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The evening air was cool and crisp against Iruka’s skin, gently caressing his cheeks as he gazed up into the star-speckled twilight. Hand-in-hand, he and Kakashi slowly traversed the well-trodden forest path up the mountainside, the soles of their sandals crunching softly against the fine gravel.
March was one of Iruka’s favorite months. Maybe it was because it was the first month where the days truly felt longer than in the winter. Or, maybe, it was because March was one of the few times of the year where he and Kakashi dug in their heels and pushed back against their tight schedules and endless duties.
Three years.
Three years as partners and three years of annually guarding a week of March like their lives depended on it. There was never a true guarantee of R&R in their lines of work, but by some miracle, they managed it each year.
Their vacation cabin. It was far away from the duties and the everyday chaos, the flak jackets and kunai.
It was a true, real home away from home.
Iruka breathed in deeply and absently traced circles on the back of Kakashi’s hand with his fingers. Kakashi squeezed his hand and looked down at him. The eye that wasn’t covered by an eyepatch crinkled in a soft smile.
No words were spoken between them and none needed to be.
Twilight was enveloping them, and yet the deep shadows beneath Kakashi’s visible eye was fading; with every passing step, Iruka could visibly see the weight lifting from his partner’s shoulders.
For so many, Kakashi Hatake was a mysterious man. And yet, even within their first year of dating, Iruka had come to realize how much his partner was an open book. It was all in the small things, the details of his posture and expression.
Iruka leaned forward and kissed the top of Kakashi’s hand. The man’s smile deepened.
The sun had just slipped behind the uppermost peaks of the mountains when the cabin came into view. It was a small log building with a wide, front porch roughly-hewn door.
It was a relic. A Hatake relic. Maybe the last of its kind from decades long-past. Iruka hadn’t pried for details, but he did know that Kakashi had spent a great deal of time and effort to ensure it was safe and secure.
There was a certain freshness to the forest that directly surrounded the hut, full of signs of recent snowmelt. Iruka remembered the past years, where he’d explored the rings of small buds and shoots as they vied for the sun’s warmth. He’d been so shocked that plants could even grow beneath the snow.
Iruka knew he should focus on their security first—to ensure that the wards were intact and that the perimeter was safe. Instead, he found himself squinting, willing his eyes to pierce through the long shadows as he searched for the telltale green dots of new plant growth amidst the barren canvas of brown hues ahead.
“Hm.” Kakashi’s soft grunt of disapproval was what first drew Iruka’s attention. The man unlaced his fingers from Iruka’s and drew a kunai.
The next thing that Iruka realized was just how quiet the forest had become.
Too quiet.
The only thing he could sense was the soft thrum of the wards, their barely-imperceptible chakra signatures standing out against the rest of the landscape.
Or was it just the wards?
Iruka’s skin prickled and his senses slammed into full alert.
Something or someone was out there—and close. Maybe even a many “someones.”
Iruka’s senses went wild as he picked up no less than four unique chakra signatures, all subtle, but clearly there.
“What the fuck?” he hissed under his breath. He drew a kunai from his belt pack and mentally ran through his arsenal of items. Not much to work with, given the circumstances, but he still had a few things up his sleeve.
Kakashi’s head whipped around to stare back the way they’d come. A heartbeat later, he tensed, a hand lifting toward his face.
Several things happened at once.
A shadow burst from the undergrowth beside Iruka and flew toward him. At the same time, another shadow leapt at Kakashi.
In true Hatake fashion, Kakashi spun around and kicked his attacker almost faster than the eye could see.
Iruka, only slightly slower, ducked low and met his opponent mid-strike, driving his shoulder into the person’s gut before following them to the ground. He drove his knee into the person’s torso and pressed the kunai to their throat.
“Move and your friend loses their head,” Iruka spat, lip curled.
From the very little light they had left, Iruka could see that he was pinning a young man to the ground, a young man who looked a little bit like he was about to piss himself.
Iruka squinted at the man’s face.
Was that a slight flush he saw there?
He leaned closer, tightening his hold on the man as he moved.
Alcohol. There was no doubting that smell.
A woman dressed in simple tunic and pants darted onto the path, brandishing something that looked suspiciously like an unlit torch. She froze mid-stride, eyes wide.
Kakashi gently tapped the tip of his kunai against the chest of the man at his feet, who Iruka also happened to notice, was ripped. The man met Iruka’s gaze with raised eyebrows as though sizing Iruka up, clearly unconcerned by the kunai held at his flesh.
“Maa, I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Kakashi tilted his head to the side, eyes fixed on the woman, who had taken a tentative step forward. He raised his voice. “I also would recommend coming out now—put your hands up and this doesn’t need to get messy.”
Bushes rustled and a few more people stepped onto the road.
A kid, probably no older than fifteen. An older man with a scowl and haughty expression. There was one other, a younger girl dressed the same as the woman; the girl immediately shrank back and looked fearful, arms folded in front of her and shoulders hunched.
“We mean no harm,” said the woman, her voice soft. “And I swear, this wasn’t my idea—”
“Oh please.” The man at Kakashi’s feet snorted. “I’ll say it before you make a fool of all of us.”
“You’re the pig-headed fool here,” spat the woman. “Up here on a dare? Where’s your common sense?”
“A dare?” Frustration gnawed at Iruka’s insides. They didn’t have time for this.
Exhaling forcefully in an effort to calm himself, he stepped back from the man on the ground. None of the people around them were emanating any kind of killing intent. Sure, the haughty man ahead of them and Kakahi’s fool of an opponent seemed a tad aggressive, but they didn’t anppear to be interested in taking lives.
Kakashi clearly had reached a similar conclusion, because he also stepped back. “A dare, is it?” He let out a laugh. “Do tell.”
He thought of the cabin and their peaceful vacation, the bed waiting for them and the long journey they’d taken. This was a vacation.
Frustration curled into anger.
The man Kakashi had pinned was getting to his feet. Iruka was right, the guy was tall and big, with rippling muscles beneath a shirt pulled tight across his broad frame.
What had the lady called him? A “pig-headed fool?” Iruka mentally labeled the man as ‘the fool.’
He turned his head coolly regarded the man smelling of alcohol, who stood shakily beside him. A fool and a drunk boy attacking two simple travelers on a vacation.
Charming.
“You’re the Copy-nin, aren’t you?” The drunk man beside Iruka gulped when Kakashi fixed him with a searing, one-eyed glare.
The glare lasted a moment, and then Kakashi smiled, tilting his head. “Maybe, or maybe not. What if I am?”
“He dared us—Takeru—” The drunk man’s voice shook a little. “He’s one of the best fighters in this part of the country. They dared us to challenge your squeeze to a fight—”
Iruka’s vision went a little red. Nothing about what they were calling him particularly sat right. Of all the wild, stupid things in the world to do... a challenge to prove himself?
“My what.” Kakashi looked a little confused. “My—”
“You’ve got to actually be fucking joking,” Iruka spat, cutting him off. “You tracked us down and jumped us on a dare? Leave us alone.”
"Dare? Not just a dare." The fool jabbed a thumb at Kakashi. “This one proved his honor in the war—these mountains are desolate and it’s everyone for themselves.” He looked Iruka up and down again. “If you’re going to be up here, you’re going to need to prove you’ve got the guts.”
“As if you—I swear to fucking gods .” Iruka cut himself off and shook his head. “You know what? Fine.” Rage was boiling in his stomach now; he could feel it heating his face.
If the villagers, fighter— whoever they were—had been out to provoke him, they’d succeeded.
Kakashi opened his mouth, barely discernible in the deepening gloom. Iruka caught the movement and raised a finger, jabbing it in his partner’s direction. “Don’t. Even. Start.”
“At least you could give me your stuff?” Kakashi smirked.
Harrumphing , Iruka unclipped his travel bags and tossed them at Kakashi, then undid the clasp to his casual, civilian jacket and tossed that over too. The last thing he gave to Kakashi were his kunai. As pissed as he was, he had a feeling this wasn’t the right fight for blades.
As Iruka turned to face the fool, the girl struck a match and lit a torch. The flicking light only seemed to accentuate the power of the fool’s arms and shoulders.
Slowly, the two of them circled each other.
Iruka noted the lightness to the fool’s steps and the fluidness to his balance. There was no doubt about it, the man was a skilled fighter.
“I’m impressed,” the fool drawled. “Angry, but showing restraint.”
“You’re kidding.” Iruka scoffed.
The tilt of the fool’s hips gave him away only a moment’s breath before his left fist darted out. Iruka slipped past the strike and darted in, aiming for the fool’s trunk, only to leap back as the fool twisted, lashing out with a vicious kick.
An evil glint shone in the fool’s eyes as Iruka regained distance. “Oh please,” the fool sighed.
They exchanged blows, battering forearms and shins without landing a true hit. Iruka couldn’t get close enough to strike the fool, and the fool couldn’t lock down Iruka’s movements. They were dancing.
Sweat began to bead at his forehead.
Iruka switched styles, pulling from a lesser-known northern variation of his usual technique. He took hold of the fool’s arm with his next strike and yanked the man forward. For such an advanced fighter, the effect was minimal.
But all Iruka needed was minimal effect. He spun, sweeping forward with a foot and effectively throwing the fool forward and down.
Anger washed over him and Iruka gave chase, taking the fight to the ground. The fool rolled over, and attempted to regain foothold, but Iruka planted himself on top of the man and began driving his fists into the still-grinning face.
“You motherfucking piece of shit—” Iruka spat as he was roughly flipped over onto his back. He bucked his hips and drove his knee into the fool’s leg, throwing the man’s balance just long enough for him to wiggle free.
He looked up just long enough to see Kakashi’s grin.
Oh that little—
Kakashi was enjoying this?
The fool fended off every attempt Iruka made to put him in a joint lock, much to Iruka’s frustration. They rolled across gravel and clothing tore, ripping away at the seams as they half-punched, half-clawed at each other in an attempt to gain advantage.
Iruka took a hit to the cheek and one straight to the solar plexus. Though he’d been braced for the latter, the strike still left him wheezing slightly.
Soon enough, he nailed the fool right back, landing a solid hit to the shoulder joint.
Kakashi wolf-whistled when Iruka lost his shirt, then clapped as Iruka landed a kick directly to the fool’s chest.
They broke apart, and Iruka rose to his feet, panting.
The fool picked himself up off the ground and let out a laugh as he wiped sweat from his face with the back of his hand.
“You’re good. No wonder he picked you.”
Iruka scoffed and raised his fists, resisting a wince as his right shoulder let out a soft pop at the movement. “Right.”
The fool didn’t raise his guard, but rather folded his arms and regarded Iruka again, this time with eyes that seemed far more curious than aggressive.
“Just who are you?”
Iruka slowly let his hands drop to his sides. “Just a nobody, really.” He shrugged. “A simple schoolteacher.”
No one moved, not even any of the onlookers.
The fool laughed again, but this time it was a full belly laugh. The man strode forward and, before Iruka had time to fully process it, clapped him hard on the back then took hold of Iruka’s bicep and gave it a shake.
“He’s good,” the fool gave Kakashi a wink. “You got a strong one, Hatake.”
“Oh, I know” Kakashi grinned.
“You’ll have to join us down in the village next time, the fighters down there love a good show.” The fool winked at Iruka. “Winner walks out with honor and the loser buys a round for the house, how’s that?”
“Okay okay,” Kakashi stepped forward and patted the fool on the shoulder. “We’ll consider?” Kakashi looked up at Iruka and Iruka caught the clear plea for help.
“Appreciated, but I think I’ll pass for now.” Iruka bent and picked up the shredded remains of his civilian shirt.
He was starting to get chilly, but didn’t exactly want to climb back into his coat while he was still caked with sweat and dirt.
Kakashi was staring. Of course he was staring, the man was about as subtle as a box of bricks.
The fool gave a salute then turned to usher his team back down the path. The older man that Iruka had mentally noted as “arrogant,” narrowed his eyes at Iruka before turning away. Iruka had a feeling that, if he’d accepted the fool’s offer, his opponent might just be that man.
Iruka watched them go, almost missing the warmth of the torchlight. “Why do I feel like you might’ve known this would happen?”
Kakashi took his hand, laden with both of their personal belongings. “Just because I appreciated the show—”
Iruka raised his eyebrows.
“ Appreciate ,” Kakashi corrected. “It doesn’t mean I knew it would happen. They’re a wild bunch down in that village. I’m surprised they didn’t notice the last few years.”
“Yeah, well. I’m not the biggest fan.”
Shaking his head in exasperation, Iruka reached out for his bag. His hand was swatted away immediately.
Kakashi pressed a large set of keys into his palm.
A soft thrill raced through Iruka.
The cabin. A warm hearth. A shower.
Kakashi.
“Would you do the honors?” Kakashi asked softly, his visible eye twinkling.
Iruka smiled, feeling slightly giddy with relief and anticipation. “Well, now that you ask…”