Chapter II
In Which: Kakashi Has Doubts

A warm summer breeze drifted in through the open window of the Hokage's office. The sun was low in the sky, casting a golden glow over the streets and homes of Konoha. Rooftops painted in the colors of fallen leaves twisted up and around, entangled among a web of pipes and alleyways. Here, far from the battlefront, the illusion of peace remained.

Kakashi was trying not to look as skeptical as he felt.

"Um, Lord Hokage," he said carefully. "I'm not trying to be rude, but this all seems a little unlikely."

The Hokage took a sip of tea. "Really?"

Is this some kind of test? Is he trying to see if I'll obey ridiculous orders, or if I'll question information that's clearly false? What's the right answer here?

"Sir. You're telling me that there's another world. And no one except you knows about it. And that the other world uses, um, magic?"

"That is precisely what I just finished telling you, yes."

"And that in this other world with magic, there is a quirky gentleman named Dumbledore who runs a school for children with magic."

"Quite."

"And in the magic world with the magic school for magic children, there is a magic rock which may be targeted by enemy magicians who also want to kill a magic boy who destroyed their evil magical overlord. With magic."

The Hokage smiled. "One would assume so, yes."

"So, my mission is to go to this magic school for magic children in the magic world, and protect the magic rock and the magic boy from the enemy magicians while pretending to be magic myself."

"Precisely."

"Sir, I don't get the joke."

"I'm afraid this is not a joke, Kakashi." The Third laid down his cup of tea and instead reached for a pipe, twirling it meditatively between his fingers. "You know we're at war. Our shinobi are strong, but our financial straits are dire. I, as your Hokage, am telling you that this is a vitally important mission that will substantially aid the village."

"So, um. Magic is real?"

"Yes."

Kakashi tried fruitlessly to wrap his mind around that concept. It didn't work very well. He felt the beginnings of a headache coming on.

"So when you say 'magic'…"

The Hokage sighed. "I myself have never been able to understand the exact mechanics. It seems irrational to me- the waving of a stick of wood, mixing ingredients in a pot, gazing at the stars- and yet I have seen the results for myself. The client is an old... friend of mine, and yet he claims that it cannot be explained, but only felt."

Of course, Kakashi thought glumly. Why not.

"If it makes you feel any better, the wizards seem to understand even less about ninjutsu than we about magic."

That did help a little. "But if I'm supposed to pretend to be a student, won't I have to do, um," he stumbled, but forced himself to say it. "Magic?"

"The Headmaster- the client, that is- thinks there is a slight possibility you may be able to wield a wand."

Kakashi choked. "Come again?"

"You're a child. Your celestial energy is less… molded, shall we say, than that of an adult. You may be able to learn to use that energy in the same manner a wizard would. If not- and I certainly have my doubts- there are other options."

"But if you think that there's even the smallest chance-"

"-then why haven't I brought this weapon, or its wielders, into Konoha?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Unlike the Headmaster," the Hokage said grimly. "I am aware of the dangers of bringing such a weapon into this world. With a wand, a person could strike a fatal blow at a distance with only a thought. In their world, the people are soft. They are not trained for war. It is but one in a thousand that has the temperament to make a wand into an instrument of murder. Here- we are ninja. The intent to kill is part of all of us."

"But if it could win the war-"

"And what then?"

It seemed obvious. Konoha would have the power to crush its enemies. Knowing that, the other villages would think twice before starting a war.

"It would serve only escalate the bloodshed." The Hokage was stern. "Think instead of Hashirama Senju. He knew that equality was peace. He gave the bijuu to the other nations as a promise of goodwill. Such an act kept peace for decades. All the same; wouldn't it be better if the bijuu were never made weapons at all?"

Objections rose in Kakashi's throat, but he forced them down. He knew better than to argue with the Hokage.

"Yes, sir," he said.

"Good. Now, with respect to the mission: when undercover with the students, you shall make no reference to the stone or your mission. Your backstory will be provided. When protecting the stone, you should disguise yourself."

"Sir, there's so much I don't know- I don't think-"

"You'll have a few weeks to learn about the wizarding world before the students arrive for the fall term. You will also have to become fluent in the common tongue of that land; English. Claiming to be from a foreign country should cover for most misunderstandings."

"Where?" Kakashi felt, suddenly, desperately, that he was in over his head.

"The client told me once that he found our language and culture to be most similar to a land in his world called Japan. Your cover is-" the Hokage glanced at a scroll in front of him- "That of an exchange student from a Japanese magical school. He has an interesting sense of humor."

Kakashi frowned and glanced at the scroll.

"He can't be serious," Kakashi said flatly. "'Konoha Academy of Magical Discipline?'"

"I think it will work nicely."

The boy resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Understood."

"Send regular reports. I'm sending you with a messenger hawk- they use owls for post in their world, so no one will be very surprised."

"Wait, what?"

"Send reports. Surely that isn't too much to ask?"

"That's not what I-" Kakashi stopped and took a breath. "I assumed I was going to be transported to this other world by some form of magic. Is that correct?"

"Yes. The Headmaster has found a way of altering a standard form of magical transportation to travel between worlds."

"Right, the sock. But if that's true, then how on earth is a messenger hawk supposed to travel between dimensions? And even if it could, why wouldn't I just use the portal to go back and report to you myself?"

"The portkey will only activate when touched by a creature with the intent to travel. However, transporting an entire human requires significant magical power. This is the best solution we've found to preserve the Headmaster's health."

That seemed awfully convenient, but he was too worn out to question it.

"Of course," he said instead. "And I only need to bring my gear?"

"Correct. Everything else will be provided for you by the client. The Deputy Headmistress, McGonagall, will return to escort you there at noon tomorrow."

Kakashi thought for a moment. "May I talk to Rin and Sensei before I leave?"

"Briefly; a quick farewell would be best. The rest of your time should be spent packing your tools and studying the language scrolls. It will be difficult to acquire replacements in the other world." The old man smiled, a hint of sympathy in his expression. "Are you overwhelmed?"

"Well, yes." he admitted. "This is definitely the strangest mission I've ever been on."

"If you succeed, you can consider yourself well on your way to becoming ANBU." The Third hesitated fractionally, and then said softly, "Your father would have been very proud of you."

He stiffened.

"But you have things to attend to. You're dismissed, Kakashi."

Glad for the excuse to leave, Kakashi ducked a nod. He hopped out the window and onto the sun-warmed tiles of the roof without looking back.

Meanwhile, the Hokage watched the young boy leap from rooftop to rooftop. The retreating form tugged at his heart. Kakashi was an adult, yes, mature and powerful as any shinobi. His hands, neatly clad in regulation gloves, were dripping, staining the ground with blood. An eleven-year-old shouldn't be on the Bingo Books of every powerful village on the continent. An eleven-year-old shouldn't have had to see his father and his best friend die before his eyes.

Kakashi shouldn't have bloodstained hands.

The old man sighed and dismissed the thought. Konoha was at war, and one way or another, more young hands would be smeared red before the end.

Kakashi slid open the door to his apartment, leaving his sandals by the door

With a weary sigh, he limped over and dropped his leather bag on the kitchen counter before heading to his bedroom to fetch his gear.

His apartment was small, fairly tidy, and sparsely decorated. There wouldn't be any sense in making it look like a home. In the past year, he had spent a total of two weeks actually living there. The rest of the time was spent on missions. There were three rooms- a kitchen, a tiny bedroom with an attached closet, and a bathroom. The walls were off-white and flaking with old paint, unadorned.

In fact, the only decorations in the house were the two pictures on his bedside table.

The first was of him, his father and mother. His mother was laughing, beautiful black hair cascading down over her shoulders, the slightest roundness of pregnancy showing through her dress. She was standing next to his father, who had his arm around her waist, his white hair tousled and unruly in the wind. His other arm was on Kakashi's shoulder. Kakashi himself, just three, leaned happily into the embrace.

The second was of Team Minato, maybe a year back. Rin smiled sweetly, hands on her knees, hair falling forward. Obito was grinning, a stick of dango poking from the corner of his mouth. He'd been running late for the photo shoot; his hair was disheveled. Kakashi, at that time just ten years old, was blank-faced. Minato-sensei was smiling in that way he did when his patience was wearing thin.

It hurt to look at them for too long.

Which was not what he was here to think about.

Chiding himself internally, he turned away from the bed and began to pack.

Kakashi laid out his armor on the kitchen table. Shinguards, armguards, sleeveless metal plate armor, mask, metal-backed gloves, headband, kunai holster, vest, and- Kakashi hesitated for a moment. Where had he put his summoning scrolls?

One upside of having a small apartment was that it wasn't difficult to find things. Kakashi rarely took the time to actually clean, so he ended up stuffing anything discarded on the ground into his closet.

Kakashi sighed and laid his sword on the chair before sliding open the door to his bedroom. Carefully avoiding the pictures on his bedside table, he used his left hand to open his crammed closet and stuck his head in. There was a pile of junk in there- shirts, unrolled bandages, muddy sandals, kunai, his lost shuriken holster, and one or two old scrolls. It only took a moment or two of prodding and scanning the pile of discarded materials before- aha! The scrolls! They were bundled together, just as he knew they would be after he tossed them in there when he returned last night from his mission to Sand.

He reached for them and hoisted the bag over his shoulder- they were surprisingly heavy- when something orange caught his eye.

Obito's goggles.

Kakashi swallowed.

Today of all days, the universe just had to mess with me.

Suppressing a sigh, he picked up the goggles with his free hand and headed back to the kitchen to finish sorting his gear.

He hadn't seen them in almost a year- not since the funeral service. Rin had left them by the memorial stone. He had brought them home, he remembered, because it was painful to see them rained on. After spending hours staring at them, replaying every moment of failure, he'd stuffed them in the closet. Some memories were too painful to think about.

The sensation of heat on his cheek surprised him. Kakashi touched his face and his fingertips came away wet with tears.

"Look what you've done, Obito," he grumbled. "You've turned me into a wimp like you."

It was his eye, not Obito's, that was crying this time.

Kakashi groaned, scrubbing his face dry with his sleeve.

"I do not have time for this, you moron," he muttered. "Don't you know I'm busy?"

Nevertheless, he slid the goggles into his bag and piled the scrolls atop them before he could think better of it. He didn't want to forget his first friend. The Lord Third might have confidence in him, but he still needed backup.

After he finished packing, he picked up his sword.

Kakashi knew better than to hope he'd be getting any sleep tonight. He'd have to go through the mission scrolls, but before that there was something else he had to attend to: he had to train. He had to get his mind on the present. He had to forget, at least for a while.

He began a kata, slashing through the air as his feet moved of their own accord.

"I'll miss you, Kakashi," Rin said quietly. "I would have liked to see you for a little longer, before-"

"Me too," he muttered.

Rin frowned and opened her mouth.

He shook his head. "Don't worry about me. Worry about yourself. If you get sent to the front lines, I want you to promise me that you'll keep your wits about you."

"Of course. Just who do you think you're talking to? Besides, I'm a medic. They won't send me to the front lines unless they don't have any other choice."

They were both silent for a moment, as they tried not to think about things getting that desperate.

Kakashi shook his head. "You know standard training is to take out the medic first. Please, Rin, be careful."

"You too- look at you, you're in full armor! You really think you're going to need all that?"

Kakashi knew he looked frightening. He wore a long-sleeved black shirt, bandaged at the wrists, and leather armor underneath. Over his clothes, he had strapped his razor-sharp sword and his vest. He wore both armguards and shinguards, and his metal-backed gloves. He had his kunai holster on his leg and two shuriken holsters on his sleeve. With equipment in as short supply as it was these days, he had to have been at least twice as armed as most other shinobi in the village.

He shrugged. "My pack was full. Wearing it is easier."

Rin wasn't convinced by the half-truth. "Don't treat me like a new recruit. I know better than that."

Kakashi hesitated, then nodded. "It might be dangerous."

She started to say something, and then stopped, and then began again, rummaging through her medic's bag. "I got something for you- I meant to give it to you on your birthday, but you were away on that mission to Lightning Country. It can be a going-away gift." She pulled a fisted hand out of her bag. "Hold out your hand."

He put out his hand, palm up, and upon it, she carefully placed a chain necklace with a small rectangular charm. A locket.

Kakashi flipped it open, and hid a wince.

Inside the locket were the same two pictures that lay on his bedside table; the first of the Hatake family as it should have been, the second of Team Minato as it once was. Kakashi was suddenly glad he'd meditated his pain away the night before, because he was able to rein in his emotions now, when it mattered. The shinobi in Kakashi beat back the lump that formed in his throat.

"Can you wear it? You mentioned you were going undercover, so it's okay if you can't-"

He snapped the locket shut with a sharp click, unclasped it, and, struggling for a moment, fixed it around his neck.

"Thanks," he muttered.

Kakashi turned to his sensei. Minato was smiling; he looked oddly proud.

"Good luck, Kakashi."

"Yeah," muttered the boy. "You too."

"I have faith in you."

He swallowed, and wondered if this was what it felt like to be praised by a parent.

"Don't forget what's important."

That snapped Kakashi back to the present. He nodded curtly.

"I know, sensei," he said. "I'll keep my eye on the prize. For our village."

With that, he formed a seal with one hand and vanished in a puff of smoke.

Kakashi arrived at the Hokage tower exactly two minutes before noon. The hallways were crowded in the building, and, seeing as he was running late already, he decided that he should take the quickest route to the rendezvous in the Hokage's office and enter through the window. So he ran up the wall using chakra suction, ignoring the midday heat, and quite literally rolled into the Hokage's office.

"I do have a door, you know." The Third didn't even look up from his papers as Kakashi knelt, before him.

"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir."

"Professor McGonagall will be here soon. Are you prepared?"

"As much as I'll ever be, sir."

"Fair enough."

And then there was a loud crack, just inches behind him. Kakashi spun around, yanking his sword from its sheath, only to find himself staring into the chest of an old woman in green robes.

And then his brain kicked in and informed him that this was most likely his escort.

With a sigh, he sheathed his blade and bowed curtly. "Good morning, Deputy Headmistress."

She pursed her lips. "The headmaster informed me that shinobi didn't speak English," she said with a frown. "We had prepared translation spells."

In truth, Kakashi had only figured out the basics from the instructional scrolls he'd been given and what little he'd overheard. But he didn't like this woman's flavor of condescension, and he didn't feel the need to tell her the limits of his ability.

"Kakashi is a skilled student," the Hokage interjected into the stony silence. "You will find he is very quick to adapt."

Neither Kakashi nor the witch had a suitable response to that.

The Hokage cleared his throat. "It's nearly noon. Are you both ready?"

Well, he didn't feel ready. But how would he ever be, for a mission like this? Kakashi tugged briefly on his headband. It was reassuringly familiar, and- as much as he didn't want to admit it- a little comforting.

"Yes, sir."

"Do we have any further business here?" inquired the witch.

"None. Kakashi knows what his mission is."

"Very well, then." The witch pulled a woolly red sock from her bag and held it out to the boy.

He took it with rather more trepidation than was strictly necessary.

"Good luck, Kakashi," said the Hokage.

And then a sudden, irresistible tug from the sock sent him spinning into oblivion.

Thanks to SilverFoxSage for betaing the rewritten chapter. Significant edits were made to this chapter. Minor continuity errors may arise. Watch out for plotholes.

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