𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐔𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐇𝐀 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋: 𝐤𝐚𝐤𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐢 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

(x) the past

"hey guess what", y/n said, "i got promoted to jonin today. i know, finally right?"

she sat down in front of one of the graves in the konoha cemetery. "it was fun, jonin exams sure are tough. only the final opponent gave me a bit of trouble."

she hugged her knees. "i don't think i'll ever reach your level but i'm trying. i'm just...i'm really trying.", she smiled just slightly.

"did i tell you i've been training under kakashi hatake? yes, the copy ninja. he's a good teacher actually. a little perverted but good. we're friends, i guess"

her smile disappeared and her lips quivered just a bit. she stopped her tears from falling and continued talking, more for her sanity than anything else.

"sasuke's really shaping up at the academy. really popular with the girls, i'm told. much like someone else i know", she teased. "he'll rival your power one day. maybe even surpass it."

she took a deep breath. "i miss you, shisui"

at the other end of the cemetery was her teacher, standing facing another tombstone altogether. he laid a flower near it.

"sorry i haven't been visiting as much", he mumbled. "my student became a jonin today. the uchiha girl, yeah. she's strong, you know. and talented. picks up whatever i teach her pretty fast. i really have it easy"

he looked around when he suddenly spotted y/n, sitting near a grave. not knowing whose grave it was, he began to walk her way cautiously.

"y/n?", he asked in a low voice

she jumped at the voice, visibly startled. "kakashi-sensei!" she relaxed a bit at the revelation.

he now noticed the grave she was by. shisui uchiha.

"so you were close to him after all", he said

she rested her chin in her hands. "yeah i was. why are you here, sensei?"

"my teammate, rin. and also minato-sensei."

"sensei...the fourth hokage taught you?", she raised her eyebrows.

"you didn't know that?", kakashi asked, amused. she shook her head.

"and....what about rin?", she hesitantly asked

"it's okay", he assured. "rin was part of my three man squad. our jonin leader was minato-sensei. later i took his place when i became a jonin. me, rin and..." he paused a bit, sitting on the ground next to her.

"obito uchiha?", she asked

"yes. you knew him?"

"he was the clumsy guy with the goggles right? it's a shame he passed away so young."

"he's the one who gave me my sharingan"

y/n nodded, deeply empathising with him. he'd probably had a worse childhood than she had. he lost every single person close to him. his team, his teacher and even his father. it was unfathomable.

"what about you?", he asked her, looking at shisui's grave

"my parents died in battle when i was, uh, 4? and then itachi's parents took me in till i was 13. they were killed too, as you know. and shisui" she paused, taking a deep breath "...passed away. itachi left the village."

"itachi, i remember him. he was part of my team in the anbu. you remind me of him a lot actually."

"oh he was my 'rival'. we were always compared to each other."

"it's a pity he turned out to be a traitor-"

"he's not a traitor!",y/n suddenly raised her voice, making kakashi shiver. "i'm sorry, but he's not"

kakashi put a hand on her shoulder. she stared at the ground, trying hard not to cry. "no i'm sorry", he said softly

she clenched her jaw, tears finally forcing their way out of her eyes, making her stifle a sob. he understood her pain, probably more than anyone else ever could. and he knew how unbearable, how lonely and how dark times could get.

he put an arm around her shoulder. "it's okay"

she suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a hug. he returned it immediately, one hand shifting to her hair as the other gently rubbed her back.

they stayed that way for a while before y/n finally pulled away. "thank you, kakashi-sensei", she said quietly

"anytime", he gave her a closed-eye smile.