.

Ino finished off the rest of her cocktail in a single swig. She eyed him carefully for another moment and then sauntered over to the bored looking Jounin. This was for his own good, she kept telling herself as she felt some of the liquid courage course through her veins. It was time to make her move, and she'd be damned if he brushed her off easily.

"Hey, how's it going?" Ino asked brightly, locking her eyes and adapting a similar stance to his own, leaning back against the wall and crossing her arms.

Kakashi let out a deep breath. As soon as he saw the blond finish her drink, he knew this was coming. He looked down at the girl now standing flush against his side, completely at ease. She was grinning up at him with a certain glint in her eye that he didn't quite trust. "Good evening Ino."

"What are you doing just standing over here on your own? This is supposed to be a party!" she exclaimed, getting straight to the point. When the girl received no response however, Ino continued on, lowering her voice an octave. "I've been watching you, you know."

Kakashi tried to do his best to brush off the feeling of unease that was prickling his skin. "I've noticed," he told her wearily, wondering how long this interrogation would last.

"So why don't you get out there? Socialize, mingle, dance or something."

The man shook his head. "I'm content to stay here."

"Well at least let me get you a drink or something. It is an open bar, after all." Ino relaxed from her Kakashi imitation and shifted to stand before him.

"No, thank you," Kakashi answered, feeling slightly irritated as he contemplated the wisdom to allow all Chunin drink, despite their age.

Ino huffed, doing her best to look the petulant child. "You really are no fun, you know that? Why come to a party if all you were going to do was stand in the corner and sulk?"

Really, the man could be impossible sometimes. Was it so bad to just loosen up and have some fun? She really didn't understand why he was being so difficult.

"I'm not sulking, and I only came because the Hokage made me."

No, that didn't sound like sulking at all...

"Oh, well last I saw her, she was already two sheets to the wind. It would probably be easy for you to sneak out now if you really wanted to." Not that she wanted him to...

"I would, but she, in all her infinite wisdom, decided it would be a good idea to pack half the top ranked shinobi of the village in a confined space, with an open bar. Someone needs to stay sober enough to break up any fights."

And maybe if he kept telling himself that, he'd actually start to believe it... Kakashi gave the girl a brief smile. She really was just trying to be friendly. It was… kind of sweet of her.

"Oh, come on," Ino continued on with a smirk. "You only turn thirty nine once-" Kakashi gave her a look. "Or ten times, depending on whom you ask. Nothing bad has happened yet, and it seems like everyone is having a good time. Well almost everyone," she added, glancing up suspiciously.

"Ino," he said, for the first time giving her his full attention. "I don't need your company. Go have fun with your friends." There was no need for her to feel obliged to keep an odd man like him company.

"I'd like to think that I am," she answered, smiling brightly and causing his eyebrow to raise just a fraction of an inch. "So tell me, Kaka-sensei. Do you have a girlfriend?"

The warmth he'd been beginning to feel for the girl suddenly turned cold. "Exactly how much have you had to drink?"

"Not nearly enough," Ino grinned mischievously, not the slightest bit abashed. "And that wasn't an answer. I mean it, you got a girl?" She poked him painfully in the ribs. "You know, I bet you'd loosen up a bit if you got laid more often."

Kakashi's mouth dropped. What was it with kids these days? Or maybe it was just Ino in general. "Ino…"

"I mean it. I could be your wingman." The man grimaced as the girl became elated with her new found idea. "Women are much more likely to go for a guy that's recommended by another chick. We're expected to know better."

"Ino..."

"Oh, what about her?" The blonde pointed across the room, her eyes alight with excitement. "She's pretty hot. And that dress, it's just screaming easy access."

Maybe, if he didn't mind the idea of catching anything… "Ino, I'm really not interested."

"Well, what about her?" She pointed to another woman who was partially obscured by a support beam. "She's not… never mind. Nice body though, shame about the face."

"Ino!" Were Asuma alive, he'd swear to buy the man a drink next time they met. As it was, he was finding a new found respect for the man.

"What about-"

"I'm not interested," he interrupted loudly, almost laughing.

Ino bit her lip, trying to figure out just how her best friend's sensei worked. There certainly wasn't a lack of attractive females present… "Oh-Oh!" she exclaimed, giving him yet another painful nudge. He looked almost scared in reply. "I get it." She grinned triumphantly. "I've also got an excellent gaydar. And I know of more than one strapping young shinobi that wouldn't mind seeing beneath your-"

"I'm not gay," Kakashi cut in, infinitely sure he did not want to know how that sentence finished.

Well she was persistent, that he could give her…

"So, what's wrong then?" Ino went back to leaning against the wall, apparently growing bored with her new found game. "Are you the type that only goes for civvies? Cause there's a few of them here too. Though personally, I never understood the appeal."

"Some find it preferable to widowhood," he deadpanned.

Ino huffed, crossing her arms. "Cheerful as ever, you are."

"Look, it's not that I don't appreciate- actually I don't appreciate your help. So please stop," he told her seriously. "I'm not interested in finding a girlfriend."

"I wasn't really talking specifically about a girlfriend, you know. I just think you need to get laid."

If Kakashi wasn't slowly getting conditioned to Ino's eccentricities, he'd probably find himself somewhat uncomfortable with her current line of thought. But at this point, all he could do was take a deep breath and give the girl his best dispassionate glance. "Goodnight, Ino."

"What about her?" She pointed to yet another random woman unfortunate enough to find herself under Ino's stare. "Now you can't tell me you don't find her attractive."

Kakashi surveyed the crowd, desperate to find something usable as an excuse. His eyes fell upon Naruto, apparently making a grand demonstration amongst a group of on lookers. "Oh, would you look at that, Naruto's attempting to mix a drink using Resangan. Gotta go."

"What? Where? Kaka-sensei!"

The man had disappeared and all Ino could do was huff. She'd failed. And what's worse is that now the man was likely gong to actively avoid her. Well this simply wouldn't do…

.

.

"Are you sure you don't want another shot, Tenten? This one's pink!" Sakura giggled, looking at the four shots lined up across their table.

The brown haired kunoichi shook her head ruefully, her face already flushed and her body feeling strangely weighted down to her seat. "No thank you. I'm done for the night. Don't want any repeats of Ino's last party."

"Oh come on, it was hilarious," Kiba laughed, nudging her with one hand while the other rested across the back of her chair.

Tenten turned to scowl darkly at the boy who seemed much too proud of himself at her side. "You let me believe I'd slept with you, for over two weeks!"

Kiba bared his teeth, grinning proudly. "Like I said, hilarious."

"Speaking of Ino, where is she?" Sakura asked, preferring to survey the crowed rather than the obviously soon to be couple before her.

"Last I saw, she was hanging all over your sensei," Tenten commented, holding her head in her hands while her elbow rested on the table. "Maybe we should cut her off too."

"No, he managed to lose her a while ago…" Sakura answered vaguely, still searching the crowd. "Though now I can't find him either."

It was then that Shizune came rushing up to their table, looking panicked. "Sakura, you haven't seen Lady Tsunade have you?"

Sakura blinked, stunned by the kunoichi's abrupt and disheveled appearance. "Um, no. Is everything all right?"

"How about Kakashi? Have you seen him?" Shizune continued frantically.

"Not in a while. Why, what's going on?"

The woman took a moment to compose her self, which wasn't easy considering her red face and disheveled clothes. "It's Lady Tsunade, she- Well Kakashi tried to get out of coming to night by leaving a pile of reports to the last minute, but she refused to take that as an excuse and demanded he hand in the unfinished ones anyways. I think she planned on getting you to finish them later-" Sakura rolled her eyes. "But then council made a stink, so now she's stuck filling them out and well…"

"Kakashi's a dead man?" Sakura finished for her.

"Something like that."

"Well, I'll keep my eye out for him," she told her, not at all feeling the least bit sorry should Tsunade track down her wayward sensei.

"Thanks. I've got to go find her." Shizune looked over the crowd once more, feeling her face heat up in anxiety. "She's already pretty drunk and carrying a bottle 70% proof."

Sakura's mouth dropped while Tenten's eyes perked up. "Oh, god. Is that stuff even legal?"

"Only in two of the five of the great nations," the woman cringed. She then turned to continue her frantic search for the leaf village's Hokage.

"Well if you find her, send some over here," Kiba called as Shizune disappeared into the crowd.

Sakura gave him a look, to which he simply shrugged and shifted his chair closer to the quickly fading Tenten.

.

.

"Hey, Kaka-sensei. Where've you been?" Sakura was finally able to locate her sensei, quite unintentionally, after making her escape from a cringe worthy budding romance.

"Sakura?" He squinted down at her with a wide smile and looking none to steady on his feet.

"Yes…" she answered hesitantly, taking in his odd appearance. He then shocked her by letting out the smallest of giggles. That was it; Sakura knew something was definitely not right. "What's wrong with you?"

He laughed, leaning back against the wall. "I'm drunk."

Sakura blinked. Okay, yes she certainly could not be called sober at the moment, but even then she still had enough sense to know that Kakashi sensei and drunk were not two things she'd ever think to witness together. "Are you serious?"

"Yep," he answered with a resounding pop and teetering slightly. "It was- it was Tsunade."

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked with growing concern.

"She made me go shot for shot with her. Evil woman." Kakashi scowled. "Said if I didn't, she'd send me on twenty back to back D-ranks… and then make me fill out the paper work."

Her mouth dropped. Tsunade had… "You went shot for shot with Lady Tsunade?" Her shishou was even more vindictive than she'd thought possible.

"And she knows I'm a light weight," Kakashi moaned pathetically. "This was her idea of revenge."

Sakura quirked a half smile. Chances were this was the only time she'd ever get the opportunity to witness this. "Are you going to be alright? You're not looking too well."

Kakashi then did something that truly frightened her. He reached over and embraced the girl in an awkward half hug, holding her to his side with one arm and looking down at her with a bright, glossy eye. "Did I ever tell you how much you remind me of my old teammate, Rin?"

"Uh, no…" Sakura replied, trying yet failing to casually extract herself from her drunken sensei's overly affectionate grasp. Admittedly, her interest was slightly peeked, but somehow being hugged by Kakashi was winning out on the overall creep out factor. "You don't talk about your past, remember?"

"Well, you do," he began, pulling her in tightly for another squeeze. "You've turned into a great medic, just like her. Though you're a bit louder, and more violent, and can still be a bit of a bitch at times."

Sakura scowled. "You know sensei, that's not really a compliment," she replied, just able to wiggle herself free from his grip.

"But I'm really proud of you. All you guys."

Sakura took another step back. "And you're kind of creeping me out."

.

.

Ino found her cherry haired friend next to- him. She squinted in annoyance. So she wasn't good enough company but she was? Like hell she was going to take that!

"Hey forehead, I've been looking all over for you," Ino called, grabbing Sakura by the arm and pulling her away, blissfully unaware that Sakura was silently thanking the gods for her interruption.

"What do you want?" she asked, doing her best to appear annoyed.

Ino grinned, holding up a laminated sheet of paper that was over a foot long. "I just got a hold of the martini list. I think it's our duty as kunoichi to thoroughly investigate."

Sakura stared at the sheet being brandished before her. "You can't be serious."

"Never question a girl in her quest to explore a martini list."

Sakura looked back over the crowd. Kakashi had somehow managed to disappear in those few short seconds and everyone else she recognized were most definitely and thoroughly trashed.

The girl sighed in defeat. "Fine, fine…"

Who said there was nothing for peer pressure?

.

.

When Kakashi woke up the first thing he noticed was that his head was killing him. His head hurt, his body ached, and his stomach was not at all happy. His eyes squinted. What the hell happened last night?

Feebly, he tried to piece together the bits of memory he had left. He remembered most of the evening, that is until Tsunade had cornered him, swinging a bottle and shouting about paper work and Jounin responsibilities. After that, things got fuzzy, and then black. Did she get him drunk?

The sound of a quite female sigh brought his attention back to the present, causing his whole body to go still. He then turned his head, the queasy feeling multiplying ten fold. blond hair was spread across the pillow while a small female body rested beneath the sheets. It only took a moment to register.

It was Ino.

.