a finger across. 

The moan tapers off to something breathy. Needy.

It is a sound Kakashi dared to imagine only in his fantasies, a sound that will feature in many of them to come. His mouth dries, his heart pounds loud in his ears. A blush burns across his face, arousal mixed with mortification - he has never been more thankful for his mask.

It is also a scene he’s familiar with, one that he would not have wished on Iruka. 

An aphrodisiac jutsu.

In that haze of arousal, Iruka weakly turns his head to look at Kakashi. In his eyes, there is a faint spark of recognition. 

“Kakashi-san,” he rasps.  

Kakashi cannot help but track the swipe of Iruka's tongue as it darts out to wet his lips. The muted shine it leaves behind. And - shamefully - all Kakashi can think is: <em>this is what Iruka would sound like in his bed.</em>

There’s a distant sound of an explosion - the distraction he was supposed to wait for, finally come unto existence. It jolts him into action: he hoists Iruka over his head and across his shoulders in one smooth and practiced movement, curling one arm around Iruka's arm and the other around his bare leg but leaving his hands otherwise free to perform a jutsu if need be. Despite the breathiness of the fabric, Iruka is emanating warmth as though he is running a fever - no doubt a symptom of the jutsu placed upon him.

Kakashi resolutely ignores Iruka's trembling, his breathy sighs. He forms a futon to blow away the symbols in the sand. 

Whether it would break the jutsu, he doesn't know. Their first priority is to escape.

“Hold on, sensei,” Kakashi swallows, ignoring the curl of desire within his gut. "We're getting out of here."

-----

He meets up with Tenzou and Yugao at the edge of the village, as planned. Their three-man cell takes quick leave of the area, making the run back to Fire's borders - a grueling three days' journey away.

It takes four hours before night falls, and for darkness to set in proper without the silvery light of the moon. The absence of light is a boon more than a bane: it would be difficult for pursuers to come across their camp.

That is, if there were any. 

Kakashi had expected hot pursuit of their prisoner, or retaliation for the intrusion. But there has been nothing: no jutsu aimed at them, no shuriken grazing their skin, no kunai planted in their back. They leave Nagisa practically unmolested, with their objective in tow; their objective being draped across Kakashi’s shoulder. 

It is discomfiting to refer to Iruka in such an impersonal way. An objective has always been a mark: to steal, to persuade, to assassinate. To use it against Iruka feels incongruous, if not for Kakashi's own affections then to address a comrade. 

But the uncomfortable truth is that Kakashi cannot consider Iruka as anything else, not at this very moment.

For Iruka has been restless, the entire time he was on Kakashi's back. The jutsu has not worn off even with the destruction of the array and the distance they gained. There is a damp patch on Kakashi's shirt where Iruka has been gasping helplessly against the fabric. Kakashi's neck is drenched with sweat, from physical exertion and his proximity to Iruka’s body heat. 

Most incriminatingly, Iruka's groin is positioned just where Kakashi's tactical vest ends.

It is impossible for Kakashi to maintain an unyielding grip on Iruka; it is equally impossible for Iruka to remain still. It is therefore very natural for friction to occur - for Kakashi to feel the way Iruka's cock fills out against his shoulder as they ran, especially through the thin material of the yukata.

A healthy dose of desperation and his iron discipline stave off Kakashi’s own burgeoning arousal. Or so he hopes.

They stop in a suitable clearing. Tenzou creates a thick copse of trees with its trucks curving to form a hollow dome able to fit four at its base, while Kakashi and Yugao set up the perimeter traps and seals. Such is their routine, established by once a plan and now muscle memory; they reconvene in mere minutes.

"Senpai," Tenzou says. There's an undercurrent of concern in his voice.

The cause is clear: Kakashi has refused to set Iruka down even when they were a safe distance away from the village. Iruka is essentially little more than a deadweight at this very moment.

As if in reaction to Tenzou’s words, Iruka shudders again against his shoulder. Kakashi hastily sets him down, positioning him to face away from the others. 

Iruka deserves to have his modesty preserved, as much as Kakashi can provide, even if Iruka's yukata is presently drenched with sweat to the point of translucence. It sticks to him, almost as though it is a second skin. Leaving nothing to the imagination. The way he’ll shiver if Kakashi pushes it off him, shoulder by shoulder...

He tears his gaze away from Iruka and breathes out, harsh. It is only physical relief he can afford. 

"An aphrodisiac," he explains briskly, calling upon his lifetime’s worth of discipline, his experience in imparting information concisely. "I found him in a seals array, and tried to dispel the jutsu, erase the seals." 

Iruka's heavy breathing in a corner of the dome speaks volumes about the success of either attempt. 

Tenzou's eyes flick towards the other man, his face set in neutrality. "What did they do to him?”

"Nothing good if it involves an aphrodisiac," Yugao says darkly. 

"We'll get him back to Hokage-sama," he says, decisive. None of them are medics; he can only hope that the aphrodisiac would run its course. Or that they get to Tsunade before the symptoms can worsen. "Tenzou, you're on first. Yugao, third. We leave at dawn."

Tenzou nods, and darts upwards to perch within the trees he built. Yugao settles in a far corner of the dome. He doesn't miss the way she turns her back to him, giving him the privacy he wants to talk to Iruka; gratitude settles firmly in his gut.

He crouches again, this time a distance away. Iruka probably doesn’t want anyone to see him with his inhibitions lowered, Kakashi included.

“Iruka-sensei,” he murmurs. There’s the minutest of shifting - he takes it as acknowledgment. “I’ll get you back to Konoha. To your students - to Naruto. I promise.”

There’s the sound of an exhale, shaky and forced. 

“Kakashi-san,” the quiet rasp comes again. Kakashi holds himself still. “I have to go back.”

“We will,” he says hastily. “I promise you, sensei - “

“I have to go back.” Iruka’s breathing shudders again, and Kakashi yearns to reach out, to hold him. To comfort. But physical affection is the last thing Iruka needs right now. “But you can’t let me.”

Something cold drains into Kakashi’s body. 

“Sensei,” he says, almost choking on the possibility of his past, repeated. It would be cruel of fate to act so callously. The hoarseness of his voice makes it sound like he’s begging: “Iruka.”

Iruka only repeats, “You can’t."

-----

The wards scream to life as their pursuers finally make their attack.

-----

Something is wrong.

Maybe it’s the way the darkness of the night is supposed to cover their tracks, and the camouflage of Tenzou’s Mokuton-built fortress their presence. Maybe it’s how the pursuers stop far too easily, never giving chase even as they retreat. Maybe it’s how their team is getting run ragged into the dawn of the next morning, as they move camp again and again and again.

Three times. They’ve been attacked three times, within an hour of setting up camp. Had it been once, Kakashi would put it down to unluckiness; twice, coincidence. Three times make a pattern. 

Nagisa is tracking them. 

Kakashi considers chakra sensors - then discards the theory. All attacks so far have involved different shinobi. Sensory abilities are a highly valued skill; Nagisa would have gone the way of Uzushio if other countries realize the number of chakra-sensitive shinobi they’re putting out. 

Perhaps a physical tracker. But none of them has taken anything from the village, and the yukata draped on Iruka (on which Kakashi forced himself to perform the most perfunctory of inspections) is far too thin to hide any tracker sewn into its seams or sleeves. Iruka has been coherent enough to confirm that he had not been fed during his brief captivity.

That leaves only jutsu.

(There remains only one unknown factor in this entire scenario.)

He turns to Iruka - huddled again in a corner of the dome. The aphrodisiac has shown no sign of reducing in intensity throughout the night, raising a whole different set of medical concerns: dehydration and heatstroke, to name a few. More worryingly, Iruka has been incredibly reluctant to press forward, with all attempts at running being best described as faltering. When pressed, he would only shake his head.

(You can’t let me, and Kakashi can’t tell whether he’s remembering Iruka, or remembering Rin. You can’t.)

They had to resort to carrying him but therein arose another problem: Iruka would thrash wildly the very moment Tenzou or Yugao touched him. The only person he would remain still for, would allow to touch him, is Kakashi.

It sets something possessive and dark purring within him, even though he knows that it’s likely due to the jutsu. It also means that Kakashi is the only one who can carry him as they run, limiting his movement and defenses.

Still, the most pressing concern remains Nagisa’s recurring ability to find their camp. And if it’s truly jutsu, then there is one way for Kakashi to confirm: the Sharingan.

He raises his hand to pull off the headband, to direct his gaze towards Iruka… and then hesitates. The Sharingan burns memories into his mind, this he knows. He also knows how utterly mortifying it is to be vulnerable, to curl away from pitying eyes. 

If he looks at Iruka, he'll remember him like this, forever. Even though Iruka should be standing with his head held high, his ponytail tied back proper, confident and assured. All the things Kakashi respected him for. 

And he will be those things still, Kakashi tells himself, but only if Kakashi can get him back within the safe boundaries of Konoha. 

(As though you won't remember him like this when your hand is wrapped around your cock, something small and nasty whispers to him.)

Better traumatized than dead, Kakashi repeats and pulls the headband off. 

The strain sets in almost immediately. The sluggish swirl of the tomoes within the eye begins to quicken as it greedily absorbs any and all information it could perceive, the blurry haze of chakra settling into proper place as his vision comes into focus. 

Iruka's chakra levels are running low, with the occasion flicker and flare Kakashi expects from a loss in control. What alarms him is a thin cord of chakra running from Iruka's heart, through the gaps of Tenzou's Mokuton dome and out into the distance. 

There is little doubt that at the other end is Nagisa. 

The cord is cool when Kakashi reaches out to touch it, to run a finger down the line. He flicks at it, noting how the chakra is foreign from Iruka’s fiery own - and the ephemeral flash of inscriptions running across Iruka’s form.

"Senpai," Tenzou says hesitantly.

Ah, right. He must look quite peculiar, touching nothing midair. Actually, now that he notices - the cord seems to go right through Yugao's knee, with her none the wiser. 

Curious. 

"I think," Kakashi says in lieu of an answer, "we need to ask them some questions."

-----

It takes a counter-ambush to capture a Nagisa-nin. It takes the Sharingan to get her to tell them what Nagisa did to Iruka. 

It takes a sick mind to come up with what they did. 

The tethering jutsu, Nagisa calls it. A fuuinjutsu, a forbidden technique: the sealing of foreign chakra into another person's body. As long as the source of chakra existed, Nagisa would be able to track Iruka wherever he went. 

Placing trackers on prisoners and marks is nothing new, least of all to Kakashi. While physical trackers like the Aburame's insects are far more common, infusing raw chakra into the body is not unheard of. Still, as most jutsu do, such methods have their limitations - in this case, weakening or dissipating entirely after a certain distance is gained. 

Nagisa's jutsu entrenches the chakra more firmly, the transfer of chakra augmented by emotional intensity and physical intimacy. 

In blunt terms: by sexual intercourse. 

(The aphrodisiac jutsu certainly makes that easier, Kakashi notes clinically.)

The tether also acts as a reel, one that constantly compels Iruka to return to the source of the chakra. Even though Kakashi killed the caster, apparently they were but a mere conduit for the source: the sands of the cavern, chakra-infused over the years. 

Loyalty to one is a danger to all, the Nagisa-nin murmurs under the swirling Sharingan. Better to bind to a place rather than a person.

There is little need to ask why such a jutsu is so necessary, not when it is clear how small Nagisa is compared to other hidden villages of similar status. The low birth and high mortality rates of shinobi lifestyles are problems Konoha chose to answer through a relatively open (for hidden villages) immigration policy. Nagisa merely circumvented the lengthy background and security checks through the forced conversion of foreign shinobi to bolster its own forces. 

After all, why invest in training when you could appropriate a trained shinobi? Why keep your best assets at home performing menial jobs and administrative tasks when you could send them out into the field?

A policy that makes sense on paper. A policy where someone looked at another villages’ shinobi and considered them resources instead of people. The results instead of the means.

(Even so, there’s a twisted part of Kakashi that is relieved - that it is but a tracker instead of a ticking bomb. That when he said ‘back’ he meant to Nagisa, and not to Konoha. That Iruka will not go the same way as Rin.)

Behind him, Tenzou’s chakra sharpens, glass-shard sharp and glinting. Kakashi wagers the idea of loyalty to one's village being ripped away so easily disturbs him. In direct contrast, Yugao’s chakra simmers, roiling bursts contained within a chilly veneer.

He turns back to the captive. “How do we break the jutsu,” he demands. “I interrupted the ritual - it shouldn’t have taken hold.”

A blank gaze. “There were other conduits attending to him,” she finally says, the hungry pull of the Sharingan drawing the information out of her. “A claim has already been made. An interruption is merely another."

Other conduits. How many of them had laid their hands on Iruka before he had gotten there? The very thought turns Kakashi's voice vicious; he snarls, again - “How do we break it?” 

“We must let go of him,” comes the placid reply. “Or there must be a stronger claim.”

-----

“Senpai.”

Tenzou finds him outside of the dome. Kakashi is staring out into the distance, for the possibility of more ambushers, more pursuers, more lives to take - something he knows how to do better than solve this problem before them.

“Tenzou.” Kakashi doesn’t turn to look at him. “What are our chances of making it to Fire?”

He doubts they can even make it to Konoha. What an ingenious plan - instead of facing their opponents head-on, Nagisa merely tires them out until they are forced to give up from sheer exhaustion. He’d appreciate it when it isn’t done against him.

To his credit, Tenzou doesn’t soften his words. 

“Very low." Kakashi thought so. "Even with chakra pills, we’d be drained of chakra long before we reach the borders. And with that fever Iruka-sensei is running...”

He breathes out as Tenzou trails off, sifting through the various plans he has come up with. A single guard while the others slept would mean they'd have to carry that guard alongside Iruka. A decoy would be useless. And if any of them were caught and brought back to Nagisa…

“I won't abandon him.” The words tear themselves out of Kakashi’s throat, unbidden. Cutting losses, sacrifice - concepts they’re both familiar with. The choice to save three over a compromised one. 

But it means letting Iruka go back. Back where they can finish the ritual.

That isn't an option.

Tenzou nods slowly, his faith in Kakashi absolute. “I know."

Kakashi shakes his head sharply. Those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash - but this is more. More than camaraderie, more than loyalty. More than the guilt of allowing someone to be ripped away from their home, never to return, only to be part of a system that will never value their choice.

But to keep Iruka, to return him to Konoha...

It has to be Kakashi. The jutsu would not accept Tenzou, nor Yugao - it recognizes only Kakashi as a competing claim. If they were all to get away from Nagisa alive, then Kakashi would have to - 

He’d have to -

“I can’t,” he says, hoarse. 

"I know.” The answer jolts him out of the maelstrom of his doubts; he finally turns to look at Tenzou. His friend looks back at him, steady as the trees he built. "But you have to."

Duty calls. Kakashi closes his eyes. Tenzou is right, he has to -

"You have to ask him.” Kakashi’s eyes fly open. They meet Tenzou’s own, dark and piercing. "Ask him, senpai."

To ask Iruka - 

"He's out of his mind.” Kakashi's fist clenches, tight, almost as though lightning would build in his hands. As though he could punch his way through the chest of this problem. "He won't know what he's saying."

"Better he decides than you decide for him," Tenzou tells him bluntly.

Kakashi stares at Tenzou, searching his face for another solution, another possibility. As though there'll be another way to bring all of them out unscathed. But Tenzou remains unwavering in his conviction. Firm. 

"Go and ask him, senpai," he says again, not unkindly. 

Kakashi stands.

------

When he steps back into the dome, he finds only Iruka. Curled small and tucked away into a corner, the previously pristine yukata now creased and sweat-stained. His gaze remains vaguely vacant, staring into the distance, but his eyes flick weakly to Kakashi as he sits down in front of Iruka. 

How to even begin this conversation? Iruka-sensei, if you don't want to go back to Nagisa, you'll have to let me fuck you. 

Iruka-sensei, I don't want to rape you, but if I don't do it Nagisa probably will. Would you rather be raped by me or them?

Iruka-sensei, I'm sorry. 

(There is one more path, one where a kunai is put to Iruka's throat and pushed in deep. The one where Iruka becomes unreachable, untouchable - but remains wholly his own. 

Kakashi refuses to even think of suggesting it.)

Kakashi takes a deep breath, to say something - but Iruka's voice is the first to cut through the silence. 

"I'm sorry to put you in this position, Kakashi-san," he whispers. 

Kakashi should be apologizing, not Iruka. He should have done more reconnaissance before plucking Iruka right out of the ritual. He should have watched and waited - but fear had driven him more than caution had then. 

"Maa, sensei." He forces his voice lighter and smiles wanly through his mask. It was comforting then, their easy-going banter - he can't help but wonder if Iruka finds it comforting too. If he still does. "We've all had a tracker planted on us before. Yours is just a bit harder to get rid of."

He thinks he sees Iruka's twitch upwards, just the slightest bit - but that might just be wishful thinking. 

"You heard about how to break the jutsu." Iruka dips his head downwards, and Kakashi doesn't know whether it could be called mercy that he doesn't need to say it again. That he doesn’t need to say it aloud. 

It doesn't stop his throat from clogging up, to cement what comes next into words. Into reality. 

Ask, the echo of Tenzou's voice reminds him. 

"Iruka-sensei," he forces out. "I... What do you want?"

Iruka stares at him. Kakashi can see the heated glaze of his eyes, the damp sheen of his skin. What was he thinking, asking - but he can't make this decision for Iruka. Tenzou is right - and even if the choice is not much of a choice at all, Kakashi has to give Iruka anything that he can. 

God, he'd give Iruka everything that he can. 

"We can break the jutsu now," he continues. "Or - or, we can - "  - let you go back to Nagisa, except that choice isn't a choice at all, not one he could let Iruka take any more than he could let Iruka commit suicide. 

"We can wait until the borders," he says instead in a moment of great weakness. It comes out like a plea. "We'll just run all the way there. They wouldn't risk invading Fire -"

"The borders," Iruka murmurs. "The borders, they," - he cuts off with a shudder, before forcing out a strained, "three days away."

"We'll make it," Kakashi says, desperation dripping through the cracks in this terrible plan. 

Iruka lifts his head. Before he even says a word, Kakashi knows. 

"Kakashi-san is a very kind person," Iruka breathes out. "But I... one man isn't worth all this."

You are, Kakashi wants to say - you are, you are worth all the miles I ran after you, worth all the rain drenching my clothes and the sun beating down my back. Worth the burn in my muscles and the strain in my shoulders. 

But it’s not about Kakashi, not here, not now. 

“I’ll be fine,” Iruka is saying. He’s even smiling - a weak, reassuring smile, as though Kakashi is one of his students needing reassurance for a skinned knee, or from a violent storm. “I can take a few weeks more of captivity. I promise.”

Like how Kakashi promised him a few hours ago. “I promised that you’d return to Konoha, sensei. Would you have me break that promise too?"

“If it means keeping everyone safe,” Iruka answers. “Yes.”

All of them, duty-bound. Martyrs and fools. If this is Iruka’s choice, Kakashi has to respect it - but…

“You know what will happen,” he says. A nod. “You know you might not see Konoha ever again.” If Nagisa decides Iruka is valuable enough, they would increase the security and begin negotiations with Konoha - rescue would be immensely difficult. Yet, still, another nod. “Then why?”

“Like I said,” Iruka says, softly. “I don't want to put you in this position. You shouldn't have to do this."

"I shouldn't have to," Kakashi repeats, uncomprehending.

“I couldn’t…” Another tremor sweeps over Iruka. The sight of Iruka’s throat working around the words, the shift of his Adam’s apple under the skin - it catches Kakashi’s eye and keeps him there. Keeps him wondering how it would taste, if he puts his tongue to it. “I couldn’t be so selfish.”

Selfish, he says. No, Kakashi knows what selfishness is: the urge to tear off the arms off any ninja that would attempt to bind Iruka to their cause. The depths of Kakashi’s want, to be the only person Iruka should ever tether himself to. The hollow grief at the thought of an Iruka-shaped absence in the part of Konoha Kakashi considers his, even though he would be alive in Nagisa.

This is also selfishness: the absolute dread at the idea of Iruka never wanting to see Kakashi again for as long as he is alive.  

"It would be selfish of us to leave Naruto worried,” Kakashi says instead. He avoids saying ‘you’, an effort to soften the blow - an effort in vain from the twitch that would have otherwise been a flinch. “Your students. Your colleagues. Friends.” 

“They’ll understand.” They won’t. No one possibly could, least of all Kakashi. “They’ll carry on.” 

Iruka looks at him - soft and resigned. Final. “You’d look after Naruto for me, won’t you?”

In any other situation, that is a promise he can make easily. In this situation, it is a promise he is not yet willing to give. 

“You’d go back to Nagisa just to spare me.” Kakashi says quietly, confirming.

Iruka nods again, exhaustion getting the better of him.  "And that's the only reason." Another nod, slow and languid. "I see."

"Thank you," Iruka says. His weak but sincere smile rends Kakashi apart - and the wretched part of it all is the gratitude. That he would be left to the wolves just to spare Kakashi. 

And in that very moment, Kakashi knows what he is willing to lose.

"You're wrong about one thing, sensei," he says. There is a flicker of confusion in Iruka's eyes as Kakashi holds them with his own. They widen when he pulls off his headband yet again so that they might better see the strands of chakra tethering Iruka; further still as he pulls down his mask. "I'm not kind at all."

He reaches out to curl a hand around Iruka's nape, pulling him close - close enough for Kakashi to press his lips to Iruka's own.

"I'm very, very selfish," he confesses into the space between their mouths, and begins to stake his claim.

[doctorrabbit]

After binge watching 2 seasons of BNHA and reading Naruto fics my brain birthed this: what if Naruto characters got transported into BNHA universe

Ok, like, hear me out. Naruto and BNHA have a lot of things in common. I mean, BNHA almost entirely consists of plot twists that used to be classic shounen manga tropes and now they're just cliches. But at the same time Naruto is much more dark, like a dystopian take on BNHA where all main characters have awesome powers but they are literally trained to be murderers and child soldiers. And that's not mentioning Orochimaru's labs and ROOT training which are fucked up even by ninja standarts. And I thought it'd be interesting to see characters from different shounen animes react to each other. 

So, Team 7 has another "simple" mission that turns out to be not simple at all and they get transported into BNHA. Note, when I say Team 7 I mean Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi, Sai, Yamato and possibly Sasuke. Cuz poor Tenzou and Sai don’t get enough love from the fandom. Timelines are... tbh I didn’t really think about it. Maybe, end of 1st year/start of 2nd year for BNHA kids (they already live in dorms) and some random time when kiddie ninjas are 16-17yo.

The ninjas suddenly appear in U.A (on school property or somewhere nearby) and at first they’re all hella confused and kinda scared, Kakashi already entered his “I won’t let my teammates die” mode, then the heroes appear, almost get themselves killed by determined shinobi but Nezu uses his big brain and deescalates the situation.

Shinobi agree to talk, the paranoid ones get ready for oughtright torture but the heroes just send Tsukauchi in and kinda get the picture. Or, like, a piece of the picture. Basically, they learn that ninjas come from another world entirely and they are the closest thing to heroes their world has. The ninjas, on their side, are not as surprised as they should probably be cuz, first, they already know about parallel universes and, second, they’re Naruto’s friends, they are guaranteed to end up in some hella weird shit, they’re used to it. 

In the end it’s decided that the ninjas will stay in the hero course dorms so that teachers/heroes can keep an eye on them while they try to find a way back home. And what I wanna see is...

Culture shock. From both sides:

“So, what are your quirks?”

“What’s a quirk?”

“What do you mean you don’t have chakra here?”

“So, what can you do?”

“Uh, you mean, like, special moves? Or basic stuff like tree climbing, water walking, running fast? What? Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something?”

Kakashi seeing Aizawa and Yamada being a couple and thinking about his relationship with Gai.

Hagakure learning why it’s a very bad idea to startle ninjas. Even as friendly as Naruto, as laid back as Kakashi, as seemingly normal as Yamato. Don’t scare ninjas, period. 

Also, Bakugou meeting people who can and will kill you. Who actually killed. Cuz his costant death threats are really annoying and I’d like for him to meet someone who doesn’t coddle him and excuses his shitty attitude.

“Don’t ask us about our childhood if you don’t want to cry like a bitch” club: Naruto, Sai, Yamato, Kakashi, Sasuke.

On a more angsty note, Aizawa and other teachers: “Excuse me, I heard something strange and just want to make sure I misunderstood. Is it true that you all killed at least once, that you are taught to kill from 6 years old and you are legally an adult once you graduate your shinobi academy which normally happens when you’re 12? Wait, what do you mean I heard right?” Cue surprised Pikachu face. Or, well, horrified realisation face.

Midoriya and Naruto bonding over being abused because of circumstances out of their control.

Yamato with his “from Orochimaru’s lab straight to ROOT” story.

Kakashi with his giant guilt complex.

Sai with his... everything.

Sasuke with his revenge story. Maybe he and Iida should talk about it.

Sakura who seems the most normal of them but will happily fuck you up.

Crazy training regime.

On that note, imagine if Rock Lee was with them. Imagine Midoriya and him meeting. Lee is basically Naruto-version of quirlkess hero but no one doubts his power or belittles him. I think Midoriya would go nuts.

Bakugou fighting anyone of the teenage ninjas and getting his ass kicked in the first 3 seconds.

Shinobi value teamwork above everything, hero course is full of loners.

And a lot more...

[kuriquinn]

Once and Future [7/7]

Title: Sowing Season

Disclaimer & Masterpost

AN: Hah! Finally completed my NarutoWeek2017 fic! Drinks all around! (only, you know, not really, because I don’t drink...)

Kakashi stands on the roof of the Hokage Tower, gazing down upon the village that he is now in charge of.

In the distance, construction has started on Hokage Rock, builders and sculptors etching his face on to the mountain. He’s still not quite sure how to feel about the whole thing – he thinks Obito would have a lot to say on the subject if he were here. As it is, he’s had to deal with Naruto petitioning to have the rock-face carved without Kakashi’s mask.

I’ve got to give it to him, he managed to get a decent following on that front, too. Almost enough people to make it happen.

He smirks to himself, wondering idly if the joke he shares with his former students will ever get old – and then sighs again when it remembers that at least two of those former students are far too occupied with other matters these days to care.

Konoha is a village in transition, with the ruins of the old core being lovingly put back together by its inhabitants. A new business quarter is in the building process on the outskirts, and far above Hokage Rock surveying has already started on another section.

Since the end of the war, migrant workers and refugees have been keen on setting up shop here, lured by the promise of work and raising their children in the same village where Naruto Uzumaki was born. Franchisers and moneylenders are keen to capitalise on this, too. Kakashi personally finds it distasteful, but with the economy still in recovery following Pein’s attack and the War, the village can’t afford to be picky.

A problem for another day, he decides, shrugging his shoulders. He is keen to head home.

It’s rare that he ever gets away from work before sunset these days, and he’s looking forward to eating something that’s actually cooked instead of out of a cup. Either he’ll visit Gai, who has taken up fine cuisine as his latest hobby, or see if Manako wants to go out for a meal. She might not be a fan of cooking, herself, but she has a talent for suggesting the perfect take-out for any occasion.

Honestly, he’s not picky as long as he doesn’t have to make anymore decisions today –

“Lord Kakashi! There you are!” Shizune calls.

So close… Kakashi’s shoulders droop, and he mutters, “Knock it off with the ‘lord’ thing…”

“I know you’re about to leave, but there are a few things we still need to go over first,” his assistant says.

“Can’t it wait until tomorrow?” he asks, trying not to sound like he’s whining. Shizune puts her hands on her hips, and beside her Ton Ton emits an unimpressed oink! and sighs. “Alright, let’s go back downstairs…”

Once he’s firmly trapped – or comfortably seated – behind the desk, Shizune flips open her ever-present notepad and begins to run through the items.

“We’ve just received another two letters from the Raikage demanding information about Sasuke Uchiha,” she tells him.

“Well, that’s slightly below average,” Kakashi remarks mildly. “He must be cooling off.”

“It seems so. Shall we give him the same answer as usual?”

Kakashi nods. “Sasuke Uchiha will face Konoha’s justice, which will take into account all of his actions in the war. As such, there will be no extradition.”

Shizune purses her lips at this. She’s one of the people who considers this a lax handling of the former missing-nin’s case – she took it to heart that he intended to kill her master – but Kakashi knows she’ll eventually get over it.

He’s seen Sasuke go through hell and fall to the worst darkness imaginable before coming back. If Kakashi has to put every part of himself on the line to ensure the kid has a decent shot at a future, he’ll do it. He owes him that much – he owes all of his former genin squad that much.  

“The Mizukage is requesting a private meeting with you,” Shizune goes on eventually, knowing that any commentary on the issue of Sasuke will be ignored. “Something about nectar imports? Which is sort of odd for this time of year…”

“And not really something I handle,” Kakashi says. “That’s more the business sector, isn’t it?”

“I think she’s angling for a date, Lord Sixth.”

Kakashi shudders. “Uh, I’m unavailable. Forever, I think, if I remember how the vows go. Have Shikamaru take that one.”

“He’s not going to be happy about it.”

“Tough.”

Shizune checks something off in the notebook. “Iwa’s responding to the query we sent out a few weeks ago, about the Chūnin Exam. They’re onboard.”

“Which means it’s only Kiri and Kumo that haven’t responded yet. Have Shikamaru bring that up when he meets the Mizukage. And while you’re at it, add a note about it to the reply to the Raikage.”

“Right.” Another check. “The Elders want to discuss rezoning the village.”

“Again?”

“Yes.”

“And what particularly do they want to discuss?” Kakashi challenges, eyes narrowed.

“Well…”

“It’s the Uchiha compound, isn’t it?”

“To be fair, it’s not so much a compound anymore as a bunch of ruins,” Shizune says nervously, “so I can sort of see their point –”

“We’re not touching it.”

“But Lord Sixth –”

“No one in this village is being rezoned without having a say in the matter, and until the Uchiha clan – such as it is – is able to offer input on the subject, the compound stays.”

“Lord Kakashi, they don’t have to wait on your approval,” Shizune reminds him quietly, “you might as well at least try to salvage part of it while you can.”

“I know they don’t have to wait on my approval. But I also have no intention of supporting a decision that ignores the interests of a member of this village. Sasuke might not care now, but in the future he will. Besides, Naruto will nag me about until he drives me insane,” Kakashi replies. “He’s not about to allow the Uchiha legacy to be erased any further. And knowing him, he’ll end up getting the whole village standing in front of construction crews and protesting in the streets.” He leans back in his chair and folds his arms across his chest. “I can pick my battles. So can the Elders.”

“They’re not going to be happy about that,” Shizune remarks uncertainty.

“And again, I say – tough.”

If he had his way, he’d have removed Koharu and Homura from their positions as soon as he took office. But as he told Shizune, he knows how to pick his battles. Getting rid of the Elders, or the institution that supports them, is something he isn’t equipped for right now. And his goals extend beyond his own simple distrust of them – he intends the next generation of Konoha’s villagers to be safe and unafraid to use their voices.

Not ruled by the machinations of those in the shadows, he decides. If that’s the only legacy he can pass on to Naruto, it’s one he’s totally committed to.

“Uh…moving on. There’s an artist of some sort from Iwa that wants to meet with you. It has something to do with permission he needs to work on some collectable cards? I’m not really sure I understood the message…”

“That doesn’t sound urgent, let’s deal with it tomorrow. Anything else?”

“Captain Yamato sent a clone to speak to you. Updates about his surveillance mission I imagine.”

Kakashi sighs.

“If it makes you feel any better, it’s the last thing on the list and then you can go home.”

“As long as you don’t find anything else for me to do, right?” Kakashi challenges, and Shizune shifts her weight, a guilty expression on her face. “Fine. Send him in.”

As she disappears, Kakashi rubs the back of his head, trying to figure out where the paperwork ends and where his desk begins. In the one corner that isn’t obscured with memos, the photograph of Team 7 offers him a rare reminder of why he bothers with all of this.

Taking the frame in hand, he stares down at the familiar faces, hit once again with the disbelief that they are all still here and alive. He can see any of them at any point if he so chooses (although Sasuke isn’t big on talking these days, which is understandable) and he no longer has to lie awake at night trying to ensure they all survive to adulthood.

Naruto is his usual self once more, resilient as ever. He might be committed to becoming Hokage and enduring Iruka’s private training sessions, but he’s irrepressible as ever. There’s even been some instances of graffiti in the village the Kakashi feels certain he’s responsible for.

Sasuke might not be talkative, but when he does speak it is with candor and a genuine tone of remorse for his actions. Even Ibiki is impressed by the level of cooperation and has even agreed to testify as to Sasuke’s character when it comes time to present his case. It’s a testimony that will go a long way, considering the head of Torture and Interrogation has absolutely no stake in the remaining Uchiha’s rehabilitation.

Sakura isn’t quite back to normal, but whenever she sees him she has a smile at the ready. There was a rough patch in the first month following the end of the war – and a week in the psyche ward that Tsunade refuses to elaborate on – but her work in the hospital keeps her busy. And she’s visiting Sasuke on a regular basis, which is a relief.

Maybe Kakashi’s an old romantic, but there’s something fundamentally wrong with a world where Sakura might not forgive Sasuke. Or where her feelings for him don’t endure. Even knowing that not every story ends happily, and that there is still the possibility of it going wrong, Kakashi continues to bet on them even after all these years.

Literally.

He has an ongoing wager with Tsunade, who says Sasuke is too damaged for them to ever have a future. The Legendary Sucker is his guarantee that his former students – his friends – will one day be happy.

Now it’s just Naruto who needs to get a clue, he thinks to himself as Tenzou’s clone wanders in.

“Lord Hokage,” he says, bowing.

“Knock it off with the ‘lord’ stuff,” Kakashi grumbles.

“Hey, you wanted to be Hokage –”

“No, I didn’t –”

“ – so now you can be ‘Lord Hokage’ with a vengeance.”

“I should put you on latrine duty…”

“You’ve already got me following around a snake, it wouldn’t be much different.”

“You did volunteer,” Kakashi reminds him.

They smirk at one another, and Kakashi leans backward. “Alright. What’s the news?”

“Orochimaru is back in his hide-out.”

“The one close to Konoha, I gather, considering your presence.”

“Yes. He seems to want to stay close, in spite of his recent trip to Suna.”

“Did you check in with the Kazekage?”

“Yes. Lord Gaara said Orochimaru simply wanted access to some old storage. I managed to get a look at the information he was after first – I think the old bastard wanted me to see it, to be honest – but there was nothing dangerous in it as far as I can tell.”

“Fine. Continue to monitor the situation. I’m surprised Gaara allowed him that much.”

“I think Gaara is giving him a chance,” Tenzō muses, “but then again, Orochimaru is sneaky. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was trying to pull something off under all our noses.”

“Maybe. Maybe not,” Kakashi says, fishing in his slew of papers for a particular memo. Once he finds it, he passes it to Tenzō. “Look at this.”

His former subordinate frowns at the paper. “What is it?”

“That’s a petition sent out by the new council in Oto. They want official recognition as a legitimate shinobi village.”

Tenzō gapes. “Are you actually considering it?”

“It’s a topic of discussion,” Kakashi confirms, taking back the paper. “There would be conditions, of course. Curbing the violence there is a main one. Another is that Orochimaru will no longer have decision-making powers. The fact that they could even demand that without worrying he’d kill them suggests he might be more interested in other things these days. In any case, it will be a long time before anything officially happens.”

He can see that Tenzō continues to have reservations, but he doesn’t air them.

The two of them converse a little longer, but eventually the clone disappears. Either Tenzō has moved out of range, or he no longer has the energy to maintain the jutsu. In any case, Shizune is nowhere to be found and Kakashi doesn’t want to waste another second at the office.

He practically sprints from the Tower to his apartment, and then half-way there thinks better of it.

People know to look for him there, and he just wants a few hours of peace and quiet.

(It’s an indication of how desperate he is, considering there is nothing quiet or peaceful about Manako.)

The tiny flat above the demolition and supply shop is brightly lit when he gets there, suggesting she is still awake. As usual, he bypasses the front door, choosing instead to climb inside through the window. Upon entering, he inhales the mouth-watering scent of food. It seems he was right – somehow, without him even asking her, she’s already brought take-out from their favourite yōshoku restaurant.

He wanders past the spread on the table and into the living room where his partner is curled up on the couch.

She’s wearing nothing but one of his long shirts, boxers and a pair of thick socks, swinging her feet back and forth while she scribbles something on a pad of paper. Probably calculations for a new explosive device or other.

“I don’t care what they say about you, you are a good woman,” he tells her as he falls heavily onto the empty space beside her. He lets his head fall back on the pillow and considers the merits of sleeping now and eating later.

Hot food or cold food…yet another decision…

 “Don’t spread rumours,” Manako tells him. “I just don’t feel like scrounging for food the rest of the week, so I ordered a lot. For leftovers.”

“Oh. Of course,” he allows. “Let me never again mistake your laziness for forethought.”

“Damn straight.”

She pushes away the page of calculations and sits up, appraising him. “You look like crap.”

“I feel like it.”

“The Icha Icha movie is on in fifteen minutes if you want to watch. Might make you feel better.”

Kakashi grunts in agreement. He likes that idea.

“I don’t care what we do as long as I don’t have to think about it. All day long, people bringing me news, expecting me to make decisions – it’s exhausting.”

Manako is quiet for a long moment at this, and he figures there’s a fifty-fifty chance of her mocking him for whining or showing a rare bit of sympathy and offering him a neck massage. He really hopes it’s the latter.

“I guess now’s probably not the best time to tell you I’m pregnant, then,” she says instead.

Kakashi snorts. Figured it would be closer to the first option.

“Yeah, now would not be a good time…”

“Well, too bad,” she retorts, “because I am.”

Kakashi cracks one eye open and glares at her. “Seriously, that’s not funny. I’ve had a long day.”

“Seriously, I’m not joking,” she snaps. “There are about six pee-sticks in the bathroom that can show you how much I’m not joking.”

Silence fills the apartment, and as every second ticks by, it becomes more and more evident that she’s being completely serious.

“So,” she eventually says, arranging herself on the couch with her ankles and arms both crossed, raising an eyebrow at him in challenge, “let’s discuss.”

終わり

Yes, it’s a little bit of a cliffy/open-ended ending, but I thought that was appropriate given the flow of the entire fic. It is all about laying the groundwork for the future, so I hope I’ve managed that.

Thank you all for reading! Reviews and concrit are much appreciated - and if you’re feeling generous, I also accept tips through ko-fi (just scroll to the top and click the button!)

クリ

[raendown]

Commission for @cassieeeeanne!

Pairing: KakashiYamato Word count: 4273 Rated: G Summary: After a car accident leaves Kakashi without his memories Tenzou finds himself the only one having trouble moving forward - mostly because he is the only one left to remember all the years of being happily married, years that now exist only in his own mind. He visits still, of course he does, but over the past few months he's discovered that hope is hard to cling to when your other half is already letting go.

Follow the link or read it under the cut!

KO-FI and commission info in the header!

Memoir Redacted

The hospital hallways were warm, which felt wrong. Something about being denied the cliché of a cold uncaring hospital just didn’t sit right with him no matter that he tried to rationalize it away by reminding himself they were just entering the height of summer and one of the nurses had told him a month ago that their air conditioning wasn’t the best. Stepping out of the cool breeze outside and in to the muggy heat of the in-patient wing, Tenzou automatically pulled at the collar of his t-shirt. He could already feel the sweat gathering in the small of his back.

At the very least his partner was probably happy with the temperature. Kakashi had always abhorred the cold, although he wasn’t even sure if the man remembered that or if it was just instinct that had him leaning in to what small patches of sun reached his bed during the day.

Rubbing at his temple with one hand, Tenzou returned a greeting from one of the nurses with a small wave of his other hand. He was never sure if it bothered him or touched him that they all knew his face and his name by now. For the first week after Kakashi’s accident he had practically camped here and in the month after he woke up Tenzou had visited every day after work. Two more months down the road and he still visited just as frequently but he didn’t think many people would blame him for not staying as long each time anymore.

Looking in to the eyes of the man he loved and seeing nothing but blank politeness would drive anyone from the room, he was sure.

When he reached Kakashi’s room Tenzou paused to look in through the window, taking a moment just to admire the sight of his husband’s placid smile and the carefree lack of tension in his shoulders, the ease with which he held himself even in this sterile, foreign environment. For a man with little to no memories of who he was Kakashi had been incredibly brave from the moment he woke up. It was almost as admirable as it was painful to see all the qualities that Tenzou had fallen in love with him for all those years ago displayed so prominently despite the fact that, for all he knew, he was untethered to this world around him.

Clearing his throat, Tenzou pushed his thoughts aside just as he pushed the door open and stepped through.

“Knock, knock,” he called softly. Kakashi turned to look at him and his heart thudded painfully at the minute tightening around those beloved eyes, the flicker of impatience where there should have been loving welcome.

“Tenzou-san.”

“I’m your husband,” he pointed out for the hundredth time. “There’s no need to be so formal.”

Kakashi closed his eyes in the way of his fake smile and tilted his head to one side, “Ah, I still forget things sometimes. Please excuse me.”

He apparently forgot, too, that as his husband Tenzou would know all his habits, could read the irritation behind that false smile and knew that Kakashi didn’t really want him here. They got along well enough. Of course they did, they had clicked together like puzzle pieces right from the moment they first met so many years ago. The problem now was that this wasn’t the first meeting and yet only Tenzou carried the baggage of their shared memories.

“I brought you a few things from home,” he offered, letting the fake smile pass without comment. “You’ve already read the other books I brought so I thought you’d like the last in the series. And this is just a little, uh, you play with this puzzle box a lot. Mostly just to keep your hands busy while we watch TV but I thought maybe…”

“That it might spark some memories?” Kakashi held out one hand but it was with the air of someone resigned to doing something just to get it out of the way.

Dropping the puzzle box in the outstretched hand, ignoring the screaming voice in his heart that yearned to weave their fingers together, Tenzou nodded and murmured quietly, “I had hoped so.”

“Maa, I appreciate the book,” Kakashi offered. “I’m dying to know what happens next.”

“I could spoil it for you,” Tenzou teased with a hesitant smile. He was pleased to see Kakashi huff and snatch the novel away from him as well to hold it close like a precious child. He always had gotten a little too in to his stories; it was good to see that was another thing about him that hadn’t changed.

“Don’t you dare! Junko has been through so much and I want to find out for myself how she deals with Haruya’s betrayal! A love story should be experienced, not recounted!”

Tenzou recoiled like he’d been slapped in the face and his reaction seemed to force Kakashi to realize what he’d just said. To his credit he did wince, a clear sign he hadn’t meant to be so blatantly insulting, and set the book down to rub awkwardly at the back of his head. No amount of apologetic expressions could make up for blunt honesty, however. The damage had already been done.

Fighting hard to keep his own face neutral, Tenzou took a step back. “Anyway, I just came to drop those off and to let you know that…that I’m still thinking of you. But I, uh, I suppose if you’re so excited then I should let you get to reading!”

He offered a false smile of his own but didn’t dare look up to see whether it worked in the slightest. Kakashi’s eyes burned in to him as they both murmured awkward goodbyes and even though he knew it was impossible Tenzou felt as though those eyes followed him all the way back out of the hospital, chasing him through the too-warm hallways and out in to the breeze where he was disappointed to realize that he still couldn’t breathe past the lead in his chest.

Of course, as weak as he was for the man he had married, Tenzou was back at the hospital only two days later. Kakashi had called him a sucker for punishment many times before and never had he felt so much like laughing and crying at the same time because the man was more right than ever and he wouldn’t even remember it.

A terrible irony considering how much he enjoyed being right.

Before going to Kakashi’s room he spoke to one of the nurses in the hallway who updated him on the fact that there were really no updates to be given, his condition unchanging. The blood clot they were so worried about was still in the same spot, not moving towards his brain yet but also not disappearing, and the blood thinners they had him on weren’t making as much of a difference as the doctor had hoped. If it weren’t for the blood thinners Kakashi could have actually come home. Tenzou supposed his husband was probably grateful that giving an adult so much Advil had such a potential to be dangerous since it gave him an excuse not to go live with a man whom he saw as a stranger.

The first thing Tenzou saw when he did enter the room was a smile he knew all too well. Kakashi had a cute face and a killer smile and he knew just how to use it, always had. It was one of the first things that caught Tenzou’s attention and it was one of the deadliest weapons against him whenever they bickered. The problem right then was that his favorite smile was being directed at someone who was absolutely not him.

Both Kakashi and the nurse stopped laughing as soon as they spotted him there in the doorway, the nameless young man who had probably come in to the room by accident cleared his throat and bid the patient a good day, edging around Tenzou with a nervous look in his eyes that said he knew all about the odd relationship between them but had chosen to stop and flirt anyway. Hopefully some of the other nurses would know his name so Tenzou could ask him very politely to step the fuck off.

“Tenzou-san,” Kakashi greeted him. His voice carried a firm note that elicited a very soft sigh from the doorway.

“You don’t have to- never mind. How are you?”

“Well I suppose most of my day has been pretty good.” When Kakashi smiled there was a layer of coldness behind it that said Tenzou was the one who had ruined that good day by interrupting the scene he had just now.

Choosing not to address that, Tenzou rather stubbornly stepped in to the room and parked himself in to visitor’s chair. Kakashi was his husband. They had been married for six years and dated for two before that. No wet behind the ears nurse boy was going to step in to his territory without a fight; just because it hurt to his very core that Kakashi would give so much warmth to someone he had no connections to and yet turned away from Tenzou on instinct, that didn’t mean he was ready to give up quite yet.

Almost. But not yet. He was worn and tired and the months of cool reception had been hard but he was also patient and so deeply in love he didn’t know if it was in him to turn away. This was the road he had chosen to walk and by god he would walk it until his knees gave out from underneath him. Or until he was asked to leave. That was an option he had very carefully considered, accepted, and then gently pushed to one side in the desperate hope that it would never happen.

“Have you gotten very far in your book?” he asked. It was the safest topic he could think of to talk about and was rewarded for his efforts by the excitement on Kakashi’s face.

“Already four chapters in! It’s thrilling! The romance, the action, the suspense and everything, it’s all so masterfully crafted. I really must have some good taste for these to be my favorites. This author is a genius!” While he spoke his hands traced shapes in the air, the most animated movements Tenzou had seen from him since the accident. It was heartening to see.

“You met him once, you know,” he said. “We went to a book signing two years ago when this last installment came out. You were first in line. We camped outside the bookstore all night.”

Kakashi’s jaw dropped with awe. “I met him!? Tell me! Tell me everything!”

There was really no denying that happy expression. For the first time since the man had woken from his coma he seemed excited to interact and Tenzou was human enough to take his wins where he could find them. It was incredible to be in the center of Kakashi’s focus again and for the next couple of hours he dredged up every scrap of knowledge he had about the Icha Icha series and its author, things he had picked up over the years from listening to this same man gush over them or reciting a few raunchy passages during intimate moments. He might have never read the books himself but after living with someone who obsessed over them for so long he was bound to know at least enough to carry his weight in the conversation.

Unfortunately the well of his knowledge did run dry eventually and even Kakashi could only ask so many questions about the author when their meeting with him had only lasted for about fifteen minutes, most of which had been spent standing to the side and speaking over his shoulder while the man continued to sign novels for other people in line. The description of how jealous the other book lovers had been to see him being so friendly with the author earned a laugh at least.

But as the conversation slowly began to peter out again Tenzou felt the same old frustration rising up in him.

“It shouldn’t be this awkward,” he blurted suddenly. “You always told me it was love at first sight, that you were captivated right from the beginning. I don’t understand. How is it different now?” He knew he had ruined all the good rapport he’d just built when Kakashi ran a tired hand through his messy silver hair.

“Maybe you look different,” was his blunt suggestion.

“Not that much. At least, you always said–”

“Or maybe that’s the problem! You’re always on about what I’ve said and what I’ve done and how you think I’m supposed to be. I don’t know that guy you want me to be, Tenzou-san, and I don’t know you. Maybe I fell in love with you the first time because you didn’t expect anything from me!”

Leaning back in his chair, Tenzou took a deep breath to steady himself. It was surprisingly difficult. “You’re right, I have been expecting a lot from you. It’s just hard. One day I have a husband who loves me and then the next…”

“Yes, yes, the next you have me. Well I’m very sorry to be a disappointment for you but I don’t think you’ve ever completely understood what it’s like from my side. I don’t know you! But you look at me like you’re just…waiting.” Kakashi shook his head. “I don’t even really know what you’re waiting for. My memories? Some sign that I’m falling in love with you all over again even though you haven’t given me any time or reason to? It stresses me out to have you here, Tenzou-san. I’m sorry if that hurts to hear but every time you visit…it’s just stressful trying to figure out who you’re waiting for me to be.”

Each word he spoke was like another knife in Tenzou’s heart. Ice ran through his veins and his lungs burned for the air he couldn’t seem to breathe in properly. No pain he had ever felt came even close to this except those first terrible hours after the accident when they weren’t sure if Kakashi would live or die. But worst of all was knowing that Kakashi hadn’t said anything that wasn’t true. Knowing that for all the hope in his heart Kakashi’s memories were gone, they might never come back, and there was absolutely nothing he could do about that.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered quietly, hands fisted on his knees. “You’re right, of course. I should never have put those expectations on you. It was unfair of me. Thank you for being honest. Perhaps it would be best if I…visited less often.” Despite his efforts he couldn’t quite bring himself to say he would stay away and he averted his gaze to avoid seeing any potential disappointment in Kakashi’s face.

“Right. I truly don’t mean to hurt you but I would appreciate a little space to just breathe and learn to be me again. Please don’t think I haven’t tried to remember. I have. I can see how much you love me and it isn’t that I don’t want that. I just…I don’t remember you.”

His voice had only been so soft on the few rare occasions when they fought for real and Tenzou hated himself for even making the comparison after what he had just been told. It took a great deal of effort to peel himself up out of the plastic chair and step back towards the door with both hands clasped together in the awkwardly polite manner so many had made fun of him for over the years.

“If space is what you ask of me then space is what I will give you.” He hovered for a couple of long minutes as he tried to think of something else to say but all the words in his head were jumbled and messy, emotional and so very much not what needed to be said at that moment. For all that he had always been the more mature between the two of them, more in tune with his emotions, it was sort of funny that now he had finally found a situation where that worked to his detriment. Now in the hour when he felt the most was the time when he needed to box himself in and display the least – and he had failed at that. It simply wasn’t in his nature. With a formal bow Tenzou excused himself and whispered his goodbyes.

When the door closed behind him Kakashi’s voice did not follow but the nurses in their station all watched him pass with sympathy in their eyes as tears began to spill over his cheeks. He ignored them. Their sympathy was not what he wanted right then.

Resisting the desire to go visit his beloved was about as hard as he’d thought it would be. Neither of them had ever had any family to fall back on and without Kakashi as the glue to keep them together he found his circle of friends less cohesive than he would have liked. He spent the next couple of weeks feeling isolated despite the people all around him at work or when he went out shopping, lonelier than he could ever remember feeling in his life.

Most of the time he spent away was filled with deep cleaning their home and flipping through magazines he had no real interest in, things he could do that didn’t require much brain power since his mind remained stuck in a hospital room where he apparently wasn’t welcome. Or needed. The sight of Kakashi smiling at another man played in his head a hundred times over until he thought it might make him physically ill to remind himself yet again that if the memories never came back then he had no right to stop Kakashi from falling in love with someone new and starting a new life over the ashes of their old one. It was a hard truth and it hurt to swallow but it was something he knew he couldn’t let himself forget.

He hadn’t been sent away entirely yet, however, and Tenzou could only keep his stupidly hopeful heart away for so long. Certain occasions should be spent together, after all. On the Monday of the third week he found himself trudging along muggy hospital hallways once again and fanning himself absently with one hand while he waved to the nurses with the other. Kakashi wasn’t in his bed when Tenzou came in to the room but the bathroom door was closed and the light was on so he hovered anxiously just inside the room feeling as though he were back in high school waiting for the principal to see him. When the door opened he did his best to assume a neutral face instead of the kicked puppy look he knew he was probably wearing.

“Oh. Tenzou. Jeez, you scared me.” Kakashi faltered in the bathroom doorway and put a hand over his heart, laughing a little at his own reaction. Then he continued on to clamor back in his bed before saying anything else, melting back against the pillows.

“I hope I haven’t come at a bad time,” Tenzou murmured, still not coming entirely in to the room yet also unwilling to send himself away. Not if he didn’t have to.

“Maa, I was pretty bored actually. The TV in here stopped working yesterday so I haven’t really had much to do.”

A half smile formed on his lips and he asked, “How will you ever watch your soaps now?”

“Right? All that drama and I’m missing it! They’re so messy and stupid and they draw you right in until you’re sitting on the edge of your seat because you’ve gotta know whether Takeshi survives that third brain transplant.”

“Brain transplants?” A snort of disbelief escaped him and he was thrilled to hear Kakashi laugh.

“I know, right!”

“Ridiculous.”

They both giggled over the stupidity of soap operas for a little while, coming up with more and more unbelievable problems for the characters to face and the stupidly dramatic solutions the show might bring out for them or the twists that would get thrown in to the mix. It was pleasant conversation, more pleasant than most they’d had, and not just because this time Tenzou could actually put his whole self in to it with no pretending. He could easily admit to feeling the draw of those stupid dramas as much as his husband. What made it truly nice though was the ease in Kakashi’s stance, the lack of tension in his shoulders, the way he seemed to sense that there was nothing being asked of him and so felt no need to raise his hackles defensively in the face of failure.

Eventually the conversation turned to other things in a natural manner and Tenzou happily followed along whatever path Kakashi wished to tread. Honestly he was just happy to finally sit here with no expectations and no burning in the back of his eyes as he compared every breath and blink to the man he wanted to be sitting in front of him. In a way it was like meeting Kakashi for the first time all over again and it was strangely refreshing.

More than three hours passed by almost without notice and he only truly realized the time when his stomach rumbled loudly enough he feared they might have heard it all the way over at the nurses’ station. With a faintly embarrassed look Tenzou held a hand over his stomach and apologized.

“Time for lunch?” Kakashi asked him with light humor. He nodded.

“Yeah, I think I’ll treat myself to my favorite.”

“Oh? What’s your favorite?” It was only an innocent question asked with a surprising amount of genuine curiosity but for Tenzou it felt like a bucket of ice dumped over his head.

For a little while it had been just like old times and whether that was because he’d been able to let go for a while or simply because he forgot about Kakashi’s condition in his eagerness wasn’t clear. Obviously he would need to do a little more work on this whole ‘no expectations’ thing; apparently his poor tired heart had been hoping that just this one nice conversation would solve all their problems. Pushing himself to his feet, Tenzou very firmly told himself to put a lock down on his emotions and keep this pain to himself lest he alienate his husband after all that work he’s just put in to growing closer again.

“I’m really boring,” he joked instead. “My favorite thing to eat is just this really great apple walnut salad I get from a place that’s a few miles from here.”

“Maa, a man’s got to eat his veggies.”

Tenzou smiled softly. “That he does. Well, this man is off to eat his veggies right now. Have a good day, Kakashi. I’ll come visit again…sometime. Not too soon, I promise, wouldn’t want you to get tired of my face or something.” He forced a little chuckle that even managed to sound half genuine and it seemed like he would manage to get away from this visit without any proverbial scratches.

He made it all the way to the door and halfway out before Kakashi’s voice called himself with an absent note, already distracting himself with something. When he turned back the man had one of the Icha Icha books open across his lap for yet another read through, his fingers fiddling with a worn puzzle box to keep them occupied.

“What is it?” he asked. Kakashi smiled vaguely.

“Happy birthday, Tenzou. Just thought I should say that before you go.”

“I…it is my birthday.”

“Mm. I hope it’s a good one.”

With that Kakashi went back to his book and Tenzou very carefully shut the door, leaned back against the corridor wall, and slid down to the floor with both hands clasped over his mouth to muffle the sobs bubbling up out of his chest.

Kakashi remembered his birthday. As calmly as though it were only normal he had remembered something he’d never being told, oh so casually stopping Tenzou’s heart and nearly ending his entire world because Kakashi remembered. It was only a single detail, small in the grand scheme of things, but to him it was the breath of fresh air after so long in the dark. It was a ray of hope when he had only just begun to accept that all may truly have been lost.

Tears streamed down his cheeks and Tenzou curled in to himself to muffle the sounds of his crying, desperately trying not to draw attention from the man just on the other side of the wall, but for once it was not pain that shook his form. It was joy. Joy so bright and hopeful it almost did become its own kind of pain but he could not have cared less, gave himself over to it without hesitation. After so long feeling nothing but the slow dwindling of his own hope it was a strange kind of ecstasy to latch on to something so small and seemingly insignificant.

Kakashi had remembered his birthday. And with that Tenzou was reminded of what it was like to believe that things might really be okay. Because if he remembered this one thing – well.

What else might he remember?

[raendown]

Part 1 of a commission for @white-crow-haruno

Pairing: KakashiYamato Word count: 2536 Rated: E Summary: Just a bit of fun between two good friends. No strings attached and no commitments. Kakashi wouldn't have things any other way.

Follow the link or read it under the cut!

KO-FI and commission info in the header!

Wood and Wine (Crack It Open)

“You brought wine?” Kakashi lifted his one visible eyebrow at the bottom in his guest’s hand. Then he snorted when Tenzou pulled it closer to hold against his chest like a protective mother.

“Well I didn’t want to show up empty handed, that’s bad manners.”

“This isn’t a date, kohai.” Still, Kakashi opened the door a little wider to let him in.

Setting his bottle on a nearby table so he could slip off his sandals, Tenzou rolled his eyes. “I know that, thanks. As if I would ever date you. Can you imagine what sort of disaster that would be? No thank you.”

Kakashi snagged the wine and headed over to the kitchen. It wasn’t worth the effort to even pretend to be offended. They had both agreed to having no strings attached when they started this arrangement and so far neither one of them had found any reason to deviate from that. Good friends they might be but Tenzou was right; they would tear each other to pieces if they ever tried to date. Kakashi was at least man enough to admit that it was in large part thanks to him since he had absolutely no interest in dating anyone at all. Fucking was good enough for him.

If he wanted companionship, well, that’s what friends were for and with Gai and Tenzou on the roster he had all the friends his antisocial tendencies could handle.

“Did you want to drink this first or something?” he asked, fridge door open and one hand still on the wine in case he needed to pull it out again. Tenzou waved him off.

“No, that’s just for you. I’m trying to watch what I put in my body.”

“Shame, I was planning on fucking you from behind.” Kakashi snickered at his own joke.

“Classy. Real classy.”

Shutting the wine away for now, Kakashi waved his guest in. “Come on then. I sure you know your way to my bedroom by now. Well, you should. I don’t always blindfold you.”

Walking ahead of him, Tenzou stripped out of his shirt when they were only halfway down the hall. Kakashi approved since it gave him an excuse to ogle all those well-crafted muscles even if he usually preferred to do the undressing himself. It was just hotter when he got to unwrap his own presents.

Belt dropped on the floor and trousers already undone, Tenzou fell back on the mattress as soon as they walked in to the room, arching his back in a languid stretch that showed off his abs quite nicely. Without further ado Kakashi knelt over him and dragged his tongue along those delicious lines. If Tenzou was going to put them on display then of course Kakashi was going to take what was on offer. They had done this enough times to know exactly how to press each other’s buttons.

“Ugh, don’t tell me you’re in the mood to tease,” his friend grumbled. Kakashi smirked and dragged his teeth along the man’s oblique.

“And what if I am? Maybe I feel like tying you down and taking my time. Tease you until you can’t take it anymore and beg me to fuck you so hard you walk funny for a week.”

Shoving his head away with a snort, Tenzou lifted his hips to reach for the pouch tied to the back of his waist. “Maybe you feel like that but I don’t so get on with it and fuck me. If you try to make me beg I swear I will leave and you can fuck your own hand.”

“Ooh, sassy. You know I like that too.” Kakashi took the lube when it was passed over, a new brand he’d never seen before but instantly took a liking to as soon as he popped off the cap and got a whiff. “Mm cherries!”

Pretending not to see the way Tenzou rolled his eyes again, he tossed the bottle off to the side for now and leaned down to wriggle his fingers under the hem of those trousers that were still in his way. If he wasn’t allowed to pleasure of stripping his partner out of his shirt then at least there were still miles and miles of tanned legs to reveal slowly like a mid-July Christmas gift. And in the wake of his fingers Kakashi eagerly trailed kisses along every bit of skin revealed until he had Tenzou panting before they’d even truly begun.

Tossing the other man’s last bit of clothing aside, Kakashi gave brief consideration to removing his own. Naked sex was a treat he didn’t indulge in with many people but he could trust Tenzou. After a few seconds he decided against it only because to get naked himself he would need to stop and pull away – only for a minute or so but now that he had Tenzou naked and spread out like a feast before him he realized he was wildly impatient. Not for lack of trying, he hadn’t had sex even once the entire time his friend was away on that last mission and he was very ready for this dry spell to end.

“I thought I just said no teas- ah!” Tenzou’s reprimand cut off when Kakashi sank his teeth in to the man’s thigh, his tongue following after to sooth what he had hurt.

“Now, now. Just because I’m grabbing a quick bite to eat doesn’t mean I can’t savor my meal.”

“You know it’s gross when you compare me to food?” In direct contrast to his words, Tenzou leaned back and crossed his arms above his head, stretching himself out like a buffet.

“Don’t pretend you don’t like it,” Kakashi told him.

He could catch a hint, however, so he set aside his plans of lifting up those long legs and opening Tenzou slowly with his tongue. That could wait for another day when they both had a bit more patience. For now he reached for the lube again and squeezed a generous amount on to his fingers, grinning when the other man obligingly spread his legs without needing to be asked. He did so love an eager partner who knew what they were doing.

Both of them enjoyed the slick friction of his first finger sliding inside, tight but not too tight, not even close to the limits they had reached together before. Kakashi twisted and pumped his middle finger only a handful of times before pausing to slide in another. When Tenzou grunted he licked his own lips with anticipation.

“You did say not to waste time,” he said.

“I did,” Tenzou agreed. “So stop wasting time. You know I can take more.”

“Mm, that you can.” He gave no more warning than that before shifting his angle to prod that sweet spot deep inside, the one that always made Tenzou howl with pleasure when he hit it just right.

Like right now, he noted, watching the man’s head fall back to cry out a garbled string of curse words, all the muscles in his body tensing under the onslaught of unexpected pleasure before relaxing entirely to invite more. Kakashi took that invitation quite happily. Using one hand to push those beautifully muscled thighs just a little further apart, his slid his fingers in as deep as he could and then pulled away just far enough to add a third.

This part he refused to rush, though only because he didn’t want to hurt his friend. As much as Tenzou liked to brag that he could take it Kakashi was all too familiar with how badly it tended to ruin the mood when one partner failed to prep the other enough. Pain was for masochists and missions. He still enjoyed himself though; it wasn’t exactly a chore to watch Tenzou writhe on his fingers and moan like a shameless night worker, both hands fisted against the headboard and pulling on it until the wood creaked in protest. When a sharp crack ripped through the air Kakashi took that as his cue to finally stop.

Grabbing the lube one more time, he used his other hand to free his length and doled out enough cherry scented gel to cover it generously. A whimsical smile touched his face at the thought of having Tenzou lick it all back off like a frozen ice treat but instead he shuffled forward to toss both tanned legs over his shoulders.

Pushing inside that tight heat felt about as close to nirvana as he thought he would ever experience. All the times he’d called this man a tight ass when they were younger, he couldn’t have known back then how right he was. The grip around his cock was insane, filthy and perfect, one of the best fuck’s he’d ever had. If Kakashi had even a slightly better grip on his own emotions then maybe the two of them might actually work as a couple but what they had here was fine too. Two friends who could find each other whenever they needed to work out a little tension, that was really all either of them were willing to put up with.

“Shit, did you grow another inch since last time?” Tenzou panted, fists tightening around the headboard again and stroking Kakashi’s ego at the same time. He always had been good at multitasking.

“Nah, just a better angle.” Rolling his hips for emphasis, Kakashi winked. “Let’s see if you can ride me as good as last time.”

Tenzou grunted and rolled his eyes back but it didn’t stop him from giving as good as he got. Crossing his feet behind Kakashi’s shoulder, shifting to hold his weight high on his own upper back, he used what bit of leverage he could find to push back in to every thrust and snap his own hips down each time Kakashi slid back in to him. The difference was incredible and it left the two of them cursing under their breath with pleasure before long.

After that it was like a race, both of them desperately chasing their own end yet at the same time trying to get the other to come first. Tenzou clenched down around the shaft fucking him each time they separated and Kakashi did his best to keep that perfect angle to aim for his friend’s prostate on every thrust. With double handfuls of tanned ass he pulled their bodies together almost violently and let his eyes roam along the planes of the gorgeous body riding his cock. Was there any sight better than a willing body enjoying the pleasures he had to give?

In the end Tenzou came first but he pulled Kakashi along behind him only a few seconds later, both of them gritting their teeth to muffle their ecstasy out of sheer habit. Shinobi were meant to be quiet in all things, after all.

When they had both had a few moments to get their breath back Kakashi tilted his head to contemplate a job well done. Lax muscles and flush cheeks, belly painted with strings of his own cum, Tenzou certainly looked like a satisfied customer. His eyes were half-lidded and glazed as he stared up at the ceiling with a slightly goofy expression, giving Kakashi a very strong urge to ruin the perfect picture he made. Only with a great amount of self-control did he manage to resist leaning over to poke his friend in the ribs.

Instead he gave a light warning swat to the ass still clenching around him before pulling away to reach for the tissues on his nightstand. Their position at the very end of the mattress made it a bit of an awkward stretch but he snagged the box with one finger and latched on with a bit of chakra. After pulling out a couple for himself he tossed the box down on Tenzou’s chest.

“Damn,” he mumbled. “It is always a pleasure, I must say. And I really needed that. Tried to pick up a couple weeks ago between C-ranks but the woman I spent two hours chatting with turned out to have a boyfriend.”

“Have you ever considered that you might actually be a sex addict?” Tenzou asked him, only half serious.

“Considered the idea. Discarded it. I’ve gone ages without when I’m actually out on duty and not gone in to anything like withdrawal. I just really like sex when I’m home and there’s nothing else to do.” Kakashi shrugged and shuffled off the bed to stuff himself back in to his pants.

He watched as Tenzou sat up and lifted his arms for a lazy stretch. “I mean, that’s fair. Can’t say I’m any different; if there’s something on offer then I’m not going to say no.”

“Exactly. Now, are you gonna stay and help me drink that wine or do you have something else to do tonight?”

“Might as well; gonna be a while before I trust my legs to get me back across town anyway.” His friend shrugged and reached for his pants.

Kakashi turned for the door, already mentally rooting through the kitchen to remember where he left his corkscrew, then he paused to turn back with a smirk. “I thought you said you were trying to watch what you put in your body?”

“And I thought you were going to fuck me from behind,” Tenzou shot back.

“Yeah that’s fair. So, wine? Maybe some pretzels? That’s really all the food I have in the house so it’s that or chewing on your fingernails.” He laughed at the wrinkle of Tenzou’s nose before ducking out of the room and actually heading for the kitchen this time.

Since it was just the two of them here he didn’t bother to pull his mask back on, glad for the chance to breathe freely in the company of one of his few trusted people. He wondered sometimes what the big deal was about relationships. There wasn’t anything he needed that he didn’t already have, nothing he could find in a relationship that he couldn’t already get. If he wanted great sex there was always Tenzou – and other willing bodies, they were hardly exclusive – and if he wanted companionship then the two of them could hang out for a while before his friend went home, though Gai usually covered the companionship part with his ridiculous daily challenges.

The only difference he could see was that he didn’t have anyone to help with chores and he always fell asleep alone but since he didn’t mind cleaning his own mess and he hated sleeping next to other bodies that actually worked out pretty well. No matter what any busybody acquaintance thought, Kakashi was perfectly happy with his current situation.

Footsteps from behind told him Tenzou must have gotten dressed at light speed. Without turning around he pointed at a random drawer and said, “Look through that, would you? I can’t remember where I left my corkscrew.”

As Tenzou moved to do so, Kakashi smiled to himself. Good sex and great company that he got to kick out later when he’d had enough of being social, what more could a guy ask for out of a lazy weekend?

[raendown]

All According to Plan

So @syndellwins requested “Tenzou x Reader AU, where Kakashi demands Tenzou shows up to his wedding to Obito with a date or he'll tell something embarrassing about Tenzou at the party. So Tenzou decides to ask a co-worker that's a bit cranky and obs she has a huge crush on him. She reluctantly says yes (she doesn't wanna feel used but also wants to meet Tenzou outside the office) and Tenzou notices that weekend (yeah, a long ass party weekend) that's she is actually nice ?? And she kisses him back when they have to pretend and hey, she's actually turning him on and everything?”

It’s not precisely what you ordered but, like, 5888 words + so many hours of my life = please love this anyway? XD

Under the cut or also on AO3! 

His best friend was a prick. Tenzou knew that already, of course. He never missed an opportunity to tell Kakashi that he was a giant prick. Kakashi usually snapped back with a crass comment about his genitalia and Tenzou honestly wished that he could solve his problem with that simple, familiar argument. This time, however, Kakashi was being a prick for his own good and that complicated things. It was harder to stay mad when he knew that his best friend was only worried for him. Still, threatening to reveal all of Tenzou’s embarrassing secrets to the general public if he showed up to Kakashi’s wedding without a date was going just a little too far.

That was how he came to be standing outside of your cubicle, nervously wiping damp palms on his thighs before knocking to catch your attention. You looked up and felt your heart skip a beat. Despite your massive secret crush on this man the two of you didn’t talk very often. You wondered what he could possibly need from you. He worked for a different department after all. Maybe some of the paperwork you had sent over was incomplete?

“Ah, good afternoon Y/N,” Tenzou greeted you in that smooth voice of his. You tried hard to hide the shiver that raced down your spine.

“Good afternoon,” you said back. “How can I help you?” You were intrigued to see him fluster and tug at the cuffs of his jacket, obviously anxious about something.

“I wanted to ask a favor. It’s – ah – it’s just m-my friend is getting married in a couple of weeks and he, er, threatened me if I didn’t bring a date. So I was wondering-” Tenzou pulled at his shirt collar “-if you might come with me and pretend to be my girlfriend? Oh god I know this is really awkward to ask out of nowhere and I’m so sorry. I didn’t know who else to ask!”

You forced yourself to keep breathing as his question settled over you. Pretend to be the girlfriend of the man who you’d be staring dreamily at for almost a year now? Yes please! Instead of throwing yourself in to his arms the way you wanted to you managed to make a thoughtful expression.

“The good old fake date, huh?” You asked. “Just for the one night?” It wouldn’t feel great to part ways at the end but you had hopes that maybe you could interest him in a real first date after all was said and done. Might as well put the idea in his head now. Tenzou sighed in obvious relief and grinned sheepishly, his shoulders relaxing and his entire body easing out of the tense stance he had been in.

“It’s actually more of a weekend party. Kakashi and his fiancé are…” he rolled his eyes. “Well I’m glad they make each other happy because they seem to get a kick out of making everyone else miserable.”

You laughed because you could imagine that. Kakashi used to work here as well before his division expanded and got their own building. You hadn’t had much contact with him but his reputation as a hard man to work with was nearly legend. He was still used as a funny horror story to make any new hires feel more comfortable around the place. You could only imagine the sort of person who would be able to put up with him.

Tenzou seemed so adorably happy that you agreed to his plan that it was hard not to stand up and pinch those smiling cheeks. He let you know all the details of where, when, dress code, and the names of people you would most likely wish to avoid. You committed it all to memory and chatted with him until he mentioned his lunch break was almost over. You waved him off towards the elevators, waiting until he was fully out of sight before pumping both fists in the air and giving vent to a muted noise of excitement. The coworker in the cubicle next to yours poked her head around the divider to give you a knowing look and a wink. You only laughed. This was going to be amazing. You could just feel it.

Just a little over two weeks later Tenzou found himself on your doorstep, dressed to the nines and incredibly nervous as he knocked three times. He wasn’t exactly sure what he was nervous about, though. The two of you had always gotten along well and he didn’t foresee any difficulty in pulling the wool over Kakashi’s eyes. He would introduce you as his girlfriend at the wedding, mention that things were still fairly new between you, and then sadly say that things just didn’t work out a few weeks later. It was an easy deception and it would hopefully get Kakashi off his back for at least a couple more months. Yet still he found himself a little anxious and he couldn’t pin down the reason.

When you opened the door he had to struggle to keep his jaw in place as he saw the green silk delicacy you had wrapped yourself in. You had picked this dress with him in mind and, judging by his reaction, it had been worth the three hour debacle in the store. You stayed silent and didn’t bother to hide your pleased expression as his eyes slowly moved down and back up your body.

“Uh, hi,” he murmured in a distracted manner. You chuckled. “Ready to go?”

“I’ve been ready for you for a while.” You would never admit how long it took to practice saying that with the perfect mix of innocence and sultry suggestion. It worked though; you heard Tenzou clearing his throat gruffly as you passed him.

He helped you in to the car and hurried around to hop in to the driver’s side. The wedding was being held just out of town, only an hour or so drive from your place, and conversation filled the car the whole way there. Tenzou was so easy to talk to and he was interested in so many different things. You were happily surprised to discover that his favorite hobby was gardening and you were still talking about which plants both of you were growing when you pulled in to the venue.

The wedding was being held on the edge of a lake in the exact spot that Kakashi and his fiancé had first met each other, coincidentally at someone else’s wedding. You looped your arm through Tenzou’s as he led you to your seat, noting some heads turning to watch the pair of you walk by. You discreetly asked for names and made note of which people to really play up the affection around. You did agree to try and pull one over on his friends, after all.

The ceremony was beautiful. You found yourself crying as Kakashi traded vows with his husband, a soft adoring light in his eyes that you had never would have thought possible. You had always known him as a lazy, snarky ass. But the way he looked at Obito had you accepting a handkerchief from Tenzou. Whoever this Obito guy was he had to be some kind of man to get someone like Kakashi to settle down.

After the ceremony, as everyone waited for the couple to take their wedding photos before the dinner, you and Tenzou escaped in to the trees surrounding the lake. The two of you hid in the natural shield of a sizable Weeping Willow, giggling at how childlike it was to run away from the other guests.

“So if Kakashi is your best friend, how come you’re not in the wedding party?” you asked, hoping it wouldn’t ruin the mood. Far from seeming offended, Tenzou chuckled.

“They only wanted one groomsman each,” he explained, “and Gai challenged me for the right to stand up with Kakashi. It meant more to him than it did to me so I didn’t really put up much of a fight. As long as all of my friends are happy at the end of the day then so am I.” You couldn’t help the warm smile on your face.

“You’re a good man, Tenzou,” you told him. He blushed and rubbed his head awkwardly.

“Not really, I guess I just don’t feel a need to be in the spotlight.”

You shook your head at his adorable modesty and rested one hand on his arm. “No, you are a good man. I’ve never known someone as selfless and caring as you. Kakashi is lucky to have you as a friend. I’m lucky to have met you.”

His blush deepened and he tried to laugh it off, changing the subject. This time you let him. The biggest victory in that short conversation, however, was that you noticed he had allowed you to come so close that your bodies were nearly pressed together and he hadn’t asked you to step away yet. There was no one here to fool right now so technically you had no excuse for such forward behavior. You felt your hopes rise just a little bit higher that this event could end with you talking him in to a real date.

The two of you continued to chat and make each other laugh until your privacy was forcibly invaded without warning. Just as Tenzou said something so adorably cute that you couldn’t resist leaning in just a little farther, a figure in the corner of your eye parted the long trailing leaves of the tree that made up your little hide-away. You looked over to find a young woman with curly black hair and legs that went on for days. Her striking red eyes carefully took in the sight of how close you were standing and a soft smirk appeared on her painted lips.

“My, my, Tenzou,” she said in a smoky voice. “What have we here? I thought I saw you with a little something on your arm when you came in. I’m glad to see that I wasn’t mistaken.” She carefully picked her way over to you, heeled shoes sinking in the grass with every step.

“Kurenai, good to see you. This is my date; Y/N this is Kurenai. She went to the same high school that Kakashi and I used to attend.” Tenzou sounded relaxed and at ease but you could feel the tension in his body as your joint deception was put to its first test. You squeezed his bicep surreptitiously in the hope that it would comfort him.

You and Kurenai traded greetings and pleasantries, making small talk about what a lovely day it was for a wedding and how heart-warming the ceremony had been.

“Raidou said he thought he saw you sneak off over here and I volunteered to come get you two,” Kurenai said after a few minutes. “Kakashi and Obito will be back soon. All of the guests are moving in to the hall to find their seats.”

“Oh, we should go then.” Tenzou looked down at you and you saw the exact moment he realized just how intimate your position was. His wide almond eyes blinked at you in surprise and he felt a strange urge to send Kurenai away so you wouldn’t have to move.

“Certainly,” you agreed, inwardly smiling at his stunned expression. “I’m famished and I can’t wait to hear the speeches.”

“I think once you hear Gai give a speech you’ll change your mind on that one,” Kurenai warned you. “When Kakashi made Gai his Best Man I don’t think he remember that he would have to give a speech!”

Tenzou groaned and you looked back and forth between them, confused. He led you away as they both regaled you with the horror stories of their friend Might Gai. Apparently he had a strange obsession with what he called the ‘Springtime of Youth’ and had passed the line over to fanatical a long time ago when it came to physical fitness. You laughed as Kurenai described the epic battle it had taken to convince Gai he was not allowed to wear a green suit to the wedding and the tears which had followed after.

A little horrified but also a lot intrigued, you and Tenzou followed Kurenai out of the tree’s privacy and towards the beautiful hall across the field. You couldn’t help but glance around at the scenery and marvel that it was just such a perfect place to fall in love.

As it turned out, Kurenai was not seated at the same table as you so she waved goodbye and made her way towards a man with a beard and an unlit cigarette between his lips. Tenzou checked out the seating chart then you walked with him towards a table that only had two empty seats left and carefully looked around at the curious faces looking back at you. Some of them were faces Tenzou had pointed out to you earlier, before the ceremony, and others were new. One of them was quite obviously trying to resist looking at your chest while innocently adjusting herself in her seat.

The staring one introduced herself an Anko and you recognized the name as one of the people Tenzou had said you might wish to avoid. When your attention moved on to someone else you noticed her eyes returning to your breasts. You ignored it. The others introduced themselves as Raidou, Genma, and Konan. As opposed to you, Konan seemed to take issue with Anko’s need to stare at your goods. She hit the purple haired woman none too gently on the arm and they had a quick hissed argument that ended in a sweet peck on the lips. You shrugged and fell in to conversation with the two men. Genma’s date had apparently had a work emergency at the last minute and Raidou, when asked, admitted to having just gotten out of a bad relationship. To distract themselves from their own woes they took childish delight in interrogating you and Tenzou instead.

Tenzou was relieved when the speeches started soon after. Kakashi was snarky, Obito was snarkier, and despite their best efforts Tenzou and Kurenai had not even come close to preparing you for Gai. The man actually broke down sobbing yet never missed a single word of his speech and no one in the room seemed to think this was out of the ordinary. By the end you felt as though there should be spontaneous fireworks and sunsets going off behind him. Instead he received a polite smattering of applause and collective sigh of relief as he sat back down so the other Best Man could speak.

Once dinner was finished the dancing began. You watched with a great deal of amusement as Gai flung himself on to the dancefloor first thing, overflowing with enthusiasm. He had taken off his jacket to reveal the vest underneath – which was colored a green so bright your eyes watered just looking at it.

“Would you like to dance?” Tenzou asked politely. You could tell he didn’t really want to and you could definitely understand that. Dancing to slow songs was okay; you didn’t need much coordination to hold on to someone and sway in a repetitive circle. Dancing to the faster songs though, that required a bit more skill than your two left feet could handle.

“I think if I tried I might end up stepping on every toe on the floor!” You joked. “Even the people who aren’t up and dancing!”

You felt a flicker of accomplishment when Tenzou threw back his head and laughed. He had such an amazing smile and you cherished every single time that he smiled because of you.

“I will second that,” he admitted after he managed to calm down.

Instead of dancing right away he offered to bring over some drinks for the two of you. You spent the first bit of the party laughing at all the horrible moves you saw, pointing them out to each other and sometimes trying to do bad imitations in your seats. After a while Kurenai and the bearded man she had sat with at dinner came over to join you. He was still mouthing an unlit cigarette while he introduced himself as Asuma.

“We thought we’d come over and see why the two of you were being so anti-social,” Kurenai said as she delicately perched herself on the chair beside you. Asuma flopped down next to her with little thought for grace.

“We’re not being anti-social,” you protested mildly. “We’re being safety conscious.”

“Yeah we’re saving you all from broken toes.” Tenzou snickered behind his hair as Asuma guffawed.

“I’ve seen you dance, Tenzou, I believe it!” The cigarette bounced as Asuma spoke. “So, where did the two of you meet?”

“At work,” You said. After all, all good lies have a kernel of truth to them. “Kakashi used to work with us too until his department moved to the new building.”

You and Tenzou spun a story together that you had prepared ahead of time about how you chatted whenever you ran in to each other at work – not untrue – and how he had eventually asked you out – technically also not untrue. Really the only outright lie was that this was the fifth date. Tenzou described your first date when they asked, a romantic night on the boardwalk eating ice cream and watching the stars come out. As you listened to his figments you wished that really had been your first date; it sounded lovely. You wondered if he had ever gone on that date with anyone before or if he thought it up on the spot because it suited the two of you.

Tenzou saw the longing look in your eye as you listened to him babble. He was only trying to come up with something plausible but you seemed to like the same things he did. He had always wanted to go on a quiet calm date like that and you seemed as if you would appreciate it. But by the way you were watching him he realized he wanted to find out. He wanted to take you down to the boardwalk, buy ice cream, and wander along the water’s edge while the two of you talked about whatever crossed your minds.

Just as Kurenai finished cooing over how cute the two of you apparently were, the music changed. A slower tempo filled the room and singles all around the dance floor hurried to get out of the way as couples joined hands for the first slow dance of the night. Tenzou looked at you with a smile.

“Would you like to dance now?” he asked. You laughed.

“I think this might be safe, yes.”

You took his hand and let him lead you to the closest free patch of floor, ignoring the wolf whistle Genma made as you passed him going back to his seat for a break. The rest of the party seemed to fall away as Tenzou wrapped one arm around your waist, his other hand seeking one of yours. It seemed he had a little bit more skill with this than you. All of your dancing skill could be summed up in three words: high school dances. Tenzou seemed to actually have some steps to follow. You tried your best to keep up with his rhythm, distracted as you were by the smile on his handsome face.

“I’m having a really good time,” he said after the first chorus had gone by.

“Me too,” you replied. He shook his head.

“No I mean…I’m having a really good time. More fun than I thought I would. I’m really glad I asked you here tonight, Y/N.”

You flushed prettily and tried to duck your head but you couldn’t seem to take your eyes off of his. He looked so earnest and you felt as if you were falling in love for the first time all over again. Tenzou held you just a little bit tighter, bringing you just a little bit closer to him. You fought not to swoon.

“Y/N…I don’t suppose…” he trailed off, color rising on his cheeks.

You held your breath. This was it! He was going to ask you out on a real date! You had been hoping for this since the moment he had asked you to be a part of this plan and you couldn’t believe that it was really, finally happening. Was his face closer to yours? It was! He was leaning in, trying to find the words but just as obviously distracted.

“Kohai!” The spell was broken by an unapologetically gleeful voice to your left. Both of you snapped your heads around to see Kakashi in the arms of his dark-haired husband. Obito was grinning, baring his teeth in a vicious manner that said he knew just what they had interrupted.

“I see Kakashi doesn’t have to make good on any threats against your dignity, Tenzou,” Obito teased.

“A pity.” Kakashi twirled his husband in a whimsical circle. “I had some really good stories lined up for everyone to hear. When you said you had a girlfriend I almost didn’t believe you!”

“Kakashi!” Tenzou groaned, his head falling back in exasperation. You bit the inside of your cheek. So close!

“What? It’s been such a loooong time for you! So, Y/N was it? I don’t suppose you’d like to hear some stories about my dear little kohai?” Kakashi leered and Tenzou growled at him.

“You are at your own wedding!” He protested. “Aren’t you supposed to be having a romantic dance together? Aren’t you supposed to be so wrapped up in each other that you don’t have time to make fun of me? For once!”

The newlyweds laughed in a disturbingly similar way, an edge of malignance hiding just under the surface that made you go back to your thoughts about how perfect these two must be for each other. Neither of them missed a single step in their elegant waltz as they continued to speak.

“Now now Kohai-”

“As you pointed out, it’s our wedding day-”

“Why can’t you let us have a little fun?”

“The couple that slays together, stays together!”

“That was a terrible joke!” Tenzou grumbled. You had to agree.

Kakashi and Obito ignored you both as they continued to dance and cast you evil glances. You and Tenzou looked at each other, silently agreeing to try and dance somewhere else. As soon as there was an opening in the bodies on the floor Tenzou’s feet took you off in the opposite direction, almost casually dancing your way to a different spot. You could hear laughter as you left the other pair behind but they didn’t try to follow, which you were grateful for.

You found yourself surrounded by strangers you hadn’t met yet, none of them paying you the slightest attention as the song went through its final rendition of the chorus. The singer crooned and warbled and Tenzou’s arm around your waist tightened just a little more.

“I am…so sorry,” he told you eventually. “You’ve met Kakashi, you know what he’s like.”

“It’s not like he said anything bad, you know. We could dance back over to them? Maybe hear a story or two?” You giggled at the look of utter betrayal on his face.

“Not you too!”

“Well it’s not like you’re going to tell me any of the embarrassing stories yourself!” you pointed out, laughing. He rolled his eyes.

You could hear him mumbling something to himself under his breath that sounded like a complaint that the song was almost over. And indeed there was only a few more bars of musical outro before the DJ faded a song with a faster tempo, once more flooding the dance floor with enthusiastic party-goers. Tenzou’s chest sighed against you before he stepped back but you noticed that he didn’t release your hand.

“Come on, this way,” he said, pulling you along as he took off. You looked behind you to where Raidou and Genma were currently chatting at the table you had all been sitting at before. Apparently you weren’t going back there. Curious, you caught up and looped your arm around your date’s.

Together you made your way out of the main dance hall and in to one of the side wings. A sign on the wall indicated that you were going in to correct direction to find the bathroom which, while that was good to know, it really wasn’t what you were hoping for. You were glad when Tenzou stopped walking in an empty area where the lighting was dimmed.

“Okay so I was trying to say something earlier before we got interrupted,” Tenzou said, feeling nervousness well up inside him again. He pushed it down though; he wanted to get this out.

“I noticed,” you teased gently. He rubbed the back of his head with his free hand.

“Yeah. Um. Well what I was trying to say was that I’m really glad I asked you to come this weekend. I’ve had a lot of fun and you’re really pretty and this was a good idea and…I’m rambling. Sorry.” You bit your lips to stop yourself from giggling. “Anyway I wanted asked if you would consider, maybe, uh, sometime in the future, possibly, if you might like–”

“I WANNA KNOW WHAT LOVE IIIIIS!”

Both of your heads snapped around for the second time as a scarred face popped around the corner.

“Oh for fuck’s sake Anko!” the man was saying. “That was right in my ear!”

He came farther around the corner and you saw that, indeed, Anko was leaning in to him with one arm around his shoulders and the other waving an unidentified bottle of something – presumably alcohol.

“Why aren’t they –hic– playing that song Iruka? It’s such a good song!” Anko’s voice was loud and slurred, reinforcing the idea that her bottle was filled with something alcoholic. You remembered seeing her drink almost an entire bottle of wine with dinner and wondered how much she had drank since then. The man she was draped over, Iruka, sighed.

“Why isn’t Konan taking care of you?” he lamented.

“I think she passed out in the corner!” Anko said, completely unapologetic for her and her girlfriend’s behavior. You and Tenzou stood frozen as this new pair approached you. Iruka looked up when he saw someone else standing in the hallway.

“Oh thank god! Miss – oh hey Tenzou – Miss could you possibly take Anko in to the bathroom? She needs help but I can’t go in the ladies’ room myself.”

“Nonsense Iruka! You’re such a pretty girl!” Anko snuggled up to her friend and Iruka blushed to the roots of his pulled up hair.

“I let you put me a dress ONE TIME!”

Tenzou’s hand clenched around yours and you looked over just in time to see him deflate and whisper, “Fuck it.” Whatever he had been trying to say, it appeared he had given up on saying it. You swung your eyes around to glare at Anko, lurching with every step and singing a few choice snatches of things she thought should have been on tonight’s play list.

Feeling defeated but slightly vindictive, you took the woman from her poor friend’s arms and led her down the hall where the signs had said to go. Anko looked grateful but you only shook your head at her, making your disappointment obvious.

“Really, Anko, the night isn’t even halfway over yet!” you chided her. She tried to look sheepish but it was lost as you got the door open and she bolted for the nearest toilet.

It took a while before Anko was ready to be helped back out of the bathroom. You walked out to find a disgruntled Tenzou and an anxious Iruka still waiting outside. Iruka took his friend from you and said something about calling her and Konan a cab. Tenzou gave you a suffering look which you returned.

You returned to the party with little hope that Tenzou would ask you out now. Every time it looked as if he were going to he had been interrupted and it seemed as if he had given up on the whole idea. You tried not to let it ruin your night though. You still managed to have fun and make new friends and it wasn’t as if you were never going to see him again. It was just a matter of stepping up your flirting game at work from here on out.

You danced with Tenzou several more times, during almost every slow song except for one where Kakashi snagged you and whispered filthy things in your ear just to watch you go red and then another when Raidou claimed you for a sweet, calm dance. Kurenai and Genma absolutely ruled the dance floor with another girl who you heard someone call Rin. Gai, in his brilliant green vest, danced to every single song the whole night through without even one break. There were invitations to further group events that you were looking forward to accepting. Tenzou had a great group of friends and even if the two of you never happened you couldn’t wait to get to know all of these people better.

By the time the party had started to wind down the two groomsmen were discovered to have slipped away, obviously planning to start their own ‘private celebration’. You and Tenzou headed off to the hotel that had been booked for the wedding when your feet started to hurt so badly you feared you might have blisters. It would only be an hour drive back home but Tenzou had warned you that this would be a full weekend long party. Both Kakashi and Obito had a little too much money. Luckily their favorite thing to spend it on was their friends so they had prepaid for the hotel rooms and the entire weekend was open bar.

The one thing you had talked yourself in to forgetting was that Kakashi had reserved you and Tenzou the same room. With one bed. Of course, he was supposed to think that this was what the two of you would like. And of course this indeed was something you would like. However you weren’t a hundred percent sure if it wasn’t something Tenzou wanted or was even comfortable with. As the two of you approached your room and he took out the hotel key he had been given you felt the first touch of nerves.

“Well, here we are,” Tenzou said, letting the door swing open. Inside was a room more luxurious than your own at home. The massive bed would have drawn your eye even if that wasn’t what was on your mind. It was king sized with three pillows for each side and a gorgeously embroidered red comforter.

“Cozy.” You went for understatement, smiling when Tenzou chuckled a little.

You took turns in the bathroom. Getting ready for bed in silence was a wonderful treat after the booming music and room full of voices that had been beating on your ears all night. Then suddenly you were standing on opposite sides of the bed giving each other awkward, wary looks, both hesitant to make the first move.

“I don’t think I got the chance to warn you but, er, I have a tendency to snuggle in my sleep.” Tenzou was wearing an old green t-shirt with a cartoon tree on it that almost made you squeal. Under the hem peeked out a pair of blue striped boxers. You slid under the covers just to force yourself to stop looking. Why did he always have to be so cute?

“What a horrible thing!” you laughed while he got in the bed as well. “To save me from any awful surprises waking up, maybe we should just start snuggling now. So I can get used to it of course.”

Even in the darkness you could see the deep blush on his cheeks. Which is why you squeaked in surprise when he reached over and laid an arm around your waist, pulling your body flush against his own even more intimately than when you had danced.

“I can’t say I object,” he said quietly.

Internally you were screaming in joy because how could you possibly not take this as a positive sign? On the outside you strove to remain calm. You wriggled around until you were facing him with your head tucked underneath his. When you rested your hand against his chest you made an interesting discovery; his heart was pounding, racing at almost double speed.

“Y/N…” he whispered.

You looked up at him and nearly shivered at the intense look in his eye. He brought a hand up to brush some of your hair out of your eye, his thumb lingering to trace the shape of your cheek and trail along the line of your jaw. His fingers slipped around to cup the back of your head and then he was pulling you up to him, his head leaning down to meet you halfway.

You couldn’t help but moan as your lips touched his finally. Your hand on his chest fisted in his t-shirt as he slowly rolled you on to your back, his body sliding over to cover yours. When you felt his tongue brush questioningly long your bottom lip you gasped, an invitation he was only too happy to take advantage off. It took quite some time for either of you to remember to breathe and then you were forced to part, panting in each other’s faces as you showered each other with frantic rapid kisses.

“I’ve been trying to ask you all night,” Tenzou growled, his one hand skimming down your abdomen, “if you might possibly be interested in a real date.”

“You might be able to talk me in to it.” You tried not to notice how breathy you sounded as you arched under his touch, seeking out his mouth again, unable to believe how good he tasted.

“Yeah I think I got that,” he whispered. “Why didn’t I ask you out sooner? Y/N…you’re everything I’ve ever wanted.”

Touched and not a little choked up, you didn’t bother to answer. You shifted until his body had fallen in to the space between your knees so that you could bend your legs, encasing him in the cradle of your hips. Then you pulled him back down and kissed him until both of your heads were spinning and hands had begun roaming to interesting destinations.

You were holding hands as you arrived to breakfast the next morning and Tenzou pulled your seat out so that you could sit down next to a pretty girl with facial tattoos. She introduced herself even though you were obviously incredibly distracted watching the sway of Tenzou’s hips while he hurried off to bring you back a plate from the buffet.

“I don’t think we had a chance to introduce ourselves last night,” she said. “I’m Rin. And you are?”

“Tenzou’s girlfriend,” you replied, unable to stop the wide smile on your face.

It felt so good not to lie.