Ryouma nearly stumbled when the limp weight over his shoulders went suddenly mobile. He did stumble, skidding to his knees in the leafmold and brush of the forest floor, when Kakashi stabbed him in the kidney. "You little bitch!" he howled. "I'm rescuing you!"

Hauling his sorry carcass to the safe-house, instead of leaving him to the dubious mercy of the rain and the forest and the entirely nonexistent mercy of the war, totally counted as rescue. The brat was a comrade, even if he didn't seem to realize it, and he was Ryouma's responsibility. Namikaze-san had given him a mission.

And at the moment, Ryouma didn't care. He dropped his head, dragged the struggling kid off his shoulders, and punched him square in that masked mouth.