A/N: Let's get Naruto more involved into the plot, shall we? ^^; Enjoy!

The next morning, Naruto stopped by at Kakashi's house.

"Just what was that all about yesterday?" he demanded. Kakashi apologized to him.

"Something came up," he said. "It didn't go as I expected…"

"You just took off! What did you want to tell me about my parents?" snapped Naruto. "And what's up with you and that Michiko… or… Kaede… that lady?"

"Kaede…" started Kakashi. "Kaede is… she knew your parents better than I did."

Naruto blinked. "What…?" he said.

"She could tell you what your parents were like," said Kakashi.

"Eh?" asked Naruto suspiciously. "But, but, Kakashi-sensei, she's a lot younger than you. So how could she have known them better than you did?"

"Well, uhh…" He had to think of something. "She used to spend… a lot of time with them when she was little," he said. At least it wasn't a lie.

Naruto crossed his arms and thought about it.

"Alright," he said. "But… she's mad at me for some reason. How can I get her to talk?"

"Well, you're not," said Kakashi. "I'm going to train her today."

"Train her?" repeated Naruto.

"Self defense," explained Kakashi. "But perhaps you could… 'conveniently' drop by after your own training. Or when you're taking a break. Then I'll get her to talk."

Naruto thought about it for a moment, then smiled. "Alright," he said.

After Naruto had left, Kakashi went to see Kaede in the fields outside of the village, who had been waiting there for over an hour.

"You're late," she said.

"Ah sorry," said Kakashi. "An old lady needed some help with her groceries, so…"

"Aw, that's sweet of you to help her," said Kaede with a smile.

Kakashi chuckled in fake modesty. He couldn't believe she fell for it.

"If it were true," continued Kaede. "That's the oldest excuse in the book, Kakashi. And even if you're hiding most of your face, when you're using lame excuses like that, it's really obvious." She paused for a moment. "Why are you wearing that mask, anyway?" She slowly approached him and hesitantly reached both hands out to his face. "What are you…" she whispered absently, her fingers aimed at the edge of his mask, "… hiding?" Her fingers twitched before she withdrew her hands. She took a step back. "S-sorry…" she muttered.

Kakashi stared at her in surprise. Then he cleared his throat and said: "Let's… let's start your training."

What was that? he wondered.

"So… what exactly do I need to defend myself against?" asked Kaede.

"I think you already know," said Kakashi. "After all that's happened to you… And from yesterday, I can tell – forgive me for saying this – you're defenseless against men."

Kaede blushed and looked at her feet.

"You panicked yesterday," continued Kakashi, "and I can't blame you for that. But you couldn't get yourself away from me, and I wasn't even trying to do anything to you."

Kaede blushed and looked away briefly. She was probably embarrassed.

"That's why I want to train you," said Kakashi. "So that you'll never have to go through things like that again."

"I don't know if I can… do this," sighed Kaede.

"I do," said Kakashi. "You can do it. I won't stop until you can defend yourself properly. If you say yes, that is. Do you want to go through with this?"

Kaede looked up at him. "Yes," she said. "I'll try my best."

"Good," said Kakashi. "Well then, let's start."

Sakura and Sai came to bring Naruto some of Sakura's new, improved soldier pills. They should be tasting better now.

Naruto's Rasen Shuuriken was improving by the day. It was only a matter of time before he could be able to throw it, instead of running towards his target.

Suddenly, one of the Shadow Clones was starting to form the Kyuubi cloak again. All of the other clones quickly disappeared.

"Yamato-taichou!" yelled the real Naruto.

"I'm on it!" said Yamato. He used his Mokuton Jutsu. Luckily, only one tail had appeared and he could stop it in time.

Naruto was panting. When the Clone disappeared, Naruto sighed in relief. Yamato was standing next to him.

"Are you ok?" he asked. Naruto nodded. His hand formed a fist.

"Damn it," he mumbled. "It happened again."

"You're not concentrating on controlling the Kyuubi's chakra," said Yamato. "Perhaps you should rest for a day. You've been training and been going on missions every day."

"No," said Naruto firmly. "I have to keep training. I have to get stronger…"

"You have to know when to stop," said Yamato. "It's only for half a day. Wearing yourself out isn't gonna get you anywhere."

Naruto looked away. He slowly stopped panting.

"You know," he suddenly said, "I've never known the first thing about my parents. No one has ever talked to me about them."

"Your parents?" repeated Yamato. "I see. So that's what's bothering you."

"There's this girl who knew them," said Naruto. "Kakashi-sensei said she could tell me what my parents were like."

"I see," said Yamato again. "Then I suggest you go to her and ask about them. That way, you'll have less worries on your mind and we can continue our training."

Yamato was right. Naruto stood up and nodded at him. Yamato smiled. "Alright," he said. "See you tomorrow."

And they both took off.

"Where are they going?" asked Sakura.

"I don't know," answered Sai.

"The training couldn't possibly be over already?" asked Sakura. "It's only noon."

"Maybe they're taking a break," said Sai. He stretched out, turned around and said: "Well, I'm off too, then. You coming?"

Sakura kept looking at the training field until both Naruto and Yamato were out of sight. Then she followed Sai. She thought about Naruto. He was acting a little unusual yesterday and this morning. Like he had a lot on his mind, which wasn't like Naruto at all.

But he did have a lot on his mind. Naruto was thinking about what his parents would have been like. He felt stupid, because he had never asked Kakashi about them. It was strange to ask someone he barely even knew, to tell him about them. Then again, he really wanted to know.

His stomach was growling. Naruto stood still.

"So hungry…" he mumbled. His stomach growled again. "Maybe I should eat first. Kakashi-sensei's not expecting me yet, anyway." He decided to go eat some ramen first, and then immediately look for Kakashi and Kaede.

Meanwhile, Kakashi and Kaede continued their training. Kakashi was explaining what Kaede was supposed to do.

"So you have to find a way to keep me away from you," he said. "Give me an example of how you would do that."

He walked towards her. Kaede didn't really know what to do. She just took a step back every time Kakashi took a step forward.

Suddenly, Kakashi disappeared. Kaede stopped moving. "Kakashi?" she asked carefully.

"Behind you," whispered Kakashi. Kaede turned her head and her face turned red when she saw Kakashi standing very closely behind her. She quickly turned around, took a few steps back and fell down.

"What are you doing?" she asked. "You scared me!"

"Is that how you act when someone sneaks up to you?" asked Kakashi strictly.

"I…" Kaede sighed. "I'm too scared to do anything."

Kakashi sat down next to Kaede.

"I can't say I don't understand that," he said, "but if you want me to help you, you need to co-operate. I can't always be there to protect you."

"I'm sorry," said Kaede.

"For what?" asked Kakashi.

"For being a burden to you—"

"You're not a burden," said Kakashi. "Stop saying that." He stood up. "Now come on and get up. We have a lot of work to do."

He reached out to help her get up. She hesitated. She stared at his hand for several seconds before she finally reached out towards his hand. Kakashi waited patiently. Kaede looked at him, her fingers twitching again, then finally took his hand and got up. But Kakashi didn't let go of her hand. He stared at her.

Kaede blushed a little, feeling awkward. "Umm… Kakashi?" she asked. "Can I have my hand back?"

"Try and get it back," said Kakashi in a low voice. "Come on, free yourself."

Kaede looked at him. Then she looked at his hand, holding hers extra tightly now.

She gave it a try. She pulled as hard as she could, but she couldn't move Kakashi's hand nor his arm for the least bit. Even with sudden movements, she couldn't do it. Then she tried to get his hand off with her other hand, also with no success.

Kakashi chuckled as he watched her trying to free herself.

Kaede gave up and sighed. "It's not funny," she said. "You're a Jounin. I'm not even a ninja! How am I supposed to…"

Kakashi stopped laughing and looked at her more intensely.

"Look at my hand," he said. "A hand has five fingers. Do you know which one is the weakest here?"

Kaede thought for a while.

"It's the thumb," said Kakashi. "I've got the upper side of your hand with four fingers, while I've got the down side with only my thumb. Still, you're trying to get your hand back by pulling it towards yourself."

Kaede looked at their hands. She saw it.

"Now," said Kakashi, "what are you gonna do?"

Kaede grabbed her own hand with the other and pulled it downwards, making Kakashi let go of her.

"Look, you did it," he said. Kaede looked at her freed hand and smiled.

"But remember," said Kakashi, "this is not just about getting your hand back. It's much more than that. With this, I'm also trying to tell you that whenever you're in a pinch, it's not always hopeless. No matter how bad things may look, there's always a weak point. Therefore, there's always a way out." And in a lower voice, he added: "Try and look beyond the normal."

Kaede felt a shiver go down her spine. The way he was lecturing her felt nostalgic.

She smiled. "You haven't changed a bit," she said. "You used to give me advices like that when I was little."

"I did?" asked Kakashi.

"You can't remember?" asked Kaede. Kakashi saw the disappointment in her eyes.

"I remember," said Kakashi with a smile.

Kaede smiled for a moment.

"Do you… still see me as a little sister?" she asked. Kakashi stopped smiling. He didn't know what to answer.

"It's been so long," continued Kaede, "and for 15 years, I've felt abandoned by you. I've lost you as a brother. But… Do you see me as a little sister or as a friend?"

Kakashi didn't answer. Kaede could only hear the wind blowing through the grass, and the trees that were next to the field.

"O-or…" she stuttered quietly. Maybe she was nothing to him anymore.

"You're right," said Kakashi finally. "I has been a long time. I used to be the big brother protecting and playing with his little sister. But times do change, Kaede. I think we've both outgrown that role play, don't you think?"

"What… what are you saying?" asked Kaede carefully.

"You're not that little girl anymore, Kaede," said Kakashi. "The bonds we share aren't like they used to be anymore."

Kaede was quiet for a while. Then she looked at her feet. "I see…" she muttered.

"However," continued Kakashi. "If you'll have me as a friend, I'll more than gladly have you as one."

"O-Of course!" said Kaede immediately. She sighed in relief. "Don't scare me like that, man," she whispered.

Kakashi put his hand on her head and smiled. Not only did that make Kaede realize how much taller Kakashi was than she was, but it also made her feel a little uncomfortable. Even if it was Kakashi.

Just then, Kakashi saw Naruto standing a few metres away from them.

"Naruto," he said. Kaede turned her head and looked at Naruto.

"Am I interrupting something?" asked Naruto with a smirk on his face, looking at Kakashi's hand, which was still on Kaede's head.

Kakashi withdrew his hand. "Nope," he laughed.

"Ah, that's right," said Kaede. She blushed a little. "We're just old friends."

Naruto gave them a sceptical look. He decided to just drop the subject.

"Anyway, sensei," he said, "about what we talked about this morning…"

"Ah, right," said Kakashi. Actually, he had forgotten all about that. He looked at Kaede, making her wonder if he told him already.

"This morning?" she asked.

"Kakashi-sensei was going to tell me about my parents yesterday," answered Naruto. "Until you came along, that is."

"Oh… right," said Kaede. "Sorry about yesterday. I was kinda in a bad mood, so I overreacted."

Naruto was a little surprised that she was apologizing. She was really mad yesterday.

"Umm… it's ok," said Naruto. "It was my fault, too."

Kakashi took this chance. "Good," he said. "Naruto, you want to know about your parents?"

Naruto nodded.

"Well, to be honest," said Kakashi, "I think Kaede would be a better person to tell you than I would."

"Me?" asked Kaede, shooting him a look.

Naruto gave Kakashi another sarcastic look. "Yeah, very smooth, Sensei," he muttered so that Kaede couldn't hear it.

"She knew them better than I did," said Kakashi. Then he looked at Kaede. "It alright, isn't it?" he said. "We'll just take a break and you can tell Naruto about his parents."

Kaede looked at him and faked a smile. "Right," she said. "Great…"

A/N: Did you notice Kakashi is getting a little distracted? :P Don't worry, there'll be plenty of action once the plot fully developes. I just wanted Kaede to become closer to Kakashi and Naruto. Each in different ways, of course. There's actually a huge sideplot coming up, you'll see. :)