All for the Sake of Pleasure

Chapter 43

This is the last chapter guys. I wanna say thank you to everyone who reads this and that this has been one heck of an emotional rollercoaster. Without further a-due please enjoy the final chapter of All For the Sake of Pleasure

"Iruka! NO!"
Even as the smoke of a transportation jutsu surrounded his husband, Iruka reached out, just to touch him one more time.  Just to feel Kakashi's smooth skin, just to brush away the tears staining his husband's face.  But he was just a bit too slow, a fraction of a second off.  Instead of brushing his fingers against the warmth of Kakashi's cheek, all he felt was air.
"Goodbye Kakashi."
Tears pricked his eyes as he watched the smoke dissipate.  From that final pained look he had seen in his husband's features, Kakashi had heard him.  He knew, just as well as Iruka did, that this likely was their last goodbye.  Iruka had already weighed his options.  The chances of him reaching the house to grab soldier pills were slim to none.  Between healing Kakashi and the transportation jutsu, he had very little left in the way of chakra.  With time, he would have replenished his chakra with his husband's energy, thanks to the seal Kakashi had placed on him what seemed like a lifetime ago.  But his time had run out.
Shifting, he tried to ignore the searing pain in his right shoulder.  He had been stupid; blinded by anger, he had not seen the katana coming towards him until it was too late to defend himself.  At first, it had just been a sharp burn in his shoulder that slowly dulled as his adrenaline kicked in.  Now, it was not so much the pain that bothered him.  It was the difficulty he was having trying to breathe.  With each breath, his gasps became harder and harder as he felt his uncooperative, punctured lung refuse to fill with air.
The taste of blood filled his mouth as he coughed, falling back against the tree mere moments ago his husband had been leaning against.  As his skin came in contact with the rough bark, his back exploded in pain, reminding him of the multitude of injuries he had already suffered.  His fingers gripped at the uneven surface, but it was barely enough to keep him standing.
Takeshi.  Once, years ago, that name would have been like any other.  But now, having learned of Kakashi's past, those few syllables were a death sentence.  Iruka almost wished he did not know the name of his husband's attacker.  Perhaps then he would have considered the possibility of retreating, of using what little energy he had left to race towards the house and try finding the damn soldier pills that would allow him to transport to safety.  If it had been anyone else, he may have weighed that possibility.  But Takeshi?  The man who had once captured his husband, brutally tortured and raped him, leaving him with such deep scars, they were visible even to this day?  The man who had nearly taken away Kakashi's chances of fatherhood?  The man who had now stolen the lives of two of their children right in front of them?
No, retreat was not an option.
"How touching."
Iruka spun at that deep, raspy voice.  He did not recognize it, but it was one that immediately put him on edge and made his stomach twist.  Looking up, he saw a cloaked figure move out of the shadows.  Previously, the stranger was merely a blur of black as they traded a flurry of blows.  Now getting his first good look at their attacker, Iruka swallowed heavily.  What first struck him was the man's height; he was easily two full heads taller than Iruka, making him the tallest person he had ever met.  Next, was the sheer size of him. He was broad, from his massive shoulders to legs that were like tree trunks.  His very arms were so heavily corded with muscle that Iruka knew the giant could snap him like a twig.  Along with his long, black cloak, he wore standard shinobi garb: sandals, dark pants and a matching dark top that left his arms fully exposed.  A katana sheath was tied to his waist and a kunai pouch rested against his right thigh.  Watching as the man pulled back the hood of his cloak, Iruka knew he would never forget that face as long as he lived.
Dark, evil eyes stared at him with a hunger that made Iruka shiver.  Those orbs were deep set in a face that was far from handsome.  His features were too harsh, his nose too large, his lips too thin.  But what seemed most grotesque of all were the four parallel scars running diagonally down his face.  Iruka did not have to be close to know that those marks were deep.  Iruka could only assume that they had once cut down to the very bone.  Though healed to a shocking white against his dark skin, they still tore through his bald scalp, his forehead, his nose, and his lips, destroying those features, ripping apart his nose, curling his lip in a permanent snarl.
Iruka did not have to think long to realize what must have caused such scars.  His stomach twisted in revulsion as his gaze traveled down those marks that were perfectly spaced apart.  If it had been anyone else, Iruka would have assumed an animal clawed at his face.  With Takeshi, he had the feeling those marks were not created by any beast's nails, but by the hand of a young, frightened boy who had been fighting for his freedom.
"It is good to finally meet you in person, Iruka..."
The way his name rolled off the monster's tongue made Iruka's stomach sour.  The familiarity with which Takeshi spoke his name was enough to make his skin crawl.  Words caught in his throat as he watched the massive man sheathe his katana, not bothering to wipe the scarlet that stained the blade.  What could he possibly say?  What curse could he fling at the man who had once broken his husband?  What words could encompass his emotions towards the creature that had murdered two of his children?
Somehow, he dried his eyes, refusing to shed another tear.  He could not spare any energy, any ounce of thought, on Sonoe and Naoaki or else he would be lost.  Tears could not hinder his vision, cries and screams could not rob him of those precious breaths his body fought so hard for.  Not for what he had in mind.  His grip tightening on the kunai in his hand - his only weapon - Iruka knew there was at least one promise he could keep.
"I will kill you."
A laugh echoed through the trees at Iruka's words.  That hollow, dark sound made the hair on his nape stand up.  Despite the anger that burned in his belly, he felt a flicker of fear.  So far, that monster had landed several blows.  Crisscrossed marks across his back from Takeshi's katana burned as a reminder, as did his right shoulder where he had been impaled.  Bruises and scrapes were there as well, but they were nothing in comparison to the injuries that now threatened to suck the life out of him before he had a chance to keep that promise.  In return, what had he done?  He had landed a few punches and kicks, yes, but they were nowhere near close enough to kill, or even slow down, his opponent.
He did not have the strength or energy for a long, drawn out battle, not with his injuries.  He did not have Kakashi's speed or cunning.  He did not have the power his husband, his brother, and other shinobi were know for.  He was no genius, calculating, measuring, weighing out his odds.  He was an academy teacher.  He was a trickster without the luxury of time to lay out a trap.  But, he was also something Takeshi had not planned on.
He was a man the shinobi of Konoha knew to never piss off.
"I'd like to see you try."
With that, Iruka somehow found the strength to push off of the tree, racing towards Takeshi.  Powered by an unholy rage, he ran at the man who had dared to harm those most precious to him.  From the widening of those black eyes, Takeshi had not anticipated his burst of energy.  He had not accounted for the speed at which Iruka came at him.  Surprise giving him the upper hand, Iruka grinned as he felt the blade in his hand meet its target.  Tearing through layers of material as though it was softened butter, the kunai did not stop until it was embedded in Takeshi's broad chest.
An inhuman roar rang in his ears as Iruka found himself being thrown backwards several feet.  It took a few seconds for the pain in his abdomen to register as being from the powerful punch that sent him flying.  Iruka had not even seen the giant move, much less hit him with such force.
It took every ounce of strength he had to twist so that he landed on his feet. Almost as soon as he felt firm earth beneath him, he doubled over, clutching his middle as searing agony struck him.  He did not have to press down against his side to feel the new mobility his ribs now had.  And, from the pain tearing through his right side, he could only guess he had severely damaged one or more organs.
Another hit from Takeshi and his monstrous strength would likely prove fatal.
With that knowledge, Iruka stood up to his full height to watch as the giant ripped the kunai out of his left breast.  His belly fluttered with unease as he watched Takeshi laugh, tossing the bloodied kunai in his hand.  There was no immediate death proving Iruka had pierced his heart, nor was there spurting blood from the open wound to suggest Iruka had at least nicked a major artery.  The bastard did not even have the decency to pale in the slightest to show that he was heavily bleeding.
Now, with no weapon, Iruka knew there was no chance.  However impossible it was before, somewhere he had held that tiny flicker of hope that he could kill Takeshi without forfeiting his own life.  Somewhere deep within his heart, he had prayed that he would see Kakashi and Saki once again.  But now?  Now without any weapon, how could he take that monster's life without giving his own in return?  How else could he get close enough to steal a blade?  What other way was there than to give Takeshi an opening, to let the giant close enough to steal the sheathed katana at his side or a kunai from the pouch strapped to his thigh?
All he needed would be a few seconds, just a blink of the eye.  And he knew he would get at least that.  From that dark look, filled with hatred and rage, that the giant aimed at him, Iruka knew his death would not be a quick one.  No, Takeshi wanted to take his time.  If the monster had any say in it, Iruka would be tortured before he finally met his end.
So be it.
Iruka did not feel fear as he shifted to the balls of his feet, preparing to rush towards Takeshi.  He did not feel ill at the thought of killing another being.  No, all he felt in those moments was regret.
He would never again get to watch in awe as an elite jounin crawled on the floor with his squealing son on his back.  He would never catch a glimpse of the man everyone once thought to be cold and emotionless as he watched their son sleep, his eyes filled with the very emotions others thought him incapable of.  He would never again wake up to those feather-light kisses on his bare skin.  He would never feel the deep rumbling of his husband's laughter as he laid in those powerful arms.
He would never get to hear Saki's first full sentence or help him write his first words.  He would never see his child off on his first day at the academy.  He would never get to feel a father's pride as his son graduated and was promoted through the shinobi ranks.  He would never get to meet the wonderful man his son would one day become.
That thought - the knowledge that he would miss out on everything in his son's life - was what made anger ignite in his chest, burning away the compassion he had once been known for.  His fists trembled in hatred for the man who had stolen so much from their family.
"Impressive, Iruka."  Takeshi studied the bloody blade with interest.  "I did not expect so much...fire from you."
Iruka watched in a mixture of morbid fascination and unease as the man began walking towards him.  Those steps were slow, calculated, but what truly frightened him was how familiar that walk was.  Every move the man made screamed of not the giant, evil creature before him, but someone Iruka knew as well as himself.  Every graceful, languid step, every shift of his hips, the slump of his shoulders, and even the way he held his head - it was as though he was staring at his husband in someone else's body.
A smile slowly stretched across those scarred lips as he saw the flicker of fearful recognition in Iruka's eyes.  "Kakashi never told you what village I came from."  It was not a question, but a statement laced with so much certainty that it made Iruka uneasy.  The familiarity with which Takeshi spoke of him and his husband was more than unsettling.
"W-Where?" Iruka asked, his voice cracking as he shifted, keeping his eyes glued on the tall man as Takeshi slowly walked around him.  The man wore no hitai-ate to suggest his allegiance, nor did his features speak of any particular region.
"It was a small place, only a few hundred of us.  Kagegakure."  The Hidden Village of Shadow. Iruka furrowed his eyebrows, having never heard of such a shinobi village.  "No one is left except me...your husband and his ANBU teams made sure of that.  First, he killed our leader, my father...others were killed during Kakashi's capture.  Then, there was the team sent to retrieve his worthless body...an attack I barely escaped.  The rest of my village was not so lucky when they sent several ANBU teams to slaughter every living person within our walls.  Your village feared our abilities...though I doubt even Kakashi was aware of everything we were capable of..."
Iruka unconsciously stepped back as the tall man moved closer to him, close enough for him to now study the changes in his facial features as his eyes hardened in anger in a way that eerily mirrored how Kakashi appeared when furious.  As he continued speaking, Takeshi circled him with that painfully familiar gait.
"From birth, we were trained to live in the shadows.  We were renowned spies...we were treated like gods during the shinobi wars when villages would pay fortunes for any information on their enemies.  When the wars ended, we realized our power.  Why should we simply sit on the sidelines and do as others bid?  So, my father began gathering his most elite.  We trained to be the best in espionage, to become our targets' very shadows...to live as them, to breathe as them, to hear every word, to see everything.
"Could you imagine the kind of power we would hold, knowing everything the kages knew?  Knowing every detail of their defense, of their plan of attack?  Every village secret...every personal detail of our target's life."
"Someone would have sensed you," Iruka whispered as his heart raced, realizing with each pass, Takeshi's circling path was getting smaller, moving him ever closer to the chuunin.  He was nearly close enough to reach out and touch Iruka, but the giant took his time, his steps slowing as he made another circuit.  Finally, Takeshi came to stop in front of him, his dark eyes filled with terrifying emotions Iruka could not even begin to name.
"That is where you're wrong...a blood pact was all we needed to even have our chakra shadow theirs.  I was to be the first to test it out, but we needed someone high-ranking.  We needed a someone who had every security clearance, who was part of every secret meeting...we were not yet ready to test our plan on a kage...but an ANBU captain...that was perfect."
A frigid cold spread through Iruka's belly as Takeshi laughed.  Had he had anything in his stomach, he would have brought it up as he thought about the implication of Takeshi's words.  It was always a trap.  That failed mission...it had been a trap for Kakashi the entire time.
"Y-You..."
"We started rumors of amassing an army.  The perfect bait for an ANBU captain who was said to be very cocky...taking chances no sane person would. My father gave his life for our cause...and it paid off.
"Every time I made him bleed, my bond to him grew stronger...but to complete the blood pact, he had to voluntarily draw my blood." Iruka's gaze flickered up to the four marks tearing across his face as Takeshi's scarred lips twisted into a sadistic smile, revealing a perfect row of sharpened teeth.  "We just had to loosen his bindings one day.  After that, it was almost as easy as breathing to lie in his shadow, watching as he prayed for death."
Iruka felt sick as he realized the man before him had not just tormented Kakashi for that month of captivity.  No, the familiarity with which Takeshi spoke of Kakashi, the perfect imitation of his husband's movements...that spoke of years of following the Copy Cat Ninja.
"After he was brought back to Konoha, I heard whispers...my village had been destroyed with everyone in it.  My innocent children were butchered.  No one was left alive...those few who escaped were hunted down like animals and slaughtered.  I was all that was left..."  Hatred contorted his features into a frightening picture as he gave a smile that had no joy or happiness, only vicious revenge.  "That little bastard had cost me the lives of my people, my family...so when no one was around, I would whisper in his ear.  I would remind him of every time I fucked him bloody, every sad attempt he made of escape us, every plea, every moan...I made him remember how weak and pitiful he was.
"I lost count how many times he tried to kill himself...and would have succeeded had it not been for that moron always saving him.  Over time, it got harder and harder to break him...that bubbly idiot of his, making him want to live."  He spat out that last word as if it left a sour taste in his mouth.
Iruka owed so much to Gai, for everything the man had done for that boy he had once saved.  How could he ever thank Kakashi's best friend for, at one time, being the only thing that kept Kakashi alive, for bringing him back to sanity?  At least Gai would be there once again for his best friend.  Iruka was now certain he would not be returning home.  Not while Takeshi still drew breath.
"I was about to change my plans and just kill him myself...but one day, he bumped into a kid who made him a complete stammering, blushing idiot.  He started following that brat, trying to figure out why he felt all warm and fuzzy whenever he was near." The giant sneered before letting out a laugh that made Iruka swallow heavily.  "If only he hadn't decided on going on his fuck-fest after hearing about his sterility...I would have slaughtered his little love interest and made him watch so he knew...so he knew that he was the reason the boy was dead.  To take away everything he held most dear...that became my revenge.  So I was patient, watching, listening, learning...just waiting for him to finally fall in love so I could destroy him.  So I could take everything away from him like he did to me."
Iruka gasped as he felt a breeze ruffle though his hair, then a warm touch against his cheek as the giant closed the distance between them in a blink of an eye.  He froze as Takeshi's thumb brushed against his scar, his touch so similar in movement to Kakashi's that it left the chuunin feeling sick.  Despite the fear that gripped him, he tilted his head up so that he could see those dark eyes as the tall man studied him.
Takeshi had not only learned information about Kakashi's life.  He had years to learn to mirror the jounin's speed and accuracy.  He had nearly a lifetime of training to match his movements so perfectly, Iruka's body now was having difficulty reminding him that those were not his husband's fingers on his cheek.
"Imagine my surprise to see that little boy he fell for was all grown up..."  The gentlest of touches ran along his scar.  If Iruka had to put words to the touch, he would have called it sweet had it come from his husband.  Such a caress coming from Takeshi, on the other hand, made Iruka shiver as he started to understand.  All those years ago, he had been the one who had nearly died before Kakashi's eyes just to cause the jounin pain.
And Kakashi had never once told him about his teenage crush.  He never mentioned that he used to follow Iruka, too afraid and confused to admit his feelings the young academy teacher.  Too tongue-tied to ask him on a date.  Too nervous to even have Iruka see him.  Iruka understood why his husband never mentioned that time.  Kakashi never spoke of those months following his return other than a sentence here and there.  He would have been too embarrassed to tell Iruka that he had once followed him like a lovesick puppy, never working up the courage to approach him.
What hurt even more than his husband's silence on the matter was the fact Iruka did not remember any of it.  He could not recall bumping into Kakashi as a teenager.  He had no memory of running into a silver-haired jounin and having his heart skip a beat when he looked into his visible eye.  No lingering curiosity over the handsome teen he had met in passing.  He did not remember anything of a chance meeting that had left such a profound impact on the man he would one day fall in love with.
"Not only did he still have feelings for you...but a child.  It was too perfect, too easy."  Iruka's stomach turned as he thought of all the times Kakashi slept near their son, never knowing in his shadow lived a monster, just waiting, biding his time.  Takeshi could have killed Saki without ever tripping an alarm or setting off a trap.  His chakra, so perfectly mirrored to Kakashi's, would have left no one the wiser.  And, after how long would even his scent match the silver-haired shinobi he followed?  No, there would have been no evidence of an intruder.
A sickening knot in his stomach formed as he recalled the one time he feared for Saki's life.  There had been no unfamiliar scent, no clues left behind, just the terrifying truth that his son had gone missing.  Had Saki truly transported himself or did the beast before him have something to do with his son's brief absence?  Takeshi answered the unspoken question with a laugh.
"That little brat...it was too easy to take Kakashi's form and take him.  He did not realize I wasn't his daddy until I had him halfway to Mist, where I had some business partners who were very interested in a rumor about a child being born of two men.  They were willing to pay me quite a hefty sum for the boy, alive.  If only he hadn't figured out how to transport himself..."
Iruka felt ill as he stumbled back, jerking his face away from the man's gentle touch.  He had very nearly lost Saki and would have never known why.  The thought his infant child could transport himself was frightening enough, but Iruka would have preferred the innocent lie to the truth of Sakumo's disappearance.  It pained him to know now just how close this monster had gotten to destroying his family in the past.
Kakashi had torn his past apart those painful hours when Saki was missing, trying to remember someone - anyone - who would have stolen his son for revenge.  Old lovers, enemies, mercenaries - Iruka had heard the list was endless.  But Kakashi had never once thought of Takeshi.  Why would he have?  The monster was supposed to have been killed years ago.
Kakashi had never considered the possibility Takeshi survived.  If he had, would today have turned out differently?  Would the twins still be alive if Kakashi had thought of Takeshi in calculating the risk of going into hiding for the final months of his pregnancy?  Or would he have instead agreed to bodyguards, remaining in the village where he might have been better protected?
"All these years...I have learned to be patient, biding my time.  Kakashi decided to propose...how much more would it hurt to lose his husband than a boyfriend?  Then the twins?  He was just making it better and better.  But you had to have those two brats move in...if I did anything while they were around, I wouldn't have escaped."
Iruka swallowed heavily at those words.  Takeshi wanted to not simply hurt Kakashi, but to destroy him completely.  There would be no healing from losing his children and his husband and knowing their murderer was Takeshi.  Kakashi, no matter what anyone told him, would blame himself for their deaths.
Takeshi would have had his perfect revenge.  He would not have to do anything to Kakashi directly. Iruka knew his stubborn, loyal husband may not survive such a loss.  Iruka's stomach turned as he wondered if Konoha would have lost one of its greatest shinobi to his own hand or on some impossible mission Kakashi took, knowing he would not be returning home.
At least Takeshi's plan had partially failed.  He would never harm a hair on Saki's head.  Not as long as Iruka still had breath in his body.  He would not let the monster escape; he would not give him the opportunity to hurt Iruka's family one more time.  With Saki alive, Kakashi wouldn't do something stupid.  Would he?  Iruka had a flicker of uncertainty as he thought on that.  His husband was a genius, but sometimes he was an idiot of epic proportions.  Would he think, by ending his own life, he would be protecting Saki?  Without him alive, did Kakashi believe his old enemies would not come after his only surviving child?  Or would Kakashi remember what it was like to grow up as an orphan?  Would he do anything to save their son that kind of loneliness and pain?
Kakashi was strong, but was he strong enough to live for both of them?
If he survived this, Iruka was going to set some ground rules with his proud, aggravatingly honorable husband.  The first of those was going to be never leaving Saki to grow up alone as long as they had a choice.
"Can you imagine how frustrating it was to see him so deliriously happy?  Married, children...a family?  Everything he took away from me and others in my village, he got to enjoy.  But then my associates in Mist...they contacted me.  Word of Uchiha Keiko had reached them...a child with demonic abilities...who would one day have the Sharingan!  There was no way I could steal her away like they wanted - your little brat was always there, protecting her...he would have been screaming the moment I showed myself.  So my contacts told me about a rumor...a heavily shielded area your brother and his bitch created.  Because of the shields, they were never able to find it...but I could.  Someone just had to show Kakashi where it was.  It was too easy to convince him to go into hiding - a whisper in his ear, a movement out of the corner of his eye.  Kakashi's always been the skittish one.  My plan was perfect - get you in a place where it would be just you, Kakashi, and your precious little son, too far to easily call for help, too heavily shielded for you to escape.  In return for the information about this place, I just had to lead them here.  I never asked what they wanted, but it must be something to do with the Uchiha considering how much they hate him.  Something about killing off their snake leader; I never really cared about their reasons."
Iruka's blood ran cold at those words.  There were still followers of Orochimaru out there.  Sasuke had worked so hard to rid the world of them; Iruka had to let him know that there was still a group of them in Mist!  He had to tell the young man that they were plotting something, planning a revenge against him.  He had to tell them that their daughter was not safe.
The brunet shifted, a hasty plan forming in his head.  He couldn't die here.  He had to warn Sasuke; he had to smack sense into his husband before Kakashi did something stupid.  He had to live to see Sakumo grow up.  His eyes flickered to the weapons pouch strapped to Takeshi's thigh.  He was a prankster in the past.  He had learned so many slight-of-hand tricks to entertain Naruto with when he was little and for his countless pranks.  He had learned to pick-pocket shinobi without them ever being the wiser until Iruka waved a scroll, their hitai-ate or whatever else he had stolen from them in front of their face.  He just had to distract Takeshi, just for a second.
This time, he would make sure he stabbed that monster in his black heart.
"Don't forget, Iruka...I've known you as long as Kakashi has...I can read you just as well as he can."  Iruka's heart plummeted into his stomach as he watched Takeshi take a step back, removing the weapons pack from his leg.  His plans were dashed as he watched the pouch fly into the woods.  It would take a miracle for him to find those blades in the thick carpet of leaves before Takeshi caught up with him.
But he still had to try.  Without warning, Iruka pushed off the forest floor, racing in the direction of the discarded weapons.  He did not make it more than a few feet before he sensed Takeshi behind him.  He could hear the pounding of the giant's feet as the distance between them lessened.  He wasn't going to make it.
Suddenly, Takeshi was gone.  So startled, Iruka skidded to a stop and spun around.  Confusion battled with unease as his eyes sought for that dark form, but the giant was nowhere to be found.  Hesitantly, Iruka took a step towards the discarded kunai pouch, but froze when he heard Takeshi's evil laugh echo around him.
Iruka swallowed heavily as he looked at the forest surrounding him.  It was barely dawn, the sky shifting from black to pinks and oranges as the sun slowly started making its appearance.  Though the sun had yet to rise, its light had begun to shine, creating countless shadows all around him.  "Shadows..." Iruka whispered to himself as he unconsciously took a step back. 
Takeshi could have be anywhere, hiding in the shadows the trees cast against the ground.  The Nara clan could control shadows...but to become one?  To be able to hide oneself so completely that not even their energy could be sensed?  Shinobi from Kagegakure would have been able to hide anywhere, infiltrate any compound, listen in on any conversation.  Nothing and no one would have been safe.  Iruka was starting to understand why the Third would have ordered the slaughter of their entire village.
"You're smarter than I gave you credit for, Iruka." Though he could not pinpoint where that deep voice came from, Iruka could tell it was coming from somewhere to his left.  The hair at the nape of his neck rose; it was the only hint he had that Takeshi had emerged from the shadows.  Without any other warning, the left side of his face exploded in pain as Iruka was thrown towards the forest floor.  He did not know where he found the energy, but he somehow caught himself before he hit the ground and staggered back to a standing position.  Iruka reflexively twisted, bending backwards just fast enough to dodge a massive fist as it came towards him.  Iruka did not get the chance to breathe as he moved purely out of instinct, dodging limbs as they came flying at him.
He had sparred with his husband before.  He knew those quick punches and even faster kicks.  He had learned to never be on the receiving end if he could help it.  Iruka found he was able to just barely keep out of Takeshi's reach.  But Takeshi was too fast for him to even attempt to mount an offensive.  Iruka did not know where he found the speed to continue jumping out of path of the man's deadly fists and feet.  Gasping for air, he pulled on every last reserve he had as he twisted, but he was slowing.  Takeshi's fist brushed against his side with his last punch.
Kakashi had never attacked him like this.  He had never been this relentless...this ruthless.  Kakashi could tell when Iruka had had enough and would give him the chance to breathe.  He would hit with only a fraction of his strength.  In that moment, Iruka hated his husband for ever going easy on him.  Had he known just how out of his league he was when sparring his husband, he might have been able to come up with ways around his husband's speed - anything to level the playing field.  Instead, now he fought a man who moved identically to his husband and Iruka knew that if he made a mistake, if he was just a split second off, he would never see his family again.
Suddenly, his legs crumpled from underneath him as his back exploded in pain.  Falling forwards, he could not even find the strength to catch himself, his limbs instantaneously feeling as if they weighed a ton.  His lungs screamed for air as he gasped, unable to even breathe from the pain that now burned through him.
Iruka barely registered the cool, damp leaves against his cheek before he was rolled over.  He gritted his teeth to keep from crying out in agony as weight was put on his back, reminding him of the deep lacerations he had received.  He tried to ignore the searing pain in his chest where he had been stabbed.  What had Takeshi done to him?  Cracking open an eye and seeing a flicker of surprise on his attacker's face was not what he expected.  Whatever had just hit him, it had not been Takeshi's doing.
It was then Iruka realized how little chakra he had.  He used almost all of his chakra to heal his husband as best he could, then to transport Kakashi back to Konoha.  He had slowly started replenishing his stores with his husband's chakra, though it was a slow process.  It would take hours before he would have enough energy to be able to transport himself, but it had been enough energy to start healing, or at the very least easing the pain of his injuries.
Now it was as though his husband's borrowed energy had been sucked out of him, leaving him completely drained as the full extent of his wounds pinned him to the forest floor.  But that was impossible!  He had had a seemingly endless supply of his husband's chakra to pull on whenever he needed it for two years now.  Kakashi had refused to reverse the flow or to remove the seal, even when pregnant.  Kakashi had explained time and again that it was such an insignificant drain on him that he barely even noticed it.  Iruka had not fought him on the matter, understanding it made him worry less knowing that Iruka was protected, and the brunet would have done anything to ease his husband's fears.
That constant slow flow of Kakashi's chakra into him had become such a part of him, it was painful to have that tie to his husband severed so abruptly.  But it was nothing compared to the agony of understanding why he no longer was connected to the man he loved.  From the state Kakashi had been in when he was transported back to Konoha, he would not have been able to sever their connection by voluntarily dismantling the seal.  Had it been his husband's reserves ran out, it would have been more gradual.  The flooding of Kakashi's energy into him would have slowed to a trickle before stopping completely.
There was only one reason his husband's chakra did not simply stop transferring to him, but vanished completely, leaving him barely able to breathe from his injuries, much less have the strength to move.
Kakashi! No...
His vision wavered even as Iruka shook his head in disbelief.  It couldn't be.  He had transported Kakashi to the hospital; Tsunade and Sakura would have taken care of him!  But the cold emptiness that slowly filtered through him proved otherwise.  Even as tears began to roll down his cheeks, hatred for the man who killed his husband began to burn in his chest.
"Well, well."  Iruka focused on the man who spoke with such a lightness in his voice.  "Three down...two to go."  As he spoke, Takeshi squatted down, his large hand moving to cup the brunet's cheek.  Iruka could not even muster the energy to pull away from that touch as Takeshi brushed away a tear from his face.  "Too bad...I was looking forward to having a little more time with Kakashi..."
"Y-You bastard..." Iruka snarled between clenched teeth.  If only he could find the strength to lift his arms to choke the smug monster.  Takeshi laughed at his words, amused with his spirit.  "You will never get close to Sakumo..."  Of that, Iruka was certain.  If he did not return to Konoha, he knew Naruto and Sasuke would protect his last child with everything they had. Saki would never be in danger of an attack as long as he was in Konoha and, by the time he would be old enough to take missions and leave the safety of the village, his genius son would be more than able to protect himself.
Takeshi tsked as he shook his head.  "I've killed two of your children and your famous husband in one day and yet you still underestimate me, Iruka.  Don't forget...I've had years to plan my revenge."  Iruka struggled to move, but he could not even manage to lift his arms off of the ground, much less attack the man laughing at his feeble attempts.
In horror, Iruka watched as Takashi brought his hands up to his lips and whispered so softly, the brunet did not hear his words.  The cloud of smoke that, for a brief moment, hid the man from view warned Iruka of what Takeshi had done.  The knowledge his attacker performed a henge, however, did not prepare him for what he saw as the smoke dissipated.
The shock momentarily stole his breath as he found himself staring into a perfect copy of himself.  His double smiled, his chuckle filling Iruka's ears.  Hearing his own laughter coming from such a monster made him sick.  "Kakashi was not the only one I have been shadowing..." A flicker of fear ran through Iruka as he watched Takeshi blushed, nervously scratching the back of his head, in a perfect imitation of Iruka when he was embarrassed.  Everything, from the smallest hint of a smile to the way he held himself and the inflection in his voice, it was as though Iruka was staring at himself in the mirror or one of his best dopplegangers.  Except this copy was not under his control, and that was what terrified Iruka most of all.
Iruka doubted Naruto could even tell the physical difference.  But Naruto would sense the difference in chakra, wouldn't he?  His blood ran cold as he recalled Takeshi's earlier comment about blood pacts and how Kakashi had unknowingly signed that agreement by tearing apart the man's face all those years ago.  Takeshi had certainly drawn his blood as he opened up Iruka's back and pierced his lung.  His gaze moved to the shinobi's chest, where he could see a dark stain spreading across his green shirt.  Takeshi followed his gaze, a tanned hand moving up to touch the dark mark gingerly.  When he pulled his hand back, Iruka could clearly see the red on his fingertips.
Iruka watched as Takeshi smiled.  But this was not a smile that had ever graced Iruka's face.  No, the grin that twisted his face into a wholly unfamiliar expression was filled with pure evil.  It was a look that made the brunet's heart race and his hair to stand on end.
"Pity...I should have been more careful not to kill him...I was looking forwards to fucking that tight ass of his.  I bet he would have been so relieved to see his beloved Iruka...so broken up over the twins, he'd do anything I asked."  Hearing those words, said in his own voice, made Iruka see red.  Bile burned the back of the brunet's throat at the thought of Takeshi tricking his husband, making Kakashi believe that monster was him.  Offhandedly, his copy added "it's too bad you never got to fuck him.  You would have loved it.  I never lasted long once he started screaming."
Takeshi's words made him sick.  If Kakashi had ever offered such a precious gift to him, Iruka would have showed him something other than the pain and fear his husband had only known before.  He would have waited a lifetime for his husband to ask him, but he would have been perfectly fine if Kakashi never made that request.  As long as he had his husband's love, he would have been happy.
Iruka felt violated as he thought of all those private, personal moments that monster was privy to.  How could such an evil being exist?  How could he hold onto that hatred for so many years?  He couldn't let Takeshi escape, not now realizing what his double had planned for his revenge.  If he could imitate Iruka perfectly, no one would worry about the brunet spending time with his son...they would leave him alone with Saki.  They would assume Saki's odd behavior and cries were because of the death of his father, not that the boy could sense that the brunet who returned was not his father.  No, no one would ever think his son was in danger.  They would never know until it was too late that Iruka had been replaced by a monster.
Iruka's eyes widened slightly when he saw his kunai in Takeshi's hand moving towards him.  Slowly, purposefully, Takeshi began drawing an abstract pattern across Iruka's chest, putting just enough pressure to cut away his shirt, leaving his skin bare.  Then, as he continued speaking, Takeshi began applying more pressure, the blade digging into Iruka's skin in a seemingly random design, sometimes just enough to scratch, others enough to draw a gasp from the chuunin.  "With Kakashi out of the way...maybe I will let the boy live.  Think of what that little genius could do if raised in the right...environment.  Train him.  Make him hate your precious Konoha as much as I do."
Rage boiled his blood at the thought of Takeshi being allowed anywhere near Sakumo.  He would never let Takeshi near his beautiful, innocent, and impressionable son.  He just needed that damn blade and a way to somehow muster up enough strength to attack the man leaning over him.
"I just need one little thing to make sure your brother doesn't get too suspicious..."  Iruka's gaze flickered from Takeshi's smile to the blade as it trailed along his left arm, leaving a bloody line in its wake.  "I may look like you, sound like you...move like you.  But I have not followed you for as long as I have with Kakashi...there may be some things I make mistakes on, names or faces I do not know...that brother of yours is perceptive...he'll eventually wonder.  Our pact will make sure Sasuke will never see through the henge.  They will never figure out my chakra is not yours.  But Naruto will, at some point, check to make sure this is real and not an illusion."
Iruka did not get the chance to wonder what 'this' was.  He did not have the time to register the kunai had lifted off of his palm.  He had only a flash of unease as his heart raced before his hand exploded in pain.  Iruka could not hold back the scream that echoed throughout the otherwise silent forest.  His eyes watered as he gasped for air, finding the strength to turn just enough to look at the source of his pain and the kunai sticking out of the bloody mess that had once been his hand.
"There! Perfect fit!"  That happy statement was said with a chuckle.  Iruka's vision swam in tears as he looked to his tormentor and the piece of jewelry that he was admiring on his left ring finger.  No longer did that silver band's diamonds glisten.  No, every crack and crevice was now filled with crimson, giving the ring a grotesque, scarlet sheen.
His vision turned as red as the blood that stained his engagement ring.  All he knew was that there was a blade cutting through his hand and Takeshi was no longer paying attention to him.  Fueled by rage, he found the energy to move.  Before his perfect copy had a chance to register Iruka moving his left hand, Iruka gripped the warm handle, slick with blood, and pulled it from the earth.  The weight of the metal felt good in his hand, momentarily distracting him from the burning pain.  Before Takeshi realized what he had planned, Iruka moved into action.
Iruka despised needless violence; he hated taking a life.  But he felt a momentary rush of pure joy as he buried the sharp kunai in Takeshi's chest, dragging a surprised gasp out of the monster.  Blinded by emotions he dare not even name, Iruka twisted, flipping his perfect copy onto the ground and pinning him there even as he wrenched the kunai from his chest before plunging it back into his attacker's frame.  Every wet, thick squelch as he stabbed Takeshi was drowned out by an inhuman scream.
Iruka did not know when the henge had been dropped or when he had stopped screaming, only that he could finally see past the rage and hatred for the man beneath him.  It was then that he heard the sound of laughter, twisted and harsh.  Looking down at the large man he straddled, Iruka saw the red that stained everything beneath him. He watched in a morbid sense of satisfaction as crimson erupted from Takeshi's chest with each rattling chuckle.
"Y-You will not s-survive..."
Iruka would have laughed at that statement.  He sat above a man who, even now, soaked the ground with his own blood.  It would not be long until Takeshi bled out.  In comparison, Iruka was badly injured, but he would heal with time - time that he now had.
The realization that he had won - that he had defeated Takeshi and survived - was a bittersweet one.  He would never meet the twins.  Those two beautiful lives were extinguished, gone as though they never even existed at all.  But Iruka would always remember.  He would always recall how the twins battled one another, kicking their poor father until he was breathless.  How he had loved feeling them move against his fingers, as though they recognized his touch.  He had loved them from the moment he knew of their existence and no length of time would decrease that love for the children he had lost.  He would always miss them.  He would always wonder who they would have grown up to be, who they would have become.
And Kakashi.  Tears blurred his vision as he thought of his husband. Even now, the lack of chakra was painfully obvious.  Perhaps he was wrong and Kakashi did inactivate the seal.  If only he was that lucky!  But Iruka knew in his heart the painful reality.  Kakashi would never break their connection, especially when he knew Iruka was battling for his very life.
Purely out of habit, he looked down at left hand.  He had loved wearing his engagement ring, admiring the piece of jewelry that stood as a reminder of everything he and Kakashi had been to each other.  But, instead of the band of diamonds, he only saw a bloody stump where his ring finger had once been.  Understanding how Takeshi had gotten his engagement ring off so easily - and the source of the burning ache in his hand - did not ease the pain of knowing the man who had given him such a precious gift was gone.
Iruka looked down to the man who, even with his dying breaths, continued to laugh.  It was a sound that tore at him.  For all he had lost today, the sound of Takeshi's laughter was like countless stabs to the heart.  Something dark and terrible overtook him in those moments as he tightened his grip on the bloodied kunai in his hand.  Unable to stand letting Takeshi have one more single moment of enjoyment at his family's expense, Iruka looked down at the man who had taken so much from him.
With no more than a single thought, he tore the blade through Takeshi's neck, forever silencing the monster.  Iruka closed his eyes as a spray of warm blood hit his face, filling his senses with the taste and smell of iron.  Even as the wet last gurgles, then complete silence, filled his ears, Iruka felt no satisfaction.  He felt no joy.  He felt only emptiness in his heart for the family he had lost today.
Wiping away the gore splattered across his face, Iruka opened his eyes and looked down.  His stomach turned as he saw the blood that covered Takeshi's body and stained his own hands a bright crimson.  The smell of death filled his nostrils as he weakly sat back on his heels, his shoulders slumping in exhaustion.  Every ragged, sharp breath he drew from his battered lungs served as a painful reminder that he could not stay here.  He had to get back to Konoha, back to what little family he had left.
Slowly, he shifted, his gaze coming to fall on Takeshi's left hand where his engagement ring bit into the man's much larger finger now that the henge had been dispelled.  He refused to leave behind that precious reminder of the husband he had lost.  There was no way he could get his ring over that massive knuckle.  A flicker of disgust hit him even as he tightened his grip around the kunai, knowing what he had to do to get his ring back.  He tried to pretend he was just cutting a piece of meat, but he still tasted bile as the kunai cut through flesh, only meeting a moment of resistance as he cut through the joint before he severed the digit completely.  Swallowing heavily, he fought the urge to vomit as he wrestled to pull his engagement ring off of Takeshi's unattached finger.  Though the digit was slick with blood, the ring would not budge.
Without warning, the earth beneath him shook, throwing Iruka to the ground and sending the severed finger, along with Iruka's engagement ring, rolling across the forest floor.  Almost as soon as he scrambled back up to look around for his ring, the sound of an explosion hit his ears.  Iruka spun in the direction of the loud boom.  He did not get the chance to wonder what had happened before a second, then a third explosion shook the forest.
The echoing crack of trees falling to the ground was deafening.  Iruka staggered as the ground continued to rumble with every explosion as they became closer and closer together until he was barely able to keep his balance, much less dodge as the first nearby tree began to fall towards him.  He nearly was flattened as the trunk came down, its bark scraping against his ravaged back as he rolled out of the way.  He continued to move as the crackling of burning wood hit his ears and heat began to surround him.  Iruka fought to regain his footing even as he had to jump back to avoid a fiery branch as it fell to the forest floor.
Somehow, he got his second wind as energy flooded into him, giving him the strength to dodge as another tree came crashing down towards him.  There was no way he could stay here, unless he wanted to be crushed by a tree or burned to death.  Chakra pumped into his limbs as he ran as fast as he could.
Iruka did not spare a thought for the source of the explosions.  His mind was focused on avoiding the forest that was crashing down around him.  His heart pounded, drowning out the sounds of the forest being torn apart.  All he could feel were his lungs screaming as he gasped for air.  His eyes stung as the air around him quickly darkened with smoke that burned his nostrils.  The smoke thickened until he was choking on the air, his throat burning from hot ash.
All that mattered was that he escape.  Somewhere in his mind, he had already run through his options.  The house would provide no safety from the explosions, much less the growing fires.  He had no idea how much of the forest had been rigged to explode or how far he would have to run to get away from the destruction.  An image flickered in his mind of the river that ran through the forest.  Water would provide some protection from the fires and the strong current would move him faster than his own legs.  That was his only chance.
Iruka ran, praying his new-found strength would not run out before he reached the river.  He did not have to wonder where the sudden influx of energy had come from.  After all this time, he recognized Kakashi's chakra as easily as his own.
He's alive!
Tear that had nothing to do with the ash blurred his vision as his feet pounded against the forest floor.  Takeshi had not killed him!  Words could not describe the mixture of sheer joy and pain that coursed through him.  He could see Kakashi again, but it would be a bittersweet reunion.  Together, they could mourn the loss of their children.  Perhaps it was selfish of him, but Iruka was grateful beyond words that he did not have to go through such a horror alone.