ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
"I knew you were lying." Asuma yawned as he twirled a new cigarette between his fingers. Kurenai eyed it with distaste, but chose to squash her desire to smack it out of his hand.
"Apparently he's always late these days." Genma shrugged. "He'll be here. That Tenzou kid seemed pretty sure of it."
"He was surprisingly fun, actually." Raidou chimed in from his spot on the grass. "Tenzou I mean. We hung out with him a couple days ago, sans Kakashi. At first he seemed pretty meek, but once you get him going he's sharp as a kunai."
"And oh so adorable, ain't he?" Genma grinned wolfishly. "Figures Kakashi would ditch us for a pair of big, brown eyes."
"Oh, stop it." Kurenai sighed with a familiar annoyance. "He doesn't look like a girl."
"I totally thought he was a girl." Raidou admitted.
Hayate decided to break his silence then. "That's just because of Genma."
"Genma does not affect how I think, okay?" Raidou huffed.
Asuma paused in lighting his cigarette to chuckle around it in amusement. "You sound like your trying to convince yourself."
Laughter echoed around the group of friends, the only voice not present being Raidou's, as he was too busy out-blushing the absent Tenzou.
"Whatever..." the mortified shinobi muttered as he sunk a little lower in his seat.
Raidou was saved further humiliation by the arrival of the much debated couple. Kakashi and Tenzou appeared just before them, Kakashi looking like his usual calm self and Tenzou beaming them a cheerful little smile.
"Hey!" the mokuton user greeted as they approached the group. Kakashi wiggled his fingers in a casual salute.
"Well, I'll be damned." Asuma murmured around his cigarette with a grin. "I didn't think you'd show."
Kakashi put on an air of injury and pressed his hand to his heart. "I'm hurt."
"Senpai was just finishing grocery shopping. We were thinking of making dinner tonight!"
It was like someone ran through the crowd and smacked everyone across the face simultaneously. Tenzou had the sudden feeling that he should not have shared that particular piece of information. The stiffening of his Senpai beside him confirmed those fears.
"D'awwww." Genma, naturally, chimed in first. "Well that's just the darnd'est."
Before anyone else could make any further comments, Kurenai valiantly cut in. "That's wonderful. I wish I had someone to make dinner with."
Asuma sat up instantly. "What's so great about making dinner?"
A loud snicker erupted from Genma, who got a sizzling glare from Asuma in response.
"Women always like men who can cook." She replied airily.
Asuma seemed to seriously consider this information as Genma leaned forward, his impishness not diminished in the slightest.
"So. Is it true, Tenzou? Do you like men who can cook?"
It wasn't so much the question, but the fact that Tenzou actually considered the answer as if it was asked in complete seriousness that made Kurenai punch Genma solidly in the shoulder.
"OWW!"
"Don't answer that, darling." She instructed with a friendly smile. "You'll get used to Genma eventually."
"Probably not." Kakashi muttered.
Any further potential tension was eradicated at the usual flareful entrance of their last, exuberant friend.
"I AM HEREEEEEEEE!"
A green streak whizzed past everyone, exacting no responses from a single person in the vicinity. Even Tenzou had already gotten used to Gai's antics.
"I apologize for my lateness!" Gai gasped as he panted heavily, clearly having run the entire way. "I was strengthening my core, and could not bare to stop early!"
"No more talk about your core, please." Genma cut in. "You're disturbing dear Tenzou."
The mokuton user looked thoroughly confused, but Kakashi stepped in before he could enquire.
"Maaa. Are we just going to sit around all day?"
"It's called socializing, Kakashi." Genma bit back.
"It's overrated." Kakashi responded with disinterest.
Kurenai leaned forward and whispered into Genma's ear with obvious frustration. "Stop needling Tenzou, you're making Kakashi angry."
Genma blinked at his kunochi friend before turning to Kakashi and studying him for a moment. He heightened his shinobi senses and noticed with mild surprise that Kakashi's eyes were ever so slightly narrowed, his shoulders were stiff and some of the hair on the back of his neck was standing. Kurenai was definitely right.
"How the heck did you know that?" He whispered back.
Kurenai sighed. "I bothered to pay attention?"
Genma rubbed his chin thoughtfully and Kurenai turned her sights back on the ANBU pair before her.
"We were thinking of playing some dice, if you'd care to join?"
Tenzou's large, almond eyes lit up instantly. "What's that?"
"It's a strategy game, but it's still lots of fun. I can show you how to play." She responded with a bright smile at Tenzou's eagerness.
The little shinobi turned to Kakashi with such genuine excitement glistening in his eyes that Kakashi couldn't have said no to him if his Icha Icha book depended on it. Kakashi smiled warmly, which was all the indication Tenzou needed. He whirled back around to face Kurenai without his level of excitement diminishing in the slightest.
"Okay!"
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Turns out Tenzou was pretty damn smart.
Kurenai sat back in amazement as her last piece was pushed off the board for the third time. She liked to think she was pretty damn good at this game, but Tenzou essentially handed her own ass to her like she was born yesterday and had never had an independent thought in her life.
"You're...pretty good at strategy..." Kurenai murmured as she scratched her head in utter confusion.
Tenzou smiled and began to pile the pieces back into place neatly. "Thanks! I've had a lot of training."
That brought a metric ton of questions to Kurenai's head, but she politely refrained from asking any of them. Kakashi and Tenzou were being very secretive about Tenzou`s origins, and seeing as Kakashi was in ANBU, they probably had good reason to keep things quiet.
"Won again have you, Tenzou?" Kakashi asked as he turned from his conversation (one sided) with Gai. The group had kind of paired off after Kurenai and Tenzou faced off with their game. Genma, Raidou and Hayate were building a tower of dumpling sticks, Gai and Kakashi were talking about their next big rivalry match (Gai was) and Asuma was having a ball watching Kurenai get annihilated by Tenzou.
"Ah...yes, but Kurenai is really good, too. It was a difficult round!"
The kunochi couldn't help but wonder how Kakashi had managed to make such a charming, warm friend. He seemed impossible to get to these days, but Tenzou had managed it. Perhaps the shinobi had just needed to be left to his own devices, to heal on his own time.
"Eh. She's better at other things." Asuma chuckled.
Genma, never missing a cue, promptly cut in. "Oh yah? What other things?"
Asuma realized the error of his wording and nearly choked on his cigarette.
"I'm assuming he's talking about my unparalleled skill with genjutsu?" Kurenai supplied, turning and sending Asuma such a heated death glare that Hayate shrivelled back behind him.
"A-actually, that's exactly what I meant. I forgot what company we were in..." Asuma corrected with obvious nervousness.
Genma 'tsked' and turned back to his dumpling-stick tower. "You two need to stop wasting time and just shack up already."
The two shinobi practically glowed neon red and glanced down at the ground quickly. Tenzou decided he needed to be careful about how he talked around Genma. The young man didn't miss a thing.
"Maaa. This has been...riveting. But we need to go." Kakashi yawned as he stretched and stood from his place beside Gai.
"Need plenty of time for your man-date, do yah?" Genma teased mercilessly.
Kakashi merely regarded Genma with his usual blank stare. "At least I have a date."
Raidou, Hayate and Gai snickered loudly. Genma actually pouted and focused his attention back on his art work. "Whatever..."
Kakashi gave a little mock bow to his friends and tapped Tenzou on his shoulder. The mokuton user, his blush bright enough to match Kurenai and Asuma's, slowly stood and tried to smile a goodbye to his game partner.
"It was great playing with you."
Kurenai returned his smile. "Yes, it was. We should do this again; I obviously need practice."
"That would be great!" Tenzou exclaimed, gaining a chuckle from the two ninja before him. Kakashi cleared his throat loudly and Tenzou scurried to catch up to him. Once they were walking beside each other, Tenzou twisted and sent a wave behind him to the group of ninja watching them walk away. He received a little wave back from everyone, most of them looking either confused or incredibly amused.
"I'm not sure what to think right now." Raidou mentioned casually as he waved goodbye.
"Well. Basically the cold, lone-wolf outcast is getting laid before Kurenai and Asuma. That is some sad shit." Genma commented brazenly.
Kurenai glared at Genma while Asuma merely blushed. "Can you stop?"
"You really think..." Raidou began, making some kind of motion with his hands. "That they're...you know..."
"Doin' it? Well, I don't actually know. But they're something alright. Tenzou looks and sounds like he's 12, but he's got the mind of a 20 year old. So who friggen knows."
Gai pointedly did NOT join in on the conversation. He stared holes into the table he had been occupying with Kakashi, rightfully guessing that no one would pay him any mind.
"It doesn't matter what they're doing. You need to stop teasing them about it, because this is the most we've seen Kakashi in years."
Genma waved Kurenai off and finished placing the last stick on his Dumpling castle. "The guy's made of steel, he can handle it. The reason he shuts himself off from the world isn't because he can't handle a little nagging. It's something a lot deeper than that."
Silence descended on the crowd. Everyone knew Genma's words to be true, and they all briefly reflected on Kakashi now in comparison to the last time they'd seen him. He'd changed for sure, but no one really understood to what degree.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
"What did you want to have for dinner, Senpai?" Tenzou asked as they strolled through the market.
"Anything but dumplings. I don't know why people like them so much." he muttered.
Tenzou laughed lightly. "I thought they were nice."
The copy-nin merely scrunched his nose in response. "I have something in mind. It'll be a surprise."
Tenzou's eyes widened ever so slightly. He'd never had a 'surprise' before. "Okay...I like that."
"I don't meet many ninja who enjoy surprises." Kakashi answered with a soft smile, although it was clear from his eyes that he understood Tenzou's excitement.
The younger ninja glanced down, slightly bashful, and played with the ends of his hair lightly. "I never thought I would get to experience so many new things."
Kakashi felt his heart twist. He gently placed two fingers under Tenzou's chin and tilted his head up so they could look at each other. "You have your whole life to do that, Tenzou. And there's a lot out there to discover."
A moment passed where the two had to stop walking, because they couldn't bare to tear their gazes away. Tenzou was filled with a sense of gratitude, of extreme affection and attachment. The only reason he was here now, making friends, having home-made dinners, was because of Kakashi. The only reason he'd ever gotten to experience intimacy with someone he respected, was because of Kakashi. How could he ever repay his captain for all of that?
Kakashi couldn't help but be overwhelmed with intense protectiveness. He needed to provide for Tenzou, make sure he was happy, safe, enjoying all the things Kakashi had taken for granted his entire life. Kakashi felt like trash, but he also felt invigorated. These last few weeks with Tenzou, and with his friends, had slowly melted the ice and shadows around his heart. He no longer felt that terror ripping at his stomach and clouding his brain. On the contrary, he felt an urge for warmth. Kakashi was still scared, and he knew he would be scared for a while to come. But the seed of friendship and intimacy had been planted and it wasn't going to go away.
Someone almost smacked into Tenzou and with profuse apologizes from all parties involved, Kakashi and Tenzou proceeded to his apartment without delay, but with significantly redder cheeks.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
When they arrived, the second both ninja stepped into his apartment it was like a thick blanket descended on them. Tenzou was nervous because he was actually in his Senpai's apartment, and Kakashi was nervous because the last person to ever be in his apartment had been Gai when he was stalking Kakashi for rivalry matches. The copy-nin was suddenly paranoid of the cleanliness and decorativeness of his humble abode. Obviously, it was ridiculous for him to wonder if Tenzou thought his apartment was pathetic when the poor kid lived in an ANBU issued closet, but worried he was all the same.
"You can make yourself at home in the...ah. Well. I guess on my bed." Kakashi murmured as he realized he, too, did not own a couch.
"I'll help with cooking, Senpai. I'd rather be useful."
"Alright." Kakashi softly concluded, his voice at least two levels lower than it normally was. His throat actually felt as constricted as his gut did. He couldn't believe how nervous he was, it made absolutely no sense. He slowly padded over to his fridge and began taking out the ingredients for dinner. "I wanted to make orange chicken, if that's alright."
"Oh..." Tenzou gasped lightly. "I've never heard of that, it sounds good."
Kakashi smiled to himself and handed Tenzou a knife. "Here. You can chop the chicken."
As the two settled into the kitchen and began their preparations, Kakashi became more and more unsettled. He couldn't discern what he was feeling. Nervousness was one of them, excitement was another. When he looked at Tenzou, he felt a certain burning longing. He supposed they hadn't really been 'intimate' in a few days, so he wondered if he was craving him. It didn't help that they were in his apartment, a half second from his bed, where he'd NEVER had anyone of any importance before. It was like a new phase of his life was beginning. Maybe he wouldn't have to sleep alone again for a while to come. The thought caused pulses of electricity to surge through his veins. The idea seemed impossible, but here Tenzou was, and it didn't look like he had any intentions of leaving.
"Senpai...?"
"Ah. Sorry, did you say something?" Kakashi blinked away his thoughts, embarrassed.
"I asked if you had any pepper."
Cooking continued as normal, but Kakashi found it harder and harder to focus on what he was doing. He kept staring at Tenzou's face, or the back of his neck, or the small of his back, or the flexing of his shoulder blades. Tenzou's hair looked softer and fuller than ever, and the way his lips were curved in a permanent little smile as he worked make Kakashi's fingers itch.
Tenzou laughed at himself as he dropped a piece of orange on the floor, and as he bent to pick it up, Kakashi caught sight of his delightful rear and firmly decided to hell with this cooking shit. The copy-nin placed his knife on the counter, strutted up to Tenzou, and spun him around.
"What's-"
Tenzou's lips were firmly captured and his sentence effectively lost forever. A loud sigh brushed against Kakashi's lips as Tenzou pressed into him, his arms wrapping around his neck. Their kiss turned frenzied, both shinobi panting lightly. Kakashi gripped Tenzou's hips and lifted him up onto the counter. His hands had barely left Tenzou's hips when the mokuton user slid forward and pressed their groins together, twisting his legs around Kakashi's waist. They kissed fast, hard, their pace punishing their lips. Tenzou dug his fingers into the muscles of Kakashi's back and the copy-nin nearly groaned in response.
Lightning fast, Kakashi whirled Tenzou around, knocking the salt and pepper over in the process, and strutted out of the kitchen with him. The one nice thing about living in basic accommodation was that his room was not far away. In a moment Kakashi was through his bedroom door, and without further ado, dropped Tenzou onto his bed. The younger shinobi managed one bounce before Kakashi was on top of him. They stared at each other, both panting, both red faced, both craving the other.
"Your bed is so cold." Tenzou whispered.
"It's always cold in here."
Kakashi crawled forward, knelt above Tenzou and promptly pulled his shirt over his head. As he tossed it to the ground, Tenzou sat up and frantically did the same for Kakashi. They came together again, bare chests pressed together, kissing almost desperately. Kakashi marvelled at how tiny Tenzou was, yet so well built. His hands roamed the mokuton users hard back, toned from years of training with a sword, from slicing other men to ribbons. Kakashi suddenly felt ferociously protective. He wanted to shield Tenzou from ANBU, from the kind of missions it would force him to be on. He wanted him to live a normal life, for Tenzou's eyes to always be willed with warmth, and never to be cold and dead like he knew his had been.
Kakashi snapped back to the present when he realized he was instinctively yanking down Tenzou's pants. He stopped for a moment and glanced at his kouhai, concerned he'd frightened him. Tenzou's eyes were glazed over, his pupils dilated with obvious arousal. There was no fear or hesitation in his features. He wanted Kakashi, and he definitely wanted his pants off. With a flick of his wrists and a quick yank, Tenzou was free of his bottoms and Kakashi was kissing a line down his neck. A little gasp escaped Tenzou's throat as his head fell back, exposing more flesh to his Senpai. Kakashi's lips ghosted over Tenzou's collar bone, down his chest, little goose-bumps peppering his skin. Tenzou's nipples were hard, so Kakashi teased one lightly with the tip of his tongue. Tenzou gasped and jerked, his head shooting up. He didn't say anything, just looked embarrassed, as if he hadn't been expecting the contact.
"Are you ok?" Kakashi asked with a smirk.
"Yeah...sorry." Tenzou murmured, his face aflame.
"I have a very good idea of what I want to do to you, but now I want to make sure you're ready."
Tenzou's face went from bashful to determined. "I like it, Senpai. I trust you. I just...didn't know...you could do that." he stammered, glancing down.
"You can pretty much do anything. Depends how dirty your mind is." Kakashi quoted from his favourite book, ridiculously thankful that there was no way in hell Tenzou would ever read it.
His kouhai looked incredibly embarrassed and obviously stranded for ideas as to how dirty a persons mind could possibly get. Kakashi kept eye contact as he bent down again, nipping Tenzou's nipple gently, and grinning as the mokuton user yipped and moaned. Tenzou was far too bashful to continue watching Kakashi and let his head fall back again as Kakashi continued kissing down his chest. He could feel Tenzou's breath quicken the farther down he went, as if his body knew what was coming, even if Tenzou himself didn't.
Kakashi placed a kiss on Tenzou's abdomen before very casually flicking his tongue across the head of his penis.
"Ah!" Tenzou gasped, his hips bucking. He glanced down in shock, his eyes wide, but pleasantly surprised.
Kakashi stared at him, and when Tenzou gave no protests, dipped his head and sucked gently where his tongue had been. Tenzou's legs widened as his back slightly arched. Kakashi kissed a line down his length and Tenzou grasped the pillow ahead of him as his back pushed farther off the mattress.
"Oh...Senpai..." Tenzou moaned, his eyes squeezed shut.
Kakashi couldn't help but take all of Tenzou in his mouth, his desire to hear his voice and feel him squirm overtaking his original Icha Icha inspired idea of drawing everything out. Tenzou's thighs nearly crushed Kakashi's head as he moaned.
"Haaa!..haaa...Senpai, oh, oh..."
Tenzou arched so much he slightly scooted up the bed, but Kakashi kept with him and sucked hard. Tenzou moaned again, his legs opening. Kakashi sucked along Tenzou's length, swirling his tongue around the head of his penis before dipping down again. Tenzou's thighs were shaking and his breath was hitching, so Kakashi knew he was close. He slowed his ministrations, taking his time as he dragged his mouth down, flicking his tongue around the base, grasping Tenzou with his hand and pumping as his mouth pulled up again. It seemed the thing to do was swallow from the Icha Icha books, so when Tenzou breathed Kakashi's name and came with a long, light moan, Kakashi waited until he was done and sucked it down as fast as he could. Definitely...not the most pleasant texture or taste, which kind of made him second guess if he wanted to listen to the book on that tidbit.
Kakashi unconsciously wiped at the side of his mouth before glancing up. Tenzou was looking down at him, suddenly shy. He was holding the pillow to his chest, his legs folded up against his body. Kakashi smiled and crawled up the bed to sit beside him.
"You okay?"
Tenzou nodded vigorously, still not quite able to meet Kakashi's gaze. "Yes, Senpai. You..." he trailed off, bringing the pillow up to cover half of his face. Kakashi vaguely remembered him doing this before, on one of the first occasions they'd ever 'been together'. It was incredibly endearing that Tenzou became extremely shy and flustered after he discovered something 'new' with Kakashi. As if he still didn't know what to think, even after having experienced it.
"You...always make me feel so good." Tenzou breathed, and now, looked straight into Kakashi's eyes. Thick emotion danced across his face, his eyes slightly glistening. "I don't understand how you do it. But it's wonderful. Sometimes I...feel like I'll never be able to keep up. I just don't know anything, and you know so much."
Kakashi pulled Tenzou against him, feeling enormously guilty because lets face it; Kakashi had no damn idea what he was doing, either. Tenzou seemed to be one of the general populace who thought the copy-nin was some kind of Sexual Guru, when in reality, he was making everything up as he went along and using a soft-core porn book as his guide.
"Tenzou..." he breathed, gently running his fingers through his scalp. Kakashi had no choice but to at least partially fess up. His poor kouhai was basically feeling bad about himself for nothing. "I don't really know what I'm doing, either."
"You know a lot more than me..." Tenzou murmured against his Senpai's chest.
"Ah. No...not really. Whatever I know, I learned from a...mentor." he supplied, supposing that Jiraiya-sama was a sort of mentor. "He told me a thing or two, which has been helpful. But all of these things your experiencing with me for the first time...it's my first time, too."
Slowly, Tenzou tilted his head up and gazed at Kakashi. "...Really?"
"Yeah." he answered with a smile. "I wouldn't even let you touch me at first; remember?"
Tenzou did remember, and he felt like an idiot for forgetting. "Oh..."
They sat in comfortable silence for a moment as Tenzou processed what Kakashi said. "But, you're so good at everything."
"Maaaaa...weellll..." Kakashi stretched and folded his arms behind his head in what was a somewhat genuinely cocky gesture. "I suppose I'm just a natural. They do call me a genius, you know."
Tenzou laughed lightly, and from the mirth in his eyes, Kakashi could tell he was placated. It made the copy-nin feel good to know that he had helped, even a little. Being embarrassed about his virginity to another blatant virgin was just ridiculous, anyway.
Kakashi nearly jumped a mile when he felt something warm grind against his very raging erection. To his surprise, Tenzou's mirth had turned into impishness in less than a minute. At least...he thought it was impish. It was so hard to tell with Tenzou sometimes, who looked innocent no matter what he did.
"I can feel how hard you are, Senpai."
Kakashi stared. His hardness got a little harder. "Uh. Yah."
"You'll let me help?" Tenzou asked, his wide eyes basically asking Kakashi for permission to get him off. If it was even possible, he felt himself stiffen further.
"You can do whatever you feel comfortable with."
After just the slightest pause, Tenzou leaned forward and kissed Kakashi., obviously having no qualms about where his mouth had just been. The older jounin gasped lightly, but his partners lips were gone as quickly as they'd come. Soon he was watching Tenzou's face slowly retreat as his kouhai crawled down his body. A thought crossed Kakashi's mind and he grasped Tenzou's chin lightly before he was out of reach.
"When I tell you to, take your mouth away and finish me with your hands."
Tenzou stared in confusion. "I...don't remember that part."
"Just trust me." Kakashi instructed with a smile.
The mokuton user couldn't help but smile back. "Okay." he whispered, before turning back to his current goal.
No damn way was that gunk touching any part of Tenzou's body, especially his mouth.
The part of Kakashi that was irrationally protective of Tenzou forbade it.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
After laying lazily against one another for around an hour, both of their stomachs began to protest their abandonment of dinner. With many sighs, the two put pants on and shuffled back to the kitchen. It amazed Kakashi how something as simple as merely enjoying Tenzou's presence, and continued lack of clothing, soothed him. His apartment felt warmer than it ever had, and Tenzou's smile made him feel lighthearted and free.
Everything had been left mid-preparation so it wasn't difficult for them to get going again. In no time dinner was ready, and the two knelt at Kakashi's small table and enjoyed it. The copy-nin had never wished for Sake so much in his life; for some reason it just seemed perfect for the occasion. Thankfully he'd never taken to drinking pathetically by himself, so he had no form of alcohol what-so-ever in his apartment.
The thought of a drunk, depressed Kakashi was a pretty damn scary one. Someone would lose an eye for sure.
"This is great, Senpai." Tenzou said as politely as he could around a mouthful of chicken.
"Thanks. I found the recipe on the back of a noodle box. I should read the back of boxes more often..."
"I never considered cooking like this before. We just ate what we had to in Root."
Kakashi frowned around his food. Just the mention of that piece of shit organization full of maniacs made his stomach churn. "That's because it was shitty there." he answered flatly.
Tenzou blinked in surprise. Then, he laughed, having to swallow some water quickly not to choke on his food. "Yes...it was 'shitty', Senpai."
Comfortable silence descended on them for a moment as they enjoyed a bit more of their dinner. Tenzou poked his rice around, something obviously on his mind. He looked like he was working up the will to say something. Kakashi was utterly oblivious, since he was trying to eat at a normal pace and not inhale his entire dinner. Damn he was starving. Stupid uncontrollable sexual urges.
"Kakashi-senpai..."
The copy-nin glanced up in mild surprise. Tenzou barely ever said his name anymore.
"You've gotten a lot better." The young shinobi continued with obvious hesitation. He seemed to be gauging Kakashi for his reaction, if he would accept the direction the conversation was going. In truth, it made the copy-nin's heart swell to hear Tenzou's opinion. After all, his kouhai had been the first one to really suffer because of his deep-buried issues. If anyone should have a say in Kakashi's improvement, it was him.
"Thank you, Tenzou." Kakashi answered softly as he smiled. "I feel a lot better, truthfully..."
"Even with your friends. I noticed a difference in just one day."
Kakashi glanced down at his food, suddenly slightly bashful. Sharing was still a little difficult for him, so he found it hard to formulate the kind of words he wanted to.
"I have you to thank for a lot of it, Tenzou. I wouldn't be where I am now if it wasn't for you."
Tenzou stared, his dinner pressed against his chest, as if it represented something precious to him. He curled into himself slightly before he spoke. "I...think about that all the time. But, with you...everything I get to experience now..." he stopped, looking slightly embarrassed. "I'm glad you feel better. You deserve to be happy, Senpai. And surrounded by people who care about you."
The two ninja sat there in thick, heavy silence, the affection shared between the two of them a weight on their lungs. Neither of them wanted to ruin this moment, but both of them wanted to speak. If it wasn't clear before, the fact that they were both increasingly important to each other was now blatantly obvious. Things were heading in a direction that terrified and excited Kakashi. It scared Tenzou, too. Both of them felt safer than they'd ever felt, yet completely vulnerable.
Finally, Kakashi gently lay his bowl down on the table. He stood fluidly, progressing the three short steps he needed to reach his kouhai. They stared at one another, both their chests heaving slightly as their hearts beat erratically. Kakashi knelt, crossed his legs, and scooped Tenzou into his lap. His subordinate did as he was bade, straddling Kakashi's waist, the two facing each other. Kakashi gently brushed his fingers down the sides of Tenzou's face, gliding them through the few strands of hair that fell in his way. He leaned forward, his fingers hold on Tenzou's face tightening slightly, and pressed a slow, deep kiss to his lips. Their mouths opened wide, tongues touching, speaking. Kakashi heard the barest little whimper from Tenzou, felt his thighs shaking just slightly. They kissed and kissed, slow and deep, eyes squeezed shut, hearts racing.
When their lungs could handle no more, they stopped, pulling apart only as far as they needed to. Kakashi did not let go of Tenzou's face. They seemed to be breathing in time with one another.
"If you care, then don't leave." Kakashi choked out, unable to meet Tenzou's gaze.
Tenzou was confused, as he didn't think he'd ever given Kakashi that kind of impression. "Why would I leave...?"
"Everyone leaves me."
The mokuton user paused in understanding. He chewed on his lip, unsure of how to answer. He'd seen so much death...how could a shinobi ever guarantee his life?
"I have more of a reason to live now than ever, Senpai. I'll train hard, and fight harder. It's all I can do for you."
Kakashi kissed him again, harder than before. Tenzou felt as if he could drown.
"I guess I'll take that." Kakashi chuckled around Tenzou's lips.
They embraced wordlessly, their kiss still glistening on their lips.
What happiness could a shinobi have?
Time would tell.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
THE END!
Haha, kidding. I'm gonna write an epilogue. Truthfully, I'm kinda sad to end this fic, because I do really enjoy writing these two. But, as I'm sure you all have noticed, it's harder and harder for me to put chapters out in a decent amount of time. I actually may get WAY more free time very soon, in which case I may just extend this fic or start another one. We'll see! MAYBE I'll finish Better Having Met You...I really didn't want to leave that fic hanging like that.
Thanks so much for reading, and for all your reviews 3 3