Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi immediately made their way to the Hokage Tower, ducking and dodging anyone who might try to stop and question them.
It had been almost funny to see the looks of astonishment on Tsunade's and Shikamaru's faces when they first stepped into the office. However, before anyone could say anything, Naruto had gone off on a tangent about teamwork and comrades and had insisted that the entirety of Team 7 be present to help figure out Kakashi's predicament.
Kakashi seemed uncertain, but the other three shinobi in the office, already familiar with Naruto's antics, gave him exasperated looks. However, none of them opposed him because they all knew that when Naruto decided to do something, it was nearly impossible to change his mind.
And so Sasuke found himself standing in the middle of the Hokage's office, a silent, young Kakashi at his side, ignoring the grating voices of his other two teammates as they argued.
He shot sideways glances at the silver-haired Jounin, trying to get a read on his expression but the young shinobi's eyes always seemed to find the blonde.
Sasuke supposed it made sense. Naruto had an uncanny resemblance to his father, and of what little he knew of his former sensei, there were three things he knew for certain.
The fourth Hokage, Naruto's father, was Kakashi's Sensei.
Kakashi got his Sharingan from Obito Uchiha
And everyone kakashi had ever loved was dead.
He wasn't 100% certain whether the final statement rang true for this version of Kakashi, but based on observation alone, he decided to take and educated guess and say probably.
"Wait, so he's like 30 right now?" Naruto exclaimed, waving a finger at the younger version of his sensei. "He looks way younger than that!"
"Naruto, you're not listening!" Sakura barked out, eyebrow twitching as she struggled to remain calm.
"He's lost about 13 years, so he's not 32 anymore. He's 19," Shikamaru interjected as he took another drag of his cigarette, blowing the smoke out the window. The puzzled look didn't leave Naruto's face.
There was a pause and then Sakura asked,
"Wait, Naruto. How old did you think Kakashi-sensei was?"
"I don't know, like 50, or something."
The room was silent as they all stared at Naruto.
"I mean, all his hair is gray!" Naruto defended.
Tsunade barely managed to contain a bout of laughter as her shoulders began to shake.
Shikamaru brought two fingers to the bridge of his nose and let out a sigh, looking exasperated.
Sasuke was unsurprised, but turned his face to hide the slight uptick of the corner of his mouth.
"You idiot," Sakura breathed, fists shaking at her sides.
Kakashi looked unimpressed by the amusement at his expense.
Naruto grinned, looking pleased to have brightened the atmosphere in the room.
"Right!" Tsunade exclaimed as she slammed a fist down on her desk, expression serious once again. "Let's get back to the task at hand, shall we? Uchiha, explain the situation," she barked.
"Shouldn't we be waiting for Yamato and Sai to come back before we talk about this?" Naruto shouted out.
"They're out of the village for the next week, Naruto. We can't afford to delay this for that long. Uchiha, proceed." Tsunade replied sternly.
Everyone listened intently as Sasuke described the past few days in detail.
"And you really don't remember anything, Hatake?" Tsunade questioned, a single eyebrow raised.
"Actually, there was something. The last thing I remember is a man with red hair and purple eyes, probably of Uzumaki descent," at that Tsunade and Shikamaru exchanged a quick glance. "I think he caused the injury to my neck somehow. Then Uchiha-san found me unconscious in the forest," he finished.
"And you failed to inform the Uchiha of this because?" she demanded, giving him a stern look.
"No, sir." Shikamaru almost dropped his cigarette at the formal address, and Sasuke heard the Nara mutter something that sounded suspiciously like "troublesome".
"Do you remember sending one of your summons back to the village with an injured shinobi two days ago?" The lazy Nara drawled from his spot at the window sill.
"No, sir." Shikamaru almost dropped his cigarette at the formal address and Sasuke heard the Nara mutter something that sounded suspiciously like "troublesome".
"Too bad. Hisato-san fell into a coma shortly after he was brought in. We're not sure when he will wake up. He's bound to know more about our predicament. In the meanwhile we'll have a chat with that summon of yours, what was his name?" Tsunade asked no one in particular as she rifled through the mountain of papers littering her desk.
"Bull," Shikamaru provided.
"I'll summon him right away, Tsunade-sama," Kakashi said as he prepared to perform the jutsu.
"Not so fast, brat. You need to get checked out by a medic before you even think of using your chakra,"
"I'm fine, really- " Tsunade cut him off with the wave of her hand. "No excuses this time, Hatake. You're going to the hospital and that's that."
"Yes, Hokage-sama," Kakashi replied as he bowed.
Sasuke raised his eyebrows slightly at the show of obedience.
Everyone else in the office seemed unsettled by the unfamiliarity of the action as well.
"I forgot what a somber kid you were," she said as she eyed him with her hand on her hips.
"Naruto and Sakura, take Kakashi to the hospital. Make sure he isn't seen by anyone just yet. There should be some cloaks in one of the rooms down stairs. And Sakura I need you to perform the examination personally. Then all of you come back here for further instruction once that's done. Uchiha, you stay here. I still haven't heard your yearly report," she ordered as she went back to rummaging through the mess in front of her.
"Yes, Tsunade-shishou," Sakura replied, not daring to show any emotion.
"No problem, Baa-chan!" Naruto gave a smile and thumbs up, but Sasuke could see the latent concern in his expression.
He watched the three of them leave with a considerable amount of envy. All he wanted to do was to go and get some rest, which reminded him that he still had no place to stay - Naruto's ratty old couch was sounding better and better by the minute. However, he had a feeling he wouldn't be leaving the tower anytime soon.
Tsunade finally seemed to pull out the document she was looking for and motioned for Sasuke to take a seat.
"I'm sure you know we didn't just keep you here for your report," she said twirling a pen in her hand.
He felt his stomach drop at the mischievous expression on the woman's face.
"That can wait for now. Tell us about the Kakashi incident again. Spare no details."
He'd better get comfortable.
Sasuke sighed and began to recount the events of the past two days once again.
Kakashi followed the two shinobi out of the office, still reeling from all the new information he had learned in the past few hours. Apparently, he was now a Jounin sensei. And thirty-two years old. It was utterly baffling. He had never imagined he would make it to his thirties, let alone become a sensei.
It had been a shock to see Naruto at the village gates. He couldn't stop himself from staring the blond. He could have been the Fourth's twin, but his personality was very much like Kushina's. Although, he did seem to have Minato's charisma and knack for persuading people to believe in him.
He observed the two shinobi in front of him, both of whom were apparently part of his genin squad. Although they seemed to snap at each other and bicker constantly, he could sense the underlying closeness between them. The kind only present among comrades in arms. The final member of the squad, however, seemed removed from it all. This led Kakashi to wonder whether Sasuke had indeed been telling the truth about being away from Konoha for so long.
He couldn't jump to any conclusions yet; he needed more time to observe the three.
As soon as the thought entered his mind, he was stunned and immediately began to quash the idea. It had been a long time since he'd found himself interested in anything, and it had been an even longer time since he'd felt anything but apathy towards others. But something about these three, and knowing that he had been the one to teach them, had sparked an interest within him.
No, he thought again. He couldn't afford to become attached. In the end, they always left him. They always died. Just because it hadn't happened yet in this time, didn't mean it wouldn't happen again.
"Here, Sensei, wear this," Naruto said passing him a plain black cloak.
"Stop calling him that," the pink-haired kunoichi, Sakura, chastised.
"But he's Kakashi-Sensei!"
"He doesn't even remember teaching us… or he hasn't taught us yet? whatever. It would be like if I started calling you Naruto-Sensei out of the blue," she said.
"It has a nice ring to it," Naruto replied with a thoughtful expression, which quickly morphed into a frown. "But it sounds kind of weird coming from you, Sakura-chan," he teased, crossing his arms over his chest and looking down at her.
"Fool! Just shut up and let's go," she said attempting to look stern but was unable to hide her obvious fondness for the blond.
The exchange caused a warm feeling to bloom deep within Kakashi's chest.
"You can follow our lead, Kakashi-san," Sakura announced as they exited the tower. "The village is probably a little different from the one you remember."
As they made their way swiftly through the streets, he realized she was right. Everything seemed out of place, and all the buildings appeared to have been rebuilt. He wondered what could have caused such a complete reconstruction.
Naruto and Sakura ushered him into the building through the bustling corridors and into a secluded wing of the hospital.
"Naruto, wait here and guard the door. Don't let anyone in, not even nurses, unless I say otherwise," Sakura said as they stood outside one of the private examination rooms.
"Sure, Sakura-Chan."
"Kakashi-san, you come with me and we'll get started on your exam," she said with a reassuring smile.
He nodded and stepped into the clinical room, situating himself on the cot.
The door made a soft clicking sound as it was shut, and Sakura made her way to his side.
"I should probably introduce myself again, since you probably have no idea who I am. My name is Sakura Haruno. I'm a medic-nin and you were my Jounin sensei," she said with a small smile.
"Kakashi Hatake," he responded automatically, and then immediately cringed at his own impulsiveness. "But you knew that already," he added awkwardly.
She chuckled lightly. "No worries, Kakashi-san. I would probably react the same way if I were in your situation. Ready to begin?"
He nodded, trying his best to fight off the embarrassment threatening to tint his cheeks pink.
Luckily, Sakura didn't seem to notice as her hands began glowing green with the diagnostic jutsu. She let them rove over his body, stopping above his neck several times.
"The wound on your neck appears to be an isolated injury, but I'd like to take a closer look at it. Please remove your shirt and mask." She pointed to a shelf. "You can find some surgical masks over there. I'll turn around and wait for your signal that you're ready."
Kakashi found himself immensely thankful that this kunoichi knew about his strange quirks. He had no desire to feel any more vulnerable than he already did in this strange, new Konoha.
Once he was ready, she turned around and began to closely examine his wound.
Her eyebrows drew together tightly as she inspected the injury.
"This is odd," she said just above a whisper. "It… it looks like a seal. Does it hurt?" She asked, prodding lightly at the spot.
"Not anymore," Kakashi replied, feeling uneasy about being marked in such a crude way.
"Whatever it is, it seems to be the cause of your… Regression. It's inactive right now so it shouldn't cause any more problems. Nonetheless, I would suggest you avoid using your chakra for a few days at least. I'll need to take some pictures for Tsunade-sama, then we can head back to the tower. Other than that, you have a clean bill of health."
They finished up and headed back out of the exam room.
"Everything alright?" Naruto asked, looking extremely serious for the first time since Kakashi had arrived.
"Don't worry about it for now. We'll just have to keep an eye on it." she responded.
And uneasy atmosphere settled between the three of them as they departed for the tower.
Kakashi felt a pit form in his stomach. Seals were never a good sign.
Sasuke really wanted to crash.
It had been at least two hours since the others had left, and he found himself wanting to give into his exhaustion more and more. Tsunade and Shikamaru were still arguing over the Kakashi situation, leaving him alone with his thoughts. He wondered how Kakashi was, what he must be feeling. It couldn't be easy dealing with all the information that had just been unloaded on him. There was another knock on the door, and the three shinobi re-entered.
"Sakura, update me."
Sakura obediently walked over to Tsunade and they began speaking amongst each other in a hushed tone.
Sasuke watched Naruto and Kakashi carefully. He could tell this was bothering Naruto. He saw right through the hastily planted fake smile across his face. Kakashi, on the other hand, was unreadable. His face took on the same grave expression that it always seemed to have.
"Alright brats listen up," Tsunade commanded.
They all stood to attention awaiting her next orders.
"We can't let anyone in the village know what's going on with Kakashi. There could very well be spies within our ranks. I will inform only the most highly trusted shinobi within our village, and that includes all of you. Since we can't risk Kakashi being seen, he'll have to stay with one of you."
Team 7 exchanged glances before Naruto shouted out "Oh! oh! He can stay with me, Baa-Chan! I don't mind at all. You wanna stay with me right sen-"
"Shut up Naruto, let shishou finish! And stop calling him Sensei!"
This time when Sasuke looked at Kakashi he struggled to contain a smirk at the look of dread plastered across his face.
"That's not necessary, Naruto. I've already decided who he'll be staying with.." Tsunade continued as her eyes stopped on the broody Uchiha.
Sasuke felt the colour drain from his face.
"Since our dear Uchiha has no place to stay either, I've set up an apartment for the two of them near the village outskirts," she said, directing a look toward them both, warning them not to argue. "Do either of you have a problem with that?"
Sasuke remained silent, sending Tsunade a glare of his own. All he wanted to do was collapse onto a comfortable bed. How was he supposed to let his guard down with someone who was practically a stranger invading his space?
Kakashi shot Sasuke a quick glance in his peripheral vision before replying, "No problem, Hokage-sama."
"Alright, then. One other thing. You're banned from using your chakra for a week. With your injury, there are still too many uncertainties, and we can't be too careless. Naruto and Sakura, you're dismissed. Hatake and Uchiha, Shikamaru will take you two to your apartment. Have fun boys."
With that the shinobi began to leave.
"How come the bastard gets to stay with Kakashi-sensei? I'd be a way better roommate!" Naruto exclaimed as they exited the office.
"I doubt he'd survive 10 minutes living with you, dobe," Sasuke quipped.
"You really are the same asshole, huh?" Naruto retorted, folding his arms over his chest, unable to contain a tiny smile.
"Hn." Sasuke said with a hint of fondness.
Sasuke could've sworn he saw Kakashi smile a little.
This whole cohabitation thing was going to be interesting.
Later that night in Tsunade's office, Shikamaru sighed heavily as he flipped through the photos of the seal on Kakashi's neck.
"Looks like they're coming for Konoha next," he said gravely.
"We have to be on our guard Shikamaru. They couldn't have done something like this without inside information. First Kumo and Kiri, now Konoha. I wouldn't be surprised if Gaara and the old fence-sitter contact us within the next few weeks," Tsunade replied.
"You mean to tell me that they have spies in every hidden village?"
"It's possible. With the way Uzashio went down, I'm surprised they didn't try to make a move earlier. This just proves that the cycle of hatred can never truly be broken. Someone always wants revenge."
"Have we learned any other details about the group?" he asked.
"I've been in correspondence with the other Kage. No-one knows a thing. Just that they are connected to Uzashio."
"Has anyone else survived the seal?"
"All the others disappeared within 6 hours of being marked. I have no idea how the brat managed to survive. Hisato-san is in a coma, and we still have to wait another two weeks before we can interrogate that damned summon!" Tsunade said, her voice filled with frustration at their inability to do anything.
"We should count our blessings. We can't afford to lose one of the village's strongest shinobi. Especially when he's next in line to become Hokage. It's not an ideal situation, but he's still alive. We'll just have to hope that it's reversible," he said, giving the photos another once-over.
"I'll send scouts to the area Kakashi was found. Other than that, all we can do is now is wait."
Shikamaru set the documents down and began to light another cigarette. He stared out the window contemplatively. He couldn't help but notice that there was no moon out tonight.