Chapter 34!
Title: "Levels and Lies"
Disclaimer: I own nothing!!
Note: Hope you enjoy, Kumi Sadinkal! :D
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I rolled over, my arms spreading across the mattress sleepily.
It was so nice, being on the brink of sleep, the morning light pouring into the room, the local birds calling to each other outside… My arms curled under and around my pillow, tiredly gripping onto it, nuzzling my face deeper into the pillowcase.
I didn't know why, but I was in a really good mood.
I felt like everything was absolutely right in the world…
I took a deep breath, about ready to close my eyes and fall back to sleep… when I noticed something.
Forests and rivers…
"Kakashi?" I asked the air as I immediately sat up, looking around my room.
No one replied…
… He wasn't here.
I looked back to my pillow…
In a sleepy second of delirium I thought that he was here, but it was only his scent.
I immediately remembered last night…
… That had been new… not only what we did, but the way he showed up without any other reason than to see me… without planning it ahead of time….
I flopped onto the mattress, my head landing on the pillow.
I slowly rolled over to my side.
I stared at the wooden floor of my room, watching the bits of dust mites float through the sunlight.
It was really peaceful, and my eyes stung for more sleep, but I wouldn't be able to go back to sleep now.
… My mind was completely on him, and couldn't be bothered with dreams now, not when reality was already more perfectly bizarre than I could possibly dream…
I gripped the pillow a little closer to me, trying to trick my arms into thinking it was him… but of course it didn't feel anything like him. He was warmer, firmer, and had a hypnotic heartbeat that no mushy pillow could replace.
I suddenly missed him even more…
It was such a curious feeling, missing someone so much even though I had fallen asleep next to him, and havig only been conscious of being alone for a few minutes.
My heart felt like it was being weakly tugged at from different angles every time I thought about him and the way his hands felt last night… how much I wished they were still on me.
I wanted to see his smile again.
I wanted to see mismatched his eyes again.
I wanted to feel his lips again.
I felt so restless now… I really wanted to see him.
...
Jeez… what's gotten into me?…
I had always wanted more time with Kakashi-sensei… but I felt so much more urgent about it right now… like I didn't want him ever out of my sight, or out of my reach.
I was about to ignore that weird realization until that sentence popped up in my mind, as if I was subconsciously trying to tell myself something.
"Don't let him forget…"
… Maybe it was because of what he said… maybe I was trying t make sure he doesn't forget me...
No…
I quickly sat up in bed, running my fingers through my hair, combing it out a little, but I was mostly trying to comb my mind.
I want to see him because I want to… no other reason!... I told myself.
BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUZ!
I nearly jumped clear out of bed when Warble started droning off-key with his annoying little voice.
A little upset at myself for getting so worked up over my own alarm, and upset over being interrupted from my thought process, my fist landed directly on Warble's head… or what would be his head if he wasn't just a rectangle.
By a happy coincidence my knuckle landed on the right button and he finally shut up.
Finally paying less attention to the interruption and to the little glowing numbers on my overly-abused alarm clock, I was a little shocked.
'8:45'
Why was it set for 8:45?
I hadn't set it...
I haven't had to set it since Kakashi-sensei left the hospital.
Then in a rush of realization that came to me when I thought of his name, I remembered…
"Tomorrow, by the river… at nine…"
…
He set the alarm…
…
I laughed to myself, suddenly happy that he did that… he left something behind, it made everything seem so real suddenly…
…
He was always planning things when I didn't even think he was…
I want to see him even more now…
...
… I have to calm down…
…I'll get to see him at nine.
…
Wait…
Nine… in 15 minutes!
I flung the sheets (that I never remembered climbing into… did he do that too?) off of my lap, my feet landed on the floor with a thud that I knew would probably wake my parents up.
But I really didn't want to be late.
I cursed my slow-moving brain for not realizing that I only had such little time, (now 13 minutes), left before I'd be late!
I hurriedly started changing, frantically tossing clothes on the floor without caring.
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The grass rustled a little noisily under his sandals.
He didn't pay it any mind, he wasn't trying to be stealthy right now… he especially couldn't even focus on training when his mind kept going over last night.
It was so impulsive, irresponsible, definitely not what he should have done, but, more importantly, it was… dangerous.
He was so sure he had better control over himself… that he could control these thoughts, these desires… but last night… he slipped up and went to see her, needing to touch her, even though he was going to see her about twelve hours later anyways…
He really couldn't make himself wait…
And when he did touch her… those desires only got so much more worse.
Thinking back on it now, he had to stop in his tracks, temporarily forgetting his route to the riverside. He held a hand up to his masked face, rubbing his palm over his eyes, a little bothered…
…
He remembered when the same palm was running along her back… her skin.
…
The way she reacted to the way he touched her.
He was only barely touching her, but she was so… responsive…
He really wasn't used to dealing with such sensitivity… he felt like he always had to check everything he was doing, making sure it wasn't too much…
…
Even though they were only together for a few minutes last night… she…
She was shaking, but she followed his touch, visibly wanting more…. And yet he knew too well that she really didn't want more.
He sighed deeply, dropping his hand from his face… looking down at the foliage around his feet.
It was a lot of work being in a relationship like this… one that required just enough distance, and trust… one that required a lot of self-control and understanding.
…
And throughout his life he's always had issues with all of those things!
…
… But he knew he could do it if it was for her…
They've come this far, right?…
…
And this was a good place, where they were now… nothing too serious, or scary… a place where she could slowly become more comfortable…
...
He would never forgive himself if he ever hurt her because he was too selfish…
So, he would stay like this however long she needed…
He silently promised that to himself as he started on his route to the riverside again… feeling a bit less bothered.
…
Despite his recent thoughts and desires… he knew he could wait… becuase he was already this happy just being with her…
Even if he couldn't touch her, he knew he would be happy with just the way she looked at him… her smile.
He chuckled to himself, remembering their conversation yesterday.
Her reaction to his story.
He loved her smile when it was that bright, that honest… he couldn't get enough of it.
…
Somehow, he found his mood greatly lifted with those last thoughts.
The river was in sight through the trees, the sound of the water was soothing.
The worries, the guilt, seem to have washed away when he wasn't paying attention…
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"Ha… ha… ha…." I was panting, leaning onto my knees.
I ran the whole way here.
The water crashed against the rocky side of the river, drowning out my breathing.
I must've been getting out of shape… I hadn't trained in several days.
I didn't even get to do morning exercises today, I was in such a hurry.
Well, today was about Kakashi-sensei's therapy, not my training, so I didn't have to worry about that…
I was worried about something, though.
I checked my watch.
'9:07'
Jeez, I was still late!!
I stood up straight, picking up my pace as I followed the riverbed.
I looked around, feeling a little rushed.
The sooner I found him, the better.
I hoped he would overlook my lateness.
But I couldn't really think about that when I suddenly realized that he really wasn't here.
From this point I could see at least a mile along the river both ways… this was the usual training spot for shinobi… it was where the river was the calmest.
I checked around again.... this was definitely the meeting point....
Maybe he was late, too.
Maybe if I tracked, and found him I could actually lecture him about being late.
I smiled a little mischievously at the thought, just before I picked up my feet to started running into the forest.
But something wasn't right.
My feet picked up, but only landed back onto the same spot clumsily, I felt something around my stomach, and everything suddenly went dark.
"You're late." My favorite voice said with a playful scold into my ear.
His arm was curled around me, his hand covering my eyes.
It was really just like him to suddenly appear without a single sound or give-away.
"Sorry…" I apologized with a smile.
My hands reached up to the hand over my eyes.
My fingers curled around his loosely… but I definitely wasn't going to pry his hands off of me… I just wanted to feel him again.
"You also need to work on your detecting skills." He said with that same stern tone he actually used to use with our team when we were slacking or fighting…. I suddenly wondered if he had ever been seriously upset with us…. or if Kakashi-sensei was just a good actor. "It was really too easy sneaking up on you… just like always." I could almost hear the smirk on his lips.
"Hey, don't say it like tha-!" I ordered, playfully upset.
He cut me off.
"It was okay that I could do this when you were younger, but now you need to start learning how to more efficiently detect enemies." His voice was almost whispering into my ear. He already broke out of his serious, teacher voice… he sounded warmer.
I was immediately reminded of last night… I felt a little restless again…
But his words distracted me from whatever that feeling was.
"If you did this when I was younger, it definitely wouldn't have been 'okay'…" I pointed out a different 'this' a little cheekily, as one of my hands grazed along the arm he had curled around my lower waist, my fingers finding his, which were resting on my hip.
I knew he meant sneaking up on me, but he never used to sneak up on me like this when I was younger.
He didn't say anything. I only heard his laughter in my ear, his chest shaking behind me.
It was always rare to hear Kakashi-sensei laugh when I was his student… but now I've heard it so many times… I never got tired of it.
He ended his laughing with a deep breath; I felt his chest against my back.
It was really nice how I could feel more details of him when he was covering my eyes like this.
"Anyways, today's about your therapy, not my training." I reiterated my previous thoughts, breaking this little moment, already feeling bad about it when his hands left me.
He walked around to face me.
I was a little surprised when I saw he had his mask on.
… but I guess he was just being responsible… anybody could be wandering through these forests during the day.
I wondered, for a moment… what his face looked like in the sunlight… We were usually only together at night.
"This is my 'training', too." He spoke up. I felt a little lost… what were we talking about?
"Eh?" I sounded my confusion before I planned to. "Training?" I asked using a real word…
Kakashi-sensei still 'trained'?…
He looked down at me, smiling through the dark blue fabric, "I may be older, but even I need to keep training…"
I gave him a questioning look.
"Every shinobi continuously tries to push the limit of their power throughout their lives…" he walked towards the trees a little, lost in what he was saying. "A true shinobi is never happy with their current level… " He said those words like his mind was in a far off place. "… Well, at least that's what an old teacher of mine taught me…"
… the Yondaime…
I suddenly remembered the picture of a young, scowling Kakashi, his team leader leaning casually in the background.
"Buts that's enough of that… let's start with chakra control." He announced with a light tone.
He turned back to me like he didn't just say something that was actually really… meaningful.
I was still thinking those words over.
He walked right passed me, onto the river not even taking a few seconds to collect chakra, and was already doing push-ups by the time I turned around.
I really didn't think I needed to be here…
But I guess I can enjoy the show.
I smiled as I sat down at a nearby boulder, looking forward to spending most of the day with him…
….
……………
….
It was actually really surreal, watching Kakashi-sensei train.
He covered so many areas in a really short time.
The whole time I was only standing close by, doing my job… making sure he didn't overexert himself.
But judging from his performance, he was practically back to normal…
He was doing everything just as incredibly as usual…
Chakra control, chakra precision, shuriken throw, kunai aim, he even practiced the chidori twice.
Seeing that technique still brought back bad memories…
…but I noticed something…
Kakashi-sensei handled it differently than Sasuke.
Sasuke had always been so full of rage… hatred… when he used it, but Kakashi seemed so… calm.
Almost like he didn't want to use it…
Thinking back, I couldn't really remember him resorting to it in battle more than a few times… My mind flashed back to our very first B-level mission… how that Haku boy died…
I was distracted from that when he turned back to me, and away from the pile of splinters that used to be a tree, as well as the boulder that got the first hit. You could see right through it.
He didn't even seem that tired.
He smiled through his mask when our eyes met.
Even when he was recovering from injuries, he was still of the best shinobi in Konoha…
"That should do it for the ninjutsu training…" He spoke up as he took a few steps towards me.
"So, you're done?"I asked, leaning away from the tree I had been resting on, walking to him, too.
"Not quite."He suddenly stopped in his tracks, crouching a little… like he was getting into a battle stance. "I still have to check my taijutsu level." He had completely adopted his usual stance.
I stopped in my tracks, too.
I really hoped he wasn't thinking what I thought he was thinking.
"You're going to train with a tree right?" I asked, already planting my feet in the ground, steadying myself.
"That would be pointless." He summarized vaguely, his voice sounding a little mischievous, his foot inching forward an inch or two.
I suddenly felt my sense of competition grow.
"What happens if I win?" If we were going to do this, I needed something in mind for motivation.
Even from this distance I saw the smile underneath that mask widen.
"You'd be better not to challenge me." He inched closer, using a warmer voice.
I already knew that too well… but I couldn't help it… this conversation was getting fun.
"Challenges always make things more interesting." I tried to match his tone, and not give away the fact that it was actually a little intimidating to talk to him like this.
I heard him chuckle.
"Fine… if you win, you can have whatever you want… but if I win, I get whatever I want…"He summed up the prizes rather vaguely.
I immediately wanted to know what he would want, as I also thought about what I wanted.
Even though I originally just wanted to walk up and kiss him just now… I'd actually have to have a fist-fight with him before I could do any of that…
There was something definitely strange about this…
"You can't take that back if I win…" I warned him, inching forward, strengthening my stance.
"That's if you can keep up." His voice sounded like it came from the spot where he had been standing… but he was suddenly gone.
I wasn't surprised.
Old trick.
I turned around just in time to raise my arms, blocking his shin from hitting me.
I threw his leg down, hoping to throw him off balance, but he brought around his fist when I wasn't looking.
I managed to duck out the way and jump a few feet back as he found his balance again, crouching towards the ground.
He really wasn't going easy on me was he?
He had always pulled back his hits before… but now he seemed to think I could handle it…
Somehow that made me happy…
He wasn't treating me like a little kid anymore.
I took a few breaths, trying to think of what to do next.
… If he wasn't going to hold back, I wasn't either…
I took off, zigzagging towards him so that he wouldn't be able to follow my movements.
And like a second nature, I collected a heavy amount of chakra in my fist.
I lunged forward, but he only dodged. I tried again, but he dodged that one too.
II tried again and again, but he only dodged... just like he did during our team exam...
He knew what I was up to.
I decided to change it up.
I ducked to the ground, the chakra flowing to my leg as I swung it towards his feet.
I barely grazed his sandal before he jumped up into a tree.
I felt a grin spread on my face as I looked up at him. This was actually really fun!
"You keep dodging!" I shouted up at him. It was always unsatisfying when you went to hit someone, expecting to feel the impact, when you only meet air... but a littlepart of me was happy I didn't hit him, of course.
"I can't let you hit me when you have all that chakra attached to your fist." He said calmly as he jumped to another tree, and out of sight.
"You want me to go easier on you?!" I called after him, almost laughing.
He didn't answer… but I knew he wouldn't want me to.
He was probably already planning something.
I walked further into the wide clearing, checking over my shoulders, behind my back, up in the air…
He really wasn't coming back out…
I couldn't see him anywhere…
…
… Don't tell me…
He always loved using this one.
I still couldn't figure out how he did it… but it was definitely troublesome.
I looked towards the ground.
"Old tricks again, Kakashi-sensei?" I called towards the earth.
Of course, no answer…
I raised my fist, collecting chakra again
I aimed for the ground in front of my feet.
After this, he should be disoriented for a few seconds… that's when I'll-
But I couldn't finish my plan.
Something stopped my hand before it hit the ground.
An arm wrapped around me like a vice.
"Don't jump to conclusions…" He whispered directly in my ear… making me forget the chakra in my arm.
Shocked, I stopped moving for a few seconds.
"Hey!" I tried to turn around to face him, but he was holding me too tightly.
"And you still have to work on detecting enemies…" He added playfully. His arm started to slowly unwinding from around me, his hand grazing across my lower waist even slower.
That definitely wasn't necessary.
I couldn't move when he was touching me like that.
"What's wrong?" I felt his masked lips against my ear. He didn't sound at all concerned.
Woah....
I pulled myself away from his arms.
His voice just now… it gave me goosebumps… and that really bugged me.
I was suppossed to be serious right now!
"I was just surprised…" I snorted back at him, rubbing my arm a little, hoping the bumps would go away before his Sharingan caught sight of them…
"Of course…" He agreed a little too willingly, sounding sarcastic.
He took a few steps towards me… I only took one backwards.
I definitely wasn't as focused as before.
"Distractions in the battlefield are very frequent…" He came even closer, wearing his 'perfectly innocent' face. "You shouldn't only learn how to deal with them…"
I suddenly felt familiar fingers curl around my chin from behind.
It took me a second to realize that he had used his infamous speed to sneak behind me again.
"… but how to cause them."
His thumb passed over my lips as he titled my head towards his.
Something clicked when he said that last part.
"Since when did this go from you training, to you teaching?" I asked up haughtily.
"... Teaching's my job, after all…" He said it in a really suggestive way.
That was definitely new… he would never say something like that seriously…
This was still just a game to him.
He was so sure he was going to win!
The competitive edge from yesterday suddenly came back.
His hand was still titling my face towards his.
I turned around completely, facing him.
I let my expression soften.
I lifted my hand to his side. After a moment, my hand crawled under the thin fabric of his blue shirt.
I immediately felt his muscles tense up underneath my hand.
When I looked up at his eyes, he really didn't look serious, or innocent, anymore.
He had that expression I loved seeing so much… the one he always had when I touched him.
I slid my fingers across to his abs, feeling upward and around slowly.
I let my hand press even harder against his skin when I saw him flinch a little.
… His chest was always sensitive…
I started leaning in closer to him, too.
He seemed to really believe me.
He wasn't paying attention to my other hand.
Maybe I got this 'distraction' thing down?
With one, chakra-induced, flick he fell back a few feet away from me.
I almost felt bad for a second…
…until he landed on the ground with a poof.
…
It was a replication!
I immediately spun around, expecting an attack from behind.
He wasn't there.
Just as I thought that maybe he was waiting in trees or would attack from the side, I immediately felt something tug on my ankle.
"Doton, Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu!"
"Damn it!" I shouted as I felt that tugging on my foot suddenly get stronger.
But it was too late, I couldn't move my arms or legs, and only my head was above ground.
And now his ankles were eye-level.
It took me a second to catch my breath... being pulled into the ground like that was more than a litle disorienting.
"Hey!" I finally yelled at him as he stood there, laughing quietly. "That was ninjutsu!" I argued as he knelt down to face me.
"This was supposed to be a strict taijutsu match…" I argued further, trying to win some sort of pride back… but it was hard when I was in this position.
He only chuckled a little more, looking down at me a little condescendingly.
I was already vowing some sort of revenge…
"Yes, yes…" He waved a hand as he closed his eyes for a second, agreeing calmly. "I bent the rules a little."
He understated with a polite tone as he performed another hand seal.
"A little?" I mumbled to myself right before his hands punched through the earth, both of them finding my waist.
It was a really strange sensation…. Being quickly buried and dug out like that.
As soon as my feet were on the ground instead of in it, I went a little wobbly-legged and cold.
I patted my clothes free from dirt clots and dust hastily.
I felt really grungy and whiplashed.
But I got over it as soon as I looked up at him again.
His mask was down.
"What you did wasn't exactly taijutsu, either…" He commented on what I did to that replication playfully as his hands combed through my hair. He pulled me closer. His fingers stopped as they reached the back of my head.
He pulled my face towards him quickly.
This was a little sudden.
I was still trying to get over my first experience with being on the bad side of an earth style jutsu...
But I guess he was looking forward to the end of his training as much as I was.
Now that the 'match' was over, I could finally kiss him without it being anything but a kiss.
I decided to let his comment, and even his cheating-jutsu, slide when our lips met.
I really couldn't think about anything else.
His fingers searched further into my hair, deepening the kiss…
I lifted my arms to rest on either side of his neck.
I pulled him closer to me too.
Kissing him now felt a little different than usual… maybe it was the way his lips were moving faster than normal, maybe it was the way his large hands were sliding down the front of my shoulders to my waist, or maybe it was the fact he was pulling himself closer than usual…. But whatever it was… it felt nice.
After only a moment, he took a step forward.
I took one backward.
He took another.
I took another.
Wherever he was going, I trusted him.
I suddenly felt the rough surface of tree bark against my back.
He stopped walking, and now I could focus more on the kiss, which was moving even faster.
I felt his tongue graze along my lips.
...
I opened my eyes for a moment, his were closed… but he almost looked pained.
… I really couldn't figure out why he would make that face….
But instead of just letting him kiss me like that, I wanted to do something, too…
I worked up my courage for a few seconds…
I brushed my tongue against his first.
It was so strange that it felt so good.
I could tell from the way he hesitated for only a moment, that he hadn't been expecting that.
But when he started kissing me again, it was even deeper than before.
His hands on my waist pressed me against the tree a bit harder.
His chest was pressing against mine every time I took a breath.
I felt his fingers slide up and down my sides, like he was trying to feel me through the fabric of my shirt.
Everything was getting so warm.
But everything got even warmer when I felt his knee push up between mine a little.
It was such a small gesture… but combined with the way his tongue was moving against mine, how his fingers gliding up to my shoulders, it all made me feel weak.
That's when he suddenly pulled away.
His right hand left my shoulder as he suddenly pulled his mask up.
"Don't move." He whispered seriously, his left hand on my shoulder pinning me against the tree.
He wasn't looking at me, he started scanning the forest behind my tree.
I suddenly heard rustling.
Somebody was coming… and I wouldn't have been able to tell till just now…
… I really did have to brush up on my detection skills.
But I couldn't think about that when I suddenly saw Kakashi-sensei's face soften into a relieved expression.
He wasn't serious anymore… he looked confident again… almost mischievous…
What exactly was going on?
"Kakashi-san…" I heard a voice that I barely recognized. "I was sent by Lady Tsunade to check up on your progress…"
Now I remembered that voice… I only met him once before, but I knew he was one of those desk-ninjas, well, that's what we called the ninjas who only had basic training, but did important, government paperwork instead of fieldwork.
That still didn't explain why Kakashi seemed a little relieved… or playful….
As if answering my question, I suddenly felt his hand on my shoulder loosen a bit… his fingers didn't leave me.
"Tell Lady Tsunade that she doesn't have to worry about anything… I'll be back at 100% soon…" I noticed Kakashi-sensei's little lie… he was probably already at 100%...
I heard the desk-nin speak up again, "That wasn't the only thing I was sent to say…" The desk-ninja's words suddenly drowned out when I felt Kakashi's fingers trailed along my collarbone, and then up my collar… his fingertips closing around my zipper.
This was why he had that look on his face!
The desk-nin, un-trained and with weak observation skills, wouldn't be able to tell that Kakashi-sensei was now unzipping his subordinate's shirt on the other side of this tree.
He pulled the zipper down farther and farther.
My heart was beating fast… the thumps were reverberating into my throat.
I saw him glance at me from the corner of his eye for a moment. The look he gave me was a little strange… not so playful, but more like he was checking on me…
… But what was stranger was the fact that I wasn't trying to stop him.
Sure, this was really embarrassing… but I… I hadn't even thought about stopping him till the zipper was already passed my breastbone.
Even then… my heart was beating faster, and I could feel my face flush with red, but I didn't stop him.
The zipper passed over my chest smoothly.
Why didn't I want to stop him?
It slid down a few more inches, reaching my stomach.
I was already expecting him to unzip my whole shirt… but he suddenly stopped.
Reality came rushing back when his hand suddenly left me altogether.
"… the debriefing meeting for your teammates will be tomorrow morning. But Lady Tsunade has requested to see you know about the recent activity in the enemy's region. If you could shed some more light on the abilities of Asaka."
My heart jumped when I heard that name. The desk-nin continued.
"You must have some useful knowledge about her abilties since you were the only one that survi-"
"Okay. I'll meet with Tsunade immediately." Kakashi cut off the monotonous desk-ninja rather harshly. Whatever he was about to say, Kakashi really didn't want him to say it.
"Understood." The desk-nin answered back a little quietly, apparently affected by Kakashi's snap.
I heard the rustling fade away.
I looked back up to him… he was busy glaring at the ground.
"Kakash-"
"The mission's been pushed forward… We're leaving in the morning." His voice was a little scary.
"What?" I took a step toward him.
He only seemed to notice I said anything when my hand landed on his arm.
"A scout spotted some new activity at the enemy's hideout… If it is them, then we can't let them sit still for too long, or they might start planning something." Kakashi explained further.
He finally looked over to me. His expression softened immediately.
I felt a little better… but still a little shaken by that name… by what that desk-nin was about to say.
'only one to survi-'?... survive what?
I was interrupted by that question when I felt his fingers close around my zipper again.
He zipped it upward slowly, smiling a little wistfully as he did.
He really wasn't himself right now.
As his hand reached the collar of my shirt, I grabbed it in mine.
He squeezed my fingers back softly.
"I have to go now." He said quietly.
Already, in only two minutes, the day had already taken a turn from being one of the best ones I've had in a while… to possibly one of the worst.
I tugged his hand down, making him crouch over. I lifted one of my hands to his mask, pulled it down to his chin.
Our lips met for only a moment.
I pulled his mask back up.
His smile seemed a bit more genuine this time.
"I'll see you again, tonight… as soon as the meetings over…" He said suddenly, pulling me into his chest… the way his hands closed around my back…
It felt like he really needed to hold me.
"Like last night?" I asked quietly, clutching onto his back.
I felt him nod above me.
…
"Bye…" I said, even quieter as his arms left me.
"Tonight…" He reminded me as he suddenly disappeared into the forest, following the route to central Konoha… I took the way to the residential section…
All I could do now was to wait till tonight…
… but it definitely wasn't going to be a good day…
Not when I suddenly felt guilty again for knowing more than Kakashi wanted me to about Asaka….
….
……………………………………………………………
…
He walked through town a little slower than he knew he should… but he had several things to think about… what had happened between him and Sakura just now…
… Earlier, he had been so set on staying on a certain level… but the way she actually… the way she was starting to get more comfortable with him …
The way her tongue brushed against his… the way she didn't stop him the way he had expected her to when she was hiding behind that tree…
…
… he really had to wonder whether they were still on the same 'level' as before…
…
But he couldn't think about that right now!
… He really needed to collect himself if he was going to be forced to talk about the Asaka mission for hours on end…
He really needed to clear away any biased emotions, any feelings…
He needed to sort out what happened in the past, and what he had to do now…
… it wasn't really working…
Why of all times in his life, did these problems have to come back now?!
Why not in a few more years… when his relationship with Sakura would either be stronger… or possibly over… ... ...
But it was happening now when their relationship was still so fragile against outside influences.
He wondered if this was finally the karma he had been expecting for falling in love with a student and not regretting it…
He passed the booths and markets that always seemed to be bustling in Konoha, trying to drown out the costumer-owner squabbles over money or quality, but his efforts were immediately shattered when he saw a familiar woman come walking up to him.
She looked like she had actually been looking for him.
"Kakashi-san…" She called his name a little formally.
He would've preferred ignoring her, but he already made eye contact.
… He really didn't want to talk with Haruno-san right now.
He was dealing with a lot, and talking to his young student's/lover's mother was definitely not something he was prepared for right now.
"Good afternoon, Haruno-san…" He said as cheerfully as he could, putting on one of his more charming, fake smiles, that he knew still had an effect on people even if he was masked.
"Good afternoon…" She replied, smiling back with a friendly expression, equally as fake as his own… he could see her mother-bear squirming inside.
She was going to bring up Sakura, wasn't she?
"I'm sorry that Sakura kept you up so late last night…" Haruno-san apologized, unwittingly hitting the nail on the head… He definitely missed some sleep, sneaking into her room last night… but Haruno didn't know about that part.
"No, its fine… she didn't stay that long…" He brushed it all off the best he could, already wanting to drop the conversation as politely as possible.
"I know you probably needed your rest last night. And yet she stayed till 7:30, right?" Haruno-san pushed the matter a little further. It really sounded like she was actually asking him. "She got home almost before 8:00…" Haruno added.
She wasn't really good at this… poking for information. Kakashi could tell she was trying to figure out why Sakura didn't get home till 8:00…
…and now Kakashi was too…
She left his apartment a little after 6:30…
Why was she late?
Despite his own confusion, he wasn't going to let Haruno-san continue to distrust her daughter… otherwise it might lead onto an investigation.
"Yes, she did stay till 7:30… some of the other Jounins were visiting, so our appointment was postponed several minutes." Kakashi summarized the lie politely.
"Oh…well, thank you for understanding, Kakashi-san…" Haruno-san bowed slightly towards him, and he to her. She seemed content with his answer.
"Of course, good afternoon." He finished.
He felt like dodged a bullet just now... even if Haruno-san seemingly had no suspicion that he was currently in a deep relationship with her daughter... it was still rather nerve-racking having to talk to her.
They went their separate ways, Haruno-san's confusion was eased… but now Kakashi had to deal with the question she had left him.
Where did Sakura go… why was she late?
…
He sighed heavily.
…
Things were definitely getting mixed up, weren't they?…
…
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