Tangents and Parallels

“HAS ANYONE SEEN MY ETERNAL RIVAL?!”

All of the occupants of the Jounin Standby Station sighed and in unison, turned their heads in the direction of the door where a man clad in green spandex was standing.

“No,” one man replied, sprawled out on a couch in one of the corners of the room. “Hatake hasn’t been around here for days.”

Gai deflated at the answer but nodded in thanks, losing some of his boisterous cheer.

“Is something wrong, Gai?” Kurenai asked as she walked over to the other Jounin, Asuma in tow. Unlike the rest of the Jounin, they had noticed the undercurrent of worry in Gai’s voice, hidden deep under layers of his usual exuberance.

Gesturing for the duo to follow him, Gai stepped out of the room, shoulders stiff and tense under his flak jacket. Kurenai and Asuma exchanged concerned glances, swiftly following the other man. “Oi, Gai; what’s going on?” the Sarutobi asked, putting out his cigarette.

It was normal for Maito Gai to hunt Kakashi down for one of his ridiculous challenges but he always hid his worry for the Hatake well. To see him almost visibly tense was rather alarming.

“Kurenai, Asuma, have either of you seen Kakashi around lately?”

“Of course I ha…ve…,” the Genjutsu mistress trailed off, crimson eyes widening when she realized that she hadn’t seen the ANBU for at least a few days. “No…I actually haven’t.”

“Me neither,” Asuma added, mouth twisted in a displeased frown. “Is he taking on too many missions again?”

Gai shrugged, his worry now clear on his expressive face. “I don’t know,” he almost wailed, shoulders slumping as a dark cloud formed above his head. “Since Kakashi only takes ANBU missions, I can’t even check the roster.”

“Have you checked at his apartment?” Kurenai suggested, growing increasingly worried for their friend. There had been a time when the Hatake had done nothing but missions back-to-back, eventually collapsing from blood loss and exhaustion. The Sandaime had stepped in at that point, forcing him to rest but Kakashi had gone straight back to work the instant he had recovered.

None of them wanted to see Kakashi in that state again.

“I didn’t think of that! A fine suggestion, Kurenai! I shall correct my oversight right away!”

With that, the taijutsu expert sprinted off, leaving a bemused Kurenai and Asuma in his wake. Asuma scratched his beard, tossing his cigarette away as he came to a decision.

“Hold up, Gai! I’m coming too!”

“And me.”

The three Jounin stared at the elderly woman in front of them, jaws gaping open in shock. Asuma recovered first, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. “Can you repeat that, ma’am? Did you say that Kakashi cancelled his lease and left?”

“Yes,” the civilian woman snapped, fresh out of patience for the trio of shinobi that had barged into her quarters with no warning. “That boy hardly ever stayed in there anyway. Now, unless you have business with me, get out!”

“We’re sorry for the trouble, ma’am; have a good day,” Kurenai apologized to the irritated civilian, bowing to her once before ushering the men out of the apartment complex. “What do we do now?”

“I have no idea,” Asuma replied, scratching his beard in thought. All of them knew that Kakashi was emotionally unstable, what with all the tragedy in his life. But him moving out without a word was alarming on so many levels.

“If Kakashi has moved to the ANBU dorms, the situation is worse than we thought,” Gai added, countenance grim as the corners of his mouth turned downwards in an unhappy frown.

“Maybe we could ask around? There’s a chance that someone might have seen him sometime.”

“Hmm…let’s go ask my old man,” Asuma proposed after a short pause. He knew that the Sandaime was keeping tabs on Kakashi for the sake of his successor; he might have some answers.

“A YOUTHFUL IDEA!” Gai beamed, having regained some of his usual vigor at another possible way to track their wayward friend. “Let us go see Hokage-sama immediately!”

Kurenai and Asuma nodded, the three of them setting off towards the Hokage Tower. Fortunately for them, the Sandaime wasn’t in any meetings at the moment, so they got to see him without any trouble.

“Ah, Asuma, Kurenai-chan, Gai-kun,” Hiruzen greeted warmly, pipe in one hand as he set down a paper he had been reading. “What can I do for you?”

Before Gai could go into one of his ‘youthful’ tirades, Asuma spoke, serious eyes fixed on his father. “Did you know that Kakashi moved out of his apartment?”

That made the elder Sarutobi raise an eyebrow; he certainly had not known. “No,” he replied, brow furrowed in confusion. The last Hatake had not given any indication that he had planned something quite so serious. “I wasn’t aware of it.”

“And he isn’t in the ANBU dorms?”

“I would have been notified if that was the case.”

“I see…”

The trio exchanged worried glances, not knowing what to do since even the Hokage didn’t know what had happened. It seemed that they had no choice but to search for Kakashi everywhere in the village.

“Thanks, Dad. I suppose we’ll look for him then.”

“Might I ask why you’re searching for him?”

“We have not seen my rival in a long time, Hokage-sama,” Gai replied this time, tone somber. He was beating himself up inwardly for not paying attention to his friend. “I fear that something may have happened to him. Because the last time…”

All of the occupants of the room winced, clearly recalling the terrible state the Hatake had driven himself to in an attempt to not feel.

“Ah,” Hiruzen murmured to himself before shaking his head and looking at his son. “I can, however, assure you that Kakashi-kun isn’t heading that way at this moment.”

Asuma looked skeptical. “You sure?”

“Of course. I have no answer for you on the matter of his moving out, but I do know that his mental state has been stable for quite some time. Kakashi-kun hasn’t gone on a lot of dangerous solo missions lately.”

That was a surprise, making Gai’s jaw drop while Kurenai and Asuma blinked in shock.

Nothing had deterred the Hatake from going on tons of suicide missions, no matter who had to beg and/or manipulate him.

“Oh…” Kurenai snapped out of her state of stupor, eyeing the serene Hokage curiously. “I suppose you wouldn’t know where we could find him now, Hokage-sama?”

“As a matter of fact, I do.”

“This is the place?”

Gai peered at the fairly large house he could see through the trees, situated on the edge of a huge clearing. He hadn’t even been aware that the place existed; it was located near the old training grounds that no one used anymore since it was somewhat far from the central part of the village.

“Yeah,” Kurenai said in response, ruby red eyes narrowed as she studied the air in front of them. As a Genjutsu mistress, she was sensitive to chakra and could feel the faint pulse of chakra from a barrier. ‘I suppose this is the barrier Hokage-sama warned us of.’

She didn’t know if the three of them would be able to cross it, but considering that all they wanted was answers, it should be fine, right?

“Let’s go; we’re not going to accomplish anything just standing around,” Asuma finally said after no one made a move for almost five minutes, striding towards the house with resolute steps.

Thankfully for them, they crossed the barrier with no issues, making them sigh in relief. But that passed in an instant, once again undecided about actually knocking on the door. None of them had met the Uzumaki yet, but the little they knew told them that she was extremely protective over those she cared about.

Mix in her skills in Fuuinjutsu and there was an unholy combination.

“Seriously, aren’t visitors supposed to knock instead of standing around like dummies?”

The three Jounin startled at the sudden voice, spinning around to look at the speaker. None of them had sensed anyone, which made it all the more alarming.

A young girl, about seven to eight years old, stood a few feet away from them, hands on her hips as she raised an eyebrow at the trio in question. “Well?”

“Uh…Uzumaki Hikari-san?”

“That’s me,” the redhead confirmed Gai’s hesitant query, eyebrow still raised. “Just Hikari is fine, Maito Gai-san, Sarutobi Asuma-san, Yuuhi Kurenai-san.”

It was Asuma’s turn to raise an eyebrow in question. “You know us?”

“Kind of,” Hikari replied in an absent tone, slipping past the Jounin and opening the door. “Come on in; I think I know why you’re here.”

Kurenai looked at the two men then proceeded to follow the girl, removing her sandals. She was rather curious about the girl who looked completely unconcerned about having three strangers in her home, but she was more desperate for answers about their missing friend than satisfying her curiosity.

“Up the stairs and first door on the left,” Hikari called to them from the doorway to the kitchen, a mischievous and knowing glint in her bright blue eyes. “You’re shinobi, so I don’t need to tell you to be quiet but I’ll still say it. Naruto and Karin are taking a nap right now and should any of you wake them up, there’ll be hell to pay.”

That declaration earned her three blank stares to which Hikari only smirked at and ducked into the kitchen.

“I don’t want to find out if she was serious,” Asuma mumbled after picking his jaw up from the floor. He moved towards the stairs, taking extra care to be cautious. For some reason, he was certain that the midget would follow through on her threat.

Once on the second floor, he immediately turned to the left to look for the room Hikari had indicated, only to find that the door was open and the person they were searching for standing there with one hand on the door knob.

“Kakashi?!”

The whispered exclamation caught Gai’s attention and he opened his mouth, “MY ET- mph!”

“Quiet!” Kurenai hissed, slapping one hand over the man’s mouth in a bid to silence him. “You were warned.”

“Hikari threatened you?” Kakashi asked drily, gesturing for the trio to enter the room he was in. He shut the door behind them, activating the privacy seals in case Gai got carried away again.

“Yep. For a midget, she sure is scary.”

The silver-haired teen shrugged, not really worried. She had yet to follow up on her threats anyway but he wasn’t going to tell the others that. It was fun to watch them cower in front of a kid.

“What are you guys doing here?”

“Hokage-sama said we could find you here…” Kurenai trailed off, discretely taking in the room. The walls were painted a silvery gray, with a few shelves that held an assortment of scrolls and books. To her left, there was a large desk and a chair to go with it, the most noteworthy item on it being the photo of Kakashi’s old team. There was a decent sized bed on the other side of the room, with comfortable looking blankets on it.

Even a wardrobe was available, one of the doors open enough to tell Kurenai that it was filled with clothes. The windows were open, curtains tied at the side, which was a tell-tale sign. No shinobi ever felt safe enough to keep their windows open, especially large windows.

But above all that, the room felt lived in.

Kakashi’s old apartment had never felt like that; it had been cold and impersonal, with little to no quirks that spoke of the occupant’s personality. The teen had certainly never spent enough time there to make it a home anyway.

“I see that our worries were unfounded,” Asuma mused, looking around the room much less subtly than Kurenai but better than Gai who was literally bouncing around the place. “You look well, Kakashi.”

Apart from giving a deadpan stare, Kakashi didn’t react; instead, he stretched out a hand, snagging Gai’s collar when the man bounced past him and tossed him on the bed.

“Sit down before you break something, Gai,” he ordered, visible eye narrowed when the spandex clad spun his arms around and missed a shelf by an inch.

The taijutsu master’s expression turned sheepish and he quickly sat down next to an amused Asuma. “It is quite the surprise, my rival! I am glad to see that the light in your spirit is shining brightly!”

“Right…”

Kakashi stared at Gai for one moment, then turned to Kurenai. “Care to translate?”

“We were worried since no one had seen you for days,” the woman explained, crimson eyes showing her relief at seeing their friend appearing healthier and happier than ever. “We also went by your apartment but the landlady said you’d cancelled your contract.”

“Ah.”

“Not to blame you, but you didn’t mention anything to anyone either,” Asuma threw in his piece, taking in the Hatake. Kakashi had always been lanky and thin, but now he was filled out. Seemed like he was getting regular meals and proper rest.

Before he could formulate a reply, there was a soft knock on the door. Kakashi got up to open it, aware that the active privacy seals would not allow any sound to escape the room. Hikari stood outside, grinning up at him with a tray in her hands, laden with sweets and glasses of water.

“Think your friends would be fine with just water?” she asked, letting the teen take the tray from her. “We’re out of tea and I’m saving the juice for the kids.”

“They better be,” Kakashi replied absently, making a face when there wasn’t anything to his liking amongst the food. “Everything is sweet.”

Hikari rolled her eyes. “I think I’ve spoilt you too much,” she retorted before conceding, “It’s actually matcha pudding; I even cut down the amount of sugar I used while making it.”

“Oh, good.”

When the girl shot him an exasperated look and turned on her heel, a hand shot out to grab the back of her shirt and hoisted her up, earning a noise of protest.

“Hey! What are you doing?!”

“Introducing you.”

“I already know them! Besides, they’re here for you!”

“Hmm.”

Ignoring the flailing, Kakashi balanced the tray of food in one hand and pulled the girl into the room, shutting the door with his foot. Hikari glared at the silver haired teen when he finally dropped her on his desk, kicking him half-heartedly.

Asuma, Gai and Kurenai watched the by-play with entertained expressions, sharing slightly bemused glances with each other as Kakashi passed out the pudding.

“Did you make this, Hikari-chan?” Kurenai asked, eyeing the perfectly formed pudding with interest. It looked like something she would find in a shop. “It looks very good.”

“Thanks for the compliment, Kurenai-san,” the redhead chirped happily, having resigned to her fate and making herself comfortable. “Naruto and Karin have never had many sweets before, so I experiment every month or so with new recipes. It’s actually easier to appease them rather than the picky idiot.”

“Picky idiot?” Asuma echoed with a wide grin, glancing at the unfazed Hatake. “I suppose it fits Kakashi well.”

“Right? It’s not a bad thing to dislike sweets, but he whines when he doesn’t get a piece but then grumbles that it’s too sweet!”

“I just have good taste.”

That comment earned a deadpan stare from the Uzumaki. “Eat your dessert, Kashi-nii, before I decide it’s too good for you and take it for myself.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“Try me.”

Kakashi pointed his spoon at her, holding the matcha pudding -something that actually suited his preferences- protectively. “You are an evil brat,” he accused, though there was no real heat behind his words.

Hikari’s only response was another exasperated eyeroll.

“So? Why were you guys looking for Kashi-nii?”

Gai, who had been enjoying his own dessert with much gusto and loud compliments, cut himself off to reply to her, “My eternal rival had not been seen for days! And he had even moved out! They were worthy causes for concern but I am delighted to find him well!”

“’Moved out’?” Hikari repeated, a frown furrowing her eyebrows as she glanced between the two supposed rivals. “What did you not tell me, Kashi-nii?”

“Like you said, I never used my apartment,” Kakashi shrugged, clearly unconcerned about the conversation. “So I just moved here.”

“And you didn’t bother to tell me or your friends?” The girl’s voice was drier than a dessert, her expression saying that she was completely done with her pseudo-brother’s nonchalant attitude. “And you ask why I call you an idiot.”

“You never asked.”

“I think that it’s a given when the owner of the house you’ve moved into is me, Kashi-nii. Well, at least Naruto will be pleased with this.”

“And you’re not? I’m hurt, Hikari.”

“You’ll live,” Hikari waved her hand dismissively, shifting her attention to the other three adults. She could see barely hidden shock on their features and internally wondered if it was that strange to see Kakashi bantering with another person. “How did you guys know to find him here anyway?”

“Hokage-sama told us. It was a real surprise to hear that Kakashi was actually in the village and not on a mission.”

“Ah. His suicidal phase.”

“You know about that?” Asuma asked, intrigued. It was clear that the Uzumaki girl was the one responsible for their friend’s change and he was grateful for that. Seeing Kakashi spiral deeper into the darkness had been painful; he didn’t want to witness that again, standing on the sidelines with no idea how to help.

“Kind of. Safe to say that he won’t be going that way again, not if he knows what’s good for him.”

Gai took that moment to leap off the bed, rushing to Hikari and grabbing the startled girl’s hands. “YOU HAVE MY ETERNAL GRATITUDE, HIKARI-CHAN!” he yelled, voice boisterous and cheerful once more. “TO SEE THAT THE FIRES OF YOUTH HAVE BEEN LIT AGAIN IN OUR DEAR FRIEND IS WONDERFUL!”

Hikari’s expression turned bemused but she didn’t pull away, head tilted to the side in thought. “There’s no need for thanks, Gai-san,” she finally said, a small but genuine tugging at the corners of her mouth. “Kakashi-nii is very precious to me and I like to see him happy too.”

That was all it took for Gai to grab the Uzumaki in a bear hug, tears streaming down his cheeks in waterfalls as he blubbered incoherently about ‘spring’ and ‘youth’.

“Oi, Gai,” Asuma sighed, getting up to pull the man away. “Let go of her; you’re probably choking her.”

“Oh! My deepest apologies, Hikari-chan!”

“It’s fine,” Hikari waved away the apologies with a smile, straightening her clothes. She had received worse, after all. “I didn’t really mind.”

She stopped for a second, head tilted towards the door. “I think Naruto and Karin are awake now,” she murmured, hopping off the desk. “Pretty sure Manami-san can handle them but I think I’ll go help her out. You guys should come meet them when you’re done with your conversation.”

With that, Hikari slipped out the door, leaving three adults staring at her back.

“Well, I see how she was able to straighten Kakashi out,” Kurenai finally said, a teasing smile on her lips as she looked at the silver-haired teen in the corner. “Hikari-chan sure is a no-nonsense person.”

Kakashi snorted. “Hardly. She’s a troll and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”

“She’s got a good heart though,” Asuma said, lounging back on the bed. “You feel safe here, don’t you, Kakashi?”

“…what do you mean?”

The Sarutobi gestured to the windows. “You keep the windows open, share a house with at least four other people and most of all, you look lighter.”

There was a short silence while Kakashi took that in, staring out the window at the Hokage Monument, specifically at the Yondaime. “Hikari made me see that I still had something to live for,” he said, voice distant but strong. “She didn’t take no for an answer and was rather clear that she would drag me along, kicking and screaming.”

“Seems perfect for you.”

“MY ETERNAL RIVAL HAS GAINED A WONDERFUL SISTER!”

Kakashi snorted, turning away from the window. “Try two,” he replied blandly. “And a little brother.”

“Oh?” Kurenai perked up, interested. “Do you mean the kids she mentioned, Karin and Naruto?”

“Yeah. They’re kind of a package deal.”

Asuma grinned, “Guess we now know who we need to kick you into shape if you ever need it again.”