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Summary: Kakashi returns from a mission on New Year's Eve and finds something unexpected at the memorial stone.
Rating - Teen
Pairing:KakaIru
This is unbeta'ed so please let me know if you find any errors.
It was cold. The temperature seemed to drop twenty degrees now that the adrenaline was gone and he was safely inside the village. Kakashi wrapped his arms tightly about his body before shaking his head and rolling his eyes at the artificially lit streets and jovial people milling about beneath him. It was New Year's Eve and if the chanting was reliable very close to the midnight. For the first time in many years he'd mistimed his traveling speed and made it back in time for the celebration.
He kept to the shadows, hoping no one would pay attention to the lone figure slinking through the alleyways. He began to relax as the streets once again faded to darkness the farther he edged from the center of the village. Well, at least until he reached the cenotaph, which was surrounded by candles and oddly festive - too festive for a memorial stone in the middle of an unseasonably cold and damp winter. "What are you doing?"
Iruka stopped his forced laughter when the sound of another's voice reached him. "Oh…hi Kakashi-sensei, I didn't notice your presence."
"Evidently," Kakashi replied taking in the scene before him. In addition to the votive candles there were multicolored lanterns; a small radio playing oddly relaxing music; food; stuffed animals; a blanket so orange it could only have come from Naruto; artwork that was more scribbled lines than anything with actual shape or form; sake and several other types of liquor; a black katana that Kakashi swore was winking at him; and a small bejeweled mirror.
Kakashi sighed. Normally he wasn't superstitious, but he had noticed odd things happened whenever he accepted a mission that involved "retrieving a lost object" from whatever shrine happened to find it. "Please tell me this isn't some type of odd seppuku ritual."
"Seppuku?" This time Iruka's laugh was genuine as he contemplated the man before him. "Why on earth would I commit seppuku?"
"Don't ask me," Kakashi shrugged. "You're the one with the sword at the memorial stone in the middle of the night."
"It's New Year's. I'm celebrating." Iruka chirped causing the other man's forehead to wrinkle in a frown.
"Celebrating?" Kakashi cocked his head to the side try to remember how often Academy teachers received pysch evals.
Iruka nodded for emphasis, "Yes, celebrating."
Kakashi knew he spent more time at the memorial stone than anyone so he couldn't judge anyone's mourning process, but even he had never gone so far as the throw a party. "Don't you think this is rather morbid?"
"Morbid? No." Iruka answered as he looked around him. "Pathetic? Yes. My mother believed that the flow of a year is determined by how you begin it. If you are sad and alone when the year begins you'll remain sad and alone all year. If you're happy and surrounded by loved ones you'll remain happy and surrounded by loved ones all year."
"Most years Naruto and I would stop by here then go visit Sandaime. Afterwards we'd grab some takeout from Ichiraku then crash at my house and watch movies. He's off with Jiraiya and my other students are with their families. Sandaime and my parents are here. Instead of going to some party with people who extended an invitation out of politeness or intruding on my friends and their lovers or moping around I decided to gather gifts from people who care about me and spend New Year's forcing myself to be happy with my loved ones. I can't help it if most of them are dead."
The slight change in Iruka's timbre as he spoke the last sentence caused a chill to run up Kakashi's spine.
"Wait here Iruka-sensei."
Kakashi's voice lingered in Iruka's ears after the jounin teleported away from him.
It wasn't long before Kakashi returned with an urn; a tea set; an oddly shaped kunai; a medical kit; and collector's edition of Icha Icha still in the original plastic, a box of dog biscuits; a potted plant; three picture frames two of which held pictures while the third held perfectly preserved sakura petals; a scroll sealed with what looked like an Uchiha crest; an old fashioned blowup doll in a faded orange dress; a toy carved in the shape of a wooden kunai; a tanto and an oversized pair of dice.
"Kakashi-sensei?"
"Most of the people I consider family are here too." Kakashi explained as he added his items to the memorial stone before removing his hitai-ate and exposing his face. "As for the others..."
Iruka giggled watching the other man's face lit up as they were surrounded by ninken. "You didn't have to do this."
"I was on my way here anyway. I might as well try something different." Kakashi smiled revealing a perfect set of dimples as Guruko and Bull acquainted themselves on the teacher. "Your way seems… well, let's just say I think they would enjoy it."