Chapter Text
Guy remembers his first day on the ice like it was yesterday.
He was clinging to the rink barrier, mesmerized by the shiny surface and how so many people slid across it so fast without crashing into each other. An absolute mystery!
To be honest, he still didn’t fully understand it. Classes with Choza-sensei’s group were one thing— they were already trained. But public sessions with loads of amateurs? That was undoubtedly some kind of ice magic!
It was taking Mama and Papa so long to lace up their skates that he almost ran out on ice without them.
Everyone on the ice was having so much fun!
The chilly air stung his cheeks in a funny way. The muffled sound of music echoed from overhead speakers, blending with laughter, and the slicing rhythm of blades on ice.
He even spotted a boy who could skate backwards, tracing a beautiful arc on the ice. So cool! He must try to do that too as soon as Mama and Papa are finally done.
The cool boy did some strange move— jumping and spinning in the air like some fairy tale creature, like he was weightless. The boy landed on one foot extending the arms and leg in an arabesque. The posture looked shaky, and he could barely keep his balance for a couple of seconds before falling flat on his ass.
Still, it was the coolest thing six-year-old Guy has ever seen.
He now knew how much training was required for that shaky double jump from his own experience. Muscular pain from excessive off-ice training. Never-ending bruises and scrapes from all the failed attempts. Dizziness from overusing the wobble board.
Now, he, Might Guy, ten years old was about to take part in his first ever figure skating competition.
He trained hard with Choza-sensei for years. He could even jump doubles and almost didn’t fall anymore! He could skate fast, spin, and he didn’t mess up the step sequence a single time in that morning’s training.
When he finally made it to competition, he was ready to challenge his rival!
Papa said the best way to push yourself forward is to have a rival! And if he wanted to become an Olympic Champion, he needed a truly worthy opponent. So, when he saw Hatake Kakashi perform like it took him no effort at all, like skating was the most natural thing in the world, he immediately knew he was the one! The prodigy from Serpent, Slug, & Toad Skating Academy! His rival! And today, he will officially challenge Kakashi and start their rivalry!
He had trained. He was prepared. Mama had sewn him such a cool costume. Shiny and sparkly! He could see her and Papa cheering him loudly with a big poster. Choza-sensei was right there next to him too, his calming presence full of encouragement.
But.
Something was wrong.
Guy couldn’t feel the encouraging tap on the back from Choza-sensei. Some invisible and very heavy monster was sitting on his shoulders, pressing him to the ground, making him crouch and his knees shake.
He couldn’t hear his Papa’s boisterously cheerful voice, only his loud heartbeat like thunder in his ears. His arms felt weirdly ticklish and alien. Ice under his skates felt even more slippery than that very first day. The cold bit through the thin fabric of his costume. For a second Guy felt an urge just to run back to his Papa and Mama.
No!
He is Might Guy and Might family members never forfeit a challenge!
***
Kakashi liked competitions and hated them at the same time. Skating itself was nice, sort of fun, and he was good at it. The smooth glide, the snap of his blades carving patterns into the ice— it felt like flying. Winning was nice too. It made him feel like all his training was not for nothing. It also made his dad proud and they ordered pizza from his favourite pizza place.
But everything except performing his own program?
That was what he hated.
Getting up early, training and warming up with all those clumsy kids on the rink— why do they even come here if they didn’t have the skill? Then the endless waiting for his own scheduled performance time.
Dad repeatedly told him how important it was to see what your fellow competitors were capable of.
As far as Kakashi could tell, his fellow competitors were nothing more than poorly trained children.
He even saw a couple of boys storm off the ice crying mid-program after a fall. Who does that? Even Obito doesn’t do that and he is lame. Even that loser in weird looking jumpsuit who popped every single jump in short skate yesterday pulled it through to the end. He started sobbing the moment he stepped off the ice, but Kakashi didn’t care what happened off the ice.
Genma was skilled, though. Nice spins and overall skating skills. Plus, he trained at the Academy too, so Kakashi knew he had already started triples.
Kakashi felt a bit jealous. Dad didn’t allow him to try triples yet, saying he was too young.
He could try convincing Dad.
But not Tsunade-sensei.
Being a couple of years senior Genma was in another group. Kakashi was not allowed to compete with him. And soon he will advance to Juniors. He’d be able to compete in larger competitions, regionals, even nationals, while Kakashi was stuck here with children for another four years or so.
If it didn’t matter how good he was, what’s the point of being called a prodigy?
Kakashi didn’t understand why award ceremonies had to last forever. He got his scores and just wanted it to be over. Free skates alone took ages. It wasn’t even an important competition anyway. Why did they need medals and diplomas and those ugly-looking plushies?
And all of it was presented by different people to make it long and pompous. They weren’t at the Olympics!
What animal was this plushie supposed to be, anyway? At least it was better than the sickeningly sweet candies from the last competition. He could give this plushie to Pakkun, at least.
How was he doing at home all alone? He just wanted to grab his medal, go home, and play with his dog.
Finally, once all the prizes were awarded, hands shaken, photos taken, he could go home with Dad and cuddle with Pakkun. Maybe they can watch some old performances together too. Dad said his blade work was starting to look smooth and elegant like Mom’s. Kakashi wanted to grasp the technique better.
He was about to climb to his seat and finally go home when he heard a loud, cheerful voice.
“Hatake Kakashi!”
A raven-haired boy with the bushiest eyebrows Kakashi has ever seen was running toward him. He was dragging a tall, bulky man and waving his free hands like those huge, weird air-filled dolls outside the supermarket.
“Congratulations on first place today! It was super cool! And you can jump so high!” the boy tried to mimic the jump with his hands. “It looked like you were flying for a moment! That’s so youthful!”
“Oh, that’s… thanks, I guess…” mumbled Kakashi. Youthful? How could jumping be youthful? Well, he is nine, so wasn’t everything he did sort of ‘youthful’?
He gave his father a quick glance, but the adults were busy exchanging pleasantries. Now that the boy had come closer, he realized that he recognised him. It was that loser with all the failed jumps. It was even painful to watch at some point.
“Your costume was very… flashy.”
“Thank you! My Mama made it for me! You have great taste!” the boy beamed with pride and joy. He pointed to himself with his thumb and grinned. “I’m Might Guy and one day I’ll become an Olympic Champion!”
“You couldn’t land a single jump yesterday.” It slipped out before Kakashi could stop himself.
“Thank you for your support, my worthy rival!” Might Guy gave him a thumbs-up. His grin didn’t waver for even a second. “I’ll train even harder from now on and overscore you! Watch me!”
Fortunately, a loud honk from a nearby car rescued Kakashi from having to reply to that dramatic proclamation. It wasn’t like he had a witty comeback anyway.
“Looks like we are running late, my boy,” the bulky man who was clearly Guy’s dad said. Those eyebrows and that grin must run in the family. “Sakumo-san, Kakashi-kun, pleasure to meet you. See you at the rink!”
The Hatake’s bid their goodbyes as the overly enthusiastic pair literally jogged back to their car. Kakashi saw a woman waiting inside. It seemed like she was on the phone.
He felt his father gently ruffle his hair.
“Don’t start slacking off now, Kakashi.” There was a smile in his voice. “Not when you have such a fierce rival.”
“You really think so?” The younger Hatake tilted his head back to look up at his father. “He literally couldn’t land a single jump.”
“Yes. But it seems he always bounces back.”