When Tenzou arrived back at his room Genma was waiting for him with a large grin on his face. Despite everything working out for the best, Tenzou was still annoyed with his friend for taking things into his own hands. The moktuon user strode into the room and pointedly ignored Genma's knowing smirk.

"Soooo...how did it go?" He sang to Tenzou's back.

The mokuton user began slipping his vest on with a hard frown. "You would know if you had been there."

"Aww, come on. We didn't want to wake you."

Tenzou spun around and shot Genma a dirty look. "That's definitely not why. I wanted to speak to him on my own time."

Genma rolled his eyes and his grin melted away. "So, it would have been better to sulk in your room and put it off? I don't think so. Did you guys talk it out or not?"

"We did." Tenzou answered simply as he strapped his sword on. There was silence as Genma expected his friend to elaborate and Tenzou decidedly did not. As the mokuton user hoped, the other ninja got the wrong idea about his silence.

"Wait...did it not go well?" He asked with shock. Slowly, Genma stood from his bed, looking concerned.

Tenzou turned back to him and sighed dramatically. "Well..."

Genma flew to him, his eyes wide in disbelief. "No SHIT? Wow, I can't believe it. What sad ass excuse did he use this time?"

Unfortunately, Tenzou was far too honest to keep the charade up any longer. He snorted loudly in a horrible attempt at containing his laughter at Genma's incredulous expression and genuine frustration. The other ninja picked up on the situation right away and shot Tenzou a withering glare.

"Oh, ha ha. I get it. You got me back, good for you."

Tenzou laughed out right and Genma grinned and joined him.

"I couldn't help it." The mokuton user admitted with a smile. "Anyway...it went well, really. It all depends on Kakashi now but he's willing to try, and that's what matters."

Genma nodded sagely. "That's what I expected. He just gets all...weird about death and stuff. I mean, given our profession it's not really that surprising, but in the past he's taken it to a level where he was just unfriendable."

"Yes, I've heard." Tenzou murmured. "I'm meeting with some members of Kakashi's team from the last mission to draft a report. I should be back in a couple of hours, if you want to grab lunch?"

"Sure! AWW, we're getting lunch! It's like old times." Genma crooned as he trapped Tenzou in a friendly headlock. "Soon we'll be going on missions together again. I feel so emotional right now."

To display just how emotional he was, Genma produced an exaggerated sniff and wiped his dry eyes onto the sleeve of his uniform. Tenzou laughed and shoved at him playfully.

"Stop, you'll make me look like a sap in front of the others if I show up all teary-eyed."

"Ahhh, right. The captain has to look tough, eh? Still can't get over it." Genma's grinned only seemed to get larger as he prodded Tenzou. "Are you gonna show me your captain moves when we train next?"

"Come on, I'm not captain. We were low on man-power." Tenzou blushed, slipping his mask on and swatting Genma's hands away. "Besides...I'd rather stay with you guys."

The giddy shinobi simmered down at Tenzou's sincere comment. He smiled brightly and saluted his friend as he left. "It sure would be nice."

Tenzou softly closed the door behind him and sighed.

If he was honest with himself, he wasn't ready to leave his squad. Being promoted was nothing compared to being happy with people he knew cared about him. It was something he'd never had, and now that he had it, he couldn't give it up.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The meeting went by fairly easily. Most people in the squad had been healed and were in pretty good shape, making it easy for them to conjure up details from their memories. Kakashi obviously needed to write his own report since he had been the presiding captain, but clearly, that would have to wait. After around two hours of chatter and picking brains for important details, Tenzou finally sealed the report and went to hand it in to the ANBU missions desk.

The ANBU missions desk was basically the place where injured ANBU went to not be bored to death. Clearly, the business of the black ops was no business of the rest of the village, so it wasn't the usual missions desk everyone else reported to. The fact that there was even a missions desk at all was basically just a testament to how busy ANBU could get. Otherwise, the reports would be handed in directly to the Hokage.

"Team 12b reporting in." Tenzou announced as he placed the scroll in a woman's hand. There were three ANBU at the desk; two women and a man. The one he was speaking to nodded, took his scroll and started checking things off on a list. Beside her, the other woman was openly eyeing Tenzou from head to toe. Feeling eyes on him, Tenzou glanced in her direction and froze. She was leaning forward, pressing her armoured breasts against the desk.

"So...are you the one with the wood?" She purred.

The woman who had accepted Tenzou's mission report slowly turned to look at her companion with obvious embarrassed surprise.

Tenzou blinked, completely missing her innuendo. "Ah. Yes?"

"I heard you can make it pretty big if you want to."

It seemed like the other two ANBU were more uncomfortable with the conversation than Tenzou was, mostly because he didn't get it. Was she just asking about his Mokuton? Was she mocking him?

"That's...part of it, yes."

"Any part of your body?" She breathed as she slinked closer to Tenzou on the table. The woman beside her slapped her in the arm and muttered something about 'embarrassing' and 'unprofessional'. Tenzou was starting to put the pieces together, especially when his conversation partner openly stared right at his crotch.

Ohhhhh.

So by wood, she meant penis. And by growing, she meant penis.

Gotcha.

"I never thought about it like that, but thanks for the idea." He answered easily. It seemed like his paper work was finally done, especially since the other two ANBU were so embarrassed they could hardly look at him. Tenzou saluted them and nodded to the woman who was openly and very ineffectively hitting on him.

"Good day."

As he turned his back, he heard her call after him. "I'll be here if you ever need to practice."

Tenzou laughed to himself and kept walking as he heard someone from the table groan loudly. "You need to get your head examined, Nuriko. Seriously."

"What? It's a compliment."

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The mokuton user returned to his room to find Genma lounging on his bed with a book in his hands. Tenzou had never actually seen his friend read, which was an amazing sign that missions were finally winding down. Tenzou being the only person at the missions desk to hand a report in was a good sign as well.

"Hey, Genma." Tenzou greeted with a smile. "That's not one of Kakashi's books, is it?"

Genma snorted loudly and let the book drop onto his stomach. "He'd never let me touch them, so no. Although I did just bring some of them to him today, which he was sure to remind me was a great honour and would never be repeated again. He was way too happy about it."

Tenzou laughed and started stripping his armour. "Speaking along those lines, I had someone refer to my mokuton as "my wood" today when I handed in my report. I had no idea what she was talking about, until she asked if I could "make it any size I want" and then stared right at my -Genma?"

His friend was clutching his stomach and laughing so hard no actual sounds were escaping his lips. Tenzou grinned right along with him and tossed his sword to the side. "I'll admit I completely missed the fact that she was hitting on me for half of the conversation, which I'm sure you could have predicted."

It took a while for Genma to be able to speak, and breathe, so Tenzou gave him a second. With a loud whoop and a wiping of his tears, his friend was finally able to sit up and converse normally again.

"Wooooo. Man, that made my day. 'Cause I can actually just picture your face and how confused you definitely looked. I can't get over the fact that someone actually said that to you, especially at missions desk. Do you know who it was?"

"Oh, someone referred to her as Nuriko?"

Genma's face dropped. "Ah, shit. It all makes sense now. Nuriko is stark-raving mad, Tenzou. Definitely a good idea to have walked away from that one and continue to not talk to her."

The seriousness in Genma's demeanour worried Tenzou. "Wow, that bad?"

He shrugged. "Eh. It's not the worst ever, but if she's taken an interest in your 'special talents' I would just avoid her. Because...well. Not to freak you out, but I wouldn't put it past her to corner you somewhere solitary and help herself to your Tenzou-bits, if you get what I'm saying. Especially if she thinks they'll 'grow on command' or whatever she's envisioning."

The mokuton user's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Are you saying she would rape me?"

"Weeeeelllll...yes. Yes, that's what I'm saying."

Tenzou looked absolutely horrified. He unconsciously curled into a ball and huddled in the corner between his dresser and the wall. "Ugh! WHAT? I would OBVIOUSLY report her."

"Yeaaaaaahhhhaboutthat..." Genma sung as he looked increasingly awkward. "The guys in, lets call it Upper Management, are kinda hard core. If you walked up to them and were all like 'Nuriko sat on my dick and I didn't like it' there's no way they'd take you seriously. Unless she like...actually hurt you, which would then be considered assault and would be punished."

It seemed like Tenzou had no idea what to do with his face or his body. He went from horrified, to angry, to concerned, to horrified again. "Wh-what? I...I can't even process all the terrible that you just said..."

"Yes. Yes, I know. So let's just forget about it! Besides, after 'The Incident' between you and Junko, most people are aware that you and Kakashi are kind of a 'thing'. Kakashi is both respected and feared in this organization. Not that ANBU aren't whack enough to not care about that in the slightest, re Junko, but it still gives you a little extra leverage."

Oh, great. So the only reason he was potentially not going to get molested was because he happened to be ex-sleeping with Kakashi? What did it take to get a little base respect in this place?

Genma could see he had opened a can of something that may have spoiled and ruined the atmosphere. He laughed to try and ease the considerable worry displayed in Tenzou's countenance and hopped off of the bed to make his way over and clasp his friend on the shoulder.

"You're fine, Tenzou. You're a tough kid and you can take care of yourself. I didn't mean to shake you about Nuriko, I'm sure she isn't stupid enough to do anything like that. Crazy enough? Possibly. Stupid enough? Not as much. Let's grab us some grub and forget about it. Gai should be back soon, he was taking care of some business from another mission as well."

Tenzou nodded and shook off his unease. No point in dwelling on it, really. "Alright."

Genma slung an arm around Tenzou's shoulders and lead them out of the room. Secretly, he was as uncomfortable about the situation as his wood-wielding friend, but tried not to be obvious about it.

Tenzou didn't need to know about that time Nuriko tied an unsuspecting male ANBU up and tickled him with a feather duster for three hours.

No he did not.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The two friends found Gai and proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon together. Genma told the taijutsu specialist about Nuriko, but he was just as clueless as Tenzou.

"Surely she will not breach ANBU code of conduct merely on a whim?"

"Yaaaaah. 'Course not." Genma answered with a horribly fake grin. Gai raised a large eyebrow in response.

"Is that why she has been present at the mission desk throughout the duration of the war?"

Tenzou whirled around in his chair. "HO. What?"

"You didn't recognize her?" Genma asked around his food.

"She's wearing a mask, Genma." Tenzou deadpanned. "Kind of hard to be memorable when you look like everyone else."

"Indeed. We have known Nuriko for some time, so she is easier to recognize in uniform." Gai supplied. "Regardless, I have seen her at the missions desk every time I dropped off a report. She has not been on a mission once during the conflict."

"Probably because she's too unpredictable. Which kind of defeats the purpose, because her speciality is sabotage missions because of her unpredictability." Genma mused. "Well, whatever. I don't want to cause you too much stress about this, Tenzou my man. You've started to get quite a reputation for Badassery around here. I don't think she'd fuck around with someone who is known to be exceptionally good at killing people amongst other people who are supposed to be good at killing people."

Tenzou snorted out his water. "Thanks, Genma. I'll just keep an eye out for her."

He received a thumbs up for his answer. Gai seemed to remember something and nearly knocked Tenzou out of his chair in his excitement at remembering it.

"WAIT! Tenzou, did you not speak to Kakashi? How did it go?"

Genma leered at his young friend in response to Gai's question. Tenzou turned slightly red and absently pushed food around his plate with his chopsticks.

"Ah. It went well."

"REALLY?" Gai exclaimed. Several people turned around in response and quickly went back to their meals. Gai looked slightly embarrassed. "Sorry. I mean...really?"

It looked like the moktuon user wanted to disappear, but he answered regardless. "Yes. I mean, we...worked it out? At this point I can't help but be weary of Kakashi's ever changing attitude towards our relationship. But, he admitted he acted out of fear and didn't trust himself or my skills enough in this situation. He genuinely wants to...fix things, so...that's good."

Gai looked serious which slightly worried Tenzou. Then again, Gai was an intense individual. It wasn't really that surprising.

"I see. I think that is a very good sign, Tenzou. I know Kakashi can be...difficult to understand or predict, but he does not lie."

"I know..." Tenzou whispered. "I just don't want to get my hopes up. You know?"

His two friends looked sombre at his words. The mood at the table seemed to have plummeted significantly.

The mokuton user turned bashful as he continued. "Also, I want to say. I'm sorry you guys have to be so involved in this. It's really not your problems, so I appreciate your constant support. It's...really helped me. A lot."

They smiled brightly in response. Genma slapped Tenzou on the back and Gai sniffled loudly.

"No problem, buddy."

"AS A TEAM WE ARE ONE HEART AND MIND!" Gai shouted, jabbing his finger into the air. More people turned to stare before going back to their meals. Gai was too emotional to notice this time.

Tenzou laughed and blushed. "Thanks, guys."

The three smiled at each other before Tenzou continued. "So. How is everything going with you two in terms of...uh, dating? We need to focus on someone other than me for once."

Genma grinned wolfishly. "Weeeeellll, you know. The ladies are always keeping an eye on me and me on them. Actually, there's this one girl I particularly like. She's got crazy red hair and keeps flirting with me whenever we have a mission together. Problem is, I've never seen her without her mask on."

Gai snorted, but Tenzou was very interested. "Really? You've never seen her in the locker rooms or hallway? Debriefs?"

"Nah, she always wears her mask. KIND of puts me off a little, because usually only the loopiest ANBU insist on constantly wearing their masks when it isn't necessary. But...hey. Yah never know."

Gai looked unimpressed. "She seems to be remarkably similar to the last five women, Genma. You're going to have a parade of vexed lovers after you at this rate."

Tenzou turned to Genma in shock. "You seemed like such a gentleman..."

"Hey, hey. Woooow now." Genma called with his hands in a position of surrender. "Let's not get too hasty with the assumptions. I am PERFECTLY gentlemanly. It isn't my fault that the women in this organization are so...unique. And, mostly, emotionally crippled. Or...never had emotions to begin with. All the same, it ain't my fault."

Tenzou laughed and Gai shook his head. "Genma, maybe you should look elsewhere?"

The other ninja sighed and shrugged. "Well, that's what I used to do. The last year has been ridiculously busy, though. I've barely spent any time at all in the village."

The mokuton user couldn't help but feel guilty at that. Part of the reason Genma had been so busy was because he'd needed protection from Root so many times. It was thankfully over now (or at least, he assumed it was) but it still made him feel bad to think he'd affected his friends lives.

"Well. Why don't we go out tonight?" Tenzou offered quietly.

Gai perked up instantly. "What a DELIGHTFUL suggestion! Why, I haven't had dumplings in ages! And we all know the most delicious dumplings in Konoha often attract quite the crowd."

Genma laughed and smiled brightly. "Sounds like a plan to me. Poor Kakashi,stuck in bed while we romp around the village."

Tenzou and Gai both frowned at that. Thinking of Kakashi still caused a little pang of pain in Tenzou's heart, but he did feel awful that his captain was bored to death in a hospital bed.

"Let's bring him some dumplings, then. Hospital food isn't exactly the most extravagant." Tenzou suggested.

"Done! Night on the town it is! Man, this is great. It feels like ages since we've all been able to let loose like this."

The three of them beamed at each other and quickly finished their lunches.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Genma needed to tie up some business with his last mission, so the other two relaxed together in the rooms until it was time to get ready. Donned in regular Konoha uniforms, the three friends appeared in the market with grins on their faces. Genma made an exaggerated gesture of scanning the crowd.

"Woo! A lot of people are out tonight. Perfect."

"You look like a predator right now, Genma." Tenzou chuckled.

Gai was quick to respond. "That is not necessarily off the mark..."

"Hey now! Genma's got feelings, too." The charismatic shinobi answered with false injury. "Although, you are kinda right."

The three of them proceeded through the market, a place Tenzou hadn't been back to since he was haunted by Root. Memories of those days flooded him with a distinct paranoia. Was he really in the clear? Should he be watching his back? The last thing he ever wanted was to be a burden on his team again. Thankfully, he was sporting his beloved faceguard his friends had so lovingly gifted him with. At least his jaw would be safe.

They made it to the dumpling stand without incident. As Gai had predicted, it was teeming with people, many of whom were young women to Genma's distinct delight. Tenzou eyed Gai out of the corner of his eye, wondering if he'd be looking, too. Gai never really spoke about dating or women,which Tenzou didn't really think was strange or suspicious since many ANBU didn't. Being in the black-ops tended to be a little segregating and everyone in it was prepared for that.

After they had sat down and placed their orders, Genma very inconspicuously looked around for his first victim.

"Man. It is so nice to see people who AREN'T capable of cutting my throat out on a whim."

Tenzou laughed. "I don't find the others to be too violent, really."

"PPPFTT. Give it another year." The other shinobi grumbled. "Trust me; it takes a special kind."

Once again, Tenzou found his attentions resting on Gai. "Are you interested in meeting anyone, Gai?"

"Oh!" The green-clad shinobi exclaimed, clearly not expecting to be addressed. "Well, it would certainly be nice. I do not find the women we ah...work with to be my type."

"I can see him with a nice, meek little thing." Genma commented. "You know, to balance out his lunacy. Can you imagine dating someone as hyper as you, Gai? It's like you would both just combust from excessive energy."

Tenzou tried really hard not to laugh at the comment, but it ended up coming out as a really loud, sort of wet snort. Genma grinned but Gai seemed unperturbed.

"Hmm, yes. Actually, I agree with you. I have been so busy training that I have not really given much thought to what kind of partner I would like, but I think you're right."

"What about her?" Tenzou whispered as he gently pointed to his left. The other two glanced over quickly, attempting not to be obvious in their hunt. It was a small, dark haired young woman. She was cute in a simple, but charming way. They turned back to look at each other, Gai with a slight blush to his cheeks.

"She's nice."

"Excellent." Genma cackled. "We have our first target."

Gai looked like he was going to melt into the ground. It was actually extremely charming, especially since Tenzou had never seen him as anything other than confident and dynamic. Overly dynamic. They decided to move a little closer to where the girl in question was sitting. Tenzou knew nothing about 'meeting people' who were total strangers, so he depended on Genma for guidance. Which...well. He was pretty charismatic, surely he knew what he was doing?

"Alright. We don't want to look like creeps, so we need to be smooth. Gai, go over there and order something random from the counter. She's sitting right behind it. I'll be close by, so if you need anything, just look over to me." Genma instructed as seriously as if he was giving orders on a mission.

The bowl-cut shinobi looked like he was going to panic. "I...I do not know...what do I say?"

Tenzou wanted to call the whole thing off, but Genma was determined.

"Just pretend like you're noticing her for the first time, then smile and say hi. Easy peasy."

"What do I say after that...?"

Genma twirled some hair around his finger as the thought about it. "Well, if she says "hi" back, then you can just make small talk by saying something like "do you come here often?" And then just take it from there."

Gai turned completely pale. Genma sighed and slapped him on the back.

"Buddy. You NEVER STOP TALKING. Trust me, you'll make conversation just fine."

That logic actually seemed to sit well with Gai. He thought for a second, nodded once, then stood briskly. "Of course, my friend! You are correct! I shall take this as a challenge, like all other challenges! "

He saluted his two friends, spun quickly on his heel, and made his way to the counter to place his order. Tenzou bit his nails in his nervousness but Genma seemed more than confident. The two friends watched Gai as he leaned over the counter to speak to the dumpling man. Once his order had been placed, he slowly craned his neck around to peep at his target. She was sitting innocently, utterly unaware of Gai's presence. He coughed loudly once and to the ninja's delight, she jumped and spun around as he'd hoped.

"Ah! Sorry to startle you."

"Oh..." She began, looking at the forehead protector around his waist and the vest around his chest. "It's no bother, shinobi-san."

"Please, that is far too formal. Do call me Gai."

She giggled and Genma nearly slapped Tenzou off the table he hit him so hard in the arm. "Alright, Gai-san."

"Do you come here often, ah...?" Gai rattled off and made a gesture as if waiting for the next piece of the sentence.

"Mimi. And, no, not really. I'm just waiting for some friends."

"That is too bad! The food here is most excellent."

Genma was now practically strangling Tenzou in his excitement. The mokuton user shoved him away and gasped for air, extending a leg to keep Genma at his distance.

"Holy shit, he is killing it!" Genma whispered.

"You're killing me!" Tenzou gasped with a glare.

Mimi giggled. "I've heard it's good."

"What did you order? You simply must try the oyster balls."

She laughed again and the two began chatting easily. After around three minutes, Gai's random order was up. He picked up the food and offered some to the young woman. She bowed lightly but declined. With a smile, a hand shake and a few more words, Gai bid farewell to his conquest and made his way back over to the table. Genma was practically running off with his seat, he was so excited about Gai's progress.

"Wow, wow, wow buddy! What are you doing? You can't come back here without asking her out!"

Gai shook his head and casually plucked an oyster ball into his mouth. "Judging by my observations, that is not the best course of action."

Genma looked absolutely incredulous, but Tenzou leaned forward. "What do you mean, Gai?"

"Well." The fuzzily-browed shinobi began. "I noticed that she was wringing her hands slightly when we first started talking, which means she was hesitant in conversing with me. Her body was pointed away from me the entire time, meaning she was not directly engaged in the conversation. She lost all of her tension only when our conversation remained casual and easy. My deduction? She is either not interested or has a boyfriend."

Genma's jaw dropped and Tenzou slowly clapped his hands. "I'd say you're a natural at this, Gai."

As if to prove Tenzou's point, Mimi soon walked past their table with a couple of friends in toe. She bowed her head lightly to Gai with a smile. When Gai acknowledged her and smiled back, the three ladies proceeded to leave the area without glancing back once. Genma scowled.

"Ah well. Better luck next time."

The three friends food arrived shortly after. They ate, laughed and talked, Genma glancing around the vicinity every once-in-a-while in case anyone he was interested in happened to be around. Before they knew it, the sun was setting and alcoholic drinks were getting involved. It was a beautiful night, warm with a cooling breeze, and little lights began to pop up all over the dumpling stand. Tenzou thought it was the perfect atmosphere for a night out with his friends. He suddenly felt a pang in his heart at the thought of Kakashi alone in his hospital room. As soon as his captain was able, they had to come here again with him.

Round after round of drinks diminished in the blink of an eye. Genma was beginning to point at everything whenever he spoke, and Tenzou was starting to have to squint at anything past Gai to be able to see it. The mokuton user felt warm and fuzzy all over, and he loved it. Numbness was just what he needed.

"Oi, Genma." Gai slightly slurred. "That woman over there has been staring at you for a while."

He spun around and quickly gripped the table for support. "Oh. I see."

The woman in question was very attractive and definitely shooting glances at the intoxicated ninja. Genma turned to his friends for a moment with a devious grin on his face.

"Gentlemen. It has been a slice." He announced before throwing his legs over his chair and swiftly standing. To Tenzou's amazement, Genma actually pulled it off without toppling onto his face. He strutted over to the table housing his prize and the remaining two friends could not help but fire amused and eager looks each others way. He was either going to be amazing or utterly hilarious. Time would tell.

A few seconds later it seemed like he was invited to sit. He did so, and the two began to converse with many a-giggles exchanged. Tenzou and Gai glanced at each other in surprise.

"This seems really uneventful..." Tenzou pouted.

"Indeed. I assumed there would be antics."

"Maybe she's drunk, too?"

"I do not see any -wait a minute!"

The two squished together in anticipation and eagerly watched their friend and his conquest. There seemed to be a bit of a commotion where, surprisingly, Genma looked uncomfortable. He stood from the table but the woman clasped his hand and yanked him down. Since he was around six drinks in, the young ninja toppled over and practically slammed his face onto her shoulder. Genma zipped away and successfully made it a few feet from her before he had to stop and clutch his head as it spun. She got up and chased after him. Tenzou and Gai looked to each other in surprise again, but for a far different reason.

"Uh. Should we help him...?" Tenzou asked slowly.

"...Y...es...?"

Genma staggered closer to them and they could clearly see a look of (hilarious) panic in his eyes. That pretty much did it, and the two ninja stood and strutted over to their friend as calmly and soberly as they could manage.

They didn't really have to say much.

"She wants me tah friggen beat up her boyfriend! Like COME ON." Genma cried, gesturing backwards violently at the now shamed looking woman.

Tenzou and Gai looked to her for confirmation. She nervously wrung her hands.

"He's a jerk!"

"She said the only way we can 'be together' is to scare him off. I'd have to be the stupidest prick ever.."

The other two ninja sighed simultaneously. Tenzou decided they'd had enough of a night out for one day.

"Come on, guys. I think we should leave."

"Sounds damn good to me!" Genma cried as he barrelled past the two of them. The woman looked like she really wanted Genma to stick around, as she practically shoved her way in between Tenzou and Gai to get to him. She seemed to stop herself when she nearly came face to face with two ninja vests.

"I think you've got your answer, Miss." Tenzou asserted gently. She laughed nervously, nodded, then peered over their shoulders and wiggled her fingers at Genma's retreating frame.

"Think about it!" She called out to him.

They heard their friend mutter something angrily in response. Trying not to laugh, Tenzou gently pushed the woman away a little to indicate to her that she should walk in the opposite direction. With far more dejection then he was expecting, she sighed, turned and made her way back to the table she'd previously occupied. Gai and Tenzou exchanged equally amused looks before hey turned and headed towards their enraged friend who was already quite a while ahead of them.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

After they had returned to the stand to pick up Kakashi's dumplings, a fact Tenzou remembered when they were practically half way back to the base, the three friends stumbled up to the ANBU hospital. Genma was in considerably better spirits after the three of them had laughed the situation out a bit. Because, really...it was hilarious.

"Maybe I'm just goin' for the wrong type'a girl, yah know?" Genma slurred as they strode through the corridor to Kakashi's room. "Like maybe I have a type and it's a bad one. Like it's so bad, guys."

"I told you that already." Gai pouted.

They arrived at Kakashi's room a moment later so talk of terrible life decisions was hushed for the time being. When they entered, their captain sat up in his bed and wiped sleep from his eyes. He seemed curiously unsurprised to see them visiting at such a late hour.

"Who died?" Kakashi yawned.

"We brought you dumplings." Tenzou responded with a large, drunk grin. He padded over to Kakashi's bed and plopped the container into his lap. "It's a little late to eat, which we didn't think through at all, but you can have it for breakfast!"

Kakashi stared at the dumplings before blinking back up at Tenzou. "Are you drunk?"

There was a loud giggle that seemed to have come from Genma. Kakashi sighed. "That's definitely a yes."

"We felt bad that you couldn't join us tonight, so we thought we'd bring you a little piece of our outing." Tenzou described with the same smile he'd had since he entered the room. Kakashi couldn't help but smile back.

"Well, that was thoughtful. Did Gai break anyone?"

"Genma almost broke someone's boyfriend!" Gai shouted far too loudly.

Kakashi stared, looking genuinely concerned. "Again?"

"Wow, wow, wow! I didn't...I mean...she tried to get me too n' I didn't..."

It clearly took a lot of effort for Genma to say that and continue to stand upright, because in the next moment he merely gave up and plopped down onto the side of Kakashi's bed. "This thing's actually pretty comfy..."

"Not if you have to lay in it for a week." Kakashi pouted. "I'd rather watch you make an ass of yourself. Not fair."

"OI!" Genma shouted and nearly fell into Kakashi. "No way -not my fault. She was all like 'oohh do this' and I was all like 'Hell naw'." He explained with many jerky arm gestures. "I don't know why I always attract weirdo's."

Kakashi slowly raised his hand to offer an explanation, but at Genma's fierce glare he blinked innocently and retracted his arm.

"Gai did very well, though!" Tenzou supplied with continued cheerfulness.

"Oh?"

"N'yah. He's a smooth operator, that one is." Genma leered. He leered so hard he nearly fell onto Kakashi again. Their captain shoved him over a bit and the other ninja flopped onto the bedside table with the grace of a rag doll. "...Not cool, man."

"I feel like we may be disturbing other patients..." Tenzou murmured as he craned his neck to look out the little window to the room. "We should keep it down."

"Per...haps we should leave..." Gai suggested as he watched Genma drool on the lamp beside Kakashi. "We may need to get water into our friend."

"Don't judge me..." Genma murmured against the lamp.

Tenzou laughed and went to help his friend, but Gai beat him to the punch. Despite not at all being sober, he hoisted the babbling senbon-wielder onto his shoulder and waddled to the door with him.

"I shall give him some refreshing liquids and put him to bed. You can come whenever you like." Gai threw over his shoulder to Tenzou as he approached the door. The mokuton user blushed crimson as he realized he would be alone, and drunk, with Kakashi. Sober Tenzou may not have been ready for that and may have fled accordingly. Drunk Tenzou merely felt himself heat up exponentially.

Drunk Tenzou also had a much slower reaction time, as when he finally thought up a response to Gai, his friend was apparently long gone. With an even stronger blush he turned back to Kakashi, who was grinning at him in open amusement.

"It seems you've had quite a bit yourself, haven't you?"

Slowly Tenzou made his way to the side of Kakashi's bed. He tried to look as sober as possible, but clearly it wasn't working because Kakashi continued to grin at him wickedly.

"Well, I had a bit. I mean it wasn't that much."

"Hmm. So, two?"

"...Uh..."

"Three?"

Tenzou looked increasingly embarrassed. "I didn't exactly keep count or anything..."

Kakashi nodded sagely. "I see. I mean, one rarely does."

"Right? When they keep coming, you just keep drinking. It's natural is what it is." Tenzou blathered, his hand gestures only a few notches lower than Genma's. Kakashi's grin merely widened, his eyes dancing.

"I appreciate the entertainment." He murmured and patted the spot next to him on the bed. "Sit down and tell me about your night. I'll live through you."

There seemed to be next to no thought process in Tenzou's mind. He literally plopped down no sooner than Kakashi's hand had left the bed. It seemed like he realized this once he was settled, and the resulting look on his face was comical enough for Kakashi to nearly snicker. Tenzou blushed and tried to feign some sense of detachment by looking to the sky and pondering casually.

"It was just us, hanging out. Gai spoke to someone for a few minutes, and then we just...you know. Joked around. Paid too little attention to what round of drink we were on. Gai may or may not have bet Genma thirty dollars that he couldn't touch his toes with his tongue. I may or may not have turned myself into a bench at one point..."

Tenzou snickered loudly at the surprised look on Kakashi's face. "I didn't think I could do it, but Genma was just so convincing...and then I did it."

"Your entire body?" Kakashi gasped, most definitely impressed.

"Well, yah. I became a bench. Except my face, which was somewhere on the part where you put your back."

Kakashi stared at him for a second.

"Can you do it again?"

Tenzou blushed furiously and somewhere in the back of his mind, his sober self helpfully pointed out that this was his own doing. "Uh...well...I did it with significantly less alcohol..."

Kakashi shrugged.

It seemed almost impossible to get away from having to perform in front of his captain, so he decided to just accept it. With a deep breath and the reminder that he probably wouldn't remember this in the morning anyway, Tenzou calmed his mind and pictured himself as a bench. He felt his arms become the arm wrests, his back become the back, his legs and waist become the seat and legs. Before he even knew it he felt, and indeed was, A Bench. Kakashi was starting at him with his jaw hanging open.

"Tenzou. In all seriousness, this is incredibly impressive. There are so many ways you can use this on a mission."

Bench Tenzou blushed and glanced down. "We have Genma to thank, really. I never would have considered doing it if not for him."

"What else can you do?" Kakashi asked, looking far too excited for Tenzou's liking.

"Uhhh...well...I haven't tried doing anything else..."

"How about a desk?"

Tenzou sighed and slowly morphed back into himself. With a squeak he nearly toppled over, but grasped the bed frame to steady himself. He hiccoughed and blushed. "I, ah...I don't think I'm quite in the best shape for anything else, Senpai."

"Maaaaaaaa." Kakashi responded with exaggerated disappointment. "Fine. Wouldn't want you to end up where I am."

The mokuton user slowly plopped down beside Kakashi on the bed again. He smiled blearily at his Senpai. "Knowing you, you'll be out of here in no time."

Kakashi smiled lightly, but glanced down at his hands. "Not quite, but thanks for the vote of confidence. When it comes to my sharingan, sometimes I can be frighteningly powerless." He sighed and played with his hospital bracelet. "It'll be at least another four days before I can start hobbling around on crutches."

For the life of him Tenzou could not picture his intimidating captain looking so vulnerable, but from the downtrodden aura Kakashi was exuding, the mokuton user could tell he wasn't exaggerating.

"I'm sorry. But, at least you're here for a good reason. You saved the mission."

Kakashi laughed lightly. "You saved the mission, Tenzou."

"Well, after, I guess. But if it wasn't for you your entire squad probably would have died. The craziest part is that everyone is talking about it like you swatted off a bunch of flies. As if you killing 20 ninja and living to tell the tale is so 'business-as-usual' that it doesn't even impress people anymore. I still can't get over it, but to anyone else, even Genma and Gai, it's like 'Oh, well, that's just Kakashi' as if it's no big deal at all. Do you ever feel a lot of pressure to keep doing better and better?"

A weight seemed to press down on Kakashi's shoulders, though his expression didn't change too much. He exhaled slowly and attempted to sit up a little straighter before he answered. "Yes. I put that pressure on myself mostly, because a ninja should always be improving. But I know how you mean it, and you're right. At least it keeps me on my toes."

Tenzou had his hand on Kakashi's leg before he realized it. Yanking it back seemed rude so he left it there, and besides, it kinda felt nice. "You'll always be a valued member of the organization and village, Senpai. Nothing could change that."

There seemed to be the smallest shift in Kakashi's demeanour, mostly in his eyes. They seemed to harden with a bolt of something Tenzou couldn't decipher. He paused for so long that the mokuton user nearly spoke again.

"People are fickle, Tenzou. Don't have too much faith." His captain finally responded, a sharpness to his words that worried his kouhai. It sounded like his opinion was based on experience.

"What makes you say that?" He whispered cautiously. The conversation was having a sobering affect on him.

Kakashi remained silent, his lips so tight the blood slowly drained out of them. Tenzou squeezed Kakashi's leg gently and his captain finally turned to look at him. He smiled, but it was sad.

"Don't mind me. Konoha is a good village, and you're a smart man."

Clearly that did not convince Tenzou. He still had many questions, but the sadness in Kakashi's eyes smothered any further questions he may have had. Perhaps it was bad timing, or too soon, or he still had too much alcohol in his system, but the moment called for it and Tenzou didn't care; he leaned forward and placed a lingering kiss on Kakashi's jaw. When he pulled back, Kakashi turned to look at him, his eyes now swimming with something far more warm.

Tenzou smiled. "Well. I'll always value you, no matter what happens between us."

For the first time in their relationship, Tenzou thought he saw Kakashi get choked up. He glanced down quickly and seemed to squeeze his eyes shut, as if forcing a couple of tears away. When he glanced back up, his face was sunny and bright, his friendliest smile in place. His eyes glistened, but nothing fell from them.

"I know."

They smiled at each other until Tenzou cracked and glanced down, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. There was so much history and emotion between them that neither really knew what to do, or how to act. Tenzou technically being drunk was not helping his judgement. Slowly, his body decided for him as it rose from the bed. He glanced back at his captain, who was still smiling at him.

"I think I'll head back now. Definitely need water, too. We disturbed your seep, so you must be tired."

"Maa. I suppose. I wish I could come with you, just to see the state Genma's in."

Tenzou laughed. "Once you're well, we'll all go out as a team. You can see 'Drunk Genma' then."

"Sounds good." Kakashi whispered. He grasped the dumplings from his lap and wiggled them a little in his hand. "Thanks for breakfast."

The two of them were lost in each others gazes again, as if the magnitude of things that needed to be said between them was becoming apparent. As if drawn by an invisible force, they leaned forward until their lips met in a hard, lingering kiss. It felt so ridiculously good to kiss Kakashi again that Tenzou nearly crawled into his lap. But, he didn't want their reunion to be when he was drunk on six rounds of sake. It needed to be something he would always remember.

Kakashi seemed to be of the same opinion, because slowly, their kiss ended and they broke apart.

"Thank you, Tenzou." Kakashi breathed. It was the most loaded thank you the other ninja had ever received; he felt his throat constrict with emotion at the sincerity of it. His addled brain had no idea how to respond, but with the way Kakashi was looking at him, he knew there was no response needed. With one last smile Tenzou turned and made as dignified a way as possible to the door. He opened it, glanced back at his captain with a simple wave, then stepped through and slowly closed the door behind him. Tenzou stood there for a few moments, desperately tempted to kick the door open and rush Kakashi's poor, mangled body. Alcohol certainly did lower inhibitions, because he was thoroughly prepared to have sex with someone who could barely move their arms. Psh. Arms. Kakashi didn't need to move, he just needed an erection. He could have one of those, right?

Before he thought about it too hard he concentrated and teleported out of the building. Bad, Tenzou. Bad.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

HAPPY HOLIDAYS YA'LL! That one took a while, but things have been busy and festive. Hope you enjoyed!