Disruption & Balance

Part One

Their relationship was a new, fragile thing. Secret glances, shared looks while no one was looking, and tiny smiles of encouragement. It truly began when Kakashi asked her to be his assistant when he ascended to the position of Hokage, on some level knowing he was doing to it keep Sakura close, and perhaps draw her closer. He should have calculated that what was between them could grow to something else more quickly than he anticipated, but the pessimistic side of him doubted she would consider him in such a way. He imagined, at first, a slow build-up over the years until he retired from the position and was ready to ask when they were both in a good place if she would consider him. He barely hoped she would be just as interested.

But she was.

And he was ecstatic.

What he was not quite so happy about was the fact that she was his subordinate and he, her employer, in a position of great power, giving every appearance of impropriety to the Council and to the village as a whole if they were to make their relationship public. They were even risking the possibility of a full corruption investigation that would result in every detail of their life dissected and put into the public record. So they chose to be quiet about it and it worked.

Until the day Uchiha Sasuke returned.

A small crowd was gathered in front of the main gates. Kakashi approached, the edges of his Hokage robes weighing him down as he held his former student's eyes. Naruto wrapped an arm around Sasuke protectively, chin raised in challenge. Kakashi was half tempted to have the formerly missing nin arrested on the spot, after all that they'd been through, after all that Sasuke had put his team through. Then, there was a blur of pink hair and Sakura threw her entire self at Sasuke, tears running down her face. The years of waiting, the promises broken, remade, and broken again, had culminated to this moment.

Sasuke was home.

As the three embraced and Kakashi stood a little ways apart from them, the crowd murmured, watching their Hokage and the small squadron of elite shinobi that had also gathered to witness the event. Kakashi could tell from some of their faces that arrest was exactly what they expected, but others knew the tragic narrative that had surrounded the three and looked on in sympathy.

"Sensei, I'm willing to take responsibility for Sasuke and whatever he does from this point on, but he's back," Naruto said.

Of course he would say that. Kakashi resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose and sigh. Actually, no, he did it anyway. He wanted Naruto to see exactly what he thought of this whole situation. No matter what Sasuke was before as a citizen of Konoha, it didn't change the fact that now, the Uchiha was a war criminal. The Hokage couldn't let war criminals run free within the village without consequences. All of his predecessors would rise out of their graves and place a thousand year curse or something equally devastating on him.

Kakashi stared down his former student with both eyes, because now the Copy Nin didn't have his sharingan anymore. He wasn't certain what that meant for his legacy in the history books, but he was never one to care. His gaze shifted to Naruto who was, to Kakashi's knowledge, a more powerful shinobi than anyone had ever conceived could happen. What, like he could banish both of the most powerful warriors the village had ever known, one of whom was constantly vetted as his successor?

Kakashi took a deep breath. "I'll see you at the Tower."

Back at his desk, Kakashi rested the entire weight of his head in his hands. He bet no other Hokage had to deal with this. Wait, maybe the Third did because Orochimaru had left under similar circumstances. But Orochimaru never came back. Why? Why did the universe choose him like this?

There was a gentle knock at the door, one he recognized immediately as Sakura's by its rhythm. Before he talked to all of them together, he wanted to speak to her and hear her thoughts first.

"Come in," he said. After she settled into the chair placed in front of his desk, he asked, "Are you here to tell me that we should let him do as he pleases because he's sorry?"

The sarcasm didn't sit well with her. Her lips thinned before she answered, "You of all people should know that's not what I think."

"Then what should I do? I'm at a loss here."

"Let him earn it," she stated simply.

He carefully studied her face, which was the total opposite of what it had been only moments before with Sasuke. Her green eyes were clear and bright, although there were traces of redness from recently shed tears. She perched on the edge of her seat, posture perfect, hands folded neatly in her lap. Kakashi straightened in his seat. "Go on."

"The war is over. Sasuke's achieved what he's wanted to accomplish—even though he didn't care enough about the consequences to the people who cared about him—but I don't see another reason for him to betray Konoha again.

People deserve second chances, but I'm not saying we should be stupid about it. Naruto, despite what everyone says about him, is not any idiot either. We both saw the risk that Sasuke had become to Konoha during the war. We both know the consequences."

"Then why? Why should I let him stay?"

"It's not for him—it's for us." She took a deep breath. "Despite all that, both Naruto and I are willing to put our reputation on the line and give him one last shot." Sakura reached over the desk, taking his hand. "Not everyone gets it together immediately. All of us are just works in progress."

He knew she wasn't just talking about Sasuke, but also Kakashi's own issues as a person. As much as he'd like to point out that as messed up as he was, he'd never abandoned his village, he had to admit that he saw her point. Uchiha Sasuke was lucky he had her on his side. "You and Naruto will take responsibility for him. For the first year, he never leaves the house without either one of you as an escort. At the end of that first year, we'll see what the situation is and discuss his future."

Surprisingly, Sasuke didn't argue for himself about the impositions placed on him when Kakashi repeated these restrictions later with all of them gathered. And so it came to be that the last heir of the Uchiha had returned at last.

#

The clock on the wall read 7 PM.

Kakashi glanced over at his assistant who was reading through files at her desk. "Don't you have places to be?"

One month had passed since Sasuke's return. There were dark circles beneath Sakura's eyes as she looked up from her work. "Oh, is it so late already? I had no idea."

"Would you like to come over for dinner?" he asked.

"I'd love that. Thanks." Her smile alone was worth falling into a small panic about which recipes to fall back on in his limited knowledge of cuisine. He could cook, but as a man of limited tastes, he didn't mind eating the same thing everyday. Meanwhile, he found himself wanting to impress his girlfriend at least a little bit. Grilled fish and rice just seemed so boring when he considered offering it to her.

He was an adult. He was the Hokage. He could think of something.

"Yum, curry!" she said as he laid her plate in front of her. She leaned in, inhaling the steam rising out of the food.

"Eat up," he said, smiling. In the safety of his rooms, although they were the ones provided to him as Hokage, he felt safe enough to pull down his mask to press a kiss on her cheek.

Pakkun looked up from where he and the other summons were gorging themselves on kibble and sniffed the air. "Since when did you learn how to make curry?"

"I've always known how to cook curry." Kakashi stirred the vegetables and chunks of meat in the sauce, hoping nothing had been undercooked.

"I think this is the first time I've ever smelled—"

"Ah, who wants a treat?" Kakashi stood, going over to the blue ceramic jar full of dog biscuits. The summons, who at this point had long finished gobbling down their food, perked up immediately. They gathered around him eagerly. He tossed each one directly into their mouths, to ensure that there'd be no fighting later on about who got more treats than the other.

When Kakashi returned to the table, Sakura teased, "You spoil them."

"I saw you sneak them more than few treats before their dinner, so who's spoiling them now?"

"Pakkun just seemed deprived. He's very sneaky, you know."

"You're telling me." Kakashi chuckled. He ate his first spoonful of curry and found it adequate. "Once, I put them on a diet, but none of them were losing weight. I come back home early one day and discovered that Pakkun here has discovered where I kept the kibble and picked the lock."

"We'll find it again someday, you know. There's only so many places you can hide stuff around here," Pakkun said, licking the last crumbs of biscuit from his lips.

"At least it'll keep Kakashi sharp. He's been getting soft ever since he became Hokage." Sakura nodded.

"Excuse me, I am as sharp as ever."

Pakkun padded over, tilting his head. "You say that but is that a bit of pudge I see?"

Kakashi patted his stomach self-consciously. "It's just the way I'm sitting. My abs are still washboard, thank you very much."

"Oh are they?" Sakura waggled her brows.

"All across Fire country, they talk about how shredded your Hokage is—be proud."

Sakura choked on the glass of water she was sipping. When her coughs turned into full out laughter, he couldn't stop himself from laughing too. Being Hokage was the most difficult job he'd ever had, but it was worth it for evenings like this. Where they commiserated over paperwork and shared juicy bits of gossip they'd picked up during the day.

"So Yui and Kayo finally hooked up!" Sakura clapped in glee.

"I'm pretty sure they did that because they were scared you were going to lock them in a room together overnight," Kakashi said.

She avoided his eyes. The spoon heading to his mouth stopped midair as he fixed her with a stare. "Sakura."

"Hm?"

"Did you lock them in a room together overnight?"

"No!"

"Oh, good."

"It just so happened they had a lot of work to do and I arranged for them to be the only ones in the office for the evening." She lifted her shoulders in an exaggerated display of innocence. "And it happened more than once."

"Their future children thank you."

"I like to think of it like I'm a fairy godmother of match-ups." She scraped the last of her food off her plate.

They did the dishes together—he washed, she dried. When she mentioned he should think about getting a dishwasher, he shrugged it off with some excuse about not having enough dishes to justify it. However the real reason may have been that he enjoyed the little ritual they'd created after dinner and the extra time spent standing close in the small kitchen where her scent seemed to wrap around him.

He noticed Sakura staring off into space in thought and asked, "What's on your mind?"

"Sasuke has been…pursuing me." She took a plate he'd just cleaned out of his hand and began wiping it down. "He still thinks I'm interested in him like that."

"Ah. I suppose the whole, 'He doesn't leave the house without you or Naruto as an escort' deal doesn't help."

"It's not ideal," she replied. "And I'm not ready to tell him that I've been seeing you for a few months now."

Kakashi allowed himself a brief, shiny fantasy where he held Sakura's hand in public, announcing to the world that she was off the market. Possibly for good. He sighed. How many months before retirement again? So much reconstruction still to get done still, but Naruto could pick up where he'd left off. Kakashi had actually meant to retired some time ago, but he'd unintentionally extended his tenure by tying his successor's time up as an overgrown babysitter. "I trust you'll figure this out."

"Thanks. I know it might be weird for you."

He tapped her nose with a bubble covered finger, making her squeal. "You don't have to worry about me."

#

Kakashi woke up alone in his bed, patting the spot Sakura once occupied before realizing she had already gone to work. He pressed his cheek into the pillow she'd used as he reached for the note left for him on the night stand. He read it after he stretched out his sore muscles with a satisfied hum.

Had an early shift at the hospital. Don't be late for your 10 AM meeting! I'll see you in the afternoon.

Kisses,

Sakura

His attention caught on a pair of lacy panties left deliberately on the floor and a grin formed on his lips. Sakura had cleaned up all of the clothes they'd torn off each other except those. He was eagerly looking forward to an encore tonight.

The digital numbers of his clock read 9:34 AM and he surmised he would be acceptably late if he took a shower and fed the dogs first. He thought it might shock his staff into an early death if he showed up on time, so he mercifully decided to spare them by staying true to his habits.

The meeting was mercifully short and he managed to get ahead of a lot of his work when he decided he could reward himself by visiting Sakura at the hospital. He turned the corner in the hallway, thinking of excuses lame enough to make her laugh when he noticed Sasuke's energy signature. His suspicions were confirmed as he approached Sakura's closed office door when he heard the sounds of their conversation.

"—not there when I stopped by last night with Naruto," Sasuke said.

"I was out with some friends."

Kakashi immediately pivoted and began walking back the way he'd come. It wasn't his place to eavesdrop, as much as he'd like that. He ran into Naruto studying the offerings of a vending machine.

"Sensei! Good timing. You owe me at least a hundred ryo by this point. 128 if you want to be exact." Naruto stuck out his hand, palm up.

Kakashi sighed, pulling out a small money pouch. He paused. "Did you know that Sasuke is still interested in Sakura?"

"Huh? Oh. Yea, I guess. I think Sasuke was surprised Sakura had moved on, but he thinks he can convince her again." Naruto peered into the slight opening in the pouch in curiosity. "But she's seeing somebody."

Kakashi almost flinched. "Oh?" Even to his own ears, his voice sounded strained despite his efforts to keep it casually interested.

"We came by really late last night because I didn't feel like going to the emergency room—"

"That's stupid."

"—but she wasn't there! And it wasn't like she had hospital shift because we checked."

"She could have slept over a friend's place."

"Nah, Sakura hates not sleeping in her own bed. Even if she drinks and falls asleep somewhere, she'll wake up and walk home in the middle of the night." Naruto rubbed his chin. "I wonder who it could be?"

"Who indeed?" Kakashi pretended to think.

"Well, whoever the bastard is, I feel bad for him."

"Why?"

"Well, it's tough to compete with first love. You remember what she was like."

Kakashi frowned. Memories of the old days played in his mind. Sakura's obsession with Sasuke had been on the strong side, to put it gently. "People change. First love is a load of crap, anyway."

"Hey, don't knock first love. Hinata is my first love and I'm going to ask her to marry me."

"How does your first love feel about you spending about half your time with your long lost best male friend?" Kakashi surrendered a few coins which Naruto used to purchase a neon colored drink with enough sugar to kill a horse.

"She's very underst—" Naruto cut himself off as Sakura came around the corner. Her eyes widened at the sight of them. "Is something wrong?"

Sakura smiled weakly. The edges of her lipstick were just slightly smeared around. "N-no. Kakashi, I'm going to grab something to eat—do you want to come?"

"I could use something to eat too—Ichiraku?" Naruto crushed the now empty can of soda.

"Actually, Sasuke said he needs to run an errand so you need to go with him. I can't go because I need to finish my shift after I come back," she said.

"Okay, but make sure Kakashi-sensei pays. Make. Sure." Naruto clapped his hands on her shoulders, his blue eyes going large in emphasis. She laughed softly and nodded.

As Sakura and Kakashi walked out of the hospital, he lightly commented, "If there's one thing I've learned at my age: never owe Naruto money. The amount never seems to go down. He's as bad as a loan shark."

"Maybe if you stopped sticking him with the bill?"

"If you're not going to be helpful, then I don't want to hear it."

She nudged him gently, her lips quirked. He tucked a loose piece of hair behind her ear, feeling the urge to lean down and kiss her, but they were surrounded by people. He turned his head because of that strange intuition where you knows you're being watched. He spotted Sasuke standing at the window from the third floor, focusing on them intently, face drawn into a frown.

#

They chose a small café near the hospital. It was a favorite of Sakura's, with deeply green ivy running up its walls and a worn sign hanging above its door that read, "Sweet Home." They ordered their food and sat at a table in the empty patio area.

Sakura folded the paper napkin in front of her smaller and smaller. "I have to tell you something."

"I'm listening."

"Sasuke kissed me."

Kakashi called upon all of the carefully cultivated calm he'd learned over the years and it still wasn't enough. He pick up his own napkin and began tearing it to pieces as he spoke, "Can I kill him?"

"I slapped him, if that helps."

"Only if you also threw him into a wall."

"The hospital can't afford that."

"I will increase the hospital budget explicitly for this purpose."

"Political corruption at its finest…" Sakura laughed, but it trailed off. She stared at her hands. "I told him that I'm in a relationship with you."

"I hope he finally got a clue then." That at least confirmed Kakashi's suspicions about whether Sasuke had realized the truth back at the hospital.

"He thinks you're using me." Sakura paused as the server brought the food they'd ordered. Soup for her and a salad with chicken for him. When he made his choice earlier, he was most definitely not thinking about the comment about him going 'soft' since his promotion.

"Excuse me?" He stabbed his fork into the pile of leaves that were supposedly good for him. He harbored a private conspiracy theory concerning lettuce farmers controlling the government that really had no basis since he, as the Hokage, was basically the government. He'd yet to have shadowy meetings with the Lettuce Council, although he was waiting for it any day now. He pulled down his mask to eat. Contrary to popular belief, he did eat in public.

"Because we haven't told anyone. He thinks you're forcing me to keep it a secret and—oh I don't know." She rubbed her face, her voice tired. "I tried to tell him he had the wrong idea, but he wouldn't listen. I'm sorry. If I'd just kept it together—"

"What he decides to believe is not on you."

"I just can't help but feel like this is my fault."

"And I can't help but feel you're wrong." Silently, Kakashi counted the time left before his term came to an end, calculating down to the second. The math was perfect, but he kept redoing it, hoping for a shorter outcome.

She didn't answer, unfolding the napkin, revealing a complex webbed pattern imprinted on its surface.

"Hey." He rested his fork on his plate.

"Hm?"

"You know what I've been dying to do since my eyes went back to normal?"

Her brows rose when he told her.

#

"This machine is rigged," she stated flatly.

"Sakura, you know as shinobi we are banned from almost every arcade game out there. If it's rigged, then you know it's fair for us." Kakashi said all of this without looking at her, staring hard at the purple bunny she'd picked out among the other toys crammed into their glass prison. "Depth perception is amazing."

"You're going too far!" She pressed her nose to the glass, watching the metal claw swing back and forth.

"Almost. Almost." The claw descended on the bunny, latching successfully onto an ear. Kakashi drew back his hands, curling them in triumph. To his horror, the claw drew the toy briefly into the air before it slipped back into the pile. They fell silent, listening to the faintly irritating tinkle of cheerful music as the claw moved across its tracking and dropped nothing into the opening.

"Well, that was pointless." Sakura straightened. When she noticed his pout, even behind his mask, she squeezed his hand. "But it was fun. I have to go back to the hospital. I'll see you in a bit?"

"Okay. Love you." He touched the glass of the claw machine in mourning. Damn, he thought he'd be really good at this for some reason. He was good at everything else.

She stopped in her tracks. Then, she glanced around before pressing a quick peck on his cheek. "Love you too."

It was only after Kakashi stared at the accursed purple bunny made of plush for a few minutes after she left that he realized what he'd done. That was the first time they'd ever said that to each other and he'd barely registered it. He was happy, but this wasn't what he'd planned. Why did the universe not listen to his plans? He glared at the bunny. "This is your fault."

He was able to avoid working for almost another hour before one of his staff tracked him down and dragged him back to the Tower. Sakura had trained them well.

It came time for Sakura to finish her shift and come into the office, but there was no sign of her. Kakashi drummed his pen against his desk, watching the door for any signs of pink hair.

"How strange. Sakura is never late," Yahiko commented as he came in to drop off a bunch of files.

"Something probably came up at the hospital," Kakashi said.

"I actually saw her leave the hospital a while ago."

Kakashi finished the rest of the conversation in automatic, single syllable answers until Yahiko left. He stared at his desk without having much to distract him there except the reminder that he needed to bounce ideas with Sakura for some of his decisions. Sakura's desk sat to his right, kitschy photo frames and other knickknacks decorating it. He went over to it, picking up the old photo of Team Seven, a moment captured forever before everything went to shit. Now, things were better, much, much better. He'd worked hard to it that way. Heaven help him, was it too late to banish Sasuke forever?

He set the frame back down among the others of smiling family and friends. He wasn't inclined to keep personal items on his own area, but he wouldn't mind one of him and Sakura together.

"I'm sorry I'm late," Sakura said, coming through the door. "I got tied up with something."

"No worries. However, many filing cabinets did spontaneously combust in your absence."

"Oh, so everything was normal."

"Yep." He took her by the wrist and dragged her into an embrace.

She blushed, murmuring against his chest, "Didn't we say no PDA in the office?"

"This is a termination hug."

"Excuse me?" She pulled back, narrowing her eyes. "Are you breaking up with me?"

"As my assistant, yes. I decided I can't wait until retirement."

"Oh," she said, stepping close again. She wound her arms around his middle. "Does this have anything to do with Sasuke?"

"Who's that again?" Kakashi feigned being deep in thought. "Ah. Him. He didn't even cross my mind."

Sakura raised a brow, telling him she wasn't buying it.

"Well, now he can't say anything about us keeping our relationship a secret," he added.

"You're going to fall apart without me." She smirked, backing him up until his backside hit the edge of his desk. Papers shifted on impact.

"Will not," he lied.

"Will too," she whispered against his jaw. He shivered at the light touch of her breath against his skin. She drew back suddenly, leaving him cold. "So, termination not accepted."

"That's not how employment works."

"Sorry, I have to go to the basement for some files."

"Still fired."

"You're cute," she said over her shoulder as she left the room.

#

Somehow, after being fired, Sakura became even more of a slave driver than before. He lost track of all the papers he'd signed and the decrees made on his behalf, not to mention the additional research he was forced to do to brush up on existing laws of Konoha and foreign villages. Exhausted, he fell asleep at his desk, only waking when Sakura gently touched his shoulder.

"No more. Please," he mumbled, covering his head.

"Do you want to head to the udon cart for dinner?"

"I lost all my money at the claw machine," he said, sniffing.

"I'll pay." She sighed, encouraging him onto his feet.

They left the lobby of the Tower, stepping into the fading light of the setting sun. Kakashi stretched, relishing the rise in temperature after spending hours in his chilly office, popping his stiff joints as he did. He stopped after a few feet. Casually, without turning around, he addressed the shinobi leaning up against the wall next to

the entrance. "Breaking rules already, Sasuke?"

"That's where you're wrong. I have two escorts right here, Hokage-sama." Sasuke uncrossed his arms as he came up to them. "Naruto dropped me off earlier, so I didn't walk here alone."

"How long have you been waiting?" Sakura asked, frowning.

"I just felt that we should finish our conversation from earlier with all relevant parties present," Sasuke said.

"And I made it very clear earlier that there was nothing more to talk about," she replied. Her eyes flashed dangerously. It was one of the signs that she was about to fly into a rage.

"Kakashi." Sasuke ignored her. "I was made aware of what was going on."

"Yes, and?" Kakashi glanced over at Sakura, whose lips were pressed together as she simmered in upset silence. He began weighing his options. So far, he'd trusted her to handle this situation, knowing in his gut that anything he did might be the wrong move. However, directly confronted like this, he wasn't sure if he could stop himself from saying his piece.

"You know how she can be. I…I admit I've made mistakes in the past that hurt her. That's why I want to know for certain this time that her heart won't be broken," Sasuke said.

Kakashi felt his soul almost escape out of his mouth. This. Was. Rich. "As much as I'd like to promise you the world, Sasuke, that's something I can't do, because it's really not up to me. Now, if you'd like, I can walk you home or you can come sit with us awkwardly and be a third wheel."

Sasuke, unsurprisingly, chose to go home. He seemed to finally notice how far he'd pushed the kunoichi these past few days. Sakura went to run some errands until Kakashi came back, deciding to meet up at the udon cart later.

The streets near the Uchiha compound, once solely filled with shops run by the clan, were slowly being reoccupied by villagers from other families. Kakashi caught Sasuke lingering in front of a store that was in the process of covering the sign, coating over the red and white fan that symbolized the Uchiha.

"I don't know what I expected when I came back," Sasuke said.

"Well, all things considered, I think it turned out all right for you. It could have been worse."

"There are just so many changes. It's stupid of me to be surprised by that—I've been gone for a long time, but I just thought…" Sasuke trailed off the sight of children running by with their dog caught his attention. "I'm actually glad new families have started living here. This area was so deserted before. It was terrible walking home when I was younger."

Kakashi felt a stab of pity imagining the younger Sasuke heading back after team practices to a part of the village emptied of life, constantly reminded of the betrayal, unable to forget the past. Yet, Sasuke had never brought this up before. "You've gotten chattier since you left and came back."

"There's a lot to catch up on," Sasuke spoke slowly, considering everything that came out of his mouth. "You're Hokage now, and Naruto's obviously next, and Sakura—she's different too."

"This may come as a surprise to you, but people do change."

"Except me. I don't feel different at all. I put my entire life on hold to pursue a revenge that turned out nothing like I expected. Now I'm back here, but I'm still the same while everyone's moved on."

"I'm going to have to disagree with you there. You've changed plenty." Kakashi's arm shot out, neatly blocking a cloth pouch filled with powdered chalk aimed at Sasuke. The boy who threw it and his friends who had dared him ran away screaming. Sasuke shrugged without commenting on it. His despondent lack of reaction was worrying. He knew the prank had been coming, obviously because it was a child's attack, and he had just been about to take it. It was only a little while ago that Sasuke had been primed and ready to fight on Sakura's behalf and with that taken away from him, he seemed deflated.

"When I heard Sakura also put her reputation on the line for me, I thought it meant she still had feelings for me." Sasuke picked up the pouch that had fallen on the ground. He untied it, dumping out the chalk in a cloud that coated his fingers in pale dust. "How do you think I've changed? I just assumed that of her because that's how I've always thought of her."

"You didn't used to ask these questions."

"Are you saying I should shut up?" Sasuke shot him an annoyed looked.

"You're free to interpret as you will." Kakashi stopped in front of the gates of the Uchiha compound. The wood had been recently been repainted and lacquered, the acrid smell still lingering in the air, the only place in the area where the Uchiha fan was fresh and new. "One last question."

Sasuke opened the gate, but waited at the threshold. Kakashi couldn't believe he was about to ask this. In any other circumstance, he wouldn't give a damn about who Sasuke was interested in, but here, if it concerned her, he needed to know. "Do you love Sakura?"

Sasuke stood there in silence for so long that for a moment it was unclear whether he heard the question. Finally, he sighed. "It's complicated. More than anything, I wanted to make up for my treatment of her in the past." His gaze dropped. "I was thinking of that when I pushed her about her relationship with you."

That wasn't an answer, but Kakashi nodded. "All right. I'll see you later." He was about to walk away when he added, "And remember: step outside of the compound without an escort and I'll throw you in prison."

It was always good to remind people you had the power to throw them in prison.

As the gate was about to shut completely, Kakashi could have sworn he heard Sasuke muttering under his breath, "What does she see in you?"

#

Note: I began writing this with every intention of having a super messed up scene and a lot of angst, but I am incapable of that. It ended up being so cute and fluffy I wanted to get myself checked for cavities. Please leave a review if you enjoyed it!