Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anyone else except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. The song for this chapter is Jess A.'s piano rendition of All Our Days from RWBY. It's not actually played in this chapter, but plays a central theme of this chapter. Another song alternative would be the Piano Guys's rendition of Just the Way You Are by Bruno Mars. Please enjoy!

Author's Notes: First up, to all my reviewers and followers, thank you so much! Apparently as of right now, Civilian Pianist is in 4 communities, has 118 followers, and 85 favorites. It's thanks to you guys that I want to keep writing, so thanks again for supporting me. Hopefully you'll stay with Tomoko and I until the end!

Chapter 9: All Our Days

It was about a week after I had met Obito and Rin that Minato-san visited Nagareboshi again. It wasn't a sudden thing — if anything, the meeting was so casual I just didn't see it coming.

It was just the early morning, where Mom, Dad, and I were all fully dressed in work uniforms (me being in the Sylveon kimono dress again) to clean up the cafe before the work day officially started. I was carefully wiping down the piano itself, taking extra care towards the inner piano strings and gears so that the music would still be in tune when I could faintly feel a small tap on my right shoulder.

Tap tap.

It didn't seem like much at the time, so I ignored it, continuing to clean the giant instrument. The thing is, the tapping didn't stop and instead persisted on my other shoulder. By then, it had already caught my attention, and I turned around only to get a flash of yellow.

…Eh?

Minato-san's soft smile greeted me as his hand went up to my head, lightly ruffling my hair. For once, Minato-san really looked like the Jounin he was supposed to be, donning the usual Konoha green flak jacket over his usual clothes with his Konoha headband tied proudly across his forehead, blue ribbon standing out from his blonde hair. Honestly, it was both fitting and surprising considering that the only times I'd seen him was when he was dressed casually. "Hello, Tomoko-chan, are you free right now?"

"U-Uh…" Oh great, I'm stuttering. "H-hi, Minato-san…and um…yes?" My response came out rather high-pitched and squeaky. Maybe it's the shock of seeing him as the ninja he is that's making me this way.

To my surprise, Minato-san laughed. It wasn't supposed to be anything outstanding, but coming from such a powerful ninja really made me jump. It sounded so happy, so alive.

It reminded me of my old Dad. That powerful man who ran away at 18 in order to escape being drafted into war. The man who taught me almost everything I knew in my old life. That man whom I looked up to as a father and as a person. And yet here Minato-san was, laughing and reminding me of what I lost in that collision.

I loved Dad — and the others I left behind — and the feelings of longing and sadness were so much to where I had to physically push away the memories in my mind in order to concentrate on what Minato-san was saying.

…Looks like I haven't gotten over my past life as much as I thought.

Once Minato-san got over his laughing fit, his hand landed on my head again, lightly ruffling my hair while kneeling down to look at me in the eye. I couldn't help but notice how his eyes were so blue — almost like Mom's. "Neh, Tomoko-chan, how do you feel about seeing Kakashi again?"

Wait, what?

My answer was immediate. "I would love to see him."

Honestly, when thinking on it, Nagareboshi felt a bit empty without the masked ninja. He had always visited me to ask for a song almost every day, and I just got so used to his presence that not seeing him made me feel a bit lonely. Sure, we really didn't talk a lot during those moments and let the music do the talking instead, but I felt a connection with him. Even when taking my past life into consideration, Kakashi was always someone I sympathized with as a person, whether as Tomoko or as my past self. And you know - being a 6 year old without her best friend was just sad.

I just wanted to see him again.

…And maybe tackle-hug him again — only if he would let me. Then again, knowing Kakashi, he wouldn't.

…Darn his anti-socialness!

Again, Minato-san laughed, this time a bit louder than before, holding his stomach with one arm before looking up at me again.

Did he know something that I didn't?

"Actually, right now is the Chunin Exam Finals, and I was thinking of taking you to see Kakashi fight. How do you feel about that?"

Before I had the chance to answer, Dad popped up behind Minato-san's shoulder, glowering in his green work kimono. "What is this I'm hearing, Minato? Do you actually plan on taking my little girl to see death matches?"

Oh no. Dad was in 'Protective Daddy' mode again, and based on the dark aura surrounding him, Minato-san seemed to realize it too, fumbling. "Oh, Judai! Uh, well, I was just thinking my student needed some motivation—"

"At the cost of possibly traumatizing Tomoko?" Dad snapped, arms crossed about his chest. "You know why I've been trying to keep my family out of the ninja business Namikaze, and yet you want to take my own daughter out to see ninja fight?!"

The Yellow Flash was, for once, cowering, slowly becoming smaller and smaller with every second.

Whoa. Time for damage control.

"Daddy, it's okay!" I piped in before the dark aura got too big, barely preventing Shinobi Mind War 1. My voice turned more high-pitched with each breath. Guess that's a benefit of being a kid again. "I'll just be watching from the sidelines and I want to see Kakashi-kun again!"

The aura disappeared immediately, with Dad striding past Minato-san to gently pick me up and cradle me in the crook of his arm. His originally fierce brown eyes were now calmed down to a more tame hazel chocolate hue, looking at me in concern. "Are you sure, Tomoko-chan?"

I nodded, mouth in a firm line to reassure him. Despite my effort, the worried lines on his face only deepened, his stubble twitching a little on his chin. "There will be a lot of blood and people will be hurt — Kakashi-kun included, sweetie. Are you really sure you want to see that?"

"Yeah! I just want to see Kakashi-kun again and support him, Daddy!" At my immediate, heartfelt response, Dad just sighed before cuddling me, stubble scratching my forehead while grumbling in my hair.

Ack — feels weird.

"…When did my little girl start belonging to a boy?" He mumbled dryly.

I honestly had no idea how to respond to that, squirming a little in his hold. What was he trying to insinuate? We were only 6…

Minato-san gently sighed next to me. "Well, I think Tomoko-chan just gave us her opinion, so will you be okay letting her go for a bit Judai?" Dad mumbled something in my hair again, arms tightening around me. "Judai?" Another grumble. "Oi. Judai?"

"GODDAMMIT, MINATO, I GET THE POINT ALREADY!" I found myself being thrust into Minato-san's arms, ears ringing somewhat from Dad's sudden yell.

Ow. I'm blaming you, Minato-san, if I go deaf.

"Just make sure to bring her back before sundown, protect her from any stray jutsu or kunai, and keep an eye on her at. All. Times." Near the end of it, Dad was verbally growling and brandishing a kunai. "Are we clear?" Even though I was far away enough to not worry about it, the glint of black metal looked really terrifying, especially when in Dad's hands.

Meep.

"C-Crystal. I-I got it, Judai. Thanks." Minato-san choked out, voice cracking a little.

I just whimpered, whipping up any courage I had left to look at Dad in the eye. "Daddy, that yell hurt a bit."

Immediately, the Dad I knew was back, lightly patting my head with an apologetic smile while putting away the kunai to…well, wherever it came from.

"I'm sorry about that, sweetie. I just had to chew out some old trash over here." I swear I could see Minato-san get verbally stabbed with each comment Dad made, shrinking a little. "Just be safe and come home soon, okay?"

I sheepishly smiled and reached out to hold his hand. It was honestly a lot bigger than mine and despite the distance, I could distinctly feel the rough calluses on his palms.

Oh well. Have to handle cheering up Minato-san later.

"Okay, Daddy. You make sure to help Mommy out at Nagareboshi. I love you."

At my last words, he immediately brightened, leaning over to plant a loving kiss on my forehead. "I love you too, sweetie. I'll see you soon."

It was about this time that Minato-san decided to hightail it out of the cafe, probably to avoid more of Dad's wrath, quickly nodding to him while walking out with me still in the crook of his arms. Once the warm sunlight began to hit my face, Minato-san turned to look at me, shifting his hold on me a little so that I could look at him face-to-face. Even in the early morning, I could still see how some beads of sweat were still present on his cheeks — probably as an effect of Dad's 'Protective' mode from earlier. "Are you fine being held like this, Tomoko-chan, or do you prefer piggyback?"

In response, I just shrugged. "Whatever floats your boat, Minato-san."

Immediately I found myself regretting that remark because the next thing I knew, I saw a flash of yellow before my stomach somewhat gave out, my eyes noticing the environment being completely different. Turns out the Jounin ended up using the attack that made his namesake of the Yellow Flash. I had to literally clutch onto Minato-san for dear life to properly get a look at everything, wrapping my small arms around his neck.

Instead of the shopping district we started out in, I saw gray walls with a long row of light green spectator stands of sorts, really only consisting of a rectangular platform with metal fencing walling it off. One set of stairs on each side of the room led down to the main floor where most of the fighting took place. One wall was specifically notable for having a large statue of two ninja hands forming a hand-sign, with one of the wall panels behind it specifically being an electronic screen. There were other ninja around us, ranging from Minato-san's height to what looked to be young teenagers. Everyone was wearing a Leaf headband though, with varying ribbon colors of green, red, and blue.

Even though the surroundings looked a bit cleaner than I remembered, I still knew where we were.

This is the Tower from the Forest of Death where Naruto's Preliminary Round took place. So, even back during Kakashi's time, they used this arena often.

Apparently I was too engaged in properly looking around to hear Minato-san's voice. "—Tomoko-chan?" The worried tone immediately snapped me out of it, and I turned my head only to see worried blue orbs. "Was the teleportation too fast for you?"

Um…my stomach feels like it's giving out, but doing great! Don't think the Hiraishin is really a good thing to use on a civilian.

That wasn't actually a good response, even in my head, so I just sugar-coated it. "I-I'm okay, Minato-san. But you can put me down now…"

The Jonin simply smiled before shaking his head, hefting me up a little more so that my head could barely reach his height. "No can do, Tomoko-chan. You won't be able to see from here and besides, Judai — I mean — your dad told me to keep a good eye on you." I didn't miss the small shudder that went through his frame at the last remark and simply pouted.

Guess Dad was a good enough ninja to make even the Yellow Flash terrified. Good to know.

"…Tomoko?" The dry, boyish voice made me blink and look downwards. Silver eyes and a black mask greeted me back, a frown clearly seen through the material.

"…Kakashi-kun?" I rubbed my eyes and blinked again. Sure enough, my best friend was right in front of me, standing up to about Minato-san's waist and looking up at me with disbelief. Unlike the last time I had seen him, Kakashi was donning a completely new outfit consisting of a long-sleeved grey jersey with a brown waist-cape hiding the weapon pouches hanging off his usual black ninja pants. Even from the height I was at, courtesy of Minato-san, I could see the kunai pouch strapped to his left leg as well as some slight scratches and flecks of blood on the few blotches of skin I could see on the Genin. The appearance of the silver haired ninja made me squirm a lot more than before, and it was just enough for the blond Jounin to gently let me down for me to face him properly. "Hey."

"Hey yourself," the Genin grumbled, hands thrust into his pant pockets. "How did you end up getting here, Tomoko?"

In response, I just pointed at his blond sensei, and Minato-san simply shrugged. Kakashi's face fell in response, a frown palpable through his mask. "…Minato-sensei."

"Well, I thought you might need some motivation, Kakashi~!" Despite Minato-san's cheerful tone, the frown on Kakashi's face simply increased, looking more like an exasperated expression.

"Minato-sensei, did that really mean bringing Tomoko here?" He simply raised a hand to his face, shaking his head dryly. "I thought Judai-san wouldn't appreciate it."

I pretended not to notice Minato-san's instinctive flinch at the sound of my dad's name and blinked.

"Well, Daddy let me go so here I am?" I added my two cents rather nervously. Kakashi simply gave me a long stare through the one silver eye peeking through his hand before sighing.

…Why is it that Kakashi seems to sigh mainly around me?

In the end, I just pouted and crossed my arms to look away from the Genin. "And I just wanted to see you…"

"I told you that I would be back in a week or two, didn't I?" Kakashi deadpanned.

Honestly, I wasn't buying any of that shit and just gave him a questioning stare back.

"..."

"..."

"…Well, I guess the two of you have now learned the language of 'awkward but meaningful silence.' Congratulations." Minato-san clapped his hands sarcastically.

"... Isn't it a 'staring, contemplative silence,' Minato-san?" I asked him, breaking eye contact with my infuriating best friend.

"You get the idea, Tomoko." Minato-san droned tonelessly. From his expression, it really looked like he was just done with the entire day already. Considering he dropped the honorific to my name and all.

"…Why were you two even trying to name that in the first place?" Kakashi mumbled.

I just shrugged. "Well, we weren't really talking about anything else now, right? And not to mention, I would really like to hug you right now, but I'm guessing you're not going to touch that with a 10 meter pole until after the Exams are over, aren't you, Kakashi-kun?"

"…You know me so well Tomoko, how could you guess?" I didn't even need to look at the ninja to hear the blatant sarcasm in his normally dry voice.

"Body language says a lot of things, Kakashi-kun," I just wiggled a finger at him. "And right now, yours is clearly saying, 'Don't you dare touch me until I can at least shower and prepare for any kind of concussion your hugs can give.'"

Kakashi dragged his hand across his face before giving me a long stare, silver eyes narrowed. "I don't think I sound like that, Tomoko."

Again, I shrugged my shoulders, rolling my eyes a little. "Well, you tell me, Kakashi-kun—because your tense shoulders and bloodstains kinda say otherwise."

"…You were worried about me," Kakashi stated mildly, taking a step closer.

Well no jack shit, you reckless ninja! I know of some of the things your future self does, and honestly, you would give me far too many heart attacks. 'Worried' is an understatement.

Outside of my inner monologuing, I let out a deep sigh, sounding very Kakashi-like for a second. Guess he was rubbing off on me more than I thought. "…It was obvious, huh?"

Soon enough, my best friend was close enough to be at hugs-length, mouth set in a thin line through his mask. "I told you not to worry, didn't I?"

By then, the child in me was causing my eyes to blur from some tears, and it took all I had to keep my voice steady. "…You did."

Pinch~

"AH!" I jumped, looking around suddenly before my gaze landed onto Kakashi's figure.

Did he just pinch my cheeks?!

Apparently my reaction really threw my friend into a fumble because he started to laugh.

Kakashi. The most stoic ninja that I had ever known. Was laughing.

HUH?!

"What was that for~?!" My voice came out rather high-pitched as a result, my hand landing over the now offended cheek. Despite my little reaction, Kakashi continued to laugh heartily, arms across his stomach with tears in his eyes. "Kakashi-kun~!" I found myself protesting, cheeks now bright red.

"Y-You…" Kakashi kept laughing, wheezing from the amount of mirth escaping his masked mouth. "You just looked so weird just now!" If it wasn't Kakashi, then I would've been offended. Instead, I gaped, blinking rapidly.

It took about a few seconds from my best friend to calm down, and by then, Kakashi had on a 'closed eye smile,' hand reaching out to pat my head. Eh? "Don't worry, Tomoko. I said I would be fine before, and I'm standing right before you, right?" Still in shock, I nodded numbly. "So—"

"Will Hatake Kakashi come down for the next round?"

The announcer's voice made me jump, but unsurprisingly, Kakashi was unfazed, glancing to the side in the direction of the arena before sighing and looking at me in the eye. From the closeness, I could make out the soft pupils of his silver eyes and feel the cool metal of his Konoha headband against my forehead.

"Quit being a dolt and just believe in me, okay?" He huffed gently, lightly bumping my head with his headband. "I'll always protect my friends — that's my ninja way. And how can I do that when I don't come back?"

Lub-dub.

Immediately, I felt really warm, and quite honestly relieved.

How could I not trust him when he said it all like that?

I sighed again before gently smiling at him. "Alright then, Kakashi-kun. Kick their butts and come back safely, okay?"

Kakashi simply smirked through his mask before pinching my cheek again, standing up straight to face the arena. "That's a given already." I could only watch him jump onto the handrail and leap down to the battlefield below, and just shook my head.

Kakashi'll come back. I know he will. With that in mind, I took a deep breath.

"GO KICK THEIR BUTTS, KAKASHI-KUN!"