At dinner that evening, Kiba seemed distracted. He took just one bite of his favorite meat cutlet before putting it down.
He still hadn't recovered from the shock of learning that someone so beautiful was actually a man. Every so often, he stole a glance at Haku, who was tied up in the corner, with a look that questioned everything he knew about life.
Shikamaru also glanced at Haku from time to time, his chopsticks absently stirring the food in his bowl.
The world really was full of surprises.
Sasuke, meanwhile, was preoccupied with Kakashi's Sharingan.
He shoveled food into his mouth without tasting it, his mind filled with thoughts of the Sharingan that might be hidden beneath Kakashi's mask.
That man... just what connection did he have to the Uchiha Clan?
"All right, Sasuke. Come outside with me."
Kakashi had keenly picked up on Sasuke's distraction.
The boy's chopsticks moved mechanically through the food in his bowl, while his vacant gaze rested somewhere far away.
Kakashi set down his bowl and chopsticks with a soft clack against the wooden table, breaking the somewhat subdued atmosphere.
Without another word, he rose and headed for the door.
Sasuke pulled himself out of his tangled thoughts.
He looked up at Kakashi's retreating back. Moonlight had already outlined the doorframe.
His daze lasted only a moment. Pressing his lips together, he gently set down his chopsticks and stood without a word, silent but resolute. He followed close behind Kakashi into the night, bathed in cool moonlight.
Outside, a damp, salty sea breeze washed over them, carrying a slight chill and fluttering the hems of their clothes.
A bright moon hung high between sea and sky, spilling its pale light over the porch and the shimmering water beyond, lending the scene an almost unreal