Atonement

Chapter 6

It was a couple of hours later, around 2 P.M. when Kakashi decided to get out of the house to start his plan. Since they had come back home, the atmosphere between father and son was... awkward. Sakumo danced around his son as if Kakashi was out of glass and could shatter every moment. And Kakashi wasn't any better. Sometimes he still wondered if this was all real and not just a figment of his imagination.  

As he walked down the stairs he forced himself to make some noise, it would be suspicious if he could disappear without his father noticing. 

As soon as he got to the end of the staircase he shouted, "Dad, I'm going out training. I'll be back around dinnertime, okay? Love you!" before he ran out of the house without waiting for a response. 

Sakumo just saw a flash of silver before the door fell shut. Worriedly he stared in the direction his son had run off to and whispered, "Love you too, son." 

He would have preferred to lock his son up in his room, only to know that Kakashi was safe and he could be protected by the best of Sakumo abilities, but he knew that Kakashi wouldn't sit still. His son was a fighter. Strong, brave, and determined. Sakumo only feared that Kakashi had inherited his determination from his mother. 

Clary had been an incredible woman. Gorgeous, brave, and an unwavering determination sometimes. She had been one of the prettiest women in Konoha, only rivaled by the black-haired beauty of the Uchiha clan, Uchiha Mikoto, and Tsunade Senju. With her long, silky chestnut brown hair and those emerald eyes, she had been an image for the gods. 

She had been a civilian and Sakumo remembered delightfully the time where she fought desperately against their love. They had met in the Academy but Clary had soon dropped out of the program and started to learn a civilian job. When Sakumo met her again, she was a teacher in a civilian school and taught the children there self-defense. Clary never wanted to fall in love with a shinobi. Her dream was to settle down and have a family, not to live in constant worry if your love will come back to you. Therefore, she had stubbornly tried to deny her feelings. It took a mission where Sakumo had almost died for her to accept them. 

He remembered the day as if it was yesterday when Clary sat next to his hospital bed with tears streaming down her beautiful face. As soon as she realized he was awake she had hit him before pulling him closer and kissing him passionately. She had shouted and cried but in the end, they were finally together. 

After a couple of years, Sakumo had finally been brave enough to ask for her hand. Their marriage day had been small, only them, the rest of their families and their closest friends. It was one of the happiest days in Sakumos life, only topped when Clary told him three months later that she was pregnant. Her angelic laughter as he threw her around in happiness was still in his mind and every time he remembered it, he felt like crying. He missed her so much! 

Then there was Kakashi's birth. He didn't like to remember his wife's screams and cries. The birth had been long and exhausting, but then, after hours, he held his son in his arms. Kakashi had been so tiny and fragile, making Sakumo experience a wave of overprotectiveness for his son. However, when he had turned around to smile happily at Clary, he had to watch helplessly as his love laid sickly pale on the hospital bed. She had been drenched in sweat and was obviously in pain but she still managed to smile. Her shaky hands had longed for her son and Sakumo had hurried next to her bed. Clary had kissed her son lovingly before turning to her husband and kissing him too. 

"Look, Clary. Our child," Sakumo had whispered proudly. 

"Hai. He's beautiful, just like his father. Promise me to be strong, okay Love?" she had replied weakly.