Author's Notes: This chapter took a long time to perfect. And it may still be flawed. LOL What else can I say? On to the story!!!

Elbow, Nose, Foot, Rock...Bugs?

It had only been two weeks since their so called assassination attempt and they were already at each others throats. Kakashi turned his back to his partner, lifting his shirt to examine the bandage, which had already soaked through in the last two and half hours they had been moving. Neither shinobi had slept much since they fled Konoha. Neither had eaten much either. They had to keep moving, relocating, keeping their senses on high alert.

The moment word got out that the great Hatake Kakashi had turned traitor and was considered an S-class criminal by his own village, hunter nins had been on their ass trying to collect bounties and make a name for themselves. Genma spent the better part of his waking hours defending his famous partner and the fact that the hunter nins considered him more of an annoyance than a threat was really starting to piss him off. So they bickered for a lack of anything better to do.

They slept when they could and scavenged for food, eating anything that wasn't poisonous, while avoiding all forms of human contact. They had to appear to be in hiding until their first meeting with Sasuke and Shikamaru, which was two and half months away. The only upside to being hunted and constantly moving was that word would get around of their hit and miss sightings, adding fuel to the fire that they had indeed turned traitor.

Genma pulled out a roll of bandages and a small bag with a green oatmeal looking substance, dropping his pack at Kakashi's feet, "Lift." he grunted motioning for his partner to pull up his shirt for him. Kakashi glared and leaned against the tree gulping down what was left of his water. Genma narrowed his eyes and grabbed the bottom of the jonins shirt, jerking it up and ripping the soiled bandage off in one swift movement, "Do you always have to be an ass. Hold your fucking shirt up...please!" he ordered through gritted teeth.

The stare down lasted only a few minutes before Kakashi complied, although Genma was sure retribution would come later when he least expected it. Kneeling down he rub a glob of the green paste into the burn and spread it out evenly, then wiped his hand on Kakashi's pant leg. If he was in any pain, the silver haired jonin didn't show it. But Genma could feel the shinobi's intent to kill and knew he was receiving a death glare, although he chose to ignore it and proceeded to tape a fresh bandage over the wound.

Looking up at Kakashi, he grinned and patted the wound lightly, "There all better. Does Kaka-kun want a sucker for being good?"

"Bite me."

"Ugh. Not until you have a bath." Genma stood, wrinkling his nose and waving a hand in front of his face.

Kakashi grinned perversely, "So you would if I..."

"NO!"

"The last report put their location roughly near the border between Sound and Grass. Right where they should be if they have managed to stick to the plan." Sasuke ran his finger along a thin line on the large map spread out over Tsunade's desk. Shikamaru turned to stare out the darkened window. It was late, about the only time he and Sasuke could both visit the Hokage without raising any suspicion.

"We knew hunter nins would be sent after them, but nothing like ANBU has reported. Without fear of retribution from Konoha, every shinobi country immediately ordered them to bring back their heads." Tsunade leaned back in her chair still eyeing the map, "We can only hope the added publicity will make it easier to earn Ryuujin's trust when they finally do cross paths."

"That wont be for another two and a half months." Shikamaru sighed, "We hope they make it that long without losing their heads."

"I still cant believe what they're saying about Kakashi-sempai and Genma-san. Especially not..."

"But the rumors. It all makes sense doesn't it?"

Sakura shot Ino a dirty look, "You didn't know him. Would you believe it if it was Asuma-sempai?"

"If he was alive...no, I wouldn't believe it." Ino muttered softly.

"I wouldn't either. There is something very wrong with this whole assassination story."

"Sakura, there were witnesses. Not just villagers, other shinobi who also deserve out trust. And you treated Gaara yourself. He's a Kazekage, he wouldn't lie about being attacked." Ino whispered.

Sakura seem to consider her friends words, then shook her head, "No. Something is wrong. There's more to this..."

"I knew that Hatake would turn eventually. He's no better than his old man." a voice carried over the crowd and Sakura's ears instantly perked up as her head turned towards the man she couldn't see. "Coward, running around Fire Country in hiding. Suppose to be all bad ass and what have you. Why doesn't he just off himself like his trash..."

Sakura stood, eyes searching the crowd for the piece of crap mouth she was going to stuff her fist into. She surged forth, pushing people aside angrily as a blonde blur and a loud crash erupted near the bar. Ino hot on her heals, "Move it or lose it buddy!" She could hear her friend cursing behind her as she shoved past the last person.

"Don't ever speak about my friend like that you piece of shit! Hatake Kakashi is a better man than you will ever be!" Naruto's grip on the shinobi's throat tightened, his teeth bared, red eyes burning with rage.

"Naruto." Sakura hadn't meant to whisper, but the sight of her friend broke her heart. All the anger she had planned to take out on the terrified man pinned to the wall slipped away as she walked up behind the angry blonde, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder, "He's not worth it."

Sakura's soft voice and hand chipped away at his rage, but instead of letting the man go, Naruto turned to face the nearby crowd, "That goes for all of you. I don't want to hear even a whisper from anyone about Hatake Kakashi or Shiranui Genma. Is that clear?" he growled. Several heads nodded and others just stared unsure of themselves. Some lowered their eyes or backed away.

"Naruto."

Hinata's small voice seemed to crack the wall of rage he was desperately clinging to and it finally crumbled away. His eyes turned back to blue and he released the man, letting him drop to the floor, red marks where his nails had dug into the skin. Hinata placed her hand on Naruto's cheek and turned his face to look at her, "He'll come back."

She seemed so sure of what she was telling him that Naruto couldn't help believing her. Nodding his head, he turned and wrapped his arms around her tightly, burying his face in the crook of her neck. Sakura looked back at Ino who merely shook her head. She didn't know what to think anymore. Sakura and Naruto seemed so sure that their long time mentor and friend was innocent and would return, she had no choice but to trust their instincts.

When Naruto turned to leave, Hinata's hand tucked securely in his own, he was surprised to find a pair of dark eyes staring back at him, "He stomped you into the ground and you still believe in him. He all but admitted he was leaving and you still trust that he will come back. What makes you so sure dobe?"

"Because you came back and your more of an ass than he has ever been, and that's including his rude behavior this last year." Naruto grinned slightly.

Sasuke's mouth twitched in an attempt to hide his own smile. Naruto had always been able to inspire people, heal them, beat some sense into them, and trust them when no one else would. He believed Naruto's ability to understand and have compassion for other's pain and suffering was his greatest strength. 'And the fact that he never gives up didn't hurt either.' Sasuke turned away from his friend to hide his smirk and led the way out of the bar.

"Are you going to eat that?"

Genma glared at his friend and snatched the last black insect off the leaf plate stuffing it into his mouth. He tried to keep a straight face, but who could when your mouth was full of something crunchy and slimy and tasted like it had shit as a last ditch effort to get revenge.

Genma's face began to contort and turn a slight shade of green, "Drink before you puke up your dinner." Kakashi laughed and tossed him his canteen.

Taking the canteen, he twist off the top and gulped down as much water as he could, then swished some around to get all the little bits and pieces before taking another long drink. "Next time, I get to pick the restaurant." he coughed, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Suit yourself, but no sushi." Kakashi shivered, "And your buying."

Genma dug a piece of bug wing out from between his teeth and flicked it off his finger into the dirt "I hate to say this, but I cant wait to get to that dragon ass's lair..."

"Dragon God." Kakashi corrected with a sarcastic smirk, stabbing his kunai into the dirt again and again in search of desert.

"Whatever. I just wish the next month would just pass already so we can finally sleep in a bed and eat real food."

"You think he's going to be that generous, or that trusting right away? It may take a while after we accidentally on purpose cross into his territory and do something amazingly stupid to catch his attention. Then we have to convince him he cant live without us so he will invite us in for tea. After that..."

"I GET THE FUCKIN POINT ASSHOLE!" Genma yelled, too frustrated to care if every hunter nin in the area had just discovered their location. He was about to toss Kakashi's sorry ass to them and make a break for Konoha, accepting his arrest for bailing on a shitty mission and handing the great Copy brat to the enemy. "I didn't ask to come on this piece of shit mission with the craziest son of bitch in Fire Country!"

"Then why are you here?" Kakashi's eyes seemed fixated on the soft upturned dirt between his legs, his voice barely above a whisper, "You could have stayed in Konoha and let me do what I set out to do on my own."

Genma tugged at his hair for lack of anything else to do to take out his frustration. He wanted to scream and kick and slap some sense into his partner. They were right back where they had started in the hotel room. Kakashi's reasons for suggesting the mission in the first place and wether it had anything to do with his odd behavior lately. "You self absorbed arrogant fuck!"

Kakashi half heartedly pushed off the ground and headed for the nearby stream, pretending to ignore Genma's curses and accusations. He knew they were both just too exhausted to let the argument carry on until one of them finally threw a punch. Although, he was surprised that he wasn't angrier at the irrate jonin. 'I should have already pounded his ass into the ground.' he sighed heavily, kneeling down by the waters edge and dipping his canteen under the surface, 'I must be losing my edge.'

Kakashi was so busy thinking about what his partner had said, both in the hotel and recently, that he didn't hear the man approach until he was face down in the stream, a hand at the back of his head holding him in place. His reaction time had apparently been affected by the lack of sleep and proper food because it took him several seconds for things to click before he started fighting back.

Elbowing Genma in the nose, Kakashi pushed up on hands and knees and inhaled sharply trying to fill his lungs with oxygen again, then coughed hard, "What...the...hell...is...wrong...with you!?" But all Kakashi heard in response was whimpering and Genma rolling back and forth on the ground behind him, "You broke my nose!"

"Serves you right!" Kakashi rolled onto his butt and pressed his hand to his face where a rock had cracked his cheek, blood mixing with the water dripping from his hair down his face. Genma rolled towards him and pushed up, still clutching his nose in one hand. Kakashi looked up from the blood on his hand just in time to see the foot coming at his face.

Genma stood up, staggering slightly and pointed down at the jonin laying on his back across the stream, "You've been asking for..." But before he could finish, he cursed loudly and his back hit the ground hard, the rock that had ricocheted off his forehead rolled several feet away.

Both men lay staring up at the dark forest canopy, breathing hard against the pains they had inflicted upon each other. Genma nursing a broken nose and a lump on his forehead, Kakashi a busted lip and cut along his cheekbone just under a huge bruise. It was quiet for several long minutes, except for the occasional cough or groan.

Kakashi was the first to start laughing.

Just a chuckle, then he couldn't stop himself and it continued to elevate to a hysterical, cant catch your breath kind of laugh.

Genma lifted his head and glared.

Then slowly a smile spread across his face and he shook his head, letting it fall back onto the mossy ground. The ridiculousness of the situation, his ranting and cursing, the bug meals, all adding to the fact that they could be attacked at any moment for being the loudest living thing in a ten mile radius just made it all the more funny.

Not to mention, they had just fought like a couple of school yard boys instead of the shinobi they were suppose to be.

It was a full ten minutes before either of them could keep themselves from bursting out in riotous laughter just by looking at the other.

Genma smiled at Kakashi, "I knew the great Copy brat had a funny bone somewhere in that skinny ass body." he grabbed a handful of moss and tossed it at the silver haired jonin.

Kakashi batted it away still grinning, then after a few minutes he closed his eyes, "You were right. Sort of."

Genma's smile fell away, replaced with mild shock, but he didn't interrupt. He was finally getting what he wanted, the truth, straight from his partners mouth. It almost seemed too good to be true he thought, watching the jonin across from him.

Kakashi draped his arms over his knees, "There is something wrong with me and I did suggest this mission for selfish intentions. I never intended to involve you or anyone else in this. Im sorry Genma." Kakashi's mismatched eyes met Genma's brown.

"Maybe that's part of your problem."

Kakashi frowned, apparently confused.

"Your trying to go it alone. Solving this problem of yours. Maybe that is part of the problem. People aren't meant to be alone all the time Kakashi. Even shinobi need someone other than themselves."

Genma pushed up and walked over to Kakashi, holding out a hand to his friend who's eyes had become thoughtful and unfocused.

After a moment, Kakashi blinked up at the hand, seemingly surprised by its sudden appearance. He hadn't even heard or seen Genma get up. And yet he stood directly in front of him. Then looking past the hand to Genma's face, he took a deep breath before taking his friends offer, letting him pull him to his feet.

"That's twice you've snuck up on me today. I think we should look for a small out of the way inn and indulge ourselves before we get killed by a stray rock."

"Or elbow." Genma smiled and patted Kakashi on the back.

"Or foot." Kakashi chukled.