Kakashi kissed me and the world exploded.
Literally. The world erupted, spraying dirt, rocks, and grass in all directions. The ground itself shook in protest and the sky above seemed to turn a menacing black.
A bomb had gone off. Shinobi were screaming. The bitter aroma of blood thickened in the air, shouts originating from contrary directions. All was chaos. The smoke was thick and somewhat choking. Mere feet away, a tree had been torn from its roots. It had come within an inch of crushing me as I sprinted past, unaware of all danger except that of which I was attempting to contain. Kakashi had appeared from the smoke as if summoned, pulled me from the harm I'd been oblivious to seconds prior, and kissed me. And then the world exploded.
I pushed him away, baffled and quite outraged.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" I screamed.
Kakashi stared at me blankly, as if he himself didn't know exactly what the hell was wrong with him. His left sleeve was fractured down the side and blood that did not belong to him was smeared across his cheek. For once, his signature mask hadn't remained intact. It had been reduced to a shredded mess in the heat of combat, revealing the lower half of his face.
Another explosion. The ground under our feet shook with more violence, yet we continued to gaze at one another.
"I wanted to make sure that I was able to do that at least once," Kakashi responded impassively.
I could hear yelling. Whether friend or foe I couldn't tell. It was all jumbled noises in the cacophony. I thought perhaps someone I knew was shouting my name, reaching through the discord to get my attention. But when I strained my ears, it melted back into the chaos and I was once again alone with Kakashi. I arched my eyebrow at him, trying to read the meaning behind his explanation.
"Sakura, how many chances can a person have after the world ends?" Kakashi queried.
That unique smile of his, the one that always seemed to echo more pain than cheerfulness, was on his face again. His voice was light, but not wholly cheerful. He was feeling the battle, I thought. The kiss had merely taken him out of it for a minute.
The correct thoughts clicked into place. My mind completely awakened.
"You...you've been...you have...," I stuttered, astonished as I realized.
"For a long time."
I grabbed Kakashi's face in my hands and pressed our lips together. Tears were running down my face.
Me, too, you idiot. Me, too.
The world exploded again.
