Okay…I plan on getting the next few chapters out uber
Fast…before school ends, cuz I kno I wont do
Shit over summer…lmao
Here we go!
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My day off. I lay in bed, two hours after I usually get up. Sun filtered through the wooden blinds over the window above my headboard, casting shadows on the closed door of my closet. I could hear my neighbors busy in their apartments, starting their day. I got up slowly, and right on queue, there was a knock at my door.
"Ugh…coming, I'm coming!" I opened the door and was surprised to find the person who was on the other side. "Kakashi?"
"Hey, I have a pretty big favour to ask you, Iruka."
"Okay, what is it and I'll see what I can do."
"Well, you should come with me…it's complicated."
"Oh…okay. Just let me get dressed real quick."
"Yea, I'll wait out here."
"Okay," I closed the door. What could he want? After I got dressed I joined Kakashi and we walked briskly down the street. It only took a moment for me to realize that we were heading towards the Hokage's edifice.
We entered and headed immediately to Lady Tsunade's office. When we entered, the Hokage wasn't present but Shizune was organizing some papers at her desk.
"Oh good, you're back! Tsunade just left to get the ANBU head and should be back soon!"
"Right, where is Fuyu?"
"He's sitting on the balcony…I gave him some paper and a pen to draw but he hasn't touched it. You should have seen the fit he threw when he woke up and couldn't find his father!"
Kakashi nodded and waved me over to the balcony with him. The Hokage's balcony overlooked the central square that branched to all the main routes through Konohagakure. When we stepped out onto the balcony, I immediately saw whom Shizune was talking about. Sitting with his knees tucked to his chest was a young boy, maybe four years old, moping just out of the morning sunlight. He was pale with black hair and large, dark eyes, his hair was just long enough to be messy and his knees were skinned and dirty.
"Fuyu, this is Iruka," Fuyu looked up at me but looked away again in disinterest. "Iruka, why don't you talk to him for a bit until Tsunade gets back."
"Um, okay," I doubted that Kakashi asked me here just to talk to a troubled little boy. I knelt down and tried to make eye contact again. "Hi, so why are you out here all by yourself?"
Nothing.
"Are you sad?"
Nothing.
I sat down and crossed my legs. This was awkward…what was I doing here?
"Iruka-kun," I stood up at the sound of Tsunade's voice. "I need to request a favour of you."
"Anything, ma'am."
"Come in here," Tsunade sat down, putting down a packet of papers on her desk.
I sat down in front of the desk, I hadn't noticed but three chairs were placed there whereas there was usually one. Had there been people here before me?
"What is it you want, my lady?"
"I see you met Fuyu," she spoke with out looking up from the papers. "Well, according to norms, a child in his situation would be filtered into the Foundation, but Kakashi requested that that doesn't happen to him."
"What is his situation?"
"Well, as far as we know his mother is dead, she isn't a Konoha native and we do not know her identity. His father has just been sent on an emergency ANBU mission. It is an extensive mission that could take up to a year to complete and there is a high chance he will not return. So by technical definitions in Konoha, he is either an orphan or an abandonee. Either way, with his father's precarious position in ANBU, he would be sent to the Foundation."
"I see," I never agreed with the Foundation. Training war orphans and children tied to some of Konoha's most guarded incidents to become assassins in ANBU seems very atrocious to me. It was only by a request very much like this that I did not get filtered into the Foundation myself.
"Iruka, I was hoping you would look after Fuyu, this way he will be able to return to his father after the mission. If he is sent to the Foundation, he will not be allowed to leave."
Every quantity of my heart screamed for me to say yes, but my mind was racing. Could I actually take care of a kid? He was probably old enough to go to the pre-school classes while I taught at the Academy, but I didn't have any parenting skills. Apart from being too young to have had children of my own, my own parents were killed when I was pretty young, too young to have learned much from them. Yet Saying no would go against what I believed in, which was more important. Anyways, isn't never trying the true definition of failing?
"I'll do it," Kakashi looked relieved and Tsunade nodded in agreement.
"Thank you, Iruka-san, I truly appreciate it. I would have seen to him myself but this mission directly affects my squad and I. I need to be able to leave on a very short notice."
"I understand." 'Directly?' I knew this could only mean one thing; this mission had something to do with Uchiha Sasuke. I wonder how Naruto would be taking this, is he tied into the mission as well? Or, knowing Kakashi, does he even know about it?
"Well, then, I suppose we should round up Fuyu and get him acquainted with his new location as soon as possible."
"Definitely," I looked over and saw Fuyu was looking into the room. Surely he had been listening and probably heard the agreement. I stood up and walked over to him, as soon as I did so he quickly turned away and returned to his former pose. I once again knelt down and tried to look him in the eye, but he bluntly ignored me. "Fuyu?"
"I don't wanna go with you."
Well that was fast, already on the wrong foot and I hadn't even started! "No one says you have to do anything."
"They want you to replace my dad," Fuyu pulled his knees closer as big tears rolled down his cheeks.
"No, we just want you to have a good place to stay while we wait for your dad to come back."
"Why did he leave?"
"Uh…well…he is old friends with Kakashi and one of Kakashi's students needs some help…"
"Why?"
"Um, well he's lost and needs help finding his way back home."
Fuyu was silent. I had tried describing the situation as best I could in terms a young child would understand.
"Hey, it's almost nine o'clock, what do you say we go get some breakfast?"
Finally he looked at me.
"You are hungry aren't you?"
Fuyu nodded.
"What's your favourite food?"
"Pudding."
I tried not to laugh, kids always know how to cheer themselves up best. "Okay, normally I would say pudding isn't a good breakfast food, but I haven't had any in a long time. And I know a place that serves it really good!"
"So can we get pudding?"
"Yea, we can if you promise me you will come stay with me so I have an excuse to eat pudding too."
Fuyu laughed, I was relieved.
"I'll take that as a yes." I stood up, as did he, Kakashi stood in the doorway. Even though he wore a mask over half of his face, I could tell that he was smiling. I could always tell.
"Well done. I'll come by sometime tonight to discuss some details with you."
"Okay," I walked past Kakashi. Fuyu grabbed my hand, it surprised me at first but I was glad he bonded so quickly.
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We had no idea where the Akatsuki were, and I was already getting agitated. No one had any clue as to how we would track the Akatsuki and it didn't appear that anyone was very concerned. All Sasuke had really mentioned was being able to kill his brother, and he was annoyed that Suigetsu apparently didn't care about training since he had lost my sword.
"Zabuza, I want to ask you something."
"What is it?" I never liked talking to Sasuke, and when he addressed me I liked it even less.
"I want you to train Suigetsu. We all need to prove we can handle missions if we join the Akatsuki. I am positive you will have no problem, but Suigetsu's lack of skill due to his confinement for so long might be a problem. I am aware that you knew him during his only years of training, so you will be the most familiar with his capability for certain jutsu and skills."
I nodded. It wasn't hard to tell that Suigetsu and I would have nearly the same fighting style, seeing as we both were trained for the Seven and both had water-type chakra. But I already knew that Suigetsu was a less than capable student for me. Unless by some miracle he could control his attitude or mature pretty damn quickly, he would be just as difficult as before. Then again, I needed to appease Sasuke so he would not grow suspicious of me, or, if he already suspected me as I thought, he would continue allowing me to remain with him.
"Fine."
"Good, we can stay here while you train him. There's a small lake that we passed about twenty yards back."
"I know, that should be adequate. Where is Suigetsu?"
"He said he was tired and wanted to swim."
"All right then," I turned and walked towards where we had passed the lake. This would prove to be interesting, and probably in the most dysfunctional way possible.
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Wow, sorry for how long and boring this chapter was
But it was a neccissary evil for building the plot….
Next chapter will be MUCH better
I promise!
-laura
