literature

The Dead Don't Always Stay Buried: Chapter 4

Deviation Actions

Eclipse-The-Awesome's avatar
Published:
2.6K Views

Literature Text

  In The Last Chapter... "He's really something, huh? He's not wrong though; I am stronger now. I guess I'm a little colder, too... but I'm going to make sure what happened to you doesn't happen ever again," he vowed, smiling to the cold rock and stepping away, "G'bye now."


  9-10ish Months Later

  Kakashi was double-checking his supplies for what must have been the third time that night, steadily sorting through each and every weapon's pouch with deft fingers. He pulled out various shuriken, counting them before setting them back into their allotted spaces, and placed all his scrolls into easily reachable compartments. Finally he couldn't stall any longer. He closed everything back up securely, sure he had everything he needed. It was time to go.

  He was dressed in his ANBU captain uniform, the Hound mask snugly fitted over his face once again. He stood from his bed, slid his sword into its scabbard, turned around and opened his window. He leaped out of the window, landing out onto an outcropping of roof, and started out from his apartment to the Hokage Tower. They had seen suspicious activity around the village, and now all ANBU had been called there by Minato.

  Konoha stretched out beneath him as Obito stood atop the monument, hands clasped loosely behind his back. He'd regrettably been too busy lately to stop in and see how things were going; the situation in Ame had deteriorated and when he wasn't busy there he was making sure that no one suspected Yagura of being controlled. A recent incident with one of the Seven Swordsman was causing more problems than he would have liked, and with the upcoming birth of a new Uzumaki he had been up to his ears in planning and damage control.

  For a break, maybe out of a smidgen of bitterness, he had returned to the Leaf earlier that day and started causing some (mostly) harmless trouble. Now he watched, the Hokage Tower in view as a group of ANBU appeared and vanished to undoubtedly meet with his old teacher.

  Kakashi was quiet as he leaped over the rooftops of Konoha, a bit frustrated and rapidly approaching the Hokage Tower. Today just wasn't a good day; the ANBU had been busy with damage control and clean up for arson, sabotage, and other such mischief caused by an anonymous man since five in the morning. An anonymous man that Kakashi suspected he knew the identity of. It also didn't help that Kushina had been ready to pop for a while now and everyone was nervous about her going into labor.

  Kakashi was just about to jump up and into the open window of Minato's office when he saw the figure on the Hokage Monument... He paused, leaping backwards onto the wall around the building. He narrowed his eyes at the shape, trying to get a better look. It stared down at the village, silent and unmoving. He knew it was a bad idea to go alone, but that was sort of his thing, and he had a feeling he knew who it was. He looked around, making sure he hadn't been spotted, then quickly sneaked off to confront the figure. He had to get to the bottom of this and see what the hell his old teammate thought he was doing.

  Obito didn't move from where he stood, even when his vision was completed with Kakashi's viewpoint. So, Kakashi was coming to see him? Well, he hadn't hurt anyone today, so there was nothing that he could actually be in trouble for. He couldn't even be connected with his actions.

  A few moments later, a short time that seemed endlessly long to Kakashi, the ANBU captain was standing in front of the masked man. His shoulders were squared and he held all the grace and composure his rank commanded from him. He was on the defensive, but he hadn't drawn his weapon yet.

  "Uchiha Madara," Kakashi greeted, voice even and emotionless, "What is your business in Konoha?"

  Obito almost winced. He was starting to hate that name, but he had chosen to take it up; there was nothing he could do. He inclined his head in greeting to the young ANBU, not letting Kakashi see how hard he was clenching his hands.

  "I can't stop in and see how my village is doing?" He questioned; every note was perfectly polite, if not a bit cold.

  "No, because this isn't your village anymore," the Hound replied, monotone. He paused for a minute, letting the words sink in for the both of them.

  "It's more than a little suspicious as well. You don't happen to know anything about the criminal activity that has been happening today, would you?" The question was completely empty of any inflection, but even so still held an accusatory air. Behind the mask, Kakashi narrowed his eyes at Obito. The double vision was creepy, a ghost of himself in his vision, and Kakashi was sure he'd never get used to it.

  "Why would I know anything about that?" Obito asked. Part of him was still beyond hurt after their last encounter, and part wanted to laugh because he knew the Hound had come alone. Either he didn't think 'Madara' was a threat, or he was more confident in his abilities than he should be.

  "Because I have reason to believe that you're the cause of it, and that you might be planning something that puts Konoha in jeopardy," the Hound answered simply, reaching subtly behind him for a kunai. He didn't think Obito would want to hurt him, he didn't want to hurt Obito either, but still... "I'd say that was enough plausible cause to send you to T&I."

  "I suppose," the other conceded, keeping his composure carefully as he watched the silver haired young man. He hoped they wouldn't have to fight, but he was fairly sure he could win if they did. He would rather not have to battle Kakashi, but who knows, it might blow off some steam, "It's a shame I have no intentions of going there."

  "I'm afraid I'll have to take you in, sir," the Hound said, pulling out his kunai and shifting his feet into a more stable position. He closed his Sharingan eye since there was no use to giving Obito an unfair advantage. Kakashi felt his stomach flip, treating Obito like a stranger didn't feel right. All the same, he had to remain professional, "By force, if you refuse to be detained."

  "If that's the case, I'm afraid I'll be forced to refuse. I'd advise you to put your weapon down and leave." Obito didn't move, not even his feet, perfectly content to let Kakashi make the first move. He wasn't as impulsive as he once was, at least not when the threat of a battle came up.

  Kakashi clenched his jaw under his mask and for a moment everything was still. Then, fast as his lightning element, Kakashi had thrown the kunai towards Obito's right shoulder and was off. He sprinted around and slid behind the other man as Obito dodged. He came up on the left and tried to swipe Obito's feet out from under him.

  Obito lifted his feet, avoiding both attempts at attack. The ANBU really was fast, but the Sharingan would always give him the advantage in a fight. As his feet touched the dirt, the Uchiha spun and caught the punch Kakashi had aimed at his back, using the momentum to throw Kakashi back while simultaneously slipping a kunai into his other hand from his sleeve and flinging it at the other boy's thigh with expert precision.

  Kakashi dodged the kunai with a quick jerk of his leg, but only just barely. The blade stuck deep into the earth just between his legs. Kakashi flipped backwards and back onto his feet, landing in a crouch and pulling his sword out of his scabbard. He ran at Obito again, faking left before going in with a thrust of his sword towards Obito's side.

  Obito's sharingan morphed, glowing red inside the shadows of his mask as he let the blade and its wielder go straight through him with his intangibility. He grabbed the Hound's arm before he could phase out to the other side and side-stepped. In a short series of movements the Uchiha had driven his elbow into the crook of his opponents arm, forcing the masked face close enough to backhand. He let go then, taking a few steps away and pulling out another kunai.

  Kakashi was sent flying through the air a few paces from the force of the slap. He tucked and rolled, landing hard on the rock of the Hokage monument with each turn. At the end, he rolled back into a defensive crouch. It was clear Obito was better than him, even without the advantage of the double-vision.

  Kakashi snorted in frustration before attacking again, slashing into Obito's arm as he dashed past and around him. He finally landed a hit, the cut curving around Obito's arm. "Why are you even here? You said you didn't want to destroy Konoha!" Kakashi demanded as he spun to face the other, breaking character of his ANBU persona.

  "And I haven't, have I?" he asked, tilting his head to look at the ANBU. His arm stung, but it wasn't a deep cut. The middle of a fight was no place to bandage it anyway... Even when he had proof that he had finally, finally surpassed his prodigal teammate.

  It was a bittersweet victory, but one he would take anyway, and getting the ANBU to break out of his normal shell of regulations and rules was a plus. "I had some free time on my hands and felt like coming to see how things were going, even the great 'Madara Uchiha' needs a break once in a while."

  "Oh, like I believe that for a second!" Kakashi hissed back, keeping his sword up and pointed at Obito. He felt the various shallow scratches and bruises over his body, but they hardly even registered, "I know you're planning something. We've been monitoring the places you've said you've been, and I've seen what you've been doing. Whatever your definition of 'peace' is, I think it differs from ours."

  "Ah."

  He had been hoping they weren't keeping track of all that. Well, it wasn't like he was trying to cause all that strife. However, he needed control of those areas and in order to gain that control the current systems had to be changed. "Conflict is unavoidable. The Mist is entering into a bloody civil war and Ame is right in the middle of their own. Both will end soon," or grow exponentially more violent, if the anti-bloodline limit radicals had anything to say about it.

  Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the other and pulled his sword closer to his side. "I don't care what your reasoning or plans are, just keep them out of the Leaf Village. We have no need for your 'help', or whatever it is you're planning. You're not welcome here."

  Obito was grateful for the mask, because he almost lost it at the cruel words that were stabbed into his ears. His hands twitched, his breath hitched, and he had to fight not to do something impulsive and stupid like throwing Kakashi off the mountain. Instead he took in a slow breath through his nose as he prepared his voice to speak. When it came out, even he was surprised by how chipped and icy it sounded. "That's too bad, because I wasn't asking permission. I'm not welcome here, hm?"

  Kakashi's breath caught just how evil Obito sounded in that moment, and if he didn't know better he'd think it really was Madara himself in the flesh. He clenched his jaw as Obito repeated his words, condescending and cold, and hissed out his extra air through his teeth.

  The Uchiha moved, faster than the human eye could follow, and appeared behind Kakashi with a kunai held against the boy's throat. "I wish you didn't feel that way."

  He remained very, very still when he suddenly felt Obito close to his back, the cold of metal pressed against his jugular. He could see the back of his head from Obito's eye. What was he going to do?

  Obito's fist connected with the back of his old friend's neck, pulling away the kunai at the same time.

  The punch stunned him and he dropped down to his knees as his vision went fuzzy and black. The kunai had been removed, but a small cut oozed blood just a hair's breadth away from a place that would have killed him. He dropped forward, but caught himself on his hands before his face could smash against the rock. He coughed hard, dispelling saliva and slight amounts of blood. By all means, he should be unconscious, but they didn't make him an ANBU for nothing. His ears were ringing, and Obito could see his vision was blurry and blotted. Kakashi wouldn't be fighting for a while.

  The boy stepped back, stowing his blade and looking over his opponent carefully. He had made sure not to actually hurt him, for all he wanted to return the damage the ANBU's words had done to him he still cared about the boy. If he didn't, why would he have left take-out in the other's apartment before coming to the mountain?

  He felt others beginning to approach, probably in search of him or Kakashi. Obito bit back a sigh and crouched down, picking up the sword the Hound had tried to stab him with. He stood back up, a foot away from Kakashi's back, turning the blade over in his hands and watching the light reflect and glint off its surface.

  He thought about walking up right behind Kakashi, the other boy still heaving for breath and blinking back spots, watching his ex-friend's shoulders rise and fall desperately. He switched his grip on the blade into the offensive, raised it above his head, and aimed...

  …before he stabbed it in the ground beside the boy where he found it and activated his Kamui once more, vanishing into the vortex without a word to his former friend.

  Kakashi was left struggling to get his senses back in the wake of Obito's strike. If he'd had the mental capacity to do it a moment ago, he would have asked Obito why he didn't just kill him. He knew why, but his defeat made him bitter and he longed for one last dig into his ex-best friend. His breaths were shuddering and his forehead almost touched the ground as he coughed. He'd tensed and then sighed when he'd heard Obito raise and stab his sword, respectively. He knew that Obito was gone.

  He heard the other ANBU scaling the side of the mountain and found the strength in himself to stand shakily. He stumbled over to his sword and pulled it out of the ground, returning it to it's scabbard. He composed himself just moments before Owl and Ox stood before him.

  "We must get back to the Tower and warn the Hokage. The Masked Man was sighted here and I think he may be the one behind all these small crimes. I think he's distracting us from some bigger plot," Hound said, the picture of professionalism.

  "And you engaged?" Owl asked, her voice incredulous.

  Hound gave her a look that immediately shut her up, and in minutes they stood before the Hokage and the rest of the ANBU.

  Minato had been sifting through reports, bewildered at the sheer lack of pattern; An empty building lit on fire, several hundred windows blown out, the pound wall falls apart and a dozen dogs escape, the entire Uchiha compound's supply of hair products replaced by various neon dyes… The list went on and on and he had no idea what to do with it. The ANBU were out looking for the culprit and cleaning up his messes. Most of them had returned with nothing new to report, not even a sighting of who it was. He had called Kakashi in almost half an hour before and there was still no sign of the kid.

  When his student did finally walk in, a line of blood sliding down his neck, Minato grew tense and on guard. Another inch to the right and the boy could have died. "Hound," he had to at least pretend to be a professional, "Report."

  Hound nodded, flanked by his usual team of Owl and Ox. He cleared his throat, still a bit scratchy, and began."On my way to Hokage Tower roughly a half-hour ago, the Masked Man was sighted near the top of the Hokage Monument. I pursued in an attempt to get some answers about this streak of odd criminal activity we've been having."

  Kakashi felt his stomach and chest clench; Minato was not going to be happy about that. Talk about a 'careless risk', eh? At least sensei wouldn't reprimand him with Owl and Ox here... Would he? "I told him I had plausible cause to detain him, he declined."

  "He said something along the lines of being innocent, which clearly couldn't be believed, and said he was just 'dropping by' to check on his village. I got him to talk about Ame and the Mist a bit, and have enough to confirm that either one or both of their civil wars were caused by him. I told him to take his business elsewhere, said he wasn't welcome here, and he left." After kicking my ass.

  "Just that easily?" the Hokage didn't wait for an answer, instead turning to the other two ANBU and putting on his 'I am your leader, listen to me' voice, "Owl, Ox, inform the other teams still in the field of this development. I want all ANBU and jounin ranked ninja looking for this man. Consider him armed and extremely dangerous. Do not engage. Any sightings are to be reported directly to me."

  Minato watched the two snap to attention before poofing away into smoke. He turned to Kakashi then, facing him straight on. He was somewhere between angry, horrified, and relieved at the news he had received. "You pursued a man that could very well be Madara Uchiha, on your own, and attempted to detain him. On. Your. Own. I thought I taught you better than that."

  Kakashi ducked his head, shifting nervously on his feet. One hand came up to run through his hair and he shrugged his shoulders. "Well, you did. You're a very good teacher, but I..." Kakashi trailed off, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, "Okay, so it wasn't my shining moment of excellent planning, but what was I supposed to do? I couldn't let him get away, and he'd be long gone by the time I could report to you..."

  Minato gave the boy a flat look. "So, you went after him without notifying anyone of anything. Kakashi, you could have died." He could have lost his last student that night because he didn't seem to understand the idea of asking for help. Had he really failed so much in getting teamwork into the boy's head?

  "I would have rather he got away than you risk getting your throat slit," he muttered, quieter this time. Fear. That was the most prominent emotion right then, "He got away anyway and you managed to get yourself injured!"

  Kakashi kept his gaze down, guilt and shame bubbling up through his chest and into his throat. He wanted to say that it was Obito and he knew Obito would never kill him. Or he hoped not, at least. He was worried for the Masked Man; how far from sanity he seemed to have fallen, how cold he'd become... Even so, he had no more right to call the Masked Man Obito, because he'd chosen the other name and so had his ex-friend.

  Instead, Kakashi just sighed and bowed deeply in apology. "Sorry, Hokage-sama. It will not happen again. What will my punishment be?" God, he just wanted to get this over with. Minato was silent for a long time before he sighed in response.

  "For now, go to the hospital and have someone heal your neck. You'll report to T&I tomorrow and find Yamanaka Inoichi for a new psyche evaluation," he ordered. He paused for a moment, thinking carefully about his next command, maybe making the boy ANBU had been a bad idea...

  Kakashi nodded at the first two bits. He didn't like hospitals, and he especially didn't like being Mind-Walked, but he had little choice at this point.

  "You can turn in your mask now."

  It felt like the breath was knocked out of his chest, he might as well have been slapped. He swallowed hard, as if a lump had been formed in his throat.

  "No!" unprofessional, "I mean, wait! Please reconsider, Hokage-sama. I promise it won't happen again, and you can't do that! I just... Please, don't do that," he pleaded, breaking his 'Hound' character and letting the teenager finally show through.

  Minato shook his head sadly, looking down at the only student that he had left. He wasn't trying to coddle him, it was far too late for that now, but putting him on such high risk missions when he was clearly traumatized and possibly/probably suffering from both depression and survivor's guilt had been a bad move in the first place.

  "Look at what happened tonight. You knew how dangerous the enemy was but instead of looking for someone to go with you, or even sending a proxy to get backup, you went on your own. And got injured for it. How am I supposed to trust you to make decisions in the field that will keep your whole team safe if you make choices that are unnecessarily risky to yourself?!"

  The Hokage sighed."I'm sorry. I know you've been having a hard time and that missions are the best way to avoid thinking. I heard from someone a few months ago that you mentioned feeling 'numb' whenever you weren't working, but I can't let you, or anyone else, get themselves killed needlessly."

  Kakashi grimaced, shifting uncomfortably as he tried in vain to think of some rebuttal that would let him stay on as an ANBU. Eventually, he thought of nothing, so he gripped his mask and tore it off. His face was scratched badly, and there was a bit of blood at the side of his mouth that was seeping into his cloth mask. He set it down on the desk, avoiding slamming it no matter how much he wanted to.

  "What the hell am I supposed to do now, then? ANBU is the only reason I leave my apartment most days. I'll go insane in a week!" Kakashi protested, gritting his teeth. "I've never put any of my teams in danger, you know that. And who the hell told you that?!" Granted, it was true, but he never told anyone that.

  Minato winced. He had known that things were bad, but he had been trying to fool himself into thinking it would work out. Well, it hadn't worked out, and now he wasn't sure how to proceed. The truth was usually a good place to start.

  "I don't actually know who reported it. There was a note attached to some flowers sent to Kushina and myself the day after we found out about the baby, whoever sent it seemed very concerned for you. I had hoped my requiring you to spend some time here outside of missions might help. Apparently, I was wrong."

  "Oh, so now anonymous people sending notes have more weight with you than I do? Because they'd know so much more about how I'm feeling than myself," Kakashi muttered sarcastically under his breath, shaking his head. He was clenching and unclenching his fists, trying to remain calm. Who the hell had sent it? The fucking flower arrangement faerie of mental health?

  "And it has been helping! I made one mistake, sensei, it won't happen again. I've been sticking around for longer like you asked me to, and I've been talking to my friends, I spent the entire day with Gai a couple days ago!" He knew at this point his protesting was useless, but he had to try.

  "They have more weight when I know that you don't think you can tell me things yourself!" He hadn't meant to raise his voice, even the fraction of a note that it had, but he was getting tired of Kakashi refusing to talk to anyone. The boy hadn't even denied the accusation. "If it is helping, then why are you still so desperate to go out on missions? Gai came in for his and wouldn't stop talking about how next time you trained with him he would get to the top of the Third's head first. If this stunt you pulled tonight had gone bad, there wouldn't be a next time."

  At that point, Minato wanted to see Kakashi strike out; for him to act like a normal teenager the way he was so close to doing, because really that's all he was. A teenager that had lost too much in too little time.

  Kakashi really didn't want to think about what would have happened had he died tonight. How Minato would have felt, how Gai would have felt... Hell, probably how Obito would have felt, too. The guilt came to him like a punch in the gut, and all he wanted was to deny and just. Stop this. He didn't like talking about his feelings, he wasn't good at it, and Kakashi visibly winced.

  Kakashi was about to start yelling, when he just... sighed. He nodded his head and took a step back from the desk. He closed himself off again because he just couldn't do this right now.

  "Alright, Hokage-sama. I understand. I will report to the hospital as soon as possible, and then to T&I tomorrow." Then promptly shut himself away in his apartment for a yet-to-be-determined amount of time. He knew this would spread like wildfire and he'd be the gossip of the village for a while. He wasn't stupid enough to expect otherwise with this entire building full of ANBU. Some cruel people will think he deserved it, but the ones who gave him their pity was what really killed him. He didn't even want to think about Gai...

  Minato nodded, taking that as the best he was going to get. He had expected worse, or maybe better, he didn't know what would constitute as which right then. It hadn't been something he wanted to do, Kakashi was a good ANBU, a good shinobi in general, but he cared too much for his student to let him go off and be as reckless as he chose.

  "Good. I know ANBU meant a lot to you, but you're still a jounin if nothing else. And if Kushina goes into labor, I still expect you to come with us... if you choose to do so."

  Kakashi nodded sharply, professional mask back into place even if he was leaving his Hound mask behind. "Of course, Hokage-sama," he said, keeping his voice even and emotionless. He went to the window and opened it, and in moments he was gone.



  He soared over the roofs of buildings on his way to the hospital, absentmindedly reaching up to touch his bleeding neck. A good spot on his mask was stained now. Dammit, he hated washing day. A few minutes later, he landed in front of the hospital and walked in. Thank god it was a calm night and no one else was here... They could see him right away. In and out quickly.

  There were precious few shinobi who enjoyed going to hospitals. There was just something about them that, for those who had been born into a generation of war, reminded them of death instead of healing. However, every once in a while everyone had to come in, be it for a broken arm or a physical. The latter is when had brought Asuma Sarutobi to the place that night, the appointment scheduled to accommodate him just getting back from a boring, diplomatic mission. He had passed some very miffed looking, multicolor-haired individuals who he could have sworn were Uchiha on the way in, and on the way out he ran into one of his old classmates.

  "Kakashi," he called and raised a hand in greeting, entering the near-empty waiting room. It had been a few months since he's seen the boy in more than passing. Kakashi turned his head towards the voice, waving back tiredly as the other man came over to stand with him.

  "Yo, Asuma," he said, smiling pleasantly at him in a way that didn't quite touch his eyes. He turned to face front quickly, not wanting the other to see the splotch of blood on his clothing or look too hard at his battered body. He felt ridiculous, here in his ANBU uniform but without his mask. The other ANBU were all out and about, and he was sure Asuma would see something was up.

  "What are you in for?" he asked, trying to keep attention off himself.

  "Just had to update my physical," Asuma explained, taking the seat next to the ANBU, "What about you? Rough mission?" It looked like it, but he wasn't sure if he was breaking protocol by asking. ANBU were usually very secretive about their jobs, and Kakashi was a private person to begin with.

  "No," Kakashi said, shaking his head. He shrugged and scratched his nose, "I just ran into that Masked Man, he's should be gone by now. Hokage sent me here to make sure I'm okay and to get fixed up."

  The other shinobi let out a hum of understanding. The word on the street was that someone only identified as 'a masked man' had gone around Konoha causing mischief. He had seen some of the person's handiwork first hand in the form of Academy children on an unsanctioned sugar rush, throwing chairs out of windows.

  "Any idea as to who the guy was?" he asked, noticing two nurses conversing and staring 'inconspicuously' at them. Or more specifically Kakashi.

  Kakashi thought for a moment, biting the inside of his cheek. He shrugged and let out a quick 'nope', popping his 'p'. He dropped down into his own chair with a sigh, leaning back against the uncomfortable plastic. He glared subtly at the nurses who weren't looking at him that moment, he had moved closer to hear their conversation. He could just barely hear them...

  "What about you? Did you see him at all? ANBU is asking anyone who saw him to report to the Hokage," Kakashi informed Asuma.

  Asuma shook his head, relieved that he hadn't. "No, but I've seen what he did. Have you seen Fugaku Uchiha? I'm sure he has something to say about that masked guy." He had run into the Uchiha clanhead earlier and had to struggle not to laugh at the strange shade of orange that had overtaken bits of the man's hair.

  Off to the side, the nurses glanced at them again and this time Asuma heard what one was saying. "That's definitely him. Mimi says her friend in ANBU said that he went off after the guy alone and almost fell off the Hokage Monument!"

  Kakashi chuckled quietly. "No. I haven't seen any of the Uchiha, actually... I really want to now. Neon hair dye, right?" Kakashi might have hated Obito at the moment, but... That was funny, he had to admit. Especially since it was happening to the uppity Uchiha.

  Kakashi sighed went he heard the nurses talking, turning away from them to face Asuma more head-on. "I didn't know word of that would spread so quick..." he murmured, mostly to himself, as the ladies gossiped. He hated being the subject of talk; it made his heart twist uncomfortably in his chest.

  "I'm sure you had your reasons," Asuma stated, completely ignoring the women in favor of facing the other shinobi, "But yeah, from what I heard it's every member of the clan that took a shower this morning, and you know the Uchiha..." He rolled his eyes. It was a well known fact that many Uchiha were at least somewhat obsessed with appearance, so a good percentage had gotten hit. "It's not just that either. They had to pull in retired Academy teachers to try to calm the kids down, and when that didn't work Inoichi went in and knocked them all out. Then, some of the fences around the Nara property were knocked down and now we've got deer roaming around with a clan too lazy to gather them up."

  "I heard he got kicked out by the Hokage," the other nurse whispered, no more quiet than the first.

  "No! But he's his student!"

  "I know! Poor kid, first that stuff with his team and now this…"

  "You don't think that's why he did it, do you?"

  Asuma rolled his eyes at the civilians. "Where do they even get their information?"

  Kakashi was grinning by the time Asuma had recounted all the pranks he'd encountered, at times interjecting with a little 'oh no!' or 'oh my lord' to the ridiculousness of some of the things. He frowned at the nurse's gossip -how the hell had that gotten out so fast?- and looked uncomfortable at Asuma's reaction.

  "Actually, um..." he sighed, his shoulders heaving slightly as he readjusted himself in his chair. He rubbed his tired eyes and shrugged. "I did get kicked out of the ANBU by the Hokage," he said softly to Asuma so the nurses wouldn't hear.

  Well, that threw him for a loop. "Oh…" that was all he could say for a minute, and he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, "Do you want to… talk about it?" That was probably a no. They had never been overly close; they were friends, comrades if nothing else, but neither one went out of their way to spend time with the other.

  "Not really, no. He's just... Being irrational," Kakashi said, he knew that wasn't true but he still felt like the Hokage was blowing this all out of proportion. God, he hated Obito right now. At least he'd gotten his wish and Kakashi was out of danger... "I'll be fine. He'll let me back in soon, I'm sure."

  "Probably," Asuma agreed, if only because he doubted Kakashi wanted to hear otherwise, "So, what's this I hear about you having a boyfriend?" Gai had mentioned something several months ago about an occurrence when he was training with Kakashi, and Asuma had to admit he was curious. It was about as far off the ANBU topic as he thought he could get.

  Kakashi sputtered momentarily before he covered his face with his hands. He took a deep breath, letting it go slowly after a few long moments. He shook his head. "No, I don't," he sighed before dropping his hands, "A cashier-girl just thought I did because she saw me talking to another guy while I didn't have my mask on."

  Asuma snorted. "That would do it." Kakashi was well known for always having his mask on, God only knows why, and there was betting pool between their class about just that. Something as simple as talking to someone without it would set something like that off in their village, or any village like it for that matter. "Gossip is the lifeblood of shinobi villages, after all."

  Kakashi nodded, shrugging his shoulders. "I guess so, but I really wish I wasn't the target of it quite so often. Mostly because people tend to report the rumors they hear to the Hokage and he apparently thinks them all true..." The last part was grumbled and said bitterly under his breath. He sighed again, "Looks like I'm going to be the target of gossip a good while longer now."

  Asuma gave a world-weary sigh. "Trust me, I know what you mean. With all the things people say about me and dad…" he shook his head, "Anyway, if you ever want a break from it, Kurenai and I are around."

  Kakashi gave Asuma an eye-smile and nodded. "I'll keep that in mind, thank you." Just then he was called in to be healed up, so he stood and said his farewells to Asuma. Minutes later, he was in a hospital room waiting for a doctor.

  Once Kakashi was out of sight, the son of the Third Hokage stood up and approached the two nurses. They were still gossiping, this time about one of their coworkers. They turned to look at him and started getting nervous. One of the ladies shifted uncomfortably on her feet as Asuma drew nearer. "Um, yes? Maybe we help you?" she squeaked.

  Asuma put on his most politically correct smile as he addressed the two. "Well, yes. You see, my friend and I couldn't help but overhear you talking... about him."

  The girls paused and looked at each other. They looked back to him meekly, each one of them instantly appearing ashamed to have been caught in the act. The brunette that had spoke stared down at her shoes, scratching the back of her neck nervously. "Oh... Well, I'm very sorry."

  She elbowed the other girl who quickly apologized as well.

  "Oh, it's not a problem for me, but I would appreciate it if you would gossip only when shinobi aren't around to hear you. Specifically, the ones you're talking about," he tilted his head, "If it wouldn't be too much trouble I'd like it if you would apologize to my friend too."

  The girls both nodded furiously, as if they were two bobble-headed dolls. "Of course, of course. We didn't mean anything by it. I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

  "Thank you," he gave them both a polite smile before leaving, positive they would be gossiping again by the time he was out out the door.



  Taji, a young medical ninja of promising talents, entered her examination room with clipboard in hand and pen behind one ear. "Alright," she started briskly, looking up at her patient, "What are you in for?"

  Kakashi shrugged. "I've been sent by the Hokage to get healed up. I have a lot of cuts, a lot of bruises, one minor slit in the side of my neck, and was knocked unconscious for a few seconds via head trauma," he listed off, keeping his voice indifferent.

  The girl cast a quick glance over her patient, a few years younger than her, and gave a quick nod. "If that's it I'll have you out of here in a minute," she assured as green encompassed her hand and she closed the distance between them, "If you would kindly remove your mask, so I can see?"

  Kakashi paused for a moment, then he sighed and tugged down his mask. He pulled it away from his face and throat so the doctor could work. "I assume you have doctor-patient confidentiality?" He joked, but another part of him was a bit nervous. Gossipers were everywhere, you couldn't know whom to trust.

  She gave him annoyed look, placing her hand gently on his neck. "Of course I do, and unlike some people I actually take it seriously."

  Kakashi nodded in relief and smiled at the medic, although it didn't touch his eyes. "Thanks, it's just that I'm going to be a subject of a lot of gossip soon. I'd rather not add to it. Gotta be careful and all that."

  "Soon?" the girl gave him a dry look and cupped his cheek, "I've heard your name eight times in the past ten minutes. You fractured your jaw, by the way."

  "Eight times?" he said, eyes widening and a hopeless look came over his face, "Please tell me you're joking. Not saying nice things, I assume... What are they saying?"

  "That you got kicked out of ANBU for being suicidal, mostly. Something about the man that let loose all of the test frogs in the basements too; that you went out alone to fight him." She dropped her arm once the fracture was healed. "Turn around so I can get the back of your head."

  Kakashi looked mortified as he turned around. "I am NOT suicidal! God, why is everyone so concerned about my mental health? All I want is to go on missions and live my life like anyone else. I just... take more missions than the average shinobi," Kakashi shook his head a little, trying not to disrupt the doctor, "and I had to fight him alone."

  Taji rolled her eyes, sending healing chakra into the back of the shinobi's neck. "That's what they all say." She had heard it time and time again, and sometimes it had been true, so there was no point in her arguing or prodding.

  Kakashi just sighed and leaned his chin onto his hands. At least he'd been sleeping better lately... He'd hate to think of what a doctor would say about the bags under his eyes. "I just wish the Hokage didn't believe everything he heard about me. He got a note from an unknown sender about something I apparently said and took it as gospel!" Granted, it was true. The medic didn't need to know that.

  "There have been twelve suicides and thirty seven kamikaze attacks in our ranks since the war ended. If I were him, I'd be keeping an eye out too." At last she was done, stepping back and scratching things down onto her clipboard.

  Kakashi sighed deeply and shook his head. "Yeah, I know... I shouldn't be so hard on him for caring, but still. Am I free to go?"

  "Almost," she said before she looked up again, "Have you experienced any unusual aches, pains, cold/flu-like symptoms or strange cases of chakra depletion in the last forty eight hours?"

  Kakashi thought for a minute before shaking his head. "No, I haven't."

  A few more boxes were checked and Taji hummed. "And your transplanted eye, anything unusual about it?"

  Kakashi paused again. The double vision... "No, nothing."

  "Then you're free to go. I'll see you soon."

  Kakashi nodded and stood up. He thanked the doctor and pulled his mask back over his face, setting it carefully over his nose and making sure it was secure. He opened the door and left the room, walking through the corridor until he found a window. He climbed out, and in mere moments he was off into the night again. He sighed as he leaped over building after building. How was he supposed to get himself out of this mess?

  He entered his apartment like he had all those months ago, standing in the pitch black for a few moments before turning on the light. He headed into his bedroom, pulling off his sword, his weapon's pouches, and his supply bag and setting them down on his bed. He headed into the kitchen, stretching lazily, and found a box of takeout and a note on the counter. He examined them curiously.

  He didn't even read the note. As soon as he recognized the handwriting, his face darkened and his manner swapped to something colder. He crumpled the note, and threw both it and the takeout into the trash. He took a few ration pellets, the tasteless things bitter in his throat, and went to bed.  

  This is a fanfiction that I co-wrote with my RP buddy. That being said, it was originally an RP so if there is any weird formatting or paragraph placement just chalk it up to that and tell me so I can fix it. The entire story has been written already, so now all I need to do is edit out chapters and publish them. I felt this wasn't getting enough attention on the site we originally started posting on, so I'm putting it up here as well.

Dammit, Kakashi. Don't waste food! And also maybe not go off to fight dangerous men on your own. Tune in next time for when we sent Kakashi to therapy! Yay!

First: fav.me/d7wuq8e
Previous: fav.me/d8jk3wa
Comments1
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
KakariGeikoGirl's avatar
This turned out excellently for an RP. You're writing skills are very good, keep it up! I am interested in seeing where the story heads next:D