Thirteen Years Prior
Daiki and Kakashi stood in front of the freshly reinstated third Hokage. Two buns sat on top of her head, the rest of her electric blue hair hung freely about her shoulders. Her young face was hidden behind a red and white mask which resembled a lioness.
"Lord Fourth is dead." Kakashi spoke boldly, grey hair spiking out behind his cartoonish cat mask. The teenagers were clad in the typical anbu garb, a red marking tattooed on their left biceps; perfect uniformed child soldiers.
"Yes." Hiruzen nodded, holding a newborn in his arms. "Kushina as well." The room was thick with sadness and despair. Kakashi had pleaded with the elder shinobi to allow him to fight against the nine tails but the request had been denied.
"Naruto?" Daiki asked, keeping her tone even and her voice low. Hiruzen displayed the infant to the young warriors, without a word. The small bundle had short yellow hair, his cheeks, decorated with whiskers like a fox, were flushed a light pink, and he seemed unaware of just how difficult his life would no doubt be. "Orphaned." She whispered, pulling the mask free of her face. It was something she could sympathize with all too well; raised by wet nurses and nannies, until she was old enough to care for herself. She remembered her first night in her flat, alone, barely 5 years old. It was around the same time she joined the academy.
"An unfortunate truth." Hiruzen agreed. Daiki hadn't been Minato's student, like Kakashi, but she felt the deaths with equal levels of anguish.
Daiki sat cross-legged on the low hanging branch, braiding the ends of her hair. Her lilac eyes trained on Kakashi and Rin. The pair were waiting impatiently in the training field for their teammate Obito. The Uchiha was regularly late, and oftentimes with no valid excuse. Minato was at the edge of the field, whispering with his young wife, Kushina. Daiki felt her heart warm as she watched the couple. They were everything she had imagined her parents might have been if they weren't victims of war.
"You really shouldn't bring your friend." Kakashi voiced his disappointment to Rin as his dark eyes met Daiki's.
"I think she has a crush on Obito." Rin smiled, her warmth barely phasing the young emotionally hardened boy.
"Daiki." Minato called for the young girl's attention as he moved closer to the group of children.
"Sir?" She asked, sliding down from the tree and gracefully landing a few paces away from the Yellow-Flash of the Leaf.
"Would you escort Kushina back for me?" He asked, flashing her a brilliant smile.
"Absolutely, Sir." Daiki beamed, clasping her hands behind her back as she peered past him to look at Kushina.
"Maybe you'll get lucky and she'll thank you with a warm meal." He glanced back at his wife, admiration clear in his features.
"May I?" Daiki asked, pushing the porcelain mask on top of her head between the knots. She held her arms out for the child, wanting to hold the child.
"Just this once." Hiruzen nodded, transferring Naruto to the young girl. Daiki held him close to her, careful to keep the blanket between his skin and her grey armor.
"He looks just like his father." She whispered.
"What happens to him?" Kakashi asked, peering through his mask as the baby, leaning slightly closer to the girl.
"He will be treated like all orphaned children." Hiruzen explained. "Never knowing the truth of this."
"The nine-tails is sealed inside of him." Daiki noted, pulling the cloth back to expose the seal on his stomach. "They will treat him with disdain. Eventually he will learn the truth."
"Not from either of you." Hiruzen demanded. He slid his hands under the bundle, navigating around her arms. "The two of you are being officially reassigned. Uzumaki-Namikaze matters are no longer your concern."
"My lord." Daiki began, determined to argue.
"No more." Hiruzen interrupted.
Ten Years Prior
Daiki took her grey armor off, resting it on the kitchen counter next to her porcelain mask, leaving her clad in black pants and a skin-tight black tank top. She unbraided her hair and moved slowly to the fridge, opening the door to see what groceries were needed. The sun had been down for hours, it had taken her longer to get to the flat than she'd expected.
"Daiki." A dark haired woman spoke from her place on the dark blue sofa.
"Yuki." The blue haired girl greeted. "Sorry I'm so late."
"I didn't expect you here." The woman stated. "Lord third-"
"You can go for the night." Daiki interrupted. "I'll send for you if anything changes but for now just plan to return in the morning."
"Yes miss." Yuki agreed, taking her leave. After scribbling down a list of necessities Daiki moved to the bedroom, picking up free standing clutter along the way. She pushed the door open and a small smile spread across her lips. Naruto clutched his body pillow, clad in his blue pajamas with the dark animal faced nightcap. Daiki crawled into the small open space behind Naruto, wrapping her arms around the small child.
"Good night, sweet boy." She whispered, burying her face in his soft yellow hair.
Five Years Prior
Kakashi watched Daiki rearrange a handful of goodies in the wicker basket. She had filled the basket with a handful of single serve ramen cups, muffins, and a loaf of homemade banana bread. Her hair was fashioned in due braids and her gentle face was focused. Narrow features displaying an unspoken kindness.
"Lord Third is going to be furious." Kakashi noted. He was dressed in his anbu armor, but his mask was resting on the counter next to her basket. He traced the design with his forefinger as she spoke, waiting impatiently for her to finish. The bottom half of his face was hidden behind black cloth, per usual, and he held his scared left eyes closed.
Kakashi looked at the teary eyed girl. Her electric blue hair swayed in the light breeze, dancing around her petite shoulder.
"Where is Obito?" She asked, the answer was already so clear to her. Kakashi's left eye was held shut, a fresh scar over the agitated flesh of his eyelid.
"Fuck him." She shrugged, setting the basket on a pre-cut sheet of plastic wrap to encase the goodies. "That boy deserves better."
"He'll retire you if you continue to disobey him." He shrugged. "19 seems a little premature to give up such a successful career."
"He isn't going to retire me." Daiki rolled her eyes, tying a red ribbon around the basket handle. "I have the highest success rate for reconnaissance, second only to Itachi. I'm also one of the most skilled interrogators assigned to the anbu."
"A glorified torture maiden." He scoffed, leaning forward on the counter.
"Why are you here?" She smirked, looking up at him.
"Well, Itachi's on assignment." Kakashi shrugged. "I'm not really a fan favorite among my comrades."
"They like you." Daiki assured him, running her fingers through his wild hair. "They just don't want to be in the way."
"They call me 'Friend-Killer Kakashi'."
Kakashi sat in the middle of his bedroom floor, his eyes pooling with unshed tears. He had heard the whispers, what the others were calling him. He had failed his teammates, lost both of them. His room was dark, lit only by what little seeped in from the town outside. Daiki walked slowly into the dark room, careful not to disturb anything. She knelt down behind the boy, closing her eyes so as not to see his exposed face. She didn't want to betray his confidence. She wrapped her arms around him, her palms resting on his chest as she set her chin on his shoulder. Kakashi tensed at her touch. He had heard her approaching, but hadn't expected her to make contact.
"It's okay." She whispered. "You did what you could." Kakashi relaxed, closing his eyes and bowing his head.
The pair found themselves standing in front of Hiruzen once again, the environment heavy with despondency. The three were five years older, five years more jaded than before, the only difference.
"It's a tragedy to be sure." Daiki noted. "Embarrassing that so many in our ranks were foiled by the genjutsu of a thirteen year old boy."
"He is not the average 13 year old." Kakashi explained. "You know that. Not all of us are blessed with an immunity to genjutsu."
"It isn't a blessing." She countered. "It's a skill I spent years perfecting."
"Irrelevant." Hiruzen called their attention back to him. "Daiki, I am assigning you to the retrieval team. Your goal is to apprehend Uchiha Itachi and eliminate the threat if need be."
"Eliminate him?" Kakashi asked. "Is this a call you can make on your own?"
"Do not question me." Hiruzen instructed. "Daiki you are dismissed, report to your superior or further detail."
"Sir." She bowed her head, leaving Kakashi and the weathered hokage to speak privately.
Three Years Prior
Sasuke slung a kunai at Daiki, she swatted it away with ease. He tried a new approach; taijutsu. He closed the distance between them, his little legs propelling him into the air. He kicked towards her. She raised her arm, his shin connecting with her forearm. The black material of her shirt bunching under the force. He fell backwards from the impact. She shoved her hands into the pockets of her black pants and took a deep breath. He was driven yet still so immature. His failure to inflict damage on the kunoichi did not deter him. Sasuke picked himself off the ground and lunged at her again. Daiki positioned the bottom of her foot against his stomach, striking him down again. This time Sasuke skidded across the ground, though the force delivered was not grand. The dirt scraped up his knee and his resolve. Sasuke sat down in the dirt, his eyes filling with tears.
"I'll never be enough." Sasuke muttered. Daiki joined him in his defeat, kneeling down in front of the young boy. She ran her thumb across the scrape on his knee.
"You're ten years old." She whispered. "These things take time."
"I don't have time." Sasuke argued. "You wouldn't understand!"
"Wouldn't I?" She asked, pulling the boy up out of the dirt. "You start the academy tomorrow and you're already so talented." After a few moments of silence Daiki wrapped her arms around the boy, hugging him against her hip. Sasuke begrudgingly hugged her back.
"You don't have to check in on me." Sasuke muttered. "I don't need a mother."
"I promise you I am not trying to be your mother." She assured him. "I'm having dinner with Naruto, why don't you join us."
"No." Sasuke refused. "I'd like to eat on my own."
Present Day
Kakashi leaned against the tree, the orange book open in his left hand, his other tucked away in the pocket of his pants. Daiki crossed her arms, her face obscured by the lioness mask. He was clad in the typical Jonin fashion; green flack jacket and shinobi headband proudly displayed yet easily covering his sharingan. Another eight years had aged the pair significantly. Not longer were they ruthless, mission oriented teens, driven by a need to prove their worthiness to the village. Kakashi had been retired from the anbu the same night Daiki had been promoted to task force leader, a position she currently held; though the current mission had been shifted and no longer centered around the rouge traitor Itachi.
"You were assigned a team?" Daiki asked, taking half a step closer to her comrade.
"I was." He nodded, closing the book and sliding it into his jacket. "A meeting to which I am running late for."
"There is a surprise." She chuckled.
"I was assigned Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto, and Uchiha Sasuke." Kakashi reached up for her mask as he revealed the identities of his students. Daiki tensed, tightly gripping his wrist to halt his action.
"My boys." She stated, strain clear in her voice.
"Hiruzen rejected the adoption request." He reminded her, the muscles in his forearm contracting as he fought against her restraint. The resistance forced her to grip tighter.
"I see them three times a week, when I'm not on assignment." She explained. "And I check in with them as soon as I return from assignment. I don't give a damn what the old man says, they're my boys."
"I don't want to hurt you Ki." His eye focused on the hand that clung to his arm.
"You couldn't." She assured him, letting his hand go anyways. Kakashi jerked the mask free from her face, breaking the band which secured it. Electric blue strands of her hair branched out wildly at the contact. Her cheeks were flushed, but out of frustration rather than embarrassment. Kakashi used his other hand to hold the back of her head.
"I'll take care of them." He whispered, pressing his masked lips against her worried forehead.
"You better." She warned.
"Will you act like you don't know me?" Kakashi asked, stepping away from her and offering her mask back. Daiki took the porcelain from him and turned her back to him.
"That depends on you." She shrugged. "They know where I am from and to an extent my duties. Revealing a history could expose the past you are duty bound to hide."
"I'll let you know."
"Don't keep them out late." She instructed.
"Yes mom…I mean ma'am." Kakashi teased. Daiki rolled her eyes and repositioned the mask over her face. Kakashi left her, heading towards his meeting.