Haircut

For the sensei

Disclaimer: I do not know the character as they belong to Kishimoto sensei.

It was a hot summer afternoon, even though Iruka has already took off his vest, the mission room was still boiling hot. Although lots of people have suggested that he should cut his hair short, but he has kindly refused. His hair was much longer than his taste as it reached his elbows already. Although he has tied the ponytail as high as he could have, it was hard to disguise that his hair was far too long for a man. He has taken him longer to wash his hair day by day. He was glad that he only needed to take fieldwork rarely as he wished that he had got no reason to cut the hair off.

Maybe he was just feeling foolish, but he was waiting for his lover to come back. He looked at his hair that lied in front of his chest. He stroked his hair lovingly. It has been a year since his silver hair lover went out for mission. 'Kashi,' he whispered when his tears shed. It has already a year has passed and no sign of his lover at all. Although Hokage sama has sent out ANBU to look for him, due to shortage of hands, the search was not carried out for a long period. He sighed bitterly when he tired to dry his hair with a towel. He recalled a memory that he has before his lover left for mission.

When he was back to their apartment from the mission office, he was surprised to see two silver hair men inside the bathroom, arguing. One of them was holding a pair of scissor and a comb on his other hand, while the other men sat in the middle of the bathroom. Both men looked up when Iruka walked into the bathroom, 'Kashi, what are you two doing?'

'Hair cutting,' the one who was standing replied, 'can't you see that?'

Iruka grinned, 'I am not blind, but why don't you go to a barber?'

'No,' both men replied in unison, 'I don't want any strangers to hold any weapon near me. You know that, Ruka.'

'I know, but I can cut it for you if you can ask me nicely.'

'Thanks, Ruka. Although I trusted you, I don't want my natural reflect hurt you, when you bring a sharp object around me. Besides, I am good at hair cutting for myself, don't I?'

From just grinning, Iruka could not stop his laugh. 'Hahahahahaha…. Unless you call your broomstick shape hair as good looking. To be honest, I much prefer your hair style when you were in ANBU, the wolfish style fits you well, as you looked very hot like that.'

By the time Iruka finished his sentence, the kage bunshin has already disappeared and the other placed his hand at Iruka's waist and pull off his hair ban that Iruka has to tie his ponytail. 'Now about now,' he grinned as sexy as he could, 'do I look attractive to you now, Ruka? With this hair cut?'

Iruka wrapped Kakashi's neck with his arms. 'Yes, Kashi… I much prefer your hair down like this without those hair clay.' He rubbed his lips on his lovers. 'Much prefer this.'

Kakashi smiled, 'do you want to trim yours? The end looked a bit dry.'

Iruka nodded silently and left the other man slowly took off his vest and his turtleneck and left his chest bare in the air. Then he sat at the stool that his lover just sat when he came back. He closely his eyes when the other man slowly brushed his hair. Although he went to the barber periodically, it was nothing alike, as the barber that he went never treated his hair gently. But it didn't border him before, until now.

Kakashi was good at that as Iruka could hear the noise that the scissor produced. It was swift and crisp and that he could felt some tips of his hair dropped on his bare back. He only opened his eyes when he felt that Kakashi was messaging his hair. He looked at his lover though the mirror. All he could see was the love that leaked out from the normal eye that his lover has. He slightly tilled his head, 'ne, Kashi, can you cut my hair next time then?'

'Of cause my love,' the other man bend down and kissed the tip of his hair. 'Of cause I will. I don't like other people to come close to you other than I do.'

'Possessive pervert.' Iruka laughed.

Kakashi grabbed his lover waist tightly from behind. 'But you like it, don't you, sensei?'

Iruka flushed, but didn't say a word. Kakashi kissed his cheek and said, 'so this is a promise between you and me then. Only I could cut your hair from now on.'

Iruka nodded slowly. 'Promise.'

Iruka drew his thought back to the reality and he felt on the floor in the bathroom. He could not hold his tears back anymore. He really missed his lover. No matter how well he could pretend in the daytime, the emptiness took him every night. He needed his lover, he needed his warmth. But where was he? He could not even certain that whether he was alive or not. As a matter of fact, it was more likely that he was already dead. He moaned like an injured animal. All that he wanted was his lover back to his arm safely.

A small noise from the door, somebody was trying to open the door with a key. Iruka alerted, as nobody other than him and Kakashi should have the key. He drew out a kunai from his pocket and waited for the person to come in, while he tried to control his breath and held his charka.

He dropped his kunai when he saw the person. Although the silver hair was longer than it used to be, he knew it could not be wrong, it was his lover.

'Ruka?' the silver man questioned, as he was not sure.

'Yes, Kashi.' Iruka replied while he ran to the man. He hugged the man tightly, as if he would disappear any second. 'Even if this is a dream, I am so glad that you are here with me,' he whispered. 'I missed you so much.'

'I am sorry, Ruka. Sorry that I have made you cried again.' He stroked Iruka's hair gently, 'please don't cry, as your tears were like kunai that stabbed into my heart.' He kissed of the tears that were on Iruka's face and bought Iruka up in the bridal way to the bed. 'Ruka, I love you, sorry that I…'

'Kashi!' Iruka screamed when he jumped up. But there were nobody next to him, no sign of anyone. He checked the bathroom, the kitchen/ living. Nobody. But he saw Kakashi's key and a note on the table.

Dear Ruka,

Sorry that I have break my promise. But I love you.

KKS

When Iruka dropped the note on the floor, he felt that world was breaking down, his head was spinning. He heard a small crack at the window. He turned towards the window. It was an ANBU who worn a cat mask.

'Sensei, Hokage sama required your presence in the hospital.'

Although Iruka would like to get up, his legs were too weak to support his weight. The ANBU saw the note on the floor. He sighed very quietly, as he was not supposed to show any emotion. He lifted up Iruka on his shoulder and did a transport jutsu.

When Iruka opened his eyes, he was in the morgue. He saw the Hokage stood by a body covered by a white cloth. Without looking, he knew who was there. He has not got the courage to walk to the body. He stood there, shaking. Naruto ran into the room and held him tightly and supported most of his weight with Sakura.

'I am sorry about this, Iruka,' said the Hokage, 'Sparrow found him by the spring of the Nava River where only the ANBU use for training annually.'

Iruka has not even got the power to sob. His tears dropped on the floor quietly. 'He was gone,' his heart screamed, 'it really was a dream.' He let Naruto pushed him out of the morgue and sat on the bench at the corridor. He cupped his face with his hand. 'Kakashi…' he whispered.

On the end of the corridor, there was a white shade standing there. Although the shade wanted to embrace the crying man, he knew that nothing he could do. There was a black figure stood next to the shade and grabbed his hand. The shade looked at the crying man one last glaze and moved along the corridor with the back figure. Along the corridor that the two figures were walking, there was a trace of water droplet on the floor. 'Go-me… Iruka, go-me… Aishiteru…' before the white shade dissolved into the white light.

The End

Yanvi: I didn't mean to write a sad ending in the first place, but just then when I was half way, I just could not resist the images that I saw in my head. Go-me-ne, Iruka sensei, I have made you cry. But the story just flew like that when I was typing. Sighed. This is my 1st ever attempt to write a sad ending story as I always thought life in reality was bad already and so story should be good in the dreams. [:_:]