Disclaimer: I have no rights to Naruto. Apologies to the real owners for stealing their characters and making them do strange things.

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Late Night Appreciation

Iruka couldn't help but grin as he wended his way back home from Ichiraku Ramen. Naruto had hit him up for five whole bowls, but it was worth it to see him so ecstatic. What a relief. He'd been worried out of his mind that Kakashi-san would fail Naruto. Iruka hadn't even wanted to think about how crushed Naruto would have been if he'd been sent back to the academy. He really had to thank Kakashi-san…

And, he realized, that was Kakashi-san's apartment, right over there. Too perfect. He sauntered over and rang the doorbell. For a while, the apartment remained dark and silent, but eventually Iruka heard sounds of movement within, and a moment later the door swung open and Kakashi looked out.

The words of thanks Iruka had prepared died on his lips. Kakashi, his silver hair even more wildly tousled than usual, was clad in a sleeveless under shirt and loose pajama pants. As Iruka stood there, he yawned and scratched the back of his head. Clearly, he'd been sleeping. Iruka blushed. What had he been thinking, calling this late at night? Of course Kakashi-san would be sleeping.

Kakashi, after waiting some time for his caller to say something, decided to move things along himself. "Iruka-kun, isn't it? Something I can do for you?"

"Ah, H-hai!" Iruka stammered, collecting himself. "I, um, just wanted to say 'thanks' for passing Naruto." Iruka's smile crept back. "He's over the moon, you know."

"Ohhh, that." Kakashi scratched the back of his head again. "No point in thanking me, really. It's not like I did Naruto any favors. I passed those three because, well, they passed..."

Iruka shifted awkwardly, "Well, yes, but… um… I wanted to thank you anyway. I mean… some people aren't willing to give Naruto a chance even when he's done something right…"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Mmm… true enough. So you're thanking me for not being a prejudiced asshole," he said with gentle sarcasm. "In that case, you're welcome."

Iruka rubbed the scar on his nose and smiled sheepishly. "It sounds ridiculous when you put it that way, but I really am grateful… for Naruto's sake."

Kakashi regarded him speculatively with one half lidded eye. "You seem to care about Naruto a lot. Since he's going to be in my care for a while, maybe it wouldn't be a bad thing to hear a bit more about him from you... Why don't you come in?" He turned and started to shuffle back into the apartment.

Iruka objected hastily. "Um… but… Isn't it kind of late? I mean, I woke you up, didn't I? I'm really sorry about that…"

Kakashi looked over his shoulder and laughed softly. "Well, I'm awake now. A little late to be worrying about that, eh?"

Iruka flushed with renewed embarrassment, but followed Kakashi-san inside. Kakashi lead Iruka into a cramped space which seemed to double as a kitchen and living room. There was only one place to sit down; a low couch running along the base of one wall. Kakashi arrayed himself over one half of this. He hadn't turned on the lights, but the cool, silvery light of the moon streamed in through the windows. The light glimmered in Kakashi's hair and ran along the contours of his body, draped so casually and yet so elegantly over the couch, until he looked like a living stream of poured silver. Iruka stood frozen by the sight. He'd always admired the fluidity of Kakashi-san's movements and posture. He just looked so easy and relaxed in his own body. There was something relaxing and reassuring about Kakashi-san even when he was just standing around. He had a way of looking completely at rest, and yet as if he could slide instantly into motion. Iruka himself always felt stiff and awkward by comparison.

"And? Are you going to sit down?"

"H-hai!" Iruka shook himself out of his daze and dropped onto the far corner of the couch from Kakashi-san, as rigid and ill at ease as Kakashi was relaxed. He wished he'd had the courage to ask if he could turn on the lights. He thought it might dispel some of the strange effects the sight of Kakashi-san bathed in moon light was having on his head.

"So… What can you tell me about Naruto?" Kakashi asked when his guest was as settled as he looked like he was going to get. At first, Iruka was too nervous to provide anything but the barest essentials in response to Kakashi's questions, but as he warmed to his subject, he began to relax. Soon he was smiling his goofy smile again, sitting cross-legged on the couch, facing Kakashi, and gesticulating animatedly as he talked. After a good hour and a half, Iruka finally began to wind down. There was a brief lull in the conversation. Kakashi's eye crinkled into a smile. "Naruto's lucky to have someone like you in his life. Seriously. I'm jealous."

Iruka barely heard him. He was struck by the sudden desire to see what that smile looked like on the rest of Kakashi's face. He reached forward impetuously. When his fingers were about two inches from Kakashi's nose, he realized what he was doing, and snatched his hand back. Kakashi-san hadn't tried to move away. He just kept on smiling.

"Curious, are we?" he asked, with a touch of laughter in his voice.

There wasn't much point in denying it at this point. "Well… yes."

Kakashi-san reached up and pulled the fabric covering his nose and mouth down to hang loosely around his neck. Iruka, after he'd gotten over his surprise at how easily Kakashi-san had complied with his wish, studied his exposed face. Nothing unusual. His features were well proportioned. They weren't particularly strong, but neither were they too delicate. They were pretty much in keeping with the rest of Kakashi-san; masculine, but with an understated elegance. The smile was just what you would expect of kakashi-san, too. It was gentle, maybe a little reserved, with a just a little sardonic edge.

"So?" The lips moved. "What's the verdict?"

"You're pretty good looking," Iruka answered absently. Kakashi-san's lips quirked in amusement, and Iruka flushed. "Um… what I mean is…"

"Then you wouldn't mind if I did this?" Kakashi-san interrupted, he shifted on the couch so that he was sitting upright, closing the gap between them. Iruka could read neither the expression in his half-lidded eye nor his smile, and just sat dumbly waiting and wondering what Kakashi-san intended to do. Kakashi-san placed a hand on the couch between them to support himself and leaned in. His lips brushed softly, lingeringly, against Iruka's.

Iruka sat as if turned to stone. Kakashi pulled back to observe his reaction. For a while, Iruka's jaw worked, trying to form words that just wouldn't come out. Finally, he managed to stammer, "You… Me… You… Where did that come from?"

"The way you were looking me at earlier made me think you wouldn't be averse to this sort of thing." Kakashi said levelly. His tone was as light and unconcerned as ever, but he was watching Iruka intently.

Iruka was dumbstruck. Had he looked like that? He probably had. He hadn't been thinking beyond his admiration, but his heart had been racing nearly as fast then as it was now, even if his head hadn't yet registered what that meant at the time. Now that Kakashi had given him the idea, he could feel his muscles yearning to lean forward so he could try kissing Kakashi back, and maybe bury his hands in that wild silver hair. He also realized that this attraction he felt towards Kakashi hadn't just started today. Now that his brain was starting to wake up, however, he also realized something else.

He checked his desire, sat back, and looked Kakashi steadily in the eye. "Tell me if I'm wrong, but you weren't even sure who I was when you answered the door tonight, were you."

"…True enough. I remembered seeing you around now and again, but frankly, before you showed up at my apartment, I didn't pay much attention to you." Iruka was wearing the kind of expression that you might expect to see on a puppy who's been offered a treat but received a smack on the nose instead, so Kakashi held up a hand and went on hastily. "Wait a minute, wait! It's true that I didn't notice you before, but that doesn't mean I'm just jerking you around, or anything. You were really attractive just now, getting all exited over Naruto." He chuckled to himself. "You sounded just like a proud father, even though you're barely more than a kid yourself..."

"Oi! I'm 23!"

"Like I said. Barely more than a kid," Kakashi repeated with a smile.

Iruka snorted in return. "You can't be more than 3 or 4 years older than me!"

Kakashi considered. "You have a point there, but I have the soul of a perverted oji-san, so the actual time in years is misleading."

Iruka smiled. It was true. Kakashi did have a penchant for smutty books and pornographic pictures of big-breasted women that was a little odd in light of the present situation. A front? But then, Iruka got nosebleeds from Naruto's sexy jutsu. They were both men, he supposed, with the normal drives… with a couple minor additions. But cracks about having the soul of an oji-san aside, Kakashi-san really did seem more mature than he was. He had a self-possession and assurance that Iruka couldn't even come close to matching. It was one of the things that drew him to Kakashi; one of the many things.

He decided he didn't care anymore whether Kakashi was serious about this or not. He leaned forward and grasped Kakashi's face between his hands. Kakashi's eye opened wide in surprise as Iruka wound his fingers into his hair. He ran a thumb over Kakashi's lips, getting a feel for their shape and texture. Then he pulled Kakashi's face close to his, and returned his kiss. At first he was as gentle—tentative, he realized—as Kakashi had been. Then…

"Hey, woah!" Kakashi cautioned as he fell backwards under Iruka's enthusiastic embrace.

...

Well, that's that. First fic I've put up, so criticism would be very welcome. Please, don't pull your punches.