A.N. Regarding names, some I make up some I find elsewhere. Kamo was originally Drake (maybe from Draco – Dragon?) Anyway I looked for a Japanese word for male duck, couldn't find one. But I did find kamo: a wild duck, or slang for: a sucker, an easy mark. Worked for me.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Chapter 8 starts here.

Yoko flew across the rooftops in great arching leaps, a blur of white against the bright morning sky. She landed in the courtyard of a grand manor close to the edge of the village, one that had a particularly fine view of the lake and its waterfalls. Red mist seeped under the door into the kitchen, where a young woman was preparing vegetables. The mist dissipated as Yoko stepped out of it.

"Hello sister."

The young woman spun around making her long white braid whip around her shoulders and presenting Yoko with a face that was a mirror of her own.

"So you're still alive."

"Of course, I'm touched by your concern. And stronger than ever."

The woman stroked a finger along the flat edge of the knife she had been using, then set it down on the cutting board. "I bet you are, how many have you fucked to death now?"

Yoko's lovely face remained expressionless. "It's our destiny sister and it was a good death. I promise they all died happy."

"It's a curse. The Mizukage had the right idea when he tried to destroy us."

In response Yoko patted the slight curve of her sister's belly. "And yet you're the one continuing the succubus line? What did this little one's father know that was worth taking?"

The woman's eyes shone bright with anger. "He's my husband Yoko, I love him. Grandmother was right, if you're willing to love a man, to give yourself the way a lover should, this evil blood limit of ours won't harm him. You still have a choice. Find someone to love and you can live like a normal woman, like me."

Her sister reached for a slice of daikon radish. She popped it into her mouth then closed her teeth over it with an audible click before chewing slowly. "I have a better choice. Keep your husband if you want him, but take Taki as well."

"Take Taki? What the hell do you mean? Can't you see, I'm just a servant here."

Yoko's hand lashed towards her and connected hard, leaving a bright handprint on her left cheek. "God you were always weak but I didn't think even you would get this pathetic. You know damn well how. You can have Taki and I'll take Konoha. We can re-establish our clan and be the force that we were born to be. I have supporters, powerful supporters. The other villages will all fall to us eventually."

The woman sank to her knees, pressing a hand against her swollen cheek, laughing, eyes streaming. She sniffed loudly to stop her nose from running. "Take Konoha! Are you mad? Just how do you plan to do that, by using that little Leaf chuunin you brought with you? What is he, some kind of secret heir?"

Yoko's embarrassment at her outburst almost matched her anger. No one had ever been able to infuriate her like her twin. She smiled in a thin attempt to cover both. "That's the beauty of this plan, he's no one. Just a teacher. No one will miss him or be surprised when he fails an A class mission, but he knows all the secrets I'll need." As she was speaking she felt a third emotion flare through her, a much less familiar one, jealousy. Iruka had left a note but she hadn't bothered to read it, and he'd said she reminded him of someone. "Wait… when… how do you know him?"

"I don't." The woman pulled herself up using the edge of the counter. "It was careless of you to let him get away. A Leaf chuunin was arrested during the night. It's big news. We don't get a lot of spies here in Waterfall. Looks like you were too slow this time, might have lost your cute little bag of goodies." She smiled back, but her eyes were as hard as diamond. "Or maybe he didn't want you."

Yoko's were eyes just as hard and her voice as brittle as cut glass. "You know how it works dear sister, they all want us eventually, I just have to be patient. And I'll get him back easily enough when I'm ready to leave."

She rubbed her sister's belly again. "This will be our secret heir."

In a single move the other woman grabbed her kitchen knife and pressed the point against her stomach. Her eyes glittering with cold determination.

"Back off Yoko, I'll kill my baby and myself before I let you use us. If that's what you came here for you wasted your time. I'm happy, can your insane mind understand that? Happy! I have a loving husband, a comfortable life, and a safe future for my baby. You can't offer me a damn thing."

Yoko took a step back. "Very well. I'll come back after I have Konoha. You'll find I can be more persuasive than you expect." She stroked a slender white hand over the teakwood counters on the kitchen cabinets, as if admiring the workmanship "Don't worry I can find my own way out."

Her twin sucked in a gasp then choked the air back out, spluttering in her fury. "Mokkou-san! So that's how you found me. He met you somewhere and mentioned he'd been working on a house with a cook that looked just like you. You killed that sweet man just to get a roadmap of the village and a plan of this house!"

The cloud of red mist had already vanished.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

The Mermaid was not exactly what Kakashi had been expecting. Obviously he knew that a modern pirate ship would not be a full-rigged schooner flying a Jolly Roger at its mast. But how on earth had they got their hands on this? It was a modern gun-ship, fully armed, fully loaded, that wouldn't have been out of place in the world's most sophisticated coastguard or navy.

He dumped the unconscious Kamo unceremoniously on the dock. The kid was just too wasted. He'd collapsed under the weight of his companion and the influence of the drink several hours ago. Even after letting him sleep it off until almost dawn Kakashi had ended up carrying the other pirate most of the way himself. Should have just ditched him in the ocean a quarter of a mile back, but that wouldn't have made him seem too trustworthy. The man's weight wasn't the problem, it was the stink of cigarettes and booze.

"Nice boat, doesn't look as if it holds a lot of goods though."

Geb was still drunk enough to slur his words. Combined with the lisp Kakashi found it quite amusing. "Oh we can get quite a few down there. They'll lie pretty quiet when we have the seals on them." His eyes rolled towards the copy nin, then glazed over with fear. "You don't remember the seal do you?"

Remember? Kakshi scratched the bridge of his nose casually, lifting his headband just enough to peer underneath. The sharingan stung with even this slight stimulation, but found no match for Gep's face in his memory. "Hmm, seal? What seal is that?"

Geb's eyes flicked from the man passed out at his feet to the gun-ship anchored off the quay and back again. It looked as if he was making a painfully hard decision.

"If I tell you, you know help you… will you help me?" He lowered his voice to the barest whisper, "…help me to get away?"

Kakashi felt a triumphant shout echo through his brain. Yes! He knew this kid was no ruthless killer. He allowed his body no reaction at all. "Sooo… you're not happy living the life of a pirate?"

Gep scraped a circle on the dirty wooden boards with his foot. "I… I didn't join them willingly. Not really. Look… I was just a kid, he got me drunk. Maybe a bit more than drunk, and the sex was good. But I never wanted to go with him, I just woke up on his ship. Not this one, it was a beat-up smelly old thing. That was before…. Look you can help me get home, I know you can. Will you?"

He met the copy nin's exposed eye with an unwavering gaze, eyes moist, chin trembling.

Kakashi's eye curved into a happy arc. "Sure kid. Just tell me what you know."

Gep sank to his knees as if they had given out under him, then sat back on his haunches. Kakashi crouched facing him without breaking eye contact for a second.

"Well the boss has always done a trade in men… and women, to work, to fight," Geb's face flushed red, "a-and you know, other stuff. Sex. Runaway kids mostly. But I guess he steals some from their villages like he did me." He took a deep breath and bowed his head, scratching at a stain on his pants.

"But then this guy came, said he wanted top class fighters, ninjas, and he'd pay whatever it took. Gave the boss that new ship over there."

Kakashi scratched at his untidy hair, careful not to betray his mounting excitement. "Was that the sennin?"

"Er no, I don't think…" Gep stopped suddenly, back straightening. "Hell no, I can see what you're doing. Get me home then I'll tell you."

Shit, and he'd been so close. Kakashi's smile beamed with good-natured honesty. "Of course, a promise is a promise. So where do you live?"

Gep wilted as if the air had been let out of him. "That's just it, I don't know." He looked up, eyes hot and bright. "Like I said I was just a kid. We called it Stonebridge Village, but no one seems to have heard of it. I've tried to get some of the other guys to tell me where I came from but…" his voice coarsened, developing a harsh croak, "I think they were all too drunk at the time."

Kakashi stood up, casually leaning over the slumped youth. His hot lead had suddenly gone very very cold. He'd give it two days. If he hadn't made any real progress by then he'd ditch the kid somewhere safe and start at the beginning again.

"Ok, Stonebridge Village. That shouldn't be too hard to track down." Who was he kidding, there had to be thousands of villages with stone bridges.

Geb brightened. "You were there once, I remember you. It was that thing you did with your hand that did it." He lifted two fingers in a lazy gesture.

"You and… and a tall man with yellow hair, a think there were some others too. I'm not sure… it's all kind of jumbled. I was really small, maybe four or five. But this guy, biggest man I ever saw, he came into the village and said he'd kill us all if we didn't hide him. He did kill several people, there was a big memorial service afterwards."

If Geb had been four or five that would have been about fifteen years ago. But was it before or after? If he'd had the sharingan already then he'd still have the memory intact. Kakashi's skin prickled. He hesitated. These were places in his memory where he seriously did not want to go. It was the time that included his last few months with Obito, and the raw angry rivalry between them that was resolved much too late. His last precious year with Sensei, when he could and should have said so much, but had done little more than sulk and feel sorry for himself. And then of course, there was Rin.

Without Iruka to pull him back from the precipice, and the abyss of despair that lay beyond, they were memories he was afraid to remember. Cold sweat gathered on his spine and formed a little trickle that sent an icy chill through his body… and soul.

His eye curved upwards again. "What else do you remember? Was there another boy, the same age as me? A boy with black hair and dark eyes?"

The smile was rewarded with a faint flicker of familiarity, as Geb sucked on his lower lip and shook his head slowly. "Dunno. Lots of people have black hair and dark eyes. I just remember you."

He looked at the copy nin with an expression close to awe.

"You faced off with that big guy on your own. I thought he was going to squash you like a bug but you did something with your hands. And then he was on fire and screaming, and I was screaming, and my mom was screaming because I'd sneaked out and she thought I was in the house. And you looked right at me and raised your two fingers and I thought you were gonna set me on fire too, and I screamed and screamed…"

His eyes had become vacant and haunted. "But you didn't. I remember thinking you might even be smiling, I couldn't really tell because of that mask thing you're wearing. And I… I kinda hoped you were smiling at me."

He closed his eyes tight. "And that's all I can remember."

Kakashi spared a glance for the man still lying unconscious beside them. He wasn't going to wake up any time soon. "Ok. So tell me where we can get some decent coffee in this town and we'll start making some plans."

Oooooooooooooooooooooooo

Iruka woke much later than usual. The sun was already fully risen, promising a clear bright day. He reached for Kakashi beside him and touched smooth sheets. That's right he was away. He opened his eyes and took in the unfamiliar room for a few moments before he remembered that he was the one on the mission. Kakashi was probably back by now and waiting for him. He grabbed a pillow and hugged it, feeling the familiar dull ache of loneliness. But something was different. As much as he wanted his lover, it felt… normal. His need didn't have the edge of desperation that he'd been feeling for the past few days. Maybe he was finally getting this thing under control.

When he was ready he made his way through the rambling old house towards the sound of happy voices. He found the Hero eating breakfast at a large low table with two girls and a boy. They looked about twelve years old.

The Waterfall leader rose to greet him. "Umino-san, or can I call you Iruka-sensei? Did you sleep well? I was just about to send one of my genins to wake you."

So that explained the three preteens trying not to stare at him. "Oh, er I'd be honoured to have you call me Iruka-sensei and I slept very well thank you. But I'm surprised to see that you have a genin team."

"Well being Hero isn't normally so demanding, not often I get dragged out of bed to deal with spies." He winked. "I need a day job too."

He sat back down and Iruka sat next to him. Breakfast looked good and he was hungry, he'd barely eaten the day before.

The Hero passed him a plate of fried cakes. "Try these, they're a local specialty."

"Thank you, but I need to find the Princess. I abandoned her in the night."

"Hardly. Your mission was to bring her here safely then take her back, right? Not to tag along with her the whole time. Hidden Waterfall's the safest place on the whole continent. She'll find you when she wants you. I can guarantee that everyone in the village knows you're here by now. So… as soon as you're ready I'll show you around a bit. The kids can train by themselves for the day. And I'd like to introduce you to my sisters."

Iruka took a cake and bit into it. It was sticky and oily. "So I er, assume you won't be sending a message to Konoha now."

"Well no. I can spare a runner if you want, I mean if you still need to send a letter to Hatake-san." He sounded almost hopeful. Iruka wondered idly which one of his sisters would be the runner.

"No really, there's no need on my account. I just thought if someone was already going…"

Iruka rubbed his sugary fingers together, their stickiness added to his discomfort. He was being foolish. He'd only been gone three days. He didn't need to check in with Kakashi just because he'd be a few days late. It was hardly as if Kakashi had never been late on a mission after all.

"Now about my sisters, they're strong willed but don't be put off. Picky too, they've already turned down just about every eligible man in the village… Oh, and they'll probable want to spar with you, they'll not interested in weaklings. But I'll share a few secrets that will help you to bring them down."

The Hero was willing to help a stranger beat his own sisters? He must be desperate. They must be awful.

They were interrupted by the arrival of two women who materialised out of a shimmer of rain-like water droplets. And they were gorgeous. Twins obviously, red curls, violet eyes and at least six feet tall. One of Jiraiya's wildest fantasies brought to life.

"Oh, Mimi, Fifi, we were just talking about you. This is Umino Iruka from Konoha, he's been anxious to meet you."

Iruka scrambled to his feet with as much dignity as he could muster and bowed politely.

"Sit down. Sit down everyone. Girls, have some tea, and breakfast, get to know each other while I deal with the kids."

The Hero ushered his gennins out of the room leaving Iruka with the two Amazons and a heavy dose of awkward silence.

They sat, one on either side. Iruka tried hard not to sweat. Or at least not to sweat too noticeably. The woman looking down on him from his right spoke first.

"So I assume our dear brother summoned us here so that you could fall in love with one of us at first sight."

Iruka didn't know whether to repress a cringe or a smile. "Well, er, he did mention in passing that you're both unmarried but…"

"Good. So now we've got that out of the way let's talk about something more interesting." She slammed a kunai on the table. "Have you ever seen anything like this before?"

Iruka let out a long breath, more grateful than the two women would ever know for the change in subject. He picked up the kunai and turned it over in his hand. It was longer and more tapered than the weapons he was familiar with.

"No, not exactly."

"Didn't think so. It's designed for accuracy over long distances. Better suited for the open spaces we have in Waterfall than more standard types." She winked playfully. "I've shown you mine, now you show me yours."

Iruka blushed but took a kunai from an inner pocket and put it next to the other. The girl pushed it over to her sister."

"See Mimi, I told you. Shorter and heavier. In a forest distance isn't much of a consideration, the tree cover lets you move in much closer for an attack. It's power and speed that counts, right Umino-san."

"So you two are weapon specialists?"

"The best in Taki." The Waterfall leader said, as he returned to find the table littered with weapons. "Well I see they've started right in with the knives. Just don't suggest to either of them that they throw like a girl."

Mimi flashed him a look that was sharper than the daggers spread out before them. "Jealousy jealousy, you just wish you could throw like a girl."

The Hero grinned wide and threw up his hands. "I'm about to give up on you two. I introduce you to the best looking guy to come to the village in months and all you want to do is talk about killing people."

Suddenly the door opened and Yoko walked in. The temperature in the room seemed to increase twenty degrees.

The two sisters looked at each other suspiciously and shuffled a little closer to the man between them. Iruka, however, was less aware of them than of their brother, who really was a very handsome man. For the first time he noticed his beautiful eyes, and the way his hair fell into little waves behind his ears. It made him think of Kakashi's mismatched eyes and his impossible hair. He looked away as his stomach tightened and a hard knot started to form in the centre of his chest. Kakashi. Suddenly he wanted him so much it hurt.

He looked back at the Hero, who was staring at Yoko in a way that could only be described as predatory.

Iruka sprang to his feet. "Princess! Oh, er I'm sorry. Let me introduce Ookami-sama, from Wolf Island."

The Hero bowed low then clasped her hand in both of his. "We are honoured by your visit. Please, Princess if there is anything, and I do mean anything, I can do to make your stay here in Waterfall more pleasant just let me know."

The truth dawned on Iruka with the speed and brilliance of a tropical sunrise. Yoko had been the source of the sexual tension between them all along. Her undeniable sex appeal was like a blood limit skill, influencing everyone around her. Why shouldn't non-nin families have such abilities? They just wouldn't have any reason to train them, so they usually stayed more or less dormant. Yoko probably didn't even know herself. After all she had lived on a small Island all her life.

He pushed his way, almost rudely, between his client and his host. "I assume you came here looking for me Princess?"

"Yes. I want to go back to Wave Country. How soon can we leave?"

Thank God. Iruka bowed to the Waterfall leader and his sisters. "Thank you again for your hospitality, it's been delightful meeting you all but as you see I have to go."

Pulling Yoko behind him, he walked out into the sunlight. Protecting this woman was getting more and more complicated all the time.