Heart's Note: For the past 2 years, Father's Day hasn't really been a happy thing for me. But still, I write.

Disclaimer: Naruto and all it's characters are copyrighted to Masashi Kishimoto, not me.

Naruto can taste it. It's in the pack ramen that's been left on his doorstep. It's in the bento boxes that he sometimes finds on his counter before a mission. It's in the bowls of veggies and milk cartons that somehow appear on his table on rainy days, and it's in his heart when he tells Iruka-sensei about the packs. The teacher laughs, ruffling Naruto's hair as his student says those packs somehow taste a little like Ichiraku's best recipe.

"That's what love tastes like, Naruto." Naruto doesn't really get it right then, but he knows he'll understand it someday.

Besides. Those vegetables actually taste good when they've been dipped in leftover ramen broth.

Sakura can hear it. It's really subtle at times, but sometimes it's as subtle as a rhino. Kakashi's voice changes depending on what's going on around them. If he's stressed, his voice gets tighter. If he's scared, it gets just a little higher. He generally only gets scared when his students are threatened, Inner Sakura has noticed. ANd when he's proud of them, even Naruto can tell from just his voice.

Sakura likes to pretend that Sasuke's voice will someday get that way, about thier children.

Little does she know it will.

Sasuke can smell it. His smell has seeped into the Jounin vests that Kakashi wears, a mix of wet dog, blood, and paper. It shouldn't be calming, but it is. Sasuke knows what it's like to wake up from nightmares, screaming for someone who won't come home again. But he also knows his team enough to recognize who's trying to comfort him, and he can tell just be scent. Naruto; ramen and grass. Sakura; apple blossoms and some kind of fruit. But Kakashi's scent is the most calming, and is the one who can actually get him to sleep again.

So it's no surprise to Kakashi that he finds one of his vests missing after Sasuke has left the Village.

Tsunade can see it. It's in the way that Sakura can't hold still while she is sparring with Naruto. It's in the way that Naruto continues to have his ass kicked by even Jiraiya on the day that Kakashi is coming home. And it's in the way that Sasuke won't stop brooding, staring off towards the Konoha gates as Team 7 awaits thier sensei. So, it's no surprise to Tsunade, who is watching from the Hokage Tower, that she sees three blurs racing down the streets to the Gates.

She was like that, too. With Granpa.

Kakashi can feel it. It's in the looks of gratitude Naruto gave him after that storm, when the boy woke to find decent food on his table. It's in the smiles that Sakura gives him when he's proud of her progress, and it's Sasuke's help to back up his Raikiri after a bad night. But he can also feel it a different way. He can feel it as they tackle him to the ground in a group hug. Sakura has her arms wrapped around the back of his neck, gently burying her face into her sensei's hair. Naruto is clinging to his arm, blabbering on about how much he missed him during that week. Sasuke is standing off to the side, before Kakashi grabs the boys wrist and pulls him into the hug. He clings desperatly, grateful that Kakashi came home alive again.

Kakashi isn't surprised at all when he and the remaining members of Team 7 find Sasuke waiting to come home, 3 years after he left.

Heart's Note: My biological father left my Mom and I when I was 4, and the man I can call my Father, my Granpa, died when I was 14. I've been without a father figure for the past 2 years, but I make do. We all do, really.