It was a normal day at Konoha's Hot Springs. The ones that were not unisex, anyway. On the ones that were, as a matter of fact, unisex, Jiraiya would've had the worst day of his life as it happened to be the day in which the asylum for the elderly and disabled was visiting en masse and had thus reserved the place.
Naruko had proceeded to whine about it the entire way to the other ones. Kakashi was not certain whether to be flattered or worried that his students thought he might be a pretty boy under the mask he wore. Or maybe he should be horrified about the many, many possible disfigurements that Satsuki theorized he could be hiding under his mask.
Even the Daimyo, his wife and his daughter had ended up somehow joining the guessing game.
Ultimately, they'd arrived at the newest looking Hot Springs in the village, built with specific, anti-Jiraiya measures (or so they advertised, anyway). Kakashi had gone ahead and entered, pointing with his finger at the Daimyo behind him and ignoring the stunned faces of the staff. It'd take him but a couple of minutes to give his body a full wash and even less to find something to tie to his face so it'd act as a mask.
The Hot Springs were pretty much standard and unassuming. A pool that was basically a shallow hole on the rock that had pleasantly warm water filling it. There was a, from sight alone, sturdy wooden palisade dividing both sides, which didn't bother Kakashi in the least.
If he wanted to peek, he wouldn't do it from the hot springs themselves. After all, he owned a telescope, so there was no need to risk proximity.
Kakashi sighed in contentment, almost submerging in the hot and relaxing water. However, he found himself incapable of fully relaxing, feeling a bit worried as he saw the face that the Daimyo of the Land of Fire made. It looked not unlike someone who was in way more pain than he liked to admit he was. He was also walking with a noticeably strained step, as if he was afraid of putting too much pressure on the ground. Considering the floor was the hard stone that bordered the spring itself, it seemed entirely unnecessary.
"So you do wear a mask even here…" Nobunaga spoke, letting out a suffering sigh. "I just lost ten thousand Ryo, you know."
Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "I'm not even gonna ask." He spoke, with all the respect of a petulant child towards the man who sponsored Konoha.
"Oooh! So nice and soft!"
Kakashi blinked. Nobunaga blinked. "Naruko?"
Both the ninja and the civilian seemed entirely entranced by the sounds coming from the other side of the palisade, because it sounded too good to be true. Let it not go unsaid that Kakashi was a fan of slapstick comedy, because it was the kind of comedy he enjoyed the most. Particularly when the moronic, elitist character got what was coming to him and learned a necessary lesson.
While this wouldn't have the same… pathos… it certainly would give Kakashi a laugh or two to listen to Satsuki's distress while Naruko went about being Naruko, as well as Sakura's frustration. Comedy dictates that someone has to suffer, and Kakashi thought he'd suffered enough in his life to be a willing target, so the genin offering themselves to provide comedy targets for him was always a plus.
Some would say he was an ass for deriving enjoyment from his genin's antics, but he would say that he was an ass because he doesn't even remember how many kids his own age he killed during the Third World War, so it didn't make a difference.
"Naruko, I swear, if you keep disrespecting Kichou-sama I will end you." Came the dangerously low voice of Sakura. And then Kakashi remembered that the (admittedly very attractive) wife of the Daimyo was also on the other half of the springs.
"Flattery is hardly disrespectful, Sakura-chan!" Came Naruko's carefree voice.
"It's not flattery, it's harassment!" Sakura yelled, clearly frustrated. From her voice alone, Kakashi could tell that her face was likely red and not from the heat. He wondered about the face that Satsuki had during the entire exchange. Maybe she was just trying to pretend she didn't know either of the idiots.
"Don't worry about it, it's totally okay, I don't mind." Kakashi almost laughed at the strained yelp Sakura gave right then and there, but he had to keep himself silent lest he advertise the fact that he was listening in on their conversation. Kichou seemed like the kind of authority figure he could get behind, from her words alone. "Naruko-chan, this is your first time seeing ones like mine, right?"
"Yep!" Naruko answered, sounding far too happy. "Do they really get that large?"
"Well, mine aren't all that large." The grown woman admitted. "If I had to guess, I'd say that you will probably get ones bigger than mine when you grow up." She continued.
"Wouldn't that be totally uncomfortable? I mean, they seem heavy…" That was Sakura. Apparently, if Kichou thought it was okay to speak of the matter, then Sakura thought so too.
"They aren't all that heavy, but larger ones do tend to strain the back when you try to use them."
Kakashi then leaned back. "You know, it's at times like these that it turns out that we grossly misinterpreted the conversation and they turn out to be talking about something totally innocent in the end." He remarked, tapping his covered chin in thought.
"No. I know my wife." Nobunaga answered. "I doubt it."
Meanwhile, on the other side of the palisade, Satsuki tried to forget she had come with that same group. "I am surrounded by idiots and perverts." She murmured to herself.
"Yeah, but it's nice like that." The one seated next to her, a girl that was around her age more or less, yet seemed almost two years younger if she had to guess, from her small size and the lack of training making her seem all the more innocent. "It's fun." She added.
Satsuki rolled her eyes. "For you, maybe."
"Yes, it is fun for me… but you're enjoying it too, aren't you?" asked the black haired girl, smiling widely. Satsuki scoffed, but that did not deter the princess of the Land of Fire. "If you weren't, you wouldn't have smiled when you said that."
Satsuki blinked. "It must have been a trick of the water vapor."
"Well, I guess it doesn't matter." Kou spoke, looking at her with a kind smile that spoke of wisdom beyond her years. Wisdom came from something Satsuki knew well, but she wondered how the little girl with no shinobi training nor awareness of the world outside the sphere of royalty could know pain. "But still, you should enjoy it while you can. After all, you never know when the things you love will be taken from you."
And that, the pain of losing what you hold most dear… That Satsuki knew well, much as she wished she didn't.