A/N: So FF didn't send out alerts the last time I updated so make sure you've read the previous chapter before this one!

Large fluffy clouds floated across the sky making it overcast one moment and then dazzlingly bright the next. The dark, dreary, gray fit the tense and somber atmosphere that seemed to blanket the entire village. The times when the Sun would shine through the clouds and bathed everything in it soft warm light felt so wrong.

It wasn't right.

Nothing was supposed to be bright on days like this one.

"Ah, Kakashi-san," Kasumi-sensei greeted in a hushed voice. While she wasn't clad in the standard clothes of mourning, like the ones he was currently in, she was wearing more formal clothing in darker colors. "We'll be open late today," her voice was soft and careful like she was worried that if she raised her voice something would break. "And…" Kasumi's voice drifted off as she glanced at his black funeral clothes, "I'm… sorry for your loss."

Kakashi didn't say anything in response, but he did nod his head a little to her.

Turning her attention away from Kakashi, Kasumi bent over so she could be closer to Ran's eye level. "Ran-chan, it's time to let go." She said in reference to hand fisted in the fabric of Kakashi's pants with a white knuckle grip.

She had been like this since yesterday…

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Ran hadn't responded at first.

She just stared at him, her big black eyes seemingly staring into his very soul. The wind ruffled her hair. There was nothing. No response to show that she had even heard what he had said. Maybe she hadn't heard him afterall? Or she was confused? Kakashi had made sure to be pretty straight forward about what happened, but maybe he hadn't been clear enough?

"Ran?" Kakashi called. "Do you understand what I said? Asuma died on a mission earlier today." God, saying it felt wrong. Asuma was one of the top jounin of the village, the Sandaime's son, and a former member of The Twelve Guardian Ninja. Another one of the few people Kakashi considered to be a friend had died. How many did this make it? He had lost count ages ago…

There was no noise.

No questions.

No wailing.

Not even a sniffle.

Ran had fisted her hands into the hem of her shirt so tightly they trembled as tears streamed down her face.

This was not the kind of reaction Kakashi has been expecting from a child, and it was disturbing to see one of someone much older and experienced coming from one so young. What was he supposed to do now? If anything, screaming and wailing would have been easier to deal with, but this silent closed off crying… Bull whined and leaned some of his weight against her side and Pakkun pressed his snout against her hand. At least his summons were more emotionally attuned than him.

With training being called off for the rest of the day, the group split up. Naruto and Yamato headed off somewhere to deal with their grief in private, and Kakashi and Ran went back to their apartment. The eerily silent tears stopped as soon as the left the seclusion of the training field. One of Ran's hands untwisted itself from the hem of her shirt and all but cling to the fabric of his pants. As though he was going to disappear if she didn't hold on tight enough. The treck through the village was incredibly awkward and tense with Kakashi having no idea what he was supposed to do. Ran had seemingly emotionally closed herself from everything and everyone.

The awkward feeling didn't fade when they arrived home, if anything it got even worse. Ran wasted no time clutching Kero-chan to her chest and sitting with her back against the wall and her legs drawn up to her chest. She sat eerily still, far too still for someone her age. It was incredibly unnerving to see a young child who was admittedly rather good at sitting still at times, but this was a whole new level stillness. All she did was sit there and stare at the wall or down at her stuffed turtle.

Kakashi was so incredibly out of his element here. Not only was he trying to process and grieve the loss of his friend, he also had to help Ran through it as well. He sighed and rubbed his face with a hand. While her prior experience with the situation could help ease her through it, but it could also do the opposite as well.

It wasn't like Kakashi was licensed counselor. Talking to people wasn't exactly his thing, to say the very least. Death was a part of ninja life, and while younger shinobi often needed help adjusting to this, Kakashi had been mostly paired with other older shinobi who didn't need to talk about their feelings during missions. He had gotten off lucky with his genin team in the way that he never really needed to have many serious talks with them. Generally leaving them to figure it out on their own.

… And look at how that worked out for him.

Ok, so maybe that wasn't the best route to take.

So, uh, emotions and feelings… were… something? Whatever that something was, it wasn't his.

Some people were good at all that feely stuff and excelled in helping people through their emotions in a truly positive way, like Minato-sensei and Naruto. And then there were people who were emotionally stunted to the point where it was a miracle that they were functioning to the point that they were. In other words: him.

Maybe he could throw Ran at Naruto and let him solve it?

No, that was too easy, and things that were too easy never worked out. Besides, Ran was his responsibility. Feeding, clothing, making sure that she didn't accidently kill herself, and making sure that she grew into a well rounded and (emotionally) functioning adult was his job as her parent.

… The poor kid was screwed.

There was no way around it. Kakashi just wasn't good with children. The set of children that had been put into his care had turned out so wonderfully. It wasn't like there was a traitor in their ranks or anything. Once again Kakashi was forced to confront the fact that he just wasn't the kind of person who was meant to be a parent. He was a shinobi through and through. Being caring, emotionally supportive, and outwardly showing affection just weren't things they were known for. While this wasn't the case for everyone, there were many shinobi who managed to be genuinely good and well rounded people, but it was for Kakashi. How was he supposed to provide the kinds of things Ran needed from a parent?

Kakashi sighed and rubbed his hand over his face. So many things came naturally to him. He was a genius in every sense of the word when it came to things that related to being a ninja, but he just couldn't seem to grasp anything that related to connecting to another human being on an emotional level. The only reason he and Gai were as close as they were, and Gai probably considered them to be the best of friends while Kakashi considered them to be regular friends, was due to the fact that Gai was too stubborn to be brushed off when they were younger. He continued to force his way into Kakashi's life, not caring how he felt about it.

But maybe it was a good thing that Gai continued to force his way into his life. Despite seeming thickheaded and oblivious kind of person, he was surprisingly insightful and good at all things related to emotions. Gai had been there every time it felt like Kakashi's life was falling apart, forcing his companionship onto him in order to keep him from wallowing in his depression and grief. It wasn't just Kakashi that Gai had helped either. He had given Lee the role model and motivation he needed to continue being a shinobi despite not being able to use ninjutsu or genjutsu. He didn't let Neji push him away and was there for him no matter what he did. He even nurtured and guided a directionless kunoichi into a path she truly excelled like no other in.

There was one thing that Gai no doubtedly beat Kakashi in, and despite their competition, he never brought it up or counted it. It just added just how much better of a person Gai was compared to him.

Gai had been given a team of young genin and he raised them with care, causing them to grow into splendid and well rounded shinobi. None of Team Gai went to others for teaching, or abandoned their village in order to gain power from an infamous criminal because they knew their teacher wasn't good enough to give them the skills they needed.

And yet he never brought this up. He never held it against Kakashi.

Despite all of his faults, Gai really was a better person than him. He should be the one raising Ran, not Kakashi. Gai would be able to give Ran the kind of comfort and support she needed.

Kakashi sighed and ran his hand down his face before glancing over at Ran. She was still curled up around her stuffed turtle and staring at the opposite wall unmoving. Honestly, this would be easier if she were crying and screaming. That was what kids were supposed to do; letting out their emotions in an explosive way. They were supposed to tell you what was wrong, and he would at least have somewhere to start if she did that. But she clammed up and shut down and was giving him nothing to work with.

Just what he supposed to do?

What would someone who wasn't emotionally stunted do?

Gai would practically attach himself to them and would either force what was wrong out of them, or he would patiently wait for them to open up on their own when they were ready. Kakashi certainly wasn't going to do the first, but maybe the second would work. Getting to his feet, he made his way to the wall and slid down it until he was sitting on the floor a foot or so away from her. Ran briefly glanced over at him before turning her attention back to Kero-chan.

Well at least she acknowledged him, so far so good. He should probably say something. "Do…" Kakashi started awkwardly, "you want to talk about it?"

Ran said nothing, but she did shake her head no.

It was a start.

"Ok," Kakashi said before leaning his head against the wall and closing his eyes. Hopefully she would open up on her own eventually.

Only she didn't. The two sat there in silence for a good while. "Do you want something to eat?" He asked her as dinner time rolled around. Maybe food would help her open up.

Ran shook her head again.

'Damn.' Kakashi thought.

The silence continued for a while longer before Ran got up and went about the motions of getting ready for bed: putting on her pajamas and brushing her teeth. Before heading into their room she sent a small glance back at him. Kakashi gave her a smile he hoped didn't look forced before sighing and rubbing his eyes once the door was closed.

That had gone just great.

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"You need to let go, Ran-chan," Kasumi-sensei repeated, but Ran shook her head. "It'll be ok, Kakashi-san will be back later," she tried to reassure her. "Right?" she asked Kakashi.

"Yeah," he said with a look at Kasumi that she seemed to understand. Asuma's funeral was starting soon, and despite what people liked to say about him being late to his own funeral, the funeral of a friend was not something he was going to be late to.

Kasumi nodded her head before gently prying Ran's finger off of his pants. "Kakashi-san needs to go now, but you'll see him in a bit," she said.

Ran tried to hold on, but the strength of a child couldn't match that of an adult. She looked incredibly worried and little betrayed as Kasumi succeeded. After being picked up against her will, Ran reached out and attempted to catch any part of Kakashi's clothing, but he was out of her reach. With one final glance back at the two girls, Kakashi made his way from the daycare.

Kasumi started to rub soothing circles onto Ran's back and looked ready to comfort a crying child. It wouldn't be the first one of the children had burst into tears today. But Ran didn't cry, instead she buried her face in Kasumi's chest and clung to her shirt.

The service was about as nice as a funeral was expected to be. There were fewer people in attendance than Kakashi had expected. Perhaps there were those who didn't want to intrude on private service, and would be visiting the grave in their own time? Either way, Kakashi really couldn't bring himself to care about the feelings of those not in attendance as he watched Kurenai lay a bouquet of flowers on the grave marker. With Konohamaru trying to stifle his sobs in the background.

As the service wrapped up, those in attendance made their way from the graveyard after exchanging a few short words with those who were close with Asuma. Kakashi stood off to the side and watched as Team Eight stood by their sensei in a show of support. A few members of the Sarutobi clan stood on her other side. Kakashi gave Kurenai a small head nod that she returned when she caught his eye. He wasn't good at words, and she knew that, but she seemed to appreciate his gesture, no matter how small it was.

Shoving his hands into his pockets, Kakashi slowly made his way out of the graveyard. He wasn't going to pick Ran up, though. He needed some time to himself in order to process and grieve, and he did that best when he was alone in front of the memorial stone.

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The atmosphere in the daycare was eerie and tense in a way a daycare was not supposed to be when Kakashi arrived to pick up Ran. The usual sound of laughter and screams of delight couldn't be heard, instead replaced with sniffling and the occasional hiccup. The workers looked even more frazzled than usual as they rushed about the building. "Ah, Kakashi-san, are you here to pick up Ran-chan?" the worker at the front desk asked. Stray hairs were coming out of what was surely once and orderly bun, and there were wet patches of unknown origins on her clothes. After he nodded his head she continued, "she's currently out back with Kasumi-sensei."

That was odd. Ran usually rammed at the gate in an attempt to get out as soon as she realized he had arrived. "Did something happen?"

"Ah, well, things tend to be really tense when there's a funeral…" The worker glanced away and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "The kids tend to pick up on their parents' negative emotions and then act out since they don't know how to properly process and manage them."

Kakashi guessed that what she said made sense. Kids were impressionable after all. The worker lead him to the same playground that Ran had been hiding in after she got into her first fight with Ueda Kouta. Kasumi was crouched next to her rubbing her back and saying comforting words in a low voice.

"Tempers tend to explode at the smallest things when the kids are really stressed," the worker started to explain without prompting. "I believe one of the other children knocked her cup of juice over her drawing and ruined it. Ran-chan got upset and it started out as a verbal fight but it turned into a physical one."

Kakashi sighed. "I'm sorry about her."

"What?" The worker blinked before she realized what he had said. "Ah! No, it's fine! Well, I mean, it isn't… But their's wasn't the only fight that broke out." She waved her hands in front of her seemingly in an effort to force away any less than stellar meanings he might have taken from her words. "They've both been scolded, and have apologized to each other, but Ran is still upset. Kasumi-sensei's trying to help her feel better, but it doesn't seem to be working."

Suddenly Ran's head whipped up, startling Kasumi and the other worker. Kakashi gave her a little wave as her eyes grew huge in what seemed to be disbelief. Wasting no time, Ran stumbled to her feet and ran up to him. Stopping a few inches in front of him, she slowly reached a hand out a hand and touched him. As though to make sure he was real before twisting her hand into the fabric of his pant's leg.

Things didn't get any worse the next day, or the following one, but they didn't get any better either. Ran still wasn't talking and was still getting into fights at daycare. She had also started to have night terrors again. Kakashi continued to ask her if she wanted to talk about it, but she still only shook her head no. Despite her not talking, Ran was incredibly clingy around him. To the point where Kasumi-sensei had to pry her off of him whenever he dropped her off, and she would frantically run up to him when he would pick her up.

Despite Asuma's death, Naruto hadn't taken a break from his training. If anything, it seemed to motivate him to work even harder. There really wasn't anything Kakashi could do as he 'supervised' the training. Tenzo was really doing all of the heavy lifting, and even then, there wasn't much for him to lift anymore. Naruto hadn't slipped up and used the Kyuubi's power once since he started using two clones. Kakashi had apparently given Naruto the last piece of the puzzle and all he needed to do now was to figure out how to make it fit with the rest. They were really only there as a formality at this point.

Kakashi's eyes abruptly stopped moving across the pages of Icha Icha and went rigid when he felt a certain presence arrive in the training ground. Well, two presences to be precise. The damn woman had cornered him somewhere he couldn't exactly leave.

"'Sup, brat," Tsume said as she flopped down next to him on his wooden couch. Kuromaru curled up by her feet and let out a low sigh.

"Tsume," Kakashi greeted her flatly.

"I hear that your brat is having some trouble," she said as she crossed her arms.

Kakashi's eye twitched. How did she know about that?

Tsume continued on when he didn't say anything back. "It's not a dig at your parenting, which is pretty shitty by the way." A pause "That one was a dig," she barked out a laugh.

"Are you here for any other reason than to trash talk my parenting?" Kakashi didn't so much snap, but forcibly say back.

"Hey, don't get all defensive on me!" She glared at him. "I'm here to offer you some tips. You know, as the successful parent of two brats of my own."

Successful was probably stretching it, but whatever.

"Anyway," Tsume huffed, "I hear your kid is having some trouble." She took Kakashi's silence as confirmation. "Kids are difficult, little girls even more so. Don't get me wrong, boys are tough, but in different ways. With boys it's all 'put your pants back on, don't piss on that, and don't start fights you can't finish.' But girls are different. They respond to things differently."

Kakashi briefly wondered what Tsume not including herself as a girl meant for how she saw herself. But that wasn't important right now.

"While boys tend to get all aggressive and fight out their feelings, girls bottle that shit up like a fine sake. They bottle up more and more until it eventually explodes into something way worse than what the boy was doin'. To make it worse, they keep that bottle hidden away and you don't know how bad it is until it's exploding in your face." Tsume pulled on a fistfull of her hair absentmindedly.

"So you think that talkin' to 'em when they seem like they're bottlin' it up would work, right? Force 'em to get it out before it gets real bad, but that doesn't work either." Tsume continued. "Nope, sometimes they clam up even further, and you've just made the whole situation worse. This is where I'm gonna give ya some real good advice that I didn't realize 'til Hana had exploded a few times." Tsume smirked at him.

"Ya can't force it out of them, that only makes it worse. You gotta let them open up to you on their own, ya know? Let them know you'll be there when they're ready to open up and you'll support them and all that. While it doesn't seem like much, and they usually don't open up right away, it seems to help. The knowing that you'll be there and all that is comforting, or something. Let her know that and then give her some time, and she'll open up to ya when she's ready." Tsume finished her speech with a strong pat on the back that honestly felt more like a smack.

Kakashi wasn't really sure what to say in response to all of this. What she said made sense, and she certainly had the experience to back it up. It seemed almost too easy though, and wasn't that what he was already doing? This was a little different, though. Less of his current, 'tell me what's wrong' and more of a 'I'll be ready to listen when you want to talk.' Maybe it was just what Ran needed.

"I-" Kakashi started, but she cut him off.

"Well, I've said what I wanted to say," Tsume said as though she hadn't heard him start talking. "Now, don't go falling all over yourself in an attempt to thank me," Tsume barked a laugh and Kuromaru groaned at her feet. "Chin up, brat," she pat (smacked) him on the back again. "You'll get it eventually." Tsume gave him the most sincere grin he had ever seen from the woman. A part of him was previously convinced that it wasn't possible, but apparently anything was possible.

"Yeah…"

"I'll be expecting you to cover my tab the next time we're at the bar," she gave him a wolfish smirk before bounding away. That's just how she was: wild to the very core. The woman came in like a hurricane and left with a wake of destruction when she was done. There was no option but to hold onto something until then. Kuromaru sighed and glanced at Kakashi before heading after her.

Although, if Tsume's advice worked he may have to fulfill her request, but then again he didn't know if his wallet could take the hit. Tsume was notorious for being able to drink anyone under the table. The only exception to this being Tsunade.

A single man wasn't meant to cover her tab. It just wasn't possible.

As Kakashi walked Ran home from daycare he wondered just how he was supposed to put Tsume's advice into action. Should he just sit Ran down and tell her that he was willing to listen when she was ready?

Even just thinking that felt incredibly awkward.

Him, Hatake Kakashi talking about feelings. It sounded like a bad joke. Sure, he could manage his own relatively well. Enough time and practice tended to do that to a man, but another person's feelings was where he truly struggled. It didn't help that not only was he terrible at it, but talking about things like emotions made him incredibly uncomfortable. How was he even supposed to bring it up? Maybe he shouldn't address it so formally? Maybe make it casual with a joke? Did he even know any jokes? He did know some, but not ones a kid would get. There was also the fact that Ran might think he wasn't taking the situation, or her, seriously. She might clam up even further then.

Ok, so the casual approach was off the table, and the the formal one felt incredibly awkward. What else could he do? It wasn't exactly something that came up naturally in everyday conversation. Especially if the person you were trying to converse with wasn't exactly talking. Maybe he could slip her a piece of paper with a note on it? Ran seemed to like writing so that might work.

Now if only if that didn't feel like the kind of thing teenagers came up with when confessing their feelings to their crush the whole thing would be perfect.

"I'll get started on dinner then. Why don't you work on your kanji until then?" Kakashi said when they entered the apartment.

Ran nodded her head before getting her kanji books out on the low table and set to work. Kero-chan was held close to her chest as she wrote the new characters over and over in order to memorize them. She didn't even notice when one of her extra pens and a loose piece of paper were swiped out from under her nose.

Well, it wasn't like she was supposed to be able to notice. Kakashi was trying to be sneaky after all. In between grilling the fish and setting up the rice cooker Kakashi managed to scribble out a quick and to the point note.

Hopefully this would work and Tsume knew what she was talking about. If it ended that she was talking out of her ass and this all blew up in his face, he would stick her with the tab after a wild night of partying with as many people as he could find. No, that was cruel, and Tsume was just trying to help. He would stick her with Genma's long standing tab instead. Cruel, yes, but not unusually so.

"Clear off the table," Kakashi said to Ran as he started to move the dishes over. She quickly did as she was told and they settled down to eat. "Oh," Kakashi said once she picked up her chopsticks like he had forgotten something. "I forgot to give this to you." Before handing her the folded up note. Ran looked from him and the note for longer than was necessary before she hesitantly took it. Not wanting her to feel pressured, Kakashi casually started eating while she read.

Reading it once, then twice, Ran looked up from the piece of paper to find Kakashi's unmasked face smiling at her. She blinked slowly before staring at him for a good minute. Had he done something wrong? Maybe he should have phrased it differently? Why was she just staring him like that?

Ran didn't say anything, but she did nod. It was a start. She had acknowledged his offer and would hopefully talk to him soon. The two sat in silence for the rest of the meal with Ran looking thoughtful as she ate.

Kakashi was about to stand up and start the dishes when Ran suddenly started crawling around the table. "Do you need something?" He asked her, sounding unsure. Once again she didn't say anything, and Kakashi froze when she climbed into his lap. Making herself comfortable, Ran rested her head against his chest and closed her eyes.

What?

The hell was he supposed to do here?

Kakashi didn't so much panic internally, no, he frantically, no, quickly tried to figure out what to do. The ninken usually liked it when he pet them when they were on his lap, maybe that would work? Experimentally rubbing her back, Kakashi paused briefly, waiting for her to pull away. Only she didn't. Apparently he had done something right for once. Kakashi continued to rub slow circles on Ran's back as her breathing slowly evened out and she drifted off to sleep.

The note sat abandoned next to Ran's empty bowls. Written out neat characters was:

'I'll be here to listen when you're ready to talk' It was signed with a poorly drawn masked Kakashi giving a peace sign.

"Kakashi," Pakkun said as he appeared next to his summoner at the training ground, "you were right about Asuma's students. The smart one seems to be planning something."

Kakashi sighed as he lowered his book from his face. He had a feeling that Team 10 might try something idiotic like try to avenge Asuma on their own. While they were a skilled team, and Shikamaru's strategic mind was invaluable, they wouldn't be enough to take down an Akatsuki pair on their own. Much less one that had killed Asuma.

"Thanks. You and the others keep an eye on them and let me know when they start to move out," Kakashi ordered the pug.

"Will do," Pakkun said before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

Knowing Shikamaru, Kakashi had a few hours, maybe until morning at the latest, to set up care for Ran before he had to head out himself. He was pretty limited in options right now though. With his team likely being sent as a back up team once Naruto completed his jutsu, and Gai and his team being out of the village on a unrelated mission. And he wasn't enough of an asshole to ask Kureani to watch her while he was gone.

He was just going to have to make it so the only person available wouldn't be able to say no.

Genma groaned into his pillow when he heard someone knock on his front door. Rolling over and catching a glimpse out of his window, he groaned even louder when he saw that the sun wasn't even up yet. What the hell could someone want so early? Two someones going by the chakra signatures outside. Whatever it was, they could wait until at least the sun was up. Or maybe the afternoon. Scratch that, the afternoon would be best. Well never would be the best, but afternoon was second best.

The knocking turned into pounding and Genma tried to block out the sound with a pillow. They would get the hint eventually. The pounding only got louder, though, and Genma was pretty sure his door was going to buckle if they kept going. Replacing it would be a real pain. Maybe they just wanted something quick and he could go right back to bed afterwards.

A man could dream.

"Ok, ok! I'm coming!" He called out with a groan. Rubbing his face a few times, Genma stumbled to the door and yanked it open. "The hell do you want so early in morn-"

That wasn't right.

He must have still been dreaming.

There was not a small child at all be herself at his door.

Eyes that looked more tired than he felt blinked up at him before swaying a little.

Oh hell no.

"Kakashi!" Genma bellowed and frantically looked for his neighbor.

He was not doing this to him!

"Oi, brat, where did Kakashi go?" Genma asked the little girl with wild bed head and rumpled pajamas. She didn't say anything in response, instead continuing to sway as if she were going to fall asleep standing up. Groaning again when he spotted a note pinned to her shirt, and a necklace made of string with a house key on it, Genma crouched down so he could read what the letter said.

'Off to make sure Team 10 doesn't get themselves killed. Be back soon. The apartment is all set up and Ran knows what to do.'

It was signed with a henohenomoheji and a crudely drawn peace sign.

Genma muttered a few words that probably shouldn't have been said with a kid so close by, but he doubted she was awake enough to hear what he was saying. Taking a few calming breaths and rubbing the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes, Genma tried to figure out what to do. Dealing with Kakashi always gave him a headache, and he had a feeling that today's was going to be like none before it.

It wasn't exactly like he could leave the kid on her own for however long Kakashi was going to be gone for. But really, was there no one else who could watch her? Genma would be the first to admit that he wasn't great with kids, part of the reason he only proctored the chuunin exams instead of taking on a genin team. Maybe he could put in a D-rank and get some brats to watch her during the day while he did other stuff? That would probably work, but he still had a while before the low level mission's desk opened. How difficult could it be to watch a sleepy five-year-old anyway? He was an elite jounin after all! Maybe not up to Kakashi's level, but his skills were certainly enough to watch a single five-year-old for a few hours.

Opening his eyes, Genma said, "alright, Ran-" but abruptly stopped when she wasn't where he had left her before closing his eyes. "Ran?" Where the hell had she gone? He had looked away for five seconds! "Ran?" He called as he looked around the landing for the little girl he had just seen damn it! "Ran!"

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Ran breathed heavily as she ran from the apartment building, focusing all of her attention on the rapidly disappearing scent of Kakashi. Once Genma had yelled that he was coming Kakashi had taken off at what was probably a leisurely pace for a shinobi, but still incredibly fast to her. She had seen him take off in the direction that she thought might lead to the big red gates, but she didn't know the sprawling twisting village well enough to be sure. The barely there and rapidly fading scent was all she had to go on, and Ran pushed her legs to go as fast as possible before she lost the trail.

Something was going on. She didn't know what, but it was big. Naruto was training so much that she hadn't seen him at all, and then there was Kakashi's now bandaged hand. Then there was how he had set her drawer of clothes and futon out in the living area before putting those confusing squiggles on the door that made it impossible to open. The last time that had happened was when Konohamaru's team had watched her for awhile. He had said that he had to do something important, and he didn't know how long he would be gone for, but Genma would be looking after her. After that he pinned a note to her shirt and put a piece of string with a key dangling from it around her neck.

Something was going on.

Ran had tried to ask him what it was, but all he did was smile at her pat her head. It had felt like there were snakes and rocks in her stomach from how twisty and heavy it felt when Kakashi had knocked on Genma's door. As soon as Kakashi had waved and jumped off of the landing Ran had known that she needed to follow him. Acting sleepy ended up being easier than expected, and Genma seemed to have bought it. The fact that he was only half awake probably helped. The second Genma closed his eyes Ran had slipped out of her loud sandals and crept away from the man. She had to get away while she had the chance. Even if he closed his eyes for a couple of seconds that would have to be enough.

Something was going on, and whatever it was felt very, incredibly, terribly, bad.

Ran had no idea where she was going. The scent was lost several times, causing Ran to wander around aimlessly until she managed to find it again by some incredible stroke of luck. Pajamas slick with sweat and sticking to her skin, with the key bouncing against her chest and face, as she ran through the deserted streets of Konoha. Her lungs burned and it felt like her legs were fire, but she couldn't stop.

Something was going on, and she had to stop it before it was too late.

The first one to react was Shikamaru when his eyebrows shot up and said, "oi, Kakashi-sensei…" Ino was next when she gasped, and finally Chouji who looked nervous and uncertain. Kakashi had a feeling he knew what they were reacting too, but he really hoped that he was wrong.

Tsunade glanced over her shoulder before closing her eyes and letting out a slow breath through her nose. "You should talk to her," she said before touching his shoulder gently.

There was no ignoring it, the tapping of bare feet against the street from earlier was without a doubt Ran. He had really hoped that she wouldn't follow him, but he really couldn't hold it against her. He wasn't exactly forthcoming about what he was doing, or took the time to explain where he was going. Sighing, Kakashi turned to face her.

Ran stood hunched over with her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. Red faced, pajamas crumpled and dirty, hair wild beyond belief, and feet muddy and scratched up from stepping on the occasional rock; Ran looked like a mess. She reached up and wiped some sweat away from her face as she started to breathe normally again. Her expression was mixture of fear, apprehension, and a little bit of anger.

"You shouldn't have followed me," Kakashi said as he walked over to her. The others tried to look as if they weren't paying attention to what was going on, but they were obviously listening in.

"Where are you going?" Ran demanded.

"A mission."

"But you're leaving the village! You didn't do that for any of the others…"

"Those were low level missions, higher ranks often have you leaving the village," he explained.

"But-but…!" Ran looked almost pained and was on the verge of tears. Kakashi crouched down a little so he was closer to her height and waited for her to continue. "But Asuma… H-he went on a mission outside of the village!" Tears started to spill over and run down her cheeks. "And-and-and he died!"

Kakashi put a hand on her shoulder. "Ran-" he started to say, but she cut him off.

"I don't want you to die too, Papa!"