Chapter Text
The list of villages he had conquered in the name of the Fire Lord had long since blurred together. These days, each subsequent victory over some tiny Earth Kingdom village meant little more to Kakashi than another banner emblazoned with the symbol of fire to hang over the walls of another city. Another invasion to plan, another city to raid... another evening of hazy bars and sleepless nights, tormented by guilty visions of lives lost and the ones he had stolen away.
It was all for the sake of the Fire Lord, for the prosperity of the Fire Nation. (And Kakashi was nothing if not a dutiful soldier.)
Perhaps sensing the way his mind had begun to wander as of late, Genma had started dragging Kakashi to the post-battle celebrations that the soldiers participated in. A lifetime of paranoia meant he never drank anything he didn’t himself pour, instead always bringing a personal flask with him, but he supposed that it could be beneficial for the camaraderie between the troops. If nothing else, it was an excellent excuse to get wasted.
Today’s celebration was being “hosted” at the bar of one of the villages the Fire Nation had overtaken a week prior. Kakashi remembered how the villagers had fought back initially, only to surrender the moment he made an appearance, his scar and blood-red eye all too distinctive. To these villagers, he was like a nightmare story come to life. No one dared challenge Kakashi of a Thousand Kills, lest they be the next ones to be added to his list.
The Fire Nation emblem hung like a trophy over the entrance of the building as they entered, displaying loud and clear who held the power. The room quieted to a tense hush as everyone turned to stare at them. Genma clapped a fellow soldier on the back, making a loud comment about getting the party started and soon enough everyone had relaxed, though several wary looks were still shot Kakashi’s way.
The first half hour passed by uneventfully, with Genma trying to get Kakashi to loosen up, and Kakashi keeping his face resolutely buried in a novel. Another half hour passed, and soon, all of the comments from the brunette were of the less savory variety. He was incorrigible, that man, making eyes and twirling his toothpick at any woman who so much as breathed. Kakashi sipped at his drink quietly, knowing better than to say anything to encourage his now-tipsy companion.
Usually, he found nights like these to be rather dull, but tonight found his eyes drifting towards one of the figures at a back table, a woman who sat by herself, her vivid pink hair attracting all kinds of attention. She was approached by a seemingly never-ending stream of suitors throughout the night, yet all of the men were instantly rejected.
Once, he noticed the hand of a rather bold man drifting towards her exposed thigh. Before Kakashi had decided whether or not he should step in, the man’s hand had been forcibly removed by the woman herself, the man screaming as his fingers turned an unnatural shade of purple.
Releasing the squealing pig, the woman glared at the rest of the bar’s inhabitants, as if to warn off any of the other men from attempting to catch her attention.
Kakashi couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped his lips. Unfortunately, his friend was not as distracted as he had hoped, and immediately noticed the direction of his eye.
“Ohhhh, I see how it is,” Genma commented with a knowing smirk. “Wondering if it’s natural, hm?”
Of course, Genma had to turn everything into innuendo. Kakashi refused to respond, knowing by now that any reply whatsoever would only be seen as encouragement. If he was being honest, he would say that he was more drawn to the shape of her legs rather than the color of her hair, captivating though it was. The woman’s dress was a modest length, but it did little to hide her thighs, thick thighs and toned calves that were rare to see on such a petite woman. It sent his mind spinning with all sorts of uncouth fantasies, but he absolutely could not convey anything of the sort to the other man lest he start running with the idea.
He should have known that simply disregarding Genma wouldn’t be enough. Before Kakashi could take another sip of his drink, his arm was seized by his companion. The silver-tongued philanderer grabbed the silver-haired general and dragged him across the room.
The woman’s eyes darted up to register their presence, her gaze flashing with a fire that Kakashi found completely captivating.
“Hey gorgeous,” Genma purred as he plopped down onto the seat directly in front of the woman. Kakashi remained standing there awkwardly, not wanting to sit down and impose further but also knowing it would be worse to leave her alone with the other.
“My name’s Genma, and this one—sit down man,” he tried to yank Kakashi down by the arm, but Kakashi resisted, scowling at the brunette who eventually gave up with a shrug and rolled his eyes playfully at the entirely unamused looking woman. “This is General Hatake, one of the Fire Nation’s most esteemed leaders.”
“Though,” he added with a grin, “a pretty thing like you could call him Kakashi.”
“For fucks sake,” Kakashi muttered under his breath. “Leave the girl alone, Genma.” He grabbed onto the man’s shoulder, trying to drag his friend away, but Genma simply swatted his hand away.
“Stop being such a downer, come on.”
“Let’s go, Genma.”
The brunette pointedly ignored him, turning back to the woman. “Handsome, single, and he led the troops for nearly every single invasion. He’s the Fire Nation’s hero, this one. Don’t you think his hard work deserves a little appreciation?”
Genma added little wink to the statement, but the girl looked anything but thrilled, seeming to recoil farther into the booth.
Misinterpreting her reaction, Genma backpedaled, waving his hands dismissively. “Oh don’t worry darling, he would never hurt a sweet thing like you. He only gets rough with those Earth Kingdom brutes. So primitive, always tracking dirt and dust everywhere—haven’t they heard of bathing?”
The girl stiffened even more at Genma’s jab, her grip on her glass tight enough that Kakashi was worried the thing might actually shatter. He was well used to people treating him with wariness, even straight up fear, but the girl’s reaction to them was neither of those things. She seemed like she was a moment from snapping, her eyes burning a toxic shade of green and dripping with clear contempt.
It was clear they were not wanted here.
Kakashi dropped his hand onto his friend’s shoulder once more, this time his fingers digging in hard enough to bruise as he shifted into his commander's voice. “Genma, enough. Go back to the bar.”
Genma's shoulders tensed at the order, though moments later he was brushing it off with a lighthearted chuckle as he got out of his seat and walked over to yell at the bartender for another round.
Kakashi held back for a moment, offering the woman a slight bow. “I apologize for my friend’s behavior. Please allow me to pay for your drinks as amends.”
The woman stood up abruptly, her chair screeching against the floor as it was forced backwards.
“Your integrity is misplaced, Kakashi of a Thousand Kills,” she retorted in a scathing tone, glaring at him as if she weren’t two heads shorter. Dropping loose change on the table, she sneered at him, the malice on her features almost as vivid as her hair. “I can take care of myself.”
She knocked her shoulder into his arm as she walked past him, the contact point throbbing more than he would have expected for someone of her stature. Feeling off-balance about the interaction, Kakashi returned to the counter and quietly took a seat on a barstool. He sipped at his drink once more, tuning out everything else as Genma started chattering further nonsense in his ear.
Meanwhile, the pink-haired woman stomped out of the bar, and no one was sober enough to notice the way the earth crackled beneath her feet.