Progenitor

By TwinEnigma

Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto or Inuyasha series or characters. I am doing this purely to amuse myself.

Warnings:

The wolf is old, larger than any wolf he has ever seen, and his milky-blue eyes gleam with intelligence. He fills much of the cavern, dark fur mottled with grey, and bones lie littered around his paws. This wolf has lived for millennia, through ages untold, and still remains, mostly forgotten by all but those of the wolf.

Kakashi bows, kneeling before the ancient, and greets him: "Great-grandfather."

The old wolf opens its mouth, grey flecking his muzzle. "Little Hatake," the voice echoes, strangely disembodied. "You have grown."

Kakashi raises his head, removing his mask. It is not necessary here.

"It's been a long time," the wolf says, with something that affects a smile. The rows of teeth seem dull and yellow with age, but their sharpness and strength is still salient. "What business do you have with me, little pup?"

Kakashi steels himself and finally answers with his own small fangs bared, "Great-grandfather, I have come to take the trial for the Goraishi."

"The trial?" the ancient wolf chuckles, "Little Hatake, what makes you, with your blood so thin, think you can succeed where many of purer blood have tried and failed?"

The jounin clenches his clawless hands into fists at his sides. "I must succeed, Great-grandfather. The lives of my students – my pack – depend on it. I will not fail them." The word pack is foreign and familiar on his tongue, the edge of genetic memory and instinct grating against his humanity.

Silence permeates the cavern, save for the steady breathing of the old wolf. In the shadows, other smaller wolves observe them in respectful silence.

Finally, the old wolf bares his teeth in a smile. "Little Hatake, I, Kouga, leader of the Yourouzoku tribe, will grant you permission to take the trial. As you are my own descendant, it is only fitting that you would be the one with the right heart to succeed."

Author's notes:

Kouga's Goraishi is a lightning-based holy relic of his wolf youkai tribe that can be worn on the hand. Kakashi's heightened senses and a possible reason for the mask kind of prompted this drabble.

Originally appeared as the second chapter in Variables, but I've decided to axe that fanfic and move everything in it to the places they should be.