Double Edged

Thank you a thousand times over, slinkymilinky, for that absolutely gorgeous artwork. I’ve got it as my laptop background now and it’s probably gonna stay there forever. Everyone, you MUST stalk this woman. She’s not only an amazing artist (check her out on deviantart) but she’s a fantastic writer as well. Poke at her fic “Porcelain Orchid”, you won’t regret it.

Thank you also to Veronika-chan for actually making a COMIC of some of the scenes from the story! She’s got one posted up now and has more on the way. Nika-chan, you are so fantastic!

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Song Reference: Paralyzed
Artist: The Used
Lyrics: Paralyzed by the same old antics/Back and forth like some walking spastics/How could a fistfight be romantic?/Thinking back now will you ever feel the same?

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This was so incredibly awkward.

Sakura continued to nod and make little sounds of interest as Naruto talked and talked and talked about his adventures with Jiraiya. It wasn’t that she wasn’t interested in what he was saying, more that her mind was still reeling from the fact that he was there to begin with— and that she had no idea how to tell him she was dating their ex-teacher. Naruto treated his team like it was his family, and in a way it really was. What was he going to say about her dating the man he looked up to like an older brother?

Maybe they shouldn’t tell Naruto about their relationship. After all, she was only supposed to be dating Kakashi for his books. Perhaps, for the sake of the mission as well as her heart, it would be best to keep it quiet. For now, at least. Maybe once she came up with a way to salvage things it’d be okay to… No, that wasn’t fair to Naruto. He deserved to know, more so than some of the people who knew already. If she wanted this to work and for everyone to be okay with it, they all needed to be on the same page— and that included her and Kakashi.

Sakura’s gaze slid from Naruto to the man who seemed to be constantly in her thoughts nowadays. Kakashi… how could one person be the most confusing aspect in her life and the one that made her the happiest at the same time? Whatever the complications in their relationship — their age difference, the fact that he was her team leader, her own vendetta — none of it really mattered when she was with him. All he had to do was make fun of her, give her a warm glance, hold her hand, kiss her breathless… and she would melt.

Even though she knew the attraction went both ways, she was stumped as to how they could possibly stay together. If Kakashi found out about her ulterior motives, she wouldn’t blame him in the least for feeling utterly and completely betrayed. Hell, she’d probably kill him if she found out he’d been playing her like this! But at the same time, she felt she needed to tell him everything. If she told him about the mission but explained that she’d quit because she cared about him, then everything would be fine. She was certain that if she quit, he’d be much more inclined to forgive her than if she stuck with it.

What she felt for him was much more than the love she’d professed to have for Sasuke. She didn’t know what to call it though, and she wasn’t sure she wanted Kakashi to know how she felt either, at least not yet. Not until she figured it out for herself first. She knew she was attracted to him physically. Seriously, how could any woman not be turned on by that face or the way he kissed or… Sakura’s cheeks flushed as her stomach fluttered in response to her wandering thoughts.

Was this what it felt like to love someone? To want them with you, even if they made you want to throttle them half the time? To wake up every morning hoping to run into them, if only for a quick smile and hello? To lose yourself every time they kissed or touched you? She didn’t know, but she was hesitant to use the word ‘love’ for what she had with Kakashi. After the way her first love confession had panned out, she was a bit more guarded about saying the word to someone else. Even if that someone was the best thing to happen to her for a very long time.

Damn it… she really wished she’d had the opportunity to talk with Tsunade about all this! She didn’t want to hurt Kakashi, but at the same time she didn’t want to disappoint her mentor and by extension herself. If she could just figure out how serious this bet was, or if there was even a bet to begin with, then it’d make her life a whole lot easier. All she needed was one tiny hint that Tsunade was in fact testing her. Just one little eye twitch or smirk and she’d know what she needed to do.

She tore her eyes way from watching Kakashi’s ass (and no, she didn’t feel bad about ogling him considering he’d done it to her more than a few times) when she heard Naruto suck in a sharp, surprised breath. Following the line of his wide-eyed gaze, she felt a hard pang of sadness slam into her when she noticed where they were; Training Ground Three. Their old practice area when they’d been Team Seven.

If Kakashi realized where he’d taken them, he didn’t give any indication of it. Instead, he swung the chain link fence open and flipped the sign to ‘occupied’ before stepping back and motioning for his teammates to precede him. Sakura heard Naruto gulp heavily before he took a deep breath and crossed into the training area. It took her a few seconds longer to collect her shaken nerves and suppress the memories that came flooding back at the sight of such familiar terrain, but she soon found herself walking across the threshold, her shoulder grazing Kakashi’s chest as she went.

“Enjoying the view?” he murmured, his dark eye glinting mischievously.

Sakura tilted her chin up at him and replied haughtily, “As a matter of fact, I was.” She smirked at the surprise that flickered across his face and walked away, a feeling of triumph coursing through her. If that was how he wanted to play, then fine. She could do it, too.

She heard Kakashi clear his throat slightly as he finally closed the gate and took the lead again, this time taking care that his backside was always within her line of vision. Despite the sudden dip in her mood, she couldn’t help smiling.

They came out from the line of trees that ran around the perimeter of the training ground and onto a wide, flat stretch of grass that was all too familiar. The grass was a little more worn than it had been and the boulder was definitely sporting a few new scars, but it was almost exactly as it had been nearly three years prior. Even the wooden posts were still there, and as they passed between them, Naruto gave the middle one a quick pat. That’d been where Kakashi had tied him up and ordered them not to feed him. It was the place where they’d stopped being three people and became a real team.

“Alright,” Kakashi said as he turned to face them, his book still open and his eye roving over the pages greedily. She had no idea how he could read and talk at the same time without losing focus on either task. “Like I said, the rules are the same. You have twenty-four hours to get the bells by whatever means necessary.”

Naruto chuckled softly and looked around the training field, his blue eyes carrying a hint of sadness to them. “Not even this place has changed much, has it?” he commented. “That’s kinda cool … I guess …”

“Yeah,” Sakura mumbled back, rubbing her arm as a sudden chill crawled down her skin.

It was strange being back here with three out of the four original Team Seven members. So much had changed and yet this place still managed to preserve all the old memories — not to mention all the old pain. She was over Sasuke, and had been for some time now, but it still hurt to think about him. About his betrayal and how none of them had been strong enough to help him. About the way he’d rejected her, making it very obvious she was beneath both his affections and what he termed useful. And while the pain he’d caused had been the catalyst she’d needed to approach Tsunade for training, the wound was still fresh enough to sting.

“Oh, that’s right. This is where we used to train back when Sasuke was part of the team, wasn’t it?” their team leader remarked absently.

Sakura closed her eyes and silently berated him for his social deficiencies. Give the man a kunai and he could show you how to kill a person in about a hundred different ways. Put him in a position where emotional sensitivity was needed and he self-destructed like a bad exploding tag. It was hard enough being here and thinking about Sasuke’s absence, did he have to go and say it out loud?

Kakashi, seeming to sense he’d just put his foot in a steaming pile of emotional crap, coughed into his fist and shifted awkwardly. “So, ah… shall we get started?” he inquired hesitantly as he returned the book to his belt pouch.

It wasn’t the most subtle change in topic ever, but his effort to distract them from their glum thoughts was still very touching. Sakura used the excuse of digging out her gloves from the pouch on her belt to compose herself, and she knew Naruto was doing much of the same as he fussed with his clothing. “What, you’re not gonna read this time, Kakashi-sensei?” the boy mocked as he swung his arms from side to side to loosen his muscles.

Sakura tugged the battered black leather onto her hand and made a fist, the material creaking as it stretched under the pressure. “Or maybe you’ve already finished it?” she taunted, which made her blond teammate snicker.

Excited adrenaline was beginning to seep through her bloodstream in response to the tension before a fight. She was more than a little eager to get this thing started, and not just because she needed a distraction from all the memories. This was the first time Kakashi would see just how far she’d come over the last two and a half years, and she was anxious to show her skills off.

Kakashi pulled his hands from his pockets and immediately her gaze fixed on them, her body tensed in preparation for whatever jutsu he was about to whip up. She knew from experience just how fast his hands were, but all she’d need were the first three to determine his method of attack in order to counter it.

“No, I think I’ll save it for later,” he murmured, his voice carrying a coolness to it that sent a shiver down her spine. “Besides, I have a feeling this time I should probably take it seriously.”

Sakura’s breath sucked in when he reached up and lifted the hitae-ate covering his eye … and the black and red sharingan came to life. It was like the very air was suddenly charged with energy, as if electricity was simmering on a low crackle and even the slightest move would set it off. The hairs on her arms stood up and her skin prickled in response to Kakashi’s chakra permeating the space between them. It was more than a little intimidating.

No one moved and the battle tension kept building and building. Sakura focused on controlling her breathing, counting her heart beats to make sure the rate was within normal parameters. The energy continued to swell until it reached the point where she felt she was being suffocated by it. She realized, belatedly, that it was more than just the sharingan at work. Part of that awful, crushing energy was coming from Naruto as well. She had a moment to wonder whether her chakra felt anything like that to the others when the dam finally gave way and all the tension exploded in the blink of an eye.

The only reason she knew shuriken had been thrown was by the shrill whistling of metal slicing through the air. What she hadn’t seen was that two people had moved. Naruto was only a fraction of a second faster than Kakashi but the latter’s aim was more accurate. With a startled yelp, Naruto pushed off the ground to avoid the flashing metal stars. Sakura could only watch in awe as Kakashi twisted around with the blond’s movement and sent off another volley of shuriken.

A loud poof broke through the air and in the wake of the following smoke another Naruto appeared. The clone grabbed its creator in midair and hauled him out of the way of the shuriken. Naruto hit the ground and went skidding backward with a giant shuriken in hand, and Sakura couldn’t help grinning as he drew his arm back to fling the weapon at their leader. Despite what she’d said earlier … she had to admit he really had improved.

But the giant shuriken never left Naruto’s grip. A surprised grunt broke from him as Kakashi suddenly appeared at his back, one hand gripping disorderly blond spikes while the other directed the shuriken to the back of his captive’s throat. Wow … she’d always known he was fast, but that was ridiculous speed! Maybe it was just that she hadn’t seen Kakashi in action for a while (she didn’t count the mugging incident as being real action), but it seemed like something was different about him as well. Perhaps she and Naruto weren’t the only ones to have gotten better.

“You’re still quick to start, I see,” Kakashi commented, ignoring the clone behind him with a kunai to his back.

Naruto tilted his head back and flashed a cheeky grin at the taller man. “Weren’t you the one that said never let the enemy get your back?” he teased. “Or are you just gettin’ too old for all this?”

Kakashi’s eyes narrowed before he swung his leg backward … and nailed the clone right in the groin. Sakura winced as the clone disappeared in a burst of smoke and Naruto let out a pained whimper. “Sorry about that. You know how it is, getting old like me. You lose your balance all the time,” the copy ninja deadpanned, completely uncaring that his captive was squirming uncomfortably.

He released Naruto abruptly and the blond immediately cupped protective hands over his crotch as he limped away a couple steps. Sakura froze when watery blue eyes fixed on her pleadingly. “Not a chance in hell!” she snapped, pointedly turning away from him. Nothing in the world could make her touch Naruto … down … there.

“You’re so cruel, Sakura-chan,” Naruto complained, but it was falling on deaf ears. After a few seconds, he managed to shake it off and square his shoulders again. He took a deep breath and released it, his brow furrowing in determination as he turned to face Kakashi. "Okay, let's do this — for real this time!"

Kakashi nodded once and … disappeared. Sakura blinked in surprise as the pale smoke continued to curl and drift on the light breeze. It was unbelievable how fast his hands moved. She hadn’t been able to catch a single seal! Okay … she knew it wasn’t a transportation jutsu. That required a scroll linking the person to a destination. Usually. She’d see Kakashi use it without a scroll before. But this was a test of their abilities; he wouldn’t be trying to run away from them.

The only reasons anyone disappeared were to escape or plan an attack. And since he wasn’t trying to escape, that meant he was planning an attack. All she had to do was figure out where the assault would come from and she could take away his advantage. Her eyes scanned the area around them, trying to catch even the slightest glimpse of him hiding. Nothing, not even a tuft of pale hair. So, if he was nowhere to be seen, that meant he had to be …

Sakura drew her fist back and slammed it into the compacted dirt beneath her feet. At the very moment she made impact, she released a sharp burst of chakra and grinned as the resulting explosion tore the earth apart a good twenty feet around her. Naruto yelped in horror and dove for safety as the dirt began to crumble under his feet. And as great slabs of rock tilted upward at odd angles … a similar expression could be seen on the face of Hatake Kakashi.

She smirked at his ashen features and taunted, “Found you, sensei.”

Kakashi nodded weakly and said in a rather thin voice, “Yes. Yes, you did.” A slight shudder ran through him, and she couldn’t help giggling in delight. The only other time she could recall ever seeing him so shocked was when she’d sucked eel sauce from his finger at the festival.

“Crap, Sakura! You almost killed me!” Naruto shouted from where he was sprawled across a patch of solid ground. He had one hand pressed dramatically to his chest and a thin sheen of sweat coated his brow.

“I did not!” she fired back, turning around to shoot Naruto a scathing glare. “I knew exactly what I was doing, thank you!”

He back-peddled, holding his hands up defensively as if she were about to come over and punch his head clean off his shoulders. “I-I wasn’t saying you didn’t know what you were doing! I was just … maybe next time you could warn a guy, huh?”

An agreeing grunt came from behind her and she turned in time to see Kakashi hauling himself out of the wrecked bedrock. Sakura arched an amused brow as he swiped a hand down either arm to clean the dust from his sleeves, the action causing a dull cloud to form around him. “Impressive,” he commented dryly. “But now it’s my turn!”

Before Sakura could so much as finish blinking, his palm had connected with her chest. A condensed burst of wind exploded from his open hand and the force of it not only knocked the breath out of her but also sent her tumbling across the torn up ground. Sakura winced in pain and wheezed as she pressed a hand to her chest. A quick feel at the tender spot told her he’d actually cracked one of her ribs. That son of a bitch! The warmth of her own chakra seeping into the sore flesh was soothing, but it also distracted her from noticing Kakashi’s follow up attack until he was right on top of her.

Sakura yelped and rolled to one side in order to avoid the palm heading right for her shoulder, his intention obviously being to dislocate the joint and prevent her from using her arm. Rocks and debris cut her bare skin as she gained her footing in time to block the slash of his hand to her side. She’d barely had time to defend herself before he dropped into a crouch and swept his foot toward her ankles. He was trying to force her airborne, which would put her at a severe disadvantage for his next attack. Chakra raced down her leg, but it wasn’t quite fast enough to absorb the blow completely. A sharp gasp was torn from her as pain snapped up her calf from the impact.

She supposed she should have been pissed off with him for coming at her full force, but she wasn’t. It was actually rather flattering to know that the Hatake Kakashi was treating her, the girl who’d been the weakest link in Team Seven, as a serious opponent. He was acknowledging the fact that she’d grown, become strong enough to put up a serious fight. If it weren’t for the fact the bastard had hit her, she probably would have blushed.

This time, she pressed the offensive as she took a running leap into the air. She knew that it would be impossible for her to make an overhead assault while her opponent was watching her, but that wasn’t what she was trying to do. As expected, Kakashi jumped out of the way and her fist broke through the ground as if it were made of melted butter. But in the process of dodging her attack, it forced Kakashi to put his back to Naruto.

Kakashi bent backward, dropping one hand to the ground for support as a kunai whistled by where his belt would have been. His leg swung up, blocking the follow up punch from the blond, and then he was on his feet and forming seals.

“Naruto, get out of there!” Sakura shouted just as lightning crackled through the air. Naruto’s eyes widened as pale blue streaks of light shot across the ground toward him. It wasn’t a raikiri by any means, but it was certainly strong enough to take her teammate out if it hit him.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Sakura slammed her palm into the ground and let out another rush of chakra. This time, rather than breaking the ground to pieces, she used the chakra sort of like a shovel and forced it to rise upward, effectively forming a barrier between Naruto and Kakashi. The lighting hit the wall of chakra-infused earth and dissipated in a shower of blue-tinted sparks.

When Kakashi looked her way, the approval in his gaze very nearly made her cheeks flare up. “Countering a lightning based jutsu using earth as an insulator; quick thinking, Sakura.”

She shrugged and tried to play it off like it was no big deal, but she couldn’t quite keep the smile from her face. “Just common sense, that’s all,” she replied before racing across the distance to press the offensive.

Her fist whistled through the air toward his head and he dropped onto his back to avoid it. A foot connected hard with her stomach and sent her reeling backwards, choking for breath. He was on his feet in an instant and charging at her the next. Sakura threw her arms up, blocked the punches, jabbed for his gut and managed to connect with his hip hard enough to make him grunt. She swept her foot toward his ankles and he kicked it away; she aimed a right hook for his jaw, he struck her exposed side. Every move she made, he compensated for and reflected back on her until she was hardly thinking about her actions and merely reacting on gut instinct.

Blow after blow rained down on her as Kakashi continued to drive her further back into the tree line, and somehow she managed to either deflect the attacks completely or redirect them so they weren’t nearly as devastating. If he forced her into the trees, it’d be all over. Maneuverability would be difficult, and she was already having a hard enough time keeping track of his hands. She needed to end this. Now. All she had to do was land that one perfect punch and he would be down like a sack of bricks.

Sakura grit her teeth and tried to keep up with his flashing hands, tried to redirect her chakra at a moment’s notice to sneak in an attack of her own. One of the first combat lessons they’d learned at the Academy was to avoid close-quarters encounters at all costs. The only time a shinobi got close to their target was to make the kill. Kakashi was breaking that rule a thousand times over. If he wanted to defeat her, all he had to do was whip out some kind of ninjutsu. Instead, he was catering to one of her strong points, that being taijutsu. There had to be a reason for that. It was stupid to play into your enemy’s strengths, not unless…

Not unless your enemy’s forte was chakra-enhanced strength. Kakashi was forcing her to deplete her chakra in defending herself so that she was not only useless to Naruto but a sitting duck as well. The realization dawned on her in a split second, and it took that same amount of time for her to change her course of action. Laying him out cold was no longer a priority. Getting the hell away from him was.

A branch brushed her shoulder and she knew she’d run out of time and space. Sakura growled under her breath and did the only thing she could think of; she channeled chakra to her right foot and stomped it down into the ground. Kakashi was airborne the minute the earth began to cave in under his feet. He’d obviously been anticipating her to do that, but she didn’t care. It at leased forced him to back off for the time being.

Kakashi landed in the tree just overhead, balancing easily on the thin branch as if it were several feet thicker than it actually was. “You have gotten faster,” he commented, but the praise was tempered by the detached tone to the words.

“That’s nothing,” she boasted breathlessly as a resolute smile curved her lips. She raised her fists again and crouched into a defensive stance. “Wanna come out of that tree, Kakashi-sensei?”

“Want to guard your back a bit better?”

The words were whispered rather intimately in her ear, and the Bunshin in the tree disappeared with a soft pop and grey smoke. Sakura spun around with a startled gasp and a fistful of chakra. Kakashi caught her wrist and used her spinning momentum to twist her arm up along the length of her spine. The movement sent a sharp stab of pain through her arm, but she shoved it aside as she reached back with her free hand to grab whatever she could of him — that being the collar of his vest. Letting out an angry snarl, she hurled him up over her shoulder and into the air.

It would have been a perfect toss … had he not kept hold of her arm and taken her down with him. Sakura’s back slammed into the ground and her breath exploded from her lungs for the second time in one day. Her vision blurred and for a moment she thought she was about to pass out. But then a heavy weight settled across her lower stomach and she realized the reason everything looked dim was because Kakashi was looming over her.

She grunted and began to fight like mad to throw him off. Her arms swung wildly, she bucked her hips and tried to ram her knees into his back. None of her attacks were particularly well coordinated, but she was so pissed off at him that she didn’t care. All she wanted was to inflict some kind of damage on his person.

Kakashi absorbed her wild movements easily, tightening his thighs around her sides as he quickly caught her wrists and pinned them over her head with one hand. The other closed around her throat, not squeezing but definitely firm enough to imply that he could if he wanted to. Sakura glowered and tried to jerk her hands free, gasping when his fingers dug in a little harder. “Stop moving,” he ordered.

“Go to hell!” she spat back as she gave a particularly violent twist of her hips … and froze when she felt the tell-tale press of an erection against her belly. Almost immediately after realizing this, a tight feeling wound through her stomach and she could feel a pleasant heat between her legs. Her eyes widened in shock — both at his reaction and hers.

A faint pink color peered out over the top of his mask, and his ears were a slightly darker shade. He cleared his throat and mumbled so low she almost didn’t catch it, “Sorry.”

Sakura nodded as she licked her dry lips. She felt his penis twitch and couldn’t quite hold back a thin moan. The heat between her legs became a throbbing need for something more. Her thighs rubbed together and the resulting friction made the breath leave her lungs in a soft pant. This time, it was Kakashi to moan as his hips gave a subtle roll against her. The hand on her throat loosened, became more caressing as his thumb traced the underside of her chin gently. Sakura’s heart was hammering about a mile a minute as his thumb stroked higher, rubbing across her lower lip. He was leaning closer to her and his heavily lidded eyes were drifting closed…

And then Kakashi was suddenly bowled off of her by an orange streak that came out of nowhere to tackle him around the middle. Sakura let out a small cry of surprise and sat up, pushing her tangled hair from her face and blinking dazedly at what had just happened. It took her a moment to realign herself before she was on her feet and racing over to where Naruto was … staring blankly at the spot where Kakashi should have been. Instead, what was lying on the forest floor was a small black ball.

There was a soft hissing sound and then Naruto was reeling away from the ball with a loud squawk of shock and a thin cloud of smoke. His hands scrubbed frantically across his reddening eyes and his cheeks were damp with tears. “Owowow … damn it! It stings!”

“Naruto, stop rubbing your eyes!” Sakura ordered. The medic side of her kicked in as she took a deep breath, narrowed her eyes, and ran in to yank him away from the smoke by the back of his shirt. Even still, her own eyes were stinging a littler as sh grabbed his wrists and pried them away from his face. “It’s tear gas and you’ll only make it worse by rubbing!”

“But it stings, Sakura-chan!” he complained, blinking puffy blue eyes at her.

“I know it does, but you have to stop touching them.” He nodded slowly and gave a hard sniffle as the gas triggered his sinus response as well. Satisfied that he was going to do as he was told, she quickly reached behind her and dug around in the pouch on her hip for the supply scroll that every medic carried with them. It was essentially a well stocked First-Aid kit conveniently compressed into one slim scroll.

Sakura pulled it out, flicked it open and did the three seals needed to activate it. As soon as her chakra came into contact with the paper, the characters written in black ink began to turn into the objects listed; gauze, bandages, tweezers, needles … and flushing solvent. She grabbed the tiny bottle and quickly unscrewed the cap. “Okay, tip your head back for me and hold still. And try not to blink too much.”

“Okay,” Naruto groaned, fisting his hands against his thighs as she scooted closer to him. “I’m gonna get him for this, I swear!”

“We’ll have to find him first and we can only do that after you’re able to see again.” Sakura leaned over him, her torso pressing against his shoulder and her knees on either side of one of his thighs. He sucked in a sharp breath and she frowned disapprovingly. “Hold. Still.”

“Sorry,” he mumbled, and for some reason he sounded incredibly embarrassed. That would make the second time in less than twenty minutes that a man apologized to her sheepishly. Unsure what exactly Naruto had to be self-conscious about, Sakura shook her head and very gingerly parted his swollen eyelids.

His shoulders jerked a little, but to his credit he managed to stay still enough for her to squeeze a few drops of solvent into his eye. Immediately, the lid closed in protest at the thick liquid, and as a drop squeezed from the corner of his eye, she dabbed it carefully with a little gauze. Sakura moved to his other eye and repeated the process before sitting back on her heels and recapping the bottle. “How do they feel?” she asked.

Naruto gave a few experimental blinks and sniffed loudly. “Fine, I guess. Everything’s a little blurry though.”

“That’s just the solvent. Give it a couple seconds and you’ll be fine.” She moved away from him and resealed the supply scroll while he adjusted to the fluid in his eye. “You’ll need to wash your hands before touching your eyes again, and don’t wipe at your nose either. If the irritant gets into your sinuses, it’ll affect your eyes.”

“Touchin’ my nose can make my eyes itch? That’s so messed up!”

Sakura laughed at his disbelief and shrugged. “Well, not really. The entire front of your face is all interconnected. Your eyes, nose, mouth … they’ve got all kinds of little passages and cavities leading from one to the other.”

“Wow, really?” Naruto started to bring his hand up to touch his face but stopped when he remembered her warning.

She nodded and sat down on the ground next to him. “Really. That’s how Kiba can drink milk and shoot it out of his eye.”

“Huh. And all this time I thought he was pullin’ a genjutsu or somethin’.”

“Nope, it’s completely natural.”

“Weird.”

Grinning, she nudged his side and said, “There was this one guy who came into the hospital one night. He’d been at a bar earlier and had a run in with Anko-san. She was so ticked off that she took a snake and inserted it—”

“I don’t wanna know where she inserted it!” he exclaimed, pressing his hands over his ears. He shivered and Sakura snickered at his response.

After a moment, Naruto slowly lowered his hands and shook his head. “I bet you see a lot of weird stuff, huh, Sakura-chan?”

She picked up a rather pretty maple leaf from the ground and spun the stem between her fingers. “I guess. After a while though, you get kind of used to it. You have to, otherwise you can’t do your job.” Sakura glanced over at him and the naked awe on his face made her blush. “Quit looking at me like that.”

“I can’t help it,” Naruto said, an edge of laughter creeping into his words. “It’s just … you sound so cool when you’re talkin’ about all that stuff.”

Her cheeks burned hotter at the compliment and she tucked a piece of hair self-consciously behind her ear. “So, um … how are your eyes?” she asked, changing the topic to something other than herself.

He gave them a few experimental blinks before turning to her with a beaming smile. “Hey, those drop things really worked! Thanks, Sakura-chan!”

“No problem,” Sakura laughed as she pushed to her feet. She offered her hand and he took it, letting her haul him upright. “Now how about we go relieve Kakashi-sensei of his bells?”

Naruto’s grin flashed wickedly across his scarred cheeks as he snickered, “Y’know, when I found you guys it almost looked like you two were—”

“Naruto, if you finish that statement I’m gonna punch you into next week!” she threatened heatedly. Her cheeks were probably as red as her shirt and all she could hope was that he confused it for anger rather than embarrassment.

To his credit, the blond very smartly kept his mouth shut.

Huffing irritably, Sakura surveyed the forest around them with narrowed, contemplative eyes. “So, where do you think he went?”

Naruto’s face scrunched up and his nose twitched. He pointed east. “That way,” he replied confidently.

She arched a brow and folded her arms across her chest. “And just how do you know that?”

“Well, he’s got your scent on him, and I can smell you goin’ off that way. And he knows I’ve got a pretty good sense of smell, so he’s headin’ for the river to get it off of him.”

While it was more than a little disturbing that he was able to smell her on someone else, she had to admit she was impressed with his reasoning. “So, our best bet then would be to hit him at the river.”

“Probably. But he’s also probably expectin’ that.”

Sakura nodded thoughtfully as she tapped a finger against her lower lip. Naruto was right; Kakashi was anticipating for them to give chase. Why else would someone of his caliber deliberately leave a scent trail for them to follow? More than likely, he was already waiting in ambush for them. Ideally, the best way to avoid an ambush was to not walk into one … or use it against the enemy.

A slow, wicked smile curved Sakura’s lips as she said, “Hey, I think I have a plan.”


____________________________


After taking a moment to thoroughly ream himself out for thinking with his cock (something that he had never done before, no matter the distraction), Kakashi killed two birds with one stone by taking a walk in the freezing river. Not only did it wipe Sakura’s scent from his clothing, but it also knocked the hard-on right out of him. Standing waist deep in bitingly cold water was uncomfortable as hell, but it’d worked. Fortunately for him, the standard-issue gear was designed to dry quickly so at least he didn’t have to spend the rest of the day half-wet.

It hadn’t been much fun laying traps all over the place in cold, sopping pants, but at least he couldn’t smell Sakura on him anymore.

He’d heard of battle lust before, but that was ridiculous! Whether it was simply the close-quarters or actually witnessing her in action, he didn’t know. But one thing was certain; Sakura was not just another medic-nin. She was a full blown kunoichi … and the sight of her punching several feet of rock like it was nothing was arousing as hell.

Kakashi thought back on the night he was mugged and shook his head, a smile twitching beneath his mask. To think he’d accused her of setting off an exploding tag inside village limits. And all she’d used was her fist and flawless chakra control … Tsunade had certainly done her job well.

But that moment beneath the trees, when he’d had her pinned and she’d glared up at him with such defiance … he would be remembering that for a long time, and not because of the sharingan. He’d wanted her in a very bad way — and he knew that she’d wanted him as well. The fact that the discovery had been made during a professional setting, however, wasn’t good at all.

This was the problem with teammates having personal relationships. It changed the team dynamics, made people prioritize in a potentially harmful way. The team always came first. No exceptions. There were more than just their lives at stake — lives that depended on them not to act irrationally. Kakashi sighed quietly and let his head fall back against the trunk. Genma was right; they needed to talk. And the sooner, the better.

The sharp crack of a twig snapping jerked him out of his thoughts and back into the moment, his body tensing instinctively. They wouldn’t really be so clumsy … would they? If that was one of his former students stepping on a tree branch, he was going to give them hell like they’d never seen before. He damn well taught them better than that!
Another twig cracked, followed by another and then a dull rumbling sound reached his ears. Kakashi’s brow furrowed as he felt a tremor vibrate up the tree trunk. What in the world…?
Carefully balancing one hand on the branch, he reached with the other for the shuriken holster on his thigh. Years of experience allowed him to keep his breathing steady, his heart rate down and his body perfectly still as the sounds of snapping branches and rustling underbrush came closer. Just a bit further and … there! Kakashi let the shuriken fly, and it was only by the grace of his lightning fast reflexes that he was able to redirect the deadly stars at the last possible moment.
Animals were scurrying frantically through the forest: squirrels, rabbits, birds, snakes. All of them were rushing for the river, as if being chased by some enormous predator. The tremors were growing in intensity until the leaves around him began to shake and rattle with the force. Kakashi actually had to channel a little more chakra to his feet to compensate for the sudden, erratic movements shivering through his tree.

Something big was heading this way, and the sound of its arrival was almost like thunder. Acorns plopped heavily from the trees, colored leaves swirled and looped as they were shaken from the branches, and pine needles rained down like miniature senbon. Any minute now, and whatever it was his former students had cooked up would be upon him. Kakashi raised his hands in preparation for a counter-jutsu.

It wasn’t until countless orange-clad figures came exploding through the trees that he realized what all the commotion was about; hundreds of Naruto clones were swarming the forest, rushing en masse through the obstacles and traps to trigger them and give their creator a clear path. Kakashi had a moment to appreciate the cleverness of the plan before he was on the ground and flinging shuriken as fast as he ever had at the approaching clone army. Soft pops and bursts of smoke erupted around him as he made a dash for the river.

Most ninja tried to avoid putting their back to water for the simple fact that it made escaping a bit trickier. Fortunately, escape wasn’t what he had in mind. Kakashi channeled chakra to his feet and used the extra burst of energy to leap over the river entirely. He landed on the opposite shore, his feet sinking into the crumbling dirt, and waited until he heard the splashing of cloned feet on water before spinning around with his hands already half way through the needed seals.

There was a moment where fifty sets of blue eyes widened in surprise and a similar number of feet went skidding across the river’s surface as the clones tried to back pedal … but it was too late. Lightning crackled and flared around Kakashi’s hand and, without a second’s hesitation, he plunged it quickly into the water and watched the blue streaks race across the super-conductive element. A chorus of howls and yelps nearly drowned out the crisp, snapping sound of electricity meeting solid objects. Smoke billowed thickly in the air, both from the evaporating water as well as the dissipating clones, and a sudden kick to the breeze sent it spiraling away down the river.

Not a clone was in sight, but on the opposite side of the bank was one lone figure gasping for an even breath and looking at him in amazement.

He was about to remind Naruto that a ninja had to always be mindful of their surroundings when the sharingan detected movement to his left. A giant shuriken came ripping out of the bushes in his direction and in the wake of it came a second Naruto. Kakashi dropped to his knees and bent backward just as the weapon whistled over his head, and the breeze of its passing was forceful enough to ruffle his hair. Were the shuriken to have it its target, it would have been a death blow. It was good to see Naruto wasn’t taking this lightly.
Kakashi had only just started the seals for an answering ninjutsu when the Naruto on the other bank drew back his fist and sent it flying into the ground. His eyes widened in shock as a split began to tear through the river bed, opening up in a chasm that swallowed earth, water and fish like a hungry mouth. The chakra radiating from the implosion told him it wasn’t really Naruto across the way, not unless he’d suddenly developed incredibly accurate chakra control. That was Sakura hiding under a Henge no Jutsu and staying back with the clones so as to draw attention from Naruto’s attack. It was a classic pincher technique, one that wouldn’t have worked without solid teamwork and perfect timing.
As he allowed himself to fall into the scored earth, a surge of pride swept through him. Teamwork was something he’d taught them. It didn’t matter how powerful a ninja was if they couldn’t work as a unit. For all their growth and time apart, he was amazed they still maintained that unity.
They still had a long way to go if they wanted to get the drop on him though.
Working quickly, Kakashi pulled the summoning scroll from his vest and nicked his thumb on a kunai as gravity helped unfurl the scroll. The blood smeared paper snapped crisply in the wake of his descent and he didn’t stick around to watch the ninken go tearing up the side of the chasm. His hands formed the seals for a teleportation jutsu mere seconds before he would have hit the ground.
The sound of two people shouting in surprise was dim in his ears as the disorienting sensation of the jutsu swept him away.

__________________________

“You know, Tsunade, I think the plan might have backfired.”
Tsunade paused in bringing the sake bowl to her lips to arch a pale brow in Jiraiya’s direction. “Oh?” she questioned as the mane sitting across the desk from her sipped his drink carefully.
Jiraiya nodded, staring into the clear liquid pensively as he tapped a finger against his thigh. “Have you really been so busy as to not notice that your apprentice is in love?” he murmured back, his lips quirking at the corners a little.
She stiffened and her eyes narrowed in annoyance. “My, my. You seem to have forgotten that I’m the Hokage. My whole life is nothing but busy right now.”
“You still need to take time for the important things.”
“This from the man who lazes his days away at a peephole, watching women young enough to be his granddaughters bathe.”
“Nice patch job on that hole, by the way. I can’t even tell it’d been there.”
“Thank you,” Tsunade replied smugly as she took a sip of sake. “I have a wonderfully talented wood user at my disposal.” Tenzou had been absolutely mortified when she’d asked him to reinforce the women’s bathhouse. She’d never quite seen a shade of pink like the one that had stained his face the entire time he’d worked.
Jiraiya let out a short bark of laughter and said, “A wood user, eh? Does she handle the morning variety at all? Ow!”
Tsunade glared at him as he rubbed the red spot on his forehead, the one caused by having a paper clipped snapped at him with incredible force. “Another comment like that in my presence, pervert, and body parts will come off!” She shot a pointed glance at his crotch, letting him know exactly which body parts she’d be starting with.
Clearing his throat uneasily, Jiraiya very casually crossed one leg over the other as if to protect himself. “So, back to your apprentice and my number one fan; I think they’ve fallen for each other.”
She nodded slowly, finished off her sake and poured some more. He held his bowl out and she obligingly refilled it as well. “Sakura doesn’t surprise me. The girl loves to be in love. First Sasuke, then medicine … but what makes you so certain Kakashi’s on the list? Or, for that matter, that he’s fallen for her?”
Jiraiya shrugged and gave his sake a gentle swirl. “Writer’s intuition?” he suggested dryly, grinning when Tsunade rolled her eyes. “The next time you get a moment, talk to them. Not together, obviously, but just pay attention to the way they react. With her, it’s a good deal more noticeable, but with him the change is subtle. You’ll see what I’m talking about.”
“Why exactly are you bringing this up again?” Tsunade asked, leaning back in her chair with a sigh. “Is this your way of saying you want to cancel the bet?”
“And miss out on the chance to score an all access pass to the women’s bath? Absolutely not! It was merely an observation I’d made and I was curious how you felt about it. You’re notoriously overprotective of Sakura.”
Tsunade lifted her head to give him a very sour glower.
“Well, you are,” he grumbled as he shrank a little lower in his seat.
“Listen, just because I keep her away from your groping hands and lascivious gaze doesn’t mean I’m overprotective!”
“Didn’t you send an ANBU squad to follow her on her first solo mission?”
Her eyes widened and she leaned forward in her chair. “Who told you that?” she demanded, her tone icy with menace.
Rather than cower at her obvious ire, Jiraiya’s dark eyes met hers and said, “The ANBU clerk who’ll turn up dead tomorrow. Poor fellow somehow managed to ingest frog toxins. I don’t know how that could have happened.”
Tsunade snorted and flopped back into her chair again. She closed her eyes and released a long, low breath as her fingers cupped the cool porcelain sake bowl carefully. “You need to run these things by me before you do them, Jiraiya. If all the spies in Konoha were to suddenly disappear, it’ll tip our enemies off.”
“I understand that. But this one was bold enough to tamper with your sake.”
Her eyes snapped open to meet his as an icy chill went down her spine. “What?”
Jiraiya’s face was grim and anger was burning hotly in his eyes. “This one was a bit personal,” he admitted, and there wasn’t a drop of the warmth she was used to hearing in his voice. “And I haven’t determined yet whether this was an internal attempt or external.”
“Are you suggesting someone inside the ranks tried to poison me?”
It was his turn to arch a brow. “Are you saying the thought hadn’t crossed your mind?”
It had, and she had a good idea of who would be responsible for it. Danzou wasn’t foolish enough to ever directly order anyone to poison the Hokage, but he damn well could insinuate that it’d be for the better good. If it was a former ROOT operative, whatever he so much as hinted at would be taken as an order, and if the person were caught later Danzou could say with all honesty he had nothing to do with it.
Tsunade sighed again and scrubbed a hand down her face. “And you wonder why I’ve not noticed my apprentice has gone and given her heart away?” she mumbled.
Jiraiya stood up and she didn’t protest when he swiveled her chair around to face him. “I already alerted Shizune,” he reassured her as he knelt by her side. Tsunade’s heart skipped a beat as he placed a large hand on her shoulder and squeezed comfortingly. “She’s got a good head on her and is already preparing to check everything that crosses your desk. And I’ll talk to Kakashi tomorrow, have him recommend some names of people we can trust to guard you. Don’t worry. You protect the village, and the village protects you.”
She smiled bitterly. “Of course,” she replied softly, reaching up to cover his hand with hers. There was a brief moment where their hands lingered and their gazes remained fixed, but it was broken when Tsunade cleared her throat and turned back toward her sake. “Now, let’s finish this bottle off. With Shizune on the job, it’ll be a cold day in hell before I see another drop of this stuff.”
He chuckled pleasantly and reclaimed his seat. Their sake bowls clicked as they brought them together in a toast before tipping them back simultaneously. Jiraiya held his out for a refill and she complied before topping off her own.
“So, how do you think it’s going?” he mused as he glanced at the window behind her. Outside, the sky was nothing but darkness. Heavy clouds were rolling in once again, blotting out the stars completely. With the way the lights from the village twinkled below, it almost looked like heaven and earth had switched places for the evening.
Tsunade laughed softly and said, “Knowing those two, they’re probably making Kakashi feel his age.”
“Well, here’s to growing old gracefully.” The clinking of porcelain rang sharply through the dimly lit office as they drank to that toast.

___________________________

Naruto collapsed on the ground next to Sakura and slouched back against the tree. His legs felt like rubber, he couldn’t catch an even breath and he was so worn out that sleeping on the cold forest floor seemed like a really good idea. Around them, the forest was filled with the quiet thrum of nightlife: owls calling softly, bugs chirping, unknown things rustling through the leaves. Every time he exhaled, his breath clouded in the cool air.
“Y-Y’know, it’s kinda nippy out,” he began as casually as possible. “Maybe we should snuggle up and—”
“Naruto, if I wasn’t so tired right now, I’d hit you,” Sakura snapped and, despite claiming to be exhausted, she managed to crack off an intimidating glare.
Swallowing hard, he held up a placating hand and laughed off the comment. “Yeah, yeah. I got it.” He sure didn’t want her hitting him, not after what he’d seen her do to the training grounds all day.
Sakura sighed wearily and stretched her legs out in front of her. A slight grimace twisted her lips before her palms began to glow softly. Naruto watched as she ran her hands down her legs and felt his mouth go dry when she moaned in bliss. “Oh, that feels so good!”
“Does it?” he wheezed while carefully thinking about all kinds of unpleasant things to keep his mind off of Sakura: Kiba kissing Lee. Shino with his bugs. Kiba kissing Lee while Shino’s bugs crawl over them. Wait … passionately kissing with the bugs crawling inside their mouths.
Nasty!
“Okay, so what are we going to do?” she asked, completely unaware of her teammate’s predicament. “We’ve only got a few hours left to get those bells, and Kakashi is being … well, Kakashi.”
Naruto’s brow scrunched as he shot her a confused look. “Kakashi? Since when’re you two on first name basis?”
A heavy blush colored her cheeks as she quickly looked away. “About that,” she mumbled, her fingers curling nervously in the hem of her skirt. “Naruto, there’s something I think you need to know. It’s about—”
The bushes across from them gave a sudden rattle and Naruto reacted on instinct by flinging a kunai at the source. A startled squeak cut through the darkness, and immediately all the other night sounds of the forest fell quiet in their location.
“Naruto, what are you doing?” Sakura hissed as he charged over toward the bush.
He didn’t answer her as he shoved the plant aside roughly … and saw a squirrel cowering about two inches away from his kunai. Oops. Naruto reclaimed his weapon and as soon as it was gone, the squirrel skittered up the tree. Angry growls and chittering noises followed after him, as well as a few acorns, as he wandered back over to Sakura and dropped down into his vacated spot.
She was staring at him with one brow arched and a smirk teasing at her lips. He shrugged and returned the kunai to its sheath. “At least it wasn’t a rabbit this time,” he joked, grinning as she snickered. “Anyway, what’re we gonna do about getting those bells?”
Sakura’s smile wilted around the edges and the humor began to fade from her eyes. “I don’t know,” she replied, an edge of a groan creeping into her voice. “I mean, he’s just … he’s amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it before. And it’s not just the sharingan either. His seal-making speed is too fast for me to follow.”
Naruto nodded in agreement and rotated his neck to ease a bit of the ache. Maybe after this was done he could talk Sakura into giving him a massage or something. Jiraiya-sama was always talking about how good medical massages were. “Yeah, Kakashi-sensei’s insanely strong. He’s smarter than Shikamaru. His nose makes Kiba’s look second rate. He uses the sharingan better than Sasuke. And he’s got better taijutsu skills than Thick-brows.”
“His name is Lee,” Sakura interrupted sharply. “I wish you’d stop calling him that.”
“Aw, c’mon! I’m only kidding! Besides, it’s not like he’s here an’ I’m sayin’ it to his face,” he replied, giving her side a friendly nudge.
“Yeah, but still … it’s not nice,” she muttered, pushing a strand of hair back behind her ear. “And he’s a really great friend.”
“Ooo … I think somebody has a crush on Caterpillar Brow!” Naruto snickered at his own joke, which quickly turned into a pained yelp as she clocked him good on the top of the head. “Ow … Sakura-chan!”
“I told you to can it, didn’t I?!” she snarled. “I do not have a crush on Lee. He’s just a really nice guy who I happen to be friends with, and I won’t tolerate you making fun of him. Got it?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he groaned. To say anything other than that would mean getting hit again, and he really didn’t want that to happen! Geeze … women really were fickle creatures, just like that pervy sage said. One minute, they were having a nice conversation, and the next she was beating the crap out of him.
Letting out an irritated humph, Sakura folded her arms across her chest and said, “We need to stop him from using both hands. That’s the only way we can get those bells.”
“Yeah, but how?” he groaned as he tugged the hitae-ate off and rubbed his hands roughly through his hair in frustration. “He’s not gonna just sit still an’ let us tie him up or anything! Well … maybe you, but definitely not me.”
He cringed when Sakura brought her hand back threateningly. “I’m warning you, if I have to waste the last bit of my chakra on an idiot like you, I’m never gonna speak to you again,” she warned angrily.
“Okay, okay! I’m done!” Naruto’s shoulders slouched as she lowered her hand and he waited until she was busy fussing with her skirt to shake his head. Girls were crazy! Was there some kinda weird cosmic rule that said they had to beat up the guys who liked them? That was just messed up!
“Now then,” she continued, going straight back into business mode once again. “Kakashi-sensei is phenomenal, but he’s gotta have a weakness. Everyone does. If we think about it, we’ll figure it out.”
She had a good point. If they could just figure out Kakashi-sensei’s weakness, then they’d get those bells no problem. It was just … what the hell was it? The sharingan allowed him to see everything, even potential movement. Getting him to stay still long enough to bind his hands really wasn’t an option. He knew all their weaknesses already and used those against them. Naruto shuddered as he remembered that awful genjutsu Kakashi-sensei had whipped out on him earlier, the one where he’d seen Sakura stabbed to pieces by kunai and shuriken. It’d been so horrifying that he’d puked all over the forest floor.
And then the bastard had gone and knocked him out right into it. He could still smell vomit on his jacket, despite Sakura’s earlier assurances that the river had done a good job of taking it out.
Okay, so none of the conventional methods were going to work against Copy Ninja Kakashi. That left them with … what? Despite his earlier teasing, he doubted having Sakura try to maybe seduce their former teacher would really work. The guy was asexual or something. He had to be, seeing as Naruto couldn’t recall ever seeing him with anyone. Or maybe he was just really good at hiding it? Or maybe he was one of those guys who only liked the women in those dirty magazines and books? It made sense, what with the way he loved Icha Icha…
Icha Icha.
A splutter of laughter burst from his lips, one he quickly tried to suppress with his hand. “Sakura-chan, I think I’ve got it,” he sniggered, grinning widely as she flashed him a surprised look.
“What, Kakashi-sensei’s weakness?”
He nodded. “If you think about his habits, you’ll get it.”
Her green eyes flared angrily and she jammed her elbow into his ribs hard enough to rock him. “Stop being a know-it-all and just tell me!”
“Well,” he drawled, still chuckling despite the fact his ribs were stinging from her elbow. “It’s Icha Icha.”
Sakura’s brow pinched as she leaned away from him. “Are you saying we need to take his books and hold them hostage? Because I can tell you now, getting our hands on his books isn’t going to be easy.”
Naruto shook his head and bit his lower lip as more laughter tried to break free. “No, no! It’s much easier than that. Remember earlier when you asked him if he’d finished the book an’ he said he was gonna save it for later? That means he doesn’t know how it’s gonna end yet. And you know how much he loves those books. So, if we both come at him an’ I start talkin’ about the ending…”
“He’s going to cover his ears because he doesn’t want to hear it,” Sakura finished, her voice soft and breathy with awe. “Naruto … that’s brilliant! It’s so simple! You really are something, you know that?”
Yes! Recognition from Sakura! His heart sped up and a light feeling moved through his chest at her excited words. Even if they failed to get the bells, her words were enough for him.
“So, if we do it like that, we have the advantage an’ can win,” he concluded proudly.
“It’s perfect! Now, all we need to do is find him. Think you can do that?”
“Hehe … you bet I can! Let’s go!”
They took to the trees then, Naruto in the lead and Sakura following close behind. There were only a few hours left until sunrise, so they had to act quickly. Kakashi-sensei was in for the surprise of his life as soon as they found him!

_________________________________

The sky was just beginning to turn that muddy grey color of dawn when they finally made their move. Kakashi had been anticipating it for the last three hours, but now that they were in action … he was severely disappointed.

All that wonderful growth and potential they’d shown during the whole exercise, and what did they decide to do? Come at him in a full frontal assault. No clones. No incredibly powerful punches. Just them dropping out of the trees like a couple of ego-inflated genin. He waited for one of them to go, ‘haha! Just kidding, Kakashi-sensei’ but the determined looks on their faces told him it’d be a cold day in hell before that happened.

They really couldn’t be serious about this.

Letting out a disillusioned sigh, Kakashi decided it was time to bury them completely. If this was all they had, he’d make damn certain they didn’t receive anything higher than a B-ranked mission for a very, very long time. He brought his hands together for the first seal.

“Hey, Kakashi-sensei!”

Kakashi paused, glancing up in surprise at Naruto’s voice. His eyes narrowed at the decidedly wicked gleam in the younger man’s eyes.

“Wanna know how Icha Icha Tactics ends? See, what happens is this…”

A horribly cold feeling sank heavily in Kakashi’s gut. He wouldn’t dare! After waiting so long for the next installment, Naruto wouldn’t seriously—

“During the last chapter, the hero—”

Shit, he would! He was going to spoil the entire book! Jiraiya always threw one final plot twist in at the end, and Naruto was going to ruin it! All thoughts of the test flew out of his head as he quickly clamped his hands over his ears and closed the sharingan. He didn’t want to risk it memorizing Naruto’s lip movements. Not for anything would he allow his one vice to be ruined. Damn it, what the hell was Naruto doing? He and Sakura should be attacking him, not screwing up his book!

Kakashi’s eyes snapped open when someone gave a hard tug on his belt … and removed the bells. Realization crashed down on him like a drunken elephant plummeting off a cliff as two bells were dangled in front of his face by his beaming teammates. For a moment, he was so shocked that he forgot to take a breath and the resulting dizziness made him blink as he slowly lowered his hands from his ear. The first thing he heard was Sakura’s delighted giggle — and the light tinkle of silver bells being jangled a few inches from his face.

“A ninja should look underneath the underneath,” Naruto mocked as he fisted his bell. “Isn’t that what you always used to say, Kakashi-sensei?”

“Aw, leave him alone, Naruto,” Sakura laughed. “Forgetting things is common in the elderly.” The two of them laughed at the joke before turning and heading back toward the village.

Kakashi’s shoulders slouched and he leveled a doleful glare after the retreating pair. “Yes, let’s just hope the enemy has a passion for reading as well, hm?” he remarked dryly as he jammed his hands in his pockets and followed after them.

“Hey, are ya comin’, old man, or are we gonna have to carry you back?” Naruto called back.

“Naruto, it’d be a shame if you suddenly found yourself barred from Ichiraku Ramen, wouldn’t it?” he asked casually, smirking as the blond gasped indignantly at the very idea.

“Y-You wouldn’t really … would you, Kakashi-sensei?” Naruto asked hoarsely.

“I think that’s Kakashi-sensei’s way of saying you better stop,” Sakura interjected as she turned to flash a brilliant smile over her shoulder. For a moment, the humor faded from her eyes and was replaced with a gentle, affectionate look that made his breath catch. Their gazes lingered for a few seconds before she quickly turned away with pink-tinted cheeks.

Kakashi released a quiet sigh and pulled his downfall out from the pouch at his back. He flipped open to where he’d left off in Icha Icha Tactics, but he wasn’t really interested in reading it. Not when he had a perfect view of Sakura’s swaying skirt. If he hadn’t spent the last twenty-four hours using his chakra supply, he might have been tempted to activate the sharingan. It was a very nice view, after all.


The entire walk back to the village was punctuated by the excited chatter of his two younger teammates. Thankfully, they didn’t dwell entirely over their victory, but rather what they’d been up to for the last two and a half years. Kakashi pretended not to listen to them talk, but in reality he was curious. While the bell test had shown how they’d both grown physically, the stories they swapped showed how they’d grown as people.

Well … maybe. He’d winced when Sakura gave Naruto an almighty smack (chakra free, fortunately, but still painful) for telling her about the stealth jutsu his mentor had tried to teach him at the women’s bathhouse. When was he going to learn not to say those sorts of things in front of Sakura? Then again, part of him was sort of glad Naruto was digging his own grave. The boy did have a thing for her, a thing Kakashi would rather not actively encourage for personal reasons.

It was as they passed through the gates and onto the busy main street that Naruto asked the one question Sakura obviously had been dreading: “So, Sakura-chan, any boyfriends yet? Any ex-boyfriends whose asses need some kickin’?”

Kakashi didn’t need to see her face to know she was beet red; he could see it on the back of her neck. “O-Oh, well, um…,” she stammered uncertainly, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear in a very familiar gesture of unease. For a quick second, she glanced over her shoulder at him, and in that short exchange of looks he saw uncertainty written all over her. She didn’t want Naruto to know about them, at least not yet.

Disappointment sank heavily in his stomach at that realization, and it took quite a lot of effort to keep it from showing externally.

Clearing his throat, Kakashi changed the subject for her by saying, “So, I’m actually rather impressed you were able to get the bells this time. Even though that was a below the belt trick you two pulled.” The grateful smile Sakura shot him made the disappointment twist like a kunai in his gut.

Naruto snickered mischievously and flashed a grin over his shoulder. “Wasn’t it one of your rules to fight dirty?” he asked, a note of slyness in his words.

Kakashi shrugged indifferently and replied, “Maybe. Regardless, it was a good move.” If by good move one actually meant ‘embarrassing as all hell’. To be taken down by his own book was humiliating. It was also something Naruto and Sakura unwittingly had in common.

The blond’s grin widened further as he folded his hands behind his head. With that expression and the way his elbows stuck out from either side of his head, it made him almost look like the thirteen-year-old genin he’d taught. The boyish exuberance was marred, however, by the fact that Naruto had gotten much taller over the years.

“Could be I’ve gotten better than even you, huh, Kakashi-sensei?”

Okay, that was taking it a bit far. Kakashi was about to put Naruto back in his place when Sakura jumped in by scoffing, “Oh, what arrogance! Do I need to smack some of that hot air from your head?”

Naruto was quick to put some distance between them and his wary gaze was fixated on Sakura’s hands. “Hey, hey! All I’m sayin’ is that I learned some pretty awesome jutsus from that pervy sage, ones even Kakashi-sensei might have trouble handling.”

“Wow, really?” Sakura asked, giving her companion an awed look.

“Actually, speaking of jutsus,” Kakashi interrupted, keeping his voice subtly casual. He normally wasn’t the boastful sort, but seeing Sakura react like that triggered that urge out of dormancy. “I developed a new one that’s rather brilliant and—”

A loud, growling sound cut him off and Naruto pressed a hand quickly to his stomach. Letting out a sheepish laugh, he scrubbed a hand through his hair and said, “Sorry about that, but it’s been a whole day since I got a chance to eat. Jiraiya-sama an’ I were supposed to go to Ichiraku Ramen yesterday, but then we ended up doing that bell test instead, so…”

“I’m actually kind of hungry, too,” Sakura admitted.

Kakashi’s shoulder slumped in defeat. He just couldn’t cut a break today, it seemed. First, there was the embarrassing way he’d lost the bell test. Then, there was the continued battering of his ego. And now he was being upstaged by a rumbling stomach? When would the indignities end?

He came out of his dejected thoughts when Sakura turned to him with that bright, addictive smile of hers and asked, “Are you coming with us, Kakashi-sensei?”

A quick flinch creased the corners of his eyes at the use of his proper title. He didn’t know why he was so surprised she would start calling him sensei again. It was appropriate for his position, after all. Maybe it was just that he’d gotten used to being just Kakashi to her that it sounded strange to hear.

Or maybe he didn’t want to be Kakashi-sensei to her. Maybe he wanted to remain simply Kakashi.

Regardless of his feelings on the matter, it was obvious she was trying to establish a professional front before their teammate. Whether or not her sudden remembrance for decorum had to do with her wanting to keep their relationship a secret from Naruto, he didn’t know. But he didn’t like the idea of her being embarrassed to be associated with him in a more familiar sense.

“It can be your treat,” Naruto added gleefully.

Oh, hell no! There was no way he was getting stuck with a bill from Ichiraku Ramen for the bottomless pit that was Uzumaki Naruto’s stomach.

Assuming an appropriately contrite expression, Kakashi laughed softly and said, “Sorry, but I’m going to have to pass for today. I have to create and submit a list of the new teams.” It was true he had to get those lists in (actually, they were due two days ago, but who was counting?) but that wasn’t what he intended to do today. There was a fabulous new book all but begging to be read on a nice, warm bakery rooftop. Besides, he wasn’t really in the mood to spend an afternoon hearing Sakura call him ‘sensei’.

He was just about to teleport out of there when Sakura exclaimed, “Wait, sensei!”

Kakashi paused, one brow arching in question as a light pink color blushed across her cheeks. She shifted uncomfortably as Naruto gave her a bewildered look and mumbled, “I, um … I need to talk to you. Please. And alone.”

Ah. Letting out a long, controlled breath, he nodded and said, “Alright. Naruto, wait right here a moment.”

“Yeah, okay,” he said, his eyes flickering between them curiously.

Kakashi waited until the boy’s back was turned before nodding for Sakura to follow him down a narrow side street that was empty save for a few stray cats. The smell of garbage was strong, the concrete was slick with filth and judging by the soft ‘ew’ that came from behind him, she was just as aware of it as he was. It wasn’t a romantic setting in the least, but he didn’t particularly care about that. He doubted this was going to be a very pleasant talk.

Once they were far enough down the side street where they wouldn’t be head, Kakashi tucked his hands in his pockets and waited for her to speak. Sakura couldn’t quite raise her eyes passed his collar bone as her fingers twisted together nervously. “I … I think we need to talk,” she began hesitantly.

“… That is why we’re here, isn’t it?” he drawled noncommittally.

She shook her head and said, “No. I mean we need to talk. About us.”

For a moment, he forgot to breathe as her softly spoken words slammed into him with hurricane force. “Ah. I see.”

“But not here,” Sakura continued quickly. “Somewhere a bit more…”

“Clean?” he suggested drolly.

“Private,” she corrected with a small smile. “Although, clean would be preferable, too.”

Kakashi took a deep breath and released it slowly. She wanted to talk. In private. He knew she was still after his books, so she couldn’t be gearing up to dump him. It seemed foolish to ask for secrecy now when people already knew about them. How long did she think it would take before Naruto heard it from someone else?

Finally, after a moment of silence where she stared at him worriedly, he said softly, “Okay. I don’t have any plans tonight, so if you wanted to—”

“Tonight we’re supposed to have dinner with Genma and Shizune-san, remember?” she said, one brow arching in disbelief that he’d forgotten.

He closed his eyes and let his head fall forward with a groan. Oh, that’s right. Today was Saturday and they’d already made plans. Damn it…

Sakura took a step closer to him, the corners of her lips turned up in a tentative smile. “What about after dinner? You could come over to my place and we can have some tea and talk a bit.”

Kakashi shifted his weight to one foot as he tried not to think about the last time he had tea in her apartment. “Won’t Ino be there?” he inquired.

Her nose wrinkled at the mention of her roommate before she shrugged and said, “It’s Saturday. She’s probably got plans already, and if she doesn’t I’ll just tell her to clear out for a bit.”

Damn. He’d half hoped Ino would be there, just for an extra layer of control. Still though, he supposed it was best that one of Konoha’s biggest gossips wasn’t around to witness them discussing their relationship. Letting out a breath that bordered on a reluctant sigh, Kakashi nodded slowly. “Okay. After dinner is fine.”

The smell of her shampoo wafted toward him as she moved closer to him. Kakashi hardly dared to breathe when she stretched up on tiptoe, her front pressed to his, and brushed a kiss across his masked lips. His body reacted on impulse to the feel of her, one hand sliding around the small of her back to pull her more firmly against him while his mouth angled to better meet hers. Someone moaned softly, and it took him a moment to realize it was her.

It was over far too quickly. Sakura drew back from him and he moved as if to chase after her lips. She smiled and a soft, delighted giggle broke from her as she pushed away completely. “Naruto’s waiting,” she said as she slowly began backing her way down the side street. “I don’t think he’d appreciate me keeping him from ramen just to kiss you.”

“Well, his priorities have always been a little skewed when it comes to food,” he quipped weakly. Mentally, he wanted nothing more than to drag her back and kiss a few more of those moans from her mouth.

Sakura’s smile widened and her laughter was light and a little shy as she toyed with a strand of hair. “I’ll see you later tonight, okay?” she called back before exiting the alley and heading back toward their waiting teammate.

Kakashi waited until she was out of sight before letting his head thunk hard against the building behind him. This was what he’d wanted, what Genma had so correctly said they needed to do. It was absolutely imperative that they sort everything out between them if either of them expected more from this relationship. And yet, knowing what had to be done still couldn’t quite keep that heavy, sickening feeling from his gut. He didn’t do emotionally open very well and could honestly admit that the idea of doing so with Sakura was a bit scary. But if it meant hanging on to her … he’d do it.

It just wasn’t going to be pretty or come out easily, that was all.

Sighing again, Kakashi pushed away from the wall and took to the rooftops to try and find a place to read for the rest of the afternoon. Try being the operative word.