I still don't own Naruto. Maybe I'll get it for Easter?
A squirrel started, shocked away from its search through the autumn leaves by a mostly black blur. Small streaks of gold and silver broke up the monotony. The figure stilled, revealing a one-eyed teen holding a small child.
Hatake Kakashi set down in the clearing, letting Naruto walk around on his own feet for a change. One silver eye checked the sun's position. Satisfied that they were still making good time, he lowered his pack to the ground. Crouching next to it, he began digging through it. Naruto looked on in curiosity, and then puzzlement as Kakashi pulled his hand out, revealing a bottle.
"Come here, Naruto." The shinobi beckoned. The toddler warily complied, eyeing the bottle.
"Don't worry. It's just some temporary hair dye." Kakashi informed him, amusement clear.
"Why do we need that?" The little boy asked, still watching the cylinder of brown liquid in his teacher's hand.
"Not we. You."
"Why am I the one that has to have gunk in my hair? That's not fair!" The blonde protested, covering his hair in a feeble attempt to protect his sunshine locks. He jumped away from his caretaker.
"Naruto…" The teen growled, snatching a wrist, and trying to drag the wiggling boy closer.
"Why are you making this so difficult?" Kakashi sighed in exasperation, after a few minutes of struggle. He let the boy's arm go, giving up for the moment.
"I don't want you to do anything to my hair." Naruto pouted, staying just outside of the older male's reach once released.
"It'll wash out after a few days. It's not going to stay brown." Kakashi reassured him.
"I still don't want to do anything to change it. It…" The child's voice dropped to a mumble.
"Huh? What did you say?" The silver-haired jounin leaned in closer.
"You'll think it's stupid." Naruto whined, not meeting his sensei's eye.
"I promise not to laugh." A right hand was raised in accordance.
"It reminds me of this man I see. In my dreams. He looks kinda like me, and smiles at me." Naruto admitted. 'It's not like I'm lying. I do see Dad in my dreams sometimes.'
Kakashi paused at the unexpected response, his single eye widening a fraction in surprise. Shaking himself from his stupor, he cleared his throat.
"That leaves me in a pickle, Naruto. You may not want to dye your hair, but you need something to disguise yourself." The jounin stood up from his crouch.
"Why?"
The silver haired nin could have groaned at the eternal child's question.
"Because, it was one of the conditions that Sandaime-sama set to go on this trip." He answered.
"Why?" A silvery eyebrow ticked.
Naruto was internally grinning, keeping the façade of the curious child externally intact. He loved pushing his sensei's buttons.
"Naruto…when you get older, you'll learn that there are some people you don't question their orders. Your 'Jiji' is one of them. You're either leaving this clearing a brunette, or going back to Konoha as a blonde." Kakashi stated, his irritation beginning to show through.
"Why do you have to use that yucky stuff? Can't you just use that henge thing that I read about?"
"First, the henge is only an illusion, meaning it's easily disrupted. Second, a henge can only be cast around the user's own person. Since you're still training on how to access your chakra, you can't make your own henge." The scarecrow explained. He inched closer to the blonde.
"There's not something else you can do?" Naruto begged, on the verge of whipping out the tears.
The older boy, purposely avoiding meeting those baby blues, crept closer, kept his eye on the boy's torso. He caught a glimpse of Naruto's bellybutton. The nin stilled.
"Wait here." Kakashi ordered. He blurred over to his pack. A small pile of things began to grow as he searched through the bag. Spare clothes, extra kunai pouches, a first aid kit, a teddy bear…
'Wait. What?' Naruto looked at the bedraggled bear sitting innocently against the edge of the pile. 'Why on earth would he have this with him?' Naruto wondered as he nudged the stuffed animal with his toe.
"Here we go!" The teen finally exclaimed. In his hand was a scroll. Naruto arched a golden brow in question.
"You're going to wrap me up like a present?" The boy hazarded a guess.
"Ouch!" Naruto rubbed his head while he glared up at his sensei, who was holding the offending document in his hand.
"What was that for?"
"For being a smart-aleck. Now, take of your shirt, and lie down on the grass." Kakashi ordered, as he unfurled the scroll. "Now!" He repeated, seeing the child dawdling.
Naruto complied, taking off his dark blue shirt, and laying it down so he at least could lay down in comfort. A poof of smoke alerted Naruto to the appearance of items from the scroll. He turned his head to see his sensei holding an assortment of brushes and ink.
"What are those for?" The child asked, eyeing the thick black ink.
"Since you won't let me anywhere near you with hair dye, this is the next best thing. A seal." The dog summoner explained.
"You know sealing?" This new bit of information surprised the tiny blonde. Kakashi chuckled.
"I was bound to pick a thing or two, my sensei being who he was. Lay down on your stomach."
"It's not going to hurt, is it?" Naruto asked as he complied, his voice small, and muffled from underneath his arms. His experience with seals had mostly been painful. Having never experienced this particular seal, he didn't know what to expect.
"It might sting a little bit. Just think of it as a sunburn." His sensei comforted him.
"That's cold!" Naruto yelped, as he felt a damp cloth run across his back.
"It's just an alcohol wipe. I'm cleaning off where I'm going to put the seal. When it comes to fuuinjutsu, it's better to be safe than sorry. Any foreign matter could have affected the seal. Maybe changing your hair color forever. I wonder how pink would suit you…" The shinobi mused.
"Sensei…that's not funny…" Naruto pouted, as he watched the grass in front of him.
Kakashi laughed at his student's reaction, unscrewing the cap to the ink well.
"Hold still, or we're going to find out real soon. I'm going to be starting to draw it, so don't move." He instructed, bringing the ink-laden brush down to the blonde's back.
Naruto shifted minimally, but not enough to throw the brush. He fought the urge to giggle like mad as the brush seemed to find all his ticklish spots. Kakashi tucked away each little flinch for later.
Within minutes, the seal was complete. Kakashi cleaned out his brushes with some water from his canteen and sealed away his supplies. Satisfied that the ink was dry, he helped the boy into a sitting position.
"Ok, now to activate it. Remember how we've been working on moving your chakra around your body?"
Naruto nodded.
"Good. I want you to concentrate your chakra around your back, right where I'm touching."
The boy complied, as Kakashi could feel the energy swirling beneath the surface of the skin.
"Excellent. This might be a little harder. I want you to push your chakra out from there, like your just letting it rise to the surface." He instructed.
Naruto carefully let his chakra rise. Keeping it level like that was still difficult for him. Finally, Naruto felt a sting as the chakra activated the seal. He winced.
"Did it work?" The toddler asked.
"See for yourself."
Naruto tugged a lock of his hair into his field of vision, and saw a rich chestnut brown come into view.
"Yatta!" He exclaimed, dancing around for a bit, before the slight sting in his back made him slow down.
"Now that that's taken care of, we should head on our way. Grab your shirt." The Cyclops began repacking his things. Naruto pulled his shirt back on, careful of dragging the material across the sensitive area.
"Ready?"
"Ready, Sensei." Naruto replied.
"You probably shouldn't call me that outside the training room, Naruto." Kakashi advised.
"Ok, Kakashi-nii," Naruto beamed. The one-eyed jounin paused, feeling his heart expand at the sound. An answering smile spread across the hidden lips.
Picking the smiling boy up in his arms, mindful of the seal, he hitched him over his shoulders, and headed out of the clearing.
0o0o0o0
Two figures were illuminated by the flickering firelight. A whiskered face was imitating the fish staked to roast next to the flames. The masked youth with him was laughing at his antics.
A quick poke found the fish to be done. Kakashi carefully took them away from the fire to cool. Reaching into his mess kit, he fished out a plate to serve their dinner on.
"Nngaaah!"
Kakashi whirled around, kunai at the ready, to see Naruto waving one hand frantically at his tongue, hanging from his mouth, and the other holding a fish on a stick. White flesh was showing from a crescent shaped bite mark.
"Ah wah huhry?" The boy tried to say, realizing he had an audience.
Kakashi shook his head, a slight smirk on his lips as he replaced the kunai.
"Here, this should help. Slowly." He instructed, passing the boy the canteen of water. Naruto greedily grabbed it, and began to down the cool liquid, hoping to give his poor tongue some relief. Trickles made their way down his face, creating dark spots on his shirt, before he finally handed it back to his mentor.
"Better?"
Naruto nodded.
"Next time, wait. Patience is a virtue after all." The jounin sagely said.
"Yeah, yeah…" The little brunette pouted.
"Think you can try eating some, now that it's cooled?" Kakashi asked, offering a plate of the fish to him.
Naruto took the plate, and carefully began picking at the now pleasantly warm fish. His teacher watched in amusement, as he tried to eat the fish while avoiding irritating the tender flesh of his tongue.
Naruto eyed the offending fish on his plate, as he contemplated some form of retribution for his sensei laughing at him. He snuck a glance at the teen.
"Hey, no fair!" The child cried out at seeing a bare fish skeleton. Kakashi smiled at him, the mask firmly in place.
"What's not fair?" The masked shinobi asked, head quirked in puzzlement.
"You…the fish…mask…UGH! How can you eat without taking your mask off?" The child exclaimed in frustration. Naruto had been trying for the last few weeks to catch his brother figure without the mask, unsuccessfully, of course.
"Years of practice."
Naruto pouted, but returned to his dinner.
The fire cracked, burning down as the night wore on. Sparks flew up as Kakashi added another log to the blaze.
"Kakashi-nii?" A young voice broke the stillness.
"Yes, Naruto?"
"Why do you wear it?"
"Huh?" The older youth glanced up, surprised at the sudden question.
"The mask. Why do you wear it?" Naruto repeated. For as long as he had known the legendary nin, he had never understood his reasoning for hiding his features.
Kakashi jerked in surprise, pausing for a moment, then continued to tidy up camp for the night, pondering how to answer the boy, if at all.
A few minutes passed as Kakashi began unrolling the sleeping bags, and washed the dishes.
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want." Naruto whispered, sensing the discomfort that he had put his teacher in. He changed into his pajamas, and crawled into the smaller sleeping bag.
Kakashi sighed. One hand clutched his shirt in front of his chest, while he glanced at his sensei's son with his own grey eye. "I'll tell you sometime, just…not now. It's getting late; you should be heading to sleep. I'll be right there once I check the perimeter."
Naruto snuggled into the warm covering. He had seen the hidden pain still buried in those eyes. Guilt twisted his insides at having dredged that feeling up from where it had been buried.
Not long after that, Naruto noticed the glow of the fire dampen from behind his closed lids. The warm glow barely illuminated the dark clearing. He heard slight movement as Kakashi laid himself down to sleep.
Kakashi watched the stars, unable to fall asleep. He played with the chain beneath his shirt as he thought back on the years he had hidden behind the mask. It had been so long since he'd first donned the black cloth. It had been nearly ten years since anyone currently living in Konoha had seen his face. It was just habit now to pull it on in the morning.
He was torn from his introspection by a nudge at his side. He glanced down to see a mop of dark hair snuggled into his side. He smiled fondly at the boy before curling around him, pulling him closer. Perhaps there were better things to think about now.
0o0o0o0
Sunlight broke through the surrounding trees, waking Naruto up from a decently restful sleep. His back still twinged every now and then where the seal was, but it was much better than the previous day.
'Thank Kami for mom and Kyuubi.' Naruto thought as he changed out of his pajamas. 'Speaking of which, I should probably pay the fu…guy a visit sometime soon.'
While his visits with Kyuubi had been constant while still an infant, they had waned in frequency in the last year. The increased human contact brought about by his training with Kakashi lessened the need to depend on the ancient being as an anchor for his sanity. Having others see him as more intelligent than the average toddler helped too.
Naruto grinned. His plan had worked out better than he could have ever thought. At least, for the moment. Save one Hyuuga Hizashi from the executioner's blade: check. Pull Hinata from her shell: check. Engage in a formerly dubious friendship with one waterfowl hairstyled Uchiha: check. He even got Itachi to give him a shot. So much changed, and he's only just reaching his third birthday!
"Hey, kid, come here." A voice called, pulling him from his reverie.
Naruto perked up, and saw his sensei holding some small rods. Curious, he quirked an eyebrow at his teacher. He had never seen those before, even in his past life.
"I told you that we were going to do some training on this trip, so I better keep my promise." Kakashi explained. A wide grin split the younger's face.
"These," Naruto's sensei held up the rods, "are to help channel chakra."
"Huh? But I thought you gotta start with leaves? That's what I see the academy kids doing."
"Probably, but that's just the route that works for most students, since they don't have a lot of chakra to begin with. You, on the other hand, are special." Kakashi gently poked his charge in the stomach to emphasize his point.
Naruto eyed Kakashi warily. 'I'm pretty sure Jiji doesn't want anyone to tell me about my tenant yet…'
"You probably have about the same amount of chakra as someone four times your age, if not more. While that will be lots of help later on, it's a problem for you right now. Have you ever played with the garden hose?" Kakashi asked.
"Um…I've seen some other kids do it." The boy answered.
"Hm…what about that stream in the woods? Remember how, in spring, the water nearly reached the bridge? It was causing the bridge to shake because of how fast it was going." The teen tried explaining it in a different way.
Naruto nodded, clearly remembering thinking that the bridge was going to be swept away any second.
"When we passed across it yesterday, was it still like that?" Kakashi questioned, leading the boy to an answer. The chestnut hair whipped back and forth as Naruto vigorously shook his head in the negative.
"What did it look like?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto thought about it for a minute. "It was slow. There wasn't very much water in it. It was barely moving any of the old leaves around."
"Exactly." The jounin praised the child's answer. Naruto ducked his head slightly, still not used to the recognition for such simple things, like answering a question correctly.
"Your housemates, like most academy students, are kinda like the stream yesterday. Think of chakra like water. They don't have much of it, so it just trickles around. To move any large amounts of it, they would have to use a lot of effort. You are like the creek in spring. You have so much chakra that getting it to move won't be the problem. Getting it to move where and when you want it to will be, though. That's where these rods come into play." Kakashi handed Naruto one of the smooth dark rods.
"What am I supposed to do with it?" Naruto asked, turning the rod around in his hands.
"First thing's first. Take a seat. Start moving your chakra where I say." He instructed.
After a few minutes of internally circulating his energies, Kakashi told him to gather it near his hands.
Satisfied, the jounin gave him one of the rods to hold.
"Wrap your hands around it. Closer. As close as you can get it. There. Now, try moving your chakra between your hands. Right to left." Kakashi watched as Naruto, eyes closed in concentration, attempted to comply with his teacher's instructions. On the fifth try, he was successful. Naruto looked up with a grin, awaiting the next step.
"Nice job, kiddo. Move your hands a little bit apart, now try and get it to go through the rod in the same way." Kakashi watched, his eye steadily widening in surprise as the dark metal began to gain a bluish hue. He would have bet anything that if he were to uncover his sharingan, there would be a miniature sun of chakra between Naruto's hands.
'I wish I would have known about this one earlier. It's a lot less painful than falling from trees…' Naruto mused, still working on the exercise.
Before long, the sun had risen to its highpoint in the autumn sky. Kakashi glanced at the now slightly tired child. He snorted. Any other child his age, and they would be flat on the ground, gasping for breath. Not this little chakra monster.
"That's enough for today. We still have to cover some ground before we stop for the night." He informed the boy.
A quick lunch of cold fish, and the two were setting out. This time, Naruto was walking hand in hand with his mentor. Occasionally, the little temporary brunette darted ahead, but always within sight of his temporary caretaker.
By the time Kakashi set up camp for the night, Naruto was almost ready to fall asleep in his arms, having walked almost the entire day on his own. After a quick supper, Kakashi tucked Naruto into his sleeping bag. He watched as the boy slumbered on, not a care in the world. Like it should be.
0o0o0o0
The next two days brought much of the same routine, as they headed to their destination. Training in the morning, slow travels in the afternoon. Kakashi got to know the boy much better as they walked. Naruto was energetic, mischievous, but very bright and insightful beyond his years. The perfect balance between his parents. The thought brought a bittersweet smile to Kakashi.
"If only they could see you now," He mumbled under his breath, as he watched the brunette in amusement. The little boy was quite the sight in the mornings. Hair sticking up from all sorts of angles.
"Huh?" Naruto groggily stirred. Still half-asleep, he attempted to sit-up, then gave up altogether, and tried to crawl back under his sleeping bag.
"I guess you don't want any special birthday pancakes, then." Kakashi sing-songed.
Naruto lay there for a second, then the words registered. His eyes snapped open. The brunette struggled to get out of the sleeping bag. Kakashi chuckled at the boy's situation before figuring that he better help out before Naruto hurt himself. He didn't want to meet Kushina on the other side if her son died because of camping equipment. Kakashi shuddered at the thought.
"Hold still, Naruto." The cyclops ordered. Within minutes the bouncing boy was seated next to the fire, watching the pan with his breakfast on fry away.
After breakfast, Kakashi questioned the wisdom of giving the kid sugar, since he was now wired from all the syrup he had poured on the pancakes. 'Oh well…'
"Come on, let's get packed up." The ANBU started putting out the campfire and other assorted tasks.
"What about training?" Naruto questioned.
"Change of plans for today," was all Kakashi said, leaving the young container to wonder what his sensei had planned. Said sensei quickly looked away, not sure whether to laugh or sigh at the suspicious look in his student's cerulean eyes.
"Why aren't you wearing your hitai-ate?" Naruto carefully asked, taking in the plain clothes, and simple strip of cloth that Kakashi had wrapped around his head. A worn, but well cared for scarf covered the lower portion of his face.
The Yondaime's student did sigh at that. How did a child get so cautious at the age of three?
"I promise you'll like it. Get changed while I finish cleaning up, then we can head out."
By midafternoon, the pancakes had worn off. A loud rumble sounded from the boy's stomach.
"Can we stop yet? I'm starving!" Naruto whined.
"Almost there. Want to ride instead? We'll get there quicker." Kakashi offered. With a nod, he shifted the now three year old into his arms, and headed into the trees.
0o0o0o0
Kakashi gracefully leapt to the ground when they reached the top of the hill. In the distance was a quaint little village. Even from this far, Naruto could see the colorful flags, and hear the noise of the gathered crowds. He nervously shifted in his teacher's arms.
"What's going on there?" He softly asked.
"They're having a festival, Naruto."
"Like the Memorial Festival?" Naruto mumbled, still not sure if he liked this idea.
Yuuka had tried to take him out last year to see the fireworks. 'Tried' being the key word. After the first few flying projectiles of rotten fruit, she had spirited him back to the orphanage, where they spent the night in his room, watching the fireworks from behind the glass.
"Not exactly. The Memorial Festival is held to honor the sacrifice of the Yondaime and the other shinobi who gave their lives on the night of the Kyuubi attack. As far as I know, Konoha is the only village to do so. This is just a plain old harvest festival. All these little patches around the outskirts are fields, and the occasional orchard. They're celebrating because they've had a good crop of fruits, vegetables, or whatever they grow. It's their time to have fun before winter, and we're going to join them." Kakashi smiled. "They're having a birthday party for you without even knowing." He teased.
Naruto just stayed where he was, watching the village.
"Hey, get that look off your face. That's no way to look on your birthday." Kakashi urged him.
"They're not going to throw stuff at me?" Naruto finally asked, quietly.
"So that's what's got you in a twist." Kakashi set Naruto down on the ground, and got on one knee to look him in the eye.
"Naruto, nothing is going to happen to you here. I'm going to make sure that you have the best birthday ever. After all, that's my job as a big brother." Naruto was pulled into a hug by Kakashi. "Now, let's go get some lunch. There's something I think you'll love that I don't think you've had before."
As they walked into town, the myriad of sights and sounds had Naruto twisting his head this way and that to take them all in. Seeing no one doing anything but taking the cursory glance at the newcomers, he allowed himself to relax. Suddenly, Naruto's nose twitched. He took a deep breath in.
Kakashi was just about to talk to the owner of a fruit stand, when he found himself being dragged along by the hand. Naruto was on the tantalizing familiar scent like a bloodhound on a scent trail. Poor Kakashi was just able to keep himself on his feet. A few passers-by chuckled at the duo. Thankfully, Naruto finally paused. Kakashi looked up to see what had grabbed his attention.
'Must be in the genes.' He mused.
"I guess I didn't need to ask. You found it for us. Let's go get some ramen." He smiled.
Naruto didn't need to be told twice. Quick as a wink, he flew across the street, and launched himself on the stool, Kakashi following at a more sedate pace.
"Well, what do we have here?" The kindly looking ramen chef turned to see his new customers. "What's your name, young one?" The man asked, wiping his hands off on the towel tucked in his apron. Naruto cast a questioning look over at Kakashi.
"This is my little brother, Takashi. He's turning three today, so I thought I'd treat him to some ramen for lunch." Kakashi said, easily intermingling truth and tale.
"Happy Birthday, Takashi-chan!" The man boomed, sincerity shining from his smile. Naruto couldn't help but relax in the man's presence. "Now, what can I get you?"
"Two chicken ramen, please." Kakashi ordered. The large man quickly set the noodles to boil. With the threads of goodness cooking, he turned to his customers.
"I haven't seen you around here before. Are you here for the festival or just passing through?" The chef asked them.
"A little of both actually. Takashi's never been to one before, so I thought I'd bring him to the one tonight. It's good timing. We're on our way to relations that live in a village a couple days travel from here."
"Your ma and pa picking up supplies then?" The salt and peppered cook questioned.
Naruto squirmed. Kakashi took over once again.
"I'm afraid not," He answered, letting a bit of depression slip into his tone. "It's just us two, but we do alright, right Takashi?" The nin mussed his traveling companion's hair.
"Nii-san!" Naruto whined, trying to knock away the bothersome hand.
"Er…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories." The now slightly red chef apologized.
"No harm done. Just me and him for almost three years. He doesn't even remember them," Kakashi finished, melancholy seeping through into his voice.
"At least he's got you." The cook responded. He turned to check the noodles. A slightly uncomfortable silence descended. A bored Naruto began toying with the bottle of some sort of seasoning to the side of the stand. The large man moved about the small kitchen, and soon, returned with two steaming bowls of ramen.
"Dig in, boys!" He encouraged.
Naruto just gazed at it in reverence, blue eyes nearly tearing up from the sheer awesomeness of the dish before him. He grabbed a set of chopsticks, and tore into the bowl. The noodle maker laughed at the display. Having tiny hands did not bode well for him. At all. Within moments, Naruto set down the now empty bowl. The tiny brunette was startled from his temporary haze of contentment by a flash from his side. He looked to see the source, and found his sensei holding a camera, and then safely secreting it away.
"Why'd you do that?" Naruto pouted.
Kakashi didn't answer. Instead, he reached over and pulled a noodle from Naruto's hair. Then a piece of chicken. And another noodle, until a small pile of ramen ingredients formed in front of the boy.
"I think you need more practice using chopsticks." Kakashi teased him, barely concealing his mirth.
The chef, on the other hand had no problem, and was heartily laughing.
"Anyone who enjoys ramen that much deserves another bowl. My treat, consider it a birthday present." He said, placing another carefully in front of the child.
"Try to keep it either in the bowl or in your mouth this time." The silver haired teen laughed.
Naruto cutely scowled at the youth before digging into his second bowl, this time at a much slower pace, as to fully enjoy the rich flavor of the soup.
When the bowl was empty, Kakashi pulled out some coins to pay for their meal.
"Don't worry about it. It's on the house. I haven't had this much laughter in a long time. Have a good time at the festival, and many happy returns, young Takashi." The older man wished Naruto.
"Thanks, old man." He waved, before hopping off the stool and into the street.
"Thank you, sir." Kakashi said, with a slight bow of his head to show his appreciation, before heading off to keep a watch on Naruto.
0o0o0o0
The disguised Konoha residents meandered through the festival. Here and there, stopping to play a few games. Naruto gathered quite a crowd at one booth.
Mutterings of awe at the skill of the child passed through the crowd as the chestnut haired boy threw another ball at the target. It hit the stack of sake bottles just to the left of center, causing the left hand of the tower to collapse. Naruto grinned at the small amount of applause that he garnered.
"Remember rule number three?" Kakashi finally reminded him, leaning over to whisper in his ear.
"Hehe…he…oops?" Naruto gave him a wide smile, as he replaced the ball onto the counter.
"Let's go." Kakashi sighed.
"One sec." Naruto scanned the racks of prizes before pointing to a large toad in the corner. "That one, please."
The attendant swiftly unclipped the stuffed animal, and handed it to the boy. A few giggles sounded at the sight of the young child being dwarfed by his prize.
"Want me to carry it?" The teen offered.
"I got it." Naruto piped up, partially muffled by the green fuzz that was invading his mouth. He wrestled with it for a moment before finally getting a one armed grip on it. The disguised blonde fought against a yawn, trying to cover it up. Kakashi, seeing this, decided to head back to the room he had rented earlier in the day for the pair.
They headed down a street full of inns and eating establishments. Raucous laughter drifted from the doorways of those who were serving drink to their guests at that hour. Young couples promenaded down the lane, enjoying their romance by lantern light. Small groups of friends gathered around, telling stories and boasting about their summer adventures. Kakashi deftly navigated them through the busy streets.
Kakashi felt Naruto tug his hand out of his grasp. He paused, and waited while Naruto adjusted his arm around his new friend. The undercover jounin glanced around at his surroundings. His attention was caught by a group of girls fawning over a trio of brawny youth. A silver eye narrowed. He edged closer, listening in on their conversation. An uneasy feeling settled in his stomach. He knew that accent. Had heard it many times while having threats directed at him in battle. Kakashi's heart began to beat faster. The tall, lean youth was bragging about some fight or other. Judging from the vagueness of the details, it was probably from a mission. If he was right, these men held no love for his departed sensei, nor would they look kindly on his son.
Having heard enough, the one-eyed ANBU edged his way back out of the circle. He glanced back to where his charge had been, and found nothing.
"Shit."
0o0o0o0
Naruto felt his arm getting uncomfortable wrapped around the neck of the toad. He tugged his hand out of the larger grip of his sensei. The tired boy wrapped both arms around the faux amphibian's belly, locking hands together, and then continued in the direction that he knew Kakashi was leading him in.
Naruto was more than ready for some sleep, truth be told. Tonight had been one of the most fun nights in his life, in both this and the former timeline. He'd rarely had the time to just enjoy such a gathering without any glares or mutterings behind hands.
The Uzumaki heir trod down the street, pausing to yawn every so often. He vaguely recognized the buildings, so he supposed that he was heading the right direction.
Suddenly, he felt himself pushed to the ground, as someone ran into his side, spilling their drink on him. He cried out as a sharp pain radiated from his back, right where the seal was. Tears gathered at the edges of his lids.
"Watch where you're going, you little brat!" A slurred voice yelled.
Naruto cracked his eyes open to see a familiar blonde head of hair over a tattooed forehead.
A/N: Thanks for putting up with the slow update. Four concerts in two weeks does not bode well for free time. Musical is getting into gear too, so there go my weekends.
I had hoped to have this out for Christmas, but alas, distractions .
I hope you had a wonderful holiday season. Back to the grindstone of work and school! I at least have a new toy to play with. It goes to show how nutty I am that a practice violin is a toy to me, lol.
Thanks to everyone who reviewed, alerted and favorite! It's humbling to have so many people read my little drabbles. *bows*
Special thanks to Tora, Mokimo, and Le Diosa for being sounding boards and for the great feedback and encouragement they've provided me with.
Happy New Year!
Soprano-in-Waiting