The next morning, Iruka slowly blinked open his eyes to find himself alone on the couch. Again.
A loud ringing sound shattered the stillness of Iruka's apartment and nearly sent the chuunin through the ceiling in shock. He grabbed his alarm and smashed it shut, placing it back on the coffee table slowly.
Well. At least Kakashi had been sweet enough to make sure he got up for work.
There was no note this time, but Iruka assumed Kakashi had meant the alarm to serve a double purpose. With a long yawn and a little scratch of his bare stomach, Iruka threw off his blanket and padded over to his bedroom. As he dressed, the chuunin couldn't help but feel slightly uncomfortable with the notion of Kakashi silently leaving every night they were together. As silly as it sounded, he couldn't help but take it personally. Perhaps the Hokage merely saw Iruka as stress relief.
A loud, aggravated sigh escaped the school teachers lips and he slammed his drawer closed. Enough of that. He was in this because he trusted Kakashi; he'd just have to keep trusting him, or stop altogether. No feeling sorry for himself.
With that mindset firmly in place Iruka finished getting ready in record time and headed to class.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
For the fist time since the war, Iruka' class was finally back to normal. According to a few of his students, some of them had attended Kakashi's free therapy sessions with their parents, and looked much better for it. The chuunin felt his heart soar at the mischievous smiles sported by his now rambunctious students. It was like life had been restored to a dying atmosphere.
Iruka never thought he would be so thrilled to dodge a chalkboard eraser.
"OI! Did you not see me come in?" He screamed to his class.
They regained their seats respectfully, though the energy hardly diminished.
"Yeeeess, Iruka-sensaaaaiiiiii..."
"Much better." The school teacher responded, utterly unable to keep the genuine smile from spreading across his face. "Now. Seeing as it's Friday, I'm sure you all know what's in store for this morning-"
"-WEAPONS PRACTICE!" The class shouted with their usual glee.
Iruka sighed in his worst attempt at looking distraught to date. "Yes. Weapons practice. Now, quietly and orderly line up in front of the back door."
With far more cooperation than Iruka was expecting his class did his bidding. In no time, they were in four very neat lines before a series of wooden targets. The chuunin placed several buckets full of weapons at his feet and watched with amusement as the children practically salivated at the sight of them.
"Now. Today, we're going to be learning something new. You will learn how to control the direction of your shuriken with chakra."
"OHHHHH!"
"Before we get started, I want to go over the safety rules. Today's class will be very dangerous so I'll need..."
Iruka trailed off as he sensed a presence behind him. Whirling around, the school teacher felt his stomach drop at the sight of an ANBU patiently standing beside a tree a few meters from his class. As naturally as possible, Iruka turned back to his class and began to firmly instruct them not to move.
"If anyone touches these weapons, they'll be banned from weapons practice for three weeks."
The class gasped in utter horror. Iruka knew there would be no temptation.
As the chuunin approached his comrade, the ANBU bowed respectfully.
"My apologizes for interrupting your class, Iruka-sensei." The otherwise stoic shinobi greeted with amusement evident in his voice.
"Not at all. What can I do for you?"
He casually pulled his arm from its hiding spot in his dark robe. A scroll was clutched in his pointed grip. "Message from the Hokage."
Iruka stared at the rolled up piece of paper like it would burst into flames at any moment. Kakashi wouldn't send him an ANBU carrier message like this if it wasn't important. With a deep breath and a smile, Iruka took the offered object from the other ninja and slowly opened it.
Iruka,
Come to my office as soon as possible. We've taken Keekyo's father into custody.
Kakashi.
It was extremely difficult for Iruka to hide how tightly his chest constricted at the news, but he managed it. With a little nod he gave the ANBU his recognition that he had read and understood the message, and then the other shinobi was gone.
Another long, deep breath and Iruka was ready to face his students. Stuffing the note in his breast pocket, he casually stroke back to the children.
"Thank you for waiting so patiently, class. Now. Each of you grab a single shuriken..."
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
After what seemed like an eternity, Iruka found himself standing before the Hokage doors feeling extremely anxious. One of the ANBU guards knocked and announced his presence. He heard Tsunande tell them to let him in, and somehow, he knew there would be even more visitors.
The doors opened to reveal Tsunande, Kakashi, Shizune and Ino. Iruka almost stopped walking when he saw Ino, but quickly deduced that she must be trying her hand at some kind of interrogation. The four ninja stopped talking when they saw him, all turning to him with varying signs of warm acknowledgement.
"Ah, Iruka-sensei. Thank you for coming." Kakashi welcomed brightly. "I hope I didn't cause too much of a fuss with your class."
"Of course not, Hokage-sama." Iruka responded with equal vitality. His expression dropped when he saw Tsunande, who was openly scrutinizing his and Kakashi's conversation. It was all he could do not to blush violently. Clearly, she knew something was up. How embarrassing.
"I called you here because we've had some pretty serious developments in the Keekyo case." Kakashi continued. "As you can see, I've called some expertise in."
Kakashi turned to Ino with a smile and the young girl beamed at him happily in response.
"You were able to gather enough evidence to bring her father in?" Iruka asked, clearly surprised they'd actually managed to accomplish it.
Now the room went sombre. Kakashi closed his eyes and nodded. "Yes. We spoke to many more of his old acquaintances, and they all said the same thing. That they suspected he neglected his daughter, at least emotionally, and that he turned into a completely different person when she was born. That he wanted a son, originally."
"I don't understand why they didn't just have more kids." Ino muttered with contempt. "You want a son so badly? Make one."
"Most people in this village only have one child, Ino. Standard missions don't pay overly well, and the village itself is quite small." Shizune explained quietly. "Perhaps it wasn't really an option for them."
Ino shrugged with a huff, tossing her hair, clearly not thinking much of the couples excuses. "I guess. I never really thought about it like that. Still...it's just so cruel."
The young ninja suddenly looked so sad Iruka feared what news would come next. Shizune put a comforting hand on her shoulder and Ino smiled faintly in appreciation.
It seemed Kakashi took the change in tone as a sign. "Ino, thank you for all your help. Shizune, have you copied her statement?"
"Yes, Kakashi-sama."
"Alright. You can go now if you'd like, Ino."
It seemed like she was about to argue, but there was a tiredness in her eyes that Iruka hadn't noticed before. Slowly, she nodded, and Shizune turned to show her out. Ino gently touched Iruka's arm with a faint smile as she passed him, and he returned it. A glimmer of pride swelled in his chest; it was so wonderful seeing his students grown and contributing their talents to the village.
When the door closed after the young blond, the three remaining shinobi turned to each other, Kakashi regarding the chuunin first.
"Iruka. I brought you here because we need to get an official account from you, not only of what you gathered on your intelligence mission, but also some information on what you have seen as Keekyo's Sensei."
"Of course." Iruka answered softly.
Kakashi turned to Shizune. "I'll leave the rest to you."
Shizune bowed as Kakashi walked up to Iruka, his smile apologetic. "I have to go and take care of a few more things in Intelligence. I'll explain everything when I get back."
Iruka returned Kakashi's smile. A warm hand descended on his shoulder and stayed there, the two sharing a moment so brief the chuunin was certain no one could notice.
Oh wait.
He'd conveniently forgotten about Tsunande, who's grin was so wolfish he nearly sputtered an apology. Naturally, it bothered Kakashi not a bit. He merely walked right by Tsunande and out the door, the ex-Hokage following him after she shot Iruka a little eyebrow waggle.
Briefly, Iruka wondered if it wouldn't be easier on his psyche to just admit the whole thing to Tsunande instead of trying to very unsuccessfully hide their little tryst.
"Iruka-sensei?"
"Oh!"
The chuunin snapped back to Shizune, who was looking at him with genuine concern. He must have looked as distraught as he felt.
"I apologize, Shizune-san. Where should we start?"
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
The process was far more gruelling than Iruka thought it would be. He described Keekyo's father's absence from school, which was so stark that Iruka hadn't actually met him at all. Although the details were scarce, he tried to paint as accurate a picture as he could of Keekyo's mother and her attitude towards her daughter. They also needed an account of Keekyo's attitude, temperament and personality. Iruka couldn't ever remember her being overly sad, but she did seem afraid of bad grades, although many students were. Hinata had been equally terrified, as had Sasuke to a certain degree. Although they all had a reason in common; an overbearing father they aimed to please.
Finally, it got down to the information he'd gathered. Essentially, Iruka reiterated the notes he'd written to Kakashi. Shizune scribbled everything down with impressive speed, barely glancing up from her paper. Iruka marvelled at how she could still write when she'd clearly been at it all day. His hand cramped from marking papers after only a couple of hours.
"Ah...I believe that's all I can think of, Shizune-san."
With a loud sigh the healer dropped the quill and sat back in her chair. "You sure?"
Iruka laughed heartily. "I wouldn't tease you."
With what was obvious relief, Shizune put the scroll to the side for the ink to settle further. She rubbed her temples and made no effort to sit straight or adjust her posture. Iruka gave her a sympathetic smile.
"You look tired."
She sighed again. "It's my eyes more than anything. We've had a lot of information come at us in a small amount of time. I suppose, I'm also just...it's so unnecessary. That poor little girl."
Iruka stood a little straighter, dreading the conversation but ploughing ahead regardless. "Was she running from her family because of her father?"
Shizune nodded weakly. "Yes. Ino saw it clearly in his mind; he'd just been furious with her for merely existing. As you suspected, he dreamed of a life where he'd had a son instead. When he woke to find her there, he couldn't handle it anymore. He just stopped trying to be even remotely nice to her. Even through his eyes, you could see Keekyo slowly break down. She couldn't handle it anymore, either..."
Tears stung Iruka's eyelids, but he held them back. His poor Keekyo...she'd been a perfectly sweet girl. She did not deserve to be driven to desperation by her own family. Iruka wished she'd come to him instead, but they'd never been particularly close. With thick guilt he remembered when he'd wished no more children to show up at his doorstep, but now he would have given anything to open his door and see her there.
"I'm sorry, Iruka-Sensei..." He heard Shizune whisper.
It snapped him out of his deep, depressing thoughts. The look on the other shinobi's face told him tears were the only thing he'd managed from showing on his face.
"Kakashi-sama told me to wait until he got back to tell you, and I should have."
"No, no!" Iruka laughed nervously, trying to shake himself out of his funk. "I'm fine. Really."
It was then that they heard the doors to the office open again. Shizune smiled and hastily stood.
"I'll leave the rest to you, Kakashi-sama."
She winked at Iruka and hurried by, bowing to Kakashi as she left the room. Iruka sat there, blinking in surprise. He hadn't looked so horrible as to actually scare Shizune off, had he?
Kakashi made his way to Iruka with none of Shizune's haste. He pulled her chair a little closer and gracefully melted into it. He regarded Iruka with all of the warmth the chuunin had gotten used to receiving from him lately. It was still such a treat.
"I'm guessing from Shizune's guilty retreat that she said more than I'd intended?"
Iruka stared at his hands as answered. "She just gave me the gist of it."
"Hmm. Yes, that was too much."
The chuunin laughed weakly. Now that Kakashi was here, he found it hard to hold back his feelings. Lately, the Hokage had become more and more of a comforting presence in Iruka's life. All he wanted to do was feel his warmth. No part of Iruka wanted to hold back; he wanted to let it all go and take Kakashi in.
"I..I'm not surprised. But, I can't help but feel...like I could have done something. My student was suffering right in front of my face and I didn't notice."
The chuunin jumped back when he suddenly felt arms around him. Kakashi shamelessly held him, his gaze capturing Iruka's, his eyes filled with a soft intensity.
"You have an entire class to look after, Iruka. You can't save everyone. Keekyo's parents only had one child, and they couldn't even look after her. They are the only ones to blame."
Iruka slowly relaxed into Kakashi's embrace. He so desperately wanted to accept his comfort, whatever he would give him, but he wasn't sure. He didn't know if that would be weak of him. He didn't know if he would be overstepping his boundaries. Iruka wanted to rest his head on Kakashi's shoulder and just be held by him.
"I...yes. Of course, Kakashi." The chuunin answered, smiling as pleasantly as he could.
Kakashi's face fell. His grip on Iruka's shoulders tightened.
"Don't do that." He chided firmly.
That had not been the reaction Iruka was expecting. He gaped for a moment before answering. "Uh...what?"
"Don't close up on me."
The irony of Kakashi telling him not to close himself off was not lost on the chuunin. He heard the words of Naruto echoing through his skull; You need to learn to ask for help.
But, Iruka found that he couldn't. He didn't know how to ask for...it was just too embarrassing. His expression was so distraught that Kakashi couldn't help but smile. He pulled the chuunin a little closer and Iruka willingly went with him.
"What do you need?" Kakashi asked softly.
Iruka felt like someone had picked him up and tossed him into an alternate universe. One where he was the stone-cold, distant hero of a village and Kakashi was the warm-hearted school teacher completely in touch with his emotions. Perhaps this really was just a dream.
Their chests briefly touched as Iruka took a long, deep breath. On his exhale, he felt himself just let go. As he'd so desperately wanted to do, he leaned down and gently rested his head against Kakashi's shoulder. He allowed himself to sink down, nestling against Kakashi's chest. His Hokage was so warm and safe and comforting. Nothing and no one could harm Iruka here, in this haven of sweet smells and overpowering peace.
When Iruka snapped back to reality, he realized that Kakashi had wrapped his arms around him again, and was gently combing his fingers through his hair. Briefly Iruka felt humiliated, like a child, and not at all like a grown shinobi. But the feeling was fleeting. Something told him this was right, and it was ok. It was ok to be a little vulnerable. Kakashi had been vulnerable with him, hadn't he? It had been so hard for him to shed his clothes, his metaphorical walls. But he'd done it, so Iruka could do it, too.
"Thank you..." The chuunun murmured after a time. Somehow, he could feel Kakashi's smile.
"I get a lot of thank you's when my chest is involved."
Iruka blushed, but didn't waver. "Well. It's really nice."
"I've worked hard on it."
"I feel that."
"Do you feel the rest of me?"
Iruka blinked. "The rest...?"
He shot up, smacking Kakashi in the shoulder, his face completely red. "Really!"
Kakashi broke down into laughter, smacking his own knee in his glee. He looked like he was trying to say something, but could not form words through his own amusement. Iruka couldn't help but slowly join in with him. The two laughed until there were tears in their eyes. When Kakashi finally managed to settle down enough to speak, he did so as he slowly dabbed at his eyes.
"I...I was kidding." He breathed.
Iruka shook his head, his smile large and genuine. "I definitely figured that out."
"Your face..."
"Was classic from the way you howled."
With one last wipe of his eyes, Kakashi breathed easy and grinned at his fellow shinobi. "I'm not that much of a pervert. Although...it's not like you haven't seen it. Or touched it. Or...taken it in the-"
"Alright." Iruka interrupted with another rising blush. "It was just such a sincere, sweet moment. And you had to go Kakashi on it."
"Maaa. Is that a thing now? When someone does something inappropriate, it's a Kakashi?"
Iruka grinned. "I may make it a thing."
"I forbid it in my village." Kakashi countered.
"You'll never conquer an idea, Kakashi. Once it takes hold, it'll-h-hey!"
To his complete surprise, Iruka found himself dodging Kakashi's wicked fast arms. It was only a temporary victory, as he was prisoner in what felt like a moment later. They nearly tumbled over the chairs in their struggles, but after some wobbling, managed to stay aloft.
"Not if I give your mouth something else to do." Kakashi purred shamelessly.
Iruka laughed, unable to keep the bright smile from his lips, before they were softly joined by Kakashi's. They kissed, slowly at first, but passion soon overtook them. Within moments they were panting, Iruka moaning lightly as their tongues danced against each other. He felt Kakashi's hand under his shirt and was overcome with the urge to have him.
"Kakashi..."
"I want you." The Hokage breathed.
Iruka shifted against him, his arousal almost uncomfortable. "Yes...but, where..."
In their haze of desire, their eyes caught. With his ever impish grin, Kakashi flicked his gaze over to the crowded Hokage desk. He wiggled his eyebrows once. Iruka's face fell.
"No, Kakashi."
The poor Hokage looked like a kicked puppy.
"But...it's more than big enough."
"It's disrespectful."
Kakashi shot him a flat look. "To what? The desk?"
"...Well...no..."
"The window?"
"No..."
"The wood the room is made of?"
"You know what I mean, Kakashi." Iruka sighed, crossing his arms.
Kakashi looked defeated, but determined. "One day, Iruka. One day."
That brought a shy smile to the chuunin's lips. Kakashi looking forward to future time with him was something that made his stomach flutter.
"How about that couch-shaped pile of comfortable cushions over there?"
Iruka craned his neck and looked over. Oh.
"Ah. That works."
Kakashi looked like a kid who had been let loose in a candy store. He gracefully hopped off the chairs, scooped Iruka into his arms, and carried his prize over to their chosen coitus place.
Iruka couldn't believe how happy he was.
Oh wait.
"Kakashi, Shizune left the report on the-"
"Not now."
"...Ah...Ok..."
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Iruka wasn't sure what Kakashi had done in order to grant them so much privacy, but the two had more than enough time to make love and then lay amongst the cushions and finally enjoy each others warmth. The thought of how many other Hokage's had been with their respective partners in their office crossed Iruka's mind, but he couldn't imagine anyone else being so risque. And, well...he still thought it was a little disrespectful. But at least they hadn't desecrated the desk.
Unless...
Iruka squeezed his eyes shut and prayed these weren't Hiruzen's tea pillows.
He...would understand, right?
Kakashi nudged Iruka with a questioning glance. "What's going on in your head?"
"I...was just wondering what use these pillows usually have."
The Hokage was silent for a moment.
"Best not to think too hard about that."
Oh, God. They were totally Hiruzen's tea pillows.
Kakashi laughed and clutched Iruka a little closer. "Don't worry about it." He whispered before he placed a soft kiss on Iruka's cheek. "It's my office now."
The chuunin melted instantly. His hair tie had been long discarded, as Kakashi was fond of doing, and he sighed at the feel of Kakashi's fingers in his hair. The Hokage seemed almost fascinated with his long, chocolate locks.
"Why do you always wear your hear up?" He asked casually.
Iruka shrugged. "I guess...I've been doing it since I was a kid. It's just habit."
"Hmm." Kakashi mused, staring at the strands as they slipped through his fingers. "You look beautiful with your hair down, Iruka."
The chuunin nearly sputtered. "...Beautiful?"
Kakashi's smile was so bright Iruka nearly had to blink twice to adjust his eyes. "Yes. Beautiful."
Any response he could think of hardly seemed adequate. Instead, Iruka leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Kakashi's chest, just over his heart. When he pulled back, the Hokage's eyes were alight. They looked like they would swallow him whole.
"W...why do you wear your mask?" Iruka asked softly.
Kakashi played with Iruka's hair for a moment longer before he answered. "It...is also kind of a habit, actually. When I was young, I thought it made me look really mysterious. I wanted to be taken seriously as a ninja. Women would look at me and lose their minds about how 'adorable' I was and how I looked 'exactly like my father', and at the time, it drove me nuts. Seems like it was a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Soon, I didn't want to be associated with him at all. I just...ended up never taking it off."
The chuunin couldn't help but place another kiss over Kakashi's heart. Once again, words just seemed inadequate. Kakashi obviously had a lot of ghosts. Iruka wanted him to let them go as slowly as he needed to.
"And here I thought it was just to hide your dashing good looks." Iruka responded with a warm smile.
"I didn't think it was fair to the rest of the men in the village. No one needs that kind of resentment."
Iruka laughed lightly and Kakashi smiled with him.
"It's a shame...because you light up the room when you smile." Iruka whispered. Kakashi gently kissed him, the two coming together again briefly, their bodies twisting around each other. It was times like this that Iruka literally felt like he was a part of Kakashi.
Man. He was in deep.
When they slowly broke apart, it was with obvious disappointment in Kakashi's eyes.
"We have to get up, Iruka. I've already pushed the limit of how long we have together."
A light laugh accompanied Kakashi's words. "Of course. I'm surprised we've even had this long."
The two stood and began to dress, Iruka trying not to gawk at Kakashi too hard as he slowly slipped back into his clothing. It was such a pleasure to watch his muscles twist and work under his skin.
With just a couple of minutes to spare, a knock sounded at the doors. Kakashi called to their guest as he smiled and jabbed a finger at Iruka's head. Confused, the chuunin placed a hand on his skull..and realized he'd forgotten to tie his hair back up.
But where the hell was his hair tie.
"It's Tsunande. Open up." She barked from behind the doors.
No no no no nononononono.
Iruka was utterly doomed if she waltzed in here and he just happened to have his hair flowing freely for absolutely no reason, when it had CLEARLY been tied not two hours ago.
Patting his body down like crazy for a substitute, he looked to Kakashi for mercy. The Hokage was already talking unnecessarily slow to the door, so there wasn't much more he could do.
"Yes, yes. The door's open, as it always is. You can come in." He drawled. Although Kakashi paused as much as possible, when he turned back, Iruka was still hair-tie less. The look of defeat and horror on his face was almost enough to make Kakashi break out into laughter again.
Tsunande strode in, looking slightly annoyed for the obvious delay in allowing her entrance. As she came up to the two ninja, she opened her mouth to speak to Kakashi, but did an almost comical double take when she saw Iruka.
"Well! Iruka-sensei. I've never seen this look on you."
"Ah...yes, well...I needed something to occupy my hands with, so I took out my hair tie. I can't seem to remember where I placed it."
She quirked an eyebrow. "Huh. I didn't know you were a fidgeter."
Iruka laughed lightly and tried not to break out into a cold sweat. "Well, the situation is a little...unusual."
"Indeed it is." She agreed. "Well. Have we got your statement, Iruka-sensei?"
"Oh..." Iruka started, in total disbelief that she'd actually believed him. "Yes. Shizune-san has written it all down."
"Excellent. The ugly part is coming up soon; the punishment. Kakashi and I will discuss it at length, but we need all of the evidence first. After Ino prodded his mind, there was really nothing for him to argue against. It's not like he broke the law, but he failed in his duty as a parent and caused mental damage to a young child that ultimately ended in her death. So. We have some big decisions to make."
Iruka turned to Kakashi. The Hokage smiled pleasantly back at him, but Iruka felt his heart go out to him. That certainly wasn't going to be fun.
"Do you need anything from me, Tsunande-sama?"
"No, Iruka-sensei. But, thank you for your assistance. You were instrumental in us closing this case." Tsunande praised with a genuine smile.
Iruka bowed. "I wish I could have done more."
"You did more than enough." Kakashi cut in softly. The two smiled at each other, and Tsunande cleared her throat.
"Before you leave, Iruka-sensei...you might want to retrieve your vest from that pile of cushions. I'm sure you might find your elusive hair-tie there, as well."
It was a strange, almost out-of-body feeling that overcame Iruka. As if, someone else looked down at him and noticed, with a muted horror, that he had indeed forgotten to put on his vest. That person than turned their field of vision over to the location Tsunande suggested, and yes, there it was. Right where he'd left it.
Clearly, he had just been made an ass.
At least he didn't have to worry about admitting their relationship to Tsunande. If there had been any doubt in her mind, it was now quite erased.
"Ah. Thank you." He answered absently. With the same kind of disjointed feeling, he walked over to his vest, picked it up, put it on, and walked back to the current and former Hokages. Kakashi was, as he expected, smiling wolfishly at him. Tsunande looked pleasantly amused.
Iruka swore a painful, slow revenge on Kakashi for his betrayal. He would pay dearly.
"Good day, Tsunande-sama. Kakashi-sama."
Iruka bowed to the two and as casually as he could, and fully aware that he had still not tied up his hair, left the office.
Tsunande turned to Kakashi. She smirked at him, crossing her arms over her chest.
"You're a dick."
He looked scandalized. "Moi?"
"You could have easily told him."
"I'm going to be honest with you. I truly, really didn't notice the vest either."
Tsunande laughed. "You were too taken with his new look?"
"Yes. Actually. I quite like his hair down."
"Indeed." Tsunande chuckled, shaking her head. "I'm happy for you, Kakashi. For both of you. There's only one spinster allowed in this tower, and that's me. Enjoy yourselves."
Kakashi smiled, and the two shared a very deep, very real moment that was not unheard of in their friendship.
"You're not a spinster. You're a warrior. One of the best this village has ever seen."
"Oh, stop." Tsunande blushed, waving his comment off. She quickly changed the subject. "The part that is going to be really amusing is when Naruto finds out..."
Kakashi's entire face morphed into one of complete and utter terror. If it was possible, he went even paler. Tsunande barked out a laugh that was so loud she was certain the whole tower heard her.
"Oh ho ho ho...yes. Enjoy that. Now, let's get down to business. And I mean real business this time."
Ooooooooooooooooooooo
The next day, as Iruka was shopping for groceries, he ran into the little old lady who had given him the key information they'd needed to solve the Keekyo case. Naturally, she was thrilled to see him. The poor woman nearly wiped out in her desperation to get to Iruka as quickly as possible. The school teacher dumped his bags onto the nearest vendor and ran to assist her.
"Please, don't rush like that." He chided softly as he loaned her his shoulder.
"My goodness, I swear in my prime I was fit as a fiddle. You never really get used to old age."
Iruka chuckled and finally, the older woman was in the clear of a serious and awkward accident. "Thank you for your help, Sensei. I couldn't help but come as quickly as possible, especially since you wanted closure."
The chuunin blinked in confusion. "Closure? About Keekyo? Why, what have you learned?"
With far too much excitement considering the seriousness of the situation, she beckoned Iruka closer and he obliged her by leaning forward.
"Well. Turns out, it was all the fathers fault. Well. I suppose the mother isn't completely innocent either, but still. He drove that poor child to near desperation with his callousness. The details aren't really known, but he was apparently taken from his home yesterday and has been sentenced to unpaid community service until retirement. He's been stripped of his vest and ninja status. Really, just completely shameful. His wife hasn't been seen in public since. I can't imagine this is easy for her, either."
Iruka couldn't help but feel a weight press down on his chest. He supposed 'justice had been served', but it didn't really help ease his pain. Now more people would suffer. Keekyo's mother didn't seem like a bad person, perhaps just too accepting of her husband and his wrong-doings. Some people would see that as a "good wife". In this case, it caused her to fail as a mother. It was just a giant mess.
"Sensei?"
"Ah!" The chuunin snapped his head back up and tried to smile. "My apologies. I was just letting what you said sink in. Thank you for the information, I appreciate it."
The older woman seemed to sense Iruka's sadness and wisely decided to leave him be. They said their goodbyes, Iruka plucked his groceries from where he'd left them, and he silently trudged home.
Except, fate decided it wouldn't have Iruka alone tonight.
"Senseeeiiii!"
The chuunin spun with a bright smile on his face as Naruto bounded up to him from inside the crowd. The excitable blond came to an almost violent stop just before the school teacher, his trademark toothy grin in place.
"OI! I've been looking everywhere for you. You're never this hard to find!"
Iruka laughed and tousled the young ninja's hair affectionately. "Sorry, Naruto. Things are still pretty crazy. But, I'm wide open tonight. Why don't I make you dinner?"
"Hehehehehehe. As if I'm ever going to say no to dinner, Iruka-sensei! You can tell me everything while you cook. Oh...uh. I'll help too, of course." He added as an obviously untrue after thought. Iruka merely gave him one last playful head rub before pawning his groceries off on the younger man.
"Just don't break anything this time and we're even."
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
As usual, Naruto and Iruka had a great time together. True to his initial suggestion, Naruto had sat and watched Iruka cook and demanded that the chuunin relay all of his news pronto.
"It's going to dampen the mood of our night, Naruto." Iruka warned.
"Wha? Really? That bad?"
"You've heard about the incident with the young girl, Keekyo?"
Naruto blinked rapidly. "Umm. Nope."
Iruka dropped his wooden spoon and turned with disbelief. "Really? The entire village is talking about it."
The blond ninja's look of blank incomprehension continued. He scratched at his temple a little. He blinked again. "No clue."
The chuunin sighed and placed his hands on his hips as he usually did when he was completely unimpressed. "Naruto. If you want to be Hokage, you have to know what's going on in the village."
To his credit, Naruto looked rightly shameful.
"I know. You're right." He murmured.
Iruka smiled and turned back to his cooking. "Well, it's a good thing you're here. I'll tell you all about it."
The next hour consisted of Iruka attempting to tell Naruto all about the Keekyo investigation while being interrupted with "WHAT? THAT BASTARD!" or "BUT THAT'S HORRIBLE!" and so on. Naruto certainly made any situation more lively, and despite the seriousness of their topic, Iruka found his mood improving significantly.
Naturally, whenever it came to Kakashi, he left out the more...complicated bits. Part of him felt guilty for not telling Naruto, but he and Kakashi hadn't even really had a conversation about their relationship yet. The Hokage had been rightfully busy and Iruka really only saw him when it was at his convenience. Once things were a little more settled, he would break the news to his young friend.
Iruka served dinner and Naruto rambled about injustice and what he would do as Hokage around his food. Once the young blonde's rage had subsided, he asked Iruka how his job as Headmaster was going, and the topic shifted to much more casual conversation. Dinner was finished, dishes were cleared, and the two continued to chat. Iruka had bought sweets for Naruto and the young ninja devoured them with excitement. Eventually, stuffed full of dinner and desert, his eye lids began to droop and his head nodded. The school teacher gave Naruto his usual set of extra p.j's he kept around for moments like this, tucked him into his own bed, and turned out the lights.
With a loud yawn, Iruka finished cleaning around the house. He changed, washed, and made himself comfortable on the couch. While he waited for sleep, the chuunin briefly reflected on how happy he was for Naruto. His life was so different now than when Iruka had first accepted him into his life. It made Iruka happy for Naruto to be happy. Hopefully peace would preside, and everyone would get the happy ending they deserved.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
The next morning, Iruka served a sleepy-eyed Naruto breakfast. Once the young ninja regained enough consciousness not to be a harm to himself, he hugged Iruka, thanked him profusely for a great night and bounced away. The chuunin watched him go with a smile. As he turned to go back inside, he noticed something glimmering out of the corner of his eye. He bent down and inspected the small flower pot that stood outside of his apartment, and stuck in the dirt was a kunai with a note attached to it. A brief bout of anxiety returned to Iruka, but it was quickly quelled when he recognized Kakashi's hand writing.
Stopped by to give you news about the case but saw you had company. Enjoy yourself, I'll stop by again tomorrow.
Kakashi.
P.s. You two are sickeningly adorable.
Iruka laughed and folded up the note. It made his chest warm to think that Kakashi would be visiting him at some point that day. Perhaps...he would make something nice for him. He didn't know if Kakashi enjoyed sweet food or not, so maybe something a little more mild.
Recipes flew through his head as he headed back to the kitchen. Maybe he would just make him a fresh loaf or something. Or maybe just dinner. But, he didn't know when he was coming. Maybe he loved sweets. But what if he hated them?
Iruka had a feeling he was over thinking things.
He grabbed his wallet, threw his vest on and headed out the door. Sake it was.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Iruka was just finished cleaning his house when he heard the knock. For some reason, his heart rate soared to completely unnecessary levels. Kakashi managed to make him feel nervous despite having already been naked and in compromising positions with him three times. Damn his charm.
The smile that greeted him when he opened the door managed to smother his nerves in a tingling warmth.
"Kakashi..."
The Hokage laughed and stepped inside when he was beckoned. "I say this often, but I'll never get tired of being greeted like that."
Iruka blushed crimson as he closed the door. "Like what?"
"It's the way you say my name. It's like you can't believe I'm here, but are really happy about it."
Uncertain if there was a way to respond to Kakashi's statement that WOULDN'T make him more embarrassed, Iruka chose to merely smile and duck his head. The Hokage laughed again and as was his custom, made himself comfortable on the couch.
"Ah...I bought some sake. Are you interested?" Iruka offered, clearing his throat slightly.
"Sounds good."
Iruka gladly made his way over to the kitchen and prepared a little set up for them. When he made his way back to Kakashi, he was quite collected and smiling warmly. "I hope you like it cold?"
"I'm not picky."
The school teacher set down their cups and poured each of them a portion. When he sat down, they held their cups aloft, Kakashi's eyes suddenly a little serious.
"I'll toast to us finally closing our case. Hopefully Keekyo rests in peace."
His exhale was shaky, but Iruka nodded and clinked their glasses together. After their sip, Iruka toyed with the edge of his ceramic cup as he spoke. "I...heard about it a bit in the market today. Life time community service?"
Kakashi looked a little disappointed but he continued all the same. "Yes. His wife is still working, and Missions Desk has been informed that she must receive enough missions to sustain them. But, he'll never work again. If he can't even take care of his own daughter, he can't be expected to take care of his fellow ninja on a mission. It was unanimously decided that he didn't deserve his rank."
The school teacher nodded absently, sipping a little more of his sake. "I think his real punishment will begin very soon. Everyone will know about it soon enough, and the people in this village aren't quiet about their opinions. He won't be able to go out in public without being shamed."
At that thought, Kakashi took on a very sombre air. "I know."
Iruka glanced up at him, suddenly concerned. "Are you alright, Kakashi? Was this hard for you?"
The Hokage shrugged and downed the rest of his drink. "It wasn't that bad. To be honest, I was furious with him. Dishing out his punishment was a little satisfying. However...I do understand what the aftermath is like. Even though he deserves it, I have a hard time wishing it on him."
Iruka nodded in agreement, but before he could answer, Kakashi shifted and his expression completely changed.
"So. How was your visit with Naruto?"
The chuunin accepted the change in topic and smiled right back. "It was nice, as usual. Actually..." he paused, staring at Kakashi as his stomach cramped with nervousness. "...you should join us next time."
Kakashi waved him off casually. "I couldn't ruin your time together."
"No, no. We have plenty of opportunities to talk, just us. I think it would be really nice. Besides...I was telling Naruto about my week, and of course, you were part of it. I left out the, uh...details." He stammered, blushing slightly. "...and felt bad about it. I don't want to hide...us. But. I wasn't sure what to tell him."
Kakashi nodded lightly, swishing the liquid in his cup around in circles as he glanced down into it. "I would have dodged that bullet, too. I'm pretty confident I know what Naruto's reaction will be like."
The Hokage made a wide, flailing gesture with his arms that Iruka wasn't expecting and the chuunin laughed heartily.
"Haha, that seems accurate! But, he needs to know eventually. He's like a little brother to me. I mean, that is...are we...?"
"Together?" Kakashi asked with a smile. "I hope so."
It felt like Iruka's heart had turned into a fire cracker, soared out of his chest and exploded over his head. His entire face lit up like said fire cracker and both ninja shared a bright smile. Slightly overcome, Iruka glanced down, trying to control his smile.
"That's...that's great."
Kakashi leaned in and Iruka wasted no time in giving him a long, drawn out kiss. As cliche as it sounded, he wanted to run around the village screaming at the top of his lungs. Iruka realized that he had been attracted to Kakashi for a long time, he just hadn't ever given them any thought because it was such a ridiculous notion. Perhaps the man in his dream had been Kakashi all along, hidden from view because he'd never bothered to explore his attraction or even think about it.
When they parted, both ninja had such goofy grins on their faces that they both laughed instantly. Kakashi's face had a wonderful, completely open, bright happiness to it that tightened Iruka's throat. He had never seen the infamous Copy-nin so delighted, and to think that he caused it...well. He couldn't even comprehend it.
"UUUUUUUUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The two jumped up and whirled around, caught completely by surprise.
With his face smooshed up against the glass of Iruka's living room window, Naruto continued to scream in muted horror. He looked like he'd just seen someone have their arm amputated in front of him. Something in Iruka told him to run, but he knew he was trapped.
"Did...you know he was there?" Iruka whispered to Kakashi, his eyes locked with Naruto's.
"I was a little distracted...so no."
"Ah..."
With a long, heavy sigh, Iruka stood and motioned to Naruto to head to his front door. The blond peeled his face from the window and zipped over. Iruka barely had the door open before the young ninja had bounded inside with his arm up and an accusing finger jabbed at Kakashi.
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING!?"
Kakashi blinked. "Kissing."
"UGH!"
"Oh, it's actually really nice."
"SHUT UP THAT'S GROSS!"
The frantic ninja whirled around, his finger now pointed at Iruka. Quite hilariously, he actually looked betrayed. "Wh...What are you doing? With...with KAKASHI-SENSEI?"
"Ah." Iruka started, his face a mask of glowing red. He rubbed his scar nervously and dreaded the incoming conversation. "I suppose this is good timing, as Kakashi and I just decided to ah...to tell you."
"TELL ME WHAT?"
"We're...together?"
"WHAT? WHAT? WHAT?"
"Calm down, Naruto." Kakashi demanded calmly from his seat on the couch. "Your giving me a headache."
"YOU STAY OUT OF THIS!" Naruto yelled as he spun on Kakashi. Just as fast, he was back towards Iruka. He looked positively beside himself.
"Naruto. It might seem surprising, but...well. It's not like we didn't know each other, although very casually, for years..."
The blond looked like he was slowly starting to simmer down at Iruka's attempt at an explanation. He took an exaggerated deep breath, rubbed his temples, and then continued to speak.
"So wait. Let me get this straight. You...and Kakashi-sensei...are...girl...I mean...boyfriends?"
"Ah. Yes." Iruka answered with a nervous smile.
Naruto paused.
"EWWW! WHY KAKASHI-SENSEI!?"
"Hey..."
"Would you be happy for Kakashi if he was with someone else?" Iruka asked calmly.
That seemed to stop Naruto's tantrum. He blinked, obviously quite thrown by the question. It took him a moment of scratching his head and placing his hands on his hips, but eventually, he had an answer that seemed to confuse him more than the question.
"Well...yes. I want him to be happy..."
"So, why is it so bad if it's me instead?"
Naruto sputtered and jabbed another finger at the obviously deeply offended Kakashi. "B-BECAUSE HE'S A PERV! And...and kind of a dick!"
Poor Kakashi was slowly deflating from the very degrading conversation and Iruka knew he had to turn the tables before his self-esteem took a legitimate hit.
"What else is he?" Iruka asked warmly.
That seemed to do the trick. An instant transformation overtook Naruto, who at once looked bashful and slightly shameful. He drew a little circle with his toe, stuffed his hands in his pockets and murmured an answer that he was obviously embarrassed to say.
"Great..."
"What was that?" Iruka asked with obvious confidence.
Naruto looked like he wanted the floor to swallow him up. "He's great."
Iruka could see Kakashi smile from the corner of his eye. Feeling much better about the situation and how Kakashi was feeling, Iruka continued.
"He is great. So, if you want both of us to be happy, then it makes sense for us to be happy together, right?"
The chuunin knew the situation was effectively settled as Naruto looked like he was so ashamed of himself that he nearly melted into a puddle of embarrassed goo.
"Yes...BUT, wait!"
Something seemed to spark new, scandalized life into Naruto's body and he jabbed his finger into the air. "You're both men! I don't get it! You don't like girls?"
Silence descended on the room. Iruka and Kakashi looked like neither of them wanted to go anywhere NEAR this conversation. With a sigh of acceptance, Kakashi took up the challenge.
"Everyone is different, Naruto. You can't put restrictions on how people feel. It just...is what it is."
Though his statement was simple, it seemed to have a profound effect on Naruto. Any fight left in him quickly died down, as if he could see he was being childish. Iruka stepped closer and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, smiling down at his foster little brother with affection.
"It's alright, Naruto. I wasn't exactly planning on you finding out like this...actually, was there something you needed? Why are you here, anyway?"
The blond's head snapped up and he blinked in surprise, clearly having totally forgotten his original intentions. "OH! I wanted to ask you to dinner, but...at my place. I want to try making real ramen myself!"
Iruka laughed and ruffled Naruto's hair. "Really? You want to cook?"
"Yeah! You inspired me. I mean...it's probably gonna be awful, but I wanna try."
The blond's look became bashful again as he slowly turned to Kakashi. Clearly, he was embarrassed for unintentionally insulting the pants off of him. "Kaka-sensei...you're invited, too. Just don't complain if it tastes bad."
Kakashi smiled and was about to answer when Naruto suddenly leaped back with so much shock Iruka reached for his kunai's.
"HOLY CRAP! YOUR FACE!"
The Hokage reached for his jaw on instinct, but realizing that he still had his mask down, he laughed and dropped his hand. "Well. I guess you've got me, Naruto. Don't share my secret."
Iruka couldn't help but laugh as well at Naruto's shell-shocked expression. It made sense; he and the rest of team seven had been dying to see Kakashi's face for years. And now, without any to-do at all, there it was.
The chuunin placed his hands on Naruto's shoulders and slowly guided him towards the front door. "Kakashi and I would be more than happy to have dinner with you, Naruto. Perhaps in a couple of days? Kakashi...?"
The Hokage stood as well, joining Iruka in seeing Naruto out. "Should be fine. I don't typically have meetings after 5 o'clock anyway."
Standing just outside of Iruka's apartment, the three stood and regarded each other. Naruto was clearly trying to process all of the surprises he'd been handed in such a short amount of time. The young ninja was openly gawking at Kakashi's face, a fact that nearly had Iruka snorting with laughter.
"I can't believe it. You're good looking. I thought you'd have like...scars or something. Why the heck do you wear a mask all the time?"
"To keep people in deep suspense." Kakashi answered, his tone teasing. "I thought you figured out by now that it was nothing special."
Naruto puffed up like a bird at the jab. "WELL. I stopped thinking about it, honestly. I mean, it was whatever..."
Now Iruka couldn't help but laugh. Naruto pouted and Kakashi continued to grin.
"Oi, Iruka-sensei...this better not mean you'll be on his side all the time."
Kakashi placed an injured hand over his heart and Iruka merely laughed lightly again.
"I'll be on the side of justice, Naruto. Don't worry about a thing; nothing is going to change. It's just that the two of us won't be alone anymore."
A little unexpected smile spread across Naruto's face. It turned into a wide, bright grin, his arms flying up and bending behind his head as he smiled. "That's good. I like that."
Now everyone was smiling, and there was a moment where the warmth they all felt for each other was palpable in the air.
"Heh heh heh...with a mug like that, I can kind of understand why you like him, Iruka-sensei!" Naruto teased, effectively dispelling any tension that may have remained in the situation. Kakashi actually blushed at the compliment and Iruka leaned down to hug Naruto tightly.
"I like him for the same reasons you like him, Naruto." The chuunin whispered.
When Iruka pulled back, Naruto was blushing as well, obviously embarrassed for being called out quite correctly.
"Now. Kakashi and I were just enjoying some sake, but we'll see you for dinner in a couple of days, right?"
Naruto nodded mutely, but his grin had returned and his embarrassment subsided.
"Yup! Don't do anything too weird, you gross old men!" Naruto shouted, then turned and ran down the hall, disappearing around the corner. Kakashi sighed and Iruka 'tsked' and shook his head.
"Really. We're not even old..."
"Not even."
They turned to look at each other.
"Right?"
"Right..."
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Time flew and the dinner with Naruto came so fast Kakashi practically forgot about it. Thankfully, Iruka was far better with keeping appointments and effectively gathered him from his Hokage post to attend the event in a surprisingly punctual manner.
Dinner went well. Kakashi and Naruto's banter had seemingly not diminished at all from the time when they had first started getting to know each other. It was truly like the two of them were brothers, separated by a large age gap, forever stuck in a loop of teasing affection. Kakashi obviously had the upper hand as Naruto was about as predictable as it got and the Hokage was sharp as a needle. It was almost unfair, really. But the war and the battle with Pein had brought the two of them closer together than ever, and the underlying love they had for each other was evident despite their never ending banter.
Naruto's ramen tasted like mushy, burnt mushrooms, but somehow they all manged to leave his house somewhat satisfied. Iruka promised to return the next day and show him how to prepare something far more edible, and the blond did not protest even a peep.
Kakashi and Iruka's relationship continued to slowly grow, mostly restricted by Kakashi's constant presence at the Hokage tower. Since he was new in his position, there were still many details that needed to be ironed out, causing the Hokage to work later hours than he normally would have. Iruka didn't really mind, however. He was used to being on his own, and was kept busy with his class, the missions desk and his constant flow of marking.
Luckily for the two new lovers the village seemed to simmer down quite a bit after the Keekyo incident. According to Kakashi, the ANBU therapists were actually quite busy for a couple of weeks, but after the initial rush people seemed to regain their sense of reality and stopped going to sessions. Within three weeks, the therapists were back to their ANBU posts and normalcy seemed to return to the village.
As for the students, most of them continued to show improvement. The only exceptions were Keekyo's friends, a couple of girls, who needed more help than the others. Iruka gave them a little extra affection and support, and they seemed to slowly coast through their grief without too much permanent scarring.
Iruka ran into Keekyo's mother in the market once, but she was gone as soon as he saw her. Truly, the chuunin felt bad for her. He didn't know whether or not she was actually a bad person, or just trapped in a difficult situation that she didn't have the strength of character to handle. Her life was going to be difficult from now on, with the death of her daughter and the villages disdain to handle. Not only that, but her husband was certain to be bitter and angry with his sentencing. He couldn't be easy to deal with.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Iruka packed up the dinner he made for Kakashi as tightly as possible. They'd made it kind of a 'thing' to have little picnics in the Hokage's office when things got too hectic for the Hokage to escape to Iruka's. Kakashi seemed to thoroughly enjoy Iruka's cooking, which pleased the chuunin, so he cooked for the other man as much as possible.
The downside? Every damn ANBU guard knew they were seeing each other. It didn't take a rocket scientist to put two and two together, after all. None of them seemed particularly judgemental, though, so it wasn't really a big deal. Just slightly embarrassing.
Said guards let Iruka in and he smiled at his partner.
"Good evening, Kakashi. I made your favourite."
"Battered eggplant?" The Hokage asked with adorable excitement. Iruka walked up to him and the two kissed gently in greeting.
"You guessed it! But, I ran out of pepper, so there's chili flakes instead. I hope that's alright."
"I like a little bit of spice."
Iruka smiled wider and placed the basket on the Hokage desk. "How's your day been?"
Kakashi sighed in his usual dramatic way and rubbed the back of his neck. "Booooring."
There was a considerable stack of scrolls littering his desk. Iruka gifted him with a consoling smile and gently rubbed his back. "At least it's not book balancing."
Kakashi looked like he was actually going to vomit. "How dare you mention book balancing in my presence."
Laughter accompanied his offence. The two shared a smile before Iruka's face dropped and he scratched his nose.
"Well, I'll be going now."
"What?" Kakashi answered, his whole face falling. "You're not staying? You're abandoning me to the paper work?"
"Kakashi, I have missions desk tonight. I told you already." Iruka chided with a small sigh. He wasn't actually angry, because he hadn't expected Kakashi to remember. He was terrible with that.
The Hokage looked bashful. "Oh...sorry. Yes, you did."
For someone so brilliant and talented, Kakashi had terrible short term memory when he wasn't 100% focused. Toss a scroll full of ninja secrets past his face and he'll remember 60% of its contents with one glance. Tell him you're working tomorrow night? Blank.
"You can make it up to me by eating all of my cooking." Iruka responded with a smile.
Kakashi looked like he'd won the lottery. He beamed at his lover, bending down, closing the distance between them. "This is why you're my favourite." he breathed before kissing Iruka.
Their kiss was long and deep, hands travelling over clothes, until Kakashi managed to pull up Iruka's shirt and drag his nails up and down his abdomen. The chuunin inhaled sharply against Kakashi's lips.
"You're making this hard." He laughed.
Kakashi looked down. He grinned. "I can see that."
Iruka whacked him playfully in the shoulder. "Izumo is never going to let me hear the end of it if I show up to my shift aroused."
"Well. We can take care of it, if you want..." Kakashi purred, his eyes darting back to his desk. Iruka sighed and shook his head in amused disbelief.
"What is it with you and the desk..."
"What's with you and the desk? You know it isn't alive, right?"
"Yes, Kakashi. I am well aware. It just feels wrong. Possibly very uncomfortable..."
"Oh, and the chair was better?"
Iruka turned scarlet red. Kakashi had been waiting for a meeting in the official Hokage greeting chair that ended up being cancelled. Iruka happened to be there. They hadn't seen each other in a few days.
"I...still can't believe we did that."
Kakashi grinned like a mad man. "It was fun."
"You're a very difficult man to resist, Kakashi." Iruka admitted, his cheeks still red. The Hokage leaned down and kissed him again.
"That's what I like to hear." Kakashi whispered, his voice husky.
Iruka laughed and hit him lightly again. "You're incorrigible. And, you're making me late. I'm sorry Kakashi, I do need to go."
"Alright." Kakashi sighed, pulling his mask back up to officially end their time together. Iruka smiled and gave him a kiss on his clothed cheek.
"Do you know when you're free next?"
"Maaa...I'll send you a message. There's this dumb meeting and then this other boring thing..."
"Kakashi." Iruka chided with a laugh.
The Hokage winked at him. Iruka smiled, bright and warm, before turning to leave. He yelped and jumped when Kakashi slapped him, fairly hard, on the ass. He whirled around, the Hokage batting his eyelashes innocently at him. Iruka waved his finger 'no', smiled again, and left.
Iruka had a stupid grin on his face throughout his entire shift.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
As time progressed and the village calmed after the war, Kakashi had more and more time on his hands. The two began to spend a considerable amount of time together, to the point where more and more people slowly caught on to their relationship. The two had been together so often that it wasn't even a shock. Most people just took it in stride, other than being mind blown that Kakashi, the man who could have any woman he wanted, preferred another man instead. Though Iruka was a village favourite, so most people just accepted it.
Not that anyone could really DO anything about it. Kakashi was the Hokage; they had to respect him. If anyone disagreed with him to the point where they felt the need to vent their anger on him, they risked slandering their leader. Clearly, that was not acceptable.
Iruka, however, was a bit of a different matter. The longer their relationship went on, and the more people caught on, he started to receive some strange looks. They weren't necessarily hostile, but they reminded him of how Naruto had reacted. Kind of...a look of severe confusion. Like "you're intimate with men? Oh...well...okay..". Seeing as it was the Hokage, though, there was almost a tint of respect to their gawking. Like they were confused, but impressed at the same time. It was manageable.
When they'd been together almost three years, one of the most precious events of Iruka's life happened. Naruto, his pride and joy, finally got his act together and married. On the big day, Iruka and Kakashi stood by Naruto's side as he was committed to his future wife. The chuunin had to fight to control his tears the entire ceremony. It was a miracle he didn't look like he was about to cry in every picture. Kakashi needled him endlessly, but it was clear from the look of warm pride on his face that the Hokage felt the same way.
To his credit, Iruka at least managed to make Naruto as teary-eyed as he was. As the chuunin helped Naruto dress, he told him how much he loved him and how proud he was. Naruto had managed to make every one of his dreams come true through sheer willpower and the affects of his loving nature. Naruto told Iruka that the only reason any of it had happened was because of him. Iruka had pushed Naruto onto a spiral that made him a better person and, funny enough, assisted in saving the world. The two hugged, cried on each other's shoulders, and barely pulled themselves together in time for Naruto to actually get married.
"Ne, Iruka-sensei." Naruto threw over his shoulder just before they met up with the assembly. "I hope me and Hinata are as happy as you and Kakashi-sensei. Maybe you can give me some tips."
"Maybe it's Hinata I should be giving advice to." Iruka laughed as he dabbed at his eyes. "You and Kakashi have far more in common than you think."
After the wedding, as Iruka and Kakashi lay in bed, the chuunin couldn't help but feel a little tinge of sadness. He and Kakashi would probably never formally marry. It hadn't ever happened before, a wedding between two men, at least not in their village. Not that it mattered, but it was such a beautiful event. And wouldn't it be nice, to call Kakashi 'husband'?
"What's the matter?" Iruka heard Kakashi mumble.
"Nothing. Can't stop thinking about the wedding." Iruka slightly fibbed.
"Mm. It was nice." The Hokage yawned. Within moments, he was sound asleep. Iruka realized there was no point in dwelling on it, since it likely wasn't going to happen. Besides, they didn't need a ceremony or rings to know they were married. Every single one of the people in their lives saw them as partners. They knew each other as their partner. That's all that mattered.
Another year passed. Hinata and Naruto had their first child, which Iruka was practically beside himself about. He was, clearly, Uncle Iruka and Kakashi was Uncle Kakashi (sama). To the chuunin's delight, more of his students began to wed. It felt like he and Kakashi were going to a wedding every other month. Things in the village, in the world, were as peaceful as they'd ever been. Everyone was happy, including Iruka. Sometimes he couldn't get over how wonderful his life was. His job as Headmaster was going well and had been going well for years. Kakashi had molded into his role as the Hokage so well that the city's economy was actually booming. Iruka didn't think his life would ever be so complete, and he thanked the stars every night for allowing him and Kakashi to come together.
However, when Kakashi and Iruka had been together almost five years, Iruka had a life altering confrontation with a random older woman. She stopped him in the market to very embarrassingly blunder:
"Aren't you two concerned about ending the Hatake line? Kakashi's talented, he should have children to carry on his skills."
Iruka blinked in mortified confusion as he clutched the apple he had been about to purchase.
"Uhh...well. There isn't much we can do about that..."
She persisted. "But his is a very esteemed line. Even his father was talented."
Something in Iruka snapped. Long ago, Kakashi had divulged all of his deep, buried hurt from everything that had to do with his father. It was horrible what happened to Kakashi's family, especially his father. Iruka was sensitive to anything that had to do with Kakashi and pain.
His eyes flashed and he raised his chin just so. "Well. Perhaps if the village hadn't ridiculed Sakumo into ending his life so tragically early, Kakashi could have had siblings to carry on their line instead."
Anyone within earshot stopped what they were doing instantly. An awkward silence prevailed. The woman looked like she wanted to argue, but who could really argue with that? Instead, she sniffed and merely walked away. Iruka took a deep, cleansing breath and turned to the vendor he had been dealing with.
"I'll just take three of these."
The woman nodded mutely and hurried to deal with his purchase.
Despite being quite secure in their relationship, what the old woman said had affected Iruka. He went home, put his groceries away, and then sunk down onto his couch and stayed there in morbid silence until Kakashi came to visit him.
The poor Hokage was greeted with a distraught partner who was terrified he was ruining the other man's life.
"Are you sure, though? We can have children of course, but they won't be ours. I couldn't live with myself if I robbed you of that and you really wanted it." Iruka rambled, his voice thick.
Kakashi smiled and held Iruka, running his fingers through his hair. "I've never troubled myself with that, Iruka. I was prepared to live alone. Children haven't really ever been on my mind."
After much consoling, Iruka finally calmed down. But, Kakashi was still troubled. Something told him Iruka would always be worried about this, no matter what he did. He cursed the stupid old hag who put the seed of doubt in his lovers mind, but at the same time, he wondered if this wouldn't have come up on its own at some point. He needed to see if there was a solution.
The next day, Kakashi went to visit Tsunande. She didn't hang around the Hokage tower much anymore, but the two visited each other often. The copy-nin brought up his concerns to Tsunande, who rubbed her chin and mulled it over.
"Well. If it's just a concern of spreading your genes, that's easy."
Kakashi blinked. "It is?"
"Sure. Just knock up some chick."
The Hokage sighed and rubbed his temples. "Really?"
Tsunande shook her head. "Idiot. You don't have to have sex with her."
Kakashi's eyes bulged out of his head as Tsunande described the process of 'artificial insemination' and how it wasn't popular at all in the village, but was possible. "The only problem is finding a woman who is willing to pop out a baby for someone else. You'd have to pay her, of course."
"Hmmm." Kakashi pondered. "A single woman, preferably with good genes. Someone who isn't going to want to keep the baby..."
Tsunande nodded her head. "Yes, exa- Oh my God. What is that look for?"
Kakashi grinned. Tsunande's jaw dropped. He continued to grin. "You do have wonderful genes, Tsunande."
"OH MY GOD, GET OUT."
"Come on. You'd be helping out a dear friend."
"LEAVE NOW. WOW. DO YOU NOT REMEMBER HOW OLD I AM?"
Kakashi poked the diamond on her forehead. "I feel like that isn't going to be an issue."
"I HATE YOU."
"Please?"
"GO AWAY."
"For Iruka."
"FUCK OFF."
"For me?"
"DIE."
"For the future of the village...?"
Tsunande got off her couch, glaring bloody murder at Kakashi. "You are the ODDEST person..."
He held up his hands, but his grin remained. "It was just a suggestion. I'm sure we can find someone else. Although...wouldn't it be cute, to be able to visit a baby that was yours? You'd be the godmother, of course. You'd be Aunt Tsunande."
The poor woman actually looked distraught. There was something in her eyes that told Kakashi she loved the idea of having a child, even if she wouldn't be it's mother. And she did so love Kakashi, and Iruka was a favourite of hers. She made a loud disgruntled noise.
"Words can't even describe how much I hate you."
"So you'll do it?"
"Fuck off."
"Great. I'll come by in a few days with some semen. You know, to give you time to think it over."
Kakashi JUST managed to dodge the flower vase she hurled at him with the power of a thousand shinobi fists. He couldn't wait to get home and tell Iruka.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
"...She...you...what..."
"The process is a little strange, but if Tsunande is sure it'll work, then it will."
Iruka's jaw hadn't closed since Kakashi broke the news to him. He looked shocked, excited, concerned, hesitant, happy. "She's really willing...she'll actually give the baby to us?"
"I don't doubt that if she decides to, then she will. We'll just have to be good family members and bring the baby to her for visits. It'll be nice, having an Aunt."
Tears slowly ran down Iruka's cheeks. His face looked wondrous, bright and happy. "Really. Really?"
Kakashi smiled. "Yes, Iruka. If you want to, then really."
"C-can we adopt, too? I've always wanted to adopt. We can have one that's ours -Oh. Well, yours. And then one who is an orphan?" Iruka whispered through his tears. Kakashi laughed and bent down to place a kiss on his love's forehead.
"Yes. We can have as many as you want."
Iruka broke down into happy, amazed tears. He dropped into Kakashi's arms and the two hugged tightly, laughing and crying. The Hokage hadn't been expecting any of it, but he found himself filled with excitement. He never thought he would get to have children. He never thought he would have a partner. When Kakashi was younger, he saw himself dying alone. Now he was going to have a family.
Sniffling, Kakashi rubbed at his eyes quickly. Iruka would never let him forget it if he saw him cry.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
"Hello, favourite person."
"Fuck you." Tsunande bit back at her Hokage visitor. She turned and walked into her apartment, hugging herself. Kakashi stopped when she saw how uncertain she looked.
"Tsunande. I know I was an ass, but it's because we have the same sense of humour. You know this is an option, right? You can say no, an actual no, and then it's done."
"Of course I know that, brat. I'm not a push over."
She sighed, flipping her hair over her shoulder, straightening her back. "I've thought about it. A lot. I'm more than willing to do it. You two are obnoxiously adorable, and I couldn't think of anyone who would be a better parent than Iruka. He loves children, and he deserves one. I guess you get one, too, by default."
Kakashi flipped her off and Tsunande stuck out her tongue. They smiled at each other. Kakashi looked a little misty eyed and Tsunande looked away with a blush.
"You just want to teach a child to gamble." Kakashi chuckled.
"Perhaps." She responded with a grin. "Alright. Enough talk. Go in my bathroom and do your pervy business. The...appliance is in there. Make sure your Kakashi Juice goes right into the container. And don't make any weird noises."
Kakashi made a face and walked past her. "Weird noises..."
The door closed. There were definitely no noises, but he was taking a lot longer than Tsunande expected. Kakashi was out and ready in around ten minutes, not looking at all like he'd enjoyed the experience.
"It was incredibly weird trying to get off knowing you were waiting and listening for me." He muttered. Kakashi handed Tsunande what she needed and she took a long, deep breath as she gazed at it.
"Well. It wasn't what I was expecting in life, but I guess I'll take it." She sighed.
Kakashi frowned and rubbed her shoulders. "Are you okay?"
"Of course." She answered, snappy but with no bite to it. "It's just...it looks like cooking equipment. Would have been much nicer if it was a real penis."
"...Well..."
"Shut up." She snapped, shoving him. "Now move before these puppies die off."
He bowed and she stalked past him to her bedroom. When her door closed, Kakashi suddenly got extremely nervous. He couldn't believe he was doing this. Technically, he was knocking up one of the infamous Sannin in her senior years so he and his gay lover could have a kid. It was just absurd.
But. That child, that definitely beautiful child, was going to have KILLER skills when it got older. Senju and Hatake genes? He wouldn't mind that combo if he was honest with himself. Although, the goal was that his child would never have to raise a kunai in it's life. And hopefully, if peace prevailed, it would have two loving parents and at least one other sibling. Kakashi would do everything in his power to give his child a better life than he'd had.
A giant, dopey grin took over his face.
His child.
His and Iruka's.
Life was good.
"I HATE YOU, KAKASHI! I'M GOING TO CRUSH YOUR HAND WHEN THIS THING POPS OUT OF ME!"
Kakashi kept smiling. It was nice to have good friends to count on, too.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
THE END!
Well, I really hope you guys liked it. The child part just kind of...came to me as I was writing. I was not expecting this chapter to be this long, but there was so much to write about! Please R and R and let me know what you thought. Hopefully, Iruka and Kakashi are happy in Canon as well. If not, then hey, that's what fanfiction is for :D
BYE!
