Author's Note: As promised, here's ChapterTen just in time for the end of the week! This chapter doesn't really have a particular genre, it's just got a whole bunch in one and there's a lot of emotional rollercoastering here, so hope everyone enjoys it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
"Kakashi is this ok?" Rin asked, motioning to her outfit. Wanting to dress to impress for the dinner and also making sure to take the weather into account, she had chosen to replace her usual dress and apron outfit for a more practical dark-washed jeans and light purple argyle sweater combination.
Kakashi glanced over at her briefly and nodded. "Yeah, it's fine. I mean come on, it's just a dinner; it's not a black tie event."
Running a comb through her hair once more, Rin notified him, "I'm ready to go," and they exited their apartment, heading to the Hokage tower.
Now normally Minato didn't use the residence in the tower at all, but at the recommendation of the council that he be around in case anything were to happen with the war, he had shrugged resignedly and accepted that this was one thing that he could not combat against. What they were proposing did make sense, and the Hokage residence was much larger than his regular apartment, making for more room to cook and entertain tonight's guests.
On their way to the tower, Rin couldn't help but suspect that there was something up with Kakashi; he seemed almost anxious since they'd left the apartment. "Are you ok?" It seemed as though she was going to be asking her friend many questions today.
He looked up from the ground at her, seeming almost surprised that she'd noticed a change in his natural countenance. "Yeah…" he responded, though he was sure that from his trailing off she had surmised that there was definitely something the matter with him on this particular afternoon.
Although he had responded affirmatively to her question, the truth was that there was something that had been bothering him: the proposition sensei had given him the day before. Kakashi was still pondering on what the answer should be and this was a tough question to answer, especially since he needed to answer it on his own, not even having informed Rin of what had gone on yesterday. He had decided to keep this to himself, for he was uncertain of what her reaction would be to the news and he certainly did not wish to upset her with it.
The rest of the walk remained silent, both parties turning the gears in their minds furiously with thought: Rin was still wondering what was up with Kakashi and Kakashi was still wondering what answer to give his sensei. Unknowingly, the rapid turning of their cognitive gears had incurred not only an increase in their brain's processing speed and problem solving ability, but also in their walking pace and in less than an hour, they had arrived at their desired destination.
On their way up the stairs, Rin had dealt with the ANBU members at the door, both of whom were very young (probably initiated in only a week ago), by appeasing their egos, commending them on their efforts, and mentioning that she was the former student of the Yondaime Hokage himself. They'd looked very pleased with her and had let her through immediately, though they appeared to have more of a problem with Kakashi, letting him through only after much insistence on Rin's behalf.
Once inside, the pair quickly found the residence and were greeted by the grinning face of their sensei, who welcomed them in merrily.
Rin went straight to the kitchen, where she found Kushina slaving over a few pots of cooked food and Kakashi joined Minato in the main sitting room, muttering something to him about changing the guards at the door. Minato had rubbed the back of his neck, and explained, "Sorry, but they're the youngest and most inexperienced. All the good ones have been taken away on missions and to the frontlines."
Kakashi nodded in understanding, but still complained that they were much too immature to be handling something like ANBU, describing how Rin had gotten past them so easily by appealing to their senses and ego. Minato laughed good-naturedly at the description, reminding Kakashi that the pair guarding the door were merely two teenage boys, and would act like two teenage boys, no matter what their rank.
Meanwhile, Rin offered her services in the kitchen to Kushina, who gladly accepted and wondered out loud why Minato wasn't the one helping since he was the host. Rin smiled kindly up at the older woman and said that it was probably for the better that Minato wasn't helping in the kitchen; he barely knew how to make instant ramen. At that statement, Kushina grinned and chuckled, agreeing with the younger medic nin. After about 15 minutes of help though, Kushina decided to let her guest of the hook and re-employ her boyfriend.
"Minato!" Kushina yelled through the apartment with such a tone that it had Minato on his feet, standing rigidly in a salute immediately, eyes frozen with fear. Kakashi shook his head and chuckled while Rin, seeing it happen from the doorway, shared a few giggles of her own.
The Hokage then Yellow Flash'd himself into the next room, earning a "Damn it Minato!" and a spatula over the head from his beloved girlfriend.
Kushina then turned to Rin, telling her to go make herself comfortable in the sitting room and not worry about any more preparations; she had already helped enough and after all, she was the guest. Rin had insisted politely that it was not bother to her to help but Minato sided with Kushina, also telling her to go make herself comfortable in the sitting room.
With a warm smile, Rin obediently meandered into the adjacent room, reminding them that she would still help if need be. She then took a seat on the couch next to Kakashi, engaging in idle chatter for a while until the smells of finished cooking wafted through the air and she sat up and went to offer her services once more. Kushina spotted her coming at once and, also once again, told her to go into the sitting room and not worry about helping; she and Minato had everything under control.
Rin disappeared back into the sitting room and Kushina and Minato continued to work on setting the table, laying out the dishes, glasses and bowls with vast varieties of foods on the mahogany oak dining table. While they worked in tandem, they too engaged in idle chitchat until Minato brought around a touchy subject, revealing his doubts.
"I think I made a mistake," he admitted, whispering so that the other pair in the room two doors to their left couldn't hear.
Kushina, not understanding what he was talking about, inquired, "What mistake? Did you put too much salt in the eggplant stew again?"
"No, it's not that," he remarked, frustrated. "I offered Kakashi a position in ANBU yesterday."
"I see," said Kushina, setting down another plate. "And you think this is a mistake…?"
"I just…I don't know what I'm going to do Kushina," he confessed. "I really don't want to take him away from the academy and shove him into ANBU – I know Rin would probably not like me for it as well – but with the way this war has been going, I don't think I'll have a choice in the end."
"Well, I'm sure you'll figure something out, and besides, it's not like you can just retract your offer," she reassured her boyfriend. "How about that change in Kakashi though?"
"What do you mean?" Minato questioned, a now confused look replacing the previously frustrated one.
"Oh come on Minato, don't tell me that you haven't noticed it. His personality has done almost a complete 180!"
"What do you mean?" he asked again.
Kushina popped her head from around the doorframe and peered into the sitting room where she was met with the sight of Kakashi laughing lightly, looking on in amusement at Rin's exasperated expression as she tried futilely to slick down a piece of his dishevelled hair that was sticking up in the back. Kushina peered only more intensely at the pair as she heard Rin make a small comment about how her hands were freezing to which Kakashi had responded by scolding her for not wearing warmer clothing and then allowing her to place her hands anywhere along his arms and absorb the heat emanating from his body. "Jeez," Kushina heard him comment as he shivered slightly, "I always forget how cold they are; maybe if I remembered, I'd actually decline." Grinning triumphantly, Kushina turned back around and beckoned Minato to come over and stand where she was.
He stuck his head out from behind the doorway as well, and was met with the sight of Rin's hands now encircling Kakashi's wrists. Kushina popped her head up beside his and commented, "That's what I mean."
Minato, who now donned an equally triumphant grin, shook his head. "I should have known. It may have been Obito who made Kakashi a changed man, but it's Rin who's keeping him that way. She's always had a comforting and serene presence about her, and it's only helped those around her." His voice took on a lower tone as he continued to speak. "I think it may also be in part because Kakashi still feels guilty and responsible for what happened to Obito. He doesn't want to do anything like that and ignore a friend, he doesn't want to do wrong to those he's closely associated with. Now that nearly everything and everyone is just out of his reach, just far out enough that he can't help, he's going to make sure he helps her. He's going to make sure he's a good person. He wants to at least do right by her."
Kushina nodded in comprehension and then reverted back to setting the table and placing the various plateaus on it. Minutes later she was finished, no thanks to her boyfriend who was still staring at Kakashi and Rin, and she called to them from two rooms over, "Dinner's ready!"
The four of them gathered at the table, all in considerable high spirits and prepared to devour the delectable meal before them. Rin commented on how good the Udon noodles were, Kakashi said nothing but helped himself to thirds, fourths, and fifths of the Eggplant stew, and Minato praised the ramen his girlfriend had attempted to make him. It seemed that Kushina was the most overtly pleased with Kakashi's seemingly intense liking of her eggplant stew, not missing the surreptitious whisper of "Get the recipe" he'd given to Rin.
After stuffing themselves silly, the group headed back over to the sitting room to talk more about each other's lives and discuss current events in the shinobi world. As soon as the topic of the war was brought on, Kakashi, having made his decision, decided to pipe up and let his sensei know. "Minato-sensei?"
"Kakashi, how many times do I have to tell you? You can just call me Minato now!"
Kakashi ignored the man and continued on. "I've made my decision. I accept your proposition; I'll join."
The look on Minato's face as Kakashi shared the information with him was unreadable. At first it had seemed like he was disgusted and upset at the acceptance, but later his look turned to one of well-contained happiness.
Rin on the other hand, donned a look of confusion: What proposition? What was her friend agreeing to? She decided to investigate further into the matter, hoping to draw a conclusion. "What are you two talking about?" she questioned, looking back and forth between the two males.
Minato appeared to remain calm and neutral but Kakashi went rigid almost immediately, mentally scolding himself. Idiot, you should have known that she'd find out sooner or later.
Catching his reaction, and noticing that Kushina didn't appear even half as confused as she, Rin turned to him. "Kakashi? What proposition?"
Seeing that Kakashi wasn't about to answer her, Minato intervened, hoping that the situation wouldn't get ugly when he told her. "He's going to go into ANBU."
Rin's eyes flashed dangerously in Kakashi's direction when she heard the answer, before a clam, albeit cold, and neutral look overtook her features. "I see."
The conversation continued on lightly but the atmosphere was definitely tenser now that the cat was out of the bag. Suddenly, Rin winced and dropped her head to her hands. Minato and Kushina stood up alarmingly fast, concerned as to what might be happening to the young woman but did not move closer so as not to cut off her air. A few moments passed and Rin finally pulled her head up, still wincing but smiling gently now. "It's fine, I just get chronic headaches. They always come at a bad time," she giggled lightly and the two adults in the room calmed enough to go back to their seats.
"Are you sure you're ok?" Minato asked her, regarding her sceptically.
"Yes, I'm fine," she tried to smile but it came out as a pained grin.
"Want to go home?" Kakashi suggested.
She winced again. "Yeah, maybe we should," she agreed. "Thank you so much for the dinner and I'm so sorry that we have to leave early," Rin said to the couple.
"No problem, you just make sure to get some rest, ok?" Kushina told her.
Rin nodded and exited their home, Kakashi opening the door for her and then following right behind her. When they got out of earshot, they changed demeanours.
"What was that?" he hissed. "You don't get chronic headaches!"
She turned around and glared at him. "Why didn't you tell me about ANBU?" she demanded.
He sighed; so that's what this whole thing was about. He'd been afraid of that. "I was only offered the position yesterday."
"And you didn't think that I may want to know? Did it not run through your mind to tell me?"
They were walking side by side now yet neither was facing the other. He shrugged. "It's not really your business what I do."
"Of course it isn't," she spat venomously and with a burst of speed, she passed by him brusquely and continued to walk in front of him the entire way there.
Anger and confrontation and tension; the three things Kakashi had feared the most when contemplating whether or not to tell her. It seemed that life wanted all his worst nightmares to come true. The pair reached their apartment quickly, and for Kakashi, it seemed that he would have to share his living space with someone who severely disliked him at the moment.
"I still can't believe you didn't tell me," she muttered under her breath, not really intending for him to hear.
He did hear however and he decided to retort. "I didn't want to tell you because I knew you'd react like this!"
"You would have had to tell me sooner or later!"
"You wouldn't have approved; you'd have tried to talk me out of it. This was a decision I needed to make on my own."
"I may not have approved but I wouldn't try and interfere with your decision making. I can't believe you would think that!"
He snorted in disbelief. "Of course you would have."
She spun around so quickly it made both their heads spin. "Don't pretend to know me so well Kakashi," she snapped at him and she looked ready to make a stinging come back but ran her hand through her hair and decided against it at the last minute; she just wanted the arguing to stop. "It's your life, do whatever you want. I'm fine with it, really." Rin then stalked off towards the bathroom, leaving Kakashi to his thoughts.
When they were both finished with the bathroom and in their pyjamas, sitting on their respective mattresses, the atmosphere seemed a little less volatile. "I'm sorry," she apologized, knowing that he wasn't one to start off conversations. "I don't want to argue with you and I didn't mean to snap like that."
He looked down, not meeting her eyes. It was embarrassing enough for him to be apologizing; to actually look at her would mean a certain blush. "I'm sorry too," he mumbled, "I should have told you earlier."
They both leaned back to lie down on their mattresses. Kakashi, still unsure of what was going on in her mind despite her apology, scooted closer over to her mattress and reached out a hand warily to place it on her shoulder, asking warily, "Are you sure you're ok with it?"
Rin abruptly turned over onto her side, just out of his reach, muttering a, "Yeah, it's fine," but by the tone of her voice, Kakashi could tell it was anything but. "It's what you've always wanted, right?"
"Yeah," he confirmed, "it is. This way I can become stronger and help out more. I can also finally put Obito's gift to use and make him proud." He sighed, noticing that she was still as tense and angry with him as before. "But if you don't want me to, I can always change my answer. I'm sure Minato-sensei won't mind and that way I'll be able to around more too. Seriously, if you don't want me to go, I won't."
"No," she sighed exasperatedly yet Kakashi could tell that she wasn't as angry anymore, "That's really sweet of you Kakashi, but that wouldn't be fair to you. You can't build your life around mine and you definitely shouldn't put your dreams on hold because I don't agree at the moment with your decision. Just...if you're doing this, do it for yourself. Don't do it for anyone else, ok? Don't do it for sensei or me or Obito. Remember, you're not living life for anyone of us; at least you shouldn't be. Live life for yourself. This is what you want? This is a goal you've strived towards? Fine. But make sure it's your goal, and not someone else's. Make sure you're not carrying out anyone's dreams but your own."
"I'm not," he insisted, but part of him knew that was a flat out lie.
"Promise?" she held out her pinkie finger, still not bothering to turn back over and look at him.
For Kakashi that was a good thing too because his face looked reluctant and remorseful. He was mainly joining ANBU for himself but he had ulterior motives as well, motives that concerned both his living and his dead teammate. He would try and change it over time though, make it so that he was going to be able to say that his promise to her was real. Kakashi held up his own pinkie and grasped hers in it, saying with a sure tone of voice, "I promise."
Author's Note: Well, that's the chapter! Hope you guys enjoyed it! Special thanks to chapter nine's reviewers: catgirl9696, chibirain94, Sakra-chan, snappa, JoiZ.D, ninbunny alchemist, catwomanswrath, and Sachie-chan11!
Chapterly Challenge: Yes guys, it's that time again! Before I post this week's chapterly challenge, I will post the standings thus far:
catgirl9696 - 0 points
chibirain94 - 0 points
Sakra-chan - 1 point
snappa - 4 points
JoiZ.D - 2 points
ninbunny alchemist - 0 points
catwomanswrath - 0 points
Sachie-chan11 - 2 points
As you can see, snappa is in the lead, so that's who you guys/girls need to catch up to! And if I got your standing wrong, please let me know! And just for reference, last chapter's correct answer was: All that glitters is not gold. I was hoping that more of you would make the connection to chemistry (auriferous) and whip out your periodic table of elements. XD
Now for this week's chapterly challenge: It's another popular saying and it's most commonly spoken among pirates and the like. Without further ado, here it is, you need to translate it into common terms (Use any resource you like EXCEPT the internet!) : Male cadavers are incapable of yielding any testimony.