Taisetsuna "Precious" - Version Two

by Aoikami Sarah

Chapter Seven

As sunlight crept through the panes, Kakashi emerged silently from his room, fully dressed. He'd hardly slept and couldn't wait to start the new day. He was not surprised to find all four females still snoozing. Oururi was spooning Yami and Yume and Hikari lay sprawled at her back. He scratched his head and smiled under the mask. Their mother's eyes flicked open involuntarily as she felt his presence come into the room.

"Morning," he whispered. She slid out from between the girls and followed him to the balcony. The air was still crisp and cool, but refreshing. Oururi looked out over the Leaf Village and took a deep breath.

"Despite what you think, it really was just a job for the Hidden Sand, which as you pointed out, I have now failed," she groaned and stretched her arms on the railing, leaning back while hanging on to the cold iron.

It was all he could do to keep from watching her. "Why didn't you tell me I had children?" he asked and looked out where she did.

"What would have been the point of that? You wouldn't have been able to see them and besides…" she stopped herself short hearing the sliding glass door crack open.

"Kaasan, I'm hungry," a soft voice called from the door. Yami rubbed her left eye and looked sleepily out at the pair.

Kakashi closed his eye. "Ok, let's see if I've got anything to eat in this place."

"Do you actually have anything other than dried fish?" Oururi jibed as she followed him in.

"Ewwwwww." Yami made a face. "Otousan, you eat dry fish?"

"There's nothing wrong with dried fish," he whined and shut the door behind him.

.X.

At last, the strange little family emerged. They had hardly set foot on a public sidewalk when the comments started again.

"So cute!"

"All three…!"

"…Even dressed alike!"

Kakashi sighed heavily. Oururi laughed. This made his heart skip a beat. It was back. The shimmering, crystalline laugh she had lost when she joined the Anbu squad was back. Something had changed. Kakashi didn't have to look far for the source of her happiness; they were tagging along behind her. He smiled himself and was about to reach out to tousle Hikari's hair when he saw them.

On the rooftops and around corners, several ninja were watching them. They knew they had been spotted and wasted no time. Kakashi readied himself. This hadn't escaped Oururi's notice either. She nodded to him and placed the children between them. The girls blinked signals to each other, communicating the number of enemies and who would take down whom.

All this was rendered unnecessary when one of the ninja came out into the open with his hands raised slightly. "Good morning, Kakashi. Hokage-sama would like a word with you," the man said quietly with a pleasant but fake smile on his lips.

"Oh?" Kakashi asked.

"Come this way." He motioned in the direction of the village hall.

"Seems we have an escort," Oururi whispered.

"Don't try anything," Kakashi advised. "We'll do better if we just go along."

All five of them were shown to the Hokage's office. He was busy signing documents, but put his brush down when they arrived.

"Kakashi," the Hokage croaked with a pleasant smile. "Thank you for getting the forbidden scroll back last night."

He bowed slightly in response. "You're more than welcome."

Sandaime looked up and wove his fingers together. "Aono Oururi, isn't it?" he asked. "We haven't seen you in many years. How have you been?"

"Fine, Hokage-sama."

'He knows damn well she's not permitted to return for 10 full years," Kakashi thought. He sweated a little. 'Damn it. He knows exactly what's going on. What's he up to?'

"And these are your girls, right?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

He took a long drag off his pipe and let the smoke curl up around his large, triangular hat. "That's good. They're fine ninja. I didn't even hear them till they were popping the scroll out the bathroom window. I expected as much from the offspring of two such outstanding ninja."

All of them swallowed deep. Kakashi raised a brow. 'Cripes,' Kakashi thought. 'He really does know everything.' The girls looked up at their mother who stared into the Hokage's sharp, black eyes and clenched her fists.

"The scroll is back where it belongs," he said as he scratched the side of his wrinkled face, calmly. "You'll be on your way tomorrow I should think," he intoned a note of warning in his assumption. "Tell me, Oururi, do you like it in the Hidden Sand?"

The muscles in Oururi's shoulders relaxed. "No," she said very plainly. "We don't."

"It's so green here!" Yami cried.

"And the sun's not as hot!" Yume added.

"And Tousan is here!" Hikari grabbed Kakashi's hand.

'Whoa, they sure know how to work the sympathy angle!' Kakashi thought. 'Let's just hope he's having a good day and doesn't have us all sent to prison.'

Oururi looked astounded. "Girls!" she gasped.

Silence washed over them as they waited for Sandaime to take another long drag.

"You're a valuable asset, Oururi, which Konoha should not have given up so easily. Those were dark and confusing days after the death of Yondaime, as you well know."

Kakashi took a deep breath and nodded once.

The old man pulled open a new scroll and made a note. "You should be only a few more months left of your obligation to the Hidden Sand, am I right?"
"I believe so," Oururi answered quietly.

"Then we shall meet again when you return," he said and smiled slightly.

Kakashi sighed with relief.

"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama," she said and put her hand on Hikari's head. "But I can't return."

"What?" Kakashi asked, shocked.

"My girls were born in the Wind Country. They're Sand ninja. I can't leave them behind."

Sandaime stopped writing and squinted up at her. "I see." He dipped his brush, crossed something off and wrote something else. "I'll see what I can do." With a nod they were dismissed. The family walked in silence to the ramen shop.