#katasuke

Title:  She’s His Mechanic. [KawaSumi, KawakixSumire, OneShot, AU]

Rating: M.

Wordcount: 3, 842.

Sumire cleaned the lab working under her senior colleague, Akita. She respected this woman a lot and always listened to her instructions. After all, it was thanks to Mr Katasuke that she had a chance of figuring out how to synergize with Nue. 

Working with the machines and new inventions was far more enjoyable for Sumire as of lately. At first, she thought about joining the Ninja Science Department only because of Nue and when she doubted her decision Boruto's words were the final push she needed to do so. 

However, when she wanted to be a ninja didn't her decision was influenced by Boruto too? But a lot of days passed without Sumire even seeing him, not to mention she found new people that were the source of her inspiration, so her enjoyment right now originated from something else than Boruto's words, right?

It was quite a while when Sumire really enjoyed something for real. Brainstorming with the team about new inventions that can basically change the entire fate of a fight, helping civilians with new tech, even simple tasks like cleaning was more enjoyable than Sumire thought it would be before.

"Sumire, could you please move this package over there?" Akita asked pointing out her finger towards the table with a label 'Prototype-Mecha-Hands'.  

"Prototypes of mechanical hands? I thought we already finished making them, Akita." Sumire said in her confusion but still walked over to pick up the box and put it on the assigned table.

"Well, kind of. Finished mecha-hands are just for specific people. The main reason for it is that our finished ones use the basic chakra system." Akita's explanation was reasonable. It's not surprising the package content went under the label of the prototype products in this case.

"Eh? Wouldn't that mean our mecha-hands are mainly suitable just for the ninja? What about the citizens which chakra is hard to identify?" Well, technically the science department Sumire worked for, focused on ninja tools, but improving technology for Konoha citizens was equally important. If you took into consideration how many times Konoha was attacked in the past... Creation of mechanical hands and legs for people with hard to identify chakra could pay off in the future.

"Our tools are created specifically for the ninja, but sir Katasuke wanted to improve our mecha-hands anyway. Our intended goal is to make our product available without the need for using or depending on the other person chakra." And that's how Akita Inuzuka started to talk about the details of their new experiments with prototype products.

Immersed in their discussion like always they forgot about cleaning and after snapping out of it finished to clean everything losing half of their life span. On the lucky side of things, Seventh Hokage was late to his earlier announced visit.

Taking into consideration that Sumire planned to attack the village hurting innocent people in the process and Mr Katasuke's actions under genjutsu influence, Hokage regular visits to supervise them weren't surprising. 

"Now when I think about it is there a reason why we suddenly work again on mecha-hands prototypes? We were focusing on our other project just yesterday." Sumire decided to ask Akita while waiting for Naruto Uzumaki arrival. 

“You’re pretty sharp. The project we were working was postponed this morning." Akita sigh meant it was a really stressful situation for their staff.

"Why?!" From what Sumire gathered project that started just yesterday came to a halt this morning. It was unusual because when Mr Katasuke discarded projects staff was informed one week before it could happen.

"We received a special request from Lord Seventh,"  Akita whispered to her.

If the project was scrapped because Hokage had a special request, it's no wonder Mr Katasuke accepted it. Both her and Mr Katasuke should be happy to receive the second chance that Naruto Uzumaki was willing to give them.

"Oh... Isn't it rare occurrence?"  Sumire curiosity about what Naruto Uzumaki requested just grew more when Akita asked her to make tea for the guest that was supposed to arrive one hour ago. 

"Yeah, it's rare. Would you like to lead the project requested by Hokage? You've worked with us long enough, so I don't think Katasuke would be against you taking the lead."  Akita tried to start the topic in the most casual, possible way.

"Could I really work on it?" Sumire question hid excitement and enjoyment that she now felt. 

"Yes. Why won't you talk with Lord Seventh personally? It seems he already came." What?! Hearing Akita's words Sumire looked in the direction of the front door and saw Naruto Uzumaki smiling and waving in her direction.

"It would be great if you want to work on my request Sumire, ya know?" Naruto spoke and Sumire at that moment wanted to disappear from embarrassment she couldn't sense Hokage presence at all.

"Really, Lord Seventh? Can I?" Sumire couldn't believe her luck. It was the truth she enjoyed tinkering with machines, so working on mecha-hands was the big opportunity to work on the project she's passionate about. 

"You can, ya know! I can include it to your rehabilitation record. I'll explain to you everything in detail personally." Lord Seventh ruffled her hair gently. Sumire was grateful that Naruto Uzumaki didn't treat her coldly. 

"Thank you!" Sumire bowed and followed Lord Seventh to the main lab room. After all, she needs to know why Hokage requested them to work on prototypes of mecha-hands.

Naruto Uzumaki sat on one of the chairs in the main lab room and gestured for Sumire to sit next to Mr Katasuke that was surprised seeing her here.

"I took under my protection the boy named Kawaki. Some of you know it already, but he lost his arm protecting my daughter, Himawari. For now, he's using my own personal mecha-hand as a temporary solution, but it has its limits." Sumire had a hunch The Lord Seventh explanation was mainly for her and not Mr Katasuke that looked rather bored hearing this story. 

Sumire was glad Himawari was safe and nodded prompting for Lord Seventh to finish explaining his request. She could tell that he had fun in being overdramatic with his explanations, now she knew where Boruto got from his storytelling skills.

"For various reasons, I want to appoint Sumire as Kawaki’s personal mechanic. I honestly believe that this boy should interact more with children around his age without trying to insult them." Naruto Uzumaki sighed.

"So not only will I be checking how Kawaki adjust to the Lord Seventh mecha-hand, but try to create a more suitable replacement for Kawaki needs?" Sumire asked. Lord Seventh gave her the report with all the information she needed. After a while of bragging how he's more popular with children in comparison to Sarada's father, Lord Seventh shadow clone disappeared from the lab.

"He could just hand us the report and save all those theatrics for later. Anyway, I appoint you as the leader for our mecha-body-parts project, Sumire. Don't disappoint me." Mr Katasuke was really serious right now so Sumire couldn't mess up things up. It was her chance to work on something she really is passionate about. 

And she planned to use this chance in the best way possible.

A week passed after Sumire started to work on Lord Seventh request. She was preparing every needed thing for the first meeting with Kawaki that was supposed to come today.

In the precise moment, she wanted to question her subordinate competence a handsome, tall boy with the appearance of a delinquent entered the room without knocking.

"Yo, I came for the check-up and to meet my mechanic." From his seemingly uncaring mannerism in his body language, Sumire had a hunch it was the person Lord Seventh described in his report. 

"Oh, you've arrived earlier than I anticipated. I'm your appointed mechanic, Sumire Kakei." Sumire introduced herself with the best smile she could manage. Some even could say she was sparkling during this introduction. The first impressions are important after all. It doesn’t matter if they just an act or not. 

"Ain't you fucking sunshine and rainbow," Kawaki glared in her direction not hiding his suspicions towards her. Sumire seeing his reaction could sense he just like she had a difficult life. Now she could understand why Lord Seventh told her being Kawaki's mechanic can be included as part of her rehabilitation.

"Ain't you an example of a real gentleman?" Sumire raised her eyebrow accepting the challenge of showing him she wasn't either sunshine or a rainbow. If he ever develops balls to really get to learn anything about her at all. 

"You scientists are always up to something shadier than my appearance," he growled. It seems despite his short temper and rude attitude Kawaki had really high intelligence and decided to accept her challenge. Sumire couldn't help but respect him for that. It's the first time when a person could see through her acting.

"I can assure you that not all scientist are shady. Some of them really want to help people using just the ethical methods. I don't know what happened between you and scientists in the past, but I intend to gain your trust and in exchange, I want for you to trust me too," she boldly proclaimed. If acting doesn't work then being honest will.

"...fine," he sighed probably thinking she was too bold and refusing her meant disrespecting Lord Seventh care for him. 

After the check-up and listening to all Kawaki problems with the hand he got from Lord Seventh, Sumire noted everything down for further research purposes and subtly told him he can leave. After that, she scolded her co-worker for failing his task but giving him a second chance to fix the mess he made.

Her relationship with Kawaki is rather hard to describe, but Sumire had a hope she'll gain his trust. Especially, since they're supposed to work together from now on. At least now she had a glimpse of what to do in future. And it was her own decision, the decision she made without depending on anyone.

Buying research materials wasn't something girls around her age did.  Most of them visited Konoha shopping district to buy a cute accessory, ninja tools, or fashionable clothes.

It wasn't the only reason Sumire made a long-trip to Konoha. She wanted to see both Boruto and Sarada. Double-check if the decision she made to give up on her feelings for Boruto is the correct one. Spotting them a minute later and seeing their happy banter, Sumire was sure the decision she plans to make is the right one.

It was time to stop idolise Boruto and depend on him for everything she wants to do in her life.

"Ain't you that mechanic little girl?" Sumire could swear the voice she heard was familiar.

Turning around she noticed Kawaki holding a Lord Seventh card from the Shinobi Extreme Scrolls. He looked at her with bored expression ignoring girls that swarmed around him like a flies due to his so-called 'mature charm.'

"Who you're calling a little girl? I'm the only present mature girl here," she shrugged it off completely ignoring murderous stares of other girls. 

"Such pettiness. If it ain't proving you're little girl, so your other traits do." Kawaki stood up and walked over to her in an attempt to perhaps run away from unnecessary attention.

"Just because I'll let that comment slide doesn't mean I'm a little girl," she clarified.

"Yeah, yeah. Where are you going?" From what Sumire knew from the rumours it was strange Kawaki was that calm while interacting with her. Maybe the main reason for it was that Hokage gave him an instruction to respect her? It didn't mean she personally gained Kawaki's respect and trust. At least not yet.

"To the tool shop. I need some things for my research and your next check-up." Sumire felt she could be honest in Kawaki's presence. Even when she was spending time with her friends from academy days, she was acting to some degree. But Kawaki wasn't her friend from the academy, so she didn't see why she should bother with all theatrics. That guy could see through her acting anyway.

"I'll go with you," Kawaki stated with confidence. Sumire suspected it was because he wanted to make sure she's telling the truth. The more time she spends with him, she's more convinced he holds some grudge against science, or to be precise experiments.

"Suit yourself." It was the only thing she could tell.  Rest of the day was filled with complete silence between her and Kawaki. 

Their second encounter was more casual, they even made a small conversation. Kawaki didn't trust or respect her, but she made progress.

Sumire was aware that getting to know Kawaki will require having a lot of patience and time. Because she had a hard past as well, she probably understood it more than anyone else. Perhaps. She wasn't a mind reader, so maybe Kawaki is right in calling her a little girl.

Sumire made the first step in stopping being dependent on Boruto. Instead of her usual two-braids, she changed her hairstyle into braided-bun. She still didn't want to cut her hair to respect the memory of her mother.

"Your bun looks nice", commented Akita while they were working together yesterday. Sumire liked that change herself. It was the first change she made to strive towards her goal of being more independent. 

From now on she wanted to live her own life not being dependent or completely influenced by others. She'll grow to be a beautiful, independent, confident woman that can hold her own ground. Hey, maybe she could be a famous scientist in the future?! That would be nice.

"What do you think, Nue?" she asked her first friend and companion.  Sumire decided to summon this still little monkey and was happily explaining everything that happened when he wasn't summoned. Nue just nodded approving decision Sumire made. Spending time with her long-time friend really helped her to feel refreshed.

Recently her days were filled with leading some projects, doing routine check-ups on Kawaki mecha-hand and going out to Konoha shopping district to have all needed materials. She saw and initiated the conversation with her old friends but had the best contact with Denki, Iwabe, Metal Lee, Wasabi and Namida. It's strange how time can change the structure of your relationships.

"Yo, little mechanic girl," Kawaki entered the lab and Sumire sighed. Because of him 'little mechanic girl' started to be a nickname used by her co-workers.

"I'm not the little mechanic girl. I'm growing up, you know?" Well, her words weren't taken seriously by Kawaki at all. At least he didn't show his usual short-temper. He once called Sarada an 'asshole' during one of his bad days.

"You're still far from being mature. Changing the way you tie your hair up ain't changing that."  This sort of conversation started to be a welcoming ritual between them. Kawaki always called her a 'little mechanic girl', she denied it by saying she's mature just for him to refute by stating she's still immature.

Sumire started to work by doing the usual check-up. It will consume some time to make it, but she created the formula for mecha-hands designed for people with hard to identify chakra.

"Ain't you too much serious today?" Kawaki chose the wrong moment to talk. 

"How do you manage to talk when I try to focus and be silent when I want to talk?" she decided to ask. It was rare for Kawaki to be in a talkative mood. Sumire was usually the one that was doing all the talking.

"Don't you remember? You challenged me subtly during our first meeting. Ain't it normal I'm testing if you're really trustworthy?" Kawaki looked at her like it was the first time he's genuinely interested in how she responds.

"I suppose it is. Trust after all is something you build up just with people you want to put faith in." Yes, it was the answer Sumire reached after thinking through her past actions. She regretted them, was grateful for a receiving second chance, but the feeling of guilt welling up inside her mind never left her side. 

"That doesn't mean they're good people," he scowled. Considering this conversation triggered her bad memories, Sumire was assuming it could trigger some bad memories for Kawaki too.

"In that case perhaps we're more similar than we initially thought," Sumire concluded the subject. Rest of the check-up they spend in their usual silence.

Sumire knew that she was far from gaining Kawaki trust and respect. However, now she could understand him a little bit better as a person.

Her hard work to change paid off. Not only her hairstyle was fitting for her new image of a future scientist but her clothes too. Maybe she'll manage to really be acknowledged as mature by Kawaki. She honestly doubted it, but she could always hope. 

"And mecha-hand suitable for that stubborn donkey that can't admit I'm mature is finished!" Sumire happily admired the polished result. 

"Ain't this sort of comments proving you're still a little mechanic girl?" Kawaki raised his eyebrow.  Sumire wasn't even surprised he entered the lab without knocking. She was more worried she couldn't even notice he was here until he spoke to her.

"Oh, you're here. Good, I need to make few final adjustments." Sumire ignoring his comment meant they were going into silence mode. There was a lot she had to work on today. For example, swapping Lord Seventh mecha-hand with mecha-hand created for Kawaki needs.

After the final adjustments, Sumire was satisfied it was over. Six-months of hard work and regular check-up meetings with Kawaki to create mecha-hands designed for civilians were worth it.

"How do you feel with using your new mecha-hand? It's adjusted to your body size, so it should make your movement easier. " Sumire needed to jot down Kawaki input just in case she needed to make more adjustments.

"It feels strange using another artificial hand, but I think I'll manage." Kawaki opinion was helpful, even if he was lost in thought looking at the ceiling of the lab.

"In that case, we can limit our check-ups to two meetings every month." Sumire decided and got his approval.

"I think you'll remain a little mechanic girl, but among all scientists, I know I respect you the most," Kawaki whispered, which didn't escape Sumire's attention that this time had on her real smile. 

Sumire still couldn't describe her relationship with Kawaki, but his respect towards her meant a lot. During these past six months, she started to respect him too. Though, she wasn't sure where their mutual respect for each other will lead to. 

Sumire mainly worked staying the entire day inside the lab, so taking a day off felt like a strange phenomenon for her. Just like they agreed on Kawaki regularly visited the lab for check-ups two times every month. That helped them to start to be on more friendly terms. 

Sort of friends. Neither she or Kawaki openly called their relationship a friendship. Even after they managed to open up a little about the past family problems they had in common. 

Having shitty fathers was the things that they both shared. It's no wonder Sumire felt the need to gain Kawaki's trust. She sensed some sort of solidarity with someone who went through a hard life in relatively peaceful times.

"I didn't see you in Konoha shopping district in a while little mechanic girl." Kawaki whistled some strange tune saying his greetings. 

"It wouldn't hurt you to say sometimes my name. I always am open to small changes." Sumire stretched out trying to relax.

"Ain't you usually busy?" Kawaki had his usual bored expression.

"I have a day off today. Want to go with me admire the beautiful lake near the village?" Sumire question was answered by his grumbling that she interpreted as 'yes'. 

The view just like she heard was really breathtaking. Clear azure lake, trees surrounding the landscape, chirping birds and presence of not many people made this place ideal for making her more relaxed.

"Sumire." That's why Kawaki sudden use of her name startled her. The moment he did it was the moment she was caught off guard.

"Yes?" It was her automatic response.

"You're still a little mechanic girl. Calling you by name or not ain't changing that." She thought he wanted to talk about something serious, but it turned out to be his attempt to mislead her!

"I'm more mature than you think!" She went into her memorised response.

They closed the distance between each other at the same time. Sumire spaced out for a moment but before she noticed she and Kawaki was sharing a passionate kiss. She didn't have any idea who kissed who first, but at this point, she just enjoyed the thrill of it.

Both of them were wrestling with each other for a while before landing into more intimate position. Taking short breaks to catch a breath between kissing didn't stop their fight for dominance over the other.

When Sumire thought the winner of her internal fight with Kawaki will be decided by moving a few steps further, she heard familiar footsteps.

"I can't believe Sasuke won popularity contest for the coolest looking dad of the year!" Lord Seventh shouted accidentally walking into them and seeing quite an intimate position the youngsters were in.

Sumire distanced herself from Kawaki that send an angry glare towards Lord Seventh. 

"Did I interrupt something?" Naruto Uzumaki let out a nervous chuckle. He wanted to appear as cool guy in front of his adopted son.

"N-No, not at all! I-I was just checking if Kawaki's mecha-hand is working without any problems." Sumire lied in her panic.

"She's my mechanic, after all, ain't she?" Kawaki lied to Lord Seventh appearing to be calm, but Sumire could tell he was equally confused by the whole situation. 

"Is that so? I suppose every person feels the spring of youth just like says Rock Lee, even if it's overwhelming sometimes, ya know?" Naruto concluded scratching the back of his head.

This certainly was awkward. After a short explanation from Lord Seventh that killed the mood Sumire was in, she decided to head back home saying some sort of excuse she already forgot.

Now she couldn't define the relationship she shared with Kawaki at all. Friends weren't kissing each other in the way they did. They weren't dating either. Love wasn't out of the question, but with the type of person, Kawaki is expecting any sort of confession when they were both confused about their feelings wasn't the best course of action.

It'll take a lot of patience to define the relationship she has with Kawaki, but Sumire was alright with that. Some people need more time than others to sort out their emotions. Kawaki acknowledged her as his mechanic in front of Lord Seventh.