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"You are on medical leave. No."

"I want a mission."

Lion groaned. "I don't care. No."

"I want a mission."

"For god's sakes." The ANBU commander leaned back in his chair to look up at the operative before him. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but if you're this antsy, go to your fix. You're in no condition to-"

"Not my fix anymore. I want a mission."

The commander stiffened. He sat still for a moment, then slowly nodded and shifted through the files on his desk. "On the other hand… here's an A rank. Below your caliber, but considering your medical condition, just right. …For what it's worth, Hound, I think that fix would've been good for you if you weren't in ANBU. But you are, and he would have made you weak. I'm sorry you had to lose him."

Hound said nothing. He just accepted the file, opened it, and almost as quickly shut it and handed it back. "I will leave immediately. Already have prepared the necessary supplies. Will return as soon as possible."

"Yeah, yeah. Take your time. That mission was meant for Treefrog, a rookie, so I won't be worried unless you don't come back for three days. As long as it's in that time frame, you're good."

Hound nodded and vanished.

A simple A-rank for an ANBU rookie was child's play, for the great Copy Ninja. Hound didn't bother wasting even a spark of his low Chakra in tracking down the rogue chuunin that was lurking along a trade route between Konoha and Fog Country, attacking and robbing travelers. He didn't bother with any fancy jutsu or specialized techniques- this man wasn't worth that.

The man screamed when he saw death coming for him in the form of a white ANBU mask. His brown eyes, brown like Ir- like his fix, widened in fright, and he tried to resist and fight, but it was pointless. Hound easily and effectively slit his throat, then sealed the body immediately into a transportation scroll. Returning bodies of enemy ninja in perfect condition meant a bonus for Hound and, more importantly, a chance for Konoha to research on the bodies and investigate more into other villages. The actions of this chuunin missing nin were going to help Konoha learn about the Hidden Mist.

Mission accomplished in record time. And now, Hound remembered what he was- he was a creature who accomplished missions. That was all he did and all he existed for. It had been foolish of him to try and become something different with his fix. He was a machine, and Iruka was human. They did not mix.

With another two and a half days on the clock until he had to return to Konoha, Hound decided to check up on his other teammates. Cat was safe in the village, but Sparrow and Turtle were out undercover in a very dangerous situation.

He was Hound, and he was a machine. The only people that mattered to him were Cat, Sparrow, and Turtle. There was no Academy sensei. There was his ANBU squad and no one else.

"Sparrow has been successfully infiltrated into the camp. So far, he has been assigned no missions and been told little. Taiyo's been busy with negotiations; it seems like their only hazing ritual is having the boss talk to the newcomer, and since the boss hasn't had time yet, Sparrow's been stuck waiting."

Hound nodded at that, casting a wary look over Turtle's shoulder, towards the camp. "Any idea what Taiyo wants to talk to him about?"

"Considering how these operations usually go? Why exactly he went missing nin and joined up with this group."

That gave Hound pause. "They haven't asked already? …What were their requirements to let him join last week, exactly? Do they know anything about him at all?"

"Just his name, ex-rank, and his old village."

Hound shifted uneasily. "…I don't like this. For a camp of missing nin, they are very easygoing. Be ready; they could already know Sparrow's not really missing nin and are just waiting for the right time and place to act. And, earlier, when you said that Taiyo was involved in negotiations- negotiations with who? Why?"

"With Tea Country, actually. It seems that their government is less unaware of the missing nin's presence here than we first thought. I stayed here to watch Sparrow, but he managed to get word to me that Taiyo was talking with a friend of the daimyo- it looks like the missing nin have been paying the government off in order to stay here and be left alone."

That was even more unusual. "That's… odd. This country has no hidden village; you'd think that instead of paying money, the ninja would just take a few missions from the government as payment for letting them hide out here."

Turtle nodded in agreement. "Yeah; Sparrow thinks so, too. Said he'll try and find something else but promises nothing; he's on thin enough ice as is."

Hound paused, then inclined his head and stepped back into the dark trees. His mission was accomplished, and his team was well. Hound's persona was beginning to relax and fade, Kakashi struggling to break through, still uneasy from when his ANBU identity had overtaken him without permission. But Hound relied on the cold mask and stayed in charge, all the way until the ANBU operative had made it back to Konoha.

The transition from efficient killing machine to nervous, socially awkward, and lonely jounin was natural and easy. Hound dropped off the body in the transportation scroll and steadfastly avoided Iruka's home, and the civilian district. He just went back to his apartment, dropped the mask, and allowed himself to become human once again.

But he wasn't human, was he? Humans didn't kill. Humans had friends and relationships and… he wasn't sure what else, but he knew that humans were like the people he saw on the streets of Konoha, who walked around and smiled and laughed and were happy. He wasn't one of them. He would lurk in his dark apartment or perhaps in a tree, watching with confusion as the denizens of Konoha went about their day. Sometimes he would watch and try to see what he was missing, what made them human and him not- other times, he would just sit there and look on with longing.

He wasn't human. And that was why he couldn't be near Iruka again. Nice, kind, sweet, patient, helpful, calming Iruka. Everything he touched turned to mud. Iruka was human- therefore, not a fit for a monster like him. It was simple.

Simple, and yet it hurt. He had only barely known Iruka for two weeks, but the man did something for him- he calmed him like nobody else ever had, not since Minato had died. Kakashi had thought that maybe, just maybe, Iruka would be able to dispel this pathetic darkness he called a life but then- no. He couldn't risk losing control and hurting him. He was known for being a killer. Those he touched, those he grew close to- he killed. He would not let that happen to Iruka.

That was okay. Things would just go back to being the way they always had. The civilian district would become his fix, and he would stay ANBU captain Hound and kill and maim until someone maimed and killed him. …The thought of just going back to that, though, when he had almost had a possibility of changing it… it hurt.

Kakashi didn't have time to stay and mourn, though. Kakashi didn't have time to be Kakashi at all. He had only just begun to clean and sharpen the kunai he'd just recently used to kill when he felt his upper right arm begin to burn. He dropped the weapon reflexively to reach up and grasp at the tattoo, then sighed in resignation.

Time for Hound. Again.

When Hound reported for duty, it was to what looked like all the available operatives assembled together in ANBU headquarters. Lion was at the head of the group of about forty solders, pacing back and forth and pouring over a slim sheet of paper in his hands. Hound joined the silent ranks and stood, waiting. For so many ANBU to be assembled, it had to be an emergency.

His thoughts went to Sparrow, about to be interrogated by missing nin- what if his cover was blown? No- that was improbable. It was impossible that Lion would have known before he had. Turtle was supposed to report to his captain, not the commander. Besides, he had only just spoken with Turtle, and everything was fine.. Yes… improbable.

Two more other operatives joined the small army, and then Lion turned to face his men and began to speak. "There has been a very serious breach in security. One of the Academy sensei was taking his class on a field trip to the forest near the southern gate in order to educate his students on poisonous and edible foods one might be exposed to on missions- he has not returned. He was set to bring his class back at 1200 hours; that was five hours ago. The other Academy sensei who went looking for them discovered signs of a fight and blood. This class contains many children with kekkei genkai; there is the Byakugan, the Sharingan, children trained in their clan's secret jutsu, and the Jinchuuriki, so retrieval is crucial."

The Jinchuuriki?! But… he's in-

"The reason for the attack is unknown. But Umino Iruka, the Academy sensei of this class, is a chuunin with solid skills; in order to take him and his class, the enemy is expected to be jounin or higher, and most likely more than one ninja. Your objective is to track where the enemy has taken the students and retrieve them as quickly as possible. If the enemy is too strong for you to be able to retrieve them, then you are to kill the students with the kekkei genkai- Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Hinata, Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Akimichi Chouji. Uzumaki Naruto, the Jinchuuriki, is to be retrieved at all costs; you are not allowed to kill him or leave him in the hands of the enemy. While those I have just listed are your priority, you are, of course, to try and save the entire class if at all possible."

Iruka.

Human or not, machine or not, Hound cold not think of anything other than Iruka. Iruka, possibly dead, possibly tortured, definitely captured- Iruka, Iruka, Iruka-

"A strike team lead by Raven will be the front of the assault; Raven will command all of you in this operation. The strike team will consist of Toad, Whale, and Hound. Step forward, strike team."

Hound moved forward obediently, body moving while his mind stayed frozen. Gangs of ninja that went after kekkei genkai were always skilled. He'd faced his own share with the implanted Sharingan, and Iruka… Iruka…

"Raven has already been told where Iruka-sensei and the others disappeared. I know that many of you had family in this class- remember that you are only ANBU. Only ninja. With those masks, you are not anyone's brother, sister, parent, friend. You are a tool. Nothing more."

Hound nodded. Right. Lion was right. He was a tool- and an effective one, at that. He never failed

except when it counted.

Father Obito Rin Sensei

All dead. Because of him. He failed them. If Sakumo and Obito and Rin hadn't known him, they would not have died. And Sensei…

Then I'll break this curse. I didn't know that I was killing my father by hating him; I know better now I was only thirteen when Obito died; I'm stronger now. I wasn't ready for Rin to jump in front of me like that; this time I'll be ready. And unless the enemy is as strong as Kyuubi… no one is killing my fix. Not this time.

Hound turned firmly to face his new team. Raven- of course, Raven. The only ANBU operative above Hound himself, besides the commander. The man who became an ANBU black ops captain at only thirteen, the only ninja with a Sharingan more feared than his own. If it weren't for the fact that was an Uchiha, he would've been elected ANBU commander already- Itachi.

Then there was Toad- another one of Jiraiya's students. Perhaps not as skilled as the Fourth to create his own jutsu- but skilled enough to a feared ANBU captain. Taijutsu extraordinaire- the reason, perhaps, that Jiraiya had been less successful with him was that he hadn't been quite so gifted with ninjutsu. But a fine operative, one that could help Iruka.

And then, Whale. The most skilled Hyuuga there was- much to Hiashi's chagrin. Hound had only worked with him a few times, but enough for him to know that there was no one else better with the Byakugan and that this operative was just the ninja needed to make their team complete.

Two taijutsu users, one ninjutsu one, and one genjutsu one. Perfect.

Now they just had to save Iruka.

…and his students.

Team Raven led the other ANBU across the village, after Iruka. …and his students. Hound trailed on behind Raven's right hand man, sniffing occasionally but in vain- the wind was blowing the wrong way and besides, they weren't close enough. By the time he could smell blood, other trackers, like Whale, were much more useful than he was.

But he could smell more than blood. He could smell Iruka's blood.

While Kakashi panicked in the back of his mind, Hound just curled his hands into fists and moved faster.

When they finally reached the site of the battle, Hound was greeted with a confusing mess of scents and, worst of all, blood. Thank god not all of it was Iruka's, he could smell that much, but at least half of it was. The dark forest clearing was scattered with kunai and shuriken and footprints, many of them tiny. The blood was sprayed across a tree trunk here, a drop or two here- there were no large black stains int he dust, but that just meant Iruka had been moved quickly. He could still be seriously injured.

"Taichou, I found something!"

At least a quarter of the ninja present started at the term, being ANBU captains themselves- Hound among them- but the operative was addressing Raven. Hound still turned on reflex to see a man holding up a tiny, whimpering dog, it's small whines sounding plaintive and sad. It's white fur was flecked with blood in places.

That dog… that was the Inuzuka boy's dog.

"I recognize that puppy. Hinata-sama sometimes hangs up with the Inuzuka boy in her class; this is his," Whale interjected helpfully, his voice tense.

Raven immediately gestured at Hound. "Summon one of your dogs. He doesn't seem to be able to speak our language, but I think one of your summons will be able to get through to him. He might be able to tell us something."

Hound immediately complied, and with a drop of blood and a puff of smoke Pakkun appeared in the middle of the crowd of ANBU. He pointed silently at Kiba's dog and Pakkun complied without question, only too used to being summoned in the middle of ANBU operations without time to receive orders or even think, just act. Pakkun growled a bit amidst the other dog's whining; it seemed to take a bit of cajoling to get anything at all comprehensible out of the animal. But, finally, Pakkun turned to address the small army at large.

"The pup's scared out of his mind. Said his master and his friends were ambushed out of the blue by some really strong ninjas, or at least, they had really strong Chakra. He wasn't paying much attention to anyone other than his master but said that the enemy ninja- there are five of them- knocked out them all with a jutsu. The big one didn't fall asleep and tried to fight them off but he was beaten- pretty badly. Akamaru tried to stay with his master but one of the enemy said something about a pet being worthless and just a waste of space and tossed him away. They went due north."

Hound heard and understood all of this, but Kakashi only really cared about one part- that Iruka was beaten badly.

Those five enemy ninja were going to die. And if Iruka was already dead… he would rip them limb from limb and enjoy it.

"Pakkun," Hound said hoarsely, "take him back to the Inuzuka compound. Tell the human in charge that there was a problem at school, and it is being taken care of."

"You got it, boss."

Raven didn't even wait for Pakkun to convince Akamaru to move. He just gestured at Whale to take the lead and turned in the direction that the enemies had gone. "Stop when we get within one hundred meters of the enemy. Hound, keep on smelling to back him up; if the enemy changes direction, tell us."

Hound didn't bother even nodding. They weren't moving fast enough. Dawdling here meant they were doing something to help Iruka. His hands itched with a lust to kill. He wanted- he needed his fix, his former fix, his- whatever Iruka was to him, he didn't want to find his body. His was sick of finding bodies. He was going to find him alive. There was no other option.

The large ANBU team traveled at breakneck speeds for over an hour and a half, long enough to reach the border to Fire Country, before Whale stopped them with an upraised hand. At least half of the squad looked like they had half a mind to keep on going, and then Hound remembered that he wasn't the only one with people in that class. Perhaps he would end up fighting to be the one to kill those bastards.

Whatever. He hadn't invented his own assassination technique for nothing- killing was his specialty.

"They are about a hundred meters ahead. …Thirty one children are being guarded by two of the ninja; they are wearing Kumo forehead protectors. Three of the other ninja are with Iruka-sensei. They appear to be interrogating him."

I am going to break their filthy little necks, I am going to gouge their eyes out and carve their hearts out of their chests-

"Security… lax, at best. I don't think they expected people to come after them this soon. The ninja watching the children are also on the lookout for pursuers, but they have not noticed us yet. They are in jounin uniform."

Jounin… not ANBU, then. Heh. I could take these bastards alone. I will stick my fist in their chest and-

"Good," Raven murmured darkly. "Then they won't be ready for us. My team and… Frog, take your team- we will attack together. Everyone else here will be our backup. Intercede as necessary."

Good. He'd be right up there in the front lines. Raven and Whale, they had family in the class, so they were probably out for blood, just like he was. Well, they could handle the two guarding the kids. Those three interrogating Iruka were his and his alone.

"Oh. And, everyone? One of the those kekkei genkai kids is my brother. If any one of you decides that it is too risky to leave him alive and even thinks about taking a kunai to his throat? I will kill you. Konoha ninja or not, I will kill you."

Hound found himself grateful that at least Iruka's name wasn't on the kekkei genkai list to kill if necessary.

Raven's warning was enough. ANBU operatives or not, killing children was not an activity any of them looked forward to. Every single one of them intended on killing the five enemy ninja and rescuing Iruka.

…and his students.

The strike team and their backup moved forward silently and without hesitation. Frog's team was ordered to go after Iruka- Hound silenced Kakashi's cry of protest- while Raven's would go for the children. The children were supposed to be priority, after all. It was eight against five, but there were a great deal of hostages they had to worry about- and Iruka could be in very bad condition. This situation wasn't exactly ideal.

But Iruka would not be dead. Hound just wouldn't let that happen.

The two ANBU teams approached the perimeters of the enemy camp warily. More and more children were beginning to wake, if their squirming around was any indication, but they were all thoroughly bound, blinded, and gagged. The two ninja 'guarding' them weren't really doing too good a job; the Uchiha was managing to try and cut through his bindings with a sharp rock on the ground while staying discreet. Perhaps the guards thought that he would be harmless, because he was just a pre-genin?

Well, they were jounin. To them, he was.

But the children weren't anywhere near as worrisome as the small tent pitched next to them. The two ANBU teams had slipped inside the rather large privacy jutsu cast around the clearing- that meant they could hear the sounds coming from inside it. The screams.

Iruka was screaming.

They. Are. Dead.

Some of the children whimpered when Iruka yelled, several were undoubtedly crying, and Iruka just kept screaming.

THEY. ARE. DEAD.

Raven did not waste time. With one simple command gesture both teams moved forward, fleeting as smoke and dangerous as fire, moving in on the children and the tent. It took everything Hound had not to go after Iruka

He's screaming he's hurt he's dying not again please god not again

and instead went after the children. He was a tool. He was nothing more than a tool. He was a tool. He was nothing more than a tool. He could not jeopardize the mission, not when Iruka was being taken care of by the other team

You are trash, Kakashi. Nothing more than trash-

No! No! Iruka will not die! I won't allow it! I won't watch him die!

Jeopardizing the mission? For your friend? You already chose not to do that the day I died.

Iruka is not my friend, he's-

Will you let him die, Kakashi, will you-

SHUT UP, OBITO, AND LET ME SAVE HIM!

Hound moved with the cold grace of a serpent and the ruthless nature of a beast. Three children were freed and one jounin was attacked by him in the space of five seconds, said jounin almost immediately being rendered immobile by Raven's genjutsu. Hound didn't bother either thanking the captain or feeling disgruntled that one of the men who had hurt Iruka had been beaten by another, he just easily slit his throat before turning to the other. Faced by a full ANBU team, the man balked almost immediately, the blood draining from his face. He was young, looked barely sixteen- like this was his first jounin mission.

Well, it would also be his last. He had hurt Iruka, and Iruka wasn't supposed to be hurt. He would die.

Hound moved faster than all of the others, even Raven; one Chidori later, the bastard was dead on the ground.

Cold and efficient as a machine. Thirty seconds and two lives later, their mission was accomplished. Just like that.

Hound didn't have time to waste thinking about the tenuous quality of life; he moved on immediately to the tent, hand still aglow with lightening. Cloth disintegrated under his white hot touch and he appeared inside the tent to find that the other team had been just as effective in their mission. Three dead bodies surrounded- surrounded-

Iruka was sprawled in the dirt. His uniform was torn and bloody, his face swollen and bruised. He looked disoriented, half his hair hanging out of his ponytail, splayed across his cheek and matted together with blood. His hands and feet were bound, but unlike the children, he could see and he could scream.

Hound moved forward with a snarl, forcing back the ANBU operative who dared to touch him with a kunai. It was sawing at the ropes around his wrist, but- but- that was so close to the veins in his wrist, he could hurt him and he'd already been hurt enough, and he was Kakashi's Iruka and no one else's and Hound wasn't going to let anyone touch him right now. Iruka twitched at the new touch on his wrist and tried to speak, the words half a moan.

"Stu… stu… stu-dens… stud- (cough) stu-dents…?"

Hound's heart throbbed painfully

What heart I am ANBU I have no heart

when he realized that the sensei was asking about his students, now of all times. He gently loosened the knots with sharp claws of nails- doglike ones, just like his namesake- and nodded. "They are alive and well, Iruka-sensei. All thirty one of them."

Iruka smiled faintly. The smile revealed bloody teeth, one of them missing entirely, and was a pained expression through bruised and swollen and split lips. It was a beautiful smile.

Then, with another breathy moan, he passed out. But his heart beat on underneath Hound's hand and he had never felt a more wonderful feeling.

He wasn't too late. Iruka was alive. He wasn't too late. Iruka. Was. Alive.

The children outside were all in varying degrees of hysteria but unharmed, and Hound did nothing more than nod at Raven to receive permission before he took to the trees, Iruka in his arms. Three other operatives tailed him, for safety, but Hound ignored them. All that mattered was Iruka, Iruka, Iruka. Iruka was alive.

Something thrilled inside of him to know that he had actually done it. He had saved Iruka. Iruka wasn't going to die and the bastards who had tried to hurt him were dead; someone who he had come to… to… to care about had not died. The rush of hope and relief and gratitude and he didn't even know what else was so strong and foreign it was almost uncomfortable and he didn't know what to do with it. He felt vaguely ill, but not in a bad way.

Iruka is alive! He almost wanted to cheer. This was the best he had felt since- this was the best he had felt ever. Hound never felt happy. Hound never felt good- until now.