Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Somewhere to Belong ❯ Partner ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter Five: Partner

 

Kakashi woke up to find Iruka ruffling through his over-sized pack and pulling out various items. The chunnin looked at him as he rose and smiled.

 

“Good morning!” he said cheerfully.

 

“`Morning,” Kakashi yawned.

 

It felt a bit too early for him, but he figured that now that he was up, he might as well continue with his mission. He stared at Iruka curiously as the brunette pulled out some packages of instant ramen.

 

“I was just going to start breakfast. I don't know how you feel about ramen, but I couldn't find much around the house that I could take with me. Do you want some?”

 

Kakashi stared at him for a moment, taken aback by his kindness. No one had ever offered to make him breakfast since…he couldn't even remember when. Iruka held a light smile, waiting for his answer.

 

“Um, yeah…sure,” Kakashi said finally, “I'll go see if there's anything else I can forage.”

 

Iruka nodded, and Kakashi went off. He returned later with two handfuls of edible plants and some fruit. Iruka had a pot of water boiling over a fire. Since it was daytime, they didn't have to worry about their location being given away by the bright fire and being attacked in the dark. The chunnin took the water off the fire and poured it into the cups of ramen. Kakashi offered him half of what he had found.

 

“Thanks,” Iruka said, taking it.

 

“No problem. How's the ramen coming?”

 

“Just three more minutes.”

 

“Naruto's least favorite part,” Kakashi commented.

 

“Of course,” Iruka laughed.

 

Kakashi smiled, glad to see his partner happy. Something about it warmed him inside. He had stayed up late last night, lost deep in his own reflections. Even after Iruka had already fallen asleep, the jounin had thought about his last words to him. Just “Iruka” is fine…Kakashi had wondered why he hadn't answered back. Maybe he had just been too out of it to really comprehend it then, but now, it hit him so suddenly. He was on a personal level with Iruka.

 

He thought about this, even now, especially now that Iruka was smiling and treating him like a friend. Of course, there had been plenty of people who had acted nice towards Kakashi, but the way Iruka did it was just so real. It was obvious that he wasn't just pretending to enjoy the jounin's company, the way Kakashi never doubted some ninja had. It just came naturally to him.

 

“Kakashi-sensei…Kakashi-sensei!”

 

Kakashi jumped in the realization that Iruka was trying to get his attention.

 

“Wha- oh…`Kakashi''s fine…”

 

Iruka stared at him for a moment and then smiled.

 

“Kakashi, then…Your ramen's ready.”

 

He handed it to him.

 

“Thank you,” Kakashi said as he took it.

 

He then realized that Iruka was staring intently at him, as if waiting for something.

 

“Hmm? Is there something wrong?” the jounin asked him.

 

“W-what? No!” Iruka said, startled that he had been caught in the act.

 

He sat down and drew some of his noodles from his cup with some chopsticks, blowing on them to cool them down a bit. The chunnin looked up at Kakashi hesitantly, and his face fell in disappointment when he realized the Copy-Nin had already “instantly” finished his ramen and that his mask was back in place. Darn, missed it again.

 

“So then, I suppose we should start at the bottom of our section of the border since that's the part we're closest to and work our way around,” Kakashi said, watching Iruka eat his noodles.

 

“All right,” the chunnin agreed after he had taken down a gulp of ramen.

 

They left immediately after they had packed everything back up. Iruka was relieved to find his load slightly lighter as he leapt from tree branch to tree branch. He hadn't really wanted to accept Kakashi's offer to help with some of his burden, but the jounin had insisted so forcefully that Iruka had felt he had no other choice. He knew Kakashi only wanted to help him, after all, and now as he was bounding along the outside of the border, he was secretly glad he had let him.

 

“How long until we reach the end of our section?” Iruka inquired after a while.

 

“Just a few more hours,” Kakashi replied, “Then we can patrol most of it again on the way home.”

 

“Sounds good,” Iruka said.

 

The chunnin was getting tired, though, and feared he might have to stop for a break soon. Kakashi seemed as energetic as ever, yet he still held a lazy expression in his eyes. He slowly pulled a book out of his back pocket and began to read. Iruka was slightly irritated, feeling like Kakashi was shutting him out, and at the same time, he wished he had something of his own to amuse himself, though he could do without that kind of book…

 

Boredom led to daydreams, which Iruka usually tried to avoid while on missions lest he daydream himself into an enemy's trap, but today, it was unavoidable. He thought about his students, as he always did, and wondered what they were doing. What kind of substitute did they get stuck with this time? And what are they doing to torture that poor sub right now?

 

He remembered his own days as an academy student, when he had been a lot like Naruto, pulling pranks and doing the silliest things- anything to get attention. The teachers had hated him too. They had always warned the substitutes about him ahead of time whenever he was left under their watch…and he had had such a fun time torturing them. That had been before his parents had died. Afterwards, the loneliness that had plagued him had caused him to perform even more outrageous acts in pursuit of attention, even as a genin. It had driven his sensei crazy. During their tree climbing exercise, he had tried to climb the same tree as one of his teammates, grabbing onto him on the way up in an attempt to get higher without as much effort. This had caused his teammate to lose his concentration…and his footing as well. They had both come crashing down, and Iruka, having landed on the bottom, had spent the next few months on crutches. Looking back, it had all been so stupid, but despite the pain, still amusing.

 

“Something funny?” Kakashi inquired.

 

Iruka looked at him questioningly before realizing that he had been openly smirking for seemingly no reason at all. He laughed it off.

 

“No, nothing,” he replied, “Just old memories.”

 

“Oh…”

 

“How old were you before you were able to climb trees using only chakra?” Iruka asked curiously.

 

The jounin thought for a moment.

 

“Um, let's see…About five, I think.”

 

Iruka stared at him wide-eyed, but then shook his head. What did you expect of a genius?

 

“I broke my leg the first time I tried,” Iruka said.

 

“Really?” Kakashi asked, “Me too…Then, I learned to climb in my crutches.”

 

Iruka was so startled that he almost fell over. He tried to imagine a five-year-old Kakashi climbing trees with a broken leg and felt sorry for the poor kid, but awed at the same time. He was about to open his mouth to say something, but Kakashi beat him to it.

 

“Sakura was able to do it right away…Naruto and Sasuke didn't quit until they had mastered it as well.”

 

“Well, they always were dedicated students,” Iruka said with a smile, “Naruto… was eventually. He took a bit longer.”

 

Kakashi nodded.

 

“He talked about you a lot. Seems you're the one who gave him the encouragement he needed. He was motivated by his dream…but also by you.”

 

Iruka looked away embarrassedly. Kakashi's tone was so smooth and mellow. Something about the way he talked sent shivers down Iruka's spine, especially when he was complimenting him. The chunnin almost couldn't take it.

 

“N-no,” Iruka stammered, “I just gave him my headband. Naruto's drive to succeed comes from within him. It's because he's so stubborn when it comes to his dream to become Hokage.”

 

“You're important to him,” Kakashi told him casually, “I bet he misses you a lot right now.”

 

Iruka felt a bit taken aback. It was true that he had been thinking about Naruto a lot lately. Maybe this was obvious enough for the jounin to notice…Though Kakashi didn't have to notice this in order to assume someone who cared about Iruka must be missing him right now.

 

“He writes to me sometimes,” the chunnin said, “I have to remember to check my mail when I get back…”

 

Kakashi gave him his one-eyed smile. Naruto had written to him too, but only once since he had left. He hadn't had much to say except that Jiraya was teaching him some cool new jutsus and to watch over Sakura for him. Kakashi hadn't gotten around to replying yet- for one thing, he didn't know exactly where Naruto was since his location kept changing. It was hard to send a letter when you didn't know the address.

 

“Let's stop here for lunch,” Kakashi suggested a while later as they passed over a stream.

 

Iruka nodded. The two ninja landed on the forest floor and started rummaging through their bags. Kakashi pulled out some rope, and Iruka found some extra food that they had brought with them. While Iruka prepared a fire, Kakashi walked over to the stream to fish. He tied a thin rope to the ring of a kunai and threw it with expert skill. It pierced through a fish, and Kakashi drew the rope in to claim his catch. Iruka found plenty of wood on the forest floor and quickly started a fire. They roasted the fish and ate in silence. Iruka took out some shuriken and stared aiming at the trunks of nearby trees as he ate, trying to line them up along the bark.

 

Kakashi watched with mild interest until he playfully threw one of his own shuriken in the same direction, hitting one of Iruka's flying weapons and knocking it off course. The chunnin looked slightly irritated but ignored the jounin and threw another shuriken. Kakashi did the same thing, once again messing up Iruka's aim.

 

“Come on, now. I have to practice,” Iruka told him, trying not to sound too annoyed, “I've been slacking off for far too long.”

 

“I can help you if you want,” Kakashi offered, “When we're done with lunch, we can have a little training time. I'll be your sparring partner.”

 

Iruka thought about it for a moment. He didn't like being shown up by the jounin, but Kakashi's offer to train with him was tempting. He hadn't really had a chance to train with anyone for a long time. Whenever he did actually find time to train, he often had to do it alone. It could be helpful to spar with someone with more experience…and Iruka liked challenges.

 

“All right,” he agreed finally, but took his time eating.

 

The last thing he wanted to do was rush into this unprepared. Kakashi didn't seem to be in any hurry. He had finished his meal rapidly, as always, but he held the same lazy expression and continued to throw kunai and shuriken at the tree as he waited patiently. When Iruka was ready, both ninja stood up and drew their weapons. Iruka stepped out into the open clearing and held his kunai in front of him defensively.

 

“Ready when you are,” he told the Copy-Nin, but Kakashi didn't even bother to answer back.

 

The jounin immediately lunged for Iruka with his own kunai, aiming low. Iruka stepped out of the way a split second before Kakashi came barreling past him, barely more than a silver streak. Iruka was amazed at his own speed. He didn't have long to dwell on it, though, because Kakashi turned around just a quickly and was coming for Iruka again. Throughout the series of attacks and blocks, the chunnin concentrated more on defending himself rather than throwing out any attacks of his own. Kakashi continued to attack him relentlessly, waiting for Iruka to make a move.

 

“You have to strike back sooner or later.”

 

“Can't get…an opening,” Iruka grunted, frustrated.

 

They hadn't even been going at it for too long, and the jounin was already beginning to tire him out.

 

“Just try a bit harder,” Kakashi told him, “Be aggressive…Like it's you or me.”

 

Iruka pushed himself to look on their training battle as a life or death situation. I can't-! Iruka was getting tense. He knew it was stupid, but part of him just didn't want to hurt Kakashi. He shook it off as best he could. He's a jounin. Whatever you throw at him- he can take it. Chances are I won't be able to hit him anyway…Barely taking any more time to think, Iruka quickly jabbed a fist into Kakashi's abdomen. It took him a moment to register that he had hit him at all. Iruka gawked at the Copy-Nin for a moment. How-?

 

The jounin grunted and took a step back. He was just as surprised, though he tried to convince himself that he had let the chunnin hit him on purpose. Maybe I underestimated him…

 

“Lucky shot,” he said with a hidden smile, “but I bet you could do better.”

 

Iruka snapped out of it in time to counter Kakashi as he attacked him fiercely. Iruka was determined to hold out against the jounin, even if he was below him in rank. After getting hit, Kakashi wasn't about to go too easy on him, though. He crouched down and swung his leg, knocking Iruka's feet out from under him. Iruka barely had time to think before he found himself on the floor, staring up at the high branches of the trees outlining the sky. He seemed dazed for a moment, and when the chunnin made no motion to get up right away, the Copy-Nin stared at him, confused.

 

“It's too early to give up,” he said with a laugh, offering Iruka a glove-covered hand.

 

Iruka didn't answer. Instead, he swung his own leg at Kakashi's ankles while still lying on the ground. Before the jounin knew it, he was on the floor next to the chunnin.

 

“Who said I was giving up?” Iruka asked with a sly smile and immediately leapt to his feet.

 

The jounin smirked beneath his mask and jumped up to continue the mock battle. Kunai clanged against each other as the two continued to fight. Eventually, they moved on to simple genjustu and ninjustu, though this tired out both jounin and chunnin, turning what was supposed to be a quick practice into advanced genin-level training. Kakashi had just come out of hiding to tell a panting Iruka that they should save their energy for their actual mission, when a kunai zipped past his head, missing him by a hair before embedding itself in the trunk of the tree behind him. The jounin jumped in surprise and stared at the chunnin, wide-eyed.

 

“Hey, careful! I was just about to tell you that we're done.”

 

Iruka stared at him, confused and slightly nervous.

 

“I didn't throw it.”

 

Both ninja stiffened and turned to face the direction that the kunai had come from. They held their defensive stances and waited for the enemy to show themselves. Kakashi uncovered his sharingan and tried to figure out where their attacker was hiding. He sensed that there was more than one. He didn't have to wait long, though. They appeared of their own wills, emerging from the trees before them.

 

“Two Leaf ninja alone? Hardly a challenge,” one scoffed.

 

“Do not speak so hastily,” another one warned, noting the silver-haired jounin in front of him,“Is that not Sharingan Kakashi?”

 

“Ha,” a third sneered, “There're enough of us here to handle a legend.”

 

“Who are you?” Iruka demanded, clutching his kunai tightly.

 

“Oh, someone's feisty,” an enemy ninja mocked, “Are you going to tear all of us apart with that toy?”

 

Iruka's fist shook slightly, but he held his glare and answered the ninja with silence. Kakashi didn't look too pleased with their company himself.

 

“What do you want?” he asked, “I take it you didn't come here just to chat.”

 

“You're right,” one, apparently the leader, said, “We noticed the increasing weakness of your pathetic village and thought that we'd take it to our advantage. Are you really alone? Only two ninja?”

 

He wasn't convinced, Kakashi could tell, as he watched the leader of the enemy ninja's eyes sweep back and forth over the clearing, as if expecting there to be reinforcements hiding in the bushes and trees behind them. The Copy-Nin wouldn't have minded the help, to be honest.

 

“The two of us will be more than enough for you to handle,” Kakashi told them.

 

Kakashi didn't enjoy making long speeches any more than he enjoyed listening to them. Besides, the enemy didn't look like they were going to wait for him to say any more. Though he wanted more information, he knew he probably wouldn't be able to get it until the enemy was beaten down. Kakashi only hoped that he'd be able to back up his words. “Don't you have faith in yourself as a ninja?” Iruka's question echoed through his head. He knew he couldn't deny what his inner self knew. It won't take much to mess this up, but still…He glanced over at his partner. The chunnin had stood up to their attackers first. If he could be so bold and confident, Kakashi knew that part of him would have to be as well. Pushovers. I can do this. I have to do this! Maybe it was Iruka's presence that had restored some of his confidence. Kakashi didn't have much time to think about it.

 

The leader charged at him directly, kunai in hand. Kakashi countered him easily, forcing his opponent to pull back and try his attack again. The Copy-Nin was more than ready for him. He blocked a kunai trust aimed at his stomach and turned around to slash at a new adversary attacking from behind him. Kakashi pulled out some shuriken from his leg hostler and threw them at both enemies, in front and behind him, aiming for their vital points and landing direct hits. After both of his opponents had fallen, more appeared, however, and Kakashi found himself surrounded. This is going to be tough, he thought. He had taken down the leader, which was good- with any chance, the rest of the team would fall apart…but there were so many of them! Kakashi could feel his heart pumping in his chest. The training itself had been enough to tire him out. Will I have enough chakra to get through this fight? He had no choice but to see how far his limits would take him.

 

Iruka wasn't having a much easier time. He already had a few scratches from the kunai and shuriken he had not been able to block or dodge completely. He was currently facing three opponents, and though the odds were far from fair, the chunnin was still putting forth his greatest effort. The Fifth did say this area would be dangerous…I just wish I didn't feel so out of practice and unprepared. Iruka fended them off as best he could, though they came at him from all directions. He was panting heavily, and sweat was beginning to run down his neck. Got to keep going…Don't give up! All three jumped at him at once, brandishing their weapons- an attack that was impossible to block. As they pounced onto the chunnin, however, they were surprised to find that their target had vanished in a single “pou!,” and a log was all that was left in his place. Iruka took their shock at his substitution jutsu to his advantage and slipped in behind them, striking two of them down before they even had the chance to know what had hit them. The remaining ninja gasped as he watched his comrades fall before him, but recovered quickly enough to block Iruka as the he came for him next. He forced the chunnin to take a step back and swiftly kicked his feet out from under him. Iruka gasped as he fell to the floor, but remembering his training with Kakashi, used his position on the floor to swing his leg at his opponent's ankles, bringing him to his level. Iruka quickly sprang to his feet and dove down upon his fallen opponent, kunai pointed at his throat. The enemy ninja was not willing to die so quickly, though. He wasted no time kicking up into Iruka's stomach before the chunnin's weapon could reach its target. Iruka grunted in pain, dropping his kunai to the ground. He staggered back, but was careful not to let down his guard. His hand reached down to get another weapon, but his opponent didn't give him the opportunity. A fistful of senbon flew at the chunnin and embedded themselves in his shoulder, piercing deep into his skin. Iruka cried out in pain and clutched his injured arm.

 

Across the clearing, Kakashi turned his head at the sound of his partner's scream. Iruka! There was a thud and incredible pain in his head as his opponent struck him during his moment of distraction.

 

“Urgh…” Kakashi grunted as he staggered back a few steps.

 

He put his hand up to his head and tried to make sense of what was happening. He felt slightly dizzy, but was able to block the next kick that was aimed for his stomach. He held onto his opponent's leg and used it to knock him off balance. Then, he raced across the field.

 

“Your fight's with me!” his opponent yelled angrily from the floor.

 

Kakashi ignored him and dodged the round of shuriken the enemy threw after the Copy-Nin as he made his way over to where Iruka was. The chunnin was now defending himself with a kunai held in his good hand as his opponent came at him fiercely, intent to kill flashing in his dark eyes. Without use of his left arm, Iruka was unable to form any hand seals and thus, was even more vulnerable to attack. He knocked his opponent back and braced himself for the next attack, but the enemy didn't come at him right away. Instead, he began to form his own hand seals with an evil grin on his face.

 

Iruka gasped as the world around him suddenly went black. He couldn't move! His mind began to feel hazy, and he lost track of where he was. What am I doing? he thought wearily. Suddenly, grass appeared beneath his feet, and the sky turned a light, peaceful blue. The clouds drifted by lazily, and Iruka could feel the wind on his face. W-where am I? This place…feels familiar, but I don't remember where I've seen it before…

 

“Iruka!”

 

He turned his head towards the sound of his name, but couldn't believe what he saw. He trembled as a figure approached him from the distance. It had been so long since he had seen her face that he thought he had almost forgotten what it looked like, except for the photos that he kept throughout his house to remind him. She looked so much the same- her long brown hair and tan skin that matched his…She looked upon him with his own brown eyes.

 

“Mom…”

 

“Iruka…You've grown up.”

 

Her voice cracked as her eyes filled with tears, and Iruka felt her arms wrap around him tightly. He was frozen in shock. As she held him, he felt himself growing smaller and smaller until his body was that of a child. He buried his face in her shoulder and breathed in her familiar scent. He couldn't stop shaking. His mother held him closer, squeezing him tighter and tighter. Iruka couldn't breathe, but he didn't resist, either. Mom…

 

“Kai!” a voice shouted.

 

Iruka blinked, and suddenly, Kakashi's face was before him. The Copy-Nin breathed a sigh of relief. Iruka gasped suddenly as his lungs fought for air, and he realized that he had just been on the verge of suffocating. The jounin was breathing heavily himself, obviously more than a little worn out. Kakashi had broken the genjutsu just in time, however, and now its caster lay dead behind him.

 

“Be careful- there's still more,” the jounin warned him, not even giving Iruka a chance to thank him.

 

Iruka, still feeling a little out of breath and light-headed, stood back to back with his partner, prepared for the next attack. Their enemies were hidden now, but Kakashi knew that they were still there. His chakra was running low- he had wasted no time unleashing his chidori on Iruka's attacker, killing him instantly. He was using his sharigan now to search the trees and bushes for their enemies, but they were masking their presence too well. Kakashi sighed and covered his blood-red eye in order to save the last of his chakra.

 

No sooner had Kakashi replaced his headband that a fleet of enemy ninja suddenly swept down upon them from the highest part of the trees and surrounded them.

 

“We want the Copy-Nin alive,” one grunted to the rest, “Keep the other one as a hostage…or kill him if he becomes too troublesome.”

 

There was something different about this group. Reinforcements? It couldn't be… There were noticeably more of them, Kakashi decided. With Iruka and him in the condition that they were, they would be forced to retreat.

 

“Iruka, be prepared to make an escape,” Kakashi told the chunnin.

 

“What? No!” Iruka hissed, “If we let them slip past us, they'll be free to make their way to the village! We can't let that happen!”

 

“If we die here, it will happen anyway,” the jounin said plainly, “At least we can have a chance to warn them. There are too many enemies here. We can't win.”

 

Iruka grunted in frustration, but knew that Kakashi was right.

 

“Head in the direction of the stream,” Kakashi whispered and without another word, created a mass of clones to divert the enemies' attention.

 

Replicas of the jounin leapt at the enemy ninja, attacking them head on while the real Kakashi mingled with them, fighting his way through the tough ring of opponents. Iruka wished he was able to use such a trick, but no sooner had the thought crossed his mind that the noticed that there were replicas of him fighting alongside the mass of Kakashis. The jounin must have created them for his benefit. Iruka was thankful for the distraction, and did as Kakashi had told him- he headed for the stream.

 

It was difficult to get through the enemy ninja with only one good arm, but Iruka managed it. With the clones to cover him, he was able to make it to the safety of the brush and to the riverbank. He bounded from tree to tree, desperate to get as far away from that clearing as he could. Kakashi was sure to be right behind him…At least that's what he had thought. It wasn't until he had made his way a good distance upriver that he realized that the jounin was nowhere near him. Kakashi? Iruka panicked. Did the enemy have him? Had he somehow not been able to escape?

 

Without even stopping to think, Iruka rushed back towards the clearing. What am I doing? I'm going to get myself killed! The chunnin was trying to calm himself down, though he was not being too successful. Kakashi's a jounin! He can handle himself! Then, Iruka thought back to how weary Kakashi had looked after freeing him from that genjutsu. If he had been low on chakra then, how had creating all of these clones affected him? Some of those clones had been for Iruka…He couldn't abandon him now!

 

He burst into the clearing and was shocked to find it empty. He glanced around again and again, heart racing. Where did they go? There weren't even any more bodies lying around indicated that Kakashi had defeated them. Everyone had simply disappeared. Iruka suddenly stiffened as he felt someone breathing right next to his ear.

 

“Looking for someone?” a voice sneered.

 

There was a thud at the back of his neck, and Iruka collapsed to the ground, worried eyes scanning the field one last time before his vision finally went black.