A/N Me, enjoying part two entirely too much. I hope you don't get sick of Daddy son moments, there is plot and more recognizable stuff coming. Promise. Does most of the specific baby stuff come from my own life? yes, yes it does.

Part 2 Chapter 5

Kakashi

Day one-hundred and fifty-three without her

Genma had shown up at his door that morning with a summons from the Hokage. "Nothing serious, just wants to check in with you." When Kakashi had sighed, and grumbled something about needing to get Kazuki ready, Genma had scoffed and pushed past him into the apartment. "I can watch him."

Kakashi had been extremely dubious. The only other time he'd been left alone with Kazuki had been the day of Sakura's funeral. It had only been an hour, but that had been more than he could handle. There had been spit up running down his shirt, and he looked as miserable and uncomfortable as Kazuki had. He had immediately passed him back to Kakashi and told Aiko he'd meet her at home. He needed a shower.

Both he and Aiko were frequent visitors, but he never volunteered to hold Kazuki after that. "He would play with him when he was older and less likely to puke on him." Kakashi did not blame him. He was pretty sure everything he owned had some kind of baby related stain.

So when he had so eagerly offered to watch him that day, even suggesting he 'take a break' and stop for lunch, Kakashi was positive he had an ulterior motive.

"You're sleeping on the couch, aren't you?"

His responding chuckle was far too exaggerated to be believable. "What? Can't a guy just want to hang out with his best friend's kid for a few hours?"

"That's not weird at all."

Genma waved him off, eagerly flopping down on the floor beside Kazuki. The five month old was laying on his stomach, gumming a wooden kunai. When Genma made a ridiculous face, he cooed happily. "See? We'll be fine."

Kakashi scoffed, leaning against the couch. "Oh yeah? What if he poops?"

Genma shrugged. "Change him? It can't be that hard. You do it."

Rolling his eyes, Kakashi crossed to the kitchen and got down a bottle and the can of formula. "He might be hungry soon. He usually has a bottle in about an hour, before his nap." He glanced back over his shoulder at the pair of them. Hopefully the Hokage wouldn't keep him that long. "Maybe I should summon Pakkun…"

"Tch. We'll be fine. I even wore an old shirt so it won't matter if he ruins it. Go. Oh, and hey…" He grinned up at him, the picture of innocence. "If you wanna swing by the hospital and bring Aiko lunch, I'll pay for yours too."

Snorting derisively, Kakashi scooped up his son. "I guess I'll be back in a couple hours. Make sure you get a really good afternoon poo, okay Buddy?" He kissed his drool covered cheek and handed him to Genma. "He better be in one piece when I get back. Or you might be sleeping on the couch for a while."

As it turned out, the meeting with the Hokage did not last long at all. Walking out, Kakashi considered going straight home. But he was never one to turn down a free lunch. He was also curious what Aiko would say when he showed up.

He could eat fast, and it wouldn't take too long in the hospital. He wanted to get home. It was a good thing the Hokage hadn't ordered him back to work already. Kakashi decided he wasn't ready to leave his son for that long yet.

On the way to Ichiraku, he ran into Gai. His ever cheerful, green-clad friend was happy to see him, falling into step beside him.

"Kakashi! You look well this fine afternoon. Where is little Kazuki-chan?"

"With Genma. Apparently I needed 'a break.'"

Gai chortled. "He volunteered to babysit?"

"I guess."

"Well, since this is the first time you've been out alone…" Gai gave him the blinding grin that always came before some ridiculous challenge. "How about it, rival? Are you up for a blood pumping challenge?"

Kakashi sighed, wondering how long he could be gone before disaster struck. "Maybe next time, Gai. I've already been gone twenty minutes. I'm grabbing lunch at Ichiraku and swinging by the hospital before I head back."

"Hmm." Gai looked thoughtful. "You're in a hurry to get home to your boy. Excellent parenting. Makes me think of my father." The nostalgic gleam in his eye vanished, replaced by another blinding grin. "How about this? I'll join you for lunch, and we'll see who can eat the fastest! I believe the last time we did that, I beat you by thirty-five seconds."

A small smile tugged at Kakashi's mouth. "Why not. It's on Genma today, so he can buy yours too."

Later, after letting Genma treat himself and Gai to three bowls of ramen each—winning two out of three in their race—Kakashi headed to the hospital with lunch for Aiko. She was surprised to see him.

"Kakashi? What are you doing here?" She looked around him as if he were hiding the baby from her behind his back. "Where is Kazuki-chan? You visit me at work and don't bring my favorite little boy?" Her humor melted and she looked serious. "Are you okay? Is he?"

Kakashi smirked and held out the to-go from the sushi place she and Sakura had liked. "I'm fine. I brought lunch."

Relaxing, she took the food with a small smile and shouted back over her shoulder at another medic. "I'm taking my lunch!" Ushering him towards the elevator and presumably somewhere to sit and eat, Aiko gave him a curious look. "Where is Kazuki? I'm surprised to see you out without him."

Hands in his pockets, Kakashi shrugged. "With Genma." She stopped mid step to gape up at him. "He said I needed a break."

Blinking rapidly, Aiko barked a laugh and shouted back at the other medic as the elevator door opened. "I'm taking my full hour!"

By the time they made it back to his apartment, he had only been gone two hours. When he let them in, there was fussing and swearing coming from the bathroom. Well. At least they were both still alive.

Giving Aiko a significant look—to which she stifled a laugh—Kakashi reached for the bathroom door. Before he opened it, Aiko waved at him to stop. "Do you have a camera?"

"Uh… yeah. Hang on." He quietly jogged down the hall to his bedroom, grabbed his camera and came back, handing it to her. "Can I save my son now, please?"

She nodded, looking entirely too pleased with herself. Sighing, he opened the door.

Aiko was probably right to get the camera.

Genma was sitting on the stool by the shower, his clothes soaked and his face twisted with disgusted concentration. He was struggling to keep hold of a fussy, wet, squirmy Kazuki with one hand, the shower head spraying rather wildly in the other.

Aiko darted around him, snorting with laughter as she snapped a picture of her boyfriend's unimpressed face. Kakashi could only sigh again, pinching the bridge of his nose. See if he ever left them alone together again.

Still cackling, Aiko handed him back the camera and stepped forward to help. "What happened?"

"It's not funny!" Genma glared up at her as he got control of the shower head, aiming it down at Kazuki's backside. "Damn you, Kakashi. He had his afternoon poop alright. All up his back and down his legs. I've never seen so much shit. How does he make so much? He's so tiny!" Passing Kazuki to Aiko, who held him up to be rinsed, Genma continued grumbling. "And why the hell is it so hard to get him clean? Why are there so many little crevices? I would have thought a boy would be easier!" He whimpered pathetically. "I'm going to have to burn everything I'm wearing."

"Hmm." Kakashi's eye crinkled with a small smile. "Don't be such a baby. It'll wash out."

KSK

Kakashi

Day one-hundred and eighty-five without her

A tiny foot struck Kakashi in the shoulder. Not ready to be awake, he tried to ignore it.

"Neehhh Da Da."

This time, it was a backhand to the face. And then another.

"Da Da." More cooing and squeaking and another kick to his bicep.

He sighed, cracking his eye. Pink hair and two dark eyes that were looking like they'd be green soon, greeted Kakashi. This time when Kazuki flung his arm towards his nose, he caught it, a slow smile creeping up his face.

"That's not a very nice way to wake your dad." When the only response he got was more gurgled nonsense, a short chuckle rumbled in his chest. "You're a little young for taijutsu. I wonder if you'll be as strong as your mother was."

Kakashi's smile faded as he thought about Sakura. Thankfully, another kick to his shoulder pulled him from the thought before he could spiral. He didn't have time for that: he had a mission today.

Brushing his little knuckles against his lips, he imagined their son instead. As soon as he was old enough, he would take him to the third training ground and start teaching him taijutsu, and how to throw a kunai. If he was half as gifted with Chakra control as… as his mother, he'd be scaling trees and racing across streams before he started at the academy.

Would he be a better teacher to his own son than he had been… would be to his mother and the rest of her team?

He hoped so. He didn't want to fail their son. Not like his father had.

Being a shinobi was dangerous. Kakashi knew that better than most. Did he even want his son to be a shinobi? Did he want that life for him? What would Sakura have wanted?

Another kick, this time to his face. Kazuki, seeming to find this amusing, managed something that definitely sounded like a laugh. He hadn't done that before.

Kakashi sighed but couldn't hold back another smile. His son had laughed for the first time after kicking him in the face, and he was debating whether or not he would be a shinobi.

"You're going to be a terror someday, aren't you." Kakashi grabbed hold of his feet and leaned in to blow a raspberry on his belly. "A famous, deadly shinobi like your daddy."

Kazuki shrieked, laughing and squealing each time Kakashi blew on his belly. "Or maybe a hot headed medic that can uproot trees with a flick of your finger like Mommy…"

With a rush, his chest ached and his throat tightened. But instead of letting his thoughts linger on Sakura, he focused on Kazuki. He focused on the pink haired, cooing, laughing little boy she had given him to raise.

KSK

Kakashi

Standing outside of the Haruno's house, Kakashi held his son against his shoulder. He had to be heading out for his first mission in more than six months in less than an hour. It wasn't going to be dangerous, just escorting an especially self important civilian government official. He should only be gone three days.

Mebuki was perfectly capable of looking after her grandson, not that she knew that's who he was. Eight-year-old Sakura adored Kazuki and was more than a little excited to have him over again. Kazuki would be fine.

It was only Kakashi who was struggling. He didn't want to leave his son. Three days felt like forever. "Maybe I should wait another month. What do you think, Kazuki? Hm?"

In response, Kazuki merely babbled something as he drooled all over the collar of Kakashi's green flak vest and tugged on his mask.

"Yeah, I'll miss you too, Buddy." Patting his back and freeing his mask from his tiny, determined fist, Kakashi sighed. "I'm sorry I have to go. It will just be a couple days, and then I'll be home. I promise, I'm not leaving you forever."

A little sigh tickled Kakashi's ear as Kazuki dropped his cheek to his shoulder. Pressing his own cheek to his son's, cuddling him close, Kakashi took a deep breath and finally approached the house. He could do this. His son needed him to do this. Nappies and formula weren't free, after all. They'd burned through more than half of the ryō Sakura had saved, so he needed to get back to work.

Mebuki answered the door when he knocked and smiled warmly up at them. "Good morning Kakashi, good morning Kazuki-chan."

Kakashi swallowed hard. "Morning, Mebuki."

"Come in, come in." She stepped aside and waved them in. "I have Sakura's old crib set up in our room so I'll be right there if he needs anything at night. And the weather is supposed to be lovely the next few days so I thought we'd get lots of time outside." She wagged her fingers at Kazuki, who gurgled happily and reached for her hand. "Sakura is going to be home all day tomorrow, so we're going to the park. She was about this age when she discovered her love for swings."

Kazuki was going to be fine. More than fine. He was probably going to have fun. "That sounds great, Mebuki… I uh… thank you for doing this for us. I…" They had a daycare center in the village especially for shinobi, but he would be gone for days at a time. He didn't like the idea of leaving Kazuki with strangers that long.

"We're happy to keep him. You just come home safe, okay?"

He nodded, handing her the bag he'd packed but not quite ready to hand over his son. Somehow seeming to understand, Mebuki smiled again, patting him on the shoulder and taking the bag into the other room. Dropping his mask, Kakashi kissed his forehead, and hugged him close. "Alright Kazuki, be good for Mebuki-san, okay?"

Kazuki bucked against him, his little hands waving and clutching at his vest. "Da Da!"

"Yeah, Daddy will be back soon, I promise." Okay. He needed to leave. If he took any longer saying goodbye, he'd probably give in and stay home another month. He couldn't do that, he had to go back to work. For his son, and for himself. Getting back into his normal routine would be good for his mental health, or so said Aiko.

Dropping one last kiss to his chubby cheek, Kakashi said goodbye. "Bye, Buddy. I love you, and I'll see you soon." He tugged up his mask just in time for Mebuki to step back into the room. Without any more hesitation, he handed Kazuki over.

"Say 'bye-bye' to Daddy, Kazuki-chan!" She helped him wave goodbye as he left, Kazuki's little babbling and happy squeaking following him out.

Back on the street, Kakashi took a deep, cleansing breath and headed for the village gates. He could do this. This mission would be easy. Then he'd be home and back with his son.

KSK

Kakashi

Day two-hundred twenty–two without her

It only surprised Kakashi a little to find that Aiko had been right. He'd taken four missions of varying length—always low ranking and low risk—over the last month. Caring for his son was Kakashi's new purpose in life, and getting back to work was how he would do that. Focusing on a mission instead of his grief, knowing he was providing for Kazuki and not just following orders for orders' sake, made him feel fulfilled in a way he had never been before.

It made dealing with how much he missed Sakura a little easier.

The last mission had lasted four days and was fairly uneventful. Now that he was home, the only thing Kakashi cared about was seeing his son. Leaving the Hokage's office, he headed straight for the Haruno's.

It brought an easy grin to his face when Kazuki saw him. He'd been sitting up, chewing on a block while Kizashi built a teetering tower for him to knock over. When Kakashi called out to him, he shrieked with glee. "Da Da Da!" His excitedly flailing arms knocked over the tower as he tried to turn and reach for Kakashi.

"Hey, Buddy!" Not wasting any time, Kakashi scooped his son up into his arms, and peppered his jubilant little face with kisses. Kazuki's shrieking giggles made Kakashi laugh too. "I missed you too, Kazuki-chan."

KSK

Kakashi

Day three-hundred forty-nine without her

It was her birthday. Another day he'd been dreading.

On their anniversary three and a half months earlier, Kakashi had put their son to bed and proceeded to drink two bottles of sake and cry himself to sleep on the couch. He'd been woken sometime around four in the morning by furious, hurt cries. When he'd stumbled in to check on him, Kazuki had been halfway under the bed, flailing his arms and legs in anger.

Realizing what had happened, shame and fear cut through the thick haze of hungover sleepiness and he dove down to scoop him up. He must have woken up alone and crawled to the edge of the bed looking for Kakashi, tumbling to the floor. Shocked from the fall, he'd rolled halfway under the bed and gotten tangled in the sheets that hung over the edge.

After checking him over and determining he was fine, Kakashi had started crying again, holding him close and putting them both back to bed.

Next year he would see if Mebuki and Kizashi could keep him.

But today, he didn't have a good excuse for how he woke up feeling. It wasn't like anyone knew it was her birthday but him. He wanted to lay in bed and sulk, think about how they'd spent the day the last two years—probably cry while he touched himself to the memories.

But he couldn't do any of that. The little boy climbing on his head, flopping up and down until he was noticed was the main reason.

Grumbling, Kakashi pulled his son off his head and sat up. "I'm up, I'm up." He sighed, settling the energetic toddler on his lap. "Morning, Buddy. Today's your mom's birthday."

"Ma ma…" He latched his four teeth onto Kakashi's arm, gumming and drooling all over it.

Kakashi sighed again, ruffling his pink hair and trying to think of the best way to spend the day since he wouldn't be allowed to mope. "Maybe we should visit her?" It would probably be something that Kazuki might want to do when he was older. That was a normal thing to do. He visited his own dad on his birthday.

Kazuki continued chewing on his arm, looking up at him with big green eyes. "Ma? Dada puppa?" More unintelligible babbling Kakashi took to mean he wanted to go out today.

"Sure, we can see if the puppies want to hang out today too. Would you like that, Kazuki?" Scrubbing a hand across his face and through his hair, he managed a smile at Kazuki's excited clapping.

"Puppa yep!" He yelped, trying to imitate a bark.

"Okay. Let's get dressed then. Maybe we can get something to eat from Hatsue. Or something sweet?" Kakashi cringed but Kazuki had already made his love of sweet things known. Just like his mother.

A visit to the cemetery, lunch at the training grounds with the ninken, and maybe a stop by the park on the way home would wear the toddler out. Kakashi could put him down for a nap and have his pathetic cry in the bath while he slept.

He would leave the sake for their next anniversary.