Another Perfect Wonder | By : jaded_priceless Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Kakashi/Iruka Views: 10015 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 4 |
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Chapter 36
Iruka was not surprised his blind run through the woods lead him to the chasm. He wasn’t kidding when he told Mama-san that his great grandmother had found happiness in Giha and that his mother had spent a good portion of her childhood in the city. Most children sought their mothers when they were in a state of despair. His mother was long gone, it was only fitting he sought her ghost in the place she loved so much. He slowly made his way down the familiar trail in darkness planning to spend the night in the shelter where he’d spent those first few hours of daylight with Kakashi but then he felt a slight prickle on the edge of his senses. One of the chakra magnets was glowing. He walked to it and picked it up hoping that it appeared his curiosity was drawn by the glowing object not that he was measuring and recording the strength and nature of the signature. He turned around slowly looking for any other glowing objects before setting it back down where he found it. It had pulsed faintly in his hands when he faced southeast. None of the others were glowing. Someone had teleported to this location and then walked away. He reached inside his cargo pocket and withdrew his father’s fishing knife and slowly began walking in that direction towards the residential district. Iruka had walked the streets many times but never gone inside the homes. All of the items he’d acquired were lying in the streets or were from the business districts. He avoided the houses out of respect. He continued down the deserted thoroughfares searching for something out of the ordinary until he found footsteps. They were steady as if the person who made them moved with a purpose and knew exactly where they were going. He took a deep breathe and slowly released a bit of chakra, allowing his senses to expand least he be taken unawares by a silent assailant. He moved slowly deliberately, stepping lightly on top of the human footpath, knowing a more experienced tracker would be able to tell the amount of undisturbed snow was larger than any that would have been left by a foot that small. They ended at one of the larger houses. It contained less dust on the inside even though it was missing both doors. Iruka could feel no other presence or the tell-tale lack of space to indicate someone was masking their chakra when he went inside. He followed the wet footprints to a wall. There at his eye level was a picture of three women, five smiling girls, and a young boy. There was enough moonlight to see that the child in the center had bangs covering her forehead, plaits dangling from above both ears, two skinned knees and a bright toothless smile that bore a striking resemblance to the woman standing behind her and the older woman to her left. Her resemblance was even stronger to him. Iruka backed out of the room slowly and ran as fast as he could using chakra the direction he came from. When he arrived at the shelter he was only mildly surprised to see that same picture with only with a clear plastic covering over the frame waiting beside a lit fire. Why else would someone lead to him a picture of his mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, uncle, and civilian step relations if the photograph was not a gift for him?“Kakashi, you shouldn’t have said that.” Over the years Kakashi had grown quite used to his ghosts. They spoke to him at the oddest times. Get that one, Kakashi. She’ll like it” He followed Rin’s advice when choosing Sakura’s medical pack and Obito’s when selecting Naruto’s ninth birthday present, “Goggles. Only a real man can pull of that look.” “Kakashi, you shouldn’t have said that.” Only one of them was consistent. There were times like now, when he reveled in the pain he’d caused another, his sensei’s voice always made an appearance. He had plenty of practice ignoring it. When he emerged from his extended soak Iruka still was not back. He added a log to the fire and climbed into bed giving no farther thought to the man who’d rescued him. “Kakashi, you shouldn’t have said that.” As he slept his sensei’s voice grew louder. “Kakashi, you shouldn’t have said that.” He woke in the middle of the night no longer able to escape the disappointment in Minato-sensei’s voice. He dressed and walked around the house expecting to find Iruka pouting on the front or back porch or in the ancient outhouse. All three were empty. “Kakashi, you shouldn’t have said that.” “I know, Sensei. I know” Kakashi groaned his earlier satisfaction slowly twisting into fear as he looked at the clumsy footfalls that were half filled with snow remembering why his sensei most often used those words and how he lost the reason. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” Kakashi repeated running back into the house and gathering the considerable stores of rope. The last time Minato-sensei chastised him with a simple Kakashi you shouldn’t have said that he’d just insulted Obito for being late to leave on a mission. The last mission they ever took together. He lost an eye and Obito had died simply because he was an asshole. He couldn’t let the same thing happen to Iruka. He couldn’t let anything happen to Iruka. He wrapped himself in towels and bedding then pushed the empty sled outdoors. He loaded it carefully with Shinsuke’s and Iruka’s medical packs, several of the smaller pots containing burning wood from the fire, water, broth and a metal teacup as well as enough wood to replenish the fires. He set what remained of Iruka’s pot of tar into a smaller pot of ashes and hoped the stench along with the fires would deter any roving animals. He raided Shibata’s gift boxes picking up two flashlights which he placed in Iruka’s backpack along with several other items he wanted to keep on his person: four cans of tuna, the can opener, a portable radio, batteries and matches. He armed himself with one of Iruka’s fishing knives and several of the shoddily repaired shuriken and kunai. He tied the blunted swords to his ankles to use as makeshift braces before strapping on Iruka’s snowshoes. He secured the sled around his waist and grabbed one of the large poles Iruka used to anchor his ice fishing lines to the shore to use as a staff. The other he used as a torch. He placed the ax in the makeshift holster he used the bra to create earlier. He took a few steps and tied the red pillow case slightly above eye level between two sturdy trees to serve as a beacon. He followed Iruka’s footsteps, stopping every few feet to cut a directional marker in the trees with the ax. It was slow and tedious, but he couldn’t help Iruka if he got lost. After making every third mark he’d call for Rui and take a sip of the warm water before moving on. He’d repeated the process multiple times when he finally got a response – “Go away”. He’d followed Iruka’s footsteps across the forest to a great chasm. There they disappeared. Kakashi poured a small bit of tar over a few bits of wood and set them in the smallest pot of ash and lowered it over the edge. He used the glow to search for a safe way down as well as signs that Iruka had fallen. He put the med packs and rice balls into the backpack before anchoring the rope to a large sturdy tree and lowering himself down. “Rui,” Kakashi called for his missing companion. His fellow Konoha ninja who had rescued him from the dungeon and nursed him back to health only to earn a spit in the face and a stab to the back. Kakashi knew it wasn’t the first time Iruka had been stabbed in the back. He’d seen the scar. Kakashi had also been stabbed in the back while protecting others, but never from the one he’d been shielding, “Rui.” He called out several more times receiving only silence in response. He continued searching; letting his instincts guide him and using the radio after his voice had gotten hoarse. He found Iruka huddled against the wall shivering in a place Kakashi thought only existed in his imagination. Those who disobey the rules are trash, those who abandon their teammates are lower than trash. Those to who stab their teammates in the back are the worse type of shit and I’m ashamed I ever knew you. Obito decided to speak up. Kakashi lowered himself and placed an arm around Iruka. He was freezing. He removed a layer of blanket and wrapped it around the chuunin. Kakashi slowly gathered pieces of the wood that were not a part of the windbreak and placed them in the closest cauldron then started a fire. When both cauldrons were blazing and Iruka felt warmer he fought through the pain and pulled himself back out of the chasm. He secured the lid on the pot of broth and carried it back down to Iruka. He set it to warm next to the fire and wrapped his blanketed arms around Iruka who continued to ignore him choosing instead to focus on whatever object was trapped between his hands.
“Rui, the sun is rising. We should leave.” Kakashi yawned. He’d been dozing off and on after finding Iruka and suggesting they return to the cabin in between naps. “Not yet.” Iruka answered with the clarity of one who had not slept. He was still clutching the picture. “There is something I need to check first. Stay here and I’ll be back.” Kakashi was about to argue, but he decided to listen to the loud, angry voice inside his head telling him “shut up arrogant dumbass before you loose all of his trust.” Obito really did have a way with words. “I’ll be wa- atching for your return,” Kakashi said nervously, catching himself. He’d almost told Iruka he’d be waiting for him to get back and he didn’t want to create any further misunderstandings.
In the sunlight it was easy for Iruka to follow the footsteps he made the previous night. He walked slowly with purpose. After he’d taken a moment to think, it made no sense for him to run away last night. Someone had led him to the house and knew where he was going to set up camp. If they were aiming to kill him they would have done so. The house was empty and there were no signs that anyone had returned after Iruka left. He walked to the wall expecting to see familiar faces, but all he saw were strangers that bore no resemblance to the people in the photograph he now possessed. He searched each room until he found a document bearing the family name. It was one that he did not recognize. Iruka went from house to house respectfully searching the belongings until he came across something identifying the former owners. By the time he had finished what was left of the once thriving neighborhood and he had come to the same conclusion he started with. Someone had placed the picture in the house for him to find it. He trudged back to the fire and warmed himself a bit before looking at his worse for wear companion and the ground above him then sighing, “Let’s go Shishi.” Kakashi rose and they began the slow trek back up the chasm. He was hoping that Iruka would lose his temper and yell at him but the chuunin said nothing. Even when he lost his footing or grew tired Iruka remained a silent presence half a step behind and to the left of him. Kakashi’s indication Iruka had not abandoned him was a firm hand to the small of his back if he needed steadying or help moving forward. Kakashi plopped down on the sled as soon as they reached the top. Iruka sat on the far side of him and began rummaging for something to eat. Guessing Iruka was searching for food Kakashi handed him two cans of tuna and the can opener. “Thanks,” Iruka replied dryly before saying a more cheerful, “Itadaikimasu” and opening the first can. He passed the second along with the can opener back to Kakashi. “You keep it. I have two more. I’m just not hungry right now,” Kakashi replied. Iruka shrugged his shoulders and finished off the second can. After eating the chuunin inspected the items Kakashi had packed. They were practical for spending the night in the wilderness chasing after some who didn’t want to found but then again Kakashi was one of the village’s best tracker jounin but left much to be desired for a simple civilian fisherman. Iruka picked up the axe and walked into the woods without a word to Kakashi of where he was going or his intentions. He returned twenty minutes later with several saplings. He tossed them on the sled next to Kakashi and instructed, “Strip the branches off them.” The jounin nodded as he was looking for his pocket knife he noticed Iruka had picked up the ropes to the sled. Kakashi quickly stated, “I can walk you don’t have to pull me.” “Did it occur to you that you still have injuries that are healing when you decided to follow me?” Iruka asked sharply. Kakashi flinched suddenly understanding why Sasuke, Naruto, Anko, Sandaime, and Aoba all said the most frightening thing they had ever seen was Iruka when he was truly angry. Kakashi curled his spine in and nodded slowly. That seemed to work for Iruka’s students, Shikaku, and his ninken when they were in trouble. Iruka seemed to get ten times larger as he yelled ‘Then why did you…!” He paused then deflated, “You know what, nevermind. I’m not even going to argue with you. There’s a lake near here. Once you strip those saplings cut and unbraid a section of that rope so I can use it as fishing line.” Iruka picked up the guide ropes and attached the sled to him without another word to Kakashi.
MisatosPenPen: I’m glad you liked that line. Poor Iruka indeed, Kakashi struck deep with that barb.
Whitetiger9953: Thank you. I’m glad the last chapter had good timing. I’m sorry it took so long for this one. Thank you for reading.
Silistina: Thank you. I’m always glad to hear from new readers. I hope you continue to enjoy the story.
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