#zisestars

A sprawling carpet of emerald green grass. Morning dew glittering like diamonds dropped by a careless goddess. Flowers dripping with nectar, bursting with colour, ornamenting the field. And the sun, glinting down on them, accentuating each individual facets of every petal and grass blade.

Yugao had insisted that Tenzō wear civvies to this field and he understood why now. Without the reinforced armour and the heavy clothing, Tenzō felt…light. 

He could feel the silky breeze curling around his calves. He could feel the shy tickle of the grass against his ankles. Without the weight of his mask, he could breathe in the sweet honey smell of flowers. Yugao  had even pulled up Tenzō’s hair into a ponytail, so he could feel the sun warming the back on his neck.

He had never felt so free.

“Do you like it?” Kakashi padded up next to him.

“It’s beautiful,’ Tenzō breathed. “I had no idea a place this wonderful existed.”

Why on earth did he let Tenzō just walk off? It was clear that Tenzō wasn’t just a brainwashed ROOT lackey. He had saved Kakashi when it probably would have served his mission better if Kakashi had been dead. He risked his own life protecting Kakashi. He risked his own life saving Yukimi against one of the Sannin- the one responsible for experimenting on him.

Of course you didn’t. Kakashi thought sadly. After all, they had been on back to back missions in the ANBU. And just a year ago, Tenzō had still been deeply embedded in ROOT.

Kakashi had always regretted how he left the Iburi clan incident. At the time, he thought that he had been kind by never mentioning Tenzō in his report. But as the years passed, with no sign of Tenzō, and an ever increasing threat posed by Danzo, Kakashi started to regret his decision.

Even from that very first mission, Tenzō had gone against everything ROOT programmed into him. His compassion and kindness had been unsullied by Danzo.

And Kakashi had just let him walk back into the snake’s hole. 

That decision had weighed heavy on Kakashi for years. He should’ve convinced Tenzō to go back to the Hokage with him. Insisted that the ANBU, the real ANBU was better for him, where the Hokage- where Kakashi could protect him from Danzo. Where Tenzō would be able to walk in the sunlight instead of serving in that underground hell. 

When Tenzō had turned up three years later, Kakashi had been secretly ecstatic to have a second shot at helping him. At hopefully getting him into ANBU and more importantly- out of ROOT.

When Tenzō turned against him and he had Tenzō pinned against the floor, Chidori at his heart, Kakashi…couldn’t do it. He wanted to believe that the Tenzō he had met was still in there. He captured him to bring him back to the Hokage.

He was never going to let Tenzō go back to Danzo.

And Kakashi had been right in the end. Tenzō had put himself at risk to save Kakashi twice over. And though Kakashi had saved him in the end, gotten him into his own squad where he could watch out for him, Kakashi could never shake off that guilt.

Because, Kakashi thought, watching Tenzō tilt his head up and enjoy the ribbons of fresh air streaming over him, sunlight illuminating the bronze of his hair. You could’ve had this a lot sooner, if I had been a little braver. 

“Kakashi-senpai!” Tenzō’s voice broke him out of his reverie. There, carefully balanced on his finger, was a butterfly. Its blue wings, colour deep as the ocean and edged with black lace, flapped lazily as it perched on Tenzō’s finger. His kohai looked delighted.

  Yes, Kakashi thought. You deserved it, Tenzō. You deserved your place in the sun so much quicker.

“Senpai?” Tenzō tore his gaze away from the butterfly and looked at Kakashi curiously. 

Kakashi gave him a smile and gestured to the butterfly. “Are you using your Wood style, Tenzō? Secretly growing flowers out of your fingers, hmmmm?”

Sufficiently distracted, Tenzō squawked his defence as Kakashi laughed at him. With a huff, Tenzō turned his back pointedly on Kakashi. 

Kakashi’s eye strayed towards the nape of Tenzō’s neck. Towards the mark that claimed Tenzō as his soulmate. 

And Kakashi knew that he would never, ever tell Tenzō.

Because after all, Tenzō had never done anything bad enough to deserve Kakashi as a soulmate.

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A/N: thank you to @sketchy-and-unformed, @matsukisama, @kodiaksage and @kaoruhana08 for organising Kakayama Week 2022!