Konohagakure, Hatake Estate

Far too hot for the beginning of June, sweat dripped down Mina's back as she pulled another weed from the vegetable garden. The plants were sparse, though the carrots looked amazing on the top of the soil; the last few she pulled had been sad, shriveled little things. The leaves on the tomato plants had more holes in them than their grandmother's collection of lace tablecloths. She'd all but given up hope on the eggplants—they had simply withered in their beds near the melons. Melons: the lone survivors of the Hatake family's garden.

Obito's angry voice rose from inside against the hot wind, "There is nothing to be done about it!"

"Prick," Mina murmured under her breath. "Break up with him, nii-san," she encouraged the melon plant as she dunked another aphid covered leaf in soapy water.

Of all people, she had never expected her genin sensei to be so adept at gardening. Tsume Inuzuka had told her it was a hobby she picked up after the war. Her house was covered with beds of lavenders, thyme, and fire lilies. She said it was for her genin students. Lavender for Mina, thyme for Isamu, and fire lilies for Shisui. Each different, each strong in their own way, some departed too soon, leaving forlorn petals on the wind that kicked into the mulched beds.

The last leaf decontaminated, Mina stood, dusting off Kakashi's old pants that she had stolen a few weeks ago. The wicker basket of weeds and small gardening tools was placed on the inside shelf of the shed at the edge of the Hatake estate. Lavender hung from the rafters, carefully bunched in large groups, set to dry amidst a few bundles of thyme that Tsume had parted with. Leaving the old weeds for Kakashi, she soundlessly slid open the front door and crept down the hall.

"It didn't have to be like this. This isn't what I wanted," Kakashi argued.

Mina avoided the third board on the side of the hallway the closer she went to the bedrooms.

"And what was it you expected? Honestly, you're so idealistic sometimes," Obito sneered. "Sometimes the hard choices have to be made and lived with."

'I hope you get an ingrown pubic hair, asshole,' Mina thought, shrinking against the wall.

"She knows—"

"Quiet," Obito warned, dropping his voice. Kakashi's bedroom door slammed open, and she ducked into the bathroom across the hall.

She twisted the faucet, letting the water run over her hands. Obito leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms over his chest. "How much did you hear?"

"Nothing. Not a thing," she quickly said, lathering the soap. "No words passed by my ears."

"Smart ass," he murmured.

"Leave her be," Kakashi warned from down the hall. "She didn't hear anything."

"Fine. I have errands to run anyway."

Obito's steps were uneven against the hardwood floor. His right side was slower than his other, and he had a slight limp. He shut the front door with a quiet click, and his footsteps continued to echo down the engawa.

Mina shut the water off and dried her hands. She hugged Kakashi tightly. "Nii-san?"

Kakashi sighed, pulled her in tighter. "Hm?"

"I know you've been friends with Obito since you were kids, and you've both been through a lot together. But he's an ass. He's not good enough for you."

"You invited my team over for dinner tonight."

Mina blew cold air against Kakashi's ear, and he dropped her, protectively covering it.

"Rude."

"So is pretending I didn't say anything. I thought we were past this? Stop wrapping me in cotton wool. It was an isolated attack. I am a capable jounin, you always forget that. Shisui hasn't had to drag me back to a base camp for abdominal wounds recently. That attack was a fluke, and it was probably another mist-nin wanting to take out Zabuza. I was just collateral damage."

"I'm going to cook tonight. You should clean up."

"Kakashi—" He vanished in a puff of smoke.

Dice rolled against the coffee table in the living room, pattering against the wood, one falling to the tatami mat below. Small cushions in an array of bright exotic colors surrounded the table occupied by Team Seven. Mina glanced across the table at Kakashi and smiled at him. The entire room

"Go ahead and guess, Naruto," Kakashi reminded.

"Alright. Alright. It was…what's the phrasing?"

Sasuke slapped his hand to his face. "Who you think did it, the weapon, then the room you're in."

"Right!"

"It was Raikage-dono with a storage scroll in the dining room."

Mina shook her head and pulled out a card from a small envelope. "Sorry, Naruto."

"Wait, but it was you last time!"

Sakura sighed, "It changes every game. And you're not supposed to give away the card she showed you!"

"And it's my turn," Kakashi announced, rolling the dice. He moved a small Hokage hat along the spaces of the board and into the ballroom. "It was Kazekage-dono with the kunai in the ballroom."

The three teenagers looked at their cards, then each other, then up at Mina, each shaking their heads. Sasuke handed over a small packet of cards from the side of the table. Kakashi laid them face up with a smug smile.

"Lucky guess, nii-san. I think that's a new record, two turns to win."

Sakura pursed her lips. "I want to be the Hokage next time."

Kakashi crinkled his eye and patted her head. "I'm always the Hokage."

"Raikage then."

Mina shrugged her shoulders with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I'm always the Raikage."

The teenager growled. "Fine. Then I'll be the Mizukage!"

"Sorry, Sakura-chan," Naruto started, holding his hands in front of him in a gesture of peace.

"You can be the Tsuchikage," Sasuke offered, holding up the brown hat.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun. I'm going to win the next round for sure!"

Sasuke quietly shook his head. "I'm out for the night, I have an early morning."

Mina nodded. "That reminds me, I have another scroll for you to review. By the way, the offer still stands if either of you two want to learn medical ninjutsu. It would round out your skills, at least."

"I thought you said primary wind and lightning chakra elements had more difficulty learning medical ninjutsu?" Sakura twirled a strand of hair around her finger in thought.

"Good memory. Yes, though, not quite. Sure, lightning has its own challenges and certainly is more difficult to use in medical ninjutsu than say water or fire. Sasuke's primary element is actually fire, like the rest of his clan. Kumo has difficulty with their medical program not because of the lightning element, but because our medical ninjutsu is considered secret information for Konoha's use only…" She paused. "Why do I know that?"

Naruto quirked his brow and loudly asked, "But yours is lightning."

"Ah, I see your point. It was extremely difficult at first, learning how to directly stream my chakra rather than letting it move erratically like it wants to do. When Rin-senpai was teaching me, I fried several unfortunate sea creatures before I could control it. I'm grateful she had the patience to see it through. But, I will say, I have extremely precise chakra control even compared to your average jounin."

Kakashi nodded in agreement. "Her control is better than mine. Obito's, too."

"Right. But, I also don't have their chakra stores or jutsu range. It's a trade-off, much like anything else. In a true fight, even without their sharingan, either one could annihilate me in minutes. Though, that's not something I like to think about. I could probably beat the majority of chuunin out there, maybe a few jounin one-on-one."

Sasuke toyed with the edge of the Tsuchikage hat in his fingers. "Yet, they would both die without a competent medic on the field if under attack from all sides."

Mina shrugged. "Like I said, it's something I try not to think about."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Sasuke. "So why are you studying to be a medic when there's all the other cool jutsu out there?"

"Nii-san thought it was a good idea. The clan only has one dedicated medic at present, and she's near retirement age. My grandma was a medic, but she passed away when Shisui was six, I think."

"He was five," Mina quietly corrected. "Breast cancer. I only remember because we studied a lot at your grandparents' house. Your grandfather, Kagami, used to make the best afterschool snacks. Anyway, remind your mother she needs to be tested earlier than other women, alright?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

Sakura sat back and hugged her knees to her chest. Her eyes went from Sasuke to Mina. She pursed her lips, then looked back at the game board.

"You know, sometimes, as a kunoichi you have to reach out for the things you want," Mina said gently. "There's a time to be quiet, but also a time to be bold. Face your fears. Even if that fear is something intangible like rejection."

"Would you be willing to train me, too?" Sakura asked quietly.

Mina smiled at her. "There you go. I'd love to. Show up with Sasuke at six a.m."

Sasuke sighed. "Meet me at the front stairs of the hospital, I'll show you where to go."

"Ah, the scroll. One moment."

Mina stood up and padded down the hall to her room. She grabbed the first volume of 'Anatomy and Physiology' off the shelf and threw it on her bed. Grabbing a few more books and scrolls from the shelf, she added them to the growing pile. One of the scrolls rolled off the end of the bed in her haste, landing with a loud thunk on the floor.

"Shit," she muttered, dipping down to search for it.

Dust bunnies floated around the bottom of the bed. She grimaced as her hand brushed one of the fuzzy critters made up of Bisuke's shed fur. There was a piece of paper that she pulled out and set to the side while searching for the scroll. When she finally reached it, covered in fur, dust, and no doubt Uhei's slobber, she threw it on top of her bed. The folded scrap paper was thrown onto the nightstand. Gathering the pile of books in her arms, she went back to the living room and divvied the materials up between her two students.

"These are on loan, only. I want these back," Mina warned sternly.

Sakura attempted to nod from the top of the massive stack in her arms as she stood on the engawa.

"I can take some of those," Naruto offered, taking the top five books.

"Thanks, Naruto."

"No problem, dattebayo."

Sasuke waved single-handedly. He shut the estate gate on his way out.

Kakashi threw an arm around Mina's shoulders and hugged her against his side. "This was a good idea. Thank you."

"Sure thing! Remember all those dinners Team Eight had growing up? I can't tell you what we ate, but I remember the board games, and the campfire stories."

"I remember not having to feed you those nights," Kakashi joked. "You started inhaling the pantry when you were six."

"Oh, please. I was learning medical ninjutsu, draining my chakra almost every day. You remember how hard Rin used to work me."

The corner of his eye tightened, but he nodded his head.

"She was good to her core, you know. I don't think you've ever really mourned her. You and Obito both. And your relationship together…nii-san—"

Kakashi let go of her and began to walk faster into the house.

"Nii-san, we need to talk about this!"

He yanked the front door open, trudging across the tatami mats to his room.

"Rin wouldn't recognize who Obito is. He's not good for you! Nii-san! I love you!"

He stopped.

"I love you, and I want what's best for you. Obito isn't it."

"You really want to have this out?"

She pushed her way through his partially closed bedroom door and plopped on his bed. "Yes. I do."

"Fine. If you want to talk genin teammates who are current lovers, let's talk about Shisui."

"Oh, but—"

"No. You wanted this, imouto. Let's do it. Shisui Uchiha is not good enough for you. He has a jealousy issue. He's a perfectionist, and he will pick you apart trying to make you into his ideal image until you don't resemble yourself anymore."

"Now see here—"

"Oh, I'm just getting started."

"My turn. Obito is not looking out for your best interests. He's a philanderer. He treats you like absolute dirt. At least Shisui treats me like a queen—"

"Does he now?" Kakashi sneered. "He's not who you think he is."

"Listen to me! You think Rin wanted that for either of you? You cut each other down. He more than you. You think I don't notice how much you hurt after he leaves here in the morning?"

"He's all I had left! Everyone else was gone. He's all I had! And I thought I lost him too, at Kannabi. It was a miracle he was found. And I thought miracles never happened twice—"

"I'm here. I've been here, Kakashi. Shisui made sure of that. I came home to you."

Kakashi said nothing, silently sitting down on the bed next to her.

"Don't forget me, nii-san. Don't abandon me for Obito's sake. I'm worthy of your love too." Hot tears flowed over. She threw her arms around Kakashi's stiff body. The clock ticked silently on his nightstand. "I love you, Kakashi. You can hear my heartbeat."

His hand came up first, clutching her arm against his chest as though it were a lifeline.

"I hear you Mina," he rasped through a tight throat. "I hear your heart beat. I feel the warmth of you against my chest. You're my little sister." He swallowed harshly. His other arm pulled her closer. She nuzzled the bottom of his jaw. "You're my flesh and blood, and can never be replaced. I will never abandon you. No matter where life takes you, Kaminari, I will still love you."

She nuzzled him again, sliding the bridge of her nose against the smooth fabric of his mask. They silently clung to each other, two battered rafts adrift in a tumultuous sea, reaching for salvation from the dark.

An hour passed before Kakashi released her. "I found this in your pants while I was doing laundry." He opened his bedside table, popping up the false bottom. Tucked away in the corner was a folded photograph.

"What is this?"

"Can't say. Gag order," he choked out.

"Kakashi—" She broke off, throwing her arms around him once more. "You let him seal your tongue? Thats…I don't…"

"Shh, it's alright. It's part of being a shinobi of Konoha."

Mina unfolded the photograph and gasped. In the photo, the tall man she had seen in her dreams stood to her left. Her arms were thrown around his waist carelessly, a joyous smile on her face. Bird seed littered the ground like confetti. Another tall man with arms the size of tree trunks watched in the background, his wrists were decorated in thick gold bangles and were crossed over his chest. The hips of her black pants were embroidered in silver clouds. Her top was equally as embellished, giving the impression of one continuous cloud down her side, broken only by a blue silk belt with a red medic symbol embroidered along its edge. A Kumo hitai-ate rested on her forehead, the small kanji of 'medic' engraved in the lower left hand corner.

The mystery man had his arm around her waist. He was carefully watching her with a tender expression, a soft smile playing on his lips. Her heart stopped in her chest as she traced the image with her finger.

"You know him?" Kakashi casually drawled.

"I…"

"Don't think I haven't noticed, you've been seeing things that aren't there for months. I wondered…"

"Nii-san, this could be doctored. A trick of Kumo's. Like when they tried to kidnap the Hyuuga girl."

Kakashi shrugged. "Could be."

"Maybe they have me under some elaborate genjutsu. To keep me seeing him whenever I go about my business. I mean, it's not unheard of for foreign shinobi to frequent the capital. One of the last Hatake, not to sound vain, but that's quite a prize."

He tugged down his mask beneath his chin and kissed the crown of her head. "It's time we both got some rest. Chuunin exams are in a few days, after all. Keep that out of sight."

"Right…"

Mina went to her room in a daze, staring at the photo as she pushed one foot in front of the other. She set it down on the nightstand. The lone slip of paper waved in the dark, and she straightened it.

'I love you. Stop. Bees fly in ordered meanderings. Stop. They gather pollen from leaves flying away from lavender. Stop. A beach vacation would be nice. Stop.'

AN: Thank you for reading! I'm gonna post a couple of chapters tonight. This one's up first.

Beta'ed by: cherryBerry12