Taisetsuna "Precious" - Version Two

by Aoikami Sarah

Chapter Eight

The atmosphere around them was heavy as they found a table in the nearly empty restaurant. It was still early for dinner, but they had skipped lunch to see the Hokage. As Kakashi ordered, Oururi stood up.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

A silly grin spread slowly across her face. "I think I hear something familiar." She sneaked up to the open front door and listened. "I do!" She stuck out her tongue. "Oi!" Oururi called through the doorway. "IKURA!"

"It's I RU KA!" came the frustrated reply. Iruka's head poked under the cloth flap and blinked in surprise. Oururi leapt and tackled him. "Oururi! You're alive!" he shouted and laughed.

The six of them camped out in the restaurant till it was busy with the evening dinner crowd, trading stories of the old days.

.X.

It was just as he noticed Yume yawning that Kakashi wondered where Oururi and Iruka had gone off to. They had gotten up a while ago to say hello to a friend and hadn't come back. For just a moment he wondered what they could be talking about, but he hadn't had to sneeze all night. He excused himself and went to the men's room. When he came out, Oururi blocked his path.

"Where have you been?" he asked.

"Over there with Anko-chan and them. Have a drink with me," she demanded.

"I don't drink."

"I do." She wagged a carafe of sake in front of him. He took it and noticed it was empty. He raised a brow. She bit her lip. "Take me drunk I'm home."

Kakashi looked over to the table. The girls were gone.

"I called in a favor with Ikura," Oururi smirked, a slight blush that might have been from the sake was on her cheeks. "So, will you?" She looked up at him with her cool, grey eyes. He still knew every nuance of those irises; every fleck of blue and silver. He still knew her. He paid the bill and they walked slowly down the shadowy streets back to his apartment.

Kakashi unlocked and opened the door. The two slipped in. The reflection through the windows from the streetlamps below bathed the apartment in a dim, bluish light. He removed his shinobi's vest, leaned against the door and wondered if he was thinking clearly. She pressed herself against his chest.

"So," Oururi purred. "Do you still have a wicked tan line?" He could see her teeth glint in the dark as she grinned. Her fingers touched his cheek. Any lingering negative thoughts he had about her vanished. Gently, she pulled down the mask.

In the darkness, she couldn't see the slight difference between the tan above the mask and the paler flesh below, nor did she truly care. He was even more beautiful than he had been as a teenager. Oururi went up on her toes, her body pressing even closer to his. Their lips met and Kakashi wrapped his arms around her. He pulled at the ribbon that held her long, blue hair back and it fell all around her. They worked at the knots on each other's hitai-ate.

She ran her thumb across his scarred left eyelid. She felt the start of crows feet at the edges of his eyes. "It's been a while, ne, Kakashi?"

His hands came to rest on her hips. "Yeah." He kissed her lips slowly then buried his face in her neck, taking in her scent. "We're not 16 anymore."

She laughed lightly. "No, certainly not." Oururi put her hands on his and led him to his bedroom.

.X.

Just before dawn, Oururi fell asleep against Kakashi's chest. He watched her as the light brightened and stroked her hair. His fingers traced the outline of a scar on her back. He gasped as he realized how large it was and moved to see it in the pale light. Oururi woke and sat up quickly, her eyes filled with worry, staring, trying to read his.

"Oururi…" he whispered. "What is that scar from?"

She relaxed and turned her back to him again. She pulled her hair away from the immense scar slashed across her spine. "Sand nin."

He reached out and touched the raised mark. It could only have been cause by a very large weapon like a sword or giant shuriken. He knew very well that such a wound would have been life threatening. His heart twisted up with guilt. "This happened after you left."

"When the girls were still Genin, five Sand Chuunin, jealous of their talent attacked us one day. I was able to take down three of them, but the other two would have killed my girls. One of them tagged me in the back as I tried to protect them. It was a pretty nasty injury. My girls, our girls, they kept me going."

Oururi turned back around and fell against his chest again. He took her in his arms and rubbed his cheek against her bowed head. "I've wanted to thank you for years now," she said with the slight hiccup, trying to conceal her emotion. "When I left this village, I had no dreams, no cause, no reason to live. I could be the best shinobi I could be, but I was empty. When the girls were born I finally had something to protect. Our lives haven't been easy, but I am thankful every day for them."

"Then so am I, Oururi." What you were becoming frightened me." Kakashi held her tightly, afraid that she would fly away like a dream upon waking. "The girl who left this village wasn't the girl I was in love with. I didn't want to see that girl. I didn't…"

"That girl broke your heart, didn't she?" He felt her warm tears fall on his skin. "I'm so sorry, Kakashi. A lot has changed. I have to tell you the truth. Back then, I know you cared for me, but I didn't love you."

She laid very still waiting for his reaction. He took a deep, calm breath and stroked her hair. "I know," he whispered, almost inaudibly. "That's why I let you go." He closed his eyes as the sun peaked over the Konoha rooftops.