A/N: Chapter 3 is finally up! Or as I like to call it, the chapter where Kakashi has a guilt-induced nightmare. *evil laughter* Anyway, sorry for not uploading it sooner, I had it all typed up I just needed to post it!

"Aw, man, where is he?!" Naruto cried out in frustration. "It's just like him to be late! Jeez, would it kill Kakashi-sensei to be on time for once?"

Sakura sighed, "I know what you mean. A few years and he still hasn't changed! How long has it been now? Four hours?"

"Dunno, I lost count around two," Naruto tapped his foot impatiently. "Bah! I can't take it anymore! Kakashi-sensei said he'd meet us here for training today!"

"I know, but what can we do about it? We'll just have to keep waiting…"

"I say we go find and track him down!" Naruto put his hands behind his head, beaming at the pink-haired kunoichi. "Then we drag him back here and make him train us!"

"But, what if he shows up while we're gone? ...Oh, who am I kidding, like that'll happen! Alright, let's go find Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura smiled.

"Aw yeah! Kakashi-sensei, watch out, 'cause here we come!" Naruto begun marching in the direction of his sensei's apartment.

Not even in his dreams could the poor shinobi find comfort. Kakashi dreamt that he was sitting there eating, having a picnic with his students. Ah, this felt familiar… Why did this feel so familiar? In his dream, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke were all young genin again. They all sat together, eating lunch beneath a cherry tree and enjoying the warm had been kind enough to make lunch for all four of them, even if Kakashi suspected it that it was just an excuse to make a bento for Sasuke.

The three of them laughed and Sasuke sat there and smiled. All was well, Orochimaru had never placed that curse mark on Sasuke, and Sasuke had given up on the idea of revenge. Or, at least, so Kakashi thought.

Suddenly, though, Kakashi felt a chill and the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Next thing he knew, Sasuke was standing behind him with a kunai to his neck.

"S- Sasuke?" Kakashi sputtered in disbelief.

"Goodbye, sensei."

Kakashi tried to move but for some reason couldn't. His body seized up. Poison?! Kakashi looked down at the half-eaten dango. But… how? Next thing he knew Sasuke had slit his neck, and he himself was writhing on the ground in pain. Sakura screamed, as the light faded from his eyes.

"Guh!" Kakashi gasped, opening his eyes.

Huh? Before him was the same scene, only the three genin were still smiling and having a good time together. Sasuke hadn't killed him. Had it all been a dream?

"I must be tired," Kakashi muttered to himself. "Must've dozed off…"

But once again, Sasuke was behind him. No, not this time! Kakashi moved away, his body no longer paralyzed since he hadn't eaten any of the food.

"Sasuke! What is the meaning of this?!" he yelled.

"I don't need you losers slowing me down anymore," Sasuke said with a murderous glint in his eyes.

Sakura screamed, "Sasuke, what are you doing?! Stop it!"

"Just shut up!" Sasuke ran towards Sakura with a kunai.

"No!" Kakashi leapt in front of her, taking the blow. "Nrgh!"

Sasuke's eyes widened and he pulled back.

Glaring at the jonin, "Kakashi-sensei, always getting in my way. Stay out of this!" He cried, coming at him with a chidori.

Ah, chidori. The very same technique that Kakashi had taught to him. He felt betrayed. How could he use it against him? No matter, no time for regrets, time to end this! Kakashi prepped his own chidori, and ran towards Sasuke with the intent to kill.

"Stop it, noo!" Sakura screeched along with the thousand birds.

In a flash, it was all over. Kakashi felt the all too familiar sickening impact of his chidori hitting Sasuke's chest and tearing right through it. He saw his arm pass through the body of his own student. For a brief moment, Kakashi thought he saw Rin in Sasuke. Just like she did, Sasuke backed up, or at least tried to. He coughed up blood, droplets of which landed on Kakashi's face. The light from both their chidori's subsided. Sasuke stared at Kakashi with a pained expression of betrayal on his face.

"S- sensei… how could you?" Sasuke whispered as Kakashi withdrew his hand from the child's chest cavity.

Sasuke crumpled like a rag doll, and Kakashi caught him. Tears formed in his eyes, and he couldn't stop them as they fell on the pale boy's face.

"S- Sensei… w- why…?"

"Why? You were going to kill Sakura! You were going to kill me!"

"Why didn't you… stop me? Why didn't you try harder to stop me from going over to Orochimaru? Is it because you hate me?"

Kakashi inhaled sharply, "N- no, of course not! Sasuke, I never…"

"It's your fault, you know. Everything. It's your fault Obito and Rin died. It's your fault I joined Orochimaru. Everything is your fault."

"I know… I know. I'm sorry."

"Heh, sorry doesn't turn back the clock..." Sasuke laughed mirthlessly.

"Please…" Kakashi begged. "Don't die! Please don't die!"

Sasuke spat his words back at him, "Ha, listen to yourself! 'Please! Don't die!' How pathetic!"

Kakashi had no counter for this. This wasn't what he envisioned at all, the day he agreed to teach the three genin. Sasuke's eyelids began to slowly close.

"No, don't go! Sasuke, please! I'm sorry!"

But it was no use, he was already gone.

"Kakashi-sensei," Sakura sobbed. "How could you?"

"What kind of sensei are you?!" Naruto yelled in rage, pointing his finger at him.

Kakashi hugged the small, lifeless, body close to his own and wept, muttering sorry over and over again.

Yamato and Guy had just finished cleaning the bathroom and headed back to Kakashi's room to check on him. As soon as they walked in however, they were shocked at what they saw. Kakashi was… crying? Not only that, but he was tossing and turning and muttering something.

"Kakashi-senpai? Are you having a bad dream?" Yamato gently nudged him.

Still the jonin did not wake up, "I'm sorry… Sasuke. I'm so sorry…"

"He's dreaming about Sasuke," Guy said matter-of-factly.

"Senpai…" Yamato had never really seen Kakashi like this.

To be totally honest, it was disturbing. It felt taboo, as though he'd just trespassed on some kind of sacred ground of Kakashi's that he was never supposed to enter. Guy felt the same. To see Kakashi crying and acting so pathetic was… unsettling, to say the least.

"Kakashi… Kakashi!" Guy shouted, shaking the shinobi awake.

"Wh- huh?!" Kakashi bolted upright in bed.

Immediately he started hyperventilating.

"Calm down, Kakashi-senpai, it was just a dream!" Yamato yelled, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I… whuh… j- just a dream?" Kakashi stuttered, rubbing the tears and last fragments of dreaming out of his eyes.

"Yes," Yamato exhaled, leaning back. "It was just a nightmare."

That was when, to his horror, Kakashi realized what must've happened.

"I… I was talking in my sleep?"

Yamato sadly nodded his head.

Guy put a hand on Kakashi's other shoulder, "Don't worry about it. Happens to the best of us."

"Y- yeah, Kakashi-senpai. When you've lived and seen as many things as we have… er, that is… the life of a ninja is never easy."

Kakashi finally stopped hyperventilating and caught his breath. He was still slightly trembling, whether from the cold or the adrenaline he did not know. The copy-nin looked down, clutching the edges of his blanket.

Damn, of all times to have a nightmare, why did it have to be now?! He thought to himself. Yamato… Guy… they both saw it…

Guy coughed uncomfortably and went to sit back down. Yamato did the same. A few minutes of awkward silence passed between them. Guy wanted to say something, to comfort his comrade, but he knew that would only mortify Kakashi even more.

"Umm, anyway. How do you feel?" Yamato thankfully broke the silence.

"...Fine," Kakashi muttered, averting his gaze.

"Are you hungry? I could make you some soup!" Yamato offered.

Kakashi promptly shot him down, "No, thanks."

"Oh… okay…"

A few more minutes of awkward silence passed.

Finally, Guy couldn't take it anymore, "Nrrrgh! Enough of this! We're all grown men, aren't we? Can't we talk openly about our feelings?!"

"G- Guy-senpai…" Yamato uttered, both impressed and horrified.

Kakashi too stared at Guy, one eye open wide in surprise.

"Talk?"

"Yeah, you know! Hash things out! Kakashi, I know what you must be thinking, but it's not true! You're always blaming yourself for things you have no control over!"

"What're you…?" Kakashi turned away, face red with embarrassment.

Guy continued, "You know exactly what I'm talking about! That whole thing with Rin and Obito, with Sasuke, both of those were not your fault!"

"Tch!" At this last statement, Kakashi became infuriated. "What do you know?! If I'd just been tougher on him, if I'd only beaten this notion of revenge out of Sasuke's head, we wouldn't be in this position of having to hunt him down!"

Yamato looked on in both terror and awe at the two yelling.

"That's not true! How could you have known what Sasuke was going to do that night he ran away from the village? You did the best you could with what you had!"

"Hmph!" Kakashi crossed his arms childishly and turned away.

Guy's voice softened as he crossed the room to place a hand on Kakashi's shoulder.

"All I'm saying is… try not to be so hard on yourself all the time, okay? Hindsight is 20/20 they say. You did the best you could. You made the best decisions you could with the knowledge you had at the time. Right or wrong, in the moment those choices you made seemed like the right ones. No one can fault you for that."

"Y- yeah… he's right," Yamato timidly interjected. "And besides, think about all the good decisions you've made! After all, I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for you, Kakashi-senpai."

Yamato gave Kakashi his most earnest smile.

"Not only that," he continued. "But you have to let Sasuke take some responsibility for his own actions, too. He could've listened to you but he didn't. That was his decision. Not yours."

Kakashi uncrossed his arms, his armor cracking, "Y- yes, but…"

"No buts!" Guy grinned at the silver-haired man, giving him a thumbs up. "Don't argue with us, just accept it! At the very least, take our words into consideration!"

Kakashi fell silent for about a minute or two, then, "...Alright."

Yamato smiled, "Now that that's settled, how about some food?"

The younger shinobi stood up and headed towards Kakashi's kitchen.

Before he could leave though, Kakashi called out to him, "...Wait."

"Hm?"

"...Thank you."

Yamato just beamed in response, then took off towards the kitchen.

"You, too, Guy…" Kakashi muttered, blushing.

"Heheh!" The beautiful green beast chuckled.

A few minutes later, Yamato returned with some soup for Kakashi.

"Here you go," he said, handing him the bowl. "Careful, it's hot."

"Thanks, Tenzo. Er, crap, I meant..."

"I- It's Yamato now, sir…" Yamato sighed.

Guy laughed at Kakashi's slip-up.