DISCLAIMER: I own nothing from the Naruto universe but I do have an imagination of my own.

Thinking

Biju, etc. speaking

Biju, etc. thinking

Emphasis

Naruto and Kakashi chatted all the way to Ichiraku's, enjoying each other's company. At least one person on a roof above them noted how physically close the two were as they walked… at night. That person also noticed Naruto's smiles - different from the ones she usually gave out in abundance. Her smiles as she walked along slowly with The Porn Addict were tender, smaller, and definitely genuine. Iruka was going to kill the masked bastard, and soon! How dare Porn-san mess with his little sister!

Iruka Umino jumped down from the rooftop and into the shadows, following every move his deviant senpai made. Things just weren't getting any better: first, his best-friend Mizuki turned traitor, and now he had to stop a pervert from "persuing" his little Naruto-chan.

To those who didn't know him, Kakashi seemed relatively normal as he walked into the ramen stand if his oh-so-aloof expression and slouchy posture were anything to go by. But Iruka did know Kakashi from when the two were in ANBU. He didn't know him well, a fact he was grateful for, but he knew him well enough to see that something was going on - going amiss, as far as Iruka was concerned - between the Copy Nin and his little sister.

First, the man didn't have his beloved porn out, which should've meant this could be marked as a national holiday. Secondly, he could see his sister's harasser being affected by the little blonde, considering his cycloptic soft expressions. That, he believed was understandable, Naru-chan was sweet and sadly in his opinion, a beautiful young woman.

The nerve of her growing up!

She certainly wasn't grown up enough to deal with the village's heartbreaker, though. Actually, that's a title better assigned to Genma-senpai…

Kakashi might not be as bad, but Iruka had heard enough rumors about the Hatake's conquests to know that Naruto was in no way a challenge to the last Hatake, because at heart she was just a sweet, innocent girl. Finally, he actually saw the Copy Nin laugh - or at least chuckle a bit - which just seemed wrong! Everyone knew that Kakashi was a bastard who only slightly lessened his stoicism around his subordinates, and then it was only to harass them!

.

Kakashi sat down at Ichiraku's ramen counter, a place he had avoided as much as possible for years. There were too many memories here: memories of Obito and Rin... He had even more memories of his sensei and Kushina-nee sucking down ramen like there was no tomorrow just to come back and do it again the next day. Kakashi had been here only a few times since those days of old. Everyone he knew believed that the Ichirakus made the best ramen in the Elemental Nations, so of course he had been forced back into the stand by his various mission teammates or subordinates on occasion.

"Well look who we have here! I almost can't believe my eyes… Ayame-chan, get out here girl! You'll never believe it!" Teuchi hollered the last part toward the prep room behind the kitchen. Ayame came forward, her eyes bugging out of her head.

"Na - Naruto-chan?" The blonde nodded her head at the girl. "Oh, Kami! Look at you! You're so beautiful!" Ayame ran around the counter and encompassed the shorter girl in a giant hug. "I just can't believe it: you're out here like this? Oh! Kakashi-san, right? It's so good to see you again, too!" Ayame bowed to the Jonin.

Kakashi gave a polite nod back, but at Kakashi's confused expression, Teuchi explained. "You see Kakashi-san, Naru-chan here disappeared on us for a while many years ago." Naruto ducked her head. "Then she turned back up about a year later - well, not exactly," he chuckled. "How can I put it? She wasn't exactly herself." At this point Naruto was covering her face, interesting Kakashi even more.

"How did you even know it was me at first? You know I don't remember…" Naru began.

"Aa, it was the way you said "troublesome" so darned sarcastically." Naruto hit her head softly into the wooden counter. "Naru-chan began coming here with Shikaku-san's family - you know he'd stopped showing up here as often as he had before..." He gave Kakashi a sad look that the Hatake understood all too well. Shikaku had probably stopped coming to their establishment for the most part after the Yondaime and Kushina's deaths.

For the first time, Kakashi wondered just how much business the Ichirakus lost when the couple passed. Considering their voracious ramen appetites and thus salaries they paid out to the stand, plus the couple's friends who had been dragged in so many times for more than a decade. It was probably too hard to come here for them like it was for him: there were just too many good memories that they knew wouldn't continue here.

"Anyway, the first time I didn't realize it was you, Naru-chan," Teuchi continued. "You see, Kakashi, the little missy here had disguised herself as a Nara - and she really looked the part, too." Teuchi gave her a mischievous smile. "But that Nara wasn't nearly as laid-back enough to be a real one: I knew it immediately." Naru was fighting her blush "She was too hyper and distracted."

"I really just wanted to order some ramen, not take a walk down memory lane!" Naru whined.

"Testy brat!" Teuchi scolded. "She finally told us who she was and asked us to keep it a secret. But to see you like yourself now, Naruto-chan," Teuchi shook his head as his smile turned sad. "You look just like… you're all grown up, ne? Got your hitai-ate and everything, I see." Naruto smiled proudly at the first man to ever give her a warm meal and nodded her head eagerly. Teuchi looked at Kakashi, "You know we thought she was a boy until she corrected us!"

"Rude!" Naru pouted. "Unbelievably rude! Why do I even come here?! Yeah, yeah, yeah: best ramen in the world - I know that's what you were going to say - don't even start, Ramen-sama."

"You better believe it, kiddo!" Teuchi laughed before giving Kakashi a significant look. "You know, Kakashi-san, it's really good to see you here with our favorite blonde." Teuchi's left eyebrow was raised at the silver-haired man, whether questioning him or in accusation, Kakashi couldn't tell.

Kakashi was nearly overwhelmed with guilt as Teuchi took their orders. Whether or not that look the ramen stand owner gave him was accusatory or something else, it reminded him once again of how he had avoided and neglected his sensei's child for so many years. The Ichirakus - and probably many others, too - had undoubtedly expected him to be at least watching out for his "little sister," and yet he had done nothing. Gods, how sensei must be disappointed in me. The Jonin felt a hand fall gently on his arm. Looking up, he met Naruto's concerned blue eyes.

"Are you alright?" Naru asked softly. He nodded his head, so filled with guilt and memories that he couldn't speak. Naru leaned closer to him a bit, her hand softly moving back and forth a bit along his upper arm. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and sure enough, Killing Intent came in sharply from behind him. At least it was being reigned in and was only directed at him: but that was quite a skill.

Not good… Kakashi gave Naruto what he hoped was a convincing smile. He took the hand she was trying to comfort him with into his own sweetly, but then moved it to the table.

Naruto realized that Kakashi was subtly checking his surroundings.

Kakashi spotted the source of the KI: Iruka Umino, AKA Man with a Thousand Weapons, AKA The Deranged Dophin. The fuck's his problem? The Dolphin was staring right at him, looking very angry.

An angry Iruka-san was never a good thing. Kakashi had been forced on ANBU missions with the hot-tempered agent in the past. Kakashi wasn't one to negatively report on his subordinate's actions unless they were treasonous or nearly so, or if their actions might endanger his comrades. The Dolphin was one that he was forced to make a report on. The ANBU captain hoped that it would lead him to psychiatric help. (A voice in Kakashi's head scoffed at that. Who was he to talk about getting that kind of assistance?! Kakashi had never gone in for it, no matter how many times he was ordered to do it!)

The Hatake had been glad at the time that the pony-tailed man had decided on another career option after discussing his reported actions with the Hokage. That was until the Jonin found out that the new career Iruka-san had chosen was teaching as an Academy sensei.

His thought at the time: how would the next generation of shinobi survive?

From his self-appointed investigations over the years, Kakashi learned that the Dophin was actually a good and fair sensei. How the man's students reported him as helpful and KIND of all things, Kakashi couldn't imagine. But why was he was releasing Killer Intent on and glaring at him right now? To Kakashi that meant one thing: same old Iruka.

He watched through the corner of his eye as the chunin approached, hands in fists, looking like he wanted to kill him. Fat chance, Kakashi thought, preparing himself to defend the stand owners and his wife from seeing anything too awful.

"Iruka-sensei!" His little wife greeted the threat happily, going so far as to give him a hug. Kakashi was popped on his ear by a wooden spoon.

"You're growling son! Knock it off," Teuchi hissed in warning, frowning up at him while shaking his head. Teuchi was old enough to remember Sakumo, Kakashi's father, doing the same thing.

It had only taken that slight distraction to allow the dolphin to pull his little wife away from her stool. Kakashi reigned in his temper as he watched the Academy teacher hold onto his wife's arm and say something to her. Naruto laughed and Kakashi felt possessiveness and anger that he knew he needed to keep at bay. It's not right to feel that way about her! He continued watching the asshole, even as his wife pulled him into another hug.

Iruka's face turned from tan to red, as he smiled sheepishly. Naruto had just whispered something into his ear that she was supposed to never remind him she even knew of, or Kami forbid admit out loud to anyone: she had promised! His relationship with Anko-chan was top secret! How she even found out he'd never know, but the blonde loved to torture him - almost as much as Anko, in a different way, of course. He felt himself blushing again thinking of his snake mistress as he was pulled into the ramen stand.

Kakashi had seen Naruto hug his latest nemesis and the blush that followed on the Dolphin's face. He took that blush to mean something entirely different from what had really caused it. Kakashi forced himself not to snarl out loud or worse at the thought of his Naruto-chan's quite striking breasts being pressed against the Chunin and figured the Dolphin was embarrassed in being seen getting off to it. "Excuse us, Naru-chan," Kakashi said smoothly to his little wife as he took her from the other male and held her against his side firmly, moving her toward the kitchen.

Naruto watched, wondering what the heck Iruka-sensei and Kakashi were whispering about. She was further shocked when Teuchi stepped toward them and knocked the two men on the tops of their heads with a ladle in each hand. "That's enough you two. Your testosterone poisoning is going to ruin my noodles! Maybe you should come back a little later, ne sensei?"

Iruka nodded his head at the ramen chef, offering a small apologetic smile. Turning, he then glared at Kakashi, pointing to his eyes with his index and middle finger, then hastily pointing them back at the Jonin.

What the hell was that? And what the hell is testosterone poisoning?! Naru wondered to herself. Of course, she was never alone…

"Honestly, you can be such a moron, kit. Not that this surprises me, but you really need to pull your head out of your ass."

"But what's happening, Kurama?" Naruto asked.

"Entertainment."

"I just want them to be friends! I thought they were friends," Naruto pouted.

"And I just want fireworks, kit: fireworks and worshipers." And the fireworks have already begun! Kurama really was in need of entertainment.

Naruto hated when the fox got that gleeful look in his red eyes: nothing good ever came of it for her.

Kakashi stayed close to his wife as they ate, unable to speak much because of his frantic thoughts and self-reprimands. She's young. We were forced together into a marriage that's only made of paper. For now... He scolded himself for that small part of him who wanted a partner. What kind of thought is that?

And since when do I feel that way?

Give me a break, Kakashi internally argued back at himself. He'd look down at Naru-chan occasionally, seeing her downing ramen at a frightening pace. He was right about her, he decided. Between ramen, eggplant, and three kids, he needed to start saving for the future again. He shivered at his thoughts. What's wrong with me?!

Seeing that Kakashi had earlier finished, Naru stood up from her stool and smiled at her former sensei... and current husband. "Thank you, Kakashi, for bringing me here."

The silver-haired Jonin got up and pulled her into an odd hug faster than she could consider it, sunshinning them back to the Nara estate. She was in shock at first when she found herself still in Kakashi's awkward embrace, his face down in the top of her hair. He seemed to take note of her scent as he inhaled deeply, before literally jumping backward, saying good night and sunshinning away. Naru stood staring at the spot he had just been in, completely taken aback. She shook her head and entered the Nara home.

Opening her bedroom door, she was surprised to find Shikamaru sitting on her bed and looking miserable. He stared at her and sagged further against the headboard. "Hey you, what's going on?" she asked. Naru was really concerned; it was rare for Shika to show this much emotion.

"Troublesome."

"Well that's really helpful," she replied sarcastically. "Not."

"Tonight's really your last night here," the Nara stated, holding both a toad and a ramen pillow that lived on her bed - or so she said.

"Hai." Now she knew why he was so upset. Although Naru was anxious about moving completely out of the Nara residence, she was also excited about starting her new life with Kakashi, living together in their home. "You know I'll still be around, Shika… You're my family, after all." They rarely talked like this, but it was true nonetheless.

"Maa, it won't be the same," Shika said (whined) as he pulled out his ponytail holder. "And what that guy's going to do to you I don't…"

"Stop that, Shikamaru! What am I going to do with you, huh? I want you and Kakashi to get along! You need to stop being such a grumpy bastard to him," Naru advised. Shikamaru grunted.

"Watch it there, Naru-chan. Sasuke's the one you call bastard, remember? And it's a fitting name - always has been," Shika said quietly.

Naru agreed with her aniki on that, 100%. Shikamaru looked at her sadly. "What now, Naruto?"

"We'll be alright, Shika. We've got our seals to communicate through," Naru replied touching her silver and onyx fuuinjutsu-ed earring that matched his own. "Our team leaders are friends, plus…"

"It's been a long time since I've been around Asuma-sensei," Shikamaru interrupted.

Naru knew that she had seen Asuma more than her best friend had thanks to the Hokage, which made her feel guilty. Because of that, she rarely mentioned the Jonin to him. She had ultimately caused his death and ended up failing everyone in the end, after all.

"Last time I saw him was before you moved in with us, you know," Shikamaru continued.

Naru shook her head: she didn't know that.

"I've heard his voice recently when he's been near the Academy, but it's been difficult," Shikamaru continued, chuckling bitterly. "The first time... He'd been off with the Guardian 12, and Dad took me to the capital. I wasn't expecting to see him; never even thought of it. Some genius I am."

"What happened?"

Shikamaru groaned as he let out a loud sigh. "I must've been around four, and walked into a room in the palace, looking for Dad, and there he was, just like before - well, minus the cigarette for once…" He looked at Naruto with a little glint in his eyes. "Can you believe I broke down in tears? Kami, what an idiot. Asuma looked at me with these huge worried eyes; he even tried to comfort me! I ran away from him, straight into dad's arms. He'd just entered the room and thought Asuma had done something to me," he said with a soft snort. "They started arguing about it and I ran back outside. Eventually, Chiriku-sama found me and got me under control. He's good with stuff like that: peaceful and all."

"You were just a kid then, Shika," Naruto said, trying to comfort her older brother. "Chiriku's on our list of people to save, too. As soon as I get the opportunity, I'll be sealing up the entire Temple of Fire tight. I still haven't come up with a way to deal with Sora-kun effectively." Naru shook her head indignantly as she scratched her cheek. "Whenever I've mentioned him to Kurama, he either says just to 'kill the pretender' or offers to eat him."

Thinking of the jerk who had a sliver of Kurama's chakra sealed into him by his world's worst father, (maybe tied with Gaara's,) Shikamaru agreed lightheartedly. "Kami, that guy was a pain in the ass. Maybe you should take Kurama up on his offer."

"Oi. He's a jinchuuriki - a faux jinchuuriki, but still a jinchuuriki of sorts - so it's not surprising he's an ass. Most of us are, ya know."

Shikamaru hummed. "Not you," he stated seriously, looking deeply into her blue eyes. "I've never known how you do it, Naru-chan."

"I am exceptional," Naru boasted, her nose in the air. Shikamaru knew that she was joking; she never did have the self-confidence she very much deserved to have.

"You are," he said, watching Naruto blush and then glare at him. He snorted much like she did, which was troublesome. "Just don't let it go to your big blonde head."

They sat back against her pillows and argued over the size of her head - Naruto saying it was all hair that made it look that way. Shikamaru agreed that her head was full of hair and maybe air, and ended up being nearly strangled and noogied relentlessly. Troublesome blonde!

Finally stopping her attack, she sighed heavily. "Thanks for telling me about Asuma-sensei, Shika. It might prepare me for whenever I see Neji-kun."

Neji was a very sensitive topic for her, and although she'd asked about Hinata's cousin a few times, Shikamaru didn't have a lot of information.

"He was really in love with you," Shikamaru said softly, nudging his arm into Naru's shoulder.

"That's what he said… as he died in my arms," Naruto said sadly. "Such a fate-obsessed idiot," she added later, not meaning it.

Shikamaru smiled grimly at his little sister. "You know when you see him, he's going to be that dick we knew, right?" Naruto began to giggle, which turned into laughter. "Finally lost it, I see. Again."

Naru continued to laugh as she got out her thoughts. "I was just thinking about going over to their compound, dyeing the Hyuuga's laundry pink again, and dragging that 'fate' icepick right out of Neji's ass," she said quite seriously. "What do you say, Shika-kun? Want to make another raid on the Hyuuga Compound?"

"You're on your own with the Hyuugas, Naruto. And no, you're not going anywhere tonight. Tonight's for us, and anyone that says otherwise can kiss my formerly-lazy ass." He ignored Naru's mumbling about his ass still being lazy as she got comfortable: (it along with the rest of him, she was complaining.)

He was a Nara: their brains did the vast majority of their work! Working to prepare himself for their bitter future over his second life had been a drag. Arguing more with blondes had and would also be a drag, most likely. He bit his lip and grabbed the TV remote.

"What do you mean: tonight is for us?" Naruto asked as Shikamaru stood up.

"You've been gone all day, dumbass. I wanted to have one last day with my imouto and since you didn't bother to come home earlier, you're going to stay up with me all night." Appreciating but refusing to respond to her promise that she'd always be his little sister, he pulled out three movies. "I've got a Princess Gale flick you'll want to watch that I'm sure will be shitty, Shinobi Samurai, and Samurai Shinobi: The Jutsu is Back."

Naruto grimaced at the last movie he mentioned.

"Don't even," he went on. "If I have to watch your dumb Princess crap, you have to watch Jutsu. Just be glad that I couldn't find Shinobi Samurai III: Boogalu Ninjutsu In Paradise." Naruto burst into laughter at that title, putting her hands up in surrender as she arranged the pillows on her bed. One last night living as normal, not world-saving siblings together… just hanging out and doing stupid things? It sounded perfect.