Kakashi jumps up from the living room's rug when he feels his teacher's presence outside the apartment. Dashing to the kitchen, he sticks his head past the threshold. Inside the kitchen, he finds Kushina arranging their takeout in bowls and plates. He tells her, "Put together another bowl and plate, Minato-Sensei is back."

The teenager's head whips around at his announcement, the ponytail she has her hair in bouncing between her shoulder blades. "Really?" she says, smiling at him. Putting down the carton she'd been pouring their food out of down on the counter, she declares, "Forget the food!"

She then joins Kakashi in going to stand in front of the apartment's door. When it opens a minute later, revealing a slightly dirty, but otherwise healthy Minato, they call out in unison:

"Welcome home!"

Kakashi's teacher grins at the two of them, cheeks flushing pink. Walking in, he pulls off his shoes and lets his bag slide from his shoulders and to the floor. "Hey, 'Kashi," his teacher greets. Minato then shoots forward and before Kakashi can get away, he is hefted into the air by his Minato-Sensei's strong hands. Usually, Kakashi would protest at being held, but he is too relieved his teacher is back and safe. He lets Minato swing him around onto his back and wraps his arms around Minato's neck and encircles his legs around Minato's waist. As he clings to the blond, Minato moves forward and shares an extended kiss with Kushina.

Kakashi makes gagging noises, which earns him a swat to the back of his head from Kushina's hand. Kakashi huffs but stops making noises. When Kushina and Minato pull apart, his teacher asks her, "How are you?"

"Perfect now that you're back," she replies, with a smirk.

As the two teenagers make ga-ga eyes at each other, Kakashi grows annoyed. He is right here. It is almost worse than walking in on them that one time. At least then they'd stopped being mawkish when they realized he could see. Clambering off of Minato's back, he squirms into the slight space between Kushina and Minato.

They both look at him then, Minato's gaze curious, and Kushina's irritated. Kakashi crosses his arms and declares, "I did not need company."

Minato sighs. "What, did you and Kushina not have any fun?" he asks as he tries to ruffle Kakashi's hair.

Artfully, he dodges the tan hand and chides, "Sensei."

"Don't worry, Minato," Kushina assures his teacher, reaching around Kakashi and looping arms with the blond. She leads them over to the couch and they sit down. Almost as if by instinct, they tangle their legs together. Kakashi feels irrationally excluded at the sight and goes to sit on the other end of the couch farthest from the couple.

"We did," Kushina continues, smirking at Kakashi. "In spite of what 'Kashi is trying to sell here."

Minato returns her smirk with a smile and runs a hand through his hair. "Oh, good."

Kakashi, who for some reason itches to see them separate, decides to tell his teacher, "There's lunch in the kitchen and it's not ramen either."

"Thanks, Kakashi," replies his teacher, but he nor Kushina move to get up.

He pouts behind his mask and turns his body away from the couple. Bringing his feet up on the couch cushion, he tucks his legs close to his chest and wraps his arms around his knees. Turning his gaze to the boring street outside, he pretends Minato and Kushina aren't cuddling a foot away.

"So, did anything exciting happen while I was gone?" asks Minato after a beat of silence.

Kakashi tilts his head to the side as if in thought before he curves his eyes into a fake smile and replies, "Hm, no."

"Really?" says Minato, raising an eyebrow and sitting up a little straighter. In the process, Kushina and his legs untangle.

Feeling a little better at the sight, Kakashi decides to give his teacher a bone. "Gai's team came around while we were training and he beat Obito in taijutsu spar?" he offers up. That's probably the kind of news Minato-Sensei was hoping to hear about, right?

His teacher laughs and pats Kushina's thigh. "That exciting of a week, huh?" he jokes, looking from his smiling girlfriend to Kakashi.

Kushina snickers herself before abruptly turning somber. "Kakashi, maybe you should tell him about what happened to your ankle," she suggests.

Minato tenses. "What happened to your ankle?"

He shoots a look that tells Kushina just how easily he could kill her with his bare, tiny fingers if he really wanted to. The redhead does not cower under his gaze but instead sticks out her chin in defiance. "Mah, it was just a scratch," he tells his teacher through his teeth.

Kushina narrows her eyes at him. "Kakashi, there was poison in it."

"Poison?" echoes Minato, eyes wide and panic clear in his tone.

Indignant, Kakashi snaps, "I got most of it out and Rin the rest!"

"How did you get poison in your leg in the first place?" asks Minato-Sensei, leaning over Kushina's lap and reaching out to grab at the darkly colored singlet Kakashi's wearing today. He tugs at him, not quite forcing Kakashi to come closer, but insisting all the same. He doesn't really want to be nearer to his sensei at the moment, but he lets his teacher bring him flush against Kushina's free side. The teenager is tense from having her space invaded, just like Kakashi.

"A trap in Orochimaru's home," he answers as Minato manhandles Kakashi's leg with the small bandage just peeking out from beneath the hem of his pant leg onto Kushina's lap.

His teacher moves his ankle around, inspecting it, and even peeling back the bandage to reveal what's now just a scab. "…Maybe the next time you want to go poking around somewhere one of us should go with you," suggests the blond when he finishes his study and replaces the bandage.

Kakashi rolls his eyes and takes his leg back. "Because that wouldn't be suspicious."

"Kakashi, we have teams for a reason," Minato replies, giving him a disappointed frown.

He knows that. He probably understands the worth of teams better than anyone in this whole village right now. Angrily, he gets up from the couch and snaps, "I know!" When Kakashi tries to stalk past to go shut himself away in his bedroom and to get away from this stupid conversation, Minato-Sensei grabs his arm.

His eyes are so earnest it makes a lump form in Kakashi's throat. "I don't want you getting needlessly hurt, Kakashi," he murmurs.

He looks away from the gaze. Now he knows with 100% certainty it was Minato who Naruto inherited his puppy dog eyes from. "It was a mistake," he says. "I won't make one like it again."

"Good," says his teacher, giving Kakashi's arm a light squeeze. Voice firm, he declares, "I'm still going with you, or if I can't, Kushina will."

His head snaps up at the rule. He's not actually seven. He can't be ordered around like this. "Sensei, no," he replies, glaring at him. "I'm the one who decides if I need help, not you."

"Look how well that's gone for you, 'Kashi," breaks in Kushina, her own eyes serious. "If I hadn't insisted on bringing Rin around, you could have died because you didn't get all the poison out."

"It wouldn't have gotten to that point," he grumbles, glowering at the kunoichi.

"How do you know?" she demands, her eyebrow arched. "You aren't all-knowing, you know."

He glares harder and Minato-sensei exhales. "We all want the same thing, 'Kashi," he pleads. "Use us," he says. "We can help you."

He holds back the urge to quiver. Kakashi hasn't given in to any looks in years. Not since he was actually kid training his ninken for the first time. Finally, he whispers, "I can't let you get hurt because of me, Sensei."

"We're at an impasse, then, Kakashi," replies his teacher in a voice just as quiet. "Because we're not going to just let you go off and get hurt again either." He shares a look with Kushina. "We'll take shifts guarding you if we have to."

He clenches his hands into fists. "You can't do that," he argues.

"Kakashi, I'm your sensei," says Minato. "I don't care that you're technically older than me. You are still my student. I want to protect you as much as I can and I will do that."

He sighs. Minato-Sensei is not going to relent. Nor agree that he has more than enough prowess to accomplish his goals. Kakashi gives his teacher a defeated look. "Fine," he lies. "You win. I'll bring you with me the next time I go out."

Minato's sad expression turns to one of relief, but Kushina narrows her eyes at Kakashi. Then, leaning against Minato she wraps one arm over his chest and points at Kakashi with the other. "Don't think we won't notice if you slip off!" she says. "Since I'm moving in, there will always be someone watching you now."

Kakashi blinks. "You're moving in?" he says, looking from her to Minato. "When did this happen?"

Minato flushes while Kushina smirks at him. "We've been talking about it a while, brat," she says. Smirk widening, she flicks a loose strand of her hair from her face and explains, "Last week was my trial run to see how well we could get along without Minato around."

He scowls. "You tricked me," he accuses his teacher.

The blond laughs nervously. "It wasn't a trick, I just forgot to mention what last week was…" he fibs, sweat on his brow.

He rolls his eyes at his teacher. "Uh-huh."

Minato pulls Kakashi closer, knocking Kakashi's front against his knees. "Are you really upset with me?" he asks.

Kakashi sighs. Is he? Not really. He's just annoyed that he might actually have to take one of these two teenagers on his next mission for information. He'd been doing everything he could to keep them out of danger and now, it doesn't look like it will be feasible anymore.

"No," he grumbles.

Minato breathes out an exhale of relief. Getting out from under Kushina, he stands up. Then, using the hold he still has on Kakashi to lift him off the ground, he wraps Kakashi up in a hug and says, "Good. I'd hate it if you were, 'Kashi."

Kakashi rests his cheek on his teacher's shoulder and mutters, "I'm sure."

Minato's hug strengthens a moment. "I do care what you think, 'Kashi," he mumbles into his ear. Minato doesn't let him go, but he does lessen his grip and shift his hold so he's carrying Kakashi. "Let's go see what feast Kushina got for us, huh?"

"She got a champon and yakitori," Kakashi says.

Minato looks at his girlfriend. "Really?"

She flushes. "I wasn't sure what you'd be in the mood for, you know. So I got a mix of stuff."

He grins. "No, that's great!" he tells her. "It sounds like the three of us are going to have a feast!"

Kushina returns his smile with a laugh. "Yeah!" she agrees. "It's going to be great."

Thank you for reading and let me know your thoughts!