"Wake up, you're late." A disgruntled voice made the copy-nin crack an eye open, then he sat up, fully awake. Before him stood the picture image of his late friend Rin, just older.

"R-Rin?"

The petite head tilted, pink hair swaying softly in the breeze from the open window but she didn't speak.

The blue eyes tipped him off that this was not his friend Rin that had died years ago; but someone who looked remarkably like her. "Who are you and what are you doing here."

"Tsunade-sensei sent me. It's imperative that you're not late for this mission."

"That's the 'what' now 'who'." He growled and stood, his back popping as he stretched. He noticed her eyes glanced down his bare chest and he cocked a brow at her, "Do I need to ask the what are you doing here again?"

Blue eyes suddenly met his gray eye and they blazed, "My name is Ariwara Sumi."

For the second time that morning the copy-nin nearly jumped from his skin, "Ariwara Sumi?"

She nodded, "Now Tsunade-sensei said that you should hurry." She began to rummage through his drawers and pulled out a shirt, "Here this will be ni--." When she turned around the jounin was right behind her, "But you were said to have died."

She shivered at the closeness of the powerful ninja, "You didn't recognize me until now, eh?" Her lips upturned into a smile, "I was taken captive. I've been working as a spy for a number of years and just recently returned."

"There's no way you could have survived the loss of that much blood."

Sumi frowned and pushed her hair into a ponytail, "That's because the enemy took me as a test subject. I was as good as dead until then."

"Rin died thinking you had been killed." He growled lowly. At the wide eyes of the kunoichi across from him; he suddenly regretted the words.

"Rin is…dead?"

"You didn't know?" Suddenly he took a step back at seeing tears form in her eyes, "She died a long time ago - a little after we thought you had died - the same battle actually."

"I," She looked down at the ground, "I hadn't been able to head home just yet. I was going there right after I did this. I didn't even think to ask Tsunade. I had so many other things to catch up on - had to be filled in about the new Hokage." She whispered softly, "All these years… I thought, you would have married her."

"Of course not." Granted, he did like Rin - just not in that way. His true feelings were only directed toward this one; the one standing in front of him whom he thought died along with Rin. "Sumi," He held open his arms and she fell willingly to his chest, sobs racking her body as tears streamed down her face and to his bare skin. "Your sister loved you and would have done anything in her power so you wouldn't have to go through that." He could only imagine the hell she endured in the enemies clutches. It was then he noticed a scar peeking from the back of her collar and he sighed; there were more and he knew it. The child he had grown up with, who lived in his shadow and her sisters shadow; was standing before him, crumbling in mere seconds. The hell she had been in just got worse.

He felt her push away and she sniffed, "It couldn't be helped." Her blue eyes didn't meet his again, she merely tossed the clothes at him and turned to the window, "Tsunade needs you."

He, uncharacteristically, wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder, "Someone else needs me now."

"I'm fine." She hissed lightly, her body stiffening against his. "I was sent to point you to the mission."

"Point all you want; I'm not leaving."

Sumi shivered, pink hair brushing his mask, "Kakashi - did you - did you forget me? That's why you and Rin left me wasn't it? You thought I was right behind you , but I wasn't." She shivered again, "I kept thinking you would turn around and not see me and come back for me. I could see you and Rin running and that's why I didn't scream. I - you two… I was always the burden."

"Sumi," He sighed against her neck. She had always been the quiet one in the background, cleaning up the messes. It was for that reason she was the Hunter-Nin but, on that mission they had her in combat.

"It's alright, Kakashi." She rounded her back into his chest, "I'm fine now."

"We knew you had been captured, Sumi." He felt her stiffen again, "We were circling around to come back to you from behind; but when we got there you were gone and only a puddle of blood remained. We assumed you had died and retreated. But, we were followed." He tightened his hold around her waist so she couldn't escape, "Rin made it look like we had both been hurt and slowed my heart rate to where I was temporarily dead. They left us there. When I came back, Rin was dead."

She turned around, blue eyes meeting his gray in a steely glare, "I said I'm fine." With that she jumped from the window, disappearing before landing on the ground. She had spent over ten years with the enemy and it had hardened her; that much the copy-nin could tell. She was no longer the one hidden in the shadows, cleaning up the messes; she was now nearly emotionless. But the tears he had seen were the remnants of a life she thought she had left behind; and it must have been frightening.

Kakashi sighed as he looked at the three chunin over his book; they were sifting through their pockets trying to find money for lunch. "But I paid for it last time!" Naruto objected, his little frog pouch almost empty.

"Don't loose next time." Sasuke stuffed his hands in his shorts and leaned against the tree.

"I let you win this time!" The fox child barked as he pointed at the solemn Uchiha clan member.

Sakura sighed, "You suck at rock, paper, scissors Naruto; just give it up already."

The copy-nin's mind wandered to two weeks ago; Sumi making her first appearance in years. Everyone thought she had died; they even put her name on the memorial stone beside her sister Rin. She had lived all those years thinking they had just left her to die; never knowing she had lost her only family member.

A hiss alluded him to an upset Sumi hiding in the trees and he flipped a page in his book, "Couldn't stay away."

"Tsunade again." Her voice was a growl, her blue eyes clearly upset. "She took me off as a Hunter-nin."

Kakashi knew that was the one thing Sumi excelled in and taking that from her was almost like taking her existence. "That bitch - I liked the other Hokage better."

He smirked beneath his mask; at least that was the same, "He played favorites."

"Like Tsunade doesn't. I've seen the way she looks at you; if she wasn't fifty years old I'd be jealous." She peeked into the book, tilting her head, "So disgusting."

"Is that why you're still looking?" He laughed softly and looked up at the blushing jounin. "And exactly what would you have to be jealous about?"

Sumi humped and crossed her arms over her chest; turning her nose up into the air, "You're disgusting."

"That's not what you thought at one time." The blush reappeared on her cheeks and he smirked beneath his mask again. He wasn't worried about his chunin overhearing the conversation; they were too absorbed in their own conversation about Ramen and money.

She huffed again and jumped beside the jounin, "That was a long time ago, Kakashi. I have grown since then." Then she whispered softly, "I'm not the innocence I was back then."

"You weren't innocent back then either. You were one of the best rivals I've had." His lazy gray eye glanced over her slowly, "You had some of the best moves too."

The blush returned to her cheeks and spread over the bridge of her nose, "Pervert."

"Always." He stood and yawned, "Lunch?"

Her blue eyes were surprised, "'I'd love some."

"I'm not paying for you."

She rolled her eyes, "I should have known."