seriesnaruto
titleinthrees
ratedK
warningsnone
bymewling

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In Threes

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It's summer when Kakashi takes his three genin team out on their first killing mission. He makes a point not to let Iruka know, but somehow he finds out anyway. While Kakashi defends himself and his team against Iruka, he wonders if he should be reacting the same way.

But when it comes down to it, although they may be the closest he'll ever have to his own children, he's not their father and all three of them are strong ninjas, even Naruto.

Kakashi rethinks his decision slightly when he sees their shocked expressions as he tells them.

Sakura, who's young and smart and idealistic, protests in pretty phrases that only hold in the theoretical.

Naruto looks a bit like he's not sure what sort of face he should be making.

Sasuke looks a little startled, and Kakashi's not sure if the fact Sasuke's already seen so much death should make him more worried or less.

The mission itself is simple- in his terms. He doesn't say it, but it would probably have been easier if he had done it by himself. Sakura probably already knows, and the other two would refuse to believe it. It's the perfect mission for teaching genins to kill, and Kakashi allows himself, between stabs, to admire the hokage's discretion.

It's messy and clumsily handled for a jounin, but for genins it is wonderful.

Sakura's genjutsu and chakra control are superb; however, she lacks rather scarily in the taijutsu department and needs too flinch less. It's probably too much to hope for that she'll fall out of love with Sasuke and concentrate on her training.

Naruto shows off and spends more time on fancy moves than is necessary, but he's a stamina freak so Kakashi doesn't worry. Kakashi wishes he'd be a little more quiet and a little less animalistic in fighting style- but he supposes that's a personality fault, and nothing can be done about it.

Sasuke moves much better than the other two. He doesn't need to be saved as often as Sakura or Naruto, and he aims for the kill. Kakashi makes a note to himself that killing missions distract Sasuke. He can't be sure what Sasuke's thinking, but he can guess.

Kakashi is a little glad and a little sad that he's their teacher. They always remind him of something, but he doesn't dwell on it; some memories are better off repressed.

When they regroup for dinner at an inn, Sakura say's she killed two.

Naruto asserts some flamboyantly erroneous figure, before admitting to four.

Sasuke glances at Naruto with a certain degree of smugness when he accounts for five.

They all look at Kakashi expectantly.

Kakashi is a little surprised that they've been counting. He smiles and says he doesn't know how many he killed, but he does know he saved three genin's lives.

All three of them blush. Kakashi thinks it's cute, and stores the memory away where he can look at it when things aren't so nice.

Like when he's holding back Sakura's hair as she vomits in the toilet later that evening, or when he wakes Naruto from his nightmare at midnight or as helps clean the wounds Sasuke's gouged in his palm with his fingernails in the morning.

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A/N: (It's a little late but…) Happy New Years. I'm experimenting with new formatting!