A/N: This is a flashback. (Just so you know, I did have a few readers who were confused when I did this before. It's for them.)
… … …
""Oi, Tousaaaan!"
Naruto cried out, his small feet padding one-two on the hardwood floor of their small apartment. It had only been about a week and a half since the duo had moved in, seeing as Naruto didn't have much to bring with him, courtesy to the owners of the orphanage. They had never bought anything for the boy with his stipend during his stay there, not a toy nor anything that could even be considered proper bedsheets. Luckily, the Hokage had provided the pair with more than enough money to raise the child and live quite comfortably. Though Kakashi decided to use 'live comfortably' sparingly, seeing as he couldn't really 'live' at all. He did his best, however, to put on a somewhat happy face for the child, still unused to showing his emotions around others after the intense Jonin and Anbu training he had received.
"Hm?" He's calling me 'Daddy' already? That was fast.
Kakashi grunted, almost instantaneously floating into sight before the small toddler. Naruto giggles, the expression on his face turning into a small smile. The ghostly Anbu quickly lights down onto the floor, his winged shadow making him seem all the more other-worldly. This didn't stop the small six year old from wrapping him in a tight hug before the Anbu had a chance to recover form the odd touch. Kakashi wasn't used to hugs, though he oft got them from his parents while they were all still alive. His shinobi conditioning almost made him lash out at the boy in self-defense, but he ignored his instincts and let the blonde arms crush his torso even further. This was something he was going to have to deal with and work with on his own, tedious and unnecessary though it seemed to him.
"Are you going to teach me somethin' new today?"
Naruto asked, letting go of Kakashi to face him directly, his azure eyes shining through his small lashes. He sighed in response, rubbing his head with his hand like always, wondering just where the boy's enthusiasm came from. Probably Kushina... Kakashi thinks, watching as the small child is practically bobbing up and down, waiting for him to say something.
"Yes, Naruto. I'm going to try and teach you how to throw shuriken and kunai today. Are you ready?"
"Oooohh!"
The exasperated Anbu sighs again, opening the front door of their apartment only to gaze at it curiously before anger sets in. The poor green door has obviously been the victim of vandalism; Graffiti, all of it messages such as "Leave demon!' or "Get lost!" painted across the door. Some just decided to be frank and put painted images of dead foxes or spiky haired children, being stabbed by stick people with pointed weapons. Luckily, Naruto couldn't read, another 'benefit' of being under the orphanage's care, but he could definitely figure out what the pictures meant. Kakashi quickly ushered him past the vandalized door frame, not wanting the boy to see the horrid images, but moreso so he wouldn't have to go out and hurt the ones that did this. Every second of looking at the door raised his ire, made him wonder how his master would feel if he knew how his son was being treated by the people Naruto inevitably saved.
Kakashi let his rage simmer down, leading the boy through the streets by the hand, and showing him the easiest and quickest path to the training ground that he knew of. No one was there, as it was early in the morning, and Kakashi felt safe enough to demonstrate to the blonde toddler how exactly the technique worked. Naruto just stood wide eyed in amazement, his mouth open as he watched the two shuriken go flying with deadly speed and hit the white bulls-eye head on in the center. After showing Naruto how to do it again, this time with kunai, Kakashi sat back against one of the three log near the memorial stone and watched.
Naruto carefully fingered the two shuriken in his hand, then flung them forward in a clumsy imitation of Kakashi's throw. His eyes narrowed when he saw that he hit a few feet to the side of the target, but he ran over to pick up the projectiles anyway. Determination burning his tiny blue eyes, the orange clad child tried again, this time nicking one right a the area where it's left ribcage would be. His third throw actually had Naruto hitting part of the inside of the target, though it was still a ways off. The boy grumbled to himself, picking up the shuriken again, and walking back to his starting point.
"This may take awhile..."
Kakashi mused, chuckling and yet inwardly groaning at the same time. Guess he gets his ninjutsu skills from Kushina took eh? Kakashi thinks, watching as the boy tried for the fifth time to strike a bulls-eye on the target to no avail. He calmly floats over toward the blonde boy, watching his sixth attempt. While it was closer than the others, now on the white in the middle of the first and third ring, it still wasn't on the eye. Naruto stomped his foot, the beginning of what Kakashi feared was a tantrum, then just sat down with his stubby arms crossed over the other, turning his back to the target. Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle, he really was acting like a little kid. He briefly wondered if he had ever acted like that in his childhood.
"Need help?"
The Anbu asked, to which Naruto shook his head 'no'.
"I'll get 'em eventually. It's just kinda hard..."
"Want me to teach you a trick?"
Naruto looks up at this, Kakashi floating lazily above him with a slight smirk on his masked face.
"What kinda trick?"
Kakashi gently grabs the hand which holds the shuriken. Taking them out of Naruto's hand, he uses his other free appendage to flick the boy's wrist back and forth, like it was a pendulum. Putting the projectiles back in the child's hand, Kakashi tells Naruto to throw. Fling his wrist back before he lets go of the shuriken, Naruto watches as the two make a loud 'thunk' right into the fourth and third rings near the bulls-eye. He squeals out at the top of his lungs, almost ecstatic and crushes the Anbu in killer hug before releasing him to grab his shuriken. Nearly running into one of the three logs, Naruto turns to his foster parent, a grin from ear to ear stretching across his whiskered face.
"I did it! Daddy, how did you learn that? It's sooo cool!"
"Something I picked up from my own father. Still, Naruto, you're not done yet; What about the kunai?"
The blonde nods, his gaze curious for just a second as he drops the shuriken and replaces them with their sharper counterpart. Holding them by the bandaged handle, Naruto looks and cockily grins his foster parent before turning back to his target.
"This'll be easy. Since you taught me that cool move, Daddy, dattebayo!"
One flick later, the two kunai are embedded almost perfectly in the two opposite sides of the fourth ring near the bulls-eye. While he didn't quite get it, Kakashi was still impressed by the child's accuracy, moreso since this was most likely his first time using ninja tools. A startled cry later brought him back to reality, as Naruto's eyes filled with tears,a small cut on his index finger, the blood pouring down his palm.
Note to self: Always use blunt kunai when training Naruto. Kakashi thinks, quickly taking the injured child's hand and examining it. It had already started to heal, despite Naruto's protests that it stung. The Kyuubi, eh? Kakashi breaks out of his train of thought to show Naruto the now-healed cut.
"But it still hurts, Daddy!"
Naruto protests, causing Kakashi to sigh inwardly. Who knew raising a child could be this difficult? Though he knew what he had gotten into ever since he posses Tenzo on the day of the Nine-Tails attack; He wasn't backing down now. Guiding the kid back by his uninjured appendage, Kakashi quickly filed through their medicine cabinet, that Naruto was too small get to on his own, and brought out a small tube of anti-bacterial cream. Rubbing it on the wound, despite Naruto's protests of 'It stings more now.', Kakashi staying by the toddler's side until he topped complaining.
"Small incident aside, you did great Naruto. You deserve a reward-Ichiraku's perhaps?"
Kakashi mutters, much to Naruto's happiness. For the third time that day, the young blonde wrapped the Anbu into a crushing hug, unable to contain his excitement at being treated to food.
"You're the best Daddy ever!"
Naruto shouts, his previously downcast face turning up into a huge whiskered grin. Kakashi sighs, rubbing the back of his head and wondering if he can actually live up to that title.