A/N: Here's the first chapter following the time skip. Things will pick up from here.

"Oyaji! Oyaji! Guess what?!" I ran as fast as I could towards the far side of the room and took a running jump onto my father's hospital bed. I ignored his pained groan and shifted to pull a stack of paper from my backpack.

"Chi-chan," he grunted. "You're hurting me."

I looked down, saw that I was sitting on his knees and hastily moved so that I was sitting beside his prone form - not on it.

"Hey old man," I said with a smile, ignoring his eye-roll. I was going through a phase where I only ever called him dad when I was mad or worried about him. "I'm glad you're back! Kaa-san says 'hi' by the way."

"Your mom's not even going to check on me? Ask me how I'm doing?" Kakashi sounded incredulous, which, okay, wasn't all that unfounded. Usually my mom was hounding him to take care of himself - acting more like his mother than the mother of his child. Not showing up the minute she heard he was in the hospital was way out of character.

I gave him a cheery smile, one at odds with what I was about to say, "Of course not! Not after you disregarded her warning to be more careful on missions." The last time he'd ended up in the hospital she'd told him she refused to raise me on her own and that if he died she would burn his romance novels. "Besides," I continued, "She's got a hot date tonight!"

Kakashi groaned. He'd probably deduced (correctly) that Kaoru would be going to him for girl talk as soon as she got over her hissy fit. I leaned over and patted the top of his head. "There, there. I'll help distract her if you teach me how to jump like a ninja."

He sighed. "I almost miss the days when she was madly in love with me..."

I scoffed, realizing that at four I wouldn't be expected to remember that. "Sure, sure. I'll believe that when Tenzou learns how to act like a normal human being."

"Did somebody say my name?"

"Gah!" I flinched and would've tumbled off the hospital bed if not for the hands hooked under my armpits. "You've got to stop doing that!"

"Doing what?" The creep had the audacity to look confused.

"Appearing every time I say your name!" I snapped, clutching my heart.

"Do I?"

"You do," my dad and I chorused. I glared a bit until the young man laughed sheepishly and averted his eyes.

"Anyway," he said with a cough. "I've just come to let you know that Lady Tsunade has threatened to..." Tenzou's eyes darted toward me and he leaned in to whisper in Kakashi's ear. "...if you don't stay here for the entirety of your prescribed bed-rest."

My dad's face had paled at whatever Tenzou whispered and a full-body shudder overtook him. "Understood," he croaked.

"By the way, I'll be leading your subordinates on the upcoming mission since you won't be recovered in time to go." He paused to let that sink in. "Oh, and you can call me Yamato from now on."

'How the hell does that work?!' Choosing to ignore the insanity that is my father's subordinate, I waited for the rest of their conversation to end. I didn't bother paying attention, seeing as they were using their freaky sign language to communicate what I suppose was information not meant for delicate ears. Pfft, if only they knew...

Suddenly, my dad and Tenzou halted in their silent conversation and shared a look. Before I could ask, Tenzou waved goodbye and disappeared through the window. Almost immediately after he disappeared a knock sounded at the door to my dad's private room. My dad didn't bother to tell me to act like Tenzou was never there, some things you just pick up on after a few years of living in this strange world.

"Kaka-sensei!" I watched in bemusement as Naruto - the same one who I had only the faintest memories of - barged into the room with Sakura-nee right behind him.

"Naruto!" With a powerful hit to the head Sakura sent the blonde teen careening into the wall. "You don't just rush into someone's hospital room without their permission! There's a reason why I knocked!"

My dad and I shared a look that clearly said, 'Like causing a violent commotion in a patient's room is any better?' Luckily, we both had enough sense to never say this aloud where the girl could hear, or we would be the ones sporting pulsating lumps on our temples. 'Ouch.'

As much as I enjoyed watching Sakura beat on those unfortunate enough to evoke her wrath, I decided to interrupt the two so I could introduce myself to Naruto. I'd only seen the pink-haired girl with any regularity and was eager to actually talk with another former student of my dad's. Sasuke had apparently become some sort of enemy of the state, or whatever it was called here. I doubted I'd ever get to see him again.

"Hey Sakura-nee! Who's that with you?" I tilted my head cutely and watched with bemusement as she dropped the dizzy blonde she'd been shaking back and forth to skip over to my dad's hospital bed.

"Chi-chan!" She lifted me up and threw me in the air as I laughed delightedly. This was the main reason why I loved the girl so much, she was great fun to play with and was careful and controlled enough that I never got hurt - even when she through me fifty feet into the air (only when we were outside of course). Yeah, super-strength was awesome. "This is Naruto," she introduced. "The knuckle-headed ninja we told you about and our teammate."

"Hi Naruto," I said with a smile and a brief bow with my head. "It's nice to meet you."

Ignoring my greeting, Naruto turned to Kakashi and back to me with a suspicious look. "Ne, Kaka-sensei, are you sure Chi-chan's your daughter? I mean, she isn't wearing a mask or reading porn. She seems normal!"

My dad groaned. "Naruto, the things people do aren't necessarily inherited traits."

Not recognizing the word Naruto used I interjected. "What's porn? Do you mean those romance novels Oyaji reads?"

Naruto started laughing, Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose, and my dad just looked sheepish. "You - you," Naruto gasped. "You tell her they're romance novels?!"

Embarrassed at not understanding the conversation's turn (though I had a suspicion I deliberately avoided thinking about) I changed the subject. "Hey Naruto-san, Sakura-nee, would you like to see the pictures I drew? I came to show my dad but you can look too."

Naruto opened his mouth, but shut it again quickly when Sakura stepped on his foot. "We'd love to see them Chi-chan."

Smiling, I pulled them out. It had taken me weeks, but I'd finally finished drawing the three pictures to my satisfaction. For a little kid, they were really good. I handed the picture of my dad (without his mask) to him and the other two to Sakura and Naruto. The teens 'ooh'ed and 'ahh'ed at the Hokage monument and the picture of Sakura smiling. I'd been especially excited to draw Sakura, since she had such exotic coloring.

"Wow, Chi-chan," Sakura said with a light blush, clearly pleased with the flattering drawing, "They're wonderfully done."

"Thanks!" I smiled happily at her and gestured to my dad. "Trade with Oyaji. I drew him without his mask, which was hard since he's almost always wearing it..." I trailed off in shock as Naruto and Sakura practically leapt onto Kakashi in an attempt to snatch the drawing.

My dad fought them valiantly, but eventually lost to their superior strength (he was stuck on bed-rest for a reason). The two teens huddled together a few meters away and slowly raised the picture to eye level. "NOOO!" They shouted in unison.

Naruto turned towards my dad and cracked his knuckles, Sakura a looming presence beside him. "That's it Kaka-sensei. I'm gonna figure out what's under that mask if it's the last thing I do."

While the two teens playfully strangled my dad I hopped off the bed and moved to pick up my discarded drawing. I froze just as I reached it. My picture, the one that had taken weeks to perfect, had a mask-shaped hole where my dad's face was supposed to be. I took in the charred edges of the hole and the bits of ash sitting on my father's lap and put two and two together.

"Toooouuuuuu-saaaaan!"