Will Of Fire ~KakashixOc (Editing)

Family Ch. 41

Saying goodbye to my brother was going to be one the hardest things I have to do today. A couple of years ago, he'd left the village for some time in order to find himself and I feel as if I am doing the same. He'd joined the Guardian shinobi twelve, serving as a body guard for the feudal Lord of the Land of Fire. There is a part of me that hopes that he'll understand, but the other part knows that he probably won't. Maybe while I'm out of the village, I might run into another Guardian.
Asuma has only introduced me to one other of his compatriots. They were close friends and still stay in contact. He is now a monk of The Temple of Fire the strongest temple in the land. He's name is Chiriku. Whenever we met, I remember him being extremely polite even though we were the same age. It would be nice to see him again. I'm sure he would have some sort of information to pass onto me.

I walk up the stairs of my childhood home, running my fingers along the worn stair rail. I open the door, finding it unlocked.
"Suma?" I ask aloud, walking in. "Are you in here?"
"Auntie Miko!!!" With a quick blur and the sound of pounding feet, I was tackled in a huge hug. Little arms wrapped around my legs and spiky brown hair covers his face. His scarf had trailed behind him when he ran to me, looking like a little tail.
"Kona! What are you doing here, Bubba?" I ask, ruffling his hair. He laughs, smiling at me with his tongue sticking out.
"Uncle Asuma wanted some help moving stuff! He said I was stronger than you!" Konohamaru says, bouncing on place. I laugh, shaking my head. He definitely got that habit from me.
"Did he?" Asuma asks, sticking his head around the corner of the hallway. He grins at me, shrugging. "Kid's just say the darndest things."
"Don't they?" I laugh, agreeing. Konohamaru takes my hand, dragging me down the hallway.
"Here, Auntie Miko! I'll show you some cool stuff!" He says, leading me up the stairs. He points to things along the way like old family pictures and awards.
"That's from when I got best clone scores!" Konohamaru says, pointing to a certificate. "That's from when you won your sparring tournament... That's from when Asuma got the best kunai skills... That one is when you beat Ukitake in your Kenjutsu match..."
He rambles on and on about it, leading me down the length of the hallway. I listen intently, taking in all the nostalgic pictures. He eventually leads me to my old room, opening the door wide open.
"Here you go." He says, displaying his small arms wide. "I've got to go back to school and help rebuild some classrooms now, so you can get started cleaning here."
"Thank you, Kona." I say, kneeling down as I give him a big hug. I kiss the top of his head, breathing in his familiar childish scent. "I love you lots, Kay?"
"I love you lots too!" Konohamaru grins, pulling out of my arms. "But I gotta go! See you later, Auntie Miko!"
"Work hard, Kona." I tell him, watching him disappear down the hallway with a fond smile playing across my lips. Asuma watches him as well, worry flickering in his eyes.

"What's wrong?"
"Hmm? Nothing really, just..." Asuma sighs, running his hand through his hair. "Konohamaru has been pretty down since Dad died. I think that he isn't ready to accept another Hokage, just when his wound is still fresh. He's never known any other Hokage but Dad."
"It's helping him to get out and help rebuild the village. He'll work it out. Konohamaru is a strong boy." I say, nodding confidently. "He will accept Tsunade eventually."
"I hope so..." Asuma scans my old room, sighing. "It's been awhile since we've come home, huh?"
"Home..." I look around my old room, my chest feeling heavy. It hadn't changed at all since when I left it. The walls had once been white, but I had filled them with paintings of the forest and animals throughout my years of living here. My bed was perfectly made and my art desk still had papers scattered across it. Pictures hung on my walls and old clothes still sat in my closet. It's almost as if I were to blink, I would see Obito sitting on my bed, casually lounging around as I work on a drawing or a random hobby.

"What are you stopping by for?" Asuma asks, tilting his head at me. "I heard that Kakashi and Sasuke are awake. Naruto's back."
"Yeah, I woke Kakashi up this morning. I've already spoken with Sasuke." I say, sitting on my bed. I lean back, looking up at my ceiling. There was a picture of team Minato stuck on the ceiling, right above my bed. I stare at it, smiling softly.
"You're the one who woke him up?" Asuma asks, joining me on my bed. The bed creaks as he lays down next to me.
"Yeah."
"What's going on between you two, anyway?" Asuma asks, staring up at the picture as well. "At first I thought you guys were hitting it off, but then you both seemed like you got into a fight or something. Did something happen between you two?"
". . ." I nod, shrugging. "The night after Dad died, my kids, well... the boys, stayed over at my apartment in order to make sure I was okay... Kakashi stayed as well. We'd shared a bed, but not in an intimate way. We'd just talked for a while."
"What did you guys talk about?"
"Just about his dad and Obito." I say, sighing. "The next morning, Kakashi told me that he'd crosses the line and that he felt like he was taking advantage of me. He told me that it wasn't appropriate for us to be anything more than friends, even though I'm not even sure we're that anymore. I was hurt, obviously. I really thought he loved me, you know?"
"Jeez, Himi... That sucks. Kakashi's not thinking right. I'll have to talk some sense into him."
"That's not even the worst part. I found out that he actually does love me, but he wants to keep me safe. He said that he can't hold me and protect me at the same time. Told me that I would be better off with someone else, someone that could make me happy."
"When did he tell you this?"
"It's a long story..."