A/N: Welcome to the first Naruto fanfic I ever thought of, but not the first I ever wrote. That would be this one's sister story, New Life. The main characters here appear in different form there. If anyone wants to see what a demon does in the real world, might be interesting.

The omake policy for this one is: very welcome. Feel free to suggest anything.

Shipping: Yes. Of all kinds.

Updates: This one is to be my control story. In New Life, I promised to update weekly, to see if having a schedule kept me writing at a good pace. Any experiment needs a control, so for this story I will NOT establish a schedule. Let's see what happens!

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The last foes were defeated or assimilated. Peace was spreading throughout the land. Shinobi of all nations were reluctantly saying their goodbyes to friends from nations long distant. Naruto was 17. The great war was over.

This, Kakashi decided, was as good as time as any to abandon them and start a new chapter in his own life.

Why did he decide this? Oh, his reasoning was quite simple. He had been needed. He'd sensed that he had been needed for something his entire life, something that required him to stay in Konoha, and so he'd stayed. That feeling had been steadily mounting ever since he'd gotten Team 7 assigned to him, and had reached its climax during the war, until it suddenly released itself and flowed away, never to be seen again after Naruto had successfully saved the world. It felt good to have a pupil of his shine so brightly, it felt good to see they were all grown up and no longer needing him, and it felt good in a forbidden way to consider what else he had left. A desire or need to stay among the villagers of Konoha was not part of that "else".

Why it was not, well, that would be harder to explain. Everyone in the village was kind. They were all good people. He would miss a great many of them, and considered all of them friends. He did not hold any ill will against the village that had driven his father to suicide, in fact that was okay. He'd settled that when Pain came through and turned the hidden Leaf into a conspicuous crater. He would have liked to stay in the village, continue living the life of a shinobi, except for the tiny insignificant little detail that he couldn't. It was time for him to really put some thought into what he wanted to do for the rest of his life, and that could not be done inside the confines of a village of ninjas. They didn't know it, but if he could have explained his decision to any of them he would have compared it to the need to separate oneself from one's parents at a certain age. Kakashi, the world-famous Copy Ninja, would have no shortage of happiness, friendship and comfort if he stayed, even with that title no longer applying. That wasn't what he really wanted or needed, though.

That was why he was home today pretending to clean his clothes, cheerfully keeping up an impression of a normal life in his house while he secretly packed everything he would need. That didn't amount to much - really just a tool pack (just in case), a book (that he didn't expect to read), as many containers of his companion's favorite brand of ramen as he could find to purchase, some hairties, and two squeaky bones. Maybe a third would be good actually; if any little pups or hatchlings decided to follow in their footsteps they would certainly need some method of communication. Kakashi decided to get four. Konoha squeaky bones were really good, and he didn't know if they would decline in quality or he would be unable to buy any in the future.

The plans were already set. He would bring the cloak of darkness tonight, get them both out of the village, get directions to the nearest hideout, go there, and hopefully get several hours' worth of sleep in before the sun rose and anyone realized anything. By the time any ANBU were sent out, heck, by the time the Hokage was even told, he planned to be laying traces around the entirety of Konoha in order to protect them if any threat arose, and from there to move to the furthest hideout that had a good library. A nice vacation was in order; perhaps he should keep an eye out for a decent volcano on the way.

That was when a knock sounded on his door. Kakashi dried his hands on the second-fluffiest towel he owned, lazily called out "I'm coming, I'm coming" when there was a second round of knocking, and actually pulled open the door a good 10-15 seconds later. He didn't stretch his opening of the door to almost a minute because of malice; it was just habit. The person on the other side of the door knew this, and sighed. It was Shikamaru. The boy genius looked at the masked genius eye to eye for maybe the first time, looked inside, conveyed how unimpressed he was with Kakashi's living conditions with a roll of his eyes, and proceeded to relay his message.

"Kurenai sensei and several of my class are getting together to host a celebration this evening, for the victory and for goo-gooing over her baby. Women. Anyway, they want to know if you'll come, since Sakura's forcing Sasuke to come and Kurenai sensei misses jonin-level company."

Kakashi smiled with his one visible eye, because he was still in the habit of wearing his headband that way, and mock-seriously asked, "Did they really admit to all that?"

"No, but it was obvious. What should I tell them?" Shikamaru's tone indicated displeasure at being the messenger boy, but his slight smile spoiled the effect. It felt good to celebrate with friends in a relaxed way, even though it did sound like a lot of girls would be there. Maybe he was getting more interested in that sort of thing?

Kakashi scratched his head and said "Yeah, I'll be there. No books allowed?"

"Yep. Kurenai sensei smiled when she brought up that rule. It was the kind of smile that sent shivers up everyone in the room. If I were you, I wouldn't even bring one."

"Awww…"

"She's got new-mom syndrome. My mom explained it when I asked why Kurenai sensei seemed a little off. It starts when the first baby is born - the body does some kind of chemical hypnosis, and suddenly you're convinced the world revolves around 'the baby'." Shikamaru sighed and mumbled, "I am so happy to not be born a girl."

Kakashi smiled like a shark underneath his mask and mentioned casually, "Well, that happens to new fathers too." He couldn't quite stifle a giggle at the expression on Shikamaru's face, and considered it worth it. Hey, the young had to learn how the world worked sometime.

"Now I'm hoping she rips you a new one, sensei. See you there." Shikamaru turned to leave.

Kakashi stopped giggling and asked, completely seriously, "Who forced you?"

Something indescribable happened to the mood between them. It turned suddenly from a humorous commiseration between two men into something more...well, something more like a discussion from during the war. It gained gravity, that's what happened. Shikamaru turned his head slightly, so that the point of his nose became visible but no more, and answered plainly "Asuma-sensei."

Kakashi turned red and glanced downwards for a moment. He had been thinking in the short term, but in the long term that was accurate. Asuma had asked his star pupil to look after the child while he was dying. That was not something to take lightly. He tried to think of something to relieve his mistake. "I think he would be very proud, Shikamaru, to see you take your responsibility so seriously."

It had the desired effect. Shikamaru turned back to the street and nodded almost imperceptibly. "Yeah. Well, I'm off. See you then, sensei."

Kakashi closed his door and leaned against it, feeling a draining sensation already. He knew full well it was possible to miss something that had not yet disappeared, he recognized completely that often the feelings before such an event were paradoxically worse than the feelings after, and yet it was a surprise that he should feel bad this early. Usually it was only shortly before committing some unpleasant thing that the worst feelings hit, but he had hardly even done anything. That didn't stop the feeling of loss from reaching him. He lifted his headband from his left eye and looked out with both eyes, as he had before. The sensation of 3-dimensional vision helped remind him of what would be there after. An ally. That was more than most beings in his position had, or had had in the past.

Kakashi took his weight off the door and stood up, considering his next moves. Of course, he would go to see Kurenai's baby and many of his friends and companions one last time. Then, the inevitable would happen. But before that, he suddenly resolved to leave a note. It would be only the right thing to do. A simple note, explaining that he needed to leave for some reason unrelated to any hostility toward the village and that he did miss everyone and would be looking after them, would hopefully provide some closure. It would also inform the ANBU of exactly what had happened to him so they could begin the pursuit immediately, and no one would be able to argue against designating him a missing nin. Worth it. They should know, no matter how inconvenient it may be for me. Having something left unresolved is the worst feeling in the world; just look at me and Obito. That settled his conscience.

That left just one question: Where exactly was this celebration Kurenai was holding?

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For the first time in a while, Kakashi actually left early for something. Of course, what he really did was leave on time when it was factored in the time he would have to spend searching for the place of celebration. He had briefly considered unleashing just enough of his true sensory power to get there easily, but nah. Repressing himself to that degree was what it took to really relate to those around him, to be as they were. It felt as right as the decision to leave a note when he decided to leave early instead, so he could spend his last hours in the village as a fellow human.

His first guess was Kurenai's house. Given the age of her baby, it would be a surprise if she brought the child to a public space. But when he got there, he saw no lights on although it was starting to get dark outside. Somewhere else then. His next guess was the barbecue house, or maybe the ramen stand. Some kind of food place. Nope and nope. As the sun settled more securely into the trees, he started to get desperate enough to consider asking someone, but just then he saw a light where there wasn't usually light. He quickly made his way over to the Konoha cemetery, with its rows of flat tombstones marking the bodies of those whose bodies could be recovered for burial. He noticed there was already partial construction for an expansion to the cemetery - practically a whole new wing. The thought occurred that there were enough dead to merit a second memorial stone. That was a depressing thought. The universe knew that his generation had had enough of mourning for fallen heroes who had been comrades. Kakashi hoped that if this generation did indeed take up that burden, it would be the last to do so. He started internally preparing to be disappointed anyway.

The light he had seen came from near Asuma's grave. How fitting.

The grass bent lightly under his footsteps as he snuck into the celebration. "Am I late?" he asked, right next to Kurenai's ear. Sakura flinched, but the intended target did not. She must have been expecting something like this. My last chance to prank a friend...gone. Kakashi pushed that aside and moved on, sitting in a clear spot on the edge of their little circle. "Mah, what did I miss?"

Kurenai brushed the baby's thin layer of hair over its ears with a smile, then turned. "Very little. You aren't late. Is something wrong, Kakashi?"

He heard the tease in her question. "Nah. Actually…" He gave her a look that hopefully conveyed a warning to prepare herself. "I heard a mention of Asuma."

Kurenai's eyes widened before she glared at Shikamaru. Shikamaru shot Kakashi a 'how dare you do this to me' look. Kakashi smiled back. They were ninjas. It was time to bring back some levity. Especially here where Asuma could perhaps hear them from Heaven, right?

The baby squeaked and started wriggling. Kurenai set the child down gently against her leg, where it turned vaguely in Shikamaru's direction. The boy took the baby with no visible hesitation. No; that wasn't quite correct. He was more of a man now, wasn't he? Since when did I start thinking like a grandpa?

No matter. Sakura smiled and looked like she was going to make a comment, but just then an uncharacteristically deep voice asked, "Am I late?" in a grave tone. Everyone jumped from hearing the unknown voice. It turned out to be Guy, or perhaps a very well-handled puppet wearing Guy's face and clothes.

No wonder nobody had recognized him. Kakashi chided, "Guy. It is inappropriate to behave so grimly at such a celebration. Look around," he added with a carefree sweep of his arm and cheerful tone in his voice. "You've got someone to introduce yourself to. I don't want my eternal rival to make a bad first impression, do I?"

Guy raised his eyebrows and looked at the baby. "So that's how it is...Yosh! I shall give this child a proper introduction to the strength of the Will of Fire!"

Sakura raised her hands pleadingly. "Guy sensei, we're not going to start with that." She looked to Kurenai for backup. "We've got to introduce him to the people first!"

Kurenai nodded. "That's right. This is a night for him to meet his new family." Sasuke shifted uncomfortably at that. Sakura smiled at him and held her arms out to take the baby from Shikamaru.

Guy nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, in order to understand the Will of Fire, one must first understand the village. Yosh!"

Kurenai looked up sharply. "He will not be taken on a full tour of the village, either."

Guy looked befuddled, as if he didn't have any idea what to do beyond that. Kakashi waved his hand to indicate a space beside himself, a gesture that would have been better performed from behind a book but oh well. Guy sat down and, following whispered instructions from Kakashi, tried his best not to make too much noise or disturbance.

In the meantime, Sasuke was looking at the child he now held with a contemplative look. Everyone there had some idea of what he might be thinking. Sasuke himself hadn't been very old when the concerns of the world had barged in and stolen his childhood. What kind of life would this little one have? Kakashi hoped his former student had gained enough sense to take this as a reason to protect the child. He watched a determined look settle into Sasuke's eyes. Thank goodness, everyone's going to be just fine.

Kurenai asked Sakura if she had any medically recommended advice to give. Kakashi took that as the cue that everyone was here and their little party could start. Shikamaru waved Sasuke over and began to either talk to him or threaten him, maybe both. That left himself and Guy to find something to do. Kakashi scratched behind his ear. Do what? Now that he thought about it, years of burying his face in a book while others talked seemed like a less than effective way to learn social skills. Ah well, nothing to do about that now. And in a way, he was grateful to Kurenai for forcing him out of that. Huddling in a corner was no way to spend one's last moment of easy happiness with old friends, was it?

That hurt. Kakashi smiled instead and pushed the hurt aside. Infinity stretched ahead of him. Huddling in a village wouldn't do him any favors, either. He turned to Guy and asked about the one thing remaining unsettled between them. "So, what's the score?"

Guy actually looked blank for a few seconds before his face brightened. Damn, the war must have taken a toll if he's even forgetting about the score. But brighten, his face did, and Guy eagerly pronounced the score. As of last count, he, Guy, had been one point in the lead. Then Guy grew thoughtful. The last count had been before the war. He wondered how to account for that.

Kakashi wondered, "Should we account for that? It seems like bad form to count saving the world as some kind of competition…"

Guy nodded. "Yes, we must set an example for the youthful generations. The fires of youth must never consume such things."

Kakashi thought some more, then saw a chance. "Say, Guy… Your students and mine are grown. The fires of youth are theirs now, not ours. What do you say we settle the score?"

Guy scoffed at the idea. "The fires of youth may die down, but they are never extinguished until we are resting next to our comrades in this ground. We must never give up!"

Kakashi sighed. "I don't mean to give up. I mean…" He thought of how to phrase what he meant so that Guy would understand. "I mean that our score is a kind of measurement of the fires of our youth, right? Why not leave it to the young to measure how much they are growing? We grandpas have no need to measure how much we decline."

Guy was shocked. "That's right…"

Kakashi delivered what he hoped would be the winning argument. "Besides, anyone who needs a number to keep them from giving up is not really lit with the fires of youth. I've learned that from watching you and Lee. Lee has no need to be pushed to train, does he?"

Guy grimaced. "Of course not!"

"I'm not that boy who hides in the corner away from people anymore, Guy. You can stop pushing me. I'll compete with you on your own terms now, the terms of not giving up even if we are told we should. Isn't that an improvement?"

Guy stared. "Kakashi…" Then he smirked. "Is this the student teaching the teacher?"

Kakashi gave him a stern look. "I regard the fact that he is able to do so as a commendation to my teaching skills." He held up a pinky. "Let's promise. To never losing the will to continue."

Guy linked his pinky with Kakashi's. "To never losing that will."

Kakashi smiled while something deep inside broke. I will never play janken or hold my breath with Guy again. If only he had been able to know when the last time was the last, could he have savored it more?

He heard Sakura mutter, "Uh oh." They unlinked their pinkies and turned back to find the rest of the gathering staring. Sakura looked between them and asked, "That doesn't mean anything bad, does it? The last time you two held one of your competitions Tsunade sama had to send someone to find you, and when they didn't she had to pay out of her own funds to replace those windows."

Kakashi waved a hand to reassure her. "Mah, mah, nothing like that. Tsunade sama doesn't have to worry at all."

Kurenai looked skeptical. "Are you sure?"

Guy gave her a thumbs up and a glittering smile. "Do not worry! We have promised not to engage in fruitless competition again! From now on, the fires of our youth will show themselves in the heat of battle and the grounds of the training fields!"

Several pairs of eyes widened at this announcement. Kakashi's lone eye also did so. He had not expected Guy to announce the end so proudly. But Guy didn't know it was the end, did he? Kakashi resolved to add that to his note. I'm sorry for not telling you it was the end.

As if it had some special sensory power, the baby began to cry. Kakashi was pretty sure it was coincidence and not psychic powers. Pretty sure. Kurenai took back her child and began to soothe it with quiet whispers of love. It hurt terribly to look at. Kakashi made himself hold onto every second.

Shikamaru looked like he didn't know whether to be relieved or worried. "Seems like everyone's got whatever they need to off their chest. Should we start the service now?" Kurenai looked up at him and nodded. Shikamaru stood up solemnly and walked away into the darkness.

Whether or not the others had been told about there being a service, they moved as one away from Asuma's gravestone. Kakashi stepped back with them. Shikamaru returned with flowers, a bunch for each of them. He also held a candle and had a picture tucked under his arm. He passed out the flowers to everyone else, keeping one extra bunch with him since Kurenai sensei had her arms occupied at the moment, then set the candle down on Asuma's gravestone. He lit the candle from one of the lanterns and set the picture of Asuma next to it on the stone. He adjusted the picture, changing its angle several times until the flickering light almost made Asuma's face seem alive. Asuma's bearded face smiled out at them from the picture, which must have been taken shortly before his last mission. In it, his ever-present cigarette dangled from his lips as he looked to the side of the camera, faintly amused at whoever took the picture. He relaxed with his arms spread out beside him to cover the back of a couch. If there was a way to take a picture of a personality, the taker of this photo had discovered it.

Shikamaru stepped back to join Kurenai sensei. Before silence could fully descend, there came the sound of grass crinkling in the darkness. Ino and Choji joined the party, both wearing their old earrings from their days in Team 10 and carrying large, yet tasteful bunches of flowers from the flower shop. They seemed to sense that they were just in time as they stopped and lowered their heads in memory. Silence fell over those assembled as they watched the flickering light play over Asuma's face. The baby fussed, making soft little mewling sounds, but nobody shushed it. The sounds seemed to add a bittersweet note to the occasion.

After a few minutes, Kurenai looked to Sasuke and gestured at the stone. Sasuke's cheeks turned red as he hesitantly made his way over and placed the flowers before Asuma's picture. He paused, seemed to decide it was alright, and whispered something to Asuma's grave before standing and rejoining the others. Kakashi wondered what his former student had on his mind this time as Sasuke stared at the stone, seemingly lost in thought.

Sakura went next, followed by Kakashi, then Guy. Ino, Shikamaru and Choji walked together to place their flowers. Ino's flowers went on the lower left corner, Choji's on the lower right, and Shikamaru laid his bunch a little in front of Asuma's stone in the center. He said some quiet words about the stability of a triangle, how no corner could exist without each of the others, and how they would always be Team 10. Ino and Choji closed their eyes to remember.

Finally, Kurenai stepped forward. Before he had walked forward to lay down his own, Shikamaru had given her the bunch of flowers she now walked up with. They were laid on Asuma's stone with everyone else's; they were not the most important thing she brought. Kurenai set her child carefully on the ground next to Shikamaru's flowers, checking to see if the baby could see Asuma's face well from this angle. All seemed to be satisfactory.

As she supported the child, including holding its head up so the baby could see the picture, it cooed in a questioning tone. The baby's arms reached out vaguely in Asuma's direction. Kurenai lifted him over the flowers so he could touch the photo. His little hands sprawled across Asuma's nose and mouth, one finger reaching up to his eye. Kurenai's back was to them, but her tears were audible in her voice as she whispered, "That's your father. He loved you very much."

The baby continued to clumsily reach out, then yawned. Kurenai took him back into her arms as she continued to kneel before Asuma's grave. Ino and Choji drew in closer beside her. Shikamaru looked back at Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi and Guy, and lifted his hand in a careless 'do what you want' gesture. Sakura and Sasuke looked at each other, exchanged facial expressions, and ultimately decided to leave Team 10 and Kurenai to their privacy. Kakashi and Guy stayed for a few minutes longer, because they had been Asuma's comrades and teammates once, then departed without a sound.

Kakashi felt some control start to slip, and held it fast. Even through the haze of pain that threatened to come spilling out as tears, his resolve did not waver. He would not open his senses and purge the darkness a single centimeter before he passed the walls of Konoha. The streets and seconds disappeared so that in no time at all, Kakashi was standing before his own front door.

He grabbed his prepared pack with numb fingers, fingers which inexplicably flared as if they were on fire when he picked up a pen. The next moment Kakashi had pen to paper and the words simply spilled onto the page.

Dear Everyone,

I love you and would love to stay with you forever, but unfortunately I cannot. I'm sure I can't make it clear what I mean, but I need to give you something. It is this: I've outgrown this village. I can't stay, in the same way that no child can stay within the confines of their parent's life forever. I have something that no one else knows about, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry that the me you've loved is only a part of me. It's the only part of me I've had so far. There's more, but it is too dangerous. I must leave this village to find it, and I will never be able to come back once I do. I've always known I didn't belong here, but I stayed for you. Now I leave for you too. I miss you.

PS Guy, I'm sorry I didn't tell you it was the end.

PPS Kurenai, Shikamaru, thank you for giving me a chance to remember the past before I dive into such a far-away future. It was perfect. I'm sorry.

PPPS Don't worry for me more than your bonds force you to. I won't be alone.

Kakashi's handwriting got steadier as he went on, as the tears fell to the page and soaked in. They lent authenticity to what he was trying to say, the words that he was sure nobody he was leaving this note for would be able to understand properly. Perhaps with proof like this soaked into the paper, they could understand the feelings he was trying to convey some day. Some day when he was so far removed from who and what he was now that this part of his life would seem to be a strange dream. Perhaps it was a dream. Dreams always felt so real when you were having them. At any rate, his feelings were real. That mattered.

Kakashi took a last big inhale of the scent of the space he had called home for years, just before he opened the window. In the residential areas of Konoha, the risk was too high that he would be seen if he left the normal way. The one and only thing he would stop holding back from doing before he left Konoha was this. Kakashi took the darkness and held it around him, a perfect cocoon that would keep him from being seen, scented, or heard. He released his hold on the window, and let go.

His feet flew as the darkness bent around him. He refused to allow his senses to release to compensate. He would just have to do this blind. Quickly he traveled through the village, soon reaching the outskirts.

The security around this area was impossible to penetrate for anyone else. With the darkness around him he passed through leaving no trace. Kakashi knew the layout of these cells, dropped his darkness cloak just enough to see into them. When he found who he was looking for, he unwound the darkness and settled it around them both.

His companion was moderately impressed. "Marvelous technique you have here," Orochimaru muttered. "Are you ready?" Mid-run might not seem the best place to ask this, but it was for Kakashi. He nodded and swallowed. They ran directly up the wall surrounding Konoha village, and leaped off.

As his feet left the comforting smooth surface of the outer wall and entered the wild and free air, Kakashi allowed his natural perception to extend outwards. The night exploded into clarity, every nook and cranny, every line and curve utterly, absurdly detailed. Every face and edge of his environment could be felt in his soul. For the first time since he was a baby, Kakashi could perceive everything. The forest beneath him was a beacon of light, a distant shrine the deepest darkness. The air was alive. He was...

Oh.

Flight.

Home.

Several guards on duty that night would be required to report for biweekly mental health checkups for months after they reported a dragon taking flight from the west wall.

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A/N: I am currently at the part of the war arc where Madara just cancelled the Edo Tensei, Obito's still alive and trying to keep Black Zetsu from getting his Rinnegan, and Naruto's (seemingly) dying because the Kyuubi just got ripped out and swallowed by the statue. That is all I have seen. The rest of my information comes from spoilers I've seen on Facebook and elsewhere. Pardon any minor inaccuracies I may have in this chapter.