Hunt you down!Zabuza/canon Kakashi crossover hit me right in the curious feels. I'm so intrigued! And also it was the third time I read it, just now, but I wanted you to know your writing is superb as always and the world you paint is just brimming with details and things. It's like a tidepool. It's otherworldly while making perfect sense and it's enthralling.
Have some more, since idek when I’ll finish this ridiculous thing!
Kakashi hears the sound of theguest shower stop as he’s pouring water for tea. The Hokage Mansion is toolarge, cold and empty and echoing, but the kitchen at least is small enough tofeel like he’s actually occupying the space when he’s in it, rather than justdrifting through. Gai tries to come over frequently, but he’s busy with Lee andLee's new baby, distracted by family. Kakashi would never hold that against him.It just…makes the whole place feel even bigger, sometimes.
There are footsteps, almostsoundless on the floor, and a moment later Zabuza appears in the doorway, dressedin one of the spare sets of clothes Kakashi keeps for Gai on the rare occasionshe spends the night. At least they fit, the way Kakashi’s clotheswouldn’t—Zabuza doesn’t look half-starved anymore, the way he did in Wave, leanto the point of barely having enough food to keep his muscle. He’s filled out,gained mass. It looks good on him.
“Thanks,” Zabuza says, and hesounds tired. “For the clothes and the place.”
“It’s no problem.” Kakashismiles at him, eyes crinkled above his mask, and Zabuza stares at him for along moment before he looks away, swallowing. It makes Kakashi sigh, and he asks,“The weirdness factor?”
Zabuza laughs, a bark of soundthat’s reluctantly amused. “Yeah. Fucking strangeto see you without the Sharingan,” he says. “And without the…” A wave of hishand encompasses something, but hedoesn’t put it into words. Settles into a chair, and if one arm curves aroundhimself in a bit of unconscious comfort, Kakashi certainly isn't about to sayanything. “So—Haku and I both bit it in Wave?”
Kakashi hums in confirmation,pushing the mug of tea in front of him. “Haku stepped in front of a blow meantfor you,” he says, and doesn’t elaborate. Zabuza can probably guess it was his strike,regardless. “And our fight nearly finished you. Gato ordered you killed, andyou took him out but didn’t survive it.”
There's a long, long pause, likea single second stretched out into hair-thin wire. Then, low and angry, Zabuzalaughs. Rests his elbows on the table, lacing his hands on the back of hishead, and closes his eyes. “Fucking knew it,” he says, more to himself thanKakashi. “That idiot. Of course he would.”
Haku, Kakashi assumes. Hehesitates, wavers, but says, “He made it snow. As you were dying.”
“Yeah,” Zabuza says roughly.“That sounds like Haku.” Breathes out, low and ragged, and then takes the tea,pressing the mug between his hands. “Fuck. What a way to go out. Fucking Gato.”
With a sound of agreement,Kakashi carefully settles into the seat across from him. “I take it that’s nothow things happened with you,” he says, and it’s all too easy to call up theimage of Zabuza in a Konoha uniform. Much more flattering than Kiri'scamouflage print and pinstripes, in Kakashi’s opinion, and—intriguing,honestly. Even if Zabuza had survived the fight on the bridge, Kakashi couldn’thave imagined him tagging along back to Konoha.
“Nah,” Zabuza says dismissively,catches the shift of an ANBU guard outside the window and jerks around,automatically reaching for the sword he isn't carrying. No dulled instinctsthere, Kakashi thinks with a trace of amusement, and opens his mouth to tellZabuza it’s just Ino—
And stops dead, the words dyingin his throat. There's a bite mark on Zabuza’s neck. Multiple bite marks, some nearly healed, some fresh, and in aninstant Kakashi is on his feet, stepping close. Zabuza glances up at him insurprise, but when he sees the direction of Kakashi’s gaze he huffs.
“Sorry,” he says. “Forgot mywraps this morning. I can cover ‘em if they make you uncomfortable.”
“Uncomfortable,” Kakashirepeats, and his voice sounds strange in his own ears, almost unfamiliar. Hecan't quite stop himself from reaching out, even though he’s never one for skincontact, and he pauses there, fingertips a bare inch from raw skin. Herecognizes those sharp teeth, even though he wishes he didn’t. “You—those aremine.”
Zabuza lifts a brow. “Yeah,” hedrawls, like he thinks Kakashi is being slow right now. “And I'm not sure howthat must be messing with your raijū half, so if you want them covered—”
“Raijū. Like the yōkai?” Kakashiasks, vaguely bewildered as to what that has to do with anything.
Zabuza pauses, studies his facenarrowly. “Yeah, the yōkai. Yōkai are where shinobi get their ability to shapechakra. All the clans have spirit blood mixed in, and yours is raijū.”
Kakashi kind of needs to sitdown. “Yōkai,” he says again, andapparently that’s the difference between their worlds. It’s a big freakingdifference. “And—I left those? Did I—”He swallows, closes his eyes for a moment. Forceyou, he wants to say, but can't get the words out. Kakashi knows betterthan anyone just how much physical bartering goes on between shinobi, all thedealings that would make civilians recoil. If his alternate self manipulatedZabuza, made a deal with him for protection and citizenship in Konoha in returnfor—
It’s not the kind of thingKakashi wants to think himself capable of, but he also knows himself, knowsprecisely how desperate he used to get for connections, for the touch of skin.If he saw an opportunity during one of his low moments—
“I don’t know what stupidity’sgoing on in your head right now,” Zabuza says, amused, but there's an edge ofwarning to the tone as well, “but you can fuck right off with that. We’remarried. I enjoyed every fucking second of him leaving these while he screwedme into the mattress.”
Kakashi almost falls over.Wrenches his hand away as if he’s been burned, retreats three long steps to putspace between himself and Zabuza, but there’s only one image in his head and hecan't shake it off. Zabuza, on his back with Kakashi between his legs, headthrown back, arms around Kakashi’s shoulders, Kakashi’s teeth in his throat,and—
He swallows, mouth completelydry. Breathes, shaky and unsettled, and takes one more step back for godmeasure. Zabuza is still watching him, but his expression is thoughtful now,something closer to assessing. He rises, slow and deliberate, and picks up hiscup. His path to the sink takes him close enough that Kakashi can't help butbreathe in the smell of him, sharp and dark and heady. Touched with sex, justfaded enough that it’s not immediately apparent, but fresh enough that Kakashiknows without a doubt that his alternate self put some of those bites on Zabuza justthis morning.
It takes effort to rein himselfin, to take a mental step back and consider things. Married. Him, married toZabuza. It’s not…impossible, Kakashi supposes, if Zabuza were a constantpresence in Konoha. He’s certainly Kakashi’s type, though Kakashi would morehave expected Zabuza to be the one doing the screwing, given his attitude. Thenagain, the thought of him under Kakashi, yielding, accepting, taking whatKakashi gave him and—
Married. Gods. They're married.
Kakashi triggers a shunshin out of sheer,desperate self-preservation, abandoning the kitchen in favor of bolting back tohis bedroom and locking the door behind him. It’s a coward’s retreat, but theKakashi in another world is married toZabuza, and Kakashi thinks he has every right to flee in the face oflearning that.
