Naruto Oneshots + Imagines

Polaroid (Kakashi Hatake x Yamato)

Yamato is not above feelings these days. Ever since co-captaining Team Seven with Kakashi Hatake and leaving ANBU for good, he's learned that it's okay to live in your feelings a little- whether that be sadness or anger or the array of other emotions he's allowed himself to dive into headfirst in the last few years.

Yamato knows a lot about his feelings now, including the good ones like happiness, pride, and love. The one that still seems to baffle him, though, is romantic love.

The brunette sits on the rooftop of his apartment in Konohagakure with his favorite polaroid picture in his hand. It's of Kakashi- a picture that was taken at Naruto's eighteenth birthday party, held shortly after the end of the fourth ninja war. It was in a massive pile of different pictures taken and when he saw it, since there were plenty of pictures of Kakashi from that night, he swiped it. They were taken on his camera with his film, anyway. Perhaps it's a little weird that he just has a picture of Kakashi that the Hokage himself doesn't even know about, but no one knows.

He lovingly strokes a thumb over Kakashi's face. In the picture, Kakashi is a little drunk but he looks magical with his charcoal eyes and silvery hair on full display and his mask pulled down just far enough for him to take a sip from his wine glass. His lips look soft and lovely, and his jawline is delicate yet defined. Yamato thinks he could stare at the picture forever, let alone Kakashi's real face.

God, he wishes he could just say something, but these feelings are so complicated. Romantic love is so much more convoluted than the familial love he feels for Team Seven or the platonic love he feels for the few friends he does have. Kakashi is his friend, too, it's just that it's always been more than that- at least to Yamato it has.

Suddenly, Yamato feels a tap on his shoulder.

He clutches the picture to his chest and turns to see none other than Sai, who lives just next door to him in their tiny apartment complex. It makes sense that Sai came looking for him, as they're due for dinner with Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi in just a few minutes. Luckily, they live right down the street from Ichiraku, which is where they're supposed to meet.

"You just... Keep a picture of Lord Hokage in your pocket?" Sai asks as he sits next to Yamato on the rooftop.

Fuck , Sai already saw it. Yamato groans at that as he realizes that Sai was probably there watching him the whole time. He was just so preoccupied simping over Kakashi that he didn't notice the former ROOT member right behind him.

"Uh, yes?" Yamato answers because he knows there's no point in lying.

Maybe he can pass it off as some sort of social custom that's regularly done with friends or teammates so that Sai won't go and run his mouth to Kakashi. After leaving ROOT, the ravenette has been pretty bad about telling secrets- not because he means to, but because he doesn't understand what should and shouldn't be talked about with other people. If Yamato doesn't tread carefully with this, his feelings will be made known to Kakashi before the day ends.

"Is that common practice to do with the Hokage?"

"Oh, no, it's not really a custom or anything like that, it's just... Something you do with people you care about," Yamato tries to tactfully explain as he tucks the polaroid back into the breast pocket of his vest.

"People you care about?"

"Yes... Like friends or family, or even a lover."

"Which of those categories does the Hokage fall into for you?"

Yamato blinks. Really, he considers Kakashi all of those things, at least in his own mind. They've been friends for decades and only had each other for a very long time, so family isn't a reach either, but lovers... As much as Yamato wants that to be the truth, it isn't. They're good friends and he doesn't have the courage to say anything.