Disclaimer: I hope everyone realises that the original cast of Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto

Chapter 17

Okay, I know I was a very accomplished kunoichi, but I wasn't stupid. Madara scared the shit out of me, for more than one reason. So I had holed myself up in Azami's house for a few days. Of course I told her, and she understood, but she got fed up of my hiding and sulking – at Kakashi and some bad news I got today – and dragged me out to go food shopping with her and Gai. I swear they did everything they could together. It was sweet, if a little frustrating when I wanted to talk privately with Azami. Right now I was in the green grocers with the happy couple, looking for nothing really in particular. Gai would probably find everything in the end anyway.

"Natsuki!" I turned to see who it was, before immediately turning back around. "Natsuki!"

"Hey Natsuki-chan, should I buy the honey roast ham, or the mustard ham?" Azami said as she turned the corner, a whole leg of ham in each hand. "What's wrong? Your face is all screwy-YOU!" she dropped one ham, the mustard I think, which I watched in fascination as it rolled away. Maybe it wanted to escape the situation as much as I did, lucky ham. While I was becoming jealous of a ham, Azami had stomped up to Kakashi and was now waving the remaining ham in his face angrily. "What are you doing, harassing poor Natsuki again? Why don't you just make up your mind?"

"Hey, stay out of this. This has nothing to do with you."

"Yes it does, she's my best friend!"

"She's mine too!"

"Is not!"

"Move over, I need to talk to her."

"I will not!"

While they stood, arguing in the middle of the shop and drawing quite a few stares, I managed to slip away. I would come back, but I needed some space. I made my way through the village, spotting a familiar orange clad figure in a certain ramen stall, but deciding not to go to him. I had a lot on my mind right now, better to let him revel in the success of his first big mission. Walking past him and letting my feet guide me, I arrived outside the Hyuuga compound.

I had worked with a few Hyuugas on missions in the past, and all had seemed quite the same person. Quiet, stoic, expressionless and focused. At least they worked well, and seemed to respect me enough to cooperate fairly on missions. But they always seemed slightly suspicious of me. Then again, they had always questioned my sudden and patchily explained arrival to the village. I spotted a certain Hyuuga heiress sneaking over a wall, no doubt having heard of Naruto's return to the village. I waved at the sheepish girl as she scampered off, before sitting on the nearest bench I could find, just staring at the white Hyuuga walls. Azami'd find me if I took too long.

It was lovely and peaceful right then. Just me on a bench enjoying the soft sun and gentle breeze...

No pressure. No need to think.

No Madara.

I was seriously scared but also seriously pissed at him too. He had cost me an indefinite suspension 'for my own safety' from missions outside of the village. Hah! He'd already found me inside the village, it was probably safer sending me away. But no, the Hokage's word was law. So I was stuck here indefinitely. I hated that word. Indefinite. It was so... un-defined.

Best get back to reality though, I thought after a while, and walked back to the grocer's to see Kakashi and Azami still arguing. It didn't seem as if they had noticed my departure. I don't think they had even moved, except for their mouths and arms, emphasising their arguing.

"I need to speak to her!"

"I won't let you hurt her again!" Azami said, whacking him with the ham joint in her hands. How Kakashi didn't manage to dodge that was a mystery, but it was amusing. He actually looked quite stunned. "Hah! Are you willing to face my wrath?"

"Yes."

"You are?" uh-oh, Azami probably didn't plan for him to step up to the challenge. She looked at something behind me, and suddenly I saw a spark in her eye, what was she up to now? Maybe I should intervene before she does something too awful.

"Erm, Azami, it's okay. I'll just talk to Kakashi-"

But Azami's arm whipped out, fast as light – maybe she should consider becoming a ninja too – and grabbed Kakashi's arm, planting his hand on her bum and giving out a cry. "Kakashi! I'm married!"

What- oh shit... I turned my head just in time to see Gai's eyes burst flames at his eternal rival, who, to his credit, was looking relatively calm. "KAKASHI! My eternal rival you go TOO FAR! I challenge you to a battle! First needing the hospital, LOSES!" I rolled my eyes at Gai, but shook my head at Kakashi when I saw him agree to the battle.

"You don't have to fight him you know."

"Maa, I have nothing better to do."

I raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Look, I am really sorry."

"I've heard that from you before."

"I know; I'm a bad friend and an even worse boyfriend-"

"Boyfriend? You think you're my boyfriend? We haven't even been on a date yet, we aren't dating period, so you are not my boyfriend!"

He grabbed my hands in an iron grip – I know, I tried to escape – and looked at me until I looked up at him. Well, I glared up at him. He was trying puppy dog eyes on me, which would normally work, but I was angry and he only had one eye visible. I popped an eyebrow at him again, and when he saw he was getting nowhere sighed, but didn't release my hands. I tried shaking him off again, but he was annoyingly resistant.

"Let me go."

"Let me explain."

"You don't need to, I understand, remember?"

"Natsuki-"

"What?" smoke surrounded us as Kakashi teleported us somewhere with his Jutsu. Hah, I don't have to use chakra! I coughed through the smoke and looked around the unfamiliar room. It was a grey room, with black furniture and very little else. "Where are we?"

"My place."

I was surprised. I know Kakashi probably wasn't an interior designer, but this place didn't look homey at all. No photos, no colour, no life in the place. It was quite dark really. "Why'd you bring me here?"

"We need to talk."

"That line already? I thought I already told you we aren't dating."

"I know... I know... I ask you to forgive me too many times. I just don't know what to do! You... confuse me." Kakashi slumped onto his stairs, head low and in his hands.

"Well you confuse me too! You think it's been easy being at your beck and call?" I was going to rant-mode, and nothing would stop me. This was seven years in the making, "You're my friend one minute, possibly more the next, and then you don't show up and expect me to be fine with it? Sure you have a reason, but you couldn't even come and face me to tell me. You got Gai to come tell me long after you're gone, and expect me to deal. What's it going to be, another seven years?" I grabbed the nearest thing to me, one of his books. I almost laughed, there was a whole stack of them, but instead I chucked it at him, picking up another in my hands.

"No!-" He jumped up, damn his reflexes, just dodging the book.

I threw the other book, "Well how am I supposed to know that, Kakashi? How? Do you even care?"

"Of course I do-"

Another book was lugged at him, "Well you have a shitty way of showing it. And don't spin me that bull about you being rusty, you act fine, trust me, I fell for it."

"I never-"

"I don't even know if I should be angry at you! Maybe it's not you, it's me. Hah! Now you've got me reciting clichés. Should you have such control over my emotions? Its exhausting being angry Kakashi and you make me so angry! More than anyone else!" I grabbed the whole pile of his precious books and threw them at him, but he just dodged them all.

"I didn't mean-"

"What made you leave Kakashi?" I walked up so I was staring straight at him. We were maybe a metre apart as I glared at him, shooting my whole ninja arsenal at him with my eyes, "Huh? What? Was it me? Naruto? Or this whole mess that I'm in? Because I'm just as scared, I'm just as lonely and I'm just as terrified." Damn angry tears! Go away; I'm supposed to look angry at him, not upset! "I left my home, my family, everyone I ever knew, so that I'd wind up here. I don't even know why I'm here. You think I like being alone? You think I kicked Naruto out to have one-nighters with the next man that walks into my life? I wanted to beg Naruto to stay... just like I wanted to beg you to stay. But I couldn't, because that was his decision, just like it was yours."

"Natsuki-"

"Answer me Hatake, why did you leave?"

"..."

I nodded at his response, not really having expected any. "He found me you know." I sniffed, wiping the tears blurring my eyes. Why do I always cry when I'm angry? "He knows about me, where I live, what I know. Well maybe not all I know. But he'll come looking for me for that. I'm not even allowed to leave the village now!"

"Who?"

"Who else? Uchiha Madara."

Kakashi's eye snapped up at me, wider than normal, "Madara?"

"The most evil man in the world is after me. Yay... I'm just the luckiest girl in the universe. Imagine what torture awaits me when he gets me-"

"He won't get you."

"Yes, Kakashi, he will. He'll get me, and torture me, and if he eventually gets what he wants from me, however long it takes him to do so, I'll be of no more use to him. He'll kill me... I'll be-"

"DON'T say that!" Kakashi shouted.

"DON'T YELL at me!" I shouted, pushing him away from me and walking to the door. "Don't follow me." I walked out the door and made my way out of Kakashi's house. The moment I was out the door I teleported home, heading straight for the kitchen for some calming tea. I had just finished pouring it into my cup and taken a sip when the front door burst open. I ran to the living room, a kunai in my hand ready to attack any enemy who might have come in, you never know when Madara would come in.

But it wasn't Madara. It was Kakashi.

What?

"What are you doing here? I told you not to follow me." Kakashi was breathing heavily right now, and looking terrifying to say the least, his eye dark and glaring at the ground. I didn't know whether I should leave or stay, whether I should even move he looked so angry right then. So I stayed perfectly still, watching him carefully. Slowly he calmed down, looking up at me eventually, but not into my eyes.

"He won't get to you because I won't let him."

"I know you're good Kakashi, but even you are no match-"

"I will stop him. Even if it costs me everything." He tentatively reached out and took my hands in his again, "I'd do it all for you."

"But why?"

"... Close your eyes."

"Kakashi please just answer the question-"

"Please. Close your eyes. I promise I will answer your question."

I scowled at him, but nodded, "You better answer." Looking up at him one more time before I closed my eyes, waiting for whatever Kakashi was going to do. He released my hands and I soon felt a tugging on my hitai-ite, "Wha-"

"Trust me." Sighing again, I nodded my head. He tugged my hitai-ite down so it covered my eyes. "This is for just in case." I left the hitai-ite covering my eyes, as confused as hell. What was Kakashi doing? I felt stupid just stood there, in the middle of my living room, with my eyes covered and no idea what Kakashi was planning. I was still feeling stupid when I felt a hand on my waist, making me jump. "Easy, it's just me." I nodded, feeling weirder and weirder by the second. I felt him place his other hand on my waist too, and waited for him to do... whatever he was planning on doing. Then I could start yelling at him again.

And then I felt them.

Lips.

Bare lips. On my own.

I wanted to open my eyes and see his face, but I didn't want to waste an opportunity either. He wasn't forgiven, far from it, but... it was Kakashi... and I was a masochist, just asking for trouble. I pressed my lips harder against his, and reached up with my hands to try and 'see' what his face looked like, but he grabbed my hands, placing them around his neck, before cupping my face with his hands. I felt his fingertips lightly brush my neck as he moved to hold my shoulders. I pulled him closer, so my body was flush against his, and he moved his hands down to my hips. I was losing myself in the kiss, when I remembered what had brought him here in the first place.

No!

I pushed Kakashi off me and ripped the hitai-ite from my face. He had already put his mask back in place, and stood a couple of feet away from me. "What are you- Why- You can't just do that in the middle of an argument! I'm, I'm angry at you damnit! Now answer the damn question already."

"I left you because I got scared that I was growing attached. I came back because I wasn't strong enough to stay away any longer. I gambled on our friendship because I thought it was worth it. And I will keep you safe because I think I love you Natsuki. And I have no idea what to do." He looked down to the ground, "Find me if you want to talk about this some more." And in a puff of smoke, he was gone again.

I stood, alone once again in my apartment, when I heard a thud outside my door. Looking to the open doorway I watched a honey roast leg of ham slowly roll through the doorway towards me. When it stopped beside me I bent down and picked it up with a sigh, "Just come in Azami." This was going to be a loooong talk.