Chapter: 23

He's been sulking ever since we found Gato's head. Sakura studies her teammate's back, wondering if there's something he knows that she doesn't. Why else would he be acting so standoffish after they've come so far when they'd finally started getting along at the beginning of their mission?

She sighs, downtrodden. Had she done something to set him off? She thought them past that stage in this relationship. Sakura pauses 'cause of the hand on her shoulder, glancing up into the one-eyed mask over Narumi-sensei's face. "Leave him be," she chides softly, ruffling her hair. "He has to make a difficult choice. There is some genin who haven't quite grasped what it means to be shinobi." She tilts her head, the movement giving Sakura a clear view of her blue eye, filled to the brim with unimaginable sadness. Who died to make her look-

Oh. Narumi-sensei killed Gato.

Her jaw falls open of its own accord. Sasuke knows Narumi-sensei killed Gato.

She nods, catching her hand and giving it a quick squeeze before scurrying back into her spot in their loose formation.

How does Sasuke know, is the question. He couldn't have witnessed the murder (assassination, she reminds herself). She doubts Narumi-sensei would have told Sasuke without telling her, not that she really needed to. She doesn't care who killed the man, as long as her teammates are all okay.

But clearly, Sasuke is not okay. What did he think, that shinobi only kill when they're ordered to? That his teachers had never killed men before? That all shinobi are as ridiculous as the one that walks around the village on his hands? Did he think that shinobi never have to get their hands dirty?

Sakura shakes her head, sending Narumi-sensei a reassuring smile over her shoulder.

She doesn't deserve to be shunned by her own student.

Even more worrisome is how Sasuke's reaction to this knowledge might affect his choice of a career. If he's going to be like this every time one of them has to kill somebody, he shouldn't be a shinobi at all.

And it's probably eating at him. If he can't reconcile his former image of Narumi-sensei with this new one and reconcile the darker side of their job when he knows about his family, his brother, then it's going to tear him apart. I guess he hadn't been prepared. I've never really thought about it before.

Sakura sighs, forcing her thoughts onto brighter topics. We never figured out whether or not

Kakashi-sensei and Narumi-sensei are dating!

Kakashi Pov

Kakashi is so relieved when they make it back to the village that he's half-tempted to collapse at the gate: Sasuke's gloomy silence is a serious mood-killer, and the extra money from Gato's vault feels like lead in his bag. Who knew a genin could be so disapproving without uttering a single word? Not to mention the fact that he'd barely spent any of the treks back home meeting anyone's eyes.

The four of them are readily accepted into the Hokage's office, where Narumi gladly drops her mask and sinks into one of the chairs, exhausted.

"I knew it! You've been pushing yourself," Kakashi accuses lightly. "We should have made more stops."

His fiance rolls her eye, but she's paler than Kakashi would like.

Sensei sighs, tension around his eyes loosening only slightly. "Welcome back, Team Seven. I received a very short, very cryptic message from the two ninjas you left for us to collect. Does anybody want to tell me why they seemed certain you would all be dead before you made it to the Land of Waves?"

"The Demon brothers, of course, were fooled by Narumi's henge, Hokage-sama. We faced The Demon of the Mist just outside of Wave Country, and Narumi was forced to release her henge to gain control of the situation. Lucky for us, though, they were willing to listen to what she had to say." Kakashi is about to continue when the door bursts open and Kushina slams it shut behind her, making the genin jump.

"Kakashi and Narumi" She glares, first at Kakashi, then at her daughter. " Why, exactly, must you be late all the time? Kakashi, this wedding is important to you, is it not?"The wedding…?

"Of course, Kushina-sama."

"Well, you have three days to write your vows! Minato can get the written report later, you need to get it together-"

"Mom," Narumi interjects, draping herself over the back of the chair she's sitting in. "Our C-Rank mission turned into an A-Rank mission and put our genin into danger. The wedding vows can wait an hour or two."

"That's his mom?" Sakura whispers to her teammate; Sasuke responds with a bewildered grunt.

Kushina blinks at her daughter for a moment before turning toward the youngest occupants in the room. "Genin gets smaller and smaller every year, I swear," she mutters, waving at them before turning on her heel and exiting the room swiftly. Kakashi feels her embarrassment for several seconds afterward, though he turns his attention to his former sensei."Sensei," Sakura breathes, awed, "your mom is really pretty!"

Narumi's answering grin is bright as the sun. "Thank you, Sakura-chan," she answers softly. The Hokage sighs. "The Demon of the Mist ambushed you, Narumi intimidated him, and then what?"

A moment passes before Narumi rises. "I made an agreement with Zabuza and Haku. They helped me infiltrate Gato's lair and I made the executive decision to take him out while they kept the rest of his men busy. Then we decided to stay long enough for Tazuna to finish his bridge on the off chance that Gato's men would seek revenge on the islanders." She no longer looks exhausted. Somehow, Narumi has transformed right in front of their eyes, dropping all pretenses and looking every bit like the highly-trained ANBU that she is.

Minato-sensei nods, and he too has turned into a trained professional. "I trust you cleared Gato's vaults?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama," Narumi responds. Kakashi takes what's leftover out of his backpack, placing it on the desk. "We returned a portion of it to the island, I paid off Zabuza and Haku, and we divided our payment out of it. This is what's left."

"Enough to feed five families for five years, at least," the Hokage mutters. "Very well. You're dismissed." He waves them off, sharing a look with his daughter. "Oh, and please don't make Kushina wait too much longer. You know she's just going to hunt you down and stand over you if you do."

The four of them bow before taking their leave. Narumi's mask is firmly in place when they exit the office, but Kakashi can tell she's growing tired of hiding constantly. In a few more days, she can leave the mask behind until a mission calls for it. In a few days, the two of them will be-

"Sasuke!" Narumi shouts when they reach the street. "That's enough!"

The genin takes a half-step backward, surprised, wide, dark eyes on Narumi's mask."

Your ideals about shinobi must change. First and foremost, you have to accept that shinobi, all shinobi, are trained killers." The tension in his spine is putting Kakashi on edge, he doesn't like it when Narumi's upset. How long has Sasuke's attitude been bothering her? Why hadn't she said anything? "We follow orders, sometimes we make decisions for our country and her clients because there's nobody there to tell us what to do. I made a decision, Sasuke. It's hardly the worst thing I've ever done. Are you going to condemn me for it? Are you going to condemn Kakashi for his deeds, or your brother for his? We are not glorious soldiers, we don't always have the opportunity to show mercy. If you can't accept this job as it is, I'm afraid you're in the wrong field of work."

Before anybody can say or do anything, Narumi shunshins away, leaving Kakashi to smooth things over after the unexpectedly harsh lesson.

A lesson that, apparently, Sasuke needed to learn. His shoulders are slumped, his head bowed. Sakura gazes in the direction Narumi disappeared in.

"You really hurt his feelings, giving him the cold-shoulder like that," Sakura eventually comments to her teammate, breaking the silence that has settled over the three of them. Sasuke frowns at her, but at least he's not staring at his feet any longer.

Kakashi hums in agreement, trying to banish the urge to dismiss the genin in order to follow after his fiance. "She doesn't get harsh like that unless she's hurting." He places a hand on each of their heads, herding them toward the bridge where the three of them met for their first D-Rank. "Sasuke-chan, didn't it ever occur to you what kind of missions ANBU takes?"

The genin shakes his head. "I didn't really think about that part."

Sakura, to Kakashi's surprise, huffs a laugh. "Aren't you supposed to be from one of the founding clans of the village? Did you ever sit down to learn any history? At all? Before Konoha was built, your clan and the Senju were at war for years. Your ancestors lived for murder." She clicks her tongue. "And you were at the top of our class. I'm disappointed in you, Sasuke-Kun. Face it, you saw a severed head and you choked up. And look, you've made Kitsune-sensei upset and she's not gonna come back!"

'I think it's safe to say I may have underestimated Sakura a little bit. thought Kakashi "Okay, relax. Kitsune-chan will come back, believe me. She just needs a hug. And some sleep, because she's still recovering from his last mission." The three of them stop at the bridge and the genin turn to face him when he ruffles their hair. "Usually, I would give you guys a week off after something traumatic like that, but as members of my team, I want you guys to be at my wedding."

Sakura's jaw drops. "That's right! Kushina-sama mentioned you were getting married!" She pouts. Even Sasuke looks less gloomy, almost curious. "To who?!"

To who? They haven't realized? What kind of shinobi-

"Well," he mutters, "I guess you're just going to have to wait and see, ducklings. Three days, alright? If you aren't there, you're going to hurt our feelings." He eye-smiles at them for good measure. "Sakura, why don't you go home and get some rest?" She nods, shooting Sasuke a look before bounding away. Kakashi leans back against the railing.

"I looked up to her for a long time. And I told her she didn't have to protect me, that I could handle it, so she told me. She even told me that Gato was dead, but then… Then I saw what she did with it, and I…"

"It's called shock, Sasuke. For all the training you've done, all the time you spent in school, you've never seen anything like that. I have to give credit to Sakura, I'm impressed that she's not just as affected as you are. But, she's the one who found Kitsune outside the gates after her fight with Madara, and from what I understand, she was quite affected by that. I would have been, too. She told somebody when they evaluated her that she didn't understand how somebody could be alive when more of their blood was outside of their body than inside it."

He'd been given the details about the interview because he's his student, but he would have asked for them either way, knowing his fiance was so close to death. He had wanted every scrap of information about the condition Narumi was in when she was found.

Sasuke takes a deep breath, straightening his spine and meeting Kakashi's eye. "I'm sorry, Sensei."

Kakashi shakes his head, crossing his arms. "You haven't done anything to me, Sasuke; I want you to apologize to Kitsune. Don't make her feel like she doesn't deserve your admiration simply because she's good at her job. The fact that she's good at her job can only mean good things for our village and this team." A moment passes, and Kakashi can only hope that Sasuke has learned a valuable lesson. Maybe more than one. "Go home. Get some rest. Let her calm down before you go looking for her, okay?"

"Hai."

Gai Pov

The sun is low in the sky when Gai makes his way into the village proper. The day has been filled with arduous training, and a good meal before he goes home is just what the trio-nin ordered (at least, he assumes so, he hasn't actually asked; he just knows he's hungry). He's not in the mood for the grill, but a good bowl of ramen sounds marvelous. It's been quite some time since Gai has paid a visit to Teuchi-san.

The village is still bustling with activity when he reaches the ramen stand, but the sole patron currently occupying Teuchi's counter is anything but lively: the ANBU looks positively somber. His first instinct is to turn his smile up to 120% and greet the other customer with utmost enthusiasm, but a second evaluation has Gai settling onto the stool beside the other women a little more gently than that.

The young ANBU is bent over a bowl of ramen, though the food looks untouched; the line of her shoulders are tense, burdened.

"Your food will not eat itself, young comrade."

In the next moment, the other's head snaps up, and he turns on his seat, the one-eyed mask boring into him. "Gai-san!"

That looks like the old Kitsune mask if it had two eyes-

"Kitsune?" Narumi?

"Oh!" She laughs, somehow seeming a hundred times lighter. "I guess it's not exactly common knowledge, huh?" She taps the right side of her mask where the other eyehole should be.

"I had a new mask made after the last one was shattered on a mission." Narumi shrugs. " It is nice to finally meet you! I'm pretty certain Kakashi's been working very hard to keep us out of each other's orbit! Rude of him, really."

Gai sits taller, pulling his arms into his chest and fighting the urge to break into tears. Narumi has wanted to meet him? the youngest ANBU ever? The Hokage's beloved daughter? Has wanted to meet Gai?

"It Is My Utmost Pleasure To Be Meeting You As Well; My Rival Is Most Taken With You!" Narumi chuckles, rubbing the back of her neck, suddenly bashful. Kakashi had said that Narumi was shy, but Gai wouldn't have known it at first glance. Now, though, perhaps understanding that Gai knows her identity, she seems a bit more subdued. "I'm quite taken with him, too," she answers. "Hey, you didn't happen to get an invitation, did you? I think my mom forgot to send a few invitations out. Sheesh, I'm gonna have to hunt Itachi down?"

Narumi's hands flutter for a moment until she drops them onto the counter and grips the edge. A nervous habit? Anxiety?

"An invitation?" Gai prompts, confused. An invitation to what? From his mother? His first meeting with Narumi isn't exactly going the way Gai might have expected, and the ANBU seems so young, Gai's sorely tempted to think of her as a girl despite knowing that she's a jonin and has been working S-Rank missions for many years.

He nods, tapping his fingers against the counter while Gai gives his order to Teuchi. When Gai turns to her again, she chirps, "To our wedding!"

And Gai splutters, because what? A wedding? Kakashi is getting married? Hatake Kakashi? And the man beside him chuckles, entirely amused at the expression that must be displayed on Gai's face. How long ago was it that Gai tracked Kakashi to Kitsune's apartment to find him drowning his sorrows in and cup ramen because the person he'd spent twelve years searching for had been under his nose all along? How long has it been since Gai discovered that Kitsune and Narumi, who-from Kakashi's stories-had been so similar, were actually one and the same?

How long has Gai known Narumi's identity and not recognized that his closest friend and eternal rival had been falling in love?

"Gai-sensei!"

Just in time to save him from making a fool of himself by asking when exactly they had gotten engaged, one of his precious students appears, dropping onto the stool to his left and calling an order across the counter before addressing him. "Gai-sensei, I was wondering if you could help me with senbon practice in the morning? I've mastered kunai and swords, but senbon are such a pain!"

Narumi leans around Gai, peering into Tenten's face. "Hey, I know you! You're little Tenten! But you're not little anymore!"

Her mouth falls open; she gazes wide-eyed at Narumi's mask. "Wait! Your mask is different!" She points at her, bouncing on her stool, excitement breaking out across her face. "You're the babysitter that showed the little Uchiha what you really look like!"

Some of the wind seems to leave Narumi's face at the mention of the Uchiha boy, but she nods all the same. "That's me! Good memory, Tenten-chan, you were only three at the time!"

Tenten grins but turns back to Gai with a pout in the next moment. "Sensei? Will you help me tomorrow?"

His students seem to advance so much every single day, and a part of Gai hopes that they fail the exams just to give him a little more time with them before they're inevitably placed on permanent teams, or sent on missions that they won't return from. "Of Course, My Precious student! However, I Can Only Help So Much: Senbon Have Never Been One Of My Strengths!"

Narumi clears her throat. "I mastered senbon a long time ago; I'd be willing to help you train with them if you wanted, Tenten-chan. That is, if it's alright with your sensei, of course." A lone blue eye focuses on Gai, asking for his opinion. His permission.

He accepted it of course. The truth is, Gai's incredibly interested in Narumi's abilities. Who trained her before Obito? Before she went to Jiraiya-sama? He'd love to witness Narumi in action, and he muses over the idea of getting their teams together for a training session or two.

"We Would Be Much Obliged, Comrade! I Think It Would Be Most Advantageous For Young Tenten To Work With A Master!" Kakashi may actually combust if our teams started training together. The thought makes Gai smile.

The three of them fall silent, returning to their meals, and it isn't until another stool is occupied that the conversation picks up again.

"Neji-Kun!" Narumi greets brightly, a bit more of the tension leaving her frame.

Neji is an enigma. He feels so constricted by his clan's rules, but he has surpassed most of his clan's members in many ways. He carries so much anger and hatred for the head of his clan, his own uncle, that it scares Gai just a little. Sometimes, he worries that he will never be able to break Neji out of the shell he has encased himself in.

"Good afternoon, Kitsune," Neji responds, no ice to be found in his voice. It's such a far cry from his usual attitude that Gai does a double-take to make sure it's truly his student who joined them. "My father said you were injured recently, but he didn't know the extent of it. You lost your eye?"

The blond disguised as a brunet hums. Neji has taken up the seat on Narumi's right side and orders softly when the owner pauses in front of him.

"Unfortunately." Somehow, when nobody was looking 'Did he learn that from Kakashi?' Narumi consumed her entire bowl of ramen, along with two more that are stacked in a pile to the side.

"I was in the hospital for a few days, but then we got a new mission that had us out of the village for a while so I didn't get to talk to anybody outside of my team afterward. Hey, are you guys going to take the chunin exams this year?"

Two out of three of Gai's students look to him for an answer; Neji, gaze expectant, says nothing, but Tenten puts on her best pout, clasping her hands together, "Please, Gai-sensei?

We're ready!"

Narumi laughs at her. "Wow, you're pretty good at that, Tenten-chan! I bet you might've even gotten him to cave with that pout on your face!"

She beams, cheeks flushing red, though Gai isn't sure if it's from embarrassment or the praise.

"Did I forget about a meeting, Gai-sensei!" Lee appears at Gai's elbow, repeatedly bowing and stumbling over an apology.

"My Precious Student! You Forgot Nothing! What You See Before You Is A Meeting Of Circumstance!"

"Gai-san, he's like a mini you!" Narumi hunches her spine in order to be closer to eye-level with Lee. "It's a pleasure to meet you! You must be Rock Lee! My fiance has mentioned you once or twice! You only train in taijutsu, right? That's so cool!

"Lee gazes at Narumi, tears streaming unbidden down his cheeks. There's nothing exaggerated about them for once, and Gai wonders if Lee hasn't just found something of an older sister to look out for him. To look up to.

"It Is My Utmost Pleasure To Meet You, Kitsune-san!" Lee bows low, face hidden.

"Are you hungry, Lee? All that work probably gives you a big appetite!" Narumi turns to the owner. "Hey, Old Man, Team Gai's meals are on me!"

Gai starts spluttering for the second time this afternoon.