The Many First Times that Kakashi Saw

The first time Kakashi saw her, it was on their first day in the academy. He would later find out that she was from a civilian family and lived in the civilian district which was why she didn't know a lot of people. Her pink hair was rather strange and too stand-out for stealth. She would have to dye it if she ever wanted to go on stealth missions. Other than her outrageous hair color, she was painfully average in skill. He shrugged and continued his day.

The first time he really saw her though, was when they were twelve and had just become genin. They had been split off into teams, with his team mates being Obito and Rin. Rin was an okay student who did well in classes and had average ninjutsu. Obito, on the other hand, could be a handful. Kakashi rolled his eyes. It looks like he would have to pull more weight than his own here. Her teammates on the other hand were Uzumaki Naruto, the son of their jounin sensei, and Uchiha Sasuke who actually performed rather well in school in Kakashi's opinion. He was woken from his musings by the sound of bickering beside him. Currently, Uchiha Obito and Uzumaki Naruto were engaged in a heated debate on who performed worst in class.

"Well, it most certainly isn't me! You're the one who can't even create a decent clone!" Obito shrieked.

"Well you're the one who had a kunai stuck in your ass during throwing practice, weren't you?" Naruto shouted back.

"That was ages ago!"

"You're still dead last, though!"

"Shut up! I'm not dead last, dead last!"

Feeling the beginnings of a headache forming, Kakashi was about to butt in and tell them that they were both dead lasts when he was beaten to the punch. Quite literally, actually. He sat in amazement as Obito and Naruto came flying across the room, away from the closed fist of one tiny pink-haired girl.

"You're both dead lasts, so shut up!" He heard Haruno Sakura huff.

Under his mask, Hatake Kakashi smiled. It really was too bad that she was on a different team.

The first time he saw her as a comrade, it was during a joint mission to Suna. Minato-sensei, who had been recently undergoing hokage training, had little time for them these days and so, they were usually combined with other teams so that they can complete their required amount of missions before graduating genin. This time, his team had been teamed up with hers.

It was supposed to be a simple D-ranked escort mission. It soon took a turn for the worse when they found out that their client lied to them about the mission's specifics and they were now cornered by a group of rogue shinobi. This wasn't good. The clearing soon turned into a battlefield, and for the first time, Kakashi was actually thankful for Uchiha Sasuke's presence as it meant that there was one less genin who he had to worry about. He spent the whole time blocking attacks for his teammates while launching attacks himself.

Everything had been going well. The rogue shinobi had finally been neutralized except one who was currently being handled by their sensei. Kakashi had finally let his guard down. Big mistake. A kunai came flying towards him, aimed to puncture a major neck artery. Next thing he knew, he was sprawled on the floor, Haruno Sakura straddling him. The sleeve of her shirt cut, blood flowing from the gash on her skin.

"Are you okay?" She asked, breathless.

"You saved me," Kakashi said, wonderstruck.

"Well, don't look too shocked about it." Sakura grinned.

"Why?" He asked.

Sakura's brow furrowed, "well, that's what comrades do, don't they?"

And before Kakashi could even respond, Rin was dragging 'Sakura-chan' off for medical treatment, while showering her in 'thank you so much for rescuing my teammate's.

The first time he saw her as a friend, it was Minato-sensei's surprise birthday party and the two of them had been tasked to go to the market and grab some ingredients last minute. They had just been picking up the last few necessary vegetables when a woman's voice called out to them.

"Sakura!"

Kakashi turned to see a woman in her forties, looked obviously a civilian, and had Sakura's unique coloring. "Mother!" Sakura exclaimed.

"What are you doing here?" Her mother asked, "I thought you were going to your teammate's dad's party?"

Sakura nodded, "yes. We're just picking up a few items."

The other woman nodded and glanced at Kakashi, "care to introduce us?" She said.

"Oh, right! Mother, this is Hatake Kakashi, one of Minato-sensei's genin, and also my friend. Kakashi, meet my mother."

Kakashi was taken aback. Ever since childhood, he had been used to being alone. As time passed, however, people slowly wormed their ways into his life without his consent. Minato-sensei became a second father (making Naruto sort of his brother, but he doesn't want to dwell on that. One idiot brother is enough) and Obito and Rin became siblings of a sort to him. Gai claimed the spot as his eternal rival and he had a weird mutual understanding with Sasuke that could be summed up in grunts and nods. Could Sakura be his friend? She referred to him as her friend. Friend. The word felt foreign on his tongue, yet it felt right. Perhaps she was his friend after all.

The first time he saw her as a member of the opposite sex and not a strictly sexless creature such as how one would classify their family, they were fifteen and she was crying on the bench, nursing a broken heart. She looked rather sad, wearing what must be her best dress, her heels in her hand and her make-up smeared. Through the years, Kakashi had learned to not mind things that didn't concern him. Too troublesome to take up problems that had nothing to do with him in the first place. However, he just can't leave her alone. They were friends, weren't they?

He walked up to her side and cleared his throat to announce his presence. She gave him a watery smile, "hey, Kakashi."

He sat beside her, "care to tell me why you're crying?"

She slid her gaze to watch the soil at her feet. "He rejected me."

Kakashi frowned. What kind of idiot would reject someone like Sakura? She wasn't drop-dead gorgeous, and her forehead was rather huge, but she had beautiful eyes and a bell-like laugh and an absolutely kind heart. She's smart and hardworking too. "Who?" Kakashi asked.

"Sasuke-kun."

Kakashi's eyes widened. He didn't know she carried a torch for Sasuke. And he said just that.

"I have for a long time," she whispered, "he was just so amazing in class and in his ninjutsu, and everything he does seems to be perfect, you know? I can't help but admire him."

Kakashi snorted, "I'm better than him."

Sakura laughed and Kakashi mentally gave himself a pat on the back. "I know, Kakashi."

"As long as you know it," Kakashi said. "Want me to beat him up for you?"

Sakura shook her head, "nah. Sasuke-kun was actually really nice about it. It's not his fault he doesn't feel the same way." She looked at him and smiled, "I'll be okay soon, Kakashi, I promise."

Kakashi looked away from her gaze, feeling too uncomfortable at the prolonged sharing of emotions, "well if you change your mind and want him to receive a beating anyway, you know where to find me."

Sakura laughed, "thanks, Kakashi." Suddenly, he felt a weight settle on his shoulder and realized that Sakura had settled her head on the crook of his neck. "Let me stay like this for a while, hm?"

Kakashi didn't reply but didn't move away either. He was just being a good friend, wasn't he? This is what good friends did, he was sure of it. What he wasn't sure of, however, was why his heart was beating so hard against his chest or why a flush was slowly creeping up his cheeks. He really was thankful that he wore a mask.

The first time he saw her broken and bruised, bloodied and battered, it was when he realized just how important she was to him. Truly, it was when things become in danger of being lost, that we recognize their true value. At that time, they were nineteen, and both jounins. Danger was part of the job description, yet when she came home in Sasuke's arms instead of her own two feet, Kakashi can't help the rage bubbling up in his core. It didn't help that she was the only one in her team who was in that condition. As soon as she was deposited in the emergency room, Kakashi dragged Sasuke out by the collar and punched the dark-haired boy in the face.

"What the fuck, Kakashi?" Sasuke snarled.

"You don't get to say that!" Kakashi shouted, "what happened to Sakura? Why didn't you take care of her?"

Sasuke frowned, "Sakura doesn't need to be mothered and she'd be annoyed at you if she heard you say that."

"Don't give me that shit, Uchiha. You're her team mate. You're supposed to look out for each other. Now, care to tell me why she's in the emergency room and battling for her life while you're standing right here with me without even needing a single stitch?"

Sasuke visibly deflated and buried his head in his hands. "It's our fault," he said quietly. "We were too careless. She jumped in front of an incoming attack to save us. They snatched her away and drained her chakra. When we caught up with them, she's already hurt too badly."

Kakashi sunk to the floor next to Sasuke, and said behind gritted teeth, "I wish I could kill you right now, Uchiha."

Sasuke didn't reply and both stared at the vast skies above them.

The first time he saw her getting romanced by a guy, Kakashi was so green with envy he would have matched Gai's jumpsuit. They were twenty, and it seems like Sasuke had finally pulled his head out of his ass and realized just how desirable of a woman Sakura really is. He watched Sasuke approach her with a bouquet of flowers in his hand while she waved at the dark-haired man happily. Kakashi, who was unused to these kinds of emotions fled from the spot, unwilling to further watch the scene he was sure would unfold.

She would later find him in one of the training grounds, flat on his back and staring at the clouds. She sat beside him and poked his cheek.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

"What are you doing here?" Kakashi sniffed, "finished planning your hot date with Sasuke?"

Sakura stilled, "you saw that?"

"Hard not to as he proposed to you in the middle of the marketplace." She poked his cheek in annoyance.

"Shut up. He didn't propose."

"Whatever."

Sakura took a deep breath and laid on the grass beside him. "Besides, I turned him down."

Kakashi turned to look at her, flabbergasted. "What?"

"I said I turned him down. You really should clean your ears." She replied, refusing to look at him.

"But- but why?"

Sakura rolled her eyes, "uh, maybe because I don't like him that way?"

"But you do!" Kakashi exclaimed, yet at the same time, a silent hope bubbled in his gut, and joy rose in his stomach.

"Pretty sure I don't." Sakura sing-songed.

"But you cried over him!"

Sakura turned her head to look at Kakashi, a 'what in heavens' name are you talking about' expression on her face. "I was fifteen. I also cried at sappy afternoon soap operas back then."

Kakashi rolled his eyes, a smile erupting on his clothed lips. He can't help it. He was just too happy. "You still cry over sappy afternoon soap operas now."

"Whatever. The point is, I won't be crying over Sasuke anymore."

"Why's that?"

"Maybe because I realized, that after saving his ass so many times, he's not all that you know." Sakura said with a laugh. "There are others."

Kakashi's heart skipped a beat. Did he dare hope? "Really? Like who?"

Sakura smiled at him, "take a guess, Kakashi." She said before standing up and leaving him to his thoughts and his rapidly beating heart.

The first time he saw the light spattering of freckles on the bridge of her nose up close, they were kissing and wrapped in each other's arms on the very same bench where Kakashi found her crying many years ago. Slowly, they disengaged for air and Sakura smiled.

"Took you long enough." She said.

"I got lost in the road of life?"

She laughed, "Obito's rubbing off too much on you."

"Ha. At least my team mate is the better Uchiha."

Sakura snorted, "never thought I'd see the day you'd compliment Obito."

"Eh, the intent was more of an insult toward Sasuke."

"If you keep that up, I might think you're jealous." Sakura teased.

"Why would I be?" Kakashi said as he slowly closed the gap between them once more, "I got the girl."

The first time he saw her naked, he proposed on the spot. To be fair, he wasn't really planning on proposing with her naked, thought that was a fun bonus. They'd been together for quite some time and his team mates had been getting tired of his non-stop 'Sakura this' and 'Sakura that'.

"You know what, Kakashi?" Rin said one day after one particularly long-winded tale about Sakura's morning habits that he found cute, "you should just marry her. I mean, it's obvious that you're head over heels and I'm pretty sure Sakura-chan feels the same."

At the moment, it had been a stroke of genius. Kakashi quickly dragged her and Obito to go ring shopping. However, as time passed, he just can't seem to get the timing right and the words always fail him whenever the moment presented itself. It made him irritable which sometimes made him lash out on his team. After a particularly nasty gash he left on Obito's left thigh when he tackled him too hard for sparring purposes, his team had decided that enough was enough.

"We're not leaving here until you've finally proposed." Obito announced as they pushed Kakashi towards Sakura's front door.

"Good luck, Kakashi!" Rin said before shutting the door to his face.

Once inside, he could hear the water flowing in Sakura's bathroom. She must be in the shower. Good, that gives me some time to prepare. He paced across the room, so lost in his thoughts over the right words to say, that he didn't notice Sakura standing behind him wrapped in only a towel.

"Kakashi?" She asked, her hair dripping wet, her hand holding her towel in place. "What are you doing here? Did we plan something and I forgot?"

Kakashi turned around to face her, forgetting the open ring box in his hand, "ah, no, it's just – "

Sakura suddenly gasped, her eyes widening. "Is that what I think it is?" She said as her hands flew to her mouth in shock.

Completely forgetting that it was her hands alone that held her towel in place. Her towel which soon came falling down in a heap at her feet.

Slowly, Kakashi's eyes crawled along Sakura's body. He can't help it. It was as if his eyes had a mind of their own. The situation was slowly getting more awkward by the minute and Kakashi's brain, no longer functioning properly, did the only he could think of.

He dropped to one knee and yelled, "will you marry me, Sakura?"

Dead silence. Kakashi sweatdropped. That wasn't one of his smoothest moments.

Suddenly, he felt a pair of arms envelope him and a warm body on his own. "Yes, yes, yes!" Sakura shrieked as she kissed all over his face.

Meanwhile, outside, Obito and Rin were still standing guard. "Hey Rin," Obito said, "I heard Sakura saying yes. Do you think we can go in and congratulate them now?"

A deep moan resounded from within the apartment, followed by what sounded like a belt buckle hitting the floor. "On second thought, Obito, I think we should leave now."

The first time he saw her, their daughter, she was a wrinkly, pink little thing with sparse silver hair. He immediately thought she was the most beautiful thing he ever saw.

"Have you ever seen anything more perfect?" Kakashi asked Sakura later on, as they lay beside each other with their newborn in their arms.

Sakura smiled. "Her father comes close."

Kakashi begged to differ.

For he had seen many things and countless firsts, but right here, right now, with his family in his arms for the first time, no other thing can compete.

The first time Kakashi saw the sunrise spilling into the hospital bedroom window, with Sakura and their daughter in his arms, it was the beginning of a new life.