Kakashi looked at his ex-student dashing away from her best friend, Sasuke. His hands moved as blurs, and her body moved with grace. Her shoulder-length brown hair was tied back, but flew to the west with the wind when they stood facing each other.
Brook collapsed to the grass, unmoving. Kakashi smiled as Sasuke walked towards her.
"It's okay to lose once in a while," Sasuke said as he offered her a hand.
Cold metal barely touched his neck. She heard Brook smile. "Yeah, but it doesn't happen when I fight with you."
"You win." He scoffed.
She flipped the blade in her hand and pulled it away from him. She twirled it on her finger and smiled sweetly. "I know."
She turned towards Kakashi and flung the knife as hard as she could. He caught it with his first and middle finger with ease.
"I win." He said smartly. She saw the smile under the black cloth.
She walked to him, and when she was close enough, he pulled her into his strong, waiting arms.
"I think I win." She said in her talking-to-Kakashi voice. She pouted up at his grinning-through-mask face.
He thought about it for a moment. "Nope... I still win."
She laughed and put her hand on the top of his mask. Kakashi grabbed her wrist and her smile was forgotten.
"Not her-" He stopped and looked into the sky. Brook followed his gaze the the eagle flying high.
She sighed. "Let's go." She grabbed his hand and started walking towards the Jounin Headquarters.
Brook picked up on the very serious feeling coming from the building before they were even inside. When they walked into the meeting room, she immediately noticed that there were many more men then women, some that were not even jounin.
She noted that the only women in the room were the girlfriends or wives of men, aside from Tsunade. She furrowed her brow as she tried to piece it together. Kakashi tugged on her arm and they moved to their rightful chairs at the table. Brook sensed the immense tension rising from Tsunade.
Tsuande stood, and the quiet yammering in the room stopped. "Okay, men and ladies. You all know of our current situation with the Land of Ice." Distant murmurs. "Well, we have reached an agreement with their leader."
Brook scooted her chair closer to Kakashi, who was as tense as she was.
"If we want to come out of this war, all we need to do is find Princess Aiyame a suitor."
Brook went rigid. She understood know. The only reason the men were here was to be judged like meat for this princess.
"What about the guys who are taken?" She said, fighting the urge to hit her fists on the table.
Tsunade looked at the twenty-year-old ninja, one of her finest, and shook her head. "The only way they're out of the running is if they're married."
"When will she be here to judge them?" Brook said in a quiet tone. She couldn't tolerate the thought of any of these women to be seperated from their men.
Tsunade looked at the table. "Three hours. I expect all of the unmarried chuunin and jounin at my home in 2 and a half hours. Understood?"
"Understood, Lady Hokage." They all said in business tones, aside from Brook.
She gritted her teeth in an effort to not strangle the Hokage. Kakashi's thought were almost exactly the same, but it only came through his voice.
"Come on." He said roughly, standing up. "Let's go."
She stood and wasn't one bit surprised to see many couples the same as they were, but the women weren't trained professionals as Brook, and they fell into their mens' arms, tears flowing down their cheeks freely.
She held her composure until they were safely within the door of the samll house they had shared most of her life.
When Kakashi pulled the mask from his face hastily, Brook jumped into his waiting arms and their lips met. Kakashi's lips wer hard and hurried, and Brook's were slow and sensual. Kakashi slowed to her pace and removed his vest, trying to close the space between them.
Kakashi took her face in his hands, trying to bring her closer. Her hands were around his neck, and her feet didn't touch the ground. He was so much taller than her.
His hand reached for the bottom of her shirt and started pulling it off. She pulled away from him and murmured an almost silent, "No..."
Kakashi dropped her shirt immediately, but swept his arm under her knees and carried her bridal-style to the bedroom they also shared, all without breaking the kiss.
He took her face in the hands, he felt her body shake before the tear hit his hand. Her hands were on his face as well, but they dropped away when their lips parted.
"Brook..." He tried to say something, anything to calm her, but couldn't find the words.
She looked up at him and the tears running from her eyes killed him. No matter how bad anything ever felt to him, seeing her in pain made him want to erase all the things in the world that could ever hurt her.
She sobbed once and pleaded with him, "I can't do this without you... I can't live without you, Kakashi... I need you." She choked back another sob, but still her body shook.
"I know, Brook, I know... You know I can't stand to be away from you for any amount of time either... but this... It's out of my hands."
"She's going to pick you!" She closed her eyes and yelled, not so much at him, but at everything else. "I know it! Don't ask me how, but I know she will!"
He couldn't reply honsetly without sparking an argument, and that last thing he wanted was her angry with him.
He pulled her face up to look into her eyes, which opened. "I love you Brook. And don't you ever, ever forget that. No matter what, I will always love you."
"Even if your married to another woman? Even if your a million miles away? And you'll never see me again?"
"No matter what." He kissed her gently.
"I love you too, Kakashi..."
She accepted his kiss willingly and he layed her on the bed, and held her to his chest while she cried.
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Story notes: OC=Brook Storm.
Chapter notes: Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Chapter end notes: Thanks muchly for reading.