THE WHOLE STORY
Genma handed a mission report to Iruka, who smiled at him.
Fucker, thought Kakashi bitterly, then Goddamnit.
He reminded himself that he had promised himself that he wasn't going to act like this anymore and silently apologised to Genma.
Iruka isn't yours, Kakashi, he's obviously going to smile at other people. And if you keep acting like this, it's no wonder he doesn't smile at you.
It wasn't that Iruka hated Kakashi - that would have been preferable, at least he would have felt something - it was more like he barely saw him. Just another Jounin passing through. He shifted minutely, passing his weight from one foot to another.
This is getting ridiculous. I wish I'd never noticed him.
Kakashi leaned forward, tossed a report -perfectly written, he hated having to do things twice- down on some random chuunin's desk and left with a puff of smoke.
*
Iruka was aware of a tingling on the back of his neck.
He's here. Again.
He smiled up at Genma, slightly distracted.
Seriously, Kakashi. I'm only a chuunin, but did you honestly think I wouldn't notice? I'm not stupid.
He filed the report and in the middle of doing so, felt the tingle vanish. He looked over at where Kakashi had been standing.
Gone. Typical. I never get to ask him what the fuck he thinks he's doing-
Iruka realised there was a queue forming at his desk, and pushed Kakashi out of his brain.
For now.
*
It was about six weeks before the chuunin exams. Kakashi wandered in to the Missions office, dead tired and just wishing that the mission had been a tiny bit easier. He had to teach those kids tomorrow, after all, and he drew the line at being more than five hours late. Well... maybe six hours.
He strolled up to the desk. There was a young blond man there and he took the scroll and stamped it without even looking at what it said. Kakashi was a little surprised.
"Hey! Did you just do what I think you just did?"
Kakashi turned. Behind him was another young man - this one was an older young man, if that made any sense, which Kakashi was sure it didn't. Anyway, this older-younger-whatever the fuck Kakashi was thinking about-man was nearer Kakashi's age than the other one. He looked angry.
Is he mad at me? What did I do? thought Kakashi fuzzily. The young man - the older one, not the younger one - walked past Kakashi, and leaned over the desk. He was berating the young- the desk chuunin, goddamnit - for not sorting through Kakashi's report properly.
The desk chuunin looked stunned. His expression was rather deer-in-headlights as he frantically retrieved Kakashi's report from where he had filed it-
"And you filed it in the wrong place! Jun, how many times do I have to explain the process to you? Honestly, you've been here for nearly a month and you still can't do this? You're not making any effort!"
Kakashi felt himself wobble. He reached out to the desk, but misjudged the distance, his fingertips skimming the edge. He waited for the floor to catch him - he refused to think of it as falling over - when he was caught by the back of his flak jacket and dragged onto a chair. A hand checked his pulse and he heard someone mutter something about stupid jounin who had no sense of when to give up. He was hoisted into someone's arms in a rather uncomfortable position. There was a sensation of movement and then a smell of antiseptic.
The hospital...
Kakashi felt himself be lifted again, this time into a bed. There were various lines put into his arm and he was injected with some chakra-replenishing liquids.
The last thing he heard was "Thanks for bringing Hatake-san to the hospital, Iruka-san. He always overdoes it."
When he woke up, he still remembered the name.
*
Iruka rolled over in bed, thwacking the alarm clock sharply. He was getting up early today because there would be a class weapons test later that day and he had to prepare the materials for it, but he was even more tired than usual.
Stupid jounin. Stupid stupid me.
He'd had to take a jounin to the hospital last night. That by itself wouldn't have taken so long, but there had been an old student of his working there who had asked for help with some filing, knowing he was good at working things like that out. He sighed.
I just can't resist a student. They all still treat me like their sensei, I feel like if I didn't help them I wouldn't be doing my job.
He hadn't gotten home until three am, and here he was waking at six am for school starting at eight. He dragged himself unwillingly out of his warm, comfortable bed and made a beeline for the bathroom. A shower would help, surely…
The shower didn't help. Neither did the slice of toast he managed to eat before feeling too queasy to eat more.
Now I know why I don't wake up earlier every day. If this is what waking up this early feels like, I never want to do it again. It was never like this when I was younger.
Iruka considered the fact that what he'd just thought meant he was now old, then dismissed the idea. As far as he was concerned, old was for other people.
As he walked to the school, his mood lifted. It was a beautiful day - perfect for the weapons test - and as Iruka entered the staffroom to various calls of hello, hi, and good morning, Iruka, he forgot that he'd ever been annoyed with the Jounin Hatake Kakashi.
That was, until six weeks later.
*
The Chuunin exams were a kind of explosion of rage for both of them, although Kakashi hid his marginally better. He was at once angry that this man - this Chuunin! - was daring to stand up to him, and impressed that he was doing so.
Kakashi had wondered what Iruka was like. He'd spoken to him once, about Naruto's progress towards making Chuunin and the other man had seemed pleasant. Quiet, and rather prone to blushing, too... but now! Now he seemed so very desperate, in a way. So unbelievably alive, so incredibly there.
Kakashi was angry that his judgement was being challenged, yes, but overshadowing that was a sort of awed disbelief of how Iruka didn't seem to care that he could beat seven kinds of shit out of him, didn't seem to care that by challenging Kakashi like this he could very well be making his life a living hell, didn't seem to care about anything except his students.
Kakashi was fascinated by Iruka. Completely obsessed with him. And Iruka?
Iruka, for all intents and purposes, didn't seem to care much about Kakashi at all. That wasn't to say he harboured any resentment towards him, on the contrary, Iruka had made it clear to Kakashi that he had thought it through, and that he now believed his actions at the chuunin exams to be… not wrong, exactly, but now that he had more information, he could see that they were certainly misinformed, and he hoped Kakashi could forgive him? And now that that little misunderstanding was put behind them, Iruka treated Kakashi just like everyone else.
Kakashi couldn't stand it.
*
Jun Gorou rubbed the bridge of his nose in a futile attempt to relieve the headache that was slowly building there. Umino Iruka had proved a tougher nut to crack than he'd originally thought. He'd attempted to open one of the higher ranked scrolls today, but before he even got halfway he'd had it yanked out of his hands with a sweet, "I'll take that, Jun-san." Honestly, he was making things so much more difficult than Jun needed. He was doing his best, but his Lord was getting restless. He'd sent a message to him for advice on how to get rid of this obstacle, telling him all he knew of Umino. His Lord had not failed to help him to get rid of him, giving Jun a plan to follow.
Jun had created a scroll that was seemingly sent from Snow country requesting Iruka and one other ninja to be sent as aid. The supposed sender of the scroll had children who had been kidnapped, and needed Iruka and a ninja that his master had left to Jun to decide to rescue them. Jun was a master forger, and flawlessly replicated the signatures that were needed for a scroll of this nature to have been processed. Now all that he needed to do was decide on Iruka's companion. He didn't really care who went and who stayed, but his master had told him to send a higher-ranked ninja. Jun supposed that the more of the high-ranked ninja they killed now, the weaker Konoha would be later, and once Umino and the jounin were in Snow country, his Lord would give them a nice welcome, a thought which filled Jun with pleasure.
The morning that Jun finally finished the scroll, he entered the Missions room still unsure of the ninja he would send with Iruka. However, the chuunin himself was to give Jun the name he needed.
"Bloody jounin, like to give him a piece of my mind, always so rude, reading porn all the time, has the audacity to think it's educational-" Iruka cut his mutterings off when he noticed Jun standing there, giving him a wan smile and welcome. "Hello, Jun-san. Please don't mind me, I was just talking to myself."
Jun sat down next to Iruka, trying not to sound too eager. "Who's the jounin giving you so much trouble?"
Iruka glared at his papers. "That Hatake Kakashi. He's always hanging around me, watching me, but he never talks to me, and he does the weirdest things - like reading porn to my class of children! - and all he wants to do is annoy me." He rolled his eyes. "Honestly, it's like I've done something to insult him."
Jun smiled and said something calming, but his mind was only on the fact that his Lord would be very pleased.
*
Iruka woke earlier than normal that morning, a vague sense of foreboding settling over him like a mist, so he was awake for the knock at his door. He opened it, clad in all but his shirt, vest and sandals. Kakashi was standing there. Iruka regarded him suspiciously.
"…Yes?"
Kakashi shoved a half-unfurled scroll into his face, detailing a mission to Snow.
"And how does this involve me, exactly?"
Kakashi's grip on the scroll loosened, allowing Iruka to see; written in "Ninja Required" space was his own name. His jaw dropped, and he immediately shook his head.
"This is a mistake, I'm not on the active missions roster. The only way I'd be required for a mission is if-"
"If someone requested you, yes. They have," interrupted Kakashi flatly. "You are to be ready to leave by nine am, Umino. Meet at the front gates." He vanished.
Iruka shut the door and spent several minutes mentally flailing - he'd not been on a mission in a long time, he felt a certain amount of holy shit was required - then realised that no matter how early he'd woken, he was going to need all of the extra time to get things arranged. He winced at the thought of finding a replacement teacher this late in the term and he wondered who he would manage to get to do it.
At least, he thought, I don't have to worry about who will run the Missions desk.
Iruka arrived at the gate with ten minutes to spare, which he considered a minor miracle, despite the fact that he'd actually run around to get everything ready. He saw a small stall on a street corner and grabbed something to eat, gratefully wolfing down several sticks of dango and a cup of green tea. He paid and thanked the stall-owner, turning back to the gate and leaning his pack against it. He turned to look around, checking his watch.
"Ten oh-five," he muttered. "I can't believe they're late."
He didn't even know who'd be there, but he assumed other chuunin. They seemed the most likely for a mission like this, but then again, it might also be a single jounin in place of several chuunin. But if that were the case, why would Iruka be on the mission? He sighed and leaned against the wall, deciding that no matter who came on the mission with him, it didn’t matter, because he was still going. He smiled to himself.
"This might actually be worthwhile," he said under his breath, not even daring to say the word 'fun'.
"Of course it's going to be worthwhile, Umino," said a very bored voice from in front of him. "We're going to rescue somebody's children, how could you think it would be anything less than worthwhile?"
Iruka looked up with a glare. "What do you mean, we."
Kakashi just shrugged, the heavy pack on his shoulder shifting. "You didn’t think that they'd let you go on this mission alone, did you? I'm coming along to make sure you don’t get yourself killed."
Iruka simply picked his pack up. "Well if you're coming, then let's go. We're already late, thanks to you." He swept past Kakashi, ignoring him and exiting through the gate with not another word. If he'd looked back, however, he'd have seen Kakashi, rather unsubtly, kick himself.
*
Goddamn this! Thought Kakashi wildly, strolling silently behind Iruka. Well, if I wanted to make him hate me even more, I've managed it. I just want to be noticed by him - in a POSITIVE light - but all I do is piss him off.
He sighed and rummaged in his pocket for his book. This week the Icha Icha slipcover disguised the newest edition of a serial that was currently popular in Konoha, following the adventures of a young shinobi as he sought to redeem his family name. Kakashi enjoyed it, as it showed ninjas in a far more realistic light than most other novels. He flipped to the part where he'd finished last and buried his face in it. He didn't see Iruka looking behind him to see what Kakashi was up to.
"Oh honestly, is that thing the only book you read? That series is terrible."
Kakashi smiled into his book. Nobody knew - except maybe Gai, but that was to be expected - that Kakashi hadn't read Icha Icha in ages. He read them, sure, but they weren't all he read. He liked to keep people confused.
But maybe... Kakashi's genius brain sparked an idea.
"No, actually. See?" he said in answer to Iruka's question, sliding the book out from the cover and handing it to him. Iruka caught it, then blinked at the cover.
"Boy Shinobi? You read that?"
Kakashi took the book back; he slid it inside the cover, shrugging. "I read lots of things. I admit I do read Icha Icha, but not all the time. I get bored pretty quickly with a book, to be honest. I brought three others, too."
Iruka regarded him with an odd look. "Really, now," he said. "Well.. could I borrow one?"
Kakashi's eye curved happily. "Sure!" he said, opening his pack and tugging the three books out. Iruka reached out and touched one.
"That's my favourite book," Kakashi said, then, unable to resist a quick dig, "Next to Icha Icha, that is."
Iruka rolled his eyes, but picked the book up. "I think I read this a long time ago, but I don't remember much of it. I remember liking it, though, because the main character was--" he broke off and reddened.
Kakashi decided that a blushing Iruka was much better than a glaring one, and thought that he would try his very best to put that blush onto Iruka's face as often as possible.
"Because the main character was… what?" he said, nudging Iruka gently. Iruka muttered something under his breath, but Kakashi leaned closer, cupping his ear as though he hadn't heard him. "He was what, Umino-san? I didn't quite catch that."
Iruka flipped the book to the first page, quite obviously ignoring Kakashi, who sighed and re-opened his book.
"It's a shame you won't tell me, Umino-san. I liked that book because the main character was gay," he said nonchalantly. "I liked the fact that he was portrayed as competent and manly while still liking other men. The author wrote that book well, I think. Don’t you?"
Iruka nodded silently, still a little pink, and turned the page. Kakashi smiled and left him to read. They must have made a very odd image, he realised. Two Konoha shinobi, walking down a path... both buried in a book.
*
Iruka read the book in about three hours, eagerly devouring the well-written plot. He sighed as he finished it, making Kakashi look up from his book, which he had just begun to reread.
"Enjoy it, sensei?"
"I did," he said. "Do you know if this is a series? I'd like to read more when I get back to Konoha."
Kakashi shrugged. "I never thought to check, which is a pity. I'd like to read more of that author's writing, too." He marked the page in his book and slipped it back into his pocket. Iruka watched him curiously.
"Aren't you going to read anymore?"
Kakashi's eye curved at him again. "Nope. Now I'm going to quiz you! So, who is your favourite character?"
Iruka was a little taken aback, but answered anyway. "Probably the twins. I know that that's technically two characters, but they were so alike. I liked how they were always ready to joke, but could also be serious when the time called for it. Who is your favourite character?"
Kakashi rolled his one visible eye - that was, Iruka could only see one eye roll. He assumed that Kakashi rolled them both - and said, "Isn't that obvious? I'd have thought you'd have realised it was Kanto."
Iruka shook his head. "No. Just because there's a slightly perverted character in the book doesn't mean that he has to be your favourite, does it?"
Kakashi shook his head disbelievingly. "Really, Umino-san. You'll see right through me if I'm not careful," he joked.
"Mmm," said Iruka. He was still a little suspicious of Kakashi. He seemed friendly now, but Iruka knew from experience that Kakashi could be unkind, even cruel. He handed the book back to Kakashi.
"Thank you very much for letting me read it. But if we want to catch the ship to Snow, shouldn't we be hurrying?" he said.
Kakashi looked at the sun's position. "I suppose," he said grudgingly. They both re-tightened their packs and put on some speed, jumping easily into the trees.
Iruka knew his legs weren't quite as long as Kakashi's, but he kept up with the jounin well enough. He wasn't sure if the other man was deliberately not running as fast as he could so that he didn't feel that he was too slow, but Iruka knew that he could run faster. He pushed a little chakra into his legs, helping his muscles work harder. He drew level with Kakashi, then pulled ahead of him. He heard the man say something, but didn't quite make it out. Kakashi came up beside him and gave him a nod. Iruka didn't know if he was being deliberately patronising or simply friendly, but decided to simply keep running.
It seemed like they'd only been running for a few minutes when they came upon the grassy fields that led up to the large seaport town. Iruka dropped to the ground, hearing Kakashi land lightly behind him, and began to walk towards the town. They had about an hour and a half or so before the ship began to board and as they neared the town, Iruka picked up on the smells of fish cooking.
"I'm hungry. Do you want to eat before we go on the ship?"
Kakashi nodded. "It would be best. The food they serve on these ships is... well, let's just say it's not the best."
Iruka pointed to a small café, which had delicious smells wafting from it.
"In there, then."
*
The food was excellent. Various fish dishes, with simple sauces, and served quickly with a friendly smile. Kakashi was delighted to discover salt-broiled saury on the menu, with eggplant! He ordered quickly, Iruka choosing a dish of various different fish prepared different ways. His food arrived first, steaming hot, and he prepared himself for a meal full of dodging Iruka's attempts to see his face.
To his surprise, however, Iruka moved from his seat directly across from Kakashi and came to sit beside him at the long table. He angled himself so he was facing away from Kakashi and said, "I've heard Naruto describing how you eat. One day you'll choke, you know."
Kakashi was pleasantly surprised, but still wary. "You're not going to try to see my face?"
Iruka shook his head. "If you're hiding it, you're doing it for a reason. Why should I bother? You're obviously not going to let me see it."
Kakashi nodded, satisfied by this excuse, and lowered his mask to eat. Iruka's meal arrived a few minutes after; they both ate until they were full. Iruka sat back once he was done, and said, "Can I turn around now?"
Kakashi nodded absently, then realised Iruka couldn't see him and said, "Yeah, I'm done." Iruka turned to face him again, leaning past him to check the clock on the wall.
"We have about forty-five minutes left," he said. "Should we just make our way there? It's not like we have anything to do."
"Well," said Kakashi, "If we have that much time left we might as well drop into a bookshop and see whether they have the rest of that series or not. What do you think?"
Iruka looked at him sharply, as though he was trying to figure out if Kakashi was making fun of him, then nodded. They asked for directions from the shop owner and managed to find a small bookstore. The owner, a pretty young woman, pointed them towards the shelf where they could find the author's works. Iruka quickly picked out the next two in the series and paid for them.
"I heard from a couple of friends of mine that this series is really good. I hope you guys enjoy it!"
As they left, Kakashi heard her sigh, "What a cute couple."
He saw Iruka freeze just ahead of him and thought that he might have heard her too, but the other man was just trying to fit both the books in his pack. Kakashi's pack was a little bigger than Iruka's, and he offered to carry one of the books. Iruka smiled at him gratefully and Kakashi felt himself go slightly pink under the mask.
I wonder if we do look like a gay couple..
When they arrived at the docks, Iruka was shocked by the size of the ship. As they boarded he looked around in interest. Kakashi was amused at how curious he was, which Iruka noticed.
"I've never been on a ship this size," Iruka explained. "And I've never been on a long sea journey, either."
They handed over their tickets and were provided with keys and directions to their rooms. The corridors were long and richly carpeted, and the rooms were just as well furnished.
"I'm surprised that we're on such an expensive ship," remarked Iruka. "I didn't think that so much money would be spent on us for this mission."
Kakashi shook his head. "Usually we'd have had to walk, or take a different ship, but for this mission, time is of the essence. The more time we waste, the more likely it is that the children are injured or killed and this ship is the fastest. It only takes a day to get to where we need to go, which is impressive. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to take a rest in my room. We might as well as take advantage of the facilities while we can. We probably won't be getting much sleep once we get there," he added, and, bidding Iruka good night, closed his door.
He crossed to the bed, taking off his shoes and flak jacket and settling down in the middle of it cross-legged. He breathed deeply, focusing on the mission, mentally reviewing everything that had happened that day and checking through it to see if there was anything suspicious that he'd missed. Having satisfied himself that there was nothing too unusual that had happened that day he lay back and allowed his mind to drift. Inevitably it came to settle on Iruka.
Iruka...
He was unsure of what was going on with Iruka. He knew he was interested in him, but the comment of the girl in the bookstore had pushed him to wonder whether he might be interested in quite another way... his mind showed him things he hadn't even known he'd noticed. Iruka bending down to pick up his pack, displaying his taut ass quite nicely; the curve of Iruka's neck as he turned his head; the bright smiles that he sometimes gifted Kakashi.
He found, however, that his brain kept going back to the image of Iruka that morning, not yet fully dressed and hair not pulled up into its customary high ponytail, instead pulled away by a low band to fall behind Iruka's shoulders. He had obviously just showered, because his dark hair was still damp and there were tiny water-droplets still hanging from the tips. His arms had been crossed over his solid chest - his solid bare chest - and he had stepped forward, uncrossed them and pulled Kakashi inside, smooth lips pressing against Kakashi's own, miraculously unmasked ones-
Except that never happened and for the love of God I'm about to have a fantasy about the man sleeping next door to me -
Kakashi sat upright, heart beating fast.
This is probably not the best time for me to determine the fact that I am, in fact, very attracted to Umino Iruka, he told himself. In fact, it's probably a very very bad time indeed, due to the fact that we're on a mission together, alone, and he'd probably freak out if he realised. I mean, he doesn't like me very much. But then again, he'd probably like me better if I hadn't played all those tricks on him before… although reading porn to small children was hilarious, even though it wasn't really porn. Even I'm not that weird. Anyway, I can't be attracted to him. For one thing, he's not attracted to me. For another, he'd probably be so weirded out if he found out I was attracted to him. So would Naruto, come to think of it.. and it's never going to happen between us anyway, so this train of thought is useless.
Kakashi lay back again, determined not to fantasize about Umino Iruka's sexy body ever again. Of course, his brain had other ideas. As Kakashi fell deeper into sleep, images once more began to flicker in his mind's eye.
Kakashi watched Iruka at the Missions desk. He was smiling sweetly at everyone, and seemed to be in a good mood. Kakashi found himself stepping towards Iruka to hand him his report. Iruka took the report from him and scanned it, then looked up at Kakashi.
"This report is terrible! How dare you hand this in to me!"
Kakashi looked down at the report, which was perfect as usual. He tried to open his mouth to protest, but found he couldn't. Iruka continued, "Rewrite it and hand it in to me at my house tonight."
Kakashi left the Missions room, and walked along the corridor. He opened the door to go outside, but it opened on to the corridor that Iruka's apartment was on. It was dark outside and Kakashi saw that he was holding another report in his hand. He knocked in Iruka's door and Iruka opened it almost immediately. Kakashi blushed. Iruka was standing there, just out of a shower, hair tied back behind his shoulders. All he wore was a small towel wrapped around his waist. Iruka took the report from Kakashi, who turned to leave, but Iruka stopped him.
"Don't leave, I haven't checked it yet."
Kakashi followed Iruka inside, eyes inevitably drawn to the curve of his ass, which peeked tantalisingly from the bottom of the barely-decent towel. Kakashi was so absorbed that he didn't hear Iruka talking to him.
"..kashi... Kakashi!"
Kakashi looked up guiltily. Iruka was glaring at him.
"Did you hear a word I said?" Iruka asked, stepping closer to him. Kakashi shook his head, fascinated by the way Iruka seemed to prowl, catlike, towards him. Iruka finished up nearly toe to toe with Kakashi, the few inches height difference that was usually almost unnoticeable now causing him to look up slightly. Kakashi swallowed.
"Are you... distracted by me, Kakashi?" Iruka purred.
Kakashi nodded hesitantly, then gasped as Iruka's hands unzipped his vest, sliding it over his shoulders to fall silently on the floor. There was no other noise apart from whatever noise Iruka made and his own heartbeat. Iruka slid hot palms beneath his shirt. Kakashi's heartbeat increased rapidly. He felt light-headed.
"Do you want to touch me, Kakashi?"
Kakashi nodded again and pressed his hands against Iruka's chest, sliding one down to the barrier of the towel and allowing the other to tease Iruka's nipples to hardness. He could feel Iruka's breath against his neck and he felt one of the other man's hands moving up across his body to his face, where he tucked fingertips beneath his mask. Kakashi tipped his head back, pulling the mask off that way, leaving it pooled around his neck. He looked at Iruka, who pulled him down into a hot kiss. He stepped forwards and felt Iruka step back at the same time. They both fell onto a bed. Kakashi didn't know when they'd come to the bedroom, or when he'd suddenly become naked... but he wasn't complaining.
He pressed Iruka into the mattress, licking and nipping at anywhere that seemed sensitive. Iruka gasped beneath him, rocking his hips up into Kakashi's body. Kakashi moved down, tweaking the tiny towel off Iruka and grinning up at him lasciviously. He licked the tip of Iruka's dick, which was already half hard. Taking it into his hands he worked the length until it was fully erect, red and weeping. Then he slid it slowly into his mouth, tonguing the underside and sucking on the sensitive head. He moaned and Iruka let out a cry, his hands sliding into Kakashi's hair. Kakashi let one of his own hands move down to his own erection, pulling and tugging at his arousal. He sucked harder, enjoying the heady feeling of controlling Iruka by causing him pleasure.
He let Iruka's cock slide wetly out of his mouth and moved up over Iruka again, pressing their bodies together. He kissed Iruka deeply then sat up pulling him forward so that he was sitting on top of Kakashi. Iruka's face was flushed with arousal, the scar standing out in sharp relief. His eyes were half lidded and his pupils were large, making his already dark eyes seem even more so. Kakashi wrapped a hand around both of their arousals, allowing his head to drop forward onto Iruka's shoulder, nuzzling the soft skin and biting gently. He could hear Iruka making quiet noises, panting into Kakashi's ear. He was close to the edge and so was Kakashi, and he increased the pace of his hand. Suddenly he felt Iruka turn his head and whisper into his ear,
"Next time, I want you inside me."
Kakashi let out a low groan and his hand tightened involuntarily, pushing them both over the edge. He thrust upwards, kissing Iruka again, hearing his moans through the kiss. They both collapsed sideways, sticky and hot, panting heavily. Iruka rolled over sleepily into Kakashi's arms, and they both closed their eyes. Kakashi felt himself floating away...
There was a loud knock at the door.
"Holy shit-" Kakashi rolled over and fell off the bed, only just managing to land awkwardly in a crouch. "Yeah?" he yelled, realising that, yes, he had just had his first wet dream in what was possibly forever and there was evidence of this everywhere--
"Can I have the book you put into your bag?"
Oh God, that was Iruka, the man he'd just had an extremely wet dream about--
"S-sure, I'll just get it!" he called back, dragging his trousers and underwear off and tossing them into a corner. I wish I'd slept naked.
He retrieved the book from his bag and opened the door a crack to hand it out to Iruka, who looked both amused and concerned in equal measure.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
Kakashi nodded rapidly. "Fine, fine. I was just about to go for a shower, though, so, you know…"
Iruka nodded, still looking oddly at Kakashi. "Sure. See you tomorrow, Kakashi-san."
Kakashi closed the door gratefully, then immediately went to shower. Thank God for en-suites.
*
Iruka gazed at the book Kakashi had just handed him. "This isn't the right book," he said to himself. He thought about going back to Kakashi, but decided that it was best to leave him alone. He'd looked awfully distracted. He looked like he'd just woken up, more like, said another little part of his brain. Who'd have thought that hair could have gotten any wilder?
Iruka smiled and flicked open the book Kakashi had handed him. He might as well read this one instead.
He didn't get more than three chapters before putting the book down. It was very explicit and Iruka could feel the heat gathering in his groin from the descriptions of men bedding one another. He stood, leaving the book on the desk, trying to forget the illustration that he'd just seen, but it seemed burned into his brain, and he pressed his palms to his face in a futile attempt to erase it.
That book seems to be very well read, said a traitorous part of his brain. Kakashi must like it a lot, if he brought it with him on a mission. I wonder if he reads that one more than Icha Icha.. Of course, you know what this means, don't you..?
"Why should I care," muttered Iruka under his breath. "So what if he's gay, that doesn't change anything-"
Oh, yeah, because you don't think he's good looking at all. Sure, mocked that section of his mind. Even you don't believe yourself, Iruka. Don't deny the fact that he has a fantastic ass. You've seen it yourself. You'd just love it if you accidentally saw him naked, wouldn't you? Why don't you pop through there right now, he's probably finished his shower, he'll be drying off. You could easily get in to change your book, maybe catch a glimpse-
Iruka pressed his fingers to his temples, massaging them in hopes of erasing the insidious little voice, but he had no such luck.
Who knows, Iruka. He might even be interested in you, after all he's always hanging around you.
"That's just coincidence!" Iruka snapped. "I'm not thinking about this anymore." The voice retreated, but Iruka found himself still contemplating the book. "Oh, for heaven's sake," he muttered, picking it back up and opening it. I'll read it anyway, he thought. I've got nothing else to do.
*
Kakashi towelled his hair roughly, glaring at the soaked trousers and underwear that he'd washed in the shower. He just knew that they would still be a little damp tomorrow, but there was nothing he could do about it. He pulled on another pair of underwear from his pack and pulled out the book he knew would be there. Might as well relax with a classic, he reasoned, and, leaning back on the bed, flipped open the book.
This…isn't the book I'm looking for.
He got up again, searching through the pack. He pulled out the book he'd been reading that day, another one that Asuma had recommended, and... Iruka's new book.
Crap.
He sat back on his heels and wondered if Iruka had read the book yet.
Well, if he didn't know that I'm interested in guys, he does now, he thought wryly, and chose another of the books to read instead, raising it towards the wall that separated his room and Iruka's, in a kind of toast. Enjoy the porn, sensei.
Kakashi woke the next day with the book still in his hand. He'd fallen asleep while reading, and he had to stretch out the various aches in his muscles from sleeping in a weird position. It was about twelve in the afternoon, and he was a little surprised by how long he'd slept. Pulling on the trousers, which, as he'd thought, were still slightly damp, he made a face and went to make sure Iruka was ready to go.
He knocked on the door, and after a few seconds Iruka answered.
"Yes?"
"The ship will be in harbour in an hour or so. We've made good time. I just came to make sure you were all packed- hey, are you okay?"
Iruka looked tired and rather irritable.
"Yes, I'm fine. I look like this because I was up half the night because of YOU and your stupid BOOK-" Iruka thrust the book into Kakashi's chest, "-which is ridiculously well written, and if I were to describe it in one word, it would be unputdownable. Now go away. Yes, I'm packed, and now I'm going to have as long a nap as possible. Ok?"
Kakashi backed away. "Sure, sure. I'll wake you when we have to go."
Iruka just shut the door. Kakashi smiled down at the book.
"I forgot how awesome this book is when you first read it."
*
Iruka was still a little tired as they left the ship, but the brisk wind that slapped against his face as he left the lee of the ship woke him up far better than any amount of caffeine could. He shivered and said to Kakashi, "Is it always this cold? I've never been to Snow, but, I mean, I'd assume so."
Kakashi's eye curved at him. "Yeah, and it's only going to get colder from here on out. First order of business is getting some winter cloaks and shoes."
Kakashi led him to a clothes shop where they bought thick cloaks of sheep's wool and boots that kept the snow out. Iruka felt a little uncomfortable in his, as he'd never worn shoes that fully covered his feet, but Kakashi assured him he'd quickly get used to it, and that it was much better than getting frostbite. Instead of paying for the boots, they instead swapped their shoes for them. Apparently this was the accepted method, and they'd probably get their own shoes back when they finished their mission and returned the boots.
As they stepped back out into the chill air Iruka was grateful for the warmer clothes.
"Where do we go now?" he asked Kakashi, who consulted the mission scroll.
"We're to head north," he said. "There's a small village there, which is where the children were last seen. We'll split up there, ask around amongst the villagers if they know anything, then search for the kids. They've been missing over a week, so the quicker we are the better," he finished, rolling the scroll back up and tucking it into a pocket. Iruka nodded and they both turned towards the north, launching into a run.
The wind quickly turned Iruka and Kakashi's exposed skin red and sore. About an hour into the run, Kakashi signalled a stop. He dug in his pack and pulled out a soft scrap of material, tossing it to Iruka who stared at it, confused.
"This is one of your masks... why are you giving it to me?"
Kakashi shrugged. "The less skin you have out the better. Wind burn can be really sore, so if you wear one of my masks it'll be better for you."
Iruka nodded and tugged it over his head, knocking his ponytail askew. He tucked the bottom of the mask into his shirt and fixed his hair, then looked at Kakashi. "Thanks. Ready to go?"
Kakashi seemed amused by the sight of Iruka in a mask but nodded his assent, once again swinging his pack onto his back. As the wind once again hit his face, Iruka realised that the mask helped a lot, the threads channelling the air away from his face. He smiled underneath it, the soft material making his lips feel odd, then he wondered what Kakashi did when he had to sneeze. He made a disgusted face at the image it conjured up and decided he'd ask Kakashi at the next opportunity.
After another hour or so the village appeared on the horizon. Iruka had had a little difficulty running on the snow, which wasn't packed as tightly as it needed to be for it to support a man. He experimented with various levels of chakra, fluctuating the amount he exuded from his feet, finally finding the method that worked best. Instead of pushing the chakra out of the soles of his feet and downwards into the snow, he instead pushed it out and sideways, distributing his weight equally over the snow around his feet, enough to support him in his run. He was pleased with himself for finding the solution and as he managed to catch up with Kakashi he saw the other man give him a thumbs up. Iruka stuck his tongue out, forgetting that he was wearing a mask, but Kakashi seemed to see it anyway, judging by his laughter. Iruka shook his head and looked up to see the village only a few minutes away. As they arrived the snow thinned until there was only a solid, hard-packed layer that was suitable for walking on without chakra.
Iruka and Kakashi entered the village, grateful for the small amount of shelter the houses gave from the wind. Iruka pulled down his mask immediately, scrunching up his face to get rid of the odd sensation. Kakashi pointed to the left.
"I'll go that way and ask anyone I can find, maybe knock some doors. You see if there's a pub or something, somewhere people might congregate. Meet me back here in, oh, about an hour and a half, okay?"
Iruka nodded, replacing the mask, and sped off, looking around for signs of life. The streets seemed deserted, and he only found the bar by following the most well-trodden path. He opened the door to a rowdy room filled with men and women who all turned to face him. He felt incredibly exposed as everyone stared at him. He tugged down the mask and raised a hand in a greeting gesture.
"Ah, hello. I hope you don't mind me being here?"
A large man got up from the bar and crossed the room to stand before Iruka.
"What do you want here, shinobi?" he growled. Iruka smiled personably up at him.
"A beer, hopefully. And perhaps some information about the missing children? I'm here about the kidnapping."
The man's glare lessened, but he still didn't move.
"No kidnappings here. Not for a long time," he said, shaking his head. Iruka shrugged.
"Well, can I have a beer anyway? Or maybe something hot... I'm not used to the cold."
A young woman strode up beside Iruka, crossing her arms across her ample chest.
"You leave the poor man alone, Nobiki! Let him have a drink." She steered Iruka across the room to the bar, and the room slowly filled with noise again. She moved to be behind the bar and smiled kindly at him. "What'll it be? If you're looking for something hot, there's always the apple cider. It's best when it's hot."
Iruka nodded, gratefully accepting the thick clay mugful of cider. He took a mouthful and his eyebrows rose.
"Strong, ain't it," said the handsome man sitting next to him. "I'm surprised you didn't cough."
Iruka grinned at him. "I can hold my alcohol pretty well, I'll have you know. I'm Umino, by the way. Is it true that there've been no kidnappings around here?"
The man nodded. "My name's Reikoku. And yeah, no kidnappings in this area in years… which children were kidnapped?"
"The man was called Midaku, and his children were called Ai and Aoi, one girl and one boy. Are you sure you've never heard of them before?" Iruka asked.
Reikoku looked thoughtful. "Now that you mention it… I used to know where they had a holiday house. I can take you there, if you like?"
Iruka nodded. "That would be great. There might be something that could help the investigation there." He stood, draining the mug and leaving some coins on the bar. They went out into the cold, the swirling snow quickly covering their tracks.
Iruka was about fifteen minutes into the trek when he paused. "How long will this take, Reikoku?" he called. "I need to meet up with my partner soon."
Reikoku turned towards him. "It's still quite far yet. I suppose you want to turn back?"
Iruka nodded. "I'll meet back with him and then we can all go together, okay?" He turned around and began to move back towards the village, but felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck and the world wavered sharply as he collapsed.
*
Kakashi hadn't found anyone in the streets and whenever people answered the door when he knocked, they didn't know anything. He sighed and made his way back to the meeting point to wait for Iruka, crouching out of the wind. Five minutes passed. Then ten, then fifteen. By the time half an hour had gone by, Kakashi had stopped thinking that Iruka had found information in the pub and begun to think that he'd gotten drunk instead! He stood, shaking the snow from his shoulders and projected his chakra out, searching for Iruka. He found nothing but an hour-old trail from where he was standing and he followed it to the pub. Entering, he heard someone mutter, "Oh, not another one."
"I'll take that to mean that my partner has been here, then," he said pleasantly. "Where is he?"
There was a general sort of muttering, from which Kakashi deduced that Iruka had entered the pub about forty-five minutes ago, drunk a mug of cider and left with another man, who nobody seemed to know.
"Okay," he said. "Did anyone see which way they went?"
Nobody knew. Kakashi sighed. "Okay, fine. I'll just wander until I find him, then," he said under his breath. He went to leave, but felt a tug on his trousers. He looked down to see a tiny girl wrapped in more fur than Kakashi thought possible.
"He wenna that way," she said, pointing to the right. Kakashi stared at her, then crouched down to better talk to her.
"Who did?"
Her large blue eyes blinked sweetly at him. "The pretty man. He went with that other man outside, and he put a mask on. He looked funny with the mask, he was prettier without it."
Kakashi smiled at her and pressed several ryou into her small palm.
"Good girl," he said, and left.
*
Iruka's eyes slowly opened. He was lying on a soft bed, someone's arm tucked around his waist. He rolled over and came face to mask with Kakashi, who smiled at him.
"Hello, Iruka. How are you?"
Iruka looked at him oddly. He was pretty sure that Kakashi wasn't usually in his bed, but something was making his mind fuzzy.
"Am I drunk?" he asked, rubbing his eyes sleepily.
Kakashi laughed pleasantly, shaking his head. "Of course not, Iruka. You're just a little tired from our..fun last night. Don't you remember?"
And Iruka suddenly remembered, or thought he did. "Ye- yes, I remember," he said, sitting up. Kakashi sat up too, pulling Iruka forward into his lap to press a sweet kiss to his cheek.
"You need to do that paperwork," he reminded. Iruka nodded absently.
"I'll do it now, then."
He got up from the bed and sat down at the desk, sorting through the papers. They looked odd, he realised. Not like the papers he was used to filling in at all… more like questionnaires.
1: What is the full capacity of Konoha's fighting force?
2: What is the exact location of the forbidden scrolls of Konoha, and what would need to be bypassed before one could reach them?
Iruka stared at the sheets.
"This isn't right," he heard himself say as he turned towards Kakashi, but Kakashi wasn't there anymore. Instead, lounging on the bed, was--
"Reikoku!"
The other man got up and stepped towards him, a scowl twisting his handsome features.
"You're tougher than you look, Umino Iruka. But don't worry, I've got a lot more to throw at you."
Both the room and Reikoku swirled terrifyingly before smashing into a million pieces. Iruka opened his eyes sharply, gasping.
Instead of a bedroom there was a dank cave with seals papering the walls. Reikoku emerged from the shadows.
"Umino Iruka. I had wondered whether Jun was simply incompetent, but it does seem that you are more resistant than I first thought. You might even be a worthwhile addition to my little troupe... what do you say? Stop resisting, give me the information I need and join me. It'll be worth your while, I promise.."
Iruka spat at him. Reikoku wiped it delicately from his face.
"You know, that was a very stupid answer."
"My partner will find me soon, and then you'll be less than dead. I look forward to your bloody demise," said Iruka quietly.
Reikoku smiled at him and his hands once more formed the seal that sent Iruka spiralling into unreality once more.
His captor smiled at his limp body as it hung from the restraints, cruciform. "Your partner, Iruka-kun, will never find us to begin with, not with the seals I've used. But you don't know that, do you?"
*
Kakashi searched for footprints as best he could, but the snow had increased - he hadn't even thought that was possible - and there was only a white expanse in front of him. He sighed and tugged a scroll from his flak jacket, summoning his pack.
"Aw, gee, boss. Thanks for summoning us to this lovely snowstorm," growled Pakkun sarcastically. Kakashi glared at him.
"Shut up. I need you to help me find someone. I don't have any of his things, though... but he's gotta be the only person out here. Pak, you've met him before, I think - Umino Iruka. He's with an unknown, too. Now go! We need to find him as quickly as possible."
The pack immediately spread out, chakra-charged noses snuffling across the snow - or, in Bull's case, underneath it. Suddenly Akino barked, then howled, darting forwards across the snow. Kakashi ran after her, the rest of the pack following after twenty minutes of flat-out running, she suddenly paused and cast about. She sniffed around in a circle, but then sat down.
"This is where their trail ends, boss," she called through the storm. Kakashi stared at her.
"There's nothing here, Akino! How can it just end?" he yelled back. Akino gave him a doggy shrug.
"Dunno, but it does. Should we dig?"
Kakashi sighed. "I suppose so."
The dogs launched themselves at the snow, powerful legs scraping it away faster than the falling snow could fill in the hole again. After a few minutes they hit the ground. Kakashi stared at it, perturbed. There was no way to go anywhere else. He stretched his chakra out again, but just as it had been as he left the pub; there were areas where no chakra could be found at all.
"Actually, that's weird in itself," he murmured, kneeling. There was usually ambient chakra in everything, down to plants and stone. Kakashi closed his eyes, slowly building an image in his mind of the chakra-less areas, ignoring the snow soaking his shoulders, back and knees. He could "see" that the chakra was gone from a long diagonal section that angled downwards from where he was to a large, vaguely globular shape at the end.
"An underground cave," he said in surprise. "That can't be natural, not a construct like that.. but who cares if it’s natural."
He stood up and formed several seals.
"Raikiri!"
The lightning smashed into the thick covering and broke through, into the sharply sloping corridor below. Kakashi slid through the hole, telling the dogs to wait for his signal, and tugged his hitai-ate up. Glancing around, he could see the thousands of paper seals that covered the walls. He moved down the corridor silently, eventually reaching the bottom where it opened on to the cave. He could hear Iruka now, low pants for breath breaking the air. Suddenly another voice spoke.
"You may as well give up, Iruka. Your pathetic jounin partner, whoever he is, is never going to find you. You're trapped down here with me, forever, until you tell me what I want to know."
"I'd rather die," Iruka coughed out painfully.
"That is a distinct possibility," said the other man, sounding rather cruelly amused. "But I think I'll play with you a little more before you do, hmm? Let's see how you deal with this."
Iruka made a tortured noise and the man laughed raucously. Kakashi couldn't stand any more and darted out from the shadows, coming around the corner to see the still-laughing man turn towards him. The man let out a surprised noise and his hand flicked something towards Kakashi, which he dodged. Kakashi sent three kunai flashing towards the man, but the floor writhed and shot upwards, catching the kunai mid-flight.
As Kakashi came forward into the light, the man hissed, "Hatake Kakashi."
Kakashi formed a few seals, blowing a thin burst of flame to distract him, and then put two fingers in his mouth to let out a piercing whistle. He heard the dogs thundering down the corridor and stepped forwards to release Iruka from the bindings, but the floor roiled once again, curling around his feet. He barely managed to shunshin out of the grasping stone, grunting as the wall he appeared next to slammed into him, knocking the breath out of him just as his dogs arrived. He growled in annoyance. Most of his jutsu were suited to a wider battle area - in this close a space, anything he did was likely to hurt Iruka and the dogs too. Not to mention that the ninja he was fighting against was surrounded by the very substance he needed to fight.
He focused his chakra, deciding to fight fire with fire... or rather, stone with stone. The floor beneath the enemy ninja suddenly vanished, becoming a carpet of sharp spikes, and the other man had to form seals quickly to avoid a messy death. The dogs were working hard to surround him, but they couldn't get close without the floor moving beneath them. Suddenly Bull jumped at the nin, barking loudly, and he swung around towards him. At the same time, Pakkun and Akino jumped at the man's back, managing to fasten their sharp teeth into his neck and shoulder. The man dropped to his knees with a yell, unable to stop them slicing his carotid artery, but the two dogs' victory wasn't enough for Bull, who had been caught by two great slabs of stone. Kakashi yelled and jumped forwards, running towards his dog which lay, panting, on the floor. Kakashi went to the big dog's heavy head, stroking it gently.
"You did well, Bull. You can go now." The dog gratefully vanished in a puff of smoke. Kakashi scrambled up from his knees to quickly determine that the enemy ninja wasn't dead yet - he needed him alive to determine the level of the threat towards Konoha - healed him, not bothering with anything cosmetic, and then gently freed Iruka from the restraints. The man was limp in his arms and his eyes were unfocused. He twitched slightly as Kakashi laid him down on the floor, and gazed into his eyes with the Sharingan. He could tell Iruka was under a serious genjutsu, but it was an unusual one.
It looks like... the genjutsu isn't controlled by the caster, at least no more than the bare minimum... as though the person the genjutsu is cast on provides the actual images for the genjutsu by themselves..
It was both fascinating and horrible, and it must have been very effective. Kakashi eventually managed to undo it with the Sharingan, and as he did Iruka shuddered in his arms.
"Hey," Kakashi said gently as Iruka's eyes focused. Iruka's eyes closed and he flinched away from Kakashi with a low moan.
"Wait - Iruka, what's the matter?" asked Kakashi, confused. "Aren't you pleased to see me?"
Iruka's eyes opened, but he glared at Kakashi.
"Don't be stupid, Reikoku. Do you really think I'm going to fall for this after the millionth time of you trying it? Honestly, you're pathetic. I'm not going to give you any information. Just get it over with and kill me."
Kakashi lifted Iruka onto his shoulders, ignoring his protests.
"I suppose you must have seen me in the genjutsu a lot," he mused. "In any other circumstance I'd be flattered that you were thinking of me, but this time it's just creepy." He carried Iruka back up the corridor, the dogs walking ahead, pushing him out into the snow after them. Iruka shivered, the wind cutting into him. His winter cloak was gone, as was his flak jacket, and Kakashi hadn't seen them in the cave. He scrambled out of the cave and pulled off his cloak, wrapping it around Iruka to shield him from as much of the snow and wind as he could. His tracks from the village were gone and he realised that he'd never make it back to the village alive while the snowstorm was still raging if he had to carry Iruka, never mind if he had to go back to get their enemy - apparently called Reikoku - as well.
"Back down into the rabbit-hole, then," he muttered, lowering Iruka into the corridor again and following him down. He dismissed the dogs after praising them for their diligence, watching as they all puffed into smoke.
He made a fire as best he could from the scant materials in the cave and pulled Iruka's still-limp body closer to it, stroking his damp hair back from his face. Kakashi felt oddly chilled, shivering even though he was close to the fire. He felt sleepy, too, now that his adrenaline was gone, and he lay down beside Iruka, curling their bodies close to conserve heat, and fell asleep.
*
Iruka's eyes slowly opened. He was lying on the hard ground, someone's arm tucked around his waist. He rolled over and came face to mask with Kakashi, who was shivering violently. He sat up, staring around.
This doesn't seem like another genjutsu, he thought. For one thing, it's too real. For another, I feel like I can actually think now.
He shook Kakashi's shoulder gently, then more roughly when he didn't respond.
"Kakashi? Kakashi!"
Kakashi's skin was paler than usual and as cold as ice. Iruka tugged him as close to the waning fire as he dared and blew on the flames, trying to coax them to life. He searched the room, finding a small stool in a corner and some papers. He hesitated before burning them, but realised they were only lists of questions that Reikoku had tried to ask Iruka. He balled them up and tossed them on the fire on by one, building it up slowly with the wood from the stool. Kakashi was still shivering and as Iruka bent down to look at him again he realised that his clothes were soaked through. He stripped him efficiently down to his boxers, wringing out the clothes in a corner and laying them out flat on the floor to dry.
Kakashi had his pack with him, tossed off to one side, and Iruka dug through it to find something to cover him in. He pulled out a blanket from the bottom and laid it across the prone man, pulling him close and holding him tight to his own body, feeling the chill from Kakashi soak through his thin t-shirt. He leaned backwards, pulled a book from Kakashi's bag and began to read.
About forty-five minutes later, Kakashi seemed a little warmer, but not much. His eyes flickered open, but he seemed unable to focus for long.
"Kakashi? How do you feel?" asked Iruka, concerned.
"M'too hot," he grunted, pushing at the blanket.
"Don't, Kakashi, that has to stay on. You have hypothermia, you only feel too hot because your body is so cold! Don't push it away, please," Iruka pleaded. "Kakashi, please! You'll get sicker if you don't keep the blanket on."
Kakashi stopped struggling and gazed up at Iruka. "Okay, I'll stop," he said quietly. "But only cause you asked me. I… I like you quite a lot, Iruka."
Iruka stared at him. "What?"
"Liked you for a while," said Kakashi in a sleepy sort of way. "Since that night you took me to the hospital. You were nice to me then, made sure I didn't die." He paused. "Then you were mad at me for the exams, but I didn't mean to make you angry, Iruka. I knew they were ready, they'd improved a lot, but you didn't know… I should have told you I was putting them in before the nominations came. I'm sorry."
Iruka shook his head. "It's okay, Kakashi, you were right to put them in. I overreacted. It's not your fault," he soothed.
"You were so amazing then, Iruka. You seemed like you were so mad, I didn't know how you could get so angry about some kids! You made me interested... more than I was, I mean. And then you just acted like I wasn't there, Iruka. I wanted you to notice me so badly."
Iruka shivered at the longing in Kakashi's voice. "Is that why you played those jokes on me?" he asked. "So that I would notice you?"
Kakashi nodded. "Then this mission came, and I realised why I wanted you to notice me. You know, you're very, very, very sexy, sensei? Sexy like a... sexy thing."
Kakashi was rambling now, eyes totally unfocused and voice slurring slightly. Iruka bit his lip, worried. Kakashi was still in the moderate stages of hypothermia, he was talking nonsense. He lay down so that his full body length pressed against Kakashi's; the other man made an annoyed noise.
"Too hot, Iruka!"
"Sorry," said Iruka absently, pulling one of Kakashi's arms over his body. He threw one leg over Kakashi's body, tucking his head into the curve between Iruka's head and shoulder. Kakashi stopped complaining, pressing his face into Iruka's neck, his breath - still a little cooler than it should have been - washing over him. Iruka wrapped his arms around Kakashi, feeling himself begin to drift off, too.
*
Kakashi woke up feeling like they'd had a mission in Sand, not Snow. His back felt stiff and sore and his whole body was far too hot. There was something tickling his nose through the mask, too.
He sat up and pulled the mask down, sneezing explosively. A voice behind him commented in an amused tone, "I wondered what you did when you needed to sneeze."
He tugged the mask back up and turned to see that Iruka was lying next to him. Then he looked down to see that he was very nearly naked. He wondered if he was blushing. His face was hot already, so it was difficult for him to tell. Iruka got up and stretched, wincing as his back cracked.
"Ow. I hate sleeping on stone," he muttered. Kakashi looked around for his clothes.
"Over there," pointed Iruka. Kakashi tugged them on.
"Why is it that just about all the clothes I have put on in this mission have been damp?" he said to himself irritably and turned to Iruka, who was putting the blanket and book back into the pack. Suddenly there was a groan from behind him and Reikoku stirred weakly. Kakashi kicked him and the movement stopped abruptly.
Iruka stared at him. "From the amount of blood there, I thought you'd killed him," he commented.
"Nah," said Kakashi. "Needed him alive to find out what nasty little surprises he's got planned for Konoha. Also, to find out where your pack is."
Kakashi shouldered him after making doubly sure that he was relieved of any weaponry - he was - and tying him up thoroughly.
The journey back to the village was quicker than either of them expected. The snow was thick, but there was none falling, so the village was in clear sight a few miles away. The villagers were out and about when they arrived there and they caused a ripple of interest. Iruka asked if there was any kind of jail in the village but the nearest such facility was in the port-town that the ship had pulled into the day before.
"Can you believe we've only been here less than a day?" asked Iruka as they prepared to make the run back to the port. "I feel like we've been here forever."
"And the quicker we get home, the better," said Kakashi. "I'm looking forward to sleeping in a real bed, not a stone floor."
Iruka nodded in fervent agreement.
They arrived in the port after half a day's run. Luckily, Reikoku had dumped Iruka's pack and flak jacket inside the village, so he'd gotten it back without much trouble, which meant they didn't have to buy another ticket. They smuggled Reikoku on without much trouble and as Iruka collapsed onto his bed, he wondered how much a missing-nin of his standard was worth. Something tickled at the back of his mind as his thoughts wandered to how the school and Missions desk was doing, however, and he froze.
*
Kakashi turned at the frantic knocking at his door and fastened the last knot.
"Don't you be going anywhere, now," he warned Reikoku, and strolled over to his door.
"Yes? What's wrong?" he asked. Iruka stormed inside.
"THAT LITTLE RAT IS WHAT'S WRONG," he fumed. "You know, I wondered how someone got us into that set-up mission. Usually there are all kinds of checks and things, but this one got right on through. You know how?"
Kakashi shook his head, bemused. "Luck?"
"GOROU JUN!" declared Iruka. Kakashi was still confused.
"That stupid boy that works beside me on the Missions desk, who always files things in the wrong place!" Iruka explained.
"The blond?" asked Kakashi.
"Yes! That Gorou Jun. He-" here Iruka pointed at the bound and gagged missing-nin, "-mentioned him! It was Jun who got the scroll approved, and had me sent on it!"
"But why would this guy want you?" Kakashi asked. "No offence meant, I mean, but you're not the most prominent member of the village."
Iruka rolled his eyes. "I worked with the Sandaime on lots of things, so I have a high security clearance. I know lots of things that most other ninja don't," he said. "Jun knew that. I wonder how long he's been passing information to this creep?"
Kakashi shrugged. "It's not our job to find out. That lovely task falls to Ibiki. I don't envy you, by the way," he added, talking to Reikoku, who growled past the gag.
"That's not very nice," said Iruka.
"No," agreed Kakashi, and he flicked two fingers into a pressure point on Reiroku's neck. He went limp.
"So," said Kakashi. "Was it worthwhile?"
Iruka seemed confused for a moment, then realised what Kakashi was referring to.
"Well, we have captured a missing-nin," he said. "And I've found out a spy in my missions desk. But I didn't get to rescue any children. So, yeah, it's been worthwhile, but not in the way I expected."
Kakashi grinned and sat down on his bed. "I still have your book," he said, handing it to him. Iruka seemed distracted, however.
"Kakashi... did you mean it? The stuff you said to me in the cave."
Kakashi looked piercingly at Iruka. "What… stuff? When was this?"
Suddenly, Iruka looked very disappointed. "Oh, if you don't remember, then it's okay," he said. "You were rambling, just stupid stuff about meeting me and the chuunin exam. It didn't mean anything. I'll go now -" He stood moving towards the door, but Kakashi stood up, caught him by the arm and pulled him back.
"What did I say, Iruka?" he said. Iruka scratched his scar and said something under his breath.
"Iruka!"
"You said you liked me, okay? You said you thought I was good-looking, that you'd liked me for ages and you hung around me because you wanted to talk to me, alright?" Iruka said, trying to pull away from Kakashi's solid grip.
"And.. what did you think of that, Iruka?" asked Kakashi hopefully.
"I.. I hoped it was true," muttered Iruka. "Let me go- hey!"
Kakashi pulled Iruka closer so that he was pressed against Kakashi.
"And what would you do if it was true, Iruka?"
"I'd... ah..."
Kakashi kissed him, his free hand pulling down his mask. Iruka made a quiet noise and Kakashi let him go, choosing instead wrapping both arms around his waist. Iruka slid his hands into Kakashi's hair and parted his lips, allowing Kakashi free reign.
They tumbled backwards onto the bed, ignoring the semi-comatose body of the missing nin on the chair and didn't come out of the room again until the ship came into Konoha harbour.
Epilogue
"You're filing for what?" asked Tsunade in surprise.
"A joint mortgage," said Iruka. "We've moved house to live together and we thought it would be best."
Kakashi just turned another page in his book - the cover said Icha Icha Tactics, but the book inside was about a young wizard fighting snaky evil. Kakashi enjoyed the parallels.
"You... live together?" said Tsunade. "Since when have you guys even been interested in each other?"
Iruka rolled his eyes.
"That's difficult to determine. Kakashi was interested way before he even knew he was interested, and it took a novel for me to even realise I thought he was good looking. If you want the whole story, it'll take awhile to tell."
Tsunade settled in her chair. "I'm waiting," she said.
Iruka took a deep breath and began.
fin
Omake 1
Kakashi crouched atop the pole.
"Hello, children! Ready to learn?"
"Sensei! You're late again! I'd have thought now that you live with Iruka-sensei, at least one of his good habits would have rubbed off on you."
"He's late to draw attention away from his small penis," said Sai.
Omake 2
Iruka handed the set of scrolls to his new assistant, who was also coincidentally his new classroom assistant, thanks to how well he'd handled the class when Iruka had been away.
"Can you file those for me, please?"
"Troublesome," muttered Shikamaru.
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