The Damned
When Izumi and Minato returned from their mission, neither of them could have been prepared for what greeted them soon after. Their mission had been a success, leaving them with delight rushing through their body, excitement following shortly after at Izumi soon doing her Jounin exams.
In Konoha meanwhile, things were looking grim, the air feeling tight.
Rin was dead. Kakashi on the other hand was in the hospital, alive. While Izumi would always wish for Kakashi to be the one coming back from a mission unharmed, never would she wish injury on any of his teammates or companions. Especially not sweet Rin, so shortly after having lost Obito so shortly before, her death felt like a trick of fate.
When Izumi entered the hospital room where Kakashi was saying, a sense of familiarity rushed through her body, the scene feeling like a repetition of Obito's death months prior. In the same position the silver-haired sat huddled on his bed, but now without his eye covered, instead, it was closed, a crimson Sharingan hiding underneath. Again she found herself sitting by his bedside, on another yellow plastic chair.
"Kakashi," She spoke gently, nudging him softly. "It's me, Izu."
Kakashi was turned away from her, his charcoal eye staring ahead. "I killed her." He murmured.
Izumi was quick to deny his claims, shaking her head in sadness. "You didn't kill her. Rin was a clever girl, she knew what she was doing." She couldn't figure out why exactly the Nohara had decided to throw herself in front of her teammate's jutsu (according to the mission report handed to her previously), but knew her decision to not be without reason.
"Then why?" He sounded so done, his voice was wavering and cracking with each sound leaving his lips.
"I don't know," Izumi shook her head softly, letting out a sigh. "I wish I knew, but I can't tell you."
"I promised Obito that …"
"Shh, I know. And you did your best, Kashi."
"I could have done so much more."
"You did your best."
"Why am I even a Jounin if I can't protect my teammates?"
Izumi froze at the question, not sure how exactly to reply to the question. Instead, she angled her body towards his, leaning closer to him. She raised her hands slowly, waiting for him to possibly reject her advances, before she settled them on both of his cheeks, forcing the silver-haired to look at him. A strand of his wild hair fell between his eyes, obscuring some of his vision. Izumi brushed it away gently, making sure he could fully see her. At her movements he froze, becoming wide-eyed
"Kakashi," She began softly, seeking eye contact. He reciprocated, allowing for cerulean and charcoal to meet. "You are a capable Jounin, if anyone can be one, it is you. Not only that, but you are also a great teammate. Yes, you can be rude sometimes and for a while you didn't have your priorities set straight, but you learned from your past actions, and you got better. A good Shinobi can endure, but a great Shinobi can learn. The great power you have came with a big responsibility you shouldn't have had to handle. You did your best, you did everything you could," Her thumbs drew small circles onto his cheeks. Unconsciously, he leaned into the comforting motion. "You have been strong for so long. It is time for you to be weak now. It's okay."
A single tear ran down his cheeks. It's okay.
"You can cry, it's okay. You have been so strong, Kashi."
A sob racked through his body, and underneath his mask his lower lip began to tremble. Kakashi removed himself from the grasp of his friend, choosing to lay down and relax against the slightly raised hospital bed. He closed his eyes, attempting to calm himself down.
Izumi raised herself up from her position on the edge of his bed and sat herself down closer to him, angling her body to be able to provide him all the comfort s he could. When she was seated almost by his side, with both of her arms she reached out to him, enveloping him in a tight embrace. He was cuddled into her side now, arms limp. She pulled him in even tighter, rubbing her hand up and down his shoulder.
"It's okay," She murmured over and over again. "It's okay."
It was oddly familiar, they have been here once before.
The last thing Kakashi heard before falling into a slumber were the words 'It's okay' echoing in his mind like a lullaby, singing him to sleep.
━━━━
When Kakashi opened his eyes the next morning, he was greeted by the sight of two familiar people standing by his bed.
The next thing Kakashi realized was that someone was missing by his side. Hurriedly, he sat up, charcoal eyes blown wide in panic as he searched around the whole room for Izumi. He felt the fear in every part of his body, it enveloping him completely.
"Shh," Fuji held his finger to his lips, signaling the silver-haired to be quieter. "She's sleeping."
Kakashi's eyes fell onto the figure of Izumi, sleeping soundly. She was unharmed, she was safe. He allowed for a sigh of relief to escape his lips. He quickly noticed how in her position on the chair, she looked uncomfortable.
"She's been sleeping like a boulder for a while now," explained Fuji. "'Zumi was sleeping by your side, but when we came in she was practically falling off of the bed, so we moved her," Originally he wanted to question why her daughter was cuddling his pseudo child, but he knew it wasn't the time for that. "So don't worry about her, she can practically sleep anywhere if she wants to."
"But we aren't here to pick up 'Zumi, we are here to check on you." added Miho, smiling at the silver-haired gently.
Both parents couldn't help but notice how the boy kept on gazing at their daughter, brows furrowed together and a concerned expression drawn onto his features. They shared silent glances, eyes gleaming with delight at the sight. Before Fuji could take a step towards the young Hatake, Miho stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head firmly at him. For good measure, she even gave him a glare.
"If you need anything, no matter what, you can ask us, hun. We are here for you." spoke Miho gently, attempting to coax the boy out of his fixated stare.
Slowly, Kakashi raised his head, looking at the two parents with his one charcoal eye. Neither reacted strongly to his injury, already having predicted something bad might have happened. Instead, they smiled in encouragement, love radiating off of them.
"Thank you." replied Kakashi, voice coming out a little rough.
Miho nodded softly. "Of course, hun. We are always here for you, no matter what," Her cerulean eyes wandered over to her daughter for a moment, before settling on Kakashi again. "And so is Izumi, always. I can promise you that."
They could always promise to be there for him, but in the end, it felt as though everyone was damned to suffer. At the same time, he remembered that each time Izumi had promised him to be by his side, their bond had grown stronger, as did his want to protect her. When he heard the words from her mother this time, soothing his distress, he knew that he, Hatake Kakashi, wasn't ready to spend his life without anyone by his side. Death was haunting but loneliness was a curse he wanted to shake off. So when Izumi reached out her metaphorical hand, all the adoration she had given him pulling him in, he could only reach out himself, grasping it tightly, hoping to never have to let it go.