safety [Kakashi Hatake x OC]

one hundred three

It took Eri a few weeks to emotionally recover from the early miscarriage, and a part of her was sure she would never fully recover. She was, however, getting back to her personality, friends, and lifestyle. It took her a while to finally leave the apartment to get groceries and such, and she struggled to enjoy the celebrations of the village at the end of a victorious war and beginning a season of peace in all of the shinobi lands.

But she was getting there. And when she was ready, Kakashi was ready to assume the role of sixth Hokage. Tsunade was eager to pass it off to her successor, and the silver-haired man was the best ninja and war hero to hold the title.

So, she was able to joyfully support and celebrate him when the red and white hat was placed on his head, along with the honor and title of "Hokage."

Kakashi quickly appointed his immediate team upon the mountain of paperwork that was thrust on his desk. The previous, stubborn-minded leader had clearly been waiting to let him deal with all of the loose ends and difficult decisions after the war.

Eri had her place, too. She wasn't his "assistant" or "advisor," but her value could not be confined to a title. In reality - and there was an unspoken understanding around it - Eri was an additional Hokage. She didn't see it that way, but she was certainly treated like she was an extension of Kakashi; like they were already married.

But they weren't yet. Their friends and comrades didn't have any idea that they had talked about it and knew that it was going to be something they were going to do.

For the first week that Kakashi was Hokage, villagers would congratulate Eri whenever she was out, mostly because the man was elusive and quiet and she was much friendlier. Nonetheless, it felt awkward to her.

And after that first week it got exhausting to constantly be received as almost a celebrity by those she viewed as equals.

As the new Hokage worked late into the evening to close out that first week, Eri just wanted the comfort of his presence. So, she made her way to his office and closed the door behind her with a heavy sigh, sliding down the wood until she sat on the floor.

The orange rays of the sunset pierced through the wall of windows behind Kakashi, blurring out his figure until he got up and approached her with a chuckle. "Are you as tired as I am?"

She nodded. 

He kneeled down, pulled his mask below his chin, and gave her a warm kiss. Clearly, his priorities were in order.

When he pulled away and prepared to pull the blue fabric over his nose, she pinched his hat and slid it behind his thick hair to bring him into another kiss. 

Kakashi kept it short before breathing out a sigh and glancing at the unfinished paperwork on his desk in deep inner conflict.

Noticing this, Eri quietly said, "You can finish your work. I just wanted to hang out for a bit."

"Eh..." He drawled contemplatively. "Screw it." He stood and helped her to her feet as well. Tossing his hat - the sign of his new position - on a chair in his office, he held onto the girl's slender wrist and led her away from the bustling and lights that were slowly illuminating the streets of Konoha.

They quietly walked away from the village and away from their responsibilities and new identities, back through the open woods and into the hills of fields that surrounded the warm city.

As the gentle night breeze started to encompass them, sending chills across their skin, Eri was reminded of the beautiful scene. It was one of the first ones she recalled with the man, and it was the place where she realized that no matter what she could or couldn't remembered, she and Kakashi had a very intimate bond that she had never experienced before, and could never share with anyone else.