Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

  Obito blinks up at the sky, feeling disoriented. It was bright and blue, with fluffy white clouds, and the sun was shining brightly. He gets himself to sit up, slowly, as every part of his body ached. Why did he hurt so much? Wasn’t he supposed to be dead?

  “I think he has a concussion, Sensei.”

  Obito can’t help but start at the voice– one that had played over and over in his head– and he looks over his shoulder at—--- her. She looked back at him, warm, brown eyes filled with worry, her eyebrows drawn together.

  “Rin—----” His voice is quiet, barely a whisper, to the point where he almost couldn’t hear himself. How—?

  He shifts, with the intent to stand up, but he pauses as he sees his hands pressed against the ground. They were small. Smaller than they should have been. His arm guards pulled up on his hands, long sleeves brushing against them. He brings his palms up to stare at his hands, and he hears a soft sigh, though there was no annoyance. He looks over to find Minato approaching him, pressing a hand to his forehead that causes Obito to flinch and pull away, quickly standing.

  “I’m fine, I’m fine—---” He dusts himself off, head feeling light. Someone shifts on their feet nearby, and Obito doesn’t even have to look at him to know it’s Kakashi.

  “Fine….? You lasted about five minutes before I was able to throw you to the ground.”

  “Kakashi….” Minato sounds sheepish, and Obito had honestly forgotten how much of an asshole Kakashi had been when they were kids.

  Not that he could talk given his own behavior the past—- several years. He couldn’t remember exactly how many. Sixteen? Seventeen? He had no idea. But now the question was: how did he end up here? He remembers dying. He remembers giving his other Sharingan to Kakashi, bestowing him with the full power of the Mangekyo.

  Was this some remnant of the Tsukuyomi? Affecting his spirit as he died? He’s not sure. This all surely feels like a dream.

  “Obito….?” He looks over at Rin, blinking at her as she stares at him. “Are you sure you’re okay? You look…..”

  “Dumbfounded?” Rin looks over at Kakashi, not quite scowling, but maybe pouting.

  “I was going to say out of it.”

  “What’s the difference?”

  Obito huffs in response, getting both of their attention.

  “I said I’m fine, really. My head just hurts is all.”

  “Kakashi did throw you down pretty hard….”

  “Not my fault he couldn’t deflect it.” Obito shoots him a glare, but he doesn’t really feel it.

  He remembers what Minato had told him— that Kakashi was just wanting to look after them in the only way he could. Obito wasn’t completely sure of that himself, still, but he wasn’t going to argue. Not right now anyways. And it probably didn’t matter anyways. This most likely really was just a dream. A vision in limbo as he moved from the living to the dead.

  The thought made him sad in some way he couldn’t quite explain.

  “I think I just need to lay down.”

  Minato claps his hands together once, drawing all their own to him as he gives a nod.

  “I agree with Obito. Concussion or not, it would probably be best to cut training for the day. We have a mission tomorrow so we will meet at the gates at noon, okay?” The three kids nod, and Minato smiles. “Good. Now, I’ll walk Obito home— I want to make sure he gets there safely.”

  “I think I can walk myself home….” It’s a grumble, but he doesn’t actually protest as they make their way to the Uchiha compound. Minato talks the whole way, about this and that, but Obito tunes him out, lost in his own thoughts. Finally, they stop in front of Obito’s front door, and Minato ruffles Obito’s hair, though he pulls away from the touch again, causing the man to frown.

  “You rest, okay, Obito? Tomorrow we leave for a few days, so be sure to pack what you need. And remember–” He holds up a finger. “We’re meeting up at noon.”

  Obito waves him off with a quiet ‘yeah, yeah, whatever,’ and Minato gives a soft sigh and shake of his head before he leaves. Obito stands there a moment, casting a slow look around. He listens to the murmur of people around him—- which feels strange. He was so used to hiding, to keeping his presence a secret—---

  To being alone.

  He steps inside his house, slipping his shoes off and making his way to his room. He stares at himself in his mirror, head tilted to the side. Definitely a child, though probably a little younger. Nine, maybe? Ten, at most. At least a few years off from the Kanabi bridge incident. He’s still not sure if it’s Tsukuyomi, though he feels that isn’t quite right. After all, the point of that was an existence of their deepest desires, and, surely, if this was his, his house wouldn’t be….so quiet.

  Perhaps there was no point thinking about it too hard. He just needs to go to bed, and it wouldn’t matter.

  It never did, did it?

  Everything he did, and tried to do. Everything he fought for his whole life, whether as ‘Obito,’ or ‘Tobi,’ or ‘Madara.’ None of it had mattered. He hadn’t accomplished anything, and, perhaps, one day, his name would be forgotten to time.

  It makes him sad. He doesn’t want to dwell on it. It was too late now. He had made his decisions. Lived his life.

  He changes, climbs into bed, and falls asleep.

Chapter Text

  It’s the blaring of his alarm that wakes him up the next morning, and he’s slow to wake and sit up in his bed. He blinks blearily, swiping at the clock a few times before he finally gets it to stop. He slips out from under the covers, feet pressing against the floor. It’s another moment or two before he finally stands, making his way to the bedroom door. He catches a glimpse of himself in his mirror, stopping in his tracks and now wide awake. He stares at himself, blinking as he suddenly remembers the other day, and all the years before. Taking a step closer to his reflection, he takes it all in.

  He stares at the palms of his hands, flexing his fingers a bit. He pinches his side, and yelps in both pain and surprise.

  Okay, so maybe this wasn’t a dream like he had thought yesterday. Was he really just—— a kid again? But he remembered everything.

  He wasn’t sure what to do about this.

  He suddenly remembers Minato telling them about a mission, spinning to look at the clock. He still had four hours, but he knew from experience that it wasn’t going to be enough. He sighs, gets dressed, and heads out the door, not bothering with breakfast.

  He can go without eating for a few days, luckily.

  He’s not even out of the Compound before he hears someone call his name, looking over to see an elder waving him over. He hesitates for a moment, wanting to walk away, but——

  He can’t. He knows he can’t. Not only because it would be suspicious and he needs to blend in, but because the thought causes a twisting in his gut.

  He makes his way over to her, smiling sheepishly.

  “Emi-san, I—-“

  “Oh, I’m so happy to see you, Obito-kun!” There’s a soft smile on her face, and he sighs in defeat. Emi had been friends with his grandmother, and had always been so nice to him. “Could you help me carry these bags home—- it’s not far from here.”

  “Yeah, I remember where it is, Emi-san.” He doesn’t protest as he takes her bags, and she starts talking about anything and everything—- her grandchildren, the weather, the village, what she’s making for dinner tonight. Obito only half listens as they walk, giving a nod every now and then when it seems appropriate. He knows she can go on for hours if he lets her, and is honestly the main reason why he’s usually late. Her kids and grandkids were all grown up, and while they tried to help when they could, they had business and families of their own. Because of that, she tended to lean on Obito for help, as he was the most consistent at assisting her.

  They get to her house, and she lets him inside to place the groceries down, and she’s still talking. He knows it’s because she’s lonely— because she wants someone to talk to, even if she had to settle for him— but it was always the worst timing.

  Even still, he couldn’t tell her to stop talking.

  And so, he listens to her prattle on for another thirty minutes or so, helping put things up as he does so. Finally, he turns to her.

  “Emi-san, I have a mission today——“

  “Oh!! I’m so sorry, Obito-kun….” She does look really sorry, and he feels kind of bad. “Before you go, though—“ He can’t help the almost inaudible sigh that slips out as she toddles over to a jar on her counter, taking out three little wrapped hard candies, walking back over to the boy. She takes one of his hands in her own, pressing the candy into his palm with a wink. “Don’t eat it all at once, now, okay, Obito-kun?”

  He feels a kind of warmth in his chest, one he hadn’t felt in some time, remembering that he once more has at least a bit of a heart. It was almost strange. He had gotten so good at repressing any kind of feelings, that he almost wasn’t sure what to do with it. He can’t help a small smile as he thanks her, putting the candy into his pocket as he says his farewells and leaves, making sure to close the door behind him.

  As strange as it was to feel that warmth again, it feels familiar. Not quite so distant as he remembers. He wonders if there was some crossing of wires between his child self and his current self. Some mish mash when he was suddenly forced back into this body of his.

  He’s not sure, and he knows he can’t dwell on it for long. There was so much to think about, rolling around in his head, and it was hard to know where to start and where to end as they tumbled around, unfurling and reforming.

  He shakes it off, and starts once more to the village gates.

Chapter Text

  Obito finally makes it to the village gates. After helping some kids, and a cat in a tree, and a shopkeeper who was having troubles, and—--

  He couldn’t say no to any of them.

  It was strange. Just a few days ago, (to him, not….child…..him—- this was getting confusing, but he pushes past that), he wouldn’t have cared at all. He would’ve ignored them, continued on his way. After all, they only held him back from where he needed to be. A waste of his time. But here and now—- it was almost as if some part of his childish self had embedded itself within him. He would see someone who needed help, and those old feelings of wanting to assist would bubble up within him, no matter how much he tried to fight it.

  Or maybe it had never left him, and he was just now more receptive to it once more. He had once more embraced the light that he had tried so hard to smother and kill, and now, thoughts and feelings that he had buried long ago were resurfacing once more.

  And maybe being face to face with those people once more affected him as well. He couldn’t remove himself as easily anymore. They were there, in front of him, and he couldn’t find himself able to turn away.

  He supposes it doesn’t matter too much at the moment—- it made him look more normal anyways.

  And so, and Kakashi starts getting on to him for being late– again– Obito only huffs and glares at him, scowling.

  “I had to help an old lady with her bags! Are you saying I should’ve just walked away? How rude.”

  Kakashi rolls his eyes, and Obito can tell he’s returning the scowl underneath his mask.

  “You should know that we were waiting on you. Per usual.”

  “And you should know to respect your elders.”

  “Okay, okay—” Minato waves them both off in a signal to stop arguing, though they all know that’s not going to last very long. “Now that Obito’s here, we should get going. We’re burning daylight.”

  They set out, Minato giving a rundown of the mission details– where they’re going, (Land of Bears), what they’re doing, (running off some bandits who have been insistently harassing villagers there)-- though Obito only half listens, deep in thought. He doesn’t remember this mission, though they had gone on quite a few of them before the Kanabi Bridge mission. It didn’t help that if Obito’s estimate of his age was correct, he and Rin had just graduated Academy not too long ago. Which meant they were going to be getting a lot of D-rank missions, with a few C-ranks, thanks to Kakashi already being a Chunin.

  After so many, they admittedly all start to blur together.

  “Obito….?” The concern in Rin’s voice catches his attention, and he looks over to her, his eyebrows drawn together, in a question. “Are you okay….? You’ve been very quiet….” The tips of her fingers press together. “I know you hit your head pretty hard yesterday, so I just wanted to make sure—”

  “If he’s still recovering from that, then maybe he isn’t built for this.” Obito gives a huff, but that’s all the acknowledgement he gives Kakashi, not caring enough, nor having the energy to care about being bothered by him right now.

  “I’m fine, Rin, really. I guess I’m just– um— worried about how angry the sky looks right now.”

  Not a complete lie. The clouds had started turning quite a dark gray as they had been walking, and it looked like it was going to storm. Hard. Rin casts her gaze up to the sky, giving a nod in agreement.

  “Sensei…?”

  “Don’t worry, you two.” Minato’s voice is kind, as it tended to be when he was assuaging their fears. “It’ll storm, but we should be at least close to the next village by the time it starts, and he can stop there and hunker down for the night and ride it out.”

  Both Obito and Rin nod, Rin looking visibly relieved.

  “That’s good.” She looks back to Obito once more. “See? There’s nothing to worry about, Obito.” He doesn’t say anything as he nods, and he can see that it doesn’t satiate her worry, and he realizes he’s acting too out of character.

  He needs to channel his Tobi persona again. After all, he had based off his younger self.

  “I think I’ll just be glad when we find something good to eat.” He flashes her a wide grin, and her shoulders relax a bit, as she gives a soft giggle.

  “Are you hungry already?”

  “Hunger doesn’t have anything to do with wanting to eat good food.” He hears a chuckle from Minato.

  “You’re starting to sound like Chouza, Obito.”

  “Well, then, maybe we could learn something from them.” More laughter from Rin and Minato, and he knows that he’s succeeded in placating them.

  He needed to be more careful, or else they were gonna get too suspicious. At least, until he figured out what they hell it was that he was even going to do.

  They make it to the nearest inn, and sure enough, they only barely beat the storm, already starting to come down when they reach the village. If Obito had to guess, it was probably going to go well into the next day. They’re in the lobby of the hotel as Minato gets them rooms, Obito staring out the window at the rain pattering against the glass. He sees Rin walk up beside him out of his peripheral, and he looks over to her, pointing outside.

  “It’s raining cats and dogs out there.” She nods in agreement, watching it as well for a couple moments before speaking up.

  “Are you really okay Obito? Something seems….off.”

  “I think it’s just the weather, Rin, really.” He smiles softly, hands raising in a surrender kind of look. “I’m fine, I promise. I’ve just been thinking about a lot of things, is all.”

  “Like what?”

  He shakes his head.

  “It’s nothing to worry about. Training mostly. Figuring out how to finally beat Kakashi’s ass.” She chuckles.

  “Good luck with that.” Obito huffs as he turns to look at Kakashi, opening his mouth to say something, but he catches Rin’s face out of the corner of his eye.

  Her eyes were bright, sparkling almost, just as they tended to be around him. A soft smile on her lips, a dust of blush on her cheeks—-- she loved him. She really loved him. Or at least admired him greatly. He knows now he never had a chance with her.

  But he wonders if they would’ve been happy, if given the chance. If the whole fiasco with the Sanbi had never happened, and they had had time, could they have been something? Friends? Lovers? Safe and happy—-- all three of them. Rin, Kakashi, Minato. Kushina as well. If Obito hadn’t—--

  He knows what he has to do. He has to give them that chance. He’s not sure how, but it means he has to stay out of Madara’s clutches. And looking at the three of them, knowing that it might mean that he has to die—---

  He would do it.

  If it meant they were happy and safe, he would do it.

  Obito Uchiha would truly die.

Chapter Text

  They easily make it to the Land of Bears, and the destination of their mission. They do a scouting of the area, not finding anything really noteworthy. They’ve gathered some information from people in the village, when Minato puts out his idea.

  “I think it would be best to tackle this in two groups. One to search out their hideout, and one to keep an eye on the village.” Kakashi and Rin give a nod, though Obito feels he knows how this is going to go. “Rin and I will stay behind here— Kakashi and Obito, it seems to the west will be the most likely to look.”

  “Why am I with him?” Obito sticks a finger towards the other boy, and Minato gives a sigh, no doubt having seen this coming.

  “Because, Obito, you and Kakashi– when you decide to work together– balance each other out well.” Obito would normally argue, but he understands what he’s saying. It was less physically, and more how Kakashi was mentally driven– mission first, level-headed, thinking things through– and Obito was more emotionally driven– impulsive, driven to help and protect.

  And they did work together well—--- right before Obito was crushed to almost death by a boulder. Obito wonders though if he could try making some kind of difference earlier than that. He would be nicer, at least, and he and Rin would hopefully grow closer, and then maybe things wouldn’t quite go to complete and utter shit.

  He wasn’t sure how it would work, or even if it would, but he would try it. If it meant protecting them, then he would try.

  He knew there was another reason as to why Minato paired himself with Rin. Even now, she had already started her training to be a medic, and it was always important to protect the medic. Sometimes just as important as the mission itself. Because of that, it was usually better to keep them on the sidelines, or as backup. Not that Obito didn’t think Rin wasn’t a great fighter– she was, a good mix of himself and Kakashi actually– but it wouldn’t be in the best interest of either her or the rest of the team. And with Minato being the most experienced of them, he was the best suited to keep both her and the rest of the village safe.

  And even though the village wasn’t very big, Minato would be the fastest at getting anywhere within it, in case it was attacked. If Obito’s memory served right— and he honestly wasn’t completely sure— Minato was still figuring out the Hiraishin at this point, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t quick as a bolt if needed.

  Obito gives a sigh, shooting Kakashi a look, who only glanced at him and gave a shrug. Obito rolls his eyes.

  “Fine. But I’m in char—--”

  “No.” Kakashi immediately shoots the declaration down, and Obito huffs at him, though doesn’t argue. He doesn’t care too much, really, but he feels there’s a song and dance he has to keep up.

  His mind was racing, though, trying to figure out a plan.

  The boys set off, heading westward, keeping to the ground. The rain from the night before has finally ended, leaving the ground soaked through and muddy. It keeps their footsteps quiet, though, able to hide their presence better.

  “Everything’s so wet…..” It’s more to himself than to Kakashi. He remembers his travels to Ame, and it felt a bit like that, the way the gray clouds still tightly clung to the sky above, as if warning them that the storm wasn’t quite completely over.

  Suddenly, the rustle of leaves catches their attention, and Obito feels a hand grab onto the back of his jacket, pulling at him—- out of the way of a barrage of kunai. It admittedly takes him a moment to get his foot again, partially because he had been caught off-guard. Obito shoots Kakashi a glare, though the other boy isn’t paying attention to him.

  Though he’s still gripping his jacket.

  “Will you let go of me?” He doesn’t mean for his voice to quite come out as so much of a hiss, but it does. Kakashi blinks at him, as if he didn’t realize he still was, fingers uncurling from the fabric. His shoulders hitch up a bit, eyes darting away and downwards, and Obito realizes he looks uncomfortable.

  They can’t dwell on it for long, though, both of them realizing someone quickly coming up from behind them, and they dart away. It separates the two of them, and Obito realizes that’s probably the goal, though it’s a challenge to get back over to him, three men standing in between them.

  A trap? No. It doesn’t seem like it. More like just good timing.

  “Three against two? And we’re kids, too? Don’t you think that’s a little unfair?” Obito places his hands on his hips, and he hears what is most likely a sigh from Kakashi. It angers at least one of the bandits, though, turning to Obito with a glare. Good. Get angry. Lose your composure. Make this easier.

  It doesn’t last very long, though, or work very well, and it’s a clash of weapons and jutsu, and Obito realizes he’s being pushed back. Or, more specifically, to somewhere, and it fully registers when he feels his foot catch and slip. He quickly catches himself, taking a couple steps away from the edge of a small cliff, and he throws a glance over his shoulder. It wasn’t a steep drop, but it was a bit of a height. Not enough to kill him, but probably injure him pretty good, since if he slipped, it would probably trigger a landslide– what with how muddy the ground was.

  The thought causes a strange squeezing of his chest, and he almost feels like he’s about to throw up.

  He quickly looks away.

  He can’t really push himself forwards and away, though. He really misses having access to Kamui right now. He’s also lost sight of Kakashi, though it’s not for much longer, as the foliage behind the bandit trapping him burst open to Kakashi, only just barely keeping back his own opponent. Obito quickly notices that means they’re missing a person, and wonders if he had used the distraction to go to the village, not knowing that the two boys weren’t here alone.

  They would learn their mistake quickly enough, no doubt.

  “Nice of you to join me, Bakashi.”

  “Shut up, Obito!” He’s annoyed, and Obito can’t help but find it kind of funny. It was nice to see Kakashi be the flustered one for once.

  Obito takes a deep breath, pushing forward, kunai in hand—- and then gets knocked back as Kakashi is suddenly slammed into him, almost sending the both of them over the edge. Obito feels his hands shaking as they stop just before falling, and he grips what he can of the ground, pushing Kakashi off him.

  “Jeez, great job there!”

  “I said shut up!” His voice drops to a whispering hiss. “He uses Fuuton.”

  Oh. That’s right, Kakashi’s chakra nature was primarily Raiton— weak against Fuuton. And since he didn’t have the Sharingan, he didn’t really have a good way to combat it. That was Obito’s nature— Katon. At this age, Kakashi’s Nature Transformation wasn’t probably quite good enough to use something quite so different to his natural chakra. Not yet anyways. Obito knew that as he and Kakashi would work together over the years, he would learn a few Katon jutsu himself, and even more after acquiring the Sharingan.

  Obito tries to stand up, but he’s way to close to falling off that he very quickly stops.

  “Hey, Bakashi, move very carefully.”

  “Carefully….” He’s just as aware as Obito is, and knows if he moves wrong, he’s going to push Obito off.

  It quickly doesn't matter, though, as Obito feels the ground giving out from under him, and though he tries to catch himself, it just causes him to grab onto Kakashi, and they both fall. He fills his stomach flip, his chest squeeze so tight he can’t breathe—- hecan’tbreathehecan’tbreathehecan’tbreathe—- and everything goes black.

Chapter Text

  Kakashi pushes himself up off the ground, groaning. That was a hell of a fall, knowing Obito hadn’t meant to drag him down with him, but it had happened, and now——

  Kakashi realizes Obito is….somewhere. He half expected to find him beside him, but he wasn’t. He sits on his feet, immediately spotting the other boy in front of him, but he wasn’t looking at him.

  He wasn’t looking at anything.

  He had his back pressed against a tree, eyes wide and wild, practically hyperventilating. His hand is clutching his shirt, and Kakashi notices blood on his pants leg, realizing he must be hurt. He must be really out of it to have gotten over there with his leg injured like that.

  Kakashi stands, making his way over to him, but not too close. He doesn’t want to risk startling him in this state. And what a state it was. He holds his hands out a bit, as if he was afraid he’d—- what? Bolt? He doesn’t know, and he'd be surprised if he got very far, honestly, though adrenaline could be a hell of a thing.

  “Obito….?” He gets no response—- not that he really expected one. It reminds him of———-

  It reminds him of himself, after his father died. Kakashi had had troubles even passing his room, the image burned into his mind. He had since gotten better, but sometimes, the feeling would still seize him, squeezing him tight.

  A fear.

  He had seen Obito afraid— he was admittedly a bit of a baby—- but this was different. This wasn’t just jitters, like a genin on their first mission. This was fear.

  And Kakashi wonders where it’s coming from.

  He realizes there’s a lot he doesn’t know about the Uchiha. Not that that wasn’t on purpose, but it made him unsure of what to do in this kind of situation. He didn’t know what was causing this fear, and so, he didn’t know how to snap him out of it. He brings his hands down, in front of Obito’s face, though not too close, and claps.

———

  Obito starts, a sudden, sharp noise making him jump, and he blinks rapidly. It takes a moment to remember where he was, and what happened, but he realizes he’s shaking. He forces himself to take several deep breaths, to stop up on quivering legs, hands clenched so tightly that his nails are digging into his palms.

  “Are you done?”

  He shoots Kakashi a glare, about to snap at him, but something about the look in his eyes causes him to pause. Something in the almost unnoticeable draw of his eyebrows.

  Was he worried?

  He decides not to say anything, moving his gaze to the palms of his hands as he tries to get himself to calm down. He gets his breathing mostly under control, and he’s not shaking as much. Still trembling hands dig into his pocket, pulling out one of the hard candies he had gotten from Emi when he had helped her. He can tell Kakashi wants to ask what he’s doing, but Obito doesn’t give him the chance as he unwraps and pops the candy into his mouth, biting down hard with a loud crack.

  He sees Kakashi tense in his peripheral.

  The pain helps though, and a couple more bites finishes it off. The sweetness causes him to realize he’s quite hungry, remembering he doesn’t have the Mokuton anymore. He has to eat like a normal person again.

  That probably explained why he had also been so tired the past couple nights, sleeping like a log.

  Kakashi probably caught on to what he had been doing, as he doesn’t make any comment. Obito’s finally calmed, casting a glance over to the landslide they had caused. He knew he had grown a touch claustrophobic, but he supposed it only made since that that wasn’t the only thing that would cause such a reaction in him— though he hadn’t expected it to be so intense. His claustrophobia had mostly been brought under control, now only causing him to be a bit uncomfortable, but he hadn’t had anything that would trigger something so close to the actual cave in itself, until now.

  “I’m done.” He’s glad his voice isn’t shaking like he thought it might. “Let’s go.”

  “You’re bleeding.” The comment is flat, and Obito stops walking to turn to Kakashi, about to tell him he was not—---

  When the searing pain in his leg suddenly hits him. He glances down to his shin, noticing the blood for the first time. Sitting down carefully, he’s gentle as he pulls up his pants leg. The gash is long– going from almost his knee to his ankle, at a slight ankle– but not deep, and he can’t tell if it’s still actively bleeding or not. He’s guessing a rock had caught on his leg when they had fallen.

  He didn’t have any bandages on him. He was so used to healing quickly that he hadn’t…..really thought of it.

  He hears a sigh from Kakashi, no doubt disappointed in him. He crouches down in front of Obito, pulling out a small roll he had himself, starting to wind it around his leg.

  “We can get it properly cleaned up later.”

  “I would’ve thought you’d just leave me.” Obito’s eyebrows are raised, and Kakashi gives a huff.

  “I still can.”

  “Then why don’t you? Be less annoying.”

  “Oh? So you admit you’re annoying?”

  “Never said I wasn’t.” Obito smirks, knowing he’s being a smartass, and Kakashi glares at him, tying off the bandage.

  “There, done.” He stands, slipping the roll back with the rest of his things. Obito stares at his leg, white already stained with red, before finally standing back up. It still hurt, but he could walk on it, at least.

  Or he could make himself walk on it.

  “Rin would’ve done better.” He’s pushing buttons.

  “She’s actually in training, and you’re lucky I did it at all.”

  “I thought you were Mr. Perfect.”

  “I never said that. I’m not.”

  “Could’ve fooled me with how everyone acts around you.” There’s a sigh, and Obito glances over to an annoyed and uncomfortable looking Kakashi, shoulders hunched a bit and gaze looking off to the side. Obito blinks. “You don’t like that.”

  “It doesn’t matter.”

  “Why don’t you say something?”

  “It doesn’t matter.” Obito doesn’t say anything more, but it opens his eyes a bit to things he probably would’ve never noticed as a child. And though he was physically young again, his mind was still that of a grown up, analyzing and sharp. He realized there were probably a lot of things he was seeing in a new light. “What is with you lately?”

  “Aw, are you worried, Bakashi?” He sees Kakashi’s fists clench tightly as his sides out of his peripheral. “I don’t even know what you mean.” He didn’t. Or, at least, tried to play dumb that he didn’t. He was trying to bring as little attention to him as possible– for once– so that hopefully no one noticed anything different about him.

  But of course Kakashi was sharper than that.

  “I’m just making sure you don’t start—-- whatever that was again!” It’s Obito’s turn to tense up, and he takes a deep breath in and slowly releases.

  “Look—---- that was—- it was whatever, okay? Just drop it. It doesn’t matter.” And if he tried explaining, anyone would think he was crazy. He thought he was crazy, honestly. “Why do you care? I thought you hated me.”

  “I never said that.” His voice is quieter, and Obito stops in his tracks, staring at the other boy, who is returning his gaze.

  “You sure act like it.” A moment passes between them, before Kakashi finally glances away again.

  “I don’t—---” Another moment or two. “I never—--” And again. Obito doesn’t think he’s ever heard Kakashi stumble over his words like this.

  “Then why are you such an ass?” Obito knew why. It was how he kept everyone at arm’s length, but it doesn’t seem as if Kakashi doesn’t have as much conviction in his ideals at this point.

  He supposes they're both still young. It was possible Kakashi was still processing things, and perhaps Obito could—- nudge him in a different direction.

  Either way, there’s the hunch of Kakashi’s shoulders, not looking at him. He was uncomfortable. Obito can see that plainly, now.

  “I’m not—--” His voice is a quiet mumble, and Obito raises his eyebrows as he waits for him to finish.

  And then it hits him.

  “Are you not—-- trying to be an ass?” Kakashi still is very pointedly not looking at him, and Obito can’t help the bark of laughter. “Could’ve fooled me! You act like you want nothing to do with anyone.”

  “I don’t.”

  “Want anything to do with anyone?” Kakashi sighs quietly, but doesn’t respond.

  Obito was well aware Kakashi didn’t want anything to do with him, at least. He had made that plenty clear when they were younger, telling Obito they weren’t friends—- that they hadn’t ever been friends. But then a possibility dawned on him. And Obito shifts to one foot—- his bad leg, ow, ow, ow—-- a smartass smirk on his lips.

  “You want people to leave you alone,” He shifts to his other foot, partially to punctuate what he was staying, partially because the pain was starting to get too much. “But have you been trying to help me? Have you been trying to give advice?”

  “Can’t have you dragging me down.”

  “Is that what it is, Kakashi?”

  The question is loaded, and they both know it. Silence stretches between them, and seconds feel like minutes, feel like hours. He can see gears turning in the way Kakashi’s eyes dart just a bit, and Obito wonders why he seemed to target him so specifically. Sure, he was a mess up as a child, but he didn’t think he was really that bad.

  Was he?

  “Yes.” Kakashi finally gives his answer, but Obito can hear something else buried underneath. He leaves it alone, though, shaking his head and turning away, the both of them returning to the village in silence.