Iruka had smiled warmly at him when he had left him at the hospital the previous evening, and told the nurse whose job was to undress him and put him back in bed, that he'd had a wonderful time. But Kakashi knew that the idea of seeing Naruto, and the disturbing end to their meal, had left the teacher very unhappy. So when he knocked on the door of Iruka's by now familiar room, and the command to "Come in" seemed a little more clipped than usual, he hadn't been particularly surprised.

Inside the man he had come to see was propped up with a distinctive orange book lying on his knees. He looked at his visitor with an expression that even the genius jounin couldn't interpret.

"I asked one of my teacher friends to stop in at my apartment and pick up some stuff for me to read. I suppose I should have asked him to bring scrolls since I can't turn pages. But I didn't and he brought me a bunch of books. Well, I didn't remember this one so I asked a nurse to open it for me." His embarrassment was written all over his face but he took a deep breath and continued.

"Just what does this mean, it doesn't look like something you would give to an ordinary friend."

Using the back of his right hand he flipped the orange book over to the nervous copy nin, who picked it up gingerly and opened the front cover. Inside were the words, 'To my dearest Dolphin on Valentine's day-for inspiration. Your Scarecrow'.

Kakashi's stomach churned, he was so busted. There was no way in the world he could genius his way out of this.

There was only one way out now, the truth.

He pulled down his mask, using the few seconds of silence it bought from the teacher to gather his thoughts, and grinned sheepishly.

"Yes, I lied."

He paused waiting for a reaction, when there was none he continued.

"We've been lovers, discretely, for more than two years." He continued without giving the other man a chance to respond. "But I'm a dangerous man, it's dangerous to even know me. Everyone I've ever loved has died. After this happened, when you were attacked, I just couldn't risk it happening again… to you."

Iruka flushed scarlet and, considering the emotions that were visibly rampaging through him, his voice was a more controlled yell than might be expected.

"You pompous arrogant bastard! How dare you decide to just cut me off? Take out what… two years of my life without me even knowing? Don't I have the right to know when I've been dumped, the right to feel… something, even if it hurts? Especially if it hurts? How do you get to decide what I can feel and what I can't? I… I've been lying here for days, haunted by these feelings, not knowing where they came from. Then I realised that they always start when I see you. So what if it's dangerous, isn't that my decision to make? Dammit Hatake. It took everything I had to tell you the truth and you just lied and lied to me as if it was nothing. How could you do that?"

He fixed the other man with a cold glower, fury and hurt competing for control of his features.

The answer he got was almost a whisper. "It wasn't nothing Iruka, I promise it was the hardest… "

Everything that Kakashi had been keeping dammed up for almost a week broke through the floodgate. He looked at the angry flushed face that was set on furiously scolding and accusing him, cupped the teacher's jaw in his hands, and kissed him.

As soon as their lips touched they pressed in to meet each other, Kakashi sliding onto the bed in a single move to force as much of his body as he could against the other man's. He didn't even try to stop himself from trembling. Iruka felt kakashi's tongue in his mouth like some kind of alien fish, writhing and sliding, probing into every crevice, tickling and teasing, arousing something deeper than memory. There were hands too, in his hair, on his face, sliding down his sides to his hips, sending waves of fire through his body that all seemed to meet in his groin. His own hands were useless but his tongue was just as busy, caressing, tasting, lapping, feeding desperately on this wonderful desire. He willed his passion to flood through the other man, to meet the other's point for point and to blend them together into one glorious need.

When Kakashi finally broke away he held Iruka's face, still flushed but now breathless too, and just stared at him.

"God I want to fuck you so much, right now, right in this hospital bed."

Iruka was too lost in the swirl of his emotions to think straight.

"Yes, don't stop."

Kakashi's expression became deadly serious. He lifted his headband clear of the sharigan and looked hard at the gash in Iruka's side. Covering the eye again he ran his finger over the scar.

His voice crackled with disappointment. "Sorry, not yet. That's not going to be able to take very much strain for a while." Then he had another idea. He smiled and took a rumpled feather out of his pocket.

Suddenly Iruka realised what he had just agreed to. He was stunned. Closing his eyes tight he struggled to get back to some kind of sane reality. When he opened them he had been stripped of the hospital gown and the copy nin was poised on hands and knees above him with a ratty brown feather in his teeth. Taking the feather in one hand kakashi started to tickle Iruka's already aroused nipples.

The younger man flapped at him with his bandaged hands for a moment then started to writhe and squirm, panting with pleasure.

"Oh God stop, I didn't mean it. We can't do this here! What are you some kind of pervert?"

Kakashi darted his lips over the man under him in a hundred tiny kisses. His grin spoke volumes.

"You have forgotten everything haven't you? Well it will be my pleasure to reeducate you Sensei!"

Iruka's horrified squawk was so predictable that Kakashi started to laugh with sheer joy. But then he realised that Iruka wasn't laughing with him, he was crying. Suddenly he was afraid. He rolled over onto the bed next to him, staring into his wet brown eyes. Chocolate under water.

"What's the matter? You're not upset that we're lovers… or disappointed, are you?"

"No! Well yes. It's… I can't remember you. I have this huge… feeling and there's nothing there with it but a hole. It hurts. Two years! And I don't know a thing about you. I've tried but I can't remember anything. It almost makes me wish that whoever did this to me had finished the job. Stuck that knife through my heart so that it wouldn't be so empty."

Kakashi dropped the feather and scooped the man into his arms.

"Don't, please! It's my heart too, you gave it to me two years ago. Just give me a little time and I promise I'll fill it back up again."

Iruka relaxed, he was starting to understand why he loved this man.

Kakashi felt the change in the other's chakra. Freeing a hand he pulled up his headband to expose both eyes, he wasn't going to miss any of this.

"I think I should start right now."

In an instant he was back in position, rearmed with the feather and using his wet agile tongue to claim the length of his lover's body. He started well below his navel just above the soft back fur. There'd be time to go back to the best part, the part he was neglecting, later. And he wanted this to last.

Iruka's sweet musky smell and slightly salty skin filled his senses as he started lapping a broad swipe up his firm abdomen, using his sharigan to make sure that the involuntary twitches he was causing didn't disturb the fresh scar. When he reached his chest he made a detour for each nipple, staying long enough to suck and nibble until Iruka was almost sobbing. But with pleasure this time.

He was halfway between his adam's apple and chin, ready to close in on that wonderfully inviting mouth, now half open and gasping loudly, when the door opened.

Ochiro Akira stood in the doorway. He looked over the scene, smirking and taking his time to appraise Iruka's naked, horizontal, but none-the-less very… erect, body.

"Hatake-san, Hakage-sama wants you to see her. She said I might find you in here."

Kakashi was standing by the bed in his customary lazy slouch, mask and headband in place, before the doctor had finished saying his name. He turned and pulled the mask down briefly for a final lingering kiss, then waved goodbye as Iruka rolled himself up in the blanket. A heap of quivering humiliation.

Ochiro Akira walked over to the bed, still smirking, and patted the part where he assumed the teachers bottom should be.

"Sensei-san, you really shouldn't get yourself into these situations, you always seem to get caught.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Kakashi was ushered into the Hokage's office and Tsunade was sitting at her desk waiting for him. She had a pencil on each of its front corners, a jutsu scroll on each of the back, and a teacup, from which he was sure he could smell something significantly more alcoholic than tea, in the dead centre. Shit, things must be bad.

She raked the fingers of her right hand through her hair, scraping it back from her face. He'd never seen her do that before. Then she stared at him as if she was about to make the one decision that would change the course of history. Perhaps she was.

"Hatake-san, you were in the western part of the village yesterday."

"Yes, I was with Morino-san, drinking tea. I'm sure he's already told you."

"It's before then that interests us. There was another sharigan attack in that part of town yesterday morning."

Not this crap again. His visible eye narrowed. Yes I was sitting around on my arse while villagers are being attacked because you won't let me do a damn thing to help stop it. "I'm sorry, I can't help you Hokage-sama. I've already told Morino-san everything I saw."

The Hokage shook her head irritably. "Yes. This man you claimed to see, did you recognise him at all?"

Claimed! There was no point getting angry, but at least she didn't seem to be blaming him outright this time. Kakashi thought hard. "There was something familiar, but I can't put a name or a face to him. At first I thought it was Genma-san. By the time I realised that I was mistaken I didn't have time to look more carefully."

"And the snake that you found?"

"Ibiki-san didn't think it was important."

"Dead snakes were found near three of the other most recent victims. We're looking to see if there are still any in the areas around the others."

"So you think it is important?"

"Dammit Hatake! If I knew what was important I wouldn't be asking you!"

His eye rounded in surprise. "Are you asking for my opinion?"

Tsunade sighed and took a sip from the liquid in her teacup. "Hatake-san, there are three, count them three, sharigan users. Two of them in this village. The other one is a boy with limited sharigan ability, who would be recognised by almost anyone in Konoha and who does not have your skill at stealth and concealment

Kakashi felt the blood draining from his face under the mask. He looked unwaveringly at the Hokage and the ANBU behind her.

"So I'm still a suspect."

The Hokage put her cup back in the centre of her desk and arranged the pencils and scrolls in a square around it. "Give me one reason why you shouldn't be."

"Because I'd never betray my village and I'd never hurt Iruka-kun."

She picked up the cup and drained it. The hint of a smile flickered in her eyes. "That's two."

There was a long pause. Kakashi carefully held his chakra and kept his breath slow and even.

Suddenly Tsunade threw the teacup hard onto the floor, smashing it into dozens of pieces. "Dammit, Sound is behind this, it's obvious. But how or why… if I didn't know that damn snake bastard so well I'd swear he was playing games. But Orochimaru doesn't play games."

She gripped the edge of her desk and leaned towards him across it, her face as white as her knuckles.

"I want you to go out to Sound Hatake. Don't infiltrate, don't go into the village. I know the bastard's strength and we can't afford to lose you now. Just look around and check for rumours. Look for signs that they're preparing for war."

Kakashi's pulse quickened. "What about the old mine?" There was nothing to lose by asking now.

She waved a hand at him dismissively. "I've had Inuzuka's and their dogs sniffing around there for days, it's a dead end."

The copy nin bowed stiffly. "I'll leave at once. Will you inform Umino Iruka that I'll be away? He'll be expecting me to see him."

The ends of her lips curled into a smile that didn't extend to any other part of her face. "I'll make sure that your little teacher knows you're leaving."

Then her mouth became a thin line. She picked up the scrolls and thrust them towards him, breaking eye contact for the first time. "Don't use these unless you have to. As I said, we can't afford to lose you now." Her voice faded to a whisper. "And I was fond of your father."

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Iruka was still hiding under the blanket an hour later, when he heard someone come into the room.

Dr. Ochiro coughed deliberately. You can come out now Iruka-san. Don't worry I won't tell anyone, I'm very discrete."

Iruka wriggled first his ponytail and then his head free. If only he could control his damn blushing. The doctor was standing next to him holding a hospital gown. There was still the trace of a smirk in his eyes.

"Come on, let me get you dressed, if you can call it that, but I'm sure you'll be more comfortable than lying there naked.

Iruka smiled gratefully as he let the other man pull him into a sitting position and slip on the gown. He felt the doctor brush against him as he tied it closed, then instinctively tensed. There was something in the man's intent that he hadn't felt before. Something quite unexpected.

Dr. Ochira noticed the reaction. "Iruka-chan, I've asked Hokage-sama to find you another medic. I really wouldn't want to violate the patient doctor relationship."

"Why? What do you mean Akira-san?" He really didn't want to know the answer.

The doctor sat on the bed and leaned in close, putting his arm around him. "I've enjoyed taking care of you rather more than I should. You were a pretty thing back in our academy days. And when I saw you er… playing today, I must admit that I was impressed at how much… bigger you've grown since then."

Iruka stiffened as he felt the doctor's hand rubbing along the length of his spine… under the gown.

He tried to pull away. "No, please Kakashi and I…" What was he saying? He couldn't remember, he really didn't know what he was to the famous Sharigan Hatake.

Yes he did, he knew that they loved each other, it was all he needed to know.

The doctor's hand tightened around his waist and he was pulled deep into the deepest part of the other man's aura. There was hot breath in his ear.

"Ah yes, these elite jounin, believe me I know their appeal. But unfortunately for you Hatake-san will be gone for a while. Hokage-sama asked me to tell you. And anyway, wouldn't your mother have been happier if she'd lived to see you with a nice safe doctor? Of course I wouldn't ask you to give up Hatake-san. I'm sure we'd both want other playmates, it's only natural for men like us.

Iruka's pulse raced. He felt something close to panic. "No really Akira-san, Kakashi and I, we… "

Iruka grabbed at the arm to pull it away, but stopped short and whimpered at the searing pain in his hands.

Akira stood and took the teacher's throbbing hands in his own. He placed a kiss in the center of each palm then put his fingers over Iruka's mouth to silence him. "I'll be back later. I promise I won't leave you unsatisfied. And don't worry, as I said, I'm very discrete."

Then he was gone, leaving Iruka hurting with the burning pain and worse agitation.