Kakashi let his index finger run across the perfectly smooth spine of his new book, not so much as a wrinkle marring it. He knew from experience that it would only last so long before repeated readings left it with cracks along the spine and folds and tears throughout the pages, but for now it was flawless.

The picture on the front was perfectly telling of what would be contained within the pages, a wonderful love story, steamy scenes and handsome heroes. Kakashi was aching to read, had been ever since it was announced that a new Icha Icha book was coming out in the beginning of October, and now he finally had his hands on it.

Gently opening it he found the first page, a giddy smile hidden behind his mask as he started reading.

He didn't even get through the prologue before there was a knock on his office door. Kakashi tore himself away from the brooding prince and gently closed the book, placing it on his desk just as Sasuke and Naruto walked into his office. Why was it that someone was always interrupting his reading just when it was getting to the good parts?

Possibly because with Icha Icha there was no bad parts.

Kakashi rested his elbows on the desk and leaned his chin against his hands, tilting his head as he looked at his two agents. "Sasuke. Naruto. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Sasuke scowled at him, looking… displeased. "You said we should report in when we were done for the day?"

"Ah, all finished with the filing?

"Not even near. Did you know that whole cabinets have been water damaged at some point? Mould everywhere." Sasuke spat that last part out.

"Oh right, I forgot about that," Kakashi admitted. It was a lie, but he liked seeing Sasuke's face frown up in annoyance. He did that a lot around Kakashi, but then again, he wasn't the only one. People tended to see Kakashi as lazy because they caught him reading more often than not, but since he didn't actually have a social life, and most days spent up to sixteen hours in the office he got all his work done, and just never bothered correcting anyone.

"Are you enjoying your tasks?" Kakashi asked, the Cheshire grin on his face conveniently hidden behind his mask.

"Sure, filing documents were exactly why I became an agent," Sasuke muttered, arms crossed in front of his chest.

"At least you have a partner to keep you entertained," Kakashi said, tilting his head. "Or are you still adamant to get rid of him?" he added. Sasuke hadn't been very pleased with the partnering in the beginning had he? It was hard to believe that only a few months previously the two of them had been going at it like cats and dogs. They'd absolutely hated each other.

"It could be worse, I guess," Sasuke said, earning himself an outraged cry from Naruto.

"Bastard! You know you couldn't live without me!"

A small smirk tugged at Sasuke's lips, and he just shrugged, infuriating Naruto further.

Kakashi watched, easily reading what lay behind the words and actions. Naruto was well aware of the fact that Sasuke was just teasing him, but still couldn't help but to respond. There was still that spark between them that had caused friction in the beginning, only now it had changed into something else, something better. Just the fact that Sasuke did something as frivolous as teasing someone was a miracle in itself. The old Sasuke would never do that. He'd fume and glare and protest everything, but never tease, not like this, not with fondness in his gaze whenever he looked at Naruto.

Naruto was good for Sasuke, and had probably saved him in more ways than one. Together they had brought down the demon that had hung like a shadow over Sasuke's head, and when Sasuke was at his weakest, broken from having killed the thing that was once his brother, Naruto had been there, supporting him. Sasuke would be struggling with more than a panic attack if not for Naruto.

It almost made Kakashi envious, seeing the bond between the two of them. He himself had been alone for so long that just the thought of having what the two of them had was making his heart ache a little. It wasn't for him though, he'd never get anyone like that, someone who cared for him, and… accepted him. It was a pipe dream.

Kakashi had been single for a long time, hadn't had the time or interest to pursue a relationship for years, sticking with random dates that never went further than a few meetings, or one night stands when the urges got too insistent. Most of the time it was just himself and his right hand. They were old friends, went way back.

A loud song suddenly sprang to life in Naruto's pants, and Naruto grinned sheepishly, digging through a pocket and unearthing a phone. He slid a finger across the screen, taking the call. No respect for the fact that he was in a meeting with his superior at all. Kids these days. Kakashi looked over at Sasuke, who met his eyes and shrugged.

Naruto walked across the room, talking quietly to the person on the other end. Kakashi caught a few words. "Fine, dad," and "we'll see." Soon he hung up and came back.

"Sorry, dad'll just worry if I don't answer."

Actually, that didn't surprise Kakashi at all, considering. He had met Iruka a whole two times, both in the hospital with Naruto badly wounded. He'd be worried too if he had a son that kept getting almost killed on a semi-regular basis.

Kakashi had been worried about Naruto too at the time, he cared a lot for his agents, but he couldn't help but feel intrigued at the other man at the same time. Not many would take in a shifter, and judging by his looks he had to have been fairly young when he did so. A single young human and he had opened his home for a shifter. Kind was probably putting it mildly.

Kakashi remembered first seeing Iruka as he walked into the waiting room where Kakashi had camped out. He'd looked tired, hair dishevelled, clothes rumpled, hand lifting to absentmindedly scratch at a faded scar that slashed across the bridge of his nose. Kakashi had taken a moment to unabashedly look at him before he announced himself.

They'd spent a moment together, drinking coffee and talking—mostly about Naruto—before Iruka excused himself to get back. Kakashi had left him with his phone number, just in case.

Too bad Iruka hadn't used that once, not until it was to call in a panic because something had happened to Naruto.

The second time he had met Iruka it started with a fist to the face.

Which he was going to admit that he probably deserved. He'd done a shit job keeping Naruto and Sasuke safe after all. He most definitely did not deserve Iruka clinging to him afterwards, seeking consolation.

Kakashi had no idea just what it was about Iruka that had captivated him so from the first moment, but he found himself thinking about him from time to time. Also, maybe he sent him a text or two or ten now and then.

He had found himself drawn to Iruka right from the start. Sure, he found him physically attractive, there was no doubt about that, with those brown eyes and that smile, and that long hair that probably would look very good falling around his face and…

Point was that it wasn't just that he looked good. There was something else. Kakashi was intrigued by this man who had opened his home to a kid that was ostracized by the community, and judging by the way Naruto talked of him, had been an excellent father to him ever since. He was mild-mannered, but there was a temper simmering underneath the surface, and it piqued Kakashi's interest. He wanted to get to know him, but it was all rather hard when Iruka lived hours away and he only saw him when Naruto was in the hospital.

"Kakashi?" Naruto asked, looking at him with a frown on his face.

Kakashi realized he had maybe forgotten about the two agents in his office to daydream about one of said agent's father. Probably best if he didn't mention that.

"I figure that you've had enough filing to last you a lifetime, so I have another mission for you the day after tomorrow," Kakashi said, smiling wide enough that it would translate past his mask.


"The next time Kakashi says he has a very special mission for us, let's just run," Naruto muttered, tugging at the collar of his shirt, buttoned all the way up for once. "If he can't tell us about it he can't force us to do it, right?

"Hn," Sasuke grunted, sounding just as displeased with their mission as Naruto was. They'd been expecting something remotely related to what they did for a living. Consult on a case, gather information, something, anything. Instead they were standing in the middle of some grand ballroom in stiff suits, conversing with equally stiff politicians and business men who had no real knowledge about what was really going on out on the streets of their city apart from what they read in newspapers. They didn't know how it was to see the carnage left behind by the vampires, how it was to spend one's night running through dark streets, trying to save the world from the plague of demons and finding it a fight with no end in sight.

Naruto liked people, he really did, but these stiffs were so prejudiced and un-knowledgeable he was having a hard time not punching all of them in the face.

He heard Sasuke mutter a vow to kill Kakashi under his breath, and was on board with that. As unit leader it was Kakashi's job to attend these functions as a representative for Unit Seven. All the other agents they had met tonight were unit leaders, not agents. Kurenai and Asuma, leaders of Unit Eight and Ten respectively had apparently not been surprised to learn that Kakashi had pawned off his job on someone else. Kakashi wasn't very fond of these social gatherings, and Naruto could easily see why.

Smooching up to big shots to ensure the monetary support their agency needed was not something Naruto was fond of, not when he could have been out on the streets, actually doing something to keep the city safe. Not that he had been doing much of that these last few days, but he thought he preferred filing old reports over trying to be pleasant to every asshole in the room.

He hooked a finger in the knot of the tie around his throat and loosened it fractionally. He hated ties with a passion, but Kakashi had insisted they dress up properly. Couldn't have anyone thinking they were anything other than neatly dressed, as if that was going to make them better agents.

Naruto didn't even own a suit, so he'd had to rush out and buy one off the rack earlier. It was a little big around the waist and a little snug over the shoulders, but other than that fit as well as a suit should, leaving him uncomfortable as hell. He was pretty sure he looked like a kid who had raided his dad's closet, like he didn't belong in it at all. He felt like some sort of impostor. He didn't have anything in common with anyone here, didn't know what to say or how to behave.

He cast a glance over at Sasuke, and somehow the appeal of suits became obvious. Sasuke looked stunning. The charcoal grey suit was fitted, and clung in all the right places, accentuating a trim waist and broad shoulders, hinting to the very fit body underneath. White shirt and a dark tie topped it off neatly in its simplicity, Sasuke making it look smoulderingly sexy.

Sasuke's gaze was cast towards the floor, bangs creating shadows over his face as he apparently worked very hard to avoid eye contact with anyone. Whenever someone approached them he always greeted them in a polite manner, keeping his answers short and to the point, showing in no way that he was annoyed, but also not carrying the conversations beyond the bare minimum.

When Kakashi had told them what the assignment was Naruto had been excited. He had figured there would be food and music and no dusty filing cabinets for miles, but after the third, "They let shifters join the DPA?" his patience was starting to run out. Maybe sending a frigid bastard and a hothead to represent their unit hadn't been Kakashi's brightest idea. Naruto wanted to make their unit appear to be the well-functioning and impressive one it was, with hardworking agents who gave everything to make this city a safe home for everyone, but the way some of these guys looked down on all of them aggravated him severely.

Naruto reached towards a platter of food that passed him in hands of one of the many waiters manning the floor, managing to snatch a tiny sandwich before the waiter was lost to the throng of people again. He pouted when all he saw on it were cucumbers, but popped it in his mouth nonetheless. Food was food. He had been working hard to get his hands on the elusive trays with their tiny morsels all night, but there was always someone that seemed adamant to engage them in mundane conversations just as Naruto saw one draw near and was preparing to snatch a few for himself. At this rate he would need to drive by McDonalds on his way home or go to bed hungry.

Naruto threw long glances after the waiter disappearing in the distance, only realising someone had approached them again when he felt a discreet elbow to his ribs, courtesy of his loving boyfriend.

Naruto shifted his attention to the middle-aged man standing in front of them. He had no idea who it was, but then again, he hadn't really spent his time since moving to the city reading up on all the business men and politicians that roamed the place. He had been too busy working. Also maybe he had been keeping busy with Sasuke. Both were preferable to talking to these stiffs. Although Sasuke could also be stiff too.

"Councilman," Sasuke said with a curt nod, and Naruto tried not to snicker at the joke he'd made to himself, putting on a serious face. Naruto wasn't even sure he knew what a council man really did, so he just held back, deciding that Sasuke would just have to take this one, because he had had his fill of boring politicians for the night. The DPA was under the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice anyways, so it wasn't like a councilman could really influence them much at all. Just someone else they had to talk to because. Naruto was never going to a fundraiser ever again.

"I've been told that you are here on behalf of Kakashi Hatake," the councilman said while looking at the both of them, seemingly assessing them. He had a glass of champagne in his hands, but it didn't look like he had been drinking it at all. Damned shame really. Naruto could've used some more alcohol right about now.

"Where is he tonight then?" the council man continued. Naruto had to contain himself not to roll his eyes. It was impossible not to catch the displeased note in the councilman's voice. Sleazy politicians probably looking for favours.

The man looked every bit the politician in his boring suit, and giving off that whole I'm better than you aura that Naruto despised. The man had wanted to talk to Kakashi, and now he was stuck with a pair of mere agents, and it apparently wasn't good enough at all. Naruto was not impressed. This was not why he had joined the DPA, and he was going to make that clear to Kakashi the moment he saw that smug bastard again.

"He was unable to attain tonight," Sasuke said diplomatically, leaving out the part where Kakashi was probably sitting in the office reading his book.

Naruto's attention wavered immediately, and he started scouting for more food, letting Sasuke deal with the empty pleasantries, not paying attention to them.

The room they were in was more elaborately decorated than anywhere Naruto had ever seen before, all golden curves and white stone. Everyone that attended was decked out in their finest, long gowns trailing the floors, sharp tuxedoes and shiny shoes. Silently he wondered how these people would react if a vampire were to appear in their midst. There would probably be panic, people clambering over each other to get away, sacrificing anyone that stood in their way. They had no idea how bad it could be out there, hidden away in their mansions with reinforced doors and security specially catered to keep out vampires or other malevolent beings.

They weren't impervious to vampires any more than the common people, but vampires usually hunter in less opulent neighbourhoods. There were more people and flimsier doors. Easy targets.

Suddenly Naruto felt a hand on his shoulder, and he snapped his attention back, having completely forgotten about the councilman.

The man was looking right at him, eyes lingering on the marks on Naruto's cheeks for a moment before narrowing. "It was a pleasure," he said, clearly not meaning it at all, and then took a step back, turning before heading towards a group of equally stiff politician Naruto had no idea who were. The councilman was probably annoyed that Naruto hadn't paid attention, and he just hoped it wouldn't be a problem. He didn't look like he appreciated the fact that Naruto was clearly a shifter, he might kick up a fuss if he felt like it.

Naruto's hands fisted by his side, and he glared at the ground. It wasn't the first time someone had looked at him disapprovingly because he wasn't like them, and he hated it. He had proved that he was more than just a shifter, had proved that he was a fully-fledged member of the DPA, and he hated that still it was the beast inside that defined him.

Sasuke must have sensed his gloomy mood, because he took a small step closer, just enough that their shoulders brushed. "I need a break," he said before turning around and heading towards the double doors across the room that lead out to a large patio and a garden beyond that again. Naruto hurried after. If Sasuke was getting away so was he.

"As if being a council man is such a big deal," Naruto muttered to himself as they walked across the patio. He was in a shitty mood. He almost wished a vampire would invade the fundraiser just so he could get something to do that didn't involve licking ass. There was really only one ass he was remotely interested in doing that to, and that ass was right in front of him, hidden behind nicely cut pants.

"It is when you are likely to be the next governor," Sasuke said.

Naruto winced at that. Probably a good idea he hadn't done anything really stupid then.

The air was crisp, a nice change from the stuffiness of the ballroom. Above them a sliver of a moon shone down from a clear sky, any stars hidden by the glare of light from the city that sprawled below them. The mansion the fundraiser was held in was situated in the hills above the city, where only the richest could afford living. Naruto hadn't had much reason to go here before.

Naruto was sure that if he went to the edge of the property he would see the lights of the city spread out below them, but right now it didn't feel like they were in the city at all.

Sasuke walked stiffly across the patio, taking the steps down to the garden where there were less people. Naruto followed after, thankful to not have to talk to anyone else for the moment. He liked people, he really did, but he didn't much care for these ones in particular. Too stuck up, too full of themselves.

Naruto had no idea where Sasuke was headed, but he figured that maybe Sasuke had been to this place before or something, so he'd have some sort of plan and not just stalking through the garden, past bushes and trees.

The shadows grew deep around them the further they got from the windows of the mansion, and Naruto was starting to wonder where they were going when Sasuke suddenly stopped. Before Naruto got to say anything at all Sasuke had surged forward, hands fisting in the lapels of Naruto's suit jacket, pushing him backwards until Naruto was pressed up against a tree. Then Sasuke's lips were on him, hot and insistent, tongue licking its way into Naruto's mouth with a rough determination.

Naruto was never one to back down from a challenge, so he threw himself into the kiss, not questioning what had gotten over Sasuke. His hands buried in Sasuke's hair, yanking at waxed spikes, probably messing them up completely. He didn't care.

The hard kiss grew softer as the initial desperation eased out of Sasuke, and soon he pulled away from the kiss entirely, resting his forehead against Naruto's as they both breathed hard.

"What was that about?" Naruto asked on a chuckle as his thumbs caressed the back of Sasuke's neck with slow circles.

"I didn't like how he looked at you," Sasuke said tersely.

"Looked at me? Who looked at me?" Naruto had no idea what Sasuke was talking about.

"The councilman. He kept looking at you, even when you weren't paying attention to him, it was... unsettling."

Naruto hadn't thought the councilman cared much about him at all; he had been talking to Sasuke the whole time after all.

"Whatcha mean unsettling?"

"I don't know. It was probably nothing. Besides, I couldn't stand being around any of those people another moment." A smirk rose on Sasuke's lips before he leaned in and kissed Naruto again. Naruto eagerly reciprocated, his arms slung around Sasuke's neck with a happy sigh as a soft tongue plundered his mouth.

Sasuke shifted, a thigh pressing between Naruto's legs, pushing firmly against his groin, and Naruto couldn't help the way his hips twitched into that hard thigh, loving the friction. His cock was already starting to harden, eager to play more. He never got enough of Sasuke.

"Sasuke, I can't wait for you to fuck me when we get home," he groaned as Sasuke moved away from his mouth to trail open-mouthed kisses down his jaw to his neck. Sasuke answered with a push of his thigh, pressing it harder against Naruto, tearing a soft moan from him as his head fell back to rest against the rough bark of the tree, giving Sasuke free access to his neck. Sasuke didn't shy away, his tongue tracing firmly up the column of his throat, teeth scraping down it as a hand snuck around Naruto's hip to grab his ass to press their bodies even closer together.

Naruto had forgotten all about where they were and what they were supposed to be doing here—just as Sasuke probably had—and didn't immediately understand why a surprised squeal suddenly interrupted them. His eyes opened and he stared over Sasuke's shoulder right into the shocked face of an older woman. She was clutching her handbag to her chest, a forgotten cigarette clenched between her fingers. Naruto was expecting her face to settle into a sneer of disgust when she got over the surprise of stumbling over two guys going at it when she'd obviously looked for somewhere she could sneak a cigarette, but she looked less disgusted and more... a mixture of embarrassed and interested. Apparently socialites weren't all homophobic at least.

Naruto gave Sasuke a slight shove to make him stop that delicious way he was nibbling on his neck. Sasuke pulled away with a frown.

"I think we should head back to the party," Naruto said. "I think the speeches are about to start or something."

If Sasuke noticed the lady that had stepped back closer towards the house to smoke in peace he didn't mention it, but she did give Naruto a wink as they walked past her, and Naruto wasn't sure if he should blush or grin, and ended up doing both.

They were half-way back to the mansion when the first scream came from the open doors.


Kakashi sent off a text and leaned back in his office chair, very happy with himself. He had managed to weasel out of going to the stuffy function, and he had finished all his paperwork. To top it off he had managed to use Naruto as an excuse ("When your son complains about his assignment for the day I was in no way responsible") to send a message to Iruka earlier, and they'd been texting on and off for an hour now, Kakashi slowly moving the conversation from Naruto to other things. He still had no idea why he was so intrigued by the other man, but it was hard to deny the excitement every time he got a text message back.

He heard voices outside his door moments before there were three hard knocks. The persons on the other side sounded annoyed considering the way he or she immediately knocked again. What was the rush? If there was an emergency they would have called out.

Kakashi smirked to himself when he noticed the time. The fundraiser was probably about finished now, so it wouldn't surprise him in the slightest if it was Sasuke standing on the other side of the door, wanting to bitch and moan about how horrible it had been to socialise for an evening.

"It's open," Kakashi singsonged, wondering if he should've pulled out one of his books from the desk drawer to annoy Sasuke further.

The door opened, and Kakashi had to admit that for once he actually was surprised. It was indeed Sasuke, with Naruto on tow, and they did seem rather displeased with their evening. What he hadn't expected was the way they looked. Sasuke was wearing nice slacks and a white shirt, but the sleeve was half-way torn off and he looked rather dishevelled. There were smears of red along his cheek, and a row of red scratches down his neck.

Naruto was still wearing his suit jacket, but the tie was gone, as was the pocket that had at one point been on the front of the shirt. The pocket had taken with it a good chunk of shirt when it was apparently torn away, leaving a very strange hole in Naruto's shirt, showing off his nipple when he moved. There were no scratches on Naruto that Kakashi could see but red was smeared on his face and his chest, just like on Sasuke. It didn't really look like blood, but something had apparently happened.

"Sasuke. Naruto. To what do I owe this dubious pleasure? You didn't have to report in after the fundraiser, I told you that yesterday."

Sasuke glared, which wasn't all that surprising, but Naruto did the same, and that was new. He must have spent enough time with Sasuke that he was starting to pick up on his mannerisms.

"Went well then? Good food?" Kakashi continued, silently taking great pleasure in seeing Sasuke's glare harden. Someone was pissed off and clearly trying to contain it. Kakashi couldn't help but poke the dragon.

"I clearly remember the invitations saying black tie, I suggest putting more thought into your clothes the next time," he said, making sure the grin on his face would translate past his mask. The piece de resistance was to open his desk drawer and pick out his book, flipping it open.

"You perverted, no good asswipe!" someone exclaimed.

Naruto. No surprise there.

"Why so upset? Did anything happen?"

"If the stuffy socialites weren't bad enough we had to deal with a stampede of them running amok," Naruto yelled, arms flailing about, almost smacking Sasuke in the face.

Sasuke seemed to be anticipating the hands, so he sidestepped them neatly, and then took over the explanation. "Some low grade witch wasn't too happy by being rejected by the woman he liked, so he tried to active a love spell. In the middle of the ballroom."

Kakashi winced. He had heard enough from the units who dealt with witches and warlocks to know that spells were volatile at their best, and love spells were notoriously tricky to get right. It went against the core of magic, which was to keep balance in the world.

"Did it backfire?" he asked.

"No, it spiralled out of control. Didn't just affect the one woman, but all of them. A horde of socialite women suddenly overcome by love so intense they couldn't control themselves." Sasuke's lips were twisted into an annoyed sneer.

Suddenly the way they looked made perfect sense. Scratches from long nails, smears of lipstick on their faces, clothes gone where the women had tried to rip them off. A love spell out of control was likely to turn into a lust spell, no feelings, just a libido running away from them.

"Any causalities?" Kakashi inquired, grin gone for now. A lust spell could be bad, people losing control, finding themselves in all kinds of compromising positions. It was like a roofie, and the witch could easily end up convicted of contributing to rape. It had happened before, but Kakashi couldn't remember a scale like this, and definitely not as high of a profile setting. This could be bad.

"No, security was on top of it, knocked the guy out. It was in incantation, so the minute he wasn't focusing it faded away. People were well on their way to indecent, but it hadn't lasted long enough for anything truly bad to happen yet," Sasuke said, sighing heavily. It didn't appear much other than his pride was ruined. Kakashi guessed having to fight off horny socialites was not Sasuke's idea of a good night.

Kakashi knew this was going to have severe repercussions for the witch in question. The high and mighty of the city, the rich and the powerful, did not appreciate when things didn't go their way, and was likely to create quite the huff. He didn't envy Kurenai having to deal with the aftermath. Her unit was one of those set to monitor magical misconduct, so she would probably be blamed for not knowing the witch was about to do something so monumentally idiotic, even if there was no conceivable way for her to know. Magic was just one of those things where they had to deal with aftereffects more than prevent misconduct.

"Well, you'll have to write up a report about it tomorrow, but I reckon you should go home and get changed now," Kakashi said, dismissing the two agents with a wave of his hand.

"The next time you try to make us take your place at an uptight fundraiser I will personally shove the invitation up your ass," Sasuke said before turning around and stalking out of the room.

"What he said," Naruto added and tailed after Sasuke.

Kakashi leaned back in his chair, giving his computer mouse a little push to make sure he hadn't gotten any new e-mails, and then quickly typing one up for Kurenai. Knowing the other agents wouldn't be home from their rounds for hours he grabbed his phone, and saw that he had a new message from Iruka waiting for him. He couldn't stop the grin tugging at his lips.