Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I make any money from Naruto. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

Summery: "So, before I go, do you like... have a name or something?"

Notes: Iruka is three years younger then Kakashi. In this story he's a genin, while Kakashi is an ANBU. Iruka, Izumo and Kotetsu are on the same Genin team. Beta'd by kita_the_spaz - she fixes all the boo-boos. Oh, and sorry about the lateness! I've had a very ill puppy-dog to tend to (his heart almost gave out).

Nice to Meet You
Friendship. Humor. G.
kakashi x iruka

"Iruka...?"

Iruka snorted in his sleep, his face scrunching up in annoyance as he rolled over onto his side.

"Iruka-kun...?"

He groaned, curling further in on himself. Just five more minutes, mum.

"Hey, Iruka-kun! Wake up, man."

Iruka's eyelids flew open, his body jerking into an upright position. It took a couple of more minutes for his brain to catch up, but once it did, he blearily blinked at the surprised face of his teammate.

"Ko-kun?" Iruka yawned. "What're you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" The other boy, Kotetsu, replied incredulously. "Iruka-kun, you've been missing all night! What are you doing here?"

"All... night?" Iruka repeated confused, scrubbing his sleep addled eyes with the palms of his hands. "Oh!" The genin jumped to his feet and spun around. He remembered getting separated from his team after they were attacked by a couple of missing-nins, and then falling down that embankment and losing his pack. He also remembered a certain annoying ANBU boy following him around in the dark and then...

Iruka abruptly ended his train of thought, blushing crimson.

"Hey, Iruka-kun... You alright?" His friend leant forward. "You're all red. You got a fever or something?"

"No, no." Iruka quickly shook his head. "Kotetsu-kun," Iruka turned, criticising the area around them. "You didn't happen to see anyone else here when you came looking, did you?"

"Nope." Kotetsu shook his head. "Why?"

"Uh, no reason." Iruka lied. He turned back to the tree, looking at the base where the ANBU's body would have been leaning and was amazed at how untouched it looked. It was almost as if he had never been there. Even some of Iruka's own tracks had been covered.

"So," Iruka's teammate broke the silence. "Did'cha sleep out here all night by yourself?"

"Well, uh..." Iruka hesitated. If the place had been cleaned, then obviously the ANBU boy didn't want anyone to know he'd been there. Scratching the bridge of his nose nervously, Iruka nodded. "Yeah."

"That's so cool!" Kotetsu pumped a fist into the air. "Wait till we tell Zumo, he's gonna be really jealous. They won't even let us camp as a three man cell without sensei, and you get to go out all by yourself."

Iruka gave his teammate an odd look. "It wasn't by choice, ya'know."

Kotetsu hummed, obviously ignoring the minor details and turned, tugging Iruka's sleeve. "I came from that direction. So we better get going before you have to spend another night out here."

Iruka nodded, and followed his teammate as he walked off.

They each stumbled over the different root systems, and weaved around the too dense shrubbery. Looking around, Iruka partly hoped to catch sight of the ANBU boy, while also hoping he'd notice some sort of familiar landmark. He figured he'd just have to trust his friends navigational skills, because he had no clue where they were.

He really hoped he wouldn't have to recount the whole ordeal in—edited—detail, because if he did, his sensei was bound to chew his ass out for being such a klutz.

Sensing the other boys eyes scrutinizing him, Iruka turned. "You want something, Ko-kun?"

"Nope," Kotetsu shook his head then gave Iruka a thoughtful expression. "Well, sorta. I was wondering... were you afraid? Or, I dunno... did'cha get bit, or fall, or break anything? Anything interesting happen at all?"

"Um, no." Iruka looked away, hoping his teammate couldn't tell he was lying. "Not really."

Truthfully, he'd been terrified at first. He hated the dark and he'd had no food, or water or anything to use as a compass. Plus he'd been alone. He'd never really done well on his own, always seeking attention for just that reason. But then... well then it hadn't been so bad.

Biting his lip, Iruka tugged at his friends sleeve. "Hey, Ko-kun?" He stopped walking. "I think I forgot something back at the tree, wait here a sec okay? I'll be right back!"

Without waiting for a reply, Iruka spun on his heels and quickly ran back the way they'd just come. He slowed down slightly as he neared his destination, eyes immediately darting to the shadows, hoping to see something he'd missed the first time he looked. Finally, giving up on finding the ANBU hidden somewhere amongst the undergrowth, Iruka glanced up.

There, on one of the highest branches, sat a certain ivory-masked boy.

"Hi!" Iruka smiled and waved.

Tilting his head to the side, the ANBU slowly waved back with a small salute. He dropped to the ground in a crouch before rising to full height. "Yo."

"Hey!" Iruka gasped and pointed. "You're old!"

The ANBU crossed his arms over his chest plate, and stared down with two emotionless ebony hollows. "Not. Amused."

"Hmm, really?" Iruka grinned, surprisingly unfazed by the ANBU's menacing display. "Cause I am. You know you've got grey hair, right?"

"It's silver." The other boy whined, a pout evident by his tone.

"If you say so..." Iruka replied airily. He was about to say something more, having way too much fun teasing the ANBU, when his teammates shout to hurry up cut him off. Smiling sheepishly he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Um, that's Kotetsu. My teammate." He explained.

The ANBU nodded slowly, head once again tilting to the side. The tiny motions were almost like a language of their own. Iruka could distinctly tell when the ANBU was amused, curious and even disbelieving. All without ever seeing the other boys face. And now he was sure he was being silently asked, 'well?'.

"Uh..." Iruka cleared his throat, blushing. "So, I gotta go, but, um... I just wanted to say thank you, and um... yeah." He bit his lip.

The ANBU boy nodded, his neck extending slightly, giving the impression he was grinning under the mask. "Maa... it was nothing."

"No," Iruka shook his head. "I was a brat, and you... well, anyways, thanks."

For a moment the ANBU said nothing, did nothing, and then he reached up and scratched the hair at the scruff of his neck. "You're welcome?"

Iruka beamed brightly, his eyes widening with the expression. "So, before I go, do you like, have a name or something?" He almost hit himself in the head when he remembered that this was an ANBU. One of the most elite shinobi in all of Fire Country. The Hound. Of course he wasn't going to give a real name. "Sorry," Iruka quickly amended. "I shouldn't have asked that."

The ANBU boy stared at him curiously, the hand he'd been using to scratch his neck now casually hooked into the side of his chest plate. Iruka had the distinct feeling he was being sized up, the ANBU going over everything he'd seen and heard in the past twenty-four hours. The mask never moved, the boys stance never shifting, but after a few discernable moments, the air seemed to clear.

"I shouldn't... it's against the rules."

"I'm sorry." Iruka repeated. "I really didn't mean it. Sensei says I sometimes talk before I think, or forget to think... or just don't bother. Uh, well, she says I talk too much really, but so does everybody else so I guess maybe I do, but I only do it when I'm... I'm..." Iruka paused, eyes going wide. He made a choking noise in the back of his throat and winced. "Sorry, I'm doing that... talking thing."

"You're nervous." The ANBU nodded.

"No!" Iruka started, hands held up and waving. "No, I'm not, really!"

The other boy shrugged, his mask tilting in a 'I'm going to agree with you to make you feel better, but really, who do you think you're kidding?' kind of way. It made Iruka want to bristle, but when he realized the boy was right, he felt his cheeks heat up even more.

"So, anyway..." Iruka shifted awkwardly. He had to leave soon or else his teammate would come looking for him. But he didn't want to go without saying goodbye, and maybe... well he wasn't really sure. "You can call me Iruka."

"Like the mammal?" The ANBU asked, evidently amused.

"Yes," Iruka growled. "Like the mammal."

The ANBU snorted.

After a moment where Iruka just knew he was being silently laughed at, the other boy cleared his throat. That one hand again rose to scratch the nape of his neck. Iruka realized it was a nervous habit and smiled, encouraging, waiting to see what the boy would say.

"I'm not supposed to-"

"Oh!" Iruka waved his hands in the air again, cutting the ANBU off mid sentence. "I didn't tell you my name so you'd tell me yours. I was just, um... being polite, I guess. I understand," he offered a smile. "You're ANBU, of course you can't say."

"Kakashi." The ANBU replied.

"Huh?" Iruka blinked.

"My name. Call me Kakashi." He held out a hand.

Iruka took it numbly, completely shocked. Maybe it was a code name? Scarecrow? He snorted. "Nice to meet you Kakashi-san."

"Likewise, Iruka-san." The ANBU bowed ever so slightly, renewing Iruka's blush.

When they parted, Iruka threw the other boy—Kakashi, he did an inner happy dance—a suspicious look. "What happen to the rules?"

"Made to be broken." The ANBU shrugged. Then quickly added, "Just don't tell anyone."

"I won't." Iruka assured. He heard cussing through the clearing and realized his teammate had finally gotten impatient and was coming back to get him. Quickly turning to the ANBU, to Kakashi, he bowed. "Well, I gotta go, my friend is coming to get me. Maybe I'll see you around, Kakashi-san?"

"Maybe," Kakashi nodded.

"Great." Iruka beamed. "Uh... thanks again!" He shouted, spun around and took off through the forest.

Darting past his teammate, Iruka snagged the genin's collar and laughed. "C'mon!"

Kotetsu quickly broke free and launched himself at the brunette, knuckling Iruka's head in retaliation. "Where the hell were you?"

"I said I forgot something," Iruka scowled, spinning himself and his teammate in circles trying to dislodge him. "Come on Kotetsu, we gotta get moving. Knock it off!"

"Don't know why you're in such a hurry," Kotetsu grinned. "Sensei said if you didn't come back with somethin' broken, she was makin' ya clean the academy lavatories for a whole week!"

With a growl, Iruka kicked out and knocked his teammate away. After that, they continued walking, Iruka throwing his friend several curious glances. Kotetsu raised a brow and Iruka quickly glanced away, rubbing the bridge of his nose self-consciously. Finally, he turned. "She was really that worried about me, huh?"

Kotetsu shrugged. "It was dark, ya'know? We all were."

Feeling the corner of his lips quirk, Iruka quickly began walking again. He knocked shoulders with his friend, and cracked up laughing when the boy gave a yelp of surprise, tumbling over.