Hachi

Chapter Five

There was a certain trick to just getting on with your life and going about as usual when you felt nauseous all the time. At least, Sasuke assumed that such a trick existed; unfortunately, he'd yet to learn what it was.

He did his best to hide it. After all, Naruto and Sakura kept bugging him to work on the barrier between himself and the clone. If he could cut off that link, he wouldn't be able to feel all those unpleasant sensations. His efforts with all that were not going well, however, and for some reason he was hesitant to push too hard.

Someone needs to keep an eye on the clone, after all, Sasuke thought to himself. He couldn't have said what it was he thought the clone would do, or what disaster might occur- but pretty much everything that had ever happened in his life had taught him to be cautious.

"How are you feeling, Sasuke-kun?" Kakashi asked, gazing up from where he and baby Sakumo were couched by the training-room wall.

Sasuke bit back a growl, shooting Kakashi a glare as he moved through the room preparing for his class. "Don't you dare start all that," he warned. "I've had enough of Naruto and Sakura treating me like a pregnant woman. I'm not. Cut it out already!"

Kakashi grinned at that, his eyes following his son. Sakumo was on the move, putting his newly-learned crawling skills to good use. "Ah, still feeling like you want to throw up everything you've ever eaten?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Sasuke hissed, rushing forward and retrieving Sakumo before he could get his hands on the wooden katanas in the centre of the room. He went back to the wall and held the squealing kid out to his father.

Kakashi took him gratefully, tossing him up in the air until he was smiley and happy once more. "No you don't, kiddo. Not even a toy katana for you!"

"Why not?" Sasuke said to that. "Something wrong with swords?" he added with a glare, folding his arms across his chest. If Kakashi had a problem with it, maybe he should stop crashing every one of Sasuke's classes. Two times a week he mentored a small group of genin. Sakura did the same at the hospital. It was better for genin to have someone else to learn from- not just their jounin sensei.

"Nothing's wrong with swords," Kakashi said. "They're just not for this little guy."

Sasuke shrugged and went back to his preparations. His five students would be arriving soon. They weren't bad, but they had a long way to go. Swordplay wasn't one of the skills taught at the academy, so most of these kids had very little experience with katanas before last year.

He took a deep breath, trying to look as if he weren't dying on the inside. Back home the clone was bent over the bathroom sink yet again. It didn't matter how little food Sasuke gave it to eat; it was still throwing up several times a day.

No matter. A shinobi's job is to endure.

"And what are we doing today?" Kakashi asked, as he watched Sasuke prepare and continued to be of absolutely no assistance whatsoever. He was a full-time stay-at-home-dad these days, as he reminded everyone at every opportunity.

"The usual," Sasuke replied. "Drills and more drills. Maybe some practice matches at the end of class, if they're doing well enough." And if Sasuke himself was feeling up to it. Honestly, he would have liked nothing more than to cancel the whole class and go home to bed.

He leant up against the wall, deciding to just stand still for a few moments before his students arrived. At home the clone was gazing at itself in the mirror. Its skin was pale and covered with a fine sheen of sweat. Sasuke felt a stab of sympathy for her. The clone might not be...well, real; she'd just pop out of existence after this was all over. But for now, she was feeling pretty damn miserable.