Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine. Be glad.
Summary: Sasuke wants answers. Kakashi doesn't give them.
Author's Notes: Kakashi/Sasuke.
Reflection
By: Hana J.
There were still faint bruises, shaped like pinholes, on Sasuke's neck. Kakashi paused, for the beat of a second, and then took out his book. He flipped it open to the thirty-first page and sat down on his bed, ignoring the pupil who had the audacity to come into his home unannounced. Sasuke shifted on his feet, a sign of nervousness, and Kakashi was distinctly reminded that Sasuke was not a ninja. Not even a remarkable student.
"Kakashi-sensei," Sasuke murmured. His voice was deep and low for a boy of only twelve. Kakashi remembered his own voice being higher and smoother at Sasuke's age. Obito's voice had resembled Naruto's, loud and boisterous but scratchier.
"Hmm," he replied, lifting his book higher to block Sasuke from view. He heard the boy shift irritably at being ignored. He moved his book just before Sasuke could snatch it away and caught Sasuke's pale, slender wrist in his hand.
"Manners, Sasuke-kun," Kakashi said.
"Your eye," Sasuke stated, ignoring Kakashi's implication. "Why do you have the Sharingan?"
Kakashi leaned back carelessly on the bed, pulling Sasuke closer by his left hand. Sasuke bumped into his knees and jerked free of Kakashi's grip.
"Answer me," Sasuke snarled. He was about as effective as a pup. Pakkun would have been disappointed and annoyed at the comparison.
Kakashi raised his hand, as if to ward off Sasuke's displeasure. "A friend gave it to me," he said finally, watching as Sasuke's mouth opened and then snapped shut.
"Show it to me," Sasuke whispered. His voice was tight and his throat bobbed with the suggestion.
Kakashi's one eye crinkled up to superimpose the image of careless happiness, but he was not smiling beneath his mask. "Ah, but you've already seen it, Sasuke-kun. Forgotten what it looks like all ready?" Kakashi nodded toward his sparse bathroom that was only a few feet away. "Go look in the mirror then," he suggested.
Sasuke's hands fisted tight at his side. Kakashi didn't tense when Sasuke moved, deliberately, into his personal space. It was unsettling, but not unexpected. Sasuke's eyes were dark and Kakashi could feel Sasuke's breath fanning against his mask.
"I want to see yours," Sasuke insisted.
Kakashi leaned forward and felt something hot twist in his gut when Sasuke didn't take a step back. "Your eyes," he remarked casually, "and my one eye, are not that special."
Sasuke's eyes widened and then narrowed, and for a second, Kakashi thought his student might hit him for that remark. But Sasuke's fist curled into a small ball that released in a shudder of five fingers spreading wide against the black material of Sasuke's shorts.
"The Uchiha blood--" Sasuke began.
"—is superior," Kakashi ended. "But don't let it become a handicap, either."
Kakashi stood up and felt Sasuke's hand brush his thigh. He stuck his book into his back pocket and stepped to the side, avoiding Sasuke's fingers.
Kakashi was surprised by Sasuke's voice.
"Do my eyes remind you of your friend?"
Kakashi stilled and then smiled, turning to wink at Sasuke who was still staring at him with half-closed eyes that were darker than Obito's had ever been.
"Nope," he answered. "You two are nothing alike."
The answer was enough for Sasuke. Kakashi held open the door, and Sasuke walked past the threshold without a word. Kakashi held the door open a little longer than necessary, watching Sasuke's black outfit slide into the shadows and disappear down the street.