Iruka was out of sorts all day, to say the least; his whole situation recently was confusing. Even more so after he'd been sniffed up by a pack of dogs and introduced as the ANBU's caretaker. Now he felt even more responsibility for the other after seeing just how much the ANBU couldn't care less about himself. He spaced out occasionally, thinking of the best way to deal with the ANBU, while he was in the middle of teaching! Luckily, Sakura kept him on track, and he made it to lunch with some struggle. He was acting like Shikamaru with the amount of daydreaming he was doing during class.
When it was time for Iruka to go fix the very cause of all his recent problems and eat some lunch, a student stopped him for help with a topic he had no understanding of. The child did not even understand the basics; Kiba and math just didn't mix. The only reason Kiba had approached him was because his mother would scold him for a new one if he didn't start passing class. The reality of Kiba being able to pass without additional help would be a miracle. The brunette looked at the clock on the wall, knowing he would be unable to check on the ANBU for lunch himself.
Iruka had no way of contacting the ANBU, but he was worried that if the man missed another meal, he would go back for dinner and find him dead on the floor. That kind of death was not suited for the mysterious pervert. Kiba took a seat at his desk while he munched on a PB-J, waiting for Iruka to explain math stuff. Iruka decided to make a clone to send to the ANBU, it was the only thing he could come up with on such short notice. Kiba gasped when, all of a sudden, there were two of his teachers. Iruka paid him no mind and sent his clone on the mission of feeding the ANBU.
"Now, Kiba, what do you need help with?" Kiba shrugged, "I don't really know. Mommy told me to talk with you during lunch, and here I am."
"What did she say you needed help with?" Another shrug, and Iruka decided a full review of math would be best. It was hard to simplify the geometry behind the trajectory of a kunai and make it understandable to a second grader. Iruka also needed to concentrate on keeping enough chakra to support the clone going out of the usual range that clones usually went. Kiba watched in silence as he continued to eat the remaining bits of lunch and try to understand what the lesson was about.
Before long, the lunch bell rang, and students began flooding into the classroom while Kiba began cleaning up his mess with a slightly clearer understanding of second-grade math. He was a smart boy when he tried; that was the problem: he didn't try. Iruka's chakra was running out, but he didn't want to dismiss his clone until he was sure he had managed to shove food down Hound's gullet. Missing his lunch didn't help much either, but he would make it work. He smiled and welcomed the students back to class and told them to take their seats so he could start class.
Naruto was typically even more trouble after lunch, and Iruka had the worst time keeping his concentration on his clone with the energetic little fireball being rowdy. Especially since he was hyped up more than usual. Somehow, he managed to keep enough focus on his clone until he was sitting at his desk, taking a quick break while the students did their work. He released his jutsu, and the memories of lunch came flooding back. Almost nothing had happened.
His clone went, cooked, and helped with the ANBU's bandages until Hound retired to his room and left his clone waiting in the living room until dismissed. Well, at least Hound ate food for lunch; he wasn't too sure since he never actually physically saw the man eat. He could only assume the food disappeared into the man's stomach while his back was turned. Iruka leaned back in his chair and cleared his mind so that he could only focus on the task at hand. Once done, he leaned forward and smiled at the class, "Does anyone need help?"
…
Several hours later, after grading papers after hours at the academy, Iruka trudged to his late-night job of working at the Missions Office. Mizuki was beside him griping about how life as a teacher sucked and that his class would do so much better than Iruka's since they were all rich and could afford private tutors. Iruka laughed nervously at that as he tried to let the comment not bother him. Mizuki was the closest thing to a friend he had, and to be honest, he wasn't the nicest of people. Still, he liked to see the good in others and ignored all the nasty comments Mizuki threw his way.
"We'll have to see, my class has a couple of riff-rats, but they're all smart, even if they need some extra help." Mizuki scoffed, "Iruka, Iruka," he chided.
"Your class is full of nothing but useless brats that will all end up getting killed because of their stupidity. The only one with a chance is Sasuke, and that's a given, he's an Uchiha." Iruka's eye twitched in irritation, and his fists clenched at his sides, but he remembered who he was talking to and sighed.
"Don't say that Mizuki, they have big dreams. With big dreams comes determination, I think they will go far." Mizuki clicked his tongue, "Naruto Uzumaki will never become Hokage, no matter how much you believe in him." Iruka had had enough of dealing with Mizuki insulting him, "Not like any of those rich kids do their own work. I bet they will pay you to give them an A on their final exams."
Iruka felt immediate regret, he insulted the kids for heaven's sake! He had sunk to Mizuki's level and, in doing so, disappointed himself. He vowed never to do it again. Iruka stormed off ahead, ignoring the calls of the silver-headed chunin. Luckily, he didn't have to work at the Missions Office with Mizuki, he simply lived nearby.
Good, because after what happened, Iruka didn't feel like being with him after he let his temper get the better of him. Iruka sat down quickly in his chair next to the Hokage, who eyed him suspiciously, "Is something wrong?" The brunette smiled, "It's nothing, Hokage-sama, just got in a slight disagreement with Mizuki on the way." The old man nodded knowingly, "Mizuki," he said slowly, "has a unique outlook on things." Iruka nodded as he took a report from Kurenai, smiling up at the pretty woman.
"Good evening, Iruka-sensei," she said coolly. The brunette smiled even wider. Kurenai was always perfect with her reports, they were stellar. He never had to hunt her down for reports that looked like they were written by his students. They had eventually gotten on talking terms whenever they met at the office.
"You're looking dazzling as always, Kurenai-san. Even after a three-day mission, does nothing faze you?" She smiled politely, "Thank you, Iruka-sensei. I, however, require a good night's rest, so I must be going." He smiled and waved her off. Her cool demeanor was always relaxing and had managed to calm him down in a matter of seconds, all due to her simply talking to him with that silky voice. No, he did not have a crush on her, but she was an extremely gorgeous female jounin, he would admit that much.
Iruka looked up at the person who stood in front of him and came up blank as to who he was. That was weird, he thought he knew every ninja in town. He smiled anyway, "Hello, what can I do for you...uh.." The man stood in front of him with his posture slouched, hands in pockets, and a nearly complete masked off face. He was a jounin, surprisingly, with abnormal spiked-up silver hair that reminded him of his earlier altercation with Mizuki.
"Kakashi Hatake," He drawled as he took a scroll out of his pocket and dropped it on the desk instead of handing it to Iruka. The brunette's eye twitched, already disliking the person in front of him. What was it with people who had silver hair and their egos? He picked up the report and unrolled it to reveal nothing but chicken scratch; hell, it even had a doodle! Sarutobi leaned back and watched the interaction in silence, exhaling some smoke from his pipe. Iruka rubbed his forehead, not understanding a word on the paper. He looked up at Kakashi Hatake, "Uh, is this perhaps a joke?"
"That's my report from my last mission. I forgot to hand it in." Sarutobi chuckled, and Iruka frowned. The brunette's eyebrows creased together as his eyes narrowed, "This was due two months ago!" Kakashi shrugged, "I've been busy," he drawled. He tapped his fingers on the desk in front of Iruka, "Maa~ Why don't you just let it go? It's only a formality anyway." Iruka's mouth fell open by the sheer amount of audacity the jounin had in front of the Hokage!
He slammed his hands down on the table in front of him, "Have some respect! You are in the presence of the Hokage! Don't forget your place! Reports are filled out by everyone, even jounin!" The jounin smiled, well, at least Iruka thought he did by his singular eye forming an upside-down crescent moon.
"I thinkyoushould follow the very words you preach." Iruka turned red, not from embarrassment, but he was livid. So, what if the other was a higher level than he? He chose to be a teacher! His rank didn't make him any less capable of doing his job than others! Iruka glared at the singular eye, "Nevertheless, Hatake-san, the report is unfit to be accepted. Please redo it."
"Sorry, no can do. I don't remember what happened. See, I suffered a concussion and lost my memory." He shrugged and anybody could tell he was full of bullshit.
"You seriously can't remember anything?" Kakashi shook his head, and Iruka sighed and leaned back in his chair. His arms were crossed as he rubbed his forehead to calm himself. He looked at Sarutobi, who was watching them with amusement, and sighed once again. He already knew he was a softy; he had a reputation amongst the jounin for chewing their asses like no other but still giving them extra time or slack on reports.
They came to him when they needed more time, and this jounin was probably like any other who most likely got in his line, knowing Iruka would cut him slack. Iruka held up one finger, "This time and only this time, I'll let it go. However, if you try and turn in another report like this," Iruka waved the paper and pointed at the doodle for emphasis, "I'll have your head on a platter." Kakashi chuckled, a deep baritone that seemed to come from deep within his chest, "Thank you, sensei."
Iruka waved him off in annoyance, mainly because he didn't feel like chatting with him any longer, and he still had other work to do. Sarutobi chuckled, "He did suffer from some major injuries on that mission. He's been recovering until now." Iruka looked at the old man, getting the feeling that the old man wasn't being a hundred percent truthful with him, but he would never say that out loud to the Hokage. Iruka made a mental note to remember the appearance of the jounin and the name. Kakashi Hatake, what a weird name.
Work passed fairly quickly, and his shift ended around six-thirty, so he was just in time to head back and make dinner for the ANBU. Quite frankly, he was starving. Iruka had managed to hold out all day without his stomach grumbling, but now just the thought of food had his mouth watering. He put his hand on his empty stomach, he honestly had no idea how the ANBU managed to survive without eating a proper meal for presumably weeks. Iruka didn't eat lunch, and he was already on the verge of starving to death.
Iruka walked up the stairs to the ANBU's apartment and knocked on the door three times. He tucked a loose strand of hair behind his ear as the door opened. Iruka smiled at the masked man, "Sorry about being a little late, things at the office got busy the closer my shift came to an end." He was met with silence.
"I'll just make dinner and I'll be out of your hair." The ANBU walked away and sat down on the couch; his porn held out in front of him. Iruka rolled his eyes, the other was grown, and he could do whatever he wanted. That didn't mean he had to agree with him reading smut in front of him. He went straight into the kitchen, smiling when all the leftovers, AKA his portion of lunch, were eaten. Good, that was a good sign. He took out a skillet with a cutting board and cut up a series of vegetables and chicken. Tonight's dinner was one of his personal favorites, chicken stir-fry. It didn't take long for a curious ANBU to poke his head into the kitchen to see what was being made.
Iruka giggled and added stir-fry to the list of things the ANBU seemed to like enough to eat, that and the omurice from lunch. Iruka got out a set of clean plates he'd bought the day before, since the ANBU had none. He evenly divided the portions before he walked over to the couch and set the plates down on the only table the other seemed to own. Iruka went back into the kitchen and returned with silverware before he picked up his plate and situated himself on the couch so that he was staring at a wall rather than the ANBU.
"I take it work was hard," came a deep voice from behind. It sounded familiar, he rolled his eyes, of course it was familiar, he had heard the ANBU speak before, duh. Iruka shook his head, "I had a student in need of help at lunch, that was why I had sent a clone. Did you get enough rest? You went straight to your room." More silence. Iruka continued eating his food, noting that sleep seemed to be a touchy subject. He'd have to be careful about what he said around the man.
…
Kakashi paused while eating when Iruka asked him about sleep. He didn't want to say that he had ditched the clone in the living room and left through the window of his room to see what had happened to the original. No matter how he looked at it from different perspectives, it still seemed creepy, so he decided to stay quiet. In truth, he had stalked the teacher throughout the day after lunch. Lazily watching from a tree or rooftop when he thought his position had been compromised by a daydreaming student.
Of course, he would have never been seen; he was an ANBU for a reason, but it never hurt to be sure. He had also been trailing behind in the shadows when he witnessed the fight between Mizuki and Iruka. Kakashi didn't have many true friends, but the ones he did had never once treated him like that. At the time, his hand had come dangerously close to throwing a senbon into the vital spot on Mizuki's neck to shut him up for good. Iruka had taken all his insults with a smile until he insulted Naruto, pushing him over his limit of niceness.
Kakashi could tell that Iruka had immediately felt guilty for what he said, he was good at reading people. Mizuki, however, had cursed him to the depths of hell after the brunette had fled the scene. Once again, his hand had been close to simply taking the other out after what he promised to do to Iruka after he had walked away. Now he had a good reason to watch out for the other. Mizuki was a walking time bomb, and Kakashi had a feeling that he wouldn't forget what Iruka had said anytime soon.
Kakashi had also been pleased with how Iruka had acted when he made his appearance in front of him. The brunette was strong-willed and feisty, he would never cease to be amused by how Iruka adapted to situations. Iruka had enough guts to tell a jounin off, and enough kindness to forgive said person in a matter of seconds. Though honestly, he had helped Kakashi out with the report he'd honestly forgotten to turn in. The report was just an excuse to see more of the brunette before dinner.
The Hokage had, of course, known why he chose to show his face, and the knowing look on his face had never left his face until Kakashi left. Iruka failed to notice the silent exchange while he fumed to himself after the jounin had put him in his place. Kakashi couldn't care less about rank, he simply liked pushing the chunin's buttons. His reactions allowed him to have the most fun he had in a while. The two ate in silence, and Kakashi made plans to follow Iruka after breakfast the next morning.