Cross-posted from AO3.

Tags: Canon AU, Canon Divergence, Canon-typical violence, Exposition, Third Shinobi War, Post-Kannabi Bridge Mission, Friendship, Teamwork

A/N: All bets are off. This is Canon AU, not a repeat of canon. Team Minato will live, be friends, and have a happy ending (keyword: ending). Note: them/their are used as singular and gender-neutral in some cases.

EDIT 10/19/18: General flow/typos/mood. Added foreshadowing to one scene and deleted some extra info that gets covered next chapter. Storyline is the same. Thank you Of Monsters and Me, JCMorrison, and my beta reader CherryBerry12 for feedback!

Chapter 1: Broken Rules

The burn in his left eye woke him up. He took one measured breath, then another. How? He cracked open his right eye. A blue ceiling fell to blue walls and grey planks standing along the floorboard. The soft sheets felt jarring against the memory of hard ground, a dull pain throbbing in his knee.

He tried to sit up; his body reluctantly complied. A medic must have spared some chakra for him. Putting aside the fact that he was alive, the chakra exhaustion this time should've been severe. If not a week, he might've been bedridden for a month.

He brought his left hand to his face—bare—and slid it over the sharingan. He'd been stripped of his uniform and weapons, now wearing an airy patient gown, but Kakashi still felt the weight of her body pulling him down. He curled forward, right arm tingling where they'd scrubbed, but they could never wash it off. He could still smell her blood.

Minato flickered into the room, carrying a bundle of spare clothes and the younger jounin's weapon pouches. "Kakashi," he warmly greeted the boy before his mouth turned down. He wore the solemn veil of the Yellow Flash save his soft, blue eyes, knowing. "Kakashi," he addressed him again quietly.

Kakashi forced himself to straighten. He must've been imagining things. "Sensei," the word scratched against his throat. Was that why he was here?

Minato placed the items on the bed and glanced back to his student. Kakashi's gaze was fixed upon a weapon pouch—Rin's med kit was inside. Minato sighed. He would prefer to let Kakashi rest a little longer, but he couldn't let this continue; he didn't know when the younger shinobi might recover otherwise. "Kakashi, there's something I have to show you," he spoke casually, "Do you think you're well enough to leave?"

Kakashi blinked in surprise and looked to his teacher. Minato was fairly lenient, but he wasn't the type to encourage early discharge. If it were Rin—Kakashi dug his nails into his palm. He wouldn't be in this state if he didn't—Blood crawled from her mouth. The wound pulled at his skin. "Kakashi…" she choked out—

"Kakashi." The boy started. Minato had bent down to his eye level, watching him intently. He held his left wrist, the hand pulled away from his face. Kakashi looked at his sensei, and Minato slowly let go of his arm. He picked up a shirt from the pile of clothes and set it in Kakashi's hand. "Once you've changed, meet me in the hall."

The smell of copper and salt stung his nose. For a moment, Kakashi saw the battlefield, stone ground showered in seawater and forest looming over it. The next, he saw Minato had teleported them into a house. A marked three-pronged kunai hung from a rafter in front of their landing point, a yellow-orange mat stained with faint footprints of rust. One he could tell was Minato's, and the other—Kakashi set his foot by it—was around his size.

Kakashi lifted his head, sniffing the air again. It hummed with chakra, carrying the strong scent of the sea. "Where are we?" he asked, taking in the plain wooden interior. A lantern was tied above the room, lighting a simple dining table with chairs to their left. To their right was a door with a clock nailed up beside it. A weapons chest sat behind them next to a basic kitchen, and in front of them was a pair of heavy wooden sliding doors, flanked by dark hallways leading left and right.

"We're in a safehouse on the outskirts of Konoha." Minato stepped off the mat. "It was actually built as a safety measure for Kushina, but it turned out to be useful for other things."

Everyone in Konoha knew Kushina was the Nine-tails jinchuuriki. The Rampaging Fox was Iwa's living nightmare alongside the Yellow Flash. Kakashi didn't question any further as Minato led them towards the hall to the right. The chakra in the air grew denser and the saltwater smell grew stronger, but far from smothered, Kakashi felt strangely…comforted by the pressure, like a gentle squeeze to his shoulder. The comfort immediately vanished once Minato opened a door to the thick scent of blood—her blood.

Kakashi slipped past Minato, coming to a halt just beside the door. In the far corner, lying on a bed and wrapped in a shroud of green chakra, was Rin. Her chest rose and fell faintly with an even rhythm. A miniature tailed beast ball—what Kushina made a million times in her spars against Minato—filled the space of her missing heart, radiating an immense life energy.

"This is…" The fresh tang of her blood was clinging to his nose and sticking to the back of his throat. He could see the familiar plum marks on her cheeks, and he could feel her presence, dwarfed under the blanket of chakra and the presence of the tailed beast, but for once, Kakashi found himself struggling to trust his senses.

"Mm," Minato confirmed his suspicions from the doorway. "Kurama-san didn't tell us what ability the tailed beast is using, but her vitals are stable and Kurama-san assured us that she would be fine."

Kakashi ambled towards the bed, his feet shuffling to a stop beside it. He raised a hand to his forehead protector. Ignoring his exhaustion, he lifted it, revealing three tomoe spinning lazily. Rin's chakra flow was barely visible through the shroud. The chakra point at her heart blazed even brighter than the central node at her stomach, but otherwise, nothing was amiss—not anymore. "The seal didn't break?" he asked, still in disbelief.

Minato joined Kakashi by the bed, looking thoughtful. "Any seal on Rin would've been burned away by the tailed beast's chakra by now." The dark rotating sphere filled the room with a quiet whir. "I think the bijuudama is acting as an anchor for the tailed beast. If it decided to save her, we shouldn't have anything to worry about." Minato trusted Kushina and Kurama; they believed the tailed beast wouldn't rampage, but the council remained watchful and wary.

Kakashi's gaze drifted up to Rin's sleeping face, now clean of blood, but looking pale and drawn. He couldn't believe it. He dropped to his knees by her side, his bruised knee muted and distant. Her hand rested in front of him, a hand that would always reach out to him. He reached for it now, hesitating just outside the glowing chakra.

"It's alright," Minato said softly.

Kakashi carefully cradled her hand in his. The green chakra lapped over his fingers, saying Rin, Rin—Kakashi, it called, warm and bright. Kakashi, she called again, and he finally noticed the wetness on his cheeks.

"Rin…" He placed his other hand over hers and gently clasped it, head bowing down as the tears silently fell. Thank God. Rin was safe. She was alive. (Thank God.)

He'd felt the last quiver of her heart, felt her blood cooling on his skin, known without a doubt she had died. But here she was—breathing. Her hand was warm in his, and her chakra pulsed with irrefutable life. She was alive.

Thank God.

He didn't know how long it was until the tears stopped, until he set her hand down and lifted his head. The only evidence of his emotional breakdown was a series of damp spots on the covers with matching stains caught by his mask, but he paid them no mind. He pulled himself to his feet despite the slight numbness in his legs, viewing his sleeping friend and taking in this rare moment of peace. Thank God. It might be a while before she's fully healed, but she would heal, and for that, he didn't think he could be more thankful.

Kakashi slid his headband down like nothing had happened, turning to his sensei. Minato was smiling, relieved in his own way.

"There's still one more thing I have to show you," Minato began brightly, making his way towards the door. "But we can leave it for another day."

Kakashi followed behind, wondering whether he should feel more surprised at Minato's statement or his lack of exhaustion. "Sensei, if you're worried about how I'm feeling, that isn't necessary. I'm fine." It was true. Unlike some of his past assurances, this wasn't a lie. Chakra crackled beneath his skin as if it had always been—

He paused in his step outside the door. After a beat, he looked down at his hands. Don't tell me…

Minato paused too, closing the door to Rin's room when he noticed Kakashi hadn't. Instead, his student had his face in his hands, looking rather weary. "Something up, Kakashi?"

Rin… Why were his teammates always making him worry? Acting like a medic before she's fully recovered. Did she think using Three-tails chakra would excuse her recklessness? If this happened months ago, he'd be getting a headache about now, but as it were… Kakashi sighed, letting his arms drop. "I think Rin transferred some chakra to me." If it was Isobu, it had to be Rin's idea.

"Is that so?" Minato asked politely. As one of Konoha's best sensors, he sensed the entire exchange as Kakashi was transferred the tailed beast's chakra. But why did Kakashi say Rin had done it? It was probably safe to say the tailed beast wouldn't have elicited Kakashi's earlier reaction, nor did Minato think the beast was nice enough to treat anyone holding its host's hands. It seemed Rin's chakra interacted with Kakashi regardless of her condition. He wondered what it meant.

"Yes…" Kakashi dutifully answered. Of course Sensei noticed. He quickly moved on. "Anyway, Sensei, what was the last thing you wanted to show me?"

Minato returned his attention to the present. He studied his student's expression, deadpan but somehow expectant as he patiently waited for an answer. Even if Kakashi wasn't chakra exhausted anymore, he didn't think the younger ninja would want another meeting like that so soon. "This might shock you even more than Rin," he warned good-naturedly.

"It's alright, Minato-sensei." Kakashi appreciated his sensei's concern, but they were both jounin here. "I can handle myself. Besides"—the scent of salt and blood lingered—"if it's like meeting Rin again, then let's meet!"

Since he was determined, Minato relinquished his remaining doubts. "Alright!"

Minato led the way down the other hall. Saltwater gave way to notes of earth and wood, reminiscent of Konoha. Sensei didn't answer my question, Kakashi thought, but they already arrived at another door. Minato swung it open and looked back to Kakashi, waiting for him to enter first. Kakashi glanced up at him curiously before walking past and into the room.

Light filtered in through the curtained window and there was another person sleeping in bed. A pale, white arm rested on their stomach over the covers. Their long, dark hair was tucked underneath them, leaving their face in full view. Images of a boastful chuunin, now with scars dragged across the right.

Minato watched his student as he followed up behind him. Kakashi had paused, but unlike with Rin, his chakra wasn't wildly fluctuating.

Kakashi trod soundlessly to the bed. It'd been months since the cave-in. Months since he'd taken the goggles left at the memorial and stored them out of sight. Months since he accepted the weatherworn stone and red reflecting in the mirror as the closest he'd ever get to him. Kakashi's gaze wandered to the foot of the bed, moving up to settle on his scarred face.

Obito.

"You've come back."

No spirited retort was forthcoming. Obito answered with soft, even breaths.

Kakashi slid his gaze back to the pale right arm. What should've been crushed was whole and gave off a woody scent and the faintest trace of rot, void of chakra.

They left him under that rock.

Kakashi bit down the sudden surge of self-disgust. Rin wouldn't feel any better about it if she were standing here next to him. But the two already once talked about this—about Obito.

Medic-nin can't dwell on deaths and what-ifs, she'd told him—they focus on the people in front of them.

In front of them—Obito slept, oblivious to Kakashi's inner turmoil.

Kakashi quietly sighed and viewed the whorling scars. They looked more or less healed and weren't carved too deeply, but his right eye… "He's already been examined, right?" He turned to face Minato, not quite calm and collected, but close enough. "What's his condition?"

Minato inwardly beamed, a small smile slipping through. "Obito doesn't have any injuries or conditions requiring hospitalization. Except for some weakness on his right side, the medics said he's physically fine."

That was reassuring. Kakashi looked back towards Obito. They didn't need to talk here and risk waking him up. He headed out of the room and the two jounin relocated to the kitchen. "Then why is he asleep?" Kakashi continued, finding the tea and other supplies in the areas Kushina usually kept them. The clock already read noon. Although Obito had an extensive repertoire of excuses, oversleeping wasn't one of them.

Minato fetched a pot from a cabinet along with a few cans of curry. Not Kushina's cooking, but it would have to do. "He stayed up all night," he began, eyes downcast as he pulled the tabbed covers off. "He wouldn't sleep until earlier this morning, a few hours before I got you from the hospital."

Oh. Kakashi set the lid on a cast iron pot, rice prepped inside, and turned the stove on high. If Obito saw Rin's condition, Kakashi could imagine he wouldn't want to leave her side. Even if her vitals were stable, Rin didn't look…well, exactly. Not until Rin called to him (somehow, he didn't think Isobu did that at her behest), he hadn't been sure she would be okay.

He thought of the lap of chakra against his hand, of two sets of breaths at each part of the house, and a small warmth rose in his chest.

Lunch passed without conversation.

Once the table was cleared of all but their tea, Minato finally addressed the elephant in the room. "Kakashi, could you tell me what happened during your mission?"

Kakashi pulled his mask back in place. He sat with his thoughts for a moment before beginning his report. "As you're aware, Rin and I were sent to scout west of the Kumo front…"

("The attack came from ahead.")

"Suiton—!" A violent cyclone of water crashed into the branches. Kakashi and Rin landed without a scratch, kunai up, back to back. Anbu masks—eyes angled slits and etched with Kiri's four slanted lines—surrounded them, flecked amongst the trees and appearing from the undergrowth. Headband raised, Kakashi stashed his weapons and flew through the hand signs. Lightning chirped in the claw of his hand.

"There's no point in resisting," an Anbu said.

"Rin," Kakashi ignored them, "I'll open up a path. Run and report what we've found."

"Kakashi," Rin answered evenly, shifting to better survey the arrival of new enemies. "You know there's no way I can do that!" The words could only be misdirection—an old argument.

"Rin, they've got a sensor or a tracker," he continued, undeterred. She would've inferred that as well, but no harm in stressing it. "I'll hold them back, so get as far away as you can." He knew she would do as he asked. "I'll be right behind you."

Rin knit her brows. "Don't just say"—she palmed a smoke bomb—"whatever you want!" With a burst, a cloud of smoke enveloped them. Kakashi took the opening.

He darted to where they'd come from, to the puddles and wet earth of the suiton jutsu. "Chidori!" He ran the lightning over the waterlogged area; bolts of electricity danced towards the Anbu, scattering them. "Rin!"

She shot past him and into the branches. He followed, Anbu swarming behind them. He let chidori sputter out and shoved his hands into his packs, fanning out a set of shuriken. The sharingan's dual tomoe spun, targeting empty air, and with a flick, the metal stars whizzed to meet the Anbu. They pushed through, swords ringing when they blocked; thuds from dodges or hits.

Snap!

The forest groaned and shook. Rin set off another burst of smoke, swallowing the two Konoha-nin. The grey was quickly blown away by a giant log swinging into the group of Anbu. The ones in front dodged back as it bulldozed the branches. The rear shinobi advanced, leaping around the barreling log with ease.

Kakashi awaited them, hand whipping to a half ram seal.

"Kai!" The forest rumbled with a wave of explosions, a whole mass of treetops taken out. The Anbu who weren't quick enough fell to the forest floor, some more intact than others. Without missing a beat, another group replaced them.

His right hand chirped with lightning again. He dashed forward, leaning away from a slash as he ducked into their guard. With a jab, chidori stabbed through their heart. He pulled back, dodging a pair of blows from above, and bolted towards his next target.

"Ninpou—Kirigakure no Jutsu!"

Chakra-colored mist creeped through the branches. A few more Anbu fell to chidori before they retreated into the haze. The foreign chakra drifted over Kakashi and fogged the sharingan's vision. He drew in chidori, palming a kunai in each hand, and forced his breathing to steady.

The mist softly pressed from behind and he spun, narrowly dodging an upwards slash to his left. The sword grazed the cloth of his headband, slicing through and lifting it off; it fell to the forest below. He blocked the follow-up slash to his right and the two disengaged, springing to opposite ends of the branch. Kakashi sent a tagged kunai after them and immediately triggered it. Kai!

The explosion cleared some of the mist, revealing Anbu perched on the branches above him. Their own kunai came whistling down, carrying explosive tags.

They detonated on impact. The thunderous blast ripped off the branch, mist replaced with smoke and dust. The Anbu leapt down to inspect the damage, scanning through the mess of bodies and debris. They came across the fallen Konoha headband and a charred kawarimi log.

"Huff, huff…"

Kakashi sped over the branches, albeit at a severely reduced pace. His right arm felt incredibly heavy, the blood sticking and clotting on the armor plates. He shucked off the sleeve without a second thought. He couldn't afford to be hampered. The evidence of a battle, a mountain of logs and trees drenched and scratched by kunai, met him further along their escape route. It continued off the path. Where the fighting ended, Rin's trail began, dirt and mud in the branches leading back into enemy territory.

No wonder they hadn't pursued him, he thought bitterly. He followed the dotted line of her scent, assessing the situation. The Kiri front ran along the eastern coast of Hot Springs and Fire country while the Kumo front occupied northern Hot Springs and extended to the west, where he and Rin were. This far inland, the Anbu would've had to traverse the Kumo front, or infiltrate southern Lightning or northeast Fire to move around it. That would place Kiri in a prime position to attack Lightning or Fire unaware. They probably captured Rin for information on their mission and Konoha.

There was also the matter of the tracker or sensor. Attacking them from the front—from unscouted territory—required at least one. But according to current intel, no one in Kiri possessed a byakugan-like spying ability, and if it was a sensor—he and Rin trained with one of the most powerful ones. Unless they were careless, that'd put the sensor on or above Minato's level. Both were terrible prospects for them and Konoha.

In any case, it was safe to assume they were watching him now. With how established their numbers were, Kakashi wouldn't be surprised if the entire forest was under their surveillance. If so, they would know he and Rin were the only Konoha shinobi for miles. They were probably looking down on him, not bothering with false trails or ambushes. Though, he was arguably pursuing death, pursuing them at all. (His left eye was closed, nibbling at his chakra.) That was fine. He would never abandon Rin.

Kakashi halted on the next branch, having reached the end of the trail. He heard the rush of water and waves crashing against the rocks. He smelled the light scent of saltwater tossed in the air. His nose wrinkled. He also smelled… Kakashi looked down to see an Anbu standing in front of a bush, silent but for the unmistakable sound of relieving them self.

He dropped down from the branches, and with a twist, slammed a kick to the back of their head, knocking them out. He didn't question his luck. He turned them over, taking the mask and memorizing their features before flipping them over again. He slipped a kunai from his pouch and placed it against their throat. A quick slash, and they were permanently incapacitated.

He formed the ram seal. Henge. A puff of smoke enveloped him, dissipating to reveal the Anbu, matching chakra signature and all—or almost. He opened his left eye. Satisfied with his vision, he stood up, a few feet taller, and donned the mask, leaving the forest to search for her trail.

Kakashi caught her scent and followed it to a large camp next to the sea. It had the faintest scent of people, but otherwise the camp smelled no different from the air.

Forty… Fifty… he noted as he strolled into the lion's den, other Anbu milling about and murmuring. The shush of blades against whetstone whispered to him as he passed through the camp, distinct and clear through the ambient noise. A few heads turned, but otherwise, no one paid attention to him when he marched up to the center tent. Rin. With the back of his hand, he pushed aside the tent flap and entered without ceremony.

An Anbu looked up to a glint of red. Sharingan!

Silently, all three guards fell.

The partial henge dispelled, his energy plummeting with his dropped disguise. Kakashi staggered, tugging off the Anbu mask before covering his left eye, quietly puffing. He zeroed in on her unconscious form. Rin . He trudged towards where she lay and half-collapsed beside her, setting the mask on the ground. He didn't smell blood and her breathing was regular. He removed his hand. Her chakra flow was normal, except—the sharingan was almost blinded by the bonfire at her central chakra point. In stark contrast, a diamond of black chakra was fastened around her heart.

(Kakashi's eye narrowed further. Why hadn't he realized it then? He'd seen them before. "They disappeared the instant chidori pierced the Anbu's heart.")

His left eye closed. "Rin, it's me," he whispered, deftly untying her bindings. He felt a tremble in his arms, but it hadn't reached his fingers.

She peeked open her eyes, having never been asleep from the start. "Kakashi?" She swiftly rose, medic eyes evaluating him as she shifted to a crouch.

"I put the Anbu under a genjutsu. I don't know how long it'll hold them," he reported, then looked over his shoulder to the tent flaps. "There are well over fifty Anbu outside… It doesn't sound like they've noticed, but any sensors or trackers should know I'm here." His chakra signature and form reverted once the henge dispelled.

"Injuries?" she asked, to which he shook his head. But to be sure, she lifted a hand coated with green chakra, quickly scanning it over his body. He made no protest as she lifted his arms and scrutinized almost every surface. She heaved a sigh, relieved to find nothing, but she did notice his diminished chakra levels. The glow from her hand faded as she transferred some chakra to him. "How does that feel?"

Buried tension fled his muscles and his legs steadied underneath him. "Better," he breathed. His eyes curved up, tired but smiling. "Thank you, Rin."

She smiled back, and then it fell away with her gaze. "They sealed the Three-tails in me."

Kakashi's eye blinked wide with surprise.

"I talked to him. He's called Isobu," she explained, raising her eyes to meet Kakashi's again. "He said the seal was unstable. If he lent me his power, the seal would break and he would be released." And she would die, they both knew. Death was the fate of all jinchuuriki who lost their tailed beast. She glanced towards the motionless guards. "I also overheard the Anbu talking about plans to destroy Konoha."

"They want the Three-tails to rampage," Kakashi finished for her, eye at half-mast once more. "But Isobu doesn't sound like the belligerent type." It even sounded like he'd willingly become Rin's partner.

Rin clutched the fabric over her heart and Kakashi tensed. "There's something there, isn't there?" she asked, anticipating him. "I can feel it linked to my chakra network." And that was linked to the jinchuuriki seal. "It might be used to affect Isobu—to make us rampage." She flattened her hand on her chest, green chakra building on her palm, and then she froze, relaxing as the chakra receded. "It looks like I can't try to remove it on my own."

Unfortunately, Kakashi didn't know a method either. (Not one he would ever consider.)

He reviewed their situation. So Kiri was planning an attack on Konoha. He looked to the downed Anbu. Then why let him get this far? Was it arrogance? He and Rin were in the palm of their hands. If they couldn't escape or warn Konoha, knowing Kiri's plan wouldn't matter. He heard the monotony of the camp continue, still no change in their movements—at least, not on the surface. They must know he was here. Just what were they waiting for?

"We should have Minato-sensei and Kushina-neesan examine it and the Three-tails' seal," he judged. Only—Minato and Kushina were fighting on the Iwa front. Well, either way, they needed to get out of here first. "Now then…"

Kakashi and Rin darted out of the tent, her guards following suit. "Don't let them get away!" one of them shouted. A line of masks moved to block the Konoha-nin.

Rin flashed through a set of hand seals. "Suiton—Mizurappa!" A jet of water shot from her mouth, splitting the Anbu to both sides just as a set of tagged kunai arrived.

"Kai!" Kakashi shouted.

The blast winged around them, catching more than just the immediate enemies while forcing others to retreat. The two ran through the aftermath, more Anbu ready to receive them. "Suiton"—ropes of water formed from the remnants of Rin's jutsu—"Suiben!" The water lashed out like whips.

"Doton—Doryuuheki!" Kakashi slammed his hands on the ground. The water crashed against an earth wall that shot up in front of them, puddling.

Rin's scream yanked his hackles, but his body felt like a wet rag. He pushed against the earth wall to stand and turned around, falling against it, breathing hard. The Anbu behind them had caught up, one of them immobilizing Rin. He heard another land on the wall above him.

"You won't be getting out alive this time," one taunted.

Kakashi heard the whisper of swords unsheathing. Other blades silently raised at the words, reflecting the moonlight. The stabs were painful, but quick, pinning his body to the wall. The clone dispelled in a puff of smoke. Rin's clone soon followed. "Kage bunshin?" one asked.

"Her guards are all dead!" an Anbu at the rear announced, having bothered to check the tent.

The Anbu who apprehended "Rin" flashed a half ram seal.

A massive explosion went off near the camp's center. Kakashi and Rin felt the wind at their backs well across the camp's perimeter, henge dispelling. The wind delivered the scent of the camp, thinned even further, and muted tones of burnt flesh. Kakashi scowled, nose catching a fresh scent. "Four o'clock!"

"Suiryuudan no Jutsu!"

The two dodged left. A water dragon gouged the stone ground where they'd been, pushing them towards the sea.

"Kibakusui!" another called.

The two leapt forward before the ground erupted beneath them. Water sprayed upwards, twice the height of the forest, and showered over them. Another explosion of water went off ahead, Anbu leaping up from the sea and onto the rocks.

From behind, several attacks were called. The relentless wave of explosive ninjutsu littered the ground with smoking craters, driving them to the other Anbu's doorstep. Once again, they were completely surrounded.

Kakashi forced the lightning to his hand. Not yet. Not until Rin got to Minato and Kushina. He wouldn't let them take Rin.

Anbu rushed towards them and the sharingan tracked their movement. He charged his first target, Rin following in step. And then—

(He hadn't expected it, hadn't been watching her. The world went dark in a second.)

No one moved. All he heard were his breaths and her dying ones. His eyes uselessly burned, tears falling as the blood dripped from her ? She looked just as shocked as he felt.

"Kakashi…" she choked out, wanting to say more, but her eyes dimmed and her legs gave. Her body tipped back.

He gripped her shoulder, steadying them. He shut his eye, but it only made things worse. The rich tang of metal, her blood, blinded his senses. The wound pulled on his skin where she hung, lifeless. They separated. He didn't hear the sound of her body hitting the ground.

"Rin…" He collapsed hard on one knee.

The scab had been torn off his heart, and he bled. It bled into his sight. Anger came hot, a well-worn knife pointed at his own throat. He killed her. The sharingan resonated with pain and fury. It sucked away his chakra, insatiate. Drained, he fell forward, unconscious.

The two jounin sat in silent contemplation.

So that's how it was, Minato thought. As the Yellow Flash, Minato knew how fast a life could end. But they lived in the shinobi world; death was ever present. By fate or fortune, his students had a second chance to avoid a violent death.

Kakashi lightly clenched his fist. It didn't happen too long ago. The memories were fresh, and he had to remind himself that he'd held her hand; Rin was breathing; she would be fine. But that doesn't change the fact that you killed her, a part of him whispered. And the fact that he killed her didn't change that she was alive now, he thought back.

His fingers slowly uncurled. "Rin didn't do it." Rin wouldn't have received his attack of her own accord. Since Kannabi bridge, sacrificing comrades was never an option, even if the situation seemed desperate.

But that's what was strange—the situation wasn't hopeless.

If there really was nothing they could do, if Rin knew she would die one way or another, she would've used Isobu's powers. Rin, who constantly worked overtime at the hospital; Rin, who carved suiton ditches until the field was closed for repair; Rin, who took the scalpel to her best friend's eye, wouldn't resign herself to death. Most of all, Rin would be the last person to trample on her best friend's nindou, the only rule Obito ever followed—she wouldn't have left him to the enemy.

"Mm," Minato agreed without a second thought. He didn't think Rin would do something like that either. As far as possibilities, that left…

Minato pushed himself up from the table. "Kakashi, I'd like you to double-check something for me."

He led them back to Obito's room and Kakashi felt a cold pit of dread growing in his stomach. He quickened his pace to walk alongside Minato. "You said he had no injuries, so what's wrong with him?" he asked in a rush.

Minato remained unperturbed. He silently opened the door and let them in. He didn't say anything until they both stood next to the bed. "Could you tell me what the sharingan sees?"

Fully alert, Kakashi raised his forehead protector, three battle-scarred tomoe swirling in an orb of red. Obito's chakra flow looked healthy and strong, even along his right side. But past the subdued lines of a seal—what he recognized as Minato's work—the sharingan was drawn to threads of black chakra weaving through his body, spidering from his heart wrapped with a black diamond.

Kakashi stared. The pulse of blood in his ears filled the dead silence. A savage instinct almost usurped his mind. It was the first time he wanted to kill someone.

"It's the same," he said carefully. "Obito has the same thing Rin had on her heart." But he hadn't seen the spidering threads before. "The black chakra extends through his limbs, but aside from his heart, it doesn't look like any other organs are affected."

"I see." It was just as Minato had sensed upon his initial examination. When he'd first arrived in the safehouse with Rin and Obito, he almost hadn't noticed it next to the overwhelming aura of the tailed beast. It was at once obvious the moment Rin was brought away to be examined by the medics.

Kakashi continued to stare at the black diamond pressed into Obito's heart. The sharingan focused back on the faint chakra lines of Minato's seal, patterned for containment and suppression. If only, gnawed at the back of his mind. "It's a seal."

"Ah," Minato confirmed. After Kakashi's report, he was more or less sure of its use. "Kakashi, until Kushina can remove it, I think it's best not to visit Obito in the meantime. The stability of a seal depends on the medium, especially for seals applied to people. Seal tags, self-contained systems like this black chakra seal, can bypass this. But the containment seal will rely on Obito to generate stability."

"I understand." Kakashi knew basic sealing theory, and Obito… He must know what happened to Rin, that he'd broken his promise—and failed them both. Who knew if a scrap of goodwill existed between them now. But Kakashi had no excuses for him. He wouldn't make any either.

Kakashi watched Obito sleep. He'd slept soundly throughout their conversation. He probably hasn't moved since he fell asleep, Kakashi thought absently. His mind wandered to the day he helped Rin clear out Obito's apartment. Except for the gathering dust, the place was tidy. In his room, the bed was neatly made.

"Rin…"

His current thoughts burst like a soap bubble. Obito turned their way and Kakashi's heart was about to jump out of his chest.

"Rin…"

Obito continued to sleep quietly and Kakashi relaxed, inwardly heaving a sigh of relief.

"Sensei," Kakashi finally pulled down his headband, "there's something else I'd like to ask." There were at least fifty Anbu when he fell unconscious. Rin was incapacitated. Minato and Kushina should've been on the Iwa front. (Obito had the same seal Rin had. His right side was weak.) How did they get back to Konoha?

( Who saved them? )

The boy stood ankle-deep in the blood of the Kiri-nin. He wasn't breathless and the cells from his right side healed a throat raw from yelling. The white spiral masking his face unfurled into spikes, blood flicking off the tips as they straightened to a high collar. This wasn't supposed to happen.

The girl wasn't supposed to survive.

"Rin…" The boy moved towards her, the wood on his back cracking off a spiraling tree. He waded through the blood and gore, thick lines of it slowly dripping to the ground. Rin and Kakashi were right where they'd fallen, lying face up and still. The seafoam green chakra that first bubbled around her had turned into a flaming cloak. Obito knelt next to Rin and reached out with his right. The white one saw this as its last chance, but when it felt the danger, it was too late.

"Wait, Obito—!"

The chakra lapped at his hand and the white crackled and morphed into wood, quickly spreading up his arm. The sharingan activated instinctively and Obito hastily phased out of the borrowed body, clutching the stump of his right arm as he backpedaled. He watched as the growing tree immediately ripped through the black cloak and stood over what remained of the white spiral one.

"What happened!?" Obito cried out, shocked. "Guruguru!"

The white one didn't answer, submerged in the blood and covered by roots.

Obito looked on in horror. After everything Guruguru did to help him, he… Obito stepped towards the tree with a quiet splash. "Guruguru?"

Nothing.

Obito shut his eye tight. Guruguru might've been annoying, but without his help in the cave and the battle here, he didn't know what would've happened to Rin (or Kakashi). If the spiral one didn't work for some crazy missing-nin, maybe they would have been friends. Thank you. Obito opened his eye and looked back to his unconscious teammates.

Quiet splashes followed him as he made his way back to Rin. But when he began to pass Kakashi, his feet came to a stop on their own. It was habit, several odd years of errand-filled mornings, as much as it was an itch—why did he do it? He looked down to his side. Kakashi had a distinct white chakra, but his reserves were so sparse, it looked like wisps of smoke, the flow of it slow and weak. Obito looked to Rin's amorphous glow, brimming with life energy. He knew what she would say.

"Tch," Obito huffed before he knelt down. He placed his left hand over Kakashi's stomach. His chakra control was even worse with his left, but the central node should be able to handle it if he transferred too much. Obito watched as the wisps of chakra brightened to a white flame, and then ended the transfer. He gazed at the other's masked face, eye landing upon the scar guarding his left eye and…tear tracks.

Why did he do it? Obito stood up, quiet splashes filling the silence again. He could think about it later.

He finally knelt by Rin's side. The chakra cloak was burning away the blood around her. Even the blood from her mouth had disappeared. The only blood within the shroud circled the tailed beast ball nestled in the wound, bands of red flowing over a swirl of violet and white. Her blood glowed with the tailed beast's chakra, almost indistinguishable from the shroud, a slight strain for the sharingan to track as it circulated through her body.

He tentatively held his fingers to the fiery cloak. The green chakra lapped against them, imparting a warm feeling, but otherwise, nothing happened. He set a finger beneath her nose and felt gentle puffs of air hit his skin. He reached forward as he had earlier, checking for the pulse beneath her jaw. There was a steady thrum against his fingertips. He placed the back of his hand to the side of her neck. It wasn't too hot or too cold.

Obito removed his hand and sat on the pool's surface beside her. After a long while, he looked past the bloody trees, out into the open. His right arm had only grown back to the elbow. Someone was coming.

TMIT jutsu:
Exploding Water (Kibakusui): A powerful water-based explosion jutsu.

A/N: So, this is my first time writing something so long and serious. It was tough. I didn't realize how nonexistent Kakashi and Rin's relationship was in canon until I wrote this.

Obito checking the carotid pulse is canon. Hence, I was a bit…inspired. Next up—Reinforcements!