One More For The Team

Hm.

Househusbands sure are great, huh?

I ponder as I polished off the zenzai that Minato-nii-sama served as dessert, with Fugaku-ji-san handing over his portion to his impossibly sweet-toothed eldest son.

Sasuke, on the other hand, looked to be in a dilemma on whether to give away his portion as well. But being 'trained' by his mother, he politely finished his zenzai with a look of pain.

"Kanako-chan", Minato-nii-sama spoke out. "This is not through the official channel, but in three months time is our turn to host the chunin exams. I believe that your team can handle it with ease, so I'll talk Shikaku into registering you guys. Just don't tell your friends yet, ne?"

I nodded, secretly thankful I got an insider - the Hokage himself.

Hehe. Go figure.

Fugaku-ji-san looked up from his steaming cup of tea. "I believe you are on a team with Naori-san, and ... a Hyuga named Ko?"

"Hai, Fugaku-ji-san."

Fugaku-ji-san's mask of indifference looks to be cracking, exasperation showing through, causing Mikoto-ba-san to giggle. "It's not only you, dear. I myself still am unable to get her to call me nee-san."

"It can't be helped, Mikoto-ba-san. I'm Itachi's friend, after all. Calling my friend's mother an 'onee-san' is just ... weird. Regardless, you're still as youthful and beautiful as I've last seen you."

"My, such flattery." She shot back with faint mirth touching her features, teacup partially covering her grin.

"I've been around." I fluttered my eyes at her, making Itachi choke back on his laughter.

Sasuke, catching his brother breaking his 'superior' façade, shows an impossibly wide-eyed look.

Yes, boy - your brother is human as well, suck it up.

•

When the time reached ten, the mother's decided that it is nigh time to put the children to bed.

The Uchiha's then had to say goodbye, with Itachi carrying a sleepy Sasuke.

Before crossing the threshold to go off, Itachi turned towards Kanako and mouthed out a 'We'll catch up soon'.

Tsunade herself couldn't stop her 'mothering', despite Kanako refuting that 'I'm twelve, but also a Kunoichi!', thus she was also wrestled off home.

Kushina had the easiest part, bringing her kid upstairs.

Thus, the old team 7 is left with their sensei.

"Obito, Rin", Minato started. "How's the wedding planning going?"

"So far so good, it's even better now that Kanako is back here. Maybe I should get her to be one of my bridesmaid ...?" Rin ponders.

Obito stared into the distance with dead-fish eyes. "Yeah ... all going well. Including ... the fitting."

The two other men in the room cringed.

Fittings. Urgh.

"Right, Kakashi", Minato turned to him. "Since Kanako-chan is back in the village now, you can't use her as an excuse now ~!" He grinned.

That broke Obito out of his dead-fish gaze and stared at Kakashi with eyes renewed with vigor, filled with promises of plotting. "Heh. Sensei, you finally throwing Bakashi out of ANBU?"

Minato nodded his head. "Apart from those in administration and leadership, and the commander himself, Kakashi, you spent more than five years in the shadows. Unless you plan of taking up deskwork in ANBU, which I doubt you'll even consider, it's high time for you to take up work as a normal jonin."

Death in the ANBU occurs in a higher rate than those out of it. Obviously not inclusive of wartime efforts.

Thus, hardly anyone in ANBU lasts more than five years. Be it quitting due to wanting a change of pace or injuries, or ejected out by superiors due to circumstances, or reallocated to non-fieldwork. Or just plain death within those five years. Or being in the Hokage guard platoon. Or the ANBU commander.

Kakashi in the previous years, had been advised by Minato to take up regular jonin missions, as not only is he the sole Hatake heir, his primary charge was Kanako, who had gone off on her six year spree. However, he had given the excuse that not only does he wants experience in the black ops, he petitioned to wait for Kanako to return before quitting ANBU.

Kakashi sighed. "Fine. Would I be assigned to anything? Or ...?"

Minato took on his thinking pose, then blinked like an idea has occurred to him. "Ah. As you may know, although Shikaku is a jonin sensei now, he had just recently taken up the role of jonin commander from Sakumo-san. Needless to say, he's also swamped with paperwork. So I may just assign you to be a co-sensei for team 7 -" Minato raised a hand to halt Kakashi's protest. "Now now, I know you don't want to be a sensei. And I also know through experience that you technically have not much aptitude for teaching." Obito and Rin chuckled at that, with Kakashi hand-stabbing Obito on his side. "But as a jonin, you'd have to take up a team in the future anyways. So might as well get it over with now with an already established team with someone to help you. Though you'll be by yourself handling the team if Shikaku has to deal with work."

Quietly - although the three jonin's across him could hear, Minato muttered, "And he'll also stop bragging to me that he's getting more breaks and naps while babysitting them while dropping piles of paperwork on my desk, dammit!"

Kakashi quietened and thought about it.

True, with this, he need not take up anymore fresh genin team in the future - he'll just leave that for Obito and Rin. Plus, from what he heard from Kanako, both Ko and Naori doesn't have much enmity, and that team 7 as a whole got along quite well, hence he probably does not need to deal with any clan drama. Plus, bonus! He'll get to hang out more with Kanako than Itachi.

*cough* *cough*

"Fine, sensei. I accept. When do I get started?"