Thank you to chibi-aiichan, Ryu Earth, Ravenclaw Samurai, azigah, and Nezkov Sou for reviewing the first chapter, and to everyone who added this story to their alerts. :)
Chapter 2
"Kakashi, are you sure you're thinking this through?" Sarutobi Asuma asked as he followed the silver-haired man into Konoha's Home for Children . Kakashi's eyes crinkled into a smile.
"Iruka said I had to grow up and be responsible. If getting a kid isn't responsible, nothing is," he replied. Asuma shook his head.
"I don't think that's how it-"
"Hello, there! I have an appointment to see Tsunade-san," Kakashi greeted the secretary, a flustered-looking woman with short brown hair. She nodded and gestured for them to take a seat before she stood and scurried out of the room. Kakashi flopped down in one of the chairs placed against the wall of the lobby, with his long legs splayed out. Asuma lowered himself into a chair two away from Kakashi's to avoid the other man's feet.
"Kakashi, I don't think you're going about this the right way. You live like a 19-year-old in his first bachelor pad. That's no place for a kid," the dark-haired male continued. Kakashi eyed him lazily.
"These kids need homes, Asuma, and I'm offering one. Are you seriously telling me to deny a child a home?" One silver eyebrow lifted accusingly. Asuma sighed and sat back, turning to stare at the empty reception desk. The secretary came back a few minutes later.
"Tsunade-sama will see you now," she told them, scuttling back to her seat behind the desk asa if it were a force field blocking them from intruding on her personal space. Kakashi stood, but Asuma remained seated.
"I'll wait out here. I really want no part of this, Kakashi," he mumbled. Kakashi shrugged merrily and sidled towards the door to Tsunade's office. A blonde woman with brown eyes and enormous breasts glared at him over a sheet of paper she held in one hand.
"Hatake Kakashi, I presume?" Kakashi couldn't help but feel as if he was being accused of some petty crime. He nodded and gave the woman a small bow in greeting. "Have a seat," she ordered. He hurriedly set himself down in one of the chairs placed in front of the woman's desk. She returned to reading over the paper, effectively tuning him out. He sat awkwardly for at least three long, quiet minutes before she set the document down and eyed him carefully. "So, you want a kid."
"Well, yes, I-"
"Why would someone like you want a kid?" Tsunade cut him off. Kakashi blinked.
"Why would I-"
"Tell me what this says." The orphanage director tossed the paper she had been reading at him. He glanced down at it.
"Hatake Kakashi. Twenty-seven years old, unmarried. Occupation, cashier-"
"That's enough. So, tell me why a young, unfocused bachelor like you wants to bring a child into his life," she questioned him. Kakashi fidgeted under her calculating gaze.
"Okay, then. I love kids, and I've always wanted to have children of my own. It's gotten pretty late in my life, and I want a family. I could make some of my own, but the right woman just hasn't come along, so I thought, 'Why not give a family to a kid that needed one instead of creating even more little monsters." he explained. Tsunade raised one disbelieving eyebrow. She stared at him in expectant silence, and he sighed in defeat. "I'm a fag…?"
"That's what I was waiting to here," the blonde smirked. She leaned forward and scribbled something onto a notepad.
"Does that make me ineligible to adopt?" Kakashi asked curiously. Tsunade shook her head.
"No, we just like to know what sort of environment our kids are being released into. Some of the children here have had traumatic experiences, and we try to find the best fit for their needs. Like one little girl that came here about ten years ago had developed a fear of men after her father abused bother her and her mother before the parents were killed in a car accident. We ended up putting her with a lesbian couple that could afford to put her through therapy. She's seventeen now, and she has a boyfriend and everything," Tsunade told him, letting a small smile cross her lips as she wrote down a few more things in her notepad.
"So gay is good?" the silver-haired man asked, waggling his eyebrows. Tsunade snickered but didn't reply. "How am I doing on your score sheet?"
"Decent. You should see some of the whack-jobs that filter through here. One man came and asked for a kid that he could transplant his soul into and become immortal. I called the police on that one," she told him. "Anyways, we just have to have someone inspect your residence and file through your finances to make sure you are able to keep a healthy environment for a child. Is there an age range or gender you would prefer to adopt? We have no children under the age of three at the moment. The younger children tend to go faster than the older. New couples want to raise the kid as their own, and the babies are like clean slates."
"What age are most of the children?"
"Well, we have a lot of five- and six-year-old boys right now. Families aren't adopting as much as they used to, not with the new scientific ways to ensure healthy pregnancies. Not to mention surrogacy and fertility treatments. People prefer their own flesh and blood, which I do understand, but they forget all about the little ones that need homes already," Tsunade said sadly. Kakashi nodded in understanding.
"Well, I think a five-year-old boy would be the best match. I'd be able to take care of him much better than say... a two-year-old girl..."
"Alright, it looks like we have all we need here." Tsunade clasped her hands together in closing. "It was nice to meet you, Hatake-san. We will be calling you in a few days to let you know if you meet our standards for adoption, and if you do, you can come back and meet some of the kids. Sound good?" Kakashi nodded and stood.
"Thank you, Tsunade-san, for giving me this opportunity," he said graciously, adding in another polite bow. She nodded in response. He had turned around and was almost to the door when she called his name.
"Kakashi-san, this is a tremendous thing you are doing, offering a home to a child in need. Don't let me down, okay?" she told him. Kakashi smiled behind his mask, his eyes crinkling.
"Of course, m'lady," he drawled, and then slipped out the door, not looking back to see Tsunade shaking her head.
Asuma was dozing off when Kakashi trooped back into the lobby of the orphanage. The taller man tapped him on the shoulder to rouse him, then stuck out his finger. Asuma turned to look at Kakashi, but was meet by a finger poking into his cheek. The two men stared at each other for a minute, Asuma a little confused and Kakashi grinning with glee. When the dark-haired male recovered, he slapped Kakashi's hand away.
"That hardly seems like a responsible thing to do for someone who aims to adopt a kid, Kakashi," he growled. Kakashi beamed and led the way out of the building. When they finally emerged out into the sunshine, Asuma finally asked, "So how'd it go?"
"Splendidly. They should be delivering my child in a few days. I didn't feel like paying the fee for overnight shipping," Kakashi replied. Asuma mock-punched him on the shoulder. "Alright, alright. They just have to come inspect my place, and make sure I'm financially sound enough to support myself and the kid."
"Kakashi, are you sure you want to do this? I mean, remember when you got that dog? That didn't go down well," the shorter male warned. Kakashi shrugged.
"Pakkun was one of a kind, and besides, he's in a much happier place now!" he shot back, indignantly. Asuma snorted.
"Yes, you dropped him off with that pervert, Jiriaya, after you discovered the feeding him alphabet soup wouldn't enable him to speak."
"And he loves it there! Jiraiya lives so far up the mountain, he's practically a hermit. Plus, now Pakkun has a ton of other doggie friends to mingle with," Kakashi exclaimed. With that, he shoved one hand into his back pocket, whipped out his book, and walked off. Asuma shook his head and slowly followed.
"I need a smoke."
Naruto sat alone in the corner of the playroom, watching the other children build a tower with big, colorful blocks. The teacher, Ms. Yuuhi, was standing by the door, talking to someone who was standing just out of view in the hallway. She wasn't aware that the other boys and girls had chased him away as soon as she had turned her attention away. A boy named Neji, with long brown hair and scary eyes had told him to go away, because Naruto was clumsy and would no doubt destroy their hard work. Neji was one of the older kids in the class, and he thought he could boss everyone around for that reason.
Naruto sighed dramatically, shoulders heaving, and looked down at the single toy dinosaur he held in his hand. The plastic dino had big legs and tiny arms, and its mouth was open to display a set of sharp teeth. It had a name but Naruto couldn't pronounce it, so he just called it "Roary".
Playtime came to a halt when the teacher clapped her hands and told everyone it was snack time. A few kids let out cheers and rushed over to the tables. Naruto noticed that Neji had knocked over the tower in his hurry to get to his seat. When they were all seated, Ms. Yuuhi clapped her hands twice, not noticing the blonde child that remained seated in the corner, holding tightly onto his dinosaur.
"Okay, class, it's time to be quiet-"
"But Ms. Yuuhi!" a blue eyed girl named Ino, who had blonde hair down past her waist, waved her hand in the air.
"Yes, Ino-chan?" the teacher acknowledged.
"Naruto didn't come over to the table! He still thinks it's playtime," the little girl tattled. The girl next to her snorted.
"Naruto's so dumb," she announced, twisting a lock of pink hair in her fingers.
"That's not polite, Sakura-chan. We don't call other children names," Ms. Yuuhi chided. Then she turned to spot Naruto. "Naruto-chan, please come join us at the table, dear." The blonde boy knew better than to disobey the teacher's instructions, because that would make Iruka upset. He picked himself up off of the floor and shuffled over, clutching the dino in his hands. "Naruto, you know that you're not allowed to bring toys to the table," the woman told him gently. Naruto clutched the toy tighter.
"But, If I leave him over there, he'll be lonely," the little boy protested.
"Naruto, there are plenty of other toys to keep Mr. T-Rex company, so please put him back where he belongs."
"No, he'll be lonely!" Naruto persisted.
"Naru-"
"No! He's the only dinosaur here! He doesn't have any other dinos to be with, so he should stay with me! He won't be lonely, then!" Naruto hugged the plastic toy to his chest and shut his eyes tightly. He could her the teacher make her way over to him and stoop down to his level. He let one baby blue eye peek open to meet her red-brown eyes.
"Narut-chan, I know that you think Mr. T-Rex will be lonely because he's different, but that's not true. All the other toys love Mr. T-Rex because he's different, not because he's just like them. Being different makes you special," she told the five-year-old gently. Naruto blinked up at her, and she thought he was about to hand the toy over to her waiting hand when the little boy spoke once more.
"But… I'm different, but none of the other kids like me at all…" he whispered. She was too shocked to reply, only able to gape at the tiny blonde. Naruto hugged the toy closer. "I wanna go home…"
Iruka walked into the kindergarten building with a heavy heart. He'd gotten a call from the school, and was informed that Naruto had been brought to the office as a sobbing mess. He had been able to hear the boy sobbing in the background throughout the phone call.
"Umino-san, thank you for coming over so quickly. We've tried to calm Naruto down, but I'm afraid he might make himself sick if he keeps crying the way he is," Kurenai Yuuhi told him as he stepped inside the doors. Iruka gave her a half-hearted smile.
"It's alright. I'll just take him home and give him some ramen noodles," the brunette man replied. "Do you know what brought this on?" Kurenai sighed.
"I'm afraid the other children have been excluding him from the group. For what reason, I have no idea. I'm going to be talking to them all when they come back from their lunch," the young woman answered. Iruka nodded solemnly. "Anyway, Naruto is back in Sarutobi's office." She turned and led the way to the principal's office. She opened the office's door and let Iruka through.
Naruto was sitting in one of the comfortable chairs in front of the principal's desk, his knees pulled up to his chest. Sarutobi sat in the second chair, making some friendly conversation with the child. They both looked up when Iruka stopped beside their seats.
"'Ruka-chan, you came to get me?" Naruto asked, his wide watery eyes filled with childish hope. Iruka smiled.
"Ms. Yuuhi called me and said you were very sad, so I thought I'd come cheer you up."
"The other boys and girls didn't want to play with me…" the small blonde mumbled. Iruka knelt beside the his adoptive son.
"Then they're all missing out on how much fun you can be." He rubbed the spiky blonde hair affectionately. Naruto smiled and shrugged in embarrassment. The brunette turned to face Sarutobi.
"I'm sorry for any trouble he caused. I know he can be a bit difficult, but it sounds like the other children were being a bit cruel…" The old man sighed.
"Yes, and I'll be personally attending their class tomorrow to talk to them about being kind to their classmates," he told Iruka. "Will Naruto attend school tomorrow?"
"I'll have to ask him in the morning if he's feeling up to it. So, I'll just take him home now."
"Alright. I have to get back to work. A friend of my nephew is enrolling his child into our kindergarten. He mentioned you, actually, Iruka-san. You don't know a Hatake Kakashi, do you?"
"Hatake-san? He's enrolling a child?"
"He is. From what we know, he adopted a little boy a few days ago. A five-year-old named Sasuke. With a new child, comes a new load of paperwork," the principal explained. Iruka stared at him in shock.
Kakashi adopted a child?
Like it? :)
I'm trying to keep everyone in character...