WOW IM DUMB. LOL. I forgot to add a GIGANTIC chunk I wrote a long time ago to chapter 18. LAWLZ. Please reread!

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Dinner proceeded with obvious tension between Tenzou and Kakashi. Genma tried his dutiful best to burst the unhappy bubble between them, but once he realized it was useless, he placed himself and Gai between them and pretended they didn't exist in the room together. Genma would talk to Kakashi and Gai would talk to Tenzou, or vice versa.

"So, you think you'll go on another mission as captain, big fella?" Genma coyly asked his younger friend as he prodded him with his chopsticks. Kakashi visibly straightened from beside Gai, which confused Tenzou. How could he have not known about it?

"Ah...I'm not sure. I think it's too soon. You need experience for that, don't you?"

"Pppppffttt...well...yah, maybe. A little. But, talent plays a big part in it. Not to mention we're a little short staffed at the moment for obvious reasons. I think you will. I think they'll put you on one more 'training' mission before giving you your own as the Big Leader. I see these things."

Tenzou laughed jovially at his friend, only half believing he was being serious. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kakashi staring at him, not really listening to what Gai was saying to him. Tenzou wanted to do something immature like stick his tongue out, but smiled sadly instead. Kakashi smiled brightly in return, his eye curved right up the way it did when his mouth was covered.

"OI!"

Tenzou jerked back around, nearly spilling his bowl of soup. "Sorry! Did you say something?"

Genma sighed dramatically. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you two..."

Deciding to ignore that comment in fear of the direction the conversation would take, Tenzou decided to steer the conversation in the direction of Genma's unsightly scar on the crook of his arm and how it was sure to 'bring in the ladies', as Genma would say. This started a whole string of very inappropriate conversations that almost got them kicked out of the restaurant to protect the sensitive ears of the elderly around them.

By the time they left, Tenzou was feeling much better. Probably because he hadn't spoken to Kakashi the entire time.

When they got back, Gai gave Tenzou a very tearful farewell as he had a mission to go on the next morning. After realigning his back from Gai's typical displays of affection Tenzou made his way into his room and threw himself onto the bed.

"I'm exhausted, Genma."

His friend shook his head slowly in answer. "I know, buddy. It's the way she goes."

Tenzou stared up at the ceiling, his arms folded behind his head. He hadn't actually stopped to think about what state he was in until he'd had a relatively 'normal' day with his friends. Mind and body, he was run through. Missions hadn't stopped for two months straight, and in that time, he'd had maybe a week off in total. Everyone had to be in the same boat as him, which meant that eventually, the quality of work on the missions would decrease. They were all human; there was only so much a person could take, no matter how talented.

It made him wonder about Kakashi's decision to end, or at least pause (he hoped), their relationship. As he'd predicted, they had barely seen each other in an extended period of time. Who knew how long this conflict was going to continue? He'd been so busy with missions he hadn't bothered to educate himself on the communications coming in from Sand. For all he knew, his last mission could be tomorrow. Or it could continue on for another year. In that case, how could they be together? Maybe the strain would have broken them apart.

Like...they were now.

So.

Maybe not?

Sighing roughly, he turned onto his side and gazed across the room at his friend. Genma was cleaning off some of his kunai and looking pretty somber himself. This was obviously not easy for any of them.

"What is your next mission like?" Tenzou asked.

"Eh...not bad. Just have to escort a bunch of fluffy Sand lords across some crusty stretch of land. I'm with two other ANBU; one of them is cool, the other not so much. I've been on a mission with him once before when I first started and he thinks he's King Shit, despite being in ANBU for like six years and not getting a single promotion."

Tenzou laughed and their conversation instantly turned light and fun. After an hour, Genma admitted he was wiped and needed to turn in. Clasping hands amicably, Genma wished Tenzou good night and promised him they'd have some "Dude Time" before he had to leave on his not so hotly anticipated mission.

Laying in bed, Tenzou found he could not sleep. Kakashi was leaving tomorrow and he'd barely spoken to him. It felt wrong for them to part like this, when anything could happen. As frustrated as Tenzou was with the entire situation, he had to admit to himself that Kakashi's worries hadn't been completely unfounded. He should at least give him that.

Finally, he threw back the covers and crawled out of bed as soundlessly as he could. It would be awkward approaching Kakashi's room with Gai in there, but he knew he had to make things at least cordial or he would regret it for the rest of his life if anything happened to Kakashi.

Slowly, quietly, he opened the door to his friends room. He saw the most minute movement coming from both Kakashi and Gai's apparently still forms, signalling that they'd heard him and were awake and ready.

"I'm sorry, Gai." he whispered. "Kakashi..."

He stepped back, knowing his captain would know what to do. As he'd thought, Kakashi emerged from the room a moment later and gently closed the door behind him. He turned to Tenzou, his eyes dropping from fatigue instead of their usual, comically bored expression. It was all kinds of tired that lined his eyes and it made Tenzou's heart ache slightly.

"I, ah...well. I know I've been acting cold and I couldn't leave things like that." he murmured, suddenly feeling shy. He glanced down at the ground, unsure of how to continue.

Kakashi smiled warmly and took a step forward, placing them around a foot apart from each other. Tenzou glanced up in response.

"That was good of you, Tenzou. I was planning on leaving a peace offering, but I guess this works."

"Which would have made me feel even worse." Tenzou scowled, imaging how horrible he would have felt if Kakashi had left him a gift in apology and then died before Tenzou could have thanked him.

He needed to stop thinking about death...

"I understand why you're upset. Your feelings are completely valid. But...I see you're doing very well for yourself. Being tried out as captain after such a short period of time is a great honour. You have incredible skill and people are starting to see that."

Tenzou blushed slightly, a stubborn part of him not wanting to accept that their separation could have resulting in anything good. He rubbed the back of his head. "Yes. I'm surprised, but grateful. I...miss our team though, Kakashi. I would give up being captain in a heartbeat for things to go back to the way they were."

Kakashi stilled, his face falling into an unreadable blank canvas. You could tell he was troubled from the slight tense in his shoulder and arm muscles. Sometimes a vein in his neck popped up, but not this time. That was usually when he was angry.

"I feel the same way." he whispered, his facial expression hardly changing. "But things never stay the same when you're a shinobi. Especially when you want them to."

Tenzou clenched his jaw, hardly daring to believe that. His life would have stayed the same if it wasn't for Kakashi. He would have lived the same dull life, living entirely for the whim of another person. A person who was selfish and hot headed.

"Don't give up just like that, Kakashi. Life seems to be what you make of it. It's your decision if you don't take every opportunity to be happy."

To Tenzou's credit, Kakashi's eyes widened slightly in alarm. He seemed to reel back just slightly before he caught himself and straightened. "Of course, Tenzou...but it's not always that simple.."

With obvious frustration, Tenzou waved the rest of Kakashi's sentence off. "Fine. It's not that simple this time. But it won't always be this difficult. Anyway...these arguments go nowhere, and I wanted to leave on a good note. I wish you the best of luck on your mission."

Kakashi seemed to sag at Tenou's crisp treatment of their conversation. "Ah...thank you. It's not very complicated."

They stared at each other for a moment, neither quite sure what to do. Tenzou, deciding to put his frustrations aside, stepped forward and embraced Kakashi. He held him tightly, and instantly, Kakashi responded in kind. Tenzou found it hard not to melt into Kakashi's warm, hard, safe arms. Besides being at the base with his friends, it was the place he felt the most at home.

He realized they'd been holding each other a lot longer then he had originally anticipated, but made no moves to break contact. Tenzou felt Kakashi gently lean his cheek against the top of his head and almost sighed in contentment, except that he knew it wouldn't last. Still, he decided to enjoy it while it did.

Exactly how long they stayed that way neither really knew, but finally Kakashi murmured. "I have to go to sleep" into Tenzou's hair. Slowly, they pulled apart. Their eyes locked and the strength of the pull between them almost knocked Tenzou onto his knees.

"Be safe, Kakashi-senpai."

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Two days later, as Tenzou was suiting up for another long mission, a crisp knock resounded through his room. He answered the door, confused, to find an ANBU he had never met before behind it. He bowed crisply.

"Tenzou-san?"

"Yes?"

"The Hokage would like to see you."

He walked along the corridor beside the nameless ANBU with a slight fear tugging at his heart. Something must have happened for the Hokage to request him right before a mission. Maybe the situation between Sand and Stone had gotten worse and they had to go into a full on war. The thought made a bead of sweat trickle down his neck.

Finally, the doors to the Hokage's office opened and he stepped inside. As soon as the doors closed behind him he bowed low to his Hokage.

"Hiruzen-sama. You called?"

"Mmm." The Hokage responded, finishing up some writing he was doing on a long scroll before looking up at Tenzou. He looked grave and Tenzou felt his stomach clench in anxiety. Hiruzen set his brush on top of a little ink well and slowly stood from his large cushion.

"There has been a serious complication in one of our missions." He explained as he slowly made his way around the large desk to Tenzou. "I want you to lead a backup squad to sort the situation out."

Tenzou froze.

Lead?

"Ah..." The brunette started, stunned into temporary silence. One look at Hiruzen's face snapped him out of it, though. He was looking more serious by the second. "I will do as you ask, Hokage-sama. What happened?"

Now Hiruzen looked even more grave. Tenzou did his best to keep his expression neutral, but in reality he wanted to scream. Hiruzen was an incredible human being, but sometimes he insisted on using dramatic silence when it was totally unnecessary and incredibly painful.

"I have asked you, specifically, to lead this mission because I believe you are the only person in this organization who will not stop until it is accomplished. Yet, I know you will maintain your professionalism when it counts. I can trust you to do that, can't I?"

If Tenzou thought he was nervous before, he had literally never felt nervousness or knew anything about it. It didn't take a born and bred genius to see where Hiruzen was going with his warnings, and Tenzou felt his heart nearly explode in his chest from the pain of what he feared was happening.

"Absolutely." He answered, his voice straining.

Hiruzen nodded once, slowly. He did not make Tenzou suffer any longer. "Kakashi's mission has gone horribly awry. I need you to go out there, assist his team in completing it, and bring them all back."

Some invisible giant lifted his hefty leg and kicked Tenzou's chest straight out of his body. With practised skill, he managed to keep his knees from buckling. "Wh...wha..." he cleared his throat, blinked once, then continued. "Sorry. What exactly happened?"

"False information from Sand." Hiruzen answered, his eyes narrowed, his hands clasped behind his back. "I doubt it was on purpose, but all the same, they encountered far more resistance than they had been told they would. Their team should have been double the size. Even with incredibly talented shinobi out there like Kakashi, the mission would be impossible to complete without severe casualties. We are hoping that hasn't already happened."

Okay.

Ooookay.

Remember the art of breathing and not embarrassing yourself in front of the Hokage.

Tenzou took a deep, incredibly shaky breath and continued. "Right. Okay." Except that he was finding it slightly hard to think around his brain screaming "OH MY GOD I KNEW IT HE'S GONNA DIE AND WE'VE BARELY EVEN SEEN EACH OTHER THIS IS HOW IT ENDS I HAVE TO LIVE THE REST OF MY LIFE KNOWING HE WENT OUT THIS WAY" etc.

Hiruzen seemed to sense his distress. He took a step forward and placed a comforting, solid hand on Tenzou's shoulder. He looked right into his eyes, his old, wise gaze steady and penetrating.

"I have all the information for the mission. I have also gathered together a team for you. I wish I could send more, but we just do not have the resources. I will provide you with the scroll Kakashi himself sent-"

Tenzou's eyes widened. He didn't know if he wanted to read it.

"-as well as the original mission scroll outlining the details of your quest. Things will be different now, but Kakashi shall update you on that when you reach him. I am completely certain that he is alive."

A little, desperate moan tried to escape Tenzou's lips, but he was far too well trained for that. Instead he merely held Hiruzens gaze with his own like a man starved for water. "Yes. He is."

"Yes. He is." Hiruzen replied, smiling for the first time in their little meeting. "How long until you can leave?"

"Right now. I mean...as soon as my team is ready. I can leave."

"Excellent. They should be meeting in the back training area now. Get your things together and go to them."

Tenzou bowed extremely low to Hiruzen, hardly knowing what to say. The Hokage was giving Tenzou a chance to save Kakashi himself, because he knew Tenzou would do everything in his power to bring him back. Hiruzen obviously cared about Kakashi if he would risk sending his lover (or...ex-lover) after him, especially since the situation with the "war" was so sensitive.

"Thank you..." be breathed, still in his bow. He heard a low chuckle and looked up.

Hiruzen was smiling mischievously. "I wouldn't thank me yet, Tenzou. This will probably be an incredibly difficult mission in more ways than one."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Tenzou responded, his voice hard. Hiruzen's smile widened.

"That's what I thought."

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The mokuton user took a small second to read Kakashi's letter outside of the Hokage's office before he met his team. He knew he would have to read it alone, just in case he showed too much emotion as he read the very simple message Kakashi had relayed. It was in code, obviously, and the writing was neat and even. It seemed so strange, for such an urgent message to be so...plain. But it was very much Kakashi; keeping his head no matter what. Professional no matter what. Could Tenzou do that? Be that professional? What if Kakashi was hurt? Could he focus on anything but him?

Well. He would have to. The mission depended on him, as did his teammates, as did Kakashi. He wasn't going to let anyone down, and he absolutely would not let Kakashi down. Letting his heart rule his decisions would certainly let Kakashi down; he knew his Senpai had higher expectations from him than that.

Keeping those last thoughts firmly in mind he destroyed the letter, slipped on his mask and made his way to meet his team.

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He had five shinobi by his side. He instantly recognized one of them as Niina, and wondered to himself why the Hokage kept putting them in the same team and never giving him one of his original teammates.

Until he recognized a certain bowl cut shinobi.

He nearly fell over his own feet. That was definitely Gai; no one else had such a ridiculous haircut and was that tall. He wanted to say something, to pat him on the back, to laugh and say how happy he was to have him on such a difficult mission, but he didn't want his team to think he was playing favourites. Gai was an intelligent man and extremely good at reading people; he knew Tenzou was happy. He would have to make due with that.

It made him feel slightly guilty to be ordering around his senior teammate, though.

"Greetings. I am your captain for this mission. You've all been debriefed?"

Five curt nods.

"Good. We need to move as fast as possible. I'll push us hard until we're near the boarder, then slow down so we wont be exhausted when we get to the scene of the battle. We'll need our strength. Our friends are probably in trouble; how many medics do we have?"

One smaller woman raised her hand.

Tenzou nearly groaned. Well. Hiruzen had warned them they were low on resources.

"I can fight, too." she added quietly.

"Well. We may need your medical skills more, depending on how bad the situation is. I'll make that call when the time comes. Any questions?"

No one spoke or moved. The moment of truth was here. Not only was Tenzou on the spot as this was his first mission leading, but people's lives were on the line.

Kakashi's life might be on the line.

It was enough to give him the confidence and motivation to question nothing he did. There wasn't time to hesitate.

"Let's move."

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As they ran silence surrounded them. Gai was directly behind Tenzou, yet it was impossible for them to speak to each other. However, just knowing one of his closest friends and a close friend of Kakashi was there made all the difference. There was someone else on his team he could trust Kakashi's life to. The amount of pressure that took off of him was almost indescribable. Maybe Hiruzen had done that on purpose.

Tenzou hadn't exaggerated when he said he'd ride them hard. By the time they reached an area the mokuton user deemed appropriate even Gai's breath was starting to become ragged. He lifted his arm and called for a break. Everyone, extremely thankful, plopped down onto a branch and pulled out some pills for dinner. Tenzou took the opportunity to sit next to Gai. Without saying a word, he placed his hand on his friends leg and squeezed. Gai looked over at him, and Tenzou could practically see the expression on his face. He knew he would look worried, serious, understanding. Gai placed his arm around Tenzou's shoulders and all the young shinobi wanted to do was melt into his embrace.

A little voice in his head told him how PISSED Genma was going to be that he couldn't come.

That brought a little smile to his lips. Just thinking of the vile string of curse words that would flow effortlessly from his friends mouth at his utter indignation at being left out. Tenzou wondered how his mission was going. Hopefully his shitty teammate wasn't giving him too much trouble.

When Gai's breathing returned to normal Tenzou signalled for them to continue. They only had a few more hours until they reached their destination. He'd let them break once in between then. He couldn't afford to have anyone off their game because they were tired.

He hoped...Kakashi...

A little shake of his head cleared those thoughts. He had to be at his best, too. He couldn't worry. He couldn't stress. He had to focus.

They pushed on.

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Finally, FINALLY, they made it. Cautiously, slowly, they leaped through the trees, making not one tiny sound. They could see the remains of a battle; blood and dead Stone-nin everywhere. Lots of dead Stone-nin. It seemed like they had done a very good job with the little resources they had, from the amount of battle signs. Tenzou's heart clenched painfully as he noticed large holes in many of their torso's along with telltale scorches on the padding of their chest armour. Kakashi had certainly lived up to his hype in this battle. He hoped he wasn't too tired. Or too hurt.

Finally, they found their first Konoha body. Instantly, their little medic leaped down to him. Just one touch of her fingers to his neck had her shaking her head. She looked up at Tenzou, and he signalled to leave him for now.

The living had to come first.

After an agonizing ten minutes of silently searching someone dropped down in front of them. Tenzou halted the team, but it took only a second to recognize the altered Konoha ANBU uniform. It was kind of a play on what the Sand ANBU wore, except purposefully different so the Fire Country shinobi could recognize each other.

"Thank God, reinforcements..." the lone ninja panted, stumbling towards them.

Tenzou held out his hand to stop him. He felt terrible, but he needed to be sure.

"What does the bird say to the turtle?"

"Feed me pork." Was the instant reply. Tenzou stepped to the side so Riku, the medic, could attend to him. As she healed his wounds Tenzou knelt beside him.

"What's the situation?"

"We were completely outnumbered. Double what we expected. We took care of as many of them as possible, but we had to retreat. Even Captain couldn't handle all those ninja by himself. It was a disaster."

Kakashi...

Tenzou forced himself to remain calm.

"Where is everyone now?" He asked, his voice steady.

"I can lead you to them. Captain knew backup would be arriving shortly, so he sent me to meet you."

Kakashi was alive. Tenzou nearly felt faint from relief. Although, he couldn't understand why he was so surprised. Kakashi had his reputation for a reason.

"How many injured?"

"Everyone." The ninja answered with a hardness in his voice. Tenzou could see Riku's head sink slightly at the daunting task before her. They would have to prioritize who she healed.

"How is he, Riku?"

"Should be fine now. I guess I should save my strength." She murmured.

Tenzou rallied up their team, assigning them a formation that was prime for scouting. He wasted absolutely no time with anything. The nameless ninja stood, cracked his neck, and nodded to Tenzou that he was ready to go. With a signal from the mokuton user, the team hit the trees again.

Thankfully, the others weren't far away. Their injured guide stopped them suddenly, signalling for the team to hold back. Tenzou relayed this signal and his teammates knelt and waited. The nameless ninja took a few steps forward and pulled out a little blow-dart. With a deep breath, he sent a small dart smack into the middle of the trunk a few feet ahead of him. Tenzou could hear the sounds of little darts sinking into trees all around him. Another sound greeted them, a kunai hitting a tree, and then four more ninja dropped out of the canopy to land before them.

"Excellent work, Tuichi." A woman called to the ninja who had lead them there.

"They found me more than I found them." He admitted.

Tenzou swallowed hard when he saw them. They were definitely leaf-nin, and they were in as rough shape as their comrade had suggested. The woman had a large wound on her shoulder that was hastily bandaged. The three others had blood smeared all over their chests and arms. How much of it was theirs was anyone's guess.

Not wanting to waste any time at all, Tenzou stepped forward and signalled to them. "How many bowls of ramen does it take to fill a hungry elephant?"

The woman responded easily. "Elephants prefer Udon."

They bowed to each other before Tenzou spoke. "Where is everyone else? How many enemies remain?"

"Follow me." She answered.

Another two minutes of running before they were stopped again. Tenzou was extremely impressed with the amount of security a group of heavily injured shinobi managed to dredge up in totally unknown territory. But when he finally reached the core group, he understood why.

They kept their most injured in a small, genjutsu hidden tree fort surrounded by dense foliage. Tenzou passed someone with a giant hole in his side, a woman who was completely unconscious and another ninja with his entire face bandaged. It was terrible.

"Where is your leader?" Tenzou called to the group.

"...Here." Came the weak, hoarse reply.

Tenzou swallowed thickly. His legs felt like they were made out of lead. The mokuton user was terrified of what he would find; so scared that his whole body refused to move. But, logic told him that if the majority of his team could still move, that Kakashi couldn't be mangled. He was too quick and too skilled for that.

Slowly, Tenzou walked around a seated ninja and finally came face to face with Kakashi. His chest heaved as he inhaled sharply with utter relief. Kakashi was, as his intuition had told him, whole. Bloody and exhausted, yes, but whole. His porcelain mask was firmly in place, but Tenzou could practically see his sharingan eye black-rimmed and squeezed tight. In order to fight off so many ninja, he must have severely depleted his chakra and strained his eye. Tenzou gestured to Riku and she came immediately. The medic knelt to one side of Kakashi and Tenzou slowly sank down before him.

The two lovers stared at each other. Despite not seeing Kakashi's face, Tenzou could feel the tension and almost sense a kind of embarrassment. From experience, Tenzou knew Kakashi didn't like to be vulnerable. The Mokuton user had never seen him so ragged.

"You mentioned in your note that you managed to make a dent in their numbers despite being under manned. How many do you think remain?"

"At least twenty." Kakashi answered with a breathless exhaustion. Tenzou swallowed again, his hands clenching in frustration. This was difficult; it was excruciating seeing Kakashi like this and being unable to react in the way he wanted to.

"Do you know where they are?"

"...No." Kakashi sighed. "They retreated and we didn't have the resources to chase them."

Tenzou nodded in thought. That was alright; they had scouting capabilities with them. Riku was only one person, but she could heal their most able while he and another searched for enemies.

"That's fine. But...why would they retreat if they had the upper hand?"

The smirk under Kakashi's mask was evident despite not being seen. "We managed to trick them into thinking they didn't. We're much better in the trees than they are."

"Kakashi-taichou ran at least twenty of them through, too." The woman from earlier answered with pride. "That sure scared them off."

Tenzou nearly reared back in shock. Twenty? That was damn impressive for one person. If he killed them all with his chidori, then he must be practically paralysed from chakra exhaustion. He would be out of commission for at least a week.

Deciding it was well worth the risk of stepping out of his bounds, Tenzou inched forward and placed a gentle hand on Kakashi's arm. "Captain. Whats your status?"

Something seemed to drain from Kakashi at the question. He ducked his head slightly, his shoulders drooping such a minute amount that you'd have to be staring right at them to see it.

"I can't move."

"Will Riku's healing help?"

"She would have to give most of her chakra to me."

Tenzou closed his eyes and breathed through his nose. On one hand, Kakashi equalled at least four shinobi by himself. So, her dedicating her healing to him was strategically not a bad idea. But, if someone had life threatening injuries, it was cruel. Running a frustrated hand through his hair, he realized he needed to be very careful with the decisions he made from this point on. They needed numbers, they needed a strategy, and they needed diversions. Funnelling Riku's healing into Kakashi was probably the wrong way to go about things.

"Alright. I'm sorry, Captain, but that will be it from her for now I think."

Kakashi nodded silently in understanding.

One of the most difficult things Tenzou ever had to do was leave Kakashi at that moment. All he wanted to do was hold him and make him better. He wanted to protect him. But, that was not in the best interests of everyone involved, and the mission. He had to leave him for now. Glancing up as quickly as possible, he noticed that he had at least a few seconds of no one really paying dire attention to him. He could see Gai was watching them, but he was a trusted comrade. Taking full advantage, Tenzou leaned forward and gently squeezed Kakashi's shoulder. His love raised his head, and through their masks, the two managed to lock eyes. Tenzou tried to communicate how much he cared, and that he was determined to see Kakashi through this. In return, Kakashi merely smiled at him with as much warmth as he could muster.

With one last squeeze, Tenzou stood. He instantly looked to Gai, his one source of strength on this mission. His friend nodded curtly, a sign that he agreed with his decision. That made Tenzou feel a little better, so he began assigning healing to Riku. The other ninja in the teams began to debrief Tenzou on who had what skills, who needed healing the most, and who was best to be left alone.

While Tenzou was busy trying to fix the mission, Gai slowly made his way over to Kakashi. Fluidly he knelt beside him, his friend glancing up at him as he moved. The bowl-cut shinobi also placed a gentle hand on Kakashi's arm, smiling at him through his mask.

"It is good to see you, my friend."

Kakashi snorted. "I'm not in much of a state."

"From what I saw as we came over here, you helped save the mission and your team mates. I think you deserve to be a little beaten up."

The jounin shrugged, clearly frustrated. Gai smiled."We'll make it out of here."

Kakashi leaned forward slightly, wincing as he did so. "Please. Watch Tenzou. He's doing very well, but I'm worried...he'll..."

Gai shook his head. "I will always have my young friends back, but you're asking me to keep him from doing something stupid, when I would be just as likely to do the same."

There was a loaded silence between them as Kakashi blinked in surprise. Gai merely continued to grin at him. With a light laugh, Kakashi ducked his head. "I see. Well...I can't say I wouldn't do the same in your position."

"We'll just have to hope for the best, then."

A moment of warmth passed between the two friends. Kakashi's eyes swam and Gai's looked positive and resolute. With a far too forceful clap to Kakashi's back, Gai stood and gave him a thumbs up. Kakashi returned his gesture, clearly amused.

Gai noticed Tenzou watching him and returned to his side at once.

"I have a plan." The mokuton user breathed.

Gai grinned. "Excellent."

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Tenzou tried not to panic, but he was taking a massive risk. He'd never taken on so much at once. Although, realistically, they had no choice. Everyone had to give 150% if they wanted to make it out of this alive and actually salvage the mission.

He slunk through the trees as quietly as he could. The one good thing was that no one was expecting someone to be able to command the forest and consummate himself with wood. At least they would have the element of surprise for a time.

Through careful scouting, Tenzou and a few of his team members had managed to locate the rest of their enemies. They, too, had strategically placed themselves around the forest. The only problem was that it would take far too much time to figure out how many of them there were. Tenzou was quite good at scouting, so with time, he may be able to do it. But their enemies were aware that they existed; they would be expecting an ambush at some point. They needed to move quickly.

A little leaf blew up and over the canopy. It was Tenzou's signal to his team that he was going in.

As convincingly as he could, he left the safety of the inside of the trees and began hopping from branch to branch. With a snap of his fingers, he made the branch he landed on crack and split. Tenzou went tumbling down, landing in the clearing splayed out in what he hoped was a convincingly painful pose. Cursing to himself, he sprang up, whipping his head around and looking panicked. As he thought, kunai whizzed at him from all directions. This was what he was hoping for.

Forming his seals, Tenzou slapped together as much chakra as he could and raised his arms. A wooden shield formed around him to block the kunai, and every single tree in the direction those kunai had come from sprouted wood from the canopy and slammed shut to form a tight cocoon. He clenched his hands and squeezed the wooden prisons as tightly as possible. More ninja erupted from the trees and began to spring forward, some coming for Tenzou while many ignored him and fled in an attempt to relocate.

The rest of Tenzou's squad was waiting for their locations. The Konoha ninja sprung into action immediately, engaging whichever ninja were closest in combat. Tenzou continued to reach out with his mokuton, shaking ninja off of trees and firing some backwards. From his account, there seemed to be at least twenty remaining, as Kakashi had predicted. Twenty wasn't an impossible number by any means, but it nearly made Tenzou's head spin to think of the massive odds the previous Konoha team had been up against. There were twenty now, Kakashi had killed 20 himself, and who knows how many the others had picked off. How had their intelligence been SO wrong? They had only been a team of 9.

Taking a deep breath, he tried to manage his chakra, but he was casting some pretty large jutsu. He needed to be sure all the enemy ninja had been flushed out, so he spread his chakra and collapsed the canopies of all the trees he could reach. Someone appeared behind him and Tenzou just managed to throw up a wood wall through his back. A loud 'THUINK' sounded as a sword pierced his defences. The mokuton user spun and hopped up on top of the wall, unsheathing his sword and launching at his attacker. The enemy was as fast as Tenzou and their swords clashed. Sparks flew as the two shinobi whirled, leaped and spun around each other, their swords meeting time and time again in a deadly dance. Finally, his enemy stumbled just long enough for Tenzou to slap his hands together.

Wood popped out of the ground and twisted around the ninja's ankles. He cursed, made to cast a replacement jutsu, but Tenzou was already on him. The ninja managed to block his sword, but the wood had continued up his legs and around his torso, and soon he was bound. The mokuton user hated killing someone like this, but it was part of his mission. He sliced his sword clean through the ninja's heart and he was dead in a few moments.

Whirling around Tenzou surveyed the scene. Everyone was engaged in battle. Gai was smashing the crap out of two ninja at once, so Tenzou leaped through the trees to assist him. Thankfully, and to his pleasure, Tenzou noticed he had taken care of a good chunk of their enemies with his initial mokuton attack. It seemed to be more or less even now.

Tenzou popped out of a tree and leaped through the air, round-house kicking one of Gai's enemies in the neck and sending him flying off the tree. Another seal was formed and Tenzou's wood tendrils scooped the ninja from the air and twisted him up. With a clench of his fist the enemy was taken care of. He glanced back up to see Gai flash him a thumbs up, then punch his adversary square in the face. Clearly, Gai had it under control.

A quick look around told Tenzou there were a few of Kakashi's original team who needed serious help. As fast as he could, he made his way over to them. He could feel his insides starting to strain, chakra pulling at his veins. It didn't matter; the battle could be over in no time, they just had to push through. There were 10 Konoha ninja now, they could handle it.

He threw a kunai at a ninja who was bearing down on one of Kakashi's injured teammates. The enemy dodged it, but it took him away from his initial target and Tenzou engaged him instead. The battle ended when a sword that did not belong to Tenzou pierced through the enemy ninja's back. As his body slumped to the floor, the Konoha shinobi he'd originally been fighting nodded to Tenzou.

The battle continued on in much the same way. Slowly, painstakingly, they whittled down their enemies. The final foe fell to Gai, who kicked him into a tree so hard his bones shattered instantly. The next moment, all the Konoha ninja sat still in the trees, listening for movement. Everyone seemed to be taken care of.

Tenzou glanced around. He tried to pry with his chakra, but he was exhausted. The woman who had met them at their safe spot jumped down to him, sheathing her sword.

"I think we may be in the clear. The mission was to eradicate the enemy cell, which we've done. We weren't supposed to risk many lives, since we're so short on man-power anyway. According to the original mission parameters, I think it's safe for us to leave."

It felt strange to him for them to book it without making sure they'd eliminated all their threats, but looking around, the mokuton user could see that they didn't have much assistance left. The remainder of Kakashi's squad were completely run through, and with Riku busy healing, he only had four of his team available to fight, including him. If they happened to accidentally engage more enemies that weren't in the initial plan, they were done for.

"Alright. Pull back."

Tenzou lifted his fist and gave the signal to leave the battle field. He was pretty sure he saw at least a few people sigh with relief.

It only took them a few minutes to return to their safe spot. Just in case, Tenzou forced the ninja to be as stealthy as possible, keeping to the trees and leaving scouts behind them to sense for any tailgaters. Clearly, they had to get everyone out of the area as fast as possible, but Tenzou wasn't sure just how fast was possible. He knew Kakashi couldn't move much, and at least three others were severely injured as well.

Finally, Tenzou made it back to the makeshift base and made a bee-line for Kakashi. He figured two Captain's meeting after a battle was perfectly normal, and it gave him an excuse to make sure his Senpai was alright. With a wince, Tenzou knelt down in front of his lover, trying not to show how tired he was.

"I'm guessing everything went according to plan?" Kakashi murmured. Tenzou nodded, wiping his brow.

"Yes. We didn't suffer any more serious injuries, but everyone is exhausted. I want to move us from this location as soon as possible, but Riku seems to be out of steam and I'm not sure how much harder I can push everyone."

A little nod accompanied his report. Kakashi seemed to be contemplating what to do.

"I wasn't expecting you to find our enemies so close. It makes me feel like staying in this spot is a bad idea. It's worth the risk to move everyone."

"Alright." Tenzou answered firmly, standing with a sigh. He knew Kakashi was right, especially since he'd been thinking along the same lines he was. Gai appeared just beside him, nodding in acknowledgement. He was definitely one of the fittest out of their two teams.

"Whoever you can carry, please do so."

"Of course." Gai answered. The normally chipper shinobi was silent as he shuffled a nearly unconscious ANBU onto his back.

Tenzou turned and motioned for all of his capable teammates to grab an injured comrade. They did so without hesitation. To his delight, all injured became accounted for with a fit or two to spare.

That, as he hoped, left him with Kakashi. It was a little selfish, but he didn't want it any other way.

Besides...they were both Captains. Captains stick together, right? For planning and shit.

Yah.

Totes.

Tenzou knelt beside Kakashi again and smiled through his mask, hoping Kakashi would at least hear it in his tone. Something told him his friend couldn't be happy about his physical state.

"Alright. Lean on my shoulder."

The ANBU Captain slowly shifted over, wordlessly sliding his arm around Tenzou's shoulders and gripping his upper arm. The mokuton user grasped Kakashi's hand, placed his arm around his waist and hoisted him up. It was incredible; Kakashi's legs were almost useless. A pang of fear ripped through Tenzou; he sure hoped his Senpai wasn't hiding something from him.

"Are you sure you're alright to take me?" Kakashi whispered.

"No problem." Tenzou lied. Truly, he was tired. But he wanted to feel Kakashi's weight on him. It reminded him that he was alive.

The copy-nin said no more. With a little grunt, Tenzou turned and lead them to the head of the group. He hoped he wouldn't be too slow if they were leading; that would just be embarrassing. He made a motion with his hand for them to move forward, and with the injured in toe, they all did. Tenzou had worried about his own lack of stealth for nothing; most of the ninja in their team had someone to look after as well. The rest were just too damned broken to move that fast.

Eventually, Kakashi and Tenzou managed to locate an area that was far enough from the battle scene and provided cover for hiding. It was an old cave, nestled into the rock face behind thick shrub. The only problem was that it was dangerous for all of them to be in a place with no way out; if they were ambushed, they had their backs to the wall. Tenzou shuffled slowly into the dimly lit cave, unable to hide how tired he was anymore. A few glances around the small space satisfied any qualms he may have had with it. Quite a good spot to rest, it was.

Slowly Tenzou lowered Kakashi to the ground. His lover had barely said a peep, and not necessarily because of safety reasons. The brunette could tell the difference between Being Silent for Logical Reasons Kakashi and Sulking Kakashi. This smelled a lot like Sulking Kakashi.

"I'm thinking the injured could rest here, and we could keep watch outside." Tenzou offered.

Kakashi stretched and nodded, massaging a kink out of his neck. "That's fine. But you need to rest."

The hardness in his voice told Tenzou it was not a suggestion; it was an order. Fortunately, the mokuton user completely agreed and had no intentions of arguing.

"I will. Gai is in good shape, I'll give him first watch."

"I am pleased!" Said shinobi echoed from the mouth of the cave. Tenzou waved him in and the energetic ninja laid his cargo beside Kakashi.

The rest of their team did the same, laying the injured or exhausted in as comfortable a position as they could. Blankets and rations were pulled out and spread around. Tenzou tried to give Kakashi his sleeping bag, but the captain refused. Tenzou sighed.

"Senpai. You need as much energy as possible."

"Give it to someone who's hurt." He replied.

"You can't walk." The mokuton user responded flatly.

Kakashi merely glared through his mask. Sighing again, Tenzou rose and walked away.

"Fine."

Honestly, Tenzou was still kind of pissed about the whole "lets not be together just because" business to take an ounce of Kakashi's crap on such a stressful mission. Sleep on the damned floor, then. Fuck it.

The sleeping bag ended up being Tenzou's, as everyone else had been tucked in quite well. The mokuton user pointed out those who would be on guard duty and left the cave with them. Riku stayed behind with the injured, to guard them as well as to rest up and help them if needed.

Outside of the cave, Tenzou grew a bunch of branches and ivy over the entrance to block it. He stepped back, admiring his handy-work. Totally looked like it hadn't been entered in years.

The guard squad made themselves as comfortable as possible in the trees as they could. Tenzou apologized to his comrades for going to sleep, which they effectively silenced him about. Gai and another ninja stood watch while Tenzou and the others slept.

Tenzou hoped they would have an eventless trek back to the village. It was going to be a long one.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

After a few hours of much needed sleep and a few rotations of guard duty, Tenzou deemed break time over. The guard crew seemed rejuvenated, at least enough to run for a few more hours with some hefty cargo. They returned to the cave, Tenzou parting his living wall to reveal the injured inside. Clearly, they weren't in any better shape, but after resting for a few hours Riku had a little more energy and was healing a couple of them.

Tenzou walked up to Kakashi, who was resting against the wall by himself. The mokuton user barely resisted a sigh as he knelt beside him.

"You aren't cold against the stone?"

Kakashi merely shook his head.

It was actually a little worrying how closed off Kakashi was becoming. Tenzou shuffled a little closer to him, in case he didn't want anyone overhearing their conversation.

"Senpai. Something's wrong. What is it?"

Now the other captain merely turned away from Tenzou. "I'm fine. Worry about the others."

The mokuton user actually pinched the bridge of his masked nose in frustration. 'Kay. Here we go again. No big deal.

Tenzou stood silently and walked away from him. He could only hope it wasn't something serious, merely Kakashi in a mood. Perhaps having next to no chakra made him grumpy, like not getting enough sleep. Everyone was definitely feeling that.

An idea struck him. Riku had been healing him before; if he was injured, she'd know.

As the cave slowly started emptying of its occupants, Tenzou tapped Riku on the shoulder to get her attention.

"I never asked; what is the Captain's status?"

"Oh, it's just severe chakra depletion. Well, and a few scrapes and bruises here and there. He had a cut on his arm and leg, which I healed. Nothing serious in terms of physical injures."

Tenzou nodded. "Thank you."

Alright. So it was Kakashi being Kakashi. He could deal with that. By, you know, not at all dealing with it.

Without a word, Tenzou marched back to Kakashi and not-so-gently lifted him from his solitary resting place. The two hobbled out of the cave then leaped into the trees. They were all going at about half their usual speed; it would take a couple of days to get back to the village.

Brutal.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED! I suddenly decided to pick this fic back up. It's been a while, so I apologize for any inconsistencies.