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It was a tragedy when it happened, the attack had destroyed the village and many of its habitants, including the fourth Hokage
Your family had died before in war years ago, so you knew what it felt like to lose someone like so many kids did.
There was one specific one that caught your eye, though. He had a scar in his nose, tan skin and brown, long hair
Umino Iruka, was it? Something along the lines, at least. He couldn’t be older than 11 and was constantly getting into trouble and being the center of attention in his class.
To others, he looked like a normal child, just a bit more troublesome.
He did keep a smile
But you knew better
You noticed how he faked, how he craved aknowledgement
From time to time, you’d try to spend time with him
At first, you did so by making small talk
Then you started giving him little details or inviting him for lunch
Even though his situation was not rare in a world like yours, you felt bad for him
He was just a kid
A lonely child who just wanted someone, anyone to hold on to
“You’re aware of what taking a child in your care implicates, aren’t you?”
“I am, I want to do it. Please, let me do it”
“Not every day do I get a request to take a problem child under someone’s care”
“Well, today I am”
“You’re only 9 years older than him”
“I’m also an experienced jonin. Responsible, too”
“Well, I can’t say you’re wrong. Fine, I’ll allow this”
“Thank you, Hokage Sama”
Of course you talked to Iruka about it before making it official
He was actually overjoyed, happier than you expected
You were now, his legal tutor
This also meant you were now who his teachers went to when wanting to deal with him
But you got him under control, reassured him of everything everytime you could
This was his last year at the academy, and you helped him pass.
You’d train with him, make sure he was alright, and help him as you could
You were proud of him
And so was he
He was also thankful
He admired you, really did. He worked hard to make you prouder every time
You were the closest thing to family he had
Eventually, he started considering you as such without even realizing it
“Yeah, my sibling will return from their mission this sunday”
He then realized what he’d called you
He smiled, he really did think of you as an older sibling and a role model
You were so very proud of him when he became a chunnin, then a teacher
You were glad he was following his own dreams
Then he encountered this little devil called Naruto
He was like an even more problematic version of his younger self
You always laughed when he or others told you about his antics
Said it was karma
You’d sometimes talk with naruto and spilled details about his sensei’s childhood
Iruka wasn’t all to happy about it, but not really annoyed either
Him and you would have dinner together every night
Or at least whenever you weren’t out on a mission or something
And every night meant every night
If he worked late because of having to grade papers, that was alright. You’d bring dinner to him. If you had to complete a report, he’d make sure you took dinner that night, eating together
As far as he was concerned, you were his family
He was proud of it
And you were even prouder
The kid who you once watched cry and mourn his parents in secret, then pretend to be okay and cause trouble had become a kind, strong teacher
He’d become your little brother, too
And you loved him just as such