Summary: Hatake Kakashi, copy ninja. Not much is known of him. His past is yet to be uncovered.
Warning: Slight Yaoi Iruka/Kakashi and violence.
Note: This is the last chapter! Enjoy! And final thanks to Masterdeeds for the beta-reading! Also, I know this came out really late, and I'm sorry, but there's so much I can do against bad internet connection, school, birthday parties and the usual occupations of life.
Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me.
The Past Behind the Mask
Chapter 3: A Promise of Retribution
Night had fallen, and the sky had turned a deep blue sparkling with stars under the soothing light of the moon. The air was cooler but very refreshing and a slight breeze had picked up, causing small shivers.
Iruka was stretched on the grass, his arms crossed behind his head as a pillow, and he was watching the stars as he recalled his past. Kakashi had rested his head on his friend's chest and was fingering his Sharingan. His head protector lay forgotten on the ground beside him, as well as most of his equipment.
"I think I'm happy to have been out cold that time," Iruka said gently, not daring to disturb the tranquil mood of the night.
"You would have stopped me. I wasn't thinking straight," Kakashi replied and shook his head as he let his hand drop on his chest.
"I would have been afraid to," the chuunin answered and removed one arm from behind his head to start playing in Kakashi's hair. "You still scare me when you're like that," he continued and jerked the silver hair gently.
Kakashi pretended to wince and arched his neck to look at Iruka. The two stared at each other for a moment before going back to their black thoughts.
The operation room looked nothing like one. It was a simple circular room made of the same type of rock than the cells and was lit by a few oil lamps that gave a rank smell. Three beds had been set in the middle.
"What are you going to do?!" Haji yelled as he fought the men dragging him to one of the beds. Kakashi and Iruka had already been laid down and tightly strapped. "Hatake! You bastard! You sold us to them!"
The Uchiha was fighting with everything he had, his Sharingan seeming to shine even more in the gloom. He had heard all of Kakashi's conversation with the Healer, and he was hysterically trying to get free. His eyes darted everywhere and he was even starting to foam at the mouth.
"You won't get my Sharingan! You won't!" he kept yelling while trying to kick, punch, and bite the men holding him. The Healer walked to him with his hand gripping the handle of a scalpel.
"And who is going to stop me, boy?" he asked with a wicked smile. Haji's face froze in horror but before he could shriek, the Healer's scalpel sliced his throat neatly. Haji's yell became a gurgle as blood poured from the gash and his eyes glazed, though his Sharingan did not disappear.
Kakashi looked from his bed in shock. His mouth worked but no sound came out. He had not meant to kill Haji! What was going on?
"Don't look so horrified boy," the Healer snapped. "You aren't of the Uchiha blood. If I had given you just the eye, not transformed into a Sharingan, it would have stayed a simple eye for you. It has to be removed and transplanted while being Sharingan, otherwise it won't work," the Healer said impatiently and motioned the men to place the body on the last bed.
The Healer gave Kakashi's horrified face one flicker before sighing heavily.
"Can't you see there was no other way? He could have made the Sharingan disappear whenever he wanted, and it disappears on its own when the person is unconscious. It would have ruined everything. Death was the only way to seal the eye into a Sharingan. And he very nearly managed to revert it back before I killed him," the Healer added as an afterthought.
Kakashi's brain was numb. He had killed Haji. One of the strongest if not most courageous genin. He didn't seem to want the Sharingan any longer. In fact, the very idea of living with the eye of the boy he had killed made him want to vomit.
"Get ready. I'll use jutsus and anaesthetics, but you'll still feel some pain," the Healer warned as he approached with the Sharingan and other sharp instruments from a tray beside Haji's bed. The eye seemed to glare at him, accusing. A promise of retribution.
Kakashi didn't remember when he had passed out, but when he woke up, his left eye socket throbbed painfully. Not a stabbing pain but more like a dull one. In any case, it was nothing he could not endure. The operation had not been very painful, not exactly, but the feeling of the Healer's instruments in his socket and the squishy sound when he had put the eye in would have been enough to make him throw up. The previous events and his blood loss had been enough to finish him, and he had fainted. Which was probably for the good.
Kakashi sat up and fingered the bandage over the Sharingan. It felt clean. He made his eyelid flutter under the tissue, but winced as the pain sharpened. He was anxious to see what it was like, seeing with a Sharingan, even if he dreaded it a bit. And thinking about where he had gotten it...
"Is it painful?"
The silver-haired boy looked at his friend and shrugged. Iruka was sitting in his bed, a clean bandage covering half his face over his nose. His eyes had lost all of their feverish light of earlier and were now furious.
"A bit," he answered and threw his legs over the bed.
"The Healer told me what you did." Kakashi froze at Iruka's sudden accusing glare. "What were you thinking?" he spat, leaning forward angrily. "We're going to betray Konoha! Do you have a single idea what that means? Was the Sharingan worth that? Was it even worth killing Haji?"
Kakashi was about to reply something when Tochi barged in.
"Come on kids, we're leaving," he ordered, pushing them outside. Iruka was staggering slightly, and his face was white under the bandage. But despite that, he walked with his head high, glaring at Kakashi when he looked at him. The silver-haired boy followed suit glumly, a deep feeling of guilt creeping up from the depth of his mind. There was no anger left, just stabbing shame for what he had done. He had been foolish, he realized, and now he had endangered everyone he loved.
They stepped outside where ten ninjas were waiting, and the boys looked at the mouth of the cave they had stepped out of with surprise. It was just a tiny crevice well hidden by berry bushes and ferns that jutted out from a rough cliff. Kakashi recognized the surroundings; it was just outside Fire country. He would never have seen the entrance if someone had not pointed it to him.
"Listen kids. This is what you'll do," Tochi started explaining, but Kakashi barely listened. Two of the ninjas were holding a litter carrying what could be distinguished as a human body covered by a white cloth. The silver-haired boy averted his gaze as he swallowed audibly. His Sharingan seemed to throb harder somehow.
The Healer came out from the crevice, bending not to hit his head on the low edge of the rock, and walked straight to Kakashi.
"You must not remove the bandage for at least five days. I have placed a jutsu on it that will help you establish control of the Sharingan. If you remove it before that, the Sharingan will refuse your blood and fight it, and even I don't know what will happen then. There is a chance you might be able to control it but I would not risk it. Remember. Five days," he said seriously, waving his hand in emphasis. Kakashi nodded, but he did not listen. He wanted the thing out of his head, but if living with it could punish him a bit for what he had done, he'd keep it gladly.
"Come on guys. Remember your part and everything will go well," Tochi concluded and started running towards Konoha. Everyone followed, Kakashi and Iruka just behind him, tailed by the two ninjas with the litter.
The way to the hidden village was made silently and fast, but when they came just out of sight of the gates, Tochi made everyone slow to a walk. Kakashi and Iruka took the lead, and the Healer and Tochi followed closely on their heels.
The brown-haired genin cast a look at Kakashi that made him want to rip the Sharingan out with his bare hands. That look said he would not betray Konoha, whatever happened, and that he'd be the one to kill Kakashi if the boy truly became a traitor. But the thing Kakashi hated the most in that look was his friend's disappointment. They were cold eyes with no love in them.
The gates finally appeared and the guards hurried to meet them as soon as they were spotted.
"Hatake! Umino! Your teachers are looking everywhere for you! What the hell were you doing? And where's Uchiha?" The guard froze when he saw the litter, and he studied the ninjas as if seeing them for the first time.
"We found those boys in an ambush near the borders, and helped them escape. Unfortunately, we could not do anything for the third one. The enemy managed to run away with his Sharingan," the Healer explained with a voice so heavy with sadness it was a wonder he was not bawling on the ground.
Kakashi was shaken out of his trance at that, and he started to really see what was going on. They wanted the Leaf Ninjas to restlessly search the countryside looking for the ones who had stolen the Sharingan so that the thieves wouldn't be able to use its secret. That would distract the villagers long enough so that Tochi and his ninjas could do their little spy work without anyone realizing it.
The silver-haired boy looked around to evaluate their situation. There were six gate ninjas, eight with him and Iruka, although they hardly were in any state to fight, against eleven enemies. If somehow they could hold on long enough for help to arrive, maybe they'd have a chance.
Kakashi felt his Sharingan over the bandage. A promise of retribution. He could not seriously betray Konoha, not after what he had done to Haji. He had to pay, and if it meant his life, then so be it.
"Don't listen to them!" Kakashi yelled suddenly. All heads turned to him with various degrees of surprise. The guard had just finished checking Haji's body and giving orders to another ninja to have troops sent hunting the killers. Iruka was staring at him as if he had grown a second head, but Kakashi was glad to see that some respect was shining in his eyes again.
"They're the enemies! The captured us and killed Haji!" He almost stammered on the last part. True, the Healer had killed Haji, but he was the one that had signed his death sentence.
And, just like that, all hell broke loose. Fights erupted everywhere with shouts and moans of agony. The guards were strong, but they were overwhelmed by too much. They were seven against eleven, and Kakashi could only hope that the sixth guard had managed to escape to call reinforcements.
Kakashi was doing all he could from a distance, throwing his last shurikens and kunais while fighting dizziness and pain in his left eye. All of his throws missed, but they were sometimes enough to distract the enemy and give the guards an opening, which was often enough to give the Leaf Ninjas the upper hand. The genin looked around frantically for the next enemy and his heart stopped when he saw Iruka being attacked by Tochi himself. Fumbling in his weapon pouch, Kakashi cursed when he realized he had nothing left and threw himself at Tochi. The stocky man dodged him easily and used his momentum to heel him in the back. Kakashi crumbled on the ground with a gasp and his vision doubled. His air left his lungs abruptly and he was left gaping, trying to breathe.
The genin knelt painfully, breathing hard, and watched as Tochi took his time to beat Iruka. The brown-haired boy did not stand a chance, and all the guards had their hands full with the other enemies. Tochi was moving so quickly he couldn't see his moves. If only he could see!
A stab of pain in his left eye socket made Kakashi grunt and he realized he had tried to open his eye under the bandage. 'Five Days'. But he had to see now, or Iruka would die! 'Five Days'. He had to control the Sharingan now, or he'd also die, and his death would not be enough to repay Haji. 'Five Days'.
Kakashi ripped the bandage off and opened his Sharingan. He had thought that when Haji had ripped his left eye out he had been in agony, but it was nothing compared to now. His left eye burned as if thrown into the heart of a brazier, and the burn flowed with his blood throughout his body with each heartbeat. His ears rang with the sound of the blood rushing in his head, but it was not enough to cover the shriek of pain ripping out of his throat. But Kakashi kept walking. He had to see. He had to save Iruka!
With every staggering step, Kakashi fought the Sharingan. With every step, the blackness over his left eye receded. With every step, the pain subsided. With every step, he gained stronger control over the Sharingan.
Kakashi picked up a kunai lying on the ground and made a throw at Tochi. The big man avoided it easily, and turned his attention to the genin. He took his godly time to walk to him and shifted his balance to knee the boy in the stomach, but Kakashi could see. He could read the man's move. The slightest move of his feet, the subtlest shift of his balance, he read all that in a split second and knew what the man was about to do. The silver-haired boy caught the taller man's knee in his left palm and punched him square in the face with the other.
Tochi stumbled slightly and gave Kakashi an amused smile.
"Well, looks like the Healer underestimated you. This would be an interesting fight, but I've got no time, so I'll end this quickly," the big man snickered and started making seals.
Before he realized it, Kakashi was copying the man's seals. The Sharingan was able to see the seals a second before Tochi executed them, and the genin had started mixing chakra without even knowing how much he needed. But again, just by the man's face, the way his jaw was clenched tight and how his muscles were tensed, by his whole stance, he was able to calculate and mix the right amount of chakra. All that a split second before Tochi.
"Doton Shinjuu Zanshu no jutsu!" the stocky man yelled and Kakashi heard his own echo of the jutsu. Before he could understand what had happened, Tochi was buried in the ground so that only his head showed. The man was squirming and cursing as he tried to dig himself out, but it was no use.
Kakashi looked around and found a stray kunai, but he had only managed to raise it above his head before he collapsed on his knees, breathing heavily and sweat dampening his hair. The Sharingan was a solid ball of pain, even once Kakashi closed his eye. The world seemed to dull, when the Sharingan was hidden, but the genin couldn't care less. He had no strength left. He tried to raise his hand, to kill the man at his mercy, but his arms wouldn't obey.
"What's wrong kid? Can't do it? Are you really a ninja?" Tochi sneered and spat in the dirt. Kakashi raised his head, his eye blazing with anger despite his weariness. He slowly raised his arm, the kunai seeming to weight ten times heavier, but before he could strike, a firm hand grabbed his wrist.
"You've done enough Kakashi. You need to rest."
The genin turned his head and stared at his teacher incredulously. The man was kneeling beside him and smiling warmly, while Iruka's teacher was carrying his student inside the gates. There were a few more juunins taking care of the enemy and Haji's corpses.
Kakashi opened his mouth to say something, thank you, I'm sorry, anything, but unconsciousness grabbed him before he could do anything.
"The trials after that were endless," Iruka muttered. He moved his arm from under his head and groaned as the circulation that had been cut before surged back into the muscles with the painful ticklish feeling.
"You say that. You only had to go once and tell what had happened. I was the one convicted for murder and treason," Kakashi replied and sat up suddenly. "And I still don't know how I got away with no more than a few months' work."
Iruka copied him and stretched. They had been in one position for too long.
"Would you have preferred to be given the death sentence? Do you still think you haven't been punished enough?" the chuunin asked as he picked up the stuff he had discarded when lying down.
"Do you think Sasuke will forgive me for killing his uncle and stealing his Sharingan?"
Iruka moved to kneel in front of Kakashi.
"He will be angry, and he'll want revenge, but he'll forgive you someday. This is punishment enough for now," the brown-haired said as he caressed Kakashi's left eyelid. "It still hurts, doesn't it?"
The silver-haired nodded. "I never take full control unless in a battle. Everything has to have a price, and I still feel that I haven't paid enough," the Sharingan master answered darkly. His eye was looking inward as he remembered once again Haji's death.
Iruka sighed and grabbed Kakashi's neck gently. "Haji said it himself: death is not a severe enough punishment, but pain is. You're punishing yourself enough as it is so stop thinking you deserve to die." Iruka forced the juunin's head closer with a slight pressure on his neck.
"Besides, you would not dare die on me," Iruka whispered with a wicked smile. Kakashi stared at him blankly for a few seconds before grinning warmly.
"The idea never crossed my mind," he answered and leaned forward to kiss the chuunin. The juunin warped his arm around Iruka and the man leaned in his embrace happily.
Much farther away, just within earshot, Sasuke unfolded himself from where he had been sitting on the ground behind a tree He had managed to hide his presence there while still being able to listen to Kakashi and Iruka's tale. He had been angry, hateful, and vengeful at first, almost like the way he felt towards Itachi, but now those feelings were gone. The Sharingan; a promise of retribution Kakashi had called it.
Sasuke walked away, his mind calm and serene. Kakashi had paid enough and it was time to put an end to retribution.
The End
Doton Shinjuu Zanshu no jutsu: Inner Decapitation Skill. Kakashi uses it against Sasuke in the first volume of Naruto, chapter 7. It's a jutsu that allows the user to hide underground and grab his opponent to bury him to the chin. Thought it would be a good idea to have him copy that technique from a man called 'land'.
Finished! Hoped you like it! The ending was a bitch, and I'm still not totally satisfied with it, but it'll do for now I guess. I originally wanted to make Haji Sasuke's real father and all that, but I figured it just couldn't work with the real story, with Sasuke's dad going all 'you truly are my son' etc... It would just stretch the thing too far, so I made him his uncle instead. Not as 'important', you might say, but still a member of his family. If someone I trusted came around and revealed he had killed my uncle and stolen his money, I'd sure as hell be pissed.
Anyhow, enough of my rambling. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review!
A-chan