The Photographer's Return
Summary: Kakashi Hatake has become more distant since becoming the Sixth Hokage. Things between him and Sakura have gotten awkward, especially since he's developed feelings for her and she thinks he can't stand her.
He's come up with the perfect solution - he'll once more utilize the Sukea persona to get to know her.
Sakura allows herself to fall for a new man - one she doesn't share any complicated history with- or at least that's what she thought when she ran into Sukea, the mysterious photographer.
[The Naruto characters all belong to Kishimoto…thank you for letting me borrow them again.]
The Artwork is a commissioned work by Coloriza for this story.
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Chapter One: Enter Sukea
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It was time for another Team Seven Dinner. And Sakura was not looking forward to it. Ever since Naruto started bringing along Hinata and Sai started inviting Ino — she just felt like a loser.
It wouldn't be so bad if their other teammate — the team captain bothered to show up once in a while.
Sakura had a particularly hard day at the hospital — one complicated surgery after another. And she ended the day by finishing the paperwork on the evaluation of several Anbu she'd examined that week for release to active duty. She'd slaved away at those files and brought them to the Rokudaime to have him practically ignore her. He had a stack of documents on his desk, his laptop was closed and he stared out his window like he didn't have a care in the world as the sun slipped below the horizon, with an orange covered Icha Icha book laying open over his chest.
"Kaka Sensei," Sakura called out, trying to get his attention. It was already getting close to dinner time. The Hokage's personal guard Genma and his assistant Shikamaru had already been dismissed.
"Don't call me that," Kakashi answered absently, his deep voice a low rumble.
She blinked at him, unsure what to call him. She'd called him that for years, since the end of the war. Since he saved her life—- again. Since she'd poured her heart out again to the dark-haired boy and was again rejected soundly with Kakashi standing at her elbow near the village gates. "What would you prefer I call you? Lord Hokage? Rokudaime?"
He turned towards her, his stormy grey eyes inspecting her, peering into her very soul. The look sent shivers down her spine. "You better hurry, Sakura. You'll be late for the Team Seven dinner."
Sakura's eyes widened. So he did remember about the weekly dinners. He just purposely didn't show up. "You're invited too, you know." She chewed on her bottom lip, working to summon up her courage. "Would you like to go together?"
He watched her silently, that damn mask making it impossible to gauge his feelings. She thought there was a spark of interest in his dark eyes, but it could have just been a trick of the light — or her imagination. "Another time, Sakura." His gaze slid away from hers and he took in the newest folder on his desk — the physical reports she'd brought. "But you go have fun with the boys."
Sakura scoffed. "Yeah, the boys and their girlfriends. It won't feel awkward at all." She gave a brief, formal bow. "Have a good night, Lord Hatake." She made her way for the door, her hand barely on the handle.
"Don't call me that either," Kakashi said, materializing beside her, a swirl of leaves fluttering to his abandoned chair. He stood a head taller than her, his posture straight and predatory, not his usual slouch. She felt like a mouse peering up into the hungry mouth of an alley tomcat. He pushed open the door for her and she stepped under his arm. Both grateful and disappointed to leave his proximity. He smelled nice — like fresh pine needles after a summer rain. She may or may not have been a little obvious taking in the scent of him.
She bravely glanced over her shoulder to see him still watching her. "Good night, Kashi." She dashed away, but not without noticing the corners of his eyes crinkling just so.
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OoO
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There was always more work to replace his finished tasks. So, Kakashi wasn't worried about it. He'd get to it eventually, or his assistants Shikamaru or Shizune would get to it.
"So—- you're going under cover?" Genma asked, slipping back into view in the office and leaning against the wall. His old friend was in charge of the Hokage protective detail. He was pretty damn good at his job — even Sakura didn't detect his chakra signature. "I could go with you, keep you out of trouble.:
Kakashi snorted. "You're just eager to break up Yamanaka and Sai." He stared down at the mirror and carefully applied the purple markings under and above both eyes, hiding the bisecting scar that had marred his face since he was twelve years old.
"Why don't you just go as yourself?" Genma asked. "Why the ruse? Just tell the girl how you feel. I mean — you did notice her sniffing you, right? No-one will care about the age difference at this point. You were barely her teacher back when she was a kid. Everyone knows she was the Godaime's protege."
"I'm still in a position of authority over her," Kakashi reasoned. "And I'd like to get to know her without our history tangled up and confusing things."
Genma folded his arms over his chest. "I don't know. It sounds like things will get messier this way. You'll basically be lying to her."
"She's met Sukea before," Kakashi reasoned. "I helped the team when they were kids, barely working together on a shared goal of unmasking me. I change my voice, my hair, my eyes, my posture, my scent. I'm more talkative." He secured the wig and looked back at his guard with his bluish-gray eyes, light brown wavy hair, and unmasked face with the purple vertical markings. He tightened his vocal chords and spoke from a higher pitched voice. "I'd like to make her feel pretty and appreciated without worrying about how the Hokage having feelings for his former teammate will be viewed by the council."
"Fine, but you better hope Shizune is willing to patch you up after Sakura is finished with you when she figures it out." Genma grinned around his senbon. "She's a smart woman. She's going to eat you up and spit you out."
Kakashi grinned back, his smile slightly crooked. "One can only hope."
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OoO
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Married. Naruto and Hinata were getting married. It would be a traditional ceremony — the entire village and the leaders of all the other four allied shinobi villages would be invited as well. He'd be wearing a black kimono and she'd be wearing white as was the tradition of the Hyuga clan. Personally, Sakura had always preferred the traditional red wedding dresses over the white ones — but different cultures had different views.
Ino and Hinata had gotten into a deep discussion about floral arrangements and Sakura had happily volunteered to visit the bar and collect their next round of celebratory drinks. She'd put in the order and waited patiently, not eager to return to her table.
"Haruno Sakura?" A vaguely familiar, masculine voice called, moving towards her from the right.
She looked up and stared in shock at the man— light brown shaggy hair, pale blue-gray eyes, purple face markings, tall and lean build, perfect nose, full lips, angular cheeks, strong jaw. He was still handsome — older, but handsome. She'd only met him once in her life, but it had been one of the best days she'd lived through back when Team Seven was young — a mission to unmask their sensei. "Sukea?" Sakura asked, flipping through the metaphorical files of her photographic memory.
He smiled. It was a slightly crooked grin and his canines were sharper than average giving him a wolfish look. And she felt her heart skip a beat. "You've grown up nice." His pale eyes scanned her from head to toe and then back up.
Sakura resisted the urge to tug down the hem of her skirt. She'd foregone her usual athletic shorts under her dress and felt particularly exposed. "You're ageless," she retorted. "What's it been? Ten years?"
"Nine," Sukea answered back.
"I looked you up, but I couldn't find any of your published works," Sakura said — she was lying. When she was a kid once this handsome guy was out of sight, she'd literally forgotten about him until this moment.
"Ah." Sukea chuckled. "They're pretty obscure journals."
The bartender laid a tray in front of Sakura full of the drinks she'd ordered. She started to pick it up, but Sukea's hands covered hers briefly. "Please, let me?"
She nodded. "Okay, well my friends and I are at the back table. You can join us — if you'd like?"
Sukea smiled that crooked grin again. "I'd enjoy that. Thank you, Sakura."
She didn't quite know how to respond so she merely smiled and then led the way. She noticed Naruto's sky-blue eyes light up with recognition. Sai furrowed his brows in uncertainty. Hinata was too busy staring at Naruto to react. Ino's mouth dropped open as Sakura returned with the handsome older man carrying the drinks behind her.
"Guys, this is Sukea. He's an old friend," Sakura introduced as the man set the tray on the table. "You probably remember Naruto — he's all grown up now and not nearly as annoying."
"Sakura-chan," Naruto whined, rolling his eyes. He dropped his arm possessively around Hinata's shoulders. "It's good to see you, Sukea! What have you been up to?"
"Oh, traveling here and there," Sukea answered vaguely.
"That's Naruto's fiancé, Hinata," Sakura said, gesturing towards the Hyuga princess. "This is Sai, he's mine and Naruto's teammate. And the beautiful blond is my best friend, Ino."
"Hey! I thought I was your best friend!" Naruto protested.
"Okay, my best girl friend," Sakura corrected. Her heart warmed at Naruto's pleased smile. She turned back to Sukea. "Would you like to join us? We were hoping our other teammate would show up, but I guess he's busy."
"I'd love to," Sukea answered, pulling a chair out for Sakura and then sitting next to her. "His loss is my gain. Did you guys ever manage to unmask him?"
"We freaking saved the world together and we still haven't seen him without his mask," Naruto complained. He rested his free elbow on the table and set his chin in his hand in annoyance. "Honestly, I think he does it just to mess with us at this point."
"He's been through a lot," Sakura argued quietly. "If that mask is what he needs to cope with all the trauma he's been through, we shouldn't force the issue."
"Sakura opened up a slew of mental health facilities throughout the allied villages," Ino explained, her gaze settling on the pink-haired kunoichi with a look of fondness. "She thinks herself the expert on traumatized children."
"I should be. All my teammates were traumatized children." Sakura picked up one of the shots and tossed it back, grimacing at the bitter flavor.
"That's a very noble pursuit," Sukea said. "Maybe I could write an expose about that? I'm always looking for stories and interesting people."
"The hag is definitely interesting," Sai commented. He received an elbow to the ribs from Ino at his comment.
Sakura took another shot and tossed it back, crushing the glass in the process and slicing her fingers. "Dang," she murmured, as blood trickled to the tabletop.
Sukea's strong hand and long fingers immediately held her wrist and he laid a cloth napkin over her bleeding fingers. "Are you okay, Sakura?"
The concern was touching and Sakura nodded, holding her free hand over his and gently removing the napkin as a surge of green, healing chakra mended her wound. "I'm a medic now. I just, sometimes forget my own strength." She smiled at him, heart warmed by the look of concern in his pale gaze. "Thank you, for your help though."
He cleared his throat and folded up the soiled napkin into neat, precise squares.
"So, back to the flowers," Ino said, turning back to Hinata. "You've decided to marry at the end of winter? In mid-March? There will be cherry blossoms starting to bud by then — I hope you're planning an outdoor affair."
Sukea leaned close to Sakura's ear. He held a glass near his lips. "What are they talking about?" He took a small sip.
"Naruto and Hinata are getting married," Sakura explained, leaning back towards him. He smelled like a fresh ocean breeze. "That would probably be an even more interesting story than something about me. The eldest daughter of the most prestigious noble clan in the village marrying the former village prankster turned hero, son of the beloved fallen Yondaime."
"Oy! Sukea! Why don't you be our photographer?" Naruto asked, a broad smile across his rosy cheeks. He'd already consumed a half-dozen shots of hard liquor.
"Um, well, I wasn't really planning to be in town that long," Sukea hedged.
Sakura tried to hide her disappointment. Of course he was just in the village for a brief visit. No one she was ever remotely interested in stayed around. Sakura pushed away from the table slightly, wondering if she might duck into the bathroom to avoid this conversation or if she should maybe venture onto the dance floor. An upbeat song started pounding and it would be nice to let herself be lost to the music. She was just about to ask Ino to join her.
"But it sounds like an opportunity I'd be a fool to ignore," Sukea agreed. "It wouldn't be too much of a hassle to visit the village more often." He turned to Sakura and offered his hand. "Do you like this song? Would you like to dance, Sakura?"
She stared up at him in surprise. Had he read her mind? She bit her lower lip and when she looked into his eyes, she didn't miss the distinct spark of interest he showed. And she really liked the way he kept repeating her name. "Yes." She took his hand and then led him to the dance floor. It felt completely natural to slide her hands over his shoulders while his strong, calloused hands settled on her hips. Sukea stared down at her, his eyes focused on her while his fingers grazed over her ass in a way that could have been innocent or very intentional. By the look of those blue-gray eyes, it was very intentional and she liked it.
No man had ever bothered to be this bold with her before. Normally, one of her teammates would scare any potential beau off or they'd be too intimidated by her own reputation.
Sukea dipped his head close to her ear, his lips brushed the shell faintly. "You look beautiful tonight, Sakura," he whispered, voice barely heard over the music. "Since I'll be in the village for the weekend, could we maybe get breakfast tomorrow? I'd really like to get to know you better."
He straightened and Sakura slipped her hands behind his neck and pressed her body against his hard planes. He must have been an impressive shinobi to have kept his identity secret. She never saw him during the war, but he'd obviously survived it the same as her friends. She loved the way she fit against him — his height was the perfect compliment to hers as his chin rested atop her head. She waited until the song was over and an annoying jaunty tune pierced the loudspeaker before she answered. As they walked off the dance floor, hand in hand. "I'd like that, Sukea." .