8 years later.
The sound of silence filled the air as a figure stood on top of the large gate that surrounded the village, the darkness of the night supplying as a blanket for him to blend into. Overlooking the village, he pulled down the hood to his cloak, revealing a black horned Hannya mask that only covered the upper half of his face. His presence was hidden as he knew about the ninja's that patrol the village during the night. Using this time to his advantage, he lowered himself into a crouching position and leaned forward with his hand resting on the walls surface. A breath was taken in and within a minute, he started to search for what he had been looking for.
Years of roaming around these lands, going through every village there was to search for what he had lost and still, there nothing. Now, after traveling through deserts and woods, he had finally reached his last hope. Slowly releasing his power, he let his energy expand over the village, a swirl of red leaving him as it trailed down towards the homes of the villagers. Minutes passed by with every breath he took, his focus on his power in hopes that he will find some kind sign.
It wasn't until he felt it, a small nudge connecting to his energy, that he knew he was in the right place. He could feel power that was similar to his, so warm and familiar to him even after all these years. "There you are." He whispered, calling his power back into him as he stood. The man's eyes opened to reveal slitted blue eyes. Black gloved fingers reached to remove the mask from his face, golden blonde hair falling into the man's eyes. Defined whisker-like marks covered each of his cheeks, adding on to his animalistic appearance.
Holding the mask in one hand, he used his free one to reach out towards the pull he felt, his heart beating rapidly as he knew exactly just who that power belonged to. The man's gaze softens as he looked towards the middle of the village, hand out stretch in hopes that he could get closer to that familiar warmth. He was in a daze, following his instincts to get closer to the source and never leave its side. Though as quickly as those instincts came kicking in, he was thrown back into realty. A loud hiss escaped his mouth as his hand cupped the side of his neck, a burning sensation branding his skin.
'Remember our deal, Fujin." A hush voice whispered into his head, the tune cold and empty.
The man let out a sigh and slowly dropped his hand from his still burning skin, taking a step back from the view of the village. "Until next time, Koi." Placing the mask back into place, he turned his back to the village and disappeared back into the darkness the night provided, leaving no trace that he was ever near the Leaf Village.
"You can't be serious, Hokage-sama." The dog masked Anbu member said as he stood in front of his leader, his head tilted to the side.
The Hokage looked up from his paper work to look at one of his best elite members. The older man let out a soft sigh, having been expecting this from the silver haired man across from him. "Of course I'm serious about this, Kakashi. You are one of best ninja's in this village. Your skills could be of use to your Genin team." The Third, Hiruzen, tried to reason.
"Are those your words or the councils?" Kakashi asked, pushing his mask to the side of his face. Mismatch eyes meet those of the Hokage, showing the frustration he was feeling within them. He should have expected this of the council members. From the day of the incident, those greedy people had done nothing more than bother him with the request to train the only last surviving kin of the Uchiha Clan. Kakashi rejected every time, taking on longer missions within Anbu to get away from the village.
The old man sighed once again, wishing for the millionth time that he could escape his role of Hokage for just a bit and perhaps read one of his favorite books. No one said this job wasn't easy, after all. "The council will not let this go, Kakashi. They will be expecting you to drop out of Anbu and take on a team. Sasuke will be graduating shortly and the teams have already been made up. The council will expect you to teach him and make him into a powerful shinobi. They expect greatness out of him."
"And what is your word on the matter?" Kakashi snapped, his hand clenching into a fist
"You know that if I had full power over the matter, I would have let you have the final decision. However, I do agree that the boy will need help later on when he unlocks his Sharingan, but even then, the clan would have dozens of scrolls on it. Unfortunately, there is nothing more I can do."
Black and red eyes glared at the Hokage as the silver haired man silently snarled. Nails dug into the palm of his hand as he countued to clench his fist tighter. Was there really nothing more he could do? Going to the council himself seemed like an option, but then it would question his loyalty and that was something he didn't need. Turning on his heel, he silently made his way towards the open window next to desk the Hokage was at. "Very well, Hokage-sama." He responded before he jumped out the window and made his way towards the roof tops, advoiding the people below in the streets.
Sliding his mask back into place, the man made his way towards the Hokage Monument. There, he will be at peace once again if only for a little bit. Reaching the mountain, he continued on until he reached the top, slowing his speed so that he was left at a walking pace. Walking over towards the edge of the mountain, he sat, letting his legs dangle over the end as his hand went to go remove his mask again and set it to rest at his side. His eyes went over the view of the village; taking in the many homes of civilian's and ninja's alike. From where he was, everything was quiet. There were no birds chirping from the nearby trees or the sounds of busy market down in the village. No children's laugher or even the grunts from local ninja's down in the training grounds.
Everything was…peaceful.
Then again it always was. It was only of the reasons why it was one of his favorite places to be. It helped cleared his mind, letting him relax and get away from this new life he started. Sometimes Raiju would join him whenever he was near, other times he would sit and bury his nose in a book until night came.
Eyes looked up towards the orange and red sky, the only thing detailing that the sun was setting. Clouds slowly made their way as he looked up, his gaze trailing a flock of birds flying over him. He followed them until they flew over the village wall, his features softening as he remembered what happened a few nights ago.
"Could that really have been you, Naruto?" He asked the wind as it blew by, strands of silver falling into his eyes. He could still feel that raw power that had waken him up several nights ago. It was one that he was familiar with no matter how many years went by. He thought it was dream at first, pushing it towards the back of his mind and blamed the few bottles of sake he had before bed. He kept trying to deny that what he was feeling was real, that the pulled he felt was just the influence of alcohol and nothing else.
However, the side of him that wanted it to be real craved to find out what it was and eventually, he gave in. However, when he did, that warmth went away. It left just as quickly as it had came, leaving no trace to follow, expect for a small trail that Raiju was able to pick up on that led to the village wall. It wasn't much, but it was a sign of hope for Kakashi, one that he desperately needed.
'If you are out there, Naruto, I'll find you. That will be my mission until my last dying breath.'
His eyes harden once again, but not out of anger this time. Instead, he was filled with new brand of confidence to find his missing lover. It was a feeling that had started a fire in his eyes. He will find Naruto no matter what, even if he had to train a couple of brats to help him unknowingly. It may take some more time then he thought, but all of that won't matter once he has the blonde by his side again. Though, if he wants to start as soon as possible, he'll have to start with the brats for his team and make sure they had what it takes to be strong shinobi.
Maybe it was time he read their files.
Letting out a groan of the thought of actually doing work and not reading his Icha Icha Paradise, he took one last look towards the darkening sky before flickering home.
After all, he had a long night ahead of him.
