Escort

V.

“Ruka! Thank god, I thought I’d have to deal with those pigs all by myself.”

Iruka smiled helplessly at Ukiyo and pulled at ‘her’ kimono sleeves. He’d been at this job at the Abeko for a week and had already made a friend in the young hostess. Ukiyo had been working at the Abeko for several years and knew the place better than anyone else. Iruka’s female alter ego hadn’t been so easy to pull off and anyone looking for clues to his real identity needed only to listen to his name. He’d been pressed, being stared at by the Abeko’s owner during the interview, so he’d gone with simple. Drop the ‘I’ and just have the last four letters and voila, he had his new name. Ruka had been hired and given into Ukiyo’s hands to train. So far, Iruka knew where the hidden door to the back was in the event he had to show some gentlemen to the gaming rooms. Ukiyo usually handled that job, since the waitresses usually had their hands full running to and from the kitchen and serving the usual patrons that came into the place.

Ukiyo dropped her hands onto Ruka’s shoulders, hugging the younger woman and pretending to cry. When she pulled back and whimpered playfully, Ruka couldn’t help but giggle and they shared a laugh. Ukiyo brushed a few brunette strands away from Ruka’s face and tucked them behind her ear, adjusting the flower barrette the younger woman wore.

“There. That’s better. You’ll never catch any man’s eye if you hide your beauty.”

“Ukiyo-san, I don’t want just any man,” Ruka replied with a smile, earning a laugh from the hostess as she moved inside the restaurant, picking up her apron from her cubby and tying it around her. Iruka felt a little silly, wearing a girl’s kimono and pretending to be female. Shigure had helped him with that little problem, introducing him to Mayuri, the maid. She, apparently, was related to Shigure and seemed to be just as enigmatic as the boy was. Still, she was much more open and talkative, and she had brushed out Iruka’s hair from the normal tail and gave him the barrette to wear. Once he was ready to actually go out into the world, Mayuri had stopped him and given him a red cloth bag, a good luck charm, she’d said, from Shigure. Iruka kept the thing in his pocket.

Ukiyo waved him over before he actually began his shift, smiling at the younger woman. Iruka smiled back, leaning on the podium and looking over the seating chart Ukiyo kept there, head tilting as Ukiyo patted her shoulder.

“Ruka, any man would kill to have you for a wife.”

Iruka only smiled, blushing a little bit, before he moved away from the podium to begin his shift in the restaurant. The place was busy, as usual, with new faces fresh off the ferry. Despite what the Abeko was supposedly known for, families ate here. Iruka watched the children and wondered if the only reason that families were allowed in was because the proprietor was scoping out fresh meat for the playrooms. He hadn’t actually snuck back there yet to see what really went on behind those closed doors. The back hadn’t exactly been on the tour. He knew he needed to get back there, to look for Yukari, but he hadn’t exactly been given the opportunity. It seemed to him that the mysterious proprietor had a habit of not trusting the new employees. So Iruka hadn’t done anything suspicious for the past week, working hard to make sure eyes were never turned on him so he could slip away for his lunch break and sneak into the back rooms. He estimated that it would be at least another week before the guards’ eyes fell from his back to the rears of the other waitresses who worked here.

Ruka hurried around to her tables, talking amiably with the patrons there, giggling and acting out his part. He smoothly avoided the hands that went for his rump but blushed and hurried along as though those wandering hands had actually touched him. Already, he’d gained a reputation for being very shy when a sexual gesture or overture was made toward him. It made the more lonesome of the men try to make him blush. Iruka was sure there was a pool somewhere that held quite a bit of yen for the man who made him blush the reddest. It didn’t seem fair to him, really.

Iruka finally was able to sit down for a bit to eat his bowl of rice prepared for the waitresses by the chefs when the door to the Abeko opened to introduce the current patrons to the newest hardened faces fresh off the barge. Iruka looked up as all a prone to do when something even remotely interesting might happen and nearly choked on the piece of eel he was chewing on when he saw something – or someone, rather – he recognized. He was frozen, mind screaming “No, no, no, no, NO!” when that mop of unbrushed silver hair paused at the hostess kiosk to wait his turn to be seated.

Why in the name of all that is holy is Kakashi doing here!? Iruka thought frantically, dropping his gaze back to his rice and pretending to make a rice ball with his chopsticks. He felt what he thought was the Sharingan gaze on him and fought not to look up. Were they replacing him? They couldn’t be. Tsunade said that he’d been chosen specifically for this mission. So why was Kakashi here? Iruka shivered and finished off his lunch before he hurried to the kitchen to drop off his bowl. Well, he was in disguise wasn’t he? Even with his famous Sharingan, Kakashi couldn’t see through a jutsu that didn’t exist, right? Mayuri had done her job well. He hoped, at least. Otherwise, he was screwed and the mission would be a failure.

“Ruka!” Ukiyo called. “Ruka, come here!”

I’m dead, I’m so dead. Iruka thought as he hurried over to the hostess and the silver-haired jounin that wore a disguise that did nothing to hide his identity. Iruka made a mental note to go over disguises with his students – and if even one failed he’d make them take the class over again – and smiled at Kakashi when he stopped beside Ukiyo.

“You called, Ukiyo-san?” Iruka said in his best female voice and watched an elegant eyebrow raise over Kakashi’s unhidden eye. Iruka fought the shiver that wanted to ghost up his spine and smiled amiably at the silver-haired man.

“Ah, Ruka-chan, please show – what was your name again?”

Kakashi’s visible eye crinkled. “Naruto.”

Iruka’s mind stuttered to a halt. How dare he? How dare he use Naruto’s name – Iruka took a deep mental breath and calmed down. Of course Kakashi would have his suspicions. It wasn’t like ‘Ruka’ was a common name and if he was here looking for ‘Iruka’ then the use of Naruto’s name would incite a reaction. If ‘Ruka’ didn’t react, then Kakashi would have no basis to follow her around and watch her. So Iruka hoped. So Iruka tilted his head at the use of the name and looked properly puzzled as Ukiyo continued.

“Ah, yes, Naruto-san, to a table? I have to run out to the market. We’re out of strawberries.”

“Of course, Ukiyo-san.” Iruka smiled and bowed a little to Kakashi, gesturing for him to follow. Iruka kept his steps light and easy, portraying himself as he’d done this a thousand times before, leading Kakashi to a table in the corner, where he could see everything and his back would be to the wall. Iruka hoped it would seem like an honest mistake instead of a purposeful move, but as Kakashi sat down at the table and Iruka made to leave, Kakashi grabbed his wrist. Iruka stilled and turned back, putting on his best startled look as he stared back at the jounin.

“Will you be serving me?” Kakashi asked, looking almost lecherous. Iruka gave him a wan smile.

“When you’re ready, Naruto-san.” Ruka replied, pulling her wrist from Kakashi’s hold and sauntering away, taking a moment to hide where the cubbies were and breathe. Kakashi was interested in Ruka. Well, if that wasn’t a blow to the ego. It wasn’t like Kakashi was ever interested in Iruka anyway beyond friendship and making Iruka blush to the point he thought he was going to die from blood loss or lack of it to certain important internal organs. Iruka shivered. Now wasn’t the time to get upset over what would never be, could never be. He had a job to do, one that was important to his employer and to himself, because he’d be damned if he let that little girl get subjected to what happened to the girls who disappeared into the back every day at opening time. Doors closed in his mind, the loving teacher, the big brother, the friend, leaving him only thinking objectively.

Ruka stepped out from the cubby room and smiled as she passed familiar faces, pausing here and there to chat a bit before she made it back to Kakashi’s table, pad in hand. She tilted her head and smiled happily, pen set against the paper.

“May I take your order, Naruto-san?”