In which Haruhi does things she shouldn't and children are traumatized.
They were still. Like the calm before the storm.
She and Pakkun hadn't moved much from under their bush. Yes it was theirs now. Kakashi was standing in the clearing, hands in his pockets and looking back and forth measuredly. At one point he had glanced at them and winked.
The three genin seemed to be hiding for now. With a burst of Chakra, they had jumped off into the trees and were hiding out of sight but within range.
Suddenly, like some war statue, Naruto was standing in the middle of the clearing with his arms crossed, hard to miss with his orange jumpsuit.
She felt the collective sweat-drop. The leaves stopped rustling in a collective 'whut?' moment.
A piece of work for sure.
Pakkun snorted.
"You and me, right now, fair and square, lets go!" She was cringing so hard. She had to force herself to relax because she was hurting her sides. Massive second hand embarrassment. She heard Sasuke scoff from somewhere above her, and while she would gnash her teeth at his scoffing, she couldn't help but side with him on this one.
Kakashi tilted his head and squinted in confusion, face a perfect 'wtf' expression.
"You know, compare to the others you're a little bit... weird." He straightened his neck.
"Oh yeah, the only weird thing here is your haircut!" She giggled slightly. Kakashi shot her an annoyed glance.
Screaming, Naruto charged Kakashi.
Tuffs of dust were kicked up as he charged towards a nonchalant Kakashi. Pakkun leaned forward and she swatted a leaf out of her face.
Kakashi reached into his weapons pocket.
The move was intimidating enough for Naruto to stop dead in his tracks and jump back, watching Kakashi like an alert puppy.
"Shinobi battle techniques part one. Taijutsu, the physical part."
"Huh!" He swiftly pulled out of his weapons pouch...
...an orange book. With a scantily clad woman being chased by some horny drooling dude.
"What the!" Naruto let out, not expecting that. She was struggling. She plucked a leaf and squashed her face in it, desperately trying not to laugh. Kakashi seemed to brighten at her struggles, and flipped a few pages while Naruto sputtered on.
"What are you waiting for, make your move." He called, flipping another page.
"but.. I mean, why are you reading that book!"
"Why? To find out what happens in the story of course!" He exclaimed in his passive, laid back way. "Don't let it bother you. With your weak attacks, it doesn't really matter if I'm reading, or, whatever."
"I'm going to crush you!" Naruto screamed, charging.
He let loose a series of punches and kicks that rustled the nearby tall grass. Without looking up from his book, Kakashi stopped and dodged every single one with his hand.
Haruhi felt her eyes widen at the sequence.
"Now you're mine! Huh?" Naruto blinked with confusion when Kakashi was suddenly gone.
"Don't let your enemy get behind you all the time." He appeared right behind Naruto's extended form, hands shaped into a sign.
Oh, please no. Don't.
She heard Sakura gasp a couple bushes away.
"Naruto! Get out of there quick! He's going to destroy you!" She shouted, peeking out through the bushes. It was a good thing Sakura cared, she mused, shifting back on Pakkun's head. Said dog was watching with anticipation.
"To late," Kakashi almost sang.
"Leaf village secret finger jutsu! A tHOUSAND YEARS OF DEATH!" He jabbed his joined fingers right into Naruto's butt. The kid screamed and went sailing over the treetops.
She was suffering from second hand embarrassment so hard. She cupped her hands in her face and blew out a big puff of air. She felt the judgement rolling of Sakura and Sasuke in waves. She couldn't even call them out cause really, what the hell was that?
A splash was heard and Kakashi turned his back to them and watched Naruto crash land in the lake like a shuttle falling from space.
"Okay. Where was I." He pondered sounding not at all like he had just violated his potential student. He was flipping the page when two shuriken burst out of the water and whirled towards Kakashi, heading straight towards his head!
Accurate as heat seeking missiles they approached their target. Not looking up from his book, Kakashi stuck up his index and middle fingers and caught the two like horseshoes.
Wow. He was forgiven. She was still going to rib him later.
Naruto crawled out after his weapons, sopping wet.
"What are you doing now? You know you wont get lunch unless you get a bell by noon." Kakashi said, exasperated. She was captivated. Leaning forward through the blue green leaves, she stood on top of the blue ninja cloth wrapped around Pakkuns head and pulled on some twig branches for support. Her hair shifted over her shoulders.
"...You look pretty wobbly for somebody who's going to surpass the Hokage." He said skeptically. She missed some dialogue then.
"Pakkun," she hissed "Is there anyway we can get closer?"
"No. Not with the other two hidden."
She grunted in annoyance.
Naruto failed around like a suffocating fish, shouting about being hungry. A little too close for comfort, she heard two other bellies rumble. Pakkun sensed this and slowly backed away into the undergrowth.
"Where are we going?" She whispered as they ducked under a protruding tree root. Thick bushes with purple-green leaves and saplings that shot up like springs, leaving Pakkun to skillfully weave around them.
"Somewhere safer. Those kids were too close. Not that I was worried amateurs like them could catch us."
Then they heard a shout that rustled the leaves and scared the remaining birds away.
"SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!" Fuck! She was missing it!
Pakkun took a turn along a dip in the grass and skimmed a pile of boulders. From this standpoint, they were far away from the two hiding, but could still see the action. What looked like a cloud of Naruto clones flew through the air towards Kakashi. Of course Kakashi still looked dead inside.
"That's very impressive." Pakkun offered. "A dead-last mastering a B rank jutsu isn't much of a dead-last at all." She could only nod in agreement. People really weren't that clear cut.
"Huh!"
Naruto had jumped Kakashi from behind! She knew how this went, but she still couldn't help the worried gasp that escaped her. Pakkun leaned forward, almost sending her toppling onto the sun baked rocks. Battle cries were heard as Kakashi freaked out. The other two were probably stunned.
At the last possible second Kakashi switched himself out for another clone and Naruto ended up whamming himself in the face with his knee. She winced.
Kakashi stood off to the side and shot a wink back at them. She waved and gave him a thumbs up.
The Naruto's were beating each other up now, pissed one had gotten nailed in the kisser and the others rustled in the fall.
Eventually all of them had dispersed and the real Naruto was left standing alone and contemplating life. Kakashi had disappeared.
'Ah kid,' she wanted to say to Naruto, 'that's rough buddy.'
He suddenly jerked forward, having spotted something on the ground she couldn't see. Reaching out, his efforts were thwarted when a rope snapped around his ankle and slingshotted him upwards. Kakashi emerged from the tree line and picked up a single glimmering bell. Wow. He mockingly tossed it up and down, and had a few selective words with Naruto, who was seething in rage.
In a distantly patronizing tone, he continued to lecture Naruto. He turned his back towards the tree line.
Sharp metal burst from the coverage and streaked towards Kakashi. For one terrible moment, it looked like he would be turned into Swiss cheese. They made contact, and a series of solid thunks could be heard and Kakashi poofed and turned into a log.
Sighing in relief, she fell back against Pakkuns head. Faintly, she heard a rustling where Sasuke sprinted away on the treetops.
"So that's where he is."
!
Kakashi was crouched on a pile of rocks behind them with an absolutely sinister expression. She done just about tinkled herself.
"So, you were worried about me?" He teased, expression mellowing out slightly as he glanced away from Sasuke and at her. She froze, then grinned.
"Not for a second."
He looked on surprised and maybe a bit put out.
"I know you can handle yourself."
He paused, then blushed slightly. Pulling out something from his own weapons pouch, he mumbled, and moving so fast her hair blew over her shoulders.
They were silent for a bit. She didn't know how to explain it, but she knew Sakura chased after her crush. It was her and Pakkun now.
"You know," he began" I've never seen Kakashi lose his cool like that." Pakkun remarked thoughtfully. "I'll have to tell the others!" She assumed he meant the other dog summons. And that was cool. But what did he mean by lose his cool?
"Whoa!" She was jolted out of her thoughts when Pakkun picked his way down the rocks.
"You don't want to miss it, do you?"
He continued to pick his way down the sun baking rocks. She hoped he was careful, snakes and other reptiles normally like resting on top of rocks like this. A scream rang through the forest. It had to be Sakura's. Kakashi got her then.
She bit her tongue. She couldn't lecture Kakashi as he wasn't here at the moment, and this was a test for their future. If he went easy on them they didn't deserve to pass.
But then again, this who child soldier thing rubbed her the wrong way.
They stopped on the edge of a smaller clearing just in time to see Sakura faint and Kakashi flip another page from his perch in the tree.
"Kakashi!" She shouted, hands on her hips. Sputtering, he almost dropped the book and fell off the tree. Of course he didn't land on the ground, he pulled some jutsu out of his ass and vanished. Probably to teach Sasuke a lesson. Carefully as she could, she slid off Pakkun, who helpfully lowered his head to the ground.
She paused.
Her intuition was telling her not to. She didn't know when Sakura would wake up, or if she would accidentally hit her. And Haruhi didn't really want to be seen. If she was seen, she would be forced to talk, and if she was forced to talk, they would become friends and it would be that much worse when she leaves. And there was the fact Kakashi told her to stay hidden…
She thought of Sakura's terrified scream and rolled her shoulders, jaw clenching in anger.
If Kakashi had wanted her to stay put, he shouldn't have been a dick.
She jogged over to the KO'd Sakura and lifted her eyelid. Rolled back.
"Haruhi!" Pakkun growled.
Startled she swung around-his maw was inches away from her!
Petrified, she couldn't move as his teeth clamped around her shirt. He broke the cover of bushes just as someone landed in the small clearing.
She exhaled a shaky breath and her fingers spasmed against her thighs as she felt Pakkuns sharp teeth scrap her back and his heavy hot breath dampening her hair.
They leaned forward to see who it was.
The figure grinded to a halt, kicking up dust. Swiftly, they crouched next to Sakura's side and checked her like Haruhi did. Feeling her hummingbird heart fluttering in her wrist, they exhaled a sigh of relief and put Sakura's hand down. As an afterthought, they took Sakura's shoulders and shifted her into a more comfortable position.
"S-sasuke?" Sakura whimpered faintly.
Sasuke shot up, and jumped into the trees before she could awaken further.
Haruhi shook her head, eyes wide in surprise. The ice-cube caring about someone? She narrowed her eyes at the spot where Sasuke disappeared into the trees. As Haruhi recalled, he was an quiet kid with a massive chip on his shoulder and no respect for anyone at this point. Why would he check on Sakura?
She was lowered to the moss covered ground. Which was good; she had bad past experiences with dogs. He planted his chin for her to climb on, and she did. With difficulty. She bunched her trembling hands in the fabric and had to use a nearby rock as a step stool, the memory of Pakkuns teeth against her back still fresh. His canine tooth was as big as her fist.
"Kakashi was right."
"Hm?" She continued humming, mostly to calm herself. The stress and confusion was getting to her.
"You do like humming."
She had nothing to say to that, so she didn't respond. She did stop humming though. A bush rustled with what she assumed was another rabbit, the leaves shaking slightly. Haruhi smiled, thinking back to the rabbit trails she and Pakkun had been in earlier. Pakkun sprinted on the ground before tensing.
"What is it?" Haruhi whispered. Pakkun didn't answer, his head only tilted up and his nose twitched as he sniffed. His narrowed sharp black eyes scanned the bushes
"Hang on."
"Hang on-AH!"
She clutched the head band, digging her feet behind his ears. Her hair streamed behind her and her lips rippled with the g force, stealing her breath away. He jumped a few more times, each one a lot like a less fun roller coaster, before he bounded carefully to the forest ground again.
She gathered herself.
"Pakkun!" She hissed.
"Shh." He whispered back.
In front of them was Sasuke. And behind him leaning on a tree was Kakashi. Still reading his porn.
"...Say that after you get one of these bells, Sasuke." He taunted.
Sasuke was staring blankly at the treeline. They shifted uncomfortably, it seemed like he was looking right at them. He shifted around and a super tense standoff took place. She could almost hear the background music as they sized each other up, like two wolves or something. Or a mexican standoff.
"Ha!" Sasuke flung sharp metal like rain.
"There's no point using normal attacks!" Kakashi said leaping to the side.
Sasuke smirked.
"Hn!"
A kunai soared through the air and sliced through a suspended rope. A trap!
Kakashi did a one handed back-flip, barely dodging a storm of weaponry, which embedded itself up to the hilt with solid thunks in a tree trunk.
He slid along the ground.
"Huh!"
Sasuke appeared so fast behind Kakashi he was a blur to her senses. With his back towards Sasuke he was open to attack.
"Thwack!"
Kakashi barely raised his forearms in time to stop the spinning helicopter kick. The sound of shoes on forearms made her cringe.
Kakashi gripped his foot. Sasuke was now stuck. Twisting his torso even further, Sasuke formed a fist and swung.
Catching it like a baseball, Kakashi actually slid backwards. Rotating in the air, Sasuke took his free foot and arch it blindingly fast towards Kakashi's head, who, again, barely ducked in time. Upside down he was inches away from the unguarded bells on Kakashi's hip. With his free hand he reached.
"Ting."
With a enormous movement Kakashi threw Sasuke off just as the tip of his finger flicked the bells.
Both slid across the clearing away from each other, Kakashi now taking Sasuke seriously. Sasuke's smirk slid into a scowl.
In the distance, she heard someone shouting. The two paid no attention to it.
"Well, you are different from the other two, I'll grant you that." Said Kakashi.
"Hn." Jesus, was this kid a caveman? His vocabulary was limited to three noises. It was grating on her nerves. He rapidly flicked through a series of hand-signs, air whistling around his arms. He reared back, hair standing on end and shorts whirling around him. He took a deep breath.
Kakashi looked even more rattled than when Sasuke almost got the bell. His disbelief was tangible. He leaned forward to watch and his arms spread back, prepared to jump.
"HISSS."
HOLY HELL, SASUKE WAS BREATHING FIRE! GET HER THE HELL OUTTA HERE!
It formed a mass in the center of the thankfully rock clearing, cracking the stone. It dissipated, leaving a smoldering crater and no Kakashi.
"Hn?" Sasuke put his arm down and looked around in shock.
"Where?" A voice taunted.
Crack! A gloved clad hand reached through the hard packed dirt and grabbed Sasuke's ankle.
"Aha!?"
"I'm where you least expect me."
With a short scream, Kakashi yanked his ankle and pulled him straight down into the dirt!
The bells tingled. Tauntingly.
Kakashi crouched in front of Sasuke, who was now buried up to the neck.
"Right under your feet. Earth style, headhunter jutsu. " He said patronizingly, like a schoolteacher who hated you.
"Can't move, huh? That was ninjutsu, the third shinobi battle skill. You have talent, and you were right, you are 'different' from the the others. But different isn't always better."
Standing up from his crouch, he puts one hand in his pocket and the other held up the book. He starts walking away.
"They say the nail that sticks up is the one that gets hammered down."
She sat there stunned. Kakashi went all BAMF on this kid. She could still see him squirming in the dirt, fruitlessly trying to wrench himself free. Pebbles fell around his neck whenever there was an opening. She felt something block her sun.
"What's your game, Kakashi?"
"Hm?" He replied, flicking a page.
"It's not just about skill. What do you want from these three kids?"
At this, he glanced from the book to her, and gave her an appraising look.
"You're very sharp, Haruhi."
"So?"
Eye smiling he said:
"You'll find out."
...And he was gone. Great. Pakkun made a move to leave.
"Wait!" She hissed. He paused.
She didn't like Sasuke by any means, but she was frustrated at his and the others lack of maybe she was also annoyed at Kakashi.
Licking her lips, she turned her head towards Sasuke. Making sure they were covered by shadows and leaves she leaned forward.
"Sasuke!" She raised her voice.
Said boy stopped struggling and whipped his head around. Him being a human and not an owl, he wasn't able to turn his head all the way.
"You have two others, use them!"
"Who's there?" He demanded.
Pakkun, sensing something she didn't, pulled back and silently left the edge. Something rustled what sounded like 20 feet away. They broke into the clearing.
"Huh?!"
"S-sakura? It's you?"
"AH! Sasuke's just a head without a body and he's talking!" She fell onto her back in a dead faint.
"Hey!?" They faintly heard Sasuke say before they walked out of range. She knew Sasuke would get himself out and wake Sakura up, then have a bit of an heart to heart. Haruhi's lip curled condescendingly as she thought of how easily Sakura fainted at the sight of Sasuke. But to be fair, Kakashi did put her under a traumatizing Genjutsu, so she would let it slide.
But now it was time to see what sunshine boy was up too.
Pakkun panted, expertly running through the bunny trails. It reminded her of the Easter bunnies tunnels in Rise of the Guardians.
"Huff huff huff" Pakkun was going as fast as he could with her on board, but it wasn't enough.
"Ringgggg!"
Pakkun slowed to a trot.
"We were too late." In the distance through a break in the trees she saw the pile of rocks from before. They make it to the beginning of the clearing and made their way around, using the brownish crabgrass as camouflage. They could hear three hungry bellies in unison. Naruto was tied to the middle wooden trunk, evidently having tried to take one of the two boxed lunches from before. Sasuke and Sakura were on either side in various sitting positions. In front of the three stood Kakashi, with a mocking smile on his face.
"Uh oh, stomach's growling, huh? That's too bad. Oh! By the way, about this exercise, I've decided I won't send any of you back to the academy."
Naruto shrieked in delight.
Sakura said "What? I passed? All I did was faint and fall over. Do you get points for that" At least she knows how terrible she did.
"Hn." a small smirk from Sasuke.
"Oh boy! all three of us!" Naruto shouted in glee.
She felt a sinking in her stomach when his smile became sickeningly sweet.
"Yes all three of you are being dropped from the program. Permanently!"
My God.
Sakura looked like she was slapped with a trout.
Sasuke 'hn' in shock.
And Naruto screamed in opened mouth horror.
"Drop us from the program! that means we can never become ninja! You said if we couldn't take the bells we would be sent back to the academy! You can't just change your mind and kick us out wHY WOULD YOU DO THAT!"
"Because you don't think like ninja, you think like little kids. Like brats." That was the last straw.
Sasuke lunged forward, a move that pushed the leaves all the way from they were hiding.
Hands on his hips, Kakashi's eye followed Sasuke.
"Twck!"
"You think it's all about you." Kakashi said spitefully from his position half kneeling on Sasuke's back and stepping on his head.
"Let go of Sasuke! You can't step on him like he's some sort of bug!" Sakura screamed, mindlessly defending her crush. Oh, she was not liking this. Haruhi shrank back. This charged atmosphere was messing with her good vibes.
"You don't know what it means to be a ninja! You think It's a game, huh! Why do you think we put you on squads, did you consider that question for one moment?!" His voice was merciless and made everyone in the vicinity feel like an idiot.
"Uh, I-I don't know what you mean!?"
"I mean," He said dangerously, "You never realized what this exercise was all about. Not even close."
"What it's about?"
"Yes. That's what determines whether you pass or fail."
"That's, I mean, that's what I wanted to ask you about from the beginning." Sakura almost whimpered.
"Tch. Use your head. Three people on a squad. Why. do. You. Think, we would do that?"
Naruto screamed wordlessly in frustration.
"Ah! How are we supposed to know why you picked three people! We didn't make the rules!"
"…"
"It's so basic; TEAMWORK."
"..."
"Just working together, is that what you mean?" Sakura questioned.
"That's what I mean. It's too late now, But if all three of you had come at me you might, have been able to take them. Well, anyway, it's over."
"Ting." The bells taunted.
Sakura looked like she was thinking.
"You set it up with three people but only two bells. If we worked together and got the bells only two of us could keep them and that would lead to group conflict and the squad would break up!" Sakura, when not being blinded by her crush or insecurities, was actually smart.
"Exactly. I purposely pitted you against each other." He sounded like he was giving her a mocking pat on the head. "I wanted to see if you could overcome that and put the squad ahead of yourselves." He emphasized.
"A genin should have a natural feel for teamwork. But you, it never even crossed your mind." Kakashi sneered.
"Sakura!"
She leaned back and gasped.
"You obsessed over Sasuke, who was gone while Naruto was right in front of you-and you wouldn't lift a finger to help him."
"Naruto! You do everything on your own. Everything!"
"And you, Sasuke. You thought the others were so far beneath you they were worthless. Arrogance. " Kakashi sneered. Hate gleamed in his eye, and for a second Haruhi was caught off guard. She didn't like Sasuke at all, but he hadn't done anything to warrant that. Yet.
She realized what she saw was self hatred. Sasuke was too much like Kakashi in his youth.
He looked up from Sasuke with scorn.
"Ninja missions are carried out in squads. Of course you need individual skills but teamwork is the most essential element. Every shinobi understands this. When individuals put themselves above the squad this can lead to failure and death!"
He reached into his weapons pouch.
"For example..."
"Sakura! Kill Naruto now or Sasuke dies!" He held his kunai to Sasuke's throat.
Both of them panicked. Said boy looked rapidly back and forth. He pulled his knife away and Sasuke exhaled in relief.
Kakashi whirled the weapon around his finger.
"The enemy takes a hostage and you've got an impossible choice." He sighs.
"And someone ends up dead. "
He put it back in the pouch and finally stood up from Sasuke. He walked away and towards a large polished stone with inscriptions in it.
"On every mission your life is on the line."
Sasuke stayed down.
"Did you look at the Stone? The names engraved on it?" He stopped in front of it. His back was turned to them and his hands were curled into loose fists at his side. She shifted in realization. This rock was a memorial, she remembered now. Kakashi had people he cared about on that rock. She felt her eyes well up, even as she aggressively fought it down. This wasn't about her.
"They are all ninja, who are honored as heroes in our village."
"That's it that's it, that's it! I'll be a hero too" Naruto screeched. Why the hell did he sound so happy? Haruhi's brow furrowed.
"They are a... special kind of hero." Kakashi looked back, face blank.
"Huh? What kind of heroes are they? Come on!" He said, happy as can be. Sasuke used the moment to get up and walk back over, cool as a cucumber.
"…"
"They are all K.I.A"
Jesus Christ. Or did he exist here?
"Oh! That sounds real cool." Fuck it she was gonna put his name on the rock. He was embarrassing himself and she was blushing from second hand embarrassment so hard she was just about as red as the sharingan.
"It means killed in action, they all died." Sakura said sadly.
He froze, smile waning on his face. Dumbass. Was Naruto really this dumb?
"This is a memorial stone, the names of my closest friends are engraved here." She curled a fist to her chest and hair fell over her shoulder to cover her face. Feel trip she guessed.
He took a breathe that raised and lowered his shoulders. He looked over one.
"All right, I'm going to give you one more chance." At the action, her heart sped up. That was a good thing for him to do, and she hoped the three-no matter how undeserving- would capitalize on it.
"But I'm going to make it much harder on you. You'll have three hours to get a bell. Eat lunch now to build up strength. But; Naruto doesn't get any." Said boy grimaced. She thought it was a fair trade off though. "It's your punishment for breaking the rules and trying to eat by yourself."
His face took on shadows again.
"And if anyone tries to feed him, that person will immediately fail. I make the rules, you follow them. Got it?"
Kakashi handed out the lunches to Sasuke and Sakura, while Naruto looked on hungrily. Making up some excuse Kakashi left them to it. She shifted again, releasing the leaf and taking a deep breath to calm herself.
She and Pakkun were positioned on a side of a tree trunk, in a dip in its side. She was perched on top of his head. A patch of pretty yellow buttercups grew to their left.
"So you figured it out."
Blinking she looked up.
Kakashi's face was inches away from her. Again. Did personal space mean nothing to him?
It appeared obvious she had been crying. Tears trickled down her face, and strands of her curly black hair clung to her cheekbones where it was damp.
Gently, he lifted a finger and brushed the hair out of her face and traced it to her shoulders with his index. It tingled slightly. He didn't break the gaze.
"I heard you try and help Sasuke. You figured out they needed to work together."
She started, then blushed harder. He saw that?
Of course he did.
She grinned, wiping some of the tear tracks off her face.
"Well Kakashi, when I saw just how good you were I just knew they could never do it alone."
He blinked, scratching his now blushing cheek and looked away briefly before his eye returned to her. He just couldn't look away for long.
"Too bad you're not a ninja. You figured it out quicker than of the other three."
"Well, I am a fair bit older."
Silence fell again, and she tried to decipher what Kakashi was feeling. Surely he was rattled by his revelation to the kids about the deaths of his past loved ones?
"Are you okay?" The both said.
"Oh sorry-"
"Ah, you first-"
She giggled and covered the side of her face and he chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head and eye smiling clumsily. They had asked the question at the same time.
"Were you crying because of what I said earlier"
"I-it's not your fault. I just-"
"It's fine. I didn't know you felt like that."
She bit the inside of her lip, embarrassed.
"Here."
He reached over her; she could feel the heat from his arm as he passed. Stooping slightly, he plucked a single butter cup with expert precision. With his other hand, he cupped her hands and delicately placed the solidarity flower in her cupped palms. It was a bright sunshine yellow with a orange center. Five fat, rounded, leaves were shaped upwards into a bowl.
"Can't have you upset, now." She was speechless.
She closed her slightly parted lips and smiled lopsidedly.
"Thank you." She said gratefully.
"O-oh! It was nothing!"
She laughed into her shoulder, a wave of hair covering her face. She noticed something through the leaves. Turning back to Kakashi she shifted the flower into one hand and used the other to gently nudged the fingertips that were still resting on her lap.
"Go get 'em."
He eye-smiled warmly down at her, managing to keep his gaze unhindered. Standing to his full height, he turned and like an angered god, thundered through the leaves to the three genin, who had started feeding Naruto.
Smiling, she sat back down and lightly pressed the flower to her face.
"What am I? Chopped liver?!" Pakkun exclaimed angrily, having been forgotten in their exchange.
"Oh! sorry!"
Smiling sheepishly, they turned back to the situation. Sasuke and Sakura went directly against Kakashi's rules and had fed Naruto.
A whirlwind of Chakra, wind, and dust spread across the clearing, a manifestation of Kakashi's wrath.
"YOU!"
Naruto and Sakura screamed, and Sasuke 'hn' dramatically.
"You broke the rules! I hope you're ready for the punishment!" He slowly formed hand seals, and disappeared while clouds in the background crackled with lighting.
"Any last words?"
Naruto chattered.
"B-but y-y-you s-said-"
Kakashi tilted his head. "Yes?" He demanded.
"You said that there were three of us! That's what you said and that's...why Sakura and..." Sasuke stepped up to the plate.
"Were all on this squad and were all in it together!" He shouted.
Sakura, inspired by her crush, stood up.
"Yeah that's right!" She said something but a particularity loud rumble blocked the words.
Naruto screamed 'yeah' repeatedly.
"That's your excuse?!" Kakashi demanded angrily.
"..."
"Hn. You pass." Kakashi then smiled, cool as a can of beans.
"Huh?!"
"You. Pass."
"What do you mean?" Sakura looked confused.
"You're the first squad that's ever succeeded. The others did exactly what I said and fell into every trap. They couldn't think for themselves. A ninja must see through deception." He paused.
"In the ninja word those who break the rules are scum. That's true. But. Those who abandon their friends...are worse than scum!" Amen.
He looked up to the sky. The clouds cleared.
"Y-ya know," Said a teary eyed Naruto "He's kinda cool."
Haruhi smiled softly, pressing the buttercup to her face.
He really was.
"The exercise is over, everyone passes! Squad seven starts its first mission tomorrow!" He channeled enthusiasm in his passive way. He gave them all a thumbs up.
"Let's go home." That sounded good to everyone in the vicinity, knowingly or not. Sakura and Sasuke followed Kakashi. Pakkun made to do the same but her conscious stopped her.
"Pakkun! Naruto is still there!" She whispered. With practiced ease, she ignored the voice of her common sense screaming at her not to.
"Fine."
They crept around the back, out of sight. Pakkun let her fall to the ground and he grabbed a piece of rope with his teeth.
"The other way." She hissed. Pakkun couldn't see where to pull from his angle.
"H-hey who's there!" Naruto started thrashing, ropes now loose enough to get free. By that time, they were gone.
They had taken the long way home. Pakkun had decided that, with the now three kids following Kakashi, it was probably a good idea they stayed back. She wondered why she couldn't been seen and when would they see her, if ever? And would it even be a good idea to get to know them in the first place?
But combined with the long trail (to avoid being seen) Her stopping them to look at mushrooms, flowers, or pretty rocks,(they were cool!) and the fact Pakkun couldn't go too fast with her on his head, it was almost dusk when they finally got back. Distracted by the trip, events of the day, and the smell of food seeping onto the porch, she forgot one important detail;
When she asked him if he was okay, he never answered her.
The answer was no, probably, and she shouldn't pry, but…
Wel, she felt obligated to ask, and try to help. He was taking care of her during her stay here after all. It was on right she try to take care of him as well.
Maybe he was distracted by something, and she couldn't blame him for that. But it just seemed unlikely for him to 'forget' to answer. But the drifting thoughts were chased away when they arrived. Kakashi had left the door open slightly and Pakkun nudged it the rest of the way open before closing it behind him. He then unsummoned himself.
She stood in the middle of the hallway. Kakashi seemed to be in a good mood. He had made a dish she didn't recognize, but it included veggies so it was all good. He went to bed afterwards and so did she.
So when she woke up, she was greeted with cricket noises from outside and the sense that, she had to go to the kitchen. She shifted in her matchbox looking bed, and twisted herself over the edge. She had no idea what time it was but judging by the was the silver moonlight gleamed off the table it had to be around midnight. She went through the motions, and ended up in the hallway, slightly calloused feet barely felt the cool wooden floor, and deep breaths were heard as she inhaled the smell of steaming tea from the kitchen mixing with the night air.
She paused. Having a memory as least a little bit better than a goldfish and slightly aching sides to boot, she knew she shouldn't sneak up on Kakashi.
But something told her he was waiting for her.
She walked into the kitchen without hesitation. Besides, he made green tea, which was her favorite. Just as she had thought, he was leaning over the counter, eye following her path. She approached and he stooped down, carefully and reassuringly cupping her in his palm, and then put her on the edge of the fruit bowl. He slowly drew his hand away, as not to startle her.
She resisted the urge to swing her legs and instead crossed them at the ankle, waiting for him to speak. She bowed her head and allowed him to take a slow sip in peace.
"I'm a sensei now." He said, like making sure it was real. He tossed the words around in his mouth like he had never quite heard of them before.
She tilted her head upwards in interest, listening.
"I think... a part of me...knew these three were special. No one had ever passed my test before, and I think to avoid turmoil I focused on that fact and applied it to them."
He lowered his eye to his hands, which were splayed just below her at the base of the bowl. Gathering his thoughts.
"What are you worried about?"
...
"I'll do my best, but I'm not sure I'm what they need."
Kakashi was unsure of himself. And as much as she hated to admit it, it was with good reason. Kakashi had done a mediocre job at best the first time around, ignoring Sakura, dumping Naruto off om Ebisu, and forgetting to teach Sasuke good coping mechanisms. And Kakashi had never worked with kids this young and inexperienced before. Itachi didn't count, an at this age he was already ANBU level. Plus the fact he still wasn't recovered from his previous trauma and the three kids reminded him of his dead teammates definitely didn't help...
"Well, all you can do is your best. Teach them what you have learned from your own mistakes. And remember, you are learning how to be a Sensei, just as they are learning how to be a ninja."
He sighed, shoulders moving like mountains as he considered her words. She looked away as he took another sip of tea before speaking.
"All of these three are very, ah, special cases. A naive civilian girl, traumatized arrogant boy, and a deadlast with big ambitions. They assigned me to that team because of many reasons, the complicated factors surrounding each kid is one of them."
She jumped down onto his upturned palms and placed her hands in the the middle of his, him having taken off the glove.
"Well Kakashi, you don't have to do it alone." He could always ask the other Senseis what to do, like Gai, Asuma, and Kurenai.
He gaped for a second before eye-smiling at her.
"Silly me, I didn't consider."
"Kakashi, are you okay?"
"Yes. Yes I am."
She laughed and jumped off, wandering towards the cup of tea in interest. He called her name, voice serious now.
"Haruhi. I told the children about you."
What! Haruhi was stunned and angry. After yelling at her not to reveal herself and making her feel guilty for it, he goes and spills the beans without even asking her?
"When Naruto caught up, I told them there was a special supplement to our team, and that I would reveal what it was when they were ready."
Why would he do that?
Seeing the betrayed look on her face, Kakashi quickly backpedaled.
"We don't know how long you'll be here. It could be for another day, or for another month. Looking after you and the genin at the same time while trying to keep you a secret isn't realistic.
She reluctantly nodded, unable to find flaw in his argument. Her jaw unclenched. She was still angry though.
"Tomorrow is our first mission. I want you to come along, as it won't be anything dangerous."
"What will it be?"She asked after a moment.
His eye twinkled, regaining it's spark.
"You'll see."
Pakkun really didn't know what to make of this scent.
He was an expert tracker, hunting down some of the most elusive missing nin in the world, but when it came to figuring out what all this meant, his head hurt. He paused, feeling Haruhi's tiny legs tighten around his neck, and his headband tighten as she pulled.
"What is it?" She whispered.
Pakkun could picture her brow furrowing and her brown hand reaching up to play with her hair.
He scanned the tree line, searching for the origin of the mysterious scent. He spotted nothing. At first, he didn't notice it, a feat in and of itself due to just how skilled he was. It was similar to Haruhi's and covered by the other scents of the forest his nose had ghosted over it completely.
But...
As he continued to inhale, there was no mistaking it's difference to Haruhi's.
A second later and the source disappeared completely, leaving only minute traces behind. Whoever it was, they hadn't been here for long. Their stay too brief for pakkun to really pick it apart and too little left over to track them down.
"Hang on."
He ignored her squeal as he bounded over a boulder and headed towards the fight.
Kakashi would need to hear about this.
This is my longest one yet! I did it to celebrate 100! And the plot thickens! What is this mysterious scent?