Oh wow, it's been... far, far too long since I updated this story.
I apologise to all of my followers and readers of this story for the massive delay. I've been terribly busy with schoolwork and considering as this is my last year, it's kind of important.
Anywho, it's date night for Iruka, the little sweetheart. Continue reading to find what happens!
The bounce in Iruka's step was significant, and it wasn't oblivious to the other chuunin and jōnin in the village. It was Kurenai who noticed it first, after he had jovially walked past her, his hands laced behind his head, smiling at anything and everything.
At first, she thought he was ignoring her after she called to him, but her blazing red eyes hadn't missed the twinkle in his, so she pursued him.
'Iruka!' she called again, breaking into a small canter to close the distance between them. For a smaller chuunin, Iruka could traverse a rather large distance in a short amount of time.
He still didn't turn around at her second call, so Kurenai scooped up a small pebble on the ground and threw it at him, landing squarely at the pivot in his neck below his hands.
Iruka let out a yelp and whipped around so fast that the moment was almost invisible. He was scowling but when he saw the grin in Kurenai's face, he knew where it had come from.
'It's about time you turned around' Kurenai said, closing the rest of the gap between them. 'What's going on with you? I called to you twice.'
'Oh right. That.' Iruka said, rubbing the point of impact trying to massage the pain out. 'I've just had a great day.'
'Ooh, tell!'
'Aww, Kurenai, you know me too well that I don't open up easily.'
'Come on, like I'm going to tell anyone.'
'It's not you I'm worried about. It's everyone else.'
'I just said that I won't tell anyone.'
'I know you won't. It's more the fact that this is a village full of elite ninja. I'm pretty sure someone's going to overhear it all.'
At this comment, Kurenai grabbed Iruka's upper arm and began dragging him away.
'Right' she said, pulling the chuunin along with her. 'You and I are catching up and we are discussing your life!'
Iruka sighed, but it was more sarcasm than anything, knowing full well that it was easier to just go along with her.
They went to their usual tea shop on the corner and ordered a cup of chai tea, a special of Kurenai's that Iruka also had a guilty pleasure for.
'Right, so what's gotten you so air-headed today?'
'Kurenai, don't make me...'
'Ooh, that sounds like an insult to your trust in me.'
'Oh fine. Don't lay the guilt trip on me. Especially not those puppy-dog eyes of yours.'
'Aha-ha, oh you're just no fun.'
'No, I'm too accustomed to it haha. Fine, I'll just tell you.'
'Good. Tell me everything.'
'Well, short answer is, I have a date Friday.'
'Friday? That's tomorrow! Who in the world did you ask?'
'Ahh, you won't know her.'
'Try me.'
'Well, have you met the new kunoichi here in the village now?'
'No!' Kurenai scoffed 'You're fooling me!'
'I assure you I'm not'.
'Iruka, how old is she?'
Iruka looked sheepish at this. True, she was fairly younger than him, but you can't control emotions. It's impossible to do that.
'Iruka, don't deflect it… Oh god, she's a genin isn't she?!'
'What? No! Kurenai, she's a chuunin…I think…she could be a jōnin.'
'You don't know?'
'Well, Kakashi mentioned something about it the other day when I asked him about it.'
'So, Kakashi knows more about her then you do it seems.'
'Well, only because he had to save her from Naruto and his ramen fetish.'
'Hmm, ok. So how old is she?'
'…late teens.'
'Iruka you dog! What's her name?'
'Renita.'
'Beautiful name, 'water lily'. Haha! Oh you two would be kind of compatible! 'Dolphin' and 'Water Lily'.'
'Yeah yeah I get it.'
'So, what's her deal? She just showed up here one day and no-one knows anything about her.'
'She's more secretive than I am.'
'You'll have to tell me when you find out. You could make tomorrow night a bonding session!'
'Oh god, I haven't been on a date in such a long time. I feel rusty.'
Kurenai slipped into her motherly mode. The kind of mode that she used around her squad.
'Iruka, you're going to be fine. You're a smart guy and she wouldn't have a reason not to like you. Really, she's already said yes to a date with you, so it's one step. If things don't work out, you can either ignore her forever or become friends.'
Iruka smiled. Kurenai might be brash at times, but when she was giving advice, she was direct to the point in a very sensitive way. She had known Iruka long enough and felt as if he was a bit like a little brother. She was fond of him and simply adored it when he was excited by possible relationships.
She took a sip of her steaming cup of tea, the flavour of it satisfying her thirst. Iruka copied her, unable to think of a decent retort to this. True, he had often thought about the age difference between them, but he pushed the negatives out of his mind, focusing on only the possibilities of it all.
'So what are you planning to do?'
'Well, I asked her out to dinner but I'm thinking of going dancing afterwards too.'
'Good combination. Have you got something to wear?'
Iruka thought about this for a moment, remembering this morning.
'…no' he admitted, deflated.
Kurenai downed her drink in one.
'Right that's it. You and I, we're going. Now.'
'Huh? Now? Where?'
'Hush up and come on.'
Iruka guzzled his tea, almost burning the insides of his throat in the process before Kurenai yanked him away by the collar of his vest.
Kakashi's arms were stuffed full with different pieces of hardware. Something inside of him decided that he was going to fix up Renita's place a tad, starting with the kitchen. While it was quaint, her house was in dire need of renovations, and he wanted to do something nice for her. He wouldn't be doing this alone though; he still was able to have what was left of squad seven at his beck and call if he needed them. Naruto was grumbling with each step behind him.
'Kakashi-sensei, why are we doing this?' he whined, laden with giant planks of timber and struggling slightly to carry them.
'Because' Kakashi began 'You're still my student and when I need you for a mission, you can't object to it.'
'I don't even know what kind of mission we're even doing!'
'We're rebuilding part of a house, Naruto.'
'Who's house is it?'
'Never mind that. Just be quiet until we get there.'
The two ninja walked until they had reached the decrepit looking house, a small chill blowing.
'Woah, this place really does need fixing.' Naruto said, eyeing the house with distaste.
'I did tell you that. Come on, follow me. We're starting with the kitchen. Don't wander anywhere else in the house, got it?'
'Yeah yeah, ok Kakashi-sensei.'
Kakashi pushed open the door gently with his foot, and used his back to hold the door open for Naruto as he traipsed through the doorway, attempting to avoid banging into anything with the timber.
'This way.'
'Sensei, where's Sakura? Shouldn't she be here helping if it was supposed to be a 'squad seven' mission?'
'She'll be here soon. I needed her to do something else for me first before she arrived.'
'Oh…ok… But she's coming right?'
'Yes Naruto. Sakura will be here. I just said that.'
Naruto went quiet, and Kakashi knew that he was thinking about Sakura. He had seen the way that he adored her, and now, Kakashi finally understood what exactly it felt like. He couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness for the young ninja. Ever since Sakura and Naruto were put on a squad together, he had been trying desperately for her to notice him in a different light, but he failed every time. Whether or not he had before-hand was unknown to Kakashi, but he had seen it all too clearly since they first began having him as their sensei.
Naruto's eyes were travelling around in every direction as they walked down the hallway. Cheekily, he tried to sneak away from Kakashi into a room they had just passed through the passage. Naruto carefully lowered the large pieces of timber, trying not to make a sound as they touched the floor and tip-toed backwards, poking his head into the room.
A pack of nails hit Naruto square in the temple and he yelped in pain and toppled over.
'Naruto!' Kakashi growled 'I told you not to wander off!'
'Doesn't mean you need to throw a pack of nails at my head, sensei.' Naruto retorted, rubbing the side of his face and wincing.
'Well, maybe if you hadn't tried to look around without me, I wouldn't have needed to. Remember, someone lives here. You can't just go poking around the place and intruding on their privacy.'
'Yeah ok. I get it now.'
'Good.' Kakashi sighed, exasperated. 'It's just down here.'
They carried their shopping into the kitchen, the dishes from this morning now cleaned and set aside.
'Right.' Kakashi began, dropping the many packages and hardware tools. 'Naruto, since you need work on following instructions, I want you to read over these blue prints and see if you can put together a cupboard. If you can't complete it, that's fine, but see how much you can get done. I'll be back in a moment.'
'Wait, Kakashi-sensei, where are you going?' Naruto asked, starting to panic.
'You'll be fine. These are obvious instructions so you shouldn't have a problem with it.'
'But-but, wait!'
Kakashi had already begun to leave, walking down the passage. He looked over his shoulder to see Naruto looking at the pages of instructions that he had left him, so he took his opportunity to peek into Renita's bedroom.
'Oh good, they're still there.' he sighed to himself. 'I just hope Naruto didn't see them.'
Renita was aimlessly walking around the village, trying to make sense of what had just happened today. How is it that two shinobi that were older than her had asked her out on a date in the space of one day? It's almost impossible. Really, she didn't think much of herself to begin with. She thought of herself as a monster to society actually, and yet, somehow two men had thought the complete opposite. She smiled to herself at this. It made her feel special, something that she hadn't felt since she was with her brother when they were escaping together. The big thing to her wasn't that she in fact had two dates, but it had occurred to her that she needed to eventually make a choice on who she was going to be with, in the likelihood that she wanted a relationship.
Still, she was in high spirits. Who better than to make her feel special than the childish delight of Iruka Umino, or the mysteriously attractive Kakashi Hatake.
She was walking through the streets, surrounded by many different shops and stalls when it hit her:
She had absolutely nothing to wear!
To either of the dates!
She gripped her forehead and began to panic. Where in the world was she going to find a store that was open after five to get a dress? Nowhere, that is.
'No, no, no!' She moaned, cramming her eyes shut and shaking her head vigorously in the middle of the street.
'Hey! You alright?' a voice said, and a hand was placed on Renita's shoulder.
Renita whirled around looked at the person who had stopped to see if she was ok. A lady with spiky, deep-purple coloured hair and wearing a pale yellow trench coat with a high collar was smiling at Renita.
'Oh, right' Renita said, dropping he hands to her sides, letting them dangle freely with a defeated look. 'Oh, I'm just having a meltdown.'
'Well, tell Anko all about it,' This stranger said, taking Renita's arm and linking their arms together. 'Oh, my name's Anko Matarashi by the way!.'
'Hi Anko. My name's Renita Takahashi.'
'Pretty name. So, what's gotten you so riled up?'
'Oh…well…short answer is, I have nothing to wear to a date.'
'Oh lucky you! Who's it with?' Anko stretched the 'i' sound for at least a second, feeling very curious.
'Ahh… well, it's with two people.'
'Get out!' (Again, she extended the sound of the 'ow').
'Boy, she's excitable' Renita thought.
'Haha, well, it's the truth.'
'Hmm...'
Anko pondered something for a moment, and then stopped walking. She held Renita by her shoulders and looked her up and down, inspecting her figure, which made Renita feel insecure. Anko snapped her fingers and broke into a wide grin again.
'I have just the idea!' she said, pulling Renita along with her at a brisk pace.
Renita was sitting awkwardly on Anko's couch as she heard the other kunoichi rummaging around in her clothes for something.
'I'm…sure they're…around here…somewhere!' she grumbled, different colours and articles of clothing being tossed about into a pile on the floor.
'Do you want some help?' Renita asked, feeling as if she needed to do something.
'No that's fine!' Anko called back, another shirt flying past the doorway. 'I think… I may…have… found them!'
'Found what?'
'These' Anko said, carrying two different pieces of floating fabric. Anko's smile couldn't have grown any wider as she looked at the way that Renita's eyes had grown in wonder and disbelief.
'Here, take them.' Anko said, holding them out.
'I can't take these.' Renita said, looking at them with a warm delight. 'They're too beautiful.'
'Ahh, they don't fit me anymore. You can keep them.' Anko thrust the clothes into Renita's arms.
'But…why?'
'I'll tell you something Ren-darling. I like you.'
'What do you mean?'
'When you walked past me before in the street, I knew exactly where you had come from.'
'I'm confused.'
'I noticed it. It's a mark of the sound ninja associated with Orochimaru.'
The name stung like a swarm of hornets.
'You're the first.'
'It's nothing bad. My footsteps didn't make a sound either when I was with him. That is, until I wore heavier shoes.'
Anko winked and indicated to her regulation ninja shoes.
'You're secrets safe with me, Miss Takahashi. Now run along. You don't want anyone seeing these before you wear them.'
'Anko, I can't thank you enough.'
'I'll be around. Just order some dumplings one day and we'll have a girly date.'
'You bet.'
Iruka was clutching a bag with his newly found suit inside. Kurenai had left him in a hurry after Asuma had called her over, leaving Iruka to fend for himself at the counter. He was quite pleased with what she had picked out for him though. It was a white suit, very 80's fashioned and was accompanied with a lilac shirt. Normally, Iruka wouldn't want to stand out so much but when she had seen it, she jumped at it with a look I her eye that screamed 'perfect'. When he had tried it on, even she had dropped her jaw. He looked so smooth, so refined. It accentuated his muscular physique and made him looked even more toned, albeit that was practically impossible.
He was thankful that he had made a booking at one of the finest restaurants in Konoha before heading off with Kurenai. She was incredibly fussy, and spent majority of the evening finding the best cufflinks to match his ensemble. He got back home and carefully hung his new suit up in the closet, thankful to have such a good friend as Kurenai by his side. It was late, so he wasn't entirely what he wanted to do. There was a box of scrolls that needed marking as soon as possible, but he wasn't in the mood to do them. That, and he was tired from trying on clothes for at least three hours. Who knew that you can get so fatigued from putting on clothes?
He flopped down on his bed, fingers laced behind his head and he smiled. He couldn't believe that he had finally gotten a date after all these years, and with such a beautiful kunoichi.
'Hmm' he thought aloud 'I wonder…'
He pulled himself up off the covers and stretched upwards. He shook his limbs to loosen the tendons and prepared himself in the ballroom position, imagining that he was holding her in his arms again, his hand on the small of her back and the other holding hers. Iruka twirled about his room, a fantasy of tomorrow night playing through his head as he spun, swayed and even dipped as he practiced his dancing.
'Izumo, you have to see this!'
Iruka stopped immediately and turned to face his window. A spiky, black haired chuunin with a matching shinobi outfit and a single bandage running across his nose was perched on the roof outside, cackling like a hyena.
'Kotetsu!' Iruka yelped, turning maroon in embarrassment. 'What are you doing out there?!'
'Watching you dance like a loony.' Kotetsu replied, giggles escaping from him at random intervals. 'It's a shame Izumo missed it. You could have taught us some moves.'
'Come off it. What are you really doing?' Iruka questioned, folding his arms over his chest.
'Nah, we were just passing and I saw you prancing about like a fairy. Oh, hey Izumo! You should check out Iruka's dance moves sometime!'
'Aww, did I miss a lot?' Izumo said, face peeking out over the side of the windowsill alongside Kotetsu, his face half hidden by his brown hair and hat accompanying his broad grin.
'Yes Izumo, you missed the show' Iruka said, slightly huffing. 'Don't you guys have somewhere to be?'
'Dance one more time?' asked Izumo.
'No!'
'Aww, you're no fun.'
'See you around then, Iruka!' And with that, Kotetsu and Izumo dashed off towards to gates to resume their post.
Iruka stopped and flopped on the bed again. Time was going to pass slowly until tomorrow night.
Naruto was still attempting to sort out the cupboard that Kakashi had left him when Sakura arrived, laden with a paper bag filled with groceries.
'Naruto, what are you doing?' She said, dropping the bag on the table and crouching down to where he was sitting on the floor.
'Kakashi-sensei left me to put this together' Naruto grumbled, covered in paper and nails spread everywhere. 'Though, I'm getting confused.'
'Here, let me help.' Sakura said, taking pity on her team mate.
'Oh, this is easy Naruto.' In a flash, she had connected different pieces of timber together and pieced them together with nails, until a cupboard had almost magically appeared infront of the two of them.
'Geez Sakura, you're too smart for your own good.'
'Naruto…you were reading the instructions upside down.' (Naruto pulled a face and turned away).
'So, where's Kakashi-sensei?'
'He said he had something to do, but he'll be back…This was about two hours ago.'
'Sorry I took so long. Kakashi-sensei wanted me to get some really particular ingredients and other things.'
'Ahh, Naruto, you finally put it together.'
Kakashi sauntered back through the hallway, hands in pockets. 'Sakura, did you get the things I asked.'
'Yeah, they're on the table sensei.'
'Good. Right, you guys are dismissed now. I'll finish off whatever else I had planned for you to do.'
'Are you sure sensei? Sakura questioned.
'Yeah, I'm in a good mood. I got what I needed. Go home.'
'Hey Sakura, want to go for ramen?'
'As long as you're paying, Naruto.'
'Can it be a date if I do?'
'You wish.'
Kakashi chuckled slightly at the two genin as they bantered between them as they walked away. He looked at the rest of the timber and sighed. A flash of hand signs, and ten identical Kakashi's appeared, each attacking different swatches and lengths of timber with lightning speed until many different counters and cupboards were dotted around the kitchen at random intervals. Kakashi looked out the window. It's was very nearly night, the sun almost a speck along the horizon. She would be home soon, and he wanted to have things ready before she arrived. The many Kakashi's yawned unison and stretched infront of them.
'There's still a few things to do, guys.' Kakashi said, indicating the bits and pieces of new furniture.
All of the Kakashis sighed heavily and began pushing and pulling until they had tossed the old kitchen out the back door and replaced it with the newly built one.
'Ok guys, that's enough.'
The copies all disappeared in a cloud as they 'poofed' away. Kakashi sat down with a groan at the table and rustled through the bag that Sakura had brought back with her. Everything was there that he needed for Saturday's rendezvous, for which he was thankful. He hadn't been on a date since he was in his teenage years, since he wasn't so easy to open up to. He rubbed at his clothes and his finger left a streak in the inch of sawdust left on him. Deciding that a shower would be the best solution, he stood up and poked his head around the hallway, looking for a bathroom. Eventually, he found one and while it was rustic in some areas, it was quite well kept. Kakashi poked his head out of the doorway and listened.
Silence.
Surely he had enough time to scrub up and make himself decent, right?
He unzipped his vest and hung it over a loose rail sticking out of the wall, and pulled his shirt over his head, his white hair disappearing for a moment then reappearing in a messy tuft. He stripped off his pants, gloves, sandals, mask and hitai-ate and threw the many pieces of clothing underneath his vest, and stepped across into the shower, letting the water flow through the shower head and across his muscles, relaxing them almost immediately and pulling the thin curtain across. Normally he wouldn't use other people's products, but once the water had hit his body, an awful smell had risen from the sweat and grime on his body had caused a large amount of body odour, and it was bad. He plucked the soap from its holster and scrubbed furiously at his pectorals and flesh, turning it pink, but also giving it a lavender scent that was also quite enjoyable. It was during the middle of his scrubbing that he heard the familiar crash of the door banging against the frame on its slant, causing him to drop the cake of soap on the floor. There was no way that Kakashi was finished washing the suds off of him and his clothes were across the other side of the bathroom, leaving him susceptible to being caught. If that wasn't enough, his keen sense of smell knew exactly who it was that was home: that familiar scent of hibiscus weaving its way through the air, dancing between the scent of lavender.
Silently, he backed up against the wall, attempting to conceal himself. He brought his fingers together and whispered 'Tōton Jutsu', blending in with the tiles around him. He crept his hand over to the tap and turned it off, attempting to make no noise whatsoever and listening intently for a sign. There were no audible footsteps, only slight noises of the opening of a cupboard and the click of it shutting from the bedroom, and then the sounds of the soft 'flops' of material on the floors. Kakashi then turned a vibrant pink, although he was using the camouflage jutsu. He knew that that was the sound of clothes being removed and he was cornered, like a rat in a maze. His heart began to beat rapidly, in both fright and other humanly emotions men would get from envisioning a lady stark nude and drawing ever closer. While Renita wouldn't be able to see him due to the camouflage jutsu, he would be able to see her silhouette through the thin curtain, and yet, he had left his clothes on the other side of the bathroom, so moving was not an option. He heard some grunts and muffled speech from the other side of the door, and panicked even more. The door slowly creaked open and he saw the thin outline of Renita on the other side of the curtain, pausing at the mirror to let her hair out of the hitai-ate and leaving it on the side of the sink.
Suddenly, Kakashi had an idea. He hoped desperately that she would turn around briefly, just for a second, and the odds were in his favour. She turned to get a towel out of the small cupboard and with lightning reflexes, he twirled the tap and cranked the water full blast, calling out 'It's occupied!', while remaining invisible. Instinctively, Renita grabbed the nearest piece of clothing she could grab her hands on, which was Kakashi's shirt hanging next to her and covered herself and turned pale, shaking from both cold and fright.
'KAKASHI!' she yelled, almost screaming at the same time. 'WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU PLAYING AT?!'
'Wait, I can explain!'
'I FIND THAT HARD TO BELIEVE!'
'Just wait, please!'
'-CRYING OUT LOUD KAKASHI! THIS IS BEYOND A JOKE! OH LORD! HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN THERE?! HOW LONG HAVE YOU SEEN ME LIKE THIS?!'
'Just WAIT!' Kakashi growled, traces of venom behind his words, silencing Renita immediately.
'First of all' he started, his voice back to its normal, velvety purr. 'Thankfully for the shower curtain, I haven't seen any of you, apart from merely a silhouette, and I've turned away. Secondly, like you, I'm also underdressed, hence the jutsu. So, I think it would be best if just for a moment you can wait outside so I can come out and get dressed?'
Renita just nodded silently and backed away out of the bathroom, still clutching the vest to her for dear life, but also grabbing his shirt with a swift motion, undetected by the shinobi. Kakashi turned the shower off and shook himself dry, droplets of water flying in wayward directions.
'There's towels in the cupboard!' Renita called out from the hallway.
'Thankyou!'
He stepped out of the shower and bent down, plucking a towel from the small cupboard and drying himself off briskly. He released the jutsu and garbed himself again, pulling his mask on, and then searching for his shirt to accompany it. Realising that it was nowhere to be seen, he pulled on his pants, looking rather strange with just his mask and navy pants. He pulled on his gloves and collected his hitai-ate, flinging his towel over his shoulder.
'I'm coming out now' he called, giving plenty of warning.
He poked his out of the doorway and glanced around quickly, and did a double-take, seeing Renita leaning against the wall a few paces away. She was wearing his shirt which was much too large for her, the sleeves swallowing her hands and the torso long enough to cover her pelvic area and a third of her thigh. He took the time to observe her face properly, and taking the chance to look in her eyes, the purple iris striking amongst her porcelain skin. He smiled secretly behind his mask, for she really did look adorable. What Kakashi didn't realise was that this was the first time that he had revealed his sharingan around her, and she was staring at the crimson iris speckled with black in wonder and awe. If that wasn't the case, she was heavily attracted to his defined and sculpted torso.
'Aha…sorry about that.' He said, meekly. 'I was expecting you a bit later, and well…that didn't work'.
'Why is it that I happen to be nude around you and Iruka?' she questioned, the smallest smile tugging at her lips.
'It's coincidental.'
'Uh huh. I'm beginning to believe that it's some sort of conspiracy between you two.'
'Believe me, it's not intentional.'
'Right… So, that's what you look like'.
'Hmm?'
'I've only ever seen a fraction of your face.'
'And well, it's only the top half but gee, it's attractive' she thought.
'Well, it had to come out sometime. I wasn't expecting it to be this way, though. This is new.'
'Coincidental, huh?'
'You can call it that.'
It was silent between the two of them for a moment, each one taking in every detail of the other that their eyes could swoop over.
'So… are we on for Saturday?' Kakashi asked, his cheekbones rose pink.
'Yes…on one condition.'
'Hmm?'
'Don't wear the mask.'
'I can't grant you that. It's uncomfortable for me not to.'
'What if I beg?'
'No.' It was a flat out refusal, and she knew she wouldn't win.
'Ok, ok… don't wear the headband.'
'….ok.' Kakashi said, deciding that that would be the safer of the two options.
'Lovely.' Renita said, finally smiling a small smile. 'What are we doing?'
'Just be ready at nine o'clock'.'
'That's awfully late. What are you planning?'
'That's my secret.' Kakashi said, his eyes turning up into crescents as he smiled and walked past her.
'Now, go clean up.'
She was late, and she was kicking herself for it. She had been preoccupied with her newly-built kitchen as a present from Kakashi and all of its wonder. While it still held her little possessions, she was captivated, since she didn't get a proper look yesterday after Kakashi had left and she had crashed on her bed, avoiding the bouquet of roses that he had left on her bed and swiftly giving him a hug before he left her house for the night. She had slept in until the late afternoon, after having such a hectic day with Iruka's class beforehand. She woke up and stumbled into the kitchen, only to find that it was not the one that she had cooked in the morning before, no sir. While she had been admiring her developing household, she lost track of the time and sprinted to get changed, slowing her down considerably.
'Dammit Ren!' She cursed to herself. 'I just hope Iruka hasn't left!'
When she had woken up, however, there was a single scroll attached to the doorway via a kunai, with the address written in Iruka's neat handwriting and the time.
She stopped a few stores away from the restaurant to catch her breath. Many people walked down the streets, colourful lanterns lighting the darkened lanes at night. She collected herself and prayed that she hadn't begun to sweat and walked calmly and collected towards the restaurant, seeing a slightly worried Iruka leaning against the front with one leg on the wall and his hands in his pockets.
'Hey!' she called, quickening her step to catch up with him. He turned his head at the call and smiled, every moment of tension melting away inside of him.
'I was starting to think you weren't coming.' Iruka said, holding his arms out to hug her. '…you look…wow'.
Renita fell into his arms and embraced him a very tight hug.
'What's the matter?' she said, worry hedging her voice. 'Does it look bad?'
'What? No!' Iruka corrected himself, becoming flustered. 'You look…'
'Breathtaking' he thought.
''…beautiful' he concluded, rather meekly.
Renita smiled, her face glowing. Indeed, she was beautiful. She was garbed in a beautiful midnight blue dress that was studded with small diamantes, so she sparked in the glow of the colourful lanterns that bedecked the street around her. She was radiant, and her hair was pulled back with two curls framing her face, yet she remained to wear her hitai-ate.
'Why thankyou…shouldn't we head inside?'
'Come on. I've already notified the maître' D, so we'll be getting underway.'
The entered the restaurant, the smell of all kinds of food swirling about in the air and making their stomachs hungry. Embarrassingly, Renita's grumbled profusely and audibly, and Iruka's head whipped over to look at her.
'Hungry are we?' he said, coyly.
'Are we really going to play this game?' she giggled, though she was quite embarrassed at the way her stomach announced its lack of feeding.
'Alright, alright. I'm sorry. Wait, let me get that for you.'
Iruka fluffed up the floor cushion for her from their reserved setting; a wooden table adorned with a lacy table runner.
'Why thankyou, kind sir' Renita giggled, putting on a regal accent and winking.
'Geez, you are too fancy for me.'
'I am the epitome of fancy, Iruka darling.'
'Well if that was the case, you'd be the one paying for dinner.'
'And the backhand is served. The set is won by Iruka!.'
It had started off as a promising evening. They were both talking jovially with each other and laughing. Iruka sighed a little as he looked at her, her smile and eyes lighting up as she laughed at the stories Iruka was telling her about his students.
'-and this was before they were set into squads, but it really did happen!.' Iruka finished, after laughing again.
'I find it incredibly hard to believe that Naruto kissed…Sasuke, was it?' Renita finished, trying to breathe through fits of giggles.
'He really did! It was by accident, of course. Naruto was glaring at him as he was crouched on the table, and Shikamaru bumped into him and well, the rest is history.'
'Am I going to meet any of these students?'
'You can meet Shikamaru, but not Sasuke.'
'Why not Sasuke?'
'…he's not with us any more…' Iruka said, crestfallen.
By the look on Iruka's face, she figured it was best to leave the conversation there. She was nervous, but the nerves were beginning to ebb away from her as the night progressed. The waiter arrived with a set of menus for them, and observed the two sitting together.
'My my' the waiter began, smiling a broad grin 'Iruka, you have quite a stunning girlfriend.'
Iruka blushed a deep crimson as he struggled to find the correct words to explain the situation.
'She—she umm… she…' he started, unable to find any other coherent words.
'It's the first date' Renita said, saving Iruka from any more embarrassment.' But he could have one at the end of the night' she winked to the waiter.
'My apologies' said the waiter, handing them menus. 'Well, you two decide what you want, and I will take your order soon.'
'Thankyou, sir.' Renita concluded.
Renita watched as the waiter walked away to another table, but her focus was pulled away when Iruka hand taken hold of her hands, their warmth removing the chill from her fingers.
'Thanks for the save back there' he said, looking at her deeply.
'Oh it's fine. I didn't want him hanging around anyway. They always make things uncomfortable'.
'And I thought I was the only person that thought that.'
'No no, they're pretty nosy.'
'Renita?'
'Yeah?'
Iruka's heart caught in his throat. It began to beat so heavily and fast that it caught his windpipe short of breath. He had been thinking over and over in his head how he was going to tell her everything that he had felt since they first bumped heads. How much he wanted to stay with her at every time of the day, and how it hurt to hear her and see her so broken in his own home, his bed.
'I just… I wanted to…to…'
'To what?'
'To…to…umm (Iruka swallowed)…see what you wanted to eat' he finished, angry at himself for chickening out at the last second. He was going to regret it later.
'Oh' was all that Renita said, feeling deflated after it looked like Iruka was going to say something important. He surely shared the same feelings for her that she did for him, right? Unfortunately, she also shared them for Kakashi, in all of his mystery.
But, tonight was not the night to be thinking of him. It was Iruka that was here, and she was going to make the most of this evening, starting with a hearty dinner. Slipping her hands out of his grip, she smiled and unfolded her menu, scanning over the different dishes available for her to choose from, while Iruka mirrored her movements.
The waiter sauntered over and took their orders, the both of them ordering a dish of sukiyaki at the same time, to where they looked at each other and smiled.
'How is it that we always do the same thing almost every time?' Renita said, folding her menu and putting it down.
'You mean like bumping heads?' Iruka said, coyly, copying her actions.
'Not just that' she giggled 'Though I still have the bruise to remember it by.'
'Bruise? I had a welt Ren!'
'So we're on shorter names now?' She joked. 'In any case, that wasn't from me, silly. I don't know what you did, but I it was sure as heck funny when you turned up. What did you do exactly?'
Iruka coughed and turned his head away, avoiding the question. There's no way he was going to admit what had actually happened.
'Something silly' was all he answered.
'So, tell me about yourself Iruka.' She leaned forward and rested her head on her hands that were folded together to make a small platform. 'I know so little about you.'
'There's not much to say, and I'd prefer to spare you the sad story of little Iruka.'
I'll be the judge of that.'
'Heh…. Alright I guess. It's just…knowing where to begin.'
Iruka rubbed the back of his neck and sighed, trying to think of the best place to begin with. He wanted to tell her everything, but it was personal, and divulging all of this information so soon seemed overwhelming, and he didn't want to scare her off. As he looked into her face, something about her seemed to say that she would understand everything. Renita sensed that Iruka was struggling internally, so she reached over and took his other hand that was vacant on the table. At this, Iruka smiled, easing his nerves and calming himself down, dropping the arm that he was rubbing the back of his neck with.
'Why don't you start' Renita started, lightly tracing her other index finger over the broad scar stretched over his nose and cheeks 'with how you got this?'.
Iruka closed his eyes at her touch, enjoying the cool refreshing feeling that contrasted with his incredibly warm skin.
'Y'know, I've never actually told anyone this before' he smirked, opening his eyes after Ren had tracing over the deep gash.
'Lucky me' she breathed, softly.
'You are…in any case…only those that were around when it happened know it's origin, but I've never actually physically told someone…it's a sore spot for me.'
'Iruka, you don't have to say-'
'No, it's fine. It's high time that I did I guess; at least someone will know.'
Iruka took a deep breath, memories of the event flooding back to him.
'The night I got my scar, the Kyuubi had attacked our village, and it's a night than none of the ninja alive to be a part of it will forget. It's a part of our history, and everyone available ninja that had successfully graduated from the academy was called to attack, so this meant my parents were involved. I had only just begun my studies at the academy, so I was young; naïve.
'I wanted to be brave, and to fight alongside them as a family but they were fighting in their squads…so I broke away from the younger children and ran towards the war, with all thought and recognition of how inexperienced I was evaporating. I left all of my friends behind because I thought I could be a hero…how wrong I was. I tried to attack, but I was weaker and my precision poor, so it affected nothing.
'I could see my parents up ahead, and I ran towards them wanting desperately to fight with them, to protect them. I kept running…but I didn't realise that I had put myself in the line of fire. Hundreds, possibly thousands of kunai and shuriken were flying around every inch of me, but I couldn't stop. Before I knew it, I was crumpled on the ground with my own blood pouring relentlessly from both my cheeks and the bridge of my nose. I couldn't so anything…I was scared…frightened…all I could think of was that I was sitting in a pool of my own blood, the smell and taste of copper overriding my senses…I didn't know what to do.
Renita was sitting in complete silence, her mouth slightly parted as she listened intently to his story; like a fish hooked onto a fishing line. She only just remembered to thank the waiter when he arrived with their meals; its aroma enticing her tastebuds but she was far too interested in what he was saying to be interested.
'What happened?' she pressed.
'Well, medical ninja swooped in out of nowhere it seemed and carried me off away from the fray before I really knew what was going on.' Iruka continued, taking his hand out of hers and folding them in his laps with his eyes downcast.
'I remember trying desperately to break away from them, but they pinned me down so they could heal me wound. The pain…it was unbearable. I knew that they were trying to help me, I understood that, but it was too much… I just wanted to see my parents, to know how they were doing, but all of my attempts to escape were fruitless. Eventually they let me up, and I tried to run back to them from the exact way I came, but a firm hand clasped my shoulder and forced me to my knees and I could only watch. It was at that point there, that I was seeing my parents for the last time…and it was from a distance.
'You see, amidst all of the noise and the confusion of the battle, my father was the one that injured me. It was his shuriken that had sliced open my face to…to what you see today.'
Iruka pointed to his scar, contempt shadowing his face.
'However, it wasn't intended for me… but my own stupidity made me suffer for it, and it paralysed him. All I remember is the look on his face as he stared at me… fear…shock…disbelief… He couldn't believe or imagine that he had hurt his son the way he had and he froze, staring at me. As I looked up, he was standing there with his hand outstretched as if he was trying to reach out to me.
'My mother saw the danger behind him though, and she called out to him but he couldn't hear her. The Kyuubi had gained considerable distance and it was dangerously close to them, but he was oblivious. She ran over to him, and tried to push him out of the way, except…except….'
Iruka stopped talking because a large lump had formed in the middle of his throat, choking him up. This was hard, but at the same time, he felt better for it.
'Iruka' Renita said in a small voice. 'You can stop if you want.'
'No no, I'm fine. Really' Iruka said, forcing a weak smile. He had to finish. Not because he had started, but he owed it to himself to finish, otherwise he never would.
Never.
'Every day I see this scar and it reminds of that night. I wonder to myself if I hadn't acted so selfishly and ran in there…would they still be alive?...Am I the sole reason that they died? It's a constant reminder for me, and I used to play the fool so I could escape the reality of it all; the reality that I didn't have someone around to comfort me when I needed it…so it's why I became a teacher. I didn't want to see another child suffer the same pain I did, because it almost killed me to go through it alone.'
A small smile fell on Iruka's lips, and his eyes changed from remorse to affection.
'I look at Naruto and I see a lot of me in his stead. I had a rough childhood, but his was and will always be worse. Unlike me, he tried so hard to become the ninja he is now, but he had no help at all when he so desperately needed it so I stepped in, I guess. I mean, I deliberately messed around and suffered for it, but he didn't have the basic skills necessary to begin with and the children laughed at him. I don't want to see him have to go through the same thing that I did, so I'll always be around for him.'
An awkward silence had built between the both of the after he finished, so Renita opted to pushing about bits and piece of her food around the bowl with her chopsticks. She had no idea what to say to this, since it was so personal and yet, she could relate to many aspects of it all.
'The feeling of being alone' she said, averting eyes with Iruka and staring at the food being pushed about the bowl 'is more painful than anything physical that this world can give.'
Iruka leant over his own plate and her hands in his, genuinely smiling again.
'This isn't meant to be an upsetting night, Ren' he said, looking her square in the eye. 'Don't worry, things have changed a lot during the years, and they especially have now. Please, I want to see your beautiful smile tonight and nothing else.'
Renita smiled, at the same time blushing a small pink at his words. Iruka was, in so many ways, charming and she found herself obliging to his desires, her sweet smile developing into a broad grin.'
'Much better' he exclaimed, letting her hands go again and picking up his chopsticks for the first time that evening.
'Eat. Before your food gets cold' he said.
'With pleasure' she replied simply.
They sat there; eating the delicious food sitting infront of them and gradually began to talk about many different topics again. Iruka's story hung between them, but as they talked about anything and everything, the tension that carried with it began to evaporate, before they were genuinely laughing and smiling to each other once again. The table was cleared and the two were offered desserts, yet both of them were much too full t consider eating another bite. More chatting between them, and they dissolved into fits of laughter, after which Renita sighed deeply; her cheeks beginning to ache.
'Iruka, this has been a wonderful night' she said, flashing a wonderful smile at him which made his heart melt.
'It's not over yet' he winked, standing up and helping her up by offering his hand to her.
'Wait here, I'll be back' he said, making his way over to the reception to pay for the two meals. He returned shortly after, and took her hand again and lead her out of the restaurant.
'Where are you kidnapping me in such a hurry?' she joked, tugging on his arm as he pulled her along.
'You'll see' he said, laughing slightly, still walking as if on a mission through the colourful lanterns adorning the streets.
'Not good enough of an answer, Iruka' she laughed. She pulled hard on his arm and Iruka was swung about face, colliding once again into her and they toppled over again into a familiar position. However, this time he landed on top of her a little further down and their lips pressed together.
The feeling was intense, immediate. This was her first kiss, and however awkward and unplanned it was, it was enjoyable. Her heart skipped a beat and butterflies erupted in her stomach. It was incredible, but because it caught her by surprise, her expression was shock and it mirrored Iruka's perfectly. He was just as surprised, but he was a deep crimson once again. He had also felt the same feeling and he had missed it. It had been so long since his last kiss, and this one was pleasant, however embarrassing his position was on top of her.
He pulled away from her and started to giggle, which exploded into deep laughter. Renita just blinked at him and dissolved into laughter as well. Iruka shuffled off of her and lay down on the ground, ignoring the looks from passer-by's as he, quite literally, rolled on the ground laughing at what just happened. When the two of them had finally calmed down enough, Iruka picked himself up and helped her up again.
'Well, that wasn't what I intended' he said, dusting off loose dirt from his suit and then looking at Renita doing the same. He gently brushed some gravel off her shoulder and then pushed a lock of her out of her face and tucked it behind her ear. 'But would you still accompany me?'
'Oh sure' she said, looking for more loose dirt on her dress, satisfied that the result was minimal 'but are you going to tell me where we're going now?'
'Follow me' Iruka winked again, and offered his hand again 'we'll go slower this time. We're almost there.'
'Heh, alright' she said, taking his hand 'lead the way.'
Iruka was right. They were almost at his destination, which turned out to be a beautiful hall that was holding a large ball, figures twirling as they travelled the dance floor infront of them. Iruka turned and smiled cheekily at Ren, winking at her.
'May I have this dance?' he asked her.
'How do you know I can dance?'
'How do I know you don't?'
'Touché.'
Iruka led her onto the dance floor and pulled her onto the dance floor, preparing his hands into the typical ballroom position. Renita obliged, and followed his lead. The two of them spent hours spinning, twirling and waltzing to the beat of the music. It was a beautiful night, and Renita couldn't believe the fun she was having with him. It was a perfect date, and her adrenaline was running high from sheer enjoyment.
It was early in the morning before Iruka walked her home, carrying her bridal style the last rocky distance of the way, due the a heavy ache on Renita's feet from her shoes.
'There's something I have to ask you' he said, setting her down on the step of her house gently.
'What's up?'
Well, it's two things; One, can I repeat something from earlier tonight and two; can I ask you what rank you are? I don't want to be rude, but I'm curious.'
'One; it depends on what it is and two; I'm a jōnin, if that's nothing wrong….is there?'
'No no, it's not wrong at all. Just curious.'
'What's the repeat?'
'Just this.'
Swiftly, he leaned forward and kissed her again; nothing eager for more, nothing too quick. It was simple, tender and sweet, and they both enjoyed it immensely. He didn't care she was a higher rank, that she was younger than him, or that he hadn't kissed someone in years.
He was happy.
~Earlier that evening~
Kakashi was on his way back from the book store, a new edition of the Icha Icha series open in his hand as he walked A flash of colour caught his eye and he briefly looked up and his heart sank to a deeper level he didn't think possible.
All he saw was Iruka fall on top of Ren in a very ungraceful way and the two of them connect lips.
It was dreadful, seeing his friend so cosy with the girl he so longed after. There was no other explanation for how he felt.
He was jealous.
Aww, wasn't that rough for Iruka to admit?
Please note that while the origin of Iruka's scar has never been officially mentioned before in the series, this is my own personal view of what I think could happen.
*Edit* Okay, I just found out that yes, they have recently told the story of the origin of Iruka's scar. I'll have to change this so it matches the actual plotline of the story but I'm so rproud of how this one was! It's frustrating, but I'm aiming to keep it as close to the Naruto series =(
I hope you enjoyed this heavily long awaited chapter, and I will desperately aim for the next one to be out sooner than this one was.
Remember that if you get bored, please feel free to check out my DeviantART page for concept art and other bits and pieces that I do.
The link for my account is in my profile page for anyone interested x
*Liked it? Tell me what you think. What can I improve, change, what would you like to see? Didn't like it? That's ok. Tell me what you didn't like. I'm not shy for reviews*