Thinning Line Between

by Bethie82

Hound is a broken man who has a mission he can't refuse or fail. Harumi is a medic who can't say no to her siblings. What do these two have in common? A young blonde who needs to be kept safe from someone or something. AU where Kakashi becomes Naruto's guardian and his life is turned upside down by a medic and her family.

46. Ending 2

Bracing for the cold hands of death, Kakashi kept his eyes focused on Obito. The chain wrapped around his chest. Obito pulled his arm back, Kakashi's upper body was yanked forward, off his feet.

Obito's hand smashed into Kakashi's face and Kakashi fell to the ground. Kakashi just couldn't get himself to care that he was dying.

"I should take my eye back, after all, you don't need it anymore," Obito sneared. Kneeling on Kakashi's chest, dropping the chain and he reached into the weapons pouch on his back, Obito brought out a kunai. "Do you think your medic will be able to reattach my eye?"

Kakashi frowned, "Why are you asking me? Just kill me."

"Maybe I will wait. Maybe I should kill your medic in front of you, just like you killed Rin in front of me," Obito hissed.

Kakashi ignored the spit hitting his face as Obito continued to yell at him. Why wouldn't Obito just kill him? Why does he have to keep talking?

Kakashi was lost in his own thoughts, not fighting, just waiting for Obito to finally put him out of his misery.

"Why are you not fighting me?" Obito yelled, hitting Kakashi in the chest with the back of his kunai.

Kakashi just stared at the man holding him down, the chains loosened as Obito continued to hit him.

"Fight me Bakashi!" Obito screamed.

"No, I will not fight the person I called my friend. The person I still mourn," Kakashi answered.

"Liar!" Obito screamed, hitting Kakashi's face.

Kakashi could feel his cheek start to bleed on his mask, the same mask that is currently preventing him from spitting out the blood in his mouth. Running his tongue along his teeth, he determined they were still intact.

"Fine, Bakashi! If you won't fight me, maybe you will fight for your medic."

Kakashi frowned, "What does that mean Obito?"

Obito gave something that looked like a smile, but there were too many teeth on display and his eyes were more crazy than usual. "Oh now you show life. What happened, Kakashi Friend Killer, finally found a friend not afraid of you?"

"She is not my friend," Kakashi tried to sound convincing. Difficult to do when his face hurt, but this was not the plan. He was supposed to die, not Harumi. Taking a breath, Kakashi forcefully shoved all the hate and self loathing away. While it would be poetic to have Obito kill him. As a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf, he would not allow another to be harmed because of him. Especially not someone who had so many people depending on her. Kakashi might die, hell he prayed for death on most days, but he wouldn't die until he was sure the threat to Harumi, to Naruto was gone. He had to trust his team could take care of the one calling himself Madara. Kakashi's job was to eliminate the threat to Harumi, even if that threat was his old teammate. The one who gave him his eye. The same eye that burned.

"Why do you think I visit the memorial stone every day, Obito? Why do you think I joined ANBU after Sensei died?" Kakashi bit out, throwing more kunia at Obito.

"Why should I believe you?" Obito screeched, "Madara had no reason to lie to me!"

"What did he tell you?"

"He didn't need to tell me, I saw you kill Rin!"

"What?" Kakashi froze as Obito's words filtered through his brain.

"I saw you kill Rin!" Obito charged at Kakashi.

"What?" Kakashi asked again. Jumping away from Obito's leg sweep and throwing a roundhouse kick at Obito's head.

Obito responded by throwing yet another kunai at Kakashi. Kakashi quickly deflected it and moved closer. Obito suddenly had a metal rod in his hand and he swung it at Kakashi's head like a baseball bat, Kakashi ducked. As fast as he could, he pushed all his chakra into his hand, focusing. The tell tale sound of birds chirping filled the area. Kakashi charged at Obito.

Obito ran at Kakashi with his metal rod. Obito was running as fast as he could. This, he thought, was his vengeance. For Rin.

Kakashi felt the whole world slow down. He heard that when you are dying, your life flashes before your eyes. Kakashi wasn't sure about that, but as he was charging towards Obito, he saw the boy he once was, the one that wanted nothing more than to be Hokage, who just wanted Kakashi to acknowledge him as a good shinobi, a teammate. Kakashi could see the boy with goggles, ill fitting jackets and couldn't show up on time to save his life.

What should have taken just a heartbeat or two, seemed to last for minutes. For hours.

Moving through mud, Kakashi pushed himself to move faster.

Faster than he had ever moved before.

This was one battle he could not lose!

He will not lose.

One foot. The other foot.

One foot.

With dizzying speed, the world returned to normal speed.

Kakashi planted his foot, braced himself.

Kakashi blinked. He gasped for air as he flexed his fingers, the chidori fizzled out, the high pitched chirping sound dying quickly. He dropped his kunai and flexed his fingers again.

"I just want you to know, I have always called you my friend, even when I had no idea what a friend was. I will always remember you as you were. I will always wish things ended differently. I just want the Obito you were to be at peace. I want Rin to know that we did our best to live up to her memory. To embrace her Will of Fire. I want Sensei to be at peace, knowing his students died for their convictions." Kakashi gasped, trying not to cough as he said the words he needed to say. To say his final words to the man who was his friend. Coughing up blood, Kakashi felt a dull pain in his chest. Taking a shallow breath, Kakashi summoned his strength and pulled his arm from Obito's chest.

"I didn't want to kill Rin, Obito, she ran in front of me, knowing I couldn't stop. She ran into my chidori so that she wouldn't harm the village and the people she loved. She gave her life to protect the very thing you are trying to destroy," Kakashi gasped.

"Stop speaking her name!" Obito grunted, as he pulled the metal rod from Kakashi's chest, "You are not worthy to speak her name!"

"I may not be, but at least I can say that when I meet Rin in the afterlife, I will meet her with a clear conscience. Can you?"

For a brief second, Kakashi thought he saw something in Obito's eyes, a brief moment of sanity. It wasn't much, but it was enough for Kakashi to have hope, maybe the Obito from so long ago was still in there. But at least he wasn't threatening Harumi any more. Kakashi just needed to keep Obito focused on Rin.

"You said you saw me kill Rin, how?"

"I wasn't fully healed yet, but Madara said he heard the two of you would be close, he also heard that you two would be ambushed. I managed to escape and find you. You were not far from where I was being kept. I arrived when you were surrounded."

"And you didn't help?" Kakashi gasped and quickly turned into a cough, which led to blood trickling out of his mouth. Using the back of his hand, he wiped it away and stared at Obito. "Why didn't you help? You saw I was surrounded, you saw I was exhausted. Why did you just…" Kakashi was at a loss for words. Obito saw, but did nothing.

"I told you, I wasn't fully healed!" Obito answered.

"Since when has that ever stopped you?" Kakashi demanded. "The Obito I knew would go out of his way to help a friend. He didn't care if he was hurt, or if there would be negative consequences, he would jump in no matter what."

"I couldn't," Obito told him.

At that point the two men were just standing there staring at each other. Kakashi was grateful that Obito had forgotten about Harumi for the moment, but he was so frustrated by this conversation. Obito was there, and he didn't help.

"If you came to help, then I wouldn't have used the chidori! If you helped, then Rin wouldn't have used me to kill herself!" Okay, so Kakashi was mad.

"I told you I couldn't!" Obito yelled back.

"Why?!" Kakashi demanded.

"Because… because…" Obito stopped, "Because Madara needed me! I couldn't let myself get more hurt because he needed me."

"What? That doesn't… you wouldn't help your friends, the girl that you said you loved, because you couldn't get hurt because some old guy needed you?"

"He needed me to bring about the new world." Obito replied, eerily calmly, like he had said those words often.

"He needed you.." Kakashi repeated, "but if you could have, would you have come home?" Kakashi held his breath.

Obito nodded his head so violently, his hair fell into his eyes, "I talked about nothing more than returning. I got my Sharingan, I was going to be the best shinobi in all of Konoha." Obito's voice sounded a lot like the child he had once been.

"Why didn't you come back?" Kakashi asked gently.

"Because you killed Rin of course. I couldn't be part of a village where she wasn't."

By now Kakashi was very confused, this almost sounded like the one that kidnapped Harumi. He had heard of this, a very long time ago when he was reading a book on mental health, stupidly thinking if he could name what was wrong with him, he would be able to live with it. Funny enough knowing it's name, didn't give Kakashi anything other than more guilt. Because it meant that this was something common and didn't make him unique, so he couldn't continue to ignore it.

"Tobi?" Kakashi asked quietly.

"Tobi is a good boy," Obito answered, "He helped make sure Obito didn't get hurt. So if Kakashi is mad at someone, it should be Tobi."

"Can I talk to Obito, Tobi?" Kakashi asked.

Tobi shook his head, "Not right now, Obito is very confused and he doesn't want to talk to you."

"Then would Tobi like to stay with me for a while? I would like to talk to Obito again when he isn't so confused," Kakashi asked, keeping his voice soft, like when he would talk to Naruto after a nightmare.

Tobi nodded, "Can Tobi play with Harumi again? We still haven't finished our game."

Kakashi nodded, "You will have to ask her, but I don't think she would be upset by the idea of playing with you."

"Okay then, Tobi will stay with Kakashi for a little while."

"Tobi, can you get us out of here? I think we both need some medical attention. We can ask Harumi to heal us and if she wants to play with you," Kakashi reasoned.

Tobi's whole face lit up. It hurt Kakashi to see just how much like young Obito it looked.

"Tobi can do that!" Tobi grabbed Kakashi's shoulder and with a soft "Kamui" the two men left the barren landscape.

Only to be thrown right back to the area Obito and he had been fighting at earlier.

""Kakashi!" Harumi yelled as two men appear in the middle of the burned area, running over to them.

Kakashi and Obito looked awful. They both had holes in their chests, both were covered in sweat, blood, cuts and panting from exhaustion.

Itachi and Shishui flashed across the area and landed on either side of Kakashi and Obito. A quick glance had Itachi pulling Obitio's hands behind his back and Shishui kept his Sharingan focused on Obito.

"Fine," Kakashi gasped, "We are fine."

"Like hell you are," Harumi snarled, glaring at the man in front of her. Focusing her chakra in her hands, she quickly ran a diagnostic, thankfully Kakashi's natural healing and chakra had stopped the bleeding inside. "You stopped bleeding, and thankfully nothing vital was pierced. You will need healing, but you aren't in danger of dying right now."

Kakashi nodded, "Check Tobi, we are taking him with us."

Itachi nodded and pulled some chakra suppression seals and started to slap them on Obito.

Harumi also nodded and started her diagnostic, Obito was in a similar condition, so Harumi was comfortable that neither would die in the next few minutes.

"With chakra suppression seals, it will take Tobi longer to heal," Harumi pointed out.

Kakashi nodded, "Patch us up enough to move. We need to get back to Konoha right away."

"Harumi-chan, can we play tag?" Tobi asked, speaking for the first time.

Harumi glanced at Kakashi, who nodded ever so slightly. Turning back to Tobi she needed, "Of course we can, but we have to wait until you are healed, or else it wouldn't be fair."

"Okay, why is Tobi handcuffed?"

"It is for your own protection, Tobi," Kakashi replied, "To keep you from moving while Harumi heals you. And then it is so we can easily carry you, once Harumi had healed you."

"But if Harumi-chan heals me, can't I move on my own?"

"Not really," Harumi waded in, "I don't have enough chakra to heal both you and Kakashi to full, so I will have to heal you in stages." As she spoke, Harumi set her glowing hand above Tobi's wounded chest. The skin knitted back together, but Harumi didn't do much else. "See."

Tobi looked down and nodded. "Is Kakashi going to be carried too?"

"I would suggest he does, but knowing our fearless leader, he will insist on running," Harumi answered. Which, considering Tobi knew Kakashi, wasn't giving him any new information. Having said that, Harumi turned to Kakashi and glared at him.

He sighed and lay on the ground, allowing Harumi to patch him up. She sealed the wound better than she sealed Tobi's and she reconnected some of the blood vessels and veins. She also forced the nerves to reach and grow, while they didn't fully connect, at least now Kakashi would have pain to notify him that something was wrong.

"Done for now, you will need more healing sessions later, when I can gain back some of my chakra."

Kakashi nodded and before he stood up he quickly summoned Pakkun.

"Yo!"

"Pakkun I need you to go deliver a message to the Hokage, we are bringing someone back and we will need one of the special rooms for him," Kakashi told him.

Pakkun frowned, but didn't say any of the things running through his mind. "Okay Kakashi, you should summon the rest of the pack to help you out."

"You should, I am sure Bull could help carry people if we need it," Harumi butted in.

"Yo, Harumi-chan! Good to see you in one piece. Boss was pretty upset that you were taken…." Pakkun paused when he saw who was behind Harumi. Or maybe smelled him would be a better word.

"Go Pakkun," Kakashi said, his voice steady.

"Right," Pakkun replied before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"Where is Jiraya?" Kakashi asked.

Harumi pointed to the large group of people still standing at the edge of the battle area.

Kakashi sighed, before he slowly stood up and walked over to Jiraya. He leaned close, said something that had Jiraya nodding and moving over to the other people. Kakashi came back to Team Ro and Harumi. "Alright, we can move for a couple hours before we will need to rest. I'm sure Hokage is going to send us a welcoming party, so we should try to get as close as we can."

"Hai, taichou," everyone answered.

"Tenzo, you start carrying Tobi, when you get tired, let me know and we will switch," Kakashi added, "You will let me know when you are getting tired."

"Hai, taichou, but it is only for a couple hours, I should be fine."

"How did you want to carry him?" Shishui asked.

"On my back, we can tie his arms to his legs so if he passes out, I can still carry him," Tenzo added.

"But," Tobi said, frowning.

"Tobi," Harumi said, trying to distract him, "I need Tenzo to carry you so that you can heal and rest. The more you rest, the faster you heal and the faster you heal the faster we can play tag."

Tobi's frown turned into a grin and he hopped over to Tenzo, "Well let's go then. Tobi wants to finish our game of tag."

Harmi smiles at Tobi, "Tobi is a good boy."

Tobi visibly brightens, "Yes, Tobi is a good boy!"

Tenzo stood in front of Tobi and Tobi jumped up and onto Tenzo's back. Tenzo grunted, quickly Yugao and Harumi wrapped some rope around Tobi's arms and tied them to his legs, so his body looked like a backpack. Then the two looped the rope around Tenzo to make a harness to help distribute the weight of Tobi better.

"Itachi, you have point, Shishui bring up the rear. Standard diamond with Tenzo in the middle, Harumi you are on the left, Yugao on the right, keep in sight of each other at all times," Kakashi gave his order.

Harumi dug into the medical pouch Yugao had provided her with and pulled out a soldier pill, "Take this with plenty of water. You will need to take another when we stop."

"You too," Kakashi responded as he quickly swallowed his pill.

Harumi pulled one out and swallowed it, before tossing the bottle to Yugao, "Take one too. By the time we stop our chakra should be high enough to do another healing session on both of them."

"Lets go," Kakashi said, once everyone had their pills and water.

With a small wave in Jiraya's direction, Kakashi started to run at a fast jog. The rest of the team fell into formation as they left the village of Ame. Once out of sight of the city, the group moved faster, taking to the trees.

Honestly, Harumi was tired, she wasn't sure she would be able to keep up this pace for much longer. Jumps blurred together, she focused on moving forward. However lessons drilled into her from the time she could walk, were not stopped or ignored. This was the only reason she could think of for why she ducked.

"Kunai!" she shouted as she automatically reached for her senbons. When her fingers found nothing, she cursed quietly but that didn't stop her from moving in the direction of where the kunai came from.

She felt Shishui move towards her, "Found him," his voice carried across the distance. "Go left."

Harumi obeyed without question, turning slightly to the left.

"Catch."

Harumi recognized the voice and instinctively grabbed the bundle thrown at her. Kakashi tossed her senbons. She was really going to kiss that man when they were safe. He did think of everything.

Slipped a few out of the bundle, she slipped the rest into a small pocket in her clothes. She could hear them now, whoever they were chasing.

"Tenzo?" Harumi asked, because Kakashi was to her right.

"Itachi and Yugao have him stashed. We will find them when we are done," was the answer given to her.

Satisfied she asked, "So what is the plan?"

Kakashi gave her a small grin, "We are the distraction."

Harumi nodded, because of course they were. "How many?"

"Two, from the looks of it. I want to know if they are after us, specifically or we are an opportunity."

Harumi nodded again, following Kakashi's lead when he jumped into the center of a clearing in the forest.

"Why are you attacking us?" Kakashi asked the duo.

Harumi was slightly put off by their appearance. They were both very dirty and their clothes had holes in it. Surely this wasn't a missing-nin group, right? And if it were, shouldn't they be more, something, Harumu would think of the word later.

"Look, it was a slip, honestly if we were trying to kill you, would we wait for you in this clearing?" The older one said.

"What are you doing here?"

"Honestly, trying to go home. We were ambushed and left for dead. When we heard you behind us, I thought you were the ones that ambushed us and were coming back to make sure we were all dead."

"Where is home?" Harumi asked, as she looked over the two. The older one had large spots of dried blood, and he didn't stand with his weight evenly distributed. The younger one had a large bandage on his head and dried blood down the side of his head.

Kakashi glanced to his left, past Harumi where Shishui stepped out of the woods and nodded, "There was a large battle back there. I can see three wagons and lots of bodies."

Kakashi turned back to the two, "Where is home?"

"Ame," the youngest replied.

"Can I check them?" Harumi whispered.

Kakashi nodded, "She is a medic and can check you over and give you some spot healing, if you want."

The oldest nodded, "Can you look at him. He was out for a long time."

"Of course," Harumi slowly moved closer and quickly checked the young man, and since he didn't let go of the older man, she was able to get an idea of what is going on with the older one. "You have a mild concussion, but you should be fine to make it back to Ame, you are close enough. I would request that you go to the hospital as soon as you get back. You do have cuts and bruises, but those will heal quickly."

The older man's shoulders moved as he gave a large sigh.

"How can we thank you?"

Harumi smiled, "Just get this one back safe and sound. If you head back the way we came, the way is clear."

"Of course," the man replied before moving with the younger man in the direction of Ame.

"I'll have Itachi send one of his crows to Jiraya to let them know where the bodies are," Kakashi told the two remaining shinobi.

"Let's get back then," Harumi replied, watching as Kakashi took off in yet another direction. She sighed as she followed, she didn't understand how they did that, but whatever. ANBU are strange anyway.

It didn't take long for the three of them to find the area where Itachi was standing guard.

"Just some very on edge shinobi trying to head home," Kakashi answered.

"Since we stopped, let me check on you, Kakashi before we head out," Harumi said. Not really giving Kakashi a chance to answer before she placed her hand on his chest and started checking on him. She healed the few tears in the previous healing and added another layer of skin and muscle. She also pushed some of her chakra into Kakashi, to give him the extra he needs to heal.

Kakashi glared at her, he knew what she did.

Harumi glared right back.

She reached into the medic's pouch and pulled out another bottle of soldier pills and took one.

"I don't need to tell you what happens if you take too many, right?" Kakashi drawled.

Harumi just glared harder before she moved into the small cave that Itachi was in front of.

"Yugao? Is everything alright?" Harumi asked once she saw the purple haired woman.

Yugao nodded, "I am just healing some tears in Tenzo's muscles from the extra weight. I offered to heal Tobi a bit more, but he said he wanted to wait for you."

Harumi nodded, "Okay, I will look at him."

Tobi's head came up when she spoke, "Are you okay, Harumi-chan? Tobi was worried when you took off like that."

"I'm fine Tobi, can I check to make sure you are doing okay with all this bouncing around?"

"Sure, Harum-chan, how long until we get there?"

"I don't know Tobi, I think it depends on how long we can travel. I'm kinda tired from all the healing I've been doing, so we might not be able to go too far."

Tobi nodded, "Medics have smaller chakra reserves and therefore need more frequent rests." Tobi repeated the saying all medics learned when they first started training.

Harumi nodded, "Thats right."

Like Kakashi, Tobi had some tears in the previous healing, so Harumi quickly patched those back up. Unlike Kakashi, she didn't further the healing or share her chakra.

"I just need some water then I'm ready to go," Harumi called out.

"We will leave in five minutes then," Kakashi answered.

Harumi drank some water, then held it out to Tobi, "Drink a little bit. Not too much because you don't want to throw up on Tenzo, but you do need the water to keep healing." When Tobi opened his mouth, Harumi poured a bit into his mouth and waited for him to swallow and open his mouth again and poured a bit more in.

She stood up and moved to the entrance. Then as a group, they all moved out. They all moved into formation and moved to the trees. Going fast, they pushed forward.

The stars were bright and high in the sky by the time they stopped for the night. Harumi was pleased to see a small house for the group to rest in. Harumi was happy to have a warm dry place to rest.

Team Ro seemed to have the routine down, one of the Uchiha's started a fire, Kakashi brought out food and it was cooking on the fire. Harumi was told to "sit your ass down, we have a routine," when she asked if she could do something to help.

So she sat next to Tobi, who had more chakra seals put on him. "How are you feeling Tobi?"

"Tobi is not tired," he said, as he yawned wide.

Harumi nodded, "How about we just close our eyes and wait for dinner."

"Tobi can do that," Tobi whispered as his eye closed.

Yugao stared at Itachi, "What did you do to him?" she demanded.

Itachi stared back, "I did nothing."

"Well you must have because you are the only one who has been staring at him for the past minute."

"I can't spin a genjutsu against a Sharingan, you know this," Itachi said.

Harumi stood up and stretched, "Itachi didn't do anything, I did."

Yugao turned her stare to Harumi, "What did you do?"

"A mild sedative in the water."

"But you have been drinking the water," Shishui pointed out.

Harumi nodded, "Since I knew it was in there, I simply isolated the compound and have been sweating it out while we run. It is mild, but Tobi is still trying to heal, so his body is going to take all the help it can get to rest."

"That is underhanded," Yugao said, "I respect that."

Harumi rolled her eyes, "It isn't something I haven't done with patients for a long time now. Stubborn shinobi who don't listen to doctors orders usually get this cocktail."

Kakashi turned to stare at her, "Have you given this to me?"

Harumi grinned at him, "Are you a stubborn shinobi who won't listen to doctor's orders?"

The whole cabin laughed softly, mostly because shinobi by definition are stubborn and will not listen to doctor's orders.

Sighing, Kakashi waved his hand at the fire, "Food is done."

Three days later, Harumi looked upon the familiar walls of Konoha. Not the front gates, but apparently a small gate used by ANBU. A few hours ago a group of ANBU had arrived and were escorting the group. Harumi was asked to push Tobi into a deeper sleep, once he was asleep, they moved at a faster speed. Harumi would have to focus on the fact she was back later. Right now, she knew they were against the clock. The group needed to put Tobi into a special room in the basement of Intelligence. Unfortunately Harumi had been in that room, or one of the many like it, so she knew it would be uncomfortable for the group.

Few moments later, they were inside a building and moving deeper into Hokage mountain. Passing ANBU in full uniform as they continued deeper. Finally they arrived, and Tenzo walked into a room and working together Kakashi and Shishui cut the ropes holding Tobi's arms and legs together. Once he was free, Tenzo moved away from Tobi where one of the escort ANBU stepped forward and began to clip the metal restraints that had chakra suppressant seals embedded into them.

"Just let the sleep wear off," Harumi suggested, "He will wake up in an hour or so and it will be easier on his system."

The ANBU stared at her.

Harumi sighed, knowing her suggestions would be ignored if it were deemed necessary.

"Is Yamanaka-sama here?" Kakashi asked.

The ANBU nodded, "He is with Ibiki."

"I have some information for him," was all Kakashi said.

"The prisoner will stay asleep until Yamanaka has heard your report with the Hokage."

Kakashi nodded and a different ANBU said, "This way, you are going straight to the Hokage." He led the group through a different set of tunnels. Eventually they arrived at a small hallway in the basement in the Hokage Tower.

"You know your way from here, Hokage-sama is waiting for you."

Kakashi nodded again, and began to walk up some stairs.

Harumi glanced at her clothes and sighed again, it looked like she would get to see the Hokage in the clothes she had been wearing for days. At least she wasn't dirty from fighting and had too much blood on her clothes.

Kakashi walked straight up to the Hokage's office, where Genma looked up from his desk. After he picked his jaw off the floor he grinned at the whole group.

"One moment," Genma said as he slipped into the Hokage's office.

A moment later, Genma opened the door, "He is waiting for you."

Kakashi walked in and moved through the door. Everyone followed behind. The group stood in a loose formation with Kakashi in the front, with an Uchiha on either side, Tenzo, Yugao and Harumi standing behind them.

In the room stood Ibiki, Inoichi, Shikaku, Fugaku and of course the Hokage.

"Team Ro, report," Hokage ordered.

"Team Ro has completed the mission set out for us within mission parameters. Med-nin Harumi has been retrieved without bodily harm. The ones the captured Med-nin Harumi have been dealt with. Shinobi Uchiha Itachi and Shinobi Uchiha Shishui engaged in a battle against one calling himself Madara Uchiha. Med-nin Harumi has some DNA samples taken before Shinobi Uchiha Itachi burned the body, as per clan tradition. While the team was protecting or fighting Madara, I was engaged in a battle of my own. It was during this battle that I found my old teammate.

"While engaging with the one known as Uchiha Obito, I deduced he was brainwashed at the least or suffering from split personalities or a mixture of both. I was able to convince one of the personalities to come back with us peacefully. We brought him back and he is now placed in a special interrogation room.

"Med-nin Harumi was also able to obtain a DNA sample, to be compared to the original Uchiha Obito," Kakashi concluded his report.

Harumi was impressed, however it was also not enough information. At least not that she could think of.

"Shinobi Itachi, please tell me why you made the decision to burn the body of the one calling himself Madara Uchiha."

Harumi opened her mouth to correct the Hokage, but stopped herself. Not that anyone in the room missed it. Harumi figured they would get to her when they were ready.

"Even if the one calling himself Madara Uchiha was in fact a fake, he had Sharingan eyes and as such deserved the respect that would be given to any clan member," Itachi answered, "One of our main reasons for burning the bodies is to ensure the Sharingan doesn't fall into someone else's hands, and that reason still applied."

Fugaku nodded.

"Med-nin Harumi, report."

Harumi stood straighter, "Kakashi left me in the company of his nukin while he trained with his team. A strange shinobi with an orange mask engaged with me, wanting to play a game of tag. I was able to convince him to hide and with the help of Kakashi's nukin, I was able to find where Kakashi and his team were. Shortly after that I woke up in a cave, where I met the one calling himself Madara. The cave had large amounts of chakra suppression seals all around, so I was kept in a weaken state. It was during this time, I was told a story about why Tobi wanted to meet with Kakashi. It was also during this time I came to the conclusion that the man in the orange mask, was in fact two different men. One who claimed to be Madara Uchiha and one who is known as Tobi. I was left alone for the most part, unless it were to be told another story of how Kakashi was a horrible person, but I shouldn't worry because I would be set free once Tobi and Kakashi were able to fight.

"It wasn't long before I was told that Kakashi had crossed into Ame and that I would be safe. Madara left, and shortly after, Tobi brought me to a large flat area in Ame where Kakashi and Tobi fought. During the fight, Shinobi Itachi and Shinobi Yugao and I began to search for weakness in Madara. We learned he was full of pride and didn't like being treated like a child. Or to be reminded that he was old."

"So what did you do?" Inoichi asked.

Harumi sighed, they were going to make her say it, "I treated him like I would if my siblings got in trouble and scolded him. I also kept insinuating that because he was old, he couldn't remember things well."

"So you just irritated him to death?" Fugaku asked.

Harumi shrugged, "Well I would love to say it was an elaborate plan, but really between me asking if he would like me test him for his mental cognativeness and Itachi reminding him of clan honor and telling him to stop acting like a child, I think we just made him too mad to think straight."

"How did you defeat him?" Shikaku asked.

"Harumi asked me to check his chakra network, while I'm not as apt as a Hyuga, I can see some. What I found was Madara was using his chakra to support himself, like he was using it instead of a crutch or something similar. It was just a matter of getting him to let his guard down and I got him into a genjutsu, where after I interrogated him, Shishui just killed him. I am sure Madara felt no pain," Itachi answered.

Harumi nodded, "The way Madara was using his chakra confirmed that he was mostly dead anyway. We just needed his guard to be lowered so we could help him the rest of the way there. He wasn't using chakra in a way it is supposed to be used, which would lead me to believe that he was in a very weakened state anyway, so it wasn't as difficult as it sounds."

"Is there anything else?" Hokage asked.

When the clan heads shook their heads, the Hokage looked at the team in front of him, "Harumi, go and get checked out by medical and psychological teams before you go anywhere. I'm sure Inoichi already has someone in mind. The rest of you, go get cleared by medical and as of now, you are all off duty for three days, unless the hospital says otherwise. Any questions?" not hearing any, he continued, "Dismissed."

Harumi turned around and walked out the door, only to be met by Inoichi's sister. "I take it you are going to clear me?"

"Yep, it won't take long. We can wait until you are at the hospital if you wish."

"I would like to at least be sitting, so if I can do both at once, great."

"Of course, let's go."

Together the two women left the Hokage Tower and headed towards the hospital.

Harumi was easily cleared with orders to eat some hearty meals and to rest. Easily enough done. Harumi walked straight to her house and sighed as she walked in. This was home, her safe place and she could feel the peace of home trickle into her bones. She walked upstairs and once she reached her room, she saw the door was open and Kakashi was laying on her bed.

"Kakashi?"

"I couldn't be alone. And honestly, I don't know what to do."

Harumi nodded, "I can imagine. You can stay here if you want. I just really want to take a shower and crawl into bed."

"Should I take a shower too?" Kakashi asked, getting off the bed.

"I mean, you can. If you want, you can wait and use mine, or use the hall shower. Your stuff should still be here."

"I'll go to the hall shower," Kakashi said after a moment.

"Okay, feel free to get in bed when you are done," Harumi waited for Kakashi to nod before she grabbed some sleeping clothes and went into the bathroom to take her shower.

Turning the hot water to it's highest setting, Harumi stood under the water. Hot water was a great way to wash away any worries or leftover stress from this mission. Well that was the theory anyway. Harumi was about to put it to the test.

Her shower didn't take long, after all, Harumi was tired and wanted to sleep. Getting out of the shower and wrapping her hair in a towel, Harumi put on a pair of black shorts and purple tank top. To ensure that her hair would be manageable when she woke up, Harumi quickly braided her hair into two braids, she then squeezed the towel around each braid to pull out the excess water. Then she put some moisturizer on her face, and lotion on her legs and she decided she was ready for bed.

A quick glance showed that Kakashi wasn't back, so Harumi slipped under the covers on the side furthest from the window and fell asleep.

Meanwhile Kakashi was also taking a hot shower, only instead of bringing relief, it brought more chaos. All the emotions, all the thoughts he had pushed back into the box for later, had decided that later was now. Guilt, regret, pain. Those were constant companions for Kakashi. He recognized those. However relief and something warm was far less familiar. For all his talk of not getting attached, Kakashi would admit, here in the solitude of the shower, that Kakashi was firmly attached to Harumi. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do about that, he just knew that Harumi had become essential to him. Even his nukin noticed this. Hell, Pakkun even teased Kakashi about finding his mate.

Harumi was safe, Kakashi repeated to himself for the thousandth time since they returned.

Obito was alive, Kakashi thought again for the millionth time.

By habit, at this point because was firmly stuck in his head, Kakashi got out of the shower and dried off. He slipped on a soft pair of sleep pants that he left here and after a short debate, decided to not put on his sleeveless sleep shirt with the mask attached.

Bare chested, Kakashi walked back to Harumi's room and found her sound asleep on the bed. She chose the side furthest from the window, already knowing Kakashi's need to be between everyone else and all threats. The inside door, where Kakashi stood held the least amount of danger from outside threats. Tossing his sleep shirt on the floor beside the empty part of the bed, Kakashi slowly slipped under the covers.

Laying his head down on the pillow, he couldn't help but feel some of the tension leaving his body as he was surrounded by the comforting scent of Harumi.

What felt like moments later, Kakashi woke up to Harumi kicking her legs and thrashing on her side of the bed. Kakashi wrapped his arms around Harumi and whispered, "You are safe. You are home." Slowly Harumi calmed down. When her eyes opened her eyes were glassy.

"I was afraid you died, that you got hurt and I couldn't save you," she whispered, a single tear slipping past her eyelashes.

"I didn't and you didn't. I'm safe. You are safe. We are home," Kakashi reassured her.

"Don't leave," Harumi asked, her voice so soft Kakashi felt his heart stop for a second.

"Never," he promised, meaning it with all his steely resolve.

Harumi smiled at him, pulled Kakashi back to a laying down position and leaned her head against his shoulder.

Kakashi felt Harumi slowly sink into sleep and sighed when her breathing became slower and deeper, signaling her descent into sleep was complete. Kakashi gently ran his fingers through Harumi's hair, and whispered, "I'll only leave if you tell me too. I am not strong enough to go." Kakashi then let himself drift back to sleep. The feeling of being content filled his whole body.

Meanwhile

"Lord Hokage, what should we do with this information?" Inoichi asked.

"I will need to think about it, but I think we can all agree that this person is in fact Obito, and Obito was brainwashed by the one known as Madara. While under the influence of Madara, Obito committed treasonous acts against Konoha."

The three men standing next to him looking through the window at the sleeping Obito all nodded in agreement.

"So the question is, do we punish him for what he did while under someone else's control, or should we show mercy?"

"In other words, do we treat this similarly to being under a genjutsu or not?" Shikaku summarized.

"Yes, exactly," the Hokage nodded.

"I for one, think it should be someplace in the middle," Ibiki stated his opinion. "After all, while he was brainwashed, he did make the decisions on his own. The fact that he was able to see through the conditioning, but only after a number of years, is proof that some part of him wanted this."

"True, but the fact he created this Tobi personality specifically for these missions that Madara would send him on, tells you that Obito separated himself from the whole thing. So should we punish Obito for what Tobi did, even if we know Tobi did it so Obito wouldn't have too," Inoichi said.

"This is a strange situation," the Hokage agreed. "However I think that whatever we decide, I think Harumi and Kakashi should be able to voice an opinion."

Shikaku nodded, "Harumi will want to spare Obito, not for him, but for Kakashi."

"Why do you think that?" Inoichi asked.

"Well Kakashi has always felt guilt for being the only one who survived from his team. The relief that he feels will only be outweighed by the fact that Kakashi is going to figure out Obito's role in the death of Minato."

"How does that translate to Kakashi needing Obito alive?"

"Kakashi will need someone to blame and Harumi would want to focus it towards Obito, causing all of the hate Kakashi currently uses to fuel his guilt, to turn to Obito. Now this is just a guess, but Yoshino is already preparing for a wedding between Harumi and Kakashi. And knowing the women in my family means, Harumi will do anything, including continually healing Obito so that Kakashi could continue to use him as his punching bag, if it meant that Kakashi would heal."

"Doesn't that go against what Harumi believes in? After all she is the least called upon medic to heal our.. Guests, because she really doesn't like this part," Ibiki pointed out.

Shikaku nodded, "Under normal circumstances, she understands the need for violence but doesn't embrace it like some do. However, this isn't normal circumstances. If Harumi has decided that she is going to marry Kakashi, she will set aside all of her thoughts on the matter and will embrace whatever will heal him."

The Hokage smiled, "I think that young Kakashi needs someone like that, someone who will fight all of his demons for him."

Ibiki sighed, "And another good shinobi goes down."

Shikaku just rolled his eyes at Ibiki.

Inoichi laughed, "You will have to find another shinobi to send on those suicide missions now. Kakashi just might have found a reason to live."

"So we are in agreement that we will let Harumi and Kakashi voice an opinion. Now I have to decide what information to share with them. Some of what Obito shared is too dangerous to have outside this room," the Hokage said. "I would suggest you all go about your day. Harumi and Kakashi will be asleep as quickly as they can. Oh," the Hokage said over his shoulder as he turned to leave, "Harumi's psychological exam came back, she is fine, they didn't do anything to her, at least nothing that our people can find. She might experience some nightmares, but nothing she couldn't recover from. I would suggest you keep Harumi's family away from the house for the day. We can arrange a more public homecoming for tomorrow."

"Of course, Hokage-sama," the three men bowed.

Once he was out of sight, Shikaku sighed, "Now I have to go hold my wife down so she doesn't head over and disobey the Hokage."

Inoichi laughed, "I will come help, and we can pick up all the kids from school today."

Ibiki frowned, "I hope someone remembers to have Itachi and Shishui keep away from Sasuke, so he doesn't tell Naruto and Harumi's siblings."

"Right," Shikaku nodded as he walked down the hall and down the path that would lead him outside.

"So married huh?" Inoichi teased.

"That is what Yoshino says and she hasn't been wrong yet. Apparently the women in her family get very strange when they have found the one they want to get married."

"So you will have Kakashi as a nephew in law?"

"Could be worse, could have been one of her teammates or even a civilian medic," both men shuddered at that.

Harumi woke up to the sun shining on her face. Without opening her eyes, she smiled, she was warm and safe. Her eyes flew open when her head moved and she felt air blow across the back of her head.

"Are you awake now?" a whisper asked.

Harumi could feel the chest rumble under her head with the question. She slowly lifted her head and turned to face Kakashi. The first thing she noticed was Kakashi's mask was off and he was smiling at her. The second thing was that the sun was giving Kakashi's face a soft glow and made his hair sparkle, even though it was still blond.

Harumi smiled at how young and relaxed Kakashi looked. "I'm awake. How did I get over here?"

"At some point you had a nightmare. Then I started talking to you and you calmed down. Then you just laid your head down on me and went back to sleep."

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."

Kakashi shook his head, "Not really. I was glad I was able to comfort you. I am not good with that sort of thing."

Harumi smiled and laid her head back down on Kakashi's chest, "Just put your arm around my shoulder, stroke my back a little." Grinning when he did exactly that. "This is how you comfort someone."

"Umm, okay."

For the first time, Harumi was able to see the full blush on Kakashi's face, not just the subtle pink over his mask.

"I like this," she sighed, closing her eyes and listening to the drum of his heartbeat.

"I do too," he whispered back.

Harumi felt her grin grow wider as she just lay there enjoying this moment.

Time passes, but neither seem to care as they enjoy the quiet and sunshine.

After some time, Kakashi and Harumi were in the kitchen making breakfast. Kakashi put his shirt on, but left the mask part off. They each had a cup of coffee next to them as they silently made a small breakfast of rice, eggs and some chicken and vegetables Harumi found in the freezer.

"Do you have a plan for today?" Harumi asked.

"I was thinking of going to the memorial stone, I wasn't able to go before I left, and I would like to go now that we are back," Kakashi answered.

Harumi nodded, "Can I come with you?"

"Of course."

The two of them took their food outside to the small table where Kakashi and Harumi would sit and watch Naruto and Masahiro train. They ate in a good type of quiet, the type that was comfortable and it was able to heal.

As they finished breakfast a hawk landed on one of the large flower pots surrounding the yard. It trilled at Kakashi, who nodded. "Looks like I have to go, will you be okay at home by yourself?"

"Of course, although I might go to Yoshino's house and make sure she knows I'm home," Harumi answered, but the hawk looked at her and also trilled. "Never mind, looks like we are heading to the Tower."

The two quickly went inside, put their dishes in the sink and ran upstairs to get dressed. In just a few minutes the two of them took to the roof and ran to the Tower.

Genma waited for the two at the front of the Tower. "Kakashi, take Harumi down to Interrogation, Hokage is waiting for you there."

Kakashi nodded and took Harumi to one of the many entrances. Twisting and turning narrow hallways slowly made their way to the Hokage. Harumi was lost, but thankful that Kakashi seemed to know where he was going.

"How do you know your way around?" Harumi asked, "Everything looks the same."

Kakashi smiled, "How do you know your way around the hospital? You just learn the places you are always at."

Harumi decided not to continue that train of thought, because frankly the idea that Kakashi had spent enough time in Interrogation to know his way around was slightly alarming, but only because she knew on a physical level, that type of exposure leaves a mark. However Harumi also wasn't naive enough to think that, as ANBU Kakashi was never sent to retrieve someone and bring that person here.

"Oh good, you both made good time," Harumi heard from in front of them. She looked around Kakashi and saw the Hokage, Shikaku-oja, Inoichi and Ibiki. "So we have been talking to Obito for most of the night, Inoichi, was able to go through his mind. We have some ideas of what we should do, however we all thought it was fair to ask you two what you would want to do. Harumi, you because he kidnapped you. Kakashi, because he was your former teammate and had caused you much pain."

"What are the options?" Harumi asked.

"What did you find out?" Kakashi asked at the same time.

The Hokage answered Kakashi first, "Much of what we learned is classified as Hokage's eyes only. However we can tell you that the personality known as Tobi was the one that took the missions to poison the villages. It was also known that Tobi has only acted against Konoha twice, although the second time doesn't make him any guiltier than those he met with."

Harumi saw the flash of pain in the Hokage's eyes when he glanced at Kakashi, but it was quickly erased by a puff of smoke. "Secondly, since Tobi is the one that has been the one to work against Konoha, Inoichi has gained permission to have Tobi locked away, which would leave Obito free to live his life. So long as he lived it within the parameters that we set. Or he could be executed."

Harumi frowned, execution was something that not even Orochimaru was granted, although if he were captured now, then he would be executed. Which means Tobi did something awful. A careful glance at Kakashi showed the conflict on his face. He too, recognized the implications of execution. But the thing that broke her heart was the guilt written across his features. Kakashi carried around huge amounts of guilt and it would be nice if it could be taken away.

"Is there a majority opinion?" Harumi asked.

"There is," Inoichi answered, not giving anything away.

"Do you think I could talk to him?" Kakashi asked, the tremor in his voice heard by everyone in the area.

"Of course, but you must remember, he is heavily sedated and may not be mentally here," Ibiki answered.

Kakashi nodded and walked to the door.

Harumi steeled herself, tears wouldn't help in this situation. Kakashi didn't need her tears and Obito, though his story was sad, he made his choices. While she did understand the idea of multiple personalities, at least for her, ultimately you are responsible for your decisions. An unconscious decision is still a decision.

Harumi watched as Kakashi closed the door behind him and moved to the chair.

"Obito?" Kakashi called out.

"Hey Kakashi," a whispered reply.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Not really, but I figure I don't have long to feel uncomfortable."

"What do you mean? You don't want to try and make things right?" Kakashi was shocked, this Obito had given up.

"What do you think, Bakashi? They would let me live after what I've done?" Obito's voice was scratchy.

"There is always hope, Obito. As it stands, they are not sure what to do with you and have asked for my opinion."

Obito laughed bitterly, "So you came in here to tell me that you are going to kill me yourself? I don't blame you. I did try to kill you."

"What? No!" Kakashi was visibly upset, "You were under Madara's influence, why would I hold you responsible for what you did? And really we are shinobi, we have all killed people, set others up to take the fall and we have started wars between civilians. What makes you think what you did was any worse than what others have done? What I've done." The last part was said softly.

Harumi gasped, and turned to her uncle, "What did Obito do that is so awful?"

"I can't tell you," was his response.

Harumi glared at him, "Well if you can't tell me, can you tell me if I'm wrong?"

Shikaku glanced at the Hokage who remained focused on the scene in front of them. Shikaku shrugged, "I don't see why not."

Harumi started to think out loud, "So Obito did something. No he did two things. One isn't as bad, because it is something that was done by others in the village recently. But the other is bad enough to warrant execution. There is only one reason for execution without a trial, treason. While treason can look like many things, it is most commonly defined as purposefully doing something that actively works against the good of Konoha as a whole. This can be something as simple as letting enemies know the secret to getting through the barrier or something as complex as starting a coup. Since Obito has been away from the village for a long time, I don't think he could be charged with starting a coup." Harum paused and looked at the men in front of her. No one gave anything away.

"So Obito, as Tobi did something that endangered the village. Okay, set that aside for a moment, Obito hated Kakashi for what he thought Kakashi did. Madara worked very hard to ensure that Obito hated everything about Konoha. That to keep him isolated and to ensure that he wouldn't look for help from anyone." Harumi paused, "Wait Madara tried to control Obito. What was Madara's greatest wish? To see Konoha wiped off the world." Harumi's mind flew through all the things that had happened since the time Obito was presumed dead, that would have destroyed Konoha.

She gasped, "No!" Walking over to Shikaku, Harumi grabbed his arm and swung him around to face her, "Please tell me that Obito didn't have anything to do with the Nine Tails attack."

Shikaku remained silent.

Harumi shook her head quickly, "No, no, this will destroy Kakashi. You can't let him figure it out."

"We can't stop him from figuring it out. In fact, I'm not sure we can stop Obito from telling him," Hokage cut in.

Harumi's eyes cut over to the Hokage, who suddenly looked very old. The Hokage was staring straight at the two men in the room.

"What would you say if I told you Madara was behind the Uchiha's coup ideas?" Obito asked.

Kakashi shrugged, "I already figured that out. But the coup never happened, so that doesn't count against you."

"What do you mean?" Obito asked.

"Hokage-sama said that you are not guiltier than the others in the coup, so you will not be held any more accountable than they will be."

Obito sighed, "I didn't think this would be so hard."

"What? Trying to figure out how to live after everything is ripped away from you? I can help you with that. Give you a new purpose." Kakashi sounded desperate.

"Please Hokage-sama, let me go in there," Harumi asked, she wasn't above begging. Anything to keep Kakashi from figuring out the truth right now. Not when it was clear to everyone that all he wanted to do was save one of his teammates. Just one.

"Do you think it would help him to find out later, Harumi-chan?" Hokage asked.

Harumi shrugged, "I don't know, but I do know that Kakashi has done nothing but wish to save his teammates. He pushes himself so hard to ensure that he will always be able to save his teammates. Just let him have this one thing. Let him save his teammate. If Obito can't live with himself later, then let him tell Kakashi. Please.." Harumi begged.

The Hokage nodded.

Harumi rushed the door. Both men jumped when she threw open the door.

"Obito," Harumi cried out, "Please don't do this. I know you are feeling guilty, but that is no reason to end your life. If you need a reason to live, live to make amends. Fix what you did wrong."

"What?" Obito asked.

"Hokage-sama told us that you have the given permission to lock Tobi away, I know that through therapy you could eventually merge Tobi and Obito back. I also know that if Tobi is gone and only Obito remains, he can begin to atone for what he did, or might have done," Harumi answered. Honestly she would forever be happy if Obito were executed, but she also knows that Kakashi needs to succeed in this one thing.

"How can I atone for what I've done?" Obito asked.

"I don't know," Harumi answered honestly, "But death is not going to solve it. I don't remember Rin, but I do know she was a medic and medics work very hard to save lives. Would she want you to throw your life away?"

Kakashi nodded, "Harumi is right. Rin gave her life to save the village, are you going to spit on her memory by not honoring her sacrifice?"

Obito stared at Kakashi, "That's real rich coming from you. How many times have you taken missions that everyone called suicide missions? How many years have you walked the line between life and death?"

Kakashi nodded, "You are correct, I have done those things, but I always knew that if I died during a mission, as long as I completed the mission, I was doing something good for the village. Will you be able to do the same?"

"So you want me to keep living, because you were too weak to kill yourself?" Obito snarled.

"Stop it!" Harumi yelled, it didn't take a genius to figure this out. Obito wanted to die and was very willing to make Kakashi angry enough to do it. Some would probably call it justice, Harumi didn't. She turned and pushed Kakashi towards the door, "Go away. Obito just wants to make you angry enough that you will kill him here and now."

Kakashi opened his mouth to argue.
"Nope, go away. I am going to have a nice talk with Obito," Harumi didn't let Kakashi speak. Once the door was closed, Harumi leaned close enough to speak in Obito's ear. While it wouldn't stop everyone from hearing her, at least it would ensure they had some privacy. "Look," Harumi hissed, "I know what you did. I don't know, nor do I care why you did it. What I do care about is making sure Kakashi doesn't spiral back into the pit he is just now getting out of. So here is what you are going to do. You will live. You will work at getting to a place where you will be released from here and you will begin to make amends for what you did. Starting with showing Kakashi he did save you this time. You will not tell him what you did that night. If he ever finds out, you will let him vent, scream, punch you in the face until his arm is tired, I don't care, but you will let him do it and not complain once. Do you understand me?"

Obito nodded.

"Good, then if you can do that, I promise I will do everything in my power to help you make amends, to earn back the trust of those who you shattered trust with. I will help you become worthy of finding Rin in the afterlife. If you want to become a nomad and wander about the world helping the poor as a civilian, I will do my best to help you. If you want to open an orphanage and protect all the kids, I will help with that. I don't care what you do to make amends, but I will help," Harumi promised. "Do you understand?"

Obito nodded again.

"Good, then I will tell the Hokage that we have come to an agreement." Harumi straightened up and went to move back to the door.

"Harumi?" Obito called out, halting her.

"Yes?" Harumi looked Obito in the eye.

"You are good for him. I will do what you have asked. I will dedicate my life to protecting Kakashi and I will fix what I broke. To make myself worthy of Rin's sacrifice," Obito promised.

Harumi nodded, turned back around and walked through the door. She walked out just in time to see Ibiki handing Inoichi a handful of bills.

"Do I want to know?" Harumi asked, once the door was closed behind her.

"Ibiki said that you wouldn't be able to change Obito's mind. I said you could," Inoichi answered.

Harumi smiled, "Technically I didn't change his mind, I just didn't give him a choice."

"No what you did is you used his guilt to give him purpose," Inoichi answered. "Good job. I wasn't sure any of us would be able to do that."

Kakashi blinked, "Wait, you knew this would happen?"

The Hokage nodded, "It would do no good to save Obito, if he didn't want to be saved. It would be a shame if the village were to lose this shinobi again. Besides, according to the medical people, there is something very unique about Obito and I am sure others would like to know how he was kept together after being crushed by the boulders."

"This was all a show?" Kakashi asked.

"Not really," Shikaku answered, "Obito didn't want to live. While we wanted to keep him alive, we knew it wouldn't happen if he didn't find a reason to live. We were hoping that you could give him that reason, which is what Ibiki was counting on."

"Now that that is complete, Inoichi, when you are ready, we will do one final sweep of Obito's mind, see if there is anything else we need to check. Then we will lock Tobi away," the Hokage ordered, "Kakashi and Harumi you will be the only ones, outside of myself and Inoichi who will have access to Obito. As of right now, his existence is classified as Hokage's eyes only."

"Inoichi, find someone who is trusted to start the process of healing for Obito's mind and once you have decided Obito is healed enough from locking Tobi away, let me know and I will change these orders."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

"Now, I have a more public return for Team Ro. You will walk out of the Tower in two hours where it will be known that your mission was successful."

"Do we need to look like we just returned?" Harumi asked.

The Hokage shook his head, "No, since you will leave the Tower and be on your way."

"I will let Yoshino know to expect you soon," Shikaku said.

Harumi nodded.

"For the moment, Kakashi, you should assemble your team and give them a briefing of what they need to know. I will see you in one and a half hours," the Hokage ordered before he turned back to the window, to observe Obito some more.

"Right away, Hokage-sama," Kakashi bowed and placed his hand on Harumi's lower back, guided her to yet another set of stairs.

"I hope I am never needed for an emergency here because I will never make it," Harumi complained.

"Well if we are the only ones who can visit Obito, you will at least know your way to his cell," was Kakashi's answer.

Harumi sighed, "I guess I will. But that is a single location. The rest of this place is a maze."

"Yes, that way prisoners can't find their way out if they happen to escape."

"What happens if they do?" Harumi was curious.

Kakashi gave her a grin, "Well then you know it was on purpose."

It didn't take long for the pair to reach a small room, it was up stairs and around corners, but it was at least above ground. Kakashi quickly summoned his pack, gave them orders to tell Team Ro where to come and then Kakashi sat down.

"I can't believe he is alive," Kakashi told Harumi.

"That's an honest place to be. What do you want to be able to do with this information?"

"Honestly, I don't know."

"Well honesty is a good place to start. I don't want to step on your toes, or get you mad, but have you thought about talking to someone?"

Kakashi knew what she was asking, after all he was in ANBU, he knew about the mandatory psychological evaluations. "I don't like talking to strangers about stuff."

Harumi nodded, "Of course, but it doesn't have to be a stranger."

"What do you mean? I don't want to burden other people with this stuff in my head."

"Just hear me out. After my parents died, I talked to a distant cousin. I was lost in grief that was multi-layered. First I lost my parents, then I lost the career that I worked towards as long as I could remember. I also had a difficult time figuring out the balance between parent and sibling. I needed someone who wasn't too emotionally involved to help me just talk through some things. Honestly I spent most of my time talking and complaining, but she didn't mind. We would drink tea and just talk. She would just listen as I would tell her about the problems I was having, the guilt and dilemmas I was facing. She wouldn't judge, she would just listen. Sometime she would give an opinion that would allow me to see a different opinion."

"Did it help?" Kakashi asked.

"At first I didn't think so, but as time moved on, it did. I was able to look past my own emotions and see some things clearly," Harumi answered honestly.

"Do you think you will see her again?"

"Probably, we will see how I do tonight."

"Do you think it will help?"

"Honestly, I don't think it would hurt. Just get a neutral person who really doesn't care what you say, someone who isn't emotionally invested in the outcome, might help you."

"How can I find someone like that?"

"Well I can ask Shikaku-oja if he knows someone. After all, you wouldn't be the first person who left ANBU that needed someone to talk to."

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

"Come in," Kakashi called out.

Tenzo, Shishui, Itachi and Yugao walked in.

"Good, this will be quick. In just under an hour we will be seen walking out of Hokage Tower, so everyone will know we are back. As far as anyone is concerned, Obito does not exist. If asked, we just killed the one parading around as Madara," Kakashi didn't waste any time giving his team the briefing.

"What is going to happen to Obito?" Shishui asked.

"That is for the Hokage to decide, but for now, Obito is still dead," Kakashi answered.

"Is that what we get to know?" Yugao asked.

"Everything pertaining to Obito and Tobi have been classified as Hokage's eyes only," was the answer Kakashi gave.

Itachi nodded.

"Any questions?" Kakashi asked.

"Will we be informed when a decision is made?" Shishui asked.

"I don't know, but I can make a request," Kakashi answered.

"I guess that is the best I can hope for."

"If there are no more questions, we can head over to the Tower, turn in the mission and head out. You will all be on leave for three days, starting today. We will start training on the fourth day. Same time, same place," Kakashi finished.

After a nod from the team, Kakashi slipped out the window with the entire team and Harumi following behind. They slipped into a window on a middle floor. Kakashi led the entire group downstairs, handed in a completed mission scroll to the mission desk and the whole group walked out.

Standing on the street, Kakashi nodded and the group dispersed to different directions.

"I'm going to the Nara compound," Harumi told him, "Did you want to come with me?"

"What are you going to do?"

"I thought I would visit my aunt and listen to the latest gossip. Then see what the plan is. I'm sure she has something planned, she always does."

Kakashi grinned at her, "You mean she has a plan for when you get kidnapped? Has this happened before?"

Harumi sighed, "No, but she does have a plan for when her family has difficult missions. There is usually a large meal with everyone. It allows the person who was gone to get all the news and to ease them into being home."

"Don't you find the loud groups.. Annoying?" Kakashi asked as he walked beside Harumi.

"If it were the type of mission that required the quiet, the family member is allowed to have quiet. That is why I am going to see Yoshino-oba, to let her know that I don't need that quiet time."

"Do you want me to stay with you?"

"I always want your company, Kakashi. So if you have someplace you need to be, or someplace you need to go, don't feel like you have to stay with me. For example, if you need to talk to the ANBU in charge of Naruto's protection while you were gone to see what happened while you were gone, go do that. I'll be fine."

Kakashi glanced at Harumi, "I do have things I should do, but I really don't want to let you out of my sight again. So long as we pass the memorial stone and check in with Naruto's protection detail before we have to pick up the boys, I will be happy."

Harumi nodded, "Then I will make this a quick visit and I can go where you need to go. Or if I'm not allowed to go with you, you could send me someplace to be watched or leave me someplace safe."

"I tried that," Kakashi told her, "and look what happened."

Harumi glared at Kakashi, but there was no heat behind her glare, "Okay, that's not fair! I didn't ask to be kidnapped!"

"Well that isn't happening again, so just let me stick to you for a while," Kakashi answered.

"So just figure out what that looks like. You only have two days before we both go back on duty."

It didn't take long for the pair to make their way over to Yoshino's house after that. She was in the kitchen when Harumi walked in.

"Yoshini-oba! I'm back!" Harumi called.

"Harumi-chan? Welcome back!" came the screeching call. "Come here! I want to give you a hug."

"I have Kakashi with me, so don't do anything too awful or embarrassing." Harumi answered as she walked back to the kitchen.

"Would I do that?" she asked, wiping her hands off with a kitchen towel.

"Of course you would," Harumi answered, falling into her aunt's open arms. Sometimes if she closed her eyes really tight, she could almost imagine this was her mother giving her a welcome home hug.

"We were worried," Yoshino whispered, "Are you okay?"

Harumi nodded, "I am. Honestly I was just used as bait, so it was in their best interest to keep me alive and well."

"Yeah, but just because they want you alive, doesn't mean that they couldn't hurt you in other ways," was the answer.

"Well they tried that, it didn't really work," Harumi shrugged, not willing to tell that story yet. She did mention it in her official report, and besides everything related to Obito was classified, so Harumi was sure this counted.

"So I just stopped by to let you know that I'm home. I will go and pick up the boys this afternoon. I also need to find my sister and other brother, according to the mission board, both are around the village," Harumi paused and saw Yoshino-oba nod, "Just let me know when you want to have the big family dinner and I will be here."

"Two things, first does your uncle know you are back?"

"He was at the briefing," was all Harumi said.

"Good then he can help. I will let you know when I know for sure, but we were thinking tomorrow."

"As far as I know that should work. I don't go back on duty until the day after that."

"Perfect timing then," Yoshino smiled and turned to look at Kakashi who was hovering near the doorway, "Kakashi, of course you and Naruto are invited."

"Thank you," Kakashi answered.

"And the second?" Haurmi asked.

"Yes, we need to talk about your boy."

"What did my brothers do while I was gone?"

"Not your brothers, that one," Yoshino nodded her head in Kakashi's direction, "He almost blew up an entire training area which almost led to a large portion of the forest being burned to the ground."

"What?" Harumi gasped softly.

"You don't let a man go who is willing to blow up the world for you," Yoshino whispered, "You find a way to hold on to him. I think your parents would approve of him."

Harumi stared at her aunt, into the eyes so much like her mother's and smiled, "I guess I will have to keep him then."

Yoshino nodded and pulled away from Harumi, "Now the two of you have lots to do and lots to talk about, so go away and let me get this dinner planned."

"Did you want me to bring anything?"

"Just your lovely self."

Harumi laughed, "I can do that, bye!" She waved at her aunt as she turned around and walked back to the front door.

"Stay safe!" Yoshino yelled back.

Harumi just laughed some more and walked out of the house. "I need to make one more stop, then we can head out."

Harumi walked down a road that led deeper into the compound. Kakashi recognized this as one of the many roads that head to the Nara forest. Harumi stepped off the road and walked through the grass until she came to a large tree. She knelt down in front of it, it was only then that Kakashi noticed the slight depression in the ground, as if this motion had been done multiple times over the years.

Harumi bowed her head and silently thanked the ancestors and the spirits that commanded the Nara family to watch over the deer for her safety. She asked for guidance in her relationship with Kakashi, because she was convinced she would need all the help she could get. However one thing she was sure of, was that Kakashi would be part of her future and nothing, not even Kakashi would get in the way of that future. She grinned, this was one puzzle she couldn't wait to figure out. And if her mother was to be believed, this was one puzzle that would take a lifetime to solve.

After her prayer, Harumi slowly stood up and moved over to where Kakashi was having a stare down with the head male deer. Harumi smiled and slowly walked over to the deer.

"Hello," she said softly, "I am sorry I haven't been around for a while. There was some trouble."

The buck turned his attention to Harumi. He walked over and sniffed at her face.

Harumi held very still, until the buck dropped his head and Harumi was able to scratch the spot near his antlers. After a moment, the buck moved over to Kakashi and sniffed him. He stared at Kakashi longer before he dropped his head.

Kakashi did the same as Harumi, scratching the top of the buck's head. After a few seconds, the buck stepped back and moved away. That seemed to be the signal the herd was waiting for because the young adult deer came over and were crowding Harumi, while the older ones moved over to Kakashi.

Kakashi was very much out of his element. Dogs, he understood. But deer were a totally different beast, literally. So he tried to just pet the deer and let them sniff him. Thankfully he wasn't being shoved around like Harumi was by some more enthusiastic deer. Kakashi felt something in his chest loosen when Harumi began to laugh as two deer grabbed a sleeve and tried to pull her in two directions. It was at that moment of clarity that Kakashi knew Harumi was his mate forever. He knew it before, but this was a bone deep knowledge that this was it. Kakashi felt something else settle.

Eventually the herd turned to Harumi and started to push her around, demanding attention.

"They like you," Shikaku said from Kakashi's left.

"Is that what this was about?" Kakashi asked.

"Well as much as Harumi is a Nara, the deer help us, and we help the deer. They are connected to us. If you two have children, that connection will be there, if you want to nurture it," Shikaku said, "It is important to Harumi that the deer like you."

"Then I'm glad they like me," Kakashi answered.

"Don't worry, the deer are pretty laid back and like most people. We have yet to figure out if it is because we are such excellent judge of character, or because the deer are pretty okay with our choices."

Before either man could continue, Harumi moved over to them, "Hi Shikaku-oja, I just wanted to talk to the forest since I'm home and the deer came to say hi."

Shikaku nodded, "They must have known that you were gone and wanted to make sure you were healthy for themselves."

Harumi smiled, "I guess, but do they have to shove me around all the time?"

Skikaku nodded, "At least they didn't take your hair down," he eyed her hair still in a bun at the top of her head.

Harumi's eyes widened as she quickly looked around, "Don't say that!" she hissed, "I don't need them trying that too."

Shikaku laughed, "I know you two have things to do. Remember the boys get out of school in three hours."

"Of course," Harumi walked over and quickly gave Shikaku a hug before she grabbed Kakashi's arm and pulled him back towards the front gates of the compound.

Once they walked out the gates, Kakashi took the lead and pulled Harumi up to the nearest roof. "We have to go to one of the ANBU buildings and it is just easier to get in from the roof."

Harumi nodded, "Lead the way, Kakashi, this is your world."

"It's yours also," Kakashi argued.

"Well not ANBU, the closest I get is the special rooms in the basement of the hospital. Oh and when they appear on my doorstep because they couldn't be bothered to go to the hospital," Harumi teased.

"I will give you that, but honestly, you know so many people in ANBU, so you should at least know some of the places we hang out," Kakashi argued.

"Well, now I have you to show me."

Kakashi turned his head and gave her a huge grin, one that was clearly seen through his mask. Abruptly, Kakashi dropped down and through a window. Harumi followed, only to be met by three ANBU masks.

Kakashi grinned, "She's with me. I'm here to get an update on Naruto's protection detail."

Harumi sighed, "I can wait outside if you are going to be upset by me being here."

Kakashi shook his head, "No, you are staying here. Can one of you go and get Mouse. We will wait right here."

The one that looked like a Tiger shook his head, "This is against regulations, Hatake-san."

Kakashi glared at the one who spoke, "Son, I outrank you, so if you don't go and get Mouse, I will make your life hell."

Tiger gave a small laugh, "You are retired Hatake, you can't do anything."

At that, Kakashi turned and walked to a wall, put his hand against a piece of paper advertising free ramen and a door opened. "Harumi, come with me, I have some business to attend to."

Harumi's eyes bounced between Kakashi and Tiger, for a brief second, when she decided to follow Kakashi. Tiger stepped in front of her, to which Kakashi grabbed Tiger and threw him through the door.

"No, Tiger, you don't have permission to touch her. If you have a problem with it, take it up with Panther," Kakashi growled. He then grabbed Harumi's arm and led them through the door. "You will feel a little strange, just don't let go," Kakashi whispered as he walked forward.

Harumi was confused, until she felt the floor tilt and it felt like she was walking through water, her sense dulled and it became difficult to breath. She tried to move her hand off Kakashi's arm, so she could touch the wall, but Kakashi's warm fingers held her hand firmly on his arm. Harumi followed as Kakashi continued forward.

After a minute, maybe an hour, the hallway became a normal hallway.

"Okay, we are through it," Kakashi said.

Harumi just nodded, taking deep breaths.

"We are almost there," Kakashi added.

"I have so many questions, but I'm going to wait," Harumi told him.

Kakashi turned and gave her a wide smile, "Feel free to ask any questions you want."

The hallway opened up to a medium sized room with lots of hallways leading to and from the room. There were a few couches and few tables with chairs placed around the room. Most of the couches were occupied by ANBU with their masks off. Some had their masks on the side of their faces while others had them attached to their belts. All had on the traditional ANBU armor, but only a few had the hooded cape on. Harumi recognized a number of the people in the room, however due to the uncomfortable stares she was being given, she thought it best to keep her eyes down.

"I don't think they like me here, Kakashi," Harumi whispered.

"Well Tiger could have been reasonable and we wouldn't be here, but no. He had to be an ass, so here we are," Kakashi replied loud enough for the room to hear. "Where is Mouse?" he asked the room.

"He just got off duty, so he should be in the cafeteria or in the rec room," one of the people answered.

"Thanks," Kakashi said as he took Harumi's hand off his arm and laced their fingers together before walking down yet another hall.

"I should tell you that I have a crappy sense of direction," Harumi told Kakashi, "So you can't leave me here else I will be forever wandering these halls trying to find a way out."

Kakashi nodded, "Don't worry, I won't leave you."

"Promise?" Harumi asked.

Kakashi's heart clenched at the same question from last night, "Promise."

Harumi smiled and pulled Kakashi closer to her, she leaned up on her toes and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Okay then. Lead on Kakashi."

It didn't take them long to get to the cafeteria, which was exactly as it sounds. Lots of tables and chairs in a large room. One side of the room had food service, the other had drinks. Harumi would bet money that the food was similar to what is found in the hospital cafeteria.

Kakashi walked straight to a lone man at a table in the corner, but in the sunshine and pulled out a chair for Harumi and sat in the chair next to hers.

"Anything interesting while I was away, Mouse?" Kakashi asked when the man at the table didn't look up from the food in front of him.

"Not really," he answered, looking up. When his eyes met Harumi's he grinned, "I heard you were back, how are you?"

"Well not kidnapped, so I am calling it a win," Harumi answered with an answering grin.

"Back in Konoha is always a win," he agreed.

"So what happened while I was gone?" Kakashi asked.

"Same as always. Naruto went to the Academy every morning, in the afternoon he went back to the Nara compound with either Yoshino or Shikaku. He would be accompanied by one or more of Harumi's siblings. Once at the compound Naruto would go do homework and after homework he would either train or do chores. After training, he would have dinner with the Nara clan head family. After dinner, they would have some quiet time, either reading or playing shogi and finally it would be bath and bedtime."

"Did the boys conduct any pranks while we were gone?" Harumi asked.

Mouse glanced at Kakashi whose chin dipped ever so slightly, before answering "No, but there are a few in the works, or at least something they are talking about."

"Should we be concerned?"

"Well a few of the older kids were making fun of Naruto for being short, but his friends were quick to defend him, so while they are talking about doing something, I am unsure if they actually will," was the reply.

Kakashi nodded, "We can deal with that later if it comes up. I am glad everything went smoothly. I am officially taking back primary security for Naruto," Kakashi continued as he stood up and helped Harumi out of her chair.

"Of course. Before you go, do you want to tell me why you brought Harumi here, I would have met you in one of the entry rooms if you had sent word."

"Oh that, we tried, but Tiger wanted to be an ass, so here we are," Kakashi answered.

"Tiger, hmm?"

"Yes," Kakashi nodded, "It would be a shame if Panther heard about this incident."

"Yes a shame," was the dry reply from behind Kakashi.

Harumi turned her head and saw a tall man, with graying hair. He stood much taller than her, but not that much taller than Kakashi. Harumi watched as Kakashi grinned and turned his head.

"Good morning, Panther, how are you today?" Kakashi asked.

Harumi heard Mouse mutter something like "dumb ass," under his breath, before picking up his plate and walking away.

"Oh, if you are in town, Yoshino-oba is planning dinner in two days," Harumi called out.

Mouse waved his hand indicating he heard her and continued to walk away.

"Why do you always do this, Kakashi? You know we have rules and protocols," Panther asked.

"I tried, but Tiger wouldn't follow protocol. And since I'm not about to let Harumi out of my sight, we came in."

Panther nodded, "I'm glad to see that your mission was successful," he turned to Harumi, "It is always nice to be able to save someone. I hope Team Ro was able to arrive in time?"

Harumi nodded, "Yes, they arrived in plenty of time. It is good to be home."

"Good. Now Kakashi, you will take Harumi out the front door and please follow protocol."

Kakashi slapped his fist over his heart, "Yes Panther. Time to go and get the boys, Harumi."

"Oh and Kakashi," Panther called out, when Kakashi turned his head, "Let me know next time Team Ro is training, I think Tiger needs some extra training."

"Two days from now, normal place and time," Kakashi said.

Panther nodded, "He will be there."

Kakashi nodded back and began to move. This time he took her through a different hallway, this one with more lights and it looked like a normal office hallway. They exited the hallway in a smaller room, with a desk and a message board behind the desk. They walked out the door leading outside. Harumi saw they were close to the Tower.

"I don't want to know," Harumi said once they were outside.

"What?" Kakashi asked.

"Whatever you and Panther were talking about without talking about. I just know you are going to torture Tiger and I don't want to know anything." Harumi finished firmly.

"Aww, come on, it won't be that bad," Kakashi replied.

"Don't care, because if I know what is going to happen or what you are going to do, then I might figure which shinobi it is when he comes in for treatment after this training session."

"Aww, Harumi-chan you are no fun," Kakashi whined.

Harumi turned and looked at Kakashi, she bit her lower lip and looked up at Kakashi through her eyelashes, "You don't know what kind of fun I can be."

Kakashi's eyes darkened as he watched Harumi lick her lower lip after she released it from her teeth, "Not fair, Harumi. We have to go pick up Naruto, Masahiro and whoever they bring back with them, then we have to go have dinner with your other two siblings."

While they were talking, they walked towards Kakashi's favorite memorial stone. Both Haumi and Kakashi noticed the stares of people as they moved through the busy shopping area. Kakashi again had a book out, while Harumi appeared to be reading it over his arm, pointing at something on the page and the two of them would talk about what she pointed out. No one the wiser about what they were actually talking about.

For some it was a sweet sight, while others were unhappy by the pairing. Most were not surprised. After all, everyone heard what happened when Harumi went missing. Kakashi practically set a whole training ground on fire while waiting for the Hokage to send him out. Everyone was talking about the small medic that caused the ice cold shinobi to act so emotionally.

Eventually the pair arrived at the memorial stone. Harumi bowed her head and said a small prayer of thanksgiving for her safe return. She asked that her parents continue to watch out over the younger ones.

When she was finished, she looked at Kakashi who had his hands in his pockets shoulders hunched in. Feeling her look at him Kakashi turned his eye towards her. "I'm going to sit over there," Harumi pointed to a sunny part of the clearing, "take you time. We have all day for you to say what you need to say."

"Hi Sensei, Rin, Kushina. It's been a little while, but I was away on a mission," Kakashi sighed. "It was a disaster. Well we accomplished the mission, and Harumi is safe, but.. It was awful. I wish you could have told me that Obito was still alive. Rin, did you laugh at me while I poured out my troubles to Obito? No you were not that cruel. I just can't wrap my head around the fact he is still alive. What am I supposed to do now? Thankfully we were able to bring Obito back, he will have to answer for any crimes he committed against Konoha. I hope those are not too awful. I kind of hope that I can learn to be friends with him for real.

"Oh and I think I'm going to ask Harumi to marry me, but not yet. I just need more time to think about it. Yes, Rin. I can feel you rolling your eyes from here. I know that I don't have all the answers and I should talk to Harumi about it. But before he died, my dad would talk about the one. That one person that would make me feel home. The one who became home. The one who would be my mate for my whole life. Harumi is that for me and while I would be perfectly happy just watching her, I have a feeling she won't like that."

"You are correct," a whisper came from behind him, to his right. Kakashi spun around and saw Harumi smiling at him. "If you think I'm supposed to be your mate, then you need to court me and prove that you are willing to be my mate." Harumi then grinned at Kakashi, "And you might want to ask Shikaku-oja about how he courted Yoshino-oba."

"Do I want to know?" Kakashi sighed.

"You know that each family has certain courting rituals, right? Well the Naras are no different. Just ask him what he did and if there is anything you need to know."

"You don't want to ask if there are courting customs of the Hatake's?" Kakashi asked as the two of them moved towards the Academy to pick up the boys.

Harumi just smiled, "You act like I haven't figured out that you don't care about the customs of the Hatake family. But since I am a Nara, I have checked some records. Really, it seems like most of the customs are on what the men will do and not so much what I should do. Besides, I have customs from my mother that I will need to do."

Kakashi paled.

"Don't worry about it, Kakashi. We will figure it out. Just like we have done everything else. Through long talks and asking for space when we need it."

"I.. I will keep that in mind," Kakashi said, but then something Harumi said registered with him, "What do you mean, we will figure it out?"

"Well we are both stubborn people who have lived by their own rules for a very long time. So we need to be able to talk through what our problems will be and I'm sure there will be a lot. From which side of the bed you want to sleep on to is it okay to leave dirty dishes in the sink at night."

"You put some thought into this, hmm?" Kakashi pointed out.

Harumi smiled, "Not consciously, but I figured we have been trying to figure out what a relationship would look like for a while. After all I caught my aunt looking at bridal magazines during Christmas and since I know Shikamaru is too young to think about marriage, I assume it was about me."

"I don't know what to do with this information. I just got comfortable with the idea of being married to you a few hours ago."

"Wow Kakashi, going from a forever single to ready to be married in a few hours and you are already telling your family about it before you have even asked me on a date? Well I will say you do move fast." Harumi laughed as Kakashi's face turned red.

"You seem surprisingly okay with this."

"Well you did blow up a training ground and almost burn the forest, so I am pretty sure I know what I mean to you, Kakashi. Most people don't have an idea when they start talking about courting and marriage. At least the two of us will know where we stand."

"I am not sure I want the whole village to know my feelings," Kakashi told her.

"I'm sure most have guessed, but don't worry I won't tell anyone until you are ready."

"Including your siblings?"

"Yes, including my siblings. Oh speaking of them, I need to send a message to them to let them know I'm home."

"I don't think that will be necessary," Kakashi muttered.

"What? Why?" Harumi asked, turning to look in the direction Kakashi was starting at. What she saw had her frowning. Standing in front of the Academy were the older two siblings, along with a small group of students. They were all staring at Harumi and Kakashi.

"Do I have something in my hair?" Harumi asked.

Kakashi glanced at her, "Not that I can see."

"So why are they staring at us?"

"I don't know."

"Harumi!" Miako yelled as she ran down the road. Harumi opened her arms and braced herself.

Kakashi took a subtle step behind Harumi to add his strength as Miako jumped into Harumi's waiting arms.

"I was so worried," she sobbed into Harumi's shoulder.

Harumi wrapped her arms around her sister and squeezed tight, "I was worried too, but I'm back now, safe and sound."

"No one would tell us what was going on. They said you left on an emergency mission, but Shikaku-oja said that you were going to be gone for longer than a normal mission," Maiko sobbed.

"Don't worry about that, sweetie. I am here and I'm safe. Focus on that," Harumi answered, running her hand up and down her sister's back.

After a few minutes, Maiko pulled herself together and let go of Harumi.

Hidaki came over and looked Harumi up and down, "I know you can't tell us what really happened, but I'm going to let you know that we both know that you were not on a mission. Your stuff was left at the house and you didn't leave any of the usual signs you were going on a mission. We also know that something was wrong because all of our missions were changed to ones closer to home. If this was a normal mission, Shikaku wouldn't have made us all go live with him." Hidaki's voice was neutral, but Harumi could see the accusation in his eyes.

Harumi pulled him into a hug, "I would tell you if I could, Hidaki, but for now you have to focus on that I'm home."

Hidaki sighed, "Are we going home or back to Shikaku-oja's house?"

"Back to ours, Kakashi and Naruto will be staying with us for a bit too, I think," Harumi added.

Hidaki nodded, "Sounds about right. I am going to find my team, they let me go come find you, but I want to get some work done today."

"Of course, we are going to have takeout and family dinner is tomorrow, your team is invited of course."

Hidaki nodded and moved away with a quick shoulder squeeze.

Harumi rolled her eyes, he thought he was so too old for hugs and cuddles. Well that was fine, she wouldn't subject him to those here, but when they got home, she was going to get a proper hug.

Maiko smiled, "I guess I should go and get my team also, we are weeding some gardens, so it is something I am good at."

"Go, enjoy the soil. I'm going to wait for the younger ones and head home. I've decided that Kakashi is going to pick up dinner, so I can stay at home and rest. Honestly my feet hurt and I just want to sleep some more."

"Why… you know what? Nevermind, I am just going to leave and I'll see you at dinner time," Maiko gave Harumi one more hug before she too left.

Kakashi smirked at her, "I'm going to get takeout while you rest? How is that going to happen when I'm not letting you out of my sight?"

"You are a smart man, some would even call you a genius, I'm sure you can figure something out," Harumi smirked back. "I wonder where Itachi is?"

"If I were to venture a guess, his father wants to talk to him and isn't available to other people right now," Kakashi ventured.

"I was going to invite him over to the family dinner, at least because Masahiro and Naruto will want Sasuke to come," Harumi pouted her lower lip just a little.

Kakashi sighed, "I can already tell, you are going to be a menace during this courting, aren't you?"

Harumi smiled, "Well I have to figure out how you will react with all my moods. After all it does no good to only show you the good side, when marriage shows more the bad than the good."

"What makes you say that?" Kakashi asked.

"Simple, mother would always tell me to be careful with what I said when I was upset with my siblings, because I knew they would always love me, so I can show my worse and say the worse things. But they would always love me so I didn't have to worry about what I was saying or doing. It is like when you have been with a team for a long time, you know what they can take and what they can't so you can push them up to that line, but not cross. Moods are like that, at least when they are being reasonable. Which honestly, most of the time they are not."

The door to the Academy flew open and Naruto came running down the steps, his head whipping from side to side, looking for something. When his eyes connected to Kakashi his face broke into a huge grin, and he put even more speed into his fast run.

"Kaka-nii!" Naruto yelled as he ran down the road.

Kakashi and Harumi quickly moved down the road to try and intercept the blond. Harumi looked and sure enough, behind Naruto, Masahiro came running out of the doorway, he also poured on the speed when he heard Naruto's yell.

"Harumi-nee!" Masahiro yelled. Harumi braced herself as Masahiro threw himself into her arms, she looked over and saw that Naruto had done the same to Kakashi.

"Hey Masahiro," Harumi laughed as she kissed her youngest brother's head, "How are you doing?"

"Much better now, but you have to tell me where you were."

"I wish I could, but I can't. It is classified," seeing the pout, Harumi pointed out, "If you don't like it, you have to take it up with Hokage-sama."

Masahiro's lower lip stuck out in a pout, very similar to the one Harumi gave to Kakashi. She turned her body so Kakashi could see it and when he did, Kakashi started to laugh.

"I see that it is a family trait then."

"You will just have to get used to it," Harumi laughed.

Kakashi nodded, "So how do you feel about our children wearing masks?"

"What?" Harumi was confused.

"If they wear a mask, you can't see the pout, so it is a win," Kakashi clarified.

"Children?" Harumi asked, "as in, you want to have kids with me?"

Kakashi stared at her, "I mean, if you want them, I'm not opposed. I just thought you would want kids, since you are so good with them. But if you don't, then we don't have too, I'm perfectly happy with both Naruto and Masahiro," Kakashi paused for a breath, but when Harumi didn't say anything, just stared at him, Kakashi looked away, " You know what, just forget I said anything."

"Kakashi," Harumi whispered, grabbing his arm, "I would be honored to have your children. Just not right now, we can talk about it later. I'm sorry, you caught me off guard. I mean we just decided to start courting this morning and now you are talking babies, it is kind of a big jump."

Kakashi nodded.

"Kaka-nii, are you and Harumi-nee having a baby?" Naruto asked in a loud whisper. "Is that why you two left in such a hurry? So you could go and get your baby!?"

Harumi felt her face heat up as Masahiro shouted, "No Naruto, that is not what happens when you have a baby!"

"Yeah, how do you know?" Naruto demanded.

Harumi buried her head in her hands, "Is it too late to go away and leave them here?" Harumi asked.

"We can take them both home and you can force Naruto to practice his writing. You can make up the sentences you want him to write," Kakashi offered.

Harumi laughed as both Naruto and Masahiro groaned.

"Let's go home boys," Harumi said.

The four of them walked back to Harumi's home. Once inside, Harumi started the kettle to make some tea and pulled out the different sweets from her freezer as snacks.

"Boys, you need to finish your homework before you go outside. I am going to sit outside in the sun, so you can sit outside with me, but if you are not doing your homework you will have to sit in the kitchen," Harumi warned them as she put the sweets onto a plate and put the plate on a tray.

"What do you want me to pick up for food?" Kakashi asked, his book held firmly in his hand held at his side.

"Ramen!" Naruto shouted.

Harumi laughed, "I was hoping for fried chicken if I were honest."

Masahrio's face lit up, "Really? Fried chicken? Fried chicken is the best!" Jumping up and down, clapping his hands, Masahiro grabbed Harumi's hands and pulled her into jumping with him.

Kakashi smiled, walked over to Harumi, wrapped his arm around her shoulders and lightly pressed his mask covered lips against her forehead. "Fried chicken it is. Did you want me to get rice or did you want to make it?"

"I'll make rice, but could you make sure there is a salad or pickles, just something with vinegar to cut the oil?" Harumi asked.

"Of course," Kakashi answered.

Harumi let go of Masahiro's hands, turned to Kakashi and wrapped her arms around him, she leaned up on her toes and whispered into his ear, "I like this. We can talk later, but just know that I like this," she turned and pressed her lips against Kakashi's mask-covered cheek.

Kakashi nodded.

Harumi let go and turned back to the stove where the tea kettle was whistling. Kakashi left the house. Harumi poured the water into the tea pot and she placed it on the tray along with the sweets and two tea cups.

"Grab your homework boys, I want to sit in the sunshine," Harumi called out as she moved to the back door.

Settling herself at the table outside, she took a deep breath and enjoyed the warm sun on her face. She closed her eyes and turned her face to the sun. Some time later, Harumi felt the table shift as someone sat across the table from her. Cracking open one eye she was not surprised to see Kakashi sitting there, his book out, but his eyes trained on Harumi.

"You weren't gone long," she noted, seeing that the tea wasn't even cold yet.

Kakashi shrugged, "I just ordered the food. I'll go out to pick it up in a little while, but I thought we all would appreciate hot food tonight."

Harumi smirked at him, "You mean you didn't want to leave me and Naruto unguarded for the hour or so it would take for the food to finish."

Kakashi shrugged, "Two birds and all of that."

Harumi threw her head back and laughed, "You are being ridiculous."

Kakashi frowned, "Is that a bad thing?"

Harumi quickly stopped laughing, "Of course not. My parents used to do the same thing. I am not going to complain, unless you take it too far. I am a fully capable shinobi and I will not be coddled."

Kakashi nodded, "Understood."

Harumi poured the tea into the two cups. Naruto and Masahiro were both smiling and working on something. This, Harumi thought, is what makes life worth living.

"I got word from Inoichi, he has asked that either you or I go visit Tobi once a day," Kakashi said quietly.

"Tobi?" Harumi asked.

"It has been decided that Tobi is his code name."

"Ah," Harumi took a sip of her tea. "Did you want to make a schedule? Or what?"

"I think we should go every other day. That way there is always someone visiting, but also neither of us have to rearrange our schedule too much."

"Okay, and if one of us can't make it we need to let the other person know," Harumi agreed.

"Sounds good. Since we both saw him today, I will go tomorrow."

Harumi nodded and enjoyed the quiet afternoon. At some point Kakashi left to go and get the food. Her siblings came home and Harumi herded the boys into the house.

Dinner was normal, refreshingly normal. Harumi was pleased that all of her siblings were home and that they made it a point to talk about their day. The same mundane things that would happen on any other night of the week.

Normal, Harumi thought, is underrated.

After dinner the older two took care of the dishes, shooing Harumi out with a fresh cup of tea. Kakashi followed, while Naruto and Masahiro went upstairs to take turns taking a shower and reading. Harumi was sure whoever lost would be downstairs with them in the living room while the other was showering.

"Has it hit you yet?" Kakashi asked.

"Hmmm?" Harumi answered.

"That you're home and safe?"

Harumi sighed, "I know I'm home and this is going to sound stupid, but I didn't feel unsafe, at least not really," she paused to take a sip of tea, to try and gather her thoughts. "You see, I knew you would come after me, not because of the taunts thrown at you by Tobi, but because you are the Great Kakashi, and you called me a teammate and you don't leave teammates behind."

Harumi could see the frown behind his mask, "Really?"

Harumi nodded, "Well it isn't like I knew you had decided that you were going to marry me or anything, Kakashi."

"Married!?" A voice squeaked from behind them.

Harumi turned her head and saw her three younger siblings standing in the doorway. Harumi raised an eyebrow at Masahiro who shrugged.
"Naruto is taking a shower first."

"Married?!" Maiko o said again.

"Well eventually," Harumi said, "It is a new development, but right now we are courting."

"Does oji know?" Hideki asked.

"Yes."

Kakashi stared at Hideki for a moment and then he stood up, "Can I talk to you for a moment Hideki?"

Harumi frowned, "Why do you need to talk to my brother, Kakashi?"

Kakashi smiled, "I would say that it is a male thing, but I know that will make you upset, so I would just ask that you don't make me answer that question."

Harumi and Maiko o frowned and looked at eachother. Harumi started to laugh when she met her sister's eyes, "Fine I won't ask, but this isn't over."

Kakashi laughed, "I can live with that." Then the two men walked out the back door, Hideki closing it firmly behind them.

"So, you leave the village and come back practically engaged?" Maiko o asked.

Harumi laughed, "Well actually the practically engaged part happened this morning. Honestly, I doubt Kakashi was going to tell me, but I overheard him talking and…"

"Of course you had to butt in," Maiko o finished.

"Wouldn't you?"

"Yes, after all it is my life he would be talking about."

"What about us?" Masahiro asked.

Harumi frowned, "What about you?"

"What is going to happen to all of us?"

"Nothing really. We will continue as we have been. Like I said, we are just courting and eventually when the time is right we will get married and at that point we can figure out what is going to happen. Like if we are going to move to a bigger house, or if we will just add onto this place."

"We could move? You want to move away from home?"

Harumi sighed, "No Hideaki, I don't want to move away from home. That being said, home isn't a building, it is the people who fill the building that makes it home. But we might decide before we get married that we all need more space. After all when Kakashi and I get married, both Naruto and Kakashi, plus all of Kakashi's ninken."

Masahiro visilby perked up, "Ninken?"

"Yes, Kakashi's ninken live in his house, so they might need more room, or at least more space outside."

"Well I guess if the ninken need space, we can move," Masahiro answered.

Harumi grinned, "We have some time before that happens, so don't worry too much about it. Besides Kakashi and I haven't even talked beyond what our courting will look like."

Maiko o frowned, "You mean it is going to be different than what has been happening?"

"Well to an extent it will be the same, after all it will involve spending time together and talking, only this time instead of working towards the goal of ensuring Naruto has family, it will be the goal of integrating both Kakashi and Naruto into the family. That means there will be some changes, because we can't expect Naruto and Kakashi to make all the changes. But again, that isn't something you need to worry about. After all, most of those changes will be done by me."

"What do you mean?"

"Mostly I have been the sole provider of you three for a long time now. I have run this house how I see fit and I don't have to answer to anyone, therefore I can do whatever I want. Well Kakashi is also an adult who has done things his way for a very long time. It will be difficult for the two of us to meld our lives together." Harumi leaned closer to the younger two and lowered her voice, "Because I'm not sure you figured it out, but I'm very stubborn and I don't like to change my ways."

Masahiro laughed, "Silly sister, I know that already!"

"Then you understand that it might be difficult for Kakashi and I to be able to fit each other into our lives," Harumi saw Naruto walk down the stairs, "Come here Naruto, you should hear this too."

Naruto walked over and stood next to Masahiro, the back door slid open and the two men came in. Neither looked upset or like they were in a fight, so Harumi would ask what happened later.

"So as I was saying, Kakashi and I have both lived by our own rules for a long time, not having to explain ourselves to anyone. For example, I could decide to take an extra shift at the hospital so long as all of you were taken care of or I could go out for lunch without telling anyone. Same for Kakashi. And we have established that I am stubborn, so there are some things I will not want to bend on. This will lead to fights. It is important for you all to understand that this is normal. People fight, it doesn't mean the end of the world. It doesn't mean the whole family is going to be torn apart, okay?"

"If you want to be married, why would you fight?" Naruto asked.

"Well for the same reason you, Masahiro and Sasuke fight. You are all strong people with strong opinions. It doesn't mean you hate each other or that you don't want to be friends anymore, just because you are fighting. It just means that you have a difference of opinion about something."

"Okay, so why does it matter?" Hideaki asked.

Harumi smiled, "I don't want Naruto or Masahiro to get upset when Kakashi and I fight. After all, Masahiro is too young to remember when Mom and Dad would fight, and Naruto hasn't been in a family like this before."

"Fighting is normal," Kakashi said with a nod of his head.

"Alright, time for Masahiro to go and get showered, Naruto get your book. Lecture time is over."

Naruto took a book from his bag and sat in his spot, while Masahiro walked upstairs to take his shower.

"Does anyone have an early morning tomorrow?" Harumi asked.

"I do," Maiko o said, "we are going on a quick delivery mission, but it will take most of the day."

"Okay, Auntie is having the family dinner tomorrow night, will you be back in time for that?"

"We should, unless something happens."

Harumi nodded.

"I will be around the village tomorrow, we are training," Hideaki answered.

"What is your sensei training you all on?"

"We are going to learn another jutsu. I think he is trying to get us all ready for the exams coming up."

"Is that soon?"

"About six months," Kakashi answered.

"Who is hosting this year?"

"We are."

Harumi sighed, "I guess that means I will need to make sure to stock up on medical supplies."

Kakashi smiled, "At least you know now and not two weeks before the exams."

Harumi rolled her eyes, "I guess if we are looking for the bright side of this."

Soon after, everyone started to trickle off to bed. Harumi and Kakashi stayed up and talked about the book she sent with him. When the moon was high in the sky and Harumi yawned for the tenth time, Kakashi stood up.

"Come on, bed time."

"But I'm not tired!" She complained.

"Sure, I was imagining you yawning."

"Not my fault my body needs more oxygen then I was getting by sitting here."

Kakashi took in the slight pout, decided it was cute before walking over to where Harumi was sitting and pulling her up, "Come on, the boys will be up early, especially Naruto, because he will be excited that we are back."

"Fine," Harumi grumbled as she walked in front of Kakashi up the stairs. "Will you stay with me tonight? Just in case I have another nightmare?"

"Of course," Kakashi answered quickly.

"You were going to do it anyway, weren't you?" Harumi accused.

Kakashi just shrugged.

Rolling her eyes, Harumi grabbed her sleep shorts and shirt and walked slowly into the bathroom, her feet dragging slightly. Maybe she was more tired than she originally thought. Brushing her teeth, pulling her hair up into a loose bun and getting into her pajamas only took a couple minutes, but when she walked back into her room, Kakashi was already sitting in bed reading a book. Harumi noted that his mask was off again, but didn't comment.

"Feel free to keep reading," she told him as she slipped under the covers, "I'm more tired than I thought and am just going to sleep."

Kakashi closed his book and set it aside, then he got up and turned off the light, "I can read later, sleep is good."

"Mmm," Harumi murmured in agreement as she drifted to sleep.

The next morning was normal. Harumi woke up, Kakashi was already gone, but the sheets where he slept were still warm. She got up, pulled on her hoodie and walked downstairs. Kakashi wasn't in the kitchen, but she could see evidence that he had been there, rice was being made and there was food on the counter. She could also see that coffee was being made. She took down two mugs and looked at the food on the counter. It looked like fresh takeout, so all she did was ensure it stayed warm until the rest of the family woke up.

Kakashi walked in with Pakkun on his heels.

"Yo!" the little dog greeted Harumi.

"Hello Pakkun! How are you today?"

"Doing good. Boss wanted my opinion on your place. I think it looks good, but it might be a little small for the Naruto pup and Bull to play."

"Ah, well I am sure Naruto and Bull can play outside," Harumi suggested.

"True, you have a nice backyard, Harumi. You might have to update your seals to let me in though. I would hate to be a bother if I wanted to come and visit."

Harumi smiled, "I'm sure Kakashi can make that happen for you."

"Sounds good. Okay Boss, unless you need me, I'm going to report back to the rest of the pack the new house."

Kakashi nodded, "I'll summon the pack soon so they can meet Harumi's family."

"I'll let them know," Pakkun replied and in a puff of smoke, was gone.

"Planning on moving in?" Harumi asked.

"It is your home and it has more room. Of course we would spend more time here. So the pack will have to know this place too. Specifically where they can and can't pop in. After all, you wouldn't want them to pop in and land on the couch, Bull could break it."

"So what happens if I change the furniture around?"

"How often do you do that?"

"For sure around Christmas when we put up the Christmas decorations. Depending on the season, I have been known to move this around to make sure it has better air flow, or if it is really hot, that the couch can get a breeze when it comes."

"Well if that is the case, I can show the pack around again. But for now, they just need to be aware."

"Okay then," Harumi nodded as she poured coffee into the mugs. "The boys need to wake up soon so they can get to the Academy on time."

"The older two are already gone; they had early missions. They did eat before they left," Kakashi informed her.

"I slept through all of that?"

"You started to move when I woke up, but I told you to go back to sleep, and you did," Kakashi sounded amazed at this fact.

I shrug, "I guess I am trusting you to take care of it."

"Why?"

"You are a capable person Kakashi. I trust you when we are out on a mission, why wouldn't I trust you to watch as the oldest of my younger siblings leave the house? They are also capable people, the three of you couldn't do a bad job."

"Why are you so certain that I am not going to screw up?"

Harumi had to pause for a second before she gave a flippant answer, because it just occurred to her that Kakashi wasn't just talking about this morning.

"Kakashi, I have seen how much you care for your teammates. A family isn't that different. We all look out for each other and push each other to be the best they can be, we also support their dreams and choices."

"But it can go wrong, my genin team wasn't the best in the world. Even Naruto and Masahiro fight and don't talk to each other for days. So how do you know that I won't screw it up?"

Harumi walks over and stares into Kakashi's eye, "Like I told the boys last night, we will fight. We will get things wrong. But so long as we have decided that we are committed to making it work out, we will make it work. Will we screw up? Of course because we are human. But it is what we do after that counts. Don't put an end to something just because it now has a name and is scary, Kakashi. Decide that we will make this work, and we will make it work."

"You make it sound easy."

"It isn't. Again, a family is just like a team, it will not always run smoothly, but as long as everyone is able to focus on the fact that at the end of the conflict, we will still be a family that cares for each other, then we figure it out."

Kakashi slowly nodded, so Harumi moved back out of his space and moved to grab her discarded coffee cup and took a drink. "So breakfast is taken care of and we all have dinner with my aunt tonight. What do you have planned for the rest of the day?"

"I need to visit Tobi, do some paperwork, check on a few things. Nothing much. What about you?"

"I need to get some shopping and some cleaning done. I also need to make sure my old teammate is invited to dinner tonight."

"I can take care of the teacher when I drop the boys off at school, if you want me to."

"Or I could do it while I drop the boys off at school, before I go shopping."

Kakashi sighed, "Is there any way I could convince you to stay at home the whole time I'm away?"

"Nope!" Harumi let the 'p' sound pop as she spoke.

"So we will take the boys to the academy together, go check on my apartment, go shopping then come back to do the cleaning."

Harumi just stared at him.

Kakashi shrugged "What? You said I had until tomorrow to figure it out. It isn't tomorrow yet."

Harumi sighed, "I will give you this, but that's it, I will not have a shadow while I'm working at the hospital. I will not be denied my work, Kakashi."

Kakashi nodded, "Okay."

Harumi frowned into her cup, he gave in way to quickly. He was planning something, she knew it, but she just couldn't figure it out yet. Not that she was going to worry about it, she would figure it out eventually.

"Can you go and wake up the boys while I set the food out?"

Kakashi nodded and walked up the stairs.

The boys came thundering down the stairs, dressed and ready for the day. Everyone ate breakfast. Harumi and Kakashi took the boys to the academy before heading over to Kakashi's apartment. There they gathered extra clothes for both Kakashi and Naruto. Threw out all the spoiled food and packed away the things that needed to be eaten to be taken over to Harumi's house. They also picked up the supplies Kakashi needed for his ninkin.

Shopping took longer than expected, people kept stopping them to say hello or just to chat. Well mostly they wanted to gawk at the two, because rumor had spread and now it was being told that Kakashi burnt down half the forest while waiting for the Hokage to give him the orders to leave.

Once they had left the market, Harumi glanced up at Kakashi who had a book in front of his face, "Is this what I have to look forward to when one of us goes on a mission?"

Kakashi glanced at her, "What do you mean? As far as I know, you don't go on missions."

Harumi glared at him, "Not as a rule, but occasionally I do."

"Well I can promise so long as you don't get kidnapped, are not late, and not in any danger, that no I will not set the entire forest on fire with my worry."

Harumi just shook her head and sighed.

After putting the food away, Harumi pulled her hair up into a high ponytail and began the long process of cleaning the house. Thankfully everyone was clean and picked up after themselves, but there were still floors that needed to be scrubbed and windows to wash. The larger pieces of cleaning that didn't get done on a daily basis.

At some point Kakashi slipped away, but Harumi just shrugged, if her brothers could figure out a way to avoid helping clean, they would. The whole process took a couple hours, so when she was finished, it was time to go and pick up the boys.

Harumi slipped her shoes and before she had even made it to the street, Kakashi was walking next to her, as if nothing had happened.

"I was wondering when you were going to show back up. Figures it would be when I need to leave."

"I had a few things I needed to do, and I didn't want to ruffle more feathers than I already had. Besides, cleaning by yourself takes longer."

"Today only, Kakashi," Harumi warned.

Picking up the boys was quick and painless. Harumi told Tamin, again, that the Nara's were hosting a family dinner and he was invited if he didn't have plans. Then the small family walked back to Harumi's house where homework was completed and some training was done.

Soon enough, it was time for the group to make their way over to the Nara compound. While walking, they were joined by the two other siblings, their teams, Sasuke and Itachi (who didn't look well rested) and Harumi's old teammates.

As soon as they walked through the compound walls, Naruto, Sasuke and Masahiro took off for the group of children playing. Harumi led the adults over to Shikaku-oji's house where she greeted their hosts. Once that was done, the older two sibling's teams took off for parts unknown, probably looking for their age group. Harumi's teammates, having been to a number of these, went over to find some people to talk to who were gathered near the center of the compound.

Harumi turned to Itachi and Kakashi, "You two are welcome to go and find Shikaku-oji if you want or you can head over and watch the boys play. I'm going to help the other women with getting the food on the table to eat."

Kakashi stared at Harumi for a long moment before he looked at Itachi, "Come on Itachi, I know a good place to watch the boys play. We can talk privately there too."

Itachi nodded.

Harumi decided to grill Kakashi on what is wrong with the oldest Uchiha boy, if he didn't have the answers she liked, well, she would just have to corner Itachi and find out herself. Instead of being relieved, Itachi looks worse.

Kakashi took Itachi over to a roof where they could watch as the boys played. Itachi had a small smile on his face as he heard Sasuke's shouts of joy as all the kids played a complicated game of ninja tag.

"It seems that ninja tag has changed since I last played," Itachi observed.

"It changes with every generation, I'm told," Kakashi pointed out.

"Sasuke seems to be enjoying himself."

Kakashi grunted.

"I don't think we stopped anything," Itachi said, his voice not changing at this latest news. "My father is too invested."

Kakashi nodded, "What do you want me to do?"

"I don't know if you can do anything. I'm afraid that Danzo's solution is the only way."

Kakashi shook his head, "I am not one to ever follow Danzo blindly. He may have the village's best interest at heart, however he has a different idea of what is best for the village."

"What should we do?"

"I am going to talk to the Hokage, and if you are comfortable, I can try to get Shikaku in the meeting and between the three of us, we could come up with a different solution."

Itachi's lips twitched downward, "Hnn."

"Talk it over with Shishui and see what he thinks. But I think at this point, we all need to recognize that a civil war is going to happen, so we need to act now. You might want to start thinking about what you want."

"I want Sasuke to be safe," Itachi didn't hesitate to answer.

"What does that look like to you?" Kakashi asked.

"Itachi-niisan! Come play with us!" Sasuke yelled up at the two men.

Itachi stood up, "I will talk to Shishui tonight, where will you be?"

"I can come with you, or if not, I'll be at Harumi's house."

Itachi nodded, "I will send one of my crows then."

Kakashi watched as Itachi was swallowed by the group of young children.

"I wonder how long it has been since that boy was allowed to be a child?" Shikaku said from over Kakashi's shoulder.

Kakashi nodded, "He only allows himself to act like a child when Sasuke asks him to."

Shikaku nodded as he sat down next to Kakashi to watch. "Harumi is worried about him."

"Harumi worries about everyone," Kakashi replied.

"She considers Sasuke and Itachi family now, so I will help in any way that I can."

"I will be sure he knows that." Kakashi took a deep breath and forged ahead trying to change the subject. "Harumi said I should ask you if there are any Nara courting rituals I should know about."

"Really, not much. Just be prepared for Harumi to try and figure you out. She is going to start looking for things. Like what is your favorite dish and she will make it for you, what is your favorite place to eat. That type of thing. She is going to expect you want to learn those things about her. I wouldn't worry about it too much, because if you are not doing what she wants you to do, she will tell you. Or she will complain to a friend who will quickly tell you what you need to do to fix it." Shikaku laid a hand on Kakashi's shoulder, "I wouldn't worry too much, Harumi understands you. She has been studying you for a while. Just show her that you have been doing the same."

"I.." Kakashi swallowed against the sudden dryness in his mouth, "I just don't want to mess up."

Shikaku stared at Kakashi, studying his eyes, "With that attitude, you will do your best to ensure it doesn't happen. But know that when it does, it isn't the end of the world. You are human. You are a man. You will mess up, what counts is what you do about it. And you have lots of people around you who will help you out. Don't forget, and use us as valuable resources."

"I will try," Kakashi answered.

Shikaku nodded, "Oh and I'm not going to tell you not to hurt her, I'm just going to remind you who Harumi's aunt is. She will not take lightly to her beloved niece getting her heart stomped on. Just something to keep in mind."

Kakashi gulped at the threat.

"I would not worry about it too much. It will cause you to second guess yourself to the point where you won't act. You have been doing a good job so far, now just keep doing what you are doing."

Kakashi nodded.

"Think of it as a recon mission. You are tasked with learning everything you can about Harumi. It may take you a lifetime, but it will be worth the effort."

Kakashi smiled under his mask, "She is worth it. The question is, am I?"

Shikaku snorted, "She decided you were. It is up to you to make sure she never realizes the truth. That is something that all men have to deal with."

Before Kakashi could answer, a shout came from the square, "Food's done!"

The kids popped out from every direction, where they were hidden for their game. Kakashi and Shikaku stood up and jumped down. Kakashi grabbed Naruto and Masahiro, who had Sasuke, and by default Itachi, with them.

"Masahiro, you will have to help us, it has been a while since I have been at a dinner like this," Kakashi muttered.

Masahiro laughed, "It is pretty simple, you grab a plate from there," he pointed to a small table, "then you pile it high with food from over there," he pointed to the long tables that now had huge amounts of food piled high, "and you find an empty place to sit, either at the tables or you can find a spot on the grass."

"Really? That is all you have to say?" Hidaki called out from behind them.

Kakashi turned his head and nodded at him.

"What did I forget?" Masahiro demanded.

"You could offer to help them in the event there are any dishes that they are unfamiliar with."

"You could also just appoint yourself their guide so they don't get lost or confused," Maiko replied from next to them.

"Why do you two always pop up?" Masahiro whined.

"You will learn when you graduate from the Academy," Maiko said as she ruffled his hair. "Go show Kakashi and Naruto the food and the lines, I will hold a table for us. And don't forget to tell Harumi she needs to eat too."

It didn't take long for the small group to gather plates, chopsticks, spoons and bowls and move to the line for food. It was a fairly organized operation, one that it seemed had happened on multiple occasions. After getting their food and sitting at the table where Harumi's other siblings were waiting, the boys dug into their food. Even Sasuke, who was the most reserved of the boys, shoved food in his mouth as fast as he could chew.

Kakashi shook his head and glanced around for Harumi.

"She is over with a group of women, near the drinks," Itachi muttered, as he ate his food at a slower pace.

Kakashi nodded, "Watch the boys for a second while I check on her?"

Neither male needed to explain who 'she' was, Itachi nodded.

Kakashi wandered slowly over to Harumi, stopping in her field of view, he nodded his head to the food line. Harumi nodded slightly and Kakashi walked over and began to get some food for her. Making sure to grab some of the dishes he knew she liked, avoiding those he knew she didn't like, he slowly filled a plate. Some of the other Nara men figured out what he was doing and they would point to a dish and mention that "Harumi always loved auntie's dish."

Kakashi was shocked, until one of the older men casually told him, "We have all been there. Courting a Nara woman is hard, because it isn't about the grand gestures like it is with some women, it is all about the little things. It is difficult when you walk into any courting with very little idea of what to do, so we help out. But a note of warning, the younger ones will try to lead you astray, also testing you. They might not do it all the time, but they will. So don't take everything they say on face value. Make sure you don't follow their suggestions blindly."

Kakashi nodded his head, the older man was helping, just like Shikaku said they would. This time Kakashi would accept the help, because frankly he didn't know what the hell he was doing.

Kakashi passed the plate over to Harumi who muttered 'thank you' before being pulled back into a conversation with the women around her. Kakashi left quickly when they started talking about giving birth.

The rest of the day passed quickly. The kids playing after they ate, the men helping to move the tables back to where they belong, the women packing up food and sending it home with different people. Harumi later told him that it was sent to those who were single, or recently had a baby or someone in the house was sick. That way food was provided to those who would need it.

The evening ended and everyone went back home.

The next day Harumi went to work and Kakashi only followed her around for an hour before she was able to kick him out.

Days moved back into routine days. Kakashi still went on missions with Team Ro, having been reinstated as ANBU by Panther, but they really only had one mission. One that Harumi was not supposed to know about, but had overheard enough whispered and coded conversations to know it had something to do with the Uchiha clan.

Harumi was grateful that Itachi had confided in Kakashi and that Kakashi was doing something about it. Harumi was thankful because slowly, Itachi was losing the deep bags under his eyes and he was able to smile just a bit more. He walked around like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Even Shihui, who was always quick to make a joke, seemed happier. Sasuke was just excited that his brother was around more to help him train.

Harumi and Kakashi would trade off going to see Tobi. When Kakashi would visit, Tobi would just sit there and stare at him. Finally Kakashi started reading a book aloud, just to break the silence. On the other hand when Harumi would visit, Tobi would ask her all sorts of questions about Kakashi, what his life was like. How is he doing? The two of them would brainstorm ideas about making restitution for his crimes. Tobi was convinced that part of his restitution was to ensure that Naruto had a good life and that Kakashi was able to move forward. So harassing Harumi about those two became the focus of Tobi's world. At least until he could come up with something else.

Harumi did talk about Tobi running an orphanage or opening an academy type place, where orphans could receive training on different occupations, like weaving, painting or blacksmithing. Which would allow them to leave a life of poverty and make something of themselves. Tobi said he would think about it.

Meanwhile when not at work, Harumi was working on a secret project. While Kakashi wasn't one for traditions, she had a brilliant idea. Kakashi loved his ninkin, so Harumi was making something for them. She had long conversations with Tsume and Hana about ninkin's likes and dislikes. While likes and dislikes were varied, all three women were able to come to a consensus on what would be appropriate gifts.

So Harumi began experimenting with making homemade snacks. She started with a recipe from Hana, but made a few changes to be more in line with Kakash's pack's taste. She also began working on the dog beds. These were slightly more difficult, only because each ninkum was a different size and therefore she needed to make individual beds for each dog. Time consuming work that needed to be done without Kakashi seeing.

The big reveal came a few months later, Kakashi came back from a mission, looking slightly better than a corpse. Shishui walked in the door first, with Tenzo carrying Kakashi and Itachi bringing up the rear. Harumi jumped up and let them to the laundry room, which once again became medical central for a number of people. Mostly those with connection to Kakashi. Although to be fair, the most frequent patient was Kakashi, for chakra exhaustion.

"What is it this time?" Harumi asked as she turned to pull her supplies out. There wasn't much blood on Kakashi, but that didn't mean much anymore. Everyone on Team Ro had gotten very good at bandaging up Kakashi, Harumi made sure of it.

"Chakra exhaustion and he was hit by a number of weapons. We think they might have some poison in them, because we can't wake him up," Shishui answered as Tenzo got Kakashi situated on the small cot.

"Did you keep any of the weapons?"

"Here," Itachi held out a single senbon, "This was all I could find, since taichou pulled them out while he was fighting."

Harumi nodded as she examined the weapon. She sniffed it, filtering through the salty smell of blood to the spicy scent. She nods as she reaches into her medical supplies and grabs a small bottle of clear liquid. Then she walked over to Kakashi and with the ease of having done this many times, she examined his wounds.

She smiled.

Today wasn't a bad one. Chakra exhaustion, yes. A mild toxin in his system, yes. But his bones were not broken and he had a couple puncture wounds that were easy to fix. Taking her needle, she loaded the needle with some of the clear liquid. Concentrating, she activates the stored chakra within the liquid before she injects it into Kakashi's arm.

"A mild toxin, one that is meant to wear your opponent down. Knowing Kakashi, he would have woken up and just been a little tired."

Harumi watched as Itachi and Tenzo's shoulders moved as they took deep breaths.

Shishui grinned, "See I told you, a couple senbon isn't going to keep Kakashi down."

"I know, but you never know. Besides," Tenzo teased, "can you imagine what would have happened if we didn't rush Kakashi here? I'm not sure who would have killed us faster, Kakashi or Harumi."

"Hey!" she protested, "He is fine, why would I kill you?"

"You did break someone's arm because said person threw a kunai at Masahiro," Itachi answered.

"Hey! I didn't throw it at Masahiro. I threw it at Sasuke," said person protested, "Besides, it was blunted."

"Like that made it any better," Tenzo laughed, "Your arm was broken just the same."

"Hey!" It was Harumi's turn to protest, "I fixed it, didn't I?"

"You did," Shishui agreed.

Harumi laughed quietly, this conversation happened at least once a week, whenever she protested that she wasn't over protective. Apparently ANBU had decided that she was and made sure everyone knew it.

"Come one, let's let Kakashi sleep. I have food if you want it, or at least I can let you clean up before you have to go somewhere."

"Thanks, but we need to report to the Hokage and head back to ANBU before our deadline or else they will send a search party out," Tenzo answered.

"Of course. Come over for dinner tomorrow, Kakashi should be awake by then and I know that Naruto has been asking to see Sasuke."

Itachi frowned, "Sasuke hasn't been here since we left?"

"He came over once, but your father decided that Sasuke was spending too much time playing and not enough time on his training. I think he got it in his head that Sasuke is behind because Naruto is ahead of him in the Academy."

"But aren't you going to petition him to be moved into his age group?" Tenzo asked.

"We are," Harumi confirmed.

"It won't matter to Father," Itachi sighed, "I will bring Sasuke over. I know he likes it here."

"Don't worry cuz," Shishui said, "Uncle can't keep Sasuke locked up forever."

"Doesn't mean he won't try," Itachi answered.

Harumi smiled as the three men walked out the door, "Don't worry Itachi, if it comes to that, I'm sure we could stage a jailbreak. For both you and Sasuke. I know lots of places to hide you two."

Itachi gave her a small smile, no more than a slight upward bend of his lips, but it was enough for now.

Harumi watched as the three men walked out the door, closing it quietly behind them. She turned to the laundry and covered Kakashi with a soft blanket. She then walked around the house and checked to make sure the house was locked and secure. Then she walked upstairs, grabbed her pillow and brought it down to sleep on the couch.

Laying her head down, she closed her eyes to get some rest. Kakashi would not be happy when he woke up and realized that he was back and injured again. Thankfully he was getting used to this by now. Personally, Harumi was convinced the reason Kakashi had so many days of chakra exhaustion was because he was training his eyes. Now that he had a better idea of what his eye could do, he was not determined to master it. Also he needed to build his chakra reserves, something that was difficult to do as an adult, but if anyone could figure it out, it would be Kakashi.

Harumi woke up to the sun shining on her face. She forgot to draw the drapes to cover the windows before she went to sleep, apparently. The muffled footsteps above her confirmed that at least one other person was awake. She got up, checked on Kakashi who was still sleeping and moved into the kitchen to start breakfast. A quick miso soup with leftover vegetables, some fried sausages (a gift from a patient) and some stuffed rice balls and breakfast is complete. Making herself a cup of coffee, Harumi waits for the rest of the house to wake up. Seeing as the person who woke her up hasn't shown up, Harumi assumes that it was one of the older ones, who had an early mission or decided to get up early to train.

After sending everyone to the Academy, under the watchful gaze of Itachi and Shishui, Harumi packed a small bento box for her lunch and one for Kakashi in the event he woke up and made her way to the hospital. She was getting a later start than normal, but with the large influx of injuries due to training, the hospital administration deemed one mandatory day for each medic, where they arrived later than normal and would be expected to do all the paperwork they hadn't been able to do while on duty. This way medics got a small break, but there was still staff around in the event of an emergency.

"Harumi! I heard Kakashi's back. How did he like the surprise?" Hana called out as Harumi walked past the woman and her three canine companions.

"Oh I wasn't able to show him yet, probably tomorrow."

"Well if his pack doesn't like the treats, I can use them at the clinic," Hana told her.

"Even if they do like them, I can always make extra to send to the clinic," Harumi answered.

Hana laughed, "You say that like you have all the time in the world."

"Didn't you know that medics do nothing all day, so I have lots of time on my hands?"

"Yeah, and I'm the Hokage's secret love child."

Harumi laughed, "Don't let your mother hear you talk like that, she might skin you alive."

Hana shrugged, "Of course she would, but she would have to catch me first."

"True, have a good day Hana," Harumi waved to the young woman and continued to the hospital.

About one hour before Harumi had to leave to go and pick up the boys from the Academy, a medic in training knocked on her door, "Excuse me Harumi-san, there is a dog here to see you?"

Harumi smiles, "Let the dog in please. It is either my boyfriend's ninkin or one from the Inizuka clan."

"Of course," the medic opened the door wider to allow a large dog with a much smaller dog in his back.

Harumi stood up, grabbed the small bag of snacks she kept in her office and walked over to the pair, "Pakkun, Bull, what brings you two to my office?"

Pakkun sniffed the air, "Whacha got there Harumi? Those don't smell like our normal treats."

Bull let out a soft 'woof' in agreement.

Harumi grinned, "Well I thought since Kakashi and I are courting, I would get something for you all too, so I made these. I hope you like them." Digging into the bag, she held out a treat in each hand to the dogs. Pakkun snatched the treat out of her hand while Bull used his lips to gently take the treat out of her outstretched fingers.

"Wow, Harumi! These are delicious!" Pakkun yipped.

Bull woofed in agreement.

"Where did you get these? The Hana pup doesn't sell these ones," Pakkun continued.

"Well," Harumi could feel her cheeks heat as she blushed, "I made them?" Silently Harumi cursed the fact her nerves made it sound like a question instead of a statement.

Pakkun jumped off Bulls back and sniffed the bag still in Harumi's hand, "Well, that changes things. See we liked you with the Boss because you make him happy, but now that I know you make treats, you are stuck with us."

Bull shoved his head into her shoulder, quickly she shot chakra into her feet to hold herself upright.

"I hope that you like them, I have enough for the whole pack and I have something else for all of you, but it is at the house."

Pakkun nodded, "Okay, then we will meet you at the house." He jumped back up on Bull's back and the two turned around.

"Pakkun? Why did you come here?" Harumi asked.

"What?" Pakkun tilted his head, "Oh yeah, that's right. Boss is awake and he wants you to know. He also wants to know if you want him to make dinner or something."

"Ah, well, no he doesn't need to make dinner, but if he wants to make rice he can. We are having leftovers for dinner. I need to clean out the fridge so I can go shopping."

"We will tell him. So when do you think you will be home?"

"I have to go and get the boys soon, so sometime after that, I would assume. Why?"

"Well your living room is a little small for the whole pack to be there and we don't want to break anything. It is best if we don't all show up too early, you know what I mean?"

Haurmi laughed, "Of course Pakkun. You know your pack best. But there isn't anything in the living room that isn't replaceable, so don't worry if something breaks. But Kakashi's living room is even smaller than mine. How did you all fit there?"

"We didn't, only a couple of us would come at a time, mostly to entertain the Naru-pup."

"Ah, well I guess that makes sense," Harumi mused.

"We will go and tell Boss what you said. Do you want us to come with you to get the Naru-pup and his friends?"

"Thanks Pakkun, but I've got it. Just make sure Kakashi doesn't do anything too strenuous."

"Will do!"

Bull walked out the door with Pakkun sitting on his back, chatting about something, with Bull occasionally giving a low woof.

Shaking her head, Harumi walked back to her desk and focused on the paperwork in front of her.

Getting the boys from the Academy wasn't difficult. Thankfully the boys didn't pull any pranks today, nor did they get in trouble for something or another. Also thankfully, Naruto was going to be moved into a class where everyone was his age. Both Masahiro and Naruto were upset about not being in class together anymore, but Naruto was very excited about being in Sasuke's class. That change would happen after break, so he wouldn't be the only new kid in class.

Today Sasuke and Itachi accompanied them back to Harumi's house.

When Harumi asked about it, Itachi just said that what his father didn't know, wouldn't hurt him.

Well that wasn't something Harumi was going to get in the middle of, unless Itachi asked her too. After all she still had that favor from Fugaku to cash in.

"Kaka-nii!" Naruto yelled as soon as we turned the corner and saw Kakashi sitting on the porch. Naruto glanced at Harumi, who nodded, and he took off running down the street towards Kakashi.

Kakashi stayed sitting, probably to avoid Harumi yelling at him and Naruto threw himself onto Kakashi's lap. Harumi could hear Kakashi's grunt as Naruto landed.

"Careful Naruto!" Harumi called laughing as Kakashi shot her a glare.

Masahiro and Sasuke walked right past Naruto, nodded hello to Kakashi and headed to the back garden. Harumi followed them, leaving Itachi and Kakashi to talk.

Harumi wasn't shocked to find Kakashi's pack waiting for her in the back garden.

"Yo!" Pakkun called up to her once he saw her.

"Hi Pakkun! Hi everyone," Harumi answered. "Let me go and get the treats and the rest of your surprise." Walking back inside, Harumi grabbed the jar of homemade treats and the scroll that contained the other half of the surprise. The thing that took forever. "Here you are," Harumi opened the jar and gave two pieces to all the dogs, except Pakkun and Bull, who she gave one to. When Pakkun started to complain, she kindly told him, "You already had one. This way it is all even."

Bull gave her a big smile and munched on his treat, seemingly happy with the world.

"What's in the scroll?" Pakkun asked.

"The rest of your surprise," was Harumi's answer. She waited until everyone had finished their treat before she opened the scroll. A push of chakra and eight dog beds of various sizes popped out. "I have one for each of you, so you will always have a comfortable place to sleep when you are here," Harumi said as she set the beds out. "I hope you like them."

Each bed was a different size to accommodate the different sized dogs, each was also a unique color and fabric. Bull's was the largest, but also the softest, while Pakkun's was the smallest with the most color.

Harumi watched as Kakashi's pack walked over and sniff each bed, until they found the ones they liked. Thankfully, with the exception of Bull and Pakkun, most of Kakash's pack was the same size. Finally everyone settled into their chosen beds.

Kakashi walked into the back and looked at his pack. "What is this?"

Harumi turned and smiled at him, "I made your pack beds, so they would always have a comfortable place to sleep when they are here. I know there isn't a lot of room, but I wanted your pack to know that they are welcome here."

Harumi watched as Kakashi's eye took in the whole picture before turning to look at Harumi. He walked over and put his hands on her hips and pulled her into his chest.

"Thank you," he whispered as he wrapped his arms around her.

Harumi whispered, "Anything for you," as she wrapped her arms around him.

Kakashi laid his head on hers and just felt content at this moment. He had everything he could never hope for. Before Kakashi knew that Harumi was his one and only, his mate for life. However this was different, bigger, somehow. She was part of him before, but now she was the holder of all the things he could never hope for. The things that he thought were for others.

Harumi hadn't tried to change Kakashi, she accepted him as he was. She didn't yell at him for reading all the time, she didn't tell him that he needed to look at leaving Team Ro, and she made sure his pack had beds in her home. Harumi would protect Naruto, had protected Naruto, without a thought to her own safety. Kakashi knew deep in his bones, that if they would ever have a child, Harumi would protect that child even more fiercely. She would not allow Kakashi to stay lost in the past. Harumi wouldn't leave their child alone in the world.

Not knowing what was going through Kakashi's mind, Harumi held him tighter as she felt the first tears on her head. She moved her hands from Kakashi's back and placed them on his head, where she gently moved his head from on top of hers to her shoulder. Kakashi turned his head so that he was facing her neck. Harumi could feel his hot, shaky breath, as it hit her neck.

Harumi just held onto him, running her hands through her hair, as Kakashi cried.

Itachi, being the genius he was, kept the boys occupied by showing them new tricks to practice with their kunai. Kakashi's pack, understanding their leader better than Harumi did, just let Kakashi alone.

After some time, Kakashi had calmed down. His breath was steady again and his eyes, while red, were no longer crying. He moved his head and Harumi let him.

"Want to tell me what happened?" Harumi asked.

Kakashi just shook his head, "Not yet."

Harumi nodded, "Okay. Well it is almost time for dinner, do you want to help me or do you want to stay and play with the boys?"

"I'll stay with the boys."

Harumi nodded again, "Don't let them goad you into a contest with Itachi again. Let the poor boy have something."

Kakashi grinned, his visible eye wrinkling up and some color returned to his cheek, "Would I do that?"

Harumi chuckled, "Of course you wouldn't," her tone letting him know that she was lying.

Kakashi's grin grew until she could see it under his mask, "I make no promises."

"Fine, but if you are going to make a mess, please pack up the beds, I really don't want to have to clean those so soon after I finished making them."

"Wait," Kakashi pointed to the nine dog beds, "You made those? You didn't just buy them?"

"It wouldn't be a courting gift if I just bought something this important Kakashi. While some things should be bought, due to a person's knowledge and skill set. I am perfectly capable of sewing and stuffing a few beds."

"I will make sure they are well taken care of," Kakashi replied solemnly.

"I will leave you to it then," Harumi answered as she walked back to the house, "Itachi, are you and Sasuke staying for dinner?"

"If it isn't an inconvenience, Harumi," Itachi answered.

"Never. I just need to know how many places to set."

Time continued to move forward. Life continued to be the same. One of the biggest pieces of news to hit the village, was one that Harumi wasn't shocked to hear.

In a daring move, Danzo tried to have the Uchiha clan murdered!

It was shocking to hear but it wasn't that difficult for Harumi to figure out that something was going on with the Uchiha clan. After all Itachi, Shihui and Tobi were all involved. At some point Kakashi and Shikaku also got involved.

The fallout was horrible. Fugaku was demanding Danzo's head. He also started ranting about the village not trusting the Uchiha and how they haven't trusted the Uchiha for years. He also said something about leaving the village, or something like that, Sasuke wasn't a good source of gossip apparently.

Kakashi and the rest of ANBU were overworked for the next few weeks while they tried to root out all parts of Danzo's treachery.

One day Kakashi came home so upset, that he just sat in the living room and watched the boys play. He also asked and demanded that Harumi never allow their children to be left alone or be taken.

Everyone was on high alert for a while. Harmi was tasked with doing patrols with some of the older chunnin. The younger genin were locked down and made to stay within the village walls. The whole village held its breath as they waited for the rest of the world to respond to the fact Danzo had been executed.

Time continued to move forward. No huge war started and slowly the village returned to normal.

Harumi brought Kakashi to a birthday party at one of their favorite bars. Kakashi was so excited to read the next book in the series that he almost didn't realize it was a party. He walked in and all of his friends were there, along with his teammates. To say that Kakashi was surprised would be an understatement, after all he had already celebrated his birthday on the actual day with Naruto and Harumi's family. They had a lovely dinner with all of Kakashi's favorites and a simple mochi cake with crooked "Happy birthday Kaka-nii" written on it. Before that, Harumi had given him a small box before his daily visit to see Tobi. Turned out the box had two cupcakes for Kakashi and Obito to eat together. Obito was the one who gave Kakashi the next book in the series, with orders to hurry and finish it, so Obito could read it.

"Three parties?" Kakashi asked.

Harumi just shrugged, "It isn't my fault your friends wanted to throw a party, you are just lucky they asked my opinion or else they were going to storm the house and drag you out."

Kakashi laughed and grabbed Harumi's hand, walked around the room talking to the people gathered. He made note to put a mild sedative on Genma's senbons because Kakashi knew whose idea this was.

Obito was getting better. He was able to get some things for his rooms. Yes, rooms. He had been moved from the high security holding cells, to the ones on closer to the surface that also serve as emergency shelters for the Hokage and the elders, when the village was under attack. He was also able to move about this floor, but only because the other rooms were also occupied. After the execution of Danzo, the extent of Root was discovered. Some of the children were sent home or to their clans if they came from a clan. Others were left in the care of ANBU and kept on this floor.

Obito was very good at talking to these kids, after all he knew first hand what it was like to be held captive. He was one of the few adults these kids could relate too. Tenzo spent much of his time down on this floor, helping the different kids out. It broke Kakashi's heart every time he walked out of Obito's rooms and saw these children with the same haunted look in their eyes that he once had. Kakashi would always leave and go directly to the Hokage and ask what he could do to help these kids.

Harumi didn't know why the children were there, but she would always bring a small something for them to do. It was always a childish game or activity, because she decided that being around all of these adults meant they needed some childish things to help balance it. So color books and crayons and colored pencils and paints. Puzzles, paper and instructions on how to make paper kites, even some books.

One boy with pale skin and black hair would always ask for some more paper and paints. He would paint some of the most beautiful pieces, so much so that Harumi would bring picture books and ask him to recreate them. This slowly became something this young man would look forward to. New things to paint. When he was alone with his brother, they would whisper about seeing all the places in these books so that he could paint them in person.

Weeks turned to months. For Harumi's birthday, Kakashi presented her with a house. Well it was his old home, the one he lived in with his father. It had taken a while, but Kakashi was able to fix it up. There were three buildings on the land, the house, a small gym and a guest house. Kakashi, with help from her aunt, was able to get the walls painted, the silk screens had some lovely murals on them. Kakashi even found time to have the boys go over and pick out rooms. Turns out they wanted to stay in the same room, so it was settled. Kakashi made sure all of the rooms were aired out and ready for them to move in.

After the excitement of being presented a clan home, later that night Harumi presented Kakashi with a gift of her own.

The couple were laying in bed and enjoying the quiet. Harumi was a little sad about leaving her family home, but she decided to gift it to Hideaki, as the oldest son, he would probably like a place to call his own. But that wasn't for a while. For now, she would tell Hideaki and Maiko o that they could live in the house until they were ready to move out on their own.

"Here," Harumi said, shaking off the slight sadness and handed Kakashi a small box that was hidden on her night stand.

"What is this?"

"A gift, silly."

"But it's your birthday, aren't you supposed to get all the gifts?"

Harumi smiled, "This gift is for both of us."

Kakashi's grin turned evil, "Oh really?"

Harumi laughed, pushing Kakashi's arm, "Not like that, just open it."

Kakashi pulled the ribbon holding the box closed and slowly lifted the lid. Inside, next to each other were two sets of tiny knitted booties. Kakashi blinked, rubbed his eyes and blinked again.

"What? When" he whispered.

Harumi smiled, "I suspected last week, but I was able to confirm it yesterday."

Kakashi set the box down next to him and slowly moved his hand towards Harumi, "Can I?"

Harumi laughed, grabbing his hand and placing it on her stomach, "Of course you can." A moment later, she felt the familiar warming of her skin as Kakashi pushed his chakra into her stomach, searching, very gently.

"How?" He asked, his voice still a whisper.

"Really?" Harumi raised an eyebrow at him.

Kakashi grinned, "Not like that, but I thought you were taking precautions…"

"Do you remember a few weeks back when we were on that mission and we ended up drinking too much?"

"Yeah, ah.." Kakashi nodded, remembering the mission well. Those shinobi at the sentry posts could drink a lot. This one post actually made their own alcohol, so it was more potent than what they were used to, if the hangover was any indication.

"So apparently I didn't do as thorough a job as I normally do, and yeah," Harumi gestured to her stomach.

"Are you happy about this?" Kakashi asked, hesitant. Willing to follow her lead.

"I couldn't be happier," Harumi told him, her grin blinding him because it was so bright.

Kakashi took a deep breath, letting her joy spark his, "Then I am too."

The two kissed and held each other. Both gently stroking her stomach as if to show the babies sheltered there just how loved they were. They whispered into the night dreams and plans for these two.

"What do you think they will look like?"

"I hope they have my hair, your eyes and your spirit."

"Do you think they will be girls? Boys? One of each?"

"I can't imagine I will survive if we have two girls. So at most one of each."

"Why do you say that?"

"Can you imagine some boy trying to court any of our daughters. Nope, not happening."

"Oh Kakashi."

"How did you suspect they were twins?"

"We need to get married," Kakashi said during the early hours of the morning.

"Why?"

"Because your aunt will kill me if we are not married. Secondly, I want my kids to have my name."

"I don't want a huge wedding."

"We could elope."

"I don't want to do that either. I don't want anyone to question the legitimacy of our children."

Kakashi's grin turned hard, "They can try."

"You can't fight all of the shinobi world, Kakashi."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow in her direction, his look screaming "want to bet?"

Harumi sighed, "Let's think about it for a little bit, I'm sure we can come up with something that isn't eloping, but also not a full fledged wedding that will take months to plan."

"You need to get some sleep," Kakashi said, after a glance outside.

"There isn't a reason to sleep now, I have to get up in an hour or so anyway."

"Would you like me to make breakfast?"

"We can make it together."

"You take your shower first and I'll get food started."

"Instead of coffee, could you make me some tea?"

Kakashi nodded, gave Harumi a slow kiss, "Anything for you."

Kakashi pulled on his shirt and walked downstairs to start breakfast. He made rice and pulled out the salmon that Harumi wanted for breakfast. He took out the frozen dumplings and set them on the counter then began to take out a bunch of vegetables to make a few side dishes.

Making note to find a book on pregnancy and babies, Kakashi began to make coffee for him and Hideaki. When he heard the water turn off, he put the tea kettle on the stove and started to heat the water.

Harumi came down stairs, with her hair braided down her back. She was wearing her standard hospital clothes. Walking over she tilted her head up and Kakashi smiled and kissed her lips again.

"I'm not complaining, but should I expect lots of hugs and kisses?"

Harumi laughed, "Maybe?"

"When are you having an appointment to do all the things that you need to do for your pregnancy?"

"I can make the appointment today."

"I'll send Pakkun with you and he can let me know when the appointment is and I'll make sure I'm free."

"Sure, I can do that. Oh and Kakashi, I don't want to tell anyone yet. I would like to wait for a few weeks at least. I know that we will have to tell Lord Hokage because I can't go on missions anymore. But statistically speaking, there is a chance I might not keep the babies. It is going to be very hard on my system and the risks will go down in about six weeks."

Kakashi nodded, "I will follow your lead."

"Okay, you can ask the doctor all the questions you want, about morning sickness, mood swings, books to read," Harumi teased him.

"I was already planning on getting a book," Kakashi admitted.

"I'm sure the doctor will have lots of recommendations."

The morning progressed quickly. The boys went off to the Academy. Her siblings went to join their teams. Harumi went to the hospital and Kakashi went to terrorize his teammates.

Harumi set up her appointment for later that afternoon and Kakashi was standing at her office early. She didn't say anything, just lifted her eyebrow, which earned her a shrug answer.

She walked straight up to the doctor's office, passing the exam rooms. "We will start in here, so you can ask all the questions you want. Then we are going to try and sneak into an exam room and get an early ultrasound." Harumi informed him.

Kakashi just nodded as he followed Harumi around.

"Harumi-san!" A tall woman with blueish black hair called out, "Come on in, I have some tea and water. Also a few snacks."

"Thank you," Harumi replied as she walked in and sat in the chair closest to the window.

Kakashi stood behind Harumi and probably would have stayed there, if Harumi hadn't grabbed his hand and moved him to the chair next to her. "You can't take notes if you are standing over my shoulder Kakashi."

"Fine," Kakashi complained but he sat down and stared at the doctor.

"So how are you feeling today Harumi-san?"

"Good, honestly I expected to feel more tired or at least not able to handle certain smells," Harumi laughed, "One of the nurses got a doctor banned from the floor because she couldn't stand the smell of his shampoo."

"Well I expect you will be feeling those soon enough. How has the morning sickness coming?"

"Just some mild nausea when I wake up. A little bit of water seems to fix it."

"Good, now I don't want you to try and fix this with chakra, I know you were doing that before, we all have done it, but you need to keep your chakra use down to a minimum. This way you won't disturb the babies. In fact one of the biggest dangers your babies will face is you using a large amount of chakra."

Harumi nodded before she turned to look at Kakashi, "You can ask questions."

"Why shouldn't Harumi use chakra?"

"Well as you know, our body's chakra network is similar to our circulatory system. The babies do not have a fully developed chakra system, and if Harumi would use her chakra, she could damage the babies chakra network."

"So Harumi isn't supposed to use any chakra?"

"Oh no, I doubt even you could never use chakra. She just needs to be careful to not use too much chakra."

"What is too much?"

"Well a full heal, would be too much, but activating a seal isn't. You can think of it as a water balloon, each balloon is different and they all have their limits. As the babies grow, that limit will also grow."

"So how do you know when you have used too much chakra?" At this point, Harumi could see Kakashi was getting frustrated.

Putting her hand on Kakashi's knee, "This isn't exact. Reiki-san can only give us the best advice she can with the vast knowledge that she has. As for how do we know? Well as the babies grow, they will be able to tell me when I've used too much chakra. But for now, they are too small for me to feel if they are upset, which is why it is cautioned that I don't use my chakra outside of my normal usage. The babies have already gone through healings and are as fine as we can tell."

Kakashi didn't look convinced at all, but at least he let the subject go and they moved on.

"Do you have any books to recommend? While I have an outside view of what is going on and I could recite what is happening medically, but the two of us would like something more specific to what is going on."

"Of course," Reiki moved over to a bookshelf and grabbed two books, "This one," she held up a thicker book, "Walks you through what is going on week by week of your pregnancy, it will tell you what the typical symptoms are, how large the babies are and even what types of activities you can do." She held up a smaller book, "This one is specific to shinobi. This is the book we give only to ninja who are pregnant. It will deal specifically with how to monitor the babies, how the babies could react when they are exposed to too much chakra, and how your chakra might react as you progress in your pregnancy." She hands the two books to Kakashi, "These should answer most of your questions. As much as each person experiences a different pregnancy, there are some things that are universal."

Kakashi pulled the larger book out and opened it to the first page.

"One of my nurses said something about new food requirements," Harumi let the statement hang in the quiet.

"Yes, as an active shinobi, you are very physically fit, which means you probably have a large protein diet. As you know, the body requires lots of carbohydrates, vitamins and fat to create the cells and organs. Your babies will take what it needs from your body, so you need to ensure you are eating enough," Reiki took a paper off her desk, "on the left is the traditional food we suggest to maintain a healthy lifestyle. On the right is what we recommend for pregnant women. You should increase your carbohydrates, increase your fruits and vegetables and make sure to eat at least three servings of fatty fish a week. We will test your blood to ensure you are getting everything you need regularly. But you will also know what you are lacking, because you will start to crave it."

Harumi nodded, glanced at Kakashi who seemed to be lost in the book.

"Any other questions?"

"I don't have any. Kakashi?"

"Not right now, I might later."

"Wonderful. Would you like to head to the exam room and we will try an ultrasound?"

"Yes," Harumi jumped up and grabbed Kakashi and hauled him with her.

They were led to a small room just down the hall from the doctor's office. Inside there was a nurse who was messing with buttons on a machine that had a large screen on it. There was a bed in the middle of the room and the window was covered by a light colored curtain.

"Alright Harumi, climb on the bed and I will need you to lift your shirt and pull your skirt down a bit, we need to be able to see your uterus. Hopefully we will be able to see the babies this way. This will also give us an approximate age of the babies."

Harumi got on the bed and did as the doctor asked. She grabbed Kakashi's hand and held onto it for dear life. She was emotional and she wanted his support.

Kakashi just held on, not knowing why Harumi wanted to hold his hand, but he knew that holding hands was important to her.

The nurse and doctor worked together, they had done this multiple times and it showed in how they worked seamlessly together to get everything set up.

"This might be a little cold," the nurse muttered as she squeezed a bottle.

Harumi hissed a bit as the cool gel hit her stomach.

The nurse then grabbed a wand looking thing and used it to smear the gel around.

Harumi watched the screen closely, she knew, in theory what she was looking for. Two little white dots moving fast. Maybe inside a dark bubble.

"Here," the nurse pointed to the screen, "is baby A, and right here," her finger moved again, "is baby B."

Harumi's eyes welled up with tears, the screen getting blurry.

Kakashi squeezed her hand tight as he stared at the picture. He was tempted to uncover his sharingan so that he wouldn't forget a second of this. There in black and white were their babies. Never in a million years had Kakashi ever thought to dream of this. He couldn't believe that he, Friend killer Kakashi, was staring at his family. An emotion overwhelmed him. He didn't know what to think, or even what to do, so he just held on to Harumi and pushed the emotion back. Later, he would take it out and examine it, maybe Obito would help. Or maybe he would go talk to Sensei and Rin. In fact Sensei would know what Kakashi was feeling, after all he heard went through this with Naruto.

"Everything looks good. I can't get a good angle to get an accurate age, however from what you told me, we should be around five weeks. In about a month we will take another ultrasound and do a simple checkup to make sure everyone is growing as they should," the nurse said quietly. Before she moved the wand though, she pressed a button and the sound of printing could be heard. "Here you go, two copies, one for each of you."

The doctor grabbed a couple towels and started to clean off Harumi's stomach and helped her sit back up.

"I will see you in two weeks, Harumi-san. We will do a full lab workup then. But for now, just relax and enjoy being symptom free, I am sure that will change very soon."

"Thank you Reiki-san. If I have any more questions I will be sure to send them to you," Harumi replied as she stood up and moved over to the door, dragging Kakashi with her.

Kakashi held the two pictures in his hand like his life depended on it.

"Come on Kakashi, we can talk in my office."

"Make sure you tell the Hokage today, Harumi-san. I don't think you would want him to have to track you down after I submit my report tonight," the doctor called from behind them.

"Right, so to the Hokage's office, then mine," Harumi decided. She reached up and grabbed the two photos and tucked one into her beld and the other in one of the pockets of Kakashi's vest. "Come on, love. We have to go make Lord Hokage cry."

Harumi sighed as Kakashi held her hand and made her walk to Hokage Tower. "I'm not frail, Kakashi."

"No, but you heard the doctor, no using chakra."

"No she said not to use excessive chakra," Harumi argued.

"Is it such a bad thing to hold my hand?" Kakashi asked, his voice dropping and his lower lip pouting so much that Harumi could see it through his mask.

She sighed again, "No, it isn't a bad thing to hold your hand, but you and I will be talking about this. I refuse to be wrapped up and put in ANBU headquarters until I give birth."

"We can talk about it," Kakashi replied.

Another sigh escaped Harumi's lips but she kept her thoughts to herself.

It didn't take long before they arrived at Hokage Tower. Genma was stationed outside the Hokage's office when they walked up.

"Hey Genma, does Lord Hokage have a minute?" Kakashi asked, dropping Harumi's hand as they walked through the door.

"Let me see," Genma stood up and walked through the Hokage's door. A few moments later he returned, "He only has a minute."

"Of course," Kakashi moved to hold the door for Harumi and shut it firmly behind them. He knew how much of a gossip Genma was, and Harumi didn't want everyone to know, so that meant Genma couldn't know.

"Ah, Kakashi. Harumi. What brings you to my office today?" Lord Hokage asked, setting his pipe down.

"Mah," Kakashi's hand moved through his hair and he looked at Harumi.

"Okay fine," she answered Kakashi's silent plea, "Lord Hokage, I'm here to request the paperwork for maternity duty and leave."

The Hokage's eyebrows shot up and disappeared under his hat, "Oh, well that is a surprise. I thought you were here to inform me that you were married." He stood up and walked over to the two of them and wrapped both Harumi and Kakashi in a hug, "That is wonderful. I'm so happy for you both."

Kakashi withstood the friendly assault before taking a step back, "Yes, well, we are trying to keep it quiet until after we are married. I really don't want Harumi's aunt to kill me."

"I can understand that. Have you given any thought to what you want your wedding to be?"

"A bit," Harumi admitted, "We don't want anything huge, but we also don't want to elope. So we are trying to think of something in the middle."

The Hokage nodded and moved to sit back behind his desk, "Well back before the founding of Konoha, some people would get married over a big dinner."

"What?"

"Well the families would hold a huge dinner, for the whole clan and the couple would get married before people ate and the dinner became a huge celebration," Hokage elaborated.

Harumi turned her head and stared at Kakashi, "We could do that. We can have a big dinner at the Hatake house, invite all of our friends and family then just get married there."

"We would need some help to pull it off," Kakashi hesitated.

"Two people, we can pick two people. Just tell everyone else to come to our housewarming dinner. Everyone can bring their favorite dish and have everyone dress up," Harumi started to formulate her idea out loud, "Hokage, would you marry us? We would invite you anyway so no one would suspect."

The Hokage smiled, "I would love to help you."

"We don't have to wear full kimonos, I could wear a nice dress and you could wear a button up and non shinobi pants. I can see if one of the Akamichi's could make a cake and a couple more desserts just to make sure there are enough desserts for everyone."

"I am sure my wife had strings of paper lanterns that you can use, if you can find them," Lord Hokage offered.

"That would be great! We can set up the tables in the yard, with a small section open in the very front with a small area where everyone can see and get married there," Harumi continued. "I need some paper. Lord Hokage, I will submit my paperwork tomorrow, but I need to go and plan."

The Hokage nodded and held out two pieces of paper to Kakashi, "Tomorrow is fine."

Harumi didn't wait and walked out of the office and moved quickly down the stairs, through the streets until she arrived at the hospital.

"Where are you going?" Kakashi asked, it didn't take him long to catch up.

"My office, I need to make a list."

"Then I will leave these with you," he handed the two pieces of paper to her, "I will see you at home then. I need to go and see my team. I will pick up dinner on my way home."

"Is it going to be according to what I should eat from the book?" Harumi asked.

Kakashi shrugged, "Maybe, but from what I saw, the recommended foods are simply foods that you already eat, just more vegetables and rice."

"Can you get the stuff to make mixed rice for breakfast tomorrow?"

"What do you want?"

"Shellfish, I have everything else, unless they have squid, then I would like squid instead."

"I will look to see what they have. Don't forget to pick up the boys in an hour."

"I won't, now go and harass your team. I will see you in a few hours."

Kakashi waved and jumped onto the nearest roof and was gone.

The next couple weeks were a blur and hard. First the family gathered their friends and family to help them move across the village. That took a whole weekend, but before that, there was a lot of packing things into boxes and scrolls to help make it more portable. At some point, they even were putting boxes in scrolls. Then on moving day, there were boxes of scrolls and a bunch of people to help move the larger items. This involved a cart and lots of rope. Harumi just left Kakashi to it, because when Genma jumped on the roof to catch the rope being used to tie down the furniture, Harumi knew she was going to stress herself out, either from worry that they were going to hurt themselves, or worry that they were going to break her stuff. So she just left and supervised the unloading of the boxes.

During this time, Harumi got a large cake ordered from one of the Akamichi bakeries, she found a dress that was fancy, but nothing she couldn't wear again. She also found a nice outfit for Kakashi. She had Kakashi look for the lanterns, with Asuma's help, and the two of them set them up in the yard.

Kakashi and Harumi would laugh at night about how all of their friends were helping them set up their wedding, all while thinking Harumi was just wanting the housewarming dinner to be extravagant.

"Have you decided who is going to stand with you?" Kakashi asked one night.

"I was thinking Maiko, have you thought of someone?"

"I am not sure, I was thinking Tenzo, but it looks like he will be out of the village during that time."

Harumi laughed, "You could always ask Guy."

"Why would I do that?" Kakashi asked, horrified.

"Well after Tenzo, he is the closest thing you have to a best friend, unless you wanted to ask Shishui or Itachi."

Kakashi frowned, "I'll think about it."

"Well it might be the only way that you will be able to get Guy to not show up wearing his green spandex clothes."

"Kami forbid," Kakashi shuddered.

"At the very least you can turn it into a contest, that way it will be more fun for you."

"It is our Wedding Day, Harumi. It will be the second best day of my life."

"Oh and what's the first?"

"The day I met you."

Harumi leaned forward and kissed Kakashi on the lips, "That is a great answer," she whispered against them.

It took three weeks, but they were able to get the house ready for people and a wedding. The day had finally arrived, her wedding day.

Harumi was standing in front of her full length mirror taking a deep breath. Hanging behind her, was the dress she picked out for her wedding. It was a short white sleeveless dress. It had silver thread embroidery along the hem. Over top is a kimono inspired jacket with the same white silky fabric and silver embroidery. The jacket was held closed by a silver belt that towards the end of the belt turned into a rope. This belt would go around her waist a couple times before she tied it into a pretty bow in the front of her outfit. Her hair was longer than normal, she went to bed last night with her hair wrapped around pieces of cloth, just to make sure her hair stayed curled for the whole day. Now the cloth was out and her hair trailed down her back in soft waves.

Taking a deep breath, Harumi moved to get dressed, starting with the stockings, then slipping the dress over her head, tugging at the zipper down the side of the bodice. Then she moved to pull the jacket on. Harumi was struggling to see. Every time she would think about it, she would cry. She missed her mother. This was a day where both mother and daughter shared special moments. But Harumi's mother was missing all of this. Harumi slowly blinked, knowing that her parents were watching over her. She could only hope that they were proud of the choices she had made.

The door behind her opened and Yoshino walked in, "I should have known you were up to something." She yelled as she closed the door behind her.

Harumi turned, her jacket still in her hand, "We didn't want a huge wedding nor did we want to elope."

"I can understand that, your mother was the same way. However what I don't understand is why you didn't come to me for help?"

"I was worried that if I came to you, it would either grow into something bigger than I was wanting to deal with, or I would disappoint you, because I didn't want a huge wedding."

"Well," Yoshino huffed, "I probably would have done both of those things, but only because I love you and I want the best for you."

"I know you do, but a big wedding would take a long time to arrange, and Kakashi and I couldn't wait a year," Harumi's hand gestured to her stomach.

Yoshino's eyes widened, "You're…"

Harumi nodded.

"Oh my girl," Yoshino cried, rushing forward to wrap her arms around Harumi, "Oh my darling girl. I have so many questions, and I will ask them, but right now," Yoshino gently let Harumi go, brushed the tears off her cheeks, "I suspected that you were up to something, especially since you asked everyone to wear something a little formal. Then I saw what your siblings were wearing and I knew. Your uncle had to run home and grab this for me. I promised my sister that I would give this to the daughter that got married. Since I'm older, I got to wear it first, but she also wore this to her wedding. We both wanted our daughters to wear it in theirs."

Yoshino pulled a small box from her obi and slowly opened it. Nestled inside, among layers of soft cotton, was a silver and pearl comb. "Both your mother and I wore this comb on our wedding days, as did our mother and her sisters, and her mother and her sisters." She reached up and brushed Harumi's hair behind her ear, "And now you will wear it to your wedding day."

Harumi's eyes filled with tears as she turned around and looked at Yoshino through the mirror. Yoshino gently pushed Harumi onto the bed and sat behind her, gathering up pieces of hair. Twisting here, securing there, adding more pieces of hair, Yoshino nodded as she did Harumi's hair. Smiling, she gently slid the hair comb into the space right behind the low bun at the back of Harumi's head.

"There, now you are ready."

Harumi stood up and with Yoshino's help put her jacket on and tied the long belt. Yoshino looked at the two of them in the mirror, standing side by side and smiled, a little sad at how much Harumi looked like her mother at her wedding, but very happy that she could do this one thing to bring her beloved sister, Harumi's mom to this important day.

"Do you think Mom would approve?" Harumi asked, her voice soft.

"I think she would have been the first to laugh and help hide your tracks to ensure that no one would ruin your surprise. Like I said, she also wanted to do something like this. But I was there to bully her into a full wedding."

"Why did you do that?"

"Because a woman gets married only once and her wedding day should be something she looks back on with happy memories. I was young enough to believe that meant only a big wedding."

"So what changed?"
"I have gotten older and have been married for a long time. I think about my wedding day occasionally, but it is the everyday parts of marriage that I end up dwelling on. Those memories are what sustain you through the bad parts. So have the wedding you want, work hard on your marriage and everything will be just fine."

"Really?"

"Would I lie to you? The marriage is what you will remember, it is how he steals the covers or how he will let you warm up your feet on his legs. Those are the things important, if you had a huge wedding. You will be surrounded by your friends and family, which, of course, is the most important part."

Harumi nodded, brushing the few tears that managed to escape. "Yoshino-oba, I have a secret." Harumi turned to look at her aunt, the woman who looked so much like her mother. "Kakashi and I are pregnant," she whispered. Her eyes focused on her aunt's eyes which immediately flooded with tears.

"I know, you just told me but I would have guessed when you said you couldn't wait for a large wedding," Yoshino reached towards Harumi's stomach, paused and when Harumi nodded, she placed her hands there gently.

Harumi felt the distinct warmth of chakra being introduced to her body. She made sure to keep tabs on the babies, but they seemed content with the new chakra.

"Twins?" Yoshino gasped and pulled Harumi into a bone crushing hug, "Oh my girl! This is amazing. Wonderful. Fantastic. And any other word I can think of. I am speechless!"

Harumi laughed, "Evidence says otherwise, but I'm glad you are happy. We haven't told anyone yet, well other than the Hokage, because we are waiting until I start to show."

Yoshino nodded, "Of course I won't tell anyone, your secret is safe with me. However if the Hokage knows then your uncle…" Yoshino trailed off and her eyes grew hard, "That means your uncle knows because he is in charge of mission assignments."

"Yoshino-oba, please don't kill anyone on my wedding day. If you are going to yell or kill Shikaku-oja, wait until you are at home."

Yoshino took a deep breath, "Fine, I will not kill my husband at your wedding. However I will be having words with him when we get home."

Harumi nodded and with a glance at the clock she rushed to the bathroom to touch up her makeup, "I can handle that. Now you should go downstairs, Kakashi should be making the announcement any minute and I'm supposed to meet Maiko downstairs right after he makes the announcement. So that way there isn't a lot of waiting."

"Of course, if I see Kakashi, I will have him delay just a few more minutes because I stopped you from getting ready on time."

"Thanks Yoshino-oba," Harumi called as she touched up her eye makeup that had smeared a bit and the blush that had also smeared. But surprisingly the damage wasn't horrible, so it only took a few swipes of the brushes to fix the problems. Then she took a deep breath and walked down the stairs to find her sister.

Kakashi was nervous, he was never nervous, but today seemed to be all kinds of firsts, so he might as well enjoy it. Guy was standing next to him, wearing a simple pair of blue pants and a long sleeved white shirt with a small collar on it. He also did something with his hair. Guy looked so different that Kakashi almost didn't recognize his rival. At least not until Guy opened his mouth.

"Kakashi, my friend! I can see why you won our wager, I couldn't stand with my friend in my usual clothes, I needed to match you. My rival, you have cleaned up well, as they say."

"Hello Guy," Kakashi drawled out, some habits are hard to break, "Well honestly, I don't normally care what you wear, but Harumi would have my head on a platter if you showed up in your uniform."

"It is her house and her dinner, Kakashi. Your Harumi should be able to decide what is and isn't allowed. Now my friend, why did you want to see me?"

"Here," Kakashi shoved a box at Guy, "Don't lose this. If you do I will beat you until I can't feel my arms, then I will kill you."

Guy, slightly offended by the threat, slowly opened the box and replied, "My rival! I am not so clumsy as to lose a …." Guy's voice broke off, "Kakashi? What are these?" Guy's voice suddenly became very serious.

"They are rings, Guy. I thought as a world famous shinobi you would recognize them," Kakashi answered, trying to go for joking, but his voice was a little too husky to pull it off.

"My friend, these are not just any rings, these are wedding rings," Guy pointed out.

"I know Guy. Harumi and I are getting married."

Guy's eyes widened before he started to cry, "Oh Kakashi. I'm so proud of you. I'm so happy for you." Guy put his hand over his heart, "Don't worry, I won't lose these rings."

Kakashi was shocked at how serious and solemn Guy was. "I need to go and tell everyone why they are actually here."

"Kakashi!"

Kakashi turned at the call and saw Yoshino walking quickly towards him. "I'm glad I caught you. I delayed Harumi and she needs a few more minutes."

"Ah, is everything okay?"

"All is well, I just figured out what you two were planning and gave her something to wear. Which changed a few parts of her outfit, but nothing is wrong. In fact everything is right."

Kakashi nodded, "Well okay, so long as everyone is okay, I guess we could wait a few moments."

"Wonderful, now I already promised Harumi that I wouldn't commit murder at her wedding, but I need to have a word with my husband." With that explosive tag thrown, Yoshino turned around and walked out to the garden where everyone was.

"My rival?"

"Yes Guy?"

"Why is Yoshino-san telling you that she isn't going to kill her husband at your wedding?"

"Probably because Shikaku knew we were getting married and didn't say anything," Kakashi answered. It was close enough to the truth anyway. After all Shikaku was in charge of the mission board, so he would have to know about the medical readiness of the shinobi in the village, not that he was going to say that to Guy. Harumi would kill him for sure.

Kakashi took a deep breath, trying to find that place of calm that he had before a mission. He just needed to think of this as a mission, one where he wouldn't fail. This was also a life long mission, but one he was happy to take. If only he could be calm!

"Rival? Would it help if I were to challenge you? We could do rock paper scissors. That way we won't mess up our clothes and cause Harumi to yell at us."

Kakashi looked over at the man who drove him crazy, the one that pushed him to be better even during these stupid games. "Thanks Guy, but I'll be fine. I just want to get this over with."

"Of course my rival, but you must remember. Women spend their lives dreaming about their wedding and therefore it shouldn't be something we as impatient men, take away from them."

Kakashi felt a rock drop in his stomach, "Do you think Harumi doesn't want this type of wedding? Did I ruin her dreams?" Panic, Kakashi realized in a distant part of his mind. This is what panic feels like.

Guy smiled as he shook his head, "I may not know Harumi as well as you do, but I doubt if she wanted something different, she would have told you. She doesn't strike me as a woman who doesn't know her mind."

Kakashi nodded, the rock slowly disappearing, "You're right. Harumi was the one who suggested it. This is ridiculous, why am I doing this?"

"I think it is because you want this a lot," Guy answered.

Before Kakashi could answer, a throat cleared at the end of the hall. Kakashi turned his head and blinked and blinked again. He reached up and pulled the eyepatch off his eye. This, he would remember in perfect clarity for the rest of his life.

At the end of the hall stood Harumi. She was a vision of grace and beauty with her hair up with some pieces falling next to her face. The white dress highlighted the darkness of her hair and the brightness of her eyes. Even from this distance, Kakashi could see the glow that infused her face. Her smile lit up the whole hallway and Kakashi could feel the warmth and love that smile represented.

"I'm ready now," Harumi said softly enough to not be heard by the people on the other side of the wall, but loud enough to carry to the two men on the other side. "Make the announcement. Make sure the Hokage is comfortable and Maiko will watch. When you and the Hokage are in place, we will come out."

Kakashi nodded.

Harumi's smile softened a bit, "You can do this."

Kakashi nodded again, he could do this. He was still nervous, but it wasn't panic like it was before. He just needed to get this part done. So one last look at Harumi, he covered his Sharingan and moved to the doors leading out to the garden. Opening them and then closing them, to allow Harumi to make a big entrance, Kakashi, with Guy right behind him, walked to the table where the Hokage was sitting.

"We are ready, sir."

The Hokage smiled and stood up with Kakashi, "Then let us begin."

Together the three men walked over to the area that was left empty of tables just for this purpose. The Hokage stood next to Kakashi, Guy moved to the other side. People grew quite when the Hokage stood up, but now they were silent while the three men stood there.

Kakashi cleared his throat, "I want to thank you all for coming. It is my job to welcome you," Kakashi took a deep breath, "To our wedding."

A few gasps broke the silence, even the children sensed something big was happening and just stared at Kakashi as he stood there.

Kakashi fought the urge to slouch and pull out a book. Everyone was staring at him.

Then a single laugh rang out breaking everyone out of their shocked silence.

Kakashi turned his head and saw Harumi standing in the doorway still laughing.

"Oh I wish I could see all of your faces. Are they shocked, Lord Hokage?"

The Hokage smiled, "Yes my child, I think you succeeded in surprising everyone here."

"Great! Now let's get this wedding started so we can eat before Naruto and Masahiro convince Sasuke to do something either with or to the cake," Harumi's voice rose and two of the three boys mentioned turned to face Harumi with faces bright red.

"Mah, we wouldn't do anything like that, Harumi-nee," Naruto called out, his hand immediately moving to the back of his neck.

Harumi smiled, the answer was so like the ones Kakashi would give, "Good because boys who don't behave do not get my wedding cake!" With that she turned to face Kakashi and began the walk across the garden.

Their wedding vows were over quickly, the rings exchanged and they finalized the whole thing with a kiss. Then the new Hatake family turned to face their family, to the applause, whistles and catcalls of their friends and family.

Harumi was happy.

Kakashi walked with the Hokage back to his seat before helping Harumi to hers.

Harumi stood in front of her chair, "Now, everyone please enjoy the food you all have graciously provided. It is time to party!"

"Congratulations!" was said to the couple over and over again, as people passed their small table. Kakashi got many slaps on the back, and teasing from his friends. While Harumi was chided for keeping it a secret.

Itachi walked over with his family, who all gave congratulations, and he leaned closer to Kakashi and whispered, loud enough for Harumi to hear, "Tenzo is going to be upset he missed this."

Kakashi shrugged, "We can't plan everything around our schedules. We knew someone was going to miss out. Besides, if you were on a mission, then Sasuke wouldn't have been able to come, which would have made Masahiro and Naruto very sad."

Harumi laughed as said boys were trying to rope Choji and Shikamaru into something.

Itachi nodded as he moved away with his parents.

"We are going to have to invite Itachi and Sasuke over more often," Harumi told Kakashi in a low voice.

"Why?" Kakashi asked.

"Simple, both boys need to be boys and have fun. Besides I don't want Itachi to wallow in guilt. Big changes need to happen with the Uchiha clan, but they need to have a reason for those changes, such as closer ties to the village."

Kakashi nodded, "If that is what you want."

"Besides, Sasuke could keep the boys in check when they try to pull their larger pranks, or at least give them some extra ideas on how to not get caught."

Kakashi laughed, "That is very true."

"Are you upset that Tenzo isn't here?"

"Not as much as people seem to think I should be. We are shinobi, we are always on missions. We are just lucky that Lord Hokage was in on the surprise, else one of us might have been sent on a mission."

"I guess that is true enough, although my missions will be limited from now on."

Kakashi pressed his forehead against Harumi's, "As they should be. You are carrying the next generation, the whole reason we fight, for a better future for our children."

Harumi nodded and pressed a soft kiss on Kakashi's mask covered lips. "I know, but that doesn't mean you can throw yourself into every fight you come across."

"I promise."

The party continued, with laughter, the highlight of the night. Harumi couldn't have asked for a better wedding day. Surrounded by her friends and family. Surrounded by love and laughter, it was a perfect day.

Six years later

"Harumi! If we are late Naruto is going to kill us!" Masahiro yelled from downstairs.

"I'm coming!" Harumi yelled back as she slowly tied her jacket over her just beginning to expand stomach.

The twins were downstairs with their cousin, Harumi could hear them chattering. Twin girls who inherited their father's silver hair, but the Nara women's personality. They entered the world screaming as loud as they could and they haven't stopped. They loved their family, especially their cousins. The oldest, Yoshie, was always ready for a fight, while the younger, Shizuka was the forever peacemaker.

Yoshie was only two the first time she tried to get in the middle of a fight between Naruto and Masahiro. It was shortly after training and the boys were discussing who did a better job. Well they started to argue about it, which led to a punch being thrown.

"Nothing hard, Harumi-nee, I wouldn't really hurt Naruto."

Yoshie, who was an accomplished walker by this time, walked over and stood between the two boys and started hitting them in the legs. Harumi, who had just walked around the corner to see what the noise was about, could feel her heart stop at the sight of her baby between these two boys, much bigger than the baby, and who were not paying attention to what was hitting them, and as one, the boys pulled their legs back to kick the other.

Harumi quickly used a substitution jutsu on Yoshie and herself, so instead of kicking the baby, the boys kicked her. And being the adult shinobi she was, she grabbed their legs and yanked them up, causing both boys to fall down.

Shizuka, on the other hand, just cried while this was happening. Harumi later figured out, it was because she was just overwhelmed with the fighting. And the fact that her sister almost got hurt. It was only the beginning of Shizuka being very upset whenever her sister got hurt. She didn't care if she got hurt, but her sister? That was a totally different story.

Kakashi came home for dinner that night to Naruto and Masahiro tied to the tree upside down and the twins playing in the grass under them. After being told what happened, he decided to have a talk with the boys about fighting inside the house. As in don't do it, always take it outside. And if he showed them the small area behind the shed that no one could see from the house or the training gym, well he wasn't going to tell anyone.

The girls started the Academy a when they were five, younger than normal, but Harumi wasn't going to argue too much. They needed something else to get their energy out. Besides, as Kakashi pointed out, as did so many others, they were Kakashi's kids. While the world was at peace for the moment they didn't have to graduate early, the two would just be slightly younger than their classmates. But again, that wasn't going to be awful. At least that is what Harumi told herself.

After the twins were born, Harumi moved away from treatment and began to focus on research. She was able to work on creating antidotes to all sorts of poisons, venems and other things designed to kill you. Kakashi didn't understand it, but Harumi loved her work. She still worked at the hospital a couple times a month, just to keep her skills up, but unless there was an emergency, she was home every night and wasn't called in to handle a case in the middle of the night. Well not unless that case happened to be her husband, or his friends.

Moving slowly down the stairs, Harumi accepted the cup of tea Shizuka held out to her, "Thank you, sweetie." Taking a small breath of the peppermint tea, Harumi sighed when she didn't feel the familiar drop in her stomach.

"We aren't going to be late, right, Mommy?" Yoshie asked.

"Of course not, we are just waiting for your father to get back from visiting Lord Hokage."

Masahiro gave Harumi a side eye smile, "Oh he was called in?"

"Well I'm sure he just has a new assignment. After all, Lord Hokage knows how important this graduation is to Naruto."

Shizuka laughed, "He should. After all, Naruto has done nothing but yell about his graduation for weeks now."

"I'm sure even the ancestors know that Naruto is going to graduate today," Yoshie added dryly.

"I'm sure when you graduate, you will be excited too," Harumi informed her oldest. "Now get your shoes on, Daddy will be here in just a moment."

"How does she do that?" Shizuka asked as the girls walked to the door, which was opening to reveal Kakashi standing there.

"Hello my girls, how are you doing?"

"Good. Mommy got sick again this morning, so we are running late."

"We are not late," Harumi answered laughingly. "I said we were not leaving until Daddy got back. Which he just did."

"So why did you have to go to see the Hokage?" Masahiro asked, slipping on his shinobi sandals and making sure his forehead protector was wrapped tightly around his head.

"You will find out soon enough. Now are the older ones meeting us there?" Kakashi answered.

"Yep, they were both coming back from a mission so they said they would just meet us since they were not sure when they would come back. Will Itachi also be there?"

Masahiro nodded, "Sensei said he would save us seats if we were not there when he arrived."

"Wonderful," Harumi answered as she slipped her feet into a pair of soft black flats. "Now let's go see Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Choji and Ino graduate."

"Don't forget the rest of the class," Shizuka sassed.

Harumi smiled, "And the rest of the class."

The family walked out of the house and joined the crowds on the street.

"How are you feeling?" Kakashi whispered in Harumi's ear.

"Good, actually this was a good morning. I only got sick once and the nausea is mild."

"That's good. I can carry you if you need me too."

"You just want to carry me," Harumi answered, "I am perfectly fine walking on my own. In fact walking is good for the two of us."

"If you say so, but if you feel tired, I will happily carry you."

Harumi sighed and slipped her hand into Kakashi's much larger hand. "I know you will, but for right now, it is unnecessary."

After a bit, they arrived at the Academy grounds. The twins ran ahead to meet up with their friends and classmates. Masahiro waited a moment before joining his team. Harumi walked over to where Itachi was standing next to his parents and greeted them.

Fugaku gave her a small nod, but didn't take his eyes off of his oldest as they spoke of something in low tones. Kakashi moved over to the two men, leaving Harumi and Mikoto to talk.

"Is Sasuke as excited about graduating as Naruto is?" Harumi asked.

Mikoto nodded, "Although I'm not sure anyone could be as excited as Naruto, Sasuke is close to it. He is just upset that Itachi is already a genin leader."

"I'm sure the Hokage is going to put Sasuke on a team where he can continue to grow and with someone who is at least comparable to Itachi," Harumi answered.

Mikoto laughed quietly, "Is there anyone like that in Sasuke's eyes?"

"I don't know, but it would be interesting to see if there is." People were moving around and someone was wearing a very strong perfume and Harumi could feel her stomach churn. Her face must have shown her distress, because Kakashi was quickly by her side.

"Do I need to run you to the nearest bathroom?"

Harumi took small breaths through her mouth, the smell disappearing with Kakashi's stronger scent this close to her, "No, I think I'm good."

Mikoto nodded, "You must be having a boy. Nothing will cause a pregnant woman more trouble than carrying a boy."

Harumi laughed, "Yet you have two of them."

"I speak from experience then. The morning sickness that lasts all day. The cravings. All signs of a boy causing nothing but trouble on your body."

Harumi laid her hand on her stomach and smiled, "But it is worth it, isn't it."

Mikoto looked over at Itachi whose lips quirked up at the corners, "It is, in the end, but during, you question it."

Harumi laughed harder, knowing that Mikoto was speaking the truth. Just like labor, at times you wonder if the pain is worth it. Then when the baby is placed in your arms, you know that any amount of pain is worth it.

"Sit down, Harumi," Kakashi said, guiding her to a chair at the end of the row.

Harumi thought about arguing, but the iron grip on her shoulders told her that Kakashi was at the end of his rope of worry. So she just let him put her in a chair. She turned her head and met Mikoto's eyes. They were sparkling with suppressed laughter and Mikoto nodded her head. Yes, this was also normal.

"Can you see?" Kakashi asked.

Harumi nodded, "Yes Kakashi, I can see just fine. Now would you please stop and go talk to Itachi and talk about what being a Sensei is all about."

Kakashi looked at Harumi, "What are you talking about?"

"Did you think I wouldn't notice? Every time during the morning of graduation the new teams are announced. If I were not pregnant, they would be sending some hopeful medics my way just like they did last year. And since you are grinning, who did you get?"

Kakashi's grin grew wider under his mask.

Even after all this time, Kakashi still wore his mask when he was outside the house. However it wasn't so much he was hiding anymore, more like it was just part of his uniform. The twins asked if they could also wear masks when they graduated. Kakashi said they could, if they wanted to.

"Apparently there was much debate on the subject, but Lord Hokage, in his wisdom decided that no one else would want to take on those two demons."

"No!" Harumi breathed.

"Oh yes," Kakashi laughed, "I also got the top girl in the class. I guess Lord Hokage is hoping that she will bring some balance to the team. I just hope she is willing to work hard, because it will be hard to keep up with the boys."

"Naruto is going to kill you," Harumi told him.

"He can try, but it takes a lot to kill me," was his response.

Itachi turned to stare at Kakashi, "Taichou, did I hear you correctly? You will be Sasuke's sensei?"

Kakashi nodded, "I am told after much heated debate. They decided to continue with the 'First and Last' for this team. I believe Lord Hokage wanted to keep the tradition going."

"Why is Naruto at the bottom?"

"Oh," Harumi interrupted, "I know this one, because he still has little to no chakra control. While the physical stuff is easy, it is difficult for him to maintain any of the simple jutsus. Simply because he has no control. Also Naruto excels at the physical aspects of being a ninja, he struggles with the academic parts"

"It also helps that there will be two Sharingans available to help control the beast should the worst happen," Fugaku butted in.

Harumi sighed and shifted in her seat, conveniently distracting Kakashi from getting in Fugaku's face.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Kakashi. These seats will never be comfortable."

"I need to go make sure my genin are behaving themselves and being useful," Itachi said as he excused himself from the small group. "Oh and Kakashi-taichou? Don't forget, you will need to formally introduce yourself as Sasuke's sensei to my father, once the teams have been announced and the boys complete your test."

Harumi laughed at the mirrored looks of shock on Fugaku's and Kakashi's faces.

"But Fugaku-sama knows who I am," Kakashi whispered.

Harumi laughed again, "It is a tradition, just like when Itachi came to introduce himself as Masahiro's Sensei. We all laughed, he promised to take care of Masahiro and we promised to help in any way we could, including not doing anything."

Kakashi sighed, but before he could say anything else, a voice called from behind everyone.

"Kakashi! Harumi!"

Harumi watched as a large vein appeared on Fugaku's forehead at the call. However she was used to that particular vein appearing anytime Obito came around. Shrugging she put her hand up and waved.

A tall man with curly black hair walked up to the group. Behind him were three kids, one was older than Naruto, but younger than Masahiro. This one was holding the hands of the much younger children. The younger two had blond hair, a boy and a girl, maybe a year apart. They were looking around with wide eyes.

"Hello there," Harumi said, in a soft voice.

The older one gave her a small smile, "Hello Harumi-san. How are you?"

"I'm doing great! What brings you to Konoha today?"

The boy glances at Obito who dips his head slightly and answers, "Obito-sensei heard that Naruto was graduating today and he wanted to come and see. Since we needed to bring these two over for a checkup, we were able to do two things on one trip."

"Ah, I see. Are you staying in the old house while you are here?"

"Obito-sensei thought it would be best. These two don't sleep well."

Harumi nodded, this sadly wasn't the first time Obito brought in orphaned children to have Harumi examine them. It broke her heart each time, these little bodies shouldn't have so many scars. However it did bring her comfort to know that Obito was working on making the world a better place. He was in a better place.

Much like Kakashi, Obito was wracked with guilt, so much guilt that he couldn't do much. He slowly grew out of that, as he became closer to the orphans found in Danzo's care. They were the first. Slowly, without much thought, Obito began collecting the hurting, overlooked and sometimes abandoned children of the world. Obito figured out very quickly that he couldn't live in Konoha. There were too many memories. There was too much pressure from the Uchiha clan. Not that Itachi or Shishui would allow anyone to take advantage of Obito. Obito didn't want the constant stress, so he began to wander. With Lord Hokage's permission, of course.

One time, Harumi was out delivering medical supplies to one of the border outposts when she came across Obito. He had two young ones with him. They were so dirty, Harumi wasn't sure if they were even children, or just mud monsters that Obito created to keep himself company. Well Obito asked for help and Harumi gave it.

It took time, but eventually Obito was able to find a plot of land, about a two days run from Konoha. The only thing it had going for it was the river that ran through the northern part of the land. The rest was simply barren. But Obito said it felt right, so working together, talking to the locals, and paying for D rank missions, Harumi and Kakashi were able to help Obito build the house and get a small garden ready to plant.

Well what started as a house with a small vegetable garden has grown to three buildings and a small farming operation. They grew vegetables, had animals, it even had a small orchard, with a man made pond in the center of it. A place Obito would take the kids to play in during the hottest months of the year.

Harumi could see the peace in Obito's face when he was at his house, the place known locally as the orphanage farm. Obito still wandered a few times a year, but he was never too far from his home. He didn't have to leave to find children, although he would always come back with one or two, but people would come from far away to bring Obito their children. At this orphanage, the children gained skills, if they wanted to be a shinobi, Obito had friends in high places who could help with that. If the child wanted to be a farmer, there was plenty of opportunity. If the child wanted to work with fabrics, well there is a reason Obito now has a small herd of sheep.

"So have you decided what you want to do yet?" Harumi asked the oldest child.

"Not really. I know what I don't want to do though."

Harumi nodded, "Sometimes knowing what you don't want is a very good place to start. So what don't you want to be?"

"I don't want to be a shinobi," was the quick answer, then slower, "I don't want to be a farmer for the rest of my life either. I thought maybe I might want to work in a hospital, but I don't know what that would look like."

Harumi grinned as she glanced at Obito who was staring at her, she gave him a wink before turning back to the boy in question. "Well as you know I work in the hospital and if you wanted, I could bring you with me to show you what a day at the hospital looks like."

The boy's eyes sparkled with excitement, "Really? I mean you would do that for me?"

Harumi leaned forward and ruffled his hair, "Because Obito means so much to our family, I would do anything for him."

Obito laughed, "Even threaten me within an inch of my life."

Harumi shrugged, "Don't do stupid things, and you won't get threatened. Speaking of threats, you are coming to the graduation party tonight, right?"

"I already told Bakashi that I would be there."

"I am not letting you give this one a nickname, Obito," Harumi grumbled.

"I did hear that congratulations were in order, another Hatake running around. Do you think the world is ready for that?"

"I'm not sure I'm ready for that," Harumi replied, which caused Obito to start laughing again.

"Where are the twins?"

"I believe they ran to find their class. Since they are in the Academy, they get to watch with their other classmates. But don't worry, once they figure out you are here, they will sneak away and join us. You know they just love their Obito-oji."

Obito grinned, having Kakashi's kids call him Obito-oji never failed to put a smile on his face.

"Now sit down all of you, I'm tired of craning my neck to look at you," Harumi sighed as she moved to let the three kids move past her. As they little ones sat down, Harumi asked if she could hold their hand, just to make sure that everything was okay. They did and Harumi did a simple health check. Everything seemed in order, although slightly malnourished and a little shorter than they should be. However Harumi wasn't upset, some time with Obito would set those wrongs back to rights.

Kakashi stood next to Harumi's chair, his hand on her shoulder as he watched his wife help his friend. It took a long time before either Obito or Kakashi could call what they have friendship, but together, they were able to work through their issues. A few times, both Kakashi's councilor and the Yamanaka therapist that was in charge of Obito would have them in a joint session. It seemed that many of their problems were tied to similar events and therefore the people in charge though it would help for the two men to work it out together.

Harumi, in her own way, had worked the hardest though. She wouldn't let either Kakashi or Obito dwell in the past. There would be fights, between Kakashi and Harumi, Kakashi and Obito, Obito and Harumi or even Harumi against Kakashi and Obito, but she didn't back down when she was right. Both men learned the hard way, that while Harumi wasn't as loud as the Nara women, she was just as stubborn.

However these fights wouldn't last long, and soon they would be able to talk out their differences, or even just agree to disagree. But they figured it out.

Kakashi's kids looked at Obito as an uncle and Obito would look after them just as fiercely. If only Obito could be a sensei, then Kakashi would move heaven and earth to ensure that Obito taught his girls when the time came. As it was, he was already working on getting Tenzo to be their teacher, or maybe Mouse, if Lord Hokage could pry the mask off of his face.

Before he could get too lost in his thoughts, Lord Hokage made his way across the stage to stand on behind the podium. The crowd slowly grew quiet as the classes that were graduating made their way to their seats. Once the new genin were seated, the Third Hokage began to speak.

"Today is a day that many of you have dreamed of. Some of you never thought this day would come, but in the end, it always does. Today you will become genin of the Hidden Leaf Village. You follow in the footsteps of the shinobi who came before you, some are with us now, some gave their life for the village. Today will be just the first step, but the first step is the most important. Today you will get your forehead protectors and tomorrow you will receive your team assignments. Enjoy this time today, for tomorrow the hard work will begin. Tomorrow you will start your training into being a genin of the Hidden Leaf Village. Tomorrow your Will of Fire may be tested, so enjoy today, for tomorrow the real work begins."

Harumi teared up as the classes all stood up and made their way to the stage where the Hokage slowly handed out the forehead protectors. She could feel the tears streaming down her face when Naruto held his forehead protector in his hands, a look of awe on his face before he turned to stare at Kakashi, who nodded his head.

"What did you do?" Harumi demanded.

"I might have given him one of my older protectors, put onto a new band. It is still good, I went and had it tested. The Lord Hokage said it would be fine when I asked him."

"I can't believe you did that."

Kakashi shrugged, "I did tell him that I would always be with him, and this is a good way to ensure it."

"You jerk! You are his sensei! Of course you will be with him."

"I know that and you know that, but he doesn't."

"I still say he will kill you. And if he can't he will enlist Sasuke's help. I will not live in a war zone, Hatake Kakashi! Do you understand me!"

"Of course, love. I will do my very best to ensure that the house remains peaceful. Even if I have to put up seals on every surface."

Harumi nodded and turned her attention back to the stage. Sasuke was getting his forehead protector. His young face was very solemn as he bowed to accept the piece of metal and cloth. The Hokage whispered something to Sasuke that had his eyes widen and he turned to find his brother. Harumi watched as Itachi gave the barest smile at the unasked question.

"Did Itachi give Sasuke one of his old forehead protectors too?"

"Well, he was there when I asked if I could give Naruto one of mine so he might have gotten the idea from me," Kakashi answered sheepishly.

Harumi narrowed her eyes at him, "Kakashi…"

Kakashi's hand went up to rub his neck, the nervous tick only came out when he felt safe, "Well maybe we both went there to ask if we could give the boys our old forehead protectors."

"I can't believe you two."

Obito laughed, "Can't you Harumi? I can completely see them doing that."

Harumi sighed.

"Hey you gave all of your siblings a forehead protector from your parents. If I remember correctly Masahiro keeps the one from your father in his pack."

"I did give them all one, but not as their official forehead protector!" Harumi argued.

"Okay fine, but you have to admit, the boys looked very touched by their forehead protectors."

"Of course they do, who wouldn't?"

"Shh," Obito hissed at the two of them when other parents started to turn and stare at the two of them arguing. And while normally it would bring Obito complete enjoyment to see Kakashi fighting, this wasn't the time or place.

"Fine," Harumi hissed as she turned her attention back to the stage. More students graduated, it was pretty normal.

Soon enough it was over and the students who didn't graduate, went into the Academy and those that did, were released to go back home. The families, friends and teams all left to go back to where they needed to be. For Harumi that meant she was going to the hospital.

Before she left, she gave Naruto, Sasuke and Shikamaru big hugs and congratulations. With a soft, "I'll be at the hospital for a couple hours, but will be home with plenty of time to get dinner started." She turned to go.

"We are having ramen tonight, right?" Naruto called from behind her.

"Yes, Naruto. You asked for ramen as your special dinner. So we will eat ramen, then after dinner we will go over to the Nara compound and join the Naras, Yamanakas and Akamichis to celebrate your graduations."

"What about Sasuke's party?" Naruto asked.

Itachi answered, "Sasuke isn't having a party like yours Naruto. This is a small tradition that the Uchihas do when we graduate. However once the ceremony is complete, I will bring him by."

This seemed to satisfy Naruto because he dropped the subject.

Harumi waved at the small group and headed to the hospital. Obito and his small group of children followed her.

The couple hours at the hospital were pretty routine. Harumi needed to check on a few patients, fill out some paperwork, authorize some things. She brought the younger two into an exam room and did a more thorough exam. She found old bruises and healed broken bones, but nothing that she needed to fix, since the bruises were just days away from being fully healed and the bones had long since mended. She gave Obito a list of foods the children should be eating, mostly fish, rice and a variety of fruits and vegetables. At least this time, she wasn't working out a plan to get them used to eating.

"Can I leave the kids with you until the party? I promised Shin and Sai that I would have lunch with them," Obito asked.

"Of course you can. Tell Shin and Sai that they need to stop by more. I might not be in ANBU, but that doesn't mean I don't know people there who will drag them out to come and see me," Harumi answered.

"I will tell them, but they still find it hard to interact with the twins," Obito replied.

"No, it isn't that," the oldest boy answered, "They just find it hard to interact with the whole family at one time. Your family is very loud."

Harumi was startled, but nodded, "We can be a bit much, but why does it still bother them? They lived with us for almost a year before Obito got the house down the street."

The boy shrugged, "I don't understand it, I'm just telling you what they told me."

Harumi nodded and looked at Obito, "Tell them if they don't come over to see me in the next week, I will find their Captain and make their lives hell. Or I will just unleash the twins on ANBU headquarters and tell them Shin and Sai are being held there."

Obito threw his head back and laughed, "I almost don't want to tell them, just so I can hear all about the trouble caused by your girls. I'm sure trained ANBU don't stand a chance against them."

Harumi shrugged, "I might do it anyway, just not right now. I would just like to see the boys when they are not covered in blood and needing to be fixed."

Obito's eyes softened, "I will tell them." Then in a flurry of leaves, he was gone.

"Alright you three, I need to stop by the market and pick up some supplies for tonight and then we will go back to my house and you three can play or do whatever you want. There isn't as much space as you have at your home, but I do have enough space for you to run around if you want."

Harumi took the three children with her through the market, where she stopped to talk to Ayame at Ichiraku Ramen, since Harumi was making ramen, she thought she would get some advice from the best. While she knew it wouldn't be as good at Ichiraku, Harumi hoped it would be okay. After all this was a special dinner. After some last minute advice, Harumi continued through the market, got the few items she had ordered and moved to go back home. A small tug on her arm had her looking down.

The youngest of the children (seriously, she needed to get Obito to start giving them names when they were young. What good did it do to have them choose a name when they were older, if she didn't have something to call them now!) was staring at the small dango shop at the end of the street.

"Do you want some dango?" Harumi asked, "I have it under good authority that that place has the best dango in all of the shinobi nations."

The youngest gave a small nod.

"Alright then, we will grab some for those at home, and maybe a couple for Obito?"

Three heads nodded in unison, which had Harumi smile, and together they walked over to the dango stall. Ordering the dango and a small tea for herself, Harumi sat in the chair and waited. Watching the three kids with eyes as wide a saucers watch the dango being made.

It wasn't long before the dango was done, most of it packaged up to take with them, but Harumi let the three start to eat their sweet treat as they slowly made their way back to Harumi's house. Once there, she sent them out to the garden to play, or at least get some sun and she got busy making dinner. A few hours later, the background sounds of playing became more intense. A quick glance out the window showed that Kakashi, Naruto, Masahiro and Obito had joined. The twins could be seen at a small table, sending longing glances at the group as they played a game that Naruto and Masahiro used to play with Harumi, the simple game of 'avoid the sharp things being thrown at you,' only the younger children were using the adults as their shields.

After some time, everyone was home, Harumi had Kakashi and Obito move some tables outside so there was plenty of room for everyone. Shin and Sai even came by. Shin gave Naruto a set of custom kunai, made for hands that were not adult hands. Sai gave Naruto a bunch of scrolls, all ready for things to be sealed in them. Harumi gave the boys, no, not boys; the teens, some food to put in the freezer and scolded them for going so long between visits.

Kakashi and Obito gave Naruto some new clothes, fully reinforced and ready to be used on missions. Harumi gave Naruto a small medical kit along with a warning that she would teach him how to use everything in that kit. Masahiro gave Naruto a book about different jutsus.

By the time dinner was finished, it looked like Naruto's birthday with the amount of gifts surrounding him.

Shin and Sai took their leave, they had an early mission in the morning.

Harumi gathered everyone and herded them through town to the Nara compound where the party was in full swing. The clan head's children graduated, this was a huge party.

The Akamichi provided all the food, with some contributions from the other clans, but everyone knew, the Akamichi family was in control of the kitchen today. The Nara clan was in charge of the place and the decorations, while the Yamanaka clan took over the entertainment. Which for the most part meant the music and alcohol for the adults and plenty of toys and games for the kids.

As soon as they walked through the gates, the twins and the boys ran off to find their friends. The twins drug Obito's three children with them. Obito and Kakashi drifted off to find Shikaku and his friends, although Harumi knew it wouldn't last long because Kakashi would need to check on her. Until that happened, Harumi moved over to join the other women. As soon as her aunt saw her, she was given a chair and some tea and seamlessly joined the conversation.

Harumi sighed, content in the world. This, she knew, was one of the best moments in her life. She would enjoy it. Hold onto it, because tomorrow it was back to normal. No, she thought, tomorrow was the beginning of a whole new normal.

Iruka stood in front of his empty classroom. Another year gone, another group of genin are about to be released into the world. Every year, Iruka felt a small sense of sadness at the loss, but it was always tempered with the knowledge that a new class would come in and a new group of students would work their way through. Now, however, was not the time to get sentimental, not yet. He still had one last job to do for this class.

Gently he placed the stack of scroll on his desk, making sure not to change the order. Each team was numbered, each team was important. Once that was done, he took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"This is the hardest part isn't it?" a voice called from the doorway.

Iruka smiled as he turned to see Tamotsu standing there. "It is the best and the worst part. What brings you here to my classroom?"

"I was passing by when I saw you. It is unlike you to be here so early and I thought you might want some help."

Iruka nodded, "Normally I would say yes, but thankfully, the scrolls were not messed up this time."

"Ah, I heard about what happened last year. I feel bad for the admin that had to deal with the fallout."

Iruka nodded, "Well if you can't keep these scrolls straight, why are you in admin?"

Tamotsushrugged, "You will notice that I'm not in admin."

"No, you teach the youngest students. How has it been having Kakashi's twins in your class?"

"Honestly, not as bad as I was expecting. I am sure Harumi put the fear of Mom in them, because the one time I had to ask if I needed to call her in to deal with them, I was concerned they were about to pass out; they grew pale so fast. After that, they have been great. Too smart for their own goods, but at least it is manageable."

"I can't imagine what they will be like when they get here."

"Little demons I'm sure. But don't worry too much, just get on Harumi's good side and she will back you up in your decisions. I already know she likes you, with how you have dealt with Naruto. So I wouldn't be too worried, besides you have a few years to go."

However before they could continue their conversation, the bell outside rang, one minute until the doors opened and Tamotsu had to go to the door and gather his students. Iruka glanced at the empty classroom one last time, took another deep breath and boxed away the sadness and joy in equal parts.

"Hey Iruka-sensei!" a joyful voice called out.

"Hello Naruto," Iruka replied with a smile on his face.

"I missed you at my party yesterday," Naruto pouted, "Even Sasuke made an appearance."

Iruka nodded, "I was only able to stop in for a moment, I had many parties to attend. I did say hello to Harumi-san though."

"Yeah, she told me, I just wanted to say hi myself."

"Well according to her, you were off playing and she couldn't find you. Like I said, I had lots of students to go and see."

"Alright, but will I still see you?" Naruto's voice dropped from sure and full of joy to nervous and unsure.

"Of course, I'm not going anywhere. Besides when I'm not teaching, I'll be in the missions room handing out missions, so I'm sure I will see you there."

Naruto's grin returned, "Alright!" He turned to the quiet boy beside him, "Hear that, Sasuke, we can still hang out with Iruka-sensei."

"Hn, I told you that yesterday, Naruto. I don't see why you were worried, it isn't like Iruka-sensei disappears when we are not in his class anymore."

Sensing a fight, Iruka interrupted them, "Naruto, Sasuke, if you will take your seats, class is going to start soon. I need to look over this," he waved vaguely in the direction of his desk, "one last time before we begin."

"You got it, Iruka-sensei!" Naruto yelled before he ran to his desk.

Sasuke followed at a much slower pace, his hands in his pockets, but Iruka could see the outline of his hands clenching into tight fists.

It was the same for most of his other students. Today they would find out who their team was. Who the team leader was. Today they would start their training, well at least that is what they thought. Really today was the final test, to see if their Team leader thought they had what it took to become a full shinobi.

Once the class had settled down, Iruka stood in front of his desk and began the slow process of announcing the different teams and having the students move to sit with their team.

Slowly the team leaders showed up, grabbing their teams and leaving. Until only team seven was left. However knowing who their team leader was, it wasn't surprising that he was late. Iruka fought the placement. It wasn't right for a guardian to be the team leader of his ward. However he was out voted, because the Lord Hokage was adamant that the tradition of Team Seven would continue.

Sitting at his desk, Iruka listened to Naruto and Sasuke talk about the different ways they could prank their new sensei. Poor Sakura, she had a crush on Sasuke and it was painfully obvious, but the biggest problem with this team makeup was that Naruto and Sasuke already worked well together and they were far better than Sakura in terms of sheer skill. However Sakura had both beat when it came to intelligence and knowledge. Iruka could only hope that she got over her crush and became serious about her shinobi skills, or else she would be a liability in the field and would get killed.

Shaking his head to get rid of that thought, Iruka's sharp ears heard the soft creak of the wooden floor just outside the door. If he had his way, he would never get that board fixed because it was a good early warning system. He looked up just as the door slid open. Iruka's eyes flew over to the table with Team Seven, wanting to see Naruto's and Sasuke's reaction. Of course Naruto didn't disappoint.

As if the same person, both Naruto and Sasuke jumped out of their chairs and pointed fingers at Kakashi.

"YOU!" the boys shouted, "What are you doing here?"

Kakashi grinned, so big Iruka could see it through the mask, "Hello Team Seven. I'm your Team Leader."

AN: Here we are the final ending. (If you haven't read the other one, check out Ending 1 aka the one where Obito dies). It was difficult to decide if Obito should live or not. So I indulged myself and did both. Which ending did you like? Let me know in the comments.

I hope you all have enjoyed this story. Thank you to everyone who has stuck with this story for the past years of writing. I hope it lived up to the hype.