AN: There will be three updates this weekend, starting with this chapter. Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to post the next chapter, and on Sunday, another one :) My treat!
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There was something strangely satisfying to Sakura about having the majority of the student population afraid of her. Of course, the first time she had walked into the Great Hall after the incident with Sasuke in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, she had kept her head down and didn't dare look up. Just the thought of seeing everyone's faces, everyone's eyes locked on her, knowing they would be whispering to one another about how psychotic she was, made her feel sick.
She could barely stomach eating anything anyway so she had skipped as many meals as possible. Of course, most of her absences had been due to knowing Kakashi was still lying in that bed, unconscious and hurt, but now that she knew he would be alright and would be hopefully returning to classes next week, her appetite had returned. And so she ventured back into the Great Hall on Saturday for lunch and was met with exactly the reception she was expecting.
She was scheduled to help Madame Utatane in the library at one when the first Quidditch game of the winter was due to start. It was the second time that year she'd be missing a game. If only she could go back to that first day, where she had been so miserable with the idea of spending a few hours with Professor Hatake while her friends enjoyed the match.
If she had only known then what she knew now.
The thought lifted the corner of her lips into a small smile and she slipped through the doorway behind a group of younger Gryffindors. One of the girls looked back at Sakura, her eyes going wide seconds before she whipped back around to face her friends and whisper to them. Apparently the rumors were still flying about what had happened with her and Sasuke. Sakura ignored them and strolled onward to the Ravenclaw table, refusing to look down at her feet like she had days ago. Not today.
She was going to hold her head up and let them talk. In fact, she welcomed it. The more they talked about her, the better she felt. Especially since most of the conversation was centered around her beating the shit out of a pureblood wizard who was supposedly top of their class. How embarrassing for Sasuke. With a quiet laugh to herself, Sakura cut her eyes to the left, directly at the table sitting beneath those green and silver flags.
She ignored the typical glares that she knew were being thrown her way and searched for the familiar blonde ponytail of her best friend. It was a little disappointing not seeing Ino sitting in her usual spot, ready to wave and meet Sakura in the middle where the Gryffindors sat. What she did see was Emi Saito sitting in the middle of her usual posse, still seething with hatred at the very sight of Sakura.
Sakura rolled her eyes and turned toward the Ravenclaw table, leaving the lot of Slytherins to glare their daggers into her back. In her wake, the chatter and excited conversations around the Great Hall faded and she could hear bits and pieces of the whispered rumors starting to spark up.
" I heard she tried to scalp Sasuke Uchiha in class !"
" Why is she still here? Shouldn't she be expelled ?"
" I can't believe she would show her face knowing Sasuke is here too ."
Sakura let it all roll off of her back as she made her way to the head of the table where Shikamaru and Shino were sitting across from one another. A few of their Gryffindor friends had transferred to the Ravenclaw table and Naruto, at the sight of Sakura coming closer, perked up and lifted a hand to wave her over. At least he wasn't ignoring her.
The thought of one of her friends in particular who was missing made her stomach knot with worry, but just because Ino wasn't here now, didn't mean she was avoiding her. Of course, the fact that Ino hadn't spoken more than a few sentences to Sakura since the incident last week was evidence to the contrary.
She didn't want it to bother her, didn't want to think that her best friend may have finally had enough, and was actively trying to stay away, but it was hard not to think about it. Still, Sakura held her head high and dropped onto the bench between Shikamaru and Tenten.
"Well, look who the cat dragged in," the brunette said, reaching over to nudge Sakura with her elbow. "Thought you'd be saving face for the next few weeks for sure."
"Who, me?" Sakura sniffed and grabbed a spoon as a bowl of vegetable soup appeared before her on the table. She dipped the spoon in and found a chunk of potatoes that could occupy her mouth while she tried to think of something clever to say. Before she took the bite, she looked at Ten from the side of her eye and smirked. "It'll take more than a few rumors to get rid of me."
The Gryffindor laughed and nudged her once more in the elbow, nearly making the bite of potato and broth fall from her spoon. "That's my girl. Gods, I wish I could replay that first punch over and over in my head."
"You had good form, finally." This time, it was Shikamaru's turn to speak up and his compliment made Sakura's face flush. "At least you didn't break your thumb while breaking his nose."
Swallowing the bite in her mouth, Sakura dabbed the corner of her lips with a napkin and turned to her fellow Head Boy beside her. "Have you seen Ino the past few days? I think she's avoiding me."
He shrugged and stuffed his mouth with a chunk of cornbread. Once he had chewed and swallowed, he glanced at Sakura and rolled his eyes when it was clear that she was still waiting for his answer. He gave a dismissive wave of his hand toward the Slytherin table. "She's been a bit preoccupied."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, it's a bit hard to notice your friends when your head is up some pretty boy's ass most of the time."
Sakura's eyes went wide and she fought to keep the smile from curling the corner of her lips. It was difficult. The sound of jealousy in Shikamaru's voice really piqued her curiosity, even though the daggers he was glaring at her meant he did not want to discuss it. She pursed her lips shut and turned back to her bowl, once again glancing through the Gryffindor table to the one positioned along the far wall of the Great Hall.
With another sweeping glance, she didn't see Ino or Sai so she ducked her head back down to scoop another spoonful of soup into her mouth. Even if Ino wasn't around, or talking to her, it felt good to have a few people on her side at least. But she couldn't deny that it hurt knowing that she may have gone too far last week.
"How bad do you think it would be if you skipped detention to come to the game?" Naruto asked as he leaned forward to peer at her around Tenten. He had that mischievous grin on his face, one that Sakura rolled her eyes playfully at.
"I don't think I should risk it for Quidditch. Besides, it's not Tsunade I'm afraid of." She sighed and took a sip of her butterbeer before glancing to the clock above the doors to the Great Hall. "I'd rather face her wrath than Madame Utatane's."
And boy, was that old biddy in a mood today. She had dumped a stack of books into Sakura's arms the moment she had stepped foot into the library, and when one of the books nearly tumbled to the floor, it was as if the entire castle was coming down around them. For forty-five minutes, the woman had lectured Sakura on properly handling the tomes, often repeating her sentences two or three times to make sure the girl really understood the importance of them.
It wasn't even two o'clock yet Sakura was already ready to leave. After nearly an entire hour of being lectured, Sakura was given a cart and a list of instructions on how to properly shelve a book. The clock on the mantle behind the librarian's desk chimed twice on the hour and the Ravenclaw sighed as she gingerly slid one of the precious books back into its proper spot.
One hour down, 23 more to go until all of her detentions were complete. If only this were one of the detentions she could spend with Kakashi.
With the Quidditch game going on, the library was deserted. And while she was thankful she wouldn't have to be bothered by students snickering or teasing her about her detention, the quiet was beginning to unnerve her. There was just the tick-tock of the clock and the occasional sniffle from the amount of dust swirling amidst the sunbeams shining through the windows.
The quiet was leaving her with her thoughts and that was exactly where she didn't want to be. As much as she would adore a few hours to daydream about the secret hideaway that Kakashi had hinted at the night before, she couldn't stop thinking about things that weren't so lovely. Like the fact that she had attacked Sasuke Uchiha, someone whose family could make her life a living hell after Hogwarts.
Here she had Tsunade on her side, but after May, Sakura would be on her own and since the Uchihas were prevalent in the Ministry, this stunt she had pulled might cost her some real opportunities. They didn't seem like the kind of people who could forgive and forget an incident like this.
Not to mention, the fact that he was innocent in what she had accused him of. Which put even more worries in her head to dwell on. If he hadn't been the one to scare her in the Astronomy Tower, then who was it?
Sakura slid the copy of Hogwarts: A History into the spot on the shelf and dropped her hand to her side with a frown. It was thoughts like this that she was trying to avoid thinking too much about. It did nothing but make her feel worse about her situation. No amount of worrying would bring her any closer to an answer, as frustrating as it was. She had to stop letting it bother her.
What she needed was to prepare herself in case it happened again. They had caught her by surprise once and she wasn't going to make that same mistake twice.
Sakura snatched a book from the metal cart beside her and spun to the shelves. Apparently, the book had been sitting on top of a slip of paper. The parchment strip fluttered off the cart and landed at her feet. She bent down and snatched it, turning it over in her fingers. The writing was scribbled hastily, with the ink barely dry. The last few words were smudged but she was able to read them perfectly.
Watch you're back, mudblood. We won't be so nice next time .
With a roll of her eyes, Sakura crumpled the note in her fist and stepped toward the center aisle in the middle of the enormous stacks. "If you're going to threaten me, you need to at least use proper grammar," she called out, though the library seemed to be empty. "Y-o-u-apostrophe-r-e means you are. 'Watch you are back' doesn't make sense."
She stood still for a moment, tensed and waiting for the hyena-like cackling she was expecting to hear from around the next few shelves, but there was only silence and she crossed her arms over her chest, half in relief and half in disappointment. As much as she did not want to add any more detentions to her year, Sakura wasn't in the mood to put up with this bullshit anymore.
Swallowing back a growl, Sakura spun back to the cart full of books she was working on and nearly slammed headfirst into someone standing there. She jumped back with a yelp and pressed her palm against the outline of her wand in her skirt pocket, ready to whip it out and blast them with a hex. But the person was just as surprised as Sakura was and she quickly brushed the fiery hair from her face.
Karin hugged two books to her chest with one arm and blinked down at Sakura. Both girls froze in place, not sure how to react or what to even say to one another. The paper crumbled in Sakura's hand was on the verge of turning to dust in the tightness of her grip and a thought flashed through her mind quickly. Did Karin leave the note?
For some reason, Sakura didn't believe that.
"Oh, erm, hello Sakura."
"Hey."
The awkward silence was brutal. She would have rather turned around and found Madame Utatane, Emi, and the entire Uchiha clan than this. Well, maybe not that exactly. But having to force conversation with Karin was high on her list of unusual methods of torture. Sakura cleared her throat and moved to the cart, giving the Slytherin plenty of space to move past her.
But Karin stayed put and stared at Sakura with a strange look on her face. Or, well, strange for anyone else. For Karin, it could have been perfectly normal. There was pity in her slight frown and tension around her glossy lips as if she were on the verge of saying something she would regret.
Was this the moment she'd lay into Sakura for punching her boyfriend in the nose?
"Listen," Karin started and Sakura couldn't help the bristle that ran down her spine. She plucked a book from the cart and held it in front of her. If Karin hexed her into oblivion, at least she'd be dealing with Madame Utatane's wrath for destroying one of her books as well. "I-I know we haven't been very close, or even spoken more than a few words to one another this year. Which, I'm sure that's mostly my fault, what with all of this Sasuke stuff and everything."
Sakura blinked at her rambling and glanced down to the books in her hand. What was happening? Had she somehow stumbled into another dimension where this was something normal to talk about?
Karin shook her head with a sigh and stepped further into the stacks, properly cornering Sakura so the only exit was through the window behind her. With a sigh, the Slytherin glanced around cautiously and leaned closer before dropping her voice to a whisper. "They would kill me if they knew I was telling you this."
"Telling me what?"
"There's...talk, about some really bad things. I don't know who to turn to about it and I don't think I can turn to anyone really. But-" Karin met Sakura's gaze and let out a small, defeated sigh. "You should be careful."
Sakura's eyes narrowed and she gripped the book in her hand so tight, her knuckles were turning white. "Are you threatening me?"
"What? No! I'm sorry, that all came out wrong." She sighed again and reached up to adjust her glasses, pushing them higher up her nose. "I just wanted to warn you."
"Warn me about what? You're making this really hard to-"
"Is this gossip hour or detention?" Madame Utatane's voice cut through the words Sakura had been saying and both girls whipped around to face the elderly woman glaring at them. "Miss Uzumaki, surely you have better things to do than disrupt my library."
"Yes, ma'am." Karin glanced back at Sakura, offered a small, apologetic smile, and hurried around the annoyed librarian. In her absence, Madame Utatane snapped her fingers and pointed down to the half-empty cart of books. Without another word, she shuffled off toward her desk and left Sakura staring at the place the both of them had just occupied.
Karin's words circled through her head like a cyclone. She had been rambling and speaking so fast as if she were afraid to actually say anything at all. And now, the thoughts and questions that Sakura had wanted to avoid dwelling on had flared back to life with an all new vigor. Each question and theory amplified and any possible answer she had settled in her stomach like a stone.
What had she been trying to warn Sakura about? And why had she been so sure she had no one to turn to about any of this? Of course, Sakura understood that part all too well. The only person she trusted was Kakashi. But if something bad was being planned...Tsunade needed to know.
Unless Emi and her posse of hyenas had gotten Karin to do this just to scare Sakura. With the note and Karin just appearing out of nowhere, it was highly likely. Why would she want to be nice and warn the girl who had punched her boyfriend repeatedly in the face? Sakura scowled down at the cart and snatched two books off the second shelf.
She had to stop being so stupid.
Karin was one of them. She was in the middle of all those Slytherin bitches. If she was involved in anything, it was whatever they were planning to scare Sakura. They were just bullies and if she wanted to outsmart them, she had to ignore these ridiculous tactics they kept attempting.
But even as she slammed the books onto the shelves, far less carefully than what she'd been ordered to do, Sakura couldn't get the look on Karin's face out of her mind. It was full of nervousness and a strange kind of fear that Sakura was all too familiar with. It was exactly the look that she was sure had been on her face the night of the Christmas Festival, as she fought through the crowd to find Kakashi.
She swallowed and chewed the inside of her lip, wishing more than anything, she could go to him now with this. As much as she didn't want to upset him or put any more stress on him, he had to know what Karin had told her. If Sakura could trust anyone, it was him.
If Kakashi had known he would be facing so much bullshit, he would have faked the need to stay in the hospital a few more days. He had barely made it out of the Infirmary doors before he was bombarded by both Shizune and Iruka. He could tell the instant he saw their faces that whatever they were going to say wouldn't be anything good. And he was exactly right.
"I know you've been recovering from an attack," Shizune started, wringing her hands nervously around the hem of her cloak. "And I tried to tell them that, but they're insisting upon your presence."
"Who?"
"Tsunade and Danzo," Iruka filled in with a breath of annoyance. The frown on his face worried Kakashi and he blinked in shock at what he'd said.
"What the hell is Danzo doing here?" Had the blast he took knocked his hearing out? Surely he was hearing things. It was bad enough that the Ministry would be sending someone to investigate his attack, but Kakashi refused to believe they would send Danzo. He wasn't exactly well-liked among his peers in the Ministry and was absolutely detested by any Auror who has worked the past decade.
"Apparently, he's making this incident and what happened to Sasuke Uchiha last week his personal mission." The two turned to lead Kakashi through the halls and he took a moment to shake his head, trying to sort his thoughts out before he caught up to them. His wounds were still healing and the tape holding the gauze on his arm pulled, making him wince from the sharp sting.
As he hurried up to his two colleagues, he frowned as Shizune's brief explanation sank into his head. What happened to Sasuke Uchiha last week...Was that the incident with Sakura ? Panic bubbled up into the center of his chest and he flattened his palm over it, trying to soothe it away.
"What happened last week?" He had an idea, but he couldn't exactly tell them he had heard it all from a certain student who had snuck into the hospital room late Friday night to see him. Kakashi swallowed tightly and looked between the two of them as they shared a quick glance.
Once they had turned onto the 4th floor corridor, Shizune turned to face him while taking a deep breath. "Apparently, there was an altercation between two of your students in your class while Iruka was covering."
So, it was the same incident. Kakashi brought his hand to his face and squeezed the bridge of his nose. Tension was already starting to build at the base of his skull and he was definitely going to need something to help this ache afterward. With his eyes closed, and though he already knew the answer, he asked anyway. "Which two students?"
"Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno."
"What started it?" Since he hadn't been able to get any answers out of her the previous night, hopefully between Shizune and Iruka, he could piece the puzzle together. He opened his eyes to catch the two of them sharing another look that only made his worry amplify. The frown pinching Shizune's eyebrows was all too telling.
"Ms. Haruno accused Mr. Uchiha of attacking her in the Astronomy Tower. She got a few punches in, broke his nose, and let's just say, tensions are a bit high between the 7th year students now."
Kakashi stared at the woman and blinked in utter disbelief. There was quite a lot Sakura had left out, apparently. How could she have kept something like this from him? Especially after all she had been through and all they had been through together! His stomach sank inside him and he pursed his lips, hoping they couldn't see how furious and hurt he was. As much as he wanted to know more about that, he had to tackle the obstacle directly ahead of him currently.
"So, what does that have to do with Danzo being here now?"
"The Ministry is investigating the incident and I'm sure you can take a wild guess as to who jumped at the chance to be in charge of it." Iruka rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "He's already questioned me up and down since I was in charge that day."
"And now it's my turn." Kakashi nodded and let out a heavy sigh. "Does he know I was laid up in the hospital for the past week?"
"He doesn't seem to care."
"Of course not. Well, let's get this over with, I suppose."
Kakashi would have preferred to stay in that lumpy, uncomfortable hospital bed for the next week rather than do this, but he followed his two colleagues up to the seventh floor anyway. There wasn't much conversation on the way, and he was fine with that. It gave him time to dwell on things that were starting to turn sour in his head. And most of it involved Sakura.
He knew she was struggling lately and seeing him laid up in the Infirmary hadn't been easy for her, but to keep something like this from him? She hadn't mentioned being attacked in the Astronomy Tower to him at all and the fact that both Shizune and Iruka hadn't expanded on that didn't make him feel much better. If she was keeping things from him , there was no telling what she was keeping from Shizune or Tsunade.
The dull ache at the back of his head was starting to throb at his temples now and he took a deep breath as he ascended the spiraling, stone steps up to the Headmistress' office. Shizune and Iruka decided to stay behind and Kakashi couldn't blame them. No one preferred to be in a room with Danzo for an extended period of time. He just wanted to get this over with.
Despite the circular windows that made up the wall behind Tsunade's desk, the room was dim due to the overcast skies and the candles floating overhead didn't offer much help. Kakashi saw the Headmistress first, sitting behind her massive desk with her hands folded in front of her. There was a look on her face that he didn't want to ever be on the receiving end of.
Her amber eyes were icy and narrowed in quiet rage, but thankfully they weren't directed at Kakashi. Instead, they stared straight at the man sitting in the chair across from her. His legs were crossed at the knee and the dark cloak he wore was draped over the majority of his right side. Standing next to the arm of his chair was a mahogany cane with a ball of clear crystal on top that Danzo kept his fingers idly twisting back and forth.
Though Kakashi could only see the back of the man's head, he knew that he wore a strip of fabric over his right eye. Upon moving further into the office, Kakashi cleared his throat and ignored the man, addressing Tsunade instead.
"You wanted to see me?"
She didn't answer but flicked her hand quickly toward the man sitting across from her. She sat back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest, never taking her eyes off of him. Kakashi didn't look at him either but watched out of the corner of his eye as Danzo turned in his chair and glanced up at him.
"Hatake."
"Danzo."
He knew he shouldn't be so short or informal with someone like him in the Ministry, but he couldn't stop himself. Danzo had always been the thorn in everyone's side. The only ones who tolerated him did so because they had use for him. A fact that Danzo was well-aware of and used to his own advantage. On more than one occasion, Kakashi had suspected him of giving the Auror Division bad intel.
When Kakahi refused to say more, the man sighed and stood to his feet with the help of his cane. The bastard more than likely only used it for sympathy, which he would get none of around here. Danzo straightened and faced Kakashi, using his good eye to meet his. "I've been informed that you were involved in an attack last week."
"It was an ambush."
"An ambush after months of deadends? It seems that a skilled Auror like yourself should have been wary of a trap."
"I was, but even the most skilled wizards can't fend off an attack from several enemies at once." Kakashi clenched his jaw and tried to keep his eyes as passive as he could. It was difficult when he was staring straight at someone who rubbed him the wrong way like this. "Perhaps the information coming in wasn't up to par. That comes through your division, does it not?"
Danzo's lips tightened into a smile that held little humor behind it. "Not any longer, no. You've been away at Hogwarts too long, Hatake. I've been promoted."
The smug tone of his words made Kakashi want to roll his eyes but he kept his gaze straight and lazy as usual. Knowing it would piss the man off to know he hadn't caused a reaction at all was enough to satisfy Kakashi for now. Thankfully, Tsunade stood to her feet and let out a deep sigh that pulled his attention away from Danzo. She crossed out from behind the desk and clasped her hands behind her back.
"Why don't we get to the point, gentlemen? I do have other things I need to be doing today as I'm sure the both of you do as well."
Judging by the look of annoyance on his face, Kakashi could see that Danzo wasn't too fond of being told what to do by someone else. Especially Tsunade. He tapped his cane on the rug beneath them and cleared his throat.
"There was an incident involving two of your students this past week."
"I'm aware of the situation." Kakashi couldn't help clenching his jaw around the words. "Though, I'm not exactly sure why you're involved."
Danzo ignored that remark and turned to face the massive, stone hearth in the wall, leaning on his cane as he walked. "And from what I've been told, you've been giving instruction to these students in physical combat through the school year, correct?"
He had seen that coming and yet it still pissed him off to hear it. Kakashi rolled his eyes once his back was turned. "Yes. The Ministry is well aware of my choices in the curriculum."
"Unfortunately, it would seem the Ministry does not always have the student's best interests at heart. Or their family's." Danzo turned and narrowed his eyes on Kakashi, pursing his lips into a thin line. "And one of my new duties is to see that those who make contributions to this institution are being represented."
"Ah," Kakashi started with a nod. "I see. So, the wealthy clans elected you as their puppet. I can't say I'm very envious of your promotion." From across the room, Tsunade turned away and Kakashi knew she was hiding her smile. He didn't try to hide his and even let it reach his eyes to make it clear to Danzo.
"You've always had such blind trust in the Ministry without realizing the true power behind it. A pity you wasted your abilities on them."
By now, Kakashi was seething and he didn't try to hide it a bit. His hands clenched into fists at his side and he stared at the man, feeling very little patience left for this absurd interrogation. "If you have a point, Danzo, I wish you'd make it already."
"I'm afraid I've yet to reach my decision about the incident, but I can assure you that I will be watching the situation much more closely in the future." He took two steps away from the hearth but stopped and turned his one eye to Tsunade. "Correct me if I'm wrong, Headmistress, but it was you who recommended Hatake for the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, was it not?"
"It was," she responded through clenched teeth. "A decision I continue to stand behind."
"And this Sakura Haruno, she's your protégé, correct?" Both Tsunade and Kakashi tensed at his words. The corner of Danzo's mouth twitched upward and Kakashi dug his fingernails into his palm to keep from doing something stupid like lashing out at a Ministry official. Once again, Danzo gave her that tight-lipped smile and a quick nod. "That's what I thought. I'll see my way out."
With that, he moved toward the door, the limp in his leg no longer such a hindrance. As soon as he was far enough away from the office, Kakashi let out the breath he wasn't aware he was holding in and looked at Tsunade. She glared at the door and he wondered if she was thinking the same thing he was. He didn't particularly like knowing Danzo was aware of Sakura's existence and judging by the look on the Headmistress' face, she didn't either.
"Well," Tsunade started. "As far as unpleasantries go, that was about as enjoyable as being covered in troll shit. If you need an extra day to recover, I can have your classes covered."
Kakashi shook his head. "I'm already going stir crazy, but thank you. I'm used to dealing with bureaucratic weasels like Danzo so it didn't bother me too badly. Am I mistaken, or was he threatening you?"
"I'm not worried about him." The Headmistress sat at the corner of her desk and folded her arms over her chest, meeting his gaze. The look in her eyes made him nervous and he swallowed tightly in anticipation of what she was about to say to him. "Kakashi," she started, her tone only making him feel worse. "I want you to find out what you can about this incident with Sakura and Mr. Uchiha. When I questioned her..."
Her sigh was one of defeat and she finally turned away to stare toward the windows to her left. Even if he wanted to speak, he couldn't find his voice. Seeing the woman, who was usually so reserved and stoic, look like this was alarming. He could feel sweat starting to bead along the back of his neck.
"Her behavior is worrying. At the start of the year, I thought it was just a typical heartbreak and she would bounce back." Tsunade looked helpless, speaking as if she were thinking out loud, and it made his unease surge within him.
"She's improved with her work and doesn't seem to be as distracted as she was." That was a lie and it settled heavily in his stomach. Sakura was distracted, just by him this time . Kakashi cleared his throat and continued. "Shizune mentioned something about the Astronomy Tower?"
Tsunade shrugged. "Sakura insists that it was nothing, that she was mistaken or it was just a prank, but I know it was more than that. She never reported it and I had no idea it even happened. I'm just afraid that there is something important that she isn't telling me."
Every square inch of his body tingled with dread as she looked him in the eyes. Could she see what all he tried to hide behind his stare? A confession he knew he could never say out loud stuck like glue to the back of his throat and he had never felt the urge to vomit so strongly before. He struggled to swallow it down.
Tsunade would kill him if she knew. He was certain of that now.
Raking a hand through his hair, he managed to take a deep, if not trembling, breath. "What should I do?" He didn't know if he was asking her the question or himself, but Tsunade answered.
"Question the Slytherins who were there the day of the fight. Iruka is questioning the others and we'll see what we can find." She was reaching into the depths of the drawers of her desk and Kakashi didn't need to see the flask to know what she was searching for. A part of him wanted to trouble her for a drink but kept his mouth shut. He needed to keep a clear head if he was going to be conducting his own investigation today. "We need to figure this out before Danzo can truly fuck us over."
Kakashi nodded, though he didn't know if Danzo could fuck things up any more than they already were.
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By the time he had made his way down the seemingly endless stairwells to the Slytherin common room, Kakashi's headache had turned into a full-blown migraine and the drippy, dank dungeon didn't help it one bit. It pounded just behind his eyes and all he wanted was to turn on his heel, get to his living quarters and collapse into his bed. Not even his trusty book series could take his mind off of the ache at the moment.
But Tsunade had been insistent about figuring all of this out and though Kakashi wondered if she would be this adamant about a student other than Sakura, he had to admit, he was curious as well. Merlin knows he wouldn't be able to get it out of Sakura just yet if she even decided to tell him in the first place.
It was bad enough knowing she was dealing with things like this, but for her to keep it from him was like a knife in the chest. Did she not trust him enough to tell him what was happening? It surprised him how badly that question hurt him to think about.
Kakashi sighed at the common room entrance which was nothing more than an ordinary stretch of wall. He remembered all too well the nondescript stones that, to anyone else, seemed exactly like any other stone in the castle. But there were several that had just enough moss creeping through the cracks to resemble a snake crawling the length of the wall.
The password was enough to make him roll his eyes and he felt ridiculous as he leaned in to mutter 'pure-blood' against the wall. Apparently, they were still rotating through the same, tired passwords that they had when he had been a student. With a quiet rumble, the wall opened into the common room and Kakashi took a moment to just take it in again.
He never thought he would be back here if he was being honest, and standing within the emerald and silver aesthetics of the room was like taking a step back in time. Several Slytherins, mostly older students, sat around the fireplace working on their school work and the circle of couches on the opposite side of the room were occupied by exactly who he wanted to speak to.
Ms. Yamanaka was bent over one of her textbooks, blonde ponytail draped over one shoulder as she read and Kakashi cleared his throat as he made his way over toward her. When his shadow fell over her, she sighed but didn't look up. "For the last time, Toshi, just because I'm sitting alone, doesn't mean I want company."
Kakashi folded his arms over his chest and cleared his throat once more, louder this time. With a dramatic sigh, Ino dropped her quill into her textbook and looked up. Her eyes went wide at the sight of him and she jumped to her feet, letting her books and parchment tumble out of her lap.
"Professor! I'm sorry. I thought you were...someone else."
He fought the urge to smile and dropped his arms so he could push his hands into his pockets. "I noticed. Do you have a minute to discuss something with me?"
"Of course," she smoothed the front of her uniform down her stomach and frowned at him. "Is everything alright?"
Kakashi hoped they were but didn't respond just yet. He turned to glance toward the hearth and noticed that most of the other students were turned toward them, eyes wide in anticipation of hearing possible gossip. It wasn't every day they had a random professor in their common room, and especially not someone like him.
He steered Ms. Yamanaka toward the corner of the room, near the panels of glass that gave the room a view into the depths of the lake. The water was a murky color now and it would stay that way as long as the skies were grey and heavy. "I just need to ask you a few questions about what happened while I was away last week. Particularly, with Ms. Haruno and Mr. Uchiha."
"Oh." Ino glanced down to her hands as she picked at her fingernails. "Yeah, I don't know if I'm the best person to ask about that."
"Well, I know you're close with Ms. Haruno, and I'm afraid if I ask anyone else here, that they may be a bit...harsh in their answers."
They both glanced back to the circle of students sitting around the fire, heads ducked toward one another to whisper. At least none of them were the three girls who were usually the ones to target Sakura. He sighed and turned back to Ino.
"I'm just trying to find out the facts. I don't need opinions, but I'm sure your account will be worth more than anyone else's at this point."
She kept her gaze down, which was uncharacteristic of her and Kakashi felt his stomach drop with added worry. By now, there were layers upon layers being laid in his stomach and each revelation about this ordeal made him feel worse. He was patient as he waited for Ino to gather her thoughts and when she dropped her hands to her side and shrugged a shoulder, he lifted his eyebrows in anticipation.
"I mean, it kind of happened fast. One minute, she was standing in front of me, but she was looking at Sasuke. And then she just took off toward him. The next minute, she was punching him."
Kakashi felt sick hearing it, but damn it, he had to know more. What could have possessed her to do something like that? He shifted on his feet and narrowed his eye in concentration. "I was told there was something about the Astronomy Tower. Did she tell you anything about that?"
"No," Ino said quietly, keeping her eyes on the floor. "She doesn't tell me anything anymore. I'm worried about her."
So am I , he thought to himself.
With a deep breath, Ino shook her head and shrugged a shoulder. "To be honest, I think she's had a mental breakdown or something. She's been stressed and struggling all year and I think it just finally got to her. The past few days she seems to be better." Again, she shrugged and looked up at him. "Maybe you should question her about it."
"I will. Thank you, Ms. Yamanaka."
She nodded and turned back to the sofa where her books had been dumped on the floor, leaving Kakashi to stand beside the massive windows of the common room. For several moments, he just stood rooted to the spot, trying to let his thoughts untangle themselves from the knot they'd been in for the past few hours. It didn't matter how many students he questioned about the incident. There was only one person who had the answers he was looking for.
Across the room, one of the younger girls giggled and he lifted his gaze to find the group turning to stare at him from over their shoulders. Which was his cue to leave. He took a step away from the windows but noticed that the usual murky green of the waters beyond had transitioned. The sun had broken free from the overcast clouds and shown through the lake, brightening the common room around him.
Kakashi made it halfway across the room before he turned back and looked at the water. The color was instantly familiar and a deeply buried sense of nostalgia suddenly flared to life within him. It was a striking color, like bright light piercing through pure jade and he found himself transfixed by it. Several pieces of seaweed floated along the bottom of the glass panel, but he barely noticed them. He stared at the water as his chest filled with realization.
He knew why Sakura's eyes were so familiar to him now. They were the color of his adolescence, the color he had spent so many hours surrounded by and now, despite everything that was happening around him, at least one of the tangled threads of confusion in his head was unraveled. It was the absolute worst timing, considering the next conversation he would be having with Sakura, but there was no denying it now.
He was falling in love with her.
