Sequel to Weaving Silk. Disclaimers and rights to those that actually own most of the characters and events loosely used in this story. The rest is mine and the result of too much caffiene and an over active brain. Join me for the ride. ;)

This chapter has been rewritten slightly for those that have already read it once. Probably nothing terribly noticable.

PART THE SECOND

"Kakashi?"

"Kakashi!"

Feet pounded the ground in response to the frantic call in the darkness.

Months earlier……..

1

Mothers and Daughters: the weaver's tale

"Nane, I am so glad you could make it." Yuu Hime hugged her youngest child with excitement. Yuu Tinane was always glad to see her mother, especially since she had been sent on so many jonin missions. Lately, she just never got to visit her family as much as she liked.

The Yuu family had been a little apprehensive when she informed them that she was moving in with Hatake Kakashi. Considering what they had gone through with Orochimaru, she could understand them not wanting her to be away from the family security. Kakashi had, however, proven to the family his intent to keep her as safe as he could. At times that issue caused a number of fights between the two lovers, but they were settled quickly. Neither could stay mad at the other for long and the making up was fun.

"Of course I would come, ma. When I got back the Hokage made it clear that I was to come and see you. She said that you have a special project that only you and I could do."

In fact, the blonde buxom leader of Konoha had removed Nane from active duty and assigned her to Hime and several weeks worth of light hospital rounds. Apparently, the Hokage had an apprentice that she thought may be able to see how to make the medical tags that Nane wove. The pay was A rank pay, so Nane could not complain. That, and Kakashi would be gone for a while yet. It really was too quiet in their apartment without him. So this would take her mind off of his absence.

"Mei-Mei, watch the shop, dear."

"Yes, Hime-chan," said the dark haired daughter-in-law. Hime motioned for her daughter to follow her into the workshop.

Inside, multiple looms were in use as several of the family, male and female, worked on either setting up the looms to weave or were actually weaving. Good natured chatting and gossiping took place and when they noticed Hime and Nane shouts went up in greeting. Nane blushed as only a red head could, from head to toe, at the attention. She really did miss hanging out here all the time. Perhaps Kakashi and she should think about getting an apartment closer to the Yuu compound. Something to think on for later conversations.

Suddenly, a shape charged from the main family area and collided with her. Nane barely had time to brace herself with chakra as her newly turned eight year old nephew Tasuke barreled into her. As usual, he was a ball of barely contained energy.

"NANE! Where's Kakashi, did he come with you?" He looked over her shoulder and scanned the room for the great Copy Nin and his own personal hero.

"Sorry, 'Suke, Kakashi won't return to the village for a while yet. I am not even sure exactly when he is to be back."

She saw Tasuke's face fall.

"But, I am assigned to mama for the time being."

"You're going to be around?"

Nane nodded and the boy hugged her tighter. Then he was off again in a flash.

"Well you made his day, Nane," said her mother. Nane smiled after the boy as he headed back to the main house.

"I am the best aunt in all of Konoha, of course."

"Alright," Hime laughed, "come with me before your head no longer fits into the design workshop."

Hime took her daughter into a special area that had been set up for their purposes. A loom had been put together inside the small workshop and was waiting to be sleighed with warp. A draft table and chair were up against a wall with a light showing on it. The huge spools of thread were on shelves against the wall. The colors were very drab, greens, browns, black and white. Two warping boards for measuring out the length of warp threads hung from the walls as well. In all it was a cozy little work room.

Nane examined the designs on the table then looked at her mother.

"These are ninja uniform patterns."

Her mother nodded, "That they are, my dear." Hime tossed her auburn braid off of her shoulder.

"Tsunade and I feel that there could be a way for us to combine talents. She and I feel that you are a step away from being able to weave a chakra purpose into actual fabric the way you do your tags."

Nane felt utterly stupid. Why had she not thought of that sooner? Of course she could weave purpose into fabric. The paper weaving was easy because it was already accepting of chakra and the purpose. However, fiber weaving could prove to be more difficult because you would have to start at the very beginning of the fabric process. Maybe even down to the point of spinning the threads themselves to set the purpose more permanently within the fiber. Nane's mind flowed all around the problems and possibilities.

Hime saw her daughter slip into her problem solving face. The Master Weaver was proud at her daughter's intelligence and open mind in trying to solve this puzzle. Quietly, she directed her daughter to sit at the drafting table.

"Write down your thoughts and come and see me." Nane needed little encouragement and started to write as pen and paper were put in her hands. "This is now your workroom for this project. Come to me when you are ready." Nane was frowning with thought scribbling furiously on the paper. As Hime neared the door Nane spoke.

"Ma, can you get me the table top loom? Please." Nane never looked up from her work, but still managed to ask politely.

"I will have Mei-Mei get it."

"Thanks."

Hime slid the door closed quietly.

The next day Nane tore herself away from her workroom long enough to go and move some clothes and Kakashi's fern plant from the apartment to her old room at the compound. She had left a note for Kakashi in case he came home early and found her gone. Nane missed him and always worried when he was away. Closing her eyes she concentrated on the thread that connected them together. It glittered strongly and was taught. Kakashi was fine and apparently slightly aggravated.

Opening her eyes she smiled. Ever since her abduction by Orochimaru and the resulting massive chakra overload, she had been able to actually see the fine threads that connected one person to another. Bonds, connections, ties, name it what you will. She could see them and to some extent feel the status of the person at the other end. With Kakashi, she also felt some of his stronger emotions. This ability kept her from worrying overly much about him.

She arranged the fern in the window so that he would get some sun in the morning. She would have to get the fern a new pot soon. Her constant attentions had the plant growing crazily and its pot was too small.

Nane turned to the rest of her room and sighed. It was just as she had left it. She could not believe how much things had changed in just two years time and how this room had not. Smiling, she unpacked her clothes.

Glancing at the clock at her bedside, Nane realized that she needed to be at the hospital for rounds and to meet this apprentice of Tsunade's. That was another exciting thing in her life. Someone who could see what she did and hopefully copy it. Grabbing her leather binder of specialty tags, Nane left the compound heading for the hospital.

"Sorry, Sakura is not in Konoha right now," said the hospital clerk. A young woman in purple with her hair in a long ponytail approached Nane and the clerk.

"Who is looking for Forehead?"

Nane frowned; this girl was perhaps sixteen, seventeen at the most.

"I don't know who that is, but I am looking for Haruno Sakura. The Hokage wanted me to show her some things about my medical tags."

The blonde's eyes grew large.

"You're the chakra weaver? Asuma-sensei told us about you. He even showed us the ICE tag he got from you." The young woman bowed low. "I am Yamanaka Ino, Team Asuma's medic nin."

"Glad to meet you, Ino-chan. I am Yuu Tinane, Nane if you like. Hey, your family runs the flower shop, right?" Ino's grin broadened.

"Yours is the weaver shop. My mom just purchased fabric for new kimonos. Your family makes the prettiest fabrics. So what were you going to show Forehead, I mean Sakura?"

"Well, Tsunade seems to think Sakura will be able to do the tag weaving, and asked that I try to show her. I have tried to teach the rest of the medic nin corps, but none can actually see what it is that I am doing let alone attempt it."

Nane opened her binder and pulled out several tags. One was minor trauma the other was labeled Pain. Drawing a kunai from its sheath she looked at Ino and winked. She then pulled the blade deeply across her forearm. The clerk's eyes went wide, then fainted dead away, falling out of her chair with a thump.

Ino rushed to Nane's side grabbing the cut arm, "Nane!?"

The redhead held up her hand to forestall Ino's call for assistance.

"Once the pattern is woven it only takes a minute amount of chakra to ignite them." As blood dripped from her fingers, Nane picked up the minor trauma tag and flared her chakra. She then slapped the tag over the self inflicted wound. Immediately the tag sealed over the wound and started to heal it. Activating the pain tag she also placed that on her arm just above the first tag. After a few moments both tags fluttered to the floor, their tasks completed.

Ino took Nane's arm in her hands and searched for the slice that should have been there. Her blue eyes rose to Nane's blue-green.

"That is amazing, Nane! How do you make them?"

"That is the trick, Ino. Apparently, only I can do this. I would LOVE to show someone else, but no one can see and understand how I do it."

Ino seemed to be thinking as she and Nane helped the clerk up off of the floor.

"We could try a light mind possession jutsu," Ino offered helpfully.

"Excuse me?" Ino waved her hands to fan air towards the woozy clerk.

"Sorry, my family jutsu, mind possession/destruction. I might be able to see how your gift works through you eyes and then perhaps I can describe it for someone else."

Nane thought about it for a moment, and then nodded in agreement.

"I'm game, Ino. Lead the way."

The two kunoichi left the clerks desk talking excitedly. The clerk herself sat with her head between her knees.

"Damn crazy ninja." She said to herself as she seriously thought about getting another job.

Ino took Nane to a quiet exam room where they could try the link undisturbed.

"So, once I do this my body will go limp. It will look like I passed out. In reality I will have transferred my mind to yours. Normally, your mind would go into my body and be dormant, but I will try to keep the possession lighter so that you retain control while I just observe." Nane nodded her understanding and prepared herself.

Ino made a rectangle frame with her thumbs and index fingers. She then aimed it at Nane and pushed her ability towards the redhead. Nane saw Ino slump in the chair and suddenly felt the presence of something else in her mind. She blinked a few times at the odd pressure like sensation.

~ Ok, Nane, I am here, you can begin.

"Alright." She closed her eyes and allowed the chakra to flow to her hands. She still wore the siphons, but with the regular ninja work she didn't have as much build up. Nane had to actually force a little build up of excess over the siphons.

~ What if the siphons come off?

Nane thought of the hospital she blew apart as a child. The image transferred to Ino. The blonde gave a mental shudder.

~ Forget I asked.

Nane opened her eyes and concentrated on making a pain tag.

~ Gods, Nane, this is what you see? Ino was awe struck as she watched the threads unwrap from Nane and reweave as the chakra weaver commanded. The control that Nane had was unbelievable, but Ino could definitely see it. Nane could feel Ino's excitement and tell that there was finally someone who could see. She really wished that Kakashi were here. Images of them together at the river, the jonin bar and in their apartment flooded into her mind.

With a flourish of her hands, she bonded the weave to the tag, giving the paper the purpose of PAIN relief. Completing the process she closed her eyes and the world returned to normal. The odd pressure sensation left and across from her Ino stirred. The blonde sat up and stretched.

"That was amazing, Nane. I can see why others are having trouble seeing it. There is a great deal of high level chakra use there. It is sort of like looking through a microscope. I agree with the Hokage. If anyone else could do it, Sakura could be the one."

Nane smiled, she knew how something like this could revolutionize the treatment of battle injuries.

"So," said Ino as she leaned forward, "how long have you and Kakashi-sensei been a couple?"

Nane looked at her in surprise. She and Kakashi had decided to keep somewhat of a lid on their relationship. Only their closest friends knew and were held to their silence. Kakashi was a high profile nin with a stellar bounty on him in many countries. That made anyone he was especially close to a target.

"Please, Ino, don't tell anyone. It is complicated, and for security reasons better that few people know."

Ino could tell that Nane was very serious and the reasons why were as well. Konoha's biggest gossip shrugged her shoulders and nodded.

"Secret kept, Nane-sama."

"Thank you, Ino," Nane patted the girl's knee. Then she stood, "When should we meet again?"

Ino looked at her in confusion.

"Ino you are going to help me eventually teach this to others. Old adage….see one, do one, teach one. Once you are able to make a tag or two through me, you will be able to take control of someone else and teach them should they have the potential." Nane shook her head and looked at Ino, "Had I known about your family power sooner I would have requested you when trying to teach these knuckle heads." Nane indicated the rest of the medical institution with a wave.

Ino grinned at least this training did not involved blood and she would learn it before Sakura.

Kakashi slipped quietly through the window and into Nane's room at the Yuu compound. It was the middle of the night and it would not do to wake everyone by going through the door. He was still slightly damp from the quick shower he took at the apartment before coming over.

A shiver went through the Copy Nin's body. The Yuu family originated from Snow Country, having only moved to Konoha a handful of years ago. On the whole, this group disliked the heat and humidity of the Fire Country. Almost magically, they managed to keep their home majorly cold. By his standards, at least. Kakashi shivered again as he looked at the woman asleep in her bed.

Nane slept on her side facing the window. She must be exhausted not to hear him enter through the window. He quietly stripped out of his clothes and slid beneath the covers, spooning behind her.

I am home. He thought with a sigh as he relaxed next to her warm body. Kakashi was thinking of only sleep when Nane, still asleep herself, started to rub against him.

"Nane," he whispered hoarsely as her pelvis continued to rub against his quickly responding body. It felt wonderful and he had not seen her in weeks. Their mission schedules had kept them apart except for quick notes left in endearing places. He placed his forehead against her shoulder and tried to control his breathing. Druthers being, he would rather her be awake for love making, but if she kept this up…

"mmmmm?" Nane mumbled in her sleep. Kakashi pulled her closer to him, perhaps she was waking up.

"mmmm, Genma."

He pulled back from her in shock, "Wha….What?!" Then he saw her shoulders shaking in barely suppressed laughter. Unable to hold it in anymore Nane burst into a quiet chuckle as she rolled over to face Kakashi. The silver haired man flopped over to his back and crossed his arms over his chest, pouting.

"Oh, come on, Kashi," she purred as she moved closer, "you know you are the only Ninja God for me." Nane pressed her lips to his. At first they were thin and drawn, unforgiving. Kakashi was unable to help himself when it came to the redhead. Soon his lips softened, deepening the kiss as his arms unfolded and embraced his beautiful woman. In a quick graceful movement Nane found herself on her back with Kakashi over her. A wicked grin adorned his handsome face.

"I am going to show you how much of a God I am." His eyes twinkled in the light from the street lamps.

"As long as we are quiet," she said nervously, they were after all in her parent's house.

"For that Genma comment, I am going to make you scream my name."

"Now, wait I was jus…," Kakashi silenced her quiet protests with a kiss that made her forget everything but his name. Oh, how her brothers were going to tease her in the morning.

Nane had almost laughed herself from her perch in a tree as she watched events unfold. On the other sided of the clearing, she could see the Hokage, her aide Shizune and Jiriya also watched the testing.

Kakashi was told by the Hokage to assess Sakura and Naruto and see if they were fit to form team Kakashi from the remnants of team 7. Both teens made a good show of their new skills and power as they tried to get the bells from Kakashi.

The redhead almost choked with mirth at Kakashi's expression when his former student, Sakura, split open the ground where he hid with a single punch. Nane thought for certain that she would have to go and pick up pieces of her lover from the trees when she saw Sakura catch him off guard with another strike. Her punch destroyed the tree trunk as easily as Nane's own power had taken out another ancient tree years ago. Sakura had a control of chakra that was VERY impressive as was shown by the multiple craters and other smashed trees in the training forest. There was definitely hope that she could show the young pink haired woman how to make chakra tags. Watching the female ninja gave Nane ideas for her own possible offensive capabilities.

Kakashi was out of breath. Nane smile got even larger. These kids were giving him a run for his money. Nane thought for certain when she saw the sheer number of shadow clones that Naruto would get him. Then Sakura split the ground again. Kakashi was kept on the defensive from the start. Rasengan was Very impressive coming from Naruto, considering his father.

Yamato-san was going to have to come out and fix a number of trees, thought Nane, as another was pulverized by the wind technique in the teens efforts to get Kakashi.

When she saw the kids talking together in whispers at the base of an ancient tree, Nane knew that Kakashi's precious bells were as good as theirs. With an excellent two pronged attack, Naruto started telling Kakashi the newest ending to his beloved Icha Icha series as Sakura kept him on the ropes. Horrified at the spoiler to his newly acquired porn, Kakashi covered his ears. Naruto continued on and the Copy Nin still knew what the blonde ninja was saying. Lip reading was a bitch sometimes. Kakashi screwed his eyes shut. When he opened them again, not feeling any attack, both teens had a bell apiece, jingling them in his face. Victory was bestowed to the two young people.

Nane finally did laugh herself out of the tree when she saw the teens pulling the bells from his belt loop. Kakashi had heard her fall and smiled behind his mask. After Naruto and Sakura left the training forest with a shadow clone of their ex-teacher, now team leader, the real Kakashi walked to where Nane lay laughing hysterically. Tears flowed from her closed eyes. She tried to stifle the laughter, but it just welled up and burst out again. He sat down next to her trying very hard not to laugh himself. It was absurd, loosing a battle because of a book. Still it was Icha Icha, and the newest one to boot.

Pushing herself up from the ground, Nane wiped the tears from her eyes and kissed Kakashi on his masked cheek.

"Yo, grace."

"I'm sorry, love," she said breathlessly, "Are you hurt anywhere?"

"I should ask you that," he said as he picked a few sticks and leaves from her braided hair. Shaking his head to answer her question, "No, only my pride is injured. Those two kids have gotten quite good."

"You expected anything less from them considernig their teachers? I include you in that as well, my love." She knew he had many regrets about his three students. He had taken on the mantle of teacher when the Third Hokage asked him to be the teacher of Kakashi's former teacher's son. It was owed on many levels. Kakashi still felt that he had let the memories of both friends and Hokage's down.

"Let's go home. I want to tell you about our newest breakthrough on the ninja fabric."

"Nane!" The pug nin Pakun came running into the prototype workshop out of breath skittering to a stop just behind her. Nane looked down to him from her drafting table. She had just finished sleighing the warp on the table top loom for the first weaving trials. Her notes encompassed several note books now. Her father and brothers had recently made a new set of shelves for her copious notes.

"Pakun, what is it?" Nane was up out of her seat, project forgotten. She could tell Pakun was worried.

"Kakashi and Guy's teams have returned from Suna. They are all alive, but Kakashi is unconscious."

"Take me to him, Pakun."

"It's ok, Nane," calmed Tsunade as the frantic redhead came into the waiting area with Pakun at her heels. "He just over extended his chakra with the sharingan. Apparently, he has found a new use for it. Kakashi will need several weeks of recovery. I am taking him off active duty for the time being."

Nane let out a held breath. Then she looked around for any other visitors.

"Don't worry, I sent Team Kakashi off to file their report." Tsunade put a hand on Nane's arm.

"Can I take him home, Hokage?"

"When he wakes up. Right now, lets go see him."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Nane bowed with relief and followed the head ninja.

Nane slipped herself next to Kakashi in his hospital bed. Her hand rested on his chest so that she could feel the rise and fall of his breathing. She could also feel the horrifying low levels of chakra that he had, and it terrified her. At some point his regular soft breathing lulled her to sleep. Ino came in early the next morning finding the two of them. Gently, she woke Nane for her shift in the hospital. The red head grudgingly left the room, wanting desperately to be the first thing Kakashi saw when he woke.

Nane's mother came to have lunch with at the hospital when she heard Kakashi was there. Her only daughter poked distractedly at the food before her.

"Nane?" Blue green eyes met her green ones. The young woman sighed and put her fork down.

"Sorry, ma. I just really wish I could be there. I really want to be there when he wakes up."

"But there was an agreement, right?" Nane nodded her head and looked back down at her food.

"Yeah, there was. I understand the why's completely, but it doesn't make the want go away."

Hime reached across the table and squeezed Nane's hand.

"At least he is still alive," Hime's words made Nane look up. Something so simple to be grateful for and she had overlooked it.

When Kakashi finally did wake, it was his team that greeted him. Naruto was trying to get the smallest peek under the blanket covering up the lower half of Kakashi's face when the Copy Nin woke. Nane arrived shortly after and stood in the doorway quietly watching the group. Sakura had just finished hitting Naruto for trying to look under Kakashi's blanket. Under the cover of the small one-sided fight, the Copy Nin's open grey eye drifted to where Nana stood. He gave her a little nod and Nane smiled, winked and returned to work. Kakashi was fine.

Later that night, Nane lay next to Kakashi in his hospital bed. His head was on her chest as her fingers gently played with his hair. Relaxed in her care, Kakashi was almost asleep when they heard his team coming down the hall again, loudly talking. Many of the staff threw angry looks at the pair. One orderly even called out to them.

"Oi, this is a hospital, folks, keep it down," both teens were shamed enough to pull down their volume slightly.

Nane quickly kissed Kakashi as she slipped quietly out of the bed, grabbed a blank chart and left the room. She passed Naruto and Sakura as they entered, but neither looked twice at her.

Kakashi was already missing Nane as Naruto loudly went into the topic that was foremost on his mind, their new teammate Sai.

"He is so rude and even called Sakura an ugly pig!" complained Naruto. He would not be happy until Sasuke returned. Sai was just a pale replacement of the Uchiha in his book.

"Kakashi-sensei, did you know you have a braid in your hair?" asked Sakura as she really looked at Kakashi. He closed his eye and reminded himself to get Nane back for that.

"It must have been the nurses while he was asleep," piped in Naruto as the blonde ninja flopped into a chair.

A few days later, Naruto, Sakura, a newly added Sai and the substitue captain Yamato left Konoha on a mission. Apparently, they had leads on Kabuto and Orochimaru and possibly to Sasuke himself.

Nane had convinced Tsunade that the Yuu family could care for the severely chakra depleated Kakashi. Tsunade could see no problem with the arrangement as long as Kakashi did not use any chakra. Nane promised that if he did, SHE would kill him herself. They made the transfer to the Yuu compound quietly and without fuss. The family had moved the couple into one of the larger rooms in a quieter wing of the household. Probably, due to the last time Kakashi was there. Nane's brothers still teased her for the screaming Kakashi elicited from her. Damn Ninja God!

Still, Nane could finally lie in a bed, Kakashi in her arms, without fear that the wrong people would figure out they were together.

"Please, don't do that again," she pleaded quietly as they lay together.

"Nane, you know I can't promise that," he said as he stroked her hair. "I will promise to do it in dire need only."

"I can accept that." Nane was quiet for a moment. She shifted herself so she could look up at Kakashi's face. He could see the question in her eyes.

"Yes?"

"So, explain to me how a grown man ended up being carried piggy back by another grown man for two days? Racing no less with a teenager acting like a pack mule."

Kakashi let out a laugh. Nane liked how it rumbled in his chest beneath her chin.

"I claim that I was unconscious at the time."

"Yeah, but according to Guy, you came in second place." Nane flashed two long fingers indicating placement in said race.

Kakashi laughed as he captured the offending fingers with a hand and kissed Nane to shut her up.