Hiya!. This is probably my 3rd fanfiction that I ever wrote. I was still trying to get comfortable with the idea of yaoi, so there's no lemons here. (lol) I've updated it a bit, but it's pretty much the same as it looks on the TONFA site with just a few tweaks. It's AU, and Iruka's a jounin (we all know he could be if he wanted to), Iruka (not Kakashi) is the jounin sensei of team 7, and Kakashi's still in ANBU. The war never ended, they're still fighting with the other Shinobi nations. There's a few other changes, but you get the idea. Hope you like. n.n.

Oh yea. Standard disclaimer applies, I don't own Naruto or any of the other characters, ect.

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Iruka gasped, leaning heavily against the wall. He couldn't seem to catch his breath.

The stench of blood was all around him. He avoided looking at the bodies, at the splashes of dark red on the walls. Some of it was his own work; the ANBU had accounted for the rest. It was something he'd become accustomed to, ignoring things like that.

He shivered and tried to push off the wall. But his strength was gone, for the moment, and he gave up. I drained my chakra pretty badly there, he thought dimly. Not good. At least the bastards didn't get through…

He'd been sent with his genin team to the outpost to investigate the reports of odd events that the border guards. He and his team had arrived only to find the guards missing, presumed dead, and the border completely open to attack.

There wasn't much he could do; he'd sent the kids hurrying back to the village while he settled in to stop whatever was coming. It had been hard convincing Naruto to do as he said. He'd hoped they'd get back alright; he'd hoped they'd send help in time. He'd passed his jounin exam, but Iruka knew in his heart that he never should have taken it. But every one is needed, he thought sadly. Especially now.

But he'd done his job. He'd held until the ANBU arrived. And they'd not gotten through.

He sighed and reached up wearily to rub the scar across his face. Even that took a lot of effort from him. He felt completely drained, and he wasn't sure he was going to be able to stand if he pushed away from the wall.

One of the ANBU stopped in front of him. "Are you injured?"

The man's voice was oddly muffled through the mask. Iruka blinked at him a few times, trying to clear his head. "No." He said finally. "Just wiped out. Blew my chakra."

The ANBU studied him for a moment, then reached out and gripped his shoulder. Iruka felt an influx of warmth and strength and was able to push off the wall to stand straight. "Thanks."

The ANBU dropped his arm and waved his hand. "We'll clean up, but the Hokage wants you to stay until the new guards get here. We'll be around in case something bad happens, but we're going to sweep the area and make sure no one got by you while you were fighting here."

Iruka nodded. "Fine."

"Get some sleep." The ANBU pointed to the sleeping room, mercifully clear of blood and bodies. "We'll wake you before we leave."

Iruka didn't argue. He stumbled to the room, picked a bed at random, and fell down, fully dressed.