Dun, dun, dun (dramatic music!) This is it, the show down! It's the ultimate battle... er confrontation hehe. Who knows what will happen? cough-except for me-cough. Enjoy :)

IDK: Haha, I just love playing up the suspense

XLightningX: It's all yours :) Enjoy!

XxSesshomaruandRinxX: Haha, I love to keep my readers guessing

A heart for you: you're welcome, and I think I do XD I might need to go to rehab for cliffhangers lol

CoriGray333 : Yeah, my mom freaked out, but I think she forgot now haha. And if she didn't, she's good at playing things off XP

xoxShika-chanxox: Thanks :) I do, and I'm glad you like!

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"Kakashi!" Iruka exclaimed, wrapping his arms around the older male, tears brimming in his eyes. "'Kashi, it's so good to have you back. You have no idea how much I've missed you!"

The pale man wrapped his arms around the other hesitantly, pulling him into an embrace.

"I've... missed you too, Iruka."

"Is something wrong?" the tanned man asked, glancing up at the other with troubled eyes, arms still wrapped around the toned waist.

"Just tired."

"Oh, well I don't blame you, haha. You haven't changed a bit."

"Yeah... neither have you. Is it possible to get out of the harbor area and go somewhere quiet?"

"Huh? Sure. Here, just follow me," Iruka said, breaking away from Kakashi, a worried look still on his face.

"Thanks."

Iruka was about to begin walking, but was interrupted by a blob of energy.

"Kakashi sensei!" screamed a cheerful voice. "Kakashi sensei! Look how tall I've grown! Do you see? I've been training like crazy and now I can beat you!"

"Haha," Kakashi chuckled softly, "it's good to see you too, Naruto. Hey Sasuke."

"Welcome back," Sasuke said, extending his hand to shake the other's.

"It's good to be back," Kakashi stated, ruffling the blonde's hair.

"We shouldn't take up you time," Sasuke began. "Other people want to welcome you back too." He pointed behind him, revealing a crowd of citizens walking towards them. "Come on Naruto, we can talk to him later."

"Sasuke," Naruto whined. "You always ruin the fun!"

"If you want to have some fun, we could always go back to our place," Sasuke said with a smirk, dragging the blonde boy behind him. "Bye, Kakashi and Iruka sensei," he called out, the two becoming lost in the crowd.

"Good to see they're still together," Kakashi announced, giving a half-hearted laugh.

'Wow,' the silver haired man thought, 'even a teen is more faithful than I am...'

"Kakashi, good to have you back," came a deep voice.

"Yeah, Iruka was so worried, haha. Everyday he would fret about you and-"

"Kurenai!" Iruka scolded in an attempt to keep the woman from saying anything else.

"Kurenai, Asuma," Kakashi greeted, "thanks for coming."

"Wouldn't miss it for anything," Asuma stated cheerfully.

"Yo, Kakashi!" Genma yelled, Raidou, Kotetsu, and Izumo following close behind. "Hey, our drinking buddy is back!"

"Kakashi! We missed you!" Anko piped in, joining the crowd. "Nothing was the same around here, and a lot of shit went down."

"What do you mean?" Kakashi questioned.

"We'll explain later," Kurenai assured, glaring at Anko who merely put her hands up in defense.

"My bad," Anko apologized.

"So how was it?" Kotetsu asked, playfully punching the masked man on his arm.

"Kotetsu!" Izumo scolded. "The man is probably dead tired!"

"It's ok," Kakashi chuckled. "It was fucking random. That's the best way I can describe it."

"Lost some brain cells at sea, did we?" Genma snickered out, receiving a slap on the back of his head from Raidou. "Ow!"

"Still on a leash I see, right?" Kakashi easily countered, smirking when the brown haired man glared at him, hands cradling his hurting head.

"Alright guys," Kurenai began, clasping her hands together, "let's let these two go back home and properly welcome each other back, ne?" She gave her eyebrows a slight wiggle towards the direction of Iruka and Kakashi, receiving a blush from the tanned man and a blank stare from the pale one. "See you guys later," the woman said, the others each saying their goodbyes, leaving Kakashi and Iruka alone once again.

"Ok, back home," Iruka said, tugging the other's arm as he led him through the crowd. They easily maneuvered themselves between the numerous citizens, twisting here and there to avoid being hit, before they reached the familiar paved sidewalks of the town. "Alrighty."

"Yeah..." Kakashi mumbled, mind drifting off.

"Kakashi," Iruka began, turning his head around quickly to look at the other before returning it to it's original position, "you're off today. You've been drifting in and out of reality."

"I have?" Kakashi queried, eyes drifting lower to where his fingers were tangled with delicate tan ones, a nauseous feeling washing over him at the sight.

'Shit, he's still as loving as ever, and I... I... damn! I can't even think!' Kakashi screamed angrily in his mind. 'Fuck, i have to calm down.'

"Yeah, like right now. I've been talking for a while, and I'm pretty sure you have no idea what I said."

'Shit,' the silver haired man said, 'I'm that obvious to him.'

"Uhh... I just have a lot on my mind, that's all."

"What happened?" Iruka asked, turning a sharp corner.

"What happened?" Kakashi repeated like an automatic machine, immediately panicking in an attempt to produce an answer. "I'll tell you later, when we get to our house."

"Ok, but is it something bad? Never mind. Whatever it is, you can trust me, ok? I haven't lost any bit of love I have for you since you left, and I want you to know that I'm here for you and would do anything to put a smile on your face and make you feel better. I'll listen to anything you have to say," the smaller man finished, flashing Kakashi a loving smile.

'Kill me now,' Kakashi groaned to himself. 'I fucked up big time.'

"Thanks... Iruka..."

"Hey, hey!" shouted a familiar voice. "Hey Iruka, how are you?"

"Tachibana?" Iruka called out, smiling from ear to ear. "Tachi, it's great to see you! Come here, I want you to meet someone!"

"Who is it?" the blonde man wondered, approaching Iruka with a slightly confused look on his face.

"This," Iruka started, glancing at Kakashi, "is the man I've been telling you about; Kakashi Hatake."

"Oh my, this is him? Wow, I can see why you like him," Tachibana laughed, shaking the pale man's hand. "Nice to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine," Kakashi responded with a smile.

"Hey Iruka," the waiter began, "did you tell him...?"

"Well, I was going to wait until later, but I'll do it now, since your'e around. Let's go inside the house."

"What?" Kakashi exclaimed, eyes widening.

"You see, it happened a few months ago. I was out with Anko at a bar, and a man slipped a date rape drug in my drink and he tried to... but he didn't get far, because Tachi found me and rescued me," Iruka whispered, lowering his head slightly in shame. "I managed to cope with it by thinking of you, so please don't fret. No one's to blame for this."

Kakashi said nothing, but only stared at the other with disbelief and rage.

"Kakashi, please do not be too upset. The man is in jail probably wishing he could be dead right now. Genma promised to torture the hell out of him," Tachibana reassured.

Kakashi slowly nodded, opening his mouth to say something, but immediately closing it.

"Kakashi," Iruka whispered, "please say something."

Kakashi turned his attention to him, a pained expression in his eyes and said, "Iruka... I'm so so sorry. I'm sorry for everything. I shouldn't have left you and- fuck! I don't even know what to say. I just feel like punching the shit out of something and killing everyone that's ever touched you! And Anko shouldn't have left you alone! How the hell could she do that!"

"Kakashi, it's understandable, but I'm ok now, ok? And remember, it wasn't anyone's fault, not even Anko's," Iruka soothed, rubbing the other's back in a comforting manner. "I even bought you a small present as a sort of reminder of our bond, haha, as corny as that sounds. I hope you like it though." Iruka gave a short whistle, and rushing in came a small pug, with light brown fur, dark brown ears, and a blue bandana wrapped around his head- falling down a couple of times as he tried to run into the dining room. "Isn't he adorable? Kakashi, I remembered how you always wanted a pug, so I bought you one. His name is Pakkun."

Kakashi stared at the small dog in front of him, then to Iruka, and then back to the young pup.

"'Ruka I... I- I'm so sorry," Kakashi wept out, burying his face in his hands as he broke out into a full sob.

"I should leave," Tachibana whispered, rising from the chair. "I'll be late for my job and I don't want to get chewed out, haha... but it was nice meeting you," he finished, making his way towards the door. "Good-bye," he said, closing the door behind him.

Iruka returned his gaze to Kakashi and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Iruka," Kakashi mumbled into his hands, "I don't know how to explain this to you, but... I got drunk and cheated on you. I just can't keep this a secret anymore. I'm so, so sorry for what I did and I feel like a complete ass for doing such a thing. If I could rewind time, I would and stop myself from making this mistake."

"You what?" Iruka asked in disbelief, shaking his head as he let out a nervous chuckle. "Good one, 'Kashi. Quit joking, haha."

"I wish I was." Iruka closed his mouth slowly and remained eerily silent, staring at the man in front of him with and expressionless face. "'Ruka?"

"And you kept this a secret?" the tanned man questioned quietly, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "What happened to being faithful and loyal... and about telling each other everything? And before you even mention anything, I waited until you returned from war to tell you about the incident so that you wouldn't be depressed and eventually end up getting yourself killed... but apparently, all of that didn't matter."

"Iruka, what do you want me to do?" Kakashi asked loudly, raising his head from his hands. "I said I was sorry and-"

"Kakashi," Iruka replied calmly, stifling back a barrage of tears, "sorry doesn't fix this. This isn't like braking an expensive vase or anything. Dear Lord, Shino was right. Something very dear to me did die just now... our relationship."

"'Ruka, what are you talking about?" Kakashi whispered, his heart feeling as if it would rip in two from all of the anxiety.

"Kakashi... I'm leaving. I need some time to sort things out and- I'll take Sango with me," Iruka said, slowly getting up from the table, tears finally falling from his eyes.

"No, Iruka, please don't," Kakashi begged, staring at the other in grief.

"I- I'll t-take Sango with m-me now and I'll g-get my stuff later. I'll stay a-at Tachi's," Iruka stated, finally letting his sorrow brake free of it's barrier- choking over his own words. "Good-bye."

He walked towards the front door, calling Sango to follow, and left without another word, leaving behind a lonely and heart-broken man.

"What the hell made me think that he would understand?" Kakashi roared in outrage, slamming his fist against the table, scaring Pakkun in the process. "Damn it all! He left! He left... he left," Kakashi repeated in disbelief, tears beginning to fall once again. "He's really gone... the best thing that has ever happened to me is... gone."

(break)

Poor 'Ruru :( Two words, "Don't cheat" Well it can't get worse from here... or can it? Read and find out!