Disclaimer: Naruto etc. is not mine.

Warnings; This contains slash, mano-a-mano mentions.

Pairing: KakashiXIruka

Iruka-Sensei is Selfless. Everyone in the Village knows it.

They can see it in the way he teaches, his tireless energy as he instructs the future ninja of the Village. They say it when they see him working lodged kunai from out from the practice grounds, when the see him strolling home with papers flying out from underneath his arms. The piles of homework he takes home every night to be marked. They see the lights in his house, lit until late, the shadows of Iruka at his table working selflessly on papers that will be returned and promptly disregarded, and they say he is selfless.

The way he loves Kakashi is selfless. There are safer men to love, men who aren’t sent on missions they might not return from. But Iruka loves Kakashi and he waits for his return, every time, every single time. He is unruffled by whispers, by polite faces. When they ask outright he shrugs. ‘When is Kakashi ever on time’ he asks.

Ah, say the people of the Village, Iruka-Sensei is selfless.

The women of Konoha sympathise with Iruka-Sensei. It is difficult to love in their line of work and Iruka loves so completely. And Kakashi! He is difficult, he wears a mask, he is perpetually late. To love a man who lies, badly, to say nothing of his…. hobbies.

And everyone knows how it is to love a genius, painful and complex, never rewarding. They sigh for Iruka-Sensei.

How selfless.

His friendship with Uzumaki Naruto! After everything that boy is responsible for, he cares for him. Is patient with him, nurtures him. A monster and a freak and just plain annoying, he must be a trial for poor Iruka-Sensei, but his kindness knows no bounds.

Selfless.

Iruka-Sensei is Selfish. He knows this well, he is sure that everyone else must do too.

His job, how selfish is he for his job? He loves teaching the children; he doesn’t know anything that could suit him more. It has the challenge, the freshness that some find in missions but without any of the danger (excluding kunai practice).

He is waiting for someone to pick him up on it, to insist he make himself available for more missions, to train more, ask why he doesn’t help the Village in more productive ways. He is jeopardising the safety of them all with his complacency as a teacher…

In his heart of hearts he selfishly hopes that he will remain in the job that he loves.

Kakashi. He is selfish in his love for Kakashi. What right does he, mere chounin, have to demand the love of the infamous copy-nin? He lies in his arms at night and knows he is the safest man in the world and he is guilty. But he also knows that there isn’t a single thing in this life that could make him give it up.

He is selfish when Kakashi goes away on missions. He expects him back every time, Kakashi is under strict instructions not to die or do something equally stupid. Iruka refuses to allow him to not come back.

He, little plain Iruka-Sensei, keeps strong sexy rakish genius (self dubbed) Kakashi Hatake all too himself and he is selfish, selfish for it! He knows that Kakashi needs to touch him at every possible moment and he takes advantage of it (1)! Countless back massages and shoulder rubs from the silver haired man make him the most pampered man in the Village.

Sometimes, after a long mission, Kakashi will fall into one of his moods and do everything for Iruka, not letting him out of his sight, washing him, drying him, he isn’t allow to lift one finger for himself. Even…that…is apparently the sole duty of Kakashi Hatake, pleasuring Iruka-Sensei must be taken on only be the other man, and under no circumstances must he know his own touch. In such heady times Iruka can’t help but feel selfish.

If anyone wanted to know, Kakashi’s genius stretches to the bedroom as well.

Naruto. Sometimes Iruka thinks that even if the demon inside of him rose up and ripped apart the Village he could not give up his friendship. Poor sunny Naruto, who deserved more love than Iruka alone could give him, who deserved much more than anyone was capable of giving him.

Naruto has the most heart, the most determination, the most spirit of anyone in the whole of Konoha and Iruka will be his friend until he is whole again. And when he has shown the village, because Iruka has no doubt he will, everyone will know how selfish Iruka has been to have such a shining little friend.

Patient. They know if anything, Iruka-Sensei is patient.

Just to see him teach, to befriend his young students. When he is eye level, kneeling in the dust to work his way through the wailed misunderstandings of the children, his patience shines through. You would have to be, working with the ambitious troublesome children of Konoha.

There is not a ninja in the world that can resist the turned back of an enemy and young ninja-pretenders with their teacher-nemesis are no different whatsoever. Iruka-Sensei has eyes in the back of his head and patience in his very soul to deal with his students as he does. Writing on the board is almost a C-class mission in itself.

Iruka-Sensei is impatient. Kakashi would like to argue this point strenuously.

Anyone who says ‘faster’ as much as he does has a serious patience problem.

Iruka-Sensei is the most bashful young man in the world. The poor soul blushes at everything. Just startle him and he will flush and stutter with self-consciousness that some people in the Village could take note of. It would be a better world if people had the shy and gentle personality of Iruka-Sensei.

Of course, the trouble is his lover. If anyone was designed to test poor Iruka-Sensei’s bashful character then it is Kakashi.

Those Icha Icha books! If they deserve the name book! The colour Iruka will turn when he sees the filthy porn is almost comical, if one found another’s embarrassment funny. He protests of course, but it never makes any difference. Those novels must be a trial to him indeed.

And what of his wandering hands? The jounin is a terrible one for public displays of affection. The word affection being used loosely, lust being more appropriate. You only have to hear Iruka’s distressed yelp in the street to know what is going on with bashful Iruka and the pervert.

Shameless. Iruka-Sensei is shameless and Kakashi couldn’t love him more. When he walks with that little lilt, hips moving underneath his clothes, he is just asking to be called a minx.

Kakashi knows he does it on purpose, to get him wound up. And they call him a pervert. They obviously haven’t seen Iruka’s little glances over his shoulder, taunting him, daring him. he wants Kakashi to pounce on him. He wants to, sometimes he does, but its always him that gets the final blame.

He thinks that’s a little unfair when Iruka is so shameless.

Iruka leaves hot smutty notes in his Icha Icha books. Little explicit letters describing last night, or the night to come, written in his tight, curled handwriting. Now there is your standard every day porn and Kakashi would never deny the genius of his beloved Icha Icha, but have mercy, these notes are wanton.

The images are nosebleed-inducing in Iruka’s own special way, discreet but entirely shameless.

Kakashi thanks his lucky stars everyday that someone as sweet and kind and wonderful and as easy to love as Iruka that side to him. He plays naughty chounin effortlessly and without prompting, pretty blush on his face. He gives in when Kakashi wants to do dirty things on his desk, he allows himself to be dragged into dark alleys giggling, he loves it just as much as Kakashi…

And when Iruka perches on his lap, eyes wide and innocent, staring down into his, the slow press of his hips down into his lap contrasting with the guiltless expression on his face Kakashi falls all over again for Iruka.

Because he’s shameless.

If the people had to sum up Iruka-Sensei in one word it would beTeacher.

It’s what he does, who he is. He is good at it, they know that, they mentioned that.

But when the time comes they will look to others to save them, bigger, better, more skilled others. They will look to the jounin to protect the Village. They will hail the fast, the dangerous, the best.

Iruka-Sensei will not be needed.

And when it comes to the end, and he has filled the lifespan of a ninja, who will talk of him? He will be remembered in hearts and minds but in the legends of Konoha there is no place for a teacher with a sad past and a quiet present. He lives in the days of giants, when the time comes he knows he will be Kakashi’s lover, or Naruto’s one time teacher. Maybe he has it wrong and it will be Sasuke they remember, The Avenger.

Perhaps one day there will be hoards of children seeking to emulate Rock Lee. He winces at the thought.

Iruka-Sensei is not a legend, he is a teacher.

Iruka-Sensei is a hero.

The first time Naruto believed in himself it was because of Iruka. The first step he took to happiness was supported by Iruka. He was saved by Iruka.

Iruka-Sensei is a hero.

He is a hero and the last man alive that Kakashi loves. Kakashi could become the monster he fights if not for Iruka. Sometimes the only reason he has to survive the mission is Iruka. When the blood of the past starts staining his mind, when he stops caring, when people start becoming just that bit too easy to kill, Iruka saves him.

Iruka may well be the only reason Gai hasn’t been murdered in his sleep.

Iruka is a hero.

Fin.

A/N The word processor came up with Kakashi Hotcake when I tried to type in his full name for the first time. Kakashi Hotcake indeed.

(1) –Cough-. Oh yeah, Kakashi is the one being taken advantage of.