Author's Note: OH. MY. GOSH.
I haven't been on this site in FOREVER. I'm so sorry. College is more overwhelming than I thought it would be. :(
As you can see... this isn't a GaaraxOC story. As I was writing it, I figured that it was kind of difficult to write, so I scrapped it and began writing a Kakashi story. :)
Hopefully you guys like it! I promise I'll try to make more time for writing! :D
If you would be so kind as to review, that would just make me the happiest I've been since I last read all your amazing reviews on Shadow Possession of the Heart!

Chapter One: Friendship

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

"Ugh…"

BEEP! BEE-THUD.

Whoosh, creeeakk… pat, pat.

"Hmm… ARRGH,"

Snap, crack, pop.

"Ahh…"

"Morning, sleepyhead."

"AHH!"

Startled by the unsuspected greeting, I reached quickly to grab my blanket from the floor to hide myself from the mysterious intruder. I nearly broke my neck with the speed that I averted my gaze to the window on my right. Once my heart stopped racing from the initial shock, however, I rolled my eyes. Perched on the windowsill with a book in his hand and a glazed look in his visible black eye was Kakashi Hatake. He was my best friend in Konoha, yet he was unwelcome in my house before sunrise, nonetheless. Shuffling toward him, I reached my hand out to smack him on the back of the head. "You scared me!"

"Oh, come on," he laughed as he snapped his book shut and rested his arms on his knees, "I used to do this all the time."

"Keyword: USED to."

"Technically, that was two words…"

I ignored his smartass comment and turned on my heel to search for something to wear, rolling my eyes again as I heard Kakashi's muffled laughter. The floors creaked as he slid off the ledge to land inside the room, and the gentle tapping of his shoes signaled that he was advancing inside. I opened the doors to my closet and began sliding the hangers back and forth as I searched its contents, all the while keeping my blanket wrapped around my body. Picking out a plum-colored long sleeve shirt and faded charcoal capris, I closed the closet doors and tossed the articles on my bed.

Kakashi stood at the foot of my bed, his hands shoved into his pockets and his right leg crossed nonchalantly over his left. I simply glared at him until he finally spoke, "Yes?"

"I need to get changed."

"Oh,"

He didn't move, nor did it seem like he had even considered moving, so I groaned and rolled my eyes at him. "Kakashi, turn around."

"But Kae, why?"

"You know damn well why!" My lip curled in annoyance.

"Alright, alright," he laughed, holding his hands up in defeat, "I'm going." He spun around and leaned his elbows against the windowsill to look out at the village. Afraid that Kakashi might turn back prematurely, I hurriedly dropped the blanket to the floor so that I could change. A shiver ran through my body when the cool air hit my exposed skin. I had only worn a t-shirt to bed that night, and when I realized that Kakashi must have seen me when I woke, I blushed. Trying to shake the thought out of my head, I quickly stepped into my shorts before replacing my nightshirt with the new purple one. "Alright," I sighed, "I'm done."

"I know," he calmly replied.

I raised my eyebrows in confusion. When he turned around, I noticed that he had pulled his headband upward to expose his gleaming red Sharingan eye, and, despite the mask that covered the bottom half of his face, I could tell that a smirk was playing on his lips. A nervous jolt shot through my heart, causing it to begin beating rapidly, and I gasped. "Don't tell me that thing lets you see what's behind you…"

When he chuckled and returned the black fabric to its usual place, concealing the Sharingan, I knew that he had only played a little joke on me. Quickly, while laughing at my expense preoccupied him, I wound my fist back to land a powerful punch to his left shoulder. "You jerk! You know that I've never understood that stupid eye of yours!"

While attempting to soothe the pain in his arm by rubbing the injured area, he replied, "That's exactly why it's an easy way to mess with you."

"Ugh," I grumbled while I rolled my eyes at him.

"I'll explain it to you again," he offered.

"Please," I sighed, rubbing my temples. This is going to be a long day…

"The Sharingan allows the user enhanced clarity of perception. For example, I can tell the difference between a clone and an actual person. Because of this enhanced perception, I can read lip movements or mimic another person's actions. The Sharingan also allows me to memorize any sort of jutsu or technique that I witness. Pretty cool, huh?"

"So you don't have x-ray vision, or anything like that?"

"No, I don't," he paused for a moment before continuing in a wistful tone, "if only I had the Byakugan…"

"Kakashi!" Despite my lack of clarity regarding the Sharingan, I knew what the Byakugan was. Slowly I was becoming calloused to his perverted antics, and while slapping him on the arm I actually found myself laughing. "Those books that you've been reading really have turned you into a dirty old man."

"Hey," he said, placing his hand over his heart melodramatically, "I'm not that old."

Laughing, I turned around to approach my dresser and open the top drawer. "Perverted, nonetheless." I grasped the black fabric of my own ninja headband and pulled it out of the drawer before closing it. Before tying it around my forehead, I pulled my long blonde hair into a high ponytail that flowed down to the small of my back. After stealing into the bathroom to brush my teeth, I quickly lined my chocolate brown eyes with black liner and slid my feet into my black sandals before facing Kakashi. "Ready?"

"In case you forgot, I've been waiting for you this whole time."

I playfully flicked his forehead with my index finger before smiling at him. "Then let's go."

In a mutual, unspoken agreement, Kakashi and I decided that simply using the front door to exit my apartment was too boring, so instead we each climbed out of my bedroom window and used the rooftops and awnings to gracefully lower ourselves to the ground. Once we had safely landed, earning a couple of strange looks from random passers-by, we navigated through the streets of Konoha side-by-side.

"So," I sighed, gazing off into the distance at the rising sun, "what are your plans for Squad Seven today?"

"Lady Hokage has assigned us a mission in the Land of Waves; I'm meeting Naruto and Sakura at the gate so we can leave."

"What type of mission?"

"B-Rank."

"Agh," I grumbled, "I'd kill to go on a B-Ranked mission right about now. All these D-Ranked missions are driving me crazy." I was the leader of Squad Thirteen, a group of Genin ninja who were straight out of the Academy. Since they had so little experience, Lady Hokage will only allow them to complete low-priority missions, such as rescuing a missing cat or weeding the community gardens.

Kakashi laughed. "Ah, I remember those days."

"You're lucky you have Chunin to work with. At least they know what they're doing."

"Technically," Kakashi interjected, "Naruto is still a Genin."

"Come on," I scoffed, "the kid trained under Master Jiraiya, he perfected the Rasengan in less than a week, and he's got the Nine Tailed Fox sealed inside of him, granting him unreal amounts of chakra. He may be a Genin on paper, but he's an exceptional shinobi, nevertheless."

Kakashi shrugged his shoulders. "I guess you're right. He is something else."

We continued along the rocky path that stretched all the way across the village until I could see figures with pink and blonde hair waiting at the gate. Sakura and Naruto…

"Well," I sighed, "I'll leave you to your mission. I'm headed to the training field for a fun-filled day of playing drill-sergeant." I forced a smile onto my lips.

Kakashi coaxed me into his arms for a friendly hug, and I happily obliged. The familiar musky scent of his Jonin uniform floated into my nose, morphing my fake smile into a real one. "I'll see you later," he said before we had separated.

I watched him walk toward the gate, laughing when he pulled Makeout Paradise from the holster strapped to his leg and resumed his reading. Turning on my heel, I headed down a side street to meet my squad at the training field.