Disclaimer: Only Kumo belongs to me

Kumo trained with whichever sensei wasn't off on a mission. Of the three, Kurenai was her favorite, and Gai was just…over the top. Kakashi drove her crazy by not showing up on time. Ever. He didn't acknowledge that she was worth enough to show up on time and make the most of the time allotted for their lessons. That hurt the most. The one thing she wanted most in the world was to be acknowledged.

Today was Kakashi's turn again, and he was late, like he always was. She had already been waiting an hour, and he was nowhere to be seen. Twenty minutes later, sensei strolled up, looking like he hadn't a care in the world, casually offering the explanation "I got lost on the road of life."

Kumo had had enough of him. She exploded, shifting to a 20 foot tall lion and roaring with enough force to uproot trees and send her sensei flying backwards. "KAKASHI SENSEI. YOU'RE LATE. AGAIN!" She roared loud enough to send small shockwaves through the Hidden Leaf Village. She lowered her massive head till it almost touched the ground to stare at her sensei eye to eye. Smoldering crimson, slit-pupiled eyes burned into a single dark grey one. One of her enormous paws landed next the jounin. One of her claws was almost as tall as him and flexed next to him.

"You wouldn't kill me." Kakashi stated quietly, refusing to acknowledge her power by even looking the slightest bit concerned.

She roared again, sending another shockwave through the village, her claws clenching tore huge gouges in the ground. "ACKNOWLEDGE ME!"

"Right now, the only person alive who you respect, who truly seemed to care about you when you were broken would be ordered to kill you if you killed me." He reasoned quietly.

The thought of Shino sent her bounding away, trying desperately to contain her rage. Is this how Father felt? Did the bijuu feel like the rage I felt when Kakashi wouldn't acknowledge me? She ran for hours, doubling back on her trail, running through streams, suppressing her chakra signature and shifting forms occasionally. I lost it. I almost killed my sensei. Shino probably hates me now. Father's dead and I have nothing and no one to live for. She ran, not caring which direction she went or how her muscles shrieked in protest. Eventually she found herself in the desert and collapsed, her form returning to human as she succumbed to the darkness that enveloped her. The sun seared her, crisping her skin and she did not move.

In Konoha, the village was in turmoil. Everyone had heard the roars, had heard the thundering of "Kakashi sensei, you're late! Again!" as well as her demand "Acknowledge me!" They had all gaped open mouthed at the massive lion with crimson eyes towering above the trees. They had seen her turn and take off, only to disappear from view as she shifted shape.

Kakashi was kicking himself for how he had handled the situation. He had succeeded in convincing her not to kill him, but had crushed her spirit.

Search teams had been searching. Ninja tracking hounds, kikaichu and Byakugan all searched, but she could travel much faster than they could, the scent disappeared every time Kumo had taken a winged shape, and her chakra signature was nowhere to be found. The most they could figure out was that she was heading in the general direction of Suna, prompting a message asking their neighbors to be on the lookout for one seriously pissed off shape shifter, so she could appear as anything.

The Kazekage, having received the dispatch, sent out his own teams to scour the desert between Suna and Konoha. But he didn't have much hope. The desert was a massive and inhospitable place, and they didn't even know what to be on the lookout for.

Kakashi slumped against a tree. He had been searching for his student with his summons for hours and they had lost the trace. He ground one palm into his uncovered eye in weariness. I really fucked that up. I knew her state of mind was fragile. I spent too much time in Anbu. Sometimes, compliments don't make the student weaker. Sometimes they need to hear that they did well. i'm not in Anbu anymore, but I was still in an Anbu mindset and I fucked up. Thinking isn't going to do her any good though. With a groan he heaved himself to his feet, ordering the dogs to spread out once again and try to find the trail again. They eyed him warily, but complied.

The next morning, Kotetsu and Izumo, the gate guards were startled to see a giant dog with a spike collar approaching with a limp, silver-haired jounin draped over his back, the rest of Kakashi's pack arrayed around Bull. The dogs hadn't been able to stop their master from his frantic pursuit of his student until he was on the verge of collapse. The guards stared, but allowed the dogs to pass unchallenged as they headed for his apartment.

An hour later, when Yamato returned with his search team, the guards beckoned him over. "Kakashi's in a bad state. You might need to check on him." The younger jounin nodded through his weariness and stumbled off in the direction of his former captain's apartment. He found the other jounin sprawled on his couch, two empty sake bottles on the floor next to him, a third clutched in his hand.

"Tenzo?" Kakashi muttered thickly. "What the hell are you doin' here?"

"Keeping you from dying of alcohol poisoning, sempai." The younger man replied, confiscating the bottle.

"I got another." Kakashi slurred, pulling out a fourth from beside the couch. His kohai took that one as well. "Hic. Gimme the sake. Need it." He was almost begging his friend.

It tore at Yamato's heart to see the man he respected so much pleading for alcohol to drown his regrets in. "Sake is not going to improve anything."

"It helps me forget. I need to forget, Tenzo." he pleaded.

"Sempai."

Kakashi reached over quickly and snatched the bottle, chugging the rest of it, the liquid burning its way down his throat. "Tenzo." the older man whispered as he slid into an alcohol-induced stupor. "I fucked up."