Chapter 3
"May I ask what you're doing?"
Kakashi watched as Sakura looked up to him from the file she was reading from her spot on the large couch. It was Sunday evening and two days since they started living together. Sakura had mainly been occupied with unpacking the few belongings she possessed and going over the large pile of files that Shikamaru had left for her before Monday, so they never really got much of a chance to talk beyond the couple of meals they managed to share together.
"I'm just going over your schedule for this week." she simply replied.
Taking a seat near her, he leaned slightly to peek at the spreadsheet in her hands.
"It's weird that you practically have control over my entire life now." he said as he glanced up to meet her bright green eyes.
"Well, I hope I don't become too much of a bother to you. I don't control unless there is a risk of danger. You can still do whatever you want to do as long as you let me know in advance. Just know that I'll be close by."
Kakashi shifted again and reached out to grab the remote from the coffee table before settling the rest of the way back onto the couch.
"I don't do much to begin with anyways. Usually just go to work and stay home most days."
"Nothing else?" she asked, obviously curious to why he said that.
Turning to look at the woman sitting a few feet away from him, he just shrugged as he slouched further into the couch.
"I mean I go to meetings, work events, and parties when needed. Make my public appearances and such at the various companies we have invested in to make sure we're still in good standing with the public."
He saw Sakura's face scrunch up slightly as he gave her this new information.
"You don't do anything for yourself? Travel? Leisure? Social life?" she asked more questions.
Kakashi let a half sigh come out.
"I travelled all the time when I was a younger, so I burnt myself on that. Only time I travel these days are for work reasons is seems. I keep to myself most days, especially since the accident. It's hard having true friends when most only care about my money and gaining social status. So, when I'm not working, I'm probably up here reading, watching TV, or working some more. " he explained as he shrugged lightly.
"Then why am I here!?" Sakura exasperated, "The security setup you have now is more than enough to protect you. So why did you hire me?"
He shrugged again.
"It wasn't my idea. Shikamaru and Tenzo pushed for it. I said no at first, but caved when they would not shut up. If they had it their way, you would've been hired months ago."
Sakura just huffed and crossed her arms at this information. She felt a small pang of sadness at his mention of lack of true friends due to greed and selflessness.
'I'm essentially useless!'
"Maybe I am a babysitter then after all." she groaned as she leaned back into the couch herself, "I'm babysitting a hermit!"
Kakashi just chuckled to himself as she watched him continue to flick through the various channels for something to watch.
"Well, our goal is to have me be as safe possible. If I don't get attacked or killed, then your job is pretty easy, huh?"
She glared at him as he spoke.
"I'm not going to let any of those things happen to you on my watch. This job is never easy. Even with a Hokage level security around you, I still have to be vigilant to our surroundings and be able to take action the moment something happens."
He didn't reply to her as he continued channel surfing. She knew her words got through to him because his expression became unreadable at that point.
"Plus, we still have the issue of we have no clue who put out this hit." Sakura added as she glanced over to the urn sitting on the mantle, "Without that knowledge, anyone could be targeting you. No one can be trusted in my book. It's my job to make sure you stay safe. I'm not going anywhere until this threat is found and eliminated."
"I'm still unsure about that."
Looking back at him she gave him a puzzled look until she finally realized what he meant and sighed.
"You still don't think I can protect you, do you?" she asked, slightly annoyed.
"I do not." he deadpanned.
Sakura let another sigh escape her as she shifted to sit up straight and turned to look at him more clearly.
"I don't know what to do to prove it to you, but I really need you to believe me, Kakashi." she spoke softly, "This job is my life and I don't take it lightly. Don't judge a book on it's cover, okay?"
The silver haired man turned to look at her after what she said. He was silent for a few moments as he studied her.
"Okay. I'm still skeptical, but we've only just met. We're still strangers to each other still. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt."
Sakura bit the inside of her cheek to stop any unfiltered comments from slipping out. She turned and grabbed the files she had sat to the side when her and Kakashi began talking and made to get up.
"I'm gonna go turn in for the night. It is my first day as your assistant in the morning after all ." she said with a cheeky wink.
A half snort and laugh came out of him. Looking up to her, he gave her a small half smile.
"Alright. Goodnight, Sakura."
"Goodnight, Kakashi." she replied with her own smile, "If you need anything, you know where to find me."
She turned away and padded her way out of the living room to the hall and into her room moments later. Closing the door, she tossed the files onto the desk that was to the right of the door. Looking around the room, she took in the surroundings of her little oasis.
It was a large room, the largest she's ever lived in at least. The walls were painted a soft yellow and had complimenting light gray furnishings. She had a queen sized bed that she determined was the softest thing in existence. Slightly ahead and to the left of the her was a door to a walk in closet that dwarfed her already small wardrobe. She made a mental note to she should probably go out and buy a few more outfits now that she had to put up the front of a personal assistant and not a bodyguard.
'I wonder if Senju Security will reimburse me for that… It is a work related purchase after all.'
The far wall was another floor to ceiling window set up that took up half the wall. She had a beautiful view of downtown Konoha and it was especially breathtaking at night. Hell, the entire apartment had amazing views from any window she thought.
Shikamaru and Tenzo were even nice enough when setting up things and had put in a nice sized desk for Sakura to work at. It was already an organized mess of all the papers and files Shikamaru gave her. Walking over to it, she switched on the laptop to do a quick check before actually calling it a night. Scanning the screen, she flicked through the countless surveillance channels and found nothing suspicious and concluded that things were safe for the night.
She made her way into the walk in closet and stripped down to just her panties. Rifling through the dresser drawer, she pulled out a pair of shorts and a tank top and slipped them on. Sakura walked back out of her room to the bathroom to use it and brush her teeth before bed. She glanced back into the living room to find that it was dark.
'He must've gone to bed too.'
Finishing up her little bedtime routine, she returned to her room and shut off her lights and crawled into the large bed. Staring up into the complete darkness, she willed herself to fall asleep with no luck.
'Great…'
"So… who is this pretty lady that seems to be joining us today?" Jiraiya hummed as he eyed Sakura.
Kakashi turned to face the older man with an unimpressed look before glancing over to Sakura and found that she was shooting daggers at the old fart with those fierce green eyes of hers. Smirking to himself, he turned to face the rest of the table of men.
"Everyone, this is Sakura Haruno. She is my new personal assistant. You guys will be seeing her a lot in meetings and other various work events and day to day stuff." he explained.
He saw out of the corner of his eye as the pinkette looked away from Jiraiya and smiled and quietly greeted each of the other board members present.
"So you finally got yourself one! Good to hear, Kakashi. They make life much easier." Jiraiya piped back up as he continued checking out the woman.
Kakashi just nodded at the man before looking over to Sakura again. He gave her a reassuring smile when their eyes met.
"Any questions or comments, Sakura?" he asked her.
She gave him warm smile in return before facing the other men.
"Just that I'm happy to be here. I look to working alongside such esteemed businessmen."
Kakashi watched as nearly every man straightened up and looked smug at her words. He internally rolled his eyes at how easy they were to manipulate.
'She's a sweet talker, that's for sure.'
Clearing his throat to get the attention of his board members, they all stiffened and looked towards him.
"Shall we get this meeting started then?"
Over the course of the next several hours, Kakashi and Sakura sat through two board meetings and various appointments with other company heads. By the time it was ready to go home for the day, the CEO felt a wave of relief wash over him as they stepped into the elevator to go up to his home. It wasn't a hard day by any means, but for some reason he was extra tired today.
"Is everything okay?"
He looked over to the petite woman and shook his head with a small smile.
"Nah, just tired and glad the day is over."
"Do you feel sick or anything?" was the next thing she asked, "Would you like to go to the hospital?"
He smiled again at the worry she displayed. He knew she was just doing her job, but appreciated it nonetheless. He shook his head again and smiled at her.
"No, nothing a hot shower can't fix. Just need to relax and unwind."
She nodded as she accepted his reasoning.
"I don't blame you. I was getting a little stir crazy sitting through all those meetings to be honest." she revealed.
He started laughing at the innocent confession.
"I can relate to that. I was the same way when I started up there years ago. It's something you adjust to over time. So what did you think of your first day?"
Sakura brought a hand up to her chin and hummed thoughtfully as she recalled her first day as a bodyguard disguised as a personal assistant. Kakashi couldn't help but noticed how attractive she actually was in that moment. He knew she was pretty from the moment she walked into his office last week, but after she took him down, he never really circled back around to that train of thought until now.
She had worn a simple outfit, black dress pants and flats and a long sleeve white blouse. She had braided her long pink hair and had it wrapped into a bun that at sat low on her head. It was simple, but it suited her very well he noted. She wore just enough makeup to say that she was wearing it, but could easily tell she was a natural beauty without it.
'Now I see why Jiraiya wouldn't stop bothering her this morning. Old perv…'
The sound of Sakura beginning to speak pulled him back from his wandering thoughts.
"I actually thought it was interesting! I didn't know that your company had so many investments into other companies."
Kakashi felt a smile tug at his lips at her compliment.
"Well, Hatake International is an investment company after all. I have well over a hundred investments out there right now. My father was a smart man when he started up this company thirty five years ago. He started with nothing and worked hard for what we have now."
"He sounds like an admirable man." she replied quietly.
Kakashi stared down to a spot on the elevator floor. The talk of his fathers years of dedicated hard work brought a new set of emotions he didn't want to experience at that moment. He remained silent as they soared up to his place.
"You would've like him." he mumbled as his eyes shifted up to stare blankly at the control panel.
"You think so?"
He looked over to her and found her watching him with careful eyes, her brows knitted upwards in concern. Forcing a smile, he nodded at her before replying.
"I know so. He was a fun and friendly guy to be around. You guys would've gotten along well. Sucks you never got a chance to meet him."
Before Sakura got a chance to reply, the elevator dinged signalling their arrival home. Giving Sakura a curt nod, she quickly understood that the conversation had ended. He made a gesture for her to step out first and she gave him a big smile in return as she did.
"Did you have anything planned for dinner?" he asked as they walked into the house and he removed his jacket and tie, throwing them both onto the chair that sat near the door.
"Not really, I was just going to find something simple like usual and call it good." she admitted as she walked over to the kitchen area and sat down her work bag onto the large island.
"I could make us something, if you'd like?" he asked at that point.
Sakura turned to face him, her eyes wide and brows raised.
"You can cook?"
"Is that hard to believe?" he shot back.
He watched as she looked off to the side as she thought up a reply. Looking back to him after a second, she gave him a amused smile.
"Kinda. Figured you had some sort of private cook prepare all your meals, given what you had for lunch today."
Kakashi rolled his eyes and shook his head in defeat. Rolling up the sleeves of his shirt, he walked into the kitchen and began pulling out various pots and pans before going to the fridge and pulling out a variety of ingredients.
"I do have someone come in twice a week and prepare my lunches for me, yes. You'll actually see him tomorrow." he said as he stood straight and turned to face her, kicking the fridge door shut in the process, "But all my other meals and snacks, I prepare myself. That's unless I go out to eat or order in."
He sat all the food items he grabbed onto the counter. Moving to the sink he began washing his hands before he started prepping the food he grabbed.
"So what are you going to make?" he heard heard ask from behind him.
Drying his hands off, he turned to face the petite woman who had propped herself up on a stool at the island and was watching him closely.
"Do fajitas sound good?"
He watched as her eyes lit up and shined at his offer. A dazzling smile soon followed.
"They sound delicious."
Smirking at her excitement, he turned back to the counter and pulled a knife from the block and began chopping an onion.
A/N: Yay for chapter 3! I really like the dynamic I have built for these two. I'm super excited to write this story!
Also, I tried my best to explain what Kakashi does for work, so I hope this works. I googled so much and I hopefully used the right terms for it! Basically Kakashi (and his father) use their money to invest in companies to help them grow? At least that's what I imagined.
Please leave a review if you can! Love hearing from you guys! Hit follow so you don't miss an update either. I'm aiming to update every two weeks at this point!
Thank you to my wonderful friend and beta, Taytay95, for being awesome and working on this story as well!