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“We need to bring in some funds,” Headmaster Toshihiko said to the assembled academy teachers. “Any and all ideas are welcome.” He looked exhausted. There was a serious lack of funds currently for the academy. They had just finished some renovations when Orochimaru had attacked and so they had to rebuild again. It drained their pocketbook dry. That was three years ago, and they were still feeling the effects.
The students were always setting little fires with their fire jutsu or breaking the sidewalks and ruining training grounds with their earth jutsu or flooding hallways with their water jutsu. It was constant. Since the end of the third shinobi war, there was an influx of children as well, and their funding didn’t increase with the increase in students. It was enough to make any level-headed shinobi lose sleep.
“We could sell tickets to an event?” Suzume suggested. “It would be cheap since we could use the school auditorium, and we can make the students help with set up to get their volunteer hours.”
“But what in the world could we have as an event for that would bring in a crowd?” Kurenai asked, not trying to burst anyone’s bubble, but it was a good question.
“We need something that will bring in civilians. Something we can use the shinobi for that will interest the civilian population but won’t hurt the participants or damage the building.” Iruka added, not sure what would fill those parameters, but sure that those parameters needed to be filled.
“It would be useful if the retired and current shinobi also were interested.” Someone added from the back.
“Well, what can shinobi offer other than chiseled features and chakra control?” Toshihiko sighed to his subordinates.
“Well, that’s it isn’t it?” Anko said, lecherous expression stretching across her face. Her fellow teachers just stared, confused and a little scared. “Come on, it’s clear! We have a bodybuilding competition!”
One could hear a pin drop in the dead silence that followed her statement.
“No, really, it’s a great idea. It is appropriate for all ages, it isn’t violent, it is something that us ninja have that the civilians will be interested in. It’s fool proof! Who wouldn’t want to see their role models and protectors glistening and flexing?! It’s perfect for both the civilians and the shinobi. Civilians will be interested to see how strong their shinobi are, and the shinobi not involved will want to see who they have to compete with.”
The teachers were getting more and more convinced by Anko’s words.
“Who in the world would volunteer for such a thing Anko?” Iruka countered.
“Well, I know one sensei who owes me from the chūnin exams a couple years ago.” Anko smirked at Iruka, having heard recently from Genma that Iruka was ripped under his baggy uniform.
Iruka gulped and cursed his big mouth for questioning Anko.
“I can get at least 3 men to participate, probably more” Kurenai suddenly stated confidently.
“What about the women?” Toshihiko asked, face heating up at how that sounded out of context.
“We can start with the men first, then we can assess the excitement for a women’s version.” Anko was really pushing this idea for some reason. Iruka thought he knew why when she leered at him.
“We should be able to get enough women, there are plenty of strong kunoichi. We can plan for their event for a month after the men’s version. It will give us plenty of time to get some excitement and volunteers.” Kurenai seemed excited. Iruka knew that one of the men she would coerce was Asuma, but who else did she had that kind of power over?
Toshihiko seemed to consider the idea, tugging at this beard while he pondered the possibilities. “Let’s go for it. It will be a fun event. Who doesn’t like seeing the results of hard work and training?”
Iruka felt his heart drop. Anko would not let him out of this. At least he would be done with his debt to her for letting him be team 7’s chūnin-in-a-scroll.
Once the teachers were dismissed, Anko immediately grabbed Iruka and pulled him into a closet.
“What in the worl-?!” Iruka started, but Anko clamped a hand over his mouth.
“You are not to advertise your physique anymore. I will shut Genma up as well. I plan on making a killing on you Iruka.” Anko had the evil look in her eye.
“Anko, this is for the school! Please, at least make sure money is going to the cause.” Iruka crossed his arms, comfortable in lecture mode.
“Fine, fine, fine, but I plan on making enough to line my own pockets nicely as well as help the school some more!” Anko conceded much faster than Iruka anticipated.
“In return for my giving nature,” Anko began, Iruka should have known there was a catch, “I expect you to train even harder, bulk up in the next couple weeks, got it?! No more carbs, only protein.”
“You are really planning on betting on me? You know Kurenai is going to get Asuma in, and he’s crazy buff!”
“Asuma skips leg-days, and you know that they consider all the muscles. You, I’ve heard, don’t skip any days.” Anko purred, gripping Iruka’s bicep and squeezing painfully. “I didn’t believe Genma at first, but he was right.” She said pinching Iruka all over his body, quickly assessing his body fat index.
“Stop it! I’m not a piece of meat.” Iruka swatted her hand away.
“Oh, Iruka, you are going to be a piece of meat for one night. This is for the children. If you win, and make me a bunch of money, it will mostly go to the academy. If someone else wins the pool, then who knows where the winnings would go. And don’t you want to shock the village with your body? You worked hard on it, show it off.” Anko rolled her eyes, tired of having to convince everyone of her great ideas.
Iruka knew better than to argue. Better to go with the devil you knew, and there would be many devils betting on the competition. The Hokage herself would probably be the biggest one putting in bets.
“Fine. I’ll subject myself to this reductive form of entertainment. Really what kind of example are we setting for the children?” Anko had already walked out of the closet, leaving Iruka there to seethe to himself about his predicament.
“No ramen…” Iruka whispered, so wretchedly it would have broken the heart of any hot-blooded ninja in the village.
--
They had two weeks only. Anko insisted that the event be held sooner so that the villagers would not have time to lose interest in the event after the initial buzz. The teachers and students worked night and day, putting up posters to advertise, standing on street corners handing out fliers for the event, and decorating the stage for the event.
Kurenai easily convinced Asuma to join, the man probably would have done it without her; he was very proud of his abs after all. She got Raidō to join as well, he was easy to convince since he was part of her genin team, and she had a lot of leverage. She also surprised herself by convincing Chōza to join. She wasn’t sure how she did it, but she was just talking to Gai about the event and Chōza looked up and said he would win, representing for the big guys.
Gai was taken aback by that proclamation and dramatically asserted that he was noble competition and Gai would enjoy have a much better time against such a rival. Kurenai had gotten four men to sign up and felt very confident that they would bring in a big crowd.
--
It was one week before the event when Gai finally ran into Kakashi.
“Esteemed rival! Have you heard of the news!?” Gai twirled into the jōnin lounge.
“I just got back from a weeklong mission, Gai, I haven’t heard anything.” Kakashi said, not looking up from Icha Icha Tactics. He had only read it two times, so he was still enthralled.
“That’s perfect, because I wish to challenge you!” Gai spun on his toe before suddenly stopping in a pose showing off his biceps. “There is going to be a bodybuilding competition, proceeds going to charity, and I challenge you to join with me! I will be the winner of this event!”
“What is the charity,” Kakashi asked. Gai looked teary eyed.
“Of course, my worthy rival would want to know the good cause we will be supporting,” Gai took a minute to get a hold of himself before continuing, “the academy. It has been organized partly by our favorite sensei, Iruka.”
Gai knew that mentioning Iruka was a good way to get Kakashi interested. He wasn’t blind. He saw the way Kakashi looked at Iruka. He had an ulterior motive for challenging Kakashi to this competition: help Kakashi get a date.
“Iruka is competing as well, and the men involved will have a couple of practice nights this week. I’m sure that isn’t important information, but it will mean you’ll need to be on time a couple times at the end of this week. You may also want to up your training my worthy rival. Iruka and I have been training very hard and are in the best shapes of our lives. You are… Well, you are known for your sleek efficiency!”
Kakashi tried not to think about Iruka in even better shape. It was hard enough not thinking about Iruka in his uniform as normal, but it was impossible to get his mind off the sensei ever since seeing his speedo-ed, rock hard body.
“For the kids.” Kakashi said, walking to the mission room to hand in the report he had been on-again-off-again working on while in the lounge.
Iruka was there working (which was of course just a coincidence) and Kakashi made a beeline for his line. He was fidgeting a little bit and Gai tried not to make it obvious that he noticed. It was making Gai a little fidgety as well.
“Hello, Kakashi-sensei, Gai-sensei, what can I do for you?” Iruka politely greeted the jōnin. His smile brought a blush to Kakashi’s cheeks. Luckily, the mask covered it perfectly. He knew it did because he checked constantly.
“Report… I… I have a report to hand in.” Kakashi said lamely. Iruka just smirked as he took the proffered paper. Iruka nodded, Kakashi often handed in messy reports, but they were normally good enough, at least legible. This one is very clean, and all the details are filled in perfectly.
“Wow, thank you Kakashi-sensei! This is perfect. Thank you for your hard work for the village.”
“Speaking of ‘for the village’!” Gai interrupted before Kakashi could stiffly walk away. “Kakashi has agreed to join the body building event! Of course, I will still win, and will use this as extra motivation in my training.”
“Is that true, Kakashi-sensei? You will join the men on stage? Of course, you will draw in a lot of ticket sales. The most famous ninja in the whole of Konoha.” Iruka had a light flush on his cheeks and looked down after he said that.
“More like infamous, Iruka-sensei. We all know you are the most popular ninja in the competition.” Iruka’s blush deepened at the compliment. Iruka looked great in red. Iruka looked great in everything. Iruka also looked great in next to nothing.
Kakashi wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but he was still standing there, just staring at Iruka. Iruka met his eye again and gave a small smile, just a barest hint of an upturned lip.
“I’ll inform the board to add you to the list of contestants. Thank you, Kakashi-sensei. I look forward to seeing you more often this week.”
Kakashi nodded and walked away at that, unable to form words even if he wanted to. Iruka looked forward to seeing him? His heart fluttered in his chest. Iruka must say that to everyone, but Kakashi was sure that no one else felt this way after hearing it.
--
Kakashi was trying not to stare. It was their “dress rehearsal” and everyone was in their speedos. They just started a quick break and Kakashi had barely been able to look away from Iruka all night. The man had to be doing it on purpose.
All the other men involved in the show were wearing their robes during the break. Iruka decided he didn’t need the robe and had spent the entire practice in just his speedo.
During their blocking, Kakashi was placed next to Iruka, and walked just behind him when they walked on and off the stage. Iruka’s skin was bronze all over, not a tan line in sight. He seemed so comfortable in the small bathing suit and Kakashi was convinced the man must live in it. At least that was what he hoped as he imagined Iruka in his home cooking, cleaning, gardening…
When they were walking off the stage, Iruka bent over to pick up a piece of paper that Gai dropped. Right in front of Kakashi. Kakashi almost ran into his perfect gluteus maximus. He got close enough to be able to see the suit get pulled slightly lower. The tan didn’t end at the speedo line. Where did the tan end? Kakashi needed to know that answer.
Now Kakashi was trying harder than he’s ever tried at anything in his life. He was trying not to gawk at Iruka as the man ate a banana by the snack table. Kakashi wanted to both kiss and murder the person who put bananas on the snack table.
Iruka’s lips just looked so soft as they wrapped around the phallic snack. Kakashi used all his control to keep himself from getting too excited. He practiced every day reading Icha Icha in public, and he would not get a public boner now!
Anko came out of no where and slapped the carb-heavy fruit out of Iruka's hand, saving Kakashi from his very sexy trance.
“Iruka! Stop gallivanting, put on this robe,” Anko shoved a robe onto Iruka. Kakashi was both grateful and pissed. “If people sneak in and see you then you will go higher on the betting board! We have amazing odds right now because the general population still doesn’t know you are ripped. And I can’t believe you were eating a banana! What did I say about having sugar?”
Kakashi was distracted from their arguments by Gai. “Rival! You are looking very much more muscular than just a week ago! What is your secret?”
“Hmm… I’ve just eaten more than soldier pills for a week straight,” Kakashi deadpanned.
“My hip and cool rival! You haven’t been working out more? You are truly a genius and worthy of my admiration and rivalry!”
“You really haven’t been dieting Kakashi-sensei?” Iruka asked, walking up to the duo. “You look great.”
“Call me just Kakashi,” Kakashi blurted out. Iruka complimented him. He was in a robe, and yet, Kakashi’s heart pounded stronger than when they were practically naked together.
“Oh, well, I wouldn’t mind you calling me just Iruka either.” Kakashi stared at Iruka. He tried to have a blank look on his face, but he had a feeling he looked constipated.
“So, Iruka… do you come here often?” Kakashi felt the heat rising on his cheeks. Why did he say that?
“Umm… Yeah.” Iruka scratched the back of his head, clearly confused. His robe sleeve slipped down his arm and Kakashi was greeted with a view of Iruka’s bulging bicep, flexing teasingly as he rubbed up and down, up and down, up and down. The motion was getting Kakashi hot again. How was it so hot in here?
Kakashi undid the tie on his robe and started to remove the oppressive garment. Iruka’s awkward smile, slipped slightly as his eyes dripped momentarily to Kakashi’s torso.
Kakashi knew he had a good body. He wasn’t nearly as bulky as Iruka, Gai, or Asuma, but he was muscular. Kurenai called him lithe and he thought it was a fine description. Asuma glared at him and tried to block Kakashi from Kurenai’s view after that. That man was impossible. It was clear that she had eyes only for him and Asuma for her. Why couldn’t they see that and just get together for real already?
Kakashi was completely unaware of how hypocritical he was as he stared awkwardly at Iruka.
“Umm…” Iruka hummed, a light pink dusting graced his cheeks as his eyes finally met Kakashi’s.
“Back to the stage men!” Anko growled, enjoying her job as stage manager a little too much.
Kakashi realized way too late that he had very abruptly exposed his almost naked body to Iruka. His pale skin was flush for minutes afterward as they all made their way back to the stage. Kakashi couldn’t tell, since Iruka was walking in front of him, but Iruka was smiling and blushing for just as long.
--
“Anko!” Gai bound up to the fierce kunoichi. She turned and gave Gai her full attention. “You are as beautiful as ever and burning with the passion of youthful energy.”
“Gai,” Anko began tone flat, “just get on with it.”
“Of course, you have much to do tonight.” Gai smiled, teeth shining brightly. “I am trying to assist my worthy and hip rival in his trials of the heart. His youthful passion burning brightly for the kind and lovely sensei.”
“Kakashi likes Iruka? That explains the staring.” Anko whispered to herself. She looked over, and said sensei was just entering the green room. He glanced around and when his eyes met Kakashi, he blushed lightly. Anko’s smirked, “and it looks like Iruka likes Kakashi. Interesting.”
“Will you help me in getting them together?” Gai put his hands together like a prayer. It made his biceps bulge and Anko thought that maybe she would reward herself for getting her friend laid by getting herself laid as well.
“Sure.” Anko purred, hand moving to Gai’s arm and giving his hard muscle a squeeze.
Gai blushed slightly and cleared his throat, standing up to his full height. “They have trouble with conversation, so we need to get them close without words, I think.”
“OK. I can do that,” Anko promised. “You will owe me though.”
Gai stood straight as a ramrod and saluted. “Yosh!”
“Iruka! Kakashi! Come here.” Anko yelled.
Both Iruka and Kakashi looked startled but shuffled over.
Anko handed Kakashi a bowl of oil and a brush. “Use this and paint Iruka’s body so he glistens in the stage light. I’m too busy.”
Kakashi stared at the brush and oil, then looked over at Iruka. “But…” Anko was gone.
“It’s OK Kakashi. Anko warned me I would have to be greased up. She is betting on me to win it all and wants to try and make the odds more in my favor tonight.” Iruka rolled his eyes at the memory of Anko grilling him in preparation for tonight. “I haven’t been allowed ramen for two weeks and my soul is dying.”
Iruka was stripping out of his uniform right in front of Kakashi, completely unaware of the effect it was having on Kakashi. Kakashi was already in his robe, early for possibly the first time in his adult life. Gai had literally dragged him from his apartment just five minutes before Iruka showed up.
Iruka was unbuttoning his pants, already shirtless. The way his triceps and deltoids were tensing and relaxing as his fingers fiddled with his pants made Kakashi boil in his skin.
Iruka ripped his belt off and it snapped to the side like the whip of a lion tamer. Kakashi was reminded of one of his favorite scenes from Icha Icha violence. Iruka gave Kakashi a little smirk that made Kakashi’s knees weak.
“Sorry, I normally don’t wear a belt, but with my no ramen diet, I have had trouble keeping my pants on.”
Did Iruka realize what he was doing to Kakashi? Kakashi wasn’t sure. On one hand, he knew Iruka was a prankster as a child and so the man had a mischievous side, but on the other hand, Iruka was very professional in adulthood and came off very strait-laced. Also Iruka wasn’t so cruel as to tease Kakashi so shamelessly, was he? Thinking underneath the underneath was hard when Iruka was unbuttoning and unzipping his pants.
Iruka looked up from his hands fiddling with his pants right into Kakashi’s one eye. His head stayed facing downward, so it was just his eyes that shyly glanced up to Kakashi. Was this Iruka flirting with him?
Kakashi’s breath hitched.
Iruka was flirting with him.
This Adonis was interested in him.
“Would you like to get ramen after this?” Kakashi said smoothly, but his eye widened in shock. his genius brain was working much faster than his consciousness could keep up.
Iruka’s hands stopped fiddling and his pants fell down his legs without his help.
Kakashi’s eyes were drawn downward automatically. Iruka had lost weight since Kakashi had seen him dripping and glorious, emerging from the water like a sea nymph. Anko must have been working him hard because his muscles were swollen looking and yet he was leaner. Kakashi couldn’t say he preferred this look on Iruka, he looked hollower and definitely more miserable.
“I would love to get ramen with you,” Iruka said pants pooling around his ankles.
They just stood there, staring at one another for a moment. Kakashi couldn’t wait to make Iruka happy and full of delicious soup.
“Kakashi! I don’t see a shiny sensei!!” Anko yelled, snapping the men out of their stupor.
“Right,” Iruka smiled coyly at Kakashi. “I guess I better finish taking these off.”
“It seems a bit backward, no? You’re taking your pants off before our first date.” Kakashi joked, wiggling his eyebrows.
Iruka giggled at Kakashi, bending over and squatting one-footed in a strange contorted manner to remove his pants while standing. Kakashi smiled under his mask, despite his bulging muscles, Iruka was the same endearingly awkward man he first met all those years ago.
Iruka finished removing his pants and tossed them into a pile with his other clothes. “Ready.”
Kakashi dipped the brush into the oil and started to paint the creases between Iruka’s muscles. It should have been a much more erotic moment, but Iruka could not stop laughing. Clearly the sensei was ticklish. Kakashi would remember that for later. Ticklish normally meant sensitive to more sensual touching as well. At least according to Icha Icha. Kakashi would be testing out that theory as soon as humanly possible, hopefully in a more private venue.
“Do you… ah… want me to… paint you too?” Iruka asked as Kakashi finished applying the oil to Iruka’s calf. How was even this most innocuous muscle perfectly defined like an anatomy textbook?! Iruka was literally textbook perfect.
“It’s time people! Get a move on!” Anko yanked the oil and brush out of Kakashi’s hands before Iruka could reciprocate. “This man is your competition, Iruka, OK? So, look alive!” Anko moved on ushering the men into line on the wing of the stage and starting the music.
Toshihiko announced the rules and regulations first, “No hinges, no chakra enhancements, just pure physicality.” There was a mostly female roar from the audience. Toshihiko clearly wasn’t expecting to be interrupted at that and looked flustered. Anko laughed at the naïve man, clearly many of the audience members were going to consider this a very sexy evening.
“Anyway, please welcome our esteemed panel of judges. Our great and powerful Hokage, Tsunade-sama.” Toshihiko paused for applause and held up his hand to stop them after a couple seconds. “With her extensive anatomical knowledge, she will be the perfect judge. Next, Shizune-san,” there were less cheers, but still a healthy amount. “She is second only to Tsunade in her medical knowledge. It will come in handy. And finally, Izumo-san and Kotetsu-san,” there were only a sprinkling of cheers from the audience. “They are notable shinobi and will be a good judge of what is impressive for a ninja in terms of muscle definition.” Clearly the man had to reach for a reason that those two were on the panel.
Truth be told, they needed volunteers and Tsunade volunteered them. Anko was also pleased with the decision since they were chūnin and friends with Iruka. She could practically taste victory.
“Without further ado, let’s meet our contestants.” The audience erupted in cheers.
Anko had organized the event to start with a small meet and greet of the contestants, convinced that Iruka would charm the judges and audience. She also knew that Iruka didn’t like attention and would get more and more awkward if left on stage, so she made sure he was the last one to get introduced. Order was everything.
“First up, is our Noble Green Beast, Maito Gai!” The audience cheered as Gai dashed onto the stage. He threw glitter and spun when he entered center stage. As he spun, he removed his robe and flexed for the audience. There were more cheers. Anko glared, not expecting Gai to be so engaging.
“Thank you, Toshihiko-san! I am Taijutsu master Maito Gai! I am your most loyal servant and strongest jōnin.” Gai flashed his shiny teeth and started to lift weights, Anko was not sure those came from and not sure she wanted to find out.
“My genin team is my greatest accomplishment, and they have made me so proud.” Gai got teary eyed at this and the audience awed. They were eating out of his hands, and Anko was getting nervous. Gai was already a favorite to win, and now he was being charming instead of awkward?! She would have to make up for this somehow. She shouldn’t have let the contestants say their own instroductions.
Gai was finishing his speech and Anko pushed Raidō onto the stage.
“Next up is Namiashi Raidō-san.” He didn’t remove his robe completely like Gai, instead, he opened it and it fluttered behind him like a cape. It was a smart move, since he wasn’t very buff, and his abs were his best feature. “You may have seen him around the mission room, but he is most known for when he is going unseen, as one of our most skilled assassins. He is also a member of the elite bodyguards to the Hokage, so let’s hear it for Raidō.”
“Thank you, Toshihiko-san,” Raidō pulled out a small index card from his rob pocket and started reading, “I may be known as the Konoha assassin, but I hope after tonight, I am known as the Konoha thief instead, for all the hearts… I…” Raidō looked up and glared into the audience. Genma was seated right behind the Hokage, as her bodyguard for the event, and he was laughing so uproariously that the people next to him on either side scooted their chairs away.
Raidō blushed, stopped talking, and seethed as he walked to his mark at the back of the stage next to Gai. Toshihiko stepped in to try and save the awkward silence, “great, great, thank you, Raidō-san…”
“Our next contestant is well known and well loved, from the great Sarutobi family, Asuma-san.” There was great fanfare for the well-known son of the late, beloved Third Hokage. “He is not just a powerful and well-rounded shinobi, but also well versed and proficient at shōgi. Brains and brawn, and I don’t see a ring ladies.” There was a high pitch squeal from the audience, as Asuma flung his robe over his shoulder, winked, and walked to his place in the back.
Despite his less defined legs, Asuma was serious competition as well. He was well liked by the judges and the audience. He also looked like he had worked out and dieted the past two weeks, but still, his thighs paled in comparison to Iruka. Anko felt pretty confident still.
“The next man is our oldest and most prestigious contestant. Please welcome, the chief of the Akimichi clan, Chōza-san!” The audience went wild. This was the least expected contestant of the evening.
“I am here to represent true strength and wisdom! This is the body of a true warrior, and my son should never be ashamed of our power.” Chōza said, and there was not a dry eye in the house as the man dropped his robe and flexed his impressive muscles, chub jiggling slightly with his movement. He was the biggest man on that stage, by every definition of the word. He may have had a thick layer of fat covering them, but his strength was clear as day and Tsunade was nodding her approval of the message.
Anko gasped at the audience’s reaction. She didn’t know Chōza was doing this to try and show his son to be proud of their large physique! He could actually win this… Anko tried not to curse too loudly.
Toshihiko was rubbing a stray tear from the corner of his eyes as Chōza moved to his mark at the back of the stage.
“Wow, what an inspiration. Next, we have the mysterious and hip, Hatake Kakashi-san.” There were loud woops emanating around the room. Kakashi was popular despite, or perhaps because of, his aloof persona. He walked onto the stage already in only his speedo and mask, reading his Icha Icha tactics book.
He looked up when he hit center stage, gave a small wave, a crescent eye smile, and said “yo.” Before moving back to his mark next to Chōza.
Kakashi had honestly not prepared anything for the event, not his body or his speeches. He was only there for Iruka, so why bother. He did not expect the audience to lose their minds and collectively swoon at his greeting.
Anko wasn’t worried though, she knew the whole of the civilian population practically worshiped the jerk, but that Tsunade and the rest of the judges were not so easily tricked and their leader’s eye roll at the screams from the audience belayed her feelings. Kakashi was muscular though. Anko didn’t realize he was so defined; since he seemed kind if scrawny in his uniform. She tried not to be too nervous. The judges would never vote for Kakashi.
It was Iruka’s turn; the best for last. Right before he could pass through the black side-stage curtain, Anko yanked his hair tie off, pulled his robe off, smacked him on the butt, and pushed him through. It caused Iruka to stumble slightly onto the stage and a nice, adorable flush to paint his cheeks under the stage lights.
All the contestants were wearing just a little bit of grease paint, the thick stage make-up that helped prevent the faces of the people on stage from being washed out under the bright lights. Anko had made sure that she applied Iruka’s make-up instead of letting him do it himself. The other men were a bit clumsy looking with their high and low lights and their eye liner was a little sloppy. But Iruka looked perfect. His naturally high cheekbones emphasized to perfection and his kind brown eyes much more prominent than normal.
Iruka kept telling her this was a muscle competition, not a popularity contest or beauty pageant. Anko just laughed at him and said, “everything is a popularity contest, and pretty people get advantages!”
Iruka had no argument at the time, and still didn’t as he listened to all his competition get loud woops and cheers. He wasn’t sure he would get the same reactions.
“And last, but certainly not least, everyone’s favorite sensei, Umino Iruka!” There was a polite level of cheers from the audience and Iruka straighten up, checked his speedo was on right, and stiffly walked to the mark on the front of the stage. He stood, head held high, hands clasped in front of him to try and get some level of cover from all the eyes. There were so many eyes on him!
“Most of you know Iruka-sensei from his work at the academy teaching the pre-genin, or from his volunteer work teaching the civilian classes, but you may be interested to hear that he is also a student. He is taking classes at the capital on a new technology for filing called… computing.”
Iruka had opted to not speak during his time on stage, just in case he froze. He was happy for that now as he felt nerves twist in his gut. So, this was stage fright, huh?
He looked down at his hands briefly before clearing his throat and glancing up at the audience again, rolling his shoulders back to correct his slouch. He smiled shyly, awkwardly, unsure of what to do. He raised his hand after another couple seconds of silence and said, “hello,” before he bowed slightly and walked back to his spot, the silence was palpable in his ears. His whole face was red from embarrassment.
Then all at once, the audience erupted in noise, the cheers deafening after the oppressive silence. Iruka paused in his walk to the back and bashfully glanced back. There was a loud wolfish whistle from the back and a more genuine smile, one showing true relief, spread across his face as he walked toward the other contestants again.
Anko sighed, afraid for a moment that she had grossly miscalculated Iruka’s popularity and was on her way to loosing a bunch of money. She chalked the incident to shock. Clearly no one in the audience had expected the meek sensei to be hiding that body.
She looked at the judges table and noticed Shizune practically scrapping the Hokage’s jaw off the table, blush on both their cheeks. Anko felt she had an assured victory.
“And now, we move on to the judgement portion of the night. Our volunteers, and prime examples of shinobi fitness, will be judged according to mass, symmetry, proportion, definition, and stage presence. We will begin with the group posing.
“Would the six of you please come up to the front of the stage and go through the required poses? Judges, please rank the contestants from 1 to 6, one being the best and 6 being the worst of the group on each of the eight poses.”
Toshihiko walked off to the side of the stage, giving the men space from one another to go through their poses.
Anko was most worried about the stage presence section of the judging with Iruka. The man was not known for his self-confidence in a crowd. He was bull-headed and often acted without thought, but that generally was not due to his glowing inner confidence as much as just stubborn righteousness.
She glared at Iruka, willing him to go through the poses properly, as she had trained him over the course of the two weeks.
The men on stage all started to contort their bodies into uncomfortable (and often silly) poses that showed off their bulky muscles best. This portion was coordinated, and all the men were supposed to go through the same set in the same order. Iruka was happy to melt into the group, hoping that the eyes wouldn’t be so oppressive if everyone was doing the same thing.
The first pose was the Front Double Biceps, aka the classic strong man pose. He tried to keep a smile on his face, but as he looked over at his fellow participates, he noticed they were making some very serious faces. Anko hadn’t told him any particular face to make. He decided to go for neutral. Like he was delivering a report to the Hokage.
Pose two was the front Lat Spread, hands on his hips and duck footed. Iruka wasn’t sure how this was at all appealing, but it did show of his legs and abs efficiently. He opted for relaxed shoulders since he didn’t need to tense up for his lats to flare, visible from the front of his body. The only other two who could do this were Asuma and Gai.
Pose three was side chest. He shifted to allow his right side to face the judges and flexed his right arm in front of his body, his left tense as it held the wrist of his right arm. Anko said to try and make his hip popped and his back arch while he did this pose since it made his right leg and ass also look really nice. He tried not to think about all these people looking at his ass.
Pose four was side tricep. He simply had to shift his arms from in front of him to behind him, keeping his legs in the same bent form. It was a simple transition and yet, he felt very silly. His left arm still pulled on his right, but just behind him instead of in front. It made his triceps bulge and stung just a little. He was a little tight today after Anko made him work out all day before this event.
Pose five was his favorite. It meant getting to look away from the crowd. Rear lat spread. Why people were so obsessed with lats was beyond him, but Anko said it was important for the judges to see. He turned to the back of the stage and tensed with his hands on his hips. His lats weren’t really the muscle being judged here, but he didn’t really know that since he couldn’t see what flexed from this position. His traps, glutes, hamstrings, and calves were on full display in this position and if Iruka had looked behind him at the audience, he would have noticed almost every eye struggling to look away from his form.
Pose six was his second favorite since he still got to be facing away from the audience. Rear double bicep he understood better than the rear lat spread, but he didn’t like it. He was tired of all the ogling Anko had given his biceps. She said that they would be what really won this for her. From the back, the pose wasn’t only about the biceps, much like the rear lat spread wasn’t only about the lats. This was another one that Anko emphasized Iruka had to arc his back during. He did as instructed and missed the nose-bleeding that occurred throughout the audience.
Iruka glanced quickly to his side, Kakashi was staring at him as he lazily went through the forms. Iruka didn’t remember Kakashi being very built, but he must have put on some muscle mass recently because he certainly didn’t look bad with his arms raised and flexing. Iruka tried not to notice how nice his ass looked and how all the audience would probably be unable to look away either.
Iruka turned back to face the crowd for pose seven along with the other men, breaking the eye contact between the neighbors. It was the abdominal and thigh pose. He lifted one arm to go behind his head, this was a familiar gesture for Iruka, and after he learned it was a bodybuilding pose, he figured he should try and stop doing it in his real life. Anko had told Iruka to flex with one arm only at a time behind his head. This way, the judges would see each side of this abs definition and it would set him apart. Iruka didn’t like the idea of being set apart, but he listened to the instructions anyway (who wanted to be on Anko’s bad side? Not Iruka that’s for sure).
Pose eight was the final one of the group section and also the silliest. It was called the most muscular. For this pose, Iruka hunched his back slightly and flexed his arms in front of him, curved slightly like a crab. It was supposed to emphasize every muscle in the front of his body. Anko made him add a slight tilt to his hip to show off his legs and calf better. It was awkward, but the audience seemed to enjoy as they cheered. Iruka tried to keep his eyes toward the back doors.
Once they were finished, the judges started chattering about themselves and the contestants got to just stand on the stage for a moment, moving to the back again.
Kakashi turned to Iruka, “you looked great out there, Iruka.”
Iruka blushed, he only took one look at Kakashi the whole time, trying to look blankly at the back wall the whole time. Maybe he should have looked over more.
“I just missed your smile. When this is over, I hope to bring the sparkle back to your eyes.” Kakashi was flirting with him. It made Iruka’s heart flutter and his face to erupt in a goofy smile.
“I think your mission will be a success, Kakashi.” Iruka looked at Kakashi’s closed eye, it normally meant the man was smiling, and now that he was looking, there was a barely noticeable outline of upturned lips under the black mask.
Toshihiko came back to center stage to announce the next section. “Thank you, men! Konoha’s finest, indeed. Now we move onto the next section where each competitor will have two minutes to pose as they wish. This is more freestyle, and so the judging will be on a 1-6 scale of the whole section, keep your favorites in mind, since they will again need to be ranked 1 the best, to 6 the worst.”
Toshihiko was giving the rules so clearly because they decided to allow for more audience contribution and have an audience score and a judges’ score. There were multiple back-alley bets going on for both scores. Anko was banking on Iruka for both.
They were going for a randomized order for the individual pose section, but Anko was tricky and rigged it so Iruka would go first. She was convinced that the first one would be the most memorable since the poses would be newer and the audience wouldn’t be bored with it all.
Toshihiko reached into the bowl and pulled out Iruka’s name on a slip of paper. “Looks like we will get to see Iruka-sensei first!” Toshihiko smiled at Iruka, getting his attention from Kakashi, and gestured to the mark on the front center of the stage.
Iruka wasn’t happy to go first. He wasn’t aware of Anko’s scheme though, so accepted his fate as divinely decided.
Anko had drilled the routine into him. He would go through the same eight standard poses but add in some others that would emphasis the muscles on him that were much better than his competitors. Namely, his thighs and calves. He was incredibly nervous for this section and wasn’t sure he could actually go through with the last move.
He started the poses as Toshihiko turned the two-minute sand timer. It started easy enough, he repeated some of the other moves again. He went into kneeling poses too which he liked the best. His first kneeling pose was simple. He went into his right knee, left leg relaxed, toe pointed to easily flex his calf. He overextended his right knee over his toes ask instructed, Anko said it made his thigh really pop. Then he twisted his torso to the left, facing the audience and leaned back, arms up and hands behind his head. It was a good pose apparently. Iruka didn’t mind it much, the audience wasn’t making much noise, but the judges were making notes.
He then moved his arms, slowly, tense and flexing, until his hands touched in the front of his body, just past his left hip. It was a pose that showed off his whole body, but Iruka liked it because he didn’t have to stand. There was a lot of standing in this competition and his feet were getting tired. He had a long day of training before this with little to eat all week.
It was getting to the end of the routine. Iruka glanced nervously at Anko on the wing. She was glaring at him and making strange gestures with her hands. She clearly expected him to do the last pose. She said it showed off his hamstring, glute, and calves, which were his best features compared to the competition. He wanted the money to go to the academy and Anko promised that the pose was popular and others would use it for sure.
Iruka breathed in deep, steeling himself. He would do it. He was treating this like a mission, and sometimes, missions were weird and uncomfortable. With that thought in mind, he stood up and turned to face the back of the stage. The men were all looking at Iruka questioningly. Then he bent over. His legs were pressed tightly together, so he was sure that it wasn’t as obscene as he thought, and Anko assured him, it was strictly for seeing the definition of muscles on his legs.
There was a collective gasp from the audience and then silence. Iruka snapped back up, mortified, but a little proud he went through with it. He wouldn’t be the only one who didn’t do the moon pose. When he looked at the men in front of him, their expressions ranged from shock to more shocked.
Iruka felt a little miffed by the reaction. Did they really not think he would do the pose? He wasn’t some prude, and he was proud of his body. It was for the cause anyway. He wouldn’t look back at the audience, but he was a little satisfied knowing that he had proven himself to his colleagues.
Toshihiko cleared his throat, though there wasn’t a noise in the place. The silence made Iruka blush, but he was just the first to go. It would be better with the others.
Iruka watched the other men go, one by one, up to the front of the stage and do their poses. It looked like most of them were completely making up the routine as they went. Iruka’s face reddened considerably when none of the other men did the moon pose. Anko lied to him. Of course, she had. He should have never listened to her! The shocked faces made more sense now that he thought about it. How would be go back to teaching after that?
Kakashi was the last name chosen from the bowl and he glanced at Iruka, who was completely red faced nad lost in thought, as he made his way to the front. He spent the entire two minutes just sort of ambling through a couple poses while reading his Icha Icha, slowly and lazily. Then, as the timer was running low, he turned around, winked at Iruka, and bent over, imitating the moon pose Iruka had done earlier. The audience gasped as they had with Iruka, but it was less so.
Iruka covered his surprised laughter with his hand, eyes wide with shock. This private man just exposed his most private area to an audience of hundreds. He also normalized the move, and Iruka wouldn’t seem like a crazy pervert… Well, at least not the only crazy pervert.
“Maa, Iruka, I couldn’t let you have all the fun, now could I?” Kakashi said as he sashayed back to his mark next to Iruka.
Iruka removed his hand, exposing his bright, vibrant smile to Kakashi. “Thank you, Kakashi.”
Kakashi was struck silly at the look. Iruka was stunning. He would do anything to bring that smile to his face, even bend over in front of half the village. It was well worth it. If Iruka commanded it, he would even do it without the speedo. In fact, he would gladly take off the oppressing garment right here and now if Iruka wanted. His hand twitched toward his waist band before realizing this was all in his head and Iruka hadn’t said a word.
“Well! That was an exciting section.” Toshihiko said, trying to get the audience to calm down. “Please make your marks. The final section will involve the judges coming up and individually examining the contestants. Since you all won’t be able to do this, we have given your score sheets a separate section for overall tone and definition. Please rank the ninja in the same manner, first to sixth. Then we will have a ten-minute break for judging, and the contestants will be awarded places.”
The audience buzzed and the ninja walked up to the front of the stage again.
“Well, that was quite something boys,” Tsunade said, poorly hiding her mirth as she glanced between Iruka and Kakashi. “I think the audience really got their money’s worth.”
The judges went up to each of the men in turn and pinched and prodded their muscles up close.
Izumo and Kotetsu were joking with Iruka at his move, and Iruka explained Anko’s trickery to them. They nodded in understanding. “Crazy jōnin,” they all said in unison. Iruka was feeling a little more himself talking to his friends, knowing they wouldn’t abandon him for his last move.
“You did really good, Iruka! I had no clue you were hiding all this though,” Kotetsu joked, eyebrows wiggling suggestively. Iruka laughed at the familiar move.
Kakashi moved up next to Iruka after Tsunade and Shizune moved away from him. “Having fun with Iruka?” He asked in a deep, controlled voice. “When will it be my turn? I’d like to get this done with so I can finish a much more pressing mission.”
“Oh, sorry, Kakashi-san. We do have a time limit for this section. We should move on.” Izumo said, bowing slightly to Kakashi and they both followed Kakashi back to his post, Kotetsu turning and mouthing ‘jōnin’ while twirling his fingers around his head. Iruka laughed lightly but was very happy that particular crazy jōnin’s mission involved him.
The judging went quickly, Iruka was the first one they all examined, so he just stood there, watching the others get examined in turn. The other volunteers had collected the audience votes and a whole table of them were counting and tallying and organizing. It would be over soon.
Finally, the audience was ushered back in and settled down. Their break was over and so was the night.
Toshihiko held the results in an official looking envelope. Anko, Iruka knew, was not involved in the counting. Most of the volunteers knew she was biased and very willing to cheat, so they kept an eye on her for any tricks.
Toshihiko got the envelope directly from Tsunade, who was probably also bias to whoever she was betting for, but was sure she wouldn’t go so far as to cheat on such a silly event… Well, they hoped.
“Everyone’s attention please!” that settled the crowd, excited hushed whispers dimming to silence to hear the results. “Without anymore waiting, I would like to announce the results! Would the contestants all come to the front of the stage, please.”
In the break, the ninja on stage had walked around, getting water, or chatting with one another. They made their way back and stood at attention, all hoping more than anything else, to get to leave.
“OK, I will begin with the audience votes. First runner up is… Asuma-san! Congratulations.” Asuma bowed, projecting disinterest, but if you looked closely, you could see him glancing at Kurenai in the audience as she cheered loudly for him, smiling brightly at her love.
“Runner up is… Iruka-sensei!! Congratulations, you make the academy proud!” Toshihiko said, patting Iruka on the back as he bowed gratefully at the audience. He was blushing brightly and smiling. Anko was pissed, snapping the clipboard she was holding in half.
“That leaves the winner as… Chōza…-sama.” Toshihiko smiled dumbly as Chōza pumped his fist into the air, his son, Chōji, leapt onto the stage, hugging his father tightly around the waist, both crying and spinning in a circle.
Iruka wiped a tear from his eye at the scene. Of course, the audience would vote for this beautiful story! And the Akimichi leader was incredibly strong and muscular. Just not in a traditional bodybuilder way.
The ninja on stage all congratulated one another before Toshihiko got order again in the auditorium.
“OK! We are all very happy for Chōza-sama! Now let’s move onto the judges vote.” Toshihiko took the second card out of the envelope.
“First runner up is… Asuma-san again!” The audience cheered again and Asuma twitched, he really needed a cig. Why were they not allowed on academy grounds?
“Runner up is… Gai-san! Congratulations for the placement.” The audience cheered for the enthusiastic man as he cried manly tears and a sunset scene played dramatically behind him. This was probably why the audience had not voted him highly. Lee was screaming loudly in the audience for his sensei. Iruka giggled at the show.
“And that leaves first place. The winner of the Konoha power-body competition is… UMINO IRUKA!” Toshihiko yelled, shocked and ecstatic that his teacher won such a title.
Iruka and Chōza stepped up to the front of the stage, in front of the other contestants and accepted gawdy trophies and sashes.
“Congratulations Chōza-sama!” Iruka shook the man’s large hand.
“And to you, Iruka-sensei! Who would have guessed what you were hiding under those lose clothes all these years?” The man smiled at the shorter sensei. He like Iruka. The boy had been Chōji’s homeroom teacher after all and had done a bang-up job.
“Congratulations to our winners and thank you for joining us tonight. We hope to see you at more exciting events in the near future! Good night.” Toshihiko closed out the night. The audience ambled out and the contestants went back through the wings to the green room.
Kakashi walked next to Iruka back to the area they had left their belongings.
“Can’t wait to get my clothes back on. What a night!” Iruka said, smile not leaving his face.
Kakashi grunted in response, finding his own pants. He was not so happy to see Iruka slip his uniform over his glistening thighs. He would miss those thighs. Maybe he could get Iruka to perform the moon pose for him soon, he was incredibly jealous of the audience’s view.
Iruka was just getting his shirt back on when Anko thundered into the green room. “Iruka! What the hell happened out there!?” Iruka was roughly pulling the hem of his shirt down when he turned to face Anko, face red with anger.
“Oh, I don’t know Anko, maybe the audience didn’t appreciate me mooning them!! Why would you embarrass me with that?” Iruka yelled at one of his oldest friends.
“It’s the perfect pose for you!” Anko responded, anger deflating slightly as she remembered the pin-drop silence that followed that move. Perhaps she had made a slight miscalculation.
“As much as I agree with Anko, that that was the perfect pose for you,” Kakashi began and Iruka’s angry flush turned into one of embarrassment, “I would have to side with Iruka overall. That pose was probably too much for the general population.”
Anko huffed, but honestly didn’t think she could blame someone else for her troubles. “Fine, but at least I got the main prize!”
“Don’t forget your promise Anko! Half to the academy.” Iruka warned, glaring at her.
She waved her hands in front of her defensively, “I wouldn’t dream of going back on the deal Iruka. You worked hard buddy!” She clamped Iruka on the back and walked away.
“I need an Anko break. I’ll give her a weeklong mission tomorrow.” Iruka confessed to Kakashi, who laughed lightly.
“Well, hopefully you take much longer to tire of my company. Shall we?” Kakashi asked, gesturing to the doorway out. “You deserve as many bowls of ramen as you can eat.”
“That is a dangerous offer, Kakashi. I don’t know if even your pockets are deep enough to handle that!” Iruka joked, fitting his vest on and putting his hair up in its signature ponytail. As wonderful as the naked sensei had been to see all evening, Kakashi was happy to have the original back.
Gai swooped into view, “Rival! I have the full results here, and I beat you in both the audience and judges scoring! The challenge goes to youth and beauty, the green beast of Konoha!” Gai was still in his speedo, and so Iruka and Kakashi looked elsewhere when he high kicked in celebration.
“We should all go out to celebrate, Iruka, join Kakashi and I?” Gai asked, elbowing Kakashi conspiratorially. The man had no clue that Kakashi had figured out his own love life and no longer need, nor had he ever wanted, Gai’s help.
“Oh, actually Gai, I have a date. But thank you for the offer.” Gai looked flabbergasted. He was sure that Iruka liked Kakashi, he wouldn’t just blow off a chance to eat with him, would he?
“Maa, a date? I like the way that sounds.” Kakashi responded, starting for the door with Iruka walking by his side.
Gai looked between the two backs, then, “the springtime of love in the wiles of youth!” Gai prosed, falling to his knees, tears like rivers cascading down his face.
“Gai, let’s get dango.” Anko said, pulling the weeping man to his feet and toward the door.
“Anko! I should probably get dressed?!”
--
Iruka and Kakashi sat at the two stools farthest to the left at Teuchi’s bar. Ramen Ichiraku was a comfort for almost every shinobi in Konoha. They were drawn there like lovers in the night.
Iruka was on his second bowl and was probably going to stop there. He had made some grand promises, but after two weeks for high protein low carb foods, he wanted to avoid a stomachache. Especially since he wanted no distractions from his date.
Kakashi had finished his bowl in seconds flat. Iruka hadn’t looked over, trying to be polite to his privacy, he had seen plenty of the man this evening already. No need to be greedy.
“Do you even taste the food on the way down, Kakashi? It’d be a shame if not because Teuchi’s food is the best in the village.”
Teuchi blushed behind the counter, “flattery will get you everywhere, Iruka-sensei,” the man said as he dropped an extra chashu in Iruka’s bowl. “Congratulations on your victory tonight.”
Iruka smiled, “thank you, but you don’t have to do that Teuchi-san!” But the man was already helping another couple at the other end of the bar.
“So, it’s been two weeks, eh? Teuchi probably is trying to butter up his best customer after missing him for two weeks.” Kakashi said, head cradled in his hand, elbow resting casually on the bra, staring at Iruka as he eats.
“In fact, I know that I would be a mess myself if I had to go two weeks without seeing you.” Kakashi said coolly.
Iruka almost chocked on his noodles. “What a thing to say Kakashi! We often go weeks without seeing one another…” Iruka trailed off as he thought about what he just said. Kakashi handed in his reports mostly to the Hokage directly, since they were S-rank more and more lately. However, he would see the man around town and wave. Iruka wasn’t sure if that counted.
“Maa, Iruka, I have never gone more than a week without seeing you smile, barring only a few long missions. I may go AWOL if I did.”
“Don’t joke about that.” Iruka blushed hotly, facing away from the man next to him and back at his ramen. He finished quickly and Kakashi let him eat without any more romantic quips.
Kakashi paid for their meal, Iruka not even given the time to contest, before the two men left the comfortable atmosphere of the shop. They ambled, vaguely heading in the direction of the shinobi apartment quarter of the village. Iruka was stopped occasional as civilians and shinobi congratulated him and shook his hand. The more daring would grab his arm as they shook his hand and squeeze his bicep.
Kakashi made mental notes to silently eliminate those people.
“This is a lot more attention than I’m use to.” Iruka said, rubbing at his aching shoulder.
“Are you OK?” Kakashi asked, watching Iruka’s bicep stretch his uniform sleeve as his folded arm shifted with his ministrations.
“Oh, I’m sure it’s nothing. I just worked out really hard today before the event. Anko was hard on me these past weeks.”
“I know a nice, quiet bench we can sit at; I can work on some of those knots for you?” Kakashi asked. It implied that this would be a nice gesture for Iruka, but honestly, if Iruka let Kakashi touch him, it would be the greatest gift anyone ever gave him.
“I would love to find a quiet place with you, but you don’t have to-."
“I want to.” Kakashi interrupted quickly, trying to hide his embarrassment at the enthusiasm.
“Well, I can’t say no to such a nice offer.”
Kakashi brought them to his favorite bench. It was off the path a little and in a small cluster of trees in a little park. Most people walked right by, unaware.
Iruka sat down and awkwardly shifted so he was facing away from Kakashi as he sat next to him. He removed his vest but kept his long sleeve on.
Kakashi wasted no time and immediately started to knead the hard muscles around Iruka’s neck. The man was incredibly tight, but with each firm stroke, Kakashi could feel Iruka’s muscles relax.
Kakashi moved his hands more toward Iruka’s upper back, thumbs pushing hard into the thick traps, feeling the knot that must be bothering Iruka. He applied some gentle healing chakra as he pushed severely into the problem spot.
Iruka moaned, head lolling to the side. It was completely out of his control, but the massage was exactly what he needed (and wanted).
Kakashi’s mind frizzled dry at the noise, all his blood moved elsewhere. However, he was an elite ninja and his body continued its mission without the help of his consciousness. Iruka grimaced and panted slightly as Kakashi dug into another knot on the other side. Iruka was beyond embarrassed by the noises, but Kakashi kept going, so it must not be that bad.
Kakashi’s mind was swirling with mixed emotions that he expertly kept from showing in his actions. He was not only getting to feel the hard, ropy muscles of Iruka’s perfect back, but the sensei was pliant and moaning because of his fingers. It was too much he was in come kind if mix of heaven and hell.
Luckily, there was a merciful deity somewhere, because as soon as the second knot was loosened, Iruka moved away and put his vest back on. Truthfully, Iruka was enjoying the massage a little too much and wanted to stop before it got to be too much for him to handle in public.
“Thank you, Kakashi.” His shy smile did not help Kakashi to cool off. “This was a great date. Could we maybe… do it again sometime? I can pay next time.”
“Next time?” Kakashi’s brain was trying to keep up.
“Oh,” Iruka deflated slightly, hands clasping in his lap.
“Next time! No, yes, I mean… yes.” Kakashi wasn’t having much luck.
“Yes?” Iruka repeated, braving a glance up to Kakashi’s masked face, it was hard to read the man with it on, but Iruka guessed that was the point.
“I would love to go out again. Anytime I’m in the village. Or even outside of it! I’d put any mission on pause if you showed up.”
Iruka laughed, “I don’t think the Hokage would appreciate me showing up on one of your S-class missions.”
Kakashi couldn’t argue with that, but it was true, he would stop halfway through an assassination if Iruka asked him to. He should probably not tell the Hokage that.
“Well, if you are in town, and not on any mission, let’s agree to next Wednesday? There is a half off deal at Yakiniku Q that day.” Of course, Iruka would be frugal. It made Kakashi’s heart rush. He was getting asked out. He would make sure he was back by Wednesday evening.
“I’ll be there,” Kakashi promised. No matter what happened on his mission this week, he would be back.
“Well then, can I walk you home?” Iruka asked, it was getting late and he had mission desk duty in morning.
Kakashi nodded, and they both stood and continued their slow walk towards Kakashi’s apartment. They ran into much fewer people since the hour had gotten late.
The silence wasn’t as oppressive as Kakashi expected. He was content and high on the fact that he would get another date.
They were too soon in front of Kakashi’s door, standing face to face. “Well… Goodnight Kakashi.” Iruka leaned forward and kissed Kakashi’s masked cheek before turning and making a quick escape.
Kakashi’s hand reached up and rubbed his warm cheek. This was quite possibly the greatest date he had ever been on. His heart caught in his throat, beating eagerly. He fully expected the next time he went out with the perfect sensei to be even better.
Next time, he would opt for a shirtless massage.