Our Moments

By Khira

Scene 2

The death of the Third had serious consequences on Konoha, especially on its inhabitants, who still couldn't believe that their beloved leader was gone. The organization of the village was also a problem; the lack of a leader potentially giving the impression to other villages that Konoha was vulnerable and indeed it was. Hence in order to conceal it, the amount of ordered missions increased more than ever before.

Even Iruka, who was more used to delivering scrolls than receive them, had been called up. The ninja academy had been closed temporarily due to the recent circumstances. So, on that day, the chuunin went to the mission office to stand on the opposite side of the counter and receive a scroll with instructions; he checked that the range of the awarded mission was reasonable, the name of his colleagues, and he turned ready to leave as soon as possible.

But then he saw Kakashi. The jounin had just returned from a mission and judging by his dirty uniform and bloodstains, it had not been easy. But he seemed unscathed, so the blood was clearly not his.

Kakashi also saw Iruka. When their eyes met, Iruka couldn't help but blush. With each passing day he had remembered more details of the night they spent together and realized the jounin definitely had not taken advantage of him.

"Hello" Kakashi greeted as he approached the counter without looking at anyone in particular. Iruka didn't know who Kakashi was waving too for sure, but just in case he waved back.

"Hello" he murmured politely.

Kakashi delivered the report of his mission. Iruka smiled a little while taking notice to the face of the ninja behind the desk as he scanned the report. Oh, yes, he had, many times, suffered Kakashi's poor handwriting too. The jounin looked at him and Iruka blushed slightly. The chuunin turned to leave, but then he heard Kakashi call for him softly, just loud enough for him to hear.

"Iruka, wait."

"What is it?"

"We need to talk."

The young teacher swallowed hard. He knew what Kakashi wanted to talk about and he was not sure if he was ready. And he had the perfect excuse.

"I have a mission."

Kakashi took a quick look at the scroll in Iruka's hands.

"It's C rank." Kakashi replied without a hint of mockery in his tone. He was just reciting a fact, "It can wait a few minutes."

"All right…" Iruka accepted reluctantly. He could find no other excuse.

They walked out of the mission room; Iruka behind Kakashi at a safe distance so no one could see them coming out together. For it would attract curious looks or comments that could degenerate into malicious gossip and Iruka hated gossip.

As they walked together, Iruka began to think about what he should say. He was well aware of the fact that the jounin hadn't received any response to his question, the one that always is implicit when declaring it to someone else no matter the circumstances. The usual: And you?

«I'm in love with you», Kakashi said. And you?

No, Iruka was not in love with Kakashi. He was attracted to him, sure, but who wasn't? The jounin was strong, the strongest of the village, perhaps in the country, and he had that mysterious and melancholic personality, bizarre yet lovely. He was serious when he had to be and funny when he was allowed to. He also had a good body, thin but bundled with broad shoulders, and, Iruka had the luxury of finding out that night that he was very handsome. He wondered again about the same thing like all the people of the village did: why the mask?

Anyway, the point was that Kakashi, in his late twenties, was the most eligible bachelor of the village. That led Iruka to another important question: what the hell did Kakashi see in him?

Perhaps it was a whim. Yes, surely it was just that. The eccentric and desired Kakashi of the Sharingan had a crush on the bland and timid schoolteacher.

"Iruka" Kakashi's voice halted his walking and thoughts. They were in the middle of a corridor. A clear corridor, but someone could step in on them at any time.

"No, not here. Somebody could see us."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"Are you ashamed to be seen with me?" he asked, trying to look nonchalant, but there was obvious hurt in his voice.

"Of course not!" Iruka retorted. Being in the company of Hatake Kakashi wasn't shameful at all, but he just didn't want anyone hearing their conversation. Homosexuality was not a crime in the ninja world, at least not in the Land of Fire, but not everyone was ok with it, "I'd prefer to talk about this in private; I don't want anyone to hear us and rumors being spreading. Come this way."

Iruka led him to a small store that was just down the corridor. They entered and closed the door behind them.

"Well, tell me," Iruka started, suddenly feeling very embarrassed. The store wasn't very big and being in that small space with Kakashi... maybe it hadn't been a great idea after all.

Kakashi didn't beat around the bush, "Are you still thinking that I took advantage of you?" he asked.

Iruka blushed again, "No..."

An audible and undisguised sigh escaped from Kakashi's lips, "Do you remember what happened?"

"Yes... Quite."

"Didn't like it?"

"You know I did." At this point Iruka's face was scarlet. How could Kakashi be talking so calmly about this?

"So?"

"So…?" Iruka didn't mean to be cruel, but he really didn't know what to say. He didn't even know what Kakashi wanted from him.

Suddenly the jounin raised a gloved hand and touched Iruka's face with his fingertips. A soft touch, but it made Iruka's heart go faster. With the other hand Kakashi took off his mask and Iruka stopped breathing.

Yes, he was extremely handsome.

Kakashi leaned down, probably meant to kiss him, and Iruka understood he had to make things as clear as soon as possible.

"Kakashi, I d-don't..." he stammered. Kakashi stopped, waiting for what he had to say, "I do not... I like you, but… I'm not...

"In love with me?" Kakashi finished the sentence for him.

"I'm sorry." Iruka closed his eyes. He didn't want to see sadness or disappointment on Kakashi's beautiful face.

"I already know that."

Iruka opened his eyes.

"Oh."

"But... can I kiss you?"

Feeling confused, with his heart still pounding, Iruka nodded. Then Kakashi kissed him and Iruka realized that the confused memories of that night didn't do justice to the lips that were currently on his, Kakashi's lips.

They left the store ten minutes later. Iruka was hot and his lips were so swollen that anyone could have noticed. Luckily, for the time being, the corridor was empty.

"When will you come back from the mission?" Kakashi asked. Unlike Iruka, he looked as fresh as a rose in May.

"If everything goes well, tomorrow night."

"Let's hope it goes well then." Judging by his tone, he really seemed to want Iruka to come back soon.

"Yes. Uh... well, see you around."

"See you."

And so they parted.

The mission didn't go well. At all.

What had begun as a theoretically simple C-rank mission had ended in an unexpected ambush by a group of vicious mercenaries against three chuunins. The three were treacherously attacked and the captain of Iruka's team had to stay alone so Iruka could get out with the youngest of the three men, an eighteen year-old boy who was badly injured.

Now Iruka was in the Konoha hospital, after leaving his young comrade with the medical team, arguing with Genma and the other jounin because they didn't want him to return to his captain.

"I have to go back." Iruka said, his blood-stained hands were shaking so much because of the tension and the effort to bring his comrade to safety. At some point in the battle he had lost his rubber band and felt his hair stick to his face, "The captain is out there alone... I have to go back!"

"No" Genma replied curtly, his inseparable senbon sticking to one side of his mouth, "The C-mission has become an A one. You must stay here so they can attend you too. We'll go for the captain."

"Then I'm coming with you!"

"Don't! Iruka, you stay here. That's an order."

That's an order. «Damn jounins», Iruka thought to himself; always using the same words when they wanted to end an argument with someone of lower rank than them.

Iruka watched them go helplessly. A nurse approached him offering to help, but he ignored her, although his side really ached. But then someone came up to him, someone he couldn't ignore.

"Iruka..." Kakashi's voice was a mixture of surprise and horror.

"Kakashi..." Iruka came out of the angry trance. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to visit a comrade. What about you? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"But you're... soaked in blood."

"It's not mine." Iruka looked at his hands, his arms, torso, legs... His whole body was covered with the blood of his young comrade. It was then that he knew that the boy wouldn't make it. No one could survive after losing so much blood. «Fuck...»

He was seeing only blood. Blood all over him. Iruka staggered. Kakashi was holding him instantly.

"Iruka!"

"I must... I have to change my clothes... The blood..."

"Iruka, you better stay here." With a gesture, Kakashi called the nurse still prowling around.

"No, no, I don't want to be here. I want to go home... I have to wash..."

As the adrenaline decreased his side ached more and his vision was becoming blurred. Iruka didn't see blood anymore, only brown and black spots. He knew he was fainting, but couldn't do anything about it. And to make things worse, he was going to faint in Kakashi's arms. «How appropriate», was the last thing he was able to think clearly before losing consciousness.

Later, surprisingly Iruka woke up in his own bed. The first thing he did was to look at his hands. There was no trace of blood and he was wearing clean clothes. Then he looked to the right side of the bed where Kakashi, sitting on the edge with his face uncovered, looked at him with relief and still some concern.

"How do you feel?" the jounin asked.

"Fine." Iruka replied, which was true, but immediately he was reminded of the fallen, and he wanted to cry, "But my fellow..."

"Your fellow team is okay."

Iruka blinked, "What?"

"The two are alright. The captain managed to escape and the boy you carried will recover. Narrowly, but he will."

"Oh my god..." Iruka wanted to cry again, but this time in relief. He covered his face with his hands, "I .. I didn't think they would... Oh thank god! "

When he had calmed down, he lowered his hands and looked back at Kakashi as he felt something on his side. As if reading his mind, the jounin gave him an explanation.

"And you had an open wound on the side that should have been taken care of immediately because you were losing blood. That's why you fainted."

"Oh." At least he had an excuse for fainting like a schoolgirl at the sight of so much blood. Then he realized something, "Shouldn't I be in the hospital? How it is that I'm in my own house?"

"Would you rather be in the hospital?"

"Of course not."

Iruka couldn't stand hospitals. He had been in the hospital where he had seen the bodies of his parents. He had been in the hospital after Mizuki broke his heart and almost his spine. One centimeter more to the left and he would have been paralyzed, doctors repeated that phrase for weeks.

"That was what I thought." Kakashi nodded, "That's why I brought you here as soon as I was allowed. I thought you'd rather wake up in your bed and not in the hospital."

Did Kakashi know something about his hatred for hospitals? Well, it wasn't a total secret; his friends knew.

"Thank you," he said with a tiny smile. Seriously, he was grateful.

To his surprise, Kakashi actually blushed. Just a little, but enough for Iruka to notice.

«He's in love with me», Iruka realized, and for the first time, the words made sense. Kakashi was in love with him. Until that moment he had not believed it.

He was stunned.

"What?" Kakashi asked, noticing that something was on his mind.

"You're in love with me..." Iruka muttered, and immediately regretted it. Kakashi did not seem to take it badly though his shoulders stiffened slightly.

"Yes."

"Why?"

Now Kakashi was stunned.

"Why…?" he repeated blankly.

Iruka swallowed a few times, trying to bring order to his thoughts.

"I mean… You are Hatake Kakashi, Kakashi of the Sharingan, the powerful Copy Ninja, and I'm just... Umino Iruka."

"What's wrong with being Umino Iruka?" Kakashi asked with a patient and toneless voice. If he was uncomfortable because of the conversation, he was trying to hide it.

"Nothing, I think, but... I'm just a chuunin, a simple schoolteacher. Why me?" Kakashi looked ready to respond, but Iruka realized that the purpose of the question seemed only to increase his ego and stopped the jounin with a gesture, "Sorry, I don't know what I'm saying. I think I'm a little tired..."

Kakashi's shoulders relaxed. He put his mask in place.

"Yes, you should rest. I have to go on another mission but will be back today. Even so, I'll let someone watch over you, okay?"

"Huh?"

Before Iruka could protest, Kakashi made a kuchiyose no jutsu and a small dog appeared above the sheets.

"Hey boss!" the pug greeted to his master lifting a paw. Then he turned to Iruka. "What's up, kid?"

«Kid? I'm twenty three years old!»

"Are you going to leave Pakkun here to watch over me?" Iruka asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Do I have to stay here watching over him?" the pug asked, doing the same gesture. Iruka glared at the dog.

"Pakkun can immediately tell me or anyone else if something happens. Pakkun, please watch over Iruka. He has a wound in his side and if the stitches open you have to tell someone at the hospital right away."

"If there's no choice..." the dog said, stifling a yawn.

"Well, I'm going." Kakashi hesitated before he kept on talking, "See you tonight?"

Iruka ignored the dog's curious eyes and nodded, trying not to blush. He was unsuccessful.

TBC

A/N: And here the second chapter. I hope you liked it!

Thanks for the reviews and thanks to my beta Merley.

Khira