"Guys, gather 'round for a sec," Kakashi says.
The day after we saw the Chief of Detectives, Sakai, on the drug dealer's turf, Kakashi gets everyone in 2nd Unit together for a meeting.
"I don't want what I'm about to tell you guys to leave 2nd Unit."
Everyone's expressions harden when they see the serious look on Kakashi's face.
"Yesterday, at the second tip-off spot, we witnessed the Chief of the Detective Bureau, Sakai, make contact with an unidentified male."
All of us have a confused look on our faces, "Huh?"
"What do you mean, 'make contact'?" Sai asks.
"He passed the unidentified male what appeared to be a memo as he walked by," Kakashi replies.
"Was that all?" Naruto asks.
"That was all, no words were exchanged," Kakashi replies.
"So what kinda dude was it that walked by?" Shikamaru asks.
"Haruno can tell you about that," Kakashi replies and turns to me.
"Sure," I say, stand and describe the man from yesterday, "Japanese male, early 20s, wearing a gray long sleeve shirt jeans, and a black cap. His hair was light brown. Just an average-looking kid."
"Could this guy be a relative of Sakai's?" Sai asks.
"We'll have to look into the exact makeup of his family, but I do know that he doesn't have a son. His wife left him last year. He has a daughter, but she doesn't live at home." Sasuke replies.
"You really know a lot about Sakai..." Sai says.
"My Thursday girl keeps me up to date," Sasuke says.
"No principles," Neji mutters
"I take that as a compliment," Sasuke says.
"Even if he were a relative, wordlessly passing notes on the street isn't exactly normal behavior," Naruto implies.
"Nine times out of ten this kind of thing means..." Sai trails off.
"Kickbacks," Neji says.
"Yeah," Sai says.
"He could be hiding evidence to make some coin on the low," Shikamaru says.
"Nothing's been proven yet, but... damn it, this is a downer," Kakashi says.
Everyone sighs in frustration.
"Coin on the low," I ask.
What does that mean?
"It means he's accepting money from that drug ring, Sakura," Naruto replies.
Sensing my confusion, Naruto explains.
"You sure are a real detective, Haruno?" Shikamaru asks.
"W-well, we weren't exactly dealing with police corruptino in my old precinct," I defend myself.
We helped people find their lost pets and catch peeping toms. I've never dealt with a dirty cop before.
"That was uncalled for," Neji says towards Shikamaru.
"Boss, in the last few years, has there been a change in the number of drug-related investigations? A decrease in the number of cases would line up with our suspicions," Sasuke says.
"It's the other way around. The number of drug cases has increased since Sakai became Chief of Detectives," Kakashi says.
"That's weird..." Naruto says.
"Things aren't exactly as they seem. That's all we know for certain at this point," Kakashi says, "Anyway, get what you can on Sakai, but be quiet about it. We've gotta keep this looking like a straight investigation. We don't know anything for certain yet."
Kakashi looks at each of us. He speaks slowly, choosing each word carefully. A nervous, almost electric energy fills the room.
"None of this is to leave this room," Kakashi orders us, "Keep this quiet until we have the necessary evidence. If anyone gets wind of this, it's all over. So, whatever you do, proceed with caution."
We nod our heads, "Yes, sir."
We each raise our heads to look at Kakashi. We're committed to solving this case.
"Awwmmm," Naruto says in delight.
Lunch time
We poke at our convenience store bento lunches. Naruto lets out a giant yawn.
"You okay?" I ask.
"I'm bored to death of restaurant and convenience store food..." he complains.
"Why don't you cook something?" I ask.
"My cooking sucks," Naruto replies.
"Mine's worse," Shikamaru implies, "Don't you have anyone-" he stops mid-sentence.
"Uh... W-what?" I ask.
The mood in the room suddenly changes. I stop myself mid-sentence.
"How oblivious," Neji says.
"Sorry?" I ask in confusion.
"If I had someone to cook for me, I wouldn't be complaining about how sick I am of convenience store food. Right, Shikamaru?" Naruto asks.
"Man. You trying to pick a fight, Haruno? Just say the word," Shikamaru says.
"Other than Sasuke, everyone's single," Sai says.
"O-oh," I stammer.
It looks like a struck a nerve.
"None of us have anybody, but Sasuke's got seven girlfriends!" Naruto shouts.
"Don't be rude. I don't have that many," Sasuke says.
"Dude, don't play. We know you got a girl for every freaking day of the week," Shikamaru says.
"Wednesday resigned. I'm down to six," Sasuke says matter of factly.
"S-six?!" I exclaim.
"Don't judge, Haruno," Sai says, "Six is low for Sasuke."
"Um... Okay?"
"I would give anything for a home-cooked meal!," Naruto says dreamily and cups his face in his hands, dejected.
"I feel ya, man..." Shikamaru agrees.
2nd Unit's door opens.
Yawning and stretching, Kakashi walks into the room.
"Oh, yeah! We should all go to Boss's house!" Naruto says.
"Huh?" I say in confusion.
"Hm?" Kakashi says, unclear of what's going on.
"Nice. Let's do it," Shikamaru says.
Neither Kakashi nor I understand what everyone's talking about.
"Boss, save us!" Naruto shouts, "We'll lose our will to live if we have to eat another convenience store meal."
"At this rate, we won't be able to concentrate on our cases," Shikamaru says.
"It's been too long since we've had Boss's home-cooking."
"And alcohol. Don't forget about the drinks.," Shikamaru implies.
Home cooking? Kakashi's?
I can't tell if they're joking or not. I look to Kakashi's face for a clue.
"Yeah, I guess it has been awhile, huh?" Kakashi says.
This doesn't seem like anything out of the ordinary to Kakashi. They must do this all the time.
"Alright. So, when's good for you guys?" Kakashi asks us.
"Today, man! Today," Shikamaru says.
"Yeah, I'm good with today, too," Naruto agrees.
"I have time today," Sai says.
"Me too," Neji says.
"I'll have to reschedule today's girl for next week," Sasuke says.
"Today? You guys must be desperate," Kakashi says, laughs and agrees, "Well... Okay."
"Alright! We doing this!" Shikamaru says gladly and turns towards me, "How about you, Haruno, can you do tonight?"
"I'm free, but..." I trail off.
"Yeah, I figured you'd be." .
"Um, that was clearly an insult. Do you expect me to just let that slide?" I ask annoyed.
"Oh, relax, we're all friends here," Naruto implies.
Naruto kindly rests his hand on my shoulder.
"This is going to be your first time at Boss's place, right, Sakura?"
"Yeah. Do you guys go over there a lot?" I ask.
"Every once in awhile. We hang out, drink, and eat Hatake's food," Naruto replies, "It's always at times like this when we're starved for a home-cooked meal."
"So, Hatake cooks..." I trail off.
"Haha. He doesn't look like the type, does he?"
"Nope."
"His cooking reflects his personality, though... Hearty food, lots of flavor. It's really good so get ready!" Naruto shouts.
Naruto pats me on the arm before springing up and returning to his seat.
Kakashi's apartment...
I'm kind of nervous about going, but at the same time I can't wait. I throw myself into work to distract myself from the anxiety I feel.
A few hours later...
When the clock strikes nine, Kakashi closes the file he's holding and stands up, "Alright. Time to get out of here."
"Okay, Hatake, see ya!" the guys say.
"Huh? Isn't everyone supposed to go over to your place?" I ask Kakashi.
No one else seems to be getting up.
"We'll go when we finish-up what we're doing," Naruto explains, "I'ts always like this, we trickle out one at a time. We'll go a little later than usual tonight. We just asked today, so Hatake hasn't had any time to prep."
I nod my head, "Oh, I see... In that case, is there anything I can help you with?"
"You're already done with work, Haruno?" Kakashi asks.
"Yep, I just finished."
"All done, huh? You're coming with me," Kakashi says.
I give him a confused look, "Huh?"
"You're my shopping and setup assistant," he explains.
I nod my head, "Oh, okay. Got it."
I turn off my computer and get ready to leave.
"You sure about that, Boss?" Shikamaru asks.
"What?"
"If you take her with you, you won't have any time to hide your Icha Icha books."
"Shit. I didn't think of that. They're all over the place!"
"That's a code red," Sasuke says.
"S-seriously?" I stutter.
I'm actually kind of surprised.
"Of course not. I'm just messing around. Come on, let's get going, Haruno," Kakashi says.
"O-okay..."
So... That was just a joke?
Relieved, I start to follow Kakashi out of 2nd Unit, when...
"We're going to have to go even later," Naruto says.
"Yeah," Neji agrees.
"Not me, I'm gonna do my best to cock-block," Shikamaru says.
"That'll never while you're ahead," Sai says.
"What-," Shikamaru says.
I fall speechless, "Uh, um..."
Shikamaru looks at me, "Huh? I thought you left! Hurry it up and get outta here!"
"Okay..." I hurry after Kakashi.
We're at a supermarket. Kakashi stands, deep in thought, in front of some vegetables.
Maybe this is a bad time to talk to him...
He glares at the bean sprouts in his hands.
What do I do? If I just leave him like this it looks like he could be here for eternity.
Without saying a word, I cautiously walk up and look Kakashi in the eyes. He seems exasperated.
"What's wrong, Haruno?" he asks.
"I was going to ask you the same thing," I reply, "Are you okay?"
"Huh?"
"Are you having some kind of secret love affair with those bean sprouts?"
"No. Why? What gives you that impression?"
"Well, you've got four packs of them in your basket," I point out, "and it looks like you're mesmerized by the ones you've got in your hands."
"Huh? Oh! Y-you're right!"
Flustered, he hurries to put the bean sprouts back. He looks so cute, I can't help but laugh.
"Hey. Who do you think you're laughing at?"
"Sorry. It won't happen again."
We look at each other for a second, and I start laughing again.
"Hey, what'd I say!"
Kakashi quietly chuckles at my unsuccessful attempt to stifle my laughter.
I wait a minute before asking him the question that had been on my mind.
"Was it about the case?" I ask.
He turns towards me, "Hm?"
"I was just wondering if you had been thinking about the case,"
Kakashi quietly laughs, looking down at the floor, "You could tell?"
"It was just a guess... I've been thinking about it too."
"Oh..." Kakashi glances at me for a second before lowering his eyes to the ground, "I don't know where this case is going to take us. I feel like we've gone off the rails... No matter how hard I try, I can't understand. I can't imagine how this is going to turn out."
"Well, that's to be expected!"
"Huh?"
Kakashi looks a little down, so I do my best to sound positive.
"How could a detective as devoted as you, understand someone who could lose sight of the whole purpose of a police force?" I ask.
For a member of the force to work with a thug ring...
I continue, "No matter how hard you try, you'll never be able to understand someone like that! You don't need to understand right now."
"Haruno..."
"Work the case and the truth will come out," I say confidently.
Kakashi nods his head, "You're know, you're a good man."
"Um... Is that supposed to be a compliment? You know I'm a girl, right?"
Kakashi smiles, "Oh, yeah. You are."
I pout, "T-that was really mean."
Kakashi bursts out laughing, and we walk away from the vegetable department.
For a man that lives alone, Kakashi's apartment is pretty clean. And there are no Icha Icha books in site. It feels lived in and comfortable.
So this is where Kakashi lives...
I stand in the living room and sneak a look at Kakashi. He's busy cooking. He looks like a pro. Kakashi's cooking is rough and masculine. It really does remind me of Kakashi himself. He stir fries coarsely chopped vegetables in a big skillet. He adds white wine to a pot filled with sauteing clams, before taking a sip straight from the bottle. He tears the lettuce by hand, and chops the greens and cucumbers into large chunks. He dumps them all onto a big plate, and, while laughing something on TV, adds parmesan cheese and croutons to taste.
He makes it all look so easy, and he looks so cool doing it. How does he manage to pull that off?
"Hearty food, lots of flavor."
I remember Naruto's words, and my stomach growls.
Wow, that was loud. I guess I'm hungry.
Kakashi pokes his head out of the kitchen, "Hm? Haruno? Did you say something?"
"Yeah, my stomach said it's hungry."
I laugh a little to hide my embarrassment. Kakashi smiles.
"Haha... Typical Haruno. I should've known it was your stomach."
I giggle, "Hehehe."
Kakashi chuckles, "That reminds me, the guys are taking forever to get here..."
"Yeah..."
It's already after 11 o'clock.
"It's late so I'll lock the door, just in case," he says.
*click*
The sound of the door being locked echoes in the empty living room. My heart pounds.
So... We're all alone... in a locked apartment.
We''ve been alone this whole time, but, for some reason, I'm suddenly very aware of that fact. I'm quiet from being lost in thought.
Noticing my silence, Kakashi walks up to check on me, "Haruno? Is something wrong?"
Uh-oh...
His body this close to my own makes me feel hot all over. I feel a rush of butterflies in my stomach.
What am I going to do? I bet my face is beet red!
I look down to hide my flushed cheeks. A moment later the room is enveloped in darkness.
"Huh? What? H-Hatake!" I yell.