Okay, a new chapter. Hopefully this one will have fewer spelling errors and make sense the whole way through.
So yh, sorry for the wait
Enjoy.
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The next couple of days were a comfortable for Iruka, the trees bloomed, papers were marked, his class misbehaved, life went by and normality seemed to return to Irukas life. The nagging worry grew less and he became mellow and calm.
So that Sunday he decided to take advantage of the pleasant weather and have his dinner outside in the tree tops and maybe read that new novel that he had bought a while ago...
So early Sunday evening Iruka dressed in normal chunin uniform packed a bag of peanut butter sandwiches (high protein content you see) and tucking his book "twilight" into his bag he set out towards the forest.
When he reached the tree he swung up easily onto a branch and began to move swiftly from tree to tree. He allowed himself a small smile, he had forgotten how much he enjoyed moving freely like this, the braches bending slightly under this weight, the wind against his face it was a very good feeling.
He reached his destination, a wide flattish branch which could easily be sat on, in about 20 minutes. He was just settling down to his peanut butter when he felt something move behind his tree.
Moving into a crouch silently and reaching for his kunai he held his breath and scanned the entire area he could see. Spotting nothing, he was about to move for a better viewpoint when he saw it again. There a flash of dark colour!
An enemy Nin? Well there was no point in giving them the element of surprise. "Hello I know someone is there, please show yourself"
He hadn't expected it to work, just for it to alert the other that a surprise attack could happen, so when a figure dropped out from a branch above him (the complete opposite direction that Iruka thought he was) he did a double take. Well he could safely say that this was the very last person he was expecting!
Hatake Kakashi was standing in front of him and Iruka for once was totally stumped for what to do. The man had obviously followed Iruka for some reason but was he alone? And why had he taken an interest any way? The other problem was that well it was Kakashi and Iruka had always been, to put it lightly, a little intimidated by the famous sharingan user. He had never seemed all there, and was so worryingly over confident it made you think that there must be a reason behind it, not to mention though damn porn books...oh and the last thing was that Hatake Kakashi was easily powerful enough to blast Iruka out of the tree without blinking.
Iruka only had a vague connection with him through Naruto and he never saw him much. The last time he had seen him was the bizarre meeting a few days ago, and the last time they had had a conversation was at the chunin exam. Iruka cringed internally, normally he would dream of starting an argument like that but his protective instinct had dragged him into it and so he had to suffer the degradation of being beaten.
Iruka knew the silence ought to be broken so he tried his best. "Um hello Kakashi-san what brings you here?"
Kakashis eyes became half-moon, presumably meaning that he was grinning, "Why you of course Iruka-san."
--
Kakashi had decided to simply confront Iruka when there was nobody around. It was simpler and it wouldn't be noticed easily by anyone else. But first Kakashis curiosity and his paranoid ninja complex forced him to find out as was possible with any one suspecting anything.
He asked various chunin, jounin, administrators and parents about the teacher and replies were filled for respect and love for the man. Everyone seemed to know him and have something nice to say about him. It made Kakashi quite disgruntled. It appeared that he wasn't the only person to have noticed the man. And judging from the way some talked about him he wasn't he only person who had noticed Iruka in THAT way. Kakashi carefully remembered all those he suspected for future reference.
He also followed the chunin around for a while. Never all day and never all the same times to be extra careful. But enough to find out about his daily routine and were he could be found. But from close observation Kakashis quick mind also learnt things about Iruka that other people didn't know or had missed.
As, although the teacher had many friends and people cared about him, he seemed, at times, quite lonely and sad. Iruka lived alone and once he had gone home never really came out until the next morning. This loneliness seemed to be carefully hidden so no one saw it but it was shown in the occasional glimpse across his lovely face.
The idea of Iruka being sad troubled Kakashi more than he knew it should, but he put it down for sympathy for the man's whirring past.
Kakashi knew that he was WAY too interested in this mans life and that he really should stop it. But he couldn't brig himself to, it wasn't just boredom, it something else...something about him that made everybody love the apparently unremarkable man.
Of course it didn't help that Kakashi could get Irukas looks and body out if his mind or his dreams. the tan long haired man kept reappearing in Kakashis mind at the most inopportune moments this, added to the fact of as Kakashi had been following Iruka giving Kakashi ample time to sit and gawp at him, meant Iruka was quickly overtaking his porn books in the pervy thoughts section of his mind.
So when Kakashi saw Iruka set off for a dinner in the forest he chose this to be the time to confront Iruka and, hopefully, get the situation resolved.
--
"M-Me Kakashi-san? Is it just you who wanted to see me?" 'Awww' thought Kakashi' he looks to adorable when he's worried I want to hug him...wait! What was THAT?! Did he just think that he wanted to hug Iruka? Ok time to move on...'
"Yes Iruka-sensei it's just me who wanted to see you so there no need to be worried" Kakashi didn't realised that for Iruka this was plenty of reason to be worried.
"Oh-ok what about?" answer Iruka. He had shifted his body into a slightly less defensive position but he didn't look any more comfortable. Kakashi thought of the best way to say what he knew but was momentarily distracted by Irukas deep anxious eyes and so blurted out the first thing that came to his head.
"I known you used to be a lap dancer"
The anxiousness in Irukas eyes froze to be replaced but terror. "What!"
Kakashi realised that this wasn't good so he plunged into his story, trying into appear unconcerned.
"Well I had a mission in your home village and when I was there..."
By time he was finished Iruka looked as if he was ready to faint or run or both. "W-why are you telling me this? Why do you care? Please tell me!"
But Kakashi didn't know the answered to these questions himself and he certainly wasn't going to explain his motivations so he simply shrugged and went "Hun".
Iruka looked like a little bunny caught in head lights. Kakashis inner self screamed "hug him! Wrappy your arms around him and tell him it alright!" Kakashi was extremely concerned that he was having these erroneous thoughts and tried to quash them so they would show. Of course this meant he was very harsh to Iruka.
There was a very awkward silence
Okay Kakashi he thought make a joke, make a joke
'So you gonna give me a dance'
Crap, that sounded too hopeful, he may realise I really want it umm...
Kakashi smirked mockingly to cover it up
Nice whispers his sub conscience.
"Cos if you are then this tree top isn't such a brilliant place, what with clothes flying every were and all"
What the hell was he saying?
'Go away Hatake-san' cried Iruka in mortification,
Well at least Iruka hadn't seen that he meant it, Kakashi decided to continue.
But he was not really sure why
'I heard the whole story from you uncle. My my Iruka-san, but keeping an entire family afloat with your body alone, you must be pretty impressive. Cant wait to see you in action.'
Damn, why did I say that? Stupid stupid kashi.
Although, honestly I can't.
Maybe, but I can't TELL him that, anyway it's hurting him. Aww... he looks so adorable when he is hurt. I want to hug him.
Then it struck Kakashi that he was hurting this man, because he obviously had touched a nerve by even bringing up the subject. Suddenly he felt really sorry. The thought of hurting such a perfect creature hurt him. Why the hell had he even brought this up. Some genius
While Kakashis brain processed this Iruka was getting angry. Had the jounin just came to see him to make a joke of him? What right did he have to make Iruka feel like this!
Because right now Iruka was shamed and embarrassed by his past and the fact that it was being talked about, angry at the fact Kakashi was mocking him in such a way and so cruelly, and intimidated by the fact that he and powerful man were all alone have a rather strange conversation.
Torn between anger at Kakashi and fear of consequences Iruka realised that staying were he was or attacking Kakashi were both stupid options, staying near this man was a very bad idea. So that left the one option, to flee and hope he wasn't chased.
Iruka leapt backward off the branch and ricocheted himself off another tree before taking off across the trees at full speed toward the village. He screamed behind him "Leave me alone, just please leave me alone!"
It was a few seconds before Iruka felt that he had tears streaming down his face.
--
Kakashi made no attempt to follow Iruka, he just stood there dumbstruck. He should have stopped and he hadn't and look what had happened and were there tears streaming down Irukas face?
'Oh fuck!' he thought. 'All I was trying to do was tell him a simple piece of information and as soon as I see him I freak out like some teenager and make pathetic cruel jokes! What I barsted I am!'
It worried but didn't surprise Kakashi that much that Iruka that taken off. I had been easy to see how upset the man was getting. Kakashi felt an intense ball of frustration at himself rise in his chest. Why did he have to act so stupidly around Iruka? And why couldn't he control himself around Him? Normally, Kakashi found it perfectly natural to exude an aura of calmness and put on a cavalier attitude, never seeming to give damn. But with Iruka that front almost crumbled away leaving a stuttering awkward man. Rather like Iruka-san in fact except for the fact that Kakashi couldn't pull off unsure in as nearly adorable way that Iruka could.
This by itself was distressing to Kakashi but adding to it was the fact that it was illogical and unreasonable but he felt absolutely awful that he had caused Iruka to cry and wanted to shoot himself for doing so.
Still standing on the large branch Kakashi didn't quite see that Umino Iruka was making him lose control.
a/n please review
