Thank you! The chapter after this is a pivotal one. THE pivotal one, really. So enjoy what fluff there is in this chapter, because it won't be back for a long while after :(

The mission had gone badly.

That wasn't the problem, not in Kakashi's opinion, but it made it harder for him to move fast enough. Missions success or not, the information had said ten enemies, not twenty-five, and even the monster Hound couldn't kill so many without being hurt himself. That was okay. The bastards deserved to be dead, and just because Hound didn't enjoy killing didn't mean he had to feel guilty about the gang of sex traffickers who had long since been reduced to nothing but ashes.

But they made it inconvenient for him, nevertheless. Because he needed Iruka, and he couldn't reach him fast enough.

The rogue ninja he'd killed had nothing to do with it. It was the Iwa nin he'd encountered on the way back- that made his heart pound so fast he couldn't breathe, a scream caught in his throat and horror in his chest.

He was only seven or eight, but a chuunin already. He was arrogant and skilled, talked as if he owned the world and had seen all there was to see. He'd seen an injured Konoha ANBU and attacked, and Kakashi had fought him back, staring all the while, because that boy-

He was exactly like him.

Kakashi had fended him off easily, merely by instinct, thoroughly enthralled by just how similar that boy was to the child he had once been. He had battle scars already, and the way he spoke showed that he had seen and caused death. But all through this, he was still young, so young- he'd probably learned how to throw shuriken before he did how to walk.

And Kakashi had fought children before, he'd faced off against child ninjas more times than he could count, but this boy- their similarities struck him.

And he had felt sorry for him.

He knew where that skilled child prodigy was headed, he knew he was destined for a life of loss and would eventually be thrown into ANBU, to be used up like trash until he was dead and tossed aside after he broke. And Kakashi pitied him, wished there was another way, but there never could be. As they fought he just felt worse and worse, staring down at a window to the past and wishing with all of his heart he didn't have to watch another condemned to his same fate.

Kakashi didn't have to kill him. He could have knocked him out and walked away. He didn't have to kill him.

But the fight ended when Kakashi knelt over the struggling boy, one hand easily holding his tiny body to the ground, the other holding a kunai to his throat. "I'm sorry," he whispered, emotions hidden behind two masks, one white and one black. "I don't want to hurt you. But if I leave you alive, you'll end up being hurt far worse than I could ever do to you. ...I'm so sorry."

The blood that now coated his hands was the reason he had to go see his fix. Because he'd killed himself, somehow, but how was it that he had not managed to spare himself the way he wanted? How could he still feel so utterly shattered if he was dead? Death was supposed to mean no pain.

But he remembered someone who could make him feel both alive and happy at the same time. Happy was too much to ask, now; he just wanted something to make it stop hurting. Something or someone, with a short ponytail and warm brown eyes and a smile that made him feel like the ice inside of him was melting. Someone who made him feel alive by just being there, with laughter and friendship and his beautiful smile.

Warm blood trickled out of his head and he couldn't remember just who that was, but he did remember where he was, and that was all he needed. He put one shaking foot in front of the other, splintered white mask clutched in trembling hands- the mask that that dead child had broken. He'd been trying to carve out his Sharingan eye. A bloodied gash marked the moment the kunai had made contact, and he both relished the pain and hated it. Relished it, because it meant he was alive. Hated it, because it meant he was alive.

He needed... he needed... that man with the smile. Who could melt the ice and give him something to hold on to.

Kakashi ran to that man with the smile faster than his feet should have been able to carry him. He crashed through foliage and eventually, stumbled across rooftops, forgoing all of the stealth and animalistic grace he was known for to satisfy the crippling need and desperation brewing inside of him. He wanted... he needed... there! He recognized that home. That tree. That everything. He recognized it. That was where the smile was.

He dropped and crashed through the window, the shard of glass that pierced his hand through going ignored. He heard a startled cry and turned eagerly in its direction, but fell before he could chase after it. He scrabbled uselessly at the floorboards, feeling almost as if he might cry. He was so close. He just needed to go a little farther...

And then, suddenly, there were hands, clutching onto him and turning over, and he could hear panicked and alarmed voices. Or, no, just one voice. He blinked and a hazy face swam into view, and he beamed with joy- there it was!

But he wasn't smiling. He seemed upset. Sad? Worried? Scared?

Whatever he was, it wasn't smiling. Kakashi frowned, determined to correct this fallacy. He reached up with one shaking hand to grab onto the corner of his mouth. The man above him froze as Kakashi stretched it up into a smile, leaving a red trail of blood on his cheek, and proceeded to do the same to the other corner.

Oh. There was that smile...

Everything... hurt.

It was a hazy kind of a feeling, and the dry, cottony taste in his mouth told him he'd been drugged for days. He should be grateful for it, he supposed; surely the pain would be much worse without it, but he had never liked being drugged. ANBU weren't supposed to like that.

If he'd been drugged, though, that meant there were only two possibilities as to where he was. And his nose and the lack of restraints and much pain all told him that he probably wasn't captured. Hospital meant safe, and he groaned at that realization. Why here? Why hadn't he had the sense to go to Iruka's? Surely all that was wrong with him was just low Chakra. Maybe a few other injuries. But nothing he couldn't have taken care of on his own, surely.

Wait... no. That wasn't quite right. He remembered something else. He had gone to Iruka's, he had. He remembered Iruka being angry, and he sighed at that, hoping it wasn't something he had done to incite his volatile temper. If only he could remember just what it was that had happened-

"Kakashi? Are you awake?"

Kakashi allowed himself a small, private smile and relaxed. Ah. Iruka didn't sound angry at him. That was good, right?

He took in a pained breath, winced at the way his bandaged midsection protested, and managed to crack open his one grey eye. The Sharingan was covered, it felt like, and he didn't have the Chakra reserves to fuel it anyway. He found himself looking blearily over at Iruka, who was sitting in a chair next to him. His ponytail was a bit loose, there were slight circles under his eyes like he hadn't been sleeping well, and it seemed as if he'd just raised his head up out of his hands. His anxious expression relaxed when Kakashi opened his eye, but he still didn't look very well at all.

"Good morning, Iruka," he rasped, stretching his fingers and toes and sighing at that they were the only parts of him he could bear to move. "Or is it afternoon? I'm sorry, I don't know the time."

Iruka stared at him, and his expression twisted in something akin anger and he crossed his arms roughly, looking away. "You damn idiot," Iruka muttered under his breath, voice shaking and hands clenching. "Should've known better than to be worried about your stupid ass. It was you and your stupidity that got you here in the first place, you know- if you weren't hurt already I'd have half a mind to- gah! You just... I don't even know what the hell I'm supposed to do with you!"

Kakashi shifted uncomfortably. Uh oh. It seemed like he'd misjudged the situation pretty badly. Iruka was angry at him- very angry. He cleared his throat to try and speak, make up for whatever it was he had done, then coughed. "Ah..." he murmured inbetween Iruka's enraged grumbling, "would you mind?" He tilted his head at the water on his right side, smiling hopefully, and Iruka grumbled again as he stood.

"Stupid jounin. Thinking they are god damn invincible. I'll tell you something, Kakashi, you're not, and don't you ever act like you are again." His fingers curled around the edge of Kakashi's surgical mask, and at his surprised exclamation and flinch, Iruka just glared. "If you think it's okay to almost die on my doorstep, then I think it's okay for me to see your face."

"I what now?"

Ignoring his question, Iruka yanked down the mask with more force than necessary and held the half-full glass to his lips. Kakashi stared at him, then just silently raised his head so he could swallow. His eye didn't leave Iruka's face the whole time.

The teacher wasn't openly staring at his face. He didn't look triumphant that he had finally unmasked the Copy Ninja, or victorious, or smug. His eyes were focused firmly on the glass, almost as if he were a little nervous to look now that he had pulled the mask down. When Kakashi lowered his head back down, indicating he'd had enough, Iruka pulled his mask back up without comment and sat back down. He had never received such a response to being unmaksed before. And the few who had seen his face had always complained the moment the mask had gone up again. Iruka, though...

Well, Iruka had always been different.

In the midst of the awkward silence, Kakashi cleared his throat and did his best to look down at himself, taking stock of his injuries. "Ah... care to tell me why I'm here? I don't really remember. Just that the mission went badly." Well, that wasn't strictly true. He remembered the boy after that, and his gut clenched in a way that had nothing to do with physical injuries when he thought of killing him. Shaking his head weakly, Kakashi made himself focus on just Iruka, trying not to think about that.

The teacher's face was innocently surprised, and then he just leaned over and buried his head in his hands. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me," he muttered under his breath, digging fingers into his scalp and raking them through his hair. "You don't even remember what you did? Great. That's going to make knocking some sense into you a lot harder."

"...Eh?"

Kakashi stared as the teacher sighed again, then sat upright and shook his head. "I'm sorry. If you don't remember what happened, then it probably seems like I'm just a raving lunatic right now. ...But... damn it, Kakashi- you can't- oh, god..." The teacher closed his eyes and lowered his head again, and Kakashi was getting increasingly worried.

"Iruka," he croaked, "I'm really sorry for whatever I did... I never meant to upset you." That, he was sure about. Even if he couldn't remember, he was sure he would never want to hurt Iruka.

The teacher shook his head slightly and kept his eyes closed. His hands were still clenched tightly, shaking, his entire frame stiff with tension. Kakashi stared in concern and tried to think of something to say to make it better. He really hadn't screwed up this badly, had he? How could anything he had done hurt Iruka like this? "Iruka, I'm going to be fine," he tried, taking a stab in the dark at what was upsetting him. "Really, I've had worse-"

"Baka!" Iruka slammed a hand down in frustration and opened his eyes to glare at him. It was such a poisonous look that Kakashi withered back against the mattress, and the teacher continued on without hesitation. "That's not the problem, Kakashi! The problem isn't that you're hurt, the problem is that you were hurt this badly and came to me. Me! I turned around and there you were, dying on my floor- w-why did you ever come to me like that! D-do you have any idea what that was like! Kakashi, I-" Iruka abruptly broke off and shook his head firmly, and when he continued again, his voice was no longer shaking. "...The m-medics said... just a little longer, and you would've been..."

Kakashi stared.

Oh... he hadn't realized how close he'd cut it. He honestly hadn't realized just how serious his condition was.

No wonder Iruka was furious with him.

But when the teacher looked back at him, all of his anger was gone. In its place was guilt, and worry, and fear, and a dozen other emotions Kakashi had never imagined others would feel for him. Iruka's piercing stare suddenly made him feel guilty, so guilty, and he swallowed and found himself staring down at the bed so he wouldn't see the pain that he'd caused. "I want to help you after missions, Kakashi," Iruka whispered, voice trembling. "I want to do whatever I can for you after them. But, this... I don't know how to help... this." He gesture up and down the length of his prone form and shook his head again. "Please. Please, promise me you won't ever trust me with something like this again. If you're hurt, then please just come to the hospital. I- I promise that I'll come as soon as I can, I'll do whatever you need me to- but don't ever come to me like this again! I c-couldn't help... I thought..." Iruka trailed off into silence and let out a shuddering breath and shook his head. He absentmindedly smoothed out some of the wrinkles on the sheet and rubbed at his eyes. "Just promise me you won't come to me first if you're hurt again," he finally whispered, still shaking. "Don't take risks like that for me. It's no good if I make you happy if you're happy and dea- ...dead."

Kakashi flinched. It wasn't Iruka's words, it wasn't the possibility they painted- it was the pain in his voice, on his face, it was the obvious suffering he had put the teacher through, it was the way he seemed to almost be falling apart. It made him feel just immeasurably guilty, and he wanted to apologize, but he couldn't think of the right words to say and he wished he would've just not put the man through this in the first place. "...Iruka... Iruka, I- I don't really remember what happened, but I didn't- it's not that I disregarded my health. Really, I didn't!" he added in response to Iruka's disbelieving look. "I thought I was in much better condition than I actually was. Maa, blood loss can do that to you."

"Why you insipid-"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Kakashi pleaded, sinking under the blankets and shaking his head frantically. He really did not want to incur the teacher's famous wrath. For one thing, he might not survive it in this state. "Sorry... bad time for jokes."

"You think?!" Iruka snapped, but at least he no longer looked sad or worried. Angry and exasperated, maybe, but also a little bit relieved, and Kakashi allowed himself a hesitant eye smile.

"What I should have said," he amended, talking quicker at Iruka's glare, "is that I didn't realize that I was really hurt that badly. I thought it was something I could take care of by myself. But, the mission... it was... well, it was bad, and I just wanted to... er, well..." he trailed off, embarrassed, and the teacher softened.

"...Take better care of yourself, Kakashi," he finally muttered. "That's the moral of this story. I don't want to ask something in return for letting you come to me after those missions, because I'm not doing this because I want you to owe me- but it's the least you can do. Please."

Kakashi smiled tiredly back at him. He decided a wispy Anything for you, Sensei could very easily be taken him the wrong way and would earn him a smack to the head, so instead, he just nodded and kept smiling. "I'll do my best."

Iruka finally relaxed, his shoulders slumping as his pained expression shifted into a hesitant smile. "You'd better," he warned, then glanced at his watch and stood. "If I want to be on time for class, I have to leave now, Kakashi. I'll come back later." He took a step towards the door, then turned back to him and leveled him with a flat stare. "And if I come back to find you've escaped, there will be consequences. Do you hear me, Kakashi? I won't be happy."

Kakashi began to assure him that he had never been planning any such thing, but the teacher cut him off with just a no-nonsense look.

"I'm serious. If you leave, the next time you come to me, I'm feeding you tempura. That, and confiscating your stupid Icha Icha. If you can't follow doctor's orders like a big boy, then you certainly can't read your books like one." With one more beaming, confident smile, Iruka sailed out the door, leaving a thoroughly cowed Kakashi withering back in bed.

Maybe he would stay in the hospital. Just this once.

Kakashi spent a week in the hospital, and anther week and a half recovering after that. Most of his recovery time was spent at Iruka's, on the teacher's insistence- when the man had found out that Kakashi's caretakers were going to be eight dogs, then he had found himself hustled off to Iruka's apartment with no room for complaints. Iruka had to work, so he was alone most of the time anyway, but he had still never had anyone try to look after him. It was weird, but he couldn't altogether say he disliked it.

Finally, though, Kakashi left Iruka's and went straight to ANBU headquarters. Half a month of inaction had left him antsy and restless, and it hadn't taken much work to talk Lion into giving him a mission even though he was technically still 'recovering'.

Another week, another solo mission later left Kakashi slouched in front of his apartment building. He was currently working up the will and motivation to actually climb up the fifth floor- he may not be Chakra exhausted, but Kumo poisons had just brutally attacked his energy levels.

On the other hand, just staring at the building seemed a lot easier than walking…

Kakashi blinked when one stout, limping figure made his way outside, a bag slung over one shoulder. That looked like his… landlord? Oh?

Yes, he was watching because he was interested. Not too tired to make it upstairs.

Kakashi wasn't really doing very much to blend into the scenery, so it was no surprise that the man had only just started with his trademark limp to walk across the street when he was noticed. The landlord squinted at him, then clapped his hands together happily and hurried across the street. "Hey! Hey, Kakashi-san! I'm glad I caught you!"

Kakashi frowned. "Uh oh," he remarked aloud. "My landlord needing to see me isn't good. You did get my check this month, right?"

The man gave one of his loud, boisterous chuckles that rather annoyed Kakashi and shook his head. "Oh, no, nothing like that! No, no. It's just that there was a… small… incident while you were away. Some idiot left his water on, long story short, and I'm begging three different families not to call their lawyers. Don't worry, your place wasn't flooded, but you've got to vacate it for the time being. Just while repairs are being made. Probably… a week or more?"

Kakashi frowned darkly. "…If my place wasn't flooded, then why exactly do I have to leave?"

"Your ceiling is about ready to cave in- floor above yours did flood. Sorry, Kakashi-san." The landlord gave a very apologetic smile gesturing back at the building. "Look, I know how picky you are, so I told the crew that the only thing they can do is replace the ceiling. They won't take one step into your place. You can't either, though, not until next week. Go on and get what stuff you need, because the workers start tomorrow morning."

Oh, this was just wonderful. Exactly what he wanted after returning home from a mission.

Where on earth was he going to stay for a week?

Genma's… nope, Raidou was there. Gai's was empty, too, but… his home was a little… weird. Everything wasn't green and it wasn't full of weights or other training methods- it was just that Gai's apartment was a little… large. He didn't know what to do with such a big space and always felt awkward staying there, whether Gai was present or not. Nope… not him. Tenzou- no, no. Kakashi wanted to avoid ANBU for the time being, to postpone turning in his report, and if he stayed with his kohai, there was a chance someone could come by to assign him a mission.

…He didn't really know anyone else. No one except-

But wouldn't that be taking advantage of his hospitality? A whole week? And he's just spent a week there recovering, too. Surely that was taking advantage. And not a whole week with his fix, a whole week with a kind teacher willing to lend him a futon. That was a whole new level in their pseudo-relationship. That definitely wasn't something fixes did, that was something friends did.

Kakashi shied away from that scary word immediately. No, they weren't friends, not really. And it didn't matter if they were, nope, not at all. He could just go ask Iruka if he could stay with him and, if not, that was fine, too. Iruka wasn't his friend and had no obligation to let him stay with him. Did friends even have that obligation? Kakashi wasn't sure. He was just sure that they weren't friends. Just an ANBU and his fix. That was all…

Iruka… didn't look good.

It was a warm summer night, and yet, there was a blanket wrapped tightly around his shoulders. His nose was red, his hair was let down, and there was a box of kleenexes under his arm and many used ones lying in or near the trash can. He was poking at his dinner with a chopstick, seeming rather disinterested in it, his eyes dull and tired.

Kakashi cautiously poked his head in through the window. He shifted so he was crouching on the kitchen counter and crinkled his eye into a smile. "Ah… having a good night, Iruka?"

The teacher started, then sluggishly raised his head to blink at him with red eyes. "Doh… Kakahi? I- um… are dyou 'kay?" He sniffled, then quickly scrambled for another tissue, expression contorting painfully. "Ah… ah… aah-chuu!"

Kakashi smiled as he slid further inside. "Bless you, Sensei. And I'm okay, but I don't think you are."

"Nobe, I'm dreally fined," Iruka tried, looking him up and down as if Kakashi was the one who wasn't well.

The ANBU smirked. "You're not fine if you can't say the word. What happened to you?"

Iruka groaned and slumped over to rest his head in his hands. "…Flu's going daround da Academy. Du… du… students gave it to me." Iruka sat there miserably for a moment before he stood, reaching out towards his refrigerator, then stopped and scratched his scar. "Ah… don't suppose dyou would risk my cooking now? Dorry… don' wan dyou do get sick."

Kakashi laughed as he moved fully into the apartment and jumped to the floor. "So considerate, Iruka. No, I think I'll be fine scrounging up something for myself. Though you probably should supervise to make sure I don't burn you kitchen down."

Iruka chuckled nasally, then blinked and tugged lightly on the strap of Kakashi's bag. "Get a new pack?" he managed, and Kakashi grinned sheepishly.

"Actually… well… I'm not here because of a bad mission. My place is being worked on and I need somewhere to stay. I know I just stayed here, but I would be much less of an inconvenience this time and, well, didn't have anywhere else to go. But I didn't know you were sick- doesn't look like you're in any sort of shape to have a houseguest. I hope you feel better soon- I'm just going to go and-"

"No!" Iruka exclaimed, shutting the window before Kakashi could climb out of it. "'Sokay. Stay, stay. I insist."

Kakashi frowned but allowed Iruka to cajole him into sitting down. "I'll stay, Iruka. But you really don't look so good. Are you sure it's just the flu?"

Iruka nodded and wiped at his nose. He made another congested attempt to talk, but this time it was so unintelligible Kakashi just shook his head and laughed. "Just go to bed, Iruka. You sound like you could use it. I'll clean up…and disinfect everything from here."

Iruka managed a nasal thank you, and Kakashi watched as the teacher stumbled back to his bedroom without another word. He was normally more aware whenever Kakashi stopped by, rarely taking his word for it and always trying to examine him for more injuries while still trying to seem innocent- but it didn't look as if Iruka was up for that tonight. He barely seemed to have enough energy to make it to bed, never mind interrogate him about his physical wellbeing. Kakashi watched him worriedly for a moment, then just shook his head and began cleaning up Iruka's dishes, as well as hunting down something for him to fix himself.

He was still a little tired, but considering it was from poison and not Chakra depletion, he wasn't in any danger of passing out anytime soon. Most likely.

Kakashi didn't realize how odd it was until he was ten minutes into preparing his dinner that he was actually cooking. Well, if mixing ingredients and using a microwave counted as cooking, which he thought it did. Before he'd met Iruka, he could fry an egg, put instant ramen in the microwave, and… that was it. Living on his own for years, one would've thought he would know how to cook- but being on missions the majority of that time meant he had never had the time, or the will, or the need, to learn.

Now, he had. Iruka had somehow managed to teach him how to cook.

Him. The man who had once nearly burned down his sensei's kitchen trying to cook dinner.

Well, good for him.

Kakahsi smirked triumphantly underneath his mask when dinner came out of the microwave and, what's more, it was edible. Edible!

Kakashi smiled proudly as he dug in. It wasn't the most tasty thing in the world, but it certainly wasn't bad. And he hadn't even burned down the kitchen to make it. Oh, wasn't he accomplished? More like a badass. He could cook.

Ha! That sure showed Gai for winning their cooking challenge.

Kakashi couldn't help but continue to be proud of himself, all the way up to when he rolled out the futon in the living room and settled down on it. Iruka was teaching him how to be more than just an ANBU, and as scary as that was- he was pretty sure he liked it.

Kakashi sat bolt upright in a cold sweat.

Obito Rin Sensei

He gasped through his mask, body straining in panic, the images still flashing in front of his eyes. Obito, being crushed in a boulder, his hand gripping Rin's heart, his sensei's body torn and ripped apart by just one of Kyuubi's massive claws-

Precious people, dead-

Kakashi was up on his feet then with only one single purpose. Tenzou, Gai, Genma, Iruka- were they dead, just like the others? Had he failed them? Were their dead bodies lying in a ditch somewhere, cold and covered in blood and-

Kakashi fiercely clamped down on the panic and shook his head violently. He couldn't react like this now. Not now, not now damn it! Gai and Genma weren't here, he couldn't go to check up on them and ensure that they were all right. He couldn't panic now, he couldn't- and Tenzou and Iruka, they wouldn't be enough

Iruka since when did Iruka get onto my list

he just had to focus. Focus and think. He could check on Tenzou and Iruka and that was all that was necessary, Gai and Genma were in danger but they were alive, they had to be, there was absolutely no reason for them to be dead-

Just like there was no reason for Obito and Rin and Sensei to be dead until they were, Kakashi.

Kakashi was up on his feet before he had time to think. He didn't have time to be shocked that he had to check on Iruka, he just knew he had to do it. Tenzou was next but Iruka was closest.

Kakashi bounded back silently back towards Iruka's room, motions urgent and terrified. He tossed the door open, catching it before it hit the wall, and gazed frantically over the teacher's still form, assuring himself that he was well and truly alive.

Iruka was curled on his side, the blanket kicked off the bed to pile on the floor. He was still sweating, Kakashi could see that, his hair unbound and half-obscuring his face. The part that Kakashi could see revealed that he was smiling in his sleep. As he watched, the teacher shifted a little, scrunching his scar up in another grin.

Kakashi just stood there, slowing his breathing down to match Iruka's. Breathe in, breathe out… breathe in, breathe out… that's all he had to do. He used Iruka to keep himself calm.

Kakashi smiled softly as he breathed in time with Iruka. The teacher calmed him down. The teacher kept him calm.

Iruka was here, perfectly safe, and alive. Nothing was wrong. Gai and Genma were in danger, but they were out of his reach. If they were hurt, if they were in danger…

It killed him to admit it, but he could do nothing about it. He could not help them, because they were too far away.

Tenzou- Tenzou was within his sphere of influence, and he could go check on his kohai now. But Gai and Genma- he could do nothing about them now.

Heaven help anyone who dare tries to hurt them when I can help them, though.

Kakashi smiled faintly as he watched Iruka's chest rise and fall. This man really was a lifesaver. He'd had these terrifying nightmares before. He woken up with his heart in his throat, muscles trembling in panic, with a true, undeniable fear that his loved ones were hurt and dying before. He'd gone through this before. And, always, if his team was out on a mission, somewhere unreachable and dangerous, he'd be forced to just go to the memorial stone. He'd speak with those already dead, apologize for not saving them, swear even if his team was dead he was so sorry, sorry sorry sorry, and he'd see them again someday if they would please just wait for them.

But now…

Iruka had calmed him down. Without doing a thing except breathing, Iruka had calmed him down.

When Kakashi slowly backtracked out of the room, he was smiling. His movements were calm and peaceful, and as he left the apartment to go check on Tenzou, he was almost more relaxed than he'd been in years.

He wondered idly when Iruka had managed to become to so able to calm him. Then he decided it didn't matter when, just that he could.