Chapter Text
Team 7 huddled behind a fruit stand, peeking through a carefully constructed gap between stacked melons. Naruko, shaking with excitement, gripped her binoculars upside down, muttering, “Today’s the day, I swear it!” Meanwhile, Sasuko leaned coolly against the side of the stall, arms crossed and eyebrow twitching in silent disbelief that she had allowed herself to be roped into this. “This is so stupid,” she whispered under her breath, yet her eyes never left the dango shop across the street, where Kakashi had just taken a seat with his mask still firmly in place. They all held their breath as an elderly woman with a hunched back and slow, shuffling steps approached Kakashi with a warm smile, gently pressing a plate of four skewers in front of him. For a moment, it looked like he might remove the mask and then he lifted the bottom of his mask just enough to eat without revealing anything. Naruko and Sakutaro slump against the wall,defeated. Sasuko simply turned away, muttering, “You’re both hopeless.”
Sakutaro lowers his head in shame at being lumped with Naruko of all people.
As the old woman shuffled away, leaving Kakashi calmly nibbling his dango beneath the shade of a paper umbrella, Sasuko pushed off the wall and stepped forward with a glint in her eye. “My turn,” she said coolly, brushing her bangs aside. Naruko spun around and pointed a finger at her in Sasuko’s face. “Oh? Weren’t you the one who said this whole thing was pointless !?” Sasuko’s eyebrow twitched. “I don’t need you to remind me of what I said, loser,” she snapped, “I’m only doing this because the faster we get this over with, the sooner I can go back to actual training.” Sakutaro, still crouched with his scroll, looked up. “Alright, then what’s your plan of attack?” Sasuko’s smirk returned. “Simple. We lay down a trap, capture him, and then we remove the mask ourselves.” It sounded easy enough.
Naruko blinked. The gears in her brain turn. “Wait, wait, wait—How do you plan on doing that ?. We can’t even sneak up on him when he’s reading that dumb book!” She gestured wildly, nearly knocking over a pile of apples before Sakutaro gently karate chopped her on the head. “Isn’t it obvious?” Sakutaro brings his knees to his chest. “Kakashi-sensei’s always rambling about how he’s late because he gets sidetracked—helping lost kids, rescuing cats, helping old ladies across the street.So…” He paused for effect. “One of us should use the transformation jutsu to turn into something that will distract him long enough for the other two to lie in wait and ambush him.” Naruko scratches her head. “Sounds like a plan to me.” Sasuko nodded approvingly. “Time to get to work.”
After a heated five-minute argument about who should be the decoy, the trio agreed that Sakutaro would take on the role of a distressed civilian, while Naruko and Sasuko would lie in wait. “It makes the most sense,” Sakutaro had reasoned. “I can control my chakra better and hold the transformation longer.” Naruko huffs and puffs. “Still doesn’t explain why I couldn’t do it ?” Sasuko, already halfway through tying up her hair into a ponytail, muttered, “Sakutaro is a way better actor than you. Now shut up and get ready to split up.”
Without another word, they each reached into their pockets and pulled out the small earpieces. The same ones they used for finding missing cats. Naruko jammed hers in place and gave a mock salute. “Operation: Unmask Kakashi is a go!” Sakutaro rolled his eyes before slipping, adjusting the volume on his. Sasuko clicked her earpiece and took off in the opposite direction, voice cool and steady: “I’ll check the training grounds.” Naruko grinned. “I’ll check around the Jonin station !”
Sasuko checked three different training grounds in a row, barely sparing a glance at the small clusters of genin teams running drills or practicing jutsu. Most of them are irrelevant, mere background noise to her. She stops when she finds Team ten lounging near a grove of trees. Inosuke was the first to notice her. His eyes lit up and before she could speak, he was already striding over. With a dramatic twirl, he produced a single rose—gods know from where—and offered it to her like an offering. “My dearest Sasuko,” he said, voice dripping with poetic flair, “for every time the wind whispers your name through the leaves, I find myself—”
“Has anyone seen Kakashi-sensei?” she cut in flatly, stepping past him without a second glance. She didn’t have time for his nonsense today.
Inosuke froze, hand still outstretched, the rose wilting slightly in the awkward silence. Chōji looked sympathetic as he munched on a chip. Shikamari leaned back against a tree without a care in the world. “Sorry, can’t say we’ve seen the guy.” She shrugs her shoulders. Sasuko didn't stick around a second longer, she launched into a sprint, arms behind her back, hair fluttering as she disappeared into the trees. Inosuke stood up, the rose still in his hand. “She’ll come around. No one can resist me.”
Nearby, Asuma exhaled a slow stream of smoke, eyes following Sasuko as she vanished into the treetops. He shook his head slightly, a crooked grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Kakashi… you’ve got the weirdest ways of getting those three to work together.”
Naruko jogged up the steps to the jōnin station, scanning every corner. Not a single sign of silver hair or that accursed orange book in sight. Huffing, she decides to report back to her teammates. “Checked the entire area. Nada.,” she pouted as she leaned against a wall and kicked at a pebble. Why did Kakashi have to be so skilled at evading them ? Were they really that obvious about it ?
A moment later, Sasuko’s voice crackled through the line. “I hate to say it, but… same. Training grounds were a bust. Just ran into a bunch of nobodies and Team 10.”
They shared a brief silence, then Sasuko shifted to a sharper tone. “Sakutaro, what about you? Any sign?”
There was no response.
“…Sakutaro?” Sasuko asked again. Still no response.
Naruko twirled a strand of her hair. “Maybe he, I dunno… went to the bathroom and he’s constipated or somethin’ ?”
Another pause. Then finally, Sakutaro’s voice buzzed in, sounding slightly irritated. “Na…ru…ko !,” he sounds each syllable which has Naruko chuckling nervously in her head. “Do you always have to find new and creative ways to embarrass me?” He doesn’t need Sasuko thinking he’s disgusting.
Naruko cackled. “Aw, c’mon ! I was just kiddin’ !”
Sasuko groaned. “Will both of you shut up? Sakutaro, did you find him or not?”
A pause, then Sakutaro’s voice returned, more composed. “Yes. East market road. He’s inspecting vegetables.”
Naruko’s tone shot up with excitement. “Then what are we doing standin’ around here !? Let’s go before we lose him again !”
But Sasuko narrowed her eyes, picking up on something in Sakutaro’s voice. “You seem hesitant. What’s up ?”
“…I don’t know if I can do this,” Sakutaro admitted. “What if he just… sees right through it?” He’s never had to deceive someone like this.
Sasuko cut in, firm and calm. “You’ll be fine. Just don’t be over the top and you should be good.”
Naruko chimed in, offering her best support. “What she said !”
“…Remind me again why I agreed to this,” Sakutaro muttered. He couldn’t help but think of what his mother would think if she could see him right now. If she found out he was wasting the afternoon fooling around with his teammates instead of doing anything productive, she’d probably give him that sharp, disapproving look of hers. She’d cross her arms, sigh, and say something like, “You’re too bright to be part of childish nonsense like this, Sakutaro.” And he used to think he was but ,after becoming teammates with Naruko, he’s not so sure.
Sakutaro took a deep breath, focused his chakra, and with a flick of his hands, transformed in a puff of smoke. When it cleared, an elderly man stood in his place—stooped posture, wispy white hair, a wrinkled face that twitched ever so slightly with nerves. Just in time, too—Kakashi had finished picking through vegetables and was now walking away from the market with a small paper bag of groceries tucked under his arm. Sakutaro hobbled forward with exaggerated effort, waving one trembling hand. “Young man! Oh—young sir! P-please, a moment!” His voice cracked and trembled. He hoped it was convincing at least.
Kakashi stopped, turning with casual curiosity. “Hm? Something wrong ?”
Sakutaro gave a breathless wheeze and clutched his back as if it ached. “Ah, yes, terribly sorry to bother you, but it’s quite urgent! My dear cat—my beloved Mimi—she’s stuck up a tree near my home, and I—I’m afraid I’m far too old and brittle to climb up there myself.”
Kakashi blinked slowly, seeming to assess him. “A cat in a tree, huh?”
“Yes, yes!” Sakutaro continued, wringing his hands and layering on the pitiful tone. “I tried to ask some of the local youth for help, but they just brushed me off, laughing, saying it wasn’t their problem. These youngsters today, they’ve no respect for their elders—not like in my day, no, sir.”
Shannaro , I hope this plan actually works or we’re screwed ! I hope that wasn’t too lame of an excuse.
Kakashi let out a soft sigh through his nose and gave a small nod. “Alright, I’ll take a look. Lead the way.”
Internally, Sakutaro was screaming. It’s working !? Oh my god, it worked !
As Sakutaro led Kakashi away from the market, hunched over and shuffling along, Naruko and Sasuko crouched next to the side of a house in one of the residential areas. The simple trap—a weighted net rigged to a branch of the tree that rested on the property was almost ready. Naruko tied the last knot with a grin while Sasuko double-checked the trigger.
“Alright,” Sasuko muttered, brushing dirt from her hands. “Trap’s secured.”
Naruko gave her a thumbs-up. “Let’s go hide before they show up.”
They ducked behind some shrubbery, lying in wait. Moments later, Sakutaro,still disguised as the frail old man,emerged from the path, leading an unsuspecting Kakashi right into the palm of their hands. “There she is,” Sakutaro said, pointing to the tall tree. “My sweet Mimi. She’s all the way up there… poor thing’s been meowing for hours.”
Kakashi followed the direction of his finger, stepping directly onto the small X they’d etched into the dirt with a stick. “Alright, let me take a—”
Snap—fwip!
The trap launched. A net shot down from above and wrapped Kakashi up mid-sentence. His eye widened in surprise as the net tightened, suspending him just a few feet off the ground in a bundle of jōnin. His groceries spilled all over the ground. Naruko burst out of the bushes, laughing like a maniac. “Yes! We got him! We actually got him!” Sasuko strolled out behind her, hands in her pockets, face calm—but the slight upward twitch of her lips betrayed her satisfaction. “Took long enough.”
With a puff of smoke, Sakutaro dropped the disguise, now standing tall and proud with his arms crossed. “Wow, that was easier than I thought ! Who knew sensei was so gullible ?”
“ Who’s gullible?”
All three kids froze.
“…Wait a minute,” Sasuko said slowly, narrowing her eyes.
With a sudden poof , the Kakashi caught in the net vanished in a puff of smoke, revealing a hastily-assembled scarecrow in a flak jacket, complete with a sloppily drawn mask and a small note pinned to the chest that read: “Nice try.”
“…You’ve got to be kidding me,” Naruko whispered.
A low voice behind them cut through the shock. “Yo.”
They all turned in sync—slowly, dreadfully—and saw the real Kakashi standing a few feet behind them, one hand raised in a casual wave, the other holding a perfectly intact bag of groceries. His lone visible eye crinkled with amusement.
“AAAHH!” the three of them shouted in unison, their jaws almost dropping to the floor.
Kakashi just stood there, calm as ever, clearly enjoying the chaos as the three of them immediately dissolved into panicked bickering.
Kakashi, still calm amidst all the finger pointing and shouting, raised his hand again and spoke over the chaos. “Alright, alright. Settle down.” His tone was light, almost bored. “Tell you what... I’ll show you what’s under the mask.”
Instant silence.
The three of them turned in unison, eyes wide and jaws half-open. Naruko blinked rapidly. “Wait… really ?”
Kakashi gave a single, solemn nod. “Sure.”
The breeze seemed to pause as Kakashi reached up, fingers hooking under the edge of his mask. He began to pull it down.
Naruko started biting her nails. “No way…”
Sasuko held her breath.
Sakutaro could hear his heart beat in his ears.
The mask slid lower… and lower… past the tip of Kakashi’s nose… and then—
Another mask.
The three genin collapsed into a pile of limbs with exaggerated groans.
“ ANOTHER MASK?! ” Naruko shouted from the dirt, clutching her head. “ Are you serious?! ”
“I knew it,” Sasuko muttered, standing and brushing herself off. “I knew it was too easy.”
Sakutaro stood last, shaking his head with a tired sigh. “We wasted the whole day for this .”
Kakashi blinked once, then offered his signature eye-smile. “Training resumes tomorrow. Don’t be late.”
“We should be telling you that,” Sakutaro wiped the dirt from his clothes and started walking away with the other two. The trio grumbled as they trudged off down the path. Left alone in the clearing, Kakashi chuckled quietly to himself. “At least their teamwork’s getting slightly better,” he mused, adjusting the groceries under his arm before vanishing in a puff of smoke. Time to go home and cook dinner.
The three walked in a loose, defeated line down the dirt path, the sting of their failure still fresh in their minds. Naruko groaned loudly and clutched her stomach. “Uuugh, I’m hungry.”
Sakutaro rubbed the back of his neck. “...Yeah, guess I’m kinda hungry too.”
“We should stop by Ichiraku!” Naruko immediately brightened up, at the thought of eating at her favorite restaurant with her friends. “I could totally go for miso with extra pork.”
Sakutaro and Sasuko made the exact same face. They both look like they caught the whiff of spoiled milk.
Naruko tilts her head to the right side with both hands on her hips. “What? What’s with the faces?”
Sasuko sighed and put one hand on her hip. “All you ever eat is ramen. Aren’t you tired of it yet?” Honestly, she’s beginning to worry for the blonde’s health.
“And it’s not healthy either,” Sakutaro added with a frown. “You should really start eating better before you regret it later.”
They both looked at her like worried parents. Naruko scowled and crossed her arms. “You guys are so dramatic. I’m in perfectly good health.”
Sakutaro chuckled, then glanced up at the sky. “That and I should probably head home. My parents are expecting me for dinner.”
Sasuko looked to the side, suddenly distracted by a patch of grass. Naruko shoved her hands into her pockets and kicked at a rock. A shadow passed over both their faces—the one that always showed up when they saw other kids with their families, laughing and heading home together. Sakutaro blinked, then his eyes widened slightly as the pieces clicked together. “Hey,” he said quickly, “why don’t you guys come with me? For dinner, I mean.”
Sasuko glanced at him. “Won’t your parents get mad?”
He shrugged. “My mom might be a little annoyed at the surprise, but honestly? They’re pretty nice. They like having people over.”
Naruko looked up. “You sure? I don’t mind goin’ to Ichiraku by myself…I’m used to it.”
“Yeah,” Sakutaro said with a smile. “Actually, we should make a habit of it. Rotate whose house we eat at. Heck, maybe we can get Kakashi to join us.”
Sasuko snorted. “I’m not really a cook but whatever.”
Naruko laughed. “I’m in.”
“Let’s go then !,” Sakutaro raced them to his house. Maybe today wasn’t such a waste.