AN: hi guys! i'm so happy you're enjoying my story. i'm sorry i don't communicate with you guys so much, but there's no end notes section and i dont like to disrupt the story. all this to say you can find me on AO3 under dogloser and on tumblr as doggoneloser ! i have more stories and WIPs on AO3 and i would love for anyone to shoot me a message on my tumblr if you'd like to chat. anyway, enjoy the update!

Kakashi jumped down from a tree overlooking the training grounds, landing beside Minato, Rin, and Obito. And, if Obito had arrived here before he had, he needed no other indicator that he was late. "Hey guys." Kakashi gave a lazy, two-fingered salute in greeting to his teammates, who were all looking at him oddly.

"Kakashi," Minato greeted in a hum. "I never thought I would say this, but you're late."

"Yeah!" Obito echoed, although much, much louder. "You're late, Bakakashi! What gives?!"

"Ah, well." Kakashi rubbed at the back of his head, giving the team an awkward smile. Everyone waited for his response, but he gave none and was not planning on giving one. After a long moment, they seemed to realize that. Obito opened his mouth to complain, but Minato silenced him with a wave.

"Let's just start training, huh?" Their sensei said. All the students agreed. "Today we're going to be working on your ninjutsu and target practice, so I hope you all brought your A-game. Ninjutsu's up first! Everyone spread out, give each other some room."

The three of them jumped back as instructed and waited for further instruction. To each of them, their sensei tossed a sealed scroll. Obito fumbled with it midair, dropped it, and scooped it up again; Rin caught it with her arms; Kakashi snatched his from the air one-handedly.

"Inside those scrolls are a ninjutsu spell unique to your chakra natures," Minato said. "I want you to learn these and try to perfect them. Admittedly, they're a little out of your league… but I've seen your progress over these past few months, and I think you all have what it takes to learn a difficult jutsu like this." The Namikaze smiled kindly at his students. Kakashi could have guessed what was coming next; he'd used it on his own students often enough. "I have some business to attend to, so it's just going to be you guys out here for a while. Make sure not to push yourselves too hard, and rest accordingly. I'll be back around noon to check in. Have fun!"

With that, Minato disappeared in a blur. All three of Team Minato sighed, glanced at each other, and opened their scrolls.

Kakashi's scroll was a lightning technique, and, admittedly, he was interested. His own signature lightning move was unique to himself ⎼ and Sasuke, but he supposed that wasn't the case anymore ⎼ and he had crafted many other techniques based off of the Chidori. Those attacks were his most common lightning arsenal, but a new move would be quite helpful.

A tingle near his shoulder encouraged Kakashi to turn his head. Obito stood behind him, leaning over with wide, curious eyes. "What'd you get? Huh?" He questioned. "A lightning scroll? What's the move?"

"Shouldn't you be practicing your own scroll?" Kakashi drawled, but he knew the truth. Obito was probably overwhelmed with the contents of the Jonin-level jutsu.

"I-I can master that easy fire jutsu no problem! I'm just making sure you're not getting left in my dust, Bakakashi."

Kakashi snickered, amused, but he decided to humor his friend.

"It's essentially a lightning whip technique," he explained. "I draw chakra into my fingers, form it into lightning, and extend it. In theory, it's simple, but I'm sure the execution isn't so easy." Really, the idea behind the jutsu was so simple, Kakashi wondered why he didn't think it up himself before.

Rin's voice called over to them. "What are you two muttering about over there? We're supposed to be practicing!"

Obito looked away from the scroll to answer her back. "Kakashi's showing me his scroll! What do you have, Rin?"

"It's called Stone Senbon!"

"That's so cool! Mine's a fire jutsu that… uh… I think it's like bullets."

Kakashi knew both of those techniques ⎼ not just by word of mouth, either, but they were both ones that he could use himself. "Let me see your scroll, Obito," Hatake hummed. Obito eyed him warily, but complied anyway. He left Kakashi's scroll there and fetched his own. At the same time, Rin brought her scroll and joined them, until Team Minato sat in a small circle.

"Mm." Kakashi looked over Obito's scroll first, and Obito was looking over his shoulder at it, too.

"It's all a bunch of mumbo-jumbo. I can't even tell what it's trying to say."

"You weren't wrong with the idea of fire bullets." Kakashi handed the scroll back. "Think of it like your fireball jutsu, but in smaller, faster bursts."

Obito jumped up with his scroll, filled with energy. "Alright! Time to try it out! Thanks, Bakakashi!" He rushed away to the lakeside, where practicing any fire jutsu was safest.

Rin scooted closer in Obito's absence. "Do you think you can help me with mine, too, Kakashi?" She asked shyly. He hummed again, nodded, and took her scroll. After a minute of looking over it, he handed it back to her.

"It's another jutsu simple in theory. You have senbon on you, don't you?"

"I do." Rin dug in her pouch, pulling out her senbon. Kakashi took one gently in his fingers.

"Senbon are durable, useful for medical jutsu. They can pierce skin and muscle just fine enough, but when faced with something like a tree…" Kakashi expertly threw it, and it stuck into the bark. "It doesn't go all the way through. Using your earth jutsu, though, you can harden these into being as durable as stone."

"Wow!" Rin smiled, and it was dazzling. "Thank you Kakashi. I should go practice now." She gathered her things and stood up, but before she left, she placed a hand on his shoulder. "I think you would make a great sensei one day, you know."

He said nothing in response, and she left him to do his own practicing. Briefly he thought of his own team ⎼ Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke. He missed them dearly. When he had first found himself back in the past, he thought he would stop at nothing to return to them. But very soon he found himself with a new resolve: he would save Obito, Rin, Minato and Kushina. And, if Minato-sensei remained as the Yondaime, perhaps the Uchiha would have never been slaughtered. It would create a better future for Naruto and Sasuke, one he could never provide them.

He would remain here until death took him, and he would save both his teams.

Refreshed with his resolve, Kakashi began his practice. Not too surprisingly, the technique was actually simple to create. On his first try he found himself with a whip of lightning in his fingers. Wielding it, however, was a different story. Typically, a ninjutsu would take Kakashi little to no time at all to master, but, shoved back into his childhood body as he were, nothing about the situation was typical.

He was briefly reminded of the chakra damage and scarring within his system. Between the medical exam he had been given near immediately after he arrived in the past and the one the night prior, he knew more about his new-old body than ever ⎼ and yet, he still felt as if he didn't know enough. Death had left a permanent scar on his chakra system even into the past, and his chakra was constantly diverted to his left eye, creating a pseudo-sharingan in Obito's replacement. At least, even though he didn't have answers, Kakashi had steps to take: increase his chakra reserves so that the pseudo eye could function like a normal Sharingan.

Tonight would be another sleepless night, or near-sleepless, then. Kakashi was going to make good on his new alliance with Danzo as soon as possible, so, as soon as the sun set, he would be sneaking to ROOT HQ. Maybe there, this new lightning jutsu would come in handy.

The Lightning Whip took Kakashi a solid half-hour to use comfortably and accurately. Occasionally, he still hit some snags ⎼ such as forgetting how far his chakra could extend, since his chakra reserves were lower than they had been when he was in his thirty-year-old body, and the whip would fizzle out of existence before it hit its target. That was an easy fix, though, and within the hour Kakashi could say he had it comfortably mastered.

Obito and Rin were not faring as well as he was. While he was sure that Obito noticed first, it was Rin who first called him over to ask for more help.

Letting the whip dissipate from his hand, Kakashi shoved his hands in his pockets and sauntered over. "Maa, what's got you stuck, Rin?" He asked. She showed him a pile of broken senbon, near crumbled into dust.

"I can't get it to stick," she explained. "I cover the senbon with the earth jutsu just fine, but it's too weak, and it just falls apart like dust."

Kakashi squatted down beside her, his single eye flicking between her face and her hands. "Show me."

Rin complied, her hands moving slowly and carefully as she worked to get the signs correct. The senbon solidified, as she said, but it only held for a minute before falling apart.

"I would've thought a medic-nin would have been better at this," Kakashi mused.

Rin looked as if she wasn't sure if she should be offended or not. "What does having to be a medic-nin have to do with this?" She asked.

Kakashi nodded, mostly to himself, realizing the problem. "You've never tried to incorporate your medical skills into anything offensive," he commented, and she nodded again, confirming his theory. "It's the same process, just a different outcome. Your chakra control needs to be steady. Think of when you walk up a tree."

"The flow of chakra has to be the perfect mix."

"Exactly."

He picked up two of her senbon. "If you put too much chakra into it…" Kakashi copied the motions he had seen her use, purposefully putting too much chakra into the senbon. The tool shattered in his hands, sharp stones clattering to the earth. "...Then the senbon can't handle it. But if you use too little⎼"

"⎼There's not enough to keep it holding together." Rin gave a sharp nod, her eyes bright. "Thank you, Kakashi! I'll try that."

He waved dismissively. Before he could say anything, Rin continued, "Maybe you should see if Obito needs any help. I don't think he's gotten his down, either."

Kakashi glanced over his shoulder, looking at Obito. The Uchiha's body language was tense. No doubt the boy was frustrated. "Do you really think he'd want my help?"

"He asked you for it earlier."

"Maa. I suppose you're right." Kakashi stood, his hands returning to his pockets. "As long as you don't start calling me Kakashi-sensei."

Rin raised an eyebrow, wondering if that was based solely off her earlier comment. She looked back down to her senbon, fiddling with it. "I mean, I do think you could be a great Jonin-sensei. Any Genin would be…" She looked up again, and Kakashi was already across the training ground. He probably hadn't heard a word. Still, she smiled to herself. "They'd be lucky to have you."

On the lakeshore, Kakashi stepped over to Obito, watching as the boy tried and tried again to get a succession of small fireballs. Even from several feet away, he could see the burns on Obito's lips and fingers, but the Uchiha was far too stubborn to give up from that alone.

"What do you want, Bakakashi?" Asked the other, anger and irritation poorly hidden in his voice. Kakashi didn't respond, merely watching as Obito attempted the jutsu again. He managed about three fireballs, one after the after, just about a quarter the size of a regular Fireball jutsu, before the attack sputtered out and died on his lips. Apparently, Kakashi's silence was no help, and Obito whirled on him. "If you're just here to gloat⎼"

Kakashi cut him off. "Check your breathing."

"What?" The advice sent Obito off-kilter, distracting him from his mounting anger. "My breathing?"

"You're used to taking a deep breath for the regular Fireball jutsu and releasing it in one exhale. That's a good way to make one big flame, but not so ideal for small bursts."

Obito glanced warily at him, but when Kakashi said no more, he turned back to the lake and tried again. The shift in his jutsu was clear when he was concentrating on his breathing. Although not perfect, the flame bursts were more controlled, and Kakashi counted seven before the attack died out. Obito turned to him, then, looking unsure if he should say thank you or not.

"This better not be you showing off again," he warned. Kakashi held his hands up in surrender.

"I'm just here to help. We all need to be better, as a team. If I can help, why shouldn't I?"

Obito didn't seem satisfied. "You've never wanted to help before."

I hadn't experienced your deaths before, Kakashi wanted to reply. Instead, he swallowed it down and locked the thought away, giving Obito a cheery eye-smile. "Well, I want to help now. You're welcome, by the way."

Before he could get a reply, Kakashi retreated to work on his own jutsu until Minato returned, at noon and with bento boxes. The Namikaze appeared in the center of the training field, and his three students stopped what they were doing to sit and eat with him. After lunch was target practice. Minato watched with a careful eye as they all used their new jutsu to hit the targets, and he was more than pleased with the results.

"You all worked really hard today!" Minato cheered, his smile so bright it was blinding. "I'm sorry I couldn't stay and help, but it doesn't look like you needed my help at all!"

"Kakashi helped us," Rin said, before Kakashi could glare warningly. Just because he liked helping his team did not mean that he wanted to be brought into the spotlight for it, and spotlight was Minato's specialty.

"Oh? Did he?" Their sensei looked over the three of them curiously. "Both of you?"

Obito shifted when Minato's gaze rested on him. "Yeah."

Rin was surely aware of the uncomfortable exchange, but she acted as if she weren't. "I think Kakashi should be a Jonin-sensei one day, Sensei!"

"Huh." Minato rubbed at his chin, a curious (evil, in Kakashi's opinion) look in his eye. "Kakashi-sensei, huh? How does that sound?"

"I'd rather not," Kakashi lied, but his drawl was overpowered by Obito's boisterous laughter.

"Kakashi!" He exclaimed, pulling up his goggles to wipe at his eyes. "A sensei!"

Rin frowned, leaning over and pulling on Obito's ear. "Hey," she scolded, "that's not nice." Kakashi watched the exchange apathetically, listening to Obito's even louder whines as Rin tugged at his ear, and he thought of a pink-haired kunoichi and a blond who was, by far, the loudest. Minato soon tugged them apart.

"I'm glad to see you all getting along so well." Minato chuckled, ruffling Obito and Rin's hair. Kakashi swiftly ducked out of the way when the Namikaze reached for his head to do the same. "You all did great today. Go home and get some rest, and I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Hai, Sensei!" Came their unified response. All three of them bowed before turning away, but Minato called for Kakashi to stay. Rin and Obito glanced at each other before looking at Kakashi ⎼ it was clear that they had wanted him to do something with them, like barbeque or dango. All Kakashi wanted to do right now was sleep, so he waved his teammates on and turned back to Minato.

"What is it, Sensei?" He asked, hands in his pockets and a slouch to his shoulders.

"I meant to tell you this morning," Minato began, "but you're overdue for a medical examination."

Kakashi hummed, scuffing the dirt with his sandal. He couldn't tell his sensei that he had just been examined by a secret ANBU organization the night prior, but he would also do everything in his power to avoid another exam for another several years, at least. "Alright." He nodded. "I'll head to the hospital, then. I assume they're expecting me?"

If Minato was surprised that Kakashi wasn't putting up much of a fight about going to the hospital, he didn't show it. "They are."

"I should get going then." The Hatake turned to leave, but, once again, he was stopped by his sensei before he could take more than a step away.

"Kakashi-sensei, huh?"

Kakashi froze. Naruto's voice sounded nothing like Minato's, and yet, when he turned around yet again, he was expecting a different blond shinobi. He forced the tension from his shoulders, telling himself that he would see Naruto again, as well as Sakura and Sasuke, even if it meant reliving decades.

"I was just helping them, Sensei," Kakashi replied. "I finished early."

Minato smiled, and this time, when he moved to ruffle Kakashi's hair, the boy was too slow to move away. "I know I already said this, but I really am glad to see you all getting along. What would you think about being a Jonin-sensei one day, huh?"

Kakashi grunted, shoving Minato's hand off his hair. He fixed it ⎼ although it looked just as messy as ever, sticking up in all directions like it did. "I don't think I'm sensei material."

"Rin and Obito said you helped them both just fine."

"They're not pre-Genin." He retorted. "I've seen how most of the Academy students are, Sensei. They're hopeless."

Minato's head cocked to the side. "Now, why would you think that?"

Kakashi paused. He thought back to right after he had been dismissed from ANBU, after a decade of his servitude, in order to be a Jonin-sensei. Every single team he was assigned he had failed, because none of them knew what teamwork was. They would have been slaughtered in the battlefield, and it would have been Kakashi's fault.

Then again, Minato saw that very same lack of teamwork in Kakashi, Obito, and Rin, that day with the bell test, and he had passed them all anyway.

He decided not to answer, and Minato didn't push. "It's just something to think about, Kakashi."

Kakashi bowed. "I really should get going." He didn't think he could explain that the only team he belonged with was Team Minato, Team Kakashi, or Team Ro.

"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow, Kakashi. Make sure to get some rest."

With that, they parted ways. Kakashi made for the hospital, just in case Minato was making sure that he was actually going to the hospital, but by the time he reached the large building he knew he wasn't being followed ⎼ well, except for ROOT agents. They were hard to miss, but they were good, especially if Namikaze Minato hadn't sensed them. Or perhaps he had, but a Hokage-in-training certainly wouldn't have thought that ANBU was following his twelve-year-old prodigy.

Kakashi turned on his heel and headed home, deciding to take a longer, leisurely route to his old apartment. He didn't need a bigger apartment, but he thought he would like the one that he had begun staying at after the Kyuubi attack. The only reason he had moved when he was a teen was because the Nine Tailed Fox had destroyed his current apartment complex, but the new building had become the closest thing to home for him. For now, though, the old one would have to do.

He walked up the side of the building to the seventh floor, the one highest for this complex. More often than not, Kakashi traveled by rooftop, and having his apartment right below one was helpful. After the Kyuubi attacked and his move, the highest floor became even more of a blessing and nuisance. Dragging himself home, wounded and bleeding after an ANBU mission, was fairly easy, but he couldn't count the number of times he'd jerked awake in a near-panic because some shinobi decided to use his ceiling as a springboard.

Before he removed the ward to his home, Kakashi took a silent surveillance check. Two ROOT agents were nearby, one on the rooftop across the street and the other kitty corner to his apartment. ANBU always traveled in pairs, so he knew there wouldn't be a third, but he scanned for one anyway and was pleased when the search came up empty.

Kakashi hummed to himself, removing the wards and opening the door to his apartment. But, before he entered, he turned, his single eye locking in on the position of the first ANBU. He couldn't see the cloaked agent, but he knew he was there. His eye curved up in a smile, and he waved to the empty rooftop, then turned and did the same to the second ANBU. He felt both their chakra flicker briefly in surprise. They were clearly not expecting a Chunin to be able to sense them, let alone pinpoint their locations. Little did they know this Chunin was a decade-old ANBU veteran.

Inside his little apartment, Kakashi closed and locked the door behind him. His hands flashed in a quick series of seals; he bit his thumb and slammed it on the floor. Billowing smoke appeared and dissipated, revealing all eight ninken.

The ninja dogs immediately realized they were not in any dangerous situation and began to stroll around the apartment, finding a comfortable spot to sleep. Pakkun remained at Kakashi's feet, head tilted to the side curiously.

"Boss," greeted the pug gruffly, "mind telling us why you've got ANBU following you?"

Kakashi smiled, squatting down and petting the loyal little dog. "I had a chat with Danzo last night," he answered. "He doesn't trust me yet, so I've got some ROOT on my tail."

"And why," Pakkun asked, "did you talk with Danzo?"

The shinobi wrapped his hands around the pug, picking him up as he stood. "I need his help." Kakashi hummed as he started towards his bedroom. The other ninken were already there, some on his bed, some on the floor. He set Pakkun down and climbed over the covers, settling his arms behind his head. He was barely still when Pakkun climbed onto his stomach, curling up.

Pakkun knew better than to press information out of the Hatake, but that didn't mean he had to like whatever his brat had going on. "Just be careful, Pup."

Kakashi scoffed. "You haven't called me Pup in a long time." His hand laid over Pakkun's head, beginning a lazy scratch behind his ears.

"You haven't looked like a Pup in a long time."

"Mm. I'm still me."

"Which means you're still as reckless as ever."

Kakashi's quiet laughter echoed throughout the apartment. Neither said anymore after that, and they soon drifted to a peaceful, restful sleep.