Before starting on a new chapter of TTC, I decided to go with something more light-hearted. Dark thoughts still plague me now and then and I don't want to be depressed, so I'll work on TTC slowly. Anyway, I hope this will be a fun break for you all.

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Genma didn't know how he had never realized before that spying on kids could be so entertaining. (Oh yeah, he had always avoided them like the plague. Fancy that.)

He was lounging lazily in a tree, gazing sleepily at the pink-haired kid he was really starting to have affection for. What could he say? She was just too adorable.

So now, having escaped from the hospital as any sane ninja would, he had chosen to convalesce in the tree he favored to look over Sakura's garden. It might not have been the best idea he could have come up with, as he had to stifle his laughter more than once, which tended to jar his broken ribs.

"Oh, Sakura-chan, you're just so precious," he murmured to himself with a smile, watching the child try, yet again unsuccessfully, to climb over the wall surrounding the garden.

With a yelp, the pinkette fell again, her fall cushioned by a bush that was becoming steadily more tattered as time went on. Her mother would probably burst an artery, but hey, the next time she tried to escape, Sakura would be more careful.

He watched her do this twice more before taking pity on her and getting up from his perch. He lightly jumped from his tree to the wall and walked leisurely up to where she was, still now, trying to scale the smooth surface.

Crouching, he picked up the cloth-covered box she had adroitly managed to get on top of the wall via clever use of a long branch that had unfortunately snapped when she had tried to use it to get herself up the wall too. Twirling it on one finger, he called out, "Heya there, Sakura-chan! Whatcha up to?"

With an eep, she fell once more, having not realized he was there. She looked up at him with wide green orbs, startled.

"Remember me?" he asked the bewildered child. "Shiranui Genma, tokubetsu jounin. At your service, little lady."

Recognition shone in her eyes. "Oh! You're the one who saved me from the meanie!"

Genma chuckled at her innocent words.

"And it was my pleasure. Now, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to find Neko-san and give him my homemade bento!" she exclaimed proudly, puffing up her chest.

Genma looked at her with surprise evident on his face, cocking an eyebrow at her.

"You made it all by yourself?"

"Yup! Kaa-san showed me how!"

And indeed, he could spy the remains of a tornado in the kitchen from the open window and colorful bandages with printed chicks on her fingers from where she had probably cut herself preparing the meal.

"And why were you looking for…Neko-san to give him that bento?"

"'Cause he's just so scrawny!" she exclaimed with big hand movements to punctuate her point. "That can't be healthy! Kaa-san always says that a good day starts by a good meal and that 'food is a good way to show app-app-appreciation' so I made this bento to say thanks for helping me that time! And I thought maybe his dogs would like some, too!"

This was just too good to pass up. With a mischievous grin, Genma reached down and hoisted the little girl up the wall. He crouched in front of her, grin widening.

"Well, come on, then, better not keep the old sourpuss waiting. Hop on, girlie, I'll give you a ride."

As soon as she was settled safely on his back and he handed her the bento, he sprang from the wall and headed straight for the training grounds. Knowing Kakashi, there were high chances that was where he was.

-:-

Of course, nobody could go around Konoha without running into at least one ninja on the way. That was doubly true when heading to the training grounds. And as Genma took the fastest route, exactly like any ninja worth his salt, it was no surprise they encountered someone he knew while looking for Kakashi.

He had made sure to be discreet (No one wanted to be accused of kidnapping sweet young girls. Except maybe people like Orochimaru who seemed to thrive on being disturbing, but he was a case apart, one notch above everyone else in terms of craziness.), but of course there was no way to avoid unpredictable events from happening. And running into Gai was one of those.

One might think that the taijutsu expert would be easily found at the training grounds at any time of the day, thus them running into him was just a matter of predictability, but it was not so. As a matter of fact, Genma was very acutely aware of Gai's training regimen and he should easily have avoided his old teammate.

Except that, apparently, Gai had decided to switch things around on this fine morning and was jogging on his hands atop the river stream as they passed by instead of still be doing laps around the village.

Upon seeing them cross the bridge, the green-clad man waved cheerily at them and walked up to them (still on his hands, of course) and had Sakura staring at him, impressed as he countered gravity so easily when making his way up the side of the bridge.

He smiled blindingly at them, doing a handstand on a single hand as he made a thumbs up at them, and boomed, "My youthful friend! What takes you out here on this bright and sunny day with such a pretty lady on your back?"

Sakura's cheeks pinkened at the compliment. She was not used to be called pretty. Most of the time, people made fun of her for her large forehead. She decided instantly that she liked the eccentric man.

"Genma-san is taking me to Neko-san!" she chirped brightly.

"Yup, yup," confirmed Genma. "We're taking a lovely homemade bento for him since he's such a scarecrow, you know? He needs to be fattened up some. So I offered myself as a piggyback ride to our mutual friend." And then he had a genius if malicious idea. "Want to come with?"

This would prove to be interesting if Gai came with them.

Gai already had tears streaming down his face, the gloriously emotional man.

"Certainly, my youthful friend! I'm sure our friend would be glad to know he has friends who take his health to heart! I shall come with you to reaffirm our bond of friendship!"

At least, despite his appearance, Gai had a bright mind, and had understood Genma's hint that Kakashi had not told Sakura his real name. He would not divulge it by mistake. Sometimes, Genma felt that people were often too quick to write Gai off as a complete nutjob. In fact, the man was just so possessed with his love for taijutsu (which stemmed from his desire to protect his teammates) that they forgot he was a genius in his own rights. Of course, when compared to Kakashi, many people tended to be eclipsed in that way. And the fact that Gai was so flamboyant actually helped him hide his monstrous strength. Genma had a feeling his friend was quite aware of it and was actually playing the part to draw people's attention away from that fact. (Maybe not all of it was a façade, but it certainly helped him in being treated like a human rather than a lethal weapon.) In fact, many ninja took up strange hobbies or played up their quirks, both to keep civilians from shivering in fear when they saw them or simply as a coping mechanism after years of stressful situations.

And Gai was always good as a catalyst to make people explode in his face and let out some steam rather than implode on a mission and come back in a casket.

And Kakashi desperately needed an outlet for his violent, dark and depressing thoughts. Gai could handle his aggression well and exhaust him enough that the latent simmering anger in the silver-headed man would be drained for a moment.

And so Genma continued to head for the training grounds, this time choosing to take the streets in order to give Gai a chance at accompanying them still on his hands. On the way there, Sakura bombarded Gai with questions that the man felt compelled to answer, so unused was he to people actually wanting to talk to him instead of fleeing upon seeing him.

-:-

Kakashi was in the middle of his training when he sensed the trio coming his way, but by then it was too late to flee. He knew they were headed straight for him and at that distance, they could sense him too. Besides, Gai was stubborn enough to follow him to the end of the world if he tried to escape him. In the end, no matter how much it grated him, it was less exhausting to simply wait for them and just less time-consuming. He didn't have the energy to fend off an enthusiastic Gai.

So he just watched warily as the trio approached and Genma let Sakura scamper down from his back, hiding a slight wince as he straightened. Vindictively, as he watched Sakura approach with something like trepidation, Kakashi hoped his ribs were smarting. He held himself rigidly still, the effort it took not to flinch back tremendous, but he held strong and carefully kept his demeanor neutral even as he was panicking inside.

And Genma, the bastard, had the gall to look amused at his situation.

The kid approached him cautiously and, with a hopeful smile, presented the bento to him, the wrapped parcel looking much like an offering, perched as it was on her outstretched hands in front of her, level with his navel. He stared at it silently for a moment, hands hanging limply at his side, confused and unsure what to do in this strange situation. He must have waited too long (or maybe her little arms were simply tired of holding the bento above her head), for Sakura's bright smile abated and her countenance shifted from bright and happy to sad and ashamed. With a blink of moist eyes, she started to hang her head. (Of course, he wouldn't want a bento made by a kid. He probably didn't want to associate with a Forehead Girl like her, even if he had helped her once. She shouldn't have presumed anything and tried to make friends. She should…)

She clutched her bento to her chest as she turned around, head hung low to hide the tears threatening to fall from her gem-like eyes and started to shuffle back to Gai and Genma. Maybe she could return home and lock herself in her room and pretend this had never happened. Or until they forgot about her. A few years should do it, right?

Kakashi looked past her pastel-haired head at Gai and Genma who were looking at him reproachfully, arms crossed on their chests. Something squeezed his chest painfully and he wondered what to do. What was the protocol in a situation like this? What would Obito have done?

He almost wanted to kick himself. Obito, chivalrous moron that he had been, would never have made a girl cry and would have scolded him harshly before going to the girl to try and stop her from crying.

He sighed, knowing when to concede defeat.

The child was surprised when a large hand reached above her to pluck the parcel from her hands. Heart beating wildly in anticipation, she turned to look at the masked ninja scrutinizing the package as though trying to see how to defuse it.

"This is for me, right?" he asked in a low voice. At her emphatic nod, and trying not to notice his fellow ninja's wide grins, he continued, "Made it yourself?"

"I did!" chirruped Sakura proudly, puffing her chest, all sadness forgotten. "Kaa-san showed me how!"

"Hm…Well, I'm going to have to try it, it seems." And since he had no intention to let Gai and Genma slip away if there was a chance this was uneatable, he directed at them pointedly, "You two will certainly help me taste-test it, right? Since you were so nice to take her here, you definitely deserve to share my spoils."

Gai seemed unfazed, but Genma's grin diminished somewhat as he recognized the underlying threat for what it was. The "or else" was clearly felt in his voice, but when Sakura looked at him, he simply pointed to a nearby tree where he had left his pack and said mildly, "Wanna share? I'm sure there's plenty for everyone."

Her smile was blinding as she raced ahead of them to the tree and plopped to the ground before scrambling to sit primly, probably how her mother had taught her.

Kakashi walked there much more leisurely, murmuring viciously under his breath, "Really, babysitting?! You couldn't find anything else to screw up my day?"

Smiling brightly, Genma draped an arm around his shoulder and strolled along, making sure Sakura couldn't hear them or read his lips, "In my defense, she was already heading your way when I found her. I simply directed her in the right direction."

Gai, on the other hand, felt no compunction to lower his voice.

"It gladdens my heart to see that you still interact with the youthful people of our glorious village, my friend! Come, let's eat the undoubtedly delicious bento the young blossom has prepared for you and rejoice at loveliness of this day that shall be forever engraved in my heart!"

Still, Kakashi had to admit later (and very privately, thank you very much), watching Sakura balance precariously (at least until she got the hang of it and shifted her center) but with a wide grin and pearly laughter atop Gai who was doing a handstand on a single hand with a thumbs up in their direction while she was perched like a dancer on his feet that the Green Beast somehow managed to keep from moving at all, very much a living pillar, that it wasn't as bad as he had feared it would be.

The bento had proved to be surprisingly palatable, and since Gai's attention had been mostly fixated on the happy child, Kakashi had been granted a well-appreciated reprieve. Even Genma, who was now lounging in the shade next to him like an old man for a postprandial nap, lips quirking in a secret smile around his senbon, was keeping from aggravating him overly much, though that might have been simply because he was feeling warm and sleepy after eating the simple but calories-packed lunch. He pondered for a moment whether to tell the child or not that she had made too much for a single person, but then nearly sat up straight at that, shaking his head at the thought. As if there was a possibility of this happening again! What a preposterous idea.

Still…

He glanced once more at the duo frolicking around on the grass. Sakura, noticing him staring, waved brightly and Gai invited him loudly to join them on their youthful game. He declined with a little dismissing wave of his hand even as Genma snickered softly next to him and if his elbow jostled his cracked ribs on the way down. Well. Anyone could be clumsy from time to time.

Well. There were worse ways to spend an afternoon, loath as he was to admit it. And if a subsequent game of the child and man-child in front of him turned into a vicious game of ninja tag between him and Gai while Sakura cheered them on, clapping cheerfully at the side with Genma there to make sure none of their lethal tricks harmed her, he could always blame Gai for his childishness; everyone knew he tended to bring up outlandish challenges now and then. And as for himself…nobody ever claimed he was mature.

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Slowly getting back into the beat of things…Hope you liked this!