Iruka sat beside Kakashi on a surprisingly comfortable couch, which was currently located to one side of the Hokage's office. He had never seen it before, and he had been inside this office more times than he could count, so he assumed it was only brought out on the nights when the Hokage had to stay late and work. They had delivered the princess safely back to Ten Ravens, and her return had been marked with such a joyous celebration, that Iruka thought it had all almost been completely worth it.
Almost.
Kakashi had traveled at top speed back to Konoha, and Iruka pushed himself to keep up. While they had been in Ten Ravens, Kakashi had sent Hiromasa ahead with the mission report, and a special message for the Hokage. They had breezed through the front gaze without a second word to the guards on duty, heading towards the Tower. The presence of ANBU surrounding them as they entered was particularly heavy, and Iruka half-expected that the three ANBU who met them right in front of the Hokage's office would turn them away. Instead, they were shown in and told to wait on the couch until the Hokage arrived.
Kakashi sat as far away as possible without having their hands and arms act like a hanging bridge between their bodies. Iruka felt hot and sweaty, but he bore the discomfort by mentally going through a list of defensive moves, and how to teach them. He felt a low-grade desire burning at the back of his mind like banked fire, and felt miserable at the need to fight it off. Beside him, Kakashi was as still as a rock; he didn't even seem to be breathing, but Iruka got a sense of increasing impatience and annoyance coming from him.
"Could you stop jittering around like that?" Kakashi muttered after a few dismal minutes of waiting.
"I'm jittering?" Iruka said and then looked down at his legs; the one on Kakashi's side was bouncing around nervously and Iruka made an intense effort to stop it. "There. Happy?"
"Ecstatic," Kakashi answered in an extremely flat tone. They both looked up as the door opened, and the Hokage walked in.
"Stay out here," she threw over her shoulder at the ANBU. Kakashi stood up, pulling Iruka with him, and they went to stand up in front of her desk as she sat down behind it and steepled her fingers in front of her face.
"Hatake," she said. "Report."
Kakashi had his other hand stuck in his pocket, completing the picture of complete relaxation and boredom. Yet as he outlined their mission, Iruka noted that his phrasing was precise, his tone crisp; very different, Iruka huffed internally, from the reports he handed in to the Mission Office. The Hokage listened, and her eyebrows lifted when Kakashi got to the part about the seal.
"Well done on rescuing the princess," Tsunade said when Kakashi finished, "but did you have to get yourself all bonded together?"
"Iruka-sensei allowed his emotions to run rampant with him," Kakashi said and Iruka bristled.
"Our mission was to rescue a child. I wasn't about to let those kids get hurt," he said. Kakashi turned to look at him, his expression bland but he was actually frowning at Iruka in his mind or something, because Iruka felt the heat of his displeasure. Iruka glowered in return and Kakashi's visible eye slitted.
"You didn't have to jump in like that."
"What did you expect me to do? Just stand down?" Iruka shook his head in disgust, even though he really wanted to lean in close to Kakashi and kiss him. The urge was increasing and was almost unbearable now, but Iruka didn't think that making out in front of the Godaime was a good idea.
"Can't be helped now," Tsunade sighed and then tilted her head. "Release each other's hands for a moment."
Iruka took a deep breath and braced himself. Kakashi had already straightened his fingers, and Iruka slowly let his go slack as well. Their hands fell to their sides and Iruka bit his lip at the intense hurt that filled his soul. He withstood it for about two seconds and then grabbed Kakashi's hand again. They both were breathing rapidly.
"Interesting," the Hokage muttered, and then pressed her finger to a small red circle on the side of her desk. A bright spark of her chakra ignited the area, and it travelled down the side of the wood, streaking against the seam of the wall and floor, before slipping out under the door. The door was pulled open instantly, and Shizune stuck her head in.
"Now, Tsunade-sama?"
"Yes, send Neji in."
The young jounin entered the room with measured steps. If he was surprised at seeing Kakashi and Iruka holding hands, there was no sign of it on his face.
"Hokage-sama. Iruka-sensei. Kakashi-sensei." His greeting was, as usual, calmly polite. "How may I assist?"
"I need you to look at their chakra very closely," Tsunade ordered and Neji nodded. He clasped his hands together, index fingers pressed together and pointing up.
"Byakugan!" The veins around his eyes bulged, and his eyes were bright as he focused on Iruka and Kakashi. Iruka tried to keep still, and he was relieved when the inspection was over.
"Their chakra is mixed so closely together, it is hard for even me to tell where one ends and when one begins," he explained and Iruka flinched at the cold wave of shock that came from Kakashi.
"When I used the Sharingan to look before, they appeared only joined together at the edges," Kakashi said; his words sounded as if they were forced between stiff lips.
"I have told you what I saw," Neji answered. "It was almost like looking at the chakra-signature of one person."
"The process of the Bijozakura seal is obviously not a static one," Tsunade said in a wondering tone. "Thank you, Neji."
"It is an honour to be of assistance, Hokage-sama." Neji gave all of them quick bows, but he offered Iruka quick little smile. Iruka smiled back, remembering how aloof Neji had seemed in his classes. When he left, Tsunade turned her golden gaze on the unlikely pair before her once more.
"Kakashi, is there anything else you can tell me about the seal?" she asked. "For example, exactly how long this stage of obligatory contact will last?"
Iruka had been amazed at the depth of the Sharingan's recall; Kakashi had recounted the information from out of the book that Kiyoshi had shown them, word for word. Now, Kakashi shook his head at Tsunade's question.
"As I said in my report, there is no defined period. Apparently it depends on the bonded pair. The more resistant they are to the seal, the longer it takes."
"So we have no idea how long one of my top jounin and my best teacher will be out of commission," Tsunade sighed. "Tricky, tricky times." She nodded to herself and then looked at them with her eyes narrowed slightly. "Then treat this as a mission: you two need to find some way to work through the parameters of the seal, so you can go back to functioning in your separate capacities." Her gaze softened. "It will be hard. But it can be done."
"And who will be captain on this mission?" Kakashi asked in a drawl. Iruka rolled his eyes.
"You both are," Tsunade snapped and then waved them away. "Be off with you, and do not fail at this."
"I'm not in the habit of failing, Hokage-sama," Kakashi told her.
"Neither am I," Iruka put in and Kakashi didn't look in his direction. Iruka didn't need to see his face in order to feel his exasperation, though.
"Good! Then this will be over in no time." Her drilling stare told them it better be.
. . . . .
Their first hurdle came about when they were jumping from roof to roof on their way home. When they got to that section of the city which housed the shinobi, Kakashi simply headed in the direction of his house. He felt a sharp pull on his hand and let out a sigh before turning to look at Iruka, who was glaring at him.
"Where are you going?" Iruka asked, his shoulders held tensely. Kakashi sighed again.
"To my house. Where I live." Kakashi let his visible eye go half-lidded. Iruka's lips went thin to match.
"I was going to my apartment."
"I don't stay in anyone else's home but mine," Kakashi said in a very low and threat-laden tone.
"Well, you'll have to soon enough," Iruka said, his brown eyes flashing in the gloom. "I know you have trust issues, Hatake, but we're in this thing together. You have your place, I have mine, and you can't just have the comfort of your own home to yourself."
"My trust issues aren't that large," Kakashi informed him and Iruka's laugh was mocking. He stopped when Kakashi said, "And besides, my home is bigger than yours."
"Please. Your flat is the same as mine."
"Not my other home," Kakashi shot back and felt satisfaction at how Iruka scowled at him. "It's nearby and it's more private than the blocks. Trust me, Umino. You don't want both of us in a space as small as an apartment, no matter how close we need to be."
Iruka's face was still stony. "I still think your argument is invalid. We won't stay at your place all the while, though. I have my own home, and I won't just relinquish the rights to my personal space."
Even Kakashi's eyelashes felt annoyed. "Fine," he snapped. "First three days at my place, next three at yours and we do a round of janken to see where we take the remaining day."
"Janken," Iruka said in the sourest tones Kakashi had ever heard. "How diplomatic of you."
"Be grateful I don't challenge you to a sparring-round." Kakashi hoped his bored tones transmitted how much, or rather, how little he thought of a chuunin-sensei's chances against an elite jounin. He stared at Iruka as the other man let out a mocking laugh, his eyes sparkling in a vaguely malicious manner. Kakashi had never seen him with that expression before; he had always appeared unassuming, sweet…modestly soft.
"Do you really think you're the first person to underestimate me?" Iruka's voice was low and controlled, but Kakashi detected the tight coil of anger coming from him through their bond. "Go ahead and challenge me, if you like. I promise that at the very least, I'll make you work for it."
Kakashi actually took a step back from him, looking at him in a sharper manner. Iruka appeared just the same: almost his height but more sturdily-built, all that dark hair caught in the ponytail and brown eyes cool as they returned his regard. Iruka still felt angry, but now there was a hint of solid determination.
"Maybe I will challenge you," Kakashi said in a thoughtful drawl. "See what you're made of."
Iruka's smile had an enigmatic tilt. Then, he raised his hand, the one Kakashi was not holding, and clenched his fist. Kakashi glowered as blue-white sparks jumped between his knuckles.
"Apparently," Iruka said, looking at his own curled fingers with interest, "I've gained a bit more of an edge."
"Come on." Kakashi stomped off the edge of the building, leaping off; he didn't care if Iruka hadn't expected that, but when he landed on the ground behind a small store a few minutes later, Iruka alighted with textbook silence at his side. Kakashi took the back-alleys toward his house, his strides long. Iruka kept up with him easily, and turned with him up a narrow staircase as if he knew exactly where they going.
"You live above a weapons'-shop," Iruka said and Kakashi barely refrained from saying Obviously.
"I've rented out the ground floor," Kakashi answered, a bit reluctantly. "Ietaka-san comes from a long line of master weaponsmiths."
Iruka's fingers twitched around his. "I know. I like the balance of his kunai, and he makes practice gear for our students."
"Of course," Kakashi said as they stepped onto the narrow landing. He raised his hand to undo the protective chakra-seals, but Iruka tugged on his other hand. Kakashi looked over his shoulder and took in the way Iruka's dark eyebrows were pulled together.
"Wait." Iruka stepped forward, holding up his free hand. He moved it slowly along the door, brown fingers twitching over the handle. "Here," he murmured and then stroked where the hinge would be on the inside. "Here." He paused and then stepped back, looking down at where the door met floor. "And there."
"How did you know?" Kakashi asked, sticking his own free hand in his pocket and tilting his head; a feeling of disquiet muttered in his chest and Iruka gave him a quick glance which he ignored. Iruka had detected where all he had placed all the keys to the seals. Most people had one key, some had two…and persons like Kakashi placed three. They had to be opened in order, or the seals would react with violence, snatching up an intruder in a painful trap until Kakashi or someone else happened upon them.
"I felt them," Iruka muttered, his gaze still directed at the floor. "Knots of chakra, just as if I had placed them there myself."
"I wonder if you can undo them in order?" The spike of dismay was mercifully brief, and Kakashi's deep-set inquisitiveness began to kick in. "Since we now seem to possess the same chakra signature."
"I can try. What kind of trap do you have there?"
Kakashi laughed a little, and then sobered up at the tight, bitter sound of it. He wasn't used to laughing. "It'll trip restraining bonds and a chakra-net."
"Simple, yet effective." Iruka nodded to himself. "And kinky."
"What?" Kakashi choked out but Iruka had returned his attention to the seals. He tapped at his lips with one finger and Kakashi found himself staring at the digit, how it pressed comfortably against the plump pillow of Iruka's mouth. Kakashi looked away, controlling his breathing with an unusual effort. He felt another quick glance from Iruka and then, intrusively, a slow bear down on the bond they shared. "Unlock it," Kakashi snapped, and the curious pressure eased considerably.
"All right, fine. The first obvious seal to undo would be the one by the door-handle, but you're not the obvious type of person, are you?" Iruka sounded as if he was postulating aloud, so Kakashi didn't see the need to respond. "And since the one on the bottom is in the opposite position, that's too obvious as well." Iruka reached out and swirled his finger at the position where the hinge-seal was, undoing it. He seemed as surprised as Kakashi when it unfurled easily.
"And next?" Kakashi asked.
Iruka bit his lip and Kakashi felt their bond curl in his groin. Iruka's breath was soft, but quickening; the palm of his hand was damp against Kakashi's. Their fingers were trembling against each other's and Kakashi felt the bond urge him to just touch Iruka, feel his skin, breathe in his scent... lick his skin, nibble his lips-
"The handle next, and then the bottom one." Iruka undid them quickly, grabbed the handle and pushed his way in, dragging Kakashi after him. Kakashi opened his mouth to coolly point out that this was his house, after all, but Iruka pressed him against the wall with surprising speed.
Kakashi pushed back, and they both gasped when their hips collided. Kakashi was aghast to realize that he began to harden.
Iruka said, very breathlessly, "I'm so sorry, Kakashi, I can't—"
What he couldn't, Kakashi didn't know and would probably not ever find out, for Iruka shut his eyes and then reached for his mask, pulling it down to his chin. His mouth was on Kakashi's a hot breath later, hard and persistent. Kakashi actually felt his knees buckle at the harsh perfection of it, and a clinical part of his brain acknowledged the powerful demands of the seal.
He shrugged off his pack and heard Iruka's hit the floor as well, before he grabbed at Iruka's shoulder and slid his hand up to cup the back of the other man's head. Iruka pulled off his forehead-protector, then Kakashi's and dropped them both before returning to his mission of ravaging Kakashi again. Kakashi let him for a few moments, and then pulled back. They were both breathing hard, as if they were surfacing after being underwater for almost too long. Iruka's lips looked bruised and wet, and helplessly, Kakashi leaned in for another brief exploration with teeth and tongue.
"I don't want this," he bit out against Iruka's mouth, and their bond sang so loudly in his ears that he felt them ring. He groaned when Iruka's tongue darted into his mouth. He hadn't expected Iruka to kiss like this, with such heated intensity. Kakashi had been kissed a few times in his life, but never like this. Iruka kissed as if he would die if he couldn't get more of Kakashi.
With their seal, it was likely that they might indeed perish if their bond wasn't consummated.
"I know," Iruka muttered and he rocked against Kakashi, his breath falling hot on Kakashi's cheek and lips. "I know, but we have to. I'm—"
"Stop talking," Kakashi growled and shook off the Iruka's hand, the one he had been holding all this while. Iruka shuddered and leaned forward, pressing their bare foreheads together. They stood there for a few moments, until they began to breathe more regularly.
"Okay," Iruka said and put his hands on Kakashi's hips, his eyes still closed. Kakashi was grateful for that, at the very least. "Okay. Let's… take this slow."
"Fine with me," Kakashi tried to drawl, but his voice trembled shamefully. How he hated this, feeling so out of control, his body rebelling against common sense.
"Have you ever had sex before?" Iruka asked and his lips twitched up even though he couldn't see Kakashi's withering glare. "With a man, I mean."
"No," Kakashi said; he gazed at how Iruka's dark lashes were still swept down.
"Okay. But…have you ever thought about it?"
Kakashi sighed. "I had a crush on my sensei as a boy," he admitted. "I…felt very deeply for him."
Iruka put his hands against Kakashi's neck and tugged the mask back into place. He rest his palms on Kakashi's cheeks, maintaining the skin-to-skin contact with his thumbs as he leaned back, opening his eyes.
"I'm not sure if there's anyone who didn't have a crush on Minato-sama," he said. "He was so bright and…always smiling."
Kakashi nodded, not willing to share anything about that time of his life. Not yet, anyway.
"So…if Minato-sama asked, and if he hadn't been married, would you have been willing?"
"Maybe," Kakashi grunted. "But that was because it was him."
Iruka stared at him, and that furtive emotion came funnelling through their bond, but Kakashi still couldn't pinpoint what it was, or what it meant. Kakashi kept his body inflexible, even though Iruka seemed to be melting against him like warm honey, sweet and slow. His dark hair fell loosely around his face, and he seemed utterly lovely. Damn this seal, which bound their chakra and emotions so tightly together.
"I'm not him," Iruka murmured and simply stopped there.
Kakashi looked at him, and then averted his gaze, concentrating on a point somewhere above Iruka's left shoulder. His home was silent around them, and probably dusty from all those weeks of neglect.
"The seal demands physical interaction, increasing in intensity until fulfilment," Kakashi reminded him, keeping his tones as clipped as he could. "Touching, kissing, sexual intercourse."
"We've touched. We've kissed. Do you feel up to having intercourse?"
"Honestly, no," Kakashi said, unreasonably irked by Iruka's soft and reasonable calm. He'd always seen Iruka yelling or otherwise in the grip of some high emotion; this level of self-possession, in the face of Kakashi's uneasiness and arousal, was unsettling.
"We might as well have it now, instead of waiting for the bond to force us." Iruka smiled when Kakashi met his gaze again, startled. "Yes, Kakashi, I do remember the information you reported to the Godaime."
Kakashi bit his lip; Iruka's gaze flicked to the movement before returning to lock with his.
"We don't have to have penetration," Iruka told him, and stepped back, letting his hands trace down Kakashi's arms until they found his gloved hands again. "I guess that's the cause of your panic."
"I don't panic," Kakashi said.
"Right." Iruka's expression was wry and a bit tired. "I want to get clean. Show me your bathroom? And I hope you have extra clothes, since you didn't even give me a chance to stop at my own house."
Kakashi inhaled and exhaled in measured breaths. This was a mission; treat it like a mission, he kept telling himself.
"Follow me."