He had just been made chunin. His teammates just glared, furious that a child seven years younger than them was now a ranking superior. Kakashi glanced back at them, wishing that they would a least act happy for him. He looked down. His father was on a mission, so he would be going home to a cold and empty house. He sighed. 'Not like Father would care anyways. He'll just get drunk again. Kakashi sighed again as he trudged home, ignoring the whispers that followed him. 'Everyone has been saying that the war is his fault, that he failed the mission on purpose. I don't know what to believe. I mean, he saved his teammates, doesn't that count for something?' He halted in front of his house before he shook his head and entered. He pulled down his mask as he stooped to remove his sandals. He paused, sniffing the air. 'That smells like blood. Where is it coming from?' He stood up, padding quietly down the hall following the scent of blood. He hesitated in front of his fathers room. 'It's coming from here?' He reached out for the door handle, and gathered his nerve, then threw open the door. He froze. His father was slumped on the floor in a puddle of blood. "Father?" He asked, voice cracking. He stood there in horrified disbelief. "You're just trying to scare me right? Dad?" He staggered forward a step. "Come on, get up. This isn't funny." He fell to his knees at his fathers side. He reached out and pushed at his fathers shoulder. His father fell over revealing the source of all the blood. There was a short delicate sword impaled in his abdomen. Kakashi heard a gurgling whisper emerge from his father's mouth. He leaned down to hear what he wanted to tell him. "Kashi... I'm sorry-" he paused weasing "I haven't been there for you lately. I've been such a burden to you." He coughed wetly. "I know what the villagers have been saying about me, and you, but I did what I thought was right. I'm sorry. I love you Kashi." Kakashi stared blankly at the wall as his fathers beathing stuttered and then stopped. He slowly turned his head to look at his fathers face, gazing into his eyes, trying to ignore the trail of blood trickling down from his mouth. Kakashi croaked "Don't do this to me Dad. You can't do this to me." He voice began climbing in volume. " No, no, No, NO!" He struggled to his feet, cluching his fathers body in his arms. "You can't die! I'll get you to the hospital, they'll heal you and you'll be fine!" He started sobbing as he tripped, just barely preventing his fathers body from hitting the floor. "No! No no no." he moaned out. Giving up he just sat there, his father held tightly in his arms, rocking back and forth as he became covered with his father's blood.