The Akatsuki were in Hidden Leaf… Ninja and people were dying all around… People panicked as they followed the evacuation protocol … Their village was exploding and falling apart . She left the shop's door open as she ran to the academy to help with evacuations. Sure, she had decided to no longer be an active Jonin but that didn't mean her duties as one suddenly disappeared, especially in a state of emergency.
An elderly woman fell and she stopped to help her up, "I'm headed to the academy. The Genins, Chunins, and Jonins will be there to help you safely evacuate." She explained gently and kept a secure arm over the woman and continued her journey at a much slower pace. Another blast happened and she used her own body to protect the old woman. Relief flooded her as they approached the school and she passed the woman onto the Genins escorting the elderly.
Iruka approached her quickly, looking stressed, "you've made it here! Kakashi would have been upset if you weren't located."
Kakashi … of course as a former Anbu Black Ops member, he would be expected to be at the front lines to help handle this situation. She was thankful that Naruto was safe in the lands of the toads, but Hidden Leaf needed him. She had to trust that Lady Tsunade was doing what was best in this. To protect Naruto, to protect Hidden Leaf, protect everyone…
"They're looking for Naruto." He breathed out, "I fear they're not going to stop until they find him."
"They won't." She confirmed and shook her head before she pinched the bridge of her nose in thought, "have you seen Kakashi?" She knew better than to be worried but he was her partner, she couldn't help but be worried. She knew plenty about the Akatsuki, their abilities, and their strength. He had come home to her on the edge of death, chakra completely used up whenever they went up against them.
"No, the last I-"
"Petal," Kakashi said from behind them.
She turned quickly, "Kakashi!" Relief ran through her system and she wrapped her arms around Kakashi, hugging him tightly. She shifted to press her forehead against his, "what can I do?" She asked, nose rubbing against his covered one.
"You can help evacuate, heal people as you need to, I need to-"
"I know you do." She said softly, a pit forming in her stomach. She wouldn't cry. She would not cry .
"Don't cry." He wiped the stray tears off her cheeks. "I always come back, don't I?" He started rubbing her back gently, "it's my duty."
"I know. This is what I agreed to as your partner." She gave a tearful smile before sniffling. "I would never ask you to stay with me." She cupped his face gently, "I love you. Please come home to me. Please ." Her fear was starting to grow in her gut. Something felt different this time than the other times he would go on missions. This was different.
"I can't make that promise, I never have made that promise to you because it isn't one I can make sure doesn't happen." One of his hands came back up to wipe away the steadily appearing tears. "What do I say?"
"You always come back." She met his gaze and furrowed her brow. "How is that not a promise?" Her mind went to Asuma and Kurenai. At least Kurenai had a piece of Asuma, she would be left with nothing.
"Because, my love, I will always come back to you. I might not come back to you in this body but I will come back to you in other ways. The whispers of pages turning, the turn of winter to spring and the fresh petals blooming… and you have my essence with you wherever you go. I'll always come back to you." He nodded and kissed her forehead through his face covering. He knew she was scared. But he really couldn't afford the time to give her a proper goodbye. Naruto was due to show up at any moment and he needed to stop these people from further destroying their precious village, "if we don't stop them, there won't be a village for us to thrive in. For the future of Hidden Leaf to survive and find the will."
She nodded and hugged him close to her, "go. This isn't going to get better. I'll help the academy evacuate the village." She let him go and nodded, her tears drying and her shoulders straightening.
"I love you," he pressed his mouth against hers not caring the fabric was a barrier from skin-to-skin contact.
She held him to her for a brief moment, "I love you."
They held each other's gaze before he left and she turned to face Iruka, "go do what you need to do, I'll handle your duties here."
Pain had the nail between his nails and Kakashi was pinned between a bunch of rubble. He had no way of escaping this. His chakra was at the limit and he was dancing the line of consciousness and passing out. He needed to focus. He had to stay alive, he needed to. So many people were relying on him to stay alive… Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, Sai, Tenzo, her… He had to stay alive for her. He knew that she understood what his duties were but he wasn't done living his life with her. He wanted to fall more in love and start a family, watch their children grow to become great ninja for the village. He wanted to watch Naruto fulfill his dream and destiny of becoming the best Hokage the Hidden Leaf Village had, fulfilling the hopes and dreams of his father and mother. Naruto had grown so much. He had a lot to live for, he always had.
Pain's fingers flicked and the nail flew. Kakashi drew on his remaining chakra to form a hole in their dimension to send the nail elsewhere. He allowed his head to snap back like he had been struck before dropping forward.
If he thought his chakra was spent before… now instead of teetering on the edge of being conscious or not, he was toeing the line of death and life. All that mattered at this moment was Pain being fooled. He listened to Choji's tears of grief over his father and over himself and his heart ached for the young ninja. Once he was sure that Pain had left, he forced his eyes open and stared at Choji. He could tell that his father was okay through his Sharingan.
"If you can move… you need to run and report to Lady Tsunade about Pain's abilities. You must… hurry," he gasped, the pain from the physical attacks and his lack of chakra causing his vision to blur and focus. "Run!"
"But… I… I-" Choji started.
"Persistent fellows, aren't you?" Pain growled from the lump of human flesh that Kakashi thought he, Choji, and Choza had defeated.
Damn it! He's still alive?! Kakashi was beside himself. He thought he was safe to expose the fact that he had lived.
"Run Choji!" Kakashi shouted at the young ninja. He knew that he would be using the minuscule amount of chakra he had left to ensure that Choji was able to report to Lady Tsunade. He knew it was the only method he had left to save the Hidden Leaf. He hoped that she would forgive him and take his words of what it meant that he will always come back to her to heart and understand.
He focused his jutsu on opening the dimension to swallow the missile that was chasing after Choji to allow him to safely escape. He watched the remnants of one of the bodies of Pain die and Kakashi let out a sigh.
Well… this is it for me too. Forgive me . His eyes closed as darkness consumed him.
She was finding the remaining stragglers that were searching for the evacuation lines and directing them accordingly. She noticed Choji rushing towards the Hokage's office and home and felt it. With the intense pull in her gut, her heart felt like it stopped for a beat or two. She clutched her chest and gasped. The world around her went silent for the briefest of moments and through the rubble and ash floating around she noticed a few petals floating down from someone's nearby garden or one of the trees that had flowers. She didn't spend too long watching them. She knew that this pain in her chest wasn't a normal one and she couldn't tell anyone how but she knew it was about Kakashi.
"Kakashi…" She shifted and stared out at the rapidly declining village. He said he would always be with her. She blinked back tears and shook her head. It was nothing. He said he would come back. Swallowing the knot in her throat she straightened her shoulders and focused on her duties.
She was in the safety zones tending to those who were injured when an earthquake shook Hokage Rock. There was a brief moment when she feared the rocks would cave in on them but she knew better. This was designed to withstand any attack and to protect the village. She waved over a nurse and directed her to take over before she ran out.
As she took in the destruction, she fell to her knees. The Hidden Leaf was no more. Where it used to be was a giant crater filled with boulders, debris, and rubble. Now there was no doubt that feeling she had earlier meant. She felt the need to sob building up in her chest. The grief she felt of losing her partner and her home weighed on her like a two-ton elephant. She stood up and bit her thumb, ready to perform a summoning jutsu to go out and help in any way she could.
A fellow former Jonin came up and laid a hand on her shoulder, "there's nothing we can do right now. Lady Tsunade has asked the medically trained to stay and heal alongside Katsuyu."
"B-but our home!" She cried and wiped her face. She hated how much she was crying. She wanted to push the grief aside so she could be the ninja the Hidden Leaf needed.
"Our Hokage has given us clear orders. Besides… Naruto is handling it. He's the only one that can. He's asked for no one to interfere." He explained gently.
Her worry for Naruto blossomed in her chest. She saw him like she loved a little brother or a nephew. She fed him regularly, made him care packages, and always checked in on him. He made her laugh and sought her out for advice about Sakura and various other things in his life. She had held him when Jiraya had passed and did her best to be there for his time of grief. Naruto… She swallowed thickly, "I'm going to go closer and heal those out there that need to be healed. There's plenty within the walls of-"
"Think of what Kakashi would want you to do." He said patiently.
Kakashi is dead . Well, she wasn't entirely sure, but her heart was pretty certain. "He would want me to protect, aid, and support the Hidden Leaf. I can't do that hiding in the safety bunker. That is for the village people, I was a Jonin! I can be of use and there are people all over our village needing aid. I need to make myself useful to those who sincerely need it. This isn't up for debate." With that, she disappeared from that spot and was running through the rubble.
The roars of the fox caught her attention but didn't keep her from working on the mission she assigned herself. She stopped being a Jonin to start a quiet life and a family but that didn't mean she wasn't bound to the honor code.
"Father…" Kakashi started as his body started to glow.
"I'm grateful we had time to talk," his father smiled at him, "and for your forgiveness at long last." His gaze was soft as he stared at his son as he glowed brighter. Kakashi's vision went black and his father's voice echoed through his mind, "and finally see your mother…"
Kakashi's eyes snapped open and he gasped as his soul returned to his body. He sat up and glanced around, feeling a bit disoriented. Naruto… He stood up and took a deep breath and found Naruto's scent. He was still alive and Kakashi was alive because of Naruto. He took off after the scent. He knew that the blonde ninja would be exhausted. He had to be. The remnants of the village smelled of the nine-tailed fox and if that was the case, Naruto could be in grave danger.
He was flying through the trees, closing in on Naruto when he finally saw him. Naruto was leaning heavily against a tree, covered in dirt and sweat. He started to fall and Kakashi picked up the pace and caught Naruto on his back.
"Good job," Kakashi smiled faintly under his face covering. The pride he felt for his student was overwhelming.
"Kakashi Sensei," Naruto smiled tiredly.
"Stay still, I'll carry you." Kakashi looked at the teen over his shoulder. Naruto snuggled into Kakashi, burying his face into her shoulder, a content and tired smile on his face. He's definitely gotten heavier , Kakashi thought to himself as they walked through the woods back towards what was left of the village. "They've all been waiting for you to return," he said over his shoulder to the tired Naruto. "You did well." All he wanted was to be celebrated and respected by the village and now… his mind ran through all the memories of Naruto screaming about becoming the Hokage. You've done it, Naruto. He smiled a bit as they came out of the trees and the entire village was there cheering for Naruto.
He carefully let him down and let Naruto bask in this moment of glory that he deserved. He watched him for a moment before his eyes widened. The entire village had been destroyed, he had died and his soul came back, and he had no idea where she was. She could have been killed. His stomach knotted itself. He always said he'd come back to her but she had never had reason to say the same thing since she went into retirement. He snapped his head in either direction, eye scanning the crowds for her. Where is she? He felt the panic rise in his chest. He gave Naruto a shoulder pat and left him to it before he left his side.
Kakashi took a deep breath but there were too many scents mingled together. The brisk walk he was doing to look for her turned into a run, calling her name out.
"Oh! Check the medical tent!" One of the Chunin called back to Kakashi.
Oh no , Kakashi's mind went to the worst. Why would she be in the medical tent? Wasn't she just helping out the evacuations? His worry felt palpable. He pushed the flaps back as he entered the medical tent. He asked for her by name.
"Oh she's in the critical care tent, that one is two tents down." The nurse nodded and smiled at him.
Critical care!? He cursed to himself and ran over.
Once Pain was defeated, the village went into creating a tent village so they could get sorted properly before they started to rebuild. She helped set up the medical tents and sent herself to the critical care tent to work alongside the other medical ninja to heal the severely injured and to focus on some of those who had lost their lives and come back. She was so concerned about the work she was doing and helping the injured she didn't stop to think about whether or not Kakashi was one of the ones that came back-if he had actually died. She didn't have time to focus on feelings of grief or pain, she had to focus on tending to those who needed her.
She stood up from the current patient she was working on and wiped her forehead. She was exhausted but still, there was much work to be done, she was digging in her pockets for food pellets to replenish her chakra so she could continue to work. Her name was called through the tent and she turned towards the nurse asking for her, "someone is looking for you. They're at the front of the tent."
With a frown, she peered to see who it could be but didn't see anyone. She wiped her hands and nodded, "I'll be right-"
"Petal," Kakashi breathed out from behind her.
She turned around quickly with a gasp. "Kakashi," she gasped and threw herself into his arms. "I was so sure… my heart started to beat for one and I-I-" she couldn't hold back her tears any longer.
"I know. It was but I'm back. I'm here. I always come back, don't I?" The breathless chuckle sounded forced as he kissed the top of her head.
She nodded against his chest forcing herself to take a few deep breaths, "I'm needed here right now." She gestured to the tent, "are you hurt?" She asked and started to run her hands over his body to feel for anything broken.
"I've been better. I just need to rest. I'll go handle where we will be sleeping." He soothed and grabbed her hands. He kissed her palm through his covering. "I was worried about you. One person told me you were at the medical tent and another said you were in critical care… I-I thought the worst."
She nodded, staring up at him, "I know the feeling." She said and cupped his face. "I'm so glad you've found your way back to me."
"Always." He smiled. "I'll be going, tend to your duties. I love you." He rested his forehead against hers for a moment.
After Kakashi made sure they had a tent to sleep in, any loose ends he was required to tend to were tied up, he waited outside of the critical care tent for her. The relief that he felt when he found her felt like he had ice-cold water poured over him. She walked out of the tent looking exhausted.
"Let's go down to the river," he said and stood up, wrapping his arm around her waist.
"There's still so much to do, I'm sure you're needed by your team and-"
"I'm needed right here with you. I've tended to all my duties today. Now I need to tend to my duties as your partner." He drew her in closer and led her down to the makeshift bathhouse the village had made. "They made it for females, males, and this one is private for couples or families," Kakashi explained as he locked the door behind them.
She nodded tiredly and started to peel off her garments, looking forward to the hot bath.
"Allow me," Kakashi stepped in and carefully undressed her.
"You were the one who was about to leave for the afterlife… I should be caring for you." She sighed and watched him.
"Well, now you can." He smiled and put her hands on his chest.
She slowly undressed him, frowning at the various fresh cuts and bruises, "I don't even have the scar cream," she tutted to herself.
"I'll be okay." He soothed and ran his hands down her sides. She pulled the mask down off his face and pulled him in for a longing kiss. He kissed her back and drew her in so their naked bodies were pressed against one another's.
"I was so scared I lost you forever." She mumbled against his lips, her fingers pressing into his back.
"You'll never lose me forever." He whispered and pulled back to lead her to the private bath. He held her hands as she stepped in and got in behind her. They groaned in unison as they both sunk in to their necks.
"This is amazing." She breathed out, leaning her head back against Kakashi's chest.
"I agree," he breathed out and wrapped his arms around her.
They took their time bathing each other and relaxing their sore muscles in the hot water before they got out and got dressed in fresh clothes.
"Let's get to bed," Kakashi smiled tiredly at her before pulling his mask up over his face. She nodded and let out a huge yawn and that turned into a surprised noise when Kakashi scooped her up. "You're practically dead on your feet," he tutted.
"Too soon, Kakashi." She said in a bland tone and kissed under his chin.
"Mm, I don't think so. Life is fleeting, we need to enjoy what we have now." He teased tiredly and nuzzled the side of her head for a brief moment, "if there was anything I learned today, it was that."
She stroked his chest in response, "likewise." The word was barely audible.
He pushed through the flaps and laid her down on the cot gently. He tossed the pack of their dirty clothes and wash things to the side and laid down with her, pulling the covers over both of them.
They faced each other and tangled their legs together. He held her gaze and she stroked his damp hair, "how's Naruto doing?" She asked gently.
"Quite well. He's the village's hero," he smiled proudly.
"As he deserves to be recognized as," her eyes pricked with tears of happiness for Naruto, "I'm so glad he's okay."
"Of course he is, you should see him tomorrow." He moved her hand to his chest and took his turn in playing with her hair.
"I will." She bit her lip, "I'm so glad you're here with me, with all of us here Kakashi."
"Oh my sweet petal, me too." He pulled his mask down and leaned in to give her a kiss.
She kissed him back and sighed, "I'm sorry you were worried earlier, I should-"
"It's okay." He soothed, pulling his mask back up, "it could not have been helped."
"I know, but I want to tell you that I will always find you." She said gently and stared into his eye, trying to pour her entire heart through her gaze, "I will always come back to you just as you will for me." She nodded and buried his face into his chest.
His heart warmed. There had never been a time where she needed to say that before but with everything happening, it only felt right. He held her to his chest, "I know." He murmured. "Let's get some rest. There's much to be done. I love you."
"I love you," she murmured against the soft fabric of his shirt. Her body felt heavy and sleep was already taking over her.
He waited for her soft snores before he allowed himself to succumb to sleep. The steady rhythm of their hearts beating lulled him into his own snores.
They both dreamed of a white-haired child that night.