REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!

Note: Forgive the dirty joke mid-way... Dad was talking about jokes on the construction site and I thought... 'geez, men talk dirty all the time!' and then I thought, 'shinobi are men... so...' Hee hee hee - blech... reality bites!

I do not own Naruto…. It belongs to some Asian whose name I forgot….

Train Ride

On the train, Kakashi finally opened the sealed brown envelope, holding the Yukimoto file. It would take him several days to get to his clients – more than enough to research the Yukimoto family.

Although his hand itched to pick up a more exciting read, business had to come first.

Therefore, after locating his tiny sleeping room, and stashing his stuff carefully away, under lock and key, he found a seat by a window and sat down with the file folder.

According to the file, Yukimoto Megami was a famous operatic singer, aged 39, and not looking, according to her photo, a day over twenty.

Probably doctored, Kakashi smirked beneath his mask. Geez! She's probably an egotistic seductress – with that name – with that…. Dress….. Kakashi smirked beneath his mask.
Her first love child, Li, was eighteen years old, tallish with sulky good looks. His favorite thing to do was collect girls and buy hotshot cars, which he invariably crashed.

The recorded fines and damages raised Kakashi's eyebrows several inches.

That's more than I make in a year! This kid needs to seriously get a chauffeur!
He sighed. He had ridden in automobiles before – and had been unofficially taught how to drive a truck-like vehicle several years ago. Most shinobi never saw an iron vehicle much less drove in one. Thus, roads for automobiles were never considered important in Konoha since the Fire Country had very little technology. Konoha, basically used its technological budget on things like transmitter devices, radios, video players and screens.

Kakashi smiled when he remembered his stint in Snow Country – for all his lessons in driving, it ended up being a dog sled which had saved the Princess's life.

Now, I guess, those lessons will pay off…. I just have to recall the techniques…
Kakashi's gaze wandered onto the next page thoughtfully.

Raiden.

Raidenwas Megami's younger love child. He also was cute-looking – in an eight year old type of way. However, the effect was spoiled by a look of perpetual annoyance.

Kakashi sighed.

Another Sasuke. Angry at everything and when feeling powerless, tending to shoot off into destructive paths.
He looked at the photos again. The three looked angry, spoiled and wealthy.

Kakashi leaned back and sighed.

I will not project Sasuke or anything to do with him onto them. I will NOT!
Kakashi's shoulders drooped.

"I will – probably," as he stared out of the window in melancholy, watching rice paddies, landscaped gardens, green hills and trees pass with an occasional hamlet.

Back to the matter at hand.

According to the mission details, he would accompany the woman on her Asian tour through the adjoining country, India, then the country of Wind, Water, Fire, Earth and Thunder. The tour could take up to a total of three months, during which, he would have to keep an eye out for the mysterious attackers (if they weren't a publicity stunt and he wasn't the showpiece).

The shinobi groaned as a nightmare developed in his mind.

He could just see himself trapped in a roomful of girls giggling over Yukimoto's newest acquirement – a mysteriously masked ninja.

He shuddered involuntarily and quickly flipped the page.

In the next hour, he read the file. Twice.

After totally memorizing it, he was ready – although – for what? The information about the attackers was sketchy at best. Kakashi, after considering the little bits of evidence, didn't think the attackers even had any ninja skills to speak of.

If the attackers were real, amended Kakashi, mentally. After all, an A-ranking is really extreme for a situation like this. What's with the lady wanting a Jounin – an elite Jounin too…
He sighed. Asumo and he had once reminisced on all of the paranoid clients they'd had to protect over the years.

However, Genma's oddball client had beat the records – Shenshiro-san. The man demanded Genma share his plate during meals and even had Genma share his bed.

"Ahhhh," Asumo leered. "So that's where your habits with Raido came from…"

"Shut up," Genma growled through his senbon. "Do you want this needle up your ass?"

"Nope," Asumo said. "But you're obviously getting something old up yours!"

"HEY!" Raido glared at the large Jounin. "I am NOT anything like that nutty old geezer!"

Kakashi was too busy holding down Genma to comment.

The train stopped for a pickup at a station in a fair-sized city. Kakashi got out to stretch his legs and look around. Although, he was one of the few well-traveled shinobi (which was no doubt a factor in Tsunade's choice), traveling as far west as the Land of Spices made him uneasy.

India was very much a new place to him. Foreign. A cipher. Shinobi knew that on foreign soil, a ninja was at a distinct disadvantage and had to be constantly on their guard.

So troublesome, geez, one doesn't know what to expect.
Once he got back into his seat, he shut his eyes for a few minutes.
He was walking again down the main street of Konoha, and approaching the Godaime's favorite spot to stand – the platform beneath the stone reliefs. Kakashi, looking up, noticed a man surveying the faces.

For a moment, Kakashi thought it was Jiraiya – the man's hair was so white – but then, he gasped as he recognized his own busy, straight-in-the-air hairstyle and the profile hidden with a mask.

"Father?" he asked softly.

The man turned fully with a smile, eyes crinkling above the mask.

"Yo! Kakashi!"

Kakashi secreted away his book and leaned back on the railing to look up at the cliff's faces.

"What were you reading?" asked Sakumo

"The most amazing book in the world." Kakashi said. "Make Out Violence."

Sakumo raied his eyebrows. "Make Out….?"

"It's a really good romance…." Kakashi trailed off, blushing, realizing he sounded like a Genin all over again.

But then, Father always had that effect on me.

"Sounds like something Jiraiya would be into."

Kakashi laughed. "Yeah…"
There was a comfortable silence.

Sakumo nodded at the Yondaime's stony face, which looked too severe, too lost, sometimes to Kakashi.

"I didn't know your sensei made it to Hokage. Is he doing well?"

Kakashi's eyes slid sideways, lidded.

"I hope so."

Sakumo looked puzzled.

Kakashi fought past a lump he didn't know he had in his throat.

"He died around thirteen years ago, sealing the Kyuubi away."

Sakumo edged closer to Kakashi, placing a hand on his son's shoulder.

"He was a great man."

Kakashi cleared his throat gruffly.

"Yeah…."

"A passionate love for the village made him a hero. I hope you have developed this as well."

Kakashi scratched his head.

"Well, I certainly don't avoid the enemy."

Kabuto. Orochimaru. Itachi.

Sakumo smiled.

"Well," he said, pushing away from the railing. "It's been good seeing you. You've changed – I believe – for the better."

"In some ways."

Sakumo looked at Kakashi for a long moment. Then nodded.

"I see you have gotten over your insecurities…."

"I got a Sharingan, I learned the lesson of the true shinobi and I have begun training with Lightning's Howl… so yes, a lot of the old has changed. But…."

Kakashi paused.

"You didn't have to leave."

Sakumo turned and walked away.

"Regret. But another question is –"

"What?"

Sakumo's body flickered eerily.

His mouth moved but no words came out.

Then, jerkily:

"I said – is this taken?"

With a gasp, Kakashi woke up out of his dream, and, feeling a hand grabbing his shoulder, yanked out a kunai and pinning his enemy held it to their throat.

Opening his eyes, he found himself staring into the eyes of an older woman, who looked very scared and a little angry.

He froze, backed away slowly, stowed away his kunai, and smiling, muttered, "I'm SO sorry! I was having a bad drea-"

The woman darted away from him and disappeared off that particular train car looking scared.

Kakashi sighed and slumped in his chair.

Great, Kakashi! Why don't you just go around the countryside waving your weapons and start killing the civilians off by just being your usual scary self.
His morbid line of thought was halted by a sight of beautiful legs which suddenly came into his lowered line of vision. Looking up past the knees, the short blue skirt, the skimpy tank top and a long neck, he saw it was a young woman in her mid-twenties with a large knapsack.
NEXT UP: Aiko: Child of Love Teaches. Kakashi learns... how to lighten up!