Summary: After waking up in a different world and realizing he's gone rogue with Itachi Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake just kind of rolls with it. Missing-nin Kakashi AU.
IV. Obey No More in Silence
Konoha, Land of Fire
Ibiki Morino, head of T&I, frowned at the pages spread across the desk. They were reports on Team Seven and Kakashi Hatake's records, as well as Team Seven's words on what happened in the Land of Waves.
Morino summoned one of the ANBU prowling outside his office with a flex of his chakra. "Tell the Hokage that we're still not sure why Kakashi Hatake saved Team Seven. He made no moves on the children, either to steal Sharingan or the Kyuubi. There's no Genjutsus messing with their heads, just respect and trust for someone who literally saved their lives." His gaze turned contemplative, "And. . .perhaps that's more dangerous, as we still don't know what game he is playing with them or why."
XXX
Land of Water
Kakashi was staying in a shabby inn. The mirror he was looking into was cracked and miraculously hadn't shattered yet.
He was wearing his usual black shirt. It was sleeveless and exposed the ANBU tattoo on his shoulder. Small, white scars littered his arms along with a few freckles from when Kakashi was a kid who loved playing (training) in the hot summer sun.
He ran a hand through his bedhead, glad he had gotten a haircut in one of the villages he had passed through. His silver hair was about what it had been when he was a jounin-sensei in his original world, but a good bit shorter as he didn't really like having his hair cut—he had killed someone with scissors before and been uncomfortable with anyone except for Kushina cutting his hair since—and didn't want to have another for a while.
Kakashi leaned closer to the mirror. He poured chakra into the Sharingan, watching the red take over the inky black. Three tomoe spun inside the eyes. He poured more chakra into the eye. It changed into the Mangekyou Sharingan form, a sharp edged, black shuriken with four sides.
Him and Obito no longer saw the future together. . .but then, Kakashi hadn't had his Sharingan in years. The thought of a new Sharingan didn't unsettle him as much as he thought it would. He had already gotten his closure with his world's Obito.
As for this world's Obito, he had searched for Tobi but hadn't found anything. But the Akatsuki was still around, so perhaps this world's Obito was just keeping his head down.
XXX
Konoha, Land of Fire
Team Seven prepared for the Chuunin Exams by themselves. They were far more cohesive and ignored their new instructor (who never treated Sakura's growth seriously), instead they brushed up on Kakashi's lessons and the scrolls he left with them of basic, useful jutsus for them to learn.
Their exact thought process wasn't perfectly like this or the same (Naruto's had a lot more about cool ninjutsu for instance), but to compile the three children's thoughts: the only person they would consider worthy of being Team Seven's jounin-sensei would be the jounin that had actually dragged them from hell's door single handedly, someone who treated all three of them the same—as promising ninja that needed challenges and room to grow—while still treating them with understanding of their faults and failures. That man hadn't treated them as useless civilian, the Uchiha heir, and Hokage's son (and feared Jinchuuriki, yet still somehow dead last). They wouldn't accept just any jounin-sensei and trust them wholeheartedly. They had already done that and almost got slaughtered.
XXX
If Orochimaru could sneak into the Chuunin Exams, so could he. Or at least, that was Kakashi's reasoning.
Sneaking into Konoha during this time was a lot easier than normal. Foreign chakra was treated with less urgency and no one knew every ninja in the village.
If you were in a village swarming with ninja, henges would be easily recognized and signaled that the person was a chakra user. So Kakashi disguised himself the manual way, remembering some of the different identities he had taken while on ANBU missions. He had all the props needed, from uniforms to armor to wigs to eye contacts. Kakashi switched nationalities like a woman changing clothes, that is to say he did it often and with an inner logic no one else knew.
XXX
Forest of Death, Konoha, Land of Fire
Kakashi sat in a tree, watching a genin team pass underneath him unaware. He had been trying just to find Team Seven for a few hours, but the forest was large and it was hard by himself. Eventually, he reasoned it was better to just search for Orochimaru as the Snake Sannin was a the real threat here.
Kakashi summoned the two best trackers of his ninken to find Orochimaru's trail. Using chakra gave his position away for anyone looking, but he needed his dogs. Fortunately, they knew the scientist's unique scent; it was hard to forget the stench of cleaning supplies and snake musk mixed together. Orochimaru was a snake doused in antiseptic to cover up the smell of blood.
Kakashi and his two dogs followed the trail until it split. From what Kakashi remembered about the original exams, Orochimaru had gone after Sasuke and sent a large snake after Naruto. For some reason, Team Seven had gotten split up, but Kakashi didn't remember why. (It was the Chuunin Exams, why the h*ll did they split up? They could have died.) Kakashi followed the one that was made by Orochimaru, and sent a shadow clone down the other path, made by the giant snake as evidenced by the sudden rut in the muddy forest floor.
Sasuke and Sakura stood in a small clearing. They stared at the creepy 'genin' from Otogakure who they now suspected was never a genin to begin with. Panic and horror welled up in them, showing on their faces. Their bodies told them to run, but they found themselves unable to move.
Orochimaru opened his mouth to continue talking to the genin and was surprised by a kunai slicing into his left hand. He hissed and swung his head towards the attacker. He drew out his sword and blocked a strike aimed at his head.
The two ninja tangled briefly, in front of the terrified genin team. They jumped back to assess their injuries and situation. Despite the speed they fought with, neither was looking tired yet. They were S-class missing-nin and it had only been about a few seconds that they clashed.
Kakashi had not really dealt any real damage. On the other hand, he had been hit along his ribs and the area was going numb; as Orochimaru had been trying to capture Sasuke before he interrupted, Kakashi predicted it was only a paralysing agent. He had his clan's sword in his hands, the blade sparking with white chakra. "Oh hello," he said with fake shock. "What a surprise to see you here, Orochimaru-san. Do you come here often?"
Orochimaru didn't reply, only narrowed his eyes in irritation and recognition. He had a new graze on his shoulder, and his left hand was still bleeding.
They stepped forward yet again. Small sparks flew off from where steel hit steel.
Kakashi took advantage of his opponent's injured left hand and quickly stabbed Orochimaru in the leg, deep enough it would scar without Kabuto's medical ninjutsu. He then bent over backwards and flipped to kick Orochimaru in the jaw. "Ignoring me? But that's so rude, Orochimaru-san." Kakashi chirped. Beneath his face-mask, his smile was vicious.
"Sharingan?" Orochimaru murmured. He wondered how the Hatake got one—maybe during the Uchiha Massacre Kakashi stole an eye?—but he brushed those thoughts aside for now. Orochimaru had already switched with a clone, but then, so had Kakashi. Both knew the simple Academy Three and the variations on them were best when wanting to set traps with a low chakra cost.
Kakashi's left eye burned red with three black tomoe. He was slowly pushing chakra into Shisui's eye, knowing he needed the advantage. He stopped covering the tanto in his hands with chakra to save some of his stamina.
Sasuke straightened up, full of questions. These days there were only two Uchiha with a complete Sharingan and he was pretty sure Kakashi was not an Uchiha to begin with. And something irked at him in the back of his mind, something important, telling him he had seen Kakashi Hatake like this before.
"Why are you here?" Orochimaru was slightly interested as to why Kakashi was interfering with his plans. Did it have to do with Kakashi's relationships to Itachi Uchiha, Obito Uchiha, or Minato Uzumaki? He doubted his fellow missing-nin was doing it out of the kindness of his heart.
Kakashi shrugged. He somehow managed to look relaxed while holding a sword and bloodied kunai. "Maaa, I was bored and in the area, so I decided to see how my cute little genins were doing."
No one there believed him.
"Oh, really?" Orochimaru flatly replied and raised his sword again.
Kakashi nodded his head. "Of course," he said cheerfully and smoothly.
The two missing-nins clashed and both clones disappeared.
They were wanting to ambush each other, but both hid their chakra so well that there was no way to tell where the other was.
Kakashi blinked as second clone's memories filled his head for a moment, giving him a piece of information that made him grin. He sheathed his tanto on his back and waited, counting down in his head.
Naruto arriving from the trees above provided the perfect distraction.
Kakashi formed a rasengan in his hand, the technique easy to him as breathing. This was his sensei's jutsu, he had seen it created
That flare of chakra was all the warning Orochimaru had before a rasengan was slammed into the ground above him. A quick substitution with the kunai in Kakashi's hand saved him from injury.
"Fancy seeing you here, Orochimaru-san." With the snake sannin in range, Kakashi punched Orochimaru in the stomach, an action he found immensely satisfying.
XXX
"The Hokage sent a message," a toad reported to his summoner.
The man frowned, unable to think of what it could be at this late hour except bad news. "What is it?" He asked with a small amount of dread.
"Kakashi Hatake is in Konoha," the toad primly said. "He crashed the Chuunin Exams in the Forest of Death and stopped the Snake Sannin from going after Team Seven."
The man's eyes turned red, the three tomoe in his Sharingans clearly visible. "What?" He hissed.
XXX
Sneaking into a training ground was pretty simple. Kakashi was suppressing his chakra and clad in another disguise once again.
Sasuke sat in a tree. He was waiting, in response to Kakashi's message, signed with a heno-heno-moheji of all things. It was childish, but there was no doubt as to who the sender was. "What's your goal?"
Kakashi stared off into the trees, looking thoughtful. "To help you all train for the Chuunin Exam matches?"
Sasuke's lips tightened into a thin line. He elected to ignore the ridiculous answer for now. "How did you get a Sharingan?"
"It was a present from an Uchiha kouhai of mine," Kakashi said, carefully vague about the person's identity. Mentioning Itachi outright wouldn't go over well with Sasuke right now. He didn't need to be blunt, he needed to lead Sasuke on with crumbs of information. "He wanted me to use it and keep it safe."
Sasuke's mind whirled with possibilities and names. He was silent for a few seconds but finally he revealed, "We were told your name was Kakashi Hatake and that you are dangerous, a cold-hearted murderer."
Kakashi laughed, the sound loud and lively. "Every ninja is."
Sasuke couldn't help but silently concede. He lived in a village of trained killers. He was training to be a killer. Taking lives was normal. Any jounin-level shinobi had killed too many to remember; the good ones were estimated to have killed thousands, especially those who had fought in the wars. Things like safe and dangerous weren't really principles that applied to them.
"Bring the others over here in two nights, alright?" Kakashi smiled and added in amusement, "Make sure you lose your tails or I won't show up."
Sasuke wasn't letting Kakashi leave without getting a real answer. He stepped forward with a sense of urgency. His Sharingans activated, responding to his emotions. "Why does Orochimaru want me? Why are you helping us? What do you get from this?"
"Orochimaru-san just wants your eyes. I don't want to see three kids die when I could change things, and if I pick up an apprentice along the way, that's fine with me." Kakashi poked Sasuke's forehead with two fingers, the same way Itachi used to, and activated a genjutsu to keep him unseen as he shunshined away.
Sasuke crushed the shock that had entered him at that gesture. He tsked under his breath angrily.
XXX
Kakashi enjoyed walking through Konoha. He got to see what he remembered from before Pein's attack; his faded and fuzzy memories supplemented by the reality around him.
He stopped at Ichiraku's because. . .he didn't know why. Perhaps because it was the one place in Konoha that never really changed.
Kakashi named the first type of ramen that caught his eye. It didn't really matter what type of ramen he got. He snapped his chopsticks and dug in quietly, just one of the many faces the store owner saw that day. Not having anyone make a fuss over him showing his face was nice as he got to simply eat and enjoy his meal.
He paid for his meal and left the ramen stand to continue his walk. Kakashi paused, hesitating as he sniffed at the air. Amidst the cluttered scents of sweat, decomposing leaves, dirt, and various food from the vendors set up along the road, he singled out a familiar smell.
A hearty laugh boomed through the air as someone sprinted down the street. The young man was dressed in green and had a bowl cut.
Kakashi recognized him immediately.
Gai came to a stop in front of Kakashi. "Hello there friend! Isn't it a youthful day?" His voice was just as enthusiastic as ever.
Kakashi almost laughed. It had been a while since he saw his 'youthful' friend. "It is very youthful."
Gai grinned at the reply. "Of course. You seem very full of youth my friend." He leaned closer for a moment and squinted. His thick black eyebrows scrunched together as he thought for a few seconds. "You seem familiar. Have we met?"
Kakashi hummed thoughtfully. "I don't think so. This is my first time in Konoha." He smiled. His eyes curled into crescent moons.
"I see." Gai nodded. "Would you like me to show-"
"Bye," Kakashi quickly said and left. He had gotten rather good at slipping away from Gai over the years and utilized this particular skill to escape before Gai was able to react.
XXX
Kakashi and Team Seven met at night in Training Ground 57. This place had a mix of different habits, with a pond, some caves, and many trees.
"Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto yelled. He was wearing a burnt orange jacket and black pants, having been convinced—barely, by his teammates—that he shouldn't wear his usual bright orange clothes to a secret meet up at night.
Sakura shushed Naruto. She had changed her clothes too, trading her dress for more practical and durable pants. She had really regretted what she brought to wear on the Wave mission.
Sasuke had slapped a hand over their teammate's mouth. "Shut up, idiot," he hissed. "You're too loud." He cast a look around the training ground, activating his Sharingan to check that there was no one else around.
"Naruto-chan, I would suggest learning how to whisper or communicate with people nonverbally. I've seen a lot of people harmed by not being aware of how loud they are."
The three genin jumped.
Kakashi stepped to the side to avoid the shuriken Sasuke had thrown on adrenaline run instinct. "Hello, my cute little genin." His cheerful tone was an abomination at this late hour. "How are you, all awake I hope?"
Naruto groaned, annoyed by the reminder of what time it was. "Kakashi-sensei, why are we here at night?"
Sasuke stared blankly off into the distance, looking like he wished he never came. Or, that he wanted to slam his head into one of the nearby trees. At least one of those two, probably both.
"Because that way we can hide that he's training us and we won't get in trouble," Sakura replied. "Even if we do get caught, we can lie. We can say we thought it was someone else or didn't know Kakashi-sensei was here."
"Exactly, Sakura-chan," Kakashi affirmed. The three genin straightened up as Kakashi stopped slouching and drew himself to his full height. The missing-nin had a serious look in his eyes now, signaling that it was time to stop messing around. "Focuses for the next month: Sakura: Genjutsu and Taijutsu. Sasuke: Genjutsu and Sharingan, maybe a lightning jutsu to throw in some variety. Naruto: Rasengen, and you can add something else if you want to, perhaps a wind jutsu."
"Rasengen! You're teaching me Rasengen?" Naruto asked, his eyes wide. His hands were shaking in excitement. He had always wanted to learn Rasengen, but he had never been allowed. He hadn't even managed to bribe Jiraiya into teaching him.
"Yes, if you use some clones to get the hang of it, it'll give you a powerful move without too much time spent on it. Plus, chakra control is your biggest issue and this will help you start figuring things out. I'll explain how to get started in a minute." Kakashi threw Naruto a water balloon and turned to the other two. "Sakura-chan and Sasuke-chan, you two are going to practice genjutsu and taijutsu against each other. Sakura-chan, try to hit Sasuke-chan, and Sasuke-chan, keep your Sharingan going as you dodge her. This exercise can help you accomplish both of your goals at the same time and will help you with stamina and decision making as a bonus." He didn't mention that he also planned to throw in some illusions of his own if they weren't paying attention to their surroundings.
"Umm, Kakashi-sensei, how long are we going to train tonight?" Sakura asked hesitantly.
"A few hours."
The genin groaned and looked at each other before nodding; they were just going to sleep in and skip their official teacher's training.
A/N
Academy Three: Henge, Substitution, Clone
Hello. I've been busy. There's been a lot of other stuff, but I became a college student and wrote three original novels (currently halfway through novel 4). A bunch of relatives died, I got a contract to publish novels, started playing genshin impact, and I still have a 4.0 somehow.
The first novel, An Unwilling Prince is available to read for free here, delete spaces: / originals/prince/prince-toc/
Summary: an internet celebrity has ended up in the body of an imperial prince in a magical, fantasy world. He soon fakes his death and goes on an adventure across the continent, searching for happiness. If you like my writing (which I'll say has gotten better) and enjoy found family, isekai, slice of life, and adventure fantasy, do check it out.
There is a chance that this story will be finished someday because I do have an outline, but it's going to take a while for me to get back around due to how busy things are.
-Silver