Team Minato
Prologue
"Is it better yet?"
"Not yet, Obito," she patiently answered again, focusing intently on her task. As good a medic she may be, even she knew when some things were just out of her hands, but this was no time to be limiting herself within her boundaries; she knew that with a bit more time, she could probably succeed.
"You're starting to sound like an impatient brat, Obito," Kakashi sighed, taking care to not move restlessly even while uncomfortably leaning against a tree. He added not so quietly, "scratch that, you always sound like a brat."
"Well you sound like a know-it-all prissy boy," Obito retorted angrily, voice rising, and he took a step towards Kakashi, fist raised threateningly. "I'll knock out your other eye if you don't take that back!"
They all knew it was an empty threat, but it didn't stop Rin from reprimanding them.
"Stop it, you two!" Rin hissed, giving them both pointed looks. Obito grumbled intelligibly, crossing his arms indignantly over his chest as he glared at the tree tops, while Kakashi shrugged noncommittally and lazily stared at their surroundings.
They were still in enemy territory, unfortunately, but they found an area relatively obscured by the giant branches and thick foliage of leaves to act as a temporary base while Rin concentrated on healing his eye. She was undoubtedly relieved when she learned that her first-aid kit was put to good use, and even offered to prepare another one for Obito as well if they continued to be entrusted with these dangerous missions.
Needless to say, he agreed with an elated cheer and a sloppy grin on his face, completely disregarding the fact that silence was their lifeline to express his boundless joy at the chance to receive something from the love of his life.
His wandering eye stilled, looking through the bundle of leaves hiding them from enemies with palpable seriousness that Obito stopped to glance at his teammate. Rin was frowning at him worriedly, whispering quietly, yet the insistence for an answer was clear, "Kakashi? What's wrong?"
She repeated her question twice when he felt a need to intervene. "Hey, Kakashi," he growled, not having much of its usual bite in their precarious situation, but it was an effort nonetheless, "has the stick up your ass gone so far that it's even clogged your ears? Just gi-"
Then they felt it, he and Rin, and they understood while Kakashi was so deathly quiet. Enemies, a whole hoard of them, were headed their way.
"Crap," Obito breathed, crouching low and searching through the leaves. For now, they were alone, maybe for a minute or two, maybe for precious seconds, but the were right on the enemy's path, and a battle was inevitable.
He could hear Rin telling Kakashi to wait a while longer until his eye was completely healed, and him telling her that he was perfectly fine and that his eye could wait; so, blindly grabbing at a sliver of hope, he turned around, the widest grin on his face as he proclaimed to his stubborn captain, "You sit back and get your eye fixed, Kakashi. I want you to clearly see me pulverize anyone who thinks they can go against me."
It was somewhat satisfying to see his eye widen, the other one still drenched in the green glow from Rin's hands, and his grin became a little sharper. Rin, of course, sticking true to who she was, immediately retaliated with a sharp, "No!", but his confidence - for better or worse - didn't lose its edge.
Kakashi stared at him, completely blank, and asked Rin, "How long will it take for my eye to see?"
She bit her lip uncertainly, her brows drawing together in thought. "Maybe a minute? You'll be able to see but I'm certain it'll be blurry, and you can't risk straining your eye like that after an incomplete heal."
He nodded, accepting the information, and spoke as indifferent and bored as he always had to Obito before. "Did you hear that, Obito? One minute against about twenty experienced ninjas. You probably won't even be able to keep your cool and keep yourself from dying in that minute - "
"Hey!" Obito frowned, pointing a finger at the ever blank Kakashi. "I bet I can be-"
"- but I'll trust you."
He nearly lost his footing and stared with wide, disbelieving eyes at his rival, the one who was always a step ahead of him, the one that could care less about what nonsense he spewed, and the one who was always better. Rin was against it, not wanting to throw both of her friends into a battle that she wasn't sure they would make it out alive, and attempted to persuade them out of it. Obito couldn't believe it.
Kakashi was placing his trust in him.
His grin came back full force, and he straightened himself, adjusting the goggles resting on his head with a tug.
"Yeah?" determination hardened his features; one minute, that was all Kakashi needed. One minute to prove his worth and show him just what Uchiha Obito was made of. "You better hurry, Kakashi, or else I'll knock them all out before you can even get there."
"You won't even take down half," Kakashi scoffed behind him, but he knew, even when he jumped out and slashed an unsuspecting Iwa nin down with his kunai, that his teammate was smiling.
There was no time to waste.
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