Chapter Eight
Racing through the forest, her heart in her throat, Sakura did not know whether to be overjoyed or angry, and it was pretty hard trying to be both at the same time. Kakashi, she thought, an odd pang of longing beating in her chest. Please be alright. Please let this not be another wild goose chase.
Tears raced down her cheeks and she was useless against them as she desperately tried to brush them away. "Kakashi…" she whispered, almost as if in pain. "Kakashi."
Sakura burst through the door, her chest heaving as she gasped for breath. Eyes widening at the sight before her, she breathed his name. "Kakashi…"
His visible eye squinted in amusement as he chuckled softly. "Sakura. Long time no see."
With a choked laugh, Sakura wiped the tears from her face, even as more streamed down her cheeks. "It's you. It's really you."
Racing into his open arms, they held each other tightly, clinging to one another as if their lives depended on it. His chin resting lightly on her rose-colored head, he sighed in contentment, eyes closing in blissful wonder at the feel of her in his arms. "I missed you, Sakura."
"Hey! Uzumaki Obito! Your delivery's here! Open the door, will you?!"
With a start, Kakashi sat up from his spot on the couch, having been enjoying his usual afternoon nap. Walking to the window, scratching his head aimlessly, he looked down to the street below where the delivery man was waiting impatiently. "Alright. I'll be right down."
Stretching, Kakashi made his way to the stairs, walking down to the store below. Unlocking the door, he let the man in. "You can set the boxes down by the cash register."
Kakashi watched the man place the boxes down and, with a smile, said, "Thanks," and closed the door behind him.
Walking over to the boxes, Kakashi began to unload their contents. Grabbing a nearby checklist, he slowly made ticks down the list, mumbling the title of books to himself.
Satisfied, he set them on the shelves and turned the CLOSED sign on the door to the OPEN side. His bookstore was open for another day's work.
As soon as he got behind the register, settling comfortably on the stool behind the counter, the bell above the door rang, signaling the entrance of a customer. Looking up from his Icha Icha book, Kakashi smiled at the customer, but groaned inwardly. "Hello, Sumiko-san."
"Obito!" squealed Sumiko, as she sauntered over to Kakashi, her tight-fitting, completely immodest clothing clinging to her like a second skin. She leaned on the counter, making sure to give him a nice view of her cleavage, her breasts on the verge of spilling out of her small top, and flipped her long, dark hair, smiling. With a slow, seductive wink, she asked, "Any new arrivals for me, Obito?"
"Sorry, I don't think you'd be interested in any of them," Kakashi said evenly, turning his attention back to his Icha Icha book. I made sure of it.
"Oh, Obito," Sumiko said, as sultry as possible, "you hardly know me. How could you say such a thing?"
Biting his tongue, Kakashi managed a small, forced grin. It doesn't take long for someone to measure the likes of you.
Taking the grin as some sort of interested signal, Sumiko leaned closer, and whispered, "I'd be glad to let you get to know me at my place tonight."
Forcing a chuckle, Kakashi said, "Sumiko-san, forgive me, but I'll have to pass on your invitation. As I've told you many times before, I'm simply not interested. I already have my heart and mind set on someone else."
Pursing her lips into a pout, Sumiko shrugged and, with a wink, sauntered back to the entrance. "Well, Obito, the invitation's always open."
Ignoring her, Kakashi let out a sigh of relief when she finally disappeared. Shaking his head, he returned back to his Icha Icha book. After all, it was just another, ordinary day.
Every day, for the past five years, Kakashi had had to deal with the advances of many sex-hungry women. Of course, it wasn't really surprising, considering what he looked like. Using a transformation jutsu, he was able to hide his true identity, simply by altering a few of his features. In fact, the alterations were so minor that his chakra was neither drained nor recognized.
Most of this was due to the fact that he no longer wore his mask. Since no one had ever seen him without it, he had not needed to alter much of his appearance. With the transformation jutsu, he got rid of his scar and Sharingan, concealing it with a grey eye to match his other. He had brown hair that did not defy gravity quite as much as his silver hair did, although it still had that same, messy feel to it. He concealed the ANBU tattoo on his arm, and that was pretty much it.
In short, Kakashi was a living, breathing god-on-earth. Finally the world was free to gaze upon his chiseled good looks and tall, strong physique with no mask or uniform to conceal it. He was also very smart and extremely polite, with the boyish charm that made him perfect as a bookstore owner.
In Amegakure, there was no other man like him, and it was for this reason that women practically threw themselves at his feet (although there were a few occasions where such a thing happened). But, though he gained the attraction and attention of all genders, male and female, no one suspected that the handsome bookstore owner was none other than Hatake Kakashi, the Legendary Copy Ninja. Sure, the name Kakashi used, Uzumaki Obito, sparked some interest,but since he was just a mere merchant, and not a ninja, he was left relatively alone.
With a sigh, Kakashi flipped through the pages, finding his favorite parts. Life sure was boring in Amegakure. But it's for the good of Konoha…and for her.
Whoo. Kakashi is finally introduced in the story. Yay! Finally. It took eight chapters to get here. Jeez. Oh, and like the name I chose for him to use as a cover? Uzumaki Obito. :D Alright. Laters.
I do not own Naruto.
