Iruka sighed and rubbed his shoulder. It was still sore, a week after the mission. "Faster, Sakura. Naruto, hit her like you mean it. Don't hold back 'cause she's a girl, idiot."
Sasuke laughed, and Naruto turned an unlovely shade of pink. It clashed rather horribly with Sakura's hair.
Iruka stretched, trying to ease the tension in his neck. Watching Sakura and Naruto spar, he critically noted that Naruto was still pulling his punches and that Sakura was too slow on her left side. Sakura he could probably fix; Naruto would continue to pull back like that, not wanting to hit the girl.
"Enough." Iruka stood and smiled encouragingly at the three. "Well, that's enough of that for today. We'll end with a run, and then we'll call it good for today."
Predictably, Sakura groaned, Naruto looked excited, and Sasuke looked…well, Sasuke looked like Sasuke.
"Around the village. Stay on the ground…" a fierce glare for Naruto, who'd decided last time that running on the wall was easier than running on the ground. He didn't want to deal with the complaints that had arisen from that episode. "Go!"
They took off. Iruka watched them leave, his mouth stretching into a grin. Good kids, even Sasuke.
Iruka yawned and rubbed his hand through his hair. He'd had it pulled back earlier, but sometime during the training it had come untied and now hung freely around his face. It's time for a cut, he thought absently.
"Umino-san!"
Hearing his name, Iruka sighed and turned to the messenger.
"Yes?" he asked pleasantly.
"Hokage-san wishes to see you." The messenger, a genin, took a deep breath and then sped away. Iruka stood silently for a moment, his face turned up to the sun. Then he turned and walked slowly to the tower.
…
"Decoy." Iruka shifted his weight, feeling the strain in his shoulder intensifying with his tension. "You want me to play decoy."
The Hokage steepled his hands in front of his face, looking tired and worried. "Yes, Iruka. You'll not be alone, of course…"
Iruka glanced sideways to the silent ANBU standing behind the Hokage. Not alone.
He sighed and shrugged. "Ok. When do I leave?"
The Hokage let out the breath he'd been holding. "In the morning. The decoy goes first. Two days after you leave, the target leaves." There was something in the set of his face, in his eyes…
Iruka nodded. "I'll tell my team. You'll keep an eye on them, won't you?"
The Hokage nodded and left the tower. As Iruka walked down the stairs, he wondered why all of that had seemed so…final.