Chapter Text
Hiruzen Sarutobi sits in his office and watches in amusement as two of Konoha’s elite stand in front of him covered in yellow and pink paint respectively.
The shorter of the two, pink, has a stiff, shamed posture as he relays what happened.
“I see,” Hiruzen puffs on his pipe, “you were unmasked by a genin, Umino Iruka”
Annoyance radiates off of Hound’s entire form but his tone is polite.
“Yes sir,” he says, “he’s been targeting ANBU”
“Has he now,” Hiruzen tamps down his amusement, “well, I will have to have some words with him then”
The other ANBU, Bear, seems more amused than anything.
“Perhaps if you wouldn’t go out of your way to harass him,” she says. Hound stiffens.
“His behavior is immature,” Hound says coldly.
“You’ve gotta admit, he’s got some good traps,” Hiruzen can tell Bear is subtly teasing the young ANBU. “He’s gotten you, twice now?”
Hound’s posture stiffens but he doesn’t respond.
“Dismissed,” Hiruzen says. Both ANBU bow before leaving his office.
When they’re gone, Hiruzen allows his restrained chuckle to escape his mouth.
This was the first time he’s ever seen Hound express emotion. Usually the youngest member of ANBU is far too rigid for a fourteen year old boy. He hadn’t exactly agreed with allowing Kakashi to join ANBU but the council had overruled him on that one.
He chuckles. Of course it would be Iruka to draw that out from him. The young genin has an uncanny ability to humanize people. Part of why he pays so much attention to the troublemaker. For all his attitude and anger, Iruka’s heart is genuinely good and kind. He could easily have turned his anger against the village and, with his considerable skill and cleverness, would have made a very nasty enemy, but despite everything that happened to him, he never even considered that.
Him and Kakashi are far more similar than anyone would ever suspect. Perhaps this could be a good thing.
…
Iruka’s day has gone from bad to worse. One minute he was about to pull off a magnificent prank and the next, a clawed hand was catching the back of his shirt before he could set off his tag.
It had been an accident when he unmasked ANBU operative Hound. Iruka was stupid not suicidal and he would never intentionally jeopardize the safety of Konoha or a fellow nin. He had felt especially bad when he discovered just how young Hound is. Something in his chest had hurt at what the young ANBU had most likely seen and it had made him angry that they’d allow someone so young to join something so dangerous.
But any sympathy he may have felt disappeared under ire since Hound seemed to make it a personal vendetta or something because for the past two months Hound has been making his life difficult. Thus, he decided to do what he does best and decided to make Hound’s life equally difficult. And Iruka was far more creative than the ANBU.
“Stop following me!” he snaps, swinging from a branch and creating a clone despite knowing it won’t be effective.
“You’re being a pain in the ass!” Hound snarls, striking out and dissipating Clone Iruka. “Put down the paint!”
“No!” Iruka shouts. He glances around the clearing. Hound is clearly singleminded in his pursuit. Maybe he won’t pay attention…
Iruka unravels chakra wire, using chakra to stick the end to the tree. He creates a clone and the clone disappears with the chakra wire before Hound can notice.
He throws a wad of glue bundled into chakra paper at the pursuing ANBU as a distraction.
“Just let me go!” Iruka snaps, doubling back in the hopes Hound would trip over a branch.
“Then put the paint down!” Hound dodges with his usual grace.
“Why do you care what I do?” Iruka responds. He’s beginning to get tired. He sees his clone give a signal and he changes his direction, pretending to stumble so he can brush chakra along the ground in several places. “You’re the only one who tries to stop me!”
“Because you’re immature!” Hound dodges the flurry of branches Iruka throws at him. “You should never have graduated from the Academy!”
“I’m immature?” Iruka shrieks, “what about you? The mighty and powerful ANBU who has nothing better to do with his time than harass a genin. ANBU really not using you for anything useful?” he taunts, skidding to a halt just a little bit behind the trigger spot. He pretends he’s too exhausted to continue further.
“I’ve been running missions since you were still a snotty baby!” Hound lands. “Missions you wouldn’t even be able to begin to understand because you’re too immature you’ll never go on them! You’re just a genin and if you keep acting like this you’ll always be a genin!”
That actually stung.
Iruka takes a step back and Hound steps forward. Right on the trigger.
With a quiet twang, the ANBU operative is dangling upside down; chakra wire wrapped around his legs.
“You-!”
Iruka whoops at his success, darting forward and throwing the paint-filled balloons at the captive ANBU.
“How is that?” he taunts, making a face, “mighty ANBU taken out by an immature genin!”
“UMINO!” Hound wiggles, “what did you do? Let me out!”
“What?” he bounces on his feet, the thrill of a successful practical joke giving him a rush of energy. “Big scary Hound who has been on so many missions can’t figure out how to get out of a simple chakra wire trap?”
“You did something!” Hound accuses and Iruka grins. He holds up the seal he’s been experimenting with.
“Don’t worry, someone just needs to put their chakra into this,” he sets it at the base of the tree and admires his handiwork.
His jonin instructor hates him, has no idea how to handle him, so he foisted him off on Miura Mikaru, the village’s foremost fuinjutsu master and another transplant from Uzushiogakure. Iruka likes Mika-sensei, a lot more than he likes his jonin-sensei. The woman is probably younger than Iruka’s own parents were and has a mischievous streak that may even exceed Iruka’s own. She regularly talks fondly, and somewhat sadly, of her childhood friend with red hair and the trouble they’d get into together. She also always has some kind of baked good and fusses over Iruka as if he were her own child.
Iruka suspects the Old Man Hokage had something to do with it since he’s always giving Iruka scrolls to read on sealing techniques.
Just because his mom was from Uzushiogakure.
Iruka has always acted like he doesn’t give a damn about fuinjutsu, he’s always acted like he doesn’t give a damn about anything. The only reason he’s even bothering to become a ninja is because he can’t let his parents down. He’s always instinctively known he’s not designed for it. When his classmates and friends were oohing and ahhing over elite ninja, all Iruka could think was such a sad existence. He sees it in the ANBU who watch him, in the jonin who he passes on the street that all have such a faraway expression, a weariness surrounding them that makes Iruka’s heart ache for them.
Your heart is very big, dear one his mother’s words echo in his head guard it carefully.
He knows his limits, knows his chakra stores aren’t large but his control has always been far above that of any of his peers, so much so that his Academy instructor tried to direct him in the path of medi-nin, but Iruka doesn’t want to spend those long hours at the hospital. He hates the hospital even though he’s only been a few times. It smells like death and he hates death. Yet another mark against his potential to be a ninja. He already knows that killing is not something he’s going to be good at.
He studies the upside down and paint covered ANBU before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a necklace he made out of daisies.
“What are you doing?” Hound tries to wiggle away as Iruka approaches him. Iruka loops the necklace around Hound’s neck, using chakra to make sure it won’t fall off. “Get it off me!” Hound tries to shake it off.
“I don’t think I will,” Iruka laughs, hopping backwards. The ANBU looks ridiculous dangling upside down with a necklace of daisies around his neck. “Don’t worry ANBU-san!” he cackles, “I’ll make sure to tell the other ANBU-sans where you are~!” he darts off into the trees so he’s not late to meeting his jonin instructor. It doesn’t matter anyways. The man doesn’t like Iruka and Iruka doesn’t like him. But if he’s late, then Ko and Zu miss out on being able to learn too. And today they’re sparring against Anko’s team! He’s excited to see his best friend.
“UMINO! GET BACK HERE!” Hound’s shout echoes through the trees.
Iruka doubles back, shoves some chakra into the tree Hound had first caught him at and the tripwire goes off covering everyone outside the Hokage Tower in chicken feathers like he originally planned before he was so rudely interrupted. He waves at an ANBU who has come to investigate.
“Hound is tied up by the third training ground!” he calls, “just send some chakra into the seal!”
He skids to a halt in front of his two teammates, Hagane Kotetsu and Kamizuki Izumo, and creeps up behind them.
“RAWR!” he shouts, scaring them both. Anko cackles from where her team is approaching and runs over to hug them in her naturally aggressive way. The four of them tumble to the ground in a heap of limbs and laughter even when Zu accidentally elbows him in the side.
He adores his friends.
…
Sarutobi Hiruzen is standing on his balcony, smoking his pipe when a silent figure in a stylized bird mask lands next to him. Tall, taller than average, with a thick braid of ink-dark hair.
“Sir,” the ANBU Commander, Raven, bows low.
“Commander,” Hiruzen inclines his head briefly.
“May I speak freely?” Raven, cocks her head to the side.
“Always,” Hiruzen waves his hand.
“Sir, Umino Iruka has been exclusively targeting Hound for the past two months. Should we intervene?”
Ah. Hiruzen had suspected that was the case considering a frequent topic of conversation between him and the youth was usually complaints levied against the young ANBU with Iruka’s characteristic passion.
“Is he being harmed?”
“Just his pride,” Raven sounds amused.
“Is it interfering with his ability to do his duty for the village?”
“Not that I have seen, sir”
“Then I see no reason to interfere,” the commander’s amusement becomes palpable at Hiruzen’s words, “it’s an unusual relationship, one that I think will be beneficial for them both”
“Sir?”
“Dealing with Iruka is the only time I’ve seen Hound react to anything,” Hiruzen sighs, heart hurting for the young ANBU, “he makes Hound human again. And the attention he receives from Hound is exactly what Iruka has been seeking. Have you noticed the pranks around the village have decreased since Iruka has turned all his attention on Hound?”
“The other ANBU are relieved,” Raven says, “it’s been several weeks since the last time anyone other than Hound has been the target of an Umino Prank”
“Indeed. And while it may not seem like it,” Hiruzen chuckles, “they happen to be training each other. Iruka’s traps really are ingenious and he’s able to keep Hound on his toes. And trying to outsmart an ANBU is helping hone Iruka’s skills. I have plans to develop his skill in fuinjutsu”
“I see,” Raven hums. “So we are not to interfere with Umino and Hound?”
“Unless it becomes dangerous or impedes Hound’s ability as a shinobi, I see no reason to”
“The rest of ANBU will be happy to hear that,” Raven huffs a laugh, turning her masked face to the monument, “I agree”
“Oh?”
“Hound seems more…lively, when Umino is involved,” Raven says, “I think it’s good for both of them. The ANBU operatives are rather fond of them. It feels like having younger siblings and gives them something to fight for”
Hiruzen smiles. “I’m glad”