Kakashi was enjoying his day off on the couch half-asleep, watching some movie on the television that he wasn't paying attention to. Kasumi had sprawled out on his chest, and he idly stroked her back as he stared at the TV. The beagle lifted her head and licked his cheek happily.
Naruto successfully broke the calm and peaceful atmosphere when he burst into the living room loudly.
"Daddy!" he shouted. "Look what I found!"
Kakashi lifted his head to glance at what was in his son's arms, then sat upright abruptly when he did. "Naruto," he said very firmly. "You have to get that out of here."
"What? Why?" Naruto asked, petting the cat. He purred and opened his green eyes to stare at Kakashi.
"Because," Kakashi said slowly. "Your mother—"
He was cut off when Tsume called out, "I'm home!" and he frantically tried to gesture to Naruto to get the cat out of here.
Because no matter how hard he had tried to help his girlfriend, she had not gotten over her extreme fear of cats.
Tsume walked into the room and sniffed the air, frowning. "Why do I…smell…"she trailed at the sight of Naruto holding the cat, and she cringed, letting out a scream.
"Get that cat out of here!" Kakashi exclaimed, setting Kasumi down on the ground. She sniffed the air and barked, running towards Naruto and the cat. He yelped and sprinted away.
"Tsume," Kakashi whispered, crouching next to the Inuzuka. She whimpered and looked up at him. "It's okay, the cat's gone."
She tilted her head back and breathed deeply, closing her eyes. "The cat's gone."
"Yes." Kakashi wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Ramen wandered into the room, barking happily. Kakashi sighed. He didn't know why he had picked the beagle when he went to get Kiba's dog; he should have known that if Tsume didn't pick him that Naruto would. Ramen was the loudest dog, fitting Naruto's personality perfectly.
Sakura stepped into the room, looked at her parents, and walked right back out. She had no need to know what was going on.
Tsume slowly calmed down, and Kakashi looked longingly back at the couch. He would give anything to be back sleeping…
"Come on," he said gently, pulling Tsume up and over to the couch. "Rest for a little while. I'll go talk to the kids and tell them why we can't keep a cat."
Tsume nodded and Kakashi left the room, following the sounds of Sakura and Kiba talking to the kitchen.
"Kids!" he called. There was an answering shout, and he walked into the kitchen to find Sasuke and Kiba wrestling over a plate of cookies. Kakashi rolled his eyes.
Sakura was standing by the fridge, sipping a glass of orange juice. She was staring at her brothers with an air of amusement.
"Sakura, where's Naruto?" Kakashi asked. The pink-haired girl looked up at him and shrugged.
"I don't know. He came through here not too long ago screaming about how cats were the devil…or something." She shrugged again.
Kakashi sighed and sat down at the kitchen table. He would just talk to Naruto when the blonde got back.
"Sasuke, Kiba," he said lazily. The two boys looked up and blinked upon seeing their father. "What are you two doing?"
"Uhh…" Kiba scrambled backwards, away from Sasuke. "He started it!"
"I didn't ask who started it. I asked what you two are doing."
"Dad, it wasn't me! Kiba came up and attacked me when I was eating a cookie, and I just used simple defense!" Sasuke defended himself.
"Whatever." Kakashi sighed before gesturing for all three of them to sit down at the table. "Okay, kids, I have to tell you something."
"You and Mom are finally getting married!" Sakura exclaimed. Kakashi glanced at her coolly.
"No."
"Why aren't you two together? You've been together since we were born. That's a long time." Kiba stated unnecessarily.
"You're right, Kiba." Sasuke mused. "Why aren't they together? That's the big question."
Naruto burst into the room, looking excited and scratched. "I heard you and Mom are getting married!"
"Oh my God, how did you hear that?" Kakashi muttered. Naruto shrugged.
"I just have really good hearing. But is it true?"
"No! Your mother and I are not getting married yet."
"Awww."
"Anyways, I came in here to tell you not to bring cats into the house." Kakashi said loudly. "Or anywhere near your mother, actually," he added.
"Why?" Naruto asked, pouting. He crossed his scratched and bleeding arms over his chest.
"Because Mom is deathly afraid of them and she might have a heart attack. We wouldn't want that, now would we?" Kakashi said.
"Oh."
"Plus," Kakashi added. "We have like, twelve dogs in this house. Dogs and cats do not mix."
"Okay." Naruto muttered.
"Also, Sasuke and Kiba, you're grounded." Kakashi said. The two boys looked up sharply.
"What? Why?"
"Because you two know that you're not supposed to have cookies before dinner."
Sasuke and Kiba glared at the floor.
/\/\
Itachi sighed as he entered his room. Slipping off his jacket, he dropped it on the bed and plopped down next to it. He stared at the wall, ignoring the curses from the room next to his as the boys yelled at each other before they went to bed.
It happened so often that Itachi had learned to tune them out.
Hana slipped into his room and smiled sadly at him. "Are you okay?" she asked. "You seemed kind of out of it at dinner."
"I'm fine," he said blankly. "Just thinking about my mission."
Hana sat down next to him, curling an arm around his shoulder. He almost pushed it off, before remembering that she was his best friend.
"Hana, I don't think I can do it." Itachi whispered, staring down at the floor. Slowly, the shouts from the boys quieted, until all he could hear were Kakashi and Tsume's voices talking directly below him in the living room.
"You don't have to do it," Hana murmured. Itachi dropped his head onto her shoulder. "You can go to the Hokage, get help from another land."
Itachi let her words sink in, and when they did he sniffled. He couldn't do it. He needed help, and he knew exactly the person.
But first, he cried against his best friend, and she held him exactly the way she held Sakura when her little sister had a nightmare.
A/N: Wow, lots of drama at the end there. Totally didn't mean for that to be there. Oh well. So, how do you like it so far? Tell me in a review, and I will forever be happy! …At least until I die. Then I can't be happy.
