One Day at a Time

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters and make no money from it.

Day Fifty-Two: Dilly Dally

It was time to say good bye. Kakashi spared his trusty wheelchair another glance as he grasped the crutches the nurse had brought him, claiming that his legs were now strong enough to support him with the new tool. He was going to miss the wheeled-device, really. It made travelling from point A to point B more comfortable, though a bit more tiring for the arms. Sitting in that chair, no one would blame for being lazy.


Alas, it was time seperate from the lovely gadget.

Returning his gaze to the two wooden crutches he held, the Copy Nin examined them carefully, eye sharp for any imperfection. They were safe, he deemed. Sliding his weight off the bed and onto his new aid, he tested it, as if expecting to hear the wood splinter when he placed his feet on the ground. Much to his satifaction, they remained in one piece and offered no sign of weakness. Good, his assumption had been right.

Kakashi was an eccentric man. Nobody would be surprised by such a statement. He wouldn't call himself paranoid, though decades of being caught in enemy traps might have conditioned him to be.

In reality, he believed he approached certain objects the way he did people. With care and apprenhension. Being forced to walk with crutches implied so many details that most would overlook, yet were crucial to the silver-haired jonin.

Such as... Which would gain him the most free meals and pity?

With a sigh, the masked man had to concede victory to the chair. It was too bad he'd spent so little time with it.

After having waited all day for the perfect opportunity, he decided that now was the best moment to take his crutches on a walk. Sakura had been surrounded by people from sunrise to sunset. With the moon already high in the sky, it wasn't hard to guess that her company had long left and that all risk associated with visiting his favorite student had dissipated.

"Sakura." The jonin called as he pushed the door open as silently as possible. The girl groaned in her sleep, tossing and turning at the sudden noise. "Wake up."

The click caused by closing the door woke her up with a start, she sat immediately, eyes wide and staring at her intruder. It wasn't long before her shinobi reflexes kicked in and she grabbed the nearest object to hurl at her potential enemy before she scrambled to the end of the bed, as far away as possible from the shadowed figure.

"Get out of here!" The young woman snarled as she gripped the covers.

"Sakura!" Kakashi growled as the pillow hit head. "It's just me."

"Kakashi-sensei?" She gasped as she recognized him. "Why the hell are you waking me up like that?!"

"I just wanted to give you a heads up." He let out as he bent down to recover the fluffy item from the floor. "Naruto and Sasuke are quite curious about what happened to you."

"They asked you?" The girl replied warily, barely above a whisper. "You didn't..."

"Of course not." The older man answered immediately, the offense he felt from her lack of trust clear in his baritone voice. "I only told them about the situation as a whole. Being captive and hurt. Nothing more."

"Oh." The pinkette exhaled in relief, relaxing as she sat on the edge of her mattress. "Thank you."

"No problem." Kakashi gave her a half smile as he leaned back againt the wall. "I understand."

"They gave you crutches?" The question left the Copy Nin unphased, barely bothered by the sudden change in subject.

"Yep." He uttered cheerfully, deciding to amuse her. "My wheelchair had a busy schedule ahead of it, it seems."

The small giggle that erupted from his companion made a genuine smile appear behind his mask. It had been such a long time since he'd heard her laugh.

"Sakura..." Her voice died down as she heard him, eyes locking with his with a small frown. "Are you really okay?" The Copy Nin questioned. "It's alright not to be after such traumatic events."

"I'm fine, Kakashi-sensei." The kunoichi reassured, her lips stretched in a lopsided smile. "I'll get over it."

The two didn't say anything after her response. It wasn't necessary. Kakashi knew that she was lying, hiding something from him and she was aware of it. The older man wouldn't bother with trying to pry something out of her, the girl was even more stubborn than he was. No good results would come out of it.

"I'm glad then." Her companion lied. "I'll let you sleep now."


Chapter Fifty-Three: Click Here