Dreams of the Past

Annoying Guests

A/N Almost everyone has been asking about this, here it finally is! I want to thank everyone that's been reading and commenting! I appreciate the support for this one and reading your thoughts and ideas has been so much fun. Let me know what you think about this one!

Chapter Thirteen

Annoying Guests

The strangest part about being in the past were all the ghosts. It had been worse for Kakashi—obviously—but Sakura thought she was handling them alright. Until Sakumo brought home a guest as well as dinner one night that she had not been expecting to meet.

Jiraiya-sama's familiar, hearty laugh boomed through the house ahead of him and his host as they came through to the kitchen. "Sakumo, please. It's water under the bridge, I've already told you. Where is the little rascal anyway? Hiruzen tells me he's going to be the best of his generation. Not surprising at all!"

Sakura was getting popsicles from the freezer, a panting ninken at her feet as they came into the kitchen. Sakumo set their dinner on the counter. "Out with friends tonight. And he may be right about that, but my son won't be taking the graduation exams for a few years."

Jiraiya laughed again, coming into the room behind him. "Well of course not. He's what, five?"

"Six in two months. They're pushing for it already."

Jiraiya frowned and opened his mouth to respond but his eyes landed on Sakura and the frown became a suave, flirtatious grin. She felt her skin crawl to have it directed at her, banishing the emotional upheaval at seeing him alive in an instant. "My my, Sakumo, who is this delectable pink flower blossoming in your kitchen?" He stepped around Sakumo, and reached for her hand. Before he could touch her, the ninken at her feet intervened. Senbei, who was growing fast and big enough now that he was almost actually intimidating, put himself between them with a vicious snarl. Jiraiya took a step back, watching the dog with a cautious curiosity.

"Jiraiya, you remember I mentioned my cousin?" Sakumo jerked his head in Kakashi's direction. Her husband was standing on the other end of the room, his arms crossed and a subtle thread of killing intent leaking out of him. Something below her stomach tightened when she felt it. He was actually angry. "Hatake Karasu, from Kumogakure. This is his lovely young wife, Hatake Ayame."

"Ahh haa, I see!" He rubbed his neck. "What a lucky man he is."

Ignoring the tension Kakashi was stirring in her, Sakura bent over to hug her furry protector, kissing his head. "You're Ma's good boy, aren't you?"

He barked and licked her face. "I'm Ma's good boy!"

Standing, she grabbed the popsicle she had been hunting for and handed it down to him. He took it between his teeth and took off outside, pausing to growl at Jiraiya again before he went. "Jiraiya, one of the Sannin. It is... nice to meet you." She tore open a popsicle for herself, swallowing down a gasp when Kakashi was suddenly towering over her. He wrapped her hand in his and leaned into her space, lips pulled fully back to flash his fangs as he took a bite. His dark eyes bore into hers before cutting over to glare at the other man as he replaced his mask and stood to his full height.

"Yes, very... nice." His voice was a deep rumble, a threatening growl that made the tight feeling in her gut sink lower. Fuck.

Sakumo snorted as Jiraiya took two full steps back. "It's nice to meet you as well—uh, both of you, of course."

The sensible part of her brain that was still functioning after Kakashi's possessive display worried that the Sannin might not be someone they wanted to know about them. But Sakumo knew they were trying to avoid the Hokage's attention and had brought him anyway. If he trusted him, she would too.