Knights Errant® is an online role-playing experience set in the award-winning Kneed universe. Players assume the roles of Errant heroes as they explore, adventure, and quest across a vast world. Being "Massively Multiplayer," Knights Errant allows thousands of players to interact within the virtual world unlike any other. Whether adventuring together or fighting against each other in epic battles, players will form friendships, forge alliances, and compete with enemies for power and glory.


Arms and legs working like mad, the tarrasque charged forward towards the sounds it had heard. With his horns rearing on its head, it was eager to eat more than what it had already. More food to satiate its unending hunger.

"Iruka." Kakashi squeezed his hand and the bard looked over at him.

He wasn't as exhausted as before, Hinata had dumped a few spells into him to cut it down to one point instead of three. The health potions in his belly were more than helpful at bringing him up to half health but he was still afraid. He was trying not to let it show but this would be their final standoff and it was starting with him. As the magic user with the most experience, he was tasked with holding the monster in place while Aoba and Darui set up.

Nodding, Iruka watched Kakashi leave to join the others while Iruka stayed where he was only a few dozen feet away from the hole that the beast had awoken from. He felt unsettled having his back to it but not only was it the safest place to be, but this was where he was in charge of laying down his walls while Aoba and Darui were hidden off to his right and left, waiting for the right time to jump in.

By himself, watching the monster charge closer towards him, getting closer and closer. He felt so naked without any armour on. He didn't even have a cloak, but he had his spells. So, when the tarrasque was close enough for Iruka to see its scaly, grey hide and its beady eyes, he channelled the magic deep within him and waited only a few more seconds until it got within range. Flicking his wrist towards the charging beast, he muttered, "Hold Monster."

The tarrasque seemed to shrug off the effect of it and Iruka tried again, fear surging through him. Suddenly it froze mid-stride and the rest of his party stood, casting each their spells as invisible, shimmering walls appeared around it. It wasn't completely boxed in, only caged in by large panels of the spells so that it was caught. The kicker though was Darui's.

"Prismatic Wall!" The wizard cast quickly, and a multi-colored plane of light stretched up to box the tarrasque in. Darui then sprinted over to another side and cast the same spell Iruka had Aoba had. A loud shriek from inside its mouth rang through their ears but that didn't stop the giant eagle that was soaring up above the monster and its cage, the party on its back readying their attacks.

Iruka kept his concentration on the wall up and he saw Tsunade and Gai hurry into the box to slash at the monster's legs before dashing out, getting a few cheeky hits in. The others above sent arrows and daggers flying down onto the monster too. They only faltered when the minute of Hold Monster ended. Falling only all fours, the creature let out a scream so loud that everyone winced. It smashed itself against the hold of the walls until it hit the multi-coloured one and a flash of red energy shot out a blast of fire that didn't even startle the creature.

Iruka's turn was up again but he couldn't let go of his concentration on the spell, so he backed away, moving a safer distance away from the beast as his party continued to get more hits in. There was another smash against the colourful wall, but the orange's acid actually did some damage to it. From this distance, Iruka could see it writhe in pain, but it continued to slam itself into the walls. A flash of yellow caused lightning damage even though the green layer of poison did nothing and the blue was almost as strong.

All the while, Iruka watched with growing hope as his friends and acquaintances slowly broke down the creature's thick skin and actually did some damage. The hope didn't last long though.

The indigo layer of Darui's wall sparked but there was no effect and the violet layer caved under the pressed, the tarrasque stumbling away from their enclosure. It was supposed to have lasted for ten minutes but only about five had passed.

Ducking for cover behind a collapsed wall, Iruka hope that he hadn't been seen. The thundering steps were shaking his entire being and the cry of the beast seemed even closer now. There was a rush of steps and Iruka peeked out on his turn to see Darui running at top speed towards him.

"Shit, shit, shit." Darui was muttering as he dove down next to Iruka who pulled him in close.

"Did it see you?" Iruka demanded only to hear the answer as a roar and the crashing of running behind them as the tarrasque barrelled their way. In a moment of pure adrenaline, Iruka and Darui cried out in surprise, sprinting off to the direct right as it grated through the ground where they had been only milliseconds before.

"Eyebite: Sickened!" Iruka called out when they briefly shot back at the creature. He didn't need to see if the effect worked before Darui was up right behind him.

"Sunburst!" Was Darui's confident call and a ray of radiant damage shot from his hand, hitting the tarrasque for the full damage. As the tarrasque screeched behind them, reeling back, the bard and wizard kept running towards where their friends were.

Tsunade and Gai were both waving them over as the giant eagle swooped down above the monster and sent another few shots its way. As their enemy was distracted, the rest of the team reconvened and Gai patted a purely shell-shocked Darui's shoulder. "Good job, guys. We're making progress."

"We just have to keep hitting it." Tsunade said eloquently. Taking a breather, Iruka nodded.

A screech of an eagle flew overhead, and their eyes grew wide.

They barely managed to get out of the way as the tarrasque plowed through where they had been hiding but Tsunade didn't have the dexterity that they did. She was just the tiniest bit slower and that put her right in the path of the tarrasque's tail.

With a surprised yelp, her body was thrown passed them and Iruka looked back to see the beady eyes on them, grinding to a halt before stomping straight for them. Their hearts almost stopped dead until Darui cast another Sunburst.

Panicked, they had just enough time to Tsunade who was thankfully standing before the tarrasque shook off the blindness and ran for them.

Stepping up automatically, Darui cast a spell that Iruka knew almost instantly wouldn't work and he dove for the three of them right after he heard the words, "Wall of Stone!"

From the ground right in front of them, a thick wall shot out of the ground just in time for the tarrasque to smash its way straight through it to all but Iruka's surprise. As stone came crashing down onto them with the monster, Iruka was already casting Teleport and suddenly they were a few hundred feet away completely unharmed.

"Fuck." Darui swore in shock.

Heaving and trying to catch their breath, they hunkered down behind a patch of stone as they saw a giant eagle flying back their way.

"I can't get a hit on it unless it's immobile." Tsunade admitted and Gai agreed.

"Iruka," Darui looked at him and asked, "You still have Hold Monster, right?"

Nodding Iruka confirmed, "About six more left unless I use my higher-level spells."

"And how far away do you need to be to cast it?"

"Ninety feet." Iruka reminded after, "But it doesn't work sometimes. I had to use it twice back there."

Darui hummed thoughtfully while Tsunade said, "It doesn't even look like it's taking much damage."

"That's the natural armour," Iruka provided and he looked at his spell list again, taking in everyone's lowered health. "Here."

Taking the hands of each person there, he took a few minutes to cast Regeneration on all three of them.

They thanked him, and he slowly watched their health climb back up. "That should last for an hour."

"Hasn't even been ten minutes." Darui commented and they steeled themselves up again when they heard the tarrasque screeching nearby. They saw the eagle carrying their teammates not far above the creature, arrows being shot down at it and spells flying down onto it. It was with horror that they watched the tarrasque jump and claw at the giant eagle, sending people flying off its back.

Iruka wasn't even thinking when he cast Dimension Door to where they were. All he knew was that he had to get there and when he did, he grabbed onto whoever he could. The tarrasque's large maw was only a few feet away though and about to bite down. On instinct, Iruka pulled the other people in his grasp closer and cast Teleport just as a bite was about to be on them. Appearing in the place he'd just been, he found Hinata and three of the newcomers had been taken with him.

Aoba appeared a few feet away with a relieving four others but Iruka didn't see the one person who was missing, and he snapped his head back to the tarrasque.

He spied the person just as they blinked out of existence and reappeared right on the beast's head with it screaming under them. Iruka knew exactly who it was, and he couldn't help it when he used Dimension Door to get closer, only a few dozen feet away but within range and able to see what was going on more clearly behind a pile of rumble. Within seconds, Kakashi had attacked twice, slicing through at the back of the neck to little effect other than the creature finding where he was. A claw came up and swiped, missing but the tail came up too and sent Kakashi flying off, his body hitting the ground and rolling hard.

Swearing, Iruka saw his opportunity when he heard Yamato's voice across the way call, "Sunburst!"

A flash of distracting light signalled Iruka's chance and he hurried towards the limp figure on the ground. It was such a relief to see Kakashi move and try to stand. Helping the other man up, they limped back to cover and Iruka sat him down. He was at about half health just from one hit and Iruka quickly put his hands on the other man and cast at fourth level, "Cure Wounds."

Under his hands, Kakashi looked up at him with a playful smirk, "Fancy meeting you here."

They both sputtered out nervous chuckles and Iruka felt his chest swell with emotion even though they were in such a horrible situation. As if feeling the same thing, Kakashi boldly pulled Iruka over to him, hugging the other man tenderly as he said in Iruka's ear, "Thank you."

Hugging him back, Iruka savoured the moment of calm in the storm. "Any time."

A cry pulled them apart and they saw a body being thrown far, away from where the rest of the group was. Looking at each other, they found the same uncertainty and fear but Kakashi hardened himself and reeled in his confidence.

"Iruka. What spells do you have left and how many slots?" After Iruka went through them, he pondered and wondered aloud, "Do you think Darui or Aoba have reverse gravity?"

"Probably. What do you have in mind?"

Humming, Kakashi asked, "Do you remember the moon temple?"

"Yeah," Iruka begrudgingly remembered how much pain he'd been in the next morning from falling so much.

"If you have your Wall of Force under it, would that be force damage or bludgeoning?" Kakashi mused aloud and they grinned at each other.

"Doesn't hurt to try." Iruka said, remembering seeing Kakashi blinking out of existence and reappearing to high. "How… The teleporting thing."

Knowingly, Kakashi nodded and pulled a new dagger Iruka had never seen out of his blinkback belt. "The assassin that tried to kill Lord Senju had it. It has a feature where

They were suddenly going through a Dimension Door to the others. They found Hinata healing Yamato who looked worse for wear after being magically brought over and explained their idea.

"Even if it doesn't work, at least we'll have a prone tarrasque to take advantage of." Gai was as positive as ever and the team agreed on timing quickly before breaking up into groups again.

With Kakashi by his side, Iruka was right by the tarrasque's side when Darui cast Reverse Gravity. Within a minute, Iruka had cast Haste on Kakashi and they had a Wall of Force laid flat on the ground below with Aoba throwing a few Acid Splashes onto it for good measure. And then the huge beast fell onto it and it cried out in pain, flailing to sit up but Kakashi was already throwing daggers. Tsunade and Gai weren't far behind, dishing out as many hits as possible until the tarrasque suddenly flailed and threw them off. Getting back on its feet, it very violently and quickly thrashed.

Before anyone could react, they were thrown back and off their feet. There was a roar. There was a slam and Iruka could only see the monstrous hoof that pulled up splattered with blood, a name on their party list falling dark. The tail whipped just over Iruka's head and he tried his hardest to avoid any strikes. He wasted more spells than he wanted just to keep himself from getting hit or snapped up and he watched in terror as a body was thrown up into the air before it disappeared into an open maw.

Shocked and horrified, Iruka almost didn't react in time to the foot that came down onto him. In a split second, he threw up another Wall of Force and saw it slam down onto the invisible barrier just above his head. He snapped out of his shock and looked for anyone else at all nearby. He saw blood. He saw moving bodies too but the tarrasque was so loud and moving so quickly he couldn't concentrate. The foot suddenly moved away and instead the tail came rushing in from the side. He had been about to cast Dimension Door, but the tail clipped his shoulder before he could. It all happened so fast but Iruka found himself on the ground and in pain all over. He barely had the strength to Dimension Door away properly before he was hit again.

Now about a hundred feet away, he stood to see the people running around its feet, Yamato's giant eagle form above trying to be helpful and the carnage the monster was doing, the mess of rock, dust and dirt that was being thrown around too.

His frustration kicked in, angry at himself and annoyed that everything was falling apart. Throwing a few Cure Wounds onto himself to bring him back up to half health again, he squared his shoulders and did the only thing he knew how to do well and that was being a nuisance.

"Acid Arrow." He said after stepping a few feet closer and saw it land. He cast it another time. Again, and again, he kept casting until he got the tarrasque's attention and the beady eyes stared down at him from that far away. Slowly, it moved in his direction before letting out a growing roar and sprinting for him. Heart jumping, Iruka started backing up until he saw Yamato flying at top speed in their direction. Iruka nodded at the bird and waited until it was almost too late and got out of there. He landed from his spell by Tsunade who jumped at his arrival.

"Iruka!" She gasped, and he leaned on her as his body weakened, both looking on as the tarrasque stopped hard, grinding farther away from the speed.

"Storm of Vengeance!" Yamato's voice echoed and swirling dark cloud immediately coalesced, rolling into a swirling vortex around the tarrasque of acid, lightning and cold winds.

Someone stepped up next to them and Iruka was so relieved to see Kakashi alive at that point that he could only sigh happily when Kakashi said, "Hey."

"Here, take this." Iruka was shifted over to Kakashi as Tsunade picked through the mess to find her weapon. Blearily watching everything, Iruka vaguely saw people of their group coming closer, readying themselves for another around. He almost didn't notice the arms that went around his chest and waist or the cheek that was pressed against the top of his head. Leaning against each other, Iruka savoured the last moment of calm he knew they'd get before it was all over.

Soon enough, the cloud started dissipating and the tarrasque was once again swiping at the bird, but Yamato knew better this time and was higher up. Darui and Aoba were stepping up in front of the group, readying to cast spells by the looks of it and Iruka reluctantly pulled away from Kakashi's warm touch to stand closer, at the ready for the beast came charging towards them. When it did, following Yamato's hurried pace, they hardened their hearts and took stances.

"Chain Lightning!" Aoba and Darui called together and bolts of lighting shot from their fingers and impacted the tarrasque but didn't stop its pace. Another shot together that hit the beast and they bolted to the side. In their place, Iruka felt that same terror of facing such a horrible beast head on but he kept his head straight and watched as Tsunade, Kakashi and Gai ran forward head on to meet it.

With as much confidence as he could muster, he cast, "Hold Monster!"

Once again, it froze mid-step as they heard Darui and Aoba cast again together, "Sunburst!"

The blows that followed were a mess of attacks that were all focused on one leg. The screech the tarrasque made was suppressed within it until the spell on it faded and tried to stamp on the bugs beneath it to no success, sending dust and rocks flying. Iruka saw a dagger fly out of the dust and strike the tarrasque right in its eye.

Hurt and angry, its screech was ear-piercing and suddenly there was a rogue right in front of its face, slicing down hard. Blood flew and Kakashi flipped, landing on the head.

In a stroke of impulse, Iruka found where Gai and Tsunade were and cast quickly before they could move, "Bones of the Earth."

From the ground below them, he watched as Gai and Tsunade were raised high in the air on thick pillars of stone. Jumping onto the back of the beast, they hurried towards Kakashi as the tarrasque destroyed the pillars easily with its shoulder and tail. He heard weapons doing work but didn't have time to even hope they'd be okay because the tarrasque already thrashing in anger.

Through the roars and sounds of heavy steps falling, he heard spells being called and saw light blasting through the air again against the tarrasque's skin, burning holes through the carcass every now and then. Rearing up, Iruka saw people thrown off but this time, he didn't react in time to help. He was distracted by the barrage of crows swirling in the air, pecking and flying into the monster's eye and the socket where the other used to be.

"Disintegrate!" Someone called a beam of blast against the monster's head.

And that was the last straw. In a whirl of wind and screaming, the tarrasque's scaly tail and limbs flailed in a confusion that hit almost everything in its path and it was just barely out of its range, but he saw people go flying even further than where he was standing.

A body flew right over his head. "Holy fuck."

Hurrying over, he found Darui groaning and struggling to stand.

"Wait, wait," Iruka dropped to his knees and drop a few healing spells into the other man only to have Darui look up at him in awe and confusion. Iruka knew that Darui was just as confused as Iruka was about the bard wasting spells on the person who had dragged them into their mess but Iruka just flashed a weary smile.

"Thanks," Darui said when he was back on his feet, both eyeing the rampaging monster not that far away behind an outcrop of stones. Darui admitted after a moment, "I've got two spell slots left."

"Four." Iruka replied and they both shared a look of worry. "Should I try to hold it one more time? Give it one last shot?"

Darui nodded, getting ready to run forward to be in range for his spells. "Last time."

"Just don't hit our friends."

The words Iruka used echoed in his head and he held onto them, hurrying forward as he heard Iruka cast Hold Monster behind him, throwing out as he ran, "Disintegrate!"

The beam shot out of his finger and he almost didn't have time to dodge the mouth that came for him immediately after, the spell that held it in place failing. Rocks and stone were uprooted behind him, throwing him off balance and he fell easily as rocks and stones pinned him down.

Looking back up at the gargantuan creature above him, he felt his entire being struck with a fear that froze him in place as it descended upon him.

Out of complete nowhere, he heard a voice call out, "Hey, asshole! Take a bite out of this!"

A familiar blond boy jumped into view and slashed a rust sword right against the tarrasque's unflinching face. Landing right above Darui's prone body, Naruto took a stance and before any of them could move or react, a dagger imbedded itself into the hole where one of the tarrasque's eyes used to be. About to roar, the tarrasque didn't expect Kakashi to flash before his eyes again, sinking the dagger deeper into its skull and going as far in as he could.

The roar caught in its throat and Kakashi was shaken off when it reared up. He dropped to the ground, pushing Naruto back as the monster almost whimpered and stumbled back.

With a final cry of agony, the giant, grey scaled monster fell onto its side. It didn't move again, it didn't make a sound, and everything went quiet. A ninety-eight was shining above the dead tarrasque's head.

It was Naruto who let out a whoop of excitement and Kakashi understood why Iruka cared so much about the brat.

"Ahn!" Darui's pained cry drew their attention and they hurried to push the debris off him, helping him to stand even though he was limping.

"Naruto!"

The boy flinched automatically and hide behind Kakashi as a battered and wounded Iruka came storming their way.

"Don't you dare hide from me!" Iruka snapped and Kakashi stepped up.

"Ahn, Iruka, there you are." Kakashi cooed, pulling Iruka in for a mug even though the man was too worked up to care in that moment. "I've been so worried!"

"Iruka! I just wanted to help!" Naruto whined, backing off and leaving Darui to wobble by himself.

"When I get my hands on you," Iruka started to mutter but Kakashi's sudden hug turned warmed and more intimate, throwing him into a flustered struggle between being angry at Naruto or sheepish of Kakashi's public show of affection. Grunting, he settled for glaring daggers and patting Kakashi's shoulder.

"Kakashi!" A voice called out and Kakashi finally let go to accept a hug from Gai who was almost in happy tears. "Finally! You've done it!"

"We did it." Kakashi emphasized and Iruka noticed the other who were getting up and brushing themselves off. Yamato dropped onto a shelf of rocks with a sigh. Aoba was staring up in bliss at the sky that was slowly starting to clear up.

"Hinata!" A voice called from far off and Iruka stepped around tall stoned and mounds to find Tsunade stepping over the battlefield. Seeing Iruka, she quickly said, "I can't find them."

"Kurenai!" Iruka called out and started scanning the uneven horizon of wood and stone that was once Landerdale.

Sharing a worried look, they started combing through the area and the others joined in their search too until Tsunade made a sound that drew their attention.

Upon approach, they saw the blood splatter and the gore. Even closer, they could hear soft weeping and they found Hinata on her knees, casting a spell into something that could barely be called a body. It was mangled and broken beyond belief, as if it had been squished.

"Hinata…" Tsunade said slowly, her shaking hands reaching out for the girl. "That's not going to work… She doesn't… Most of her is gone."

Gritting her teeth and finally pulling her hands away, Hinata's small form shook. The rest stood in silence, not knowing what to do or how to help. She finally let out her pained sobs, crying out in an agony that hurt everyone there.

Between the tears and the pain that everyone felt, Hinata was shocked into silence when a pair of arms wrapped around her. Her tears overflowed suddenly, and she wept into the shoulder that Naruto had quietly given.


"Raise Dead wouldn't work?" Iruka asked Yamato after they'd stepped a ways away.

The other man should his head regretfully. "You have to have a full body for that or else it automatically fails."

Sitting together, they watched Kakashi walking over to the group near Hinata to suggest what the three of them had just discussed. It appeared the other agreed, waiting on Hinata's small nod.

They stood and started towards the others and Yamato quiet wished aloud, "If only this game had True Resurrection."

"If it did," Iruka replied. "Then we'd have no reason to actually play the game."

The others had started to gather rocks and stones nearby. Setting the bloodied stones atop the body, they slowly made a mound that covered what was left of Kurenai until it made a hill of rocks and stones.

Quietly, Yamato used his druid magic to meld the stone and rock together, creating a smooth surface over the grave and pushing away all the rocks and stones that surrounded it for a few dozen feet.

Two other small heads had emerged from where they'd been hiding. It took one looked at Naruto and his serious expression as he had his hand on Hinata's shoulder to know that this was a grave time, so they kept their distance. The rest of the group though gathered around and said a few words. They spoke of her bravery and her love, how she had a passion for being with everyone. She'd been a valiant member of their group and with every word that was said, the atmosphere felt even more cold and unloving.

With a few words to the other people who were lost to the beast, they took a few moments of silence and not a single eye in the vicinity was without tears.

And slowly a bright, glimmer number appeared over the grave, signaling the end of this chapter.

A few backed away after a bit, dealing with the pain in their own way.

A new quest has been added to your Quest List: Goodbyes

Kakashi watched his friends slowly fall away and offered a comforting hand where he could. It slowly dawned on him that this may be the last time he'd see most of them. Above them, the sunny skies were shifting, and the sun was falling fast into the horizon. The blue shimmered until the grey underside of the level above them came into view. It seemed to tremble and the edges of it started fraying quiet, pieces just floating away. The people below didn't even notice anymore.

"Thanks for everything," Kakashi said again to Yamato and the druid nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets and giving a sad smile.

"Maybe we'll see each other again someday."

"Of course," Kakashi put his hand on Yamato's shoulder and found Gai with Tsunade.

They looked over at him and smiled that same sad smile, knowing that these were their final moments. The end of all they'd been working to the last few months.

"Looks like we're done here." Tsunade said through veiled pain. "I'm not going to lie, I'll miss you all."

"Don't miss us too hard, Tsunade." Gai put on a strong face and said brightly, "We'll be together again soon; in real life!"

"Of course. You'll have to buy me a drink." They laughed softly and Gai struck a pose with his hands on his hips.

"Looks like my last quest has been completed with my goodbyes to you too." He explained, the edge of his form shimmering softly. "Thank you for all the good times, my friends!"

And then his form imploded into pixels, Tsunade looking at him with a chuckle.

"Guess you're off too." Kakashi guessed and she nodded.

"It's been fun, brat." And he nodded a goodbye as she too imploded out of the server.

His quest list shortened, and he looked over to the girl standing quietly by herself near the smooth stone.

"Hinata."

She snapped out of her reverie, rubbing her eyes. Saying as if everything were normal. "Ahn, Kakashi! I supposed this is goodbye."

"It is." He agreed, looking at the grave and back to the girl. "Not just to me either."

Her eyes turned to the grave and nodded. "I know… It's just not easy."

"It would be better to face the real her, wouldn't it?" He gave her head a pat and she nodded with a watery smile.

"Thank you, Kakashi." She too was gone.

That left just him and the person he was dreading talking to the most.

Looking over towards the setting sun, he saw the Iruka's back facing him and his hair half falling from his ponytail.

As he approached, Iruka said without looking back, "We should do it like a band aid, just rip it off."

"Yeah," Kakashi agreed faintly, the wrench in his chest turning painfully.

And then Iruka turned to him, eyes glimmering with tears and the sun's rays. He looked beat and bruised, tired beyond belief and utter devastated. But he smiled at Kakashi, bittersweet and happy. "It's over."

And it seemed like it was more than just over in the game. It felt like what they had built and things they'd been through were crumbling away even though the emotions and memories were still there.

"It's over." Kakashi agreed, his legs stepping forwards even though he couldn't feel them anymore. But he didn't miss them one bit. All he wanted to keep were these feelings he had, these memories and the man in front of him. He wanted that so much and he couldn't stop his hands from reaching out, pulling Iruka into his arms and feeling the weight of arms wrapping around him.

Feeling the wetness on his cheeks and the warm body against him, he never wanted it to end but everything was washing over white and the last thing he heard was that familiar voice that tugged at his heart whispering against his ear, "Kakashi."

He hoped Iruka had heard him say his name back. He hoped that Iruka had felt his arms tighten and he wished he'd said those three words but by the time they were formulated on his tongue, everything faded away.

And he was staring at white.

Thank you for playing Knights Errant.

You have now completed Story Mode.

Multiplayer Mode has now been unlocked.

For Story Mode playback, go to your Main Menu under Life.

Would you like to return to the Main Menu or Exit?

Blinking awake, Kakashi saw the white ceiling above him through the tint in the headgear and pulled up a hand to see that he was hooked up to a tube. Slowly sitting up, he felt no aches or pains except around his head and ears. Pulling up the visor and sliding out of the gear, he found himself in a hospital room just like he'd expected but he didn't expect to see that it was night out. He didn't expect to feel like he'd just taken a long nap and was ready to go.

He didn't expect to see the man sitting a chair in the corner, slumped asleep.

"Dad?" He said aloud with a voice that wasn't scratchy thinned from disuse.

The older man snorted awake with a start, sitting up with wide dark eyes. Gripping the hat in his lap, he stood and came forward so Kakashi could see him better. He looked tired and messy. There was a stain on his dress shirt and his hair was wild in a way Kakashi had never seen.

"You're awake." Sakumo said tentatively, moving to Kakashi's side of the bed.

"Yeah… I…" He looked around and saw his wheelchair folded away against the wall. "We finally beat it."

Sakumo didn't say anything for a long time, nodding grimly and setting his hat down near Kakashi's feet. "Yeah?"

There was an unsure feeling in his chest and Kakashi said faintly, "Yeah."

He felt like he was forgetting something. But what was he forgetting?

And then it hit him: his friends, their foes, the whole time he'd spent in the game and the voice that was permanently ingrained into his brain. There were feelings he felt deep down, and he realised while he hadn't seen his dad in almost a year before he went in game.

"What are you doing here?"

"I…" Looking taken aback, Sakumo sat down on the edge of the bed next to Kakashi's legs. "I came to see my son. I was so worried when they announced players were stuck in game. I didn't know how long you'd be in there or if you'd ever come out at all, but I didn't want my son to waste away in that empty apartment."

He breathed and calmed himself back down, reeling in his emotions before saying softly, "I know it doesn't matter now but at least you're in good hands."

Hands curled in the sheets around his waist, Kakashi thought to their relationship before and he smiled. He put away all the past frustration towards each other and muttered, "Thank you."

Sakumo's shocked face fell into a similar smile and Kakashi was pulled in for a hug that he didn't shy from.

"You're okay now though." Sakumo confirmed and pulled away, moving to the hall as he said, "You must be starving."

Reminded of bodily functions, Kakashi chuckled, "So much. What have they even been feeding me this whole time?"

"Well, it's been mostly a liquid diet," Sakumo nodded to the drip.

"I'm surprised I'm not a raisin yet." Kakashi said when Sakumo came back in after waiving down a nurse for actual food. Thanking the man when he was handed a plastic cup of water.

"Well, maybe if you were out for a month." Sakumo went digging through a briefcase, successfully fishing out an old power bar but Kakashi froze. "A week of laying in bed won't turn you into an old man. Trust me, I know."

"A week?" Kakashi repeated in utter confusion. "A week?"

Searching the other man's face, he saw the same confusion when Sakumo nodded, "Yeah, it's been almost six days now. You're one of the last players to get out."


"So," Tsunade smiled upon their small group with a glass of tinkling champagne in her hand. "To a group of great friends and to the success of Yamato's movie."

The group cheered and applauded together, toasting to the new year and to the news that Yamato's script had been greenlit. It had been almost a month ago that Yamato had contacted them all. He had somehow gotten everyone's numbers so that he could talk to them about making their adventure into the game a movie.

His career as a scriptwriter wasn't long but he was young and the script he'd sent everyone for their approval had been good. Studios had clamored for his ideas and had even asked all participating parties for a copy of their Life footage but even though most had turned the idea down, others like Gai had willing given in. It had been a very respectful process though and it gave them the chance to reconnect with everyone.

Kakashi hadn't given rights to his Life footage regardless. It wasn't on a matter of personal embarrassment, but he hadn't exactly talked to Iruka since. He hadn't even seen the man at all since they went back to reality. They were adults though and they had lives. It wasn't like they could just drop everything to see each other. He didn't want to come off as creepy either, stalking around the internet until he found the right Iruka.

"Hey, brat." Tsunade smiled up at him from where he saw seated in one of her comfy chairs, his crutches propped up next to him. "Why don't you come and join the rest of the party in the kitchen?"

"Sure, give me a second." She seemed appeased by his answer but when she sashayed away, he took another moment to quietly study the people who were milling about. It was the first time meeting up properly since the day they came back.

Gai was there in his finest tracksuit, making everyone laugh with funny tales of the students at the community center. Even Hinata was laughing loudly with the rest of the group. Behind her, Kurenai had one hand on the girl's head and another on the small bump of her stomach. Her husband seemed like a nice man too. Hinata's parents were sitting quietly in the kitchen too, listening and acting as supervisors to their weird group. Thankfully, Darui was the calmest of them, hanging out near the drinks as a nonverbal cue to keep things in check. But he didn't decline the offer to guess song titles and artists.

Finally sitting up from the chair, he adjusted his bowtie and made sure his dress shirt was tucked in properly before pulling onto the crutches. He was still getting used to them. It had only been a few days since his rehabilitation coach had encouraged him to try them more. The feeling in his feet and knees were still gone but he could at least feel and control until mid-thigh now. He could lean against counters and hobble around slowly without fail. It had been long and hard work, but it was slowly paying off. It was even more encouraging that his dad wasn't going overseas anymore and came over almost every weekend to spend time with him.

Hobbling over to the kitchen, they made space for him to sit at the island and made him a drink that he gladly sipped.

Food was almost about to be served up at the dining room table when the doorbell chime.

"Finally," Tsunade made her way to the door as she threw over her shoulder. "That boy is even later than you are, Kakashi!"

And he knew who it was going to be. It sent shivers up his spine and he was glued to his seat, unable to even lean over to see who was coming in down the hall.

"Iruka!" Tsunade called out and some of the party cheered, making their way to the front door. He could hear voices say, "Oh, you shouldn't have."

"It's the least I could do," Was the polite response and there were happy calls as people were hugged and greeted.

Iruka was beaming from ear to ear, so happy to reconnect with the people he'd missed so much. He'd been so busy ever since he'd gotten out but always found time to think about them and wish he could reconnect. Tsunade's hand on his shoulder was such a comfort and he was so surprised to see Kurenai pregnant that he was too scared to even hug her properly. It was such a relief to see them all alive and well and happy that he was stunned as the others spoke.

"Ahn, here he comes," Someone said from the back and Iruka made way for the tidal wave that was Naruto with his own version of a host gift.

"Who's ready for a party?" Naruto demanded with a bright smile and everyone was drawn to the boy who stole their attention away from Iruka. Thankful for the moment, Iruka hooked up his coat and looked towards the kitchen where he could see a pair of crutches leaning against the island.

With a breath for confidence, he reeled in the anxious seizing in his chest, squeezing his hands into fists around the bottle of wine he'd brought.

He had never been so happily nervous in his life.

Looking back at his friends, he saw Gai flash him an embarrassing wink.

With cheeks flushed from the cold and Gai's thoughtful distractions, he moved into the kitchen.

Just as he pictured, a familiar head of silver hair was perched on the edge of an island stool with his long legs stretched out under him, almost leaning against the granite. Dark eyes watched him move through the doorway and Iruka slowed to a stop, the pain in his chest stopping him.

Blinking, he realised Kakashi's mouth was moving, "Hey."

"Hi." Iruka said automatically and didn't know what to follow up with, his heart in his mouth. It was so surreal. He'd forgotten completely how much pain he'd felt when he last saw the other man but now it came back tenfold. It dawned on him as his eyes teared up that this was the first time, he was really meeting Kakashi in the flesh.

Finding that part of himself again, Iruka stepped forward, barely inches away from the other man's legs as he stuck out his hand. Grinning at full blast as tears threatened to fall, he said in an overly polite fashion, "Iruka Umino."

The stunned expression faded away, replaced by an equally glowing smile. "Nice to meet you, Iruka. Kakashi Hatake."

The warm hand that took his made the tears instantly fall and Iruka's smile wavered, barely seeing Kakashi give the same pain expression through his watery vision.

And he barely managed to whisper out. "Nice to meet you, Kakashi."


Hope you enjoyed reading as much as I did writing.