The Hokage took good care of Tankina, just as he said he would. He occupied her, indeed. Not only with paper and pencil, but also by keeping running dialogue with the child. Their conversation went from about; what they enjoyed doing, to favorite animals and all topics suited for anyone Tankina's age. Even the Hokage himself would admit he was interested in getting to know the kid.
"You seem fond of drawing animals, Tankina. You must be an animal lover, I assume?" The elder man quizzed the young girl, watching the girl as she continued to work her pencil around the paper in front of her. Tankina nodded meekly, not really bothering to look up from her paper adorned with little doodles of cats, birds and deer.
"I always walked around in the forest if I didn't have chores or homework to do." The child mentioned simply, a little smile working its way onto her lips. The Lord noticed this by seeing her cheekbones rise. A smile of his own even managed to plaster onto his face. Turning in his office chair, he gazed out the windows behind him. The sun was already beginning to touch the horizon. He hummed questioningly to himself before turning back to his desk.
"Kakashi must be back any moment now," He informed Tankina, "And speaking of him; his comrade. I saw you talking to him earlier." He added humorously. That topic finally made Tankina look up.
"Mmmhm. He's the one with the funny mask." She giggled. The Hokage mustered up a gruff chuckle.
A faint click of the door handle to the office alerted the two. The wooden door creaked open, revealing the full form of the infamous silver haired ANBU officer. Tankina's face seemed to light up. "Kakashi's back!" She chirped. Said man smiled under his mask, his right eye closing in the process.
"Yes, yes. Hello, Tankina." He greeted, lifting his hand and giving a slight wave. Tankina was about to spring up from the small desk she was sitting in, but she stopped herself. She darted her vision back to her paper. She grabbed the pencil and scribbled something down on the bottom left corner and set the writing utensil back down. She looked up to the Hokage and shoved the paper up to the man. Slightly dumbfounded, the man blinked, but took the paper anyway. Tankina giggled and skipped over to Kakashi.
"Can I come back tomorrow? Please, please, please?" Tankina begged, dragging the final "please" out. Kakashi was choked up, so he turned up to the Hokage for an answer. The elder man was smiling down at the paper Tankina offered him previously. He soon looked up to the officer.
"She's more than welcome."
"Yea!" Tankina chirped, bouncing up and down. The Lord watched the little bundle of energy in amusement. Kakashi chuckled and ruffled the child's hair.
"Alright, Tankina. Time to go." He chimed, holding his hand down for the girl to take hold of. Tankina obliged and grasped onto Kakashi's hand. The officer waved a farewell to the Lord, before leaving his office. The elder man chuckled to himself. He looked back down at the paper, his eyes falling over to the bottom left corner-
素晴らしい主火影のために少し何か！ - 短気な人
* * * *
More than half of the deep orange sun was now sunken behind the horizon, the sky a dull blend of pink and orange. Tankina was ahead of Kakashi by only a few feet, skipping around as if she were playing hopscotch, but without the drawn squares on the sidewalk. Her short hair swung back and forth with every little spring she made. Kakashi remained slowly sauntering behind the child, his hands buried deep inside his pockets. His attention would normally be on the sky, admiring the gorgeous colors of evening. But oh no, not this time. His attention was all on Tankina; watching as the little girl hopped along the sidewalk. The man would be lying if he said it wasn't one of the most adorable things he'd ever seen.
He wasn't someone to see himself as a father figure. As mentioned before, he's not even known for being gentle. But the Jounin told himself that we would do anything to protect the child. He had took her in, after all.
"Hey, Kakashi?" Tankina's little voice snapped the man back to reality. he blinked and looked down to the child. "Can we have ramen for dinner?" The girl asked. The ANBU officer blinked again, taking notice that they were just beginning to walk by Ichiraku Ramen. He stared at the infamous restaurant for a moment before turning back to Tankina. The child had a smile on her face. The silver haired man sighed quietly, his hands shuffling in his pockets before he fished his wallet out. Popping the small clasp that held it shut, he shuffled through it. He barely had enough to pay for the both of them, but it's not like he had something at home she would eat. He sighed to himself, looking back down at the child, his face then turning to a shocked expression. The little girl held her hand out, a small bundle of money being clutched in her tiny fist.
"What's this..?" Kakashi muttered, almost to himself.
"I know that look anywhere. I figured you'd need some extra money. I've been holding onto this for a while." Tankina answered meekly. Kakashi shook his head quickly.
"No no, Tankina. I don't need any money. That's yours to keep." He told the child. Tankina's face puckered in rebellion. She shook her head in return and edged the small bundle of money toward Kakashi. The officer frowned under his mask. "Tankina, please. Keep your money."
The kid just frowned again. Seeming to finally oblige the male, she retracted her arm back, but pulled out a few Ryo from the bundle. She held the few slips of paper back to Kakashi.
"At least have a few." She said stubbornly. Kakashi sighed, hesitantly taking the smaller amount of money from the child. Tankina's frown then curled into a smile. Kakashi's lips twitched into a small smile. It felt strange to have a child give him money. It didn't feel... Right, in his mind. But the kid wouldn't have left him alone if he didn't accept the offering. Tanking turned and skipped into the small restaurant. Kakashi's followed slowly behind the little bundle of energy. Ramen wasn't really a food he enjoyed eating nor did he have a dislike towards it.
Taking a seat next to the little girl, Kakashi ordered for the both of them. Teuchi confirmed Kakahsi's order and begun to start on it right away. Tankina reached across the counter and grabbed a hold on two pairs of chopsticks. She looked over and handed one to the silver haired ANBU officer. Kakashi gave a warm smile beneath his mask, and gladly accepted the utensil. Living with a child... it was pretty inevitable. It was foreign subject for someone such as Kakashi. However, this little girl has someone lit up his past couple of days.
YOU ARE READING
The Little Things
Fanfiction[SLOW UPDATES] - [NOT CANON FOR MY OC; HEAVILY BASED OFF OF AU RP'S] Kakashi Hatake was still in the ANBU Ops when his life took a sudden turn. A strange little girl, by the name of Tankina, had stumbled into his life. He took her in, even with a s...
