Written for the Mini Bingo Round at KakaIru Fest on Livejournal; the prompt for this was 'Western'.

Iruka walked behind his father, trying to keep up with his long stride. The dust of the road kicked up under his bare feet, and wisps of hair escaped from his ponytail to tickle the back of his neck. Despite the sweltering California morning, Iruka was so excited; his father had to pull him out of the way when a wagon rumbled past, because Iruka wasn't paying attention.

"Sorry!" Iruka said, gripping his father's arm. "I'm sorry, Father!"

"That's all right," his father answered. "But watch where you're going." He eyed the back of the carriage with a hard expression. "These people will not stop for us, remember that. We are strangers in a strange country."

Iruka nodded. Even though he had been born in his parents' homeland eight years ago, his earliest memories were of America, for his family had come here when he was only two. Sometimes he wondered when they would go back, but his father only shook his head when he asked. Now, they were on their way to welcome even more of their countrymen, and lead them back to the small colony.

"Do you think," he asked when they set off again, "that these people will work hard here? Like us?"

"I hope so," his father said. "But I have heard that a great warrior is among them. It is an honour to have the White Fang here in America!"

"The White Fang," Iruka said in wonderment. "He'll protect us from those men who always try to take the ripe fruits, Father? He'll stay in the fields with us?" While most of the Americans left their houses and lands in peace, and only met with them to buy their produce, there were a few idle men who claimed that the 'yeller skinned bastids' stole what was rightfully theirs. Iruka didn't know what a bastid was, and he didn't think he had yellow skin. He had perfectly normal skin. Besides, he did as much on the farm as anyone, so it made him upset: why did they want to take what the colony had worked so hard to grow?

"The White Fang is a powerful samurai," his father admonished. "We cannot expect him to work in the fields like us. It would not be right."

"Not to work," Iruka clarified with a grumble. "But he can stand there with his long sword, and chase them off!"

"Iruka!" his father said, but he was laughing a little. Iruka grinned up at him as they went down towards the small town, and even at this distance, Iruka saw the small crowd milling around near the general store. As they got closer, Iruka recognized some of the words they were speaking and looked up into their tired, wary faces.

"Welcome to America, Hatake-san," he heard his father say, and looked on in deep interest as his father offered a respectful bow to another man. Iruka looked up, and blinked at the man's pale hair and strange clothing. This must be the White Fang! Iruka tried to peer at the folds of his clothes, if he could see a sword.

"What are you looking at?" someone else said, and Iruka noticed that there was a boy a little older than himself standing behind the White Fang. How strange! This boy had the same shock of odd-coloured hair like Hatake-san. Iruka had never seen such hair before, not even on the Americans...at least, not on the young ones.

"Who are you?" he asked in the same tongue and his father tried to pinch some manners into him. The boy glared at him, and Iruka glared right back.

"Hello," the White Fang said when neither the boy nor Iruka made any move to greet each other. "You must be Iruka-kun. I am Hatake Sakumo, and this is my son, Kakashi."

"Why does his hair look like that?" Iruka asked, and the boy wrinkled his nose.

"Looks better than yours."

"Now, Kakashi," Sakumo-san said, putting a hand on Kakashi's bony shoulder. "You must make friends with Iruka. After all, we are strangers in a strange land."

"People say that a lot," Iruka confided. "But I can teach you English. It's easy."

"I'm smart," Kakashi said in bored tones, but his eyes were bright. "I can learn anything."

"Well," Iruka said with a grin. "Can you learn to stand in a field and chase off thieves and birds? You can be a scarecrow, you know."

Iruka's father and Sakumo-san chuckled. Kakashi went back to glaring at Iruka, but even in this strange land, there was something comfortingly familiar about it.

fin