Full summary: The Hound, a loyal pack animal in it's core, and The Owl, a solitary bird of prey. During their ANBU years, their paths intertwined and they settled into a comfortable pattern of carrying out their missions in silence and little real intimacy. Out of ANBU, everything is different. While Kakashi transitioned back into the regular forces, back into the light where he has the chance to come to terms with everything life has thrown at him, even having the opportunity to rebuild his pack, Owl remained in the dark shadows with ANBU. Their paths don't cross again until a mission brings them together, where they are both forced to work together again.
Also, Hayate lives.
[Chapters take place during the Interlude Period between Naruto and Shippuden. Intersects are set during the ANBU period]
Disclaimer: Everything is the property of Masashi Kishimoto. Only own my OCs.
AN: A fair warning - this is not an action packed story. This is a character driven story, with little action scenes. Anything that deviates from canon will be explained in ANs prior to the story This story will have two timelines: the Chapters will deal with the story proper that deals with the time period between Naruto and Shippuden, when Naruto is training for two and a half years with Jiraiya. Intersects will deal with pre-Naruto events.
Chapter One
The gentle light of the full moon, the quiet rustling of the leaves, the wind tenderly caressing her skin – that was all she could feel.
Drip drop.
Her sweat dripped down her face and fell to the hard earth beneath her as she let herself fall to her knees in the middle of the courtyard. Was it her sweat? She didn't know anymore. It could have been her sweat, her tears, or maybe, most probably, blood.
She let herself glance down as she finally felt her lungs fill with air again, as if it stopped even though she logically knew that no, it did not, it was just adrenaline filling her veins, charging her on past what she had thought she could do.
Red.
She saw red drops on the ground, and not the transparent appearance of sweat (or tears) meeting the earth. It was definitely blood, but not her blood. No, she knew she was bleeding, but in areas that her kimono was decidedly covering up.
She let herself bend over, let her hands drop to the ground as she caught her breath, actively making herself breathe in and breathe out – she accomplished her mission and more. She got all the Intel she needed, she just needed to get out.
She would be getting out alive, that was only thing she was sure of now that she had killed them all, all the bastards she had been forced to stay with during the year long mission.
Now, she just needed to get back home.
Home.
It was a weird word. What was home now? Was it Konoha? Or was it the Royal Court in the Capital? After all, one was where she grew up, where she had family. The other was where her heart's true loyalty lay - even if it kept sending her on missions such as these.
Breathe in, and breathe out.
Philosophical questions such as those could wait.
She was alive, she had the Intel (more than what she expected), they were all dead, and she was alive. Now, all she needed to do was get out of whatever shithole she was in and make the journey to Konoha.
It was only a five-day journey.
But first, she had to heal herself.
Or was it to rest up until she could gather enough chakra to heal herself?
Yes, that sounded better. It sounded like something that was wise. But, given everything that had happened, she didn't think she was up to being very wise as opposed to getting the hell out of here.
She groaned and let herself cry out.
A weakness, some may have said, but there was no one there to hear.
The gentle light of the full moon, the quiet rustling of the leaves, the wind tenderly caressing her skin, the flap of wings from a bird flying overhead, and the soft cooing of an owl from the nearby woods.
She needed to focus, to concentrate, needed to think of a plan. Crying and commiserating could come later, survival needed to happen first.
With rough fits and starts, she managed to pick herself up.
Not even enough chakra for a summons to help her out.
It took minutes, it felt like hell, but she managed to stand up. Wincing in pain, she forced herself to limp slowly, slowly, and step by step away.
The gentle light of the full moon, the quiet rustling of the leaves, the wind tenderly caressing her skin, the flap of wings from a bird, the creaks of the damn gate that needed to be oiled, and the sounds of paws of some nearby animal hitting the ground.
It felt like eternity, felt like forever, until she reached the gate and allowed herself to lean onto it, trying to catch her breath as she grabbed the canteen of water hanging on a corpse that was impaled on the wall.
He didn't need it, and she sure as hell did.
Water went down her throat and she felt like crying tears of joy. Water had never tasted so good, even this water from someone she had just killed.
It was then that she felt it.
Incoming chakra, and very fast at that.
She had no hope that she could outrun them.
Fight them it is.
And then, as they came closer, she felt her head go dizzy when she realized she knew this chakra signature. She knew it. She knew the owner. Which could only mean one thing: Konoha.
The Konoha ANBU extraction she had sent her summons to request for all those days ago.
Or it could be any random ninja from the village. Would this warrant an ANBU team? Maybe it was genin level, she didn't really know anymore.
It's been a long time since she stepped foot in Konoha for more than a day.
Hell, it's been a year since she even stepped out of the shithole that was…wherever this was.
Whoever was coming would be in for a sight.
And she prayed they had a healer with them because, fuck, her legs hurt and her shoulders ached and she was pretty sure a chunk of her side was taken out and would require at least a week of her in the hospital.
She coughed and felt her shinobi-honed senses go on hyper drive.
The Konoha ANBU team – or whoever from Konoha – had arrived.
She opened her eyes and forced herself to look at their general direction, forcing herself to keep calm and to keep herself together. As soon as they were here, she had to give them a report and tell them she had no energy (or chakra) left to deal with all the evidence. And then she could collapse on whoever's poor soul was nearest.
The figures, three of them plus a dog, meaning there might be an Inuzuka, came into view and she almost, almost, let our a cheer.
ANBU masks. It was ANBU.
She straightened up as much as she could and then waited until one of them stepped into hearing distance.
"Minamino Yuzuki, tokubetsu jonin, Ninja Registration Number 011701." She managed, throat still sore and voice still weaker than she would have wished. "I sure hope you have a healer with you."
"Yuzuki."
She stilled, the whole world came to a stop, when she heard that voice, that person who said her name with such familiarity and….intimacy.
No.
Not him.
Anybody but him.
She did not have the energy to deal with herself, much less Hatake Kakashi.
"Yuzuki," the masked figure took a step closer and Yuzuki instinctively took a step back, her body acting on its own desires, trying to get away even when her brain knew she would never be able to outrun him.
Not that she ever could, in any case.
"No," she cursed at how weak it sounded, and said the word again until she could get it out with enough force. "No. No. No. No."
He sighed, and pulled his outstretched hand away. "Fine. Report."
Hearing those words, she nodded and tried to gain composure, letting herself also look at the three other masked figures. "Mission goals have been accomplished. Certain…events made me need to get myself out as soon as I could. Unfortunately, it also involved killing them all. Chakra reserves low."
The figure she knew was Kakashi nodded and added in something else even as his right hand glowed a soft green, healing chakra, and he stepped up to Yuzuki, grabbing her arm before she could escape. "And injured. We'll get you healed before-"
Yuzuki struggled against his hold, or at least she tried to as best as she could. "Not you, not you!"
"Due to the shortage in personnel, you have been requested to resume you position as Hound for an ANBU mission. Kakashi, you will gather your team and head out as soon as possible to extract Minamino Yuzuki from a location her summons will guide you to. This is to be done at once, and is top priority."
As soon as Tsunade handed over the small summons, a sparrow, and let him go, Kakashi gathered his team (Yamato and Yugao were all he needed) and set off.
He couldn't really pinpoint when he had decided one of his goals as a shinobi became making sure he would be there for those that were there for him when he was at his lowest.
Minamino Yuzuki was one of the few people who was teammate, trusted friend (to a certain extent), and reliable comrade. It didn't matter that they hadn't spoken in years; something he knew was partially his fault.
If she needed an extraction, then whatever mission she was on was dangerous, potentially deadly, and she needed help. He had the opportunity, so he would help.
It was a five day journey, and when he finally arrived near her location, her summons, a sparrow, vanished suddenly, and he knew it could only mean her chakra had been exhausted.
They had arrived just in time.
He paused to sniff the air, tilting his face up to the moon as the wind drafted their way.
Blood was all he smelled, and lots of it.
Speeding towards the direction, he summoned Bull as a precaution - for attacking, or for serving as an identifier.
They saw someone reach the gate.
It may have been years since they last spoke outside of the civil politeness both were ingrained and bred in, but he would know that chakra anywhere.
"She looks like shit," Yamato muttered darkly as they all prepared for any potential outcomes as they approached her.
Kakashi saw her straighten up as they came closer and he absently noted that she was still stubborn with such matters. Not that he could judge, seeing he was…well, he was himself and he knew from experience that he could be just a stubborn as she was, if not more.
"Minamino Yuzuki, tokubetsu jonin, Ninja Registration Number 011701." He noted that she barely managed to let that out without having to pause, her throat surely giving her problems. "I sure hope you have a healer with you."
"Yuzuki."
He let her name out before he could stop himself, and then froze when he saw her become still. Since she undoubtedly knew who he was, he repeated himself, in his usual voice, hoping it masked whatever gentleness he had earlier. "Yuzuki."
He stepped closer, wanting to help her because she was so obviously in pain, and he knew the look of blood drenched clothes when he saw one, but instead, she stepped back and kept muttering the word "no," increasingly louder each time.
Whatever had happened had damaged her.
As was the case for most S-rank missions, Kakashi knew, but he knew that she had accomplished several S-rank missions before. He was leading the team for at least five of her S-ranks.
He internally sighed and stepped back, forcing himself to slip into the official, ANBU captain mode that came so naturally to him. "Fine. Report."
Almost as if a burden had been lifted, she took a deep breath and gave her report. "Mission goals have been accomplished. Certain…events made me need to get myself out as soon as I could. Unfortunately, it also involved killing them all. Chakra reserves low."
Kakashi sighed inwardly. Still the same old Yuzuki, not that he was really one to talk. He signaled for Yamato and Yugao to deal with the bodies (and all the blood, and the buildings) and decided to focus on this achieving the primary goal of their mission: extracting Yuzuki and getting her back to Konoha safely.
He wasn't that good of a healer, but he knew enough practical first aid to at least get her through until they reached the nearest Konoha outpost at the border where a healer was sure to be assigned. He reached behind him with one hand to the scroll that kept some first aid tools, while grasped her with his other hand. "And injured. We'll get you healed before-"
He felt her struggle against her hold. "Not you, not you!"
Kakashi would have the time and energy to deal with this – whatever it was that was bothering her because he knew that something was wrong because she didn't flinch, she slapped, she hit back, or she shoved, but she never struggled like this – and grabbed her face by the jaw as gently as he could while still keeping control.
"I'm sorry."
Those were the only words he whispered when he slipped his headband up and forced her under a genjutsu of his Sharingan, one that made her slump into his arms, limp and asleep.
"Shall we do the standard bury and burn once we comb through the buildings one last time?" Yugao asked as she stepped away from Yamato, who was already gathering bodies in the courtyard for burial.
"Yes. The two of you are more than capable to handle that." Kakashi replied after he got Yuzuki (so thin, when had she gotten this thin) onto Bull's back. "I'll get her to the nearest outpost. We'll meet there at noon."
"Yes sir." Yugao let out a small smile. "I would have some chocolate ready for when she wakes up, if I were you."
Kakashi sighed. "Even I know that."
Almost unbidden, images of a body curled up in a bed came to mind, of blankets wrapped around legs, of dark brown hair against naked skin, as the same person was reaching for a bar of chocolate from her bedside.
"Lock the door behind you, Hatake."