Still don't own Naruto! Would love to own Kakashi, though. Meeeooowwww.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Time passed in much of the same fashion as it did before the attack. They continued their training in the safety of the indoor arena, pretty much securing the area for themselves as most ANBU preferred to spar outdoors. The nice thing about being inside was that they had no need for their masks, which Tenzou had to admit became annoying during battle. Kakashi continued to monitor and motivate Tenzou in training his mokuton, but after what had happened, it was almost unnecessary. Tenzou was completely determined to keep his team as safe as possible, and he knew the mokuton would help tremendously.
However, he couldn't shake the nagging fear that one day, everything would backfire on him. No matter how many kind words were said, no matter how he progressed, there were those who feared him. Tenzou could not get over the idea that they had to be afraid for a reason. He didn't know what that reason was and it terrified him.
Kakashi called to him snapped him out of his revere, bringing him back to their training.
"Tenzou, can you try taking Gai in with you when you meld with that tree?"
The mokuton user paled, but Gai looked out of his mind with excitement.
"AH! To be one with nature!"
"...Uh...I've...never tried that."
Kakashi smiled warmly. "There's a first time for everything. Just, try not to leave him in there. We kind of need him."
Obviously, that did nothing for Tenzou's confidence. The brunette shot Kakashi a filthy look which his captain rebutted with a bright smile. "Go on, then."
Taking a deep breath, Tenzou concentrated. He formed the proper seals and tried to think of how he could pass his chakra onto Gai in a way that would allow him to act as he did. Perhaps it would be as easy as just...holding onto him. That was how it worked with teleportation, anyway.
Without further ado Tenzou gripped the front of Gai's chest armor and stepped into the tree. When he felt slightly less afraid then normal, he slowly tugged his friend in with him. To his utter astonishment, Gai slowly started to melt into the wood.
Wow! This could be so useful on-
"-OH GOD!" Tenzou screamed.
For some reason Tenzou could not fathom, his friend had suddenly 'hardened' half way into the tree. It looked like he was literally cut in half. To Tenzou's continued horror, Gai's face was scrunched up in an expression the mokuton user prayed fervently wasn't excruciating pain.
"O...Oh..." Gai stuttered as he looked down at himself.
"FUCKFUCKFUCK!"
Tenzou jumped out of the tree and whirled around. He could see Gai's legs on the other side and thankfully, no blood. Maybe...maybe he was alright...
"Gai!" Kakashi cried, looking not at all calm. "Okay, that did not work."
Genma looked like he was about to pass out and was the quietest Tenzou had ever seen him.
Tenzou forced himself to calm down and formed his hand signs. "Alright. I, uh, I'm gonna split the tree. Gai, how do you feel? Can you wiggle your toes?"
With a loud gulp, the taijutsu master attempted it, and to the utter relief of his friends, his toes indeed wiggled.
"Well...he's still attached. Theoretically."
For all of Kakashi's aloof words he looked incredibly worried. Tenzou had never seen his eyes so wide.
"Okay. Everyone, uh...get...ready..." Tenzou almost choked on his own words and their implications. They all looked at each other, picturing the tree moving and Gai falling in two cleanly sliced pieces. They gulped in unison.
"Okay...one...two..."
Kakashi and Genma positioned themselves beside Gai.
"...Three..."
The tree split in half wide enough for Gai to come spilling out. Kakashi caught him instantly and Genma was over him in a second.
"GAI!" They both shouted, their eyes wandering over his body frantically.
He was whole. They all sighed loudly, and Genma actually fell over with relief.
"Holy shit...hooooly shit..." Genma panted, rubbing his face a little too roughly. "I think I'm gonna puke."
"Gai, speak to me. Are you alright?" Kakashi asked, shaking his friend lightly. Tenzou jumped over to them and waited eagerly for his teammate to answer. Gai looked dazed and didn't even blink in response. Genma turned completely white again. Kakashi looked like he wasn't doing much better.
"...Gai...?" he tried again.
Seconds of agonizing silence passed. Tenzou had never felt so stressed in his life. Genma was definitely going to puke.
And then, Gai blinked. He turned his head to look at Kakashi. Everyone held their breath.
"I think perhaps the mokuton is not a jutsu that can be used with others."
Genma passed out, Kakashi laughed and Tenzou wept.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
After the team had assured themselves that Gai was ok and had no internal injuries, Kakashi deemed their training session over.
"I think we've had enough for today..." he sighed, and they all nodded eagerly. "Lets head back to our respective rooms then meet in twenty minutes for dinner. I'll buy, since this was my fault."
Gai and Genma whooped with delight, a response Tenzou was not expecting. Genma leaned towards him slightly.
"Kakashi hardly ever buys." he whispered. Tenzou wanted to be surprised by that, but nothing about Kakashi surprised him anymore.
They all formed their hand signs and teleported away. Tenzou appeared in their room with Kakashi. His captain turned to him looking so shameful Tenzou almost wanted to pet him.
"I'm sorry, Tenzou. I pushed you way too far. I don't want today to affect you and your confidence with the mokuton."
It had been two weeks since the attack and Tenzou had consistently grown closer to his captain. They had fallen into a comfortable routine, almost like two puzzle pieces sliding together with little effort. It felt really good, not only to be a part of a team, but almost a partner with his captain.
"It's alright, Kakashi-senpai. You've taught me that risks are necessary to grow. Now we know about one of the limits to my wood release. It's better to have figured it out here than on a mission."
That brought a warm smile to Kakashi's face, something the younger shinobi was getting used to seeing. He was certain he would never get tired of it.
"Of course."
The moment was interrupted by a loud bang against their wall. The two looked worried but for a split second.
"-YOU ALWAYS GET THE FUCKING BATHROOM FIRST!" was the slightly muffled scream that came sailing into their room. Kakashi and Tenzou both seemed to deflate at the same time.
"I'm starting to think they want to fight for the bathroom." Tenzou sighed. He started slightly at the cheeky grin on his captains face. "...what?"
"They have two bathrooms, Tenzou."
Silence.
"Wait. Seriously?"
"Yup. I made sure of it."
Another loud bang against the wall made Tenzou jump.
"AHA! VICTORY IS MINE! THAT IS TEN TO TWO, YOU WEAK FOOL!"
The mokuton user shook his head with a chuckle. "Well...alright..."
"I gave them a signal to use if they are ever in trouble." Kakashi started, catching Tenzou's eager attention. "Just in case someone is listening, please come closer and I'll whisper it to you."
Dutifully, Tenzou did as he was told without hesitation. "That is very clever, Senpai."
"They made me captain for a reason." Kakashi responded without bite. He pulled down his mask and slowly dipped his head the few inches needed to reach Tenzou's ear.
Unfortunately for Tenzou, Kakashi's voice instantly became husky when lowered. His breath ghosted against Tenzou's ear, and the mokuton user realized with horror that he was warming again. He felt an electric jolt burn down his neck and through his spine.
"Verbally, the code word is 'ninken'." He breathed, and his lips gently ghosted against the shell of Tenzou's ear. Tenzou's mind had instantly and literally muted. All he could comprehend was Kakashi, his mouth, and how it felt to stand so close to him. "If they can't speak-" Kakashi continued, as if oblivious to his influence. "-they will bang rapidly on the wall with their fists three times in a row. If their hands are tied, Genma is able to spit a senbon with enough force to send it through the wall." As he finished, Tenzou was shoved further down the rabbit hole by another warm jolt from Kakashi's lips. It was all he could do not to swallow loudly. He wondered blearily if his captain was doing it on purpose or not.
"Tenzou..." Kakashi purred into his ear. Mortified, the mokuton user snapped back to reality.
Damnit, I must have zoned out again.
"Ah! Yes, Senpai, I understand."
"Good. Just to make sure, whisper it back to me."
Tenzou froze.
Oh fuck.
He had not been paying attention past 'ninken'.
Oh fuck fuck fuck fuck.
Kakashi shifted slightly and turned his head to Tenzou, giving him access to his ear.
I am so fucked. This is so embarrassing. As if he needed even more creepy dirt on me. He's going to think I just hit puberty last week. This is not happening.
"...Ah...well..." Tenzou started, but had absolutely no idea how he was going to admit that he hadn't heard a word Kakashi said because he was too busy being mesmerized by his manly essence.
Except he didn't have to.
He realized with abject horror that Kakashi had the most knowing, amused, self-satisfied grin on his face that Tenzou had ever had the misery of seeing.
Someone kill him now.
"What's the matter, Tenzou? You didn't hear me?"
"...N...no..."
"If I tell you again, will you pay attention?"
Fucking asshole is doing this on fucking purpose, he just loves it doesn't he, oh yes he does...
"...Yes, Senpai..."
This time, Kakashi moved in only as close as he needed to. He repeated the signal and Tenzou nodded in understanding.
"Thank you, Senpai..." Tenzou whispered bashfully.
Something primal seemed to flash in Kakashi's eyes at that and Tenzou briefly wondered if he'd need to use the code for backup soon.
"Oh, you're very welcome, Tenzou." he responded, and the way his husky voice crackled nearly made Tenzou swoon.
"You don't mind if I use the shower first, do you?" he continued, his voice completely back to normal, his usual friendly smile in place. Tenzou blinked away his daze and nodded mutely. Kakashi merely grabbed his towel, tossed it over his shoulder and walked into the bathroom without another word.
As soon as the door was shut Tenzou let out a long, hard breath.
Wow.
Well.
He was just going to go join Genma and Gai in their room until Kakashi was ready. The last damn thing he needed was to see his captain half naked.
On the way out, he stopped to check himself briefly.
Yup, boner.
Surprised not at all.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
After he'd calmed down outside of their door for a couple of minutes, Tenzou knocked and was admitted with friendly greetings from Genma.
"Tenzou my man, you haven't even changed!"
"Ah, yah, Kakashi got the bathroom first."
"That sneaky bastard. We have two and Gai just finished, so feel free to freshen up in ours."
Tenzou could not have been more thrilled.
After grabbing his standard issue Konoha uniform from the room and his towel, he returned to his friends bathroom and let the warm shower water wash away his fluster. He had basically come to accept the fact that he was ridiculously attracted to Kakashi and that his captain knew it and absolutely loved to tease him. Tenzou had very little sexual experience, but he was sharp as any ninja needed to be and he knew what Kakashi was doing. He supposed it was better than his captain being disgusted, so he said nothing about it. Besides, it...brought a little bit of...spark to his life. So, why not?
Don't kid yourself. Kakashi paying attention to you is flattering and you love it.
Tenzou had no idea where this inner voice came from, but he didn't appreciate it.
When he emerged from the bathroom dressed and ready to go he was surprised to see Kakashi there. He looked a little different in the Konoha uniform. A little more...muted, maybe. Still handsome, but the baggy clothes and thick vest hid his physique in a way the ANBU uniform absolutely did not. It made him look a little older, actually.
"Ready?" Kakashi asked simply.
"Yes, Senpai. I'm starving."
"Haha, man, me too!" Genma crowed, rubbing his flat stomach in large circles. "Lets get us some grub!"
Ooooooooooooooooooooooo
Dinner passed as pleasantly as he expected. Genma and Gai were the funniest people he had ever met, and he almost threw up his dinner from laughing so hard for so long. Kakashi looked unimpressed.
"Maaa...don't waste my money, kouhai."
"Well, maybe if you had more personality, you could make him laugh instead." Genma jeered.
Kakashi's eye drooped slightly. "Oww."
They all laughed and Kakashi prodded his noodles sourly.
Gai slapped his friends back eagerly. "Do not fret, rival! You do not need personality to be an excellent ninja!"
Tenzou spit his noodles out with a loud snort. Kakashi's eye drooped even further.
"Maaa...Gai...I have personality..."
"Of course, of course!" Gai back peddled and Genma laughed loudly.
"The personality of a toaster!"
"HAHAHAHA."
Tenzou slapped a hand over his mouth at the withering glare Kakashi nailed him with. Genma merely laughed right along with him. Gai looked embarrassed.
The mokuton user had to admit that it was amazing to see Kakashi at the butt end of a joke for once.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
After Kakashi had threatened not to shell out a single dollar due to their ganging up on him, his captain finally paid the bill and they all began the slow walk back to headquarters.
"Aw man, it's been such a long time since I saw the market. Lets hang out for a bit, eh?" Genma suggested to the team. No one seemed opposed, so they calmed their walk to a lazy saunter and immersed themselves in the shopping crowd.
A beautiful ornate stand caught Tenzou's eye. "Wait a second!" he called to his friends as he walked over. It was full of pretty little bonzai trees and other plants. The old lady smiled warmly at him.
"Hello, young man!"
"Good evening." Tenzou greeted happily. "What a nice collection you have..."
"Oh, they're all new from the middle of fire country. This one is especially nice." She said, holding up a beautiful little cherry blossom shrub. Tenzou felt his eyes actually sparkle.
"Wow, what flowers...look how healthy it is..." he marvelled.
I wonder if I can do something like this...I bet I can...
Distantly, Tenzou could hear Genma's voice. He realized with horror that he had never told them his civilian name. They absolutely could not call him by his ANBU codename when he was out of uniform for blatantly obvious reasons. He was such an idiot.
"Genma! Here!" he called over his shoulder.
His head snapped back to the stand.
The woman smiled at him.
What...something...something had set off his instincts...
He looked around, but nothing was out of sorts. He felt around, but no chakra spikes frittered through his senses. Maybe he was just being paranoid, but his gut never let him down. He placed the little shrub back gently and slowly backed away.
"What's the matter, young man?" The old woman asked with concern.
"Nothing, I'll be-"
He cried out as he was suddenly pinned to the ground by a thick, heavy body. Just as he thought of his wood release, his entire world exploded in pain. Whoever was on top of him had just smashed their chakra powered fist into his jaw. He felt his head snap to the side and crack against the ground. His entire face throbbed with a sharp, unnerving pain. His jaw was definitely dislocated, if not broken.
The weight was off of him just as fast as it had come. He rolled to his side and pushed himself off of the ground, staring at the little bit of blood on the dirt from his mouth. Spinning, he saw Kakashi with his fist through his unconscious attackers chest. The crowd around them had parted in fear. Ninja were leaping in at all sides. Genma and Gai were searching frantically for more enemies.
"What the hell happened?" he heard a rough voice call. It was Nara Shikaku, the head of the Nara clan.
Tenzou tried to talk and ended up practically screaming in pain for his efforts. He fell to his knees, clutching his head. A hand on his shoulder caused him to look up. Gai was staring down at him with barely diluted anger.
"My friend...you're a mess. Nod if you feel steady."
Tenzou slowly nodded. Gai helped him to his feet. Shikaku approached faster then Tenzou expected him to and he had to blink away the pain to acknowledge him properly.
"Did you see where he came from?" Shikaku asked gruffly.
Tenzou shook his head. He pointed to the shop he was at. They all looked over.
The old woman was gone.
Tenzou jabbed his finger at her empty chair, his eyes wide. Shikaku took but a second to let it sink in before he approached the shop and started scanning the area.
"This stand belongs to the Kukai family. They are currently out of town; how convenient. They've also never sold a plant in their life." The Nara leader murmured, trailing his hands over the wood of the shop.
Shikaku turned to look at Kakashi, who was approaching them with blood dripping from his right hand. They exchanged a silent glance before Shikaku narrowed his eyes.
"It doesn't take a couple of geniuses to figure out what happened here, now does it?"
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
A medic nin appeared shortly after Shikaku and took care of most of the pain for Tenzou. She healed him to the point where he could speak, slowly, but she told him he would need to see the healers at the hospital to have his bone fixed. His jaw was, indeed, broken.
Shikaku insisted on speaking to the Hokage about what he had seen at the scene of the crime. He and Kakashi went ahead to Hiruzen while Gai and Genma took Tenzou to the hospital.
The mokuton user was absolutely reeling. He had been alone for ONE MINUTE, and they had gotten him. Actually, alone was sort of an exaggeration. His friends had been but a few feet away. Gai had explained that they saw him leave and heard him tell them to wait, so they did. But, they had no interest in plants so they had let Tenzou see the shop on his own. When Tenzou heard Genma calling, it was because the crowd had thickened to the point where they lost sight of him. Kakashi had instantly ordered them to get him, and the second they had pushed through the crowd, they had seen Tenzou on the ground with a nameless ninja on top of him.
"We were all in shock. They are obviously keeping a very, VERY close eye on you my battered friend." Gai explained, the grimmest Tenzou had ever seen him.
Kakashi was the fastest out of all of them, and so, he had gotten to him first. The rest Tenzou knew for himself.
As soon as his jaw was fixed, he slowly started to explain himself.
"I...ugh, oww..." The nurse smiled at him. "...I felt something. I had this feeling. I tried to leave, but he...ugh...got me as soon as I started to back away. I don't know if that old ...woman gave him some kind of signal, ...or if he'd just... been... watching."
Genma stilled him. "Alright, buddy. Just let your jaw rest. We'll figure it out."
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Gai and Genma teleported Tenzou back to headquarters, as they didn't want him using any of his chakra. His jaw was healed, but it was tender and swollen. He had been given pain killers to take the edge off, but was warned he could not spar or go on missions for at least a week. His jaw would be easy to break for at least another three days, and needed three days on top of that for the swelling.
They stayed together in Tenzou's room until the mokuton user could no longer fight off the drowsiness the drugs induced. Genma and Gai playfully tucked him in and even pecked him on the forehead.
"Now, sleep tight my little princess!" Genma cooed.
"Fuck off." Tenzou chuckled.
Genma and Gai then curled up on Kakashi's bed and sat there, murmuring to each other. Tenzou felt himself drift off to the warm comfort of his friends.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
"Tenzou..."
The mokuton user moaned softly and shifted. Kakashi waited another moment before calling again. No way was he going to get clobbered.
"Tenzou."
"...Uhn..."
Now, Kakashi approached. He placed a gentle hand on Tenzou's shoulder. Sluggishly, the mokuton users eyes opened.
"...'Shi..."
"Do your best to wake up, Tenzou."
It took all of his effort to drag his torso up into a sitting position, but he did it. His eyes were hilariously half lidded, and one was slightly more open than the other. His cheeks were swollen and puffed. Kakashi had never seen anything so insanely adorable in his entire life. He looked like a drugged up little bunny.
"Tenzou, are you in pain?"
The mokuton user grinned and giggled. "Nope."
Kakashi looked over and saw the bottle of pills on his nightstand. He snatched them up. "Did they give these to you?" he asked, his voice urgent. That snapped Tenzou out of his drug-induced daze slightly. He blinked unevenly.
"Uh...yes, the...hospital did..."
Kakashi cracked the jar open and spilled the pills into his palm. After a few quick, hard sniffs, he sighed. "They're fine." he poured them into the bottle, closed the lid and put them back in their place. He was greeted with a worried, dazed look from his friend.
"It's...that bad...?"
Kakashi leaned his arm against the bed, kneeling across from Tenzou. He looked straight into his eyes, which was actually kind of hard since he looked so hilarious. "Yes. Yes, it's that bad."
Tenzou was silent for a moment before he dropped his head. "Oh."
Kakashi sighed, scooting a little bit closer. "You don't need to talk, just listen and rest." he started, his voice gentle. Tenzou blinked, one eye staying slightly closed, and nodded attentively. Kakashi laughed and gently pushed his eye lid the rest of the way up. "I'm...sorry, Tenzou. You're...comical right now."
Tenzou huffed and glared. It did not help. Kakashi laughed again. "Please, stop. Just...do nothing with your face, I'm trying really hard to be serious."
Tenzou looked confused. He tried to make a 'nothing' face, but he just ended up looking like a high zombie. Zombified, swollen and drugged. Kakashi's head fell and his shoulders quaked. Tenzou was too far gone to appreciate the moment.
"...Senpai..."
His captain's grip on his bed tightened and his head did not come up. His shoulders were shaking hard. He was obviously laughing his ass off and trying really hard to stop.
Tenzou waited.
After maybe a minute, Kakashi raised his head. He had removed his forehead protector, so both his eyes were visible. He only had one open, and it was tearing slightly.
"I'm glad you're having fun." Tenzou huffed.
"I wish you could see yourself...I thought I was going to pass out..."
"Mmm Hmm."
Kakashi could see how unimpressed Tenzou was, so he continued as best he could. "Alright. The situation is actually pretty serious. They must have scouts on the lookout for you, and when they saw us outside, they set up shop at the empty stall. We asked around, and the vendors next door said the old woman was actually a person, so they suspected nothing. She's the grandmother of the Yatanka family, who live on the other side of town, so the chances of them being at the market were slim. They happen to be close friends with the Kukai family, so when the other vendors asked her what she was doing, she told them her friends said she was allowed to use their stand for the night. So, the people who are after you know the citizens of Konoha fairly well. They also either know you well enough to know you'd be attracted to plants, or they just assumed correctly."
Kakashi paused to let Tenzou absorb the information. He had so many feelings for Tenzou at the moment that he could hardly sit still and talk to him. His heart broke for him, it swelled with affection for him, and it most certainly was touched by him. He looked so hilariously sad that Kakashi ached, but his kouhai also had as much heart and resolve as ever.
"Interrogation got almost nothing from the people who attacked us a week ago. They've all had their tongues sealed by a very impressive, complicated jutsu. But, that tells us one thing. The ninja of 'Root' all have their tongues sealed in a similar fashion. Unfortunately, this is not enough proof for us to take it to the council. Anyone can seal their thugs tongues if they are strong enough. But...Hiruzen-sama had the suspicion that it was Danzo behind the attacks, and the seals fuel his thoughts."
Tenzou's eyes widened. "Danzo...Root...but why?"
Kakashi shook his head. "Nevermind that. There's more. Interrogation has started asking the attackers teammates and other ANBU questions about them. They spent the entire week gathering information, and the one thing they could find is that all five of the ANBU who attacked us had guarded a council meeting that Danzo had been present at. There had been two other ANBU there who weren't part of the attacks, and when interrogations asked them for more information, they had said all seven of them had taken the rare opportunity to speak to Danzo in person. Danzo had spoken to them about how passionate he was about protecting Konoha and that if anyone felt the same as him they should come to his office at a later date. That was all they could tell us, but when we asked them if they'd gone, they said no. When we asked them if their friends had gone, they said they honestly had no idea."
Tenzou's brow was furrowed in a very endearing way that did not help Kakashi maintain a serious attitude.
"Hiruzen-sama really thinks its him?"
"Its all speculation, but more and more pieces are starting to fall together. The Hokage has ordered a very secret and select few ANBU to basically interrogate everyone with the sole objective of discovering if they have their tongues sealed. It is the one, and possibly only, dead giveaway to a secret Root agent."
"How long ago was the council meeting?"
"One year."
Tenzou nodded. He looked, dead serious, into Kakashi's eyes. "Why would Danzo, hypothetically, go through all of this trouble?"
Kakashi hesitated. He really did not want to tell his kouhai. He knew how the mokuton user felt about himself, and this was not going to help.
"He is...of a different cloth than the Hokage, Tenzou. He sees you having Hashirama's cells as a potential threat to the village, in the rare instance that you are captured and your DNA is extracted. But, Tenzou, this is highly improbable. The only person who has ever been able to do what was done to you was Orochimaru. In the history of the villages, I have never heard of such a thing. Danzo is just an extremest, and he doesn't bother to think about the peaceful route. He just does what he thinks needs to be done."
Tenzou ducked his head. Coming away from all of this seemed...impossible. One of the most powerful council members wanted him out of the scene, and he had so much influence that Tenzou had successfully been attacked twice in three weeks despite being surrounded by ANBU. He took a deep breath and tried to smash his own pity party. He had promised Kakashi not to let him down. Tapping out on him would be letting him down, and he knew it.
He raised his head, so fast he kind of nearly fell over. Kakashi grabbed his wrist and steadied him with a worried expression.
"Alright. What do we do, Senpai?" Tenzou asked with obvious resolution. A smile bloomed across Kakashi's face, so happy and warm that the mokuton user nearly grinned like an idiot in response. Thankfully, he wasn't THAT doped up.
"We need to tie Danzo to what's been happening, before he has enough incidents with you under his belt to bring to the Fuedal Lords and council. If he does that, and they approve his wishes, he will drag you down to Root and no one will ever see you again."
Tenzou's jaw dropped. He hissed and closed his mouth. "Wh-what?"
"You know of Root, correct?"
Tenzou nodded.
"We don't think he will actually keep you out of the shinobi scene altogether, you're too useful. But, he will keep you to himself. And his training methods are...well, there are rumours."
A loud gulp was heard and Kakashi laughed softly. "You're not going anywhere. Don't worry. You have all of ANBU behind you; people are not happy."
Before Tenzou could ask, Kakashi gently placed his hand on his forehead. "You've heard enough. We have a plan in mind, but Shikaku is still working out the kinks. You have some of the most brilliant minds in this village working to take him down, if it is him, so rest now."
Tenzou could not help the slap happy grin from spreading across his face. "I am overwhelmingly grateful."
Kakashi smiled back. "I know."
Suddenly, Tenzou looked nervous. "Wait, what if someone was listening to us right now?"
Kakashi continued to smile. "I thought of that. I had a couple of ANBU help me secure the room. We don't have to worry about that anymore."
Suddenly, the mokuton user was overcome with the deep fuzzy feeling of utter safety. He'd TECHNICALLY just gotten the shit kicked out of him, but Kakashi made him feel safe. Tenzou leaned back and tried to wiggle his way to comfort under the sheets. Kakashi pulled the comforter around him in a similar fashion to Gai and Genma. This instantly sparked an idea in Tenzou's still slightly drugged head.
"Aren't you going to kiss my forehead?"
Kakashi blinked in surprise. "Really?"
Tenzou laughed, completely joking in his request. "Well, Gai and Genma did it! You don't want to be the only one not to, do you?"
To Tenzou's surprise, Kakashi actually smiled. His fingers gently pushed back Tenzou's bangs. He bent slowly and, softly, grazed his lips over Tenzou's forehead. Kakashi's kiss lingered, his lips so soft the mokuton user's eyes drifted closed.
Kakashi pulled back when he felt Tenzou's head fall to the side, and to his amusement, the mokuton user was fast asleep. When his eyes were closed, you could see his handsomeness. His other features rarely had the opportunity to overpower his exotic, expressive eyes. He wasn't the jaw dropping kind of handsome, but his features almost gave the opportunity for his personality to paint his face instead. He was just the kind of handsome that was under powering enough for other aspects to take over. You had to take a closer look at him to really see how attractive he was. Kakashi liked it.
Yawning, the copy-nin pulled off his uniform and climbed into bed. The relief at Shikaku offering to help was still lingering in his heart. The man was brilliant, as everyone knew; the Jounin could plan a war with his eyes closed. His and Kakashi's minds together, along with Hiruzen and other ANBU? Danzo was screwed. He had no idea what he was messing with. The best part about their plan was that it had the potential to pin whoever it was that was responsible, not just Danzo. They would put an end to this crap and teach 'whoever' that the Will of Fire never failed.
Never.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo