Memories

Jiraiya watched as Naruto created more clones to spar with. It's been only three days since the war with Akatsuki and as everyone helped around the village, Naruto stayed here, training. Or to be more specific, to be alone. Jiraiya knew that Tsunade had her hands full with comforting Sakura and dealing with the injured. Jiraiya watched as Naruto collapsed. He walked up to the boy and looked down at him.

"What do you want?" Naruto asked rudely. Jiraiya ignored him and held out his hand. Naruto reluctantly took the hand and got up shakily.

"Come on." Naruto followed Jiraiya out of the training grounds. They walked for a few minutes, pass the part of Konoha that was mostly destroyed and into the section that barely had a scratch on it. Only half of Konoha was destroyed, thanks to the Kyuubi who keep the Silver Wolf back.

"Where are we going?" Naruto asked.

"There's something I was told to give you," was the response he got. Naruto didn't ask anymore questions and looked away angrily. They walked up to a small group of apartments. Jiraiya pulled out a key, opened one of the doors and walked in. Naruto didn't follow but stood in the door way.

"What are we doing here?" he asked, he clearly didn't want to be here, in his sensei's apartment.

"I told you, there's something I have to give you. Now, get in here."

Naruto stayed where he was. Jiraiya sighed, but instead of getting angry, he got sympathetic.

"Kakashi wanted me to give it to you when he passed away. Please, just get in here," he said. Naruto walked in slowly, taking his shoes off like Jiraiya had done moments before. He followed Jiraiya into a small room, Kakashi's room. Naruto looked around the plain room. A bed, a bookshelf, a desk, and a bulletin board. Naruto walked over to the window and pretended to look out, but he was really looking at the two pictures at the head of the bed. Naruto went deep into thought about the days he wished never left.

"Here it is," Jiraiya said as he got up off the floor, pulling a box from under the bed. Naruto coughed as the dust from the box filled the air. Naruto went to Jiraiya's side and looked into the box.

"What is all this?" Naruto asked as he looked at the items. Goggles, a broken katana, an empty medical kit, and what looked like a followed up coat. There was also a small silver box.

"These are Kakashi's memories. Everything in here belonged to someone he loved," he said as he pointed to the katana. "That was his father's. That was his friends, Uchiha Obito's, he died on Kakashi first mission as a jonin. He also gave Kakashi his sharingan."

Naruto kept silent, even though question were buzzing around his head, he didn't want to interrupt.

"This was given to him by his other teammate, Rin. She died about a year after the Kyuubi attacked." Jiraiya passed, remembering the broken Kakashi that had returned from that terrible mission.

"And this," he said as he lifted the coat, allowing it to fal open, "belonged to your father."

Naruto just stared at the garment.

"W-what?" he said, his eyes locked on the character that stood for four.

Jiraiya wrapped it up loosely and handed it to Naruto. "Your father was the Fourth Hokage, Minato." Naruto fingered the material.

"I don't understand. Why wasn't I told? Why did he se–" Naruto stopped, he had so many questions.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know the answers to those questions, but I do know your father always did something for a reason."

They stayed in silence for a little.

"This is for you," Jiraiya said. Naruto looked up and saw him holding out the green box. Naruto placed the coat on the bed and took the box. Before he opened it he looked at Jiraiya.

"What's in it?"

"You're gonna have to open it if you want to find that out," Jiraiya said with a grin. Naruto lifted the lid and looked in.

"Pictures?" he lifted the one on top out an looked at it closely. Jiraiya smiled as Naruto's face filled with surprise.

"Is that Kakashi-sensei!?" he said looking up at Jiraiya.

"Yup."

Naruto looked back at the picture. It was a picture of a teen Kakashi, mask-less, cleaning a food covered baby, with bright yellow hair, and was looking rather angry at the camera.

"Is that me?"

"Yay, only about two months old and already you were more then a handful."

Naruto flipped through the pictures. Many of them Kakashi was pouting because most of the time he was either cleaning or struggling with something. Naruto figured he was angry at the one who was taking the pictures because they weren't helping him. In some pictures Asuma, Iruka, Gai, and Kurenai, all in their teens were there also.

"Never thought of who took care of me when I was only a baby," Naruto said. "But, why didn't Kakashi ever tell me and why did he leave me?"

Jiraiya wasn't sure if he was the one who should answer those questions.

"Sorry Naruto, I don't have an answer for those questions either," he lied.

A small smile creep onto Naruto's face and he closed the box. He walked towards the door.

"Naruto," Jiraiya said. Naruto stopped and turned around. "You can have this if you want," he held up the coat. A sad smile appeared on Naruto's lips.

"That's Kakashi-sensei's memories, right? It's not mine to take," he said and walked out. Jiraiya was left alone.

"It technically is yours," Jiraiya mumbled to himself as he looked down at the coat. He folded it up and placed it back in the box. He then placed the box back under the bed, as if it was never touched. He took one last look at the small apartment. Knowing Tsunade, she won't allow anyone to empty it. When he turned around, he was surprised to see Naruto leaning against the wall.

"Thought you left," Jiraiya said as he locked the door. He watched Naruto fumble with the box in his hand.

"Pervy Sage," he said in a quiet voice.

"Hn?"

"Can.......can I stay with you tonight?"

Jiraiya wrapped his arm around Naruto's shoulder and they walked away. Jiraiya was currently staying in a spare room at the Hokage mansion, considering he didn't have a permanent home. That night Naruto cried for the first time since Kakashi's passing. He didn't cry on that day nor at the funeral. Naruto cried himself to sleep in Jiraiya's arms. Jiraiya gently placed Naruto on the spare bed and sighed as he looked at the sleeping Naruto's tear stained face.

Jiraiya looked out the window and up at the moon.

"I feel stronger when I fight under the moon. That's why I chose WOLF as my ANBU name." Kakashi said, his hand outstretched towards the moon.

Jiraiya remembered the day when he confronted Kakashi about being part of ANBU. That statement, Jiraiya felt at the time, was so random he brushed it aside without a second thought. Also, being angry about the kid's choice to go on suicide missions, didn't help him decipher the message either.

But now he knew.

Jiraiya knew now that Kakashi was telling him something was happening. All those years ago he began to feel the demon beginning to creep up on him, but all those years ago Kakashi had no idea about the demon. Jiraiya knew Kakashi never asked for help directly, he always had to deal with things himself.

Jiraiya slammed his fist on the window sill.

He would never look at the moon the same way.

The End