I don't own Naruto.
"Nothing is so strong as gentleness and nothing is so gentle as real strength." -St. Francis de Sales.
The Hatake home was on the far side of Konoha, near, but not too near Shi no Mori. It was understandably not a very populated area.
On a large patch of lush grass sat a white traditional Japanese house with black framework. A stone path lead up to the front porch, a line of sycamore trees sat on either side of the path as well. In the back of the house was a large back yard with towering white gates and a small koi pond with floating lily pads drifting about its calm waters. There were large rocks positioned around the pond so that one could sit on them and watch the fish dance about below.
There were two children playing in the backyard.
Well, that's what they told their father, but really they were training.
They'd stolen two of his kunai when he wasn't looking, and he was currently making them lunch, having sent his ninken Kama, a large black Doberman Pinscher to make sure they weren't up to any dangerous shenanigans.
While Kama had a good eye, was very wise, and loved the little brats, he was also very old and had fallen asleep five minutes after he'd started his "pup watching".
Said pups were four years old, much too little to be playing ninja, but their father had began their training two weeks prior and they were convinced they were strong enough to do other things besides laps, pushups, and all that other annoying stuff their dad insisted was important.
They were wearing identical dark blue t-shirts and shorts with dark sandals. Each one of them held a meticulously sharpened kunai, pretending to slice each other, feinting, and dodging away from swift attacks.
Just as the older of the two (by two hours) made to slice his sister across the chest, she noticed something.
"Nishiki!" Kakashi complained, stopping his attack in the nick of time when he noticed his sister wasn't paying attention.
"Oh! Kashi look, it's a bunny!"
The little boy turned with a roll of his eyes, annoyed at the interruption to catch sight of the small brown creature that had gotten his twin's attention. Sure enough, a little bunny had squeezed its way through the white fence. It was too small to be an adult, which was why it was able to get inside in the first place.
"Aw, it's so cute." Nishiki squealed, blue eyes bright and sparkling. "Let's play with it Kashi. Let's keep it!"
"What?" The little boy huffed, face scrunching up behind his mask. "No way. Dad has dogs Nishiki, you think it'll be a good idea to have that thing in the house?"
"Daddy has summons." Nishiki pointed out, crossing her arms and pouting behind her own mask. "They're never out that long."
"So?"
"Hmph. Fine, I'll play with it by myself. Stupid Kashi."
Kakashi bristled, his little hand tightening around the kunai he still held. Nishiki had dropped her's and was making her way towards the little bunny sniffling at the grass in front of it.
"Not if I scare it off first." He sneered, taking a menacing step towards the small creature. He raised his kunai, preparing to launch it with all his might.
By chance Nishiki glanced back at him, taken aback by his angry tone. Her eyes went wide when she saw what he was preparing to do.
"Kakashi stop it!" She yelled.
"No." He growled, jaw setting stubbornly.
He threw the kunai.
He hadn't known Nishiki would jump in front of it.
Her scream froze Kakashi's blood, and woke Kama from his peaceful slumber.
It also scared the bunny she'd protected away.
Sakumo dropped the pot of miso he was carrying to the table when he heard his daughter scream.
He leapt over the mess and snatched his White Chakra Saber from the countertop, quickly performing the shunshin and blurring into existence in his backyard.
The sight he was greeted by dilated his pupils and put him into tunnel vision mode.
He barely noticed Kama trailing after him as he rushed to his child's side.
Nishiki was curled up on her side, her arms wrapped around her stomach because she didn't know what to do with her hands. She was trembling and whimpering. Sakumo just knew she was trying not to cry.
She had this thing about shedding tears. She hated to do it, no matter what had happened and if no one would blame her for crying.
Sakumo couldn't see her face. Her back was to him, and Kakashi was kneeling by her waist, his quaking hands smeared with crimson.
Sakumo had barely registered that because there was a kunai sticking out of his daughter's back.
There was a kunai, in his baby's back.
Kakashi's hands were probably smeared in blood because he had made to pull it out, but thought better of it.
Sakumo, kneeled at Nishiki's side, and scooped her up gently after assessing the wound. It hadn't hit an artery, but she still needed medical attention.
"Oh my poor baby." He cooed, cradling her in his arms.
She whimpered, her silver lashes and mask soaked with tears.
"D-Daddy…" She croaked.
"Shh, shh, don't speak puppy." He whispered. "It's going to be okay, alright? Daddy's going to get you help. Don't fall asleep okay? You're going to be fine."
Kakashi was watching them with wide dark grey eyes, his skin drained of blood and body stiff with terror.
"Grab onto me." Sakumo ordered him. "I'm going to shunshin."
The boy did so without question, his little blood smeared hands tightening in his father's pants leg.
Sakumo gathered his chakra, and summoned a kage bunshin to check the surrounding area for intruders, and flickered.
Sakumo sat in the pale, insipid, hospital waiting room while his daughter got her medical attention down the hall.
As he knew, none of her arteries had been hit and she was going to need stitches. Eight of them.
His son sat beside him, staring at the drying blood on his hands almost blankly. He'd been able to stop his shaking, and at any other time Sakumo would have been proud of his restraint, but currently he was battling a wealth of disappointment and fury.
His kage bunshin had dispelled, its memories informing him that no, there were no intruders. And based on what Kama had told his clone, his children had been playing with his kunai while he made lunch. Kakashi had told the doberman that he had been trying to scare away a rabbit and Nishiki had jumped to protect it. He swore he hadn't meant to hurt her.
And Sakumo believed that. There was no doubt in his mind that Kakashi had not wanted to hurt his sister.
The fact of the matter was, that he had.
"Is… Is Nishiki going to be okay?" Kakashi suddenly whispered, his voice so small that anyone else probably wouldn't have heard him.
Sakumo didn't turn to look at him.
He was afraid of what he would do.
'He's your son.' He reminded himself. 'Just a little boy. It was an accident. Remember he's your little boy, and you love him. He's your baby too.'
"What were you thinking?" Sakumo finally spoke up, his voice low, contained by a tight leash of control.
Kakashi slid from his seat, his little bloodied hands fisting at his sides.
"I dunno." Kakashi muttered. "We… we just wanted to practice being ninja."
"She's your sister." Sakumo ground out. "You're supposed to protect her. You're supposed to have more control over yourself, and know not to throw a damn kunai when she's so close to you!"
"I didn't mean to!" Kakashi blurted. "I.. I really didn't mean to."
"That, is not going to keep your sister from needing eight stitches." Sakumo pointed out frankly.
"I didn't do it on purpose!" Kakashi snarled, tears welling in his eyes.
"No, but you also didn't think either!" Sakumo shot back, looking up.
The stubborn set in his son's jaw made him lose it.
He grabbed Kakashi by one of his shoulders swiftly, yanking him over at the same time that he grasped the waist of his shorts.
No one in the room questioned the man when he pulled his child's bottoms down to reveal his underwear.
He tossed Kakashi over his knee and showed him what happened to little boy's who don't think.
Kakashi wiped his tears in a subdued manner as he once again sat at his father's side.
It wasn't like he'd never been spanked before. Both he and Nishiki had been disciplined in such a manner. But it was only when they had done something terrible, like now.
Kakashi knew what he did was wrong, even if it hadn't been on purpose. That didn't mean that being spanked was something he wanted to deal with though.
He knew his father didn't like to hit them, but the man believed that "if you spare the rod you spoil the child". So sometimes there was nothing he could do but what he had to.
Kakashi sighed quietly. His bum was still tender and his mask was clinging to his face more than usual because it was soaked with tears.
A little while ago his dad had taken him to wash the blood off his hands. There were still traces under his fingernails and his dad said he'd have to wait until they were home to get it out properly.
"Hatake-san?"
Father and son looked up at the same time, greeted by a plump old nurse with thick spectacles and a clipboard.
She smiled kindly when they both hopped up to meet her.
"You have nothing to worry about, Nishiki-chan will be just fine. The doctor would like to keep her overnight just in case but if you'd like you can see her now."
Sakumo followed the woman and Kakashi trailed closely behind them both as they made their way down the stark white halls.
The littlest Hatake present felt nerves bubbling up inside him. What if Nishiki was angry at him too? What if she hated him? He threw a kunai into her back for Kami's sake.
The nurse was explaining to Sakumo that Nishiki would have a scar, but it would fade with time and heal cleanly if he spread a special ointment (that would be provided) on it every morning and night for the next two weeks.
"She's asleep so use your inside voices okay?" The old nurse said. "I'll be back in twenty minutes."
Kakashi had to consciously keep himself from rolling his eyes because he knew the first statement was geared more towards him. He wasn't an idiot. He wasn't going to go bouncing off of the walls or yelling like some brat when his sister was obviously resting.
It wasn't his nature nor was he in a mood to behave as such.
"Thank you miss." Sakumo said sincerely.
The woman nodded and quietly closed the door behind her.
Kakashi took in the potent smell of antiseptic, scrubbed away blood, and bland fabric softener.
His sister was in a hospital bed, lying on her right side, because her newly cleaned and closed wound was on the left side of the small of her back. She was wearing a puppy patterned hospital gown and the thin white blanket was pulled up to her waist.
She was facing them, and her eyes were half lidded.
"Daddy…?" She mumbled, voice slurred.
"Oh puppy you're awake?" Sakumo said, quickly making his way over to her. "The nurse said you would be asleep."
"'M s'eepy…" She murmured.
Sakumo smoothed her wild bangs back lovingly as he smiled.
"It's okay, you can go to sleep." He assured her. "You can sleep now. You did so well puppy."
"Daddy…" Nishiki said. "'M sorry we were bad. Me an' Kashi took your kunai. An' we were using them when we knew we weren' s'posed to…"
Sakumo chuckled softly, leaning down to press a kiss to her pale forehead.
"You're injured, and I'm glad you realize what you two did was wrong, but you're still in trouble."
He pulled back and grinned when he noticed his daughter's sleepy pout.
"Mhm, yup." Sakumo went on. "No sweets for you, and no playing for two weeks. Your stunt got Kakashi in big trouble, and you have to be punished for worrying the both of us so badly."
Nishiki seemed more alert at this. She shifted a bit.
"Kashi…?"
The little boy stepped from his hiding place behind their father. Her mask was gone, so he could see the little beauty mark at the top right corner of her mouth, the opposite of his, which was at the bottom left corner of his mouth. Her shoulder length hair was more wild than usual, fanned out around her head and falling in her sleepy sky colored eyes.
Kakashi watched his twin's bottom lip tremble and her eyes well with liquid.
"Kakashi…" She croaked. "'M sorry for callin' you stupid."
Kakashi shook his head as he moved closer.
"No… I was stupid, and mean." He admitted. "I'm sorry I threw the kunai at the bunny Nishi."
He moved closer, standing on his tiptoes so that he could see her.
She reached out her hand, and he didn't hesitate to take it. Their fingers laced together.
"It's okay…" Nishiki assured him quietly, tears trickling out of her eyes. "'M sorry for getting you in trouble Kashi."
He just shook his head again.
"No… I'm sorry for hurting you."
"Love you." Nishiki muttered, eyes drooping.
"Love you too." He muttered back, scrubbing the tears in his eyes away with his free hand.
Her grip on him didn't loosen when she fell asleep, and neither did his.
The next day, when the afternoon sun hung high in the azure sky, Nishiki Hatake was checked out of the hospital by her father.
Said father was cradling her in his arms, and her brother walked beside him, carrying the small bag of the things that were needed to care for Nishiki's wound. Both Hatake had never left the hospital as Nishiki rested, and the kind nurse had allowed them to stay in the little girl's room over night. When they left she had winked at them, and Sakumo had smiled.
He certainly wasn't going to rat her out. After all, she had done Kakashi and himself a great kindness that could've gotten her in big trouble.
"Daddy I can walk!" Nishiki huffed, masked cheeks flushed. Of this Sakumo could tell because there was a dusting of pink over the brim of the dark cloth.
"Yes, I know that." He said. "I can also carry you."
"B-but… I'm not a baby!"
"You're my baby." He told her fondly, and to prove this, he hefted her up a bit to place a loud kiss on her forehead.
"Hey!" Nishiki spluttered.
Kakashi snorted under his breath.
Without looking, Sakumo, reached out, using one arm to carry his daughter so that he could kiss his fingertips and press the very same fingers against his son's forehead.
"You're my baby too, Kashi-pup."
His son bristled, whole face going bright fuchsia.
"Dad!"
Sakumo chuckled.
It was just too easy to ruffle these two's feathers.
Nishiki lied on the couch, her head in Kakashi's lap, the both of them watching their father as he watched them, sitting on the coffee table.
"So, what did you learn?" Sakumo asked. "What happens when you don't think?"
"You… can hurt the people you love… and you can get hurt too." Nishiki murmured.
"Exactly." Sakumo nodded. "And what else?"
"That we aren't ready to be ninja until we prove that we're responsible." Kakashi spoke up.
"Yes." Their father agreed. "You don't need to be in a rush to become shinobi. Enjoy being children while you can. When it is time for you to join the ranks, you will. Understand?"
"Hai." They nodded.
Nishiki watched her father sigh and run a tired hand through his hair, loosening the ponytail he had it in.
She bit the inside of her cheek guiltily. She knew she had made her father and brother sick with worry, but honestly she hadn't even thought about rushing to protect the rabbit. Even now, it didn't seem silly to try and save a living thing, but that didn't mean she didn't feel bad about worrying the ones she loved.
"Now, both of you please do me a favor and never let something like this happen again."
"Hai!" They promised.
Sakumo knew both of his children were already budding shinobi, but he wanted them to stay babies for as long as possible. He wanted them to know happiness, and be innocent and ignorant of bloodshed.
But already he could see that they would never not be shinobi.
Nishiki had a remarkable will to protect others. And a vast sense of empathy that she didn't quite understand yet. He knew her heart would always be her strength.
He always knew this, but it only really hit him as he watched her in the wee hours of the morning, as she stood on the step stool beside her brother's as he washed his hands, her own little hands also under the warm spray, little fingers helping Kakashi remove the dried flecks of blood from beneath his fingernails.
Her brother, he would be splendid. Kakashi would be a force to be reckoned with, he was already so strong, and intuitive.
"You don't have to help me," His son told his twin. "You should sleep."
"I'll sleep when we're done Kashi." Nishiki assured him softly.
"Alright, but right after." Kakashi said. "You look sleepy, so don't try to wait for me to fall asleep first."
"Okay Kashi."
Even as she took care of him, he took care of her.
Sakumo's heart bled unspeakable love. He knew they would both make him proud.
But for now, he would smother them in hugs and kisses when he could get away with it, and he would protect them from the truth for as long as the bleak world would allow him to.
"Hey you two," He called out, startling them, (if the splash of water as they flinched was any indication). "What are you doing? Get those tushies in bed."
"Yes dad."
"'Kay!"
Sakumo smiled.
Yes, for now, things were going to be fine. He had a while yet before he had to let them grow up.