Parings will include KakshixIruka, NarutoxSasuke, probably some others, and there'll be confusing parts with them, but it'll [hopefully] all make sense in the end. I own none of the characters except for mine, nor the canon. Thoughts and flames welcome, but thoughtless flames will merely be used to cook my bacon and keep me warm during the winter. Enjoy!

o0o

Kakashi was exhausted. Not physically, but his mind begged for rest. He had been taxed with delivering a message to one of the more secluded villages – a place where mental capacity had unfortunately been lacking, and every third legal term had to be explained. Very slowly and thoroughly, multiple times. Now, with this chakra he was feeling, he wanted to run himself into a tree. It could be his daily facepalm, only slightly larger than usual, and he felt it might be necessary. He wanted to go home and sleep, not investigate too-powerful beings dangerously close to West Gates.

He found the source next to a fast-paced stream crowded by trees, in the form of a little girl. She was small, long-limbed and emaciated in her too-big cargo pants and tank-top. They looked ill-fitted to the point that they probably belonged to someone else, and poorly hidden weapons helped to leave awkward and obvious lumps. She appeared to have more senbon tied into her hair than actual hair, and they seemed to be the cause of a gash that ran from her right eyebrow to her chin, trailing blood down her face and neck.

Standing over her was what appeared to be a particularly large species of leopard, hardly a head shorter than him. It eyed him skeptically, prowled around him in circles a bit for show, then stepped up to his back and pressed its nose between his shoulder blades, pushing him forward. When it had his toes brushing her knees it stepped forward without him as if to crush the girl's skull, but instead it fell into the gash on her cheek, sealing it as it went. The resounding chakra in the air sank into her skin along with the scar, leaving her face unblemished.

Regardless of what kind of chakra she had or how it manifested, not even Naruto healed that fast. It left Kakashi torn between deeming her dangerous and taking her into the village for medical help. In the end he picked her up and settled her as gently as he could on his shoulder. Her hip bones dug into his shoulder, causing him a small thudding pain every time he took a step, and it helped solidify his decision. He would take her to see the council if need be, but he would make sure she got medical help as well. Besides, if he had left her there the ANBU would have found her, something that could only result in her forced and permanent comatose or death.

o0o

Kakashi gaped under his mask, glad that the council couldn't see it.

"You want me, an inappropriate, mentally scarring shut-in who hates children, to take in a mentally unstable thirteen-year-old with rampant chakra and unknown alliances?"

"Yes. Not only did you find her, you are the only person available at this time that could effectively contain her if she decided to turn against us. You will determine if her allegiances can be gained, and if she can be trained as a shinobi for Konoha."

Kakashi thought about arguing more, but remembered how the council could be as stubborn as certain blond-haired children he knew, and decided he didn't need the headache. Either way, his evening was lost.

o0o

As it turned out, his evening was not lost. When he took Sukoshi home she was still unconscious, and didn't wake up till Iruka got home after treating Naruto to ramen. Iruka seemed surprised to find Kakashi with his mask of, but not to find the young girl sleeping on their couch.

"I thought you didn't take it off with guests in the house."

"The council is making her stay with us. She'll see me without it sooner or later. But for now, dinner. You're serving an extra person tonight."

"Yes, dear," Iruka said mockingly, and was awarded with a kiss on the cheek for his troubles.