Disclaimer - I don't own Naruto or any of the characters from the original series! Okami Etsu and the Onizuka's are mine however - so please ask nicely before borrowing! Any characters and situations herein are purely fictitious, and any similarity between those and persons living or dead is coincidental.

Normality

Iruka let out a long sigh as he finished his Thursday shift at the mission room. He looked thoughtfully at his watch... Was it too late to go and see Etsu? He decided he'd walk down to the house to at least see if she was back... He'd decide later on whether or not he was actually stopping.

The village was abuzz with the usual evening activity of people out having a good time. Iruka suddenly realised he'd walked most of the way to Etsu's without even bothering to stop by his own place to shower and change. The thought disgusted him and he came to a halt outside the shop where he'd found Etsu on Saturday night. He stared down the street before turning abruptly and began to head towards his own apartment.

'Iruka-sensei!' Itsuki's voice hailed him from the store entrance.

'Nnnnn, hey Itsuki-kun.' Iruka smiled at the energetic youngster.

'Are you going to Oba-san's house tonight? She's cooking dinner! And Naruto-niisan is coming too!' Itsuki's grin was infectious.

'Well, I don't know.' Iruka rubbed the back of his neck. 'I just finished a long shift, Itsuki-kun and I haven't even made it home yet.'

'Ne-san won't mind if you haven't showered and changed Iruka-sensei.' Naruto came over, bag of shopping in hand.

'Naruto, that is just gross.' Iruka groaned.

'Come on!' Naruto laughed and pulled Iruka gently in the direction he'd originally been going.

Etsu seemed unsurprised by Iruka's sudden appearance. Naruto and Itsuki bickered over what film they should watch after dinner as they put the shopping away. Iruka just sat sipping tea and wondering at the blissful normality that seemed to surround the house and its strange owner.

'You're welcome to bathe before we eat, Umino-san. I'm guessing a certain pair dragged you here without any thought to that.' Etsu chuckled softly as she watched Itsuki tackle Naruto to the floor in the hallway. Iruka smiled as he realised Naruto was pulling much of his strength back as he wrestled with the young civilian child.

'Ummm... Well I'd actually wandered down in this direction without stopping at my place...' Iruka blushed. 'It was my own fault.'

'Bath's across the hall.' Etsu busied herself washing rice in preparation for dinner. Iruka tripped across the hall, opening and closing the door before Naruto and Itsuki even noticed his presence. He leant back against the door with a sigh. A bath sounded like heaven at that moment. He only had a shower in his apartment. Stripping off, he washed quickly and slipped into the hot water. He chuckled as the sounds of Itsuki begging Naruto to perform a summoning jutsu reached his ears. A popping sound was coupled with Etsu's indignant shout at toads being summoned into her kitchen. Kami, they were like a real family.

Half an hour later Iruka slipped back into the kitchen to find Etsu alone.

'Where are the boys?' Iruka asked, looking around in confusion.

'Shutting the birds in for the night...And Naruto-kun said he'd fix a few traps to startle any predators. We've had a rather enterprising fox about of late.' Etsu smiled as she lifted a serving dish out of a cupboard.

'Does Itsuki-kun often stop over here for dinner?' Iruka asked curiously. He mentally berated himself for prying.

'Itsuki-kun's family is very small. He lives with his mother, Honda Keiko-san, and maternal grandfather, Ikeda Naoki-san. Ikeda-san is very ill and Keiko-san took him to the hospital. I said I would mind Itsuki-kun tonight so that she could stay with Ikeda-san.' Etsu took a deep breath.

'Are you... worried?' Iruka murmured, watching as Naruto and Itsuki came out of the gate to the bird pens.

'Yes. Very.' Etsu looked tired. Still she had a smile on her face when Itsuki and Naruto walked through the door.

'Traps are set! Believe it!' Naruto grinned, giving a thumbs up to Etsu.

'No fox-san tonight!' Itsuki agreed.

'Thank you, Naruto-kun, Itsuki-kun. Dinner's ready.' Etsu gestured to the already set table. Etsu placed the serving bowls in the middle and with a cry of 'Itadakimasu!' Naruto and Itsuki dove straight in.

The meal was apparently not only something both boys had eaten before, but a firm favourite. Iruka had to agree it was absolutely delicious, though he'd never been keen on mushrooms, which formed a main component in the dish. Having never been any great shakes as a cook himself, he always managed to turn the fungi into something resembling rubber. By the end of the meal he'd come to the conclusion that Etsu could make anything taste good. After clearing the table both boys asked to be excused and went racing off down the hall.

Iruka grinned as Etsu put down two sake cups on the table and poured for both of them. The sound of a movie starting drifted down the hallway. They sat in companionable silence for a time, Iruka noted between sips of sake that Etsu had been baking again. A large cake stood on the surface with a cake tin next to it.

'Itsuki-kun told me you'd been here yesterday.' Etsu said quietly, disturbing Iruka's perusal of the kitchen.

'I wanted to see you.' Iruka spoke without thinking and inwardly groaned. That comment was just way too forward.

'Thank you for caring, Umino-san.' Etsu chuckled. 'I know it's just friendship, but it makes me happy to think a fellow ninja actually misses me.'

'Did your mission go ok?' Iruka asked, somewhat relieved that Etsu hadn't jumped on his last comment in the way he'd expected.

'Yes. It went well. I sent my report off to Gondaime-sama this afternoon.' Etsu sighed as she stretched her long legs out.

'Sent?' Iruka pulled a face. 'That's why I never see you at the Missions Room! You don't hand in your reports there or draw new missions!'

'Hmmmm. I have a long term assignment. It's mine and mine alone. And when it's done, maybe people will trust me. Maybe they'll believe that I am loyal to Konaha.' Etsu tilted her head to one side and giggled. 'Maybe, I could even make more friends.'

'Ahhhh... about that Etsu-chan.' Iruka gulped, he had to tell her before she found out from other sources. 'I think I may have gotten people thinking about being your friends.'

'Ohhhh. I see. May I ask who Umino-san?' Etsu sounded nervous, but her eyes had lit up.

'Well, Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu - two of my fellow chunin... And I think Hatake Kakashi and Mitarashi Anko as well - though I haven't spoken to Anko-san.' Iruka glanced sideways. 'You mad?'

'Nnnnnn... Not mad, just curious as to why you're doing this.' Etsu smiled sheepishly. 'Though it's nice to know Mitarashi-chan still thinks of me...'

Mitarashi-chan? Now Iruka really was puzzled. Etsu obviously knew Anko - and fairly well by the sounds of it. Yet the female tokujo didn't appear to be friends with Etsu. He sighed. Etsu just had too many mysteries surrounding her.

'When's your next mission?' He asked glibly.

'Not for a while. I have some leave saved up, so I may take an extended break. To be honest I don't know...' Etsu chuckled. 'Let's just say I'll be around for the foreseeable, Umino-san.'

Iruka grinned. The boys were shouting at the tv as if maximum noise would help the protagonist of whatever the heck they were watching.

'Etsu-chan? What's the cake for?' Iruka asked finally. 'I noticed a load of cakes here on Saturday as well... It got me curious.'

'The cakes Saturday were for a family down the road. Their little girl just turned five. As for the pineapple-upside-down-cake that's on the side now... Well that's for an elderly couple two streets away - their grandkids are visiting this weekend... Well to be honest Obaa-san can't bake so well now because of her arthritis, so I make cakes and cookies and slip them over... So far the kids haven't actually worked it out!' Etsu laughed merrily.

'So making others happy pleases you?' Iruka rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

'Eh? I guess you could say that...' Etsu shrugged. 'I just don't like to see people in need when I know I can help.'

'Heh, you must like baking a lot.' Iruka chuckled.

'Baking, sewing and gardening. You'd be amazed how much those three things fix!' Etsu smiled craftily. 'What kind of cakes do you like Umino-san?'

'Me? Oh, I'm not really a cake person...' Iruka blushed. 'They're usually so sweet!'

'Nnnnn. You'd probably like Madeira cake or fruit cake then. They tend to be a little more on the savoury side.' Etsu looked thoughtful.

'You really don't have to put yourself out on my account.' Iruka smiled.

'No... I don't, but I want to.' Etsu grinned in reply. A sudden outburst of noise from the living room indicated the movie had finished. Iruka yawned. Kami, but he was more tired than he'd yet realised.

'Why don't you stay the night?' Etsu murmured, giving his arm a light poke to attract his attention. 'I've room aplenty. You're obviously not going to make it home.'

'Nnnnn. If you're sure...' Iruka smiled softly. He could just imagine Izumo and Kotetsu's faces when he next saw them...

'Heh - separate rooms, Umino-san...' Etsu chided .

'Naturally...' Iruka blushed. He had been thinking exactly what Etsu implied...

Here ends Chapter 4...

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