Group training... Again?
“Get up. Our teams are training together today.” Kakashi’s voice was as flat as ever, though there was a spark of eagerness behind his eyes. He’d been looking forward to this ever since their senseis announced another joint training session.
Sukea groaned dramatically, rolling over before finally sitting up. His reluctance was written all over his face, though it was mostly for show. Deep down, he didn’t mind the idea of training with Kakashi’s team—it was a good distraction. Still, he couldn’t resist making Kakashi’s morning a little harder.
As they left, Sukea walked just a step ahead, steering them toward Guy’s neighbourhood.
Kakashi came to an abrupt stop, his expression tightening. “We’re not going that way.”
“Why not?” Sukea asked, feigning innocence. “This way’s faster.”
Kakashi’s eyes narrowed, sharp with suspicion. “You know why.”
Sukea gave a lazy shrug. “Guy’s harmless. And you’re going to see him at training anyway.”
“At training,” Kakashi snapped. “Not before, with one of his ridiculous challenges to race me.” His tone was resolute, but Sukea could only smirk. The poor kid didn’t yet realize how much fun those races would become someday.
They stood there in a ridiculous standoff, bickering like an old married couple. Sukea, delighted, let the argument drag on for a few minutes, but Kakashi eventually gave in with a frustrated sigh. “Fine. Your way.”
Sukea quirked an eyebrow at the sudden surrender, immediately suspicious, but the reason became obvious when they passed Guy’s oddly quiet house.
Guy had already left for training.
Tch. Clever brat.
Just as Sukea was about to accept his defeat, the front door opened, and none other than Might Duy stepped out, looking ready for his own morning plans. Inspiration struck. “Good morning, Guy’s dad!” Sukea called cheerfully, raising a hand in greeting.
Before Duy could properly respond, Kakashi shot him a panicked glare, grabbed Sukea’s arm, and started hauling him toward the training grounds at full speed. “You’re unbelievable,” Kakashi muttered, all but dragging him along.
Sukea, thoroughly entertained, craned his neck back to shout, “Goodbye, Guy’s dad! I’m off to training today!” over his shoulder.
Duy, ever the enthusiastic father, waved heartily in the distance.
—
Despite Sukea’s antics, they still arrived on time—though not with Kakashi’s preferred 15-minute buffer. When they reached the training grounds, most of the group was already there: both sensei, Rin, Genma, and, of course, Guy. Genma glanced up as they approached.
“You’re here on time,” Genma drawled, flipping a senbon between his fingers. “Think we’ll get a second miracle and have Obito show up on time?”
Ignoring Kakashi’s questioning glance, Sukea glanced at the sun, then tilted his head thoughtfully. “Let me see… What day is it?”
Genma raised an eyebrow. “Uh, Wednesday?”
“Hmm.” Sukea tapped his chin before confidently replying. “Obito will be about… 15 minutes late due to helping his grandmother grocery shop.”
The comment was dismissed as a joke until, 15 minutes later, Obito came sprinting toward the training grounds, panting heavily and clearly out of breath. A half-eaten candy stuck out of his mouth as he stumbled to a stop in front of them.
“Sorry I’m late!” Obito gasped. “Granny needed help with her groceries. She gave me a candy to thank me, though!”
There was a brief, stunned silence before Genma let out a disbelieving laugh. “No way. He actually called it.”
“Who called what?” Obito asked confused.
“It was fairly impressive. My teammate Sukea guessed that you would be 15 minutes late because it is Wednesday.” Guy exclaimed. “I’ll have to train really hard to be able to gain that kind of intuition!”
“Uh, Guy. I don’t think it’s intuition. I think Sukea’s just been following Obito around when he’s been late to our own training.” Genma tries to gently explain.
“Wait, have you been stalking me?!” Obito demanded, his voice rising.
All eyes turned to Sukea, even Kakashi looking vaguely concerned.
“No,” Sukea said flatly, crossing his arms. “I just see you around when I’m doing other things. It’s not my fault you don’t notice me. Unless…” He leaned forward slightly, his tone dripping with mock suspicion. “Is there a reason I shouldn’t follow you, Obito? You seem awfully nervous about the idea.”
Obito’s face turned beet red. “What?! No! There’s nothing suspicious going on!” His voice cracked as he threw up his hands, clearly flustered.
“Boys!” Minato cut in, raising his voice just enough to regain control. “We’re here to train together. That means no fighting. Okay?”
A half-hearted chorus of “Okay” followed.
Sukea, still watching Obito, leaned slightly toward Kakashi and murmured, “Ask him if he gave Minato-sensei his grandmother’s recommendation slip.”
Kakashi gave him a sidelong glance. “Why don’t you ask?”
“It’ll sound less suspicious coming from you.” Sukea’s tone was light but pointed.
Kakashi exhaled sharply but, after a pause, turned to Obito.
“Did you remember to give Minato-sensei your grandmother’s recommendation slip?”
Obito flinched. Then, with clear reluctance, he slowly pulled a crumpled paper from his pocket.
“Uh… Minato-sensei… my grandmother wanted me to give this to you.” He hesitated. “You don’t have to use it or anything. I think you’re a really good teacher.”
Minato took the slip with an easy smile—then his expression melted into pure relief as he read it.
“I appreciate your confidence with my skill, Obito,” Minato said lightly, before his voice turned serious. “But we should still discuss with your grandmother if there’s anything I should be doing differently. It’s not fair to deprive you of resources that are openly available to you.”
Meanwhile, Kakashi turned back to Sukea with an unreadable expression.
“I’m going to question you about how you knew later.”
Sukea just smiled innocently.
—
Choza clapped his hands together drawing all of the children’s attention. “Well, we should actually start training. Now, hands up—who here can climb trees?” A majority of hands went up. “Without using your hands, with chakra control?” he clarified.
Most hands dropped immediately, leaving only Kakashi’s and Sukea’s raised. Obito squinted at them, suspicion written all over his face.
“You’re lying!” Obito pointed accusingly at Sukea. “Okay, I believe know-it-all Kakashi, but you’re just a baby who’s scared of blood!”
Genma winced, already gesturing frantically for Obito to stop, but the damage was done. Rin scolded Obito for being rude, while Kakashi bristled like he’d been personally insulted.
Sukea didn’t need defending.
Sukea marched straight up to Obito, his eyes narrowing as he looked up at the taller boy. He briefly lamented the fact that the Hatake growth spurt—the one that would eventually close the height gap between them—hadn’t kicked in yet. For now, he had to look up at him.
Obito, emboldened, shifted his stance, trying to loom over him. A mistake.
Sukea leaned in just enough to make him sweat, angling his head so that no one else could see his expression or hear what he said next. His lips pulled back into a grin—too wide, just a bit too sharp, revealing a flash of pointed puppy teeth.
“You know, Uchiha-kun,” he said softly, voice almost pleasant, almost friendly—but not quite. “You really ought to be more careful about who you’re insulting. I may not like blood, but I can do much worse to you without spilling a single drop.”
Obito froze, his breath hitching.
Sukea held the moment just long enough to watch him swallow hard before straightening up, the predatory edge vanishing like it had never been there. In the next instant, he was all easygoing charm, grinning in a way that was almost too friendly.
“Oh, and by the way,” he added, voice suddenly bright and cheerful—which somehow made it worse—“don’t call me a baby. I’m older than Kakashi, and if you keep mouthing off, he’ll happily kick your ass for insulting him, too.”
“What did I just say about fighting?” Minato’s voice came down like a thunderclap, and the sheer authority in his tone made Sukea’s stomach flip as though he were back under the Hokage’s stern gaze. He quickly tamped down the urge to bow and apologize. It would be a little much since Minato was still just a young jounin sensei.
Minato gave them both a sharp look, but he didn’t push the matter. Sukea’s remorseful expression must have been enough because Minato sighed and continued calmly. “Let’s refocus. Sukea, Kakashi, since you two know how to tree climb, how about you demonstrate for the others. Everyone else, pay close attention.”
Sukea casually unfolded the bandana on his forehead protector, tying it over his wig in a way that looked like he was brushing his hair out of his eyes but was just a precaution to hold it in place. Then, he joined Kakashi at the base of the nearest tree. With minimal effort, the two began scaling it vertically as Minato and Choza both explained how controlled chakra allowed them to stick to the surface. The group below stared in wide-eyed amazement.
When the two were high enough to be out of earshot, Kakashi glanced sideways. “Should I be concerned about why you know too much about Obito?”
Sukea shot him a flat look. “I’ve known Obito for years in my own time. I know a perfectly normal amount about him with that in mind.”
Kakashi didn’t look convinced.
Sukea sighed, tilting his head. “For one, I lived through years of Obito being late. You just get a feel for it after a while. Second, I happened to run into him and his grandmother while they were out shopping.” He shrugged, completely nonchalant. “We had a nice little chat. Very normal. Opened up a can of worms. Turns out that Obito had never told his grandmother when training was or delivered that recommendation slip from his grandmother to Minato about discussing Obito’s training.”
Kakashi’s brow furrowed slightly. “And you had me ask him about the slip because…?”
Sukea blinked, then scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. “I may have been dressed a bit more… casually than he’s used to when this happened.”
Kakashi just stared at him for a long moment, then exhaled through his nose. “They thought you were me…”
Sukea shrugged. “It’s my face too. I’ve had it longer.”
Kakashi’s expression barely shifted, but there was something deadpan in his silence before he responded, “Technically, we’re the exact same age. And I’ve been using it more in this time.”
Sukea gave him another flat look. “I’m not arguing semantics.”
Kakashi opened his mouth, no doubt to debate the point further, but Minato’s voice called up from below before he could. “Okay boys! Make a line on the tree and come back down!”
Kakashi obediently marked his spot and walked back down with perfect chakra control, while Sukea climbed a bit higher before making his mark. Without warning, he leapt from the tree, twisting in midair and landing smoothly, a small burst of chakra softening the impact.
Minato and Choza froze for a moment before Minato quickly recovered. “And, uh, that’s one way to break your fall with chakra... but you should probably start practising from lower heights first,” he added, glancing at the stunned group of students.
—
Minato motioned for Kakashi and Sukea to join him as Choza took over the group practising tree climbing.
“Since you two are ahead of your peers, I’m going to work on something a little more advanced with you,” Minato said, his voice calm and encouraging. “I know Kakashi has a lightning-release nature, so I went looking for resources to adapt some training for him. Lightning’s a rare nature, so it wasn’t easy.” He turned to Sukea. “What about you, Sukea? What’s your nature release? I’m fairly well versed in the others so I should still be able to help you, regardless.”
“Lightning release,” Sukea answered simply.
Minato blinked. Then he smiled—strained, just slightly. “Oh… Lightning too?”
Sukea bit back a laugh. He could practically see Minato’s thoughts racing. One kid with a lightning affinity was already outside his comfort zone—now he had two?
Taking pity, Sukea chuckled and shook his head. “I’m lying. You’re way too easy to read, sensei.” He lied. Then, flashing a grin, he continued, “Actually, I have an earth nature.”
“That's not a very nice thing to lie about.” Minato tried to admonish despite his relief being palpable. “If I trained you in the wrong affinity it could cause troubles.”
Sukea barely kept from snorting at that.
In his first timeline, Minato had never actually chakra-tested the team. He'd followed Jiraiya’s more freeform training style and just assumed Kakashi had an earth affinity, likely based on general knowledge on the Hatake clan, which had a history of earth and lightning users. It wasn’t until much later, after Kakashi had already started dabbling in earth release and was developing a second affinity, that he’d bluntly admitted Minato had been wrong. Seems having an actual training plan this time had stopped that little mix-up.
Minato gestured for them to sit in a loose circle. “Now,” he began, “we’re going to work on the building blocks of jutsu creation. I could just teach you techniques, but if you understand the principles behind them, you’ll be able to create your own eventually. For example, I’m working on something that combines chakra manipulation with an elemental release,” he explained, a spark of excitement entering his tone. “It’s a jutsu I’m developing from scratch.”
Gathering chakra into his palm, he formed a swirl of wind-natured energy. Tiny motes of air flickered and spun lazily above his hand, dancing with controlled precision. It was still clearly early in development but facets of the Rasengan it will become already visible. Minato looked so proud of the simple display, and Kakashi’s quiet awe made Minato beam.
Minato decided to start with Sukea first, given that he was more familiar with earth nature than lightning.
Minato then reached into his bag and pulled out a stack of scrolls—some neatly printed, others filled with his own handwritten notes. Unrolling a few, he squinted at the diagrams, his lips moving slightly as he skimmed the texts, searching for the right one.
Minato guided Sukea through a meditation exercise, instructing him to attune himself to the earth. He occasionally glanced at a scroll to double-check his explanations, though he seemed confident in his knowledge.
Sukea, of course, had long since mastered earth release—just not in this body. He deliberately made a few mistakes, mimicking ones he remembered Sakura making during her training with Tsunade. His actual childhood missteps had been fewer and had faded from memory over time.
Minato, satisfied that Sukea had a handle on the basics, turned to Kakashi and plucked another scroll from his pile. "This is a bit advanced," he admitted, unrolling it so they could read together, "but it was the best resource I could find on short notice. It should give us a starting point."
Sukea recognized the foreign script and intricate diagrams on the scroll instantly. It was Kumo-originated. Probably stolen from an opponent during a battle. Regardless Sukea remembered struggling through those exact exercises. Sukea was sure he had probably still owned the scroll too.
Kakashi nodded seriously, while Sukea fought the urge to laugh at Minato’s earnest but slightly amateurish fumbling with approaching how to train a nature he’s not well versed in. It struck him how young Minato seemed. He was younger now than Sukea’s own students had been when he last saw them.
Minato turned to them expectantly. “Let’s start simple. Try channelling your chakra like the scroll describes.”
Kakashi, ever the perfectionist, immediately attempted to follow the instructions exactly. A faint crackle of static flickered over his fingers before fizzling out. His brow furrowed in frustration.
Sukea knew exactly why it wasn’t working. The instructions were incomplete. Kumo didn’t put detailed instructions in their scrolls for this exact reason—to prevent enemies from replicating their techniques just by acquiring one of their scrolls. Luckily, the scroll at least outlined the essentials of how lightning chakra should flow through the body so he didn’t blow out a chakra point while trying to figure it out so it was still a very valuable resource.
Sukea let earth chakra hum beneath his skin. He hadn’t just lied to spare Minato’s feelings—appearing to have an earth nature would also protect him from what he knew was coming next.
Kakashi tried again, and there was another wave of static before a sharp spark jumped from his palm and struck Minato, the closest non-grounded body.
Minato yelped, jerking back.
Kakashi froze. “Ah.”
Minato shook out his hand, wincing as a static tingle crawled up his arm. “Okay,” he said, voice forcibly even, “so that was… progress.”
Sukea barely swallowed his laughter.
Minato, ever patient, offered pointers where he could, drawing from his understanding of other elements. Sukea mostly listened while he meditated, watching Kakashi’s form. Kakashi’s chakra stabilized for a brief moment—before another sharp spark arced and jolted Minato again.
Undeterred, Minato continued, offering advice from a slightly safer distance. But after the fourth accidental shock, he took a strategic retreat, pulling out another scroll and beginning to tinker with his own wind jutsu prototype. “Just—keep at it,” he said, rubbing his wrist. “I’m supervising. From over here.”
Sukea shot an amused glance at Kakashi. The other boy just looked frustrated, already setting his jaw in determination.
Now that Minato was distracted, Sukea leaned over slightly. “The scroll’s missing pieces,” he murmured. “You need to follow it a bit more loosely.”
Kakashi’s head snapped toward him, eyes narrowing. “And you’re telling me this now?”
Sukea shrugged. “Minato was watching us too closely earlier.”
Kakashi gave him a long, expectant stare. “Well?”
“Well, what?” Sukea mirrors the look back.
“You obviously know what’s wrong. Tell me how to fix it.” The boy huffs in frustration.
Sukea hesitated before sighing. “I can’t give you a direct answer.”
Kakashi’s unimpressed look deepened.
“The missing parts involve Kumo-exclusive chakra channelling techniques,” Sukea explained seriously. “But—I can give you hints for a workaround I developed… Well, that you will develop.”
Kakashi huffed, still skeptical.
Sukea held up a hand, letting a controlled current of lightning chakra flicker over his palm. He reached out and lightly tapped Kakashi’s wrist, sending a faint static charge through his fingers. “Right now, you’re just moving chakra around and changing it into electricity. But electricity isn’t like fire or wind. It moves like water—it seeks the easiest path. But unlike water, it doesn’t always flow where you want it to. It’s like an out-of-control dog—it’ll bite if you don’t direct it properly.”
Kakashi frowned in thought, watching his fingers and presumably feeling the current running through him.
Sukea let the current flicker out, then leaned back. “So, don’t do it like that.”
Kakashi’s brow twitched. “That’s not helpful.”
“I don’t have to be, I’m not your sensei,” Sukea said innocently eye-smiling at him. “You’ve already had more help than I did. You’ll figure it out.”
Kakashi shot him a glare but went back to concentrating, this time looking closely at his fingers.
—
Sukea looks around. He’s bored. Kakashi is working on his chakra, still sparking like a little thunderstorm, Minato has gotten absorbed in his research and everyone else is either very carefully scrabbling up trees or being blasted off as they try to compete on who can climb higher. So far Rin has gotten the highest. Carefully inching up the tree.
Sukea sighed.
He used to see so much of Rin in Sakura. Now, in turn, after watching Sakura grow up to be much older than Rin got to be, he’s starting to see so much of Sakura in Rin. The determination, the quiet pride in her own progress and the way she carried herself despite her unexpected injury from Sukea. Rin’s face had healed well—he wasn’t sure how much of that was her own medical ninjutsu and how much was simply time passing. Either way, she wore her usual patient smile, watching the boys with an amused but steady gaze from a branch on the tree.
A sharp voice drew his gaze back down.
“Hey, Obito, if you cry to Rin, do you think she’ll hold your hand while you try again?” He hears Genma taunt as Obito was making a fuss after blasting himself off the base of the tree again.
Seems Genma has finally landed on a target that his pot-stirring could work on.
Obito whipped around, face red. “Shut up, Genma!”
A thought crossed Sukea’s mind. Would Genma’s ‘joke’ actually work, though?
Curiosity got the better of him.
Humming softly to himself, he tested his voice, adjusting the tone and pitch. It took a moment to find the right balance, but once satisfied, he slipped around Choza—who was, yet again, patiently explaining to Guy that the goal was to climb the tree, not tear chunks out of it.
Moving carefully, Sukea crept up behind Obito, who was still too busy fuming at Genma to notice. He shot a quick gesture to Genma, signalling for silence, then positioned himself just behind Obito on the tree trunk.
“I need you to close your eyes and relax, Obito,” he murmured, deliberately softening his voice—raising it just enough to mimic Rin’s gentler tone.
Sure, he could have just used a henge, but he wasn’t made of chakra. He’s got a child body and reserves to match and with his plan, he really doesn’t want to miscalculate how much he has.
His target’s reaction was immediate.
Obito’s breath hitched slightly. His face went red, but—more importantly—his eyes fluttered shut.
Leaning down carefully, Sukea reached for Obito’s hand and gave it a gentle tug, turning him towards the tree. “Just follow my voice, okay? I’m going to help you so walk forward. I’ve got you.”
The boy nodded, then, without hesitation, took a step forward.
Sukea bit back a laugh. That actually worked?
Just as the boy was about to step foot on the tree, he crooned, “I want you to just focus on your chakra and use about half the chakra you were using before okay? I’ll hold you up if it’s not enough." He reassured.
Obito hesitated for a split second before obeying, shifting his chakra flow. He immediately started to slip, but Sukea steadied him, using his own chakra to keep the boy from tumbling.
“Good boy!” Sukea encouraged, suppressing his grin. “Now, very slowly, add just a little chakra until it feels like it’s sticking. Too much, and I’ll go down with you. We don’t want that do we?”
He was having fun—far more than he probably should have been. It felt exactly like training his nin-dogs, except instead of pushing them up a tree in an undignified manner, he was pulling. Had they even been born yet? They must still be puppies, at the earliest.
Regardless, he’s still not sure why he had been told he couldn’t use this method of training with his students when he’d been a jounin sensei. Something about it being demoralising? He doesn’t really know or care. Right now, he’s not a sensei. No one could stop him. And besides, it was working.
He tugged Obito’s hand gently leading him further up the tree. They made it about halfway up before Obito finally peeked.
It took him a few moments to realise that it was not in fact Rin holding him up, but Sukea and when it clicked, the boy froze, his entire body stiffening.
“YOU—”
The realization hit all at once, and with it, his chakra control shattered.
Sukea had just enough time to grab him properly before Obito’s feet lost their grip, “Careful. We really are pretty high up and I really am holding you so you won’t fall.” He says in the same soft tone he’d been using.
“Stop that! That’s weird!” The boy wiggles in his grip barely even trying to get his footing back onto the tree.
“Stop what? This?” Sukea loosened his grip slightly, letting Obito slip a little.
Obito shrieked, clawing at Sukea’s arms. “No! Not that!”
The sting in his arms made it less fun, so Sukea steadied him again. “Stick your feet to the tree,” he instructed blandly in his more normal tone. “I won’t actually drop you. I got you this far up didn’t I?”
The boy sniffles as his feet slip a few times before getting a grip like instructed and they take a few more steps.
“Almost there,” Sukea murmured, his voice still soft, just a little teasing but less like Rin. The boy was starting to cry and he didn’t feel like pushing his buttons so high up the tree. Geez he forgot Obito was a cry-baby.
Obito shot him a watery glare before scowling in determination, and gritting his teeth as he pushed forward, his steps growing steadier, his chakra flow finally getting used to the motion.
Sukea resisted the urge to ruffle his hair like a good dog. Maybe later.
They climbed a few more steps, inching higher. Rin had paused near the top, watching them curiously. When Obito glanced up and saw her waiting, he tried to shove Sukea away, insisting he could do the rest himself.
“There you go,” Sukea said, letting go completely as Obito took his first independent steps up the trunk. “Now you’re getting it.”
Obito didn’t say anything, too focused on keeping himself upright, but there was a triumphant spark in his eyes.
Then—
“Awww, look at that!” Genma called up, cupping his hands around his mouth. “Rin didn’t even have to hold your hand for you! Guess anyone will do, huh?”
Obito instantly lost control.
With a strangled yelp, he slipped—
—and plummeted straight back down.
Sukea winced.
Choza-sensei expanded his body just in time to catch him.
—
As training wrapped up, Choza declared. "Good work everyone! Time to get something good to eat, you all deserve it!"
Minato brightened up with a suggestion. "We should get Ichiraku Ramen," he offered. "An old teammate of mine runs the stall—he retired from being a ninja, so he knows exactly how a ninja needs to eat after burning so much energy.”
Choza nodded in agreement. "I’ve heard good things about it. Ramen sounds good."
The group started gathering their things. Kakashi, still a little static-y from his training, kept his distance, sending occasional sparks at anyone who got too close. Rin had taken it upon herself to thank Sukea for helping Obito by healing the scratches on his upper arms, despite Obito’s clear and overwhelming embarrassment.
"It was really nice of you," she told Sukea, her voice warm. "You helped him figure out his chakra control a little better."
Obito made a strangled noise. "I would’ve figured it out myself!" he insisted.
"Of course you would have," Rin agreed, the kind of gentle agreement that left absolutely no room for argument.
Guy, always eager to cheer up his friends, clapped Obito on the back. "You shouldn’t be embarrassed!" he said earnestly. "I’d probably mix them up too, since they look so similar!"
Obito turned, scandalized. "They do not!"
"They kind of do," Genma interjected from the side, looking far too entertained.
Obito whirled on him. “Rin is wonderful and kind and warm—he’s weird and scary!”
Sukea gasped, feigning offence. Then, fighting dirty, he turned to Rin, putting on his best wide-eyed, wounded look. “Am I scary, Rin?” he asked, voice small, pitiful.
Rin’s reaction was instant. “No! Of course not!” she said, aghast. Then she spun on Obito, hands on her hips. “How could you say that, Obito?! He looks like he could be my little brother! In fact—” She grabbed Sukea and pulled him into a firm hug, as if shielding him. “I am making him my unofficial little brother! So you can’t be mean to him anymore!”
Sukea’s stomach flipped.
It was such a simple, childish thing to say—something he wouldn’t have thought twice about in any other circumstance—but it caught him completely off guard. He barely kept his expression neutral, even as his pulse skipped.
Over Rin’s shoulder, he shot a pleading look at Kakashi, silently begging for help.
Kakashi just blinked at him, utterly unmoved, before another stray spark jumped from his skin. Sukea immediately thought better of getting him involved.
The walk to Ichiraku was lively, the group chatting and teasing as they made their way through the village. By the time they reached the little ramen stall, Minato and the stall owner, Teuchi, were already chatting like the old friends they were, Minato slipping into the first seat with the ease of familiarity.
The rest of them clambered onto stools, jostling for space. Sukea watched in mild amusement as Kakashi wedged himself right next to Minato—choosing the closest thing to a corner he could find. He only realized why when he noticed the brief scuffle among the kids over the seats next to him.
Oh. Right.
The intrigue over what was under Kakashi’s mask was still new and exciting.
Sukea found himself pushed to the end of their group sandwiched in by Choza sensei. At least it meant he wouldn’t be collateral damage to Kakashi’s lingering static.
Speaking of—Kakashi finally lost most of the excess charge crackling through him, after discharging it into his unfortunate neighbours. That was the price they paid for trying to be nosy.
When the food arrived, Sukea was gracious enough to draw attention away from Kakashi’s corner, giving the boy more opportunities to stuff his face in the small windows available. Kakashi was good at eating quickly, but he was still just seven, and this was probably the biggest group he’d ever had to eat around.
Sukea didn’t really eat around such large groups until he was a chuunin. He’s sure Choza incidentally got a peek at one point due to being on Sukea’s other side, but the man kind of already had an idea what was under there by virtue of being Sukea’s sensei so it’s an acceptable loss.
When they were getting ready to leave, Sukea happened to glance back at the counter and saw Teuchi quietly sliding a small bag to Kakashi.
Kakashi accepted it with the ease of familiarity, tucking it under his arm without a word.
Sukea didn’t need to ask to know what it was.
It was Kakashi’s customary take-away serving—Teuchi would often sneak it to Kakashi with quiet instructions to savour it somewhere he didn't feel rushed.
That was just the kind of person Teuchi was.
Back at home, Kakashi set the bag on the counter and pulled out two small containers.
Sukea frowned slightly. “Two?”
Kakashi pushed the second one toward him. “Teuchi noticed you kept drawing attention away for me,” he said simply. “Told me to share with my ‘busy little helper.’”
Sukea blinked.
Belatedly, he realized he’d barely even tasted his food earlier—too busy running interference, and making sure people weren’t looking when they weren’t supposed to, like when he was teasing his own face to his students.
Ramen had never been his favourite meal.
But this?
This salty broth, this quiet kindness—this simple act of looking out for each other—this was why he kept coming back to Ichiraku for all those years even after Minato and Kushina weren’t around to drag him there.