Epilogue

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The Dream Machine

by Bullwinkle's Lady

"Talking."

'Thinking.'

One Screen.

In Living room.

Epilogue

Gai, Kurenai, Asuma, and Kakashi watched as Sasuke's dream ended and the television screen went blank.

They had watched the entire tape together, sharing many exhuberant laughs, nervous chuckles, and awkward coughs.

"Well that was...nice," said Gai awkwardly. "I'd say that our students are perfectly sane..."

"Enough," added Kurenai, her voice just as uncertain as Gai's.

"Almost," mentioned Asuma, who had been puffing on five cigarettes ever since Choji's dream.

"Yeah-" Kakashi began, but froze when he heard noises on the television behind him. Blinking, he turned back to the screen, to see that another dream had begun. "What?" he muttered in confusion. "There was more?"

"Well of course," Kurenai mentioned, spotting one of her students on the screen. "We never got to see Kiba's dream."

"But I thought - the one with the dog-"

"Nah, that was Akamaru's," said Asuma, as though this was obvious.

'Kiba's?' Kakashi curiously turned to the screen.

Tape:

Kiba sat at a large dining table as he muttered to himself. "I just want to be...one...with my best friend."

The dog-boy looked up as Hinata, in a shef's uniform, carried a large platter in, laden with a dead, roasted, and glazed over, Akamaru.

"One...with...Akamaru..." Kiba muttered monotonously as Hinata set the tray down before him. He grabbed his fork, clenching it in his fist.

Living room:

In stunned silence, the jounin watched as piece by piece, Kiba ingested his pet dog.

"He's...he's eating his dog..." muttered Asuma.

"Akamaru..." whispered Kurenai.

"...disturbing..." mentioned Kakashi.

-And then they burst into laughter.

"Your student is a psychopath!" Gai mentioned, none-too-gently. He choked on popcorn through his high-pitched giggles.

"Mine?" spat Kurenai, clutching her sides. "At least my kunoichi isn't an axe-wielding murderer!"

"Stop it, stop it, you're killing me!" Asuma cried, tears running down his cheeks.

Having finally calmed himself, Kakashi pulled another tape out of his back pocket. "Did I mention that I recorded your dreams as well?" he muttered breathlessly.

Everyone froze.

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