Title: Thought That Counts
Summary: When most of your life is spent away from your home, celebrating birthdays is anything but simple.
Pairing: Kakairu
Rating: T

Outrage burned hot and fast through his mind the minute he noticed. Someone had been in his weapons' pouch.

Someone had been in his weapons' pouch.

Someone had been in his weapons' pouch!

Reiterating it didn't help. Changing the emphasis didn't either. He yanked the pouch open with both hands and glared into the depths. The bottom was clearly visible, albeit several inches above where he expected it to be.

Now that he thought back on it, something had seemed strange about the bag when he'd grabbed it two days ago, but he chalked it up to the fact that this one was his back-up – his primary one having inexplicably disintegrated during the night – and he hadn't used it in years.

But he felt the chakra now, had felt it when he'd shoved his hand in to retrieve Icha Icha and block out a particularly inane argument two of his students were having. Infuriatingly familiar heat spiked from the fabric to the tips of his fingers. Iruka!

Given the man's history in pranks, the how was easy to figure out. Kakashi was impressed, but unsurprised, that Iruka had managed to both create a hidden pocket in his bag and strategically weave chakra into the cloth to balance the shifting weight of whatever was in there. But the why…. He just couldn't figure out what he'd done to deserve this!

Umino Iruka had managed to create a hidden chamber that he could not get into.

It was maddening! Kakashi did not suffer unknowns well – a fact he'd ensured Iruka was all too aware of through the simple expedient of groping him unmercifully until he'd gotten the real story of his scar. He couldn't even tell if there was anything in that pouch or if Iruka was just feeling feisty.

The fabric suddenly split under his touch, and he jerked his hand backwards, half expecting it to sprout teeth. When nothing horrid emerged, he tentatively peeled the sides apart and tipped a small cylinder out into his free hand. What?

One end popped off with a gentle tug. He twisted out a small roll of paper and squinted into the cylinder. There was something in the bottom, but it refused to budge even after he gave it a good shake.

Kakashi wasted several minutes wrestling with it before discovering that the other end slid out as well.

Only a quick fist stuffed against his mouth kept his students from discovering that he did, in fact, giggle when the occasion called for it. The object had been glued to one of the end caps to keep it from rattling around, and Kakashi could see why.

Mission rations, though bland, could provide hours of mealtime entertainment because they were extraordinarily moldable. The usual shapes, of course, were not fit for polite company, but this was not a usual shape.

It wasn't even a usual color.

Kakashi turned it over in his hands, a smile spreading wide under his mask. The normal dark brown color was formed into a flat cylinder. Another layer wrapped over top of it had been dyed an eye melting pink and artfully shaped to look like poured frosting.

Iruka had even rolled out fine, twisted spindles to stick into the top for candles.

The curl of paper still rested on his knee where he'd dropped it, and he smoothed it out with one hand.

Happy Birthday!

Hopefully your pouch hasn't driven you insane. Don't worry; you couldn't open it before today, not without destroying the bag. I had to gamble that you wouldn't resort to that.

The mission rations taste truly horrible when dyed, by the way. Sorry about that. I tried a bit after I'd finished it and have only just now stopped gagging. We'll celebrate properly when you get back. I promise I'll make (buy) you something better!

Iruka

(P.S. Your dogs think I'm trying to poison you. Have fun explaining that when you get home.)

At two minutes after midnight on September 15th, in the middle of a mission with his students, Kakashi doubled over both in gales of laughter and in an attempt to hold in the warmth spreading throughout his chest. He couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten a birthday present.

To be very honest, he was certain he'd never received one he loved more.

Thankfully, he wasn't even remotely tempted to eat it, and mission rations would keep forever.

OOOOOO

Quick fic dashed off for Kakashi's birthday in an attempt to take a break from studying. First time I've ever managed to get something out for anyone's birthday! Hope you enjoyed the stupidity!