A month.

Iruka had not seen Kakashi for a month. When the first week had passed without Kakashi popping out from the shadows, it initially had been relieving. Everything had been overwhelming, and Iruka assumed Kakashi wanted to give him space out of respect. In fact, that assumption placed Kakashi further into Iruka's good graces.

Then a week turned into two, then three, four—well, okay. Fine. Iruka spent long nights convincing himself he didn't care.

Only to fail.

Work at the library was somewhat distracting but still mundane. Iruka often found himself wondering how Kakashi would react to situations Iruka witnessed and was amused by, like Jun almost combusting when someone had asked if Icha Icha could be found in the fiction section.

That had, thankfully, just been a harmless dare between freshmen, but Iruka let Jun go out to lunch early in hopes his tomato hue would disappear by the time he returned.

For someone that had put on such an effort to befriend him, Kakashi had given that up very easy. Not that Iruka had already forgave him, they still had a long way to go. Except…Iruka looked down his keyboard and sighed. A part of him missed Kakashi's presence.

Imagine that. Missing Hatake Kakashi, of all people.

Yuuri shot him a concerned look, and Iruka smiled disarmingly. More than once she had found him laughing to himself over his thoughts concerning Kakashi, and the last thing Iruka needed was her reporting to Tsunade that the new librarian had officially snapped.

Venting to his friends was out of the question. Genma and Raidou still had no idea about Iruka visiting Kakashi's company nor would they ever. However, two days ago Raidou had managed to figure out Iruka had not spoken to Kakashi in a while when Iruka answered "I wouldn't know" to Genma's question about how Kakashi was doing.

Since then, Raidou attempted to corner him when Genma wasn't looking.

That aside, Kakashi's absence was…displeasing, as much as Iruka did not wish to admit it. He liked his life balanced and predictable—it had to be with a son involved—but unfortunately nothing connected to Kakashi was either of those things. Yet Iruka recalled how much fun it was being on that rooftop garden and hearing Kakashi's deadpan responses to Gai's theatrics.

It even bothered Iruka that Kakashi had not even made a phone call to find out how work was or Naruto's tutoring progress; two things for which Kakashi was directly responsible for.

Iruka grabbed the open book beside him and firmly slammed it shut, startling Yuuri. He ignored the way she subtly inched away from him.

Forget Kakashi. At least his job wasn't stressful anymore, to his relief and pride. He had already managed to put the library in order, or as close to the order as a place frequented by college students could be. Everyone respected him and did not dare to return books that were not identical to what they had withdrawn.

Mizuki was also nowhere to be seen. Iruka had not even heard his voice or sensed his presence this past month, and the first week of October was already almost ending. Tsunade must have told Mizuki not to go near the library nor the Social Sciences building where Naruto's class took place. The rent was paid, the fridge was full—things were starting to look up.

Iruka was almost on his lunch break when he finished entering the returned textbooks into the system. He'd been a little slower than usual, and it had been hard not to be, when he started thinking about the way Kakashi had not judged him for being picky about his food and even helped him pick out the mushrooms from the rice.

He breathed in deeply. This was a problem.

Yuuri looked relieved when Iruka informed her he would be going on his break.

The library was significantly empty today, as Fridays usually were up until Midterms. Iruka could leave early if he wanted to, but there was no one waiting at home. Naruto was currently taking a mock exam, and his best friends were most likely still working.

He hummed to himself as he poured himself some still-warm coffee Keisuke brewed earlier. Keisuke was the oddest of his assistants, but the most efficient. If Keisuke wanted to wear mismatched socks and roll his jeans up to above his ankles, it was none of Iruka's business.

A majority of lunch was spent quietly eating the lumpy onigiri he let Naruto make him this morning. Jun nor Yuuri came in to ask for help, so Iruka was confident nothing had been set on fire while he took his time eating.

With ten minutes left, Iruka tossed his garbage away and made his way to the bathroom. Their bathroom was out of order due to a plumbing issue, so he would have to make his way to the Humanities department which the library shared the building with.

Iruka was in the middle of splashing water into his face when the door opened.

"My, my, I never expected you to leave the cave downstairs."

Iruka immediately reached for the paper towel and wiped his face. Through wet eyelashes, he could make out Mizuki's indifferent expression clearly.

"Mizuki-san," he greeted calmly, and threw out the paper towel. The center of his back began to ache, and he ignored it.

"You lost?" Mizuki asked, tilting his head almost mockingly,

Iruka refrained from rolling his eyes and gripped the side of the sink. "No. The restroom downstairs is out of order. Now if you will excuse me—"

"You know, I've been curious." Mizuki didn't move out of the way from the door, and Iruka felt like a cornered prey. "Why Tokyo? Why this school specifically?"

"Please move," Iruka said through gritted teeth.

"Did you miss me that much? Did you beg for this job?"

Seeing no other choice, Iruka attempted to just push past him, only for Mizuki to grab his wrist and bring them close, their noses almost touching. To anyone, this would have looked like an intimate moment between lovers, and that was what Iruka feared the most. He hadn't been in love with Mizuki for a long time now.

"Now, now. That's not polite, I-ru-ka," Mizuki breathed, and Iruka flinched.

"Take your hands off my person and don't say my name like that." Iruka managed to yank his wrist out of Mizuki's grasp. "If you move aside, then I won't report this to Tsunade-sama."

Mizuki clicked his tongue. "You're just as pathetic as ever." He stared down at Iruka with hard eyes. "But if you get on your knees, I might forgive you and that little brat of yours too—"

Iruka's fist swung before he had even realized. Mizuki crumbled, just as shocked as Iruka was, and he held his nose, grunting. Iruka had surely broken it, and one or two of his own knuckles, and it was oddly satisfying.

Without looking back, Iruka stepped over him and exited the bathroom, not realizing he had begun to cry.

"Iruka-sensei?" came from his right, the voice sounding alarmed.

"Tsunade-sama," Iruka choked, turning and his eyes widening. He became distinctly aware of the ache in his hand and the blood slowly dripping down his fingers. Of all times for Tsunade to leave her office across campus, it had to be right now.

"What the hell happened?" she demanded, just as Mizuki stumbled out of the bathroom. The color left her face, and Iruka could imagine the guillotine right over his own neck.

He provoked me, was stuck in Iruka's throat, refusing to push its way out and prove his innocence.

"I was just being polite, and he threw a punch," Mizuki wheezed through the blood gathering into his mouth from his nose.

Tsunade flinched and took a step back. "Go to the nurse's office," she ordered, and then pointed to Iruka, "and you, get in my office."

The brisk walk across campus was silent, and Iruka had to hide his hand in his pocket. Tsunade was practically shaking in her fury—students walking along the path quickly jumped onto the grass to get out of her way.

"What the hell were you thinking?!" Tsunade yelled the moment she slammed the door shut behind her, and Shizune nearly dropped the clipboard she was holding.

"I wasn't thinking," Iruka admitted quietly. "He said something awful and once he mentioned Naruto, I lost all restraint."

Tsunade groaned and collapsed onto her chair. "You giant idiot. Just when I was getting somewhere with the investigation."

"What?"

"I managed to get three of his students to talk. They mentioned being uncomfortable in his class, and how he often insulted and harassed others to the point of tears."

Iruka's lips curled in distaste. "He what?"

"But that means nothing now because you decided to punch him," Tsunade said flatly. "Because he was technically where he should be, and not the library, the blame falls on you for assaulting him and not reporting whatever he did to provoke you immediately."

"He's still an awful person regardless of me punching him," Iruka protested. "And he wouldn't move out of the way. I was practically trapped."

Tsunade shook her head and motioned for Shizune to hand her the tokkuri. "You're not understanding the bigger picture. What if he decides to file a lawsuit against the university if I don't fire you?"

Iruka suddenly grew cold and took the seat in front of the desk lest he collapse. "What?"

"Good, you're listening." She took a giant swig. "Konoha University has a Council with me at the head, and they have no idea who you are outside of the fact that you run the library. As far as they are concerned, Iruka-sensei, you are expendable if it means saving their own asses and preventing another scandal that would significantly lower admissions again. In fact, you should be thankful there wasn't any witnesses."

"Are you firing me?"

"I'm suspending you," Tsunade clarified. "Firing you means you won't have any chance to return working here, and that would be a waste. You did more for that library in a month than your predecessors did in years."

"How long will I be suspended?" Iruka asked.

"Until the investigation is over, and I know for sure that Mizuki will not want to go to court."

Iruka bowed his head and winced when he curled his wounded hand. He would need to go to the hospital. "But how long will that take?"

"Months, probably. I can only give you paid leave for three weeks, but after that, I'll have to cut your funds."

"I'll need to find another job," Iruka lamented.

Tsunade looked sympathetic when he raised his head, and Shizune gave him a sad smile.

"What about Naruto?" Iruka asked.

"He can stay in his classes," Tsunade reassured him. "Since you're not technically fired, you still count as faculty."

Iruka sighed in relief. "That's good to hear."

"There's a café two blocks away from here," Shizune supplied helpfully. "It pays its workers well and gives insurance. You can still be close by to Naruto-san to make sure he's okay."

Iruka could do nothing but nod and remain a silent observer to his life breaking into a million pieces.

"I could kill him," Genma offered.

Raidou shot him a look. "Don't—"

Genma took that as a sign to continue. "I could make it look like an accident. Maybe I could throw a wet cat onto his face while he's sleeping and—"

"Thank you," Iruka said calmly and placed his hand on Genma's, "but please don't kill anyone for me." He let go and returned to his position face down on the floor with the blanket over his head.

Genma sighed, and Iruka felt him shift closer, his thigh right beside Iruka's head. All three of them were in Iruka's living room, and having finished the online job application for the cafe Shizune told him about, Iruka was adamant he spend the rest of the day moping on the hardwood until Naruto returned home.

"You've only had that job for a month," Genma grumbled. "It's not fair. You were so close to your dream, and now Mizuki ruined everything again. When the doctors said you were almost permanently wheelchair bound all those years ago, I…" he trailed off, no doubt stopped from continuing his sentence by Raidou.

Iruka poked his head out of the blanket. "I know you're angry, as am I, but doing anything reckless won't help. I trust Tsunade-sama will get this all fixed soon."

"I, for one, am ecstatic you punched him," Raidou said, and Iruka couldn't stop his snort. "No, really. I should bake a cake as congratulations for finally breaking his nose."

Genma grinned. "I would have loved to see that." He ruffled Iruka's loose hair. "You have a temper, but never have I seen you actually lash out with more than just words. Mizuki must have been so surprised."

"He fell on his ass," Iruka laughed, and he flexed his now bandaged hand. The painkillers were working spectacularly. "It was honestly satisfying up until Tsunade-sama showed up."

Raidou winced. "Talk about bad luck."

"Well, it happened," Genma said after a moment. "Nothing we can do now except for waiting. Except—"

"Whatever you're thinking, I don't want to hear it," Iruka interjected hastily.

"This is the best opportunity to become a sugar baby if the cafe job doesn't work out," Genma finished, completely ignoring Iruka, to the surprise of no one.

Raidou shook his head and moved to the couch. Perhaps to protect himself if Iruka started swinging with his good hand.

"I am not becoming a sugar baby," Iruka deadpanned.

"I'm sure Hatake-san still has a vacancy."

"What did I say, Genma?"

Genma acted like he didn't hear him. Again. "Didn't he give you a business card? Call him, tell him what happened, show some skin—"

"He's gone," Iruka snapped. "I haven't heard from him for a month. I doubt he cares anymore."

Genma squinted. "What are you talking about? He's in South Korea. I bet he'll be returning soon now that Uchiha Itachi won the karate tournament."

"Don't you read the news?" Raidou asked as Iruka's jaw dropped. "Every channel has been covering it. Everyone says Uchiha-san is a once in a lifetime prodigy, and Hatake-san's company has helped him reach his full potential."

"I had no idea," Iruka breathed.

Genma poked him on the forehead. "Obviously. You have a television, but all you do is go on the channel with the nature documentaries."

Iruka sniffed and sat up, keeping his blanket around his shoulders. "It's therapeutic and proves good background noise for when I work."

"Old man," Raidou and Genma insulted him fondly.

Iruka shoved Genma, because he was the closest. "Whatever."

Kakashi was impatient.

"If you bounce your leg one more time, I'll remove it," Yamato promised sweetly, and Kakashi obeyed, mostly to prevent Yamato from yelling.

"Can't help it," he grumbled, looking out the limousine window. "I hate traffic."

Yamato sighed. "It's rush hour, and you want to go to the office instead of home, so what did you expect?"

Kakashi pressed his face closer to the window and squinted. "Wait, where are we?"

"We just left the Minato ward, and we're pretty close to—hey, where are you going? Kakashi?! Kakashi!"

Kakashi slammed the limousine door shut behind him and made his way across the road to the sidewalk. He bowed in apology to a car that honked at him and then gave a two-finger salute when the driver realized who he was. He ran off before anyone else could figure it out.

Konoha University was only three blocks away, and Iruka would be there.

It was not an obsession, that was just unhealthy; it was more of an itch that Kakashi desperately wanted scratch. A month and a half had passed, and Kakashi had spent his entire trip in South Korea mourning the hours wasted that could have been spent hanging out with Iruka.

Never in his life had he been so bored.

In the beginning, Yamato had attempted to find Iruka's phone number only to come up to Kakashi one day with a frown and say, He's like a ghost—no online information, no public profile. It's as if he doesn't exist.

That had devastated Kakashi to his core, and when Gai commented that he acted like a lovesick teenager, well. Kakashi was a little annoyed with himself after that and poured his attention into watching Japan's cadet team and talking to other CEOs forced to come out to watch the tournament.

Still, he had felt Iruka's absence keenly, which was why it was perfectly reasonable that he was making his way to the university on foot without telling Yamato nor any of his bodyguards where he was going. Kakashi turned his phone off because anyone could call it.

Umino Iruka wormed his way into his life without as much as a warning, Kakashi realized, as he bobbed and weaved through the evening work crowd making their way home. It should have been annoying, thinking about a man he barely knew but wanted to learn much more about.

Refreshing, would be the first word Kakashi would call him. Unpredictable, too. Would Iruka be angry with him, for leaving without saying goodbye? For never calling? Or would he hug Kakashi, breathless with joy to see his friend again after an abrupt separation?

Kakashi grinned behind his mask and bowed his head, pleased. Perhaps it would be both. Iruka seemed like the type to mask his worry and relief behind a storm of exasperation to save face. It was hard, not to be charmed by him. Impossible, even.

He missed Iruka so much.

Kakashi turned the corner, with delight bubbling in his chest. Maybe they could go to the rooftop again, once Iruka was finished with his shift. Naruto could hang out with the neighbors, and Kakashi would be forced to throw Iruka's phone off the building if he interrupted them again. Kakashi was going to be selfish.

He wanted to be selfish.

Konoha University remained unchanged since he was gone, not that Kakashi expected anything drastic to happen. He waved at a group of girls who recognized him and nodded when he saw Sarutobi Asuma smoking by the Mathematics building.

The corridor leading to the library was thankfully empty. He smoothed down imaginary wrinkles on his suit jacket and made sure his hair wasn't messier than usual. His white surgical mask was in place, and the jet lag had yet to set in. Better now than never.

Iruka was not inside. Or at least, not where he should be.

"Excuse me," Kakashi spoke to the girl at the desk, her name-tag reading Yuuri. "Where is Iruka-sensei?"

Immediately, her eyes began to well up with tears, and the boy beside her sighed, handing her a tissue box as if this wasn't the first time she had done this.

"He's on forced leave," she sniffed and blew into the tissue. Kakashi took a large step back. "The Chancellor did not tell us why, but the last time I saw him, it looked like he was hurt."

Kakashi felt his heart plummet into the acid of his stomach. "What?"

"He had bandages on his hand," the other assistant clarified when she began to cry harder into incoherency. "It was all so confusing. Iruka-sensei doesn't seem like the type to get into fights."

"Be quiet," Yuuri hissed. "We don't know if that's true. It could have been self-defense. Some of the professors, like Mizuki-sensei, always pick on—"

Kakashi tuned her out and a rage he never knew before almost consumed him. "Thank you for your time." He rushed out, without as much as glance back.

Tsunade did not look surprised to see him.

"Who told you?" she asked tiredly, and Shizune left, shooting Kakashi a look that told him to be nice.

"His assistants at the library," Kakashi answered. "What the hell is forced leave? Is he fired?"

Tsunade set down the paper she was pretending to read. "Suspended is the official term. When faculty are involved in investigations they cannot work on campus."

"Investigations? Does that have something to do with Iruka having a bandaged hand?"

"Without honorifics?" Tsunade noted, sounding amused. "You two must be close."

Kakashi made an irritated sound. "Answer the question."

"He punched Mizuki. There were no witnesses, don't worry, but Mizuki's nose is broken, and that doesn't look good on Iruka-sensei's part."

"Damn," Kakashi cursed. "So Mizuki is suspended too?"

"No," Tsunade admitted, with a sour look. "I want to, but I need him to believe we're on his side. The more comfortable he gets, the more he'll reveal to me."

Kakashi began to pace. "How long will Iruka be suspended for?"

"Indefinitely. Last week's event proved to me that Iruka-sensei and Mizuki cannot both work here."

"And you're punishing Iruka?"

"I'm not punishing him," Tsunade snapped. "I like him as much as you do—though, I think you like him more than you're letting on—and Konoha University needs someone like him working for us. Except, I cannot fire Mizuki without an agreement from the rest of the Council. Those bastards are still humiliated over the Orochimaru incident."

Kakashi slightly lowered his mask to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Orochimaru is in jail and yet he's still making matters worse."

"Tell me about it," Tsunade grumbled.

"What are we going to do?"

"I'm going to continue looking into Mizuki and his students. Testimonies from them are what we need in order to back up Iruka-sensei's claim about how much of a shithead he is."

Kakashi smiled and fixed his mask. "Iruka called him a shithead?"

"No, but he really wanted to."

They both laughed, and Kakashi accepted the cup of sake when Tsunade poured him one. He sat in front of her, sipping the alcohol, deep in thought.

"You know, I have never seen you this passionate," she said after a moment. "What makes Iruka-sensei so special?"

Kakashi shrugged one shoulder. "He's…different. That's all I can say. It's hard to put it into words, but I would like to keep him around. Yamato and the others haven't made me put in this sort of effort to be their friends."

"You've always liked a challenge," Tsunade said fondly.

"I don't think he's a challenge," Kakashi corrected. "A challenge is what Gai often forces me into for the sake of winning, but with Iruka-sensei, I want to be careful. Take my time."

Tsunade shook her head. "If I didn't know any better, I would say my godson is in love."

Kakashi opened his mouth to protest.

"I know you're not," she continued, waving him off. "Love takes time, too. I'm just glad to see you're letting someone else in. It's been a long time since you made a new friend."

Kakashi stared down into his now empty cup and smiled. Iruka was worth it. "I agree."