Hermione huffed as she pulled another box onto her desk, her assistant watching nervously from the side.
“Ma’am, we have people that can do this,” Gertrude insisted. “The Minister of Magic should not have to dig through the forgotten archives.”
“Nonsense,” Hermione waved her off. “That is exactly who should be doing it. It was my decision to overhaul the filing system; I did not want things that could still apply to us forgotten in a hidden corner. I would much rather read it myself.”
She smiled at the young girl. Hermione hadn’t exactly been the most conventional Minister since she took the mantle from Kingsley, but she had only been adding to the positive changes that man had started during his term. Hermione felt the urge to improve things for all members of the magical world as strongly now as she did when she was still a student at Hogwarts and now she had the chance to actually do something about it.
The box knocked against a photo frame on her desk and she reached to straighten it out. She took a moment to gaze down at her little family. Ron had a goofy smile in the picture and their kids took after him in that regard. It was hard to believe that her eldest was going to Hogwarts this year; when had her little girl grown up so quickly? Rose was so mature for her age; Ron said that was all Hermione. Only a year later, Hugo would be going to Hogwarts too. She was so proud of them but a part of her wanted them to remain her little ones forever. She knew they would flourish at Hogwarts though. Harry was the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor so she knew there was someone that could at least keep an eye on them.
She started to dig through the yellowed pages in the box and blinked as she spotted something that she had not seen in years. She pulled the page out, scanning the kanji curiously. She grabbed her wand and performed the translation charm. The kanji blurred and reformed into English and Hermione devoured the words on the page.
A past Minister of Magic had hired a shinobi a century ago. They were from a place called Konoha? She sank into her chair and stared at the letter. Merlin, she hadn’t thought about shinobi in about ten years now. Kakashi left and then the war exploded beyond their control so they didn’t have a chance to think about the former bodyguard. For a few years after, they’d thought about him from time to time, wondering what he was doing but she had not thought about the grumpy ninja for about a decade now. They had asked Dumbledore before he died about contacting Kakashi but were told that Konoha had cut off all contact with the Wizarding World although he hadn’t told them why.
She wondered if things would have changed in the last twenty years. They were no longer at war but allies were good to have at any time. There was a lot they could learn from them from what she remembered of Kakashi.
“Gertrude, I want you to arrange a meeting today with the council,” she said, coming to a decision. “I have an idea to discuss.”
She did not see the harm in reaching out. Whatever had caused them to break off ties happened twenty years ago; things had changed significantly in both the Ministry and the Wizarding World at large since then. She imagined things had changed for the place where Kakashi was from, maybe enough that they would be willing to put past grievances aside. She wondered if Kakashi had changed at all in the past twenty years. It was a little hard to imagine.
Kakashi slouched further into the Hokage’s chair, petulantly looking away from his student.
“Kakashi-sensei, you can’t just leave the paperwork and hope it disappears,” Sakura continued to lecture him. “And you can’t let your ninken use it as bedding. Poor Shizune doesn’t deserve to deal with your nonsense so you are not leaving until you’ve done it. I have the afternoon off from the hospital. You will do it.”
“Maa, Sakura-chan, you act as if I do nothing all day,” he eye-smiled at his student. “Your lack of faith wounds my poor old heart.”
“If I look under your desk, am I going to find your hoard of Icha Icha?” She answered back, cracking her knuckles.
Kakashi sweat-dropped as he subtly started shoving them into one of the drawers.
“I am your Hokage, you know.”
“You are also one of the laziest men I know outside of the Nara clan.”
She had grown up well. She’d come a long way from the weak fangirl he’d first met; the only downside of that was she was now absolutely terrifying. Sakura could squish any of them without blinking and while Kakashi was strong in some respects, he wasn’t messing with that. Tsunade’s influence was strong and Kakashi couldn’t claim a lot of credit as a teacher. He had been a bit useless back then.
Kakashi spun in his chair to look out over Konoha through the window in an attempt to ignore his student. The village was prospering almost six years after the Fourth Shinobi War and Kakashi planned on keeping it that way. Tsunade had shoved the hat at him the moment they’d come home to the village and Kakashi had found that he’d had no choice but to accept. The good thing was that he already had a successor; once he got Naruto trained up, he could retire and read Icha Icha all day in peace. He wasn’t really sure what else he would do in retirement. He didn’t know many who actually lived until then to tell him.
He still wasn’t sure how he’d made it this far. Thirty seven years was forever in shinobi years; he had died briefly during Pein’s attack but he was still here. He thought back to all the comrades he’d lost over the past thirty years, all the ones who wouldn’t be able to retire. He couldn’t really complain. He was pretty blessed. He had all three of his cute little genin, although they weren’t so little or so cute anymore. He had his ninken. He had Gai. They weren’t at war. Overall, he was doing very well for himself.
However, when Tsunade had shoved the hat at him she had failed to mention the sheer amount of paperwork that came with the job. He had a feeling she’d done it on purpose. That was the true secret of the long line of Konoha Hokage; hide how much paperwork there is from the successor so they can’t change their mind until it’s too late.
Kakashi was saved by his favourite student and he spun back around to greet him.
“Naruto!” He looked hopefully at the blond. “I have Hokage training for you. Do my paperwork.”
Naruto looked back at him with suspicion. He really looked like Minato-sensei now; he had hints of Kushina-nee in his features, but everything else was Minato-sensei. He had grown into a fine shinobi and like Sakura, Kakashi knew he couldn’t claim that much credit. The man had calmed down a lot since he was a teenager but he was very much still the orange and ramen obsessed idiot he had been at age twelve. Kakashi was glad he hadn’t changed too much.
“Are you just trying to get out of paperwork again, Kakashi-sensei?” Naruto crossed his arms, standing beside his teammate as he narrowed his eyes at him.
“Whatever happened to my cute little genin,” Kakashi despaired. “Here I am trying to provide you an opportunity to prepare yourself for the role you have been training for and you doubt my intentions. I may never recover from the betrayal.”
His students shared a look at his dramatics. They had grown so much; he had no idea what he did to be so lucky. They’d come a long way from yelling at him for his lateness when they were first assigned to him. They still yelled at him for his time-keeping but now they could back it up with their fists. He was so proud.
They were stopped from nagging him further by an unexpected arrival. Kakashi watched the owl fly through the open window to land on his desk, scattering the paperwork to the floor with a flap of its wings. It scratched the wooden surface as it struggled to gain purchase but it eventually settled, sticking out a leg to him.
“Did you get a new summon, Kakashi-sensei?” Naruto stared intently at the bird.
“I believe someone wants to speak to me,” Kakashi answered lightly as he took the scroll, old memories surfacing as he scratched the bird beneath its beak.
“Why not just send a hawk?” Sakura added, curiously examining the owl.
“Where would be the fun in that?” Kakashi said vaguely as he rolled open the piece of parchment, scanning it in surprise. It was in his own language, not English as he was expecting. “I have friends outside of Konoha, you know.”
He didn’t have to look up to know his students were exchanging dubious glances. Kakashi did prefer to keep to himself but he had travelled pretty far in his time. This letter was an excellent example of that. He’d had to stop writing to Neville as they’d run out of room in the journal Neville had given to him not long after he had been assigned Team Seven but Kakashi still very much considered the man his friend. He hoped he still felt the same about him. It had been quite a while.
Dear Leader of Konoha,
My name is Hermione Weasley Granger and I am the Minister for Magic in Wizarding Britain. I understand that our two lands ceased correspondence many years ago; however, I am hoping to rekindle that friendship and build a strong relationship between our two communities. I am aware that your shinobi have worked with wizards before and I believe we would benefit from sharing our knowledge and skills in an equal and cooperative effort.
I myself have encountered one of your constituents during my time as a schoolgirl. Hatake Kakashi was an excellent example of what Konoha has to offer and I believe if you speak to him, you will find that the wizarding community can also bring benefits of equal measure. I only wish to build a diplomatic relationship between us in which we can share our cultures and leave a peaceful legacy for the generations to come.
I have enclosed what we refer to as a portkey. If you wish to open the bridge once more between our communities, please hold it along with any advisors you may wish to bring. It will transport you to the Ministry of Magic. It will activate at 0906 on Tuesday 21st June, which if this arrives as it should will be in two days time to give you time to deliberate your decision. If you do not wish to reopen communication, then please do not touch the portkey. It will deactivate after the allocated time and may be destroyed as you see fit.
I hope to see you in two days. I truly believe we can build a better future together.
Best regards,
Hermione Jean Weasley Granger
Minister for Magic
Kakashi huffed a laugh. He wasn’t quite sure that Granger would have described him as ‘an excellent example’ when he’d known her two decades ago. If he remembered correctly, that whole trio had thought he was trouble. They hadn’t been too far off; Kakashi had been a grieving wreck when they’d known him. He hadn’t been too interested in being ‘likeable’ at the time. He’d just been trying to make it one day to the next in the wake of the loss of his team.
He sat back in his chair thoughtfully. He’d been responsible for cutting off contact with the wizards in the first place and it had been well deserved. Dumbledore was still one of the worst clients he’d ever had to this day and no shinobi deserved to be taken advantage of like that, much less on foreign soil with no back-up. No one had thought to revisit it, too busy with Oto and the Akatsuki and the Fourth Shinobi War.
A thought occurred to him, a long distant memory forced to the forefront of his mind. They had different ways to heal than Konoha did. Could they help Gai? Since Gai lost the ability to use his leg in the war, Kakashi had been looking for ways to help his friend. Gai had insisted that he shouldn’t, that he had gladly accepted his new circumstances in exchange for winning the war, but Kakashi knew that he deserved better. Gai had always stood by his side despite how unpleasant Kakashi had made it at times so he wasn’t going to give up on his friend. Those who abandoned their comrades were worse than scum.
He placed his hands on the desk in front of him, the letter sitting between them. He rose to his feet, attracting the attention of his former students.
“Sakura, call Shizune back.”
“Kakashi-sensei, if you would just do your paperwork…”
Kakashi raised a hand and Sakura stopped, noticing the change in his demeanour.
“If we are to leave in two days, I need her back. We have a lot to organise and the council will need to be informed. You two are coming so I suggest you go and start getting your things in order too. This will be a diplomatic meeting; it should not take longer than a couple of days so bring your jounin vests and the usual mission gear.”
The pair straightened their backs in attention but Naruto couldn’t help but ask.
“Where are we going? I thought we had the Kage Summit for diplomatic meetings between the villages?”
Kakashi smiled, although his students couldn’t see it beneath his mask.
“Have you ever heard of wizards?”
Harry fidgeted in his seat, the stuffy Ministry meeting room smothering him. He shouldn’t have worn his robes. Hermione had nagged him about how important this meeting was and how they had to be presentable so he’d reluctantly agreed to wear them. Did the Ministry not have this place magically air-conditioned or something? Maybe that was something he could suggest; a perk of one of his best friends being in charge of it all.
The three of them had gone in very different directions after the war. They had all attended their eighth year; a difficult time for them all after the losses from the previous year. Sirius died in the final battle protecting Lupin and Tonks. He’d given Teddy his parents but Harry still felt the pain of that loss even twenty years later. He made sure to tell his own kids all about the daring Marauders and their exploits and the hero that was his godfather. He knew Lupin did the same with Teddy and his sister. Ron and his family had to deal with the loss of Arthur and George. Fred had never been the same and Ginny had taken it hard; they all had. Arthur would have been delighted by the muggle education his grandkids got to have before they went to Hogwarts.
Harry hadn’t known how to cope without the threat of Voldemort hanging over his head. It had been on his shoulders since he was eleven and despite the fact everyone kept telling him it was over, Harry hadn’t truly felt it until a couple of years later. He was told by a therapist much later on that what he’d experienced was ‘hyper vigilance’. He’d spent the majority of his eighth year at Hogwarts trying to uncover plots that weren’t there or investigating potential Death Eaters. He knew he’d been almost impossible to live with. He thanked Merlin every day that Ginny had the patience to put up with him.
He’d taken time off after graduating. Becoming an auror hadn’t felt right; he’d already spend half his life fighting, he didn’t want to do it anymore. Instead, he’d supported Ginny in starting her career in professional Quidditch, watched the joke shop for Fred, babysat for Lupin and Tonks when they were busy with work, degnomed the garden for Mrs Weasley.
At first, he felt guilty. Everyone else was slowly moving on, into careers they loved and trying to make something of themselves, and he was just lazing about. It had taken a lot of time to realise that he wasn’t being lazy, that it was okay to take a break. Ginny was his anchor during that time and Harry had tried his best to be the same for her. They’d had some close calls but Harry looked back on their wedding with the same degree of pure happiness as he’d felt on the day.
Hermione hadn’t understood. There had been a tense few months when she’d been insisting he was wasting his life. He knew where she was coming from; she was one of the most driven and stubborn people Harry knew. Taking a break was unthinkable for someone like her, but he’d refused to bow to the pressure. It had helped that Ron was on his side even if the other man had entered the Auror track immediately after eighth year. Harry had to watch his best friend try to work his grief away and only succeeding in draining himself dry. Ron had gotten much better at his work-life balance since transferring to the Department of Magical Games and Sports a few years ago.
Three years after leaving Hogwarts, Harry had finally felt at peace and he was ready to do something more productive with his life. He hadn’t known what, but that had changed after a talk with Neville. The other man had taken up a position as a Herbology professor not long after eighth year and it was perfect for him. Harry remembered all the different plants Neville had trotted through the halls of Hogwarts during their school years.
They were meeting for tea in Diagon Alley when Neville had mentioned offhand that they were looking for a Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. Harry hadn’t thought anything of it until Neville had said he should apply. Harry had objected at first until Neville pointed out that he’d taught them for a year in Dumbledore’s Army. Harry had laughed it off but the thought didn’t leave him, only becoming stronger as the days went on.
He’d brought it up with Ginny and she’d been so supportive. It was a big commitment; he would be living away from her for the majority of the year but she’d then pointed out that she had to travel for long stretches with the Holyhead Harpies anyway. They’d agreed to always meet up for holidays and birthdays and then Harry had gone to the Ministry to see what he needed to do to become a teacher. Fifteen years later, he never once regretted that choice. He loved working at Hogwarts. He loved seeing nervous little first years become strong, confident wizards over the course of their time at the school. It had gotten a bit difficult when the kids were born but now they were all almost Hogwarts age, Ginny would be free to continue her Quidditch more seriously and he could spend time with his kids at school.
He was so grateful to Neville for giving him that option. He looked to the seat next to him; the moment he’d heard there would be a meeting with a contingent from Konoha, Neville had insisted he would be there. He knew the other professor had been close with Kakashi before he’d left. The Herbology professor and Head of Gryffindor both had and had not changed since his time as a student. He was still quieter than most but he’d lost that timid air about him. It was a little funny to see students scramble after a quiet word from Neville; he actually reminded Harry of Headmistress McGonagall back when they were students, although he lacked the undertone of sternness that Minerva had. The students didn’t want to upset the soft-spoken professor; it was well-known how much Neville was loved by the students. Harry also knew he’d kept to the fitness routine they’d started in fifth year and it showed. The man was fit. It was a shame about his divorce from Hannah Abbott five years ago but Harry always invited him to his own family’s Christmas gatherings.
He scanned the room once more as the scribe finally took her seat. He and Neville sat at the bottom of the long, oval desk with a couple of representatives from the Department of International Magical Cooperation across from them. The young scribe had taken a seat near the back of the room and Gertrude, Hermione’s poor secretary, was shuffling papers frantically at the head of the table. Hermione was pacing in the large open space that made up the other half of the large room. Her Minister’s robes billowed behind her gently and her glasses were falling down her nose. All those long nights reading books in the dark had finally caught up to her.
“Relax Hermione,” he attempted to help. “They’ll come.”
“We don’t know that, Harry,” she replied quickly. “It’s been so long and our people didn’t exactly part as friends before.”
Harry remembered Kakashi, although time had dulled the emotions behind the memories. He remembered the guy as a grumpy, secretive asshole, and yet he’d missed him in sixth year. He’d regretted being so suspicious of the shinobi. They could have been friends in another life, but it had just been bad timing. Kakashi was the one to help him realise that he couldn’t fight alone and what it actually meant to be at war. It wasn’t until after the final battle that he’d really understood Kakashi’s words. He also saved Sirius, giving them a precious extra two years together.
“Kakashi didn’t leave thinking we were enemies either though,” he pointed out. “It’s been a long time. Things have probably changed as much for them as it has for us.”
Hermione sighed, looking at the clock again. She took off her glasses to let them hand from the cord around her neck.
“Well, they’re supposed to be here in a minute so we’ll find out,” she said, smoothing down her robes as she gestured for them to stand.
Harry hauled himself from his chair, wincing as his back cracked. Ginny had been nagging him to join Neville in his running, saying that being hunched over a desk would ruin his back. He might need to start looking into that; he’d been hoping taking the Grand Staircase every day would be enough. They only had to stand for a few seconds before the telltale signs of a portkey started to appear in the centre of the floor.
Four people popped into existence and Harry looked over them with wide eyes. The first was a young man with bright, blond hair and what looked like…whiskers on his face? His blue eyes sparkled as he looked back at them and Harry could feel the energy radiating from the blond from here. He wore mostly black, in a uniform reminiscent of what Kakashi wore back then. He also had an orange jacket on and Harry blinked. Surely orange wouldn’t be a good colour for shinobi? He couldn’t imagine Kakashi hiding the bowels of Grimmauld Place wearing orange. The girl next to him had pink hair like Tonks down to her chin. A red headband with a leaf symbol on it held it out of her face and sharp green eyes scanned them curiously. She wore a sleeveless red shirt that split like a cape down to her knees, showing the white capri pants beneath. They both wore a large olive green vest, looking out of place compared to the rest of their clothing.
He was starting to think that shinobi didn’t actually have a uniform like he thought they did, other than the bulky vest. He had been basing it on what Kakashi wore but he hadn’t actually seen any other shinobi in uniform. The Slytherin girl back then had worn wizard clothing. The man in the wheelchair was an excellent example of this considering he was wearing what looked like a green, spandex one-piece beneath his vest. He had a bowl cut and some of the biggest eyebrows Harry had ever seen. The look was completed with an orange leg warmer on one leg and a white cast on the other.
The final member of the group was swallowed by white robes that reached the ground, hiding whatever was beneath. A red and white, diamond-shaped hat covered most of their face and it had a red symbol on the pointed tip. White fabric hung down from the hat on either side of the person’s face and a white scarf was bundled around their neck. Their head was tipped slightly forward so Harry couldn’t even see their face. Hermione quickly stepped forward.
“Hello, thank you for coming,” she smiled. “I am Minister Granger.”
There was a moment before the blond spoke loudly in a language that Harry had only heard twenty years ago. Hermione pulled out her wand and Harry noticed the group tense up slightly, except for the cloaked figure. They held up their hand and the rest relaxed immediately; they must be the leader then.
“We need spell to understand,” the robed man said slowly in a very thick accent that Harry couldn’t quite place.
The blond man turned and said something to the robed man as Hermione raised her wand.
“…do you speak this weird language?” The blond trailed off, eyes wide. “What the hell! Why am I speaking this weird language? How will Sasuke understand us? How will I be able to order ramen?”
“It is a jutsu,” the leader said calmly. “It will wear off before we return to Konoha.”
“Well, again, I am Minister Granger Weasley and I am delighted to welcome you to Great Britain,” Hermione said brightly. “Thank you for accepting our invitation.”
“It is good to be back, Granger-dono.”
Harry only had time to think ‘back?’ before the man tilted the hat up, showing dark grey eyes, a hint of spiky silver hair and a black facemask. Harry’s mouth dropped and Neville wasn’t much better beside him.
“Kakashi?” Neville snapped up from his seat.
Kakashi waved a hand lazily.
“Yo.”
Kakashi looked over the room in amusement. It had been a long time; they’d all grown up. Granger stood with a confidence she lacked last time they saw each other. She seemed comfortable in herself. Her dark official robes flowed to the ground and her bushy brown hair was tamed into a bun, with a pair of glasses hanging around her neck. She held herself like a leader.
Potter sat staring at him from a seat and he also seemed more at peace. He wore dark robes of his own that reminded Kakashi of what some of the teachers at Hogwarts used to wear. There was a hint of a red knitted sweater beneath and Kakashi was willing to bet it was one of Molly Weasley’s creations. His hair was shorter but he still had the same round glasses and curious green eyes. There was also a weight missing from his shoulders; the end of the war had been kind to him it seemed.
Neville had stood from his chair and Kakashi was glad to see his friend looking so strong; he’d obviously kept up the exercise and while he was shorter than most of the people standing his muscles were visible even beneath his soft, knitted cream jumper. His dark blond hair was just long enough to be tucked behind his ears and Kakashi smiled as he saw the green stains on his fingertips. Last they’d spoken in the notebook Neville had said his job as Herbology professor was going well. His smile was exactly the same.
They all looked so much older. They were taller and had lines in their faces that hadn’t been there before and they’d settled into themselves. It had been twenty years after all; things were bound to have changed. Kakashi liked to think he had also changed a lot since he’d been sent here for the bodyguard mission, hopefully for the better. He took off his hat so he could see them better, smiling with his eyes.
“Maa, it’s been a while,” he said lightly.
He shot a signal to his team to remain where they were as Neville launched himself at Kakashi, wrapping his arms around him tightly. Kakashi had to pause for a moment but he hugged Neville back gently. All those years with his genin had helped him become more comfortable with physical contact. Naruto in particular struggled with boundaries and Kakashi couldn’t count the number of times his student had hugged Kakashi out of nowhere. Sakura had joined in later to a lesser extent. It was strange to think now about how adverse he’d been to it back then.
“Merlin, it’s been so long!” Neville took a step back and grinned at him brightly. “I can’t believe you’re here!”
“When I received Granger-dono’s invitation, I knew I had to come,” Kakashi replied, nodding his head towards the shocked woman.
“Wait, Kakashi-sensei, how do you know these people?” Naruto demanded with his arms crossed as he looked between him and Neville suspiciously.
“I had a mission here a long time ago,” Kakashi answered casually, gesturing to Potter. “I was hired to keep Potter alive for his fifth year of schooling.”
Naruto was interrupted by an even louder voice.
“Neville-san, I am most delighted to finally meet the treasured friend Kakashi had spoken about with such fondness!” Gai rolled his chair a little closer to Neville, beaming up at him with sparkles in his eyes. “I have wished to meet you so I can observe your Youth for myself and you are blossoming wonderfully in the Springtime of your Youth! You are an example to all!”
Kakashi sweat-dropped. He should have seen this coming. He’d talked to Gai about his mission and Neville’s name had been mentioned. It had taken a couple of challenges for Kakashi to reveal the whole story to the other jounin but Gai had been so excited to hear about the wizard. Kakashi knew Gai was just happy to know Kakashi was actually capable of making friends and after the way he’d been isolating himself before he went on that mission, Kakashi couldn’t hold it against him. That mission had changed him in lots of little ways that Kakashi was thankful for now and Neville had been a big part of that.
“You must be Gai!” Neville smiled back. “Kakashi talks about you too. You’re his rival, right?”
…and now Gai was crying. Kakashi was never going to recover his image after this.
“Kakashi-sensei made a friend?” Naruto looked so confused.
“You don’t have to sound so surprised,” he pouted although he knew it was a fair assumption.
“Well, this is a lovely surprise,” Granger cut in and Kakashi was taken aback slightly to see she meant it. “If you would like to join us at the table, we can get things going.”
Kakashi nodded and walked over, pulling out a chair and setting it aside so Gai could get his wheelchair in. He took his own seat, placing the hat on the table in front of him. Naruto took the seat on his other side and Sakura next to him. The wizards sat opposite to them and Potter was still staring at him.
“I guess we should start with introductions!” Granger clapped her hands. “I am Minister for Magic Hermione Granger Weasley and this is Professors Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom, our Hogwarts representatives. Those two are Charles Hammond and Poppy Lincoln, our representatives from the Department of International Magical Cooperation and the one with all the paper is our scribe for this meeting, Aoife Rivers. The girl behind me is my assistant Gertrude Greengrass.”
Kakashi nodded in acknowledgement.
“I am Hokage of Konoha, Hatake Kakashi. This is my successor, Uzumaki Naruto, and one of our hospital heads, Haruno Sakura. This is my guard, Maito Gai,” he responded, gesturing to each of them in turn.
“Wait, I want to know more about Kakashi-sensei’s mission,” Naruto said, leaning over the table eagerly.
“It was about a year after the Kyūbi attack,” Kakashi shrugged, knowing they wouldn’t get anywhere without satisfying the blonds’ curiosity first. “I was assigned to guard Potter while he was a student. It wasn’t a big deal and it was a long time ago. You’ve had plenty of similar missions.”
“You fought a bunch of Death Eaters!” Potter insisted. “You saved Sirius.”
“What was Kakashi like back then?” Sakura added and Kakashi looked at her in betrayal. She was supposed to be the one he could count on to be sensible. “We don’t know much from before he became our teacher.”
Potter exchanged a glance with Granger.
“I mean, he took his job very seriously,” Potter said hesitantly. “He was very serious and impossible to sneak up on. He was great at the schoolwork and stuff although he was pretty quiet. He kept to himself you know, as much as he could while stuck at my side the whole time.”
Naruto and Sakura looked at each other and Kakashi got a bad feeling.
“Are you sure that was Kakashi-sensei?” Naruto frowned. “Doesn’t sound like him.”
“No offence, Kakashi-sensei,” Sakura tried to soften the blow although it was obvious she agreed with her teammate.
“Nonsense!” Gai laughed, clapping Kakashi hard on the back. “My rival has always approached things with a Youthful attitude!”
Now even Kakashi had to admit that was a bald-faced lie.
“Has he changed a lot?” Potter asked curiously.
“Should we not talk about the reason we are here?” Kakashi tried to interrupt but Naruto was already talking.
“Kakashi-sensei has always been Kakashi-sensei,” he grinned. “He’s super lazy and always late and reads those pervy books, but he’s super strong when he wants to be.”
“Maa, Naruto don’t embarrass me like this,” Kakashi drawled but he sent a sharp look at the blond. Despite their familiarity, this was still an official meeting and they were representatives of Konoha. Naruto got the message and settled down, something that would most definitely never have happened when his student was a teenager.
“Now,” he said, folding his hands in front of him. “Where should we begin?”
Harry couldn’t look away from Kakashi. He didn’t look much different. Yes, he was a lot taller and broader than he’d been twenty years ago, but his hair was the same. The mask was the same. From what he could see of his face there were no lines or signs of ageing that he could see. The mask probably helped with that but it was still uncanny. Both of his grey eyes were uncovered too; the red eye he’d seen only briefly at the Ministry that night was nowhere to be seen but he felt he would be overstepping in asking right now.
And he was their leader! So he was like the equivalent of Hermione? It was strange to think about; it wasn’t a position he’d ever imagined Kakashi in but he supposed he didn’t really know much about their village and how it worked. It was probably different from how they elected Ministers. He was a teacher too though, the younger ones had said. It sounded like he’d done a lot in twenty years.
“So I arranged this meeting for today to discuss how we could improve relations between our people and hopefully set up a reliable line of communication between us,” Hermione explained. “We are aware that it was cut off from Konoha’s side but we could not find a record of the reason. Do you happen to know so we can avoid something like that going forward?”
“I advised the Hokage at the time to stop missions involving wizards,” Kakashi replied and Harry had not been expecting that. “I reported on the mishandling of the mission that occurred while I was here. It was in the interest of the village we cut off contact and as far as I am aware, the other villages followed in our footsteps.”
“Could you expand a bit more on that?” Hermione asked calmly.
“Dumbledore abused the mission parameters and did not respect the protocols we have in place for personnel undertaking long-term missions,” Kakashi said frankly. “I do not think we need to explain more than that.”
His response had just confused Harry more. What had Dumbledore done?
“I understand,” Hermione nodded. “I hope we can move forward from that.”
“I feel the same, Granger-dono.”
“To start, is there anything you want to say or you want to rule out as far as establishing communication?”
“I am happy to open communication but I will not have wizards visiting the village,” Kakashi replied. “The occasional ambassador for specific meetings will be allowed but they will be supervised and their movements restricted.”
Harry frowned. This didn’t seem like it was going to work if they were saying that right off the bat. It didn’t scream ‘trust and open communication’.
“Is there a particular reason for that?” Hermione asked and it was only because Harry had known her for over half their lives that he could read the tension in her face.
“It is for your safety as much as ours,” Kakashi explained, resting his hands on his lap. “We are a military state and as far as I recall, wizards are not trained to deal with some of the intricacies and dangers that a shinobi village can present.”
“We can defend ourselves pretty well,” Harry interrupted.
“Yes, against other wizards,” Kakashi eyed him. “You specialise in long-range combat, correct?”
“We do,” Hermione agreed.
“That wouldn’t be any use,” the blond frowned. Harry thought his name was Naruto? “Unless you guys are super fast like Sasuke or Bushy Brows; you don’t train hand-to-hand?”
“We have no need of it,” one of the people from the International Relations department chimed in. “The only major fights currently in Wizard Britain are between the aurors and criminals and their spells are more than enough to handle that.”
Naruto and the girl with pink hair exchanged an incredulous look.
“How Youthful!” Gai cried. “You have yet to experience the wonderful world of taijutsu!”
“Taijutsu?”
“Hand-to-hand combat. There is also the issue of my shinobi interacting with magic,” Kakashi moved on. “I required a talisman last time I was here. Would that be something that could be organised?”
“Yes,” Hermione replied immediately. “We can have some on hand to issue to the shinobi who come here in the future. I will say though, if you are restricting information on your village it is only fair that we do the same. I understand it will take some time for our people to develop a true sense of trust and I agree that it should be done step-by-step.”
“I would expect nothing less,” Kakashi looked at her with approval. “It is one of the basic lessons we learn as shinobi; information is power.”
“Is that the ‘see underneath the underneath’ stuff you always talk about?” Naruto interjected.
“It’s nice to see you do sometimes listen to your old sensei,” Kakashi curved his eyes to give the impression of a smile.
Harry blinked as Kakashi switched from a more formal demeanour back to the casualness from his arrival. He couldn’t quite figure out this new version of Kakashi. There wasn’t even a hint of the sour, grumpy teen that he’d met all those years ago. He knew a lot could change in twenty years but it was strange to see the evidence in front of his eyes.
“There was something in particular that I wanted to discuss with you, Granger-dono,” Kakashi continued and at least the whole surname thing hadn’t changed. “Last time I was here, I visited a medical facility with you, St Mungo’s?”
Harry blinked, slightly thrown by the question. He couldn’t believe he still remembered that after so long. The year Kakashi was here was so chaotic, what with Umbridge and the DA and Voldemort, there were a lot of things about that time that slipped from Harry’s own memories.
“Of course,” Hermione nodded, taking it in stride.
“I want access to those facilities during this trip,” Kakashi said firmly. “I am willing to discuss payment for those services, but this is a personal request, not on behalf of Konoha.”
Before anyone could ask anything further, Gai spoke up.
“My rival! You cannot possibly still be trying to…”
“Don’t worry about it, Gai.”
“Kakashi…”
“Are we missing something here?” Hermione politely cut in.
“I was injured during the war,” Gai explained, his deep voice filling the room. Did he always talk at this volume? “Kakashi has not given up on looking for ways to allow me to walk again, despite my numerous protests. He is so Youthful!”
Sakura leaned forward suddenly.
“Is that why you asked me to come?”
“You are the representative for our medical teams,” Kakashi answered calmly. “If we establish an alliance here, there would need to be communication between you and the wizards’ medical personnel anyway, even if Gai wasn’t here.”
“That’s fancy ‘Kakashi talk’ for yes,” Naruto chimed in.
“I do not see a problem with you accessing St Mungo’s services,” Hermione brought the conversation back to the point at hand. “I do have to ask though, when he said war, is that currently still happening? I cannot send my people into that.”
“The war ended six years ago,” Kakashi reassured her.
“I thought it ended before you came here the first time?” Harry interrupted, unable to help himself.
“That was a different war.”
“How many have you had?” Neville asked incredulously and Harry agreed. They’d had one war in Harry’s lifetime and that had been bad enough. They were still recovering in some areas from that dark time and the effects still rippled through the Wizarding World in ways that hadn’t been expected at the time.
“Only four,” Naruto grinned, as if that wasn’t a horrifying number. “There were way more before the village system existed though and it’s not gonna happen again. We totally became allies with everyone during the last one so we won’t be fighting each other.”
“We didn’t fight the other villages in the last one,” Sakura said dryly.
“You know what I mean, Sakura-chan!”
Four wars. Four separate wars. Harry tried to imagine having to fight Voldemort and his Death Eaters four separate times but he couldn’t. He couldn’t imagine going through that; going through it once had almost destroyed him. It had destroyed a lot of people he knew. The shinobi sitting in front of him had been through a war too. The blond and the girl seemed so young already; how old had they been six years ago? It’s only now Harry had his own kids he realised how young he himself had been back then.
“Naruto is exaggerating,” Kakashi cut in. “They were not all in our lifetime. We have enjoyed more than our fair share of peace.”
“Weren’t you born during the Second?”
“I don’t think that is what we came here to discuss,” Kakashi said sharply and the shinobi settled. “Apologies, Granger-dono. Let us continue.”
The meeting continued as Harry processed the information. He’d learned more about Kakashi in this discussion than he had after spending a whole school year with him. He hadn’t known what to expect from this meeting but it certainly hadn’t been that. It appeared he knew even less about shinobi than he’d thought.
Gai pushed his wheels up the small slope, taking in his surroundings. The wizards had been kind enough to transport them to their medical facilities after the meeting and they were turning out to be just as youthful as Kakashi had described. He was rather glad they had not taken the ‘underground death boxes’ that his rival had also described. While going underground was useful tactically, there was nothing like the open air and thrill of exercise.
The place they had been brought to did remind him of Konoha Hospital with its white walls and sterile smell, and as he looked into the rooms they passed, there were raised beds with pink-patterned curtains drawn around some. It brought back some memories of his time just after the Fourth Shinobi War, when he had spent far too long stuck in a bed just like that.
He did not regret the actions that led him to the wheelchair. He wanted to protect his students and rival and village and he did exactly that. He knew the price of the technique before he used it and he had known there was no undoing the damage. He had not expected to survive and it was only by the Youthfulness of Young Naruto that Gai was here today. They had lost so many, including his own precious student Neji, and he felt exceptionally lucky to be alive and still able to contribute to his village. More than that, he was grateful he had not given his rival one more person to mourn. Kakashi had lost enough people in his life.
In comparison with the alternative, the wheelchair had not been so bad. He appreciated everyone’s efforts to help him and their search for ways to restore his leg but it was unnecessary. Gai had long accepted his circumstances and although he had been forced to retire as a shinobi, he was not incapable of fighting and defending his village. He would not allow his limited physical capabilities to stop him from being there for his rival and the rest of the village. He could still train his taijutsu in his upper body and remaining leg and he took a lot of pride in teaching the next generation. He had been taken off missions almost permanently but Gai decided to look at it as more time to train and contribute within Konoha itself. Gai had always tried to live up to his own Springtime of Youth and he was not about to stop now.
His rival had not stopped looking for ways to help Gai, no matter how he told him it was unnecessary. There were more important matters to attend to, especially since his rival had become the Sixth Hokage, and Gai was more than happy in his new role. He had made the best of it and thinking of what he was missing or unable to do anymore did not help him in the life he was living now. Kakashi had gone quiet about it in the past couple of years but Gai should have known better than to think his rival had given up. He was the best shinobi Gai knew, even if Kakashi did not believe it himself. Kakashi knew he was strong but all of the burdens he had forced himself to take on over the years weighed him down in a way that pained Gai to see.
That was what had made Kakashi’s mission with the wizards so significant. After the Kyūbi attack and losing the last member of his team, Gai had been useless to help his friend. He had been forced to watch his rival sink further and further into the darkness of ANBU, knowing his friend had no intention of coming back. His own attempt to join ANBU to help his rival had been rejected and Gai had just tried to just keep challenging Kakashi, to give him something to latch onto outside of his own thoughts. Gai would never be able to forget the uselessness he felt back then, when he was unable to help his friend. He had never given up but he was also at a loss on how to bring his friend back into the light.
Then Kakashi left for a year. Gai had not been able to get any details, only getting the bare minimum that Kakashi was still alive. It had not been until he had been summoned to the Hokage’s office to be given a letter that he had seen a glimmer of hope. His rival had not written much but it meant everything to Gai. It was the first time since the Kyūbi that he saw even a glimpse of his true rival, the real Kakashi. He had written back immediately, trying to build up that rapport that they used to have.
When Kakashi had returned to the village and had actually sat down with them for lunch, Gai had almost cried. It was like a massive weight had been taken off his rival and he had not been able to stop himself from hugging him then and there. It had been very telling that Kakashi had not offered any resistance and while he remained in ANBU, he kept talking to them and meeting Gai’s challenges and Gai had his friend back. He had managed to convince his rival into telling him about the mission and this was when Gai had learned about his new friend Neville. Gai did not think he could ever repay Neville for what he had done for Kakashi but he had been determined to meet him one day and try. Neville was indeed as wonderful as Kakashi had described and Gai felt they were already firm friends.
“There are some stairs just up ahead,” the man in question said, turning to look at them. “Do you need any help?”
“I shall be fine but thank you for your consideration!” Gai grinned, throwing him a thumbs up. “Your Springtime of Youth is truly shining brightly for all to see!”
Neville looked over to Kakashi who just shrugged. Gai leant forward, planting his hands onto the cold stone floor and shifted his weight forward, taking a second to ensure his weight was distributed over his centre of gravity. He looked up to Neville, still grinning.
“Lead the way, my friend!”
Kakashi sighed and picked up Gai’s wheelchair in a motion that had become all too familiar.
“This is perfectly normal, Neville,” Kakashi said exasperatedly. “Gai doesn’t do anything the easy way.”
“My Eternal Rival is correct!” Gai laughed. “I must always strive to challenge myself and if I was stopped by the most minor of obstacles, I could not consider myself at all Youthful!”
Neville still remained paused for a moment before he smiled back, turning and starting to ascend the stairs. Gai followed him with the other just behind him.
“You know, Kakashi described you in his writings but I don’t think he really did you justice.”
Before Gai could answer, Naruto spoke up from behind them.
“Did Kakashi-sensei talk about us too?” he asked eagerly.
“Yeah,” Neville turned his head slightly. “You’re Naruto; obsessed with ramen and orange, not a fan of vegetables? Kakashi said you were going to become Hokage.”
“Did you really have to tell him about vegetables?” Naruto pouted at his teacher. “You could have told him about something cool, like my Rasengan or toads.”
“Maa, maa, Naruto, we had lost contact before you learnt either of those,” Kakashi drawled.
“I’m going to have to give you another journal so we can keep better contact this time,” Neville commented. “We can compare stories about our students.”
“So you’re a teacher too?” Sakura asked curiously. “I think Minister Granger mentioned that.”
Neville nodded as they came to the top of the stairs and Gai got situated in his wheelchair once again.
“I teach at Hogwarts, the school that we were all at when Kakashi came for his mission,” he clarified. “I love it. It’s never boring and it’s amazing to think that I’m helping kids gain some confidence and to grow as people. I was never very good at school or confident when I was a student so I like how I can help these kids the way I was helped, you know?”
“That sounds very noble!” Gai gushed. “They must all look up to you a tremendous amount!”
“I don’t know about that,” Neville replied sheepishly. “I don’t do that much.”
He perked up, looking over to Kakashi.
“I started offering physical education classes during the weekend, though!” He beamed. “It’s not very popular but the students I do get say how much they get out of it. It’s still not really a thing with wizards but I benefited so much from when you made us all exercise that I wanted the students to experience that too!”
“I’m happy to hear that.” His rival tilted his head and eye-smiled. “Do they complain as much as you all used to?”
Neville blushed.
“Yeah,” he chuckled. “I have to remind them that they chose to do it but they are teenagers.”
Gai watched the interaction carefully. It seemed that his rival had left just as big an impact on Neville as the latter had on Kakashi. They came to a doorway and Neville gestured inside.
“They should be waiting for you,” he offered. “We’ll wait outside.”
“Do you want me there as a medical personnel?” Sakura asked.
“I am most grateful but there is likely little they can do!” he grinned at her. “It would be of more use for you to learn what you can from the other doctors on this ward!”
Sakura hesitated but nodded, respecting his decision. Gai rolled into the room to see a woman in an emerald green robe waiting for him. Her straight, brown hair was tied up into a ponytail and her thin, stern features were pronounced with the surveying look she gave him. A scar marred her cheek but it had faded to silver; it must have happened long ago. He closed the door behind him and rolled forward eagerly. It looked like any other examination room he’d seen so he focused on her instead.
“Hello! I am Maito Gai!”
“Hello Gai,” she smiled back awkwardly, giving the impression that she didn’t do so often. “I’m Hestia Carrow. I’ve been told that we might be able to help you?”
“My Eternal Rival has suggested I speak with you regarding the healing of my leg!”
“Okay,” she nodded, seemingly unphased by Gai’s enthusiasm. “Let’s take a look then.”
She knelt on the ground in front of him and produced a wooden stick from her robes. Gai watched as she waved it over the leg, her smile dropping into a look of concentration. Gai was forever grateful to his rival for always believing in him and never giving up the hope of recovery, but it had never borne fruit. Kakashi had helped him a lot in the aftermath of the war and continued to support him in small ways that made it easier for Gai to remain positive and forge ahead in his new life. He could not deny his rival these attempts at healing his leg but he had long accepted that it was not possible for him.
“There is a lot of damage here,” Carrow spoke up suddenly. “The normal anatomy is there but it’s like it is not made of tissue anymore, more like ash? But solidified ash…I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
Gai nodded. It was about what every other medical professional had said.
“We would have to do each part individually. Bones first, then build on that. How to go about doing that though…the nerves would be tricky too…”
Gai paused.
“Could you expand on that?” he asked carefully.
“You’re lucky,” she said, not looking up at him. “This wasn’t caused by magic. We can pretty much cure anything caused by non-magical means and although this is pretty bad, it isn’t impossible. I do warn you though, it will take a while. I’ll need to consult others more experienced in these kinds of medical spells and come up with a plan. Your leg may also still be weaker than your other one but I’m sure we can get it into some sort of working order. We should also investigate to see if it’s spread anywhere else in your body.”
The world around Gai seemed to stop.
“You are saying that I will be able to use this leg again?”
“Eventually, yes. It will be weaker than the other and more susceptible to damage; you might need to still wear some sort of brace but you should be able to walk no problem.”
Gai looked down at the white cast he had been wearing for six years now. It had become such a massive part of his life; he could not get it wet or dirty or damaged. It was something he had to be constantly aware of. It was always in the back of his mind, no matter how far he had come and the progress he had made; it was something that could never truly be forgotten. The mental burden of his disability was sometimes worse than the actual physical limitations and although Gai made sure every day that it would not bring him down, it did not take away the realities of his situation.
He could not do everything he did before. It could be frustrating sometimes, to struggle with something that he so easily did before. Even worse was his fellow shinobi looking at him like he couldn’t; it was especially bad in the months following the war. He had not expected to be treated differently, like he was less competent now he could not walk. He knew he could not do missions like them but he still trained. He still worked hard. He still taught his students. The only thing that had changed about him was the fact he used a wheelchair now. He was still Maito Gai. He felt like not everyone saw that.
It was not all bad. He had developed a sense of resilience and determination that he never would have known was possible before. The obstacles and challenges that he faced now were different than before but Gai knew he was more than capable of meeting them. He approached things unlike other shinobi and he believed that was a strength. He firmly believed he was a better person and a better shinobi for it. Everyone had been so focused on what he lost; they did not see what he had gained.
The chance to walk again though, something he had never imagined would be possible. He bowed in his seat, his chest reaching his knees.
“Thank you! Please do what you can!”
Kakashi looked around the table as he swirled around the food on his plate. They had finished the official negotiations a while ago and they had returned from their trip to St Mungo’s. Gai hadn’t mentioned anything from the meeting and had been acting like his usual self, but Kakashi had known the man too long not to notice there was something up.
Granger had offered dinner to them since they were to stay overnight and he had seen no reason to refuse. They had rented out a room in one of the restaurants of Diagon Alley to give them some privacy and while he could hear the other patrons, it was dulled enough that he could ignore it. After six years as Hokage, he still wasn’t entirely comfortable with overly formal occasions. He could suck it up and act with the best of them but it didn’t mean he had to like it. He couldn’t wait until Naruto was ready to take over and he could go back to lazing about Konoha like the good old days. He was more than happy to leave the village in the hands of the next generation and he could think of no one better than his own students.
“So Kakashi, what have you been doing, really?” Granger asked curiously. “I know you were a teacher but did you get married? Any kids?”
Granger, Potter and Neville were the only ones to accompany them to dinner. They had mentioned something about Weasley working so he wasn’t able to make it. Kakashi was more than certain that they would use this dinner to ask even more questions than they had already. It seemed that twenty years was not enough to curb the nosiness of wizards. He lifted a hand to wave in the direction of Naruto and Sakura.
“Who has the time with this lot?” He drawled, resting his chin on one hand. “I’ve already had to practically raise these monsters; I don’t need to go through that again.”
He knew he was over-exaggerating slightly. He hadn’t even seen two of his students for three years while they were off with their new mentors and the last had betrayed both his team and Konoha as a whole. He knew he had done very little as Team Seven’s teacher and he sometimes questioned why they all still referred to him as such. He wanted to keep his students though, despite the fact he failed them. He was selfish that way. Saying that, he really couldn’t go through all that again; Team Seven had aged him at least double the number of years he’d actually had them with all their dramatics.
“Aww, Kakashi-sensei, it’s almost like you’re calling us your kids,” Naruto laughed boisterously.
“What do you mean by that?” Granger asked further. “I understand you were their teacher but that would have only been during term-time.”
“We haven’t explained the school system, have we?” said Sakura. “We’re in the academy until the age of twelve then we are assigned to a jounin like Kakashi in teams of three. Our third teammate Sasuke is back home travelling.”
Kakashi picked up on the underlying tension at the mention of the Uchiha. Sasuke had returned to the village and avoided repercussions for his time as a criminal but it also hadn’t all resolved itself. He’d left the village again soon after his return, this time with Konoha’s blessing. Kakashi hoped he found what he was looking for. His daughter was waiting for him to come home.
“So you’ve known them since they were twelve?” Granger smiled. “That doesn’t seem so different to Hogwarts.”
“When we say assignment, they leave formal education,” Kakashi expanded. “They were with me in the field.”
Granger’s smile dropped slightly.
“By in the field, do you mean on missions? Like the one you were on when you came here?” Potter queried.
Kakashi nodded, expecting the uncomfortable looks on the wizards’ faces. They hadn’t been the most receptive to the differences in their cultures before but he could understand why this time. Twelve did seem very young to them.
“Kakashi-sensei was great!” Naruto grinned, oblivious to the dropped mood. “He was always late and reading his book but I learnt a lot from him. My son is going to learn from him too!”
Kakashi sighed as Naruto brought out pictures in the very same breath. His student had been dying to take those out. He was constantly being bombarded with them despite the fact he saw Boruto in person every time Naruto brought him to the Hokage Office. The pair were like twins; he felt a little bad for Hinata.
“This is Boruto and my wife, Hinata!” Naruto immediately shoved the pictures towards the wizards. “Aren’t they cute? They are totally the best, dattebayo!”
“They are lovely,” Granger gently took the photos and Kakashi counted down in his head. Reliably enough, Gai spoke up.
“You must see Metal Lee!” The man grinned widely, showing off all his teeth. “He is the son of my wonderful student, Lee! He will be a strong shinobi when he grows up! Very Youthful!”
He also started shoving pictures forward and Kakashi looked towards Sakura. He gestured with a hand and she smiled back, taking out pictures of her own. They were all absolutely hopeless. They always carried these photos so they could shove it in people’s faces at any given opportunity. He had a vivid memory of Naruto ambushing the Kazekage with them on his last visit to Konoha. He shouldn’t have expected anything different here.
“This is my daughter, Sarada, she’s two,” she added to the pile. “They are all about the same age so they’ll enter the academy at the same time.”
“Our kids are a little older,” Potter grinned and Kakashi recognised the doting parent look on his face instantly. “Here, these are mine and Ginny’s.”
Kakashi took the picture and watched the animated photo of the small family. Three children stood between Potter and his wife; the eldest boy shared the same brown eyes as Ginny and his sister, although the little girl had the same bright shade of orange hair as her mother. The eldest had light brown hair but it was the younger boy that caught Kakashi’s eye. He appeared to be the middle child and he was the spitting image of Potter. He lacked the glasses and scar but the eyes and hair were exactly the same. All five had some version of the Weasley jumper on. They looked happy.
“Oldest is Sirius, the younger boy is Artie and the girl is Ruby. Artie is entering Hogwarts this year,” Potter said fondly.
“Sirius and Arthur?”
“Yeah, we lost them in the war so we thought that this would honour them,” Potter looked at the picture, a sadness entering his green eyes at the thought. “Sirius died protecting Remus and Tonks so they could raise their kids. Teddy is a senior at Hogwarts and Andie is in her fourth year.”
Kakashi nodded. He understood all too well.
“My eldest Rose is going to Hogwarts this year,” Granger smiled. “It’s nice having Harry and Neville there to keep an eye on them all. Thankfully I don’t have to let Hugo go yet. I don’t know what I’ll do when they both grow up. I’m glad Harry and Neville are there to keep an eye on them all.”
“Hey, Kakashi-sensei,” Naruto asked suddenly. “If we’re your kids, then does that mean Boruto and Sarada are your grandkids?”
Kakashi looked into innocent blue eyes. His former genin knew exactly what he was doing. Of course, this is when Gai had to speak up.
“Aha, what a way to look at it!” Gai laughed, patting Kakashi roughly on the back. “That would mean Metal Lee is mine! I am so honoured!”
“Well, we’re certainly old enough,” Kakashi gave up, a sweat-drop forming on his forehead.
“You’re around our age,” Potter pointed out. “Not old enough to have grandkids by any means.”
“We are old by shinobi standards,” Kakashi replied, Asuma’s face coming to mind. “Most don’t live to see their students have families.”
This piece of information seemed to drop the mood once again. Kakashi sighed. Shinobi and wizards did things very differently. It seemed that even significant milestones, like family, were dissimilar. He did admire the wizards; having the freedom to marry later and have children was something he could not have imagined before. Minato-sensei and Kushina-nee were married in their late teens and even the clan heads he could think of were all married before their mid-twenties. Naruto had married at nineteen. Potter and Granger had their kids at around twenty-six; he had been assigned three twelve year olds at that age.
“You must be strong to survive this long then,” Neville spoke up, trying to lift the mood. He hadn’t had any kids either and Kakashi had been sad to hear about the divorce. It had been five years and Neville seemed at peace with it now, pouring all of his energy into Hogwarts instead.
“Death can’t keep Kakashi-sensei or Bushy Brows-sensei down,” Naruto announced proudly. “They’ve just come back stronger.”
Kakashi eye-smiled. He would not call coming back from Pein’s attack coming back stronger; if anything, when he’d woken up he’d felt like his body and soul had been put through a blender. He watched for the wizards’ reaction. This would probably be something else they disagreed on; they had not handled the topic of death so well before.
“I can relate to that,” Potter laughed, ignoring Granger’s disapproving gaze. “Voldemort succeeded in killing me but it didn’t stick either. He was a bit surprised when I turned up to repay the favour.”
Kakashi looked back at him in surprise before smiling more sincerely.
“So you managed well enough after I left then,” he said lightly.
“Neville even stabbed someone in your honour,” Potter grinned mischievously.
“I did not!” Neville spluttered, embarrassed. “I cut a snake in half! That’s not stabbing!”
“What about that Death Eater that cornered those first years four months after the war ended?”
Neville shot a betrayed look at his fellow teacher for being exposed.
“They were going to hurt someone and the knife was closer!”
There was a moment of silence before Kakashi started chuckling, the rest of the table soon joining in. Neville sat back down, his cheeks bright pink.
“People still ask me about that,” he groaned, dropping his head into his hands. “I can never live it down.”
This didn’t help the laughter.
“So you never married?” Neville asked, clearly making an attempt to change the subject.
“No,” Kakashi leaned back in his seat, glad to be out of the suffocating Hokage robes. He hadn’t deemed them necessary for this dinner. “Marriage doesn’t suit me.”
He turned to Granger.
“How is Weasley? You mentioned he was working?”
“Yes, there is a major quidditch match coming up and his department is handling the logistics,” she said fondly. “I don’t know if you remember how sports-obsessed he was back in school but now he gets to work in that field, he’s like a child sometimes with how excited he is. Hugo has most certainly inherited it too so the pair can be impossible when their team is playing. Ron went through a lot after the war so I’m just happy that he’s happy.”
“Dean and Seamus moved to Ireland after they got married,” Potter added. “I know you used to study with them a lot.”
Kakashi smiled at the memories of the pair. He was glad they’d figured it out in the end.
“Is Finnegan still setting fires?”
“Yeah,” Potter laughed. “He works with fireworks nowadays. Dean works as a fire-fighter with the muggles. We see them at matches during the Quidditch World Cup.”
Kakashi nodded and the conversation continued, the wizards updating him on the classmates Kakashi had met during his mission. Kakashi reciprocated with a few stories from Team Seven’s genin days, much to their horror, with Gai jumping in at every moment to gush about his own students. They didn’t exchange any tactically viable information or anything that could be used against them at a later date, but he wasn’t worried about that. He was glad they were all doing well.
Kakashi knocked gently on Gai’s door, entering silently when he heard the other jounin’s voice. It was late and the wizards had long left. They were given rooms for the night and Naruto and Sakura were trying to get some sleep. Kakashi hadn’t been able to follow his students’ example and this was a good opportunity to speak to Gai about St Mungo’s.
It had been nice to sit down and just talk to the wizards. They’d all had their own baggage when they were young and they hadn’t parted as friends, with the exception of Neville. It was easier now to talk to them and while they were still pretty nosy, Kakashi didn’t mind telling them more about himself and Konoha. It was also nice to hear about what they had all been doing since he went back to Konoha. He had wondered about them from time-to-time, wondering if they had survived the rest of the war.
He was glad he’d accepted Granger’s invitation. They could build a new future together that neither could have imagined before; leaving a better legacy for the next generation. Making Konoha a safe and happy place was all Kakashi wanted to achieve as a Hokage, so kids didn’t have to grow up like he and Naruto and Sasuke did. So that they could grow up without the shadow of war and the mistakes of the past hanging over them.
He spotted Gai sitting on the side of his bed and he wandered over to the seat beneath the window, shutting the door quietly behind him. He slumped into the chair, some of the tension leaving his frame. They have been friendly but it was hard to relax on foreign soil. He’d been a shinobi for far too long to lose those instincts.
“My Eternal Rival!” Gai grinned at him. “You could not resist a challenge even so late?”
“Did you say something, Gai?”
“So hip, Kakashi!”
There was a moment of silence as Kakashi waited for Gai to continue. It was going to be bad news, wasn’t it? Gai kept telling him to give up but Kakashi hadn’t been able to help himself.
“They believe there is a chance I could regain the use of my leg.”
Kakashi froze before whipping around in the chair, planting his feet on the floor.
“What?”
Gai smiled at him, a quieter, more private one than his usually unabashed grin.
“It will take a few months and they must bring others to consult but the doctor was certain I would regain the ability to walk,” he continued in a volume very uncharacteristic of Gai. “I may never regain the ability to go back to missions but I could no longer require the chair.”
Kakashi was at a loss for words. He had been the one to suggest it but to be faced with the fact that it might actually work? They’d so many disappointments in the beginning and he knew Gai had given up entirely so he could focus on building the future right in front of him. Kakashi was never strong enough for that. He had always been stuck in the past, unable to move on; Gai was so much stronger than him in that regard.
“It’s possible?” he asked quietly, needing to hear it again.
“Yes, my rival. It is possible.”
Kakashi felt the burn in his eyes and he quickly pulled down his hitai-ate to cover his eyes, feeling the fabric quickly become damp.
“Thank you, Kakashi.”
Kakashi nodded, keeping his head down.
“This is happening because of you,” Gai continued, prompting Kakashi to lift the hitai-ate to look at his friend. “You never gave up, Kakashi. You are a far greater friend than I deserve.”
Kakashi couldn’t stop the scoff that left his mouth.
“Gai, you’re the one who never gave up on me,” he eye-smiled, a lump still stuck in his throat. “No matter what I did, how I treated you. I was a horrible friend for so many years but you never gave up on me. You just kept trying to drag me back with your stupid challenges and even when I lost everything, I had you. I always had you. The least I could do was try my best for your sake.”
Gai smiled softly at him. Kakashi knew if he even tried to suggest to anyone Gai was capable of being this quiet they would tell him to lay off the booze. That was okay though; he didn’t mind being the only one to see this side of his friend.
“You…” He hesitated, struggling to put everything into words. “You’re nothing like me, Gai. I stopped. I fell into the darkness willingly. I couldn’t even end it myself; I waited for someone else to do it. I lost to my demons. You, though, you never stopped. You always make the best of it and forge your own path with your head held high. You are the strongest person I know and the most selfless, so if I have to be selfish for you, I will. This won’t erase the difficulties you’ve had to face for the past six years but it will make the future a bit easier.”
He met Gai’s dark eyes and held his gaze. He meant every word of it. He was the one who didn’t deserve Gai. As much as his friend was loud, obnoxious, challenging him to ridiculous challenges at every moment, he was a good person. Kakashi had made the mistake of taking him for granted before but never again.
“Thank you, Kakashi.”
He knew that Gai had a lot more to say, but was holding back for his sake. Kakashi didn’t question it further. He was sure there would be a lot more discussions about this in the future but for right now they could just be happy.
“Anytime, Gai.”
“Thank you so much for coming,” Granger shook his hand and Kakashi reciprocated. “We’ll see you in a month?”
“Naruto will be taking over these meetings,” He eye-smiled. “Unfortunately, the Hokage cannot leave the village too much and my council will not approve of me coming this far too often. I will see you for the official events that are to be held in the future in my capacity as Hokage.”
Naruto would also be the one maintaining this alliance after he took the hat from Kakashi. He might as well get his student to do it from the start; it would lead to a stronger relationship down the line and Naruto gaining more experience in diplomacy was never a bad thing. The only thing he had to worry about was his student telling them over-exaggerated stories about Kakashi.
This meeting was only the first step in a very long road. Kakashi had Konoha’s best interests at heart as he was sure Granger had the wizards. It would all be about finding the happy middle ground between their people.
“I understand,” she smiled. “Thank you for coming at all. It was really nice to see you.”
“Likewise, Hermione,” he said, finding that he truly meant it.
She looked back at him in surprise as Potter spoke up.
“You know, a part of me always thought you just didn’t know our first names,” he chuckled. “Ron was willing to put money on it at one point.”
Kakashi raised an eyebrow at the man. Potter really had changed so much from that grumpy, paranoid brat Kakashi knew. He was glad to see it. The war had put so much pressure on him and nobody had equipped him to deal with it. A lot of people had failed Harry Potter, but he hadn’t taken it into his future with him. He had shed the burden of the past to build a better life for himself and his family. That was not an easy thing to do.
“Such a lack of faith in me, Harry,” Kakashi said mildly, watching the man’s eyes widen with mischievous glee. “You’re almost as bad as my students.”
He turned back to Hermione.
“Gai will also be returning for the arranged treatments at St Mungo’s and Sakura will accompany him both as a doctor representing Konoha and as the main contact for medical information exchange. I am sure there are people that our medical jutsu can help too.”
“I’ll keep them company when needed,” Neville joked, winking at Gai.
Kakashi might regret letting those two meet as the other jounin threw back an enthusiastic thumbs up back at the professor. He would need to invite Neville back to Konoha one of these days. The man would love the botanical varieties found in the Forest of Death.
“I look forward to building a strong relationship between our communities,” Hermione finished and Kakashi simply nodded.
He joined his team in taking the portkey in hand. He looked back at the group of wizards and waved a hand lazily. The swirling lights of portkey swept him up before he could see the response. He wasn’t sure what kind of future they would be able to build but it was worth a try. It was all for the sake of the next generation, after all.