A/N So I got into a car accident yesterday. I was out to pick up my groceries and stopped at a light. I picked up a piece of paper from my center console to spit my gum into and a freaking SPIDER jumped out and onto my hand. I freaked out enough that I lost control of my car and hit the guy in front of me. Thankfully he is fine and so am I and baby but my car is probably going to get totaled. It was already barely going to work for us with 5 kids and now it is going to look like shit too. We can't afford this. I hate this economy, high interest rates and BS insurance that doesn't do anything for you unless you're rich. Lame. Anyway. I am depressed so you get an extra chapter. Please leave me nice comments so I feel better.

Chapter 3

Sakura

One day into the past

They made their way to the training ground in uncomfortable silence. Occasionally, Sakura peeked at the familiar stranger beside her. He didn't quite have the bored swagger she remembered. His hands were buried in his pockets as they walked and he had a slight slouch, but it didn't seem nearly as relaxed as his older self. She had the strange idea that he was probably always on time.

Now that she had the chance to observe him more closely in the morning light, she was surprised at how little he would age over the next fourteen years. There were lines missing around the corners of his eyes and he was, perhaps, a little thinner than he would be someday, but he looked mostly the same.

She pursed her lips and patted her cheeks. Maybe the mask helped to keep his skin young, blocking the sun from almost all of his face. Should she wear a mask too? She didn't think of herself as vain as Lady Tsunade, but still…

"How do I lose my Sharingan?"

"Eh?" He had spoken so suddenly she nearly jumped. "Your Sharingan?" Why did he have to start with such a complicated question?

"I'm assuming it was fairly recent for you, since you didn't notice right away."

"I don't think I should tell you." She thought about it a little more. "Honestly, it's a long and complicated story, and considering all the details, I think it would be better if you just lived it."

"Hmm." He lapsed into silence again and she thought he was done with the questions… until, "Who is Kazuki?"

Her heart clenched. Kazuki. Her precious Kazuki. How long would it be until she saw him again? Would she ever see him again?

Dammit. She really needed to stop crying so much. It seemed like all she had done since landing in the past. But her nose burned and she could feel the tears already pooling in her eyes.

"Boyfriend?"

She barked out a laugh at the absurdity of it and wiped her eyes. "No. I don't think you should ask me any more questions."

"What's the point of spending so much time with someone who knows you in the future if you can't ask anything interesting?"

"Well…" Putting thoughts of loved ones from her mind, Sakura tried to think of something which might be safe to share. "I guess I've already called you 'Sensei'."

He tsk'd. "Please don't call me that."

She frowned. "Why not?"

He dropped his head to the side, his one exposed eye staring directly at her. "Seeing as I've already had you in my bed, it makes me feel a little…" His eye dropped to her chest, before looking away quickly. "...perverted."

Her face burned, but she laughed again. "Well, you are… just a little."

This time he stopped walking, sounding positively affronted. "What?!"

She only laughed harder. Gradually, she managed to get a few words out. "You're… always… and in public…" With him glaring at her, it was harder to stop. "Kakashi-san, do you read much these days?"

Unbelievably, a dark blush crept far enough up his face Sakura could see it above his mask, even coloring the tops of the one ear not covered by his hitai-ate. The sight left her so dumbstruck her laughter died at once, her own face flaming to match his. "Oh." She clapped her hands over her mouth. It had never occurred to her that he would have ever been embarrassed about his choice in reading material. "Oh my gosh. How long have you had it?"

"It's…" His voice cracked, and it took everything she had not to laugh again. "It's new." He cleared his throat and looked away, walking quickly towards the training ground again. "How do you know about that?"

"I don't think… as long as I've known you, you've ever been without at least one of those filthy Icha Icha books."

He slowed as she caught up, glancing down at her over his shoulder. "There's more of them?" When she smirked, he frowned and snapped his attention back to where he was going. "Never mind. Don't answer that."

Her laughter accompanied them the rest of the way.

By the time they reached their destination, Sakura had managed to get ahold of herself. The anticipation of what was to come took all of her focus. She sparred regularly with her friends, but it had been some time since she'd gone head-to-head with her Sensei.

She wondered how much his fighting style would change over the next fourteen years. Probably not significantly, at least until he lost his Sharingan. Having fought beside him regularly for eight years left her feeling fairly confident he wouldn't be able to surprise her.

On the other hand, this Kakashi had never seen her fight. The conversation with the Hokage may have given him some idea of what to expect, but she hadn't mentioned everything.

Bending over to stretch, she smirked. In so doing, she missed the way his dark eye lingered on her. "Rules?"

"No Sharingan." She chuckled. This was all too surreal. "I could always try to take your bells. I don't suppose you have any on you?"

Concerned when he didn't answer, Sakura stood and looked over at him. He was staring off at the three wooden stumps, a thoughtful expression on what she could see of his face.

"Hmm. I guess I really do it. Am I any good at it?"

She took a few steps to stand beside him. "You weren't… the worst at it?"

He frowned at her. "That's not especially a ringing endorsement."

She almost laughed. "You're a brilliant shinobi. Probably one of the best our village has. Teaching is… maybe not your greatest strength."

"Should I tell the Hokage 'no', then?"

How could she answer that? Objectively, he had not been a good sensei, especially for her. He'd always been more partial to Sasuke. But… in the end, she couldn't really look back and wish things had been different. If he had been competent, he might have helped Sakura grow just enough she didn't seek out Tsunade. And there was no denying how instrumental Jiraiya had been to Naruto.

Besides, he hadn't taught them nothing.

"No. It needed to be you."

He looked into her green eyes for a few seconds before turning away with a sigh. "Unfortunately, I haven't got any bells today."

She smiled and stepped back. "A spar it is."

KSK

Nearly two hours later they lay flat out on the ground, heads side-by-side, bodies akimbo, both panting with exertion. The Hokage had ordered him to get an idea of her fighting style and her various strengths and weaknesses. He must have had that figured out in under an hour.

They had carried on for an extra hour out of sheer competitiveness. Upon realizing how good she was, Kakashi had decided to take it more seriously. Then, neither of them wanted to back down.

"Who won?"

Raking a hand through sweat-soaked hair, he sighed. "I'm not sure. We're both on the ground."

"Huh." She looked down at her thigh where he'd managed to knick her. Focusing her Chakra, she reached down to heal it. "Too bad you didn't have any bells."

He snorted derisively. "You wouldn't have managed that."

She huffed a laugh, only a hint of mocking jest in her voice. "Oh, that's right. I have to be trying to kill you to get a bell. And it takes teamwork. Would you have tied me to one of the stumps if I took too long?"

After too long a silence, she tipped her head to look over at him… when she met his dark, almost amused gaze. He was smirking behind his mask. "Maybe."

Her belly flipped and her skin burned. Kakashi should not look at her like that. The stupid crush she had been trying so hard to ignore reared its head as she turned away too quickly, standing up to escape.

He is not for you. He belongs to her.

Kazuki's mother.

Shit.

Had he met her yet? Would she get to meet her? Would it mess the future up too much if she tried to save her?

"Do you have any injuries?"

He stood and stretched. "No. The one time you almost broke skin you pulled back." She looked him over quickly anyway, turning to head back when she decided she believed him. "I thought we were taking this seriously."

She rolled her eyes. "I was. That's why I pulled back. I realized at the last second I'd drawn a poisoned kunai. I'd rather not waste my supply of antidotes."

"Hmm. Logical."

He had started to follow when an ANBU suddenly appeared beside them. "The Hokage is ready for you." Before he left, he looked towards Kakashi and inclined his head. "Senpai."

And then he was gone.

"Was that…" She hadn't seen his face, and he was definitely shorter than the few brief encounters they had had, but something about him was eerily familiar. "Uchiha Itachi?"

Kakashi narrowed his eye, watching her face as if looking for any clue of the future. "Yes. Do you know him too?"

An uncomfortable knot was forming in Sakura's gut. She felt like she knew both too much and not nearly enough. For Sasuke's sake, part of her wanted to tell Kakashi, tell the Hokage everything she knew about Itachi and the Uchiha. But then again, interfering could have far greater consequences.

Hopefully, the Hokage would find a way to send her home.

"Something like that."

Without waiting for a response, Sakura took off for the Hokage's tower. Unfortunately, the few hours they'd been gone had not miraculously yielded the fruit she wished for, but at least now she had papers and a place to stay.

"Guess he's making this easy for me." Kakashi pointed at the top sheet of her new lease as they walked towards the exit of the Hokage's tower. "That's in the same building as mine."

"Oh." Hopefully not right next door. It was bad enough he'd be watching her pretty much constantly for the Hokage. She didn't need him listening through the walls. "Well, I'm not due at the hospital until tomorrow and now that I have a place to sleep, I think I'd like to rest. I don't think the reality of the situation has fully hit me yet." She sighed as they stepped onto the street. "I'd rather have some privacy for the inevitable breakdown."

They leapt up the nearest building and she followed him across the village to her new home. It was in the opposite direction of where she knew he and Kazuki lived in the future. Not having noticed when they'd left earlier that morning, she wondered when he moved.

When they landed in front of his apartment, he gave her a bored look and pointed across the hall. "You're there." He jabbed a thumb at his door. "I'm here. Knock if you need anything and don't go running off. There are likely at least two other ANBU watching you when I can't."

Great. No friends, no family, and not a whiff of privacy.

"I can't imagine where I'd go. I'll see you, I guess."

He nodded once, and then she let herself in. Her new apartment, bare but for the essential furniture, was a stark reminder of her situation. She was alone.

Back pressed against the door, she slid to the floor. The adrenaline from the morning wore off all at once. This was real, not some fucked-up dream. She was, at least for now, trapped fourteen years in the past.

Somewhere out there, her parents were going about their day, completely unaware. But they weren't her parents. She couldn't run home to them. They belonged to a six-year-old version of herself.

There was a little Ino and a little Hinata, a little Naruto and a little Sasuke who still knew the love of his parents and how to smile. And Sakura could not go to any of them. All she had was a strange new relationship of necessity with her former, future sensei, and an empty apartment.

One more time, she told herself. She would allow herself one breakdown, one more cry. Then, she would have to move on and live as best she could until she could go home.

The tears weren't like earlier. They weren't the few, the slow, the delicate wisps of hurt she had shed already since arriving. These tears were the large, the ugly, the rushing, pouring torrents of heartbreak and the sudden loss of everything.

Her chest ached and her throat burned from choking on sobs. She felt paralyzed.

For all she had been through in the last few years, Pain's attack, the war… She had survived relatively unscathed. Sure, she had lost friends, and people she cared about had lost loved ones. But none of her closest people, none of her family, had died. It was something she was thankful for every single day.

Now, in one afternoon, she'd lost them all.

So she wept. She mourned for their loss. At that moment, for all she knew they were lost to her forever. Maybe she would live out the rest of her life here, reliving the horrors and unable to reach anyone she loved. Maybe she'd die here, her life here grieved by no one.

And then there was the future she knew.

Would she change anything? Could she?

Should she?

It felt like too big a thing to wrestle with yet.

Having no more tears left, Sakura picked herself off the floor and threw herself on the bed. She could worry about what to do next later. For now, she needed sleep.

KSK

Kakashi

Kakashi leaned against the rail of his balcony. The sun was setting, and his stomach was beginning to bother him about dinner. He sighed and slid the small orange book he had been trying unsuccessfully to read back into his hip pouch. He was too distracted to read, and more than a little annoyed.

In the space of one morning, his entire life had been upended. For the last seven years, he had done very little outside of ANBU missions. He might have relaxed some recently, making the effort at forming friendships for the first time in years, but he still mostly worked. Genma complained he worked too much, and that the occasional night out with him and a still-reluctant Tenzō did not make for a satisfactory social life. Kakashi didn't care. He liked it that way. It was easier.

Now, he was essentially on forced leave. Following around a medic from the future was hardly even going to be work. Not only that, he was not going to be able to hide his boredom—and more worryingly his staring—behind his ANBU mask. He had no doubt he was going to have to work to keep his eyes to himself.

Haruno Sakura—or 'Hana', as he supposed he ought to be thinking of her to avoid mistakes—was pretty, to be sure. Her elbow-length pink hair was unusual, and for some reason he couldn't quite explain to himself, he wanted to run his fingers through it. But it wasn't entirely her looks which had caught his interest.

It wasn't every day a pretty girl fell out of the future and into a lonely shinobi's bed. Besides touching her hair and the wholly inappropriate desire to get her back in his bed, Kakashi was dangerously curious about her. Because surely, learning too much about the future was dangerous.

Right?

And then there had been their electrifying spar that morning. Hana was strong, extremely strong… and fast, and he had been forced to concede—if only to himself—if not for his Sharingan, in a real fight she might actually be able to kill him. He had lied about the bells. She would have had those too.

Even though she had fallen into his life and messed up his comfortable routine, Kakashi found himself thinking about her all day. In the shower, during his failed attempt at a nap, and every time he tried to read his new book. He needed to get a grip… which would likely be hard when he would be forced to spend so much time with her.

Stomach grumbling again, he decided she'd had enough time to rest. The Hokage had given her a substantial stipend for the month. She could buy him dinner. It was the least she could do.

Slipping into his shoes and tugging up his mask, Kakashi crossed the walkway to her door. He knocked once. Thinking she must still be asleep, he knocked again, louder this time.

"I'm coming!"

She threw open the door with more force than necessary. Her eyes were red and puffy and her clothes were rumpled. She had evidently thrown her hair up in a bun before sleeping and now it looked like some kind of animal nest.

Kakashi suddenly felt guilty for being so upset with his new assignment. For him, that's all it was: a temporary change in his day to day. She had lost everything and everyone she knew and loved, possibly forever. The evidence of her distress was written all over her tear stained cheeks.

That was something Kakashi understood all too well.

Hoping she'd be less depressed if she was annoyed with him, and feeling like needling her anyways, he wrinkled his nose. "You look gross."

The look she gave him was pure venom as she slammed the door in his face. He chuckled dryly to himself as he leaned against the door frame and waited, hoping he had guessed right and not just made her feel worse. Fifty-eight seconds later, she opened the door again.

Her eyes looked much better, probably some medical chakra trick. The animal nest was gone, her pink tresses now hanging freely down her back, both it and her outfit looking much neater.

She gave him a smile that felt positively dangerous. That definitely didn't make him feel any kind of way. Get a grip.

"How can I help you, Kakashi-san?"

He repressed a snort with great effort. "I thought we'd spend some of the ryō the Hokage gave you on dinner."

She scoffed and muttered something that sounded like cheapskate under her breath. "Presumptuous of you to assume I'd buy you dinner. Aren't you getting paid for following me around?"

He rolled his eyes and stepped aside so she could join him. "Fine. I'll buy next time." He would not.

She leveled him an incredulous glare as she locked her door. "I'll believe that when I see it." Apparently, she really did know him. "I need a few things while we're out." As they walked towards the street, she muttered what sounded like a shopping list. "Clothes, tooth brush, shampoo…"

Deciding to keep up the game as it seemed to be working like he'd planned, he smirked, not that she could see behind the mask. "Hmm. Good plan. It might seem unprofessional to show up for your first day training new medics smelling like you've been rolling around in an animal pen."

Gaping up at him, she swatted at his bicep, a no doubt painful blow he narrowly dodged. Hmm. Violent, this one.

"Excuse me?"

He did not answer, keeping his eye focused ahead as he held back another chuckle. Eventually, she harrumphed and tossed her hair moodily over her shoulder. Neither one of them spoke as they made their way to the shopping district.

From the corner of his eye, Kakashi watched Sakura—no, Hana—observe the village. There was the distinct misty-eyed look of nostalgia as she inspected the buildings they passed. That did not bode well.

Did she like sake? He wondered if she'd answer his questions if he got her drunk enough. Was that ethical? Probably not.

"Oh! Kyūbey!" Suddenly she dashed away from his side, all but plastering her face to a restaurant window before yanking open the door and disappearing inside.

"Tch." Did she have any idea how obvious she was being? A shudder of foreboding slid down his back as he followed her inside.

"Table for one, please."

Her face was practically glowing. Rolling his eyes again, he cleared his throat to catch her attention. She looked guiltily back at him.

"Uh… make that two." As they followed the hostess to their table, she carefully avoided his eye. "Sorry. I guess I was hungrier than I thought."

"Hmm."

He let her think she was safe as they slid into the booth, examining the menus for a few minutes. Finally, "So… when does this place close?"

Her fingers clenched on either side of her menu. "I have no idea what you are talking about."

When he didn't respond, she eventually lowered her menu, looking mildly guilty. Realizing she wasn't fooling him, she sighed, dropping her elbow and menu on the table, resting her face on her palm. "Part of me wants to try to change things. But if I did, would it end up better or worse?" She glanced around the restaurant. "So much happens in the next fourteen years—good, bad…"

He didn't say anything, letting her get it off her chest. She stared into his eye for a while, no doubt wondering how much she could tell him. "You're actually pretty important to the future of the village and… certain people." A wistful expression crossed her face. "Maybe I should ask the Hokage to assign me a different guard. I could change your life just by being here, knowing you now."

Kakashi shrugged. "Or, maybe you were always here and we always knew each other now."

Sakura frowned, the idea clearly not having occurred to her. She sat quietly, probably contemplating it all through their meal. Not until after they had finished eating and were back on the street did she speak again. "Have you ever met anyone with hair like mine before?"

"No." He was pretty sure he'd seen her father once or twice, but he didn't know the man.

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

Kakashi frowned at the personal question. "No." A pause and then, "I work too much for that and… I'm not sure I'm really the relationship type." His frown deepened. Why had he told her that? Was it true? So far, it was true. If anyone had dared to ask a couple of years ago it absolutely would have been. Was it still?

"Really? Hmm."

The fact she looked a little confused at first by his answer made him think it might not be. Did he have a girlfriend in her future? He couldn't possibly be married… could he? He found he rather wanted to know. "Why do you ask?"

A faint blush colored her cheeks. It was kind of cute. "No reason."

"Hmm." Before he could press her on it, she ducked into the nearest shop, quickly attempting to lose him among the racks and isles. He almost laughed as he followed. As if she could lose him that easily.

Giving up on questioning her for the evening, Kakashi settled for making comments now and then as she threw things into her basket. Rummaging through racks of clothes, both shinobi and civilian, she quickly chose several simple outfits.

"I guess you like red?" Almost everything, aside from the Jōnin blues she'd grabbed as well, was of a similar deep red color. She gave him a pointed look before grabbing a qipao nearly identical to the one she was wearing.

"It's one of my best colors. It's only practical to choose things I'll know I look good in."

When she paused beside the small selection of women's undergarments, she flushed scarlet and gave him a shove towards the toiletries. "Don't even think about it. Go sniff shampoo or something."

"Is that any way to treat your sensei?" He eyed the rack of bras as he made his way to do as she'd asked. "I'd avoid the skimpy lace ones—not terribly practical."

The slack-jawed glare was worth the twinge of embarrassment he felt at no doubt reinforcing her opinion of him as some kind of pervert. Well, it served her right for laughing at his reading choices that morning. Not for the first time, he was thankful for his mask.

Several minutes later, she found him dutifully smelling shampoos. He blushed again, but did not comment on the bit of lace he saw poking out between her other clothes. Instead, when he landed on a nice-smelling shampoo, he thrust it in her basket. "Get that one."

She immediately pulled it back out to smell herself. "Why do you get to… oh, hell no! Floral Green?" She handed it back to him. "I am not using the same scent as Pakkun!"

"Hmm…" He took it from her and smelled it again. "I guess it did smell familiar. What's wrong with that?"

She looked aghast. "I don't want to smell like a dog, that's why!"

Quirking a brow, Kakashi tsk'd. "You really don't seem to like him. What did he ever do to you?"

"Nothing." She turned back to the wall of haircare, smelling the first one her hand landed on. "He's actually been extremely helpful over the years and is perfectly lovely, for a dog." She huffed and muttered, "I was joking about the vomit." Her cheeks burned but she shrugged, discarding the bottle she had grabbed and reaching for another. "I may have been a little traumatized when I realized we used the same shampoo. In my defense, I was only twelve."

He put the floral green back and picked up another, not bothering to stifle the small breathy laugh as he smelled it. Deciding it was nice too and did not remind him of any of his ninken, he held it out to her. "Fine, how about this one?"

"Tch." She snatched it from him. "I don't know why you think you get a say." Smelling it herself, she hummed pleasantly, before remembering she was irritated with him and rearranged her face into a small pouty glare. Evidently ready for the shopping trip to be over, she tossed it in her basket and stomped away. "Come on. I need that shower."

Smiling and doing his best not to picture that as they left, he thought the next few weeks might not be so boring after all.

A/N Sorry I skipped the spar scene. I am horrific at writing action especially this kind of physical fighting. I thought it would be better to skip it than make a shit attempt. I hope the rest of the chapter made up for that deficiency.