It was a normal day at the Academy. Kids were running around, yelling, doing normal kid things. That is, until a bell rang, signifying that classes had started. The little ninjas-in-training obediently went to classes, some with scowls on their faces, put out that their play time was over.

Unbeknownst to the kids, a young man had been watching them from his hiding place. The silver-haired jounin smiled at some of the more dramatic displays of disappointment from the children. 'Kids are so cute at that age.' he laughed to himself.

He left his hiding spot and jumped onto the roof. He walked until he found the window of the room he was looking for. He nodded at the sensei of the new class and made himself comfortable in a corner on the ceiling, masking his presence while doing so. It wouldn't do to be caught by a bunch of newbies.

A few seconds later, kids started walking in. Most had nervous expressions on their face, while some were practically jumping with joy. Kakashi noted, with a pang, that a blonde-haired chibi and an Inuzuka gaki were one of the few. The blonde looked too much like his former sensei; Kakashi forced himself to focus his attention elsewhere, deciding to look for his charge.

'Blue-ish hair, Hyuuga eyes...' While mentally recalling what his charge looked like, a young girl walked in. His eyes followed her as she sat down next to the Inuzuka. 'That's got to be her. Hyuuga Hinata.'

Kakashi observed her, noting how she looked nothing like the Hyuuga Head. Perhaps she had his chin, but other than that, nothing. 'Thank Kami for that. Hiashi's looks would not be attractive on a female.' Kakashi mentally laughed.

A loud sound broke Kakashi out of his thoughts. He looked over to where the commotion was. The blonde kid that reminded him so much of his sensei was yelling at a raven-haired boy. 'Probably an Uchiha,' Kakashi mused.

Kakashi, decidedly bored, listened in on the gaki's rant. "Oi! I asked you what your name was, politely too! Aren't you gonna introduce yourself?"

The Uchiha looked at him, a frown on his face. "No." The Uchiha then turned his face away from the blonde.

Kakashi watched with amusement as the blonde fumed. He was relieved that despite how much the blonde looked like his late sensei, their personalities were different. He didn't think that he could handle a blonde, blue-eyed kid that had the chilling and warm personality his sensei had.

Then again, they had been raised differently. If Kakashi's guess was correct, the blonde was the container of the Nine-Tails. More than likely, the kid had been treated worse than trash for something out of his control. The thought of that made him seethe; Minato-sensei had sacrificed his life to protect his village and this kid was the product of his love. The damn prejudiced villagers just would not see what the kid truly was: a hero.

A stern voice cut through his reverie. "Alright, class. Settle down," said a pony-tailed brown-haired chuunin, to no avail. "I said, SETTLE DOWN!" The rowdy class stared in awe, and somewhat fear, at the man. The man smiled at them. "You guys are now officially in training to be ninja."

Kakashi zoned out during the introductions and first day of ninja training lecture. He decided to use his time to study his charge. She was a quiet girl, obedient too. She had been one of the few who had turned her attention immediately to the teacher when he had walked in. He also found out she was extremely shy when she introduced herself. The girl had stuttered out her name and had blushed self-consciously while doing so. He had found that rather, cute, which had horrified him to no end. 'I am not a pedophile. I am not a pedophile.' he repeated to himself.

After that startling revelation, he pointedly ignored looking in her direction and decided to do what he had been hired to do: watch for any threats. It was rather pointless since no one would dare attempt a kidnapping at the academy which was surrounded by chuunin instructors, but Hiashi was incredibly paranoid, which led to him being hired as a protector. Thank Kami, it was for only a week at most.

During lunch, he followed her to where she sat under a tree's shade by herself eating a bento. The girl looked rather depressed as she sat there.

Kakashi felt like a total jerk just watching the girl. The girl was obviously depressed and here he was, just watching her.

Loud feminine screams interrupted his bout of self-disgust. Kakashi snapped to attention looking for the possible threat… and laughed. The snotty Uchiha kid was being chased by girls. Looking closer, Kakashi swore he could see hearts in their eyes. The Uchiha had a look of frantic terror on his face as he tried to evade the grabbing hands of the fanatic girls. 'The brat deserves it,' Kakashi thought to himself, a smile playing at his lips, hidden by his mask.

Soft, childish giggles erupted from his charge. The girl was giggling at the Uchiha's predicament. Kakashi's smile widened; he could grow to like this kid. Their sense of humor was surprisingly similar.

Listening to her giggles made the silver-haired jounin confirm what he had been thinking of earlier. 'She's cute.' There was no denying the heiress's cuteness; she was cute and innocent all wrapped up in one neat little package.

'A cute little package I'm supposed to be watching!' thought Kakashi, disgusted with himself.

He looked down from his perch on the tree to find that the Hyuuga heiress had vanished. Cursing, he sniffed the air, searching for the heiress's scent. He had caught her scent earlier while she was giggling; she smelled faintly of lilacs. There! He found her scent!

Kakashi followed it to find the girl behind a tree watching the blonde kid. His name was Naruto, something he had gleamed from one of the noisier kids. The heiress watched Naruto with avid fascination, somewhat similar to the faces the girls had been making to the six-year old Uchiha.

Kakashi smirked. Seems like the girl had a crush. On the supposed demon of Konoha, as well. 'I'd love to see how that plays out.'

Kakashi stood by, observing the scene. He was disappointed when the girl made no move to approach the obviously lonely boy. He trudged back to the class room when the bell rang, ending the lunch break.

He couldn't believe that the girl hadn't even struck up a conversation. But then again, at least she wasn't like those fangirls of the Uchiha. He shivered. He'd had his own share of fangirls, all vying for his attention for his supposed 'sexiness' and aura of mystery. He snorted. Fangirls were so shallow.

Over the next few days, Kakashi could see that Hinata wasn't like that. He could honestly see that she admired Naruto's determination and loud, overconfident swagger. Naruto reflected everything she aspired to be, that much he had learned from her body language and own timid smiles as she watched the blonde gaki do the exercises they had learned from their sensei until he fainted in exhaustion.

It made Kakashi smile as he watched her try to lift the blonde gaki. He wondered if she even knew where the kid lived. 'Probably not,' he thought to himself.

He sighed as he stepped into the clearing where the two were sitting. The Hyuuga girl gasped as she saw him. He put up his hand in greeting. "Yo."

It was awkward, to say the least, finally coming out into the open. He had a feeling the girl had known he was there a few times from the way she had lifted her head cautiously and looked around a few times these past couple days. The ninja lectures were probably not helping either; they were most likely heightening her paranoia.

Kakashi smiled and walked towards her. He stopped when he noticed that she tightened her hold on Naruto. It made his heart feel unexpectedly warm. The girl probably didn't even notice herself doing it. If Naruto was awake, he'd probably be amazingly surprised.

Kakashi brushed aside the sudden rush of emotions. He walked up to her and said, "I'll help you take him home. I know where he lives."

"H-how do I know I c-can trust you?" she asked. Her voice surprised him. It was surprisingly full of determination, even with the stutter. It was surprising how smart academy students were these days, but he doubted that it was because of Iruka's lectures that the girl had changed from becoming a stuttering mass to a determined little girl. He looked at the blonde. 'He's got amazing potential. The girl, even more so.'

"I don't hate the boy. Sure, he's got his annoying moments, but then again, everyone has those. So let's just say, I'm being a true shinobi of the Leaf and helping a fellow villager, ne?"

The girl looked at Kakashi doubtfully. Then her eyes lit up in recognition. "Y-you're the one that's b-been following me!"

Kakashi was shocked. How had this girl, no, academy student, known? He masked his surprise with a lazy reply. "Why do you think that?"

The girl smiled at him. "I know there's b-been someone f-following me. F-father would have it no other w-way. And then y-you just c-conveniently show up. It's k-kind of obvious, ne?"

Kakashi smiled. He really could get to like her. "Very good deductive skills, Hinata-chan. You're right, I've been following you. Hope you don't mind. Missions are missions."

"I-iie, shinobi-san. Thank you very much for watching me." Hinata bowed down low. "W-will you please h-help me carry N-Naruto-kun?"

"Naruto-kun, eh?" He smiled as Hinata's cheeks flushed red. He found that teasing her was amazingly fun. "Of course. Oh, and my name is Hatake Kakashi."

"Arigatou, Hatake-san!" Hinata smiled at him again.

"Please, just Kakashi is fine, Hinata-chan."

"H-hai, Kakashi-san."

With that, she moved to hold on to the Naruto's left arm. The weight suddenly overwhelmed her and Hinata started falling back. Kakashi's reflexes kicked in and he wrapped his arm around her small frame. She looked up at him startled. "Don't worry, Hinata-chan. I've got you."

"Arigatou."

Kakashi pulled her back up and said, "Hinata-chan, I'll carry Naruto. Why don't you gather his shuriken and kunai?" Hinata nodded and went to gather said supplies.

Kakashi picked up the blonde. He was shockingly light. 'Too light. The kid should be what, six? He's several pounds underweight!' Kakashi narrowed his eye. It looked like the Hokage needed to be informed of this.

"I'm done, Kakashi-san."

Kakashi turned to look at the girl. The many shuriken and kunai didn't look right in the innocent girl's hands, but Kakashi knew that she was a kunoichi in training and future Hyuuga Head, so he ignored it.

"Alright then, Hinata-chan. Follow me," said Kakashi in a cold voice.

He could feel the girl's questioning stare at his back, but he ignored that too. It was too soon to corrupt another child's innocence. Just one that did not deserve it was enough.

When they arrived at Naruto's apartment home, Kakashi could not control his killing intent for a second. The boy's apartment was in shambles. He could not see a single window that wasn't broken. The walls were covered in weeds and there was freaking graffiti on the kid's walls! How low would the villagers of Konoha stoop?

He looked over to his side and saw Hinata with the most peculiar look on her face. She looked like she was about to cry from the way her shoulders were shaking but when he looked at her face, her eyes were narrowed and her lips were set into a tight line. It was an impressive sight for a six-year old girl.

Needless to say, Kakashi was shocked. The girl really would be a force to reckon with if she would just believe in herself.

"Why would people do things like this?" asked Hinata in a frightfully, tight controlled voice.

Kakashi sighed. He wished he didn't have to ruin a child's innocence, but there was no choice. "Humans are stubborn and prejudiced. They make judgments based on rumors and secondhand accounts, when in truth, they know nothing about the subject." Kakashi paused, looking down to see Hinata's reaction. She was still looking at Naruto's apartment, her small fists clenched. "People cannot forget the pain from their past so they find something to vent their anger on. It just so happens that Naruto is an open reminder of their past. It's wrong and stupid, but it's human nature."

"Th-that's so HORRIBLE! H-he's just a b-boy. Don't they know any b-better?" yelled Hinata, finally breaking into tears.

Kakashi looked at her in amazement. This Hyuuga girl was more human than all the villagers combined. It was a heart-wrenching sight, watching this girl pour her heart out for the infamous "demon of Konoha."

He decided to interrupt her crying. He coughed slightly. "Um… How about I take Naruto to my house? It's safe and… clean. You want to come, too, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata nodded and silently followed him, tears still rolling down her cheeks. Kakashi was relieved when they finally reached his apartment to see that she had stopped. It was too sad to watch when he couldn't do anything about it.

Kakashi laid Naruto down on his bed, wrapping him up in his blanket. Kakashi moved the kid's blonde hair out of his face and found he couldn't look away. This kid really did look like the Fourth… too much for it be a coincidence. Knowing the Fourth, he wouldn't seal the Nine-Tails into any kid… so who was this blonde kid the Fourth had so conveniently found as a newborn?

Kakashi's sudden insight made him take a step back. 'This kid…is the Fourth's son?! But the Third told me that Kushina-san and the unborn baby died in the attack! I'll need to have a talk with him.' Kakashi's mind was reeling from his new theory.

His epiphany was interrupted, however, when Hinata's voice broke it. "Kakashi-san… Are you a-alright? Y-you suddenly took a st-step back. You look p-pale as well…"

Kakashi struggled to come up with an excuse. "Oh, Hinata-chan… Naruto reminded me of someone I knew, that's all, haha…" He trailed off, hoping she would buy that sorry excuse.

"Who does Naruto-kun remind y-you of, Kakashi-san, if you d-don't mind m-me asking?" asked Hinata.

Kakashi stiffened at her question, then decided to tell her the truth. She deserved that much, at least. "He reminded me of the Fourth Hokage. They both have blonde hair and blue eyes."

To Kakashi's surprise, Hinata laughed. "Oh, n-now that you m-mention it, they do look alike, don't they?"

Kakashi looked at the girl curiously. "You've seen a picture of the Fourth?"

"Oh, n-no. I love looking at the Hokage Monument. I've always thought Naruto-kun and the Fourth Hokage had similar facial structures. Now that y-you've told me about them sharing b-blonde hair and b-blue eyes…" At this, the girl blushed, much to Kakashi's amusement. "it just confirms it." Hinata looked at Naruto closely after saying this. "Th-they could be… related… amazingly so…" Hinata gasped and looked at the Hokage Monument from Kakashi's window, which it had an amazing view of it, and looked back at the sleeping blonde. "Kakashi-san! Don't y-you think… that they actually c-could be related? P-possibly even f-father and s-son!"

To say Kakashi was shocked would be a severe understatement. This girl, no, academy student, had deduced what he had just minutes ago with the most basic of information. He himself, had had a close relationship with the Fourth Hokage and he had just now come to that conclusion. If this girl was this good at this age, then she had amazing potential. What he would give to be able to teach her. The girl would definitely benefit under his tutelage. Kakashi sighed. It wasn't possible. This girl was a Hyuuga, the heiress, no less. He would have to settle with hopefully becoming her jounin instructor later on. That would be good enough.

A soft, trembling voice broke through his thoughts, again. 'I really have to stop losing myself in my thoughts. It's becoming a bad habit.' "Ah, g-gomen, Kakashi-san. Th-that was stupid of m-me… how c-could they p-possibly be related…"

"NO!" Kakashi coughed. He hadn't meant to be that loud. "I mean, no, Hinata-chan, you were very astute in your observation. Don't bring yourself down so easily. I was just lost in my thoughts for a bit. I really want to train you, haha…" He smiled at Hinata's wide-eyed stare. She looked like she didn't know whether to smile or cry. He was glad she chose the former.

Kakashi continued on. "Actually, while looking at Naruto, I realized that he looked too similar to the Fourth for it to be just a coincidence. I knew the Fourth personally; he was my jounin instructor before he became the Hokage." His smile widened at Hinata's surprised face. "They look way too alike to not even be related. Plus, you don't see many blonde-haired villagers in Konoha. So you see, it was amazing that you would deduce what I had with even less information than I had. You have amazing potential, Hinata-chan."

It was worth the long speech to see the girl's face. He could see her many emotions flickering across her face. It was amusing. Shock, pride, confusion, happiness were all reflected in her lavender eyes. Kakashi found he couldn't look away. They were such a beautiful sight on her face, no matter that he had seen the Hyuuga eyes many times during missions with them. 'Naruto's a lucky guy. Hopefully he sees that before he loses his chance with her.'

Finally, Hinata decided which emotion to feed from. Happiness. Her face lit up and shone. Kakashi seriously wished that he had a camera so he could keep the moment in his mind forever. Not that he was forgetting the heiress's expression any time soon.

"Arigatou, Kakashi-san! No one's ever said that about me!" said Hinata.

"No problem, Hinata-chan. I'm glad that you're not stuttering around me anymore." Kakashi almost started laughing at the way she scrunched up her nose when she realized she hadn't stuttered.

"That's… Oh! I just feel really comfortable around you. You are a very nice person, Kakashi-san." She smiled beatifically at him, making the silver-haired jounin blush. It was oddly flattering to receive a compliment from a young kid. He had been thrown insults by so many of the brats when he criticized their training. It was a nice change.

"Ah, well, I should escort you home, Hinata-chan." He frowned at how her face fell. What was it with clan's exerting so much pressure on heirs and heiresses? "Sorry, Hinata-chan. Maybe tomorrow you can come by to check up on Naruto, ne?" The girl's face lit up and then automatically blushed. Kakashi loved seeing the emotions play across her face.

With one last look at Naruto, Hinata nodded and the two were on their way to the Hyuuga Compound.

Hinata looked so forlorn at the thought of being home that Kakashi felt he had to say something. "Hinata. Umm… You're welcome at my house anytime, just so you know. Should you ever need a place to stay, my apartment is always open."

At the look on Hinata's face, Kakashi felt glad that he had offered to give up his privacy to the girl. At least she knew she had a place to run to. He knew somewhat of the pressures of being the next head of the clan, having talked a bit to Uchiha Itachi.

With one last wave to Hinata, he left, heading home. He decided to pick up some ramen packages for Naruto, should he wake up. He hoped to Kami that the kid didn't get messy when he realized he wasn't at his house.

That thought in mind, his thoughts wandered off to the peculiar heiress of the Hyuuga clan. She was going to be strong, he knew it.

To clear something up, Kakashi is NOT a pedophile, only a pervert. He's wouldn't go after young girls! Probably... hahaha j/k.

Oh and this is going to be a KakaHina story, not a NaruHina one. I was going to add in bits of NaruHina, but no, it's too hard to add in romance with those two. It's going to be tough developing Kakashi and Hinata's relationship, so I don't really want to add in complications. There might be some crushes, though, from the other Rookie Nine to make some competition, but that's about it.