Chapter fifteen

Kakashi awoke early. The sun was still gentle and compassionate, and he felt at peace where he was. He stretched out on his bed and took a couple of deep breaths. Today was the day. He looked up at the beige anonymous ceiling. This was the last time he would see it. Without having put too much into the thought he discarded it and went to the bathroom. He showered, washed his hair, for a second cursing genetics for leaving him with such an unmanageable mane. No matter what he did, he wound up looking like something the cat dragged in. One time when he'd been young he'd tried cutting it short and he hadn't shown himself in public for weeks afterwards until it had finally retained some length. He'd made the mistake of showing Gai first, hoping for a nonplussed reaction. Gai on the other hand had started laughing and hadn't been able to stop for a long time. "You look like a hedgehog!" Ever since he'd been reluctant to cut it and only did it when he had to. He'd resigned to keeping it a certain length, otherwise he'd start looking like his father which would be even more upsetting. The stupid color was even worse. Everyone else had reasonable, brown hair, or blond, or black, and what did he get? Grey. There had been no end to it when he'd been younger and joining ANBU had been his salvation in more ways than one. No one saw or even cared about his hair.

His life had previously been edged out by grievances, big or small, and then he'd gotten the chance to leave it all behind. He left behind his apartment, his few friends, left his name on the kitchen counter and walked out. He started over yet again. He forgot what he used to think when he was a person. He was Hatake Kakashi, when he was little, young, and as he stopped being young, when all the things he'd seen forbade him from ever feeling young again, that's when it stopped being his name. You cannot hold a name and wear a mask at the same time. He gave himself up and was relieved at how easy it was to let go. To cease being Kakashi and be somebody else. When he came back, after half a year or two years or five, he picked his name up again and realized that it felt odd in his mouth. While he had been away, nothing had happened to his name. But everything had happened to him. And suddenly, having a name felt like a burden.

Absentmindedly he turned the tap off and got out, dried himself off, put the towel by the basin and whipped out some shaving foam in his palm and got to work. Slowly and meticulously he shaved, taking his time, making sure not to miss anything. He knew from experience that a patch of stubble itched like mad. Every now and then he tapped the razor against the porcelain, creating a homely sound. Shaving was one of those activities that he relied upon to get prepared for a mission. After all, it was like his own little mini-mission, with its own objective and goal. Eventually the scraping sound became all he heard, as it was all he focused on it became strangely calming, meditative. He only had a little bit left on his jaw when the bathroom door was opened. For a second Naruto stared at him, and he stared back, and then he quickly shut the door again.

"I'm so sorry, I thought you'd gone out to buy breakfast! It was quiet, and I didn't think. Sorry," he finished weakly.

"It's fine," he muttered at the closed door. He believed that it was an accident. He'd never seen Naruto lie, there simply wasn't a dishonest bone in his body. He forced his hands to steady and shaved the last bit then dried off with the towel. You can calm down now, he told his racing heart. It paid no heed. He couldn't deny that he was immensely attracted to the blond and that it was awkward to have been barged in on like that, but he was just going to have to live with both of those things. He soldiered on, pretending not to notice the snapping, scorching hot coil in his stomach. He finally got out then, fully dressed in his usual clothes and the open flak jacket. He decided to wear the brown coat on top and grabbed it, then went to the door before Naruto had gotten the chance to say anything.

"I'll get breakfast," he said and shut the door behind him.

He'd bought ramen to cheer him up, ignoring that it was the third time now, all dietary pretenses of health thrown out the window. You sure spoil him, don't you, a voice said. Kakashi told it to shut up. Naruto was very pleased with his choice of food.

"Don't you tire of it?" Kakashi asked softly.

Naruto shrugged. "Sometimes I eat it more often, and sometimes less often. It's always good though."

He nodded solemnly.

"When you're done eating I'll go stash the bags. You should stay here and rest up."

"But I'm not tired?"

"Trust me, you want to rest every chance you get. No telling when your next opportunity is going to be."

Naruto grumbled a little but then nodded. He finished the broth and put the bowl down.

"Thank you for the food."

Kakashi went through the plan again, thinking about what he needed to bring. He couldn't think of anything except his weapons. Bringing a first aid kit would be bad juju so he packed that down too. Naruto looked at his bag and the things strewn across the room.

"Um... am I meant to bring anything with me in particular? Or can I just pack everything down?"

He nodded in response. "Everything except what you need to get the scroll and your weapons."

When Naruto picked his stuff up Kakashi took the time to fill up four water bottles, two each. He didn't want to be stranded on some highland plateau without water. Thirst broke down morale like nothing else. Going hungry was one thing, but drying from the inside was something entirely different, an aching that was so existential that everything else was put on hold. He put them at the bottom of the bag, underneath it, where he could easily get to them, then gave the other two to Naruto.

"Put these where you can get to them easily."

"Okay."

As soon as he was done Kakashi put his bag on and slung the other one across his shoulder.

Naruto eyed him suspiciously.

"That looks heavy. I could follow-"

"That won't be necessary. Stay here and take it easy. Take a nap. I'll come get you when I'm done."

Naruto muttered something under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. See you when you get back."

He was cute when he was grumpy. Kakashi tore his eyes away and left.

He took a lot more time going there than what was needed but it was still just morning and he wanted to make sure there was no one following him. Eventually he wound up where he should be and lugged off the bags. There didn't seem to be a lot of people coming and going in the alley but he hurried up, just to make sure. He put the bags next to each other, against to the wall where they took up as little room as possible. He performed a simple object-henge jutsu and a low-grade genjutsu, giving people an uneasy feeling when they passed by, making sure that no one thought about stopping there. He stepped back and evaluated his work. Since he'd cast the wards he knew they were there but only as a slight shimmering. Not his best work but more than enough during the circumstances. With an anxious look at the sky he realized he'd taken more time than estimated and he only took a few detours on the way back. He opened the door to the apartment with more force than necessary, abruptly waking Naruto up.

"Stay right there- oh, it's you."

He got up. Having gone to sleep fully clothed there was little more to do than to take one last look around the apartment to see if they had forgotten anything. It would take another couple of days for the landlord to discover that they had left. He had paid for a whole week and they had only been there three days.

Naruto seemed tense, the slightest rush wrecked havoc with the rhythm of his breathing and Kakashi knew just how he felt, could remember his own first, proper mission clearly.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

Naruto smiled carefully, as if to see if something would come along that would make him regret it.

"Yeah, I guess I am."

They passed Pakkun on the street, he didn't look up but wagged his virtually nonexistent tail as a way of greeting. He was ordered to remain until the thieves left the house with the scroll, and then he'd follow them.

"As I said, it's important that we move practically at the same time. You'd want to wait until they're under the genjutsu. It won't take much time, hopefully it will happen almost instantly. It doesn't matter if you end up in my line of vision, you won't be affected."

"Wait, you can control who it affects?"

"Well, sure." He'd be a nuisance during missions if he couldn't. But he didn't say that. "Repeat the plan for me." That was another rule, a very critical one; do not forget the plan.

They crossed a square, keeping an eye out for surveillance.

"We hide until the thieves show up, you take them under with the genjutsu and at the same time I steal the scroll back and avoid fighting, if possible. Then I meet up with Pakkun at the rendezvous point and if you don't show up within ten minutes I'll make you regret it. How does that sound?"

Brief, and with clarity, he mused. Naruto had definitely got it, well enough to tuck on a threat at the end.

Kakashi laughed despite himself.

"I'll do my best then."

He knew that Naruto knew that there was a very real possibility of him not showing up within the assorted time frame. Kakashi could only hope that he'd make the right call when the time came. After all, he'd promised.

They reached the alley and he watched Naruto scurry up the building and hide. With a bit of luck the fact that he was inside four walls would conceal some of his chakra. Though hopefully the thieves wouldn't have time to notice anything at all. He hid behind a wall by the crossing, with one ear constantly listening for approaching footsteps. Farther away he heard the sound of kids playing, it sounded like something complicated. There was a lot of arguing voices and the occasional silence ended by a hollow, metallic clang. He couldn't recall ever playing with children his age. If he ever had it must have been when he'd been very young. Oh well. He hadn't known what he was missing anyway.

He looked up at the sky, a stark bright blue that told him it would soon be noon. A couple of birds flew past, high up in the air, and from where he stood he only saw their silhouettes a brief moment. These alleys reminded him of the time he'd spent in the Land of Iron, infiltrating the ranks of a crime boss. Their hideout had been in a place just like this one, with little houses and apartments and clotheslines hanging between the walls to dry the garments in the fresh air. Someone had put out a red dress to dry, a beautiful, delicate light-looking dress that was swaying in the wind. It was a magnetic, enchanting movement, as soon as he laid eyes upon it it allowed all his other thoughts to diminish into the background, all becoming white noise as interchangeable as a radio channel that no one listened to.

In front of him a well-fed cat strolled by, never lowering himself by looking in his direction and something started tugging on his consciousness. He listened in and knew that it was time. Still in hiding, allowing them closer, he did a headcount. They were at least ten, which would quickly deplete the strength of his genjutsu. He had time for one last thought before he threw himself in front of them.

Damn it.

They seemed to be all there and he cast the genjutsu. Not a second later Naruto came whirling down from his hiding place. He'd gone for a normal spell, which meant confusion and disarray for those involved, but nothing that would tell them what had happened. There was twelve people standing still in front of him and like through a warped glass he saw Naruto searching frantically. He felt a sinking sensation, and knew something was wrong. With a humming sound he felt the illusion starting to crumble, but he had to hold on, to give him time. Seconds passed and it started to feel like an eternity since he'd jumped out from his hiding place. Gradually the the genjutsu began slipping out of his hands and he discarded it. Naruto jumped up at a ledge;

"It's not there! They made copies but none is the real one!"

He trusted Narutos judgment, if he said it wasn't there, it wasn't. He looked back at the man in front of the rest, the leader. He'd edged closer and was now only a meter or two away. Kakashi realized it was the spiky haired man, the one Pakkun had pointed out on their first day here.

"Good call! The real scroll's not here-"

From up on his ledge Naruto had seen something and disappeared in a golden swirl. Four of the men followed, chasing him.

The clock starts now. Ten minutes.

"-but in a secure location."

Narutos sudden escape had caused a stir within the ranks.

"Told you I sensed a freak chakra," someone said in the far back.

"Oh shut up, you always say that."

"How did you know we were coming?" Kakashi asked, since that had clearly been the case.

"We have many people on our payroll," the man answered, somewhat smugly. "A few of them just happen to work at the Iwagakure headquarters. We happen to... acquire an important document from Konoha, and two days later their two most precious ninja shows up? It's almost too good to be true," he chuckled.

Kakashi didn't laugh.

His tone had become downright mocking. "And so I thought, why not kill two birds with one stone? Why not deliver both the scroll and the copy ninja? It would have been nice to have Uzumaki as well, but he seem to have run off."

From behind him Kakashi felt a multitude of other chakras, but he didn't dare take his eyes off the leader. There were people on the roof as well, to make sure he wouldn't get away. He could probably lose them if he wanted to, but it was the man in front of him that was the problem. He had to buy time for Naruto, for whatever he was doing. The people behind him kept their distance, but managed to create a circle with the rest. He was surrounded.

"Well then, Hatake Kakashi. Let's see how well you hold your ground."

The man pulled out a tanto, not much unlike the one he'd had. He suddenly recalled seeing him before; he had a bingo book entry. Maybe he'd prove to be trouble. He had to separate him from the rest and take him out. Fighting with a tanto meant he'd have to get in close to get a hit. He should be fine as long as he stayed out of its reach. It took a second before he remembered that he was surrounded, locked in a circle with his opponent, which by then started skulking forwards. A slash dangerously close to his eyes had him off balance and he retreated to the other side. He was fast, no doubt about it. Kakashi felt a gust of wind aimed at his back and he had to retreat once again, almost stumbling backwards. If he wasn't careful the next time he slipped up would be his last. He couldn't delay it any longer and pushed up his hitai-ate, revealing the sharingan to his grinning opponent.

"Finally we're getting somewhere!" he exclaimed.

He had to stop him somehow, keep him in one place for just one second, and then he could finish it. He looked around but all he could see was the spectators, keeping him in line. It took a couple of seconds, but then he had a plan. He had no choice if he wanted to end this quickly.

The other man lunged again and Kakashi veered to the left to avoid an impact. The tanto hit the ground instead, slicing through it like butter. With the sharingan he could see that it had a faint light, a chakra reinforcement of some sort, truly formidable in its effect. Though he had no intention of finding out just how formidable. His opponent flashed his malicious smile again, he was enjoying this.

"Come on, aren't you gonna counter, copy ninja?"

Upon his words Kakashi threw a couple of kunais at him, and with a practiced motion he cut them all in half. The man was growing arrogant, he could tell. In the beginning his movements had been precise and efficient, now they had become elaborate. He thought that he was winning and his weapon showed it. He attacked again, this time with a series of unsettling, deadly moves that Kakashi barely dodged. With a hissing sound the tanto flew past him and he jumped back towards a free space. It was only then he noticed that the man hadn't missed. With a roaring sense of physical panic he looked down on his right arm which had a deep cut in it, just below the shoulder.

I can't remember wearing anything red today, he thought, before realizing it was his own blood. He still couldn't feel anything, not with the adrenaline flowing through his veins, but he knew it would hurt like hell the second it stopped. It was time to act, and quickly. He could still use the arm, which meant it was only a flesh wound. Hopefully no tendons or muscles had been cut. Carefully, keeping his eyes on the spiky haired man he backed away, as if to get as far away as possible. The man edged forward and Kakashi grabbed the person closest to him, using him as a human shield. The guy was in his thirties and shriveled up by fear. The leader stopped, watching him intently. Whatever he'd read about the infamous copy ninja, this wasn't it. He held the guy in front of him with his left arm, hiding the right from view. It crackled when the blue chakra escaped his palm.

"Stay right there, or this guy gets it!" he said, making the man in front of him shiver.

His opponent stood still for a second and then took a leap forward, knife in hand, deciding to simply cut through any obstacles. When he hit the other man, Kakashi wasn't there. He'd lodged his tanto in deep and he pulled it out, leaving his back unguarded.

It was loud, louder than he could possibly imagine, and the wheezing tone blocked out all else. With a movement almost in phase with lighting itself Kakashi slammed his hand through the leader's rib cage, leaving a gaping hole where his heart had been. Death was instant. Kakashi put the man down on the ground, almost gently, and then straightened up, dragged his hitai-ate down and ran, pushed past the stunned spectators and out onto the square.

He sagged down next to his bag, his legs were shaking. A few had tried following him but he'd lost them. His arm was still bleeding heavily, which would prove a problem. He grabbed his bag, snapping it out of the jutsu to get a hold of his first aid kit. Narutos bag fell down next to it. Damn it. Where the hell was Naruto? During the fight he'd assumed Naruto had gone, hopefully putting getting out unscathed before anything else. But if he hadn't gone, and hadn't helped Kakashi in his fight, what was he doing? He reached down into the bag with his left hand and managed to drag out the little red bag. He took a deep breath, called Pakkun, and got to work on his arm. He gritted his teeth, poured water on the wound and despite his best efforts not to, he shivered, pain racking his whole body. At least it was a clean cut. He grabbed a dressing and pushed it against the wound. Tears made their way into his eyes but he paid no mind. He leaned against the wall, and bit down a growl. And where the hell was Pakkun?

It took another couple of minutes before the dog showed up, and his heart jumped with sudden relief as he saw Naruto come trudging after him, the scroll securely strapped to his back. He didn't look hurt, which was also reassuring.

"Yo," Pakkun said, and then jumped up to a ledge to keep watch.

"Ah, you're here. I was worried I'd have to come get you, sensei," he said, and a wicked glimmering appeared in his eyes.

"Maa, do you really think so little of me, Naruto?" he said. He knew he should get up, but did nothing. By then other man noticed his arm and his bloodied demeanor.

"What happened?"

"I had a run-in with a knife."

Naruto scowled at him, at his poor attempt at humor. "Not funny. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," it ate away at his pride to be babied like that. "We should go."

"But you're bleeding."

Yes I know.

"This will be the last of my issues if they catch up." He glanced down at the dressing which had turned red in the middle, staining his fingers. "I think I should try wrapping it up though. See that red bag? There should be a bandage in it."

Naruto squatted down, went through the bag and brought out the bandage.

"There should be a new dressing there as well."

"This?" He held out a beige square.

"Yeah."

"Hold your arm out." He sat down next to him.

"It's better if I do it."

"Good luck wrapping a bandage with one hand. How do I do this?"

Kakashi sighed. "Wash your hands, then get the new dressing and put it on."

Naruto did as he'd been told, then opened the package and glanced at the old, blood-soaked one. "Shouldn't we toss it?"

"No, put it on the old one."

He put the new one on top, and Kakashi shivered. Ow, ow ow ow. He bit down a couple of words that would make even a ANBU captain blush.

Naruto grimaced. "Sorry. Now what?"

"Take the bandage and just wrap it over. Make sure it covers it."

For someone who probably hadn't dressed a wound in his entire life, Naruto did good. He wrapped it tight enough and tied the ends neatly across it. Kakashi noticed he was feeling a little unsubstantial, almost giddy from stress and pent up pain.

"Done! Better?"

Kakashi waved his arm experimentally. It did feel a little better. At least it wasn't exposed like before.

"Thank you," he said and carefully got up.

Naruto took off the scroll and instead secured it onto his backpack, which he then heaved up onto his back. Kakashi did the same and without further ado they started making their way out of the town.

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