Kakashi watched Iruka pick pieces of mushrooms from his rice, brows furrowed in concentration as he sifted through the thinly sliced beef and deep-fried tofu. They were sitting on the floor, eating at the coffee table Gai brought in from the waiting room.

Faint lines of irritation etched themselves onto Iruka's forehead, and Kakashi was thankful his smile was hidden behind his mask, charmed by the almost childish display in front of him.

"Not a fan of takikomi gohan?" Kakashi asked around a bite of yakitori. Iruka's determination to fix his meal had provided a good enough distraction to let Kakashi eat at a more sedate pace.

"Putting gobo and mushrooms in rice should be considered a crime," Iruka replied as he continued putting his mushrooms in Kakashi's bowl, his displeasure becoming more apparent the more he found. "My mother made it all the time when I was a child, because its preparation was rather simple. Unfortunately, I grew to hate it."

"I thought you said you grew up in an orphanage."

Iruka kept his gaze in his rice. "I did, for the most part. I was ten when I lost my parents."

"I'm sorry for bringing it up," Kakashi said sincerely and leaned over to pick out a mushroom Iruka missed. The smile Iruka gave him in response was almost shy. "Then what do you like eating?"

"I've been rather obsessed with ramen." Iruka shook his head, laughing. "Of course, once I gained a son, that changed drastically, but there's nothing quite like taking the first sip of a well-made broth."

"One must always set a good example for their children. I'm assuming you force feed Naruto-kun all kinds of dishes with an abundance of vegetables."

"Oh I used to, but I learned that as long as Naruto couldn't taste the vegetables, he'd eat them."

Gai returned into the room then, and he shut the door behind him with his foot while his hands were holding a kettle and two cups.

"I have procured beverages," Gai boomed, and Iruka flinched, nearly poking himself on the cheek. Kakashi handed him a napkin. "Green tea brewed in water from the natural springs of Mount Fuji. Only the best for Kakashi's most esteemed guest."

Iruka leaned forward to whisper, "Is he serious?" and Kakashi shrugged.

"Has everything been to your liking, Iruka-sensei?" Gai asked as he set the cups down in front of them and used the discarded paper bags as a makeshift stand to protect the glass table from the kettle's heat.

"Ah—it's perfect. Thank you for going out of your way to get all this," Iruka answered, bowing his head in gratitude.

Kakashi made sure to keep all of his limbs out of Iruka's range. "He's lying," he said. "He hates takikomi gohan. Not a fan of the mushrooms and gobo. Shame." Iruka's chopsticks came dangerously close to one of Kakashi's pinkies despite the precaution, and Gai's face fell.

"No, wait—" Iruka was kneeling, so he had some height to successfully grab Gai's hand to not let him run off crying— "yes, I am not the biggest fan over mixed rice, but it's the thought that counts, right?"

Gai quickly dropped to his knees, and he grabbed Iruka's hand in both of his own.

"Here we go," Kakashi mumbled, eating the mushrooms Iruka forced on him.

"You are a gift to mankind," Gai swore, and Iruka gave Kakashi a look that could only be a cry for help. "A kindness birthed by your tender grace is unmatched. I shall weep for the rest of my days knowing that Kakashi will forever be soothed by your presence."

Iruka opened and closed his mouth repeatedly. "Uh?" was what came out eventually.

Kakashi set down his chopsticks to throw a crumpled napkin at Gai's face. "Let him go. He still needs to eat."

"Right, of course!" Gai stood up and wiped his tears. "I shall make my leave. If you need anything, call me. Kotetsu and Izumo are also just a floor below."

Kakashi flushed hotly when Gai grinned widely at him and winked. It made him want to slowly pull out every single one of Gai's teeth sans anesthetic as punishment.

Iruka watched him go, and when he turned to face Kakashi, his expression was curious. "I can't help but wonder how you two met. You are complete opposites."

"He's the best in the bodyguard business," Kakashi answered. He put the plastic lid back on his now empty bowl. "I needed someone I could trust, and we're childhood friends. So it's a win-win situation."

"And who are Kotetsu and Izumo?"

Kakashi grabbed one of the cups and served Iruka tea. "The other two that make up our great childhood quartet. They're also the rest of my security detail, except they're more behind the scenes. Physical and cyber protection go hand in hand when running a company."

"And what company is this anyway?" Iruka asked as he served Kakashi in return. "I didn't recognize the abbreviation on the business card, nor the logo on the building." He took his tea and began to take small sips.

"People don't usually know the company by BAB Japan. You're probably more familiar with ANBU Japan, which we own."

Iruka began to choke, and Kakashi nearly knocked over the kettle as he crawled to the other side to pat Iruka on the back. "You own ANBU Japan?" he wheezed.

"Breathe, first," Kakashi said, and wondered if Iruka was always this warm. He was like a furnace, underneath Kakashi's palm. When Iruka calmed, Kakashi continued, "I thought you already knew. It's the first thing that comes up if you search me online."

Iruka grimaced. "In all honesty, all I saw was gossip sites, which I do my best to avoid." He shifted away so he could face Kakashi properly. "I was more interested in your picture. If it hadn't been for Shizune-san telling me your real name, I would have thought you were Jiraiya-san."

"You thought I was some old pervert?" Kakashi asked, devastated. "How old do you think I am?"

Iruka squinted, and Kakashi felt even more insulted. "At first glance? Maybe your late forties." He laughed at Kakashi's noticeable slump to his shoulders. "I'm sorry. It's just, you know, your hair, and the fact you cover your face. Some people might think you're trying to hide wrinkles."

Kakashi smiled bitterly and touched his mask briefly. How he wished that was the case.

The door opening fortunately broke the sudden silence before it could get awkward, and Kakashi was both relieved and terrified to see the face of his assistant, Tenzou.

"This was not planned in your schedule," Tenzou hissed, and Kakashi saw Gai standing right behind him, looking as if he had fought several bulls. For some odd reason, Gai could disarm any thief, scare off hypothetical assassins, but Tenzou was a formidable foe that no amount of training could beat.

"Tenzou," Kakashi began and was immediately quieted by the ghoul expression his assistant took on.

"You have a meeting scheduled in thirty minutes!" Tenzou hissed, and Gai's fear was mirrored perfectly by Iruka's. "You're supposed to be behind that desk making sure our latest issue focusing on the Open Karate Tournament is good enough to be published and distributed."

"I looked at it," Kakashi protested, and the air in the room chilled. Was Iruka always that far away from him?

Tenzou pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. "Kakashi-senpai," he said, "I do not know what is up with you lately, but you've been distracted." He gestured toward Iruka. "A date? In the middle of the day? Really?"

"It's not a date," Iruka was quick to correct. He began to get up. "In fact, perhaps it's best I leave since Hatake-san is—"

"No!" Gai and Kakashi shouted together. Iruka sat right back down to stare Kakashi wide eyed.

Tenzou growled softly. "You have thirty minutes to prepare, or I'm going to burn all your Icha Icha books."

Kakashi whined pitifully the same time Iruka asked incredulously, "Icha Icha?"

"It's Kakashi's favorite series!" Gai answered, to no one's help. Iruka's stare was now judgmental. "Many times we've tried to track down the elusive author, but he seems to be under an alias. Kakashi has been so disappointed not to meet the writer he's admired since he was a teenager."

"Thank you, Gai," Kakashi interjected, "but let's not talk about that right now."

"You're right," Tenzou agreed. "Let's talk about how your date here is going to leave—"

"I am not his date!"

"—and you're going to do what you're supposed to do," Tenzou finished.

Gai cleared his throat. "Tenzou is correct. Kakashi needs to do what he must." He went over to Iruka and Kakashi and grabbed them each by the arm, leading them past Tenzou and toward the elevator. "Which is finish his talk with Iruka-sensei."

"What?!" Tenzou followed after them. "Absolutely not!"

"Tenzou-san, the issue is perfect. He read it hours ago," Gai said and let them go to press the elevator button. He effectively acted as a wall between Tenzou and Kakashi, widening his stance to not let the furious assistant pass him. "Everything will be fine. The editors do not need Kakashi's approval."

"None of this is necessary," Iruka insisted. "I'm sure I can see Hatake-san another time. Though hopefully at a more appropriate time…"

The elevator arrived just as Iruka trailed off, and Kakashi took Iruka by the hand to lead him in. "See you, Tenzou!" he waved cheerfully after pushing the button for the top floor. The last thing he saw was Tenzou's fuming face as the doors closed.

"He's just doing his job," Iruka said after a moment. He was frowning, and Kakashi flinched, knowing that his displeasure was now toward him. "You told me you didn't have any meetings today."

"Yeah, well, I lied."

That did nothing to ease Iruka's souring mood.

"It's just," Kakashi continued, "I didn't know when I would get this opportunity again."

Iruka threw his arms up in exasperation. "Hatake-san, you know where I live and where I work. There is ample opportunity."

"But you would have continued hating me if you hadn't come here," Kakashi answered softly, and Iruka grew quiet. "A part of me had already accepted that perhaps we could never be friends."

In all honesty, the thought of never seeing Iruka again had gripped Kakashi in particular sort of fear he hadn't felt in a long time. It was concerning, but Kakashi ultimately pushed that feeling away, believing Gai's dramatics was rubbing off on him.

"I didn't hate you," Iruka said, finally, as thirteen floors passed in seconds. "It takes a lot for me to hate someone. What you did upset me, but I wouldn't have denounced you even if I really wanted to. And trust me, I wanted to." His smile was wry.

Kakashi felt the urge to start fidgeting and shoved his hands into his pockets instead. "I don't know what else to say other than I'm sorry."

"And I've decided to accept your apology," Iruka replied. "Though it will take some time for me to forgive your actions. But we're going to be friends now right? Always room for growth."

Kakashi beamed, and the elevators opened to reveal a small lounge with walls and its ceiling made entirely of glass.

"What is this place?" Iruka asked as Kakashi motioned for him to go out first.

"This leads to the roof garden." Kakashi walked over to the double doors and pushed one open. "A little pet project of mine when I first bought the building. It's where everyone usually goes to unwind if they don't want to spend their lunch indoors."

Iruka raised an eyebrow. "I never would have guessed you're the type to enjoy gardening."

"I have a bit of a green thumb, but I usually let hired workers do most of the work for large spaces like these."

"Hm."

Kakashi inclined his head and watched as Iruka's face brightened as he stood at the threshold, taking in the vision that was presented to him. "There's a lot of things left to learn, sensei. For instance, I really enjoy the look on your face when I surprise you."

Nothing about the garden was particularly complex, perhaps the most being the vines covering the fences along the edges of the rooftop, looking as if they had naturally emerged from the metal. Stone benches were scattered along the tile footpath, small flowers peeking out from the soil around them. A water fountain sat in the middle of everything, which would be illuminated by fairy lights at night.

"It's beautiful," Iruka murmured, perhaps not registering or simply ignoring Kakashi's words. "You designed this?"

Kakashi made sure to stick close to Iruka as they walked slowly. "I wish. It was more of a group effort. I started with the blueprint, Tenzou added in the fences, Gai was in charge of lighting, and the choice of plants were all Izumo and Kotetsu's doing. Arrangement was done by the gardeners themselves." He brought Iruka over to a bench. "Why don't you take a seat, sensei."

"Can I see the rest first?" Iruka asked, hopeful, and Kakashi would be foolish to reject his request.

"Go ahead." Kakashi then took a seat, content on just watching Iruka.

Iruka stopped at the lone Japanese Maple, reaching up to thumb one of its garnet leaves, and it was short enough that Iruka didn't need to tip toe. Filtered sunlight played across his face, making his brown skin glow, and it was almost dream-like.

When Iruka seemed satisfied by what he saw and returned to the stone bench, Kakashi stood. "I'd like you to meet someone very special," he said, and Iruka gave an apprehensive glance over his shoulder.

"It's not the small snake statue, is it?"

"Heavens, no. Every time I try to get rid of it, it keeps mysteriously coming back."

Iruka laughed, and it was reserved, quiet, compared to his laughter back in Kakashi's office. It was as if he considered this place to be sacred, and Kakashi was once again charmed.

They walked past the tree toward the farthest side, where a lone potted peace lily was tucked between bamboo. Kakashi squatted and quickly assessed its health.

"This is Mr. Ukki," Kakashi said, and Iruka mimicked his stance. "I originally kept him in my bedroom, but I thought he was quite lonely and gave him a place here."

"Mr. Ukki? You named it?"

"Cute, isn't it?" Kakashi joked.

"Very," Iruka agreed, lips curling into an amused smile, and Kakashi had to force himself to look back at Mr. Ukki. "Everything here is wonderful. Mr. Ukki must be happy, I would be too. Though I much prefer the sea."

"Your village was on the coast?"

Iruka nodded. "Yes, in Southern Japan. It's very small. I'm surprised that people remember to put it on the map."

"Tell me about it," Kakashi urged.

"Though we do have some fields for agriculture, it's a fishermen village that has had the same families for generations. Naruto often complained about our lack of variety in meals and refuses to eat mackerel to this day." Iruka shook his head and stood up, probably uncomfortable with squatting for so long. "So it was inevitable I guess, for him to become obsessed with ramen as much, perhaps even more so, than me."

"Are you good at fishing?"

Iruka snorted. "I enjoy it, but I'm not very good at it. Don't ask me how. I much preferred swimming among the fishes instead of trying to catch them. The water was so clear that you could even see the floor and the coral."

"I've never fished before, nor visited the ocean, even though it's fairly close by," Kakashi mused out loud. "I think I'll burn too easily. My skin can't even handle Tokyo's summers."

"It's never too late to go," Iruka replied and smiled. It was a small, sad thing. "My father made sure I loved the ocean as much as he did, but he also emphasized education was more important than getting lost in the waves."

Kakashi reached out and gently squeezed Iruka's wrist before letting go. "So he led you to your passion in books?"

"Yes."

When Kakashi began to lose feeling in his legs, they moved back to the stone bench. Iruka had grown quieter, and Kakashi found that he did not like it when Iruka retreated further into his shell.

"You know, you never told me what your favorite book was, back at the restaurant," Kakashi said.

Iruka visibly cheered up, and Kakashi released a breath he didn't know he was holding. "It's called The Tale of a Gusty Ninja. It wasn't widely popular, and I'm pretty sure it's now out of print, but I adored it as a child. My mother read it to me almost every night." He then narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You're not going to tell me that your favorite book is from the Icha Icha series, are you?"

"You have to promise not to tell," Kakashi whispered and leaned in real close. "Because it isn't Icha Icha."

Iruka feigned a gasp and said, "Oh my!" though his face was totally indifferent. "Tell me, I almost dying from curiosity."

"Pinky promise?" Kakashi laughed as Iruka made a noise in disbelief. He raised up his pinky. "Come on, sensei."

"It's Iruka-san," Iruka corrected and linked their pinkies together. "Fine, I promise."

"My favorite book is actually Majo no Takkyūbin. It was my father's favorite, and naturally, it became mine too." Kakashi quickly leaned away when Iruka blatantly stared at their still joined pinkies. "Sorry to say, I think witches on broomsticks are much more interesting than ninjas."

In reply, Iruka raised a fist at him. Kakashi pretended to shield himself by crossing his arms over his chest, laughing, but he stopped when Iruka's lowered his fist with a pensive expression.

"You said was." Iruka frowned. "Has your father passed away as well?"

Kakashi swallowed the lump in his throat and tried not to shrink back. Did Iruka truly not know anything about him. "Don't worry about it," he said after a moment and knew what little Iruka saw of his smile was strained. "It happened a long time ago."

Only silence could come after that, and Kakashi began to feel very, very small. Would Iruka stay, once he found out about Sakumo? What it meant to be associated with a Hatake? How unlucky his family was?

"Whatever you're thinking about, don't," Iruka said, and poked Kakashi right in the middle of his forehead. "I've seen Naruto make that face a lot too, when I first adopted him, and I can tell you right now that it won't help."

Kakashi rubbed his forehead. "I hope you don't treat your students like this."

"I don't have students," Iruka reminded him. "I have assistants."

"Tell Tsunade to pay them well."

Iruka laughed at that. "Don't use my words!"

"I can use them all I want."

The sound of a phone cut off Iruka's retort, and Kakashi was a little irritated over this second interruption, but he also knew the world they constructed in the garden was only temporary.

"It's Naruto," Iruka said and shook his head. "He's hungry, and there's no more leftovers. I should probably get home before he decides to harass the nearby convenience store cashier for instant ramen."

Kakashi sighed softly. "Do you really have to go?"

Translation: you should let Naruto starve.

"I must. Naruto can get rather ruthless when he doesn't eat." Iruka looked apologetic, and Kakashi took that as a victory. "I would definitely love to come back and visit the garden. Especially since it's still warm and autumn weather will be arriving soon."

"You're always welcome here," Kakashi said sincerely, and they made their way back toward the elevator. "Tell Nozawa to get you a cab when you reach the front desk. The faster you get home, the better, yes?"

"There's no need. I can get home just fine on public transportation."

"Stubborn," Kakashi scolded and playfully wagged his finger. "Let me do this just once, Iruka-san. It's not an act of charity, it's to save mankind from a hungry Naruto."

Iruka caved in rather quickly. Perhaps there had been an incident that traumatized him. "Alright, alright, fine. But no more after this."

"I solemnly swear. Have a safe trip, sensei, and see you soon."

Tenzou looked both sympathetic and disgusted. "You're absolutely hopeless."

"What on earth are you on about?" Kakashi asked as he removed his suit jacket and placed it on the back of his chair. The meeting had been unnecessary, in the end, but he had kept his mouth shut.

"I can't tell if you're trying to befriend him or trying to court him."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "How archaic. I've only known him for a week. It's the former, really." He sat and placed his feet on the desk, much to Tenzou's annoyance. "There's something about him. Iruka-san is different. I'm still trying to figure out what that is."

"Well, I hope you exchanged numbers because you're going to be in South Korea for a month," Tenzou said, and looked smug when Kakashi leaned so far back in shock he toppled over.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked when he scrambled to his feet.

Tenzou tapped his pen on his clipboard. "Seoul is this year's host to the Cadet Karate Championships. Uchiha Itachi is representing Japan in the individual kata, and we're his sponsor. You're expected to attend."

Kakashi grimaced. "I completely forgot."

"I know you did. That's why I still have my job."

"When do I leave?"

Tenzou checked his watch with an air of apathy. "Tomorrow around noon. I advise you go home now to start packing."

Kakashi immediately began using every expletive he knew, and Gai burst in through the door seconds later, exclaiming that he had never heard such vulgar vocabulary come out of Kakashi's mouth and he should cease immediately. Tenzou hid his smile behind his clipboard the entire time, but Kakashi failed to notice Tenzou write a small reminder to find the phone number of one Umino Iruka.