Squooshy's note: I was actually thinking of posting this sooner, buuuut I got caught up reading SinGrin's fanfictions. You guys should really go check them out. They're absolutely wonderful and full of amazing writing talent! ( So much better than you'll find from me! :3 ) P.s.! What would you guys think about a one shot of Darui and Omoi? They've become a recent ship of mine and there's like, NOTHING of them out there yet...
Iruka took his first normal steps out of the hospital for the first time in about four days. It was a crisp and beautiful Saturday afternoon, and he couldn't help but to smile to himself. He felt excited to be both out of the hospital, and to have a new job as a teacher.
"Hey, Iruka!" A small voice came from his right as a small round faced, mesh blonde haired boy (who couldn't be more than six or seven) came racing towards him. "You're out!"
Iruka reached out, pressing a hand against the boy's forehead so he didn't run straight into him. The blonde locks felt soft and damp under his fingers, and a bit of worry fell over him. Naruto either had been showering earlier, or he had been thrown into the river...again. Sometimes he couldn't help but to be furious at everyone's treatment of the poor boy. He saw how it affected Naruto. The hate, the taunts, the way no one would even look at him with a caring gaze...
Iruka himself had once done that due to the secret Naruto didn't know. The monster that had been the cause of his parents' death was sealed up into this bubbly little troublemaker. But he had seen himself in Naruto; causing his views on the boy to change. He offered his friendship towards the young Kyuubi boy while others didn't. And it pained him to see how hard the child tried to make friends with the other kids; like that annoying Inuzuka boy. There were two boys that seemed to not care about what other people thought of Naruto though, because he did see them together a bit when he was out doing errands. That lazy Shikamaru boy and his friend Chōji...Though it was sad that Naruto couldn't see that he did have some friends when he thought that there was no one.
"Hey, Naruto! Are you staying out of trouble?" He asked, wiping the moisture on his hand off a bit.
"O-of course I am! Who do you think I am?"
"A bad liar. Why are you all wet?"
"I was just...uh...playing by the river!"
"Naruto..."
"It's the truth!"
"No it's not."
"Yes it is!"
"No. It's. Not."
"Iruka, really I'm not lyi-"
"IF YOU LIE ONE MORE TIME I SWEAR TO KAMI THAT I'LL GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO LIE ABOUT!"
Naruto flinched away from the tempered brunette, and he stared up at him with wide blue eyes. "I'm sorry Iruka! I didn't mean to!"
The tanned Chūnin gave a soft sigh, his temper cooling. He reached out, resting a hand on the boy's shoulder, pulling him against his leg. "...Why don't we go out for some ramen? It's been a while."
Naruto perked up, and started to bounce around the teenager in a circle chanting: "Ramen! Ramen! Ramen!" The energy that Naruto possessed made Iruka want to sit down and rest by just watching. How could so much hyperactivity be pumped into one boy? 'It's probably the Kyuubi...' He had thought at first, but as he started to get to know the child, he realized that it was just plain old Naruto being Naruto. With a bit of quick healing power from the Fox sealed away in him, the blonde was like a little unstoppable golden flash around the village.
As they walked together, Naruto chattered away a mile a minute about nothing and everything all at the same time. Iruka tuned out some of it, though he did talk about about subjects that either needed correction or just were interesting.
"How did your mission go? I never got to ask you that." Naruto looked up at the Chūnin with wondering blue eyes that hinted with jealousy. Iruka's expression softened, and he rubbed the side of his scar out of a nervous habit.
"Well, I ended up in the hospital. So it didn't go too well. It was completed." He said, not wanting to get into depth about it. The death of a friend was still etched in his mind. There would be many more deaths, and he knew it. But this one was worse because she had died right in his ar-
"So, who was that weird guy that kept pacing around by the hospital room you were in from the outside?"
Naruto's voice pulled him from his quickly down falling thoughts. "Huh? What weird guy? And why were you watching people? That's creepy, Naruto!"
"I didn't do it on purpose! He was just there every time I passed by to do something!" Naruto replied, and pushed aside the curtains of the Ramen shop. He plopped down on the bench, his hands balling into fists against the counter. He shot off an order for pork ramen the moment the man behind the counter turned to him.
"Naruto say please!" Iruka scowled as he sat down next to the blonde, giving a sigh. He ordered his own normal bowl of spicy shrimp ramen, and turned back to the boy. "What did this man look like seeming how you're so interested in him."
"He was kinda tall and covered his face with a mask and his headband..." Naruto continued to rattle off a description, but Iruka already knew who it was, and he could feel his face turning a soft pink color.
"Iruka, your face is getting all funny. Are you sick?"
'What would he be doing there? He should have been on a mission or something...' Iruka was lost in his head. 'If he had so much time to just stand under my window he could have at least come up to say hello or something! No, no, he probably wasn't even there for you, Iruka. It was probably a coincidence that he was near my window when Naruto say him...' His brows furrowed as he continued to have an internal conversation with himself. Surprise crossed his face as a wet noodle struck his cheek, tearing him from his little self battle.
"You're acting weird and making weird faces! Who is that guy?!" Naruto demanded in a huff, his stubby little kid arms folding angrily across his chest as Iruka peeled the ramen noodle from his face.
"Let's not throw noodles at me anymore, okay?" He sighed, and rubbed his temples in frustration a bit. "But that guy is an old friend of mine." He waved his hand a little before he picked up his chopsticks to start eating.
"Old friend huh? Then why didn't he ever go in?" Naruto grumbled and started to gulp down his own ramen. "Would you chew for once?!" Iruka demanded, afraid Naruto would choke.
It was late when Iruka finally started on his way home. Naruto had fallen into a small food coma after eating at least six bowls. The Chūnin was carting the snoring little blonde on his back so he could head home. He was tired and needed to prepare to set his classroom up tomorrow.
He smiled as Naruto mumbled under his breath about candy, and he shifted the boy on his back a little. Sometimes the child was too adorable for his own good. He felt like it was his duty now to help his grow up as best he could.
"I see you're walking just fine." Kakashi's voice made the brunette jump in surprise.
"You really have to stop that!" Iruka turned, and threw a half hearted glare at the silver haired man. Kakashi just chuckled, and he fell into step with the other male.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you. Though you are really jumpy, Iruka-sensei."
"Ah, so you know about that?"
"I was the one who suggested you to the Third."
"Really...?"
There was a long paused, the only sounds were their feet on the ground and Naruto's light snoring. Iruka was surprised that Kakashi would have even considered him the teacher type. Though it was a pleasing thought. They climbed the stairs to Naruto's home as they came to it, still having not said anything.
Iruka opened the door, and walked in, carrying Naruto his his room and tucked him into bed, pulling off the shoes on his feet and setting them neatly beside the bed. He pulled the blankets over him, though he knew they would end up on the floor in the morning. He had Naruto stay with him a few time before so he could get a good view of how the blonde would act in a facility with another person.
"Hey, Iruka?"
At hearing his name, he turned to look at Kakashi leaning in the doorway, arms folded over his chest, looking drowsy. Iruka knew better than to trust that lazy look in Kakashi's eye. He could never read what the Jōnin was thinking...
"Yes, Kakashi?"
"I've been thinking of a way you can repay me for saving your life."
Iruka almost choked on air. "W-what?!" That caught him off guard. He coughed into his elbow, trying to get over the shock of that statement. He could hear Kakashi chuckling softly, and he glared at the ground.
"How about you go out to dinner with me tomorrow at about seven?"
The brunette felt his face flare up with heat, and he stared at Kakashi with wide eyes. "I...Uh...S-sure!" He stuttered out, and smiled, a finger rubbing embarrassedly at his scarred nose bridge.
He had absolutely no idea what he was getting himself into with accepting this little date with Kakashi, but he had a feeling that he was going to have a break from his stress as of late. So he accepted it wholeheartedly.