The Bank II
"A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it." - Jean de La Fontaine
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters contained therein, they belong to Masashi Kishimoto who is kind enough to let fans write fiction. I make no profit from this nor do I intend to.
A/N: Unbeta'd. I will attempt to post every other week. I think I'm going to need to do more rewrites on the remaining chapters than in previous chapters so I can't make any guarantees.
Enjoy.
Chapter XVII
Tsunade glanced up at the firm but still somehow deferential knock on her office door. With a sigh, she recognized that knock, she called out, "Enter!"
As expected Yui bowed herself into the office, moving gracefully to stand precisely four feet in front of Tsunade's desk.
"Afternoon Yui, you bring news from the Council?" Tsunade didn't bother glancing up from her paperwork. With the current state of things, she did not have the time to spare to humor the Council.
Yui bowed. "Yes, my Lady. They send their greetings."
"I see – is there a scroll this time?" she asked, as she finished annotating a thick document. Reaching for another one with her right hand as her left dropped the completed packet in her outbox.
"No, my Lady."
Tsunade sighed and glanced up, not bothering to try and hide her irritation.
"I see. They've sent a message, I take it?"
"Yes, my Lady." Yui bowed again and faltered before hesitantly adding, "Is this a bad time, my Lady?"
Tsunade shook her head slightly, knowing it wasn't Yui's fault that the Council hadn't stopped to consider the current situation or how it would translate itself into the Hokage's schedule. Which was to say, she had more than enough to do without having to deal with their inconsequential bullshit.
"Any time is a bad time just now," she stated shortly.
Yui blinked, unable to figure out what her response should be – the Council had sent her to obtain information, they would not welcome her return without the answers they wanted. And, yet, now was clearly not a good time to be bothering the Hokage.
Tsunade waved a hand dismissively and sighed again. "It's not your fault. You're here now. Let's just hear what they want then."
Still feeling a little off-balance, Yui took a moment to collect herself before responding.
"The Council is displeased, my Lady."
Irritated all over again Tsunade rolled her eyes. The Council was always displeased – if it wasn't one thing then it was another.
"Yes, yes. I'm sure they are. What precisely is it that they are upset about this time?" She waved a hand impatiently and refocused her attention on the papers in front of her. "From where I'm sitting there is a lot to be upset about."
"Rumor has it that there was an heir to the Hatake clan, my Lady."
Tsunade glanced up sharply, not quite believing what she'd heard.
"What?"
"My Lady, an heir to the Hatake clan – the Council has heard that there was one after all."
"They're still on about that? Now?" She exhaled in an exasperated huff before continuing. "With everything else going on, that's what they're upset enough about to send a messenger?!"
"Yes, my Lady." Yui simply nodded, knowing she had no other acceptable response. It was not her place to question the Council. Though, even she could see how inappropriate the timing was for this particular grievance to be aired.
Tsunade glared at Yui for a few moments before getting a better hold of herself. Terrible timing or not, she would still have to deal with this sometime. Clearly, the Council had no intention of letting it go, and putting them off unnecessarily would gain her nothing. Though, that did not mean she would give into them easily – she would make them work for their empty victory.
"Rumor often lies."
Yui shook her head faintly, only just able to prevent herself from taking a step back at the venomous tone in the Hokage's voice. Slightly she shifted her already stiffly correct posture back just a little, already knowing how poorly her response would be received.
"Apologies, my Lady. Medical claims say otherwise."
Tsunade narrowed her eyes, this was lower than she'd expected the Council to stoop in their snooping.
"Medical data is supposed to be confidential," Tsunade growled, unable to prevent her voice from descending to a lower pitch.
Yui flinched before hastily pulling herself together. Though, she was unable to prevent her lips from pursing faintly, allowing her distaste for her task show for only a moment before she regained full control. Hastily her expression smoothed out, back into her usual mask of polite interest.
"The Council begs to differ when matters directly relate to the village's future prosperity, my Lady."
"Future prosperity! What about our current-" Tsunade abruptly stopped herself, knowing that it would do no good.
Yui cringed, allowing a flash of fear to mar her generally serene expression. She agreed with the Hokage, it was not the right time for this, however, she had no say over the contents of the messages she carried or when she delivered them.
Aware that if she wanted to lose her temper, Yui was not an appropriate outlet for said fit of anger, Tsunade took a few moments to get her emotions under control. Once she'd forcibly calmed herself down, she waved a hand dismissively, hoping to bluff her way through the rest of the conversation.
"Technicalities."
Yui swallowed delicately, knowing what she had to say would not go over well.
"Yes, my Lady. But, still technically correct."
Tsunade was unable to prevent her fists from clenching, snapping the pen she'd been using to make notes.
"It doesn't matter."
"I'm sorry, my Lady, but the Council believes that it does."
Tsunade grimaced. "I can't see how at this point."
"My Lady, a desperately wanted heir to the Hatake clan was lost."
"And?" Tsunade refrained from mentioning all the other lives that had recently been lost as the Council wouldn't think of them as important.
"The Council would like to know what the consequences will be for those involved."
"Consequences are unnecessary at this point," Tsunade hissed through gritted teeth.
Kakashi let out a long sigh of relief as turned down the hall that would lead him to Tsunade's office. He had finally made it through the second gauntlet of curiously tight-lipped security. Though, if he were to be honest, the multiple interrogations weren't nearly as bad as he'd been expecting and the absolute last thing he wanted was to have to also make polite small talk with the various shinobi tasked with verifying his identity.
From what he could tell, no one had been informed that he wasn't expected to return. Instead, he'd just been put on the high risk of possible imposters list. Since he had returned, and confirmed his identity, Kakashi was hoping that he would be removed from that particular list. It had proved to be a real hassle for him to go through the intensive security check to make his report and then again to go through a second even more intense set of security checks to get into the hall that led to Tsunade's office.
Kakashi had forgotten how simplified his life had been made by the simple fact that he was a highly recognizable and well-known shinobi – generally, he had been privileged enough to be able to come and go as he pleased. He could only hope that things would return to normal once word had gotten around that he had returned and was no longer at high risk of being impersonated.
Next up on his list, having quickly finished filing his report, was to present himself to the Hokage. One big positive of his long slow trek back to the village – he'd had plenty of time to mentally write and memorize a detailed report. Saved a lot of time he'd otherwise have spent going over his mission details with one of the clerks. Instead of answering questions to fill out the form to the clerk's satisfaction, he'd just dictated the necessary report from memory and taken his leave once the clerk had it down.
Security checks aside, Kakashi's walk to Tsunade's office after filing his report, had not been made uninterrupted. He had, unsurprisingly, been cornered into making a mandatory pit stop before continuing on to Tsunade's office. Or, rather, he had been ambushed on his way to see her. Several wary medics, having been summoned once his identity had been verified, had approached him just as he was leaving the clerk's office. Knowing that it would be better to get it over with, he had consented, with ill-grace, to their impromptu exam. Since he wasn't seriously injured – just minor injuries combined with exhaustion and probable overexertion – there hadn't been much for them to do aside from patch up the few minor wounds he did have and advise him to go home and rest as soon as he was done with the Hokage.
Once he arrived at the door, Kakashi paused to take a moment to himself before actually opening the door. He had slunk into the village quietly and had been left alone on his semi-stealthy trek to Hokage Tower. He couldn't take the pity he knew he would see in the eyes of any of his fellow shinobi and they seemed to understand, or at least, they appeared to turn a blind eye to his passage. As he headed directly to Hokage Tower without any sort of stops or detours, he figured no one had seen fit to try and stop or intercept him. Consequently, he'd spoken to no one aside from the security details that verified his identity, the clerk he'd filed his report with, and the small team of medics who had conducted his exam. None of them had taken it upon themselves to bring up anything other than matters strictly relating to their various tasks at hand.
Kakashi inhaled and exhaled slowly, knowing that the confirmation he did not want likely lay on the other side. Part of him wanted to set his plan in motion before seeing Tsunade but the rest of him knew that he would be expected in her office. Or, rather, he would be once she learned that he'd returned. No, as much as he wanted to present her with a fait accompli, he knew it would be better to check in with her now and then bring everything else to her in the morning, once he'd had a chance to follow through with the next phase of his plan. One last deep breath in and out and he opened the door.
Tsunade glanced up upon hearing someone enter her office, her eyes going wide and her mouth dropping open briefly before she was able to get ahold of her reaction and close it.
"Kakashi?" she exclaimed, not quite certain that she could trust her eyes. Tsunade truly never expected to see him again. She'd practically given him her blessing to die in action and the mission where it was likely that he would have to in order to successfully complete it.
Kakashi nodded and slowly approached the desk, each step feeling heavier than the last.
"Yo," he greeted her with an upraised hand, more to reaffirm that he was who he appeared to be than anything else. When he stopped in front of her desk, he allowed his posture to relax into his customary slouch and stuffed his hands in his pockets. He was suddenly very tired.
Shaking herself out of her astonishment, Tsunade managed to relax her facial muscles to remove the surprise from her expression. If the man managed to make it to her office without rising some sort of hue and cry, then this was indeed who he appeared to be.
"I see, you have returned. Successful, I take it?"
Kakashi nodded and partially answered the question he knew she would ask.
"The gemstone proved to be an invaluable asset."
"What?" she asked, momentarily unable to parse his statement.
"It was a copy – had it made from the original before we left. Nearly impossible to tell the difference though. Turned out to be an excellent bargaining chip, even when marketed around as a fake."
Surprised at his foresight she nodded, it hadn't occurred to her to use the gemstone he'd taken so long ago as leverage. And, here he'd done just that without actually using the gemstone itself, which, she was sure, was still locked safely in the vault. The stone itself, copy or not, could easily have made an enormous difference for him.
Pushing her surprise concerning the gemstone aside, Tsunade eyed him speculatively.
"You appear uninjured."
He nodded wearily.
"Some bumps, bruises, and a few strains." He lifted his shoulders briefly in a sort of half-shrug, not bothering to pull his hands from his pockets. "Nothing serious though. Just worn-out, really."
She narrowed her eyes, the mission should have killed him. For Kakashi to say he had returned more-or-less uninjured seemed unbelievable, even for one such as him.
"You sure about that?"
"I'm fine – several medics ambushed me on my way here." He exhaled slowly. "Passed all their tests with flying colors."
She raised a skeptical eyebrow, not missing all the little signs that he was not at his best.
He sighed, understanding her disbelief – he still didn't believe it himself.
"I'm exhausted and have definitely overextended myself. Otherwise, my focus was such that I made it out mostly unscathed. What few injuries I did receive, have been treated. Medic's parting advice was for me to get some rest when I was done here."
Slowly Tsunade nodded, absorbing what Kakashi had said and beginning to suspect what he hadn't. What it all boiled down to was that apparently, Kakashi was right to be labeled as an elite. Abruptly she shook her head and refocused on Kakashi's presence in front of her and the possible issues his mere existence caused.
"Right… you came back."
Kakashi nodded, not in the mood to elaborate though suspecting that he would have to before his interview with Tsunade was over.
Tsunade nodded, her mind still trying to make sense of Kakashi's return.
"You do know that you've hit your mission cap?"
"Yes."
"This means at the very least, semi-retirement for you."
"I know."
"And, yet, you've come back."
He nodded and let out a long slow breath as he brought a suddenly slightly unsteady hand to rest on his forehead. Tsunade was not going to leave it alone until he gave her some answers. Understandable as what he had done was utterly contrary the way he had lived his entire life up until this point. Probable end of his career aside, huge shifts in one's personality and/or giving up one's life's goals… This was not one of his sappy romance novels, this abrupt change was a flashing neon red flag. Tsunade would be a fool to ignore it. Yes, he'd proved his identity but there were things out there that may have taken over. Or, worse, for all Tsunade knew, he may have suffered some sort of a mental break. Kakashi couldn't blame her for wanting to sort out all the inconsistencies before letting him go back out into the village.
"If you must know… she got to me," he stated calmly as he let his hand drop from his forehead, seeing no reason why he shouldn't admit it all now that Sakura was gone. In any case, it would all become clear once he set the rest of his plans in motion.
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, beginning to suspect what may have happened but not quite able to believe it to be true. Kakashi was too dedicated to his chosen life's path. That he might choose to alter that path seemed unbelievable.
Kakashi felt compelled to further elaborate, Tsunade would figure it all out anyway, might as well tell her and save them both some trouble. Besides, he was too tired to try and dodge telling her anything other than the truth.
"She finally broke me. Me one of the most dedicated tools of Konoha. And... she broke me." He shook his head slightly, ruefully. "She's always been so strong, handled everything I threw at her without batting an eye…"
Tsunade nodded, having already guessed that it had to be something to do with the time he'd spent with Sakura, but still feeling surprised nonetheless. Kakashi had been adamant about his expected end, for years. And, Sakura had long ago made her peace with his chosen life's path. He had little chance of achieving his life's goal now. Though, if he but only thought about it, there was another, larger, life's goal he could achieve, if only he tried. The Hatake ancestors would be just as pleased if he obtained that honor rather than his desired spot on the Memorial.
"And, now that she's…" Kakashi started again only to trail off almost immediately, unexpectedly having a difficult time bringing himself to say it out loud. Instead of finishing the thought, he was certain Tsunade already knew anyway, he cleared his throat and started a new one.
"I have unfinished business."
"Well, I see." She hesitated for a moment, still feeling surprised and looking for the words. "Regardless of how or why it happened, you're back."
He nodded resignedly, she didn't expect a response.
"The village wasn't- I wasn't prepared for this. It will take some time to sort out what will be next for you. Options will be found, of that I'm sure. It will just take some time."
She took a moment to take a really good look at him, his posture slightly sagging, more so than usual, clearly exhausted. And, if she didn't know him so well, she would have missed the extra droop around his eyes. He did look for all the world, broken. It hit her then, the full truth of what had likely happened. What he wasn't saying. What he couldn't bring himself to say out loud. Doing her best to keep her fresh surprise to herself she continued on, calmly.
"You've earned some time off. You won't be expected anywhere so no need to rush your recovery – you can take all the time you need. Spend your time quietly, as I'm sure the mission will catch up with you now that you're home and safe and the mission-mode has worn off."
He nodded, she was right. It had been sheer adrenaline, nerves, and determination to get him back to the village. Now that he had returned and taken steps to do as he'd planned, it was all starting to catch up with him. If he didn't have urgent business to take care of, he would next be headed directly to his apartment where he would likely spend the next few days unconscious.
"I'll have you summoned when I need you."
Taking that as a dismissal, Kakashi gathered himself to leave, straightening his slouched posture and turning on his heel. Originally he had wanted to ask about Sakura but, he found that he couldn't quite bring himself to do so – he was just too tired. Instead, he'd carry on with his plan. He'd see Tsunade again in the morning after he'd gotten some sleep, and they could discuss it then if necessary.
"Oh, and, Kakashi?" she called out to him, doing her best to keep her tone casual.
Kakashi turned, wondering what else she could possibly need to tell him and dreading that it would have to be more bad news regarding Sakura – though he honestly couldn't imagine anything worse than what had already happened. It hit him then that they may have already cleared out Sakura's apartment. He felt the panic rise, he'd anticipated that they would wait – though he wasn't expected to return, he'd assumed that Tsunade would wait until she had confirmation of his death before having both apartments cleared. His whole plan rested on them having left Sakura's apartment alone… if they hadn't… Heart in his throat he waited to hear the dreadful news, exhausted mind frantically searching for another plan.
"You should stop by and see Sakura now that you're back in the village. She'll want to see you."
His jaw dropped open. "Sakura?" he asked, his voice cracking only a little.
Keeping a knowing smirk to herself, she certainly had called it, Tsunade continued, "Sakura, we found her. Alive."
"But- the message, your message…" he started, trailing off as the enormity of Tsunade's pronouncement hit him.
She shook her head and averted her gaze, only then realizing that she hadn't left any room for hope in the scroll she'd sent him – apparently, incorrectly, assuming that it would make things easier for him to take his desired exit. If Sakura was gone, he would have nothing left to return to. That it would have had the opposite effect had never even briefly occurred to her. Granted, at the time, Tsunade – everyone – had assumed Sakura and all other first responders had been killed in the second blast. It hadn't been until the day after Tsunade had sent out the ANBU recall that Sakura had been found. Far too late to try and correct any assumptions Kakashi or anyone else may have made.
"When I recalled all ANBU and medics, the assumption was that it was a terrorist act and that all first responder lives had been lost." She paused to gather herself before continuing, that day had been one nightmare after another. "We were wrong... on both counts."
"W-what? How!?" he asked, wanting to hear more about Sakura but knowing he'd have to listen to the whole story first.
Tsunade shook her head slowly, tiredly, as the painful memories of that day reared their ugly heads.
"A simple gas line break, the second explosion was the result of a second break caused by the damage done by the first one. No terrorists, no act of war, nothing. Just a terrible accident likely due to long-forgotten poorly maintained gas lines in the North Wing."
"Sakura?" he asked, unable to think of anything else.
"We found Sakura, unconscious, and impaled by a lighting fixture which ironically kept her from being entirely crushed under a large pile of debris, the day after I sent that note. From what we can see, the ceiling caved in on her and her team only moments before the second explosion, likely saving her life. If it hadn't been for the lighting fixture, she may have been able to manage to get out on her own once the dust had settled…" Tsunade paused to remember the description of the scene and amended her statement. "Or at the very least gotten the rescuers' attention sooner."
Tsunade shook her head and eyed Kakashi for a moment before continuing, choosing not to tell him that Sakura had died, twice, when they found her and removed the multiple metal spikes pinning her mid-section to the ground and keeping the chunk of the ceiling from entirely crushing her. Only through the quick thinking of the rescuers had she been brought back long enough to get her into Tsunade's hands. Sakura had died a third time while in surgery, though Tsunade had been expecting it and was prepared to bring her back.
"She's lucky that a woman medic found her. Otherwise, Sakura probably would have lost the ability to have children – it would have been much easier to save her that way. But, Minako knew how badly Sakura wanted to have children and since I was the one to put her back together when they got her to the emergency room, she should be fine in another two or three months."
Still shocked, unable to fully process the information, Kakashi continued to stare somewhat stupidly. His whole world had just shifted beneath his feet for the second time that day.
"Sakura wasn't the only survivor. We also found another member of her team and three of the second combat medic team similarly buried in the debris – we lost all of the firefighters though, they were too far ahead, too close to the second blast." Tsunade paused for a moment of reflection for the lives lost before continuing. "None of the survivors were as badly off as Sakura though. Finding them led the rescuers to keep looking for her." Tsunade shook her head. "She's still mending but barring any accidents, she should be just fine."
Finally managing to get ahold of himself, mostly, he shook his head in disbelief.
"Where?" he didn't even bother to hide the raw emotion in his voice.
Tsunade frowned, shaking her head slightly, not liking what she was going to say next. "She was discharged a few days ago."
"What?!"
Tsunade raised a hand to stem his protests.
"Upon her request and against my wishes – there was absolutely no way of talking her out of it. The structural integrity of the hospital has been compromised and there simply aren't enough rooms or even beds in the confirmed safe portions of the building for everyone who needs them. Especially with the increased number of births we've been having for the past few months."
She felt her fingers curling into fists and had to forcibly relax them, the frustration she'd felt at the time rearing its ugly head again. She'd had more than a few bitter arguments with Sakura about the whole situation.
"Repairs can't be started for another few months as they are still assessing options – turns out bureaucracy moves slowly no matter what the circumstances. They've demolished the remains of the North Wing but sections of the main hospital block are still considered unsafe. Plans are now being evaluated for a new North Wing and how best to repair the main hospital block – they plan to make the repairs as they build the new North Wing and join it to the rest of the hospital. Until those are settled, we can't use a portion of the main hospital building. Since Sakura is, more or less, stable, she requested that she be sent home, so her hospital bed could be given to someone who needed it more than she did."
"That's-"
Tsunade waved her hand, waving away Kakashi's protests, she herself had already voiced them all to no avail.
"We have people checking in on her multiple times a day and she has been given an emergency button. The injuries to her head, arms, and legs are nearly healed. Which just leaves the massive internal injuries she sustained to her torso. Since she is a skilled medic she can handle most of her own basic day-to-day care herself."
Still incredulous, Kakashi just shook his head. The reality that Sakura had indeed survived, that she was alive, not quite sinking in just yet.
"Nevertheless," Tsunade continued, aware that Kakashi was likely still struggling with the announcement that Sakura had survived. "We didn't tell her that you weren't coming back."
Surprised again he managed to raise an eyebrow in question.
"No one knew you weren't expected back from your last mission aside from the team you were sent out with and they were expressly told not to pass that information on. We thought it best to wait for a suitable amount of time to pass and then announce that you were missing, presumed KIA."
He tilted his head to the side with a slight frown.
"But, you weren't going to tell Sakura?" he asked, unsure why the idea bothered him so much.
Tsunade shook her head unable to suppress a grimace.
"No, we didn't want her distracted while she was still recovering." She swallowed, it had been a hard decision to make. "Besides, Sakura is experiencing enough loss at the moment. Adding you to that equation…" she trailed off with a sigh. "Well, that might have been too much for Sakura in her current condition."
Understanding but not necessarily liking it, he nodded. His world still shifting under his feet. Sakura was alive…
"Which reminds me," Tsunade paused, looking for the words. She let her eyes take in Kakashi's bewildered and drained state and decided she would have to be blunt. "A warning you don't want but need to hear – even in the state you're in now. The Council has been poking around – they've been slowly focusing their attention on Sakura. They know about her lost pregnancy and are very unhappy about it. I've been able to keep them at bay but… eventually, they'll manage to try something."
Kakashi closed his eyes and cursed quietly under his breath. Sakura deserved better than to be harassed by the Council – this was his fault.
Tsunade watched his reaction closely, it was not nearly as rage-filed as she was expecting. Either he really was beyond exhausted or…
"I'm not sure you're fully grasping the entirety of the situation. Now that you're back, if they think they can get away with it, they will order Sakura-"
"No!" Kakashi interrupted her, unable to hear the awful possibility put to words – one he had worried over ever since they'd allowed themselves to be seen out and about together in situations that might lead others to believe they were in a relationship. That the Council may get wind of it had never been very far from his mind. But, as he was in the Bank, he didn't think there was any serious threat to Sakura. Once he earned his place on the Memorial, things would sort themselves out… or, so he'd thought.
"Whether you want to hear it or not, they will try to order Sakura to have your child, by any means necessary, whether she's willing or not."
Kakashi winced, he'd never wanted Sakura to be put into this situation and grasped onto the tiny ray of hope Tsunade's word choice had extended.
"Try?"
Tsunade snorted. "They don't really have any authority over her – I've managed to slowly maneuver her out of their jurisdiction ever since you joined the Bank program – but neither she nor they would know that."
"What?"
Tsunade chuckled without any humor, very glad to have had the foresight to make the decisions she had once she'd realized the uncomfortable situation Sakura may suddenly find herself in.
"Sakura probably thinks I've just been extra lazy in pushing off things on her – and to be honest, I have. But, I've also been doing it for her own good. While she wasn't paying attention, Sakura managed to complete the groundwork for a promotion that will allow her to be more involved with the actual hospital administration. It's a small distinction but important as her major employer will be the hospital itself rather than the village. Since like all kunoichi medics, she'll still be a shared employee between the village and the hospital, she'll keep her active duty kunoichi status, benefits, and everything else. The only things that will officially change will be the entity that actually pays her and the entity that has first priority for her services. However, since I ensured her status gave the hospital first priority before this promotion, nothing will actually change status or benefits-wise."
Kakashi just stared at her for a moment, amazed at not only the new wrinkle Tsunade had introduced into his current situation with Sakura but also at the foresight she had had in order to immediately put countermeasures into action.
"You're telling me this…"
"Because you need to be prepared should someone turn up unexpectedly…"
Kakashi sighed and nodded, someone would. And, of course, it would likely be at the absolute worst time possible – that was exactly how the Council did things if they could manage it.
"Does Sakura know?" He asked tiredly, everything starting to catch up with him again, and beginning to feel somewhat overcome.
Tsunade shook her head. "No, not yet. I haven't found a good time to bring it up with her."
Kakashi nodded, overwhelmed, and suddenly finding it all to be too much for his exhausted state.
Sensing that she'd said enough and that Kakashi could only stand there stupidly for so long, Tsunade nodded once and gestured to the door.
"It's late. You might as well head home, someone will be sent for you once we figure out what we will be doing next. Won't be for a few weeks, a month, at the very least."
"Right. Thank you."
"Don't forget to go see Sakura. It will be some time before she's up and about on her own so she'll be happy to have any visitors. Especially, you."
Kakashi nodded his understanding and resumed his interrupted exit, his mind still in shock as his feet automatically took him out of the building.
Before he knew it, Kakashi found himself at Sakura's apartment. That he should wait until the morning, or even stop by his own place for a shower first had never even briefly passed through his mind. Quickly, he made his way up to her balcony, aware that she wouldn't be awake to let him in but also knowing that the lock would be easy to deal with for a shinobi of his skill. He did have a key, just not on him. After all, there was no reason for him to need it while out of the village.
Quietly, Kakashi made his way into her kitchen, closing and relocking the balcony door behind himself. A part of him absently wondering if she would be angry that he broke in when he did, in fact, have a key. As silently as he could, he removed his sandals and dropped his pack in her kitchen before padding quietly down her hall, pausing briefly at the door to her bedroom. He could sense her on the other side of the door, it was late, all was quiet and she was likely sleeping. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door, unable to bring himself to walk to her bedside quite yet, he paused, lingering in her doorway.
Sakura was, as he'd hoped, lying peacefully in her bed. She was alive. Slowly he let out a breath he hadn't been aware that he had been holding. Sakura was alive. Unable to wrap his mind around this amazing fact Kakashi remained rooted to the spot, just staring at the woman he had been sure he had lost.
Sakura slowly felt pulled from sleep, all too soon as far as she was concerned. For a minute she tried to puzzle out why she was awake, the pain medication she was on practically guaranteed a full night's worth of uninterrupted sleep, and then some. After a few moments, she was able to pin it down and she found herself smiling slightly.
"Never occurred to you that I might go first, did it?" she asked, her voice weak but determined, hoping to startle him out of his petrification.
Kakashi inhaled sharply, realizing that she was right, it had never occurred to him that she might die before him. Sakura was very healthy, an excellent kunoichi, an outstanding medic and on top of it all, she was stationed more or less permanently in the village. There was no way she could go before him… or, so he had thought.
"S'okay, Kakashi. I'm okay." Sakura paused, waiting for a response. Upon receiving none, she continued, trying to get him moving again. "Won't be up for any of your nocturnal visits for some time though."
Shocked that that was what she was thinking, he would never... Kakashi found his voice. "Sakura! That's-"
Sakura chuckled weakly.
"I know, I know. Still, if that's going to be a problem… you should feel free to go elsewhere if necessary."
Now somewhat irritated he took a few steps forward, into the room.
"Sakura, that's unnecessary and you know it."
She snorted softly, wincing at the flash of pain the motion caused, he could be incredibly demanding when it came to bedroom activities and the frequency thereof.
"Do I?"
He paused, frowning.
"It was always only you," he murmured softly – the string of flings with pink-haired women flashing before his mind's eye, poor stand-ins for Sakura the lot of them. Shaking his head, hoping she hadn't heard, he changed the topic. "Just wanted to make sure you were okay."
Sakura sighed, knowing that Kakashi had said something that she hadn't caught, but she was once again feeling the side effects of the painkillers as they started to kick in again.
"S'late, Kakashi. Why don't you take a shower and come to bed?"
Panicked, his eyes widened.
"Sakura, I-"
"'m tired and s'late. Your apartment is on the other side of the village and my couch is too lumpy for a comfortable night's sleep – you know that." She sighed, shifting slightly under the covers. "Just shower – I'm sure you were on the road all day – 'n come to bed."
Kakashi stood, frozen in indecision. Never once in all of the many times they'd shared an enjoyable evening had he ever given in to his secret desire to spend the night, never even briefly considered it. And now… never had said desire to stay been so strong.
"Sakura, you know I…"
She shifted again, trying to find a more comfortable position. "S'late Kakashi... Jus' this once. 've never asked before and won't ask again." She paused to yawn before adding, "Leave at firs' light if makes things better."
Before he realized it, Kakashi had taken a step toward her. Abruptly, he stopped, sighed, and turned to return to her kitchen where he'd left his bag and sandals. He never could refuse her anything when she asked – especially since she actually asked for so little from him to begin with. Lost in his thoughts, Kakashi raided Sakura's linen closet for clean clothes and headed to her bathroom to take a shower.
Shortly, he emerged showered and in a clean shirt and pants. With no small amount of trepidation, he carefully made his way back into Sakura's room. She was right. His apartment was on the other side of the village, too far for him to want to trek at this time of night, especially after the day he had had. And, as they'd discovered rather early on in their evening escapades, her couch, while quite comfortable for sitting, was anything but for any other uses.
Kakashi also had to admit to himself that he had never in his life wanted to stay with her more. A small irrational part of him insisting that if he were to leave, somehow Sakura would cease to have survived the blast at the hospital and he would somehow manage to shatter the dream he had suddenly found himself in. Perhaps he hadn't survived that mission after all…
Once again Kakashi found himself pausing to linger in her doorway. This time he could tell that she was deep asleep – unlikely to wake again until morning – his presence probably noted and flagged as safe by her subconscious. After a moment he shook himself and made his way over to the other side of her bed. Awkwardly he shifted himself under the covers, making certain not to disturb Sakura. With an effort, he managed to keep himself to his side of the bed though he longed to reach out to her.
About an hour later, Kakashi found himself pulled from the world of sleep. Confused, he was beyond exhausted and wanted nothing more than sleep, he spent a moment trying to sort out why he was awake. After a few minutes, he realized what was wrong and sighed. Sakura had shifted a little in her sleep, moving closer to him, almost but not quite close enough to actually touch him. He let out a long slow breath, his fingers curling closed before opening again. He knew what he wanted.
Carefully, he slipped an arm around Sakura, avoiding her midsection as he knew that was likely where she was most injured. Softly, gently, he shifted her closer to him until he could comfortably slip his other arm around her.
Kakashi sighed and closed his eyes again. Sakura was alive.