Embedded Files
After a number of dates, Hatake Kakashi was convinced that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Shizune and, with encouragement from Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura, Kakashi proposed to the woman. The ceremony had been a traditional Shinto styled one, and they’d set up home in a building modelled after the Hatake residence in which Kakashi had spent his early life. The rebuilt Hokage Tower and Jônin complex weren’t really suitable homes for someone hoping to start a family.
Things were going well between Sasuke and Sakura too. After marrying Sasuke, Sakura liked to keep her own surname, hyphening it with Uchiha, and moved in with Sasuke to a building not far from the Hatakes’ and modelled on the family home Sasuke had spent his childhood. The year after Kakashi was named Hokage; Sasuke had been entered into ANBU and received the intensive training involved.
The news of pregnancies within the recovering village was met with a great deal of anticipation because it guaranteed that the village would go on. It was taken as a sign that the population was being rebuilt just as the buildings were. Konohagakure had entered a time of hope and peace once again and it raised her people’s morale.
~*~
Shizune was eight months along and had been having trouble sleeping. Her ankles were swelling and she suffered from a shortness of breath some days, so Kakashi sometimes ducked out of the office to spend a little time at home looking after her, taking much of the paperwork with him and roping someone in to sit in the office and play messenger if there was an emergency. Sitting on the sofa together they were enjoying some peace and each other’s company. Shizune was between Kakashi’s thighs, leaning back against him while he’d practically curled around her from behind, arms wrapped around her waist and resting gently on her bulge and his chin rested on her shoulder.
Shizune tilted her head to look at his face and noticed Kakashi’s eyes were closed. He was breathing steadily through his nose and Shizune smiled a little when she realised he was inhaling her scent. She moved her head again to give him a peck on the tip of his nose before watching him smile at the action. It was much easier to see his expressions without the mask and Shizune was glad he removed it when they were alone together. He always seemed much more relaxed when he wasn’t wearing it. Shizune gasped a little as the baby kicked and couldn’t help but smile when she felt and heard Kakashi chuckle behind her.
“Have you had any thoughts on possible names?” Shizune asked her husband as she rubbed her stomach gently.
“Not really,” Kakashi answered honestly as he turned his head to kiss her neck gently.
“What do you think of naming the baby after your father if it’s a boy?” Shizune suggested.
“I think the baby’s going to have a lot of expectations placed on them already just being a Hatake.”
“Not Sakumo then.”
“Not Obito either. I’d rather remember him the way he was before, but I doubt others will. So that name’s got a bad association with it. It’s too soon for someone to try to change that fact.”
“I understand,” Shizune replied, turning her head enough to kiss him. “What about Rin if it’s a girl?”
“Why don’t we just wait and see what feels right at the time?” Kakashi suggested. Shizune smiled and agreed. There was no point on deciding names until the little one arrived.
~*~
“How are you doing, Sakura?” Shizune asked her fellow mother-to-be when Sakura came to visit with Sasuke. Sasuke had gone through to another room where Kakashi was to give the women some time to themselves. Kakashi had told Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto that they were welcome to come over and simply let themselves in any time, within reason. He didn’t want them showing up in the middle of the night unless it was an emergency, but they didn’t have to knock either way before entering.
“I’m okay, Sasuke-kun’s been a great help. Naruto drops by to help out a lot too. And to think I used to see him as just an annoying little twerp,” Sakura answered before sharing a laugh with Shizune.
“Naruto’s been by offering to help here too, but Kashi usually ends up shooing him away, or making Naruto do a load of paper work so he can spend time with me instead.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Sakura laughed, “Kakashi-sensei ducking out of responsibilities as usual.”
“To be fair, he has been doing everything he can for me as well as his duties as Hokage.”
“Have you guys thought of any names yet?”
“I suggested a couple, but Kakashi wants to wait until the baby’s born.”
“Is he at least excited that he’s going to be a dad?” Sakura asked feeling a little disappointed at idea of Kakashi’s lack of enthusiasm. Though, she’d never really seen him show much enthusiasm for anything outside of Icha-Icha. Sakura suddenly hoped the poor baby wasn’t going to end up named after any of the characters in those awful books.
“He’s very excited, Sakura,” Shizune replied with a smile. “He just wants to wait so we can find a name that feels right. So, how about you? Have you and Sasuke given any thought about names?”
“Yeah, we have. If it’s a boy, we’re naming him after Sasuke’s brother, and if it’s a girl we’re naming her after Sasuke’s mother. They were important people to Sasuke, I made the suggestion to honour them and he approved. I think he was touched by the gesture, not that he’d ever admit it, mind you,” Sakura added and the two women laughed again.
~*~
Sasuke joined Kakashi in the kitchen leaving the women to themselves and watched the man sift through sheets of paper, looking decidedly bored. Smirking a little, Sasuke stepped forward and picked up a few sheets to look though. “Mission requests, huh?”
Kakashi hummed in confirmation and started setting them on the table, “D, D, D, C, D, possible B,” he listed. “These are obviously low ranking missions so I don’t see why I need to approve them.”
“Maybe the mission room staff are getting back at you for being late all the time?” Sasuke shrugged, picking up a larger pile than the one he already had and sitting down to go through them, marking them appropriately.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m helping, what does it look like? You really are an idiot.”
“And you really are a cheeky brat.”
“From what I’ve heard about you as a kid, that’s the pot calling the kettle black.”
“Maa, I still respected my sensei back then. I looked up to him.”
“I can believe that, you’d have to look up just to see his face, I heard all about how small you were as a kid. Don’t worry, you’re still taller than me, unfortunately, so I still have to look up to look you in the face, or mask rather.”
“Very funny, that’s not what I meant and you know it. And why are you asking around about that sort of thing instead of just asking me?”
“I wasn’t asking around. Tsunade was telling me all about it, wondering if your kid’s going to be a brat like you. I think she’s probably as excited about the baby as you and Shizune are. And if I was asking around about you, first; it would be good training in gathering intelligence. And secondly; I’d be sure to dig up some actual dirt on you instead; to tease you with.”
“Like you don’t already do that without dirt,” Kakashi scoffed. “Tell me, Sasuke, what kind of dirt could you possibly get on me? I walk around reading an adult romance novel--”
“Smut,” Sasuke interjected with a smirk.
“--for all to see,” Kakashi continued as though the Uchiha hadn’t spoken. “The truth about Obito and Rin are common knowledge in the village now. What is there left that you could possibly get dirt on me from?”
“What sort of deformity you’re hiding with your mask?”
“I don’t have a deformity.”
“Prove it.”
“My face really is quite boring, Sasuke. I wouldn’t want to disappoint you like that.”
“My expectations of you couldn’t get any lower, so it’s impossible for me to be disappointed by you. And by the way, you shouldn’t be doodling henohenomoheji on that sheet of paper like that. It’s got to be filed with official records. You’re supposed to just sign it.”
“It’s my insignia; it’s as good as signing it.”
“That’s fucking childish. You’re an idiot.”
“So you keep saying, but I’ll have you know my IQ is at genius level.”
“So you’re an intelligent idiot, that doesn’t change the fact you’re still an idiot all the same. In fact, it makes you worse because you should know better.”
“I believe you’ll find the phrase is eccentric, not idiotic.”
“And I believe you’ll find it’s more commonly referred to as being mentally unstable,” Sasuke responded and Kakashi had to laugh in response.
However insulting it may have sounded; neither of them were serious. The mock arguments just amused them. Sasuke knew that being targeted in such manner reminded Kakashi of Obito, of how he’d been when they were teammates, the way Kakashi wanted to remember him. For Sasuke himself, the arguments were like with Naruto, except the comebacks were usually a lot more intelligent, despite his insistence on Kakashi being an idiot.
As they fell silent to get on with their workload Kakashi chuckled again and Sasuke briefly wondered if he’d pulled out his book to read instead. But a glance showed no book and he realised Kakashi was just amused from the discussion. Reading through missions, Sasuke found his attention caught in a manner of which ones he would like to take on, or what he knew for a fact would interest Naruto. And as he was helping with this job, which clearly bored the hell out of Kakashi, he wondered if he could maybe twist his former sensei’s arm into allowing some choice missions.
Sasuke had put one sheet of paper aside knowing Naruto would love it, and was looking at another mission. He noticed Kakashi stand up and move around the room but didn’t pay much attention as he was more focussed on the mission details, already calculating how long it would take to complete. It would be a good mission for the sake of something to do. Challenging, but quick, he could have it done on the same day. He wouldn’t be away from his wife for too long. It was perfect for him. A cup of tea was placed on the table next to him and Sasuke looked up to see Kakashi heading through to the other room with two more cups. He murmured his thanks before Kakashi was out of earshot and focussed on the mission request again. Deciding it really was perfect, he placed it with the one he’d picked out for Naruto and got on with what he’d originally been doing.
Sasuke glanced up when Kakashi sat down at the table again, a cup next to him too. For a moment he was tempted to teasingly comment on how domestic it was for Kakashi to just randomly serve tea to his wife and guests, but then he decided against it. He wanted to get his own way after all and Kakashi might be reluctant to agree on account of the favouritism. It would be prudent to play nice for the time being, even if their teasing each other was only a game. That thought almost went out the window though when he almost choked on his tea because of Kakashi. He’d been taking a drink of his tea and had spotted Kakashi doing the same out the corner of his eye, only to then realise the older man had removed his mask to do so. He didn’t even whip it back up when Sasuke turned his head to look. Sasuke wondered if Kakashi had maybe forgotten he was there.
“I just don’t feel like drinking through the mask,” Kakashi commented without looking up from the document he was currently reading. “It’s not exactly comfortable sitting around with any kind of damp clothing. Disappointed?”
Sasuke frowned for a moment before remembering the comments made earlier and shrugged. “Surprised,” he corrected. “I didn’t expect you’d take it off. As for the deformity thing, that was Naruto’s opinion. He figured you were hiding blimp lips or buck teeth.”
This time it was Kakashi who almost choked, though his was on laughter. “He thought what?” Kakashi asked, hitting his chest a couple of times.
“And since you seemed to be making such an effort to hide it; we figured he must be right about some sort of deformity. But you’re right, pretty boring. Do you need a hand over there, or are you breathing okay?”
“I’m fine,” Kakashi answered, trying to stifle his amusement. “Don’t tell him. It’s much more amusing to keep him in the dark and let him use his own imagination.”
“In other words; keep giving yourself chances to laugh at him. You’re quite cruel, you know. You’ve got a wicked sense of humour. Maybe that’s why we get along,” Sasuke mused aloud, smirking a little.
With two of them working on it, the pile of mission requests was sorted a lot faster than it would have been with only Kakashi doing it. “Thanks Sasuke,” Kakashi commented and started to gather up the scrolls and stacks of paper. “You really didn’t have to help out and I appreciate it. I probably would have been working late without your help.”
“I have a favour to ask,” Sasuke announced and Kakashi hummed inquiringly, looking up from sorting out the paperwork. “These two missions here,” Sasuke answered, holding up the two he’d set aside. “I want one, and I want you to give the other to Naruto.”
After a few moments; Kakashi held a hand out across the table, wanting to see the details for the missions himself before answering. Sasuke handed them over and waited, watching. It was surprisingly easy to read Kakashi right now. He saw the Hokage’s reluctance to show any favouritism, but then Kakashi glanced at the mounds of paperwork before setting the two sheets on the table to mark his approval, clearly deciding Sasuke had earned it. “Don’t make me regret this,” Kakashi commented as he held them back out for Sasuke to take.
“You won’t regret it. I’ll make sure to tell Naruto too,” Sasuke assured him, before heading through to let Sakura know he was going out but not to worry.
Kakashi drained his cup, pulling the mask back into place before he decided to finish up the paperwork entirely. All that was left was to deliver them to their appropriate places. He had Ūhei and Bisuke deliver the scrolls to the Missions Room and sent Bull and Guruko to take the requests for filing before seeing if the two women in the next room needed anything.
It was to be the first time that Sasuke got Kakashi to give him a first choice in mission, but certainly not the last and Kakashi wasn’t exactly thrilled at the idea of being played. Still, Sasuke cut down the paperwork he had to do and the company was good.
~*~
As the weeks rolled by, Sasuke spent less time on missions and more time at home, though Naruto had noticed the Uchiha got the missions that suited him best. It wasn’t fair that Sasuke got away with bribing Kakashi, with whatever tactic he’d been using, when Naruto couldn’t do the same. And Sasuke wouldn’t tell him how he’d managed to twist Kakashi’s arm either. Still, Naruto was determined to try, and thought he might try using a gift, like he’d done with Tsunade. He wondered what would work on Kakashi, since he’d only seen Kakashi get worked up over the Icha-Icha books, of which there would never be another one.
Treats had worked with Tsunade, so Naruto decided to try that and approached the Hokage’s office with some dango behind his back. Naruto opened the door and looked into the room. Kakashi was sitting at the desk with his head propped up on one arm as he went through a large book looking bored. There was a slim file next to him which Naruto knew to be information Sasuke had brought in the week before concerning a baby he’d brought back to the village and left in an orphanage. Naruto didn’t know much about the whole thing but Sasuke had asked Kakashi to keep tabs on the infant. “Hi, Kakashi-sensei,” Naruto greeted him brightly as he entered the room. Kakashi’s gaze met his briefly before dropping to the book again. “You look tired,” Naruto commented.
“I’m not sending you on a mission, Naruto,” Kakashi commented, before Naruto could even start.
“What?! Why not?! That is so unfair! Look, I even brought you a gift! I need a mission! Come on, Kakashi-sensei! I’ve been sitting around all week with nothing to do but train! I asked at the mission desk for something and they told me you said not to. So I thought I’d come and ask you directly. I’m not a little kid, I’ve saved the village; I can handle a mission. You know I can. Come on, Kakashi-sensei, please!” Naruto held out the dango to Kakashi.
“I don’t like sweets,” Kakashi commented and turned a page.
Naruto shoved the wrapped treat into his pocket realising it wouldn’t work. “I’ll be your best friend!” he tried and pouted when Kakashi started shaking with laughter. “Why the hell not then?!” Naruto demanded.
“We’re supposed to be starting the Chûnin exams again, the village’s stability has been restored and the stadium’s almost finished. We would have been starting today if we’d been ready, but it really wasn’t a priority. I’ve sent out word last week that we’re ready to start the first part now and Shikamaru’s taken over the rest of the preparations. I just thought you’d want to enter, and well, I used to be your sensei, so I figured I’d try find you a team to enter with and make sure you’re well rested for it.” Kakashi began to comment on possibly being wrong in his assumption and maybe it wasn’t really his place anymore, but Naruto cut him off before he could get the first word out, shouting his delight and launching himself over the desk to tackle Kakashi to the ground in an overzealous hug and earning a cry of surprise from the older man. He’d honestly thought Naruto had grown out of that sorta thing. “Don’t crush me,” Kakashi commented as Naruto let him up again. “You’re not supposed to tackle your Hokage, you know.”
Naruto laughed and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Sorry, I guess I got a little carried away.”
“Maa, at least you didn’t slobber on me this time,” Kakashi said as he picked up the chair and straightened out the desk to a semblance of order again. Naruto picked up the book which he’d sent flying and put it back on the desk. “I’m getting too old for this,” Kakashi muttered.
“You’re not old, Kakashi-sensei,” Naruto commented. “I’m only teasing when I say you are.” Kakashi looked at him in surprise for a moment before chuckling and ruffling Naruto’s hair. “So what kinda team am I gonna have? Everyone I graduated with already made Chûnin, except for Sasuke, but he skipped it because he made ANBU. Say, how come I didn’t make ANBU, Kakashi-sensei?”
“ANBU isn’t really your style, Naruto,” Kakashi shrugged before sinking into his chair again and looking at the book. “I really need to work out this team format soon,” Kakashi began, but paused and looked towards the door.
The door burst open to reveal Izumo, low on breath. “Hokage-sama, Tsunade-sama requests your presence in the hospital immediately.”
“What happened?” Kakashi asked, standing up again.
“She went into labour several hours ago,” Izumo answered.
“Why wasn’t I told sooner?” Kakashi asked, but then shook his head. “Forget it, this is wasting time.”
“I thought she wasn’t due to have her baby for about a week or two yet,” Naruto commented, just as Kakashi disappeared in a gust of wind and leaves, sending stacks of paper to the floor.
“The baby’s premature, but should be fine,” Izumo replied. “We’ve got Tsunade-sama after all.”
“That’s true,” Naruto mused. “Hey, I better get over there too! Kakashi-sensei’s about to be a dad and I wanna see his reaction!” Naruto ran past Izumo and left the building to make his way to the hospital.
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