Disclaimer: Not mine

Chapter 3

Kakashi watched Iruka as he slept, he was getting more worried about him as time passed. He wasn't healing as well as he should and that morning he had developed a hacking cough that was not good for his ribs. If that didn't clear up fast he would have to risk moving him and making a run for Konoha. Iruka shifted in his sleep and groaned in pain so he got up and moved to sit beside him, gently pulling the younger man up so he was reclined against him, making his breathing easier. This close he was surrounded by the sensei's scent and he could very faintly make out the scent of snakes. Obviously something he inherited from his father but so faint that not even the Inuzuka could smell it. Stronger than that was the smell of fresh grass, chalk and lilies. The chalk scent must have come from spending so much time in the classroom. At least he smelt more of a forest and not prey. He shifted is grip as Iruka began coughing again until he suddenly spit something out and slumped in Kakashi's hold, breathing actually a bit easier. Kakashi looked down and grimaced at the clot of blood on the floor, that explained the cough, his lungs had been trying to expel the foreign substance.

Iruka winced as sunlight hit his eyes, leaning heavily on Kakashi as they moved slowly out of the cave. His ribs were stable enough now for this much movement thankfully and as long as he kept weight off his broken leg it didn't hurt too much. In a way the scariest injury was his hands, would they heal well enough for him to make hand signs again or was his career over? He wouldn't even be able to teach anymore without that ability. He could probably keep working the missions' room but that was about it.

Kakashi kept a firm grip on him, taking most of his weight, as they slowly moved around the clearing. Iruka had to get moving again in order for his muscles to stay strong and limber but he knew the pain of the broken bones must be agonising and yet the teacher didn't make a sound. "Want a break?" He offered.

"I'm fine." Iruka argued.

"Don't push it sensei, you don't want to set back your recovery." He warned and Iruka sighed but nodded and Kakashi carefully lowered him to the ground.

"Why were you sent?"

"Pardon?" Kakashi asked in confusion.

"Why were you sent to find me? Surely Hokage-sama didn't think someone of your calibre was needed."

"I don't know. I was in between missions so it could just be that. After all better to send a jounin when one chuunin is already missing. Sending more could just lead to more vanishing if you had come up against an opponent too strong for you." He offered and Iruka nodded slowly, maybe that was it or maybe Kakashi had been sent to kill him if he had gone rogue or had been captured for information. He didn't know that Kakashi was wondering the same thing. "What was your original mission?"

"Simple escort mission of a civilian. He had come to Konoha for a wedding and wanted an escort home. Since the Academy isn't in session at the moment I'm on the roster. Should have been a simple C-rank, nothing but possible bandits looking to rob travellers. Escort went off without a problem. I was on my way back to Konoha when I was ambushed. I fought back but against S-ranked ninja….Don't know how long they had be. They kept asking about Naruto, where he is, who's with him, that sort of thing. And they took great pleasure in continually telling me someone had sold me out and given them my location. I didn't tell them anything."

"I know. You would never betray Naruto by talking to Akatsuki." Kakashi agreed and Iruka smiled slightly. "Any idea who could have told them?"

Iruka shrugged slightly and then winced at the movement. "C-ranks aren't classified so there's no way to know, pretty much anyone could have seen it."

"Who knows of your parentage and who assigned you to the mission?" Kakashi pushed, if someone was trying to get Iruka killed they needed to know.

"A couple of medics, Hokage-sama, the Sandaimes' old advisers, some Council members, Anko…that's all I know of. As for the mission, the scroll was just handed to the next in line for a C-rank."

Well that list was not comforting. Either someone else knew or this went pretty high up the chain. It wasn't just getting Iruka captured, it was also putting Naruto in danger if they had managed to extract any information from Iruka. Considering what would happen if Akatsuki got their hands on the kid that was definitely not good. The only ones he could rule out of Iruka's list were the Hokage and Anko. He knew there were many on the Council who would be quite happy if Naruto never came back to Konoha. This made finding the traitor hard and also meant that returning to the village may be dangerous for Iruka, he'd been sold out once after all. "Did anything change after the invasion?" He asked and Iruka frowned, thinking back.

"I went on a lot of missions but everyone did to show the other villages we were still strong. Um…we had observers in to watch once classes resumed but they were only there for a few days. I didn't pull as many mission room shifts because of all that. Then I was busy helping Tsunade-sama adjust to her new role. Then there was Sasuke's defection and I was again doing a lot of missions around teaching which was pretty exhausting. But things have been quiet for the last….two months." Iruka answered.

All of that could be totally innocent or add up to someone trying to get the sensei killed outside the village so as not to take the blame. The question was which was it?

Kakashi suddenly froze and scented the air, Iruka watching in concern. Did he just growl? Iruka glanced at Pakkun who was just as tense and had moved closer to him. He closed his eyes and focused, searching for a threat. There was nothing…..no, there! "Two approaching from the east." He breathed as quietly as possible but Kakashi heard and nodded. "It's…it's them." He choked, recognising their chakra signatures. Pakkun pressed against his leg to reassure him. And that was definitely a snarl coming from where Kakashi was crouched. Iruka grabbed a kunai but he knew he would be worthless in a fight right now, he still couldn't walk without help so how could he fight? How were they still alive? There was no way Kakashi had left them alive to follow them.

"Easy sensei." Pakkun whispered. This was not good, he had seen the pup kill them so how could they be here? And at the first sign of threat Kakashi's hold on his instincts had begun to slip. He moved from the sensei's side to his summoners, nudging him with his nose until a grey eyes focused on him. He could see the gold flecks though as well as slightly too sharp nails. "Come on kid, snap out of it. We gotta move." He growled. This was not a good spot for a battle, especially with the sensei so injured. They had no choice but to try and make it to Konoha or at least a patrol for backup. Kakashi stared at him blankly for a bit before nodding curtly and moving to Iruka's side. He scooped the chuunin up who immediately shifted his weight into the best position to put as little stress on his ribs and poor Kakashi as possible. Gloved hands flashed through seals and then Iruka was forced to close his eyes as the cave seemed to explode around them. When he dared to open them again they were among the branches, Kakashi running at full speed with the whole pack around them. All Iruka could do was hold on and pray.

TBC….