A/N: I know this chapter is short, but there'll be more bonding between Naruto and Kaede in the next one (spoiler!), so I decided to leave this one as it is. Enjoy! ^^

The three of them sat on the grass.

"So…" started Kaede. She forced a smile, even though she was feeling a little awkward. "What do you wanna know?" she asked.

"Well," said Naruto, "you knew my parents so well, right? So… what were they like?"

"Well… your mother was a kind, beautiful woman," said Kaede. "Well, sometimes she was a little… direct with people. But she was more hilarious than she was harsh at those times. She always made me laugh."

Naruto smiled.

"And your father," continued Kaede. "Your father was one of the greatest men this village has ever known."

"Really?" asked Naruto.

"Yes, of course," replied Kaede. "Are you surprised?"

"I've never heard anyone talk about him," said Naruto. "That is… as far as I know.

"No one?" repeated Kaede. "But…" She laughed a little. But when she saw that Naruto was serious, her smile faded.

"Wait a minute," she said. She looked at Kakashi. "Does he even know…?"

Kakashi hadn't thought about that at first.

"Do you know who your father really was?" she asked Naruto. He shook his head. Kaede didn't see that coming at all.

"You never told him?" she asked Kakashi.

"Hmm… I do always tell him he's just like the Fourth Hokage, but…" he replied casually.

"Whoa," interrupted Naruto. "Just a sec. The Fourth? What does he have to do with…?"

Both Kaede and Kakashi looked at him. Naruto could tell from the looks in their eyes what they meant.

"The Fourth Hokage… was my father?" he asked. Kakashi and Kaede didn't say anything, but the looks in their eyes were enough.

A long silence fell. Naruto didn't know what to think. Should he be happy, or mad?

He stood up. He didn't show any facial expression. He looked at his feet and thought for a while. Kakashi and Kaede looked at each other. They didn't know what to say either.

Finally, Naruto said something.

"Kakashi-sensei," he said emotionless. Kakashi looked at him. "Why didn't you tell me?" asked Naruto.

"Naruto…" tried Kakashi, but Naruto interrupted him.

"All those times you said I'm like the Fourth… And that I'm probably the only one who could surpass him… You couldn't even mention that he was my father?"

Now he looked at him. "Why?" he yelled.

"Calm down, Naruto," said Kakashi. "I never intended to keep it a secret…"

"Then why?" yelled Naruto again.

"Naruto-kun!" said Kaede. "Please, don't yell."

Naruto looked at her. "Stay out of this," he snapped.

Kakashi stood up. "Naruto," he scolded. "You're angry with me, not Kaede."

Naruto turned around and took off.

"Naruto!" called Kakashi.

"Perhaps…" said Kaede carefully, "… perhaps we should let him be for a while. That's not just any little secret you've kept from him there." She shook her head. "I can't believe you never told him. I mean… our father was your Sensei."

Kakashi looked at her. "I know," he said calmly. "It's more complicated than you think."

"Then tell me," said Kaede in a soft voice.

He smiled at her. "It's a long story," he replied simply. "I'll tell you later."

"Wha—"

"Let's get on with your training."

"But, wait a minute—"

He offered her a hand to help her get up again.

"Break time's over," he said with a tone of amusement in his voice.

Kaede took his hand – without hesitation this time – but kept insisting: "Kakashi, really, I—"

Kakashi pulled her up, but once she was on her feet, he pulled her even closer to himself until her face was merely a few inches away from his.

"Later," he said seriously, looking into her eyes with such intensity it made Kaede's heart skip a beat.

"O… Ok," said Kaede softly. She shifted and withdrew her hand. Her gaze never left him as a shaky breath left her lips.

"A-anyway," stuttered Kaede, "let's continue the training."

Kakashi looked at the direction Naruto had gone. Kaede looked the same way.

Then Kakashi sighed and looked back at her. "Alright," he said. "Let's try again."

A/N: Again, sorry for the short chapter this time, I promise the next one will be longer.

I should tell you guys, I'm glad people like this story, and I'm very thankful for that, but I'm not getting many reviews. Which is fine, really, but a little feedback is always welcome. ^^ But please don't feel obliged to do so, because you're not. Heh. xD

One more IMPORTANT thing: it looks like I won't be able to upload on a regular daily basis after all, because I'm offering a friend some shelter in my home, because she can't move into her new dorm room until March - poor thing. I still have a lot of editing to do in this story, but I can't do that every night... for the time being, that is. I'm still gonna try my best and get all chapters out here as fast as I can. Sorry to those who have been following this story so far! m(_ _)m