A/N: So, I'm so sorry it's been a loooooooong time since an update on this fic, but I hit a block after chapter 6 and couldn't figure out what scenarios to do for the young Team Minato to embark on. Eventually, I just figured I'd write the next section and leave the missing pieces up to you guys. Leave a comment in the review section with an idea for young Kakashi, Obito, Rin, and Minato to go on and I'll try my best to write it out.
Until then, this is the Obito dies section, so if you want to wait before reading it for me to get ideas for the missing parts, skip it. Otherwise, I just wanted to start writing about Kakashi's healing process more than his cold, rule-abiding self.
Hope you enjoy! Please comment with ideas!
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
"So this is the Third Shinobi War?" Naruto asked, as gently as he could seeing the pain on his sensei's face.
"Hai," Kakashi murmured.
"So much death," Sakura shuddered. "And no trustworthy alliances at all."
Sasuke grimaced as he relived all the death and destruction he'd caused in his lifetime. All that he'd seen. This drawn out war hit him hard in his heart and gut.
The travelers watched mesmerized as scenes of horrible battles flowed before them, so much blood and so much terror. Kakashi winced horribly as his first jounin mission turned up around them. The mission at Kanabi Bridge. Obito's death. He could only imagine how the next scene would go.
"Alright, Kakashi, you are the jounin captain! I must part for the Bridge now, you three will take the back way around to take out any possible threats to me. I have complete faith in your ability to complete this mission." Minato stated this boldly, careful to look each of his chuunin and the jounin in the eyes. He was worried as he bounded away from them. Of course he was, he would be a fool and a horrible sensei if he weren't. But even he would never have suspected the events that did happen.
He breathed a sigh of relief as he finished off the Stone nin at Kannabi Bridge and was about to relax his stance when he sensed his flicker technique kunai being thrown. Within milliseconds, he was with a mostly unconscious Kakashi and a terrified, tear-filled Rin.
"What happened?" He murmured as he quickly moved to take care of Kakashi. "Where's Obito?"
"H-h-he…" Rin started, but a wave of sobs overtook her and she was completely unable to continue. Minato laid Kakashi gently on the ground and hurried to enfold her in his arms.
"It's ok, Rin." His heart clenched painfully as she shook her head and he noticed that the blood from huge gash across Kakashi's left eye wasn't the only thing making the area look red. He continued rubbing Rin's back as he knelt to inspect the eye closer.
And then he couldn't breathe. That was a sharingan. In place of Kakashi's eye. A two tomei, newly awakened sharingan. Impossible. That meant… Obito.
Rin collapsed, sobbing nearly hysterically now as Minato shakily closed Kakashi's left eyelid over Obito's eye. He had to confirm it though, he couldn't leave any chance that Obito could still be saved. Minato waited a few minutes for Rin to gather herself again.
"Where is Obito?" He asked her, as softly and gently as he could. She lifted her hand and pointed toward the still collapsing cavern. He considered his abilities and his options briefly. "Is there any chance of getting him?"
"His….his whole right half was crushed." She managed to whisper. "We couldn't budge the rock crushing him." Minato grasped her hand and Kakashi's limp form before teleporting them back into safe Fire Country territory. Once they were safe, he settled Kakashi in his sleeping bag before returning his attention to Rin.
"Can you try telling me what happened?" He asked, giving her his canteen of water and inviting her to lean up against him. She took a gulp of water and nodded.
"We didn't sense the Stone nin until too late. Kakashi fought them, but they were too much for him alone and killing him wasn't their purpose. They got a hold of me. Put me into a genjutsu and waited for the team captain to come rescue me instead of proceeding to Kannabi Bridge." She stopped here to glance up at the stars for a bit of strength before continuing. "I was woken from the genjutsu to Kakashi and Obito coming to rescue me. Kakashi wouldn't have come on his own, something must have happened between him and Obito," she shook her head slightly, but went on. "They had gotten into a fight with the Stone nin before finding me and Kakashi's eye was all bandaged up. The Stone nin obviously weren't happy with them finding or waking me, so they caused the cave to fall in on itself. We ran, Kakashi got hit, Obito threw him out of the way of a much larger rock, which is the one that ended up crushing him," she stopped again. A much briefer pause this time as she seemed to just want to finish the story now. "The falling rocks stopped for a few minutes after that one. Obito knew he wouldn't make it, even as Kakashi tried with all his might to get the rock off. So, Obito gifted Kakashi his newly awakened sharingan to replace Kakashi's lost left eye. I guess Kakashi got the injury from protecting Obito and Kakashi promised he would use the eye to protect me. Which he did. I performed the procedure to transplant the sharingan and then Kakashi killed the Stone nin with his chidori. We escaped the cave just as it started collapsing again."
Minato didn't have any words, he just wrapped his arms around Rin again to hold her until she decided to walk it off a bit. She went to reflect on the stars as Minato turned his attention to Kakashi, who was now growing fitful in his sleep. He knelt gently on the ground and began to rub soothing circles on the boy's back. He glanced at Rin, who was still staring up at the sky, before turning back to Kakashi and placing a gentle kiss on the boy's raw cut.
"I'm proud, Kashi-kun, for you going back for Rin. That was the right thing to do." He whispered into silver hair. He let tears ghost down his cheeks, losing a young, hopeful, spirited ninja like Obito was a painful loss. As Minato thought about the situations he'd encountered and the option Kakashi must have been faced with, he realized one more thing. "It seems I was destined to lose one of you this mission." He murmured, more to himself than the sleeping 12 year-old.
He would have lost Rin if the boys hadn't gone after her, Obito if Rin was lost, and Kakashi's spirit and soul would be completely hopeless for reform. He'd always wanted Kakashi to somehow adopt Obito's energy and hope, but at what cost? He sighed lightly at his musings. They were ninja, comrades fell for the sake of the village or other comrades often enough. This was just Rin and Kakashi's first. Well, not exactly Kakashi's first, Minato amended in his mind.
Arriving back at Konoha was with broken hearts for all of Team Minato. The Battle at Kannabi Bridge was over, but there was one young name to add to the Memorial Stone. The three shinobi hadn't talked much as they'd traveled back to their village, Kakashi was taken immediately to the hospital, Minato walked Rin to her parents' home, and he went to address the Uchiha compound.
His first stop at the Uchiha compound was to speak privately with Obito's parents and then he needed to appeal to the entire clan about Obito's sharingan.
"WHAT happened?" exclaimed an outraged clan official.
"Obito gifted Kakashi his sharigan before his death. Kakashi had lost his left eye in another battle to save Obito's life, so he gave up his sharingan to Kakashi." Minato sighed, this was the last thing he wanted to be doing after such a stressful mission. All he wanted was Kushina's cooking, a hot bath, and a long sleep, but the sharingan issue needed to be addressed before Kakashi left the hospital.
"What exactly is the boy going to do with a sharingan?" another official questioned, a sarcastic woman.
"He will improve himself as a shinobi to better protect our village. He will use it to honor Obito's memory and way of life every day for the rest of his own." Minato said in his most calming, trust-inducing voice.
There was a crowd of voices talking as the clan officials, as well as Obito's family, took part in the discussion. Finally Uchiha Fugaku, the official head of the clan, spoke.
"This is Hatake Sakumo's genius son, correct?" He asked, looking Minato down straight in the eye.
"Hai, Hatake Kakashi." Minato confirmed.
"We will allow him a grace period of one month to either prove himself worthy or unsatisfactory to carry our trademark. If we deem him worthy, we will allow him to keep the eye and if he does not meet our satisfaction, we will request he have the eye removed. If he refuses, we will have a problem." Fugaku declared. The rest of the Uchihas considered this and nodded their consent.
Minato deflated, this was good news. What Kakashi needed was time and this agreement would allow for that as well as the guarantee of no direct judgment or bullying. The Uchihas would most definitely be watching, but, out of respect for Obito and his family, they would not outright force him to fail.
