Sayonara, Konohagakure

Sayonara, Konohagakure

A story by: Urube

Prologue

A blur of fabric with a tinge of silver on top ran through the forest and jumped from branch to branch. The figure suddenly stopped and scanned the clearing he had ended in. A mask covered half of his face, his headband lost in battle, allowing his spiky hair to move in the slight breeze. He was wearing a vest with a hood down and tight, thin wrist warmers going up to near his shoulders. A small katana was tied on his back pack and you could see a few scars on his right shoulder. His weapon pouch was on his right leg and he wore dark shorts. His mismatched eyes, the one pure black, the other red with three tombs circling in his eye, searched the area yet again, looking for the noise he heard seconds before his arrival.

There it was again! A small cry, barely hear able, but just there. The young man searched again, but found the clearing empty. Determined to find the noise, the ANBU member took a few steps and drained his ears to listen to the slightest noise if there were any. He went and looked behind a bush, but found no luck. The cry began again, this time louder and more insisting. It also continued and the man found himself nearing to the place it came from. Not knowing if it was a trap from the enemy or a simply cry for help, the ANBU walked closer to the sound and pushed aside a branch, only to find a little baby in a small basket, a white blanket covering its small body.

After making sure there wasn't any traps, the shinobi knelt down to the small child and looked more closely at it. Beside it's head, lay a scroll with a sealing and a headband with a swirling mark. Wondering what a sealed scroll did with a child, he grasped the small envelope and tried to open it, only to find out it was impossible. He tried again, but came with the same result. He sighed and decided to place the scroll in his bag and promised himself to give it to the Hokage as soon as possible. Still hearing the baby cry, the ANBU lifted the blanket to discover it was a girl.

'Judging from her size, she must only be a few weeks old, at least.' the shinobi thought and covered the small child with the blanket again. He grabbed the basket by the sides, seeing there were no hung, he quickly went back the same way as he came before.

Whoever left this child behind, must either had left it behind to either protect it or simply because they couldn't afford to keep it. Or they didn't want it.

Looking down at the crying baby, the ANBU wished that they had the intelligence to speak.
The ANBU sighed. 'Being so young and not know what happened to your family... This kid would have it though when it grows older.'

Looking up again, he briefly caught the sight of his village before stopping up and look to his right. Beside the noise from the basket, he swore that he heard something move in there, but after a few moments, nothing showed up. Concluding it was his senses playing him a trick, he shake his head before start running again. Soon he was inside of the walls of his home, Konohagakure. He closed his one red eye the second he stepped inside, he knew he was out of harms way now.

Instead of stopping up, he continued to run until he reached the tower at the very end of the village against the large mountain wall there held three faces of the past's and the present Hokage.

Wasting no time in either knocking or greeting some of his fellow ninjas, the ANBU ran straight to the office and ignored the looks he received from all of the passersby and the small chatter he could briefly catch in his rush to get to the Hokage's office.

Entering the office without permission, the shinobi busted in, seeing the old Hokage with his paperwork. A few wrinkles and his white hair was the only sign of how old the Hokage was becoming of age.

"Kakashi?" The Hokage spoke. "I believe you have a very good reason as to why you just walked in without knocking first." the old man spoke with slight amusement in his voice.

"My apologies, Hokage-sama, but just as I finished my mission, I found this." On his way in, the baby kept quiet, as if it knew it was safe or it was just tired of crying. Either way, Kakashi didn't felt at ease with this and wanted the child to be taken care of immediately, though one with experience and not by him.

Kakashi walked up to the desk and placed the basket in top of the papers. The Hokage looked down at the basket and his eyebrows flied up in surprise and amusement. What was Hatake Kakashi doing with a little child?

"Hokage-sama, I found this child shortly after finishing my mission. I saw the headband and decided to bring the child back. An Uzushiogakure headband hasn't been seen since the destruction of the village." Kakashi spoke, straightening his pose, even though every fiber in his body wished to rest he didn't let it show, specially not in front of the Hokage.

The Hokage nodded, silently agreeing him. The Hokage took the headband in his grasp, his hand slightly touching the child's cheek. He dusted the headband off with his free hand and looked down at the messed object. It seemed it hasn't been used for a while, but whoever owned it decided to keep it in case it was needed. For a case like this.

The ANBU sighed. Being so young and not knowing what happened to your family. 'This child will have a lot to face in the future...' The Hokage thought sadly, his eyes edge with concern. "Kakashi."

"Yes, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi spoke and straightened his pose once again. He must have dozen off at some point.

"You will take this kid under your care. Name him what you want and-"

"...Her." Kakashi whispered, barely hear able for the old man.

"Name her as you want and make sure she will learn the way of the ninja. Any from the Uzumaki clan will be taking care off with our best hands." The Hokage placed the headband in his drawer and then looked up at Kakashi over folded hands.

"Hai, Hokage-sama, but I'm not sure if I'm the one suited for this job."

"That's only proof for me that you are." The Hokage smiled with closed eyes.

Kakashi sighed and his shoulders slumped down in defeat and annoyance. 'Seems I don't have other choices, eh? Better get this over with...' Standing up again, Kakashi spoke; "Before I go, I have something else to give you."

"Hm?" The Hokage lifted an eyebrow. "And what is that?"

"Here." Kakashi roamed through his pack, frowning when he couldn't find the object he was looking for right away. Then he could feel rough paper against his fingers and his open eye shined with triumph. He took out the scroll and placed it in front of the Hokage. "I found this in the basket beside the child and the headband. I tried to open it in case it was an explanation as to why the parents of the child had left it, but I couldn't open it and it was too risky to try and break the seal outside the village." Kakashi explained and straightened his pose once again.

"I see." the Hokage replied and took the scroll in his hand for closer examinations. "Thank you, Kakashi."

"You're welcome, Hokage-sama." Kakashi let out a tired sigh and unconsciously closed his other eye. He regained composure and looked at the Hokage with one black eye. "If you don't have any other business to discuss with me, I would like to go."

"You may go now, but remember to give the little child some food and a name. And while you're at it, you can assign this child to the academy and then train her until she's starting at the academy." The Hokage waved his hand dismissively, signifying his utter trust to the ANBU in front of him.

Kakashi frowned. Many responsibilities came with a child. 'So much trouble for such a little kid. That's absurd.' Kakashi bowed for the elder and took the basket in his hands. The child was still quiet, it put Kakashi at unease. "Hai, Hokage-sama, I'll do it right away."

The Hokage nodded as Kakashi disappeared in a blur of fabric. Kakashi yet again ran his way through the village, this time in his apartment's direction. He gave the child a glance before looking up again, stopping in front of his front door. Shifting the basket under his arm, he grabbed the key with his free hand and unlocked his door. After doing so, he put the key back in a secret pocket and opened the door as quietly as possible to not wake the now sleeping kid. He looked behind him, searching for possible followers.

She was so tired from lack of food that she fallen asleep. This is not good, I have to give her something to eat, fast. Kakashi thought and quietly closed the door behind and walked towards the living room, grabbing a piece of cloth and tied it around his forehead while the baby lay on the coffee table. He then walked towards his kitchen, only to stop again in his tracks. 'What do babies eat? They don't have teeth yet, not in so young an age and I can't give her regular milk, that's unhealthy for her.' Well, he knew that much, but...

Sighing, the ANBU looked around in the small room and found nothing he could use, he ripped the bottom of his shirt and used the ripped cloth to tie around his forehead. He then took the baby in his arms again and went out in search for one of his female friends. He stopped in front of a small apartment near his own place and after making sure the small family there lived here wasn't sleeping, Kakashi put the basket under one arm and knocked with his free hand. He waited, still with the child under his arm, and stretched his neck to look into the window beside the door when he heard footsteps nearing the door. He gave a sigh of relief when he saw that it was the wife of the house whom opened the door.

"Tsume, I have a problem. Could you help me out?" Kakashi smiled behind his mask and scratched his neck in embarrassment. A small sweat drop gave shape behind his head.

Tsume looked at the basket under Kakashi's arm and then returned her gaze to his face. "I didn't knew you had a child." she commented with a cocky smile and crossed her arms while leaning her hip against the door frame.

"She's not mine by blood. I found her in the forest and the Hokage has ordered me to take care of her. However, I do have a little problem." Kakashi blushed in embarrassment and looked down at his foot that scratched the ground with its tip.

Tsume raised an eyebrow in confusion and then it hit her. He doesn't know how to feed the baby. Chuckling, she rose and gestured for the Sharingan user to enter her house. "I know what your problem is and I'll be more than happy to help you. Come in and sit down in the living room, then I'll prepare something for her."

Kakashi did as told and entered the house, still with an embarrassed blush behind his mask. Kakashi sat down on the couch and placed the child beside him, waiting for the woman to return with some food. While he did so, he decided to close both his eyes for a few moments. He was very tired after returning from his mission. 'I'm just closing my eyes for a few moments, it couldn't hurt, right?' Kakashi sighed and finally let his body rest completely.

Tsume had prepared the bottle with infant formula when she walked in and saw that Kakashi had closed his eyes. It was hard to tell whether he was asleep or still awake. He must just have returned from his mission, that's why he's so tired. He also told me he found the child from the mission. That is why he went over here so late at night. Tsume smiled and decided to leave the shinobi alone for now, after all, a ninja needs his rest no matter how high his rank is. And seeing that Kakashi didn't have a headband, but a piece of cloth tied around his forehead. She saw a few scar on the exposed skin by the shoulders, but nothing else showed that the ANBU was hurt.

Tsume took the infant in her arms and walked into her bedroom, leaving Kakashi in her living room. She looked down in a cradle which had a small boy with a brown mess on top of his head. Seeing that he was asleep, Tsume sat down on the queen sized bed and woke up the small girl in her arm. The infant opened its bright eyes and gave a small cry and Tsume quickly reacted, gently shoving the bottle inside its small mouth. After a few moments, the baby start sucking and it drank the bottle fast. Really fast.

"You must be hungry, huh, pup?" Tsume spoke to the child. The only answer she got was slurping sounds as the baby continued to eat. Soon the liquid was gone and it seemed as the baby was satisfied since it gave a yawn, closing its eyes and almost immediately falling asleep.

"You remind me of Hana." Tsume spoke quietly to the child, standing up and walking towards her kitchen. "She too always fall asleep after she ate. However, when she was hungry, she would always cry until I gave her food. But I guess you were so hungry, you grew tired, eh?" She placed the empty bottle on the counter and walked back to her bedroom, again looking down in the cradle. She smiled and lay the baby down on the bed, as near to the center as possible before joining it in bed. She smiled down to the little infant and watched as her dog quietly sniff to the baby. After comforting it was no threat or a stranger as it had been feed and had his owner's smell as well, the dog went down from the bed and lay down on his spot beside the bed.

Tsume smiled one last time before going into dreamland.

The next morning, Kakashi woke up with a pretty sore neck from having it bent that way against the couch. Groaning, he lifted his head and massaged it with his hand. His visible eye fluttered open and shut immediately from the sun burning into his eye. He groaned again and after adjusting to the light, he looked around in his apartment.

Only to find out that it wasn't his.

Quickly looking around, he noticed he was sitting on a couch. Beside him lay an empty basket with a blanket. Trying to remember what happened last night, Kakashi stood up and massaged his sore neck.

'Was I drunk last night? No, I don't feel like I'm having a hangover. Then what am I doing here?' Kakashi thought and walked around, ending up in a kitchen. He saw an empty bottle and some dirt on the counter, but nothing else. Still massaging his sore neck, he walked around the strange house and ended up in a bedroom where he saw a woman laying in a queen sized bed with a child in her arms. A cradle where beside the bed, also with an infant.

"!" Kakashi's eyes widened in realization.

'That's right, I found a child after my mission and went over to Tsumes after help. At least I'm not having a hangover...'

Kakashi yawned, still feeling tired from his mission and went back into the living room. He removed the basket from the couch and placed it on the coffee table. After doing so, he lay down on the couch on his back and closed his eyes, returning to a light sleep, where he rested his body, but never really going to sleep.

Tsume woke up by someone poking her nose and making it impossible for breathing through the nose. She gently smacked the hand away and opened her eyes to see a small kid with lilac eyes. Tsume was confused for a while cause she couldn't recognize the scent. After some time, she remembered what happened last night and smiled by the thought. 'Yeah. Even the great Kakashi has his problems, eh?' Laughing quietly, she sat up and took the child in her arms before leaving the bed.

Walking into the living room, she saw Kakashi laying down on the couch, however, she knew he was awake due to his flaring chakra. It was much larger now and better to detect than the night before. Some rest could really do some wonder to you.

Stepping beside the couch, Tsume tossed the ANBU's leg aside roughly and sat down in the free spot. Briefly looking over to the young man, Tsume gave Kakashi a flash of her teeth while chuckling by his dark stare.

"Kakashi, go in and prepare a bottle for the kid, I bet she'll want some when she wakes up." Tsume spoke while giving the young man a threatening glare.

Kakashi sighed, but obliged. Standing up right, he began to walk to the kitchen, but stopped when he heard a loud cry. He looked towards Tsume and saw that the girl had already waking up and demanded to have some food. Kakashi sighed again before walking into the kitchen. He gave the bottle a glance and looked around in the kitchen, wondering what he should do since he had no idea how to prepare food for a child and a baby nonetheless.

"Just boil some water in the kettle and set about two spoonful of powder milk in the bottle. Make sure it's not too hot for the baby to have." Tsume explained, as if reading his thoughts, while trying to calm the infant in her arms.

Sighing, Kakashi did as Tsume explained, the explanation already burned into his mind. After finishing it, he took the bottle and brought it into the living room where the child had calmed down a little, but it still gave faint cries. Kakashi was about to give the bottle to Tsume, but she gently shoved the baby away and gave the ANBU a stern look.

"You have checked the temperature, right? It mustn't be too hot or the baby will be hurt." Tsume spoke while Kakashi sat down sighing and looked at Tsume.

"How do I know what the right temperature is?" Kakashi asked and slightly shrugged.

"Just let a single drop land on your wrist. If it's burn on your skin, it's too hot. If not, well, you can feed the baby. What's the baby's name anyway?" Tsume asked while watching Kakashi turn the bottle upside down and waited until gravity took a single liquid out of its container.

"I don't know. I haven't decided on one yet." Kakashi shook his hand and waited a few seconds to be sure of the temperature.

"Let me know when you find out, okay? I come to like the kid like it was one of my own." Tsume smiled and nuzzled her nose against the little infants. It giggled low by the action, but its smile soon vanished as her hunger grew.

"Sure." Concluding the temperature was fine, he handed the bottle to Tsume, only to have the child shoved into his arms. His eyes widen and he looked up at Tsume with a mixture of hate and fear. How was he supposed to feed the baby? Hell, he didn't even knew if he held it correctly!

"Support her head. Her neck muscles are still weak." Kakashi did as told. "I don't need to tell you what to do now, right?" Tsume raised an eyebrow and smiled when she saw that Kakashi feed the infant correctly. He also seemed to be more calm now about this than before. Tsume almost chuckled when she compared Kakashi with her husband. He had been the same the first time he had to hold Hana, Tsume's firstborn.

Kakashi actually felt calmer once holding the child in his arms. He didn't knew it would be so... calming, but he had a feeling like he could keep the child in his arms forever and never let go. 'Weird.' he thought briefly as he watched the infant sipping in the liquid. 'And all of this just because of a baby...'

After feeding the child and getting a few diapers and some other needed stuff, Kakashi left the place and went back to his own home, holding the baby in his arms while a perfect clone held the needed objects. Being a ninja had its positives...

Upon locking the door open after had put the objects down, Kakashi looked behind himself, a habit he got when he was younger. He would always look behind him, in case someone was following him or spying him. Even if no one did that, Kakashi couldn't help himself. He then looked down at the baby and smiled.

The baby opened her eyes and looked up at her foster father, laughing. It seemed the little child had come to take a liking to the shinobi. She laughed again and weakly clapped her hands together. The adult above her smiled and moved into the building.

Kakashi's clone took the stuff after entering and put them inside the kitchen before it disappeared in a puff of smoke. Meanwhile, the real Kakashi closed and locked the door and activated the genjutsu there made sure that no intruders could get in so easily.

"Why Hokage-sama has hung you on me, I have no idea. But I guess there's no other ways then, hm?" Glancing down at the infant and up again, Kakashi sighed and thought deeply. "But what should I name you?"

The child laughed again, completely oblivious to Kakashi's talk.

Kakashi poked the little child's nose gently and smiled. "I think I'll call you Rin, how does that sound?"
The child's smile faltered for a second before lightening up again in a toothless smile.