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'Genma, Radiou, good work. You 're dismissed, ' Hiruzen ordered before he took a puff on his pipe and expelled it. His eyes settled on the last man in the room while the Jounin bowed before leaving through the door like civilized shinobi. Kakashi no Sharingan held Icha Icha Paradise close to his nose until the moment Hiruzen activated the seal on his desk to the highest privacy setting. The ANBU shadows watching disappeared accordingly. Kakashi replaced his book in his flak jacket and gave his Hokage his full attention.

'Did you see them? ' Hiruzen questioned.

'Yes, ' Kakashi assented with a nod; his hands were shoved into his pockets as he slouched. His one visible eye was serious and keenly focused, contradicting his open body language.

'Report, ' Hiruzen commanded. He raised an eyebrow when Kakashi gave a full-bodied sigh.

Jiraiya had been sent out nearly a month ago to meet with a dangerous S-Class nin. Hiruzen had received a messenger toad that the meeting had occurred and gone well but that the toad sage had agreed to accompany the man on some final "errands" before he could join Konoha. Hiruzen read between the lines and suspected that Jiraiya had joined the 'errands ' to verify the man 's identity further, though the note had been sparse on the details.

There had been no other communications from the Sannin until two days prior. Hiruzen had received word that Jiraiya and the Uzumaki were making their way back to Konoha coming from Kusa. As Kakashi had led an important courier mission near the border, Hiruzen had tasked the man with a second mission. He ordered the copycat nin to observe Uzumaki from afar and report back his findings. Hiruzen couldn 't deny he was worried about his recalcitrant student. He wanted to confirm that it was indeed both shinobi making their way to Konoha.

'While Radiou and Genma settled at the inn, I traveled alone to the location Jiraiya-sama often stays at in Kusa. I was able to confirm both Jiraiya-sama and the Uzumaki 's presence ' ' Kakashi uncharacteristically paused, and Hiruzen watched in amazement as the normally stoic man appeared frustrated. 'That man is ' '

Kakashi thought back to the mission. He had expected tracking them to be difficult. They were both high-class nin known for stealth. He had gone to the inn first because it was the most obvious location he could scratch off. He didn 't expect the Uzumaki to be blatantly standing in front of the inn, squinting at the forest as though something about it bothered him. He was clearly an Uzumaki. The moment he saw that dark red hair, Kakashi was thrown back to days with his sensei and Kushina-nee-chan. The man had stood in a deceptively relaxed stance, which could immediately change into an offensive or defensive pose with ease.

The shinobi was experienced, powerful enough to relax in foreign territory alone but wary enough to spring into action. Even so, instead of shinobi clothing, the Uzumaki wore the inn's yukata, a dark navy blue that made his hair stand out even further. His hands had been shoved in the sleeves with his arms crossed over his chest. The blushing red strands of his hair were loose around his shoulders and fell with languid grace. Kakashi had been careful to quiet the part of him that saw the man and made grabby hands. He had suppressed that part of himself before it had ever existed. This was no challenge. Besides the odd one-off and reading Icha Icha Paradise, Kakashi did not give in to the pleasures of the flesh. Still, he could observe it in any case, even in a possible enemy. Kakashi had a fine appreciation of art.

The Uzumaki continued to squint at the trees, but Kakashi didn 't worry about his presence being found. He had been in ANBU, the best of ANBU; he could hide his presence completely. Only a sage or an extremely talented sensing type would be able to find him if he did not wish to be found. Kakashi concluded that it must be something else that drew the man 's attention, even though Kakashi couldn 't sense anything worrying besides himself in the forest.

'Oi, Gaki, ' a voice yelled. Kakashi almost forgot himself and nearly jumped from his position as Jiraiya came roaring out of the inn to slam his fist on top of the strange nin 's head before the man could react. 'You were supposed to keep Hideki busy! Now, Nanami-chan will never play with me! '

Kakashi 's single eye widened as the Uzumaki snarled and threw himself at the toad sage. Kakashi almost went to aid his fellow shinobi but stopped when he looked harder. The two had begun what amounted to a child 's play fight with shinobi-level abilities. This consisted of short jabs, crushing knuckles into the crown of the other head in a headlock, scratching and biting, and dodging each other while throwing taunts. Were they 'playing?

'Oi, she 's got a fianc ' Ero-Sennin, ' the Uzumaki shouted as he ducked beneath a punch to the face and jabbed toward Jiraiya 's stomach only to get him on the side, 'Of course she doesn 't want to 'play. '

'What did you say, Gaki? ' Jiraiya howled as he rained down blows that the redhead dodged with a fierce smile.

'You know your life," the Uzumaki panted before he flipped gracefully over the Sannin and jumped on his back to capture him in a headlock, 'would be far less painful if you just told baa-chan that you looove 'ack, ' Jiraiya flipped the man over his shoulder and onto his back before he straddled him.

The Uzumaki caught the toad sage 's hands before he could choke him, and they began a war of strength, with Jiraiya pushing down and the Uzumaki pushing up. They appeared completely oblivious to the civilians hovering around, horrified.

'Don 't say that Gaki! ' Jiraiya whined. Kakashi thought his face was red more from embarrassment than exertion.

'Why not, ' the Uzumaki growled, pushing hard enough that he could sit up, and Jiraiya had to get up into a crouch above his legs, 'waiting 's stupid! You both are stupid, running away from each other ' '

The Uzumaki pushed until they were both standing, though he was still at a disadvantage. Jiraiya was a tall man, while the redhead was lithe and short-statured. Still, he matched Jiraiya's strength for strength as he ground his teeth together.

'Jiraiya-sama, ' a feminine voice screamed as the front door of the inn shot open with a bang. 'Kuniharu-sama, I told you that if you could not ' 'the slight civilian woman continued to rant at the two shinobi. They both looked visibly cowed as they scrambled away from each other.

'Ah, Nanami-chan, ' Jiraiya tried to soothe her but received a slap to the face instead while the Uzumaki (Kuniharu?) stifled a laugh.

He paled when Nanami shot him a glare, though his mouth twitched again when she started in on Jiraiya once more. The two powerful shinobi allowed themselves to be scolded by the tiny civilian woman. When she demanded they help prepare dinner for the guests in penance for disrupting the peace yet again, Kuniharu intervened.

'I 'll help Nanami-nee-chan, ' Kuniharu volunteered cheerfully, 'Jiraiya-sama has to go talk to someone. '

Kakashi almost fell out of his tree when the nin turned around and pointed straight at him before he waved, a mischievous smile brightening his face.

'Have fun with Copycat-san, Ero-Sennin, ' Kuniharu said cheerfully before he ushered Nanami inside.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes before he looked to where Kuniharu had pointed. He made a discrete hand sign to meet in a clearing that had been a favorite campsite for Team Minato during the Third Shinobi War. Kakashi still felt off-balance as he traveled quickly through the trees. How in the world had the man sensed him there? Kakashi was certain he was invisible. He waited for Jiraiya to join him but was too keyed up even to bring out Icha Icha.

'He 's something, isn 't he? ' Jiraiya announced when he touched down in the clearing and smiled at what amounted to his 'grandchild ' in student terms.

'How? ' Kakashi asked, short and to the point. He was wound up tight but somehow tensed further when Jiraiya gave a full-bellied laugh.

Jiraiya wiped away a tear and then shook his head with a chagrinned smile. 'Well, that, I know the answer to, ' Jiraiya admitted, 'though about everything else he can do, I 'm clueless. No matter how many times the airhead tries and fails to explain. '

Despite the insult, Kakashi could tell there was a deep fondness for the strange man that was abnormal for the sage. Kakashi knew Jiraiya was an affable man, but he kept most people at a distance. Jiraiya stayed a step away from even Kakashi after having been betrayed and disappointed too often in his long life to tolerate the risk of closeness. In less than a month, something about the stranger had broken through that barrier. It was weird, but Kakashi dismissed the idea of an imposter. Only those apart of Team Minato knew the hand sign for this clearing or that Kakashi would know it as well. It was not a detail that an imposter would think to wring out of a prisoner to impersonate him.

'So, what is it? '

'He 's a sage, ' Jiraiya clearly enjoyed how Kakashi 's entire demeanor tensed as his uncovered eye widened, 'and he has better sensing abilities than I do! '

'A sage?! ' Kakashi demanded.

'Yeah, I know, ' Jiraiya huffed as he put his hands on his hips and shrugged, 'it was a shocker for me too. '

'But how? ' Kakashi asked.

He knew it was incredibly difficult to master. He had heard Minato-sensei go back and forth between spending the time necessary to achieve it and weighing the duties he carried as a Jounin and later as Hokage. His teacher had not made up his mind when he sacrificed himself.

'The usual way, ' Jiraiya evaded the question easily, though Kakashi noticed it. Jiraiya grinned before he waved his hand dismissively. 'I 'll tell you and the old man later! I don 't want to leave Kuniharu too long. The fool will seduce half the inn accidentally by the time I get back. The bastard doesn 't even try to do it either! '

Kakashi couldn 't tell if the old toad sage was serious about the dangers of Uzumaki Kuniharu 's charms.

'How did he know it was me? ' Kakashi managed to ask, though his pride still smarted at being so easily found by a nin he had only heard about less than a year ago.

'Dunno, but you 're famous? ' Jiraiya offered, and again, Kakashi could see the toad sage knew more than he was willing to let on.

Kakashi watched as Jiraiya scratched at his ear while looking off to the side.

Finally, he shrugged and looked at Kakashi again. 'I can ask if you want. Or, you can ask him yourself when we get back to the village? '

Kakashi pushed out his sudden desire to probe for more. He was there for a mission, and even though he technically wasn 't ordered to make contact, he might as well get intel out of the meeting now that it had happened.

'How much longer until you 're back? '

Jiraiya crossed his arms and shifted his weight as he thought about the question before answering it. 'We 'll be back in Konoha in two days, ' Jiraiya decided.

'Is he '. 'Kakashi thought of how to word the inquiry while the image of the grinning man lifted in his memory, 'safe? '

'No, he 's very dangerous '. ' Jiraiya said with sudden seriousness, but before Kakashi could react to the statement, he continued, 'Just not to Konoha. '

Jiraiya did not elaborate. Kakashi felt irritation at the lack of tangible information, but it was not his place to interrogate the Sannin. He sighed and nodded at the man.

'I 'll trust your judgment. '

'Oh, don 't get pouty, Kashi-chan, ' Jiraiya shouted and made Kakashi look up again to see the man grinning at him with a teasing glint in his eyes. 'I promise you 'll hear the full report when we get back. Sensei will want your input on this one anyway. You 'll likely be the one to keep an eye on him when I 'm outside the village. You 're the only one besides me or sensei who would stand a chance. '

Well, that was alarming 'and interesting. Ah, no, it would probably just be irritating.

'Joyful, ' Kakashi deadpanned.

'Bahaha, ' Jiraiya laughed and came over to slap his hand on Kakashi 's shoulder, 'he 'll be good for you, Kakashi! He 'll give you a chance to practice babysitting before you get saddled with genin. '

Was it supposed to be comforting? Watching the man would be akin to babysitting little numbskull genin?

'They won 't pass, ' Kakashi announced smugly.

It didn 't matter who the Hokage assigned him this time. They never passed. He could be assigned the baby Uchiha and his sensei 's son, and he would still fail the little shits if they failed the bell test. Kakashi wouldn 't waste his time training tools that didn 't care for their comrades. Besides, Kakashi would be a terrible sensei. If only the Hokage would understand that instead of shoving children at him and hoping they stuck. The council could suck it.

'I think you 'll be surprised, ' Jiraiya leered with a gleam in his eyes, which told Kakashi the man thought he knew something Kakashi didn 't. Kakashi didn 't like that a single bit.

'They won 't, ' Kakashi stated dryly and watched with annoyance as the wicked grin spread across the toad sage 's face. The man rubbed his hands together and leaned close to the copycat nin.

'Want to put your money where your mask is? '

<>

'I see, ' Hiruzen said once Kakashi had given his report, be it lacking details about comparing strangers to artwork and the bet he made with the toad sage. He would enjoy the advanced copy of the Sannin 's next book immensely.

'They should be here at ' 'A loud thud cut off Kakashi.

When the privacy seal was active, even if the window was wide open, there was a physical barrier between the office and the outside. Both men turned to see Izumo rubbing his nose with tears streaming down his face. Hiruzen placed his hand on the seal and allowed the barrier to drop as his ANBU reappeared in their perches.

'What is it, Izumo? ' Hiruzen asked kindly as he turned to the gate watcher, who staggered into the office, still rubbing his nose.

'Oh, Hokage-sama, ' Izumo said and bowed clumsily before he slipped back into professional mode. 'Scouts uh 'requested we inform you that Jiraiya-sama appears to be 'racing a strange nin? He sent a message ahead to clear the route to your office. '

Hiruzen dropped his head into his hands and silently cursed his student. What was the toad sage doing? Kakashi bemusedly stepped to the side to get a clear view of the window as though he would be able to see a dust cloud coming.

'Hawk, Koi, ' Hiruzen ordered, and two ANBU appeared kneeling in front of his desk. 'Alert the patrols of this 'race and allow Jiraiya and his guest through unmolested. Watch them and make sure there are no mishaps before they arrive. Dismissed. '

The two ANBU shushinned away with a whirlwind of leaves left behind. Hiruzen turned to Izumo, who appeared bewildered and uncomfortable.

'Go back to your post, Izumo, ' Hiruzen ordered, 'allow them through without a fuss. '

'Yes, ' Izumo left through the window, allowing Kakashi to view the rooftops better. Hiruzen rose and stepped beside him, puffing thoughtfully on his pipe.

'Jiraiya-chan must trust this Uzumaki if he is so incautious with him, ' Hiruzen mused, 'Perhaps Naruto will have a new bond after all? '

Kakashi hummed as he waited for the two shinobi to appear. He tried not to think about Uzumaki Naruto too often, or the guilt would eat him alive. He wouldn 't have been allowed to take the boy even if he had been ready and able to, but it still ate at Kakashi that he hadn 't even tried. He had numbly accepted the Hokage 's decision and then disappeared into the shadows of ANBU.

He fought. He kept his head down. He endured numbly until the pain lessened enough not to swallow him whole if he thought of it more than when he stood in front of the memorial stone. When he finally looked up again, the boy was an academy student. His life had turned into something completely different from what it had been with Team Minato, Kushina-nee-chan, and Jiraiya. Maybe he would fix that if Naruto were on his team and passed the bell test. Or maybe Kakashi would ruin the boy like he did everything else in his life. Kakashi brushed off the ghosts of the past as two heads suddenly appeared, leaping onto the roof of a building close to the wall. Red and white hair danced behind the racing figures as they gracefully leaped between roofs as expertly as any Konoha nin. Hiruzen stiffened beside him as the oddly familiar childish laughter reached their ears.

'Need another handicap, Ero-Sennin? ' a younger voice chortled. It was followed by a growl of the man close on his heels. Kakashi and Hiruzen backed up as the redhead bounded toward the window.

Kuniharu vaulted lithely inside, landed, and then turned to flash victory signs at Jiraiya, who entered moments later growling.

'I don 't know how, but you cheated, Gaki, ' Jiraiya accused and pointed at the preening man. 'This is the fifth time you 've won! It 's unnatural! '

'You 're such a sore loser, ' the man giggled and slapped his leg with the sunniest smile Kakashi had ever seen.

The man no longer wore the inn's yukata. Kakashi felt himself stiffen as he took in the man 's appearance. He wore a white coat that naturally fit him just like a certain man whose face looked remarkably like the stranger's. He was also outfitted with black cargo pants with the normal kunai and shuriken pouches attached. He wore regulation ninja sandals and a black high-collared shirt with the Uzushio crest emblazoned in orange across his chest, two pearl buttons on the stiff lapel like Kushina used to wear with her formal clothes. The man 's hair was up in a high ponytail mirroring the toad sage, and he wore Uzumaki traditional pearl-drop earrings engraved with the whirlpool symbol. These matched his shirt and the forehead protector he wore.

His crystalline blue eyes sparkled as they moved from the fuming Jiraiya and landed on the two speechless shinobi watching them. The man 's face instantly colored, and his hand came up to subconsciously touch the back of his neck. It would have been adorable on anyone besides a deadly shinobi. As it was, it was still so painfully cute that Kakashi had to dismiss the thought viciously.

'Uh 'sorry? ' the man offered as though he had suddenly realized that he had vaulted uninvited into a Kage 's office without so much as a by-your-leave.

Jiraiya seemed to become smug as he sent a sharp smile to the younger man. The Uzumaki glared and pointedly stepped on his toe. He nodded toward the two silent figures, but Jiraiya let the man stew in awkwardness. Finally, he gestured with a lazy hand toward the man.

'Uzumaki Kuniharu, ' Jiraiya drawled, 'Kakashi Hatake or Copycat-san. ' He waved toward Kakashi and winked knowingly at the scowling man.

Kakashi lifted his hand with that infuriating eye-smile he was famed for. 'Yo, ' he said before abruptly pulling out his Icha Icha Paradise book.

He waited for the inevitable shock or anger as this never ceased to annoy even the people who knew him best. He could see Hiruzen sigh heavily beside him, but rather than react that way, Kakashi saw the man smile slightly as though fond or 'nostalgic. Did the man know someone else with his greatest and most appealing habit?

No fun

.

The man wasn 't insulted by the lack of attention by Konoha 's strongest. He dipped a shallow bow while still smiling. 'Hatake-san, ' he offered.

Kakashi grimaced. No one called him Hatake-san, first because it was a reminder of his father and most preferred to pretend he wasn 't connected to Konoha 's White Fang, and secondly because Kakashi just wasn 't 'no.

'Kakashi will do, ' Kakashi offered in a bored voice as he turned the page in his book and appeared absorbed in it rather than carefully analyzing every flicker of emotion on the man 's expressive face, 'or Copycat-San if you must. '

The man smiled brightly and lost the remaining traces of sadness that Kakashi only realized had been there. 'Then, you can call me Kuniharu, ' the man offered before his lips tipped up further on one side into a smirk, 'or Sage-sama if you must. '

'Hn, ' Kakashi grunted, his eyebrow twitching at the slight mention of his being caught by the man. He gave no other sign that the subtle dig had hit home.

Hiruzen allowed himself to be ignored as it gave him leave to observe silently. He carefully weighed not only the man himself but also how Jiraiya seemed utterly relaxed in his presence. Kakashi was clearly intrigued by the man because he tried so hard to pretend that he was ignoring him. Kakashi only ever made an effort to rub it in someone 's face that he wasn 't paying attention when he absolutely was.

Jiraiya allowed his sensei this time to come to an initial conclusion before he interrupted 'Kuniharu ' from continuing to needle Kakashi. He placed his hand on Kuniharu 's shoulder to get his attention and then waved to Hiruzen.

'And that is the God of Shinobi, ' Jiraiya teased, 'Sarutobi Hiruzen Sandaime Hokage of Konoha. '

Hiruzen smiled at the man as he met his blue eyes and inclined his head slightly.

'Kuniharu-san. '

It surprised all involved when Kuniharu bowed fully at the waist, giving Hiruzen the highest respect outside kneeling. This was a gesture shinobi only gave to those they truly respected. Most gave the gesture only to their own Kage.

Kuniharu carefully kept his gaze just off to the right of the man 's shoulder as though it pained him to meet Hiruzen 's eyes. 'Hokage-sama, ' he greeted and forced a smile that appeared sad to anyone who looked closely, 'It is an honor to be in Konoha. My cousin talked fondly of it in her letters to my mother. '

Kakashi stiffened and looked at the man even closer. Hiruzen watched him closely as well.

'Your cousin? ' he prodded and watched the man smile knowingly.

'Kushina-chan, ' Kuniharu confirmed. 'She sent back letters to my mom until 'well, until the end. I found them years back in my mother 's old things. '

'Ah, ' Hiruzen murmured while his eyes calculated the man 's age.

He had known that Kushina had an Aunt back in Uzushio who had likely perished. She had even had a cousin, too, but the boy would have been a mere infant when Uzushio fell. Granted, Uzumaki's tended to age differently than most once they exited puberty. It would be hard to pin down his age just by looking at him.

'Why have you not come to Konoha before this? ' Hiruzen asked.

Kuniharu met the man 's gaze, and there was a knowing light in them that said he knew that if he answered incorrectly, he would be carted off to T&I whether he had Jiraiya 's approval or not. Jiraiya stood back with his arms crossed as he allowed the man to speak for himself.

Kuniharu placed his hand on the back of his neck again and shrugged.

'I 'well, I wasn 't sure of my welcome once I figured out I might have someplace to lay down roots, ' Kuniharu explained. "Mom died when I was four, and I get the feeling that she hated the idea of going to Konoha. No offense, Hokage-sama, but Uzumaki 's were being hunted down, and still are if we are found out. Being here would just draw more attention to Kushina-chan. After the fall of Uzushio, the few survivors felt like no one could keep them safe 'not even Konoha. Also, I uh 'know that my cousin was in a lot of danger for her own reasons. Uzumaki 's flooding to Konoha would bring undue attention to her and her role. '

All the men in the room understood that Kuniharu had just alluded to knowing that Kushina had been the holder of the Kyuubi. It was plausible as the information had been well known among the elite of the Uzumaki clan when Kushina was brought to Konoha.

Plausible.

'But your mother passed away when you were four? ' Hiruzen lightly prodded, not unkindly but still with a steely hint to his eyes as he weighed everything the man said.

'I was raised by the man who got my mom out of Uzushio during the attack, ' Kuniharu explained. 'He had a bloodline limit that made him incredibly fast. He saved my mother and me. When my mom died, Kurama took over raising me with Uzushio teachings. I learned Fuuinjutsu from him and from the scrolls my mother saved in our escape. I learned of my family connections in my mother 's things, like I said. I never met Kushina-chan. 'maybe it 's a little strange, but I was always really fond of her, or maybe it was the idea of her from the letters. I considered joining Konoha to see if my cousin might have me after all when Kurama died. I was twelve, but then, nearly at the same time, it got out that the last Uzumaki had perished from the Kyuubi. I had wasted any chance I might come to Konoha and find family waiting. '

Hiruzen felt the weight of Naruto in the back of his mind, but he held his tongue. Though Naruto held the Uzumaki name, to those outside of the village, the Uzumaki were all but extinct. Even within the village, most believed Naruto wasn 't a real Uzumaki.

Hiruzen would be required to check the man 's story with Jiraiya and any information on Kushina 's Aunt before he was inclined to believe the man. But for the moment, the Hokage felt that the man did not have nefarious intentions. He was still wary but would be willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

'Why come to Konoha now? ' Hiruzen asked. He watched as Kuniharu sent Jiraiya an exasperated glare.

'Well, Ero-Sennin impressed upon me the stupidity of upsetting Kage without a village to back me up, ' Kuniharu admitted with a grimace. 'I may have made a nuisance of myself retrieving some missing artifacts. It just wasn 't right, and I was not going to leave them in their hands. '

Kakashi lowered his book slightly to look at the strange man incredulously. He had heard from the Hokage himself why the man was so dangerous, but that he so openly admitted that doing the verging suicidal stunts was either very brave or stupid. Quite possibly both.

'I see, ' Hiruzen hummed, but light danced in his eyes.

Kuniharu seemed to relax as he looked at the old man. He could tell the Hokage found him an intriguing puzzle. He wasn 't called the Professor for nothing.

Hiruzen couldn 't place what had him at ease, whether it was the odd familiarity that seemed to ping in the back of his head when the man spoke or his striking resemblance to Kushina, to Naruto with those same whisker marks, and even Minato (though that was a puzzle itself). Perhaps Jiraiya was under the same spell, but Hiruzen trusted his judge of character and his intuition as any shinobi that had lived as long as he. He was cautiously optimistic about this plan.

'Yeah, yeah, ' Jiraiya interrupted. 'The Gaki is an impressive idiot, but what matters is he 's here and willing to join Konoha. '

'Is that so, Kuniharu-san? ' Hiruzen's eyes pinned Kuniharu to his spot.

Kuniharu 's cheeks gained some color, and he seemed to be very young before that was washed away for a moment.

'If you 'll have me, I would be honored. ' Kuniharu dipped his head respectfully.

Hiruzen nodded and then flicked his eyes toward Jiraiya. 'Very well, Kuniharu-san, if you would allow me to discuss further with Jiraiya-sama, I believe we may ' ' the Hokage was cut off by the door flying open.

'Naruto, how many times do I have to tell you 'oh, ' an irate voice cut off as a brown-haired man with a scar across his nose blushed at the eyes that landed on him. The room was resolutely barren of certain orange-loving blonds.

'Yes, Iruka-san? ' the Hokage asked, and his eyebrow twitched.

It could have been very bad if the man had used Naruto 's family name, not to mention why the man had barged inside in the first place. The academy teacher appeared visibly mortified. His eyes were as wide as saucers as he took in the important figures and the strange nin with brilliant red hair. The same nin who was grinning at him in a way that oddly made him feel like the man wanted to pinch his cheek. Mortifying. What was he thinking '

'I am so sorry, Hokage-sama, ' Iruka bowed low and cursed his fate. 'I ' um, just heard there was a ruckus, and I heard the laughter that I swear was-- so I assumed that Uz ' '

'That Naruto was the cause of it, ' Hiruzen cut off the teacher before he could use the name.

Iruka jerked and saw his Hokage make a subtle gesture to the side, which every shinobi in the village knew meant to be discrete about Naruto unless told otherwise. The teacher gulped.

'Yes, I did 'uh, think my student was the cause. I apologize. '

Iruka bowed again, as Kuniharu struggled not to laugh. Jiraiya looked equally as amused about the situation.

'No harm done, Iruka-san, your dedication to ensuring your students' good behavior is admirable, ' Hiruzen said as he puffed on his pipe.

This presented an elegant solution to being briefed by Jiraiya without being blatantly rude to Kuniharu. The man would surely realize he was being talked about; any academy student would know that, but at least he would not be required to stand awkwardly in the hall while they did it.

'If you could please accompany Uzumaki Kuniharu-san to the cafeteria. I believe he has had a long journey and would do well with a meal. Kuniharu-san is being considered as an addition to Konoha and could do to make some friends. '

Iruka 's eyes widened slightly, though he maintained his smile. His protective instincts roared to life. This stranger presented himself as a Uzumaki and, therefore, might be a threat to his precious student-- or he may be a precious bond. Either way, Iruka understood that he was to keep an eye on the man and ensure the two Uzumaki did not meet in the intervening time.

'Is that acceptable, Kuniharu-san? ' the Hokage inquired of the redhead.

There was a knowing smile on Kuniharu's face, but he simply bowed in agreement to the Hokage 's order. He sent an amused look to Jiraiya and then to Kakashi before he waved at the men and walked over to Iruka. He paused to offer the academy instructor his hand and a warm smile. Despite himself, Iruka softened at the look that smacked him over the head with the similarities between Naruto and the stranger.

'Uzumaki Kuniharu, it 's great to meet you, ' Kuniharu grinned. Iruka took the man 's hand hesitantly and shook it twice.

'Umino Iruka, it 's great to meet you too. '

Iruka gave the man a hesitant smile in response to the brilliant expression beaming back at him. As they left, Kuniharu waved happily over his shoulder without turning around.

'Don 't gossip too hard, Ero-Sennin, ' Kuniharu turned just enough so they could see the smile spread across his scarred cheeks, 'you might turn into Kyoko-chan if you 're not careful. '

With a subtle dig at Jiraiya 's latest busty heroine of the Icha Icha series, Kuniharu shut the door. He could still be heard laughing at his joke several steps away from the office.

'You let

him

read your rough drafts? ' Kakashi could be heard to complain on the other side of the door.

'

What?

He 's a good copyreader! '