A/N: Finally, I've come up with something. xD Hope I'm not disappointing you. Do let me know if I am. I might change it. :P

He knew he was staring. He wouldn't mind staring for the rest of his life if he could. The sunrays reflecting in her golden hair, dancing in the breeze that came through the window, lit up the dull hospital room with dancing lights. Ocean coloured eyes were gazing outside, the thoughts behind them mysterious as ever.

The whole world seemed to brighten up whenever he saw her. He could blame it on the Icha Icha books he'd read a couple hundreds of times by now, but he felt the exact same way as the main character was described when he had first laid eyes on the woman who would be his true love.

Trying hard not to imagine himself with Kaede in one of the adult parts of the book series, he finally stepped into the room quietly. He wanted to hold her and just take off with her, but of course he knew better.

"Are you ready?" he asked quietly in order not to startle her, as she apparently hadn't noticed him entering the room.

She turned her head to face him; her eyes aimed at him now, almost making him drown in the ocean blue. She wasn't startled or surprised. A ghost of a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, but her eyes gave away that she was nervous.

"I-I think so," she stuttered.

Kakashi smiled in spite of himself. "Ok, let's go then," he said. He reached out for her hand. Kaede almost accepted it, but stopped midway. Kakashi looked up.

Kaede let out a nervous giggle. "You know what," she said with a fake smile, "on second thought, I'm still feeling kind of… woozy. Maybe I should stay a little longer."

Kakashi smirked.

"Last week you told me you hate hospitals," he reminded her.

"What? I don't… Well, I don't hate hospitals," said Kaede, averting her eyes with that same fake smile.

"Yes, you do," chuckled Kakashi. He moved to stand behind her, gently laying his hands on her shoulders and giving her a gentle push towards the door.

"No, I don't," retorted Kaede again, leaning back a little in resistance.

"Yes. You do," said Kakashi firmly this time, leading her towards the hallways. "Now let's go."

Kaede tried to turn around. "Kakashi—" She was going to protest, but Kakashi interrupted her.

"Look what I brought you," he said.

Kaede gave up on her efforts to turn around and release herself from his grip, and looked to the right when they were almost out the doorway. There stood, around the corner, a wheelchair.

Kakashi decided it was safe now to let go of her, and released her shoulders. Kaede stared at the wheelchair for a long ten seconds, then turned her head towards him with a sarcastic look in her eyes.

"Kakashi…" she started. "I can easily walk there by myself."

"No, you can't," said Kakashi seriously. "Your body is still weak. You can't walk all the way to the Hokage's office."

"Yes, I can," protested Kaede. "And I will. I'll show you."

"You are going nowhere on foot," said Kakashi strictly. "Now stop being so stubborn and get in the wheelchair."

Kaede now turned around completely to face him, her eyes wide and her eyebrows curved into a frown.

"Make me," she snapped.

"I'll strap you down on that thing if I have to," shot Kakashi back.

Kaede suddenly looked at him in surprise. He'd startled her. But then she frowned again.

"Stop acting like I'm weak and helpless, Kakashi!" she snapped at him, much to Kakashi's surprise. Then she calmed herself down and aimed her eyes at the floor.

Kakashi half-crouched to her eye level and laid his hand gently on her upped arms. Reluctantly, Kaede looked at him.

"I don't want you to pass out again," he said softly, but firmly. "I can't have you unconscious again." He straightened, but his gaze never left hers. "Naruto and I were worried about you. I don't think either of us has ever been that worried about anyone. If something were to happen to you, I don't know what I'd do." He slowly released her, his fingertips stroking her sleeveless arms in the movement. She was so soft.

Kaede blushed, but soon regained that stubborn look on her face. "Alright, alright, I'll get in the chair," she said with annoyance as she sat down in the wheelchair. "There. Happy?"

Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle at her childlike behaviour. He looked around to see if anyone was around, but they were alone. Then he quickly pulled his mask down, bent over to surprise her with a kiss on the lips, and pulled back with his mask back on in just a few seconds.

Kaede stared at him, eyes wide open.

"Very," he answered her question with satisfaction.

Kaede blushed, like she always did when he was toying around with her. It was what made it so much fun to do.

Kakashi moved behind the wheelchair, grabbed the handles and started walking. They moved in silence until they got out of the hospital.

"What do you think the Hokage will say?" asked Kaede quietly.

Kakashi stared at the back of her head as he kept walking.

"The council are discussing the subject. Uzumaki Kaede's position as the daughter of the Fourth Hokage makes it difficult to come to a solution. I'm trying to get her to stay here, or at least as close as possible, but several others have proposed to send her to a highly rated mental clinic up in the Village of Colours in the far north of the Earth Country." Tsunade paused. "More and more members of the council are agreeing with the proposal."

"You can't make her go that far!" Naruto exclaimed.

"That mental clinic has helped people… people like Kaede," said Tsunade, clearly not liking the sound of those words. "I know it's far, but it might be the best solution for all of us."

"Then I'll stay with her!" persisted Naruto. "I won't leave her there by herself!"

"No." Tsunade stood up from behind her desk, walking around it to stand in front of Naruto. "You, Naruto, are a Jinchuuriki. Akatsuki is still after you. You're not leaving the village, except for missions. You and Kakashi can take her there, but you'll come back straight away."

"And what if I don't?" asked Naruto stubbornly.

Tsunade grabbed Naruto's collar.

"If you have any sense of responsibility towards your village, your job and yourself, you'll come back as soon as you can!" she scolded. "And otherwise, I'll personally come and get you myself, and teach you a lesson you won't forget! Got it?"

Tsunade's intimidating moments never failed to make a shiver go down Kakashi's spine. He focussed back on the matter when Tsunade's brown eyes were aimed at him now.

"Kakashi, I trust you make sure Naruto comes back obediently," she said. She let go of Naruto's collar.

Kakashi looked from the Hokage to Naruto, whose eyes were pleading for him to convince Tsunade to reconsider.

But Kakashi, as much as he loved Kaede and didn't even want to think about her being so far away for who knows how long, maybe years… he had to stay loyal to the Hokage, and if this was really the best for Kaede, who was he to refuse to take her to that clinic? What would happen if he refused for Kaede to leave the village? Would he force Kaede to stay? Would he lock her up in his own apartment, where she could harm nobody, including herself? It was the influences from outside that had made Kaede what she was right now. And Kaede did once mention that she had been through therapy for three years before Iwao hurt her.

Three years…

The very thought of Kaede being that far away for so long, isolated from the world outside of that institution, drove him insane. Three years of not knowing how she was, whether they were taking good care of her, or if she was lonely and wanted to go home.

Three years without Kaede. And they had only reunited a mere two weeks ago.

Kakashi looked back to Tsunade.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama," he said quietly.

Tsunade nodded and headed back for her chair behind the desk.

"Kakashi-sensei!" protested Naruto. "They're banning Nee-chan to a mental clinic! How can you agree to that?"

"Naruto, we have to do what's best for Kaede," replied Kakashi calmly.

"Nee-chan is not crazy!" yelled Naruto.

"We never said she is," retorted Tsunade. "But she does need help. Naruto, you know as well as we do that we can't pretend nothing's happened. People will know, and no one will feel safe around her."

"That's right," said Kakashi. "Naruto, Kaede is willing to fight against that other personality. But she can't do it alone. We can help her… by letting her get the best therapy she can get."

"I'm not leaving her in some faraway place we don't know anything about!" Naruto held on stubbornly.

"Kakashi," interrupted Tsunade. "Go get Kaede. She should be fine outside the hospital now, anyway. Let's hear what she has to say about this."

Kakashi nodded. "Yes, Tsunade-sama."

"Kakashi?"

Kaede turned her head, looking at him from the corner of her eye. "Are… you ok?" she asked.

"Hm? Yeah," replied Kakashi as casually as possible.

"Is it… that bad?" asked Kaede. Her voice was shaking. "Has the Hokage already decided on my punishment?"

"You're not getting punished," said Kakashi quickly, stopping the wheelchair and walking around it to face her. "You didn't commit those crimes."

"Then what is it?" asked Kaede. "You know something, don't you? Tell me now, Kakashi. What's going to happen to me?"

"I'm sorry, but we have to keep this between the walls of the Hokage's office," said Kakashi. "Ok?" The thought of being apart from Kaede after all that had happened crossed his mind once again, striking his heart for the hundredth time today.

Kaede stared at him with a tired looking expression in her eyes. "Ok," she said softly.

Kakashi moved back behind the wheelchair, moving it forward again.

Kaede could hear her brother's voice from outside the building. She rubbed her temples as they entered. She looked at Kakashi from the corner of her eye, and saw that he was looking frustrated as well.

"Sometimes… sometimes he embarrasses me," he sighed.

Kaede couldn't stifle a chuckle. "I believe my mother was like that," she said softly.

"I don't think even Kushina-san was as outspoken as Naruto is," said Kakashi, humour sounding in his voice. "He crosses the line regularly. Let's just hope he's not making things worse up there."

"Worse?" asked Kaede.

"I mean, for himself," said Kakashi quickly. "The Hokage was already pretty mad at him when I left to get you."

As they approached the door to the Hokage's office, Kaede noticed how the two guards next to the door were giving each other frightened looks.

"That Naruto… he's playing with his life if he keeps this up," said one guard.

"Does he want to die?" asked the other.

They both turned their heads towards Kakashi and Kaede as they approached.

"The Hokage wants to see us," said Kakashi.

"We know, Kakashi," said the first guard. "You can—"

"DAMN IT, NARUTO! HOW DARE YOU INSINUATETHAT I DON'T TREAT HER AS A HUMAN BEING!" The shouting voice of the Hokage behind that door had Kaede petrified for a moment.

"… go inside," finished the guard.

Kaede stood up, a feeling of irritation with Naruto and anxiety for the Hokage spinning at the back of her head.

"Kaede…" she heard Kakashi behind her.

"It's ok," said Kaede without looking at him. "I can handle this. Leave that thing here." She didn't want to give the Hokage an impression that she was weak by staying in that wheelchair any longer. If she couldn't even stand on her own, how was she ever going to convince the Hokage that she is strong enough to fight this?

She felt a warm hand on her upper back, but she didn't want to look at Kakashi right now. He had been looking at her with that worried frown since he'd come to pick her up. She couldn't afford any more reason to be nervous.

Finally, she reached for the door handle, slowly wrapping her fingers around it.

"You're not alone," she heard Kakashi whisper quickly as she opened the door.

Her heart jumped.

Kakashi…

A/N: I just checked the traffic stats on this story, and I must say: wow! 159 people stuck with me 'till chapter 23 so far! Yay! X3

Anyways, let me know what you think of this chapter. If you don't like the way it's going, do tell me and if enough people want to see it different, I'll change it. :) Thanks for sticking with me so far! :D