In which three children aren't quite what they're supposed to be. Sakura is fighting her inner demon, Naruto is an akasenko and Sasuke is going against his clan.

"Sometimes I question my sanity. Sometimes it replies back."

: no massacre, family team seven, au :

He raised an eyebrow at the same time as a warm smile made itself known on his face. "You do know you are under no obligation to stay here Sakura-chan?" This was a daily occurrence, him asking her this question five minutes after school would end. This was also around the first time Iruka began to take an interest in the behaviour of this one particular student.

The eight year old in question shrugged her shoulders and continued helping him out. She held six hefty text books in her arms while Iruka held double that. They crossed the classroom before dumping the books into the press at the back. Sakura then proceeded to push in all the chairs into their desk while her sensei made his way to his desk to continue with his corrections.

Iruka often wondered as to why she did this. She had started this since last year. Staying back after school that is. Sometimes for fifteen other times for twenty minutes. He wasn't complaining though. She helped organise shelves and books without being asked, brought some order to the class and chatted idly with him from time to time. Her behaviour did baffle him though since kids her age celebrated every time the bell signalled the ending of a school day and would run outside.

"Um, sensei?"

He looked up to see Sakura standing in front of his desk, eyebrows scrutinizing the paper in front of her. It was one of the tests he had just corrected.

"Shinobi can't see chakra because of the, um, restrictions of the main eight tenketsu, right?" Her words were hesitant as she looked up.

Iruka contemplated her words before nodding his head. "Yes, you're right."

"I... I think you corrected this wrong then sensei."

Tilting his head to the side, Iruka took the paper his student was offering and looked at where she was pointing. He grinned sheepishly. "Ah, looks like I did." He took up his pen and immediately began correcting his mistake. He chuckled in a bashful manner as he noticed that he'd made a little mess on his student's work. "How were you able to read my handwriting though Sakura?" It was chicken scratch in the eyes of everyone including himself. He often had students and colleagues alike complained to him when they couldn't read what he wrote.

"My sister's a doctor sensei. You both have the same handwriting," she admitted while looking down.

He chuckled before looking up at the clock. "Looks like it's time Sakura-chan." She looked up at the time as well and then went to collect her school bag. He waved back at her as she left his class.

Rin tried to glare her hardest at her teammate as he lounged on her sofa as though he owned the place. The keyword being tried. A glaring Rin was the equivalent to a rabbit trying to intimidate a lion. The success rate of this was zero and Kakashi rubbed that in her face with a smug grin under his mask he knew she couldn't perceive.

In a way, him acting so carefree—lounging in her furniture, shoes and Jonin vest disregarded

carelessly in a corner, hair mused with one arm draped across his face and his whole posture screaming peaceful—not like the usual rigid and cold ANBU he had to act as was cute. And rare. This moment should be etched in time... If Obito were here, she would have forced him to record this moment on his Sharingan. Moments like these were so scarce that her glare quickly melted off as she scurried to a corner to pick up his disregarded

clothes and continued silently by folding them away neatly.

"Kakashi, you really should quit sulking," she reprimanded him lightly, not having the heart to

fully scold him. He mumbled some incoherent words and proceeded by turning his back to her as he brooded.

She sighed and walked up to him before dropping a book on his head with a loud whack. "My hand slipped." Kakashi made a choking noise of disbelief at the back of his throat. Even Obito's excuses weren't as trashy as hers.

"Listen Kakashi," she began as he flicked through the contents of the book, skimming the words mindlessly. "I know something must've happened with the Hokage. I know, I know, something classified probably. But you need to lighten up!" Did she just give him porn? He had half a mind to

chuck this abomination of literature back at her. "So we'll start with this; today, I want you to

walk up to the first person you see and say the first nice thing about them."

"And then run away?"

"And then run away." She nodded wisely. "While laughing like a maniac."

Kakashi scowled at her and let the book drop to the floor.

"I can't believe I became your personal medic Bakashi." Kakashi didn't bother correcting her

that she was his self proclaimed personal medic. She then sighed dramatically before picking up the book on the floor. "Instead of this, I should just throw rocks at people for a living, you know."

Kakashi mumbled a "go away". He had just returned from a vigorous training session (since he had destroyed half of a training ground the earth users still haven't been able to level out the training ground with their earth style as they were constantly shocked by the residue of Kakashi's lightning) and was slightly injured. Rin, of course, had marched at him the second she smelt him entering the building and dragged him into her apartment. And so, Kakashi was found sulking on top of her sofa as she knelt beside him and healed his injuries.

"I'm pulling a twenty-two hour shift starting from tonight." So you know where I am. I'll be

safe there.

"Hm... The building's a mess." You rarely spend time here now a days.

"Yeah...I'll get to it when I can." I spend every free moment with you.

"... Get some rest." Don't over exert yourself.

"By the way, can you tell Genma to back off, please?" This time there was no hidden message behind her words as Kakashi narrowed his eyes at a spot on the wall above her left shoulder.

"Hold my Chidori," he whispered under his breath.

Kakashi may have been an epic joke at times, but he could also be so bland she didn't have

it in her to hate him.

And sometimes, when his walls were down, when he isn't using that stupid way of talking of

his with the hints and implied answers, when he isn't punishing himself and his body isn't

weighed down by his sins, when he isn't looking at her and seeing how he failed his sensei and teammate and it's only the two of them, Rin can't help but fall deeper for him. Even if it was one side. Maybe this wasn't love—there will be no happily ever after nor will there be a Prince Charming. There will be bonds and there will be a warrior amidst a battlefield saving her teammate's life—but this was enough. She was still learning to accept his broken pieces because unlike so many which had given up, she was willing to pick up the

glass—even if it cut her and she bled—she was going to slowly, gradually put him back

together.

A small trickle of nervous and weak chakra was suddenly noticed by the both of them. It also didn't belong to any of the five residents of this apartment block. Rin would have been on alert, if the chakra did not feel like an academy student's. She rose from her place while Kakashi stayed there, his spidery limbs strewn across her couch.

Opening her door Rin began making her way to the floor above her, where she felt the simple chakra flair heading towards. She stopped when she remembered that the one living above her was Iruka, an academy sensei. Everything made sense to her. She briskly walked back to retrieve a plate of dango she had made earlier on in the day to give to Iruka all the while wondering why he would invite a young student to a dangerous Shinobi area such as this one.

With his hair down and a coffee in hand, the last thing Iruka had anticipated was this. Outside of his apartment stood little Sakura Haruno, shivering slightly as the evening breeze blew by. She wore shapeless boy clothes; a brown cap, knee length shorts and a grey jumper a size too big for her. He noted the red on her cheeks, elbows and knees from the cold. In her hand she clutched A Beginner's Guide to Kinasthetic Genjutsu.

"I'm sorry, I was promised to give this to you today but forgot", she said hurriedly, her face conveying embarrassment.

Iruka frowned as he took the book he had lent to her a week ago. "You do know it's okay Sakura," he told her gently, "you could've always given it to me tomorrow."

She mumbled under breath but still nodded in understatement.

At that moment a certain woman decided to make her appearance known. In Sakura's eyes she was beautiful with a thick purple line painted on each cheek, creased smiling vibrant hazel eyes and shoulder length brown hair.

"Good afternoon, sensei!" She announced in a chipper voice. In her hands was a covered plate which Iruka strongly believed had dango in it.

"Afternoon Rin." He looked down at Sakura as he talked. "This is my neighbour, Sakura." The brown haired man then looked up. "Rin this is Sakura, a student of mine."

The lady, now identified as Rin to Sakura smiled down at her before reaching under the covers of the plate and showing off one of Sakura's favourite desserts.

"Dango?"

Sakura shortly left the two grown ups with a wave and a promise to be in school tomorrow.

Rin looked at Iruka, her face posing a question. "Since when do you give your address to your students, sensei?" she asked out of curiosity.

Iruka's eyes widened in realization. "I... I don't."

And this was the second time Sakura Haruno had garnered his attention.

AN:

Sasuke takes the spotlight in the next chapter!!