The next chapter, wow I'm fast. It's rated K+ and there are no spoilers.

The Right Way

by nayru-kleinefee


Chapter 4 – Torture Plans

“No!” Iruka’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Yes! I’m not kidding”, Kakashi told him and nodded. “Gai was so roaring drunk, he suddenly declared it was time for physical exercise and tried to convince us all to go swimming in the river. Me and Genma and Raidou and Asuma. And even Kurenai and Anko!”

“Really?! Them too? What did they say?”

“Kurenai was… not amused. And Asuma was ready to kill when Gai offered to help her out of her dress.” The Copy-nin winked. “As for Anko… she said it was too cold.” But with the way she looked at Gai, I didn’t have the impression that she would have minded the help-to-get-naked part… He shuddered.

“And then?” Iruka leaned closer, eyes curious and full of mischief, lips and cheeks flushed a little from laughter and sake and a stray lock of his hair falling into his face.

Want me to help you get naked? Kakashi blinked. “Then… oh, yes! Then Gai decided to help us ‘lose our Youthful Bashfulness’ and ran out of the bar. We followed just in time to hear him announce he’d go swimming now and see him take off his boxers, green ones of course.” And I definitely could have lived on quite happily without having seen that…

“He… he really got naked?”, Iruka breathed.

“Yes.” The Jounin nodded. And as funny as it was, I don’t want to remember anything of it now, thankyouverymuch, brain.

“Outside?” The eyes widened even more.

“Yes.” Another nod. And he scarred three pedestrians for life with it, judging from their looks.

“And went to swim in the river?”, Iruka asked in a that-can’t-be-true-but-I-so-hope-it’s-true-please-tell-me-it’s-true tone.

“Yes.” Kakashi nodded again. And by the look Anko gave him, especially his… lower regions, she seriously pondered going in the water with him… But I won’t tell you that. I don’t want to risk that you run away screaming like I almost did back then…

“In December?!” The Chuunin’s eyes were big like saucers by now.

“Yes. In deepest, coldest, fiercest December with almost one metre of snow lying on top of the frozen river”, Kakashi told him. Heh… he looks like a guppy right now… but a very cute Iruka-guppy…

“And… and what did you do?”

“We let him go there.” Because trying to stop him would have meant to touch him.

“No!”, Iruka whispered incredulously before he went to biting his lower lip in excitement.

“Yes…”, Kakashi heard himself say, mouth on autopilot while he stared at the Chuunin’s teeth and lip. Don’t you want to bite me instead? I wouldn’t mind at all. And you can choose freely where you want to bi-

“Kakashi-sensei…” He saw Iruka release his lower lip and instead stuck it out in a pout.

“Hn?” The Copy-nin forced his eyes to the Chuunin’s. Teeth… lips… pout… lips… kiss… maybe I can ki- Oh. Right. Talk. Have to talk right now… but talking’s bad… kissing’s much better…

“Don’t be mean and tease me… Tell me, please. I want to know what happened next!” Iruka was practically bouncing on his seat by now.

Know… what know? About… Gai, right. Kakashi blinked several times when the thought of his Eternal Rival butt-naked effectively cleared his mind. “Right. He practically dragged us with him all the way, still butt-naked, and then called us sissies altogether for not wanting to go in with him. I’ve never before or after heard Gai use such language!”

“And- and you really let him swim in the freezing water?”, Iruka asked, breathless.

“First I really thought about letting him”, Kakashi admitted, grinning at the cute, almost child-like expression on the Chuunin’s face. “You know, I thought that maybe he’d catch a Flu Out Of Hell and then I’d be free from his challenges for a couple of weeks.” He shook his head. “But then I thought, ‘Hey, Hatake, what kind of flu would dare to come near such a Noble Green Beast in the Springtime of his Youth?’, and I decided to safe him. Or the flu, that is.”

Iruka laughed and coughed on the mouthful of sake he’d just meant to swallow. “H-how?”, he choked out, still giggling.

“I cast a fire jutsu on the river and told Gai the snow had melted and it wouldn’t be a worthy challenge anymore to swim in warm water.” Kakashi winked at the Chuunin. “And he really believed me and praised my Noble Spirit for wanting a Real Challenge.” At that, the Jounin made a thumbs-up at the laughing Chuunin, imitating his Eternal Rival. Oh Kami! Did I really just do that?!

“Oh- Oh my-” Iruka started to laugh even harder. “Gai and- and drunk and- and-”, he choked out before another wave of laughter hit him and shook him so much he almost fell backwards from his chair.

“Hey, be careful!”, Kakashi laughed, then stood up hastily and reached out to catch him. To his utter surprise, the Chuunin wrapped his arms around his shoulders, held tight and buried his head into the Copy-nin’s chest, still laughing like mad. Oh Kami, he’s so close and warm and smelling so good and he’s laughing and that’s perfect and he’s flushed and his head is on my chest and-

“I… I’m sorry”, Iruka finally managed to force out, then straightened up and wiped the tears from his eyes. “I think I had a little too much sake when I’m this hilarious.”

“That’s no problem, Iruka-sensei”, Kakashi told him while he desperately tried to regain his wits and composure, then sat back onto his chair. Touch… warm… teeth… lips… pout… ki- No! Behave, Hatake! Don’t go there! You definitely don’t want to show him how much you liked that, and you know you will if you keep thinking about this! Kami, let me survive this without embarrassing myself…

“That’s nice”, the Chuunin said. “But I guess I really should stop drinking now.”

“You don’t have to”, Pakkun told him suddenly and looked up from his just finished third bowl of beef ramen. “I bet the boss would be delighted to carry you home, Iruka-sensei.” He grinned cheekily.

“Pakkun!”, Kakashi hissed. Is he doing that on purpose?

“I don’t think you’ll have to, Kakashi-sensei”, Iruka told him, blushing a little but still smiling. “It’s already quite late, and we both have to get up early to meet our students tomorrow.” He frowned, then grinned. “And at least one of us likes being on time.”

“No fair”, Kakashi defended himself but grinned back. “It’s patience training.”

“Sure.” The Chuunin laughed. “I can only hope it’ll work on Naruto.” Then he grinned impishly. “But maybe you should be on time tomorrow so you have more time to punish him and Sasuke.”

“A very good idea, sensei”, the Copy-nin answered. “I never knew you were so… what did Naruto say? Mean.”

“I can be if I have to”, Iruka gave back, then looked at Pakkun. “Do you want another bowl?”

“No, thank you, I’m full.”

“I’m really surprised you could eat three bowls without getting stomach-ache”, Iruka said. “If I think about eating three bowls of ramen that big compared to my size…”

And a big steak only one hour before we came here. And some strawberries. And that bite of the pineapple, but I think that doesn’t count because he spat it out again almost immediately. If I didn’t know better, I’d suspect there were at least three similar dogs that swapped places from time to time. Kakashi grinned. But there’s only one, thank Kami.

“Do you want anything else, Kakashi-sensei?”, Iruka asked.

You, please. As takeaway. “No, thank you.”

“Then we should call it a night”, the Chuunin decided. “After all, I’ve got an invitation for dinner tomorrow and I don’t want to be tired then.” He grinned and blushed a little, then paid for the food and drinks, ignoring the Jounin’s attempt to pay for his and Pakkun’s share.

“After you”, Kakashi said while he set Pakkun down on the floor again, then he followed the dog and the Chuunin outside. And you don’t look at his butt, Hatake! Behave!

“What direction do you live?”, Iruka asked him outside the ramen shop.

“That way.” Kakashi pointed to his left.

“Oh.” Iruka smiled, looking a little disappointed. “I live the other way. Then we have to-”

“We could walk you home, Iruka-sensei”, the Jounin offered. Please? I promise I will behave.

“Good idea, boss.” Pakkun nodded. “I’d really like to walk a little after that much food.”

The Chuunin smiled brightly. “I’d like that.”

“Then let’s go”, Kakashi said, inwardly bouncing of joy.

They walked in comfortable silence some time before Iruka spoke up again. “Would you like me to bring something tomorrow? Maybe a desert?”

“I don’t kn-”, Kakashi started.

“The boss will make strawberries with white chocolate for us”, Pakkun threw in, grinning. “Or do you prefer whipped cream, sensei?”

“Oh, that’s-” Iruka smiled. “White chocolate would be perfect. But you really don’t have to go to so much trouble for me, Kakashi-sensei.”

“That’s no trouble at all”, the Copy-nin reassured him. If Pakkun knows how to make proper chocolate strawberries, that is…

“Then I could bring sake”, Iruka offered. “And make a salad?”

“That would be great”, Kakashi said and ignored Pakkun’s snort at the mentioning of the latter.

“‘kay then.” The Chuunin smiled, then asked, “What do you plan to do to Naruto and Sasuke tomorrow?”

“Hmm, haven’t decided yet.” Kakashi frowned, thinking. “Maybe I could make them drain a swamp. Or clean a cowshed. Something that stinks and has them working their little butts off.”

“What about going and collecting those nasty Inatika-mushrooms?”, Iruka suggested. “They stink like hell and the boys would have to search for them in the swamp area south of the town. And I heard the hospital needs them for some kind of medicine, so you could even say it’s a mission.”

“Sensei!” Kakashi looked at him admiringly. “And I always thought I was mean!”

Iruka blushed a little. “So you like the idea?”

“It’s perfect! How did you think that up?”

“Well…” The Chuunin blushed a little more. “Maybe I… had to do it… myself…” He grinned sheepishly.

“Really?!” Kakashi laughed. “What did you do to deserve that?”

“When I was ten, I… enriched my Academy sensei’s shower foam with ink…” Iruka’s grin widened and grew mischievous. “I smelled of Inatika for two days but his whole body was blue for five.”

“I’m really glad you aren’t my student.” Kakashi laughed hard and almost stumbled in his walk because of that. “And to whom should I go for advice then?”

“Glad I could help you”, Iruka answered, still grinning. “What about Sakura?”, he asked then.

“They’re a team, so they’ll suffer as a team”, the Copy-nin decided. “That’ll make sure the boys learn their lesson quicker.” And if Sakura joined in calling me names, what I highly suspect, she’ll be punished for it, too.

“Yeah, an angry female team-mate would have stopped me from quite a lot of the things I did when I was younger”, Iruka admitted.

“Already a ladies’ man back then”, Kakashi accused and felt his stomach tighten a little.

“No, I- I- It’s not-” The Chuunin blushed brightly. “It’s not like that, Kakashi-sensei.”

“Oh, how is it then?”, the Jounin asked before he could stop himself.

“It’s… it’s…” Iruka blushed deeper. “I only… wanted to say that… that… that if I was in Naruto’s age, I would be afraid of Sakura being angry at me”, he finally stammered, then looked up. “Oh, look, we’re already here. That’s my apartment block.”

“Oh.” Kakashi did his best to hide his disappointment at the sight of the familiar house. “Then…”

“Yes…” Iruka half turned towards the front door of the house but then seemed to hesitate and turned back. “I… do you…”

“Yes?”, Kakashi asked.

“I was thinking… I…” The Chuunin bit his lower lip, looking uncertain. “Do you maybe want…” He blushed a little.

Sure I want. Whatever it is. “Yes, Iruka-sensei?”

“I…” Iruka shook his head, then smiled. “It’s nothing, Kakashi-sensei“, he said. “Thank you for the evening. It was very nice with you both. I look forward to tomorrow.”

“We too”, Kakashi answered. “Have a good night, Iruka-sensei.”

“Thank you, have a good night, too. Good night, Pakkun.” The Chuunin smiled again, then turned and entered the house.

“Can we go home now?”, Pakkun asked after a while that had his master still standing in front of the door and staring at it lost in thoughts of brown hair and an addictive smile disappearing behind it.

“Hm? Sure.” Kakashi turned around and followed. I wished Iruka had invited me inside, just for a cup of tea or such… but I guess he didn’t even think once of doing so… maybe next time…

“Iruka-sensei likes you”, his pug told him after some time.

“How do you know?”, the Copy-nin asked suspiciously.

“He wanted to see your face.”

“That doesn’t say anything about whether he likes me or not. Almost everybody I know wants to see it.”

“Yes, but he didn’t ask me how you look like.”

Kakashi frowned. “So?”

“So he doesn’t only want to know but wants you to show him, boss”, the dog told him and rolled his eyes. “Really, aren’t you supposed to be a genius?”

“My mind doesn’t work well when I’m around Iruka”, Kakashi admitted, shrugging. “So you think that’s a sign that he likes me back?”

“Yes, boss.”

“Hm.”

“And he made sure you smell like him. That’s a very strong sign.” Pakkun nodded.

“He made sure I smell like him?” Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

“Sure. When he came close and rubbed his head against you. And believe me, you smell like him now. Everybody with a good enough nose will know.”

“He was laughing!” And hugging me and warm and smelling good and-

“If you say that, boss”, Pakkun said, sounding highly doubtful. “I say, he wanted to mark you as his.”

“He’s not a dog!” Although I’d like him to mark me as his… and I mark him as mine…

“So, what did he do then?”, Pakkun sniffed indignantly. “Why did he come that close if he didn’t want to mark you?”

“He hugged me.” Kakashi smiled dreamily.

“Hugging, hu?”

“Yes, it’s like… coming close to get ruffled.”

“Oh.” Pakkun frowned, obviously thinking that over. “Well, whether he marked you or hugged you, the result is the same then”, he decided finally. “He likes you.”

“M-hm.” The Copy-nin smiled again. “I’d like that.”

“I know, boss. But the next time you want to have… let’s say that kind of thoughts about him, make sure he’s not around, will you? If he or that loud, orange kid had turned to look at you that moment, you’d have been in real trouble to explain why you were practically drooling at his sight.”

“What do you-” Kakashi blushed when he remembered a certain occasion involving Iruka talking about tying up and spanking. “Oh.”

“Yes”, Pakkun said dryly. “Believe me, boss, I don’t care what you do with him once he’s your mate or lover or whatever, and I certainly don’t want to know it, but please make sure you don’t scare him away before that.”

“So anxious suddenly? You really, really like him, hu?” Kakashi smiled. I’ve never before seen you so interested in another human except me.

“He’s… nice.”

“Iruka’s more than nice. He’s perfect and-”

“No, boss! Please, not again!” Pakkun rolled his eyes. “Okay, Iruka-sensei’s more than nice, I admit it. And I… like him. But I don’t want to hear that blushing-smiling-angry-perfect stuff again.”

“‘kay.” The Copy-nin sighed.

“‘‘KAY’?! Boss, you…” The dog groaned. “You didn’t just say ‘‘kay’, did you?”

“Oh. Hehe… I did?” Kakashi scratched his head sheepishly.

“Hrmph. You’re hopeless.”

“Maybe.” The Copy-nin sighed again.

“Not ‘maybe’, certainly.”

“I know. It’s Iruka.” Kakashi shrugged, and they walked on in silence.

“Will be a tough day tomorrow”, Pakkun announced after a while.

“M-hm. First, torturing the kids…”

“Without getting any of those smelling mushrooms on you! I will not show you how to make filled eggplants or chocolate strawberries when you stink, boss!”

“Alright, I got it. Second, buying eggplants and the other stuff for the dinner. Third, cleaning the apartment. Fourth, cooking… Tough.” But at least I know how to do steps one to three…

“I’ll help you, boss.”

“Thanks.”

“But you’ll have to deal with Iruka-sensei alone then.”

“What?”, Kakashi asked, surprised. “You’ll be there, too, won’t you?”

“Boss, I might not know much about that ‘dating’-stuff, but I’m quite sure there shouldn’t be more than two people, preferably from the same species.”

“But… but… What shall I do with him?” Apart from what I want to do with him but better not do with him to avoid never being allowed to do anything with him ever again and-

Pakkun rolled his eyes. “Boss, really.”

“No, I mean, who’ll stop me from… from being stupid and making Iruka angry?”

“I’m quite sure a genius will manage that on his own…”

“But… but…” But how?

“Boss…”, Pakkun growled. “You’re a human. You’re supposed to be the most intelligent species around, and you want to tell me you don’t know how to get yourself a mate?” He snorted. “I can’t believe that there are so many little, noisy humans running around in this town.”

“Iruka’s not a mate!”

“‘kay, boss, I-” The pug’s eyes widened. “Hell, he’s contagious!”

Kakashi laughed. “He’s just so cute, even you want to be a little like him.”

“That’s not true! I certainly don’t want to be cute!”

“Sure…” Kakashi chuckled.

“Okay, that’s it! I’ll be so out tomorrow the minute he enters the apartment. I’ll not get any more of this Iruka-‘kay-stuff on me!”

“You can’t”, his master begged. “Please, Pakkun. Just… just this once.” I’m frightened, Pakkun. Please don’t force me to say it out loud. And please help me!

“Boss, that’s not-”

“Besides, Iruka believes it’s all about you”, Kakashi reasoned. “I’m cooking for my beloved puppy, forgot?” Oh Kami, now that sounds wrong!

“Oh no, never say that again, boss!”, Pakkun growled.

“But you have to stay. At least for a while, please. Just to make sure I… I…” I don’t want to screw up and ruin it. Whatever this ‘it’ is already…

“I’ll make sure you behave, boss.” The pug sighed. “But you make sure to ask him out for a date alone, will you?”

“…Yes.” Maybe. If I can find the right way to ask him.

“Yes what?”

“Yes, I’ll ask him to go out with me alone”, Kakashi mumbled. I definitely want that. And I can do that. … I hope…

“Perfect, boss.” Pakkun shook his head. “Just make sure you sound a little more enthusiastic when you ask him.”

“That’s not easy, you know!”

“Sure, boss. He’s a tough cookie.”

“I didn’t say that, Pakkun!”

“I know, boss…”

“I’ll ask Iruka out tomorrow.” I can do that.

“You’ll ask Iruka-sensei out tomorrow, boss”, the nin-dog confirmed.

“And he’ll say yes.” I hope…

“And he’ll say yes, boss.”

“Sure he will.” Kakashi nodded. He will.

“Unless you burn the food.” Pakkun grinned.

“Heey!”


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next chapter finally: Kakashi's kitchen disaster, I mean cooking attempts.

Nayru