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Kakashi was tired. Not a bone deep kind of exhaustion, just tired. It had been a long day. His team had spent the day doing D-rank missions. Minato-sensei always said it was good to get a few in every couple of days, to help out the village in any way possible. Kakashi didn't think so. Painting fences wasn't something he thought was so helpful. It was just a chore. His feet basically carried him towards home on autopilot. As he was passing the Uchiha lake, he spotted the time sage sitting beside the edge.
She looked deep in thought and Kakashi debated whether or not he should stop or just pass on by. She wasn't someone he wanted to interrupt - obviously she had more important things to think about without him bothering her. Still, he stepped her way, unable to resist. He had been thinking about her and about time travel all day long. After their impromptu training, he found himself drawn towards her even more.
He stood next to a tree, watching as she threw stones across the surface of the lake. The pebbles rippled as they jumped across before sinking. The ripples they caused matched her eyes and he vaguely wondered what ripples she had caused herself. It was beyond him how she managed being in another time. He didn't think he'd handle it so well.
She let out a frustrated sigh and he realized that perhaps she didn't handle it as well as he thought.
Her head tilted towards his hiding spot among the trees and he knew instantly that she knew he was there.
She spoke and her tone was mildly amused though a little strained, "You can come out, Kakashi."
He stepped out and strolled over to settle on the grass beside her. The sun was setting and there was a nice glow settling on the surface of the lake. The pair sat in a comfortable silence, Kakashi watching as the sage continued to throw stones into the water.
She broke the silence first, "Do you ever wonder what the world would be like if there wasn't any ninjutsu? If chakra didn't exist in a form where man would abuse it?"
He thought for awhile. He hadn't ever considered the possibility before. Chakra was apart of life. He could feel the ebb and flow of it throughout his entire body - churning in his blood. It was all around them, in the air as it breezed past. It was present in the water circulating in front of them. He could feel it in the grass under his fingertips.
Kakashi wanted to give the sage a good answer. He always preferred to think out his answers carefully. It was a rare occasion but he found that he had no answer.
"Well... What about you? Do you think the world would be a better place without shinobi around?"
She laughed softly, "always answering a question with a question. Typical Kakashi. To answer your question, no, I don't think the world would be any better off."
"Why?"
"You don't need chakra to forge a blade. To create a weapon. Humans are such fickle things. War is in our nature. Even before chakra manifested in a way that humans could use, they fought. It was just as painful. Just as heartbreaking."
Kakashi sniffed, "why ask me then? It seems you already have an answer in mind."
"Hm, I don't know. Just hoping you had a more optimistic answer for me."
He raised his brows and responded in a bland tone, "Do you realize just who you're talking to?"
"Of course I know, Kakashi-kun!"
"Maaa..." He groaned out and redirected his gaze to the lake. She sure knew how to embarrass him. He wasn't so sure why it flustered him when she added kun to his name. Rin did it all the time and it never bothered him. "So, what's going on?"
"Hmm," she hummed as she turned towards him. He mirrored the movement, until they were sitting face to face. "What do you mean?"
"Somethings obviously bothering you."
"You want to know something about time travel?" She asked abruptly, ignoring what he said completely. Kakashi tried not to seem too eager as he nodded back. He was almost ecstatic, though. The subject had been weighing on him all day long. "Have you delved into shadow clone territory yet?"
He gave a slight nod, half shrug. "I can make a few so far but my chakra levels aren't advanced enough to make a lot."
She smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. "Yeah, it takes more chakra than you'd think. You understand how information can be relayed through clones, right?"
He nodded. "What does this have to do with time travel?"
The sage looked up at the darkening sky and settled back, palms flat on the ground. It was a position she seemed to favor when she began a story, he noticed.
"I am currently in innumerable different points in the timeline and parallel timelines. It's like the clones, sending information back to the source. I'm always getting a constant influx of information about the future and past - about choices to make or not make. What to say in what conversations. It's like I'm living numerous lives all at once."
"Sounds annoying."
"Ha! You have no idea!"
"So, how do you bear it?"
"It's not too hard. The older versions of me have figured out ways to control what information to send me. The really important choices that have the ability to change fate. They always block me from seeing my own path." She leaned forward, smiling toothily at the boy. "Isn't it damn ironic? I can see every future but my own."
"But why would they block you? You'd think that it would be hard to send any information about the future back to you."
"Hmm, I suspect it's so I can learn and grow on my own." Her voice lowered to a conspiratory tone, "to tell you the truth, I haven't even figured out how to control when I travel through time. It just happens! It could happen at any moment. No warning. Sometimes I feel a pull at my chakra but not always."
Kakashi was surprised at this. "So, you could vanish at any moment?"
"Yep. It's a little disorienting when that happens. Usually I have a bit of notice but sometimes I'm not so lucky. I could be thrown into a battlefield at any moment."
"I thought you traveled to wherever you were. How many battles could possibly occur right here?"
She grinned and wagged a finger in front of his face. "Ah, but you're getting into dangerous territory there. I can't tell you about what battles have occurred or will occur at this spot. This village wasn't always here, you know."
"Gomen." He replied, feeling a little chastised at her remark. He hasn't meant to get so close to breaking any rules. That was the last thing he wanted.
He opened his mouth to change the subject when his stomach let out a ferocious growl. His cheeks flushed and he turned away at the sages girlish giggle.
"Hungry, Kakashi-kun?"
"Obviously," he said dryly.
"I have some food at my place. Do you want to have dinner with me?"
Kakashi turned back to the sage, very surprised to hear that. "You have a place to live around here?"
"Well, of course! Am I supposed to sleep outside whenever I'm in this time?"
He shrugged as she stood and offered him a hand. Ignoring it, he stood and brushed away the grass that clung to his clothes. She drew back and bit her lip before gesturing for him to follow.
Kakashi was surprised when he found himself in front of his apartment complex only five doors down from his own. The sage messed with her pockets, searching for her keys apparently. Kakashi inaudibly sighed before stepping toward the door. He gripped the knob and lifted upwards before turning and pushing the door open.
"Oh, that's a new trick."
Kakashi pointed down the set of doorways towards his own apartment. It was probably unnecessary but he said, "my place is right down there. These doors are horrible. Really, the landlord should look into replacing them all. Anyone could get in."
The sage laughed as she brushed past him, turning to walk backward into the open doorway, "I believe 100% of these apartments are housing shinobi. Who would be stupid enough to break into here?"
She was right, to a point. No civilian would dare but other shinobi? During times of war, everyone got a little desperate. Career chunnin and genin found jobs to be either extremely dangerous or very poor paying. There wasn't much of an in-between anymore.
"Come on in, Kakashi-kun." She called out, breaking his thoughts as she headed inside, leaving the door wide open behind her. He stood at the threshold, wondering what he was doing there. He glanced down towards his place once more. It wasn't like him - to have dinner with anyone. Even Minato-sensei had tried to get him to come over to eat with him and Kushina on several occasions but the boy always denied him. He could probably make it to his door before she noticed he was gone. He looked back toward the entrance hall of her apartment, feeling drawn in.
Why was this any different?
The sage had already disappeared inside, no doubt in her actions to suggest that he wouldn't follow. It irked him a bit but he stepped inside, kicking off his sandals at the entrance as he followed the hall inside. It was an exact mirror of his apartment so he found the sage in the kitchen easily, her head already stuck in the fridge.
"Any preferences?" She called out, "I know you hate anything fried or sweet but it seems like they've come pretty recently, so I have a bit of everything in here."
"How did you.." He trailed off before sighing. He really needed to stop being surprised at the things she said. It was beginning to be ridiculous. "Nevermind. Could you make misoshiru?"
She turned to him with a wrinkled nose, "somehow, I was hoping that wouldn't be your favorite again."
"What's wrong with that?" Kakashi shot back, feeling slightly offended by the look on her face.
"It's just... I really hate eating foods that are black. I don't know, it freaks me out."
"Eggplants are dark purple, not black." He deadpanned.
She shuddered and gave a long suffering sigh, "and violets are purple but everyone says they're blue!" Kakashi just gave her an unimpressed look and she laughed, "Fine, fine. Let's have that." She pulled out all of the ingredients and begun the preparations.
He stood in the doorway stiffly before attempting a casual lean against the frame. It was so bizarre, watching the sage flutter around the kitchen. He had never really been to someones for dinner. The closest he had come was eating out with a few of his classmates during his academy days. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do in this situation.
After finishing the preparations, the sage disappeared towards the only door that he knew was a bedroom before reappearing in civilian attire. It was weird, he decided, to see the sage standing before him in shorts and a tank top. She usually was decked out in combat attire the few times he had met her.
At his inquisitive look, the sage smiled as she settled down into a chair at the kitchen table.
"This is about the only place I feel comfortable enough to abandon my gear for more comfortable clothes." He slinked over to the table and sat across from her awkwardly, spine straight and proper. "Geeze, relax! There's no one here but me and you're making me uncomfortable."
He slouched but it was more of a stab at her than any type of relaxation.
Rolling her eyes, she folded her arms on the table and stared.
And stared.
He shifted, glancing to the floor before looking back at her. She seemed amused at his discomfort. Before he even had a chance to say anything she hopped up and went back to the food, humming lightly as she stirred the soup.
"Why'd you invite me here?" He asked and she paused before continuing her stirring.
"You seemed hungry." She retorted, her head turned toward him enough for him to see her smirk. "And lonely."
"I'm not lonely." Kakashi spat out, feeling a bit defensive at the word.
She turned before casually leaning on the stove and leveling him with another stare.
"Sure. Whatever you say. Maybe I'm lonely. It's not like I have an abundance of friends to invite over for dinner."
Kakashi supposed that it would a lonely existence. He didn't know where or what time she actually came from but it was entirely possible that every single person she knew was dead or would be soon. The place where she grew up could be an abandoned wilderness by now or even a sprawling city like Konoha.
They continued on in silence, her cooking and him watching before she was finally finished. When she brought the meal over, she turned from him to stare out the window while she ate.
He was surprised and a little baffled. Most people would be trying to see him eat. He wondered if she would attempt it.
"You don't have to worry so much." She said as she slurped some noodles. She tapped her chopsticks together towards him but didn't turn. "You've always been a very private person, especially when it comes to that mask. I'm used to eating with you while turned away."
Kakashi slowly slide down the mask, reaching for his food. He watched her warily but relaxed when she appeared to only care about eating.
"In all the times you've known me, you haven't seen my face?"
She froze in mid bite before lowering the bowl to the table. "Yeah, I've seen it."
"Then why would you look away now? You already know what is underneath."
"Hmm, I suppose it's out of respect. I want to earn that right to look at you. Not many people have gotten the chance. I'm not going to -"
Then she vanished.
It stilled his movements for a moment and he stared at the empty seat in front of him, at the half-eaten meal. Kakashi wasn't sure if he should leave or not, was it rude to be in someone's house when they weren't there? Or was he allowed to stay since she had invited him in?
Well, he'd hate to leave a dinner she prepared for him unfinished.
"Arigatou." He murmured to the silent room before him. He realized now that it was rude of him not to show gratitude for the meal earlier, while she was still here.
He finished up his meal and stood, carrying the dishes to the sink to clean up. As he washed the plates and put up the ingredients, he casually straightened up. He didn't want to leave a mess, especially since he wasn't sure when the sage would be back.
Back at the front door, he pulled on his sandals before pulling up his mask securely around his face. He looked back down the darkened hall again, wondering when, exactly, that time traveling woman would be back.