I really like this pairing and its my fav ship in the show! I really like Iruka---he's a caring, personable teacher that is passionate about what he teaches, and keeps shit real. He can rolemodel a soft, kind, and inflappable person to subordinates, but with peers can be hot-headed, rebellious/risk taking, and assertive. He is motivated by his morals and has a strong understanding of himself as a person. I think he's really fun and wish he got more screentime.

As for the Iruka/Kakashi dynamic, I really like that Kakashi teases him and can bring out that rebelliousness, but is also tactful and intuitive; he knows how to toe the line. I think since they're both in that rolemodel position as teachers and both understand managing personas, they know how to identify false presentations and find truth through communication. I also like that the relationship naturally has an edge in that Kakashi is very reserved in protecting his personal life, and tends to weave lies into conversations about himself, as opposed to Iruka who is very straightforward and communicative. SO I feel both challenge eachother in different ways to grow as people and grow in their roles as teachers which is why I ship them!

While rare, the interractions they do have are also totally cute, and I love the relationships they have with Naruto as a pseudo-son! My favorite headcanon of all time is that Iruka adopts Naruto---they're just perfect!