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Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

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Chapter 11

Kakashi thought he had been discreet. He was quite sure Sasuke hadn't breathed a word about Naruto when he was in the village, for all that the boy had grown less afraid of him as time went by. Both boys had developed a strong bond, so he doubted Sasuke would rat his friend out, courage aside.

But it didn't change the fact that someone was watching them.

Naruto noticed the same, though to him it was just the unease of having another of the 'two-legs' nearby for prolonged periods of time. He still thought that people entered the forest in bursts of five days. Sasuke didn't notice a thing. That was to be expected, since he was a normal genin, and this shadow appeared to be at least jounin level. The fact that the shadow hadn't acted yet beyond constant surveillance was the only reason Kakashi hadn't done anything pre-emptive.

The problem was that he didn't know who was being watched. Was it Sasuke, the scion of the Uchiha clan and the only one able to use the Sharingan for a few more years? Was it himself, top jounin and ANBU? Or was it Naruto, whom only a few knew was still alive? He had no way of knowing, and it frustrated him.

It made him very paranoid to leave Naruto in the forest. He kept his debriefings with the Hokage brief, always returning at the soonest possibility, so he had no chance to meet any of his colleagues. On the rare moments that he had to take a mission - he'd been taking the bare minimum to stay on the active roster - he left his eight ninken behind, guarding Naruto. It was an expensive handicap, but he felt it was worth the cost.

He would have turned down the Hokage's premature summons if he dared, except that he didn't dare, because the scroll was marked 'Important'. He stared at the scroll, annoyed.

"Naruto-kun, I have to go see Hokage-sama for a bit. Will you be all right?" he asked at last. Naruto looked at him and shrugged. So Kakashi plucked Sasuke out of the forest with him, as per his instructions, and left for Konoha, leaving Sasuke to train with his clansmen while he headed to the Hokage's Tower. To his surprise, a large number of jounin were already there.

"YOSH, KAKASHI! IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE YOU'VE GRACED US WITH YOUR PRESENCE!"

Kakashi winced and turned. "Hello, Gai," he deadpanned, dismissing the spandex-clad shinobi. Gai didn't get the hint.

"I DEMAND A REMATCH! AND IF I FAIL, I WILL WALK 100 TIMES AROUND KONOHA - ON MY HANDS!" Gai flexed his biceps and posed, allowing light to ping blindingly off his teeth. Several jounin around them swore.

Yes, he hadn't missed Gai at all. Kakashi sighed.

"Ahem." The Hokage coughed at the head of the table. All jounin focused their attention on him at once.

"Hokage-sama," they saluted as one. The Hokage acknowledged them with a wave of his hand.

"I think you all know what this meeting is about," he said, nodding at his subordinates. Kakashi snuck a quick look at the calendar. What month was it now? "For those who don't know-" he just knew it was targeted at him "-the chuunin exams are coming up in two months, and it will be held in Konoha. You are gathered here today to nominate your genin for the chuunin exams, should you deem them ready."

He looked at all of them in turn. "As usual, we will let the sensei of the freshest genin to start the process. Yuuhi-jounin, Sarutobi-jounin, Hatake-jounin, please step forward."

A wave of murmurs swept through the group at the mention of Kakashi's name. Surprise seemed to flavour them, maybe because none had seen him coaching genin in Konoha. The Hokage coughed to regain their attention.

"Yuuhi-jounin, do you nominate your genin team for the chuunin exams?"

Kurenai raised a fist over her heart, her stance firm. "Hokage-sama. I, jounin Yuuhi Kurenai, hereby nominate Team 8, comprising Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata, and Aburame Shino for the chuunin exams."

"Good. Sarutobi-jounin?"

Asuma mimicked Kurenai. "I, jounin Sarutobi Asuma, hereby nominate Team 10, comprising Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, and Akimichi Chouji for the chuunin exams."

"Good. Hatake-jounin?"

Kakashi shrugged, realising the weight of everyone's eyes on him. "I only have the one genin, Hokage-sama, so there needs to be two independent genin for him to be eligible at all."

"No, you only need one," a voice said from behind the Hokage. Shimura Danzo took a step away from the Hokage, so that he stood apart. Kakashi felt his blood run cold.

"Maa, I hardly think that genin can test as a pair, Shimura-sama," he replied. His eyes flickered toward the Hokage, who looked just as surprised. It was unplanned, then.

"You do need three," Danzo acknowledged. "But then again, you already have two."

No. No. "Only one genin is registered as my apprentice, Shimura-sama," Kakashi said, a touch desperately.

"But you have been training one more in the shinobi arts, and succeeding."

Cold rage roared in Kakashi's ears. Naruto, he had to be talking about Naruto - and he'd left him alone in the forest with ROOT-

"The fact remains that, even if we should believe that this student exists, he is not an Academy graduate and not registered as a genin," the Hokage interjected, stepping in for Kakashi's speechlessness. His only consolation was that the Hokage looked furious behind that curious mien.

"He is registered as our jinchuuriki though," Danzo said, confident of victory. "Is that not so, Hatake-jounin?"

Kakashi's jaws refused to unlock, lest he did something he regretted.

"Answer him, Hatake-jounin." Kakashi's eyes snapped to the Hokage in disbelief. The Hokage, who looked angry, resigned, and scheming all at once. It was the glimpse of the last one that unhinged his mouth enough to speak.

"Yes," he bit out, struggling to sound calm. A murmur of surprise rushed among the jounin in the room at his admission. So what if the cat was out of the bag? He'd still protect Naruto with his life.

After he captured and flayed the ROOT operative that had them under surveillance, of course.

Danzo's face twisted into a smile. "Good. As it turns out, I do happen to know of an independent genin who wishes to participate in the chuunin exams this time. His name is Sai. This rounds up your genin team nicely, don't you think?"

"Very, Shimura-sama," Kakashi said, and stepped back. The rest of the nominations passed in a blur, with Kakashi concocting and discarding scenarios that might help Naruto slip out unscathed. Run away with him? That would mean turning missing-nin, and the Hokage would never allow that. Point out his ineptitude in ninjutsu and genjutsu? Gai had a student who could only use taijutsu, so that was moot, too. He hardly realised when jounin filed past him at the end of the meeting, though he took notice when Danzo slipped out halfway through. All the Hokage's privacy seals flared to life the moment his door closed.

Kakashi waited for the roar of the Hokage's impressive chakra to subside. The old man pulled his chakra back inwards, tamping it down to the levels of an average jounin, and took a deep breath.

"How is Naruto?" he asked, voice hoarse with suppressed feelings. Kakashi managed a shrug.

"He's well. Growing strong. He noticed someone watching us a while ago, though I couldn't determine their target. I thought-" I thought I had more time, but since when have I had enough time? Always, always too late.

The Hokage stayed silent. "I am sorry, Kakashi. It seems I have failed you."

"Don't be, Hokage-sama." He meant it, even though the reply was automatic. "What is your plan?"

The Hokage picked up a random sheet of paper and appeared to ponder it. He cleared a corner of his table, at the intersection of several patterned groovelines, and set the paper down.

Then Kakashi took an involuntary step back as the room burst into a phantasmagoria of colours, from reds, greens, blues, browns, yellows, purples, and blacks, all swirling in a pattern Kakashi recognised as active chakra. An unhappy frown tugged at the Hokage's mouth.

"It seems, Kakashi, that walls have ears."

Walls? Walls had become strangers to him, having spent months on end in the open forest. The only times he'd encounter walls were…in the Hokage's office.

He stared at the swirling colours with new-found appreciation.

I will contact you later, the Hokage's fingers flicked in ANBU code. Go now.

Kakashi didn't need further prompting. He shunshined from the Hokage's office, propriety be damned, and leaped into a shunshin straight for the Forest of Death. He was there in three bounds, honing onto Naruto's location with desperate accuracy. He had to find him, hide him-

"Kakashi?" Kakashi whirled round. Naruto was crouched on a bough, looking worried but otherwise unharmed.

"Why aren't you tree-walking with Uchiha?" Kakashi asked.

"Huh? You told me not to. And you call him Sasuke-kun," Naruto said, confused. Kakashi's shoulders slumped in relief.

"Oh, Naruto," he sighed, pulling the boy close for a quick hug. "You're safe. You're safe."

"Of course I am, Kakashi." Naruto must find him so strange. "The bird is gone."

Kakashi threw his senses to the limit to verify Naruto's code. Sure enough, their watcher was gone, for now.

"Clever boy," he said, relaxing for the first time that day. "Come, there is something I must tell you."

Naruto listened to his story in silence. Kakashi hoped it was because he was considering it, and not because of incomprehension. Finally, he blinked and looked up at Kakashi.

"So I just have to fight?"

"You just need to stay safe," Kakashi corrected him. "I will try to protect you, and Hokage-sama will too, but you can never be too careful."

Naruto patted his hand. "Don't worry, Kakashi. I'll be okay."

Of course I worry, Kakashi thought. Minato-sensei, was this how you felt when you took care of me? I'm so, so sorry for what I put you through.

For a moment, he imagined Minato-sensei there, reflected in that pair of too-wide blue eyes. Naruto was looking out for him instead, and that would not do.

"I'll go pick up Sasuke-kun and the new genin, hm? Let you get to know each other a bit before the exams."

"I already know Sasuke," Naruto said, looking uneasy.

"But not the new genin," Kakashi said. The boy's unease increased. "You can make friends, Naruto-kun. Remember how you did it with Sasuke-kun?"

"With a squirrel?" Kakashi laughed at the memory.

"Well, maybe not with a squirrel. But something like that," he said, ruffling Naruto's hair. "I'll be back soon. Before I go - kuchiyose no jutsu!"

Eight ninken appeared on the ground below, barking in joy.

"I won't leave you alone again," Kakashi vowed. Naruto grinned and nodded, already distracted. Kakashi set off for Konoha again, more reassured than before.

Kakashi had a problem. Sasuke he found and retrieved without much trouble, but that was all he could do, because he'd just realised that the only information he had about the new genin was his name. Kakashi had no idea what he looked like or where he lived. Sasuke grew broodier the longer he trailed after Kakashi, so Kakashi elected to drop him off back home and recollect him once he'd found Sai. Sasuke's house was dim in the late afternoon, oriented towards the morning sun.

"Sasuke-kun, you're back," a voice said from the kitchen. Sasuke fumbled for a light switch and flicked it on, revealing his mother, round with child, at the kitchen table. She smiled at them both.

"Good evening, Uchiha-san," Kakashi said, inclining his head. She returned the greeting and took a sip from her cup. Her movements were graceful, as befitting a late noble's wife, from the arc of her fingers to the careful bow of her lips. They almost distracted him from the pallor of her face. She set the cup back on its saucer with a soft click.

"Sasuke-kun, dinner's ready. It's a bit early, so why don't you wash up first?" she suggested. Sasuke glared, eyeing her distended stomach, and headed upstairs. Mikoto watched him go. She seemed to have forgotten Kakashi, so he took the liberty of looking around.

The Uchiha family home was austere but functional. Welcoming spaces were kept simple and bare, in typical clan fashion, with a sprinkle of intricate baubles that hinted at their former wealth. He could smell fresh washi paper and pine, and….

Kakashi eyed the cup in her hands. "You are unwell?" he murmured.

"I will do what I must, sensei," she said, just as quietly. She took another sip, grimacing. Kakashi accepted the non-answer and left.

The one who'd know Konoha's genin, he figured, was Umino Iruka, guardian and teacher of bratty kids. Kakashi had no idea how he did it, how he transitioned from life as a bloody professional ANBU to a hapless Academy instructor, but he'd done it. Kakashi was ready to throw in the towel with just one genin.

Umino's heart had always been larger than most.

On his way to the Academy, where he hoped to catch Umino, he realised he was being cornered. Kakashi kept watch from the corners of his eyes. This close to the administrative centre of Konoha, ninja were everywhere, with a low civilian mix. Genin, chuunin, tokujou and jounin went about their business around him.

Around him, also, were several individuals he recognised from that morning. They hemmed him in, forcing him to change trajectory with them. That ended when Gai pounced on him from behind and gave him a heart attack.

"KAKASHI, MY RIVAL! YOU MUST TELL US WHAT YOU'VE BEEN UP TO THESE FEW MONTHS! WE HAD NO IDEA YOU'VE BECOME A SENSEI!"

"Gai," Kakashi groaned, trying to slow his racing heart. "One of these days you're going to kill me for real, you know?"

Gai thumped his back, and Kakashi blinked. He stared at Gai, who gave him a thumb's up sign and flashed his teeth.

"MY RIVAL CAN'T DIE SO EASILY, KAKASHI! YOSH, WE MUST DINE NOW, AND YOU WILL TELL US ALL ABOUT YOUR CUTE LITTLE CHARGES!"

His shadows dropped all pretense of nonchalance, peeling away from the crowd. Kurenai, Asuma, and Genma approached him with smirks, Kurenai with proper deference.

"So that was why the old man asked you to stay behind that day, Kakashi," Asuma said, raising his hand in greeting. "Kurenai here and I thought we were the only ones with rookie genin this time round. Guess not."

"Seems so," Kakashi said. "Yuuhi-san, my belated congratulations on your promotion to jounin."

Kurenai blushed and dipped her head. "Thank you, Hatake-senpai. Who is your charge?"

It was on official record anyway, so…. "Uchiha Sasuke," he said.

"And when did you take charge of him?" Genma's eyes were predatory; as the late Yondaime's personal guard detail, Genma had, of course, been aware of Minato-sensei's relationship with Kushina-san, and their resultant son. He had been the one to accompany Kakashi through his initial sleuthing through the village for Naruto, two months too late. It was clear he wasn't referring to Sasuke. Kakashi nodded his apology at the tokujou for leaving him out of the loop.

"Maa, that would be telling," Kakashi said, for the benefit of everyone else.

"MY RIVAL IS AS HIP AS EVER!" Gai cried, tears streaming down his face. "COME, LET US EAT AND BASK IN THE GLORY OF OUR GENIN!"

"They haven't even signed the chuunin exam forms, you know?"

"Mine have," Kurenai admitted. "Yours, Asuma?" The jounin waved a negligent hand.

"I'll give it to them sometime. They have two more months, anyway."

"ALL MY DEAREST GENIN HAVE SIGNED UP TO BE CHUNNIN! YOSH, I'M SO PROUD!"

Kakashi sighed. It was going to be a long dinner.

Indeed, when Kakashi pried himself away from the celebrating group, tired from keeping two conversations running - one in words with everyone, and one in code with Genma - it was several hours later. The other shinobi kept their eyes averted from their finger movements at the table, as was polite. Kakashi wasn't too worried. He and Genma had several unique codes to refer to their mutual topics, so their gestures would have come off as half-gibberish, if anyone was watching.

He had so little information to show for it, too. None of them had heard of Sai, and it was too late to look for Umino. Kakashi decided to give up and retrieve Sasuke first then figure out Sai the next day. Naruto would have started hunting already, so there was no hurry to rejoin him.

A lithe figure was waiting for them at the pedestrian gate that led out to the forest. Kakashi slowed his walk as he chattered away with Sasuke, getting monosyllabic grunts for his troubles, while he assessed the new presence. It was a dark-haired boy, dressed like a girl in the way he bared his midriff, exposing toned abs. A katana was strapped to his back.

The boy turned to look at them as they neared the gate. "Hatake…Kakashi. Sensei?" he said, in a halting monotone. He had no facial expression whatsoever. Kakashi sighed. One wild child, one spoiled brat, and one robot. Fantastic.

"That's me," he said. "Are you Sai?"

"That is what I am called," the boy said. His eyes shifted towards Sasuke. "My book says it is polite to introduce ourselves at our first meeting. I am Sai, genin of Konohagakure. May I know who you are?"

"...Uchiha Sasuke."

"Hm." Sai was still expressionless. "My book says we should use nicknames to create a closer bond between friends.

"I think I will call you…duck-butt."

At Sasuke's snarl of fury, Kakashi sighed again and clamped a hand on the boy's shoulder. Sai just looked curious.

"Let's just go now," Kakashi suggested. "Sasuke-kun, behave. Sai-kun, we're about to head to our usual training ground, so follow me. And no more nicknames," he said as an afterthought.

"Strange. My book says it is a very effective tactic for friendship."

Nope, he wasn't going to think about it. He was swearing off sensei-hood after this batch for sure.

The three of them made a tense, awkward group, with Kakashi being the brightest conversationalist among them in a bid to make things work. He wasn't very successful. Between Sai's "my book says" replies and Sasuke's irritated grunts, he was making as much headway as a tortoise climbing a wall. He hoped Naruto's presence would smooth things over better.

Speaking of which, the boy must have detected their presence again, because he dropped down from a tree not long after their entry into the forest. He stuck close to Kakashi, eyes wide as he took note of the newcomer.

"Naruto-kun, this is Sai. Sai-kun, this is Uzumaki Naruto, your new teammate," Kakashi said. "Sai-kun, no nicknames please."

"Nice to meet you," Sai said. Naruto didn't reply, choosing instead to step further away and trudge along at the furthermost point from Sai. That happened to be right next to Kakashi.

"Kakashi," Naruto whispered, alarmed, eyes trained on the newcomer. "Kakashi, the bird is here."

Kakashi stared at Sai.

Oh, that was it. Kakashi had Things to Do, and it involved something physically, socially, and politically painful for his enemies.

He was going to repay Shimura Danzo in his own coin.

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Yay, I managed a slightly longer chapter! I'll scrounge up some time to reply to your reviews, I promise. Sometime. As usual, thanks for all the reviews, follows, and favourites, and as always please read and review!