Perfect Timing

Summary: A highly utilitarian girl from our world gets thrust into the midst of the Third Shinobi World War. All she wants to do now is avoid changing the original story.

It's not as easy as it sounds. OC/Reincarnation.


Chapter 7: Vile Esteemed

The powers that be are not amused.


'

"Well well well," Reina mumbled. "We meet at last."

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that," The Hokage frowned, looking at her from behind folded hands.

"...Nevermind."

It'd been a few minutes since she'd been escorted to a large, wood-paneled room only to discover that the beloved Yellow Flash had lied to her.

Sort of. Without knowing.

It appeared she wasn't here to meet just the Hokage—but instead the entire Konoha Council itself.

This included Hiruzen, an old woman whose name Reina didn't remember, as well as an old man whose name Reina didn't remember.

And of course, Danzo.

His nose is much bigger in person, Reina thought.

It's really not the state she'd hoped to meet such important figures in, her shoulders slumped and face pale, bags darkening the space under her eyes. Even though chakra-based medical attention made for shorter recovery times, it'd only been a few days since her surgery. She was pretty excited to get a head start on sleeping it off.

"Kushina has informed me you're supposed to be resting," Hiruzen continued as if reading her mind, "I apologize for the inconvenience, and hope to make this quick."

"Oh, it's okay," Reina said, then wondered why she bothered lying. Maybe this could go quicker if she let them know just how tired she was.

Then again, probably not.

The four figures are silent for a moment before the old lady with the large hairpin—Reina should've known her name, actually, it had come up in their Academy lessons—cleared her throat.

"As you may have realized, we've called you here today to discuss your... Recent mishap."

Reina realized why the council was involved. Two five-year-olds had gotten past the building's defenses, past the Hokage's ANBU, and right to his very desk without a hitch. In a time of war, no less.

Her actions had pointed out a flaw in their security that couldn't be fixed, thanks to the nature of her ability. Hiruzen couldn't possibly keep that from the rest of the council.

And though Danzo'd definitely been one of her top three people she'd wanted to avoid finding out about her Tomeru, it was clear that was too much to ask for when he was one of the powers that be.

For now, at least.

"You see," hairpin lady continued, drawing off a tangent that Reina hadn't quite expected, "Your entry into the village was an unique one. Even during the war, most of our refugee children at least came from well-known villages nearby."

"Of course, we knew better than to suspect any threat from an infant," The old man with glasses continued. "But you understand our trepidation upon realizing that even after being raised within our walls, you might hold a penchant for disobeying the orders given to you by your own Hokage."

In her past life, Reina'd had professors who used big words to mask the harshness of their condescension when they didn't like a particular student. Never her, because she always kept her head down and got good grades, but sometimes her peers. It was strange, being on the receiving end of it for the first time.

She'd never been one to misbehave before.

"Were you not told by the Hokage to wait until your seal was placed to use your Tomeru?"

"Okay yes, I'm sorry, but-"

"And once you had disobeyed him, you were unable to deactivate it. So you and the Uchiha boy broke into his office."

Danzo's cold gaze rested on hers and she's forced to meet it as he takes his turn to speak.

"Well, yes," Reina said. "But you know, I do have a theory that it was due to an issue with the seal I wrote on myself, or maybe something to do with the hand seals I got from that book. Next time I'll-"

"If you don't know," Danzo interrupted, "What really caused it, there should be no next time until you do."

The other council members nodded in agreement.

"I mean, of course, I wasn't planning to use it again before I figured it out," Reina said, annoyed. Did Danzo interrupt everyone like this, or was it just her?

Danzo leaned back in his chair before giving Reina a level look. "Would you really want to risk the consequences? For an aspiring shinobi to lose the use of their body... That is most unfortunate."

Reina deflated a little at this.

"Yeah... It would be," Reina frowned. She'd been scratching her arm behind her back since she got out of the hospital. It hurt a bit, but she was relishing being able to feel again.

"And on top of that, just like we know almost nothing about your ability, we know very little of your clan as well, outside of that book our scientists decoded."

"...Yes," Reina said. Though that wasn't really her fault now, was it?

"I'd like you to remind you that despite the risk, our village took you in when you needed a home, rather than leave you out there to fend for yourself; even helped raise you. Hopefully in remembering this, you'll be more willing to cooperate with our decisions. Do you understand?"

Reina nodded shortly, not missing the quiet threat in his statement.

The Hokage took a more gentle tone at least.

"We need to decide how to move forward," Hiruzen continued, "Though many unique Kekkei Genkai have fallen under our purview in the past, when they become an issue of security, we've always dealt with them in a similar fashion. And until we understand yours more, I'm afraid we have to ensure such an event does not occur again."

Reina rubbed her eyes. "Okay. What's the way you deal with them then?" She had a feeling she already knew.

"Well," Hiruzen said, exchanging glances with the rest of the council. "We once discussed a temporary seal that would allow you to still access your powers, to a limited extent, but now... Perhaps it would be best if we went with something stronger." He paused. "More... Permanent. At least until we've been able to research your clan more. Shiho is working on that as we speak."

Ah, yes. Konoha often deferred to seals when it came to dealing with unruly powers, though those same seals seemed to always fail magnificently in the end. It'd been one of the reasons she'd demanded to write her own seal herself.

She knew enough to know the seal Hiruzen was suggesting would be different than the one originally agreed on, one that took far many more years to master; a seal so powerful, it would ensure she'd never be able to use the Tomeru again at all, to any extent, until it was removed.

"I... But I really could write the first seal myself, if given more time," Reina said. "I really won't use the Tomeru again until then, I swear."

Her seal lessons had been going well enough, but her progress hadn't been quick. It'd been harder than she'd thought to master an exact art like sealing a Kekkei Genkai with any speed. Surely the Hokage knew that.

But then the Hokage made a point she couldn't help but understand.

"You see, Reina, we are still at war. And while we do not want to question your loyalties to the village, I'm afraid it becomes a bigger matter when you hold a power we do not understand. If we let you go about without any protection, an enemy village might attempt to kidnap you and use your powers for their own. And God forbid, if your powers were to spiral out of control in an unforseen way one day, what could happen to the village then?" his voice is sympathetic, yet firm and Reina knows that to him, the logic is infallible. The good of the village outweighs the good of the one.

Sometimes, she hated agreeing with people.

"Alright, I get it," Reina said. "Let's just have Kushina seal it away for good, then."

In truth, the commitment didn't seem that daunting, since she was pretty sure this the solution wasn't as permanent as they thought.

It's like she said. Those seals had a tendency to fail. Besides, if she wanted to avoid changing canon, perhaps this was a way to prevent standing out too much for now.

There's a nod and a look of satisfaction on the faces of the older man and woman, though Danzo's expression remained unchanged.

"Thank you," The Hokage nodded solemnly. "I hope you understand that this is for the sake of your own safety, as well as the village's security."

Reina is relieved when she's finally dismissed by the old lady. Her name is on the tip of Reina's tongue; it went something like Home... Homeru? Homare? Ah, this was going to bother her all day.

Kushina is sent in to speak to them after her, most likely to discuss the new seal and her role as caretaker, so Reina waited for her outside the door. They have to leave together now, after all.

How strange is that, going home to live with the mother of the boy she's been hallucinating.

"Oh my god!" Reina yelped when Danzo suddenly materialized before her.

"I'm sorry for startling you," Danzo said. Reina glanced down at his arm (the Sharingan arm), before snapping her eyes back to his face. "I was just leaving to head to my office. They don't need me for this particular conversation.

Reina blinked. "Oh, okay." Her mind is reeling now that she's facing him alone. Could he have the Sharingan right now? Were the bandages just for show, or had he already started stealing eyes from Uchihas?

How many years was it until he stole Shisui's?

"You know, Reina, you have done very well for someone your age," Danzo mused, still not having made any move to leave, his dark shawl shifting as he bent his neck to meet her gaze. "From your files, it seems that you've been excelling at the Academy. Even set to graduate at the end of your first year. I'm sure your recovery period will not stymie that progress."

"Thanks," Reina said, though her heart was now racing.

This was a problematic oversight on her part.

Shisui was getting even better grades and graduating early as well, so she's assumed her own rapid advancements had been properly overshadowed. But if she didn't want people like Danzo noticing her, it would've been better to pretend to get average grades from the beginning and avoid any attention at all.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

"Konoha is lucky in that it has always been blessed with quite a few prodigies each generation," Danzo said. "But even for all your advantages, when you live this life of warring paths, you will often find yourself met with difficult choices."

Like hanging around a bunch of people that were going to die and not telling them so the storyline wouldn't change?

Yeah, Danzo had no idea.

"But you made a commendable one today, giving up your Tomeru. This tells me that you have something that defines effective shinobi," he almost smiled. "The ability to sacrifice the good for something greater. That is important to have, wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes," Reina said. She really hated agreeing with people sometimes.

"Hey, hey," Naruto appeared suddenly as Danzo walked away. "Who was that guy? He was playing mummy too! But it looks like he didn't finish his costume." Naruto said, crossing his arms. "You'd think an adult wouldn't leave the house half-dressed like that!"

"Yeah," Reina agreed, crossing her arms too. "What a loser."

'


'

A week had passed now, and Reina still hadn't seen Shisui since the Tomeru incident.

"This," Reina said as she glanced over a bag of sugar. "Was way too expensive."

Naruto grinned. "But you can't have a cake without sugar!"

"Good point," Reina said. Despite the strain wartime rationing was putting on her wallet, Reina had decided to spend the afternoon baking Shisui a birthday cake.

Well, it wasn't really her money she'd spent anyways, more like the pocket money Kushina had been giving her. Kushina had been the one to buy the ingredients as well, as Reina wasn't allowed to leave the house at all except for her hospital checkups and PT.

She was a little surprised the ever-friendly Shisui hadn't visited her before her surgery, but she hadn't expected him not to show up after either. She had to admit she was worried something had happened. It was... Very unlike him.

And because she's a sap, she decided to alleviate some of her boredom and bake him a birthday cake. It's also because there's literally nothing else to do, since she's still on bedrest, and Kushina's busy preparing her seal. Minato and his team had also left a few days after her surgery to take the Chunin exams.

Reina tried hard not to think about the implications of that.

Anyways, since she'd missed Shisui's sixth birthday while she was in the hospital, it seemed like a good excuse to show up at his door with a gift and then demand an explanation. Hopefully he even liked cake, as it was really the only thing she'd known how to bake in her past life.

"I want to stir!" Naruto shouted as Reina filled the bowls withe their ingredients, managing to get flour and sugar everywhere as she clumsily ripped open their bags. Stupid chubby little five-year-old hands.

Reina shrugged. "Alright," She said, throwing the spoon at his outstretched hands. It went right through him and out the open window behind him.

Nice.

"Oh," Reina said. "That's right. You're not real."

Naruto pouted. "You did that on purpose!"

"Wish I could say I did," Reina sighed. "But now what am I going to mix with?"

Naruto grew silent for a moment, deep in thought.

"That," A voice said moments later, "isn't really what kunai are meant for." Reina turned to see Rin, who was watching her mix batter with her weapon.

Ooh. She's sassier than Reina remembered.

"Wasn't my idea," Reina defended, though she can't exactly explain more past that. The culprit's image had disappeared as soon as she'd turned around to face Rin, for some reason Reina couldn't discern.

Rin laughed. "Oh, sure. It's creative, at least. Are you making something?"

"Yeah, a cake. I just wanted to get out of my room for a bit," Reina said. "Especially after Kushina... Redecorated."

As in, painted the walls pink and filled the bed with toys and seriously what would the house have turned into if Naruto was born a girl?

It was a nice gesture, though.

"Sorry for not coming to see you sooner," Rin said with a mournful smile. "I heard about the surgery. I'm really glad it went well. Obito and Kakashi were worried too when Minato told us. We wanted to visit but then they said you were fine and we had to leave for the exams right after..."

"Thanks," Reina said. "I appreciate you thinking of me though. I can't believe you were on a mission right before the exams, though. You'd think they'd give you more time to rest up in between."

She glanced down at Rin's outfit as she spoke. No chunin jacket in sight. They'd only been gone a week though, so maybe the test wasn't over yet.

Rin grinned sheepishly before answering her unspoken question. "We didn't pass this time," she said. "But I'm sure we will next time!"

"Oh," Reina said, trying not to sound too surprised. "Even Kakashi?" Kakashi, well, he was technically retaking the damn thing, already having gotten a field promotion to chunin at six. He couldn't get through the textbook version?

"No, he got through with flying colors," Rin chuckled. "Obito was livid."

"He would've passed if he'd just paid more attention during his fights," Kakashi and Obito entered the room, the Uchiha's face already red with anger at his statement.

"I was paying attention! It's not my fault Gai's so ridiculously strong."

"Gai?" Reina blinked. He had visited her even though he was supposed to be preparing for the exam?

That... Was sweet.

"He is pretty strong," Rin agreed. "It was kind of scary. I almost couldn't believe Kakashi was able to beat him!"

Obito's expression darkened as Rin said this, so Reina shoved the batter-covered kunai in his hands.

"You can lick the spoon," Reina said. "Or the... Kunai. I guess."

"Uh... No thanks?" Obito held the kunai away from him like a bomb.

Then a mischievous look crossed his face.

"Hey Reina," he grinned. "Maybe you should give it to Kakashi instead! Are you not avoiding him anymore?"

"What." Reina deadpanned, pouring batter into tins. "Why would I be?"

"Because of your crush! On Kakashi!" Obito said, waving his arms around, the batter on the kunai dripping all over the counter. "Don't tell me you already forgot?!"

She HAD.

Her face snapped up from her baking.

"What... No!" Reina exclaimed. "Oh come on, that was weeks ago, okay!"

"Weeks are all it takes?" Obito looked at Kakashi. "Aww, that's all the time she needed to get over you, Kakashi! Doesn't that worry you?'

"No." Kakashi said, and she knew he meant it.

"Wow, at this rate, you'll never find love," Obito commented.

Kakashi shrugged. "Love is just chemicals reacting in your brain so you'll have children."

Reina opened the oven door before gently placed her tins in the middle rack.

"But everything is chemicals, not just love. Happiness, hunger fatigue, grief, guilt; all of it." She said as stood up and set up a small timer on the kitchen counter. "Just because they're chemicals, doesn't mean you can ignore them. They're what make life, life."

Obito chuckled. "She got you there, Kakashi!"

"...How precocious." Was Kakashi's only reply.

He walked off, probably to sulk in a corner. Reina finally thought to ask them what their business was, being here in the first place.

"Are you guys here for Kushina?" Reina asked. "She's busy upstairs. She doesn't want anyone to disturb her."

"We know!" Rin smiled. "We were thinking you might want to come watch us train!"

"What, me?" Reina blinked.

"Yeah!" Obito nodded. "C'mon, it'll be fun! We're going to the grounds nearby. Minato said you've been on bedrest all week, right? You must feel super cooped up!"

It was true that Reina was literally almost vibrating with boredom. She was baking a cake, for god's sake.

"I... I don't know," Reina said. "Kushina said I'm not supposed to leave the house unless someone's with me to supervise..."

"Well, we're three someones!" Obito smiled. "How about if Rin runs up and asks Kushina permission really quick?"

"Uh, I guess that would work, if she says it's okay," Reina said. Rin beamed before bolting up the stairs.

"But what about my cakes?" Reina gestured to the oven.

Obito grabbed the timer from the counter and held it up to Reina's face. "You still have half an hour! We can just do a quick spar nearby, and when the timer's about to ring you can head back first!"

It took about five minutes to get to the closest training grounds at shinobi speed, so his logic wasn't... Too bad. For once.

"I guess that works. Wow," Reina said, taking the timer back with a frown, "it's kind of nice of you guys to do this. It isn't some prank, is it?"

Obito grinned. "Of course not, Reina! We just want to spar with our friend that's been cooped up, is all."

"Can you guys hurry it up?" Kakashi said from his corner. "Daylight's burning, and we only have the grounds booked for so long."

"Kushina said yes!" Rin shouted from the top of the stairs. "We have to get Reina back before sundown though, and no letting her spar."

"Of course," Obito said. "Who'd let an injured kid spar?"

"I'm not injured," Reina started to protest.

Or a kid.

Kakashi's eyes are rolling so hard they're threatening to spin back into his head.

"Can we go now?"

'


'

When they arrived at the training grounds, it was already occupied.

That was a common occurrence, and usually settled peacefully; booking time on training grounds was incredibly inefficient, as the only log existed on a small signpost right outside of the field. It was up to the honor system to determine who had booked what if there was an issue in overlap.

That was not the case today.

"We're not leaving! We were here first!"

Kasuga Nara. He was in her class, and always ranked pretty well in written scores despite claiming to never study. She could believe it too, considering he was a Nara.

She and Shisui had eaten lunch with him and Iruka a few times at the Academy before her accident. Reina didn't remember him from the first series, but he was kind of the worst.

"You guys aren't even using it!" Obito shouted. "And don't you have your own training grounds in the Nara district?"

"Don't you have your own in the Uchiha compound?" Kasuga shot back smugly. "Oh, that's right, they probably wouldn't let you in it."

Obito fumed. Rin winced. Reina coughed awkwardly.

"And we are using it. We're practicing our jutsu." Kasuga's older cousin, who was rather thick-jawed, argued back. He had on a forehead protector and a chunin vest, so Reina had to assume he was already at least that rank.

"We have the field booked for the hour," Kakashi stepped in. "It's on the log."

Kasuga crossed his arms. "I didn't see anything on the log. Besides, we're almost done anyways, just give us a few minutes!"

"Why don't we just split the field?" Rin suggested. "We did it before with Reina."

"That's not a bad idea," Reina agreed, though both Kakashi and Obito kept their peeved expressions.

"No way," Kasuga sneered. "We need the whole field! Maen promised to to help me get my Shadow Imitation Jutsu to reach as far as his before graduation."

"Are you serious? Rin's being nice!" Obito said. "We should just kick you guys out."

"Wait," Reina said. "Why not just spar against each other then?"

The group turned to her.

"You guys," Reina gestured at Obito's team, "Are here to spar." She turned to Kasuga. "And you guys are here to practice your jutsu." She shrugged. "Just fight each other, then. They're the Yellow Flash's students, I'm sure they're fast enough to put some distance between you guys, so who better to practice against?"

The two groups glanced at each other.

"That works," Kakashi said dryly. "Obito could use the training after his embarrassment at the exams."

"Hey!" Obito protested. "And I'm not fighting some kids!"

"Might as well, since you still act like a kid yourself."

"You bastard—"

"It does seem unfair," Rin frowned. "We do outnumber them, after all."

"What," Kasuga sneered, a sudden gleam in his eyes, "Don't tell me you guys are scared?"

Obito's eyes steeled. "Oh okay, now you're on!"

The two groups stood at other ends of the field, Reina watching from the far back near the trees.

"Okay," Maen said, "Standard sparring rules. Kasuga and I against you three." He gestured to his cousin, who made a noise of agreement. "Winner gets all of the other team down at once."

Everyone nodded, and then they began.

The Nara clan's Shadow Imitation jutsu was interesting; cool, even, if Reina did say so herself. Especially in person. It was like watching long black snakes cut through the field—you'd think the shadows would homogeneously blanket all the grass in their path, but instead they seemed to rise and fall with each blade, contorting perfectly to everything it touched.

"Kasuga!" Maen shouted at his cousin. "Stop losing focus!"

Kasuga's shadow flinched around the ground as it struggled to catch up to Kakashi's speed. It was obviously unmastered, and wasn't nearly as smooth as Maen's water-like flow. Obito yelped as Maen used it to quickly grab him by the foot, the other one still in the air in his attempt at a jump, and he was suddenly stuck.

That was when Kakashi showed up behind Maen, kunai in hand.

Kasuga threw his hands down in frustration.

"I'm not! He's just too fast," Kasuga snarled, before reforming his hand seals. "Fine, if I can't catch him, then I'll go for his teammates!" His shadow flickered out erratically, but managed to snag Rin, who'd been running to avoid one of Maen's kunai. She snapped ramrod still once the jutsu took hold of her.

"Hah, got her!" Kasuga cheered, before pulling up his hand to his weapons pouch. Rin's hand followed, slowly pulling out a single kunai.

She yelps as her arm is pulled back, aimed to throw.

"Hey!" Obito protested, from where Maen is holding his body hostage. "You're not going to make her throw that at me, are you?!"

"Who knows," Kasuga sneered. "It sure would make for a fun show, wouldn't it?"

"That's not fair!"

"No, Kasuga," Maen said exasperated. "We're just supposed to incapacitate them."

"But—Look out!" Kasuga shouted when a sudden flash of silver appears behind Maen.

Kakashi, kunai in hand, stabs at Maen. The older Nara barely dodged in time, falling to the floor with a grunt.

It's enough distraction for him to release his jutsu long enough for Obito to break free. As soon as he does, he ran over to Rin.

Kasuga released her as well before running over to help his brother, who is currently pinned to the floor by Kakashi. His other hand is crackling electricity, and Reina winced as the flashes momentarily blind her.

"Hey!" Obito said, offering a hand to help Rin up, "You okay?"

"I'm fine, Obito," Rin's eyes narrowed as he pulls her up, before glancing at the Nara boys with a new competitive edge in her voice. "Let's get them."

Obito grins, before turning around.

"Hey losers!" he shouts. "How's this for a fun show?" His shoulders are pushed back as he chokes down a heavy gulp of air, before expelling the biggest collection of fire Reina had ever seen in her life.

Kakashi stepped back just in time, but unfortunately, so do the Nara cousins.

And then the fire is headed straight for her.

She should really stop hanging around Uchihas, is all she can think.

Her eyes are squeezed shut as she braces for impact, the heat of the flames licking at her face.

And suddenly, a familiar feeling bubbled in her chest, fast and harsh, threatening to rush out her throat.

Then, like clockwork, her Tomeru was on.

'


'

She really should learn her lessons.

It hadn't even been two weeks since her last incident, and here she is again. Man, maybe she shouldn't have left the house at all until Kushina finished writing the seal.

A part of her wondered if she should just head back to the house and get Kushina. She'd probably suffer a great scolding, possibly be subject the redheaded woman's glowing eyes and floating hair for hours on end, but at least the older woman might know what to do.

Tick.

The sound is loud, considering there is nothing else to hear within the Tomeru, but it feels familiar to Reina.

Tick. Tick.

Her eyes shoot down to her pockets, before she's pulled out the kitchen timer she'd brought with her.

Interesting.

It is still ticking away, even in the frozen world. Maybe it's because Reina is touching it, or that it was on her when the Tomeru was activated.

Whatever it is, she's grateful, because now she can reset the time to zero and keep track of how long she's in this state for.

"Small blessings," she muttered to herself dryly, because she's still stuck, in the end. "Gotta figure out how to get out of this..."

Reina glances up and almost yells, forgetting that there is a giant fireball right in front of her, though frozen in time and colorless. It was kind of beautiful, in an ethereal way, but that didn't mean Reina was happy to stay standing in front of it.

She walks a few feet out of the way, to be safe, before pursing her lips. If she were to go get Kushina, the trip itself would take a few minutes, pushing the limits of what she can afford to lose before she risks suffering the adverse effects of her ability. Again.

Reina shuddered. The feeling of not feeling, well, she didn't want to go through that another time. Not if she didn't have to.

That's when she sees Kakashi, who'd been running relatively close towards where she was sitting before. Maybe he was about to push her out of the way from Obito's fireball. None of this had to happen then, if it weren't for her overreaction.

Irritated with herself, she glanced at the timer.

She'd only been here about half a minute, give or take. She can afford to bring him in.

"Hi," She said, Kakashi's eyes a wide obsidian as he glances around him. "Can you help me figure out some hand seals?"

'


'

A/N: Just cross-posted to Ao3 so decided to change my username to match (old one wasn't available). Sorry for any confusion!