A/N: I only own Reyna…everything you recognize is property of Masashi Kishimoto. Any characters you don't recognize (other than Reyna) belong to Kayha!

IT COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE

Reyna didn't even bother trying to get off of Kakashi as the sound of footfalls grew closer. For one thing, her injured leg wasn't going to let her move that quickly in any direction and for another she was just too tired to try anyway. She remained as she was with her head against Kakashi's shoulder and her arms wrapped around him. She did tilt her head enough to catch a scent on the wind however and groaned again.

"Crap…It has to be Naruto and Jiraiya too; they must be coming back from their mission," she muttered even as Kakashi heard Jiraiya's chuckle.

"Well, it looks like we're interrupting a rather intimate moment, Naruto," Jiraiya laughed, continuing towards them, "I thought you were just teammates, Kakashi. If I would have known I could find this kind of research in my own home village, I wouldn't have taken so long on that mission."

Naruto quirked a brow at his two sensei's and shook his head, "Really, you two couldn't find something useful to do while I was gone?"

Reyna cringed and slowly slid off Kakashi to face her former teacher and her teammate, "Master Jiraiya. Naruto, Kakashi was just bandaging my hands up and…"

"You just happened to fall onto his lap? Well, at least you two are still fully clothed," Jiraiya grinned, "Are you finally going to admit that you're more than teammates?"

"Guess we don't have much choice now," Kakashi muttered, reluctantly releasing Reyna as she moved off of him.

"You know, Jiraiya-Sensei, you have absolutely horrible timing," Reyna muttered as well.

"Well, it could have been worse, Reyna. We could have been twenty minutes later," Jiraiya laughed even as he dropped down to sit beside her. "Now why not tell me what the hell went on before you two decided to…have some fun."

"The Rogue Pack is what happened," she muttered, immediately dropping her gaze and Kakashi sighed.

Jiraiya shook his head and tilted her head up again until she met his gaze, "And you thought that you'd be able to protect everyone better if you took off on your own and faced the entire pack with no back up, right? How many times do I have to beat you before I get it through your head that your reckless nature is your biggest weakness?"

"What? I don't get it! Pervy Sage, are you saying that you taught Reyna-Sensei?" Naruto blurted out and Jiraiya sighed.

"Yeah I did, Kid; a long time ago, back when she was really reckless and annoying. Look I'll tell you all about it later, alright but for right now just shut your yap!" Jiraiya snapped at the blonde and turned back to Reyna, "I take it by the state of your hands that you didn't succeed in the way you wanted."

Reyna shook her head, "He…got away."

Jiraiya sighed, "Look, you have to stop thinking that you're the only person in the village that can fight a battle. I got it when you were younger, you didn't really have anyone else to rely on until I finally beat it out of you, but now you have friends and allies. Why not use them?"

"I will not put my pack in any more danger than I absolutely have to. I knew that I couldn't protect them," she muttered in reply and Kakashi shook his head.

"You know, sometimes you don't have to be the one to protect everyone else. Sometimes it's alright to be the one who needs the protecting," Kakashi said quietly and she turned her gaze to him slowly.

Jiraiya nodded, "He's right and you know it. Look, Reyna I know that you're used to relying on yourself for everything, but you can't pick and choose what aspects of your life that your friends get to see and be a part of. We all have dark aspects of our lives that we'd rather face alone, but you don't get that luxury. Your friends know that they take the bad right along with all the good. Right, Naruto?"

Naruto nodded, "Right. Reyna-Sensei we've always got your back, just like you always have ours!"

Reyna sighed, "Guess that's one lesson that I'm still trying to learn."

Kakashi smiled under his mask even as Naruto spoke again bringing a grin to Jiraiya's face as well, "And we'll be right there to help you learn it and to make sure you don't forget that we've got your back."

Reyna managed a small smile and shook her head, "I'm sure you will be Naruto. Kakashi, I owe you an apology for…well…everything."

Kakashi shrugged it off, "Hey, don't sweat it. Everything worked out alright, but next time no more taking off on your own with thoughts of keeping us out of a fight."

Reyna nodded as Naruto spoke again or more accurately whined, "Man, I'm starving! Come on already! Are we going back to the village or not?"

Kakashi sighed and looked to Reyna, as did Jiraiya and she finally nodded, "Alright. Time to face the music I suppose."

Naruto was the first on his feet, ready and eager to head off to the village to get something to eat while Jiraiya and Kakashi pulled Reyna to her feet the pain in her leg finally starting to register in her mind. She leaned heavily against Kakashi as she limped after Naruto with Jiraiya walking along behind them with a slight smile on his face as he watched Reyna and Kakashi.

Once they reached the village, Kakashi took Reyna off to the hospital to have her leg and hands seen to while Jiraiya and Naruto headed for Ichiraku. Reyna heard Jiraiya telling Naruto just how much of a pain in his ass she had been when he'd first started training her as a genin. She shook her head as she heard Naruto's laugh. Once at the hospital it was Ino who saw to her wounds and didn't even ask how she had sustained them. Reyna and Kakashi were just about to leave when Tsunade stormed into the room and leveled her glare at Reyna.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Tsunade snapped and Reyna cringed a little.

"The wrong thing," Reyna replied quietly and tensed when Tsunade stood over her.

"Well, I hope you enjoyed your little outing, because you're not going to have another one for the next week. In fact you aren't even going to see the training grounds and forget about taking on missions! You will spend the next week working the main gate and the information desk in the village. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Ma'am; perfectly," Reyna responded in the same quiet tone.

"Kakashi, I'm taking you off active missions for the next few days so that you can ensure that she does not leave the confines of the village. Any training she does is to be done on her own time, understood?"

"Of course, Lady Tsunade," Kakashi answered and the Hokage stormed back out of the room while Kakashi turned back to Reyna, "Well, considering everything that's happened, I'd say you got off pretty light as far as punishment."

"To you maybe, but you're forgetting that confining me to anything is the worst kind of punishment for me. It goes against my very nature," Reyna muttered, pushing herself to her feet as she spoke.

"Still, it could have been worse."

She nodded and tested her newly healed leg. A slight twinge through where the wound had been was all she felt and so she headed for the door, barely even sporting a limp and Kakashi fell in step behind her. She may have started out barely limping but by the time they reached Kakashi's apartment, she had a fairly pronounced limp in her step. She growled under her breath as Kakashi opened his door for her and she slipped inside before disappearing into the bathroom to change into a pair of fuzzy pants and a tank top.

A/N: Another chapter done…short again I know and I do apologize. Still please click the link below and leave me a review to feed the muse!