The Mother He Never Had

27

"Ugh... I'm dying..." Naruto complained in boredom. "Then, why don't you go do soemthing?" I suggested. "You could train, or go visit Hinata at the Hyuga Clan?"

"I did that already. I don't wanna seem pushy or make her think I'm being creepy." Naruto said. "You make a good point." I agreed. Naruto and I were in the living room as I was sitting on the couch, reading a book, and Naruto was sprawled out on the floor, complaining how bored he was.

"That's it!" Naruto said, springing up from the floor. "What's it?" I asked. "I know what I'm gonna do!" He cheered. "I'm gonna go see what Kakashi's hiding underneath his mask!"

"Come again? Why would you wanna see what's under his mask? It's just his face." I stated. "If it is just his face, why would he have a need to hide it?" Naruto asked. "Probably to cover an embarassing scar." I guessed. 

"And if it's not?"

"Then, it's his business to why he keeps the bottom part of his face covered."

"Well, that ends to today! Operation: Find Out Kakashi-sensei's True Face!"

I sighed as he triumphed. "In that case, I'll leave you to it. I'm going to the store to pick up some things for dinner." I informed. Naruto and I left the house, then went our separate ways. 

*****

After getting the things I needed, I headed to the house. On my way there, I found Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura sulking. "Why the long faces, everyone?" I asked. "Operation: Find Out Kakashi-sensei's True Face was a failure. But we refused to give up!" Naruto said. 

"Have you tried a different approach?" I asked. "We're about to." Sakura answered. "Okay. Well, in that case, I wish you all good luck." I said before going home to put away the groceries. 

When I was done, I went back outside and found Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi at the ramen shop. I stood my distance as I wanted to see how this played out.

As Kakashi was about to remove his mask to eat his ramen, Squad 10 suddenly appeared out of nowhere, blocking Squad 7's view of Kakashi. "I expected as much," I sighed. "However, it wasn't a wasted effort completely." I said. 

Kakashi left, so I went over to the three kids and sat next to them. "This is almost becoming impossible!" Naruto complained as he slammed his fists on the table. "Instead of going through all this work, why don't you just ask Kakashi politely if you could see his face?" I suggested. 

"No! We can't do that! He'll never go for it!" Sakura denied. "You'll never know unless you try, right?" I asked. "We're gonna try something else! I know it'll work this time!" Naruto said. "Come on! This way!" Naruto quickly ran off with Sasuke and Sakura in follow. 

"They just won't listen to reason." I said, shaking my head while putting my hands up in an 'oh well' position. I left the ramen shop and went to the cliff where Kakashi and I went when we were on our date. I stood near the edge as I felt the cool breeze brush against my face. 

"I thought I'd might find you here." 

I turned my head and spotted Kakashi standing just a few feet behind me. "Where else would I be?" I asked, playfully. "At home." He joked back. I giggled at his comment. "Was there something you wanted to talk to me about?" I asked. 

"No. I just wanted to see you." Kakashi said. I smiled at him and turned around so I was facing him. "Oh, I should have you know that your comrades are trying to figure out a way to see your face." I informed.

"Oh, really? That's why they've been acting so weird lately." Kakashi mumbled. "Mm-hm. But just out of curiosity, what does the lower part of your face look like?" I asked. 

"Did Naruto tell you to ask me that?" He asked. "If he did, I wouldn't have told you that he and the others their plan." I stated, bluntly. "Good point." He replied as I walked over to him. 

I took a step forward and reached for his mask. I hesitantly pulled his mask down and blushed when I saw his face. He was really handsome. "Wow." I mumbled. 

"Wow what?" Kakashi asked. "You look quite handsome without your mask. I don't understand why you must keep it covered. But I suppose you have your reason." I said, placing my hand on the left side of his face. My thumb gently stroked his cheek as he gently stared down at me. 

"Anyway, I should get going," I said, taking my hand off his cheek. "I still have some things to do before I have to cook dinner." 

I attempted to walk away until Kakashi took ahold of my shoulders. "Is something wro- Mmh!"

I was interrupted when he pressed his lips against mine. I blushed slightly as I was frozen in shock. My eyes slowly closed and I kissed back. Kakashi's hands slid to the back of my waist and pulled me closer as my hands wrapped over his neck. 

I broke the kiss and we looked at each other, both of us blushing. "Thanks for letting me do that." Kakashi said after a short silence. "No problem." I replied as he pulled his mask back over his mouth and nose.

I walked away and headed home. 

(The Next Day)

"And after coming up with that genius plan, Kakashi-sensei suddenly disappeared!" Naruto complained. "I'm sorry to hear that, Naruto." I apologized, setting his lunch in front of him. "But don't worry! All is not lost yet! I've got an idea!" Naruto said as he began to eat his lunch. 

"Another plan?" I asked. "What kind of plan is this one?"

"Today, Squad 7's mission will be helping out on a farm. So, we have one night to try and see Kakashi-sensei's true face! This time, we won't fail! Believe it!" He explained. "Let's indeed hope so," I agreed. "Eat your lunch before you go."

"Yes, ma'am," Naruto replied. "Wait, aren't you gonna eat anything?"

"I will later. I'm not hungry at the moment."

"You've been acting a bit strange ever since you came yesterday. Did something happen?"

"No, nothing happened," I lied. I still couldn't get the kiss out of my mind. Every time I think about it, my face blushes. I shook my head and turned my attention to Naruto. "Eat your lunch before your team leaves without you."

"Right!"

When Naruto was finished eating, I cleaned his spot at the table. "See you tomorrow, Mom!" Naruto called. I smiled and kissed his cheek. "Good luck, Naruto." I said. He grinned at me, then ran out of the house. 

"He's always full of energy even before he eats." I said. When I finished cleaning the kitchen, I took a walk around the village. Setzoku's words repeated in my mind as I walked.

"You have until the boy turns sixteen."

"But what if I can't complete my assignment by then? Naruto's an orphan. I want to be able to spend every moment I have with my son." I said to myself. I stopped walking just in time as a tomato was thrown past my head and hit a building beside me. 

I looked to my left and saw a few kids run off while giggling. "Wonder what that was about?" I mumbled. "Because of the Nine-Tails."

I looked down to see a little girl standing next to me with a teddy bear in her arms. "Excuse me?" I asked. "You're its mother, right? The Nine-Tailed Fox?" She asked. "Please don't refer to my son as an 'it'. He has a name. It's Naruto." I said. 

"Anyway, they don't like you because you're the mother of the beast that attacked out village years ago." The girl mentioned.

"Honey!"

A woman ran over to the girl and quickly picked her up. "Don't go near here. She'll hurt you." The woman said. I looked at the woman as she shot me a glare. "Come, let's go home." She said, taking her daughter away. 

"Strange... That kind of felt like a déjà vu moment." I said. I shrugged and continued my walk.