Author's note: THANKS GUYS! Oh my gosh some of your reviews made me cry I was so happy! Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing and liking this story! Really, I was so touched by your reviews! Well, here is another chapter. One more left and then the Epilogue. Sooo happy to be finishing. I want to write a Kimimaro story, but am having some writer's block-I want it to be as good as this one, so I will give it some time. He's such a tragically beautiful character, I need a story to do him justice.

Anyway, next chapter: Moonlight Shadow

PS: Sorry for the obvious lack of...things...in this chapter. I tried-I really did. But... just couldn't stop myself from laughing. I am still laughing. So, sorry it's too embarassing to write.

Part 4, Chapter 5—Calm Before the Storm

Akane walked down the streets of Konoha with groceries in her hands, and Pakkun at her side. The weather was getting colder in Konoha, and she could smell the changing of the seasons from fall to winter approaching steadily. She hated the winter—the feeling of the cold snow, and the sounds her shoes made in it disgusted her. But she had to admit that, while every other time winter came along she would become miserable, this winter was different. After all, since Kakashi had come back from that snow mission—was it really a year ago?—she couldn't slap the smile off of her face.

Her lips curled into a smile just thinking about him. Never before in her life had she felt so happy to be alive. Every morning when she would wake up, she would just lay there, still in disbelief that she had him in her life—and more shocked that he wanted her in his, too.

Since they had well, stopped being just friends life had only gotten better. Even Pakkun seemed to be enjoying the change of pace. She noticed that they didn't fight as often as they had been, which she could tell was making her small dog happy, and even when they did disagree they found a common ground. Akane had to admit that there was nothing better in her life: he was the kindest, funniest, and most helpful man she knew.

Akane could feel herself blushing as she thought about the man she was finally allowed to love. There certainly were other benefits, but even thinking of them made her blush uncontrollably. Perhaps Pakkun wasn't completely enjoying some changes of their new lifestyle, but she figured he could get over it and spend some more time with Gai and Kurenai.

The only unfortunate thing she could think of was the fact that they were still hiding it from their friends. After all, Gai was still in love with her—she could still sense it—and Asuma hadn't returned yet to Konoha. Akane knew more than anything that the last thing either of them would want to see would be her and Kakashi enjoying themselves. It would infuriate Gai, who Kakashi still wanted to be friends with, and it would remind Kurenai of what her and Asuma had—which was still causing her a great deal of pain.

Still, despite the secrecy, their moments alone together were everything she could ask for. She could remember Kurenai reading her silly love stories before she could read and thinking how silly love sounded. She could remember listening to Kushina and Minato being cute to each other and thinking it was disgusting—but now, now she relished those few romantic moments they had and was enjoying being in love, no matter how silly it still seemed.

Opening the door to the apartment, she walked over to the kitchen and put the groceries on the counter. As she started to take out and store what she had bought for the day, she felt a pair of hands go over her eyes. She couldn't stop herself from laughing as she could feel Kakashi leading her over to the couch. Too often, he would pull little tricks like this, not realizing it made no difference.

"Don't look, I have a surprise for you!" he whispered.

"You're being stupid again, Kakashi."

"It makes it seem special," he explained before letting go of her eyes and placing a small wrapped present in her hands, "Surprise!"

"You didn't have to wrap it, either…"

"Can't you just be surprised? My god you're difficult."

"Not as difficult as y—"

"Just open the damn present." He demanded, finally getting frustrated.

Opening the small present, a puzzled look came on her face as she realized that it was a tiny book. Running her fingers over the cover, however, she realized—to her surprise—that there were small bumps on it. It was a brail book, and its title was…

"Kakashi I'm not reading this!" she exclaimed running her fingers over the summary on the back, "They even bothered to translate this thing?"

Kakashi smiled as he saw the blush creep across her face. He absolutely loved to see her flustered and embarrassed like this—to him, in these small moments, she was most beautiful—not in her best kimonos and caked with make-up. It was these little moments that he carried with him when he had to leave her while on missions.

"When I found out they made them, well…I couldn't resist!" he laughed, "I know that, if you give it a chance, you will find it a great piece of literature."

"Kakashi this is pornography!" she whispered as if it were a curse word, "Classy ladies do not read porn."

The man just walked around her and wrapped his arms around her from behind. He could feel the heat on her cheeks as he kissed her neck and whispered in her ear.

"You weren't a classy lady last night, so that shouldn't be a problem…"

"Guys!" Pakkun cried coming out of the kitchen, "I'm not deaf!"

Pakkun laughed as his owner smacked the boy with her new book and apologized for Kakashi's comment. He had to admit, although it was awkward to see the two of them "together" after watching them both grow up, he was happy that it finally happened. Even though he found himself spending a lot of forced time with Gai or Kurenai, he liked that they were finally getting along and working together as a team. For the first time in Pakkun's life, he felt like he was actually apart of a family instead of just a pet to a misfortunate blind girl—the feeling was absolutely amazing.

He watched as Kakashi explained to the girl that he was going out with Gai today to train and to hear some exciting new. He suggested to her that she go spend time with Kurenai or read the book (which she absolutely rejected) and that he would see her for dinner. With that, he gave her a kiss goodbye and started out the door.

"Bye to you too, Pakkun!"

Pakkun loved his family.

Kakashi noticed that Gai was ecstatic as they walked towards the training grounds on the outskirts of town. He had to admit, with Gai this excited over something he didn't quite feel so bad about what he was doing back in his apartment, behind closed doors. When he had finally made up his mind a year ago the worst feeling was that he was stealing her from Gai. It made him feel guilty, being so happy, but now that Gai had something to be happy about he could feel that guilt subside.

"So what did you have to tell me about, Gai?" he asked in his usual flat tone, "You seem more excited than usual."

Gai smiled the biggest smile he could at his best friend. Today, he had been told by the Ninja Academy that he had been chosen to lead a new team of Genin when they graduated in a couple of months. He was so excited that he was going to be able to make an impact on their lives!

"In a few months I will be the leader of a Genin squad!" he explained with a smile on his face, "I will get to mold them into the best Shinobi they can be! I will instill in them the importance of the Flames of Youth!"

Kakashi smiled as his friend gave a huge thumbs up and spun around. While Gai's excitement could be overbearing at times, he decided that this was one of the moments that he deserved to be genuinely excited. The white haired man had to admit, though, that he had never expected his friends to become teachers so quickly. Even Kurenai had admitted that after she became a Jounin the first thing she would do would become a teacher. It seemed as though his friends were taking a huge step to adulthood that he was not taking.

"That is great news, Gai!" Kakashi congratulated, "I am sure you will be an amazing teacher, no doubt!"

"I plan to be, Kakashi!" Gai smiled as they finally reached the training grounds, "Perhaps I will have to order some smaller green jumpsuits!"

Kakashi's eyes just widened.

Perhaps he spoke too soon…

"You look rather happy today, Akane." Kurenai noticed as she watered some of the plants on her window sill, "Something exciting happen?"

The girl blushed as her head flipped through the events of last night. She had to admit, no matter how much she hated him reading those books, they must have been teaching him something. Shaking the thoughts out of her head, she tried to think of a good excuse to tell Kurenai. After all, even she did not want the events of what really happened last night to pass her lips.

"Oh, Kakashi's gone today so I get the apartment!" she lied, "He's such a slob. Always leaving dirty dishes, making messes, and reading those revolting books."

Kurenai laughed as she watered her plants. She always found it funny when her best friend would complain about her roommate. To her, Kakashi always seemed so reserved and static that she couldn't even imagine him acting like the way Akane said he did. Hearing about some of the stupid things they would fight over was most amusing to her, but she had to admit—it made her miss Asuma.

"You can always come live with me again." She offered, "You have to admit, I'm less of a mess. Besides what's it been—over a year? I think it should be my turn."

Akane thought back to the past year and a half that she's spent with Kakashi. She had so many fun memories of things they would do together and all the sweet things he would do for her, and how much he helped her make it through an average day…she couldn't imagine trying to function without him, no matter what their relationship status was.

"Oh Kurenai," Akane started, faking a laugh, "Kakashi would probably hurt himself trying to function without me."

"If you insist, Akane." Kurenai accepted, "But when you finally get sick of him, remember—my doors always open."

The blind girl listened as the watering continued and Kurenai rattled on about a new type of makeup that they were going to be selling at their local market next month. Kurenai's offer was appreciated, but after everything that had happened between her and Kakashi…

She didn't think she was going to ever get sick of him.

Pakkun walked happily through the village. He thought the best time of year was winter, despite what the other two humans thought, and the feel of the cool ground underneath his paws was a welcome change from the warm hardwood that he was accustom to at home.

In the distance, he could see one of the humans now with Gai. He could hear, even from his position far away, that they were discussing various ninja techniques and weapons. Pakkun had to admit, sometimes he wished he was a human so that he could do all the amazing things his humans and their friends got to do. Other times, when he saw how complex humans were—physically, mentally, and most drastically emotionally, he was happy he was a dog. He had few wants and needs—a warm bed and a meal every day. He didn't know how humans juggled their numerous needs and ambitions.

He could see, as he had gotten closer, that Gai had started to run over to him. It may have just been the lighting of the early sunset, but Pakkun could have sworn he saw sparkles around the boy who was so excited.

"Pakkun I'm going to be a teacher!" he exclaimed, "Isn't that exciting! Three Genin that I can train to be just like me!"

Pakkun looked up at Kakashi who gave him a similar terrified look. Even if he was a dog, he still had a feeling that the idea of three more Maito Gais was absolutely terrifying. He had to admit, though, that Gai had looked the happiest he had been in a very long time—and it was a nice change.

"We should hang out, Ninja dog!" Gai said, pointing towards the sky, "I can practice my teaching skills on you tonight!"

Pakkun looked in horror as Gai said those fateful words. Not a second after they had left his lips, he noticed a smile on Kakashi's face. He knew what this meant and it made him feel like he ate a little too much chocolate.

"Thanks, Gai, but tonigt—"

"He'd love to, Gai!" Kakashi interrupted, giving the dog a look that told him to be quiet.

"Excellent!" Gai screamed, as he picked up Pakkun and gave him a pet on the head. "You must call me Sensei for now, Pakkun!"

Pakkun just sent an infuriated glare at the man he shared his home, and master, with. It made Pakkun want to vomit when he thought about the two humans alone together. He could still remember back to the day when Kakashi had bought him, just a young boy of six, who told him that he was bought for a special purpose. He could remember the look on his owner's face when he was handed to her—both of their innocent faces smiling at the other.

And now…

He didn't even want to think about it.

Pakkun watched as Gai started to turn the corner to go to his house, saying goodbye to Kakashi in the process. As he watched the silver haired man walk off down the street, a hand raised up in the air in a wave.

"Bye to you too, Pakkun!"

Maybe he really hated his family after all.

Akane cursed herself as her fingers danced across the pages of the book that Kakashi had given her as a present earlier this morning—if it could even be considered a book. She had told herself that, to be nice, she was going to at least open it and read the first couple pages. After all, she didn't want to have had Kakashi spent money on her for nothing—and not reading would have been rude.

Why she was angry, though, was because she had told herself that an hour ago. To her surprise, though wildly inappropriate, the book was actually enjoyable. It had a story for each chapter and, although every ending was hilariously predictable, she found that she couldn't stop reading—even if she felt like her nose was going to bleed at the more descriptive parts.

What made her blush more during this reading adventure, however, was how it made of think of Kakashi and well…even though she was a willing participant she still felt embarrassed by it. She was a lady, no matter what he said, and ladies just didn't do things like that, and they certainly did not read erotica novels.

But she flipped the page anyway; before her fingers could even touch the page, however, she heard the audible click of the apartment door being unlocked. Before she could have the chance to close the book, she heard a snicker from the man she loved and footsteps walking towards her.

"Look what we have here…" he said, satisfaction in his voice.

Closing the book, she just shook her head and handed it back to him.

"I was just curious," she admitted, "I didn't want to be rude."

She could hear him flipping through the pages in front of her. The smell of the freshly perforated pieces littered the air—she had to admit, it smelled great. As he flipped through the pages, however, she heard him give her a small laugh before handing it back to her.

"Five chapters is a little more than "curious", Akane." He snickered, "See you weren't a lady after all!"

"Have you seen Pakkun?" she asked, trying to change the subject to something that did not involve Icha Icha, "He said he was going for a walk a little while ago, but he hasn't come back."

"Oh yeah." Kakashi answered, seeing the shock on her face as if she wasn't expecting an answer, "He's with Gai tonight."

Akane could feel her eyes widen. He was with Gai tonight? She knew more than anyone that her dog loved Gai, but hated when he was forced to spend any significant amount of time with him. She felt Kakashi sit next to her on the couch, taking the book out of her hand and placing it on the table in front of them.

"He's with Gai?" she exclaimed, "Kakashi! Don't you think that's a little cruel?"

She rolled her eyes as she could feel his hands trail up her arm.

"Nope."

The next morning came early; Akane could feel the sunlight hitting her face through the window. Opening her eyes, she was greeted once again by the beautiful sight of darkness—nothing. Her other senses, however, were fully occupied. She could feel Kakashi's arm around her waist, as it always was, and she could smell the natural smell of Mr. Ukki above her head.

As she tried to get up, however, the arm pulled her closer—not willing to let the morning end.

"Don't go." A muffled voice told her, "It's too early."

She smiled as he pulled her against him. The feeling of his unclothed chest on her was excruciatingly intoxicating. She could feel his heartbeat, slow and relaxed, against hers as he beckoned her back to sleep. Resisting, she tried to pull away.

"I need to go get Pakkun," she explained, "He's suffered enough."

"No, stay…" he begged, kissing down her neck, "For me?"

"Kakashi please get off of me." She groaned, annoyed that he was keeping her.

"That's not what you were saying last—"

"Please, please don't even finish that sentence." She begged, feeling her cheeks heat up once again, "Really, Pakkun is suffering."

Kissing her once again, she tried to pull away only to feel the heat of his breath by her ear. The feeling was making it hard for her to resist his actions: The smells, the sensations, the heat—it was all telling her mind to give in. But she knew that she could not.

"I can show you how chapter six ends." He whispered. "Spoiler, they all end the same…"

Pushing him off finally, she managed to get out of bed and start to put some decent clothes on. Although she didn't want to go, the guilt of leaving her little dog to spend any more time with Gai was overpowering. She could hear Kakashi sit up as she put on her dress. Her cheeks lit up again; she could feel his eyes on her and, even though it shouldn't be embarrassing considering the situation, she still felt it.

"You're an animal or something, Kakashi." She said as she started to leave, giving him a kiss goodbye, "Get your mind out of the gutter."

As she left Kakashi succumbed to the calling of the warm bed shared once again. He couldn't help but smile as he thought of their last year together, as he lay there trying to find sleep again. He could remember how happy she was the morning after he had come back from the mission in the Land of Snow. His heart fluttered as he remembered her telling him how much he meant to her and how much she missed him. Never before had he been so happy that someone agreed with him. Since then, every day had been a blessing.

He could remember the small things between them—he smiled as he remembered the first time they kissed, or how happy she looked when he brought her flowers for the first time. He could remember how happy he was when she would tell him she loved him, and how embarrassed she would get when he would tell her that he thought she was beautiful. He loved the feeling he got when she would come home from a mission—so relieved that he didn't lose another to the tragedy of war.

Turning around in bed, he couldn't help but smile as he thought back to the first present she bought him—a beautiful silk bookmarks with little bells on it "so she could tell when he was reading those filthy books". He could remember the smile she got on her face when he told her that he loved it, and the blush she got the first time he told her he loved her.

To him, the past year had been the best of his life. Many times he had gone to the memorial stone with a smile on his face-excited to tell his old teacher that he had finally found someone that meant as much to him as Kushina had meant to him. He had told Obito that he hoped that he could see how happy he was, and that he was sad that he couldn't tell him in person.

Finally falling asleep, the boy smiled once more. He really hoped that this feeling never ended; never before had he wanted someone in his life more than he wanted her. Never before had he wanted to spend all of his with someone. He figured, however, that he probably shouldn't tell her that—she would blush too much.

"I'm glad Pakkun was no trouble for you." Akane said, as her, Gai, and Pakkun walked towards a small diner across town for breakfast, "I'm glad you two had fun!"

She could tell that her dog had not had a good night at all. From Gai's excitement this early in the morning, she could only guess how excited he must have been the night before. Of course, she knew he had every reason to be happy—teaching is one of the most exciting moments for most Shinobi. Gai, overexcited or not, would be a great teacher.

"We had a lot of fun!" Gai smiled looking down at the tired dog, "How was your night?"

Akane could feel her cheeks lighting up again.

"Boring." She lied, "I live with Kakashi, remember?"

To her relief, he laughed; it seemed as though the excitement of becoming a teacher had finally broken Gai out of the constant need to compete with Kakashi for her friendship. She was happy to talk to Gai again like she did when they were kids—no strings attached. For once in a long time, she didn't feel like he was in love with her.

It was refreshing.

Gai couldn't help but stop the conversation he was having with Akane as they approached the Ninja academy. He was so excited at the thought that maybe his future team was in there learning right at this moment. Would they get along with each other? What would there skills be? With every step closer to the school, he felt his heart quicken.

In the courtyard, he could see a young boy with his parents being counseled by the teacher. A trouble maker-he was for sure. He could remember the same scene when Anko and Akane could get into fights on the playground. But as they got closer, he could tell that this child was not a troublemaker at all.

Listening in, he heard the teacher tell the parents that their child could not possibly be a ninja. Apparently, the boy who stood there—long black hair with a determined look on his face—had no aptitude for Ninjutsu or Genjutsu. Gai had to admit he was surprised; never before had he heard of a student not being able to do either. Certainly he knew many who were less skilled in them, but never had he heard this.

As the teacher continued, Gai learned that he was recommending that the parents take him out of the academy and find him a better suited career path. He explained to the parents that a student who was incapable of doing either would die a young ninja, or not even make it past Genin. Gai could see the heartbreak in the parents' eyes with each passing word—the realization that their child could not become what they had wanted was certainly a sad one.

"I will not stop!" the young boy suddenly interrupted, "Even if I need to work five times as hard to become a splendid Ninja I will do it! Even if I have to be in this academy for years, I can take it! I will not give up!"

Gai's eyes widened as the child stood up for himself. The boy had so much fight and determination that it was almost moving him to tears. As they walked by, Gai's attention was grabbed by the person he was walking with.

"That's how I felt at his age," Akane whispered, "I know he will grow up to be an amazing ninja."

Gai looked at Akane who smiled a reassuring smile at him.

Perhaps he would wait a few years to become a teacher.

Pakkun walked with his master as the snow started to fall. For some reason, she was looking a little paler today—and her face held the lines of worry. He didn't think anything bad had happened between her and Kakashi, and he didn't think Kakashi was going on any missions soon to cause such a worried look on her face. The dog had to admit, for how happy she had looked over the past few months it was painful to see her look like this.

"Are you ok?" he asked her finally, "We can go back home if you want. I'm done with my walk."

The girl looked down at her little dog and just smiled a fake smile.

"I'm fine, Pakkun." She lied, "Just a little tired."

Truth was, she was everything but fine. For some reason, over the past few weeks she had gotten an uncontrollable feeling of dread. It reminded her of the time before the Nine Tails attacked the village—before there was unimaginable loss. She couldn't put her finger on why she felt this way, either. Everything in her life was as perfect as perfect could be. When she should be feeling so happy, she felt this unimaginable weight in her chest—it was sickening.

Running past her, she could hear the squeaking sounds of shoes in the slushy snow—the unmistakable chakra of the Forth's son, Naruto, was overwhelming. She could hear his mischievous laughter echo through the streets as he ran. Behind him, she could hear the desperate pleads of a young Chuunin, Iruka, begging him to stop causing havoc around the village.

Perhaps the fact that Naruto was growing up, and so the beast within him, was causing her distress. She was extra sensitive to chakra signatures, after all. Perhaps that was the unshakable dread she was feeling.

Yes. That had to be it.

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