Chapter 21

Naome leaned onto Shikamaru as they stood by the entrance of the village. A loud, open yawn escaped her as she tried to rub the haziness from her eyes. The light had barely begun to break through the clouds, and there she was, all ready to head out on yet another mission. Sakura and Naruto stood a little distance away, allowing the two lovebirds to cuddle in peace.

Shikamaru rubbed her arm soothingly, but contradicted himself when he let out a long drawn out yawn as well. "What a drag."

"Well I told you you didn't have to come." Naome replied.

"No, it's not that. I'm just wondering what the hell is taking Kakashi-sensei so long."

Naome chuckled. "Kakashi's late to everything. I kinda expected this would happen already."

"Yeah, well next time we should just save ourselves another half hour of sleep and show up late as well." Naome couldn't help but grin at the lazy ninja's words. She was glad his tone of voice was rather conversational. About three months have passed since their relationships were more defined, and it seemed that Shikamaru no longer held hostile feelings toward her teacher. A part of her thought that maybe things could work out this way, though she knew she would have to choose one of them sooner or later.

"Good morning kids! Everyone is here so early today!" Kakashi cheered as he strolled through the village gate.

"Yeah right Kakashi-sensei! We agreed to meet here half an hour ago!" Naruto shouted back at him. "You never change!"

"Yeah! How can you be so casual about this all when we have such an important mission today?" Sakura chirped in, pointing an accusatory finger at the jonin. Kakashi returned a sheepish grin to his two original students before turning to the two quieter ones standing on the side.

"Good morning Naome, Shikamaru."

"Good morning." Shikamaru replied with a yawn. "I guess I better get going now." He turned to give Naome a tight hug, which she returned. They shared a deep kiss before breaking apart.

"Stay safe and come back to me." He whispered as he caressed her face. Naome's eyes saddened as he gave him one last hug before parting.

"I will."

Kakashi watched the two of them and found that he was hurting more and more with each loving gesture that they shared. Oh how badly he wanted to show the same level of affection to her as well, regardless of who was present. He also knew that despite the feelings Naome had for him, there was something with the way that Naome looked at Shikamaru, that he would never have for himself.

As Shikamaru bid his goodbyes to his peers and began walking into the village, he paused in front of the taller man. "Take care of her."

Kakashi stepped forward and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Of course I will."

Shikamaru stuck his hands in his pocket and let out a small breath. He began walking away. "I know you will." He knew better than Naome did, the way that Kakashi felt for her. Thus, despite the fact that Kakashi was technically his rival, he knew that she was in good hands.

With that, the team set off on their mission. The primary mission was to find Sasuke, but in order to do that, the team decided it would be best to track down Itachi, knowing that the younger had a thirst for revenge. The nature of the mission was why Shikamaru had been particularly hell bent on sending her off today. He knew the mission would be risky, deadly even, and he needed to have Kakashi's word before they left.

The mission could take days, if not weeks. They were only working off some intel that Jiraiya's sources provided while Kakashi's ninja hounds did some of the work.

As they dashed off in the general area of Itachi's last sighting, Naome turned to Kakashi who was at the front to see the serious look in his eyes. His jaw was clenched to the point where she was sure he would have a tension headache in the next few hours.

"Kakashi-sensei seems a little bit...tense today." Naome said quietly to Sakura who was running alongside her.

"That's because he's been attacked by Itachi Uchiha before." Sakura's frown etched onto her forehead as well as she thought about the past. "It was probably about a year before you arrived in the village. Itachi showed up to look for Naruto, and Kakashi-sensei, Asuma-sensei, and Kurenai-sensei were fighting him and his partner Kisame. Itachi had him in a really powerful genjutsu, and he was in a coma for a while until Lady Tsunade came to save him."

"It was that bad?"

"Yeah. I can't even begin to imagine what he saw and what he was feeling." Sakura said. "Itachi is one hell of a criminal. His ninjutsu is just as strong as his genjutsu. Just...remember not to look at his eyes when you see him."

"Okay." Naome had shivers thinking about what kind of ninja that could be so strong that they could immobilize even Kakashi to the point where he was in a coma. Worry grew in the pit of her stomach because she knew her level of genjutsu was much more underdeveloped compared to her taijutsu and ninjutsu. If she were to be caught in one, she knew she would be in huge trouble. She tried not to show it though as she continued small talk with her teammates for the rest of the day.

When the sun was beginning to set, the four of them finally decided to call it a day. The ninja hounds had reported back no signs of the rogue ninja within the 5 kilometer radius as they moved throughout the entire day. Their only choice was to rest and continue heading to the spot where their sources had described the next day.

The team set up a campfire and caught some fish at a nearby creek for dinner. Afterwards, Naome and Kakashi took first watch as per usual. The two sat a little ways off from the campsite so that their conversations could not be heard, but they could still keep an eye out for their sleeping teammates.

The two of them sat at the base of a tree in the shadows, leaning onto the trunk for support. Naome laid her head on Kakashi's shoulder as the older male wrapped an arm around her body. It wasn't necessarily a romantic gesture, at least Kakashi was so inclined to think. It was more so a comforting position that the two of them had gotten used to, especially during the past few months where they would spend missions staying up together.

Occasionally, Naome would doze off, leaving the silver-haired ninja an opportunity to admire everything about her without her knowing. At times, the opposite would happen and Kakashi would doze off. He found that despite the uncomfortable ground beneath, he always found sleep better with her around.

Tonight Kakashi was rubbing Naome's upper arm absentmindedly when she spoke up. "You seem awfully tense today."

He looked down at her, raising an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? How so?"

She took Kakashi's hand and fiddled with his fingers as she spoke. "Well for one, you didn't attempt to pull out that dreaded book of yours as soon as we sat down here."

He chuckled, looking down at his fingers which were wrestling with hers. "Yeah well we're a bit far from the light today for me to be able to read it."

"Right," she mumbled disbelievingly. "Well the other thing is you barely spoke at all the whole trip."

A sad smile crept on his face as he decided to come clean. "You're right...I've just had a lot on my mind."

"Sakura told me earlier about what happened to you before." She backed up a bit and turned her body so that she could make eye contact with the man in front of her. "Are you scared?"

Kakashi brought his hand up to caress the side of Naome's face. Only scared of losing you. "Yeah."

Naome scanned the shinobi's eyes, unable to read the emotion behind it. In a way, he looked sad, rather than afraid. It made her want to hold him tightly and tell him that everything was going to be okay. "Is there any way I can help?"

He shook his head. "Just promise me. You won't go against my orders this mission. If I signal you to run, you will not think twice and retreat immediately."

Already, Kakashi could tell she was going to protest by the furrowing of her eyebrows and the frustrated gleam in her eyes. "Please," he begged, "I need you to promise me. Don't stop for your teammates, don't stop for me, don't stop for anyone."

"Is it really that bad?" She asked, her voice softening.

"Yeah." He guided Naome to sit on his lap while he looked deep into her eyes. "I don't know how I would live with myself if something were to happen to you."

It was in moments like these that made Naome all the more confused. She skimmed Kakashi's eyes, hoping for some sort of resolution to his feelings for her. A part of her was hurting inside. How could it be that he said all those things to her, and look as if he genuinely meant it, when almost every day, he was simultaneously pushing her away?

Kakashi's eyes were saddened as he looked at the girl in front of him. Scenes of losing Rin in the past continued playing in his mind. He couldn't bear to lose someone so precious to him again. He would rather die himself. He placed the palm of his hand on her cheek, and his heart filled with warmth when she leaned into it, holding his own hand with hers.

"Promise me."

Naome nodded slightly. "Okay, I promise."

"Thank you." The weight on his chest lifted by the slightest bit as he pulled down his mask. With his eyelids fluttering closed, he leaned in, meeting her lips. Naome leaned in, pulling her upper body closer to her sensei's. She placed her fingers through his hair and pulled him impossibly closer to her.

One of his hands remained on her cheeks while the other landed on her hips, rubbing soothing circles on her pelvis. Despite the fact that Kakashi said to not have any feelings involved, Naome could feel the need and desperation in his actions. The way he held her was like the first night, softer and more loving than the last time. She responded to it, opening herself with full vulnerability in front of the man that she loved so much.

Their heavy breathing and the occasional sound of their lips separating echoed throughout the woods around them, but the two couldn't care less about it as there probably wasn't anyone awake that was close enough to hear.

Feeling the growing sexual tension between them, and the bulge in Kakashi's pants, Naome got off momentarily to strip herself of her bottoms. Kakashi quickly unzipped his pants in response, lowering it just enough to free his member. He hissed as the cold air hit his heated shaft. Leaning forward, he pulled off his jacket so that he could cover her from behind as she sat back down on his lap.

Kakashi guided the tip of his cock to her hole as she lowered herself onto him. Both of them threw their heads back at the sensation of being with each other again. Despite still being mostly clothed and out in the woods, everything felt more intimate between them.

Perhaps it was the notion of possible death ahead. Perhaps it was the campfire a little ways off that was creating the mood and highlighting the longing in their expressions. Perhaps it was the idea that Kakashi still had some sort of feelings for her, that made it seem more real. To Kakashi, it was all of those things.

To him, this moment was more than just another instance of sex together. To him, this moment was more than making each other feel good, and appreciating each other's presence. To him, this moment confirmed more than anything that he loved her too.

Naome continued to ride Kakashi at a slow, intimate pace. Their lips continued to meet throughout this, both to show their true feelings for each other, and to muffle the light gasps that were coming out of Naome's mouth at the sensations she was feeling.

Kakashi held in his groans as well as he relaxed into the feeling of having her on top of him, and her warmth surrounding his member. He looked up at her, his eyes softening in affection as he saw the pleasured look on her face, and the overwhelming amount of feelings her eyes portrayed. He brushed her hair behind her ears, loving the way her expressions were intensified from the light of the fire.

"K-Kakashi-sensei…" she called. A familiar tension was building in her as she leaned closer to the older man. She clung onto him desperately as she almost lost it every time she filled herself with him.

"Sh…" He reminded her, though the sound of his name in the bare woods made his cock twitch. He scolded himself in his head, not believing that he was actually getting off at the idea of being caught.

She leaned forward, pressing her lips against the bend of his neck and shoulder to hide her cries each time he entered her. Her rhythm started getting shaky from the overwhelming feeling so he grabbed her hips on either side to help her out. He could hear her soft mewls and whimpering next to his ear which sent shivers down his spine.

"Kakashi…" she whispered over and over again breathlessly.

"Mmm Naome…" He could feel himself getting harder, a tingling formed in the pit of his stomach. "Come here."

He brought her head up to face him. The flush on her cheeks, her half lidded eyelids, and the small tears at the corners of her eyes which formed from the pleasure she was feeling, almost made him become undone. There was no doubt about it. He loved her. He loved her so damn much that it hurt.

Her hands that were now rested on his shoulder, gripped them harder as she began trembling. It was a telltale sign to Kakashi.

"Kakashi…" she whimpered. He pulled her down to meet his lips.

"Naome...I…" he stuttered against her lips. Naome came, her shaking body falling limp over him. He couldn't continue his words anymore as a wave of his own pleasure overcame him as he quickly lifted her off of him and came into his jacket.

After a few moments, he zipped himself up, and watched as Naome stood up with shaky legs and pulled her bottoms on. She walked away briefly and came back with a blanket from her backpack. She hesitated when she returned, but when Kakashi held his arms out to her, she easily found her spot on his lap. She sat on one side of his legs, facing sideways, and extended her legs over his. Kakashi took the blanket from her and wrapped it over the both of them as she leaned her head onto his chest.

They sat like this in silence for the remainder of the night with Naome falling asleep after some time. Kakashi held her close to him as if she was the most precious thing in the world. He didn't bother waking the other two shinobi when the time to switch shifts came. Afterall, he only had tonight to appreciate her before things would have to go back to normal tomorrow.

When the birds started chirping and the sky was beginning to lighten up, Kakashi knew it was time to wake her up. The fire had gone out already, leaving the area with morning bite, but their body heat had kept each other warm. He placed light kisses on her forehead and her cheeks until her eyelids began fluttering open. She barely peaked an eye open before closing it again and snuggling closer to the silver-haired man.

"Good morning." He said with an amused smile. "It's time to get up now."

"No...I don't want to…" She mumbled. There was a harsh cracking in her voice from her sleepiness. She knew that getting up meant whatever moment they shared for the past few hours would come to an end.

"Well I suspect the others are waking up soon." Kakashi reminded her. This caused the kunoichi to slowly wake from her sleep. She stretched her arms and back out, and made a move to stand up. Kakashi chuckled at the sight of her wobbly legs as she stood which almost sent her back to the ground. "Remind me to add more leg workouts to your training."

"Well if you want another round of piggy back squats, that's fine with me." She replied with a yawn.

Kakashi stood up as well, grabbing his soiled jacket from the ground and holding the blanket in his other hand. He sent Naome a wink, "Don't worry, I have other workouts in mind."

Naome groaned at his lewd joke. "How am I going to keep up with you, you perverted old man?"

Kakashi had a goofy lopsided grin before he leaned down and gave the kunoichi one last kiss on the forehead before pulling his mask up. "I'm just kidding. We really ought to stop doing this anyways."

"Sure, sure, whatever you say." Naome didn't fully believe him. After what they had last night, she doubted it would be the last.

"One more thing," he said. Naome watched as he draped the blanket over his shoulder and the jacket at the crook of his arm. He reached into one of his vest pockets and pulled out a dog whistle necklace, stringing it around her neck. Naome picked up the small metal tube between her fingers and inspected it.

"What is this?"

"Consider it a gift."

Naome raised an eyebrow. "Another one? Kakashi, you don't have to."

"It's the last one, I promise." He plucked the metal tube from her fingers and tucked it into the neckline of her shirt. "It's directly linked to me and my ninja hounds. If you ever need me, use it, and I'll be right there."

"Kakashi-"

"Please," he begged one last time. "It's just to ease my mind. You might not even use it. Just consider it an accessory alright?"

A small smile appeared on Naome's face. It was a small gesture, but the necklace meant a lot to her. A tiny confirmation of Kakashi's feelings, the feeling of being loved and cherished, and overall, just having a piece of him wherever she went. She conceded. "Alright."

With that, they walked back to the campfire to wake the other two members and pack up for the next leg of their trip.