Kakashi had barely landed on the roof of Iruka's apartment building when he was ambushed by the ninja Kakashi and one of the men he had waved at earlier. He wasn't terribly surprised. Annoyed, yes, but not surprised. He was beginning to suspect these ninjas were gossips in addition to being twitchy and suspicious. He shook his head at the shaggy haired man who had obviously tattled on him, and mentally gave this world's Kakashi a bit of credit for having guessed he would stop by Iruka's place while he was in the area. Maybe the man wasn't completely hopeless.

"Where is Shikamaru?"

"Back at the school," Kakashi admitted. "Were you hoping to steal him back from me? Had he wanted to escape, he would have. We had a minor disagreement so I brought him here in order to let him go if we couldn't come to a compromise. He decided he'd rather be at the school than have his teammate take his place."

"Is that why you didn't take Chouji?"

Was that contempt he heard in the man's voice? Kakashi laughed. "Of course. That was our original deal. He caught me off guard when I first took him and I made a few promises I wouldn't have made otherwise. One of them was to stay away from his teammate." He was disappointed that Shikamaru hadn't called him on his threat to take Chouji now. It would be breaking their original deal. Renegotiating their terms didn't undo the promises he had made. He couldn't have taken Chouji even if Shikamaru had decided to stay here. But Shikamaru believed he could and would, so it had worked nicely as a way to irritate the boy. Eventually someone - probably Iruka or Clef - would teach the kids about promises given by Merlin class wizards. He couldn't wait to see how they, and Shikamaru in particular, tried to take advantage of that. "I hope he comes to regret having extracted that promise from me once he realizes how much his teammate is missing out on. If he reconsiders, I'll send him to fetch his teammate himself. If not, so be it. Nine is a good number, and there is always next semester."

"Semester?" asked the brown-haired tattle. He grumbled when the ninja Kakashi shook his head at him, and then darted off across the rooftops.

"Reporting everything I just said to your leader?" asked Kakashi. "How predictable."

"As are you. You said you wouldn't be back until you returned the kids, yet here you are."

"What bothers you more, that I'm back in your village? Or that I know where Iruka lives?" He didn't get any visible reaction, which was another point in the man's favor. He wouldn't have bothered to react to such an obvious taunt, either. "Forget it," he waved. "You can probably answer my questions better than Iruka could, anyway. Shall we go to your place? You can introduce me to your cats. Or would you rather discuss this with your leader? She is going to be severely sleep deprived at this rate."

"What do you want to know?"

"Oh, a number of things. How did the sharingan bloodline survive in this world? Did you not make the connection or were you hoping I wouldn't? You and your leader let me go on about someone among your Akatsuki crossing dimensions without saying a word about the obvious culprit. If he's a sharingan user, that's really something you could have mentioned when I agreed to lend you creatures to help you gather information on him. You should know better than anyone what the sharingan is capable of. Or is yours not advanced enough to cross dimensions? Is his the first in this world to reach that level? Was the massacre averted or has it not happened yet? Really, one would think having a rogue sharingan user opening your world to the dark would be far more important than my borrowing a few kids for a few days. But what I really want to know is...his name. Is it Obito again? When I received this eye," he brushed a hand over the cloth, "it was from a very disturbed, dangerous, and broken man named Obito, the last of his kind. He had personally murdered every member of his bloodline and helped in the extermination of all magic users on his planet. He lived to regret it...for the most part. His spirit will rest much better knowing there is another world where the bloodline survived."

There was a definite reaction this time. It wasn't visible, but Kakashi felt it. Ice dripping with venom. His heart sank before the man said a word.

"It hasn't survived. Sasuke is the last." The man turned away sharply. "We'll discuss this with the Hokage."

Kakashi followed him, irritation and frustration roiling in his gut. Sometimes he was a damned fool. He should have known better. Obito had insisted the bloodline was cursed, doomed to destroy itself and any planet it bloomed on. But Obito had been half mad with grief and isolation, left behind on his dead planet with nothing but time to dream and wonder and regret. Kakashi had spent a few years trying to find something that would make the man's soul move on from his self-imposed purgatory before giving it up as a lost cause. He had only found one other world with evidence of the sharingan, and while the sharingan users hadn't turned on each other one of them had unwittingly opened the door to things far too powerful for their world to counter. Although that world was thriving in comparison to Obito's abandoned rock, it was thriving with demons now. Obito wouldn't have considered that an improvement. Kakashi had never mentioned it to him.

Still...he should have wondered how this world's Kakashi had gotten his sharingan. He had just assumed the man had gotten it the same way he had, from a dying man, the last of his kind, who couldn't stand not leaving behind something of himself and his people where it might see and do better than he had. The Obito he knew would never have given one of his eyes to someone without the blood to use it fully if he'd had any other choice. Then again, the Obito he knew hadn't been willing to risk leaving even a newborn alive. "I'm surprised Sasuke survived. I can't imagine Obito having missed one."

"Obito didn't kill anyone," the other Kakashi snapped. "He was just a child when he died."

He supposed that counted for something. If Obito's spirit really was still trapped in the dimension he had created to house his body, then he might take comfort knowing at least one version of him had died without genocide on his conscience. And murmuring that news to the void was certainly better than giving in to his first instinct and bringing Sasuke to that dimension to see if anything happened. At least it hadn't been Obito this time. Unfortunately, another of his kind had done the exact same thing he had. Kakashi would leave that part out when he told him about Sasuke. It was very irritating to have gotten his hopes up only to find more proof that Obito had been right about his kind being doomed to wipe itself out. Fate was a funny lady when it came to the cute things like soulmates, but she could also be a repetitive bitch when it came to history repeating itself.

He eyed the man in front of him and wondered if this explained what was so wrong with him. He had been twenty-three when he had stumbled his way onto Obito's planet and curiously sought out the only sign of life there. Obito's story had disturbed him mostly because he'd been forced to live parts of it through sharingan-induced visions that still occasionally wormed their way into his dreams. But he had already been an established traveler by then. He had seen the aftermaths of far worse wars, and heard far more disturbing horror stories. By the time Obito's body had turned to dust the encounter was just one more pitiable and wasteful example of what happened to villains who only realized their mistakes when it was far too late. It was sad, disturbing and nonsensical. It was life. Some people suffered and then they died. Things like that happened. That Sasuke was the last of his kind on this world was just more proof that things like that happened a lot. But if this world's Obito had died as a child during the sharingan slaughter then this world's Kakashi had probably received his sharingan as a child. Something like that could really screw a child up. That might explain why this Kakashi's students were as messed up as he was.

Maybe he should handcuff Kakashi to Iruka the way he had with the boys. There was nothing like being chained to light to prevent a person from sinking into darkness. That it usually led to sex was also a perk.

.-.

"But how does it work?" Kiba demanded. The little blanket he was holding didn't just look like the blanket Akamaru liked to curl up with, it smelled like it. If this was just a replica of the blanket Akamaru used at home then how could it smell like him when he hadn't touched it yet? That made no sense!

"Why are you complaining?" Kankuro scowled at him from where was sitting in the middle of parts from the puppet he had disassembled. "Mine isn't even a good replica." He pointed a finger that was glistening with purple liquid at Clef. "This might look like the poison I use, but it's not. What's the point pretending this 'magic cabinet' of yours will provide the things we want when they're just fakes? This is colored water!" He stuck his fingertip in his mouth and then spat on the floor. "Colored sugar water!"

Shino raised an eyebrow at him. "What does your poison usually taste like?"

"How should I know? I don't drink the shit! I just know it isn't colored sugar water."

Clef didn't smile, but he wanted to. "The cabinet, as you call it, works by focusing your thoughts so that they guide the formation of the items you create. On my world, thoughts take physical form. Thus the dirt from my world is transformed according to your thoughts. The better you know and imagine the things you seek to create, the more accurate they will be. If you know how the original blanket smells, then the one you create will have that smell. If you do not know what the original poison is made of, then the replica will not be made of the same things."

"Then it's useless!" said Kankuro.

"Not necessarily," said Shikamaru. He had hoped they could just get their stuff and be rid of the 'teachers' by now. Instead, everyone was clustered in the small round room, going through the 'replicas' they had created. Kankuro had the biggest mess around him, but Naruto also had a pile of random things and was currently shoving his latest coat back in to see if he could change it until it was 'just right', whatever that meant. It kept coming out orange so Shikamaru didn't see why the design mattered much. At least Sasuke had outfitted himself quickly and with little playing around. Neji and Gaara hadn't even gone near the cabinet, and Clef's three kids had long since taken off to explore the place. That was what they should have been doing. They could always come back to this room later.

"What do you mean?" Kankuro asked him suspiciously.

"Think about it. Does Sasuke know what his shoes are made of? Doubtful. But they look and function the same as the real thing. If you focus on the poison doing the same thing yours does, then it should do the same thing - whether it's made of the same ingredients or not." For all they knew Kankuro was immune to his own poison and that was the only reason tasting that purple stuff hadn't killed him. If he wasn't immune, they'd probably be finding out in a few minutes. Just what they needed.

Clef did smile this time. "You understand," he told Shikamaru. "I'll leave you to see your group settled." He nodded to Iruka on his way out of the room.

Iruka gave him a wincing smile and then abandoned his place by the door. He was used to the wonders of Cephiro dirt, having had to use it regularly since coming to Atlantis. But even he had trouble explaining how it worked to new students. It was essentially a stable transmogrification without the use of magic, because the dirt itself was imbued with magic. The very use of such a thing was forbidden in most parts of the wizarding world because it was far too ripe for abuse. Personally, he was relieved that Kankuro's poison wasn't as accurate as the boy had hoped. That wooden contraption the boy had created was disturbing enough without knowing it contained poisonous blades. What kind of world had Kakashi taken them from?

He bypassed Shikamaru's group and approached Naruto, was grumbling over his latest coat. "Can I help you focus your thoughts?"

"Eh?" Naruto started to smile and then quickly scowled instead. He resented the way he reacted to this man. This wasn't his Iruka. If he looked closely there were differences. His hair wasn't as tight, he looked younger somehow, and he was slighter built. He was also wearing a black robe that made him look like a weirdo or a girl or something. Definitely not his Iruka. But he felt enough like him that just the sound of his voice had Naruto fighting a smile and the urge to bounce. He was always happy to see his Iruka, knowing he'd get a hug or a hair tousle out of it even if Iruka was all set to lecture him about something. He was pretty sure he'd get used to the fake Kakashi eventually, since he was used to being irritated by the real Kakashi. But he was terrified of getting used to a fake Iruka who seemed as nice as the real one. He had promised himself not to trust anyone here. This guy was going to make it much harder to keep that promise. "I don't need your help."

"Then stop messing around and pick something," Sasuke muttered. He didn't look at either of them. He also didn't point out the obvious problem with Naruto getting all excited about designing his own orange eyesore. How the hell were they going to change clothes with a chain connecting their wrists?

"You're one to talk," Naruto scoffed. "Are you planning to wear that the entire time we're here?" Sasuke had gotten weapons and shoes, but not a single piece of clothing. He should at least want a shirt with his clan symbol on the back. Sasuke finally turned his head just enough to look at him. That look. The one that said he was about to watch Naruto make an idiot of himself and he was going to enjoy it because he was an asshole like that. Naruto immediately bristled. He knew he shouldn't take the bait, it almost always turned out bad, but he couldn't help but jump at it because maybe this time he would prove him wrong and Sasuke would be the one left looking stupid. "What?" he demanded.

"Try your new coat on."

That tone of voice was almost as bad as the look and had the exact same effect. Naruto looked at the coat he was holding as if he had planned to try it on anyway. He actually wasn't very happy with it. It was too long and loose at the bottom. It would cover his pants pockets and probably flap around when he moved. He could just see it falling around his face and blinding him the first time he flipped upside down. He had never figured out how Sasuke could stand upside down without those baggy shirts of his falling right off. Maybe he practiced or did some trick to make his clothes stiff. Or maybe his clothes were just as stiff and uptight as he was. Naruto snorted and then removed his coat. He shook out the new coat before shoving his right arm into the sleeve and whipping it around him. It did fit nicely, and he did like the black stripes along the arms. He straightened the way it fell and then shot a challenging look at Sasuke. "Well?"

Sasuke just stared at him for a long moment, vaguely aware that the fake Iruka was watching them both curiously. Then he snapped and yanked Naruto's right hand into the air by the chain, gravity pulling the loose sleeve of his new orange and black coat down so the cuff on his wrist was revealed. The cuff was still there. The chain was certainly still there. And Naruto jumped, looking wary and confused, and Sasuke suddenly wished Sakura was here to hit the moron over the head. She would have understood how he felt. "How the hell did you do that? Did you even notice?" Naruto obviously hadn't thought about what he was doing.

"Notice what?" Naruto yanked his arm loose so hard that the back of Sasuke's hand hit his shoulder. The chain was three inches long again, and after they had struggled so hard to lengthen the thing. "Now look what you did. What's your problem?"

"I believe he's surprised that the cloth went through the chain," Iruka offered. He immediately regretted speaking up. Sasuke had a very threatening glare, violently dark and vicious. Was that why Kakashi had connected the two? For someone so jaded, the man was a hopeless meddler. That connection was more likely to make Naruto more disturbed, rather than settling his more volatile partner down to his level.

"It did," Naruto blurted, lifting his arm to stare at in shock. "I did it earlier, too." He had taken off both his coat and his shirt in the infirmary without even thinking about it. He hadn't been thinking clearly about much of anything at the time. He grabbed a bit of his sleeve and pressed it against the chain. Both remained solid, so...what did that mean? That it only worked if he was taking clothes off or putting them on? Or that it only worked when he wasn't thinking about it? He shot a resentful look at Sasuke, because he now knew why Sasuke hadn't bothered to get any clothes for himself. He had thought Naruto was wasting his time trying to pick out a coat and had let him do it just for the pleasure of seeing him look stupid. But, see? Sasuke was the stupid one, not him. "I bet you feel dumb now, eh?"

He did, but that was because of the chain, which was because of the fake Kakashi. This wasn't worth attacking Naruto over, however much he wanted to. He rolled his eyes as if Naruto's taunt didn't bother him a bit. That made Naruto scowl and was almost better than hitting him. Then he directed his annoyance back on the man who shared the same face and name with their former teacher. "How exactly does this chain work? And how do we get it off?"

"I don't know that much about it," Iruka admitted. "I just know that Kakashi wouldn't have placed it on you if it would interfere with you acting as students. If it prevented you from doing something as simple as changing clothes, he would have to remove it. I have no idea how to remove it or I would have done so the moment I saw it. I don't approve of such things." That was an understatement. "I suspect the quickest way to get him to remove the chain is to either pretend to get along well enough for him to think it's no longer needed, or to find something that it prevents you from doing - such as learning or taking part in classes and activities. You are right-handed, aren't you?" he asked Naruto. "That could inhibit your spell-casting if it takes concentration to make the chain long enough for you to move freely. If Kakashi is forced to choose between your performance and his misguided notion of bonding, he'll choose what makes you better students. We just have to hope he doesn't simply move the chain to your ankles when you're working with your hands." That was just the sort of 'compromise' Kakashi would make, as if that were any better. "For now, I'll ask the other professors if they know of a way to remove it." And a way to prevent Kakashi from putting another one on if they did manage to remove this one. Kakashi would see it as a game and that was the last thing the kids needed.

"Are you two done for now?" asked Shikamaru. "You can come back later to get more."

"Yes," Iruka nodded. "This room is not stationary or solitary. There are multiple supply rooms like this one, all accessible the same as the restrooms. If one doesn't appear, they may all be in use. But I doubt that will happen often, especially with so few students at the moment. Would you like to exit and try calling the room back yourselves?"

Naruto opened his mouth, looking eager to try. Shikamaru cut him off. "Not right now. We'll try later and if it doesn't work, we just have to go to your office. Right?"

"Right," said Iruka. A glance found that Kankuro had put his 'puppet' back together and wrapped it up. It looked like a bandaged corpse to Iruka, just as it had looked when the boy first opened the cabinet and revealed his creation. The others hadn't gotten much. Perhaps they were wary of him seeing what sort of supplies they chose. "You should know that the supply rooms are monitored, so anything you create here will be noted by Clef. There isn't currently any limit to how much you can create, but excessive or wasteful usage may cause that to change."

"Figures," Kiba muttered.

"Sorry," said Iruka. "If you ever want an isolated area in which to do things in secret, one can be provided for you. You only have to ask. And your dorm rooms are private. Nothing you say or do in those will be monitored unless a death occurs." He gave a smile, hoping it was safe to treat that as a joke and that they wouldn't actually ever be in a position where they tried to kill someone or each other. "When a spirit leaves a body in Atlantis, most of the professors will immediately know and intervene so it can be found in time to place it back in its body. If you ever want all eyes on you, killing someone is the quickest way to achieve it."

"Thanks for the warning," said Shikamaru. Killing Kakashi wouldn't do them any good, so it wasn't a warning they actually needed. It was something to keep in mind though. He doubted all the 'students' here was as amiable as the three they had met so far. And the teachers could be far worse. "So how do we get to these 'dorms'? We could do with a little privacy." And there was no point pretending otherwise when Iruka was giving them tips on where and how to find it.

"You're in Kakashi's wing. That's on the top floor, so I'll have to show you how to skip the other floors if Atlantis is in the mood to show off. I don't think anyone has ever gone the long way. Although," he sent Shikamaru a teasing look as he led him and the others out of the room, "you might find something useful if you're in the mood to attempt it someday. This place hasn't been properly explored because it's constantly changing and adding curiosities. We have the common areas stable enough for our needs. The rest? A guaranteed adventure that will get you lost and entertained if not educated." He looked past the boy to include the others. "Do you all remember what to do when you get lost?"

"Jump over the nearest rail," Kiba scoffed. Because, supposedly, that would leave them standing on the first floor regardless of how high up they had been when they jumped. As if they'd actually believe that. "You're nuts if you expect any of us to try that."

"You will," Iruka assured him. He sympathized with the boy's doubt. Even he had doubted it the first time he had gotten lost here. But it was the only guaranteed way and it did work. "If you're stubborn enough, someone would be sent to find you before you starve. But it takes a few days to starve. There's no need to be that stubborn."

Kiba glowered at the reminder of his empty stomach. Their 'magic cabinet' could make replicas of food, but it was supposedly not food that would actually satisfy hunger or nourish a body. He intended to test that. Later. "When do we get fed, anyway?"

"In a few hours, at the bell. You'll hear it anywhere on the grounds. Just head for the first floor. Your dorms are provided with snacks you can eat in the meantime. You'll be forgiven if you decide to spend your first night in your dorm, especially considering how you arrived here. Tomorrow morning, however, you'll need to start attending meals in the main hall with everyone else. If you don't come on your own you will be fetched and that's not a good way to start your first real day here. Besides, you'll be starting on your individual wands after breakfast. You wouldn't want to be late for that."

Kiba made a face at the man's back. This was starting to feel like they were starting all over at the academy again. They'd probably get in trouble for 'skipping class' as well. But this 'Iruka' wasn't a ninja. If he thought he would be able to keep up with them if they decided to jump out a window, he was in for a rude surprise. He caught Naruto's eye and knew he was thinking the same thing. Too bad Naruto was chained to Sasuke. That would put a real damper on any fun they attempted to have.

Iruka had just explained how to 'knock' with a wand when they wanted to visit each other's rooms when he spotted Haku heading toward them. He was surprised Zabuza had let him off the leash so soon. Zabuza had given him quite an earful earlier, and rightfully so. There was no excuse for Kakashi to have risked Haku that way. The boy wasn't even supposed to be apparating without supervision, much less doing so across dimensions. He turned to meet the boy halfway and thus missed the way Naruto and Sasuke reacted to the sight of him.

"What is it?" Iruka asked, once he was out of earshot of the students.

"The mouse is back," said Haku. He gave a sympathetic smile when Iruka winced. "I told him that we still have no female teachers, but he insists on speaking to you anyway."

Iruka's shoulders slumped. The mouse was one of the most disturbing creatures he had met since taking his place here. It didn't even look like a mouse. It looked and sounded like a chipper high pitched dwarf wearing a round oversized mask with mouse ears. And it never came alone. "Is the...tall one with him?"

"I'm afraid so."

That was even worse. Kakashi had identified the tall one as some sort of humanoid dog, but to Iruka it looked more like a moose or camel with its long wrinkled snout. And he was so...cute in a weird and funny way. Every time the strange 'man' laughed Iruka had to fight the urge to tug on one of his floppy ears. Because he was a dog, according to Kakashi, as if that made it perfectly natural. At least he didn't have a tail like the mouse did.

"You might want to hurry," said Haku. "Ryu is keeping them company until you arrive."

"What? Why didn't you send him to fetch me instead of coming yourself? If he cuddles that mouse..." Iruka sent a harried look at the kids behind him, and then waved Haku to take over. "Please just make sure they understand how their dorm rooms work. Thank you. Are they waiting in my office? I'll go straight there."

"Their ship is parked on the front lawn," Haku warned him, before Iruka could apparate away. "Should I keep the kidnap victims from attempting to steal it or draw their attention to it?"

"What? No, don't encourage or hinder or interfere in any way. I doubt they would even know how to get inside it. But if they do, then they hopefully also know how to navigate it. If they can use that to get home, good for them. Kakashi can fetch it back afterward. It would serve him right for telling them to park out front. It's only a matter of time before someone knocks a few of those 'gummi' bits off the ship and the mouse is stranded here. They wouldn't even need to bring the entire ship if Kakashi would just-" Iruka cut himself off, taking a deep breath. "Please take over for me here. Thank you."

"I will," Haku smiled. "And don't fret too much about Ryu cuddling the mouse. I doubt the mouse would mind. Animals never mind Ryu."

Maybe not, Iruka thought, but this animal wore clothes and walked upright. And was a king, besides. Iruka was far too traditional to intentionally offend people no matter how disturbingly cute and cuddlesome they might be.

.-.

"Brothers," Kakashi sighed. Did that explain it? Obito had killed everyone who shared even a drop of his blood, from the elderly to infants. Would he have hesitated if he'd had a sibling? Kakashi doubted it. Obito had been absolutely convinced that he was doing the right thing, the only thing, to save those without the magic to protect themselves from his people. But he hadn't merely wiped out his own kind, he had joined the war against the remaining magic users as well. This 'Itachi' hadn't gone that far...unless that was the Akatsuki's ultimate goal. That would fit fate's cycle quite nicely. In that case it wouldn't matter that he had let his little brother survive for a few years because he intended him to be wiped out along with the rest of the magic users. He eyed Tsunade closely. She was looking down at her sake saucer, as if she wasn't the slightest bit concerned about the story he had told her. She had a lousy poker face.

"Are you going to tell me the rest?" asked Kakashi. "Why did you let him get away with it? Was one deranged teenager really stronger than all of you? He's bound to be far stronger now, and you must have known that would happen. Did you think he would be content just wiping out his own species and that he would never turn against the rest of you?"

Tsunade flashed him a sharp glare. "Sharingan users are not a separate species. There are many bloodlines, but we're all human."

"Then why? And why did you send the other me away for this discussion? Was it my story you didn't want him to hear...or yours?"

"I didn't send him away," she snapped. "He chose to go. Maybe he's listening right outside the door. Maybe he went home. That's his choice. I certainly have no intention of telling you anything I wouldn't want him to hear, either way. Most of the boys you took know what happened to the Uchiha clan. Sasuke certainly does. All I have shared is common knowledge. That's all I have to share."

"Then you're not afraid of history repeating itself?"

She scoffed at that. "According to you, it already has. Except in your version Uchiha Obito was a monster. Ours was a hero who died protecting his teammates. There is no comparison. Besides, nothing we say here could bring back those who have died. Nothing I could tell you would help us defeat Itachi or the rest of the Akatsuki. Unless, of course, you're offering to transport them somewhere for us. That dead planet sounds like a fitting place for them. I might be persuaded to tell you a few things in exchange for that."

"Ah, but that would be interfering on a grand scale. Ridding you of one menace could open you to a worse menace. Then instead of a dead planet like Obito's, your realm could end up overrun by demons like the other one I mentioned. No, it's much better if the interference merely prepares you to deal more easily with your own problems. That way you're ready if even worse ones pop up."

"Then you were just throwing that out there as something you could do, without mentioning that it was something you never would do."

"Yes," Kakashi smiled apologetically. "Sorry."

"Don't be," she smiled back. "I couldn't have told you what you want to know regardless." She dropped the smile when Kakashi laughed. This really wasn't funny, and she was too tired to play this game for much longer. "I wasn't the leader of the village when the massacre took place. I have no idea why Itachi was left to run free for so long. If he has gone as mad as the man you met, then it doesn't bode well for anyone. But we're already doing everything we can to deal with the Akatsuki. We have lost too many good men just trying to gain information on them. All we know for certain is that they're targeting Naruto and Gaara. If you really can make those two better able to protect themselves, then that's enough 'interference' on your part."

"And the creatures I offered to help you spy on them?"

"If you think they'd be able to survive an encounter with the sharingan, we'll use them. If they're liable to be caught and killed, then don't bother."

Kakashi didn't like how old she sounded all of a sudden. "I didn't think you were the sort to give in that easily."

She dropped her eyes and reached beneath her desk to retrieve a scroll. She waved it in front of him, but didn't let him have it when he reached for it. "Do you recognize this?"

"Should I?"

"Pakkun delivered it a few minutes after I received word that you had been spotted with Shikamaru, right around the time Kakashi must have found you."

"And Pakkun is...?"

"You just answered my question," she muttered. She put the scroll away. "Pakkun is the nindog Shikamaru summoned in order to send that report, which was written by Gaara. And that's probably all I should say since it obviously hasn't happened yet for you."

Kakashi rose from his chair, his face hot from a rare flush. Now this was embarrassing. He hadn't actually expected the kids to send regular progress reports, so he hadn't considered the time difference. He was too experienced to make mistakes like that. "Oops. I shouldn't be here. I'll be more careful next time."

"I know you will," she said, with a smug smile.

Because he had already been more careful? Had he come here at some point between taking the kids and bringing Shikamaru back? Or was there something in the report about him? Now he was going to wonder about that all night. Maybe that was her intention. Either way, she had the upper hand which meant it was time for him to go home and sooth his bruised pride. With a bashful wave, he teleported straight to his bedroom. He didn't need to look in his mirror to know he was still blushing, but he looked anyway. Bright pink against his dark mask. And she had seen that. Yeah, it was going to take a while for him to live this one down.

.-.

Naruto shoved another handful of the grape sized balls of pastry into his mouth. He didn't care what they were. They were savory and flaky and he was starving. And Shikamaru had given them all ten minutes to load up on whatever 'snacks' the room had to offer before they were to meet back up in his room. He had considered loading up the pockets of his new coat but he didn't want to get crumbs in there. Sasuke wasn't eating as fast, but only because he was trying some of the other odd looking food. "How many more do you think there are here?"

"Who knows."

At least Sasuke didn't have to ask what he was talking about. That made it easier. "He looks younger somehow. Iruka, does, too. The fake Iruka, I mean."

"I only saw his face once," Sasuke reminded him. "I thought it was some local girl."

"I thought he was a girl, too! He was prettier than Sakura. I couldn't believe it when his mask broke and I realized it was him."

"You never mentioned that."

Naruto filled his mouth so he wouldn't have to respond to that. Of course he hadn't mentioned it. They had never spoken a word about Haku and wouldn't be talking about him now if it weren't for the look-alike. Chewing didn't take long enough. The moment he swallowed Sasuke caught his eye and he knew was going to ask. As if seeing Haku had opened the door so they could talk about this. It hadn't. That door needed to stay closed. Sasuke had kept it closed just like he had. Why open it now? They had enough problems.

"How did his mask break?" asked Sasuke. How had Naruto survived? Had Naruto defeated him? Surely Naruto would have bragged about it if he had defeated him. Or maybe he wouldn't have, because that would have reminded them why Naruto had been the only one left to face him. Honestly, he didn't want to talk about that any more than Naruto did. But Kakashi hadn't been able to tell him anything when he asked. Naruto surviving Haku had to be the first step in him becoming strong enough to take on Gaara. "What did you do?"

"Nothing," Naruto said quickly, focusing his eyes on the food. "I got a lucky hit in and his mask broke. But that's all. I didn't beat him or anything. He took off to protect Zabuza from Kakashi and-" He jerked his hand way from the food he had been reaching for. That memory ended any pretense of him being hungry. "He took a chidori to the chest."

"Damn."

"Yeah. I bet Kakashi freaks out when we get home and tell him there's a Haku here. Or maybe he'll be happy..."

Happy? Sasuke supposed he might be. Even a professional ninja wouldn't like having killed someone so young, especially someone with a face like that. Naruto was rubbing his hands. All the breaded things Sasuke had tried left a hint of grease behind. He jerked his head toward the bathroom so they could wash their hands. Once that was done and Naruto was looking a little more upbeat, he asked. "What happened to Zabuza? Sakura had no idea when I asked her and Kakashi just said he was dead." Sakura had probably been wailing over his body the entire time. Or maybe he wasn't giving her enough credit. She would have been busy protecting Tazuna, too far from the fight to see anything. That would explain why she and the bridge-builder were there when he woke up.

"Oh," Naruto sighed, "that was something else." Something impressive and sad and just...something Sasuke shouldn't have missed. He had no problem telling him all about that, except it required telling him about that first meeting with Haku. He stuttered and rambled and was sure Sasuke knew he was leaving things out. But when he got to the part where Zabuza attacked Gatou's army of goons he could tell Sasuke was riveted and that felt really good. That helped to make up for him being responsible for Sasuke missing the best part of their first real mission. He was describing the snow when they were interrupted by a strange buzzing sound. "What-"

"We took too long," Sasuke grimaced. "That's probably what it sounds like when someone 'knocks' with a wand. Let's go."

"We better grab our wands," Naruto said, when Sasuke started to walk straight for the door.

Wands, Sasuke scoffed to himself. He was already disliking those polished sticks and they weren't even 'real' ones. They were too long to fit in a pocket and only good for opening doors. They would have to figure out a way to store and carry those or they would be leaving them behind and losing them all over the place. He watched as Naruto attempted to slide his into the cuff of his shoe only to give up when it only fit halfway. Sasuke had considered that as well, but they'd need high neck shoes for that and those were hard to move in. With a wry smile he tucked his under the band of his forehead protector, just behind his ear. Naruto snorted, grinned, and then did the same thing. It looked ridiculous. Somehow that fit the situation nicely.

.-.
TBC

Credits: The mouse, his companion, and the Gummi ship are from Kingdom Hearts.