Reliance
~insanity and co~
Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far. :) I really appreciate it. I've had a lot of fun writing this. Iruka never used to be my favorite character but I suppose he's grown on me!
Beta: No beta for this chapter yet. :) But if anyone has some serious criticism (even left via review instead of formally through PM's), that can change.
Enjoy, and please let me know what you think at the bottom! (We don't even have to click a review button, now. :))
Iruka kicked his sandals off and nudged them to the side, jiggling the door handle briefly to check that it was locked.
He quickly stepped into the kitchen, eying the fruit bowl as he took off the two pouches at his waist; he gave the last banana another day before it was too far gone. Iruka sighed heavily as he knelt down and grabbed the several kunai he hid at the hem of his pants, setting them down with a clink on the counter.
"Leftover's in the fridge," a cool voice called out from the living room and Iruka gave the kitchen a once-over. There was no giant pile of dishes...no pots and pans left scattered around the counters... Iruka's stomach was still flipping from the earlier argument and the battle going on in his own mind, and leftover takeout didn't sound as appetizing as it normally did. It didn't seem to settle when he recalled seeing Kakashi earlier in the Hokage's Office, either.
Iruka's cheeks burned red when he remembered everything he had said - and especially, who he had said it to! How had he not even noticed Kakashi until the very end of his little episode?
"Not hungry?" Kakashi's eyebrow was raised, head craned to watch Iruka from over the back of the couch. Iruka let out a - sadly - undignified snort when he saw the book cradled in the Copy Ninja's hands, feeling a tiny bit of tension leave his shoulders with the sudden laughter.
"No, not really." Iruka sighed, shrugging off his vest and tossing it over the back of the couch. He came around and sat next to Kakashi heavily, muscles visibly tense as he sat on the edge of the cushion.
Kakashi dog-eared the page he was on and sat the book down on his leg, arm stretched out over the back of the couch. He sighed when Iruka's gaze remained on his lap, giving the orange book a dirty look until Kakashi grudgingly set it on the coffee table and slid it to the edge, as far away from Iruka as possible. He relaxed back into the couch and his hand came to rest beside Iruka's on the cushion. He watched the muscles in Iruka's hand twitch as his fist tightened, pulling the tanned skin over his knuckles and paling it.
"That was quite the show you put on," Kakashi laughed, fingers stretching out to run over the back of Iruka's fist.
"Shut up," Iruka snapped, just the corner of his mouth turning up as he tried not to look so embarrassed. He had hoped that Kakashi wouldn't bring it up in the first place, now he just hoped that he would be able to live it down.
"No, really. You even surprised Hana, and she had been screaming at Tsunade like that before you got there." Iruka blushed despite his attempts not to. He hadn't even considered what kind of meeting he was interrupting...he just did it.
"I didn't interrupt anything important, did I?" Iruka asked, feeling more exhausted than ever when Kakashi grabbed his hand and flipped it over in his lap, having to pry his fingers open before running his own along the lines on his palm. The tan man felt a warm tingle fly up his arm and the muscles in his hand immediately relaxed. He had been so tense for so long, the feeling felt foreign and only a little uncomfortable.
He smiled despite himself. It had been a long time since the two were able to just sit. Not rush off to another mission. Not train. Not work on strategies so that they both could at least come home safe. Just...sit. Kakashi immediately noticed the tension leaving Iruka and his fingers left his palm and moved to the soft skin of his wrist, smiling as he felt the beating of Iruka's heart in his fingertips.
"Just some war strategies," Kakashi said offhandedly, smiling when Iruka shot him a mock-hurt look, unable to pull it off completely in his slowly-relaxing-state, so he compensated with smacking Kakashi's chest with his free hand. It was grabbed before Iruka could pull away and he was suddenly jerked forward.
The tension seemed to melt away from Iruka when Kakashi wrapped an arm around his shoulders, tucking Iruka's head under his chin and letting his fingers ghost up and down his forearm. Iruka stretched his legs out in front of him, letting the muscles cramp for just a moment before relaxing.
"About the mission? She came out and told me to accept it," Iruka's said, his voice muffled a bit in Kakashi's sweater but he couldn't bring himself to pull away so Kakashi could hear him clearer.
Kakashi hummed, watching the hair on Iruka's arm begin to stand up at the touches. "About Kiba and her own missions. But mostly her new team captain." Iruka just closed his eyes, not finding the energy to respond now that the tight muscles around his shoulders and neck began to relax. The two sat silently on the couch and Kakashi continued to run his fingers over Iruka's hand and arm, the warm breath on his neck making him feel more comfortable than he had been in a long time. Shivers ran through Iruka's entire body and he relaxed even further, eyes closing and enjoying their silence. When he stopped for a moment Iruka sleepily groaned and moved his own arm to gently scratch at Kakashi's shoulder, encouraging the man to continue.
"I don't want to take the mission," Iruka admitted quietly, and when Kakashi didn't respond he wondered if he had heard him at all or if he had fallen asleep. He moved to pull back again but a warm arm around his shoulders tensed and stopped him.
"You don't have to." Kakashi's response was simple, but just like with Daimou, Iruka was left feeling a little disappointed in the lack of direction he was given. He didn't advise Iruka against taking the mission - the stinging meaning behind his sleepy words saying that he agreed with the Hokage.
Iruka took a long, tired breath. "I know, but I should."
Kakashi didn't say anything after that, and just rested his chin on the top of Iruka's head, allowing themselves to just relax completely in each other's company and relish in the close contact that had become scarce since before the war had begun.
The morning dew was just melting from the grasses around Konoha by the time Iruka stepped into the Mission's Room at eight sharp. There were a few shinobi standing around, most having been told to be ready for another emergency and being too wired and tense to go back home and wait. Izumo sat at one of the few desks, chin in the palm of his hand and staring at a pile of paperwork as he, too, waited.
Iruka politely greeted a few of the other ninja, coming to sit at a spare chair beside Izumo.
"You'll have it rough." Coupled with a grin, it was Izumo's way of teasing him this morning as he took in the new uniform the mission required. When Iruka didn't respond, he continued. "I heard about that Inuzuka kid. You're going after the ninja who attacked him and his teammate, right?"
"Yeah." A low whistle followed Iruka's tired response.
"So why's the Hyuuga kid tagging along? Seem's a little young for this kind of thing. I thought there was a mistake when I read the mission," Izumo said, patting a scroll on his desk and with a flick of his wrist sent it rolling to Iruka. He grabbed it before it rolled off the edge of the desk and unraveled it enough to confirm it was their mission.
"There aren't any other Hyuuga's in the village, and the Hokage wants a Byuakugan on this one," Iruka said, feeling he couldn't bring as much enthusiasm to his voice as he normally could. Izumo either noticed this or realized there was no gossip in this story - either way, he dropped the topic and returned his chin to his hand, staring at the other shinobi in the room with tired eyes.
Iruka tucked the scroll into his thick gray vest, crossing his legs and feeling like just maybe there would be time for him to rush over and convince the Hokage to let him take someone else before Hanabi got to the office. The thought was tempting. If he caught her on a hangover, the sheer volume of his voice would do wonders for his side of the argument.
Before he could continue that thought any longer (or feel any more pleasure at screaming at a headache-ridden Tsunade in his head and causing her a great deal of pain), the door to the Mission's Room opened and Hanabi peaked her head in.
"Oh, you're here already." Iruka paled a bit at the obvious lack of enthusiasm. He hadn't expected her to be flying off the walls as Naruto would have done in her position, but something other than 'oh' would have been nice. Iruka stood and waved to Izumo, who flapped his wrist in a response.
"Hello, Hanabi. Are you ready?" There was a frown set on her face and her arms were crossed as she entered the Mission Room, eying the ninja around Iruka as she shut the door behind her. Before she could, however, it was kicked wide open and two more small children stormed into the room.
The shortest, a freckly redhead, threw her arms around Hanabi and squeaked something that sounded like 'stay safe'. Hanabi stood with her arms pinned to her side and wide, pale eyes seeking Iruka's help as she was squeezed a little too tightly. The girl slowly stepped back and gave Hanabi a watery smile, moving to stand beside the slightly chubby boy - the third member of their team.
He smiled shyly at Hanabi, and she looked relieved when he made no move to clamp onto her as the redhead did. Instead, he nervously ran his fingers through his wild brown hair and stared down at his feet, stealing glances at the youngest Hyuuga child when she wasn't looking.
"Come back in one piece, will you?" The boy gave a nervous laugh and Hanabi rolled her eyes, catching his gaze for just a moment before he was looking at his shoes once more.
"It's not that bad, guys. Stop worrying. And don't forget to keep training while I'm gone." The boy nodded but the girl brought her fists up to her mouth, looking as if she was tearing up, another squeal swelling up as she struggled to remain still.
Iruka grinned, hoping to comfort Hanabi and distract her teammates as he walked over and hooked his thumbs under the straps of his backpack.
"I'm afraid that's all the time we have for goodbyes. But don't worry, Ari, Taisuke," Iruka addressed Hanabi's teammates gently. "I'll get her back safely. Did you have any trouble with the uniform?" Hanabi looked incredulously up to Iruka at his question, taking in the appearance of his own new uniform. The light gray material was better suited to blend into the mountain ranges than their usual blue and green, and the thick material would be the difference between freezing and managing in the cold. At the moment, however, it seemed ridiculous. The material was too thick for easily maneuvering through the trees and thick forest.
It took some getting used to, Iruka thought, watching Hanabi shift the material over her shoulders.
"No," she said, head turning to the side and a frown pulling at her mouth.
Iruka grinned. She may be a natural fighter, but Iruka had picked up on her tells as quickly as he had with any other student.
"Okay then, let's go." Iruka decided sometime between wrestling Hanabi out of another one of Ari's bear hugs and when they entered the surrounding woods, that he wouldn't help Hanabi with her uniform until she asked. The moment they walked through the North Gates and took to the trees, Iruka noticed the almost jerky movements she made with every landing; her leg wrapping were too tight - the same mistake Iruka had made, himself, when he first donned the uniform.
Her mouth was set in a firm line and her pale eyes didn't deter from their path. She was a determined one, and it would be a wasted effort forcing the young Hyuuga to realize she needed help. Iruka had learned this lesson first with Neji, then had been foolish enough to think that Hanabi would be more like her timid sister, Hinata. He grinned as he lead them through the forest, remembering one of the many times he had been snapped at by the small girl beside him.
Iruka figured they would be on their way home before the sharp-tongued girl would dare to admit she needed his help.
That was fine by him, he decided, leaping through the trees with ease and pushing their pace just a little bit faster.
The trees were behind them now, leaving the scene before them empty and cold with gray stones casting sharp shadows across the flat stretch leading to the mountain range. The two stood side by side and while Iruka stretched his legs, Hanabi stood with her hands on her knees, still gasping for breath after the last stretch of running.
Iruka turned to look behind them at the lush forest. They were officially out of Fire Country now, the stone beneath their feet and the chilly wind making that crystal clear, but they were now behind schedule. While he had pushed their pace a little bit, they should be over the first mountain by now. But Iruka didn't mention that now, and instead turned his attention to his teammate.
The deep breaths next to him seemed to be slowing down as Hanabi stood straight again, sweat lining her forehead and pale eyes scanning the valley and mountain before them. In the distance, more mountains reached higher and higher. Iruka saw the apprehension pinching her mouth into a frown.
"Need another minute?" Iruka asked, trying his best to smile politely when her eyes darted over to him quickly. She seemed to take in his lack of exhaustion and scowled.
She had donned the same sour expression as when Iruka first met her at the Mission's Room, and it didn't seem to be fading any time soon.
"No, I'm fine." She was lying through her teeth but Iruka shrugged, letting Hanabi race ahead for a moment before following her to the mountains.
