A/N: I'd love to call this chapter "Fanservice no Jutsu~!" (after LittleKuriboh's 'Naruto Abridged Comedy Fandub-' *gasp* '-Spoof Series Show', episode 3), but it's a little more serious than that. Heh.

I hope you like it!

It wasn't Naruto's snoring right next to him that woke him up. It was soft rustling coming from the direction of Kaede's tent. Somehow, it made him restless.

Footsteps sounded, fading.

Where's she going?

Kakashi got up, crawling out of the tent without making a sound.

Something doesn't feel right here…

He saw Kaede a little further ahead, walking slowly towards the nearby lake. He followed her without making a sound. He didn't want to scare her. He just had to make sure she was ok.

She stopped beside the lake, went down on her knees and looked down at the water, not moving for minutes. Maybe she was staring at her own reflection, but why? Kakashi just watched quietly from the bushes behind her.

She slowly reached one hand out, touching the water with just the tip of her pointing finger. After that, her hand formed a fist and she splashed the water a couple of times.

Kakashi just couldn't figure out why she was doing this. She didn't seem unhappy after she got out of the hospital over a week ago.

She stood up. Kakashi's body tensed. If she was going back, he had to move further out of sight. But she wasn't.

What the…?

She started to take off her clothes! Was she planning to bathe in the lake?

He knew he shouldn't be watching, but he couldn't take his eyes away from her. He noticed how her skin was shining in the moonlight, and her golden hair danced along with the soft breeze like a gold liquid. Her eyes were shaded by her bangs, but he lost attention to her face once she took off her top.

I shouldn't be watching her right now…

But he was. He was staring at the naked body of the adolescent whom he'd thought dead until barely two months ago. Back then, he never would have imagined seeing her again, let alone seeing her naked. She had fully matured now, and what an incredible body she had. He felt a familiar tension he hadn't felt in a long time, but suppressed it.

What am I doing? I look like some kind of pervert.

He'd promised to protect her. He wasn't supposed to think like this. Besides, Kaede had been forced into bed with who knows how many men, so it wouldn't surprise him if she were afraid of having sex. Even with him.

He was thinking way too much of this. Kakashi hadn't been with any woman for years, and the women he had been with back then were nothing but one night stands. He had never given too much thought to anything like relationships until now. But what he was having with Kaede was different. He'd felt desires to kiss her so many times, but this was the first time he actually felt a certain need for her. He didn't just want to see that body; he wanted to touch her, to feel the softness and the heat of her entire body—

Stop it already, he scolded himself.

His thoughts left him when Kaede turned to walk into the lake.

She shouldn't do this, though. It's way too cold for this.

Yet she kept on walking, slowly further into the water. When the water reached her shoulders, she started to swim.

Kakashi made a decision. He stepped out of the bushes, and called out for her.

"Kaede!"

No response.

"Kaede, come back! You'll catch a cold!"

Kaede stopped and turned to face him. Even from this distance, he could now see why he was having this bad feeling. Those stone cold eyes were looking straight into his open eye.

Yet, she somehow looked sad. She didn't make an attempt to attack him. Instead, she turned around and swam on like nothing happened.

"What are you doing?" shouted Kakashi. But right after he'd said it, she dove underwater.

Instinctively, Kakashi threw his shirt off and dove into the lake. Just a little ahead, he saw the silhouette of Kaede swimming deeper and deeper into the water.

When he saw large bubbles floating up from her face, he sped up. She stopped moving, Alarm driving him, he rushed towards her. She was already unconscious. He quickly turned her around and placed her arm around his neck and his other arm under her knees. He lifted her up to the surface, keeping her head above the water.

She's not breathing!

He swam towards the banks where she'd left her clothes, and laid her down as soon as he'd stepped out of the water.

Without delay, he pressed his lips onto hers as firmly as he could, breathing out into her mouth. Kaede responded instantly. Kakashi made room for her to cough out the water she'd breathed in. She coughed for five full minutes before she finally opened her eyes.

They still weren't her eyes.

Panting heavily, she looked at him.

"Why did you… interfere?" she snapped.

Kakashi's anger built up fast in his chest. He'd rarely lost his calm, but this time, he was furious.

"What do you think you're doing?" he shouted at her. "You could've died!"

Kaede's eyes narrowed when she said: "Exactly."

Kakashi couldn't control himself and grabbed her shoulders, jolting her.

"If you kill yourself, you'll take Kaede with you!" he yelled. "Kaede doesn't deserve to die! She's never done anything wrong!"

Kaede's alter ego didn't seem affected by his jolting and shouting at all.

It was then that Kakashi realized he was acting out of character. He let go of her shoulders and struggled to regain his calm.

"I know that," said Kaede's alter ego, "and you know that, and Naruto, and the Hokage. But the world doesn't know." She exhaled deeply, then continued: "It'll be a matter of time until everyone knows what I've done. Some might come after me, others will hate me. To outsiders, I'm still one person. And being the Hokage's daughter, it's easy to believe that that stupid girl is getting special treatment just for that."

"I won't let anything happen to her," said Kakashi firmly.

"How can you be so sure?" snapped Kaede, standing up in a sudden movement. "She'll be miles away from you for at least a few years!"

"She'll be in good hands," said Kakashi, standing up as well. "If there's anyone who'll try to come after her, I'll be ready for them. As for you… You've never shown any concern for what might happen to the real Kaede."

She frowned at him, then turned and walked away from him in large paces, without bothering to grab her clothes. Kakashi, however, grasped her wrist and pulled it towards him. Kaede looked at him with cold eyes and squirmed.

"Tell me," said Kakashi, having less trouble staying calm now, "what's the real reason you're trying to kill yourself?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you," retorted Kaede's alter ego. "Now let me go!"

"Wrong answer," answered Kakashi in a darker voice. He gave her wrist a firm squeeze.

She grunted. "You're hurting her, as well," she said.

"Answer me," demanded Kakashi.

I'll explain it to Kaede as soon as she's back to her normal self.

Suddenly, she smirked and closed her eyes. Kakashi knew exactly what she was planning to do. "Wait, answer me!" he shouted, taking her other wrist as well. But it was too late. Kaede's legs trembled, but Kakashi caught her before she could collapse. He moved one hand to her back, having her lean against him for support. Her cold body was against his. But Kakashi didn't pay attention to that longer than a split second.

"Kaede? Kaede, wake up," he said.

Kaede moaned softly, but woke up instantly. She froze for a moment before she looked up.

Her eyes… Thank goodness, she's back to normal. Kakashi sighed in relief.

"Kakashi…?" asked Kaede softly. "What's going—"

She stopped when Kakashi moved his hand on her back a little.

Kaede jumped backward, staring at Kakashi from head to toe.

"Why's your shirt off?" she asked, flailing and pointing at him. "How did we get here? Why are we wet? What's going on?"

Now Kakashi couldn't help getting distracted by her bare breasts, and caught himself staring shamelessly at them until Kaede finally realized the situation she was in.

"What are you…" She looked down, and froze. The moonlight allowed Kakashi to see her face turn red. Kaede trembled and stepped back. She tripped, but landed in a heap of leaves.

"Are you ok?" asked Kakashi, stepping forward to help her.

"Why am I naked?" shouted Kaede, covering herself with her arms. Her face was so flushed she was almost glowing.

Kakashi couldn't hold back a chuckle. That's Kaede all right.

"What are you smirking about?" shouted Kaede, kicking some leaves up. "Turn around! Have some decency!"

"Sorry, sorry," laughed Kakashi. He turned around.

It got silent behind him.

"What's happening?" asked Kaede quietly. "W-were we…"

"No," said Kakashi. "You don't remember anything?"

"I was sleeping," said Kaede. "And suddenly I was here. But…" A short silence. "I was having a nightmare. I dreamt that I was drowning."

So she did notice…

"What's going on, Kakashi? Seriously, this is freaking me out," said Kaede.

Kakashi saw his shirt and Kaede's pyjamas lying ahead, so he moved to pick them up. Kaede's voice, however, stopped him in his tracks.

"Did the other me… come out again?" she asked carefully.

Kakashi paused, but then soon picked his pace back up. "Yeah," he muttered. He picked up his shirt; Kaede's pyjamas were a little further away.

Kaede fell silent behind him. She could be shocked, she could be surprised, she could be sad; he didn't know. He picked up her pyjamas – and her panties, but he didn't pay attention to them.

"Can I just turn around to give you these?" he asked quietly.

"Y-yeah…" She sounded distracted.

As he turned to walk towards her, Kakashi spoke up: "You didn't attack me."

"Oh," was Kaede's only reaction. She stood up, no longer bothering to cover herself.

"The… other you…" continued Kakashi. Kaede didn't show any response to that, but still Kakashi had to continue: "… She tried to drown herself. And take you with her," he added with a painful twist in his chest. "But I swam after you and pulled you out. That's why we're wet. You took off your clothes before you went into the lake; that's why you're naked."

He handed her pyjamas out to her, and Kaede slowly took them. Kakashi turned around again, giving her some privacy to put her pyjamas back on.

She took him by surprise when he suddenly felt something cold and wet on his back. Kaede snaked her arms around his waist and she pressed herself against his back, her pyjamas still in her hand. Kakashi looked over his shoulder.

She's freezing!

"Thank you," whispered Kaede in a hot breath against his shoulder blade, "for saving my life."

As if I'd ever let you drown, thought Kakashi, still with that ache in his chest.

"Don't mention it," said Kakashi. "Now put your pyjamas back on."

She let go of him as soon as he'd said it.

"S-sorry," she said. "I shouldn't have… I mean…"

"I mean you're cold," Kakashi interrupted her. "You'll get sick if you stay that way."

"Oh… right," he heard quietly behind him.

He couldn't deny that he didn't know how much longer he could hold out with her naked body against his bare back.

This is serious…

"Ok, I'm done," she said. Kakashi turned around. The pyjamas she was wearing, a sleeveless top and shorts, weren't exactly a lot of improvement.

He smiled and pulled his shirt over Kaede's head. Kaede looked at him in surprise.

"What about you?" she asked.

"I'm fine," said Kakashi, pulling his shirt over the rest of her as far as it could get. For her, it was almost like a dress.

"Thank you," said Kaede. She put her arms in the sleeves and leaned against him again, this time with her forehead against his chest. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," said Kakashi. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, trying to warm her and himself up a little.

"Be honest, ok?" said Kaede quietly. "Are you… attracted to me? Phy-physically?"

Kakashi had thought she was going to ask him something about her personality switch, but he hadn't seen this coming. He thought this topic was a taboo for her after all she'd been through.

He took a moment of hesitation. He had to be honest, but at the same time, he didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable around him.

"That's a weird question," he said. "Are you sure you're feeling ok?"

"Kakashi, just be honest," said Kaede. "You saw me naked. Any other man would've…" She shivered.

"When your life is at stake, like it was just now, nothing else matters to me," replied Kakashi, resting his cheek on her shoulder. He held her more tightly, to make sure she was really alive and well in his arms. "I don't want to lose you again."

Kaede had to arch her back to return the hug. She placed her hands on his bare chest. They felt warm.

"You… still haven't answered… my question," she whispered. She sounded distracted.

"You want me to be completely honest with you?" whispered Kakashi back.

"Yes," replied Kaede in a hot breath against his chest.

Kakashi held her even more tightly as a reaction. Unable to resist the temptation to kiss her neck, he lightly brushed the side of her neck with his lips.

Kaede gasped, arching her back more, her breasts pressing softly against him.

He planted a kiss on the side of her neck. Kaede shivered, but didn't flinch. Kakashi smiled and straightened, his face close to hers. He placed both hands on each side of her face, drew her closer and kissed her gently on her lips.

Kaede kissed him back, still lightly trembling, but with no hesitation.

She was so soft. Kakashi felt like she was all he'd ever need to compensate for the worst pain he'd get during missions; just by holding her, all of his wounds would be healed.

If only they could stay like this forever…

He was being so gentle with her. After all the horrible things she had gone through most of her life, she'd never expected that being with a man could feel so good, so right. She was no longer afraid of his touch. She actually wanted even more of it.

She'd felt strange ever since she woke up to find herself completely and utterly naked against Kakashi's equally bare chest – that was a fairly unexpected way to wake up, she had to admit to herself – and soaked because her other self had tried to kill herself.

What made her even more confused was when Kakashi actually turned around when she told him to. It was not that she didn't trust him, but even for a shinobi like him, seeing a woman naked must do something to him.

Or maybe he's… been with so many women before, he's used to…

Even though she didn't like the thought, it was very likely that that was the case.

Of course… Look at how handsome he is. Even with the mask on, you can tell he's handsome. He must be popular with women, no doubt.

The thought of Kakashi with other women made her feel a painful twist in her chest. But she was soon distracted from that as his hand left her face – cold! – and found her hips. He gently pulled her hips against his own. It was a bit scary, but he was being gentle with her; he wasn't forcing anything.

That was when he softly pressed his tongue against her lips in an attempt to deepen the kiss. Kaede hesitated for a moment, only a moment, but then carefully parted her lips, allowing his tongue to enter her mouth.

He did this yesterday as well, except he actually did force it in that time. He'd scared her with that, and for just a split second she'd thought he was going to force her into bed. But he didn't. And she should have known better than that.

This time, his kiss wasn't as deep as it was yesterday, and not forceful at all. It was like his tongue was dancing in her mouth, inviting her tongue to join it.

She was, again, distracted by his hands, moving up to her waist. One was sliding to her back, the other found the back of her head, his fingers playing with her hair.

This was nice. She would have never thought something like this could be nice.

She found her own hands, which were still on his chest, moving on their own. Her fingertips were feeling every muscle they could find. She'd thought that Kakashi, being a shinobi, would have more scars than the few little ones on his chest. She could feel every muscle tense under her touch.

Am I really affecting him this much?

She wanted to explore more, to feel more of him, but then his hands left her back and the back of her head, and wrapped around her wrists. He broke the kiss, and looked at her with certain intensity.

"You'll need to stop doing that," he whispered. "I'll lose control."

He was looking so serious, as though he was really warning her for something terrible. So even Kakashi had a limit to his self-control.

But even so…

"I… I wouldn't mind," whispered Kaede, slightly panting. "If it's you, Kakashi, I wouldn't mind…"

Kakashi exhaled slowly, a smile marking his features.

"Not yet, ok?" he said, his voice softer than ever.

Kaede really wouldn't mind going further than this. But maybe Kakashi was right, and maybe she wasn't ready yet.

"Ok," she sighed.

Kakashi planted one more kiss on her forehead. "Let's go back to the tents before we both catch a cold," he said.

Kaede blushed. "Yeah," she said with a nod.

Kakashi snaked an arm around her waist and lead her back to the tents. He didn't let go until right in front of her tent.

"Good night," he whispered as quietly as he could.

"Good night," Kaede whispered back. She crouched to get into her tent, but paused.

"Kakashi?" she asked without turning to face him.

"Hm?" hummed Kakashi.

"Don't tell Naruto about any of this."

It got quiet behind her for a short moment.

"Got it," she heard him whisper. A large, warm hand landed on top of her head, patting it.

Her heart skipped a beat. Again.

"Thank you," she said as Kakashi's hand left her head. "G-good night."

"Good night," replied Kakashi.

Kaede looked at him one more time, as he stood there with that warm smile on his face, and then finally zipped the tent closed.

I can see through your smile, Kakashi, she thought. You're worried about this just as much as I am.

She lay down, her body curling up, burying her face in her pillow.

This is getting seriously out of hand…

A/N: She means her personality shifting, by the way. Just... pointing that. Out. There. Erhem...

Anyway, thanks again for sticking with me, I hope you liked this chapter (I do... :P) and hopefully I'll see you again next chapter! Please don't forget to leave a review. Because I loooo~ve reviews.

(I'm not hyper. Honest.)