It was the last day of August when Kakashi realised something ' As he returned home from a long undercover mission, he stepped over the threshold of his apartment and inhaled deeply the familiar scent. Strange. The smell was missing something he thought.

He tugged the mask down and searched for the answer with his sense of smell alone. It felt like everything was in its place, yet something was definitely off. Kakashi thought back to how his home smelled months ago ' It had the unmistakable scent of spices that was now completely gone.

Ryoko, he realized. So she hasn 't been here even when he was gone ' The man never thought he would say this, but her not breaking into his apartment was weird. Just in case, Kakashi checked his kitchen and there was yet another proof.