The Garden
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If you walk along a certain bubbling creek in the forests surrounding Konoha, you will see a narrow animal trial leading off from one of the muddy banks. If you're willing to navigate the partially overgrown trail, you will eventually reach a clearing. Well, it used to be a clearing, but Sakanachi Umino, many years ago, had labored long and hard, and she had created a beautiful garden.
It's less a garden than a collage of what had been her favorite parts of the forest. Gnarled fruit trees, a single lopsided walnut tree, various flowering bushes, lush ferns and delicate shrubs are surrounded by swathes of wildflowers of every color. The low, wooden fence enclosing the space is overgrown with honeysuckles and wild black berries, which fill the air with the most wonderful scent. At the center of the garden is a small, sparkling pool of blue water, fed by an artificial spring. Sakanachi had used a water jutsu to divert a stream of underground water to create it. By the edge of the water is a slab of stone which serves as a bench. Sakanachi had convinced a friend to etch the Umino name into, along with a beautifully detailed image of the ocean.
Usually,
you can see her son Iruka here around dusk. He used to come here with
his mother and father, and sometimes they had picnics (there were
never enough sandwiches). Whenever he was there there was always
laughter, and smiles. Here, there was clarity everything. Sometimes
he would come here alone, whenever he was angry or scared, or just
needed some time to think. The garden was a sanctuary of sorts,
always there when he needed it.
After the Kyuubi attacked and his parents were killed, he
couldn't bring himself to come back for a long while. Too many
memories, too much pain. Too much everything!
He wanted to forget…Or so he told himself. One day, after school,
he was caught pranking a girl who had called him a loser. He had
filled her lunch box with black paint, so that it splashed everywhere
when she opened it. One of his classmates had seen him do it, and
squealed on him, trying to gain the lofty position of teacher's
pet. The sensei had been extremely pissed, and took it upon herself
to tell Iruka that he knew
better. That his parents
taught him better
than that.
When Iruka dashed out of the school, she had been a bit puzzled, but wrote it off as another attempt at getting attention.
He could barely see for the tears in his eyes, and he couldn't even tell if he was breathing because his blood was pounding in his ears too loud for him to hear his own sobs and pants. Regardless, he continued to run, away from them, as fast as he could, shaking with rage and hurt, not realizing until he had gotten there he had sprinted to the garden. Dizzy and feeling sick, he stumbled through the overgrown weeds and grass to the stone bench. Tan, shaky knees buckled, bringing him to the soft earth. He buried his face into the smooth stone of the seat, and there in the afternoon sunlight, shaking and sweating and feeling utterly lost, he wept. For the past he didn't really want to forget, and for the present that was so overwhelming.
By the time he was done, night had fallen, and the moonlight reflecting off the dark blue water glittered like diamonds. He lay there on the grass and smiled. Face still smudged from where dirt and tears had mixed together, he once again found sanctuary in this place, found peace. It wasn't the warmth of his parents' arms, but it was close enough. As long as he kept coming to this place, he decided, on the walk back to the village, he could never forget. Remembering could hurt, but it could also feel good, so much so that nothing was worth losing those memories. With them, the future looked so much brighter.
Now, years later, the garden is well kept and visited frequently. Iruka goes often, almost as much as Kakashi goes to the memorial stone. The silver haired jounin usually accompanies him. When he's away on missions, a scarecrow resembling him keeps Iruka company in the garden. Kakashi says it's so the teacher won't be lonely, but Iruka says he's just being narcissistic. The chuunin propped it up under the walnut tree, out of the rain and sun.
If you walk along a certain bubbling creek in the forests surrounding Konoha, you will see a narrow animal trial leading off from one of its muddy banks. If you're willing to navigate the partially overgrown trail, you will eventually reach a charming little garden. You might just see Kakashi and Iruka sitting on a stone bench, enjoying the beauty around them, and if you're lucky, you might see the peculiar shade of red Iruka blushes when Kakashi kisses him.
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