A/N: So I finally got around to writing this fic, which has been plaguing my mind for quite some time. The pairings will be KakaIru, GenHaya, AsuKure, and KoIzu. Then we have Anko being her crazy kid!self. Yep, this is all happening when Kakashi is 14, so all the ages will be based around that.:P Enjoy, everyone!
Disc.: I don't own Naruto; it belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
Warning: Very fluffy, light shounen-ai. If that's not your cup of tea, then do not read it.:)
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In the summer, Konoha is bubbling and bursting with entertainment and mirth. Festivals of all kinds are held, some throughout the village, some only in certain districts, and activities are made available to all inhabitants of the village, both young and old. On this particular day, the activity that a younger group had chosen was watching fireflies.
It had been Anko's idea, actually. In her words, it would 'totally kick ass'! Iruka had gone along with it because Anko was his friend, and he didn't want to hurt her feelings by saying no. So naturally, he begged Kakashi to go with him too. Kakashi agreed to do it against his better judgement, and ended up persuading Asuma and Kurenai to come as well. And even though he hadn't been asked, Gai had told Kakashi that he was very sorry, and that he would have loved to come along with them, but most unfortunately, he could not break away from his training. Kakashi cheered up a little after hearing this.
Apparently, Anko had somehow suckered Kotetsu and Izumo into it too; when Iruka asked them how, they mumbled something about 'threats' and 'kunai' and 'completely nuts'. But the girl was also able to convince Hayate, the youngest of them all at 11, and he brought Genma. It was still unknown as to why little Hayate and 17 year old Genma were such good friends, but they'd known each other 'since forever', so no one ever really questioned it.
Anyhow, the group of genin, chuunin, and jounin went out to a field a little before dusk; there, they flattened down a bunch of grass so that they could sit down. Iruka liked the way the warm grass felt against his skin, but what he liked even more was Kakashi's hand that rested so casually atop his own.
"Do you think the fireflies will be out tonight?" Iruka asked anxiously. The silver-haired jounin shrugged.
"Probably. They have been for the past week or so, haven't they?" he responded. Iruka nodded, and it was silent for a few minutes before Asuma let out a loud cough.
"Those cigarettes are gonna kill you one day," Genma said, amused. "Sometimes you cough even more than Hayate does." Asuma rolled his eyes.
"Like you're one to talk. You drink beer like water. Isn't that bad for your kidneys?"
"Liver," Kurenai corrected, sighing. Asuma glanced at her and laughed.
"Come on, lighten up. We're here to have fun."
"Some of us are here because we were forced into it," Izumo muttered darkly. Asuma laughed again, and with another sigh, Kurenai hastily plucked the cigarette from his lips so that he didn't swallow it when he laughed. Asuma turned a little red at this, and though no one could see it, Kakashi smirked.
"Lucky Kurenai cares about you so much, huh?" Kakashi said, a very distinct teasing undertone in his voice. The red-eyed woman blushed, and Asuma turned a little redder.
"Shut up about that, will ya," he muttered. Kotetsu and Izumo snickered, but hastily stopped when Asuma began to glare at them.
"Hey, Hayate, you alright?" Genma asked in concern. Hayate had begun to cough, and it sounded pretty bad. However, as his coughing subsided, he looked up at the older man and smiled.
"I'm fine," he said quietly. Genma looked relieved, and he clapped a hand on Hayate's shoulder, grinning.
"So, you ever been out to watch fireflies before?" Genma asked. The darker haired boy shook his head.
"No, I haven't."
Iruka looked at Hayate with a wistful smile. "You'll enjoy it, trust me. It's a lot of fun. My parents used to take me when I was little…" Kakashi looked at him carefully as he trailed off; the wounds were still fresh for Iruka, and talking about his parents seemed to depress him. Luckily, the scarred genin didn't seem close to tears, instead choosing to keep his bright smile.
"Well I haven't seen fireflies yet," Anko said matter-of-factly, plopping down in the grass next to Iruka. She had been wandering around the field looking for 'early bugs', although no one understood why. It wasn't like you'd be able to see them glow when it was light out. But then again, that was just how Anko was.
"Hm, what about you, Kakashi?" Iruka asked, looking at the boy next to him curiously. He nodded, his visible eye on the sky above them.
"Yes. A few years ago my sensei took our team out to watch them." His tone was casual, but everyone was silent for a few moments. They all knew that Kakashi's team was dead, as was his sensei, the former Yondaime Hokage. Iruka squeezed Kakashi's hand and gave him a sympathetic look, and when the silver-haired boy looked at him, Iruka was sure that he was smiling.
"Hey, hey! It's getting dark!" Anko shouted excitedly.
"Brilliant observation," Kotetsu said sarcastically. Everyone was looking around the field though, trying to spot the glowing bugs they'd come out to see.
"There's one," Hayate said, pointing behind Asuma. They all looked, and sure enough, a dim yellow light was seen.
"Way to go Hayate, you spotted the first one!" Asuma said, flashing him a thumbs up.
"That's supposed to be good luck," Genma added, ruffling Hayate's hair. The boy just smiled, his cheeks turning slightly pink.
"Ooh, Ooh! Look!" Anko said, half gasping with delight. Illuminated against the now purplish sky were even more bugs. She jumped up enthusiastically, exclaiming, "I'm gonna go catch one!"
As more and more bugs came out, even Kotetsu and Izumo began to enjoy themselves. The spiky haired one even got up and caught a few fireflies himself, which he and Izumo happily watched as they flickered and glowed.
Iruka, Kakashi, Hayate, and Genma had all lain down, preferring to just watch the bugs. Although once, when one of them came close enough, Genma reached out and carefully caught it in both hands, then showed a delighted Hayate.
"They're so pretty," he murmured. Genma, seeming very pleased, released the lightning bug, and the two watched as it slowly flew away.
Kurenai, who had apparently decided that she didn't care about being teased, was leaning against Asuma's shoulder, watching the little light show with a contented smile on her face. Asuma had about the same expression, a new cigarette dangling from his mouth. He even put his arm around the red-eyed woman, and although Kakashi observed this, he didn't say anything. He could always tease him about it tomorrow; for now, the moment was just too good to spoil.
"Kakashi…don't the fireflies kind of look like stars?" Iruka asked softly. "I remember my mother once saying that fireflies were little stars…and that they came down to the Earth only at night, and that that was why we never saw them in the daytime." He felt a little embarrassed about repeating that to Kakashi, but jounin didn't seem to think him foolish at all. Instead, he turned to look at Iruka, his ebony eye filled with amusement.
"Really? My sensei said the same thing…" Iruka blinked in surprise, and then a soft smile spread across his face. He moved his head so that it was resting on Kakashi's shoulder, and without a word, the jounin rested his head against Iruka's.
Despite Anko's occasional, exuberant shouts, and Izumo's yelp of pain when the purple-haired kunoichi accidentally kicked him in the knee, the atmosphere radiated calm and peacefulness.
It was then that they all decided that Anko's crazy little ideas weren't so bad after all.