Theme 8: Warmth

This takes place one year after 'Santa'; these are going in a loose chronological order tracing Iruka's quest to spread Christmas in Konoha, Kakashi's quest to get into Iruka's pants, and the progression of their relationship.

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Naruto and Iruka walked side by side down the sidewalk three days before Christmas. The chuunin held a steaming pan of macaroni and cheese with two oven-mitted hands, while the kyuubi boy balanced a tin of freshly baked cookies on his head. The tin stayed balanced for a moment, but the hyper boy couldn't stay still for long. Iruka gave a startled cry as the tin slipped from its perch on the blonde's locks, but Naruto caught the cookies and gave his sensei a self-satisfied grin.

"Naruto, I expect you to behave when we're in front of the Hokage. He's been kind enough to invite us to have a Christmas dinner with him and his family, and I want you to repay that kindness by being respectful…for once." Iruka lectured as they neared the Hokage's mansion.

It wasn't the first time that Iruka had eaten with Sandaime, but this was a new experience for Naruto. The Hokage had invited them, along with a few of the other family-less ninja in the village, to dine with him yesterday, which hadn't given Iruka enough time to properly coach his clueless pupil on how he was expected to act. Understandably, the chuunin was a little nervous on behalf of his charge.

They arrived at the mansion and Naruto relieved a little of Iruka's tension by politely offering his tin of cookies to the Hokage's wife, who received them with a kind smile. Iruka carried his macaroni to the kitchen and sat it down next to the other dishes that lined the counter. As he peeled of his oven mitts, Naruto came charging into the kitchen.

"Oh, look at all this food! Can I help?" He asked excitedly. Iruka looked at Mrs. Sarutobi, who shrugged and replied, "I'd love to have you help me."

Iruka was so relieved to see Naruto acting respectfully and another adult in the village treating Naruto as something other than a demon container that he went into the living room and sat down to chat with the other guests without a second thought.

He really should've known something was amiss.

MERRYCHRISTMASMERRYCHRISTMASMERRYCHRISTMAS

Kakashi arrived five minutes after everyone else had taken their seats around the table. His entrance interrupted Sandaime's speech about the spirit of Konoha and the importance of strong ties in the village. He greeted everyone with his usual, "Yo." and plopped down in the last empty seat, beside the little blonde boy that reminded him of his old sensei.

"Kakashi, you're late." The Third scolded. "Now, where was I again?" He tried to pick up where his speech had left off, but he couldn't recall the next lines. "Oh, forget it. Everyone, enjoy the warmth of the season, and dig in!"

The orphan shinobi dove on the food like ravenous wolves. Kakashi watched as the chuunin on the other side of the blonde boy had to pull the kids hands back a few times so the kid wouldn't get skewered with a fork in the confusion. Kakashi wisely hung back until the others had their plates piled high. Once they had their full concentration on their own laden plates, Kakashi began to serve himself. The chuunin on the other side of the blonde boy had also waited, he noticed. He was sure he knew him from somewhere…

The blonde boy began to shake a little, and at first Kakashi thought he must be choking on all that food he had shoveled hap hazardously into his mouth. The kid swallowed, though, and the Copy Ninja discovered that the shaking was from suppressed giggles, not food lodged in his esophagus.

Across the table, the other guests also began choking. There was an almost simultaneous lunge forward as everyone dove for their water glasses. The chuunin seated on the other side of the boy looked at the little blonde, then at the other ninja draining their glasses in large gulps.

"NARUTO, WHAT DID YOU DO!!" The chuunin bellowed. Kakashi was impressed with his projection. When he yelled, the whole table shook.

The blonde, Naruto, scampered away from the table and turned to wave a bottle of extra-hot hot sauce at the stunned table. "I put this in the macaroni. How's THAT for 'warmth of the season', Iruka-sensei!"

This Iruka-sensei leapt up from the table and ran after the boy with remarkable speed. Kakashi followed his retreating figure with his eyes. He admired a guy who had spirit.

"NARUTO! You get back here and apologize NOW!" Iruka's voice rumbled from the hall.

The fox-boys cackles echoing in the hall and Iruka-sensei's death threats were the only sounds that broke the silence at the table for a moment. It was Sandaime's wife, a formidable old civilian, that spoke at last.

"I should've known that inviting a whole room full of shinobi over would end in chaos." She muttered to herself.

"COME BACK HERE THIS INSTANT OR SO HELP ME, I'LL CALL SANTA IN HERE TO GET YOU!"

Kakashi chuckled and used the momentary distraction of the other guests to scarf down his food (all but the macaroni) and replace his mask before anyone else noticed. Yes, the village was chaos, but he wouldn't have it any other way.

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Special thanks to rusigil for the idea of that last threat.

We all know that a room full of shinobi can only end in mass chaos, broken furniture, and/or multiple arrests.