Part 3: In which he's hopefully loyal

12 months had passed and the child had mastered running into a relatively acceptable art form. At one year and two months old, of course Kakashi had better things to do in his life than worrying.

Or so he proclaimed to himself. Like, y'know, a textbook ninja. Thus, a liar.

The silver haired ANBU had changed his slots for half a morning, late noons, and whole evenings once Naruto showcased the weird trait of needing less sleep than the average baby. In which was also months before whatever bipedal mastery everyone in the orphanage bemoaned over.

As of late, his job felt more of a twisted hobby than the initial drag-through-the-gut reminder of his failures. Kakashi carried a pen around all the time, making it a side mission to cross out everything in the child development handbook that Naruto wasn't following.

It was fun, for the most part. Whole chapters were getting shamed in red by the week. The ninja also liked adding small notes of his own next to the crossed off bullet points; tiny scrawls that said stuff like:

'First smile, 5 months old.' It was actually a very evil, very hateful smirk. To be fair, the orphanage matron deserved whatever came her way.

'Chakra control: Genin, 10 months old.' At that, even the Hokage paled and voiced his doubts at Minato-sensei's seals for a minute too. Served him right, Kakashi thought, secretly vindictive. God of Shinobi or no, Sarutobi Hiruzen hadn't been the one to hear the not-so-quiet whispers of kicking Naruto out early.

'Spoon holding mastery, 5 days.' The pictures he snapped secretly were hilarious. Kakashi's knowledge that children developed from the feet up made it ten times more ridiculous at Naruto's increasingly demonic scowl.

… Obito would honestly cry if he saw Kakashi now. Or have laughed his ass off. Most likely the latter.

Surprisingly, it didn't take half as long as Kakashi had expected for the orphanage to introduce Naruto to the outside world. Perhaps the infamous bouts of tantrums contributed to such, but Kakashi could read the glimmer in every caretaker's eyes. They wanted him out and away as much as possible and just as soon. The ninja wouldn't put it past him before Naruto was officially tossed out. The boy would be safe for now, however, if only by the thin skin of his age.

Naruto loved to explore the lands outside of closed doors. He always left early and stretched his curfew for as long as he could, devastatingly tinier than anyone else. Kakashi constantly worked overtime due to the constant worry that plagued his veins because the villagers had no lost love for their late Hokake's son. The lack of A Ranked missions displayed their after effects when Kakashi's in-village jitters demoted his unfortunate ass from ANBU Commander to everyday stalker. Paid, but whatever.

Naruto, on the other hand, took it eerily well. He learned which paths weren't safe, creeping about the back alleys and managing to land himself tiled roofs that no kid should have had their feet on for at least another few more years. Naruto had nearly slipped a few times for his body wasn't at all prepared to be climbing anything. No muscles nor common sense stuck in his yellow little head. The building wasn't an unreasonably tall one, which comforted Kakashi more than he'd ever admit.

The borderline maniacal grin etched on Naruto's face deserved a another picture in the collection when he finally made it up.

The kid was perceptive, or looked to be, when he wouldn't move from that particular roof he'd climb only to sit down and watch the world around him.

A contemplative expression crossed his face as the child observed time pass by like an outsider exempt from Konohagure's hard-won embrace. Kakashi barely refrained from Body Flickering by his side and asking: don't you think she's beautiful?

The sight of bustling civilians running their daily lives, selling foreign wares, fresh produce, and occasional cattle. The sound of gossip from idle housewives, even more so from Shinobi of every rank - Genin, Chunin, Jounin, the hidden ANBU, who could also stick on surfaces like lizards and make elemental weapons of flame and wind and water out of thin air.

Take in how Konoha breathes through her people, her buildings, her towering trees. The Hokage monuments that have watched over them since the creation of the only Home Kakashi had ever known through thick and thin.

Minato-sensei loved this Village Hidden in the Leaves despite the tears, sweat and blood it's sucked up from the roots. Almost wistfully, Kakashi hoped his son would too. By the uncharacteristically gentle sigh that left Naruto's mouth, the boy might already be learning.

The very next week (only 4 days since), Naruto picked up his first kunai.