Kakashi lost his best friend and teammate during a mission just before he was teamed with Rin and Obito. Fast forward to the Kage Summit arc where Kakashi was elected Hokage. During the meeting his friend returns. How will this change the results of the war? Kakashi/OC Kakashi centered.
Do not read if you dislike OC's. I try to make the OC likable, but I know how some people are.
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Edit: Thanks to 3DY3Namite for beta'ing this chapter :)
The stormy gray clouds had been blocking out the sun for days in the village of Konoha. It was as if Kami himself was setting the mood for the third shinobi war, which had been going on for about a year. The gray overcast could not dampen the will of fire though, as two young shinobi sparred in one of the training grounds.
The eleven year old shinobi were locked in a fierce taijutsu battle; dodging, blocking, and exchanging kicks every second. The silver haired boy was slowly gaining the advantage with his slightly stockier build, but the dark haired girl was using her lithe body to dodge his more powerful punches and kicks.
As their speed intensified for a moment, the boy managed to get past her guard and attempted to hit her shoulder with a knife edge strike to slow her punches down. The girl saw his intention and quickly grabbed his arm, flipping backwards as she did so and jerking him off balance.
His counter to the move was to use her flip to his advantage by adding a bit more force to the movement. They ended up rolling a few feet before they came to a stop, with the boy pinning her down and holding a kunai to her throat.
After they stilled, it was easier to take note of their appearance.
The boy was dressed in dark, bluish gray shinobi shorts that had light gray stripes down the sides. His shirt was the same color, but with a mask attached to it that covered his nose and lower face, leaving only his eyes and a bit of skin visible. Brown leather straps formed an X across his front while on the back it came together into a holder for his tanto. His hitai-ate was tied on his forehead, which caused his hair to spike up and come down onto his face, one tuft of hair between his eyes, and two others over each ear. His black eyes were nondescript, perfect for the life of a shinobi that wished to stay unnoticed.
The girl chose different style of clothing though. She was like a walking shadow. Her black hair was pulled back to hang in a low pony tail that reached down to the center of her back, but it blended into her black shirt perfectly. Instead of sandals, she wore black combat boots that had hidden spaces for weapons. The black cargo pants she had on completed her outfit with the kunai holster strapped to her leg with black tape. She had her hitai-ate tied around her upper arm with a black cloth to match the rest of her clothing. Her eyes though were highly unusual. They were a light golden color, but the strangest part was that the pupils were slitted, like cat or snake eyes.
The girl rolled her eyes and sighed. "You win... again," she said. Her voice was not quiet like one would expect from her clothing, instead it was teasing and at a normal volume like one would expect from a hyper kid.
The boy moved off of her and offered his hand to her. She gripped it and jumped nimbly to her feet.
"That is twenty five wins for me and nineteen wins for you," the masked boy replied. The only way you could tell he was smiling was from his eyes as they closed in amusement.
"Hn," she grunted and crossed her arms. "But don't forget, I'm still winning in terms of ninjutsu."
The boy narrowed his eyes and started to reply, but was interrupted when a Kuma masked ANBU dropped down from a nearby tree and walked towards them.
"Hatake Kakashi, Shisou Katsumi, Hokage-sama has requested that you report to his office for a mission," the ANBU told them in a clipped monotone, which was pretty typical for ANBU.
"Hai, we'll head there now," Kakashi replied with a nod.
"Arigato, ANBU-San," Katsumi added right before the ANBU gave a short nod before vanishing back into the trees.
After an unspoken agreement, Kakashi and Katsumi brought their hands up in a ram sign, using Shunshin to disappear from the training field. Kakashi vanishing in a swirl of leaves, while Katsumi was engulfed in black clouds.
…..
Exhaling a puff of smoke from his pipe, Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage, looked up from his paper work to meet the golden eyes of Shisou Katsumi, Chūnin and last of the Shisou clan. Standing beside her was Hatake Kakashi, Chūnin and son of the legendary White Fang of the Leaf. They were only eleven years old, but they were some of the most promising shinobi in the past ten years.
The Hokage straightened up and addressed the two formally. "Hatake, Shisou, you have been assigned a B rank mission guarding a wagon of valuables from the Daimyo's palace," he told them and handed a scroll to Kakashi, which he opened and read over before passing it to Katsumi.
Katsumi skimmed over it and then looked back up at the Hokage with a grin. "This will be as easy as the genin exam," she said, her golden eyes sparked with anticipation.
Katsumi and Kakashi had been working together for over five years. They had both made Chūnin at the age of six, but for different reasons.
Hatake Kakashi was a child prodigy that would most likely be a Jōnin before he was fifteen. He was highly skilled in all the traits required for a shinobi, except for the rare times he underestimated his opponents.
Shisou Katsumi had graduated early because of her skills in taijutsu and ninjutsu. The Shisou clan had never been proficient in genjutsu, but most of them were at least able to sense and dispel up to level A genjutsu. Katsumi's last name was kept a secret from the other countries to try and prevent any assassination attempts due to her being the last of one of the most feared shinobi clan, maybe even more so than the Uchiha's.
Katsumi handed the scroll back to the Hokage. "We'll go pack our supplies and be ready to leave first thing in the morning, Hokage-sama," she told him with a quick bow before rushing out the door.
Sarutobi gave a quiet chuckle at the antics of Katsumi, while also noticing that the normally emotionless Kakashi had a glimmer of amusement in his eyes. The Hokage would have bet his hat that Kakashi was smirking under his mask.
The silver haired Chūnin quickly bowed to Sarutobi and left without a word to follow his teammate.
Shaking his head in amusement, the Hokage started signing more paperwork while contemplating the issue with Hatake. When Hatake Sakumo committed suicide, Kakashi had shut off all his emotions and cut off all attempts to get through to him. Katsumi was the only one that was able to bring him out of his shell, though Sarutobi suspected that was only because she was just as stubborn as she was strong; much like a certain genin that liked to wear green spandex and proclaimed himself as Kakashi's and Katsumi's eternal rival.
I just pray to Kami that they will remain uninjured; leaving the safety of the village during the time of war is highly dangerous.
Sighing, Sarutobi turned his thoughts to other things as he worked through the ever increasing stack of paperwork.
….
Katsumi and Kakashi lived in the same apartment building, so they tended to hang out together a lot outside of training and missions. Kakashi had sold his father's house after Sakumo had died because the painful memories were too much for him to deal with.
When Katsumi found out, she had told him that there was an apartment available in her building, so he had decided to move in after Katsumi had persuaded (held at kunai point) him to consider the option.
Katsumi and her mother had lived in the apartment since she was born. The Shisou district had been burnt to the ground during the massacre and instead of being rebuilt; the village had decided to just build new stores over it since the clan was gone.
Kakashi had just finished packing when there was a knock at his door. Before he even had a chance to answer he heard a shout. "Hey, Kashi, I know you're done packing. Want to go get something to eat?" Katsumi asked through the door.
She calls me nicknames all the time, but if I try it with her it always ends badly...
After making sure his money pouch was in his pocket, Kakashi opened the door to see Katsumi leaning against the wall with her hands in her pockets.
I still wonder how in the world she could inherit Uchiha patience and calmness, while still having the energy and hyperness of a tornado, it shouldn't be possible. I guess that just makes her even more dangerous.
Pushing away from the wall, Katsumi fell in step beside Kakashi as they headed out of the building.
"Where do you want to eat at, Kashi?" she asked, her gold eyes flickering towards him a moment.
Kakashi tilted his head in mild amusement. "You're actually giving me a choice?" he replied as they reached the crowded market area of the village.
Katsumi snorted. "I'm offended! See if I ever ask you again!" she said playfully while tilting her head upward and away from him.
Rolling his eyes, Kakashi took the lead and started walking towards a less congested area. "You don't even know how to be offended," he told her, coming to a stop at a small restaurant.
"You wanna bet? Next time we spar it will be ninjutsu only," Katsumi retorted as she sat down at a table.
Kakashi sighed, which he seemed to do a lot when around her, and place his order when the waitress came up to them.
The atmosphere in the restaurant was homey, which made it one of their favorite places to eat. It had nothing to do with the fact that it was not as popular among the younger shinobi, meaning it was usually nice and quiet when compared to the local barbecue restaurant.
Neither Chūnin spoke as they waited on their food, each one lost in their own thoughts. After their food was placed in front of them, they started eating. Kakashi managed to eat by taking bites at lightning fast speeds so no one could see behind his mask.
I have a feeling this is going to be a bad mission. I'd better go ahead and get the talk out of the way.
"You know," Kakashi started after a few minutes, "The possibility of being attack on this mission is high," he told Katsumi.
"Hn."
Those Uchiha bloodlines can be so annoying sometimes!
Kakashi took that as a sign to continue. "We won't be allowed to take hostages this time because we'll be traveling with others to a secret location. Are you prepared this time to kill?" he asked quietly.
Katsumi looked up from her plate, her slitted eyes clouded with sadness. "You know the answer to that. Can't we just go with our usual team style?" she asked hopefully.
"Yes, but you know circumstances won't always allow it," he reminded her.
"I know, I'll just have to deal with it even though it tears me apart," Katsumi said with a sigh. She suddenly reached behind her head and pulled the band out of her hair, allowing it to fall forward to perfectly frame her face.
Kakashi sighed and went back to eating while mulling the situation over in his mind.
She only lets her hair down when she is stressed. They were insane forcing her to become a shinobi. I understand they were trying to preserve and protect the bloodline, but the cost is too great.
They had just finished eating and were getting ready to leave when a voice caused both of them to stop.
"Katsumi-chan, I've been looking for you," a smooth, yet slightly lisped voice said as a pale hand came down on Katsumi's shoulder.
Kakashi narrowed his eyes in distrust as he instantly recognized the man.
It's him. We couldn't get out before he came back. Kami-sama must hate me for some reason...
Katsumi merely smiled and tilted her head up to meet the slitted eyes of Orochimaru.
"It's nice to see you again Orochimaru-sama," Katsumi said sincerely, her eyes lighting up a bit.
I don't see why she trusts him; she knows as well as I do that he is up to something.
"I thought I told you to quit calling me that," he said in the same silky voice while raising a delicate eyebrow.
Katsumi's smile changed to an evil smirk that Orochimaru would be proud of.
"Very well then, Ochi-kun," she replied happily.
The snake sannin chuckled and ran his fingers through her hair. "Would you walk with me for a bit? I would like to speak with you before you leave," he asked, not so subtly hinting for Kakashi to leave them alone, even though he had not acknowledged Kakashi's presence yet.
Say no, say no, say no...
Kakashi was about to object when Katsumi nodded.
"Sure! Kashi, want to meet up later at training ground ten?" she asked, not receiving his mental pleas.
Ground ten...? Oh no, is she punishing me or something?
The silver haired Chūnin just suppressed a sigh and nodded stiffly.
"Great! See you later!" His teammate waved before walking away beside Orochimaru.
That guy gives me the creeps. I always worry when she's alone with him.
Kakashi shook his head and turned to walk very slowly towards training ground ten, not wanting to get there too quickly.
….
Katsumi walked alongside the pale sannin with her hands in her pockets, comfortably relaxed around him, though she was probably one of the few that would ever feel that way.
"What did you want to talk about, Ochi-san?" Katsumi asked him curiously.
It was not often that she got to spend time with the elite shinobi, but she knew that he had too many missions to do to have time to idly spend with her.
Orochimaru glanced down at her with a rare show of concern in his slitted, greenish gold eyes. "I want to warn you to be extremely careful on your mission," he said carefully.
The dark-haired Chūnin tilted her head, knowing there was more.
"Rumors have somehow gotten out that one of the Shisou clan is still alive. Enemy nin from Iwa have been ambushing all Konoha nin that leave the village. They have been attacking with intent to kill and we have lost several Chūnin and even a Jōnin to them," he told her, his normally smooth voice was tinged with anger and he leaked out a small amount of killing intent. It was not much, but it was enough to clear out a path in the crowd from them.
Katsumi reached up and placed her hand on his arm. "Calm down. I'm fine and no enemy nin will be able to seriously hurt or kill me. You know that even if I dislike killing, I can defend myself from most people below Kage or ANBU level," she told him, gripping his arm until the killing intent stopped.
Orochimaru shook his head and narrowed his eyes at her in a way that could have been frightening had she not been used to it. "Don't become overconfident now," he warned her.
Smirking, Katsumi crossed her arms and raised her chin. "It's in my blood to be overconfident," she replied, and added after a moment, "And it's definitely in yours too."
Orochimaru chuckled and ruffled her hair, which fell back in place immediately. "Just be careful, I would hate to lose the last of my family just because you were caught off guard."
Sighing, Katsumi nodded. "I know, but these are dangerous times, sometimes you can't control what happens."
The snake sannin nodded in agreement before picking her up, which she only protested with a small squeak of surprise. "I've got to report to Sensei and then leave on another mission shortly," he said, giving her a quick hug, which Katsumi returned before he set her back down.
"Be careful, Ochi-san," she said and he nodded before flickering away.
Katsumi sighed, wishing she could spend more time with him. She shook her head to clear her thoughts before taking off onto the rooftops towards the training grounds.
….
Kakashi was almost at the training ground when he heard movement behind him, but stayed relaxed as he recognized the chakra signature.
So she is safe from the snake again, that's good.
Katsumi slowed down from her run and stopped beside him.
"Ochi-san had a warning for me," she said quickly and relayed the message to Kakashi.
"Well at least he was helpful this time, but the news is definitely something to worry about," he replied and rubbed his mask thoughtfully.
"I know you dislike Ochi-san, but you don't have to be so negative about him being with me," Katsumi added, clearly not concerned about the news at the moment.
She is always defensive about him. I guess I can understand it, but still... he looks at me like I'm something to eat.
"How are you two related again?" Kakashi asked her, still trying to make the connection between his passive teammate and the deadly snake sannin.
"He's my grandmother's sister's son, so first cousin I think is the way to put it," Katsumi replied as she pulled her hair back into a band. "I know you don't trust him, with good reason, but I know he would never hurt me," she added with a shrugged, glancing at Kakashi out of the corner of her eye.
I might as well give up on the matter; I never can seem to win an argument with her.
"Whatever you say," Kakashi said, surrendering peacefully.
As the Chūnin approached the training grounds, they could hear the sounds of punches and kicks against wood along with random shouts about fanning the flames of youth.
Kakashi and Katsumi stepped past the tree line to see a green blur throw punches and kicks at several training dummies at one time, hitting all of them with powerful blows that knocked off chunks of wood.
"Why did we come here?" Kakashi asked, which almost sounded like a moan if it had not been so undignified.
"Because he is our friend and we want to spend some time with him before we leave for the mission," Katsumi said told him while sending him a slitted glare, as if daring him to disagree.
The prodigy Chūnin was smart enough to keep his mouth shut.
But as long as she can't control my thoughts, I'm ok. And I do disagree with the fact; I'm just not in the mood to argue with her.
Kakashi tried to convince himself that he was not afraid of her, but a voice in the back of his head reminded him that all kunoichi were terrifying when angered.
"The famous 'K' team of Konoha! What brings you here my most youthful friends and eternal rivals?"
The green blur had suddenly appeared in front of them, revealing it to be a boy around their age and height, but the similarities stopped there.
He had black hair in a shiny bowl cut and thick black eyebrows, but that was not the worst part. It was hard to think of him as a shinobi since he was wearing a one piece, green spandex jumpsuit, which fit a bit loosely (thankfully) on his frame. He wore his hitai-ate on a red cloth like a belt, and to top it all off was burnt orange leg warmers.
All of the above together caused Kakashi's left eyebrow to twitch from just looking at it.
They really need to promote Gai to Chūnin so he can take more missions out of the village. He would scare off all enemy nins with that outfit.
Katsumi was smiling at Gai, a real smile, not one of the tolerant ones like most shinobi gave him.
"Your flames of youth burn much brighter than ours, Gai-kun. I was hoping you could cease fanning the flames for a bit so we could hang out before Kashi and I head out for our next mission," Katsumi replied, causing Kakashi to sweat-drop.
She really needs to quit hanging out with him.
Maito Gai flashed them a blinding smile and gave them a thumbs up. "Yosh! We shall hang out and let our flames of friendship grow even brighter!" he shouted with glee.
"Shall we take a walk around the village?" Katsumi offered, causing both boys to nod, though at completely different speeds.
"So what can you tell me about the mission?" Gai asked once the trio was on the trail that led around the edge of the village.
Kakashi was the one to answer the question. "It's a B rank guard mission escorting valuables to a secret location," the masked Chūnin explained shortly.
Gai nodded and scratched his chin thoughtfully, furrowing his eyebrows together till they looked like one big, fuzzy, unibrow. "Hm, just be careful and don't let your youthful flame be diminished by the unyouthful enemy. Once I'm promoted to Chūnin, maybe Hokage-sama will place us on the same team," he said hopefully.
Kami forbid, but it would make sense. I'm proficient in genjutsu, Katsumi is an expert in ninjutsu, and Gai is an up and coming taijutsu master.
"There is a good chance that will happen, given that our different abilities complement each other," Kakashi admitted, earning surprised looks from Gai and Katsumi.
Gai quickly smiled and gave him his good guy pose with the thumbs up. "That's the spirit, Kakashi-kun! I knew your youthful flames burned brighter than you let on!"
Why do I even try...?
Kakashi just nodded absently and decided to tune out the rest of the conversation between Katsumi and Gai, though he did still occasionally catch the words "youth" "flames" and "challenge".
The prologue is before the Kakashi Chronicles, then the chapters go AU right before the Kage Summit Meeting.
This fills in the time before Kakashi was teamed up with Obito and Rin. Obito and Rin didn't graduate until they were ten or eleven, and Kakashi grauated at age five, so there is no way they could have been his original teamates.
On Orochimaru... Since Katsumi is the last of his family (his parents died young in canon) I feel that he would place her health and happiness (just barely) above his human experiments. So after the events at the end of the next prologue, he turns into the Ochi-san that we all know and love (or I do at least. lol)
