D3ath: OVER 100 REVIEWS! THANKS A TON YOU GUYS! And a shout-out to titpuce86, who was the 100th reviewer!

Also, a special thank-you for darienc61 and JuMiKu for info and help! And Ochibi and Urufu, you seriously made my day with your review. I think that's probably the funniest one I've seen so far. XD

I also like how you guys keep trying to guess how others can see Kakashi. If you look back to chapter one, you might see a clue as to how it's possible…

Disclaimer: Petunia Dursley could never figure out why her Hydrangeas never grew properly…

Chapter 6

Kakashi peered out of the alley, contemplating what he should do. Somehow, he was back in Konoha, and he still had yet to determine whether this was a good thing or not.

It was nice, seeing the familiar sights, hearing the familiar sounds, and smelling the familiar smells, but…

…Why did he feel like he was an enemy nin here?

Cautiously, he stepped out, curious about whether he would be seen here or not without a henge.

When no one even paused to look at him, or even notice as he stepped uncomfortably close to a nearby vegetable seller, he decided that he was in the clear.

Now, he needed to focus on his next problem. How did he get here? The last thing he remembered was Harry getting dragged back, like he was being summoned-

Kakashi's eye widened, before his expression fell flat.

"I'm going to kill those dogs," he growled to himself, and he began to hurry through the village. He needed to find Obito, for who else would be summoning dogs here? And who else would be learning about a reverse summoning?

He began to run through the streets, trying to remember where Obito lived. 'He was kicked out of the Uchiha estate, not to mention the entire clan was murdered…his own apartment? He was living with sensei before he died…right! Maybe there!' He took a right at the next intersection, and he began heading over to Minato's old apartment.

However, as he turned onto the street that Minato's apartment resided, he came face-to-face with an old, familiar face. One that was odd, seeing as how the person was much older than he remembered.

He tried to slow to a stop, but he ended up scrambling through the surprised Maito Gai, who shuddered at the sensation and whirled around, drawing a kunai.

Kakashi held his breath as Gai scanned the street intently, no longer the goofy genin he was back when they were both twelve. Right now, he was a deadly killer, and he was looking for a target.

However, after a moment, Gai frowned suspiciously, put his kunai away, and continued on his way, still glancing about warily.

Kakashi released a small sigh of relief, and turned back to his destination.

He approached the door carefully, before picking the lock and peering inside. From both the scents and sounds, there was no one there, and hadn't been for at least the day. With a frown, Kakashi headed to the next place he knew Obito would be with their summons: the training fields.

Obito paced the area outside the Hokage's tower, trying to come up with a good-enough excuse for Harry's appearance, training, and lack of affiliation with a village.

He decided to stick with the reverse summoning part, because not only had the ANBU seen that, but it was the most logical excuse that he could come up with on a short notice. However, Harry's background and skill level could not be explained in a similar matter, so Obito was now stuck.

"Maybe I could tell the Hokage that Harry's a distant relative of Kakashi's or something!" he muttered gleefully to himself, before smacking himself in the forehead and shaking his head. "No, Obito, that's a bad idea. You'll probably succeed in making yourself look like an idiot in front of the Hokage, and Harry shipped to the T and I department."

"You're already an idiot," said a voice from next to him.

"Shut up, Kakashi. You're not helping," Obito replied absentmindedly before freezing and slowly rotating.

Kakashi scowled up at him, folding his arms. "You've got a lot of explaining to do, Obito," he said darkly.

However, Obito's mind had suddenly rebooted, and he leapt forward, shouting aloud in joy. "Kaka-oomph!" He had seized the dead teen in a hug, only to receive a sharp blow to the abdomen, making the former Uchiha let go and double over with a wheeze.

Kakashi folded his arms again, his single eye glittering darkly. "I'd like it if you don't go shouting my name, thank you very much," he commented sourly. "Also, what the hell did you do to Harry?"

Obito straightened, gasping for air. "I didn't do it, the dogs did," he refuted, rubbing his abdomen. "Geez, did you stop training at all? Because you're dead, you can afford to take a break once in a while."

Kakashi ignored him. "So why is he in the Hokage's tower, then?" he asked in a clipped, no-nonsense tone, and Obito winced.

"The ANBU were watching Sasuke, in case he regressed into mental instability or something," he replied. "Anyways, they saw Harry and arrested him. I promised I'd explain everything to the Hokage, but…" He studied Kakashi. "Y'know, you look exactly the same. I thought you'd at least look taller, but I guess you're still the shrimp you were when you died-ack!" Obito dodged another punch. "Alright, alright! I get it! Geez…" he grumbled when Kakashi folded his arms for a third time, "I thought you'd at least lighten up or something, especially with a kid like Harry in your care."

"So, what were you planning on telling the Hokage?" Kakashi asked. "Because from what I've heard so far, it sounds pretty pathetic."

Obito flushed. "Hey, I'm trying! I was never good at coming up with stuff like this."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "Obviously," he drawled, and Obito's mismatched eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean by that?" he demanded. "You've never heard me come up with a story before!"

"No, because I've heard your pathetic excuses until they made my ears bleed," Kakashi deadpanned in return.

"Hey! They weren't that bad! I-" protested Obito, but Kakashi cut him off.

"We have something more important on hand, Obito!" he snapped. "Or did you forget about Harry?"

"Crap!" yelped Obito, before he raced into the tower.

Kakashi stood there for a moment, dumbfounded by Obito's apparent lack of thought, before he smacked himself in face and hurried after the dark-haired adult, his friend despite the fact that Kakashi couldn't fathom why he considered the former Uchiha one.

Harry sat nervously in the Hokage's office, squirming a little under the Hokage's intense stare. Despite being trained to Chuunin level, he was still a ten-year-old at heart, and he still had a hard time sitting perfectly still for long durations of time.

"You said your name was Potter Harry, am I correct?" asked Sarutobi Hiruizen, steepling his fingers in front of him. Harry nodded, a little frightened. "Your name sounds like it comes from the outer countries, the ones past the barrier."

Harry started a little, his green eyes wide behind his glasses. "You know about them?" he asked, a little surprised, before he remembered his situation and clammed up. Sarutobi chuckled at the reaction. It seemed that Harry, no matter how trained he was, still let his curiosity override his shinobi instincts. Whoever trained this boy would have to work on that.

"I traveled there a few times," he told the black-haired boy mildly. "I met some very interesting people, I guess you could say."

Harry nodded, lapsing back into silence.

The Hokage studied the boy from under his hat. The boy bore a distinct Konoha accent, which was a little odd, considering how he'd never heard of the boy before. Not only that, he had been speaking with Obito, according to the ANBU, and both of them seemed a little familiar with each other. Not only that, but the boy was brought by a reverse summoning through the dog contract, and seemed intimately acquainted with the dogs, even going so far as to tackle them upon arrival.

The Hokage's eyes narrowed. Very interesting…

There was a knock on the door, and Harry jumped a little, startled by the sudden noise, and the Hokage cleared his throat. "Yes?" he called.

"Obito-san is here to see you, Hokage-sama," a feminine voice replied, just as the door opened to admit the dark-haired adult.

The Hokage noticed that Harry's eyes zeroed in on a point next to Obito's shoulder, his eyes growing wide before he gave a small nod. The boy returned his attention to the desk before him, his mouth twisting downward in a nervous frown.

'I wonder what could have caused that reaction,' the Hokage mused, before turning to his secretary, who was standing behind the jounin. "Thank you, I'll handle it from here." The secretary bowed, and shut the door, the click of her heels fading away as she returned to her desk.

"Sit," the Hokage gestured, waving his hand towards an empty seat next to Harry. "And perhaps you can tell me why I shouldn't send this boy to the Torture and Interrogation department."

Harry's eyes widened, and he looked at Obito with something akin to hope and fear.

Obito nodded curtly. "Yes, Hokage-sama. As you may have guessed, Harry-kun was brought here via reverse summoning."

The older man nodded, and Obito felt it safe to continue. "It was a practical joke on the dogs' part, Hokage-sama," he said, flushing a little. "They wanted to show me how a reverse summoning went, and well…they summoned Harry here."

"That doesn't explain very much," said the Hokage sternly. Obito cringed slightly.

"I know," he said worriedly.

"So how did you know who he was? Because the records state that he has never been here before, and judging from his reactions, he comes from the countries outside the elemental countries' border." Harry cringed, and his head jolted aside like he had been smacked by an invisible force. Judging from the slightly sour expression on the boy's face, and his hand darting up to rub his head, he had been. Sarutobi frowned even more. "That also doesn't explain how he got the dog contract, considering how your interaction proved that you two know each other in passing, but have never met each other face to face."

Obito's shoulders slumped. "How can I not send him to the T and I?" he asked, unsure. "Because he's a good kid, really. And he means no harm to this village or its secrets."

The Hokage eyed one of his best ANBU sternly. "You can tell me the truth."

Obito pushed his goggles up and rubbed the bridge of his nose, before sighing and nodding. "Fine," he said, sitting up and glancing around the room. His hands blurred for a moment, forming a jutsu, and the Hokage nodded as the room glowed with privacy seals. "But Hatake Kakashi probably would be able to explain it better than I can."

Sarutobi frowned. "Hatake Kakashi? He died nine years ago, Obito." Then his eyes widened, and he half-stood in his chair. "Unless you're implying that Kakashi never died?" he demanded, and Obito grimaced.

"Well, he did. Kind of," Obito amended.

"Kind of? Explain," ordered the Hokage.

"This here, is Hatake Kakashi, son of Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang of Konoha," introduced Obito, gesturing to his left.

And to Sarutobi's shock, Kakashi materialized before them.

The Hokage stared, before sinking slowly down into his chair. "Explain. Now," he ordered, massaging his temples and wishing he had a cup of sake. Or aspirin. Or both combined.

Either way, he had a feeling it was going to be a long day.

Harry smiled shakily at Kakashi, who glowered in reply. He knew he was in major trouble for this, even if most of it wasn't his fault. He blamed the dogs. And Obito, since the dogs were teaching him about reverse summoning.

Kakashi had just finished his explanation, and the Hokage was sitting at his desk and staring pensively at a stack of paper next to him.

"…Hokage-sama?" Obito asked tentatively, and the Hokage sighed heavily, sinking back into his chair.

"Of all the things that had to happen…" he grumbled, before looking up at Kakashi. "And it's a bit of a shock, seeing you like you haven't aged a day. Makes me feel older than I should be, especially with Obito next to you looking as old as you should be." The Hokage shook his head. "I won't send the boy to the T and I," he said, and Obito's face lit up. "But on one condition," he finished, and the smile on Obito's face dropped like a dead fly.

"What's the condition?" asked Kakashi stoically, looking as emotionless as he did back when he was still alive. It still bothered the hell out of the Hokage, but there wasn't much he could do about Kakashi's state of existence.

"That Harry become an official shinobi of the village," Sarutobi stated. "That means he is required to come here for the Chuunin exams, and undergo extensive evaluation on his abilities whenever he is here. He won't go to the T and I, but he will still have to be investigated by Yamanaka Inoichi. It also means that you'll have to send me a report once a month on his activities, Kakashi."

Obito deflated, his eyebrows creasing. "Hey, at least you won't be tortured," he assured the boy, who was looking more frightened than ever.

Kakashi smacked his teammate in the back of his head, muttering, "Idiot."

"Am I understood?" asked the Hokage, and all three nodded. He smiled. "Very good. Harry, once you are finished, you will be allowed to return home, understood? I'll make you a genin, but when the Chuunin exams come around in three months, you will be required to participate, understood?" he asked, and Harry nodded, before turning to Kakashi and whispering, "Are they hard?"

Kakashi shook his head. "No, not for someone of your skill level," he murmured reassuringly to the boy. Sarutobi smiled.

"Very well. Dismissed. Obito, Kakashi, make sure Harry gets everything taken care of," he said, and the two jounin nodded.

They all stood and bowed to the Hokage, Harry quickly mimicking the two older males' actions. "Thank you, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage slumped into his seat again once they were all gone. "I swear it wasn't this crazy when Minato was still alive…" he grumbled to himself, making a note to ask his secretary for aspirin.

Several hours later found Obito, Kakashi, Harry, Naruto, and Sasuke standing in training field three, with Kakashi and Obito arguing quietly while Harry showed Naruto and Sasuke his new headband.

"No, Obito, for the last time, you're not allowed to summon Harry every week just so you can hang out with him! He's supposed to be attending school! How is he going to explain it if he's suddenly missing classes?"

Obito sulked. "Fine, how about on weekends?"

"No, and that's final. I'll send Pakkun over with a note when he is available, and only when he needs to participate in something here, got it? Because people are going to notice if he disappears for hours on end, especially his family. Got it?"

"Fine…" They both looked over at the dark-haired boy, who was smiling and giggling at something Naruto had shouted, while Sasuke was trying (and failing) to hide a small smile.

"He's a cute kid."

"Shut up, Obito."

"By the way," asked Obito suddenly, "How'd you find me earlier?"

Kakashi smirked underneath his mask, his eye crinkling at the motion. "I spotted Naruto and Sasuke as I was leaving your apartment, and I had seen Maito Gai earlier today, so I henged as him and asked them where I could find you."

Obito's eye twitched. "You've seen him, then? Kami-sama, I hope you weren't scarred for life."

Kakashi shook his head, looking a little thoughtful. "Actually, no. To be honest, he hasn't changed much, except for the bright orange leg warmers and the vest."

Pakkun appeared between them, wilting a little under the glare he received from Kakashi. "Yo-um, boss. We're ready to do the reverse summoning again."

Kakashi nodded. He hefted the heavy backpack he carried higher onto his shoulder, not wanting to drop it. "Whenever you're ready, Pakkun." The backpack held all of Kakashi's personal belongings, such as the white chakra blade that belonged to his father, photo albums, and other little mementos that Obito had held onto for him.

"Harry," Obito called. "Time to say goodbye. They're ready to do the summoning."

Harry nodded, and gave Naruto and Sasuke a weak smile, bidding them goodbye. While he wasn't tortured, the interrogation still left Harry a little on the jumpy side. He didn't like the feeling of someone rifling through his head.

There was an influx of chakra, and Kakashi watched Harry disappear. He raised a hand in a silent goodbye to Obito, before his entire world went dark again.

Obito looked forlornly at the spot that Kakashi used to be in before sighing and striding up to Naruto and Sasuke. He pasted a shit-eating smile, and asked, "Who's up for ramen?"

The response he got from Naruto was deafening.

D3ath: So, a bit of a shorter chapter there, but still good, ne? I hope you guys were satisfied with the little Konoha arc. I figured that out of the entire situation, Harry will still be penalized somewhat, so right now, the Hokage's going to be keeping a tight leash on both Kakashi and Harry, before someone else gets an eye (or multiple eyes) on them (coughDANZOcough).

Also, any guesses on the three ways Kakashi can be seen? Cyber-cookies for the first person to get 'em all! :)

Up next! Chuunin exams and Hagrid! But beware of my sporadic updating schedule!

Posted: 1/17/2012, 11:10 PM