Death and destruction. Screams and wails of sorrow danced with the blackened smoke swirling in the air. Bodies and dismembered limbs laid on the ground like broken dolls dipped in red paint. Fires raged out of shoppe windows, debris rained from the skies, signs dangled in between door ways, bodies dangling out of windows. Kakashi struggled to breath as he walked aimlessly down what was once called the Market. The air was so thick and intoxicating like factory smoke. Such ironic ear piercing silence, such heavy dread and death.

Kakashi wrapped his arms around himself, the dead figures morphing and changing. Hair colors became lighter, their black attire changed into shinobi vests, short hair became long and tangled, shorter became taller, fat became thin and thin became fat.

Suddenly, he heard a faint voice vocalizing a soft lullaby. The voice was so familiar, but no name came to mind. Kakashi's heart became light again and slowed to a normal pace, the voice was soothing and alluring like a siren luring her victim to his death. Kakashi found himself following the voice through the wreckage and burning, morphed bodies. His attention glued to the thick shadows at the end of the road. Suddenly, wondering if his eyes were tricking him, he swore he saw a twinkle of light. He stopped and waited for the light to appear again. Then, just like stars in the darkest night, the light appeared again, and this time, it wasn't fading into black. In fact, it grew each time he blinked. The star grew and grew until it was large enough to be the same size as an average human, then stopped twinkling and became a glistening star. With the voice singing it's soft lullaby at a louder tone and the star's glistening light, Kakashi found himself just staring in pure amazement at the white star, shining so brightly that it seemed to burn away the sadness and despair in the village behind him. The heavy dread in his heart melted away and joined the blood in his heart, and for the first time, he was hopeful.

Then, the four corners of the star merged together and formed a strange shape. It became thicker and whole, the shine dimmed and it's center shaped the kanji 'death'. Kakashi gasped, the star became a casket.

It hadn't closed, yet. The casket held it's glow, allowing him to see the body of his deceased sister-in-law dressed in her blood stained white hospital gown. Her long hair draped over her shoulders, her head was facing down, blood dripped onto the bottom of the casket.

Beside her was another, much smaller casket.

Kakashi gasped at the sight of the two coffins, covering his mouth in absolute horror as he fought back the urge to scream. His heart grew so heavy that he couldn't move, bile lodged in his throat, tears blinded him.

No No No No! This can't be!

Kakashi slammed his hands against his head. He remembered saving the baby, she was alive when they ran from the hospital. But then, why are they're two coffins?

The vocalizing voice turned into Gai's howling cries echoed in the coffins went dark and the light reappeared behind him. It was the same white light from the star, the village was gone. Kakashi reached out in front of him, finding the coffins have vanished. Thinking they had appeared behind him, Kakashi spun around. He gasped, sharply, and his eyes widened in terror.

Three more small coffins appear. All three of them half vocalizing voice changed to the shrilling laughter of children. In front of one was an empty basket with a baby blue blanket, the center had a cherry blossom patterned eye patch, the last laid a teddy bear. Whimpering and gasping, he raised a shaky and tried to reach for the second coffin. More than anything, he wanted to see who was behind the lid, if they were alive. These are child sized coffins, each of these items were a memobilia to his children. Just then, the coffins began to slide back like lanterns on a string. And no matter how much he tried to go after them, he was just out of reach. He tried to run, faster than he had ever run in his life, his hand trying to grab the lid as they began to close shut.

NO! Don't take them from me! They're all I have left!

"NO!"

He shot up right in his bed, his hand clutching his rapidly beating heart and the other reaching outwards. Screams and sobs lodged in his throat, his frazzled mind processing where he was;a cramped bedroom with two twin size beds pushed against each other, an overly stuffed dresser squeezed in along the window, nightstand on his side of the bed and another on the opposite end. As he sat there, trying to slow his breath and damped in sweat, he tried to remember the true outcome.

Two years ago.

He remembered it was Asuma and Anko who had his children before the attack happened, and had kept them safe in one of the caves in the mountains by the Kage faces. They had brought them home after things had calmed down and the villagers were cleared to go find if their homes remained intact. By the time they had gotten back to their apartment, Kakashi had just arrived, wrapping the baby in a thin blanket and set her on the table. Nicholas was the first to barge in, he looked at his father for one second before running into his embrace. Mika, exhausted from trying to keep up with her brother, began to cry as she joined the two of them. Asuma and Anko stood by the door, Rikko in Anko's arms, sleeping as though nothing had happened. Mika asked and pointed to the sleeping newborn.

The baby girl survived.

Kakashi wasn't sure how long they had been laying underneath the fallen roof of the tea house, or how long it was until Choza Akamichi heard the baby's cries and pulled the large debris off of Kakashi. Luckily for them, Choza's mother was a nurse and was following her son, aiding him with her own expansion jutsu and healing any of the injured. After examining his back, she found that Kakashi's back was severely bruised, but no bleeding and nothing had penetrated his skin. Then, she examined the baby and was over joyed to find her unharmed and healthy, just tired and hungry.

Meanwhile, Gai was pulled from the firey wreckage of the maternal ward. Although he didn't suffer any burns, his right leg was broken, a jagged pipe had stabbed through his right arm thus giving him lead poisoning and a broken arm. Although it wasn't hard for Gai to workout and train the left side of his body, once he was healed from the poisoning, it still seemed odd when one side became bulkier than the other. During his recovery, Gai and the baby moved in with Kakashi and his kids. Somehow, they managed to squeeze in another bed next to Kakashi's and a cradle in the living room. Kakashi helped Gai with physical therapy and making sure he took his medication, and Gai was healed in a very short time. And with Gai's arm and leg being out of commission for these last six months, and after being in the hospital for nearly a week during that time, Kakashi added the aid of Nicholas and Mika with taking care of Rikko and the baby girl Kakashi named Hoshi.

The village was fixed in less than a year.

The villagers rebuild their lives in less time.

Twila's funeral was three days after her burnt and mangled body was found.

Gai couldn't bring himself to go to her burial. He stood at the front during the closed casket ceremony, but he didn't speak to anyone, showed no emotion, seemed like a mannequin in a wheelchair. And once he was healed just enough to walk and do hand stands, he began spending most of his time focused on training his students, going on long distance missions and improving on his strength and stamina. But, his daughter became just another child Kakashi adopted.

Outside of getting through to him, Kakashi thought to himself as his heart returned to normal, everything is fine and everyone is safe.

Knock knock

"Hmm? Come in." Kakashi announced. The door opened wide with a loud creek and a child barged in.

"Hey! Come back here!" He heard Nicholas shout from down the hall. "What are the rules!? Set up the table first!"

Kakashi watched, at the end of his bed, a pair of small hands grab onto his blanket and a little child squirm til she got to the top of the bed. Her black hair was pulled back into a sloppy pony tail, her knees got caught inside the overly large t-shirt that Kakashi gave to her for pajama's, and then she stumbled face first into his knees.

"Oh, that must've hurt." He reached down and scooped up the child. Tears appeared at the corners of her large black eyes, her nose turned a bright pink color and her lips quivered. He checked her nose and mouth for blood before continuing. "No blood or bruises, so we are just fine, Hoshi. And we have better be more careful. Don't want to start loosing our baby teeth yet, do we?"

He set her on his lap and she laid her head against his chest, her little fingers touching her teeth.

"Interesting way to start my day. But that's how most days begin when you have four kids under one roof." Kakashi whispered as he rubbed her back in a comforting way. He glanced at the bed next to him, half expecting the bed to be empty. Unsurprisingly, the bed laid untouched. Kakashi shook his head and, at that moment, wanted to run out the window to the training grounds, no doubt where Gai was, and drag him back to the house. Sometimes, Gai would return home late into the evening while everyone was asleep, head to his bed for a 'power nap' before beginning his next training session at dawn. It would seem this time, however, Gai either decided to not come home or was still away on another mission.

Either way, as he held his niece in his arms, the only thing Kakashi could do was sigh and bite down on his lip to fight back back his frustration.

"Hoshi!" Rikko ran around the corner and jumped onto the bed like a cat springing onto it's prey. He landed on his knees, smiling excitedly at Hoshi. "Hey, come on, lil' sis! Big brother say's it's time for breakfast! Oh, hi Dad."

"Mornin' son." Kakashi ruffled Rikko's hazel hair. He pulled away and tried to fix his hair, which was a mess before. "Already awake and bouncing. Don't tell me you got into the left over birthday cake."

"There's left over birthday cake!?" He asked with wide hazel with red spots eyes.

Kakashi thought back to the day before, the day the five of them celebrated Rikko's fifth birthday. Nicholas had caught Kakashi right as he came out of his bedroom and asked for money to buy his brother a birthday cake, Mika tagged along to buy him a birthday present with her allowance. While they were getting the cake, Kakashi attempted to decorate the house only to be distracted by a grumpy toddler and a rowdy birthday boy. Nicholas arrived with a small birthday cake with a yellow truck design on the top, apparently, on clearance since it was made that morning. Rikko ate the cake with a grateful smile and was more than happy to share his birthday cake with his family.

Kind heart, just like his mother, Kakashi smiled.

Rikko groaned loudly and flopped onto his right side. "Ah, never mind the left over cake, that's for desert! C'mon! I'm starving! Let's go to the table, all of us, since you're awake, Dad!" Rikko shouted with excitement, jumping onto his feet and grabbed Kakashi's hand, pulling with all the strength he can muster. Between grunts, he continued; "Come... on... Dad! I don't want to hear big brother whine again."

"Wow, even without the birthday cake, we're pretty energetic this morning. Now, just hold on. Lemme get out of bed first." Rikko released Kakashi's hand and jumped off the bed. Kakashi lifted Hoshi off his lap and placed her on the ground, he got out of bed and continued. "Both of you run along to the table and I'll be right there."

"But Papa!" Hoshi complained with a pouty face and stomping her foot. "It's yucky eggs!"

Kakashi sighed, flopped down on the edge of the bed, his heart grew heavy with sadness and his breath became still. He rubbed his tired eyes, mentally preparing himself. His eyes met Hoshi's large, round dark eyes, praying that he would be able to get through to her this time. Giving her a warm smile, he, gently, pulled his young niece to stand in front of him. "Rikko, go on ahead of us. We'll be right there."

"What's wrong, Dad?" Rikko asked, tilting his head. "She's not in trouble, is she?"

"Nothing, this is something I need to talk to Hoshi about in private. Understand?" He glanced up at Rikko with the same warm smile. He encouraged Rikko's big brother-like attitude towards Hoshi, but he was still too young to understand her situation. And it was difficult enough to help her to understand.

"I...guess...so..." Rikko kept his head tilted to the side, repeating the same words as he left the room.

Alright, let's do this again, he thought to himself.

"Hoshi, what have we talked about?" He asked the two year old as though she would remember. After gaining her full attention, he pointed to himself and explained slowly; "I am your uncle. Your papa is not home." Kakashi grabbed a silver picture frame from his bedside table drawer, the photograph of Gai and Twila on their wedding day. Twila's smile twinkled under the sunlight and Gai gave the photographer his 'nice guy' smile and thumbs up. He held it out in front of Hoshi and pointed to Gai. "This man is your papa."

Hoshi's lips stuck out a bit, her head tilted left in a curious manner as her eyes scanned the picture. Kakashi watched as her chubby little fingers touched the faces of her parents. When he first showed her the picture, he began keeping track of how much time she would spend looking at the Gai and Twila as though it were a new portrait each time. Kakashi counted to thirty when her eyes shot back up at Kakashi and pointed at him. Shaking his head, Kakashi placed the top of his finger on top of her hand and pressed down, guiding her pointed finger to Gai. Her finger flung back up and pointed at him again. "Papa."

Kakashi could only sigh. He wanted her to know that Gai was her father, she had seen him in the house several times and new that he lived with them, but she saw him as a family friend. To Kakashi, he knew it wasn't fair for her to be under the same roof as her father and not know.

"Well, we will try again, later." He ruffled her hair and put the frame back into the drawer. As he released a tired yawn, he stood up from the bed, took her hand and lead her down the hall to the breakfast table.

Nicholas was sitting next to Mika with his arms crossed and his eyes shut tightly, even with his mask on it was easy to tell he was aggravated. Mika expressed a bit of sadness as she picked at her food. Kakashi gasped softly, the dream still fresh in his mind. The coffin that held his daughter with her eye patch perched in front like a flower. His heart grew tight at the thought of losing her or his sons, having no one again. He had lived with another person for so long that he had forgotten how lonely his life was like when he was Mika's age.

Just a dream, remember, that was just a dream.

Taking a deep breath, he relaxed his anxious heart, placed Hoshi on top of the books piled onto a chair, then sat between her and Rikko. "What's with the grumpy looks you two? Everything looks delicious, Nicolas."

"It wasn't me." He said, grumpy. "I didn't make breakfast."

"Oh?"

"It was me." Mika mumbled, still playing with her food. She adjusted her cherry blossom patterned eye patch. "This was my first time cooking on the stove and nobody saw me."

"Hey, don't say that, Sis." Nicholas opened his eyes and turned his head, a little bit shocked and offended. "I was watching you. I taught you how to use those utensil's and how to turn the stove on without burning yourself. Of course, I had to watch you so you would do it perfectly."

"Thanks for teaching me, big brother." She mumbled, trying to fight back a grin and her cheeks gained a pink rose shade. Suddenly, she started handing out extras onto everyone's plates. "Well, dig in while it's still hot!"

Kakash chuckled, lowering his mask. "Kinda wish you guys would've told me you were cooking this morning." Kakashi spoke up, taking a sip from his tea. "I would've gotten up early to watch you cook, Mika. Oh, sorry I slept in so late, Nicolas. I'm guessing that's why you're upset."

"Actually, I'm upset because Hoshi and Rikko broke the rules." Nicholas glared at the smaller children, who didn't pay him any attention. "I thought breakfast was before we woke you and after we could see the sun over the rooftops. Didn't you tell us that we wake you after breakfast was ready on the table? As in everything needed to be on the table? Well, Hoshi wanted to wake you up before we got the plates on the table, thus breaking the rules."

Hoshi and Rikko scrunched up their nose's and spat out their tongue's at him. Nicholas growled, his fingers dug into his arms.

"Now, now, take it easy. Yes, you're right, son. Those are the rules and rules are to be respected by all members of the house." He instructed, taking a bite of rice. "But Nicholas, just remember, Hoshi's only two and doesn't understand what rules are, yet. So, from now on, Nicolas, Mika and I will wake up at the same time and get breakfast ready. And Rikko, you'll be in charge of getting Hoshi up and dressed. That way I get to watch you two cook and Rikko gets a chance to help out more."

"You promise?" Both Mika and Nicholas asked.

"Yes, I promise. Just make sure to wake me up before turning the stove on, ok?" Kakashi placed his hands together and bowed his head. "Thank you for the food."

The kids clasped their hands together, bowed their heads and repeated his words. Hoshi was quick to dig into everything else but the egg's, Rikko was moving his food around, Mika and Nicholas ate their foods in a polite manner. Kakashi kept an eye on the door, expecting Gai at any moment to walk through the door and into the bedroom.

We're going to have a long talk when I see him, Kakashi thought to himself as he turned his attention back to the kids.

"So, what's everyone got going on today? Besides Mika going to the academy,Rikko and Hoshi going to the daycare, that just leaves the big brother. What are you up to today, son?"

Nicolas lowered his mask to his chin, taking a small bite of rice. Most of his day's consist of training for the Chunin exams or tutoring others for their academy exams.

"Haven't thought much about it. Maybe I'll go train with sensei for a little while, no one needs tutoring today, so I'll be free a good part of the day. Anything you need me to do today, Dad?"

"Nope, today, I just want you to be a normal kid." Kakashi smirked. "You don't need to do housework everyday, son. Make sure to save sometime in the day to be yourself. I can't even remember the last time you painted a picture."

Nicholas's eye brows shot up in surprise. "Strange, I can't remember either."

Knock

Knock

Knock