lostmoonchild: Holy shit. I had an awesome birthday so that was great and then last night we had a storm roll through that had the destructive force of a tornado. Of course we were out of town and got back to see that you couldn't go fifteen or so feet without seeing some kind of damage. Nobody was hurt so we're all grateful for that. Thanks for the reviews, everybody, and for the birthday wish.
Chapter Warning: Yaoi alert in the beginning.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto so don't sue.
Chapter Nineteen
Naruto felt his stomach twisting from excitement as he moved about the apartment, making sure things were picked up and that he had everything he knew Gaara would probably want. He couldn't remember exactly the conversation that had started this but he knew for certain it had started while both men were somewhat intoxicated. When they woke up the next morning, they had both concluded that this could be considered beneficial to both men and that there were absolutely no strings attached.
Now they needed to be extra careful to make sure that Hisoka was either dead asleep or staying the night at somebody's house. Naruto didn't want his daughter to depend solely on him and everybody else had been rather eager to offer to let the girl stay the night when he wanted or needed a night to himself. It was just dumb luck that Kakashi's night fell on the same night that Gaara wanted to see him or maybe the Kazekage had known already.
Either way, neither one was willing to chance setting off an episode.
The blonde darted over to the door and grinned when he saw the redheaded man standing with an impassive look on his face. "So you decided your last name will be safer for her?" Gaara questioned as he entered the apartment, closing the door behind him.
"Yeah. I mean, her mom's family earned a pretty bad reputation and I didn't want to worry-"
The blonde's entire body stiffened as Gaara's lips crashed against his own in a dominating kiss. "If your willingness to do this tonight is anything to go by," Gaara breathed, "you've been just as stressed out."
"Yeah."
Their lips crashed together in another bruising kiss as they worked their way back to Naruto's room. "Did she notice?" Gaara asked finally.
"Naturally."
"And?"
"Asked what we were gonna do so I told her that we were gonna do guy stuff."
Gaara smirked softly as he lightly pushed the blonde back onto the bed, already feeling the beginnings of arousal. There was no denying that they were both messed up enough that the idea of an actual relationship with anybody else was beyond their hopes but this worked out just fine for the two. The one that was the most needy dominated while the other one took it but if they were equally needy…
The redhead's fingers danced across Naruto's clothes, slowly exposing the sun kissed skin as Naruto's fingers worked on his own clothes. This would be their night to do as they pleased. "When's she due back?" Gaara asked softly.
"Tomorrow morning." Naruto managed to pant.
Excellent. They had all night and as Gaara smirked in response, Naruto felt his stomach tighten in excitement. He knew that look and knew that before the night was through he was going to be reduced to a begging heap at least twice. When Gaara attacked his lips again, Naruto made a correction before his brain shut down and he was reduced to sensation only. At least three times, he decided, and he'd probably be denied an orgasm each time.
(*)(*)(*)(*)(*)
Kakashi sighed to himself as he woke with a start upon hearing the terrified screams that left his bedroom. He didn't understand how something so small could make so much noise but he supposed he should have expected it. "What's wrong?" Kakashi asked as he stumbled into his bedroom, his eye softening when he saw the stream of tears on the girl's face.
"Sa-Sas-Sasuke came and killed Daddy!" Hisoka screamed hysterically.
The Jounin stared for a moment, surprise etched on his features for a moment before he reclaimed control over his surprise. Naruto had told him that Hisoka had started vocally communicating but until now he hadn't heard a peep from the girl. "Sasuke didn't kill Naruto. It was just a bad dream." Kakashi said soothingly as he sat down next to the crying girl.
Hisoka sobbed as she clung to Kakashi, her entire body shaking as the silver-haired Jounin murmured soft words of comfort. "Th-then he sa-said that it w-was m-hic-my fault!" Hisoka sobbed. "E-Everyone el-else wa-was dead and th-there was n-no one l-left!"
Kakashi picked the girl up and held her as he walked around the apartment, his eye watching the tears that fell down her face. Was she picking up on something that one of the Bijuu was feeling or was it just one of her fears playing itself out? "Don't cry." Kakashi said softly.
He spoke soft words of comfort as he held the girl, waiting for her to stop crying. He couldn't deny that she was terrified of her dreams when she'd have nightmares of somebody she loved and cherished above all else being killed by the one person she hated and feared more than death. Maybe once upon a time she had been fully prepared to die and held no fears, but now she loved everybody that cared for her in some way.
Kakashi thought for a moment before lowering his mask. "Hisoka-chan." Kakashi said patiently.
Hisoka's eyes widened slightly when she saw Kakashi had taken his mask off, her eyes immediately falling on the scar over his left eye. What had happened? Why was he keeping that one eye closed? "Your mask is off!" Hisoka cheered before looking solemn again. "How come you have it on all the time? I think you look very nice."
Kakashi felt his cheeks turn slightly pink before he sighed. "Because I want it on." Kakashi told her. "Every shinobi has a quirk with their clothes and for me, I chose a mask."
Why couldn't Naruto find somebody sane to be around? She personally didn't understand why Kakashi would wear a mask unless he wanted to hide his face from somebody, which meant that he must have done something. "Maybe I could wear a mask." Hisoka said thoughtfully as she lightly touched Kakashi's face.
"No, you're a pretty girl and it'd be a shame to hide the fact." Kakashi adjusted Hisoka on his lap. "Now that you've calmed down a bit, do you want to talk about that nightmare? It sounded terrible."
Hisoka nodded slightly, fighting back the tears that were gathering once again. "Daddy and Sasuke were fighting and then Sasuke put that lightening thing through Daddy's chest. He died and everyone else was suddenly lying on the ground. Sasuke started walking towards me and he said that it was my fault." She curled up tightly into a ball. "He always says it's my fault. I could be really good and he'd hit me. He hit me a lot then when I woke up the last time, he wasn't there. I got hungry and thirsty but no one came and I wanted to die. Then Daddy found me."
Gods, how could he have not seen before? Kakashi hugged the girl tightly before looking serious at her. "Listen to me. There is nothing that makes it okay to hit a kid like Sasuke did you." Kakashi told her. "Sasuke cannot kill Naruto. Kyuubi will not allow that. Do you understand me?"
Hisoka nodded slightly in understanding, her eyes still telling him that she was afraid. "Kakashi?" Hisoka asked finally.
"Yeah?"
"What happened to Momma? How come she put me in that tube and didn't come back for me? Didn't she love me?"
A sigh left Kakashi's lips as he looked at the girl, seeing the doubt in her eyes. "Your momma loved you so much that she chose you over her clan." Kakashi told the girl. "Even before you were born, your mother knew you were special and she thought that putting you in that tube was the only way she was going to protect you."
"But where's Momma?"
"I don't know." Kakashi lied. "Maybe Naruto or Tsunade knows where she is."
Hisoka frowned as she looked at the floor. "She's dead, isn't she? Somebody saw her and killed her cause of her last name." Hisoka said softly. "I know why the Kages all came. They wanted to see if I should die too."
"Hi-chan, look at me." Kakashi told the girl, waiting patiently until she looked at him. "Your mother loved you enough to give up the privilege to watch you grow up and Naruto loves you enough to accept the privilege to guide you until you're ready to walk by yourself. Never ever doubt that you're loved. We all have to make choices and I've known people that have made the choice to give up something that they love more than anything in the world."
"Really?"
"Yes. Everybody has to make that choice sooner or later and it's never an easy one." Kakashi brushed the girl's messy hair away from her eyes. "Just never forget that we love you and we will never ever let Sasuke hurt you again."
Hisoka nodded slightly and closed her eyes as she nestled against Kakashi. "Kaka?" Hisoka murmured sleepily.
"Hmm?"
"Tomorrow… can I play with Pakkun?"
Smiling a little, Kakashi nodded. "Sure. Get some sleep though." Kakashi said as he pulled his mask over his face and closed his eyes.
Hisoka smiled softly as she nestled against the Jounin, her breaths evening out as she drifted off into a dreamless sleep. Holding the girl tightly, the Jounin allowed himself to drift off into a light sleep.
(*)(*)(*)(*)(*)
Kakashi laughed to himself as he watched Hisoka and Pakkun chase each other around the living room, not entirely sure which one was chasing the other. "Okay, I'm not a pup anymore. I need a break." Pakkun stated gruffly as he sat down.
Hisoka pouted slightly before cautiously moving towards the small dog, her gray eyes slightly questioning. "Can I pet you?" Hisoka asked finally.
"What do I look like? Some regular dog?" Pakkun questioned.
"Just let her pet you." Kakashi said lightly. "How long do you think you'll be able to last once she decides to be all cute?"
Pakkun gave Kakashi a dirty look before sighing. "Fine." Pakkun sighed. "You should touch my paw. It's really soft."
"Weirdo dog." Hisoka muttered before lightly patting Pakkun's head before moving away. "There. I'm done."
It was a lot more than what he had honestly been thinking she'd do. "Not bad, Hi-chan." Kakashi said lightly. "Wait until we tell Naruto."
The girl smiled brightly before patting Pakkun on the head again. "You might not be so bad." Hisoka said simply.
"Right back at you."
Poking Pakkun's forehead, Hisoka darted over to Kakashi and grinned at him. "When can we go home?" Hisoka questioned.
Glancing at the clock, Kakashi noted that the blonde should be conscious and all traces of his nighttime activities gone. Well, almost all traces. He was fairly certain that Naruto would be walking funny for a day or two. "Get your stuff together and we can start heading that way." Kakashi told her.
Cheering loudly, the girl ran to the bedroom and the silver-haired Jounin sighed softly to himself upon hearing the sound of a small body crashing into a wall. If that wasn't a sign that she was related to Naruto then he didn't know what was. "You're absolutely certain that she's in good hands?" Pakkun questioned patiently.
"Fairly certain. Besides, it's not like Naruto's the only person she's around so the odds of her getting screwed up beyond belief is fairly slim."
But if Sasuke managed to stay away from them then he'd be happy. While there was some part of him that would be pleased to see the Uchiha, there was a more dominant part of him that wanted to beat Sasuke within an inch of his life. He knew for certain that he had never taught his students to torture the innocent.
All thoughts of homicide left Kakashi's mind when Hisoka came skipping into the room, her entire face showing absolute trust in him. "Home?" Hisoka asked patiently.
"Sure."
Taking the Jounin's large hand in her own, the girl smiled brightly at him. That smile, Kakashi was fairly certain, was the familiar Uzumaki smile and with that smile she could heal what wounds had been caused because of her mother's family. Once she grew into her abilities, however, Kakashi knew that he'd pity the poor bastard that threatened Konoha and that the odds of the poor bastard ever making it out alive would be slim to none.
lostmoonchild: Haha, Kakashi and childcare. That's almost scary but my little plot bunny's been jumping around demanding some situations and the situation that the plot bunny demanded with Kakashi is the "Where's Momma?" thing. Anyway, I'd better get running since I agreed to help out with this interesting course and I'm the test subject so we'll be leaving sometime this afternoon. Read and review!