Author's Note: I don't even know anymore. I mean, writing in the dead hours of night is a terrible idea.
Regards,
— Duesal Bladesinger
Never Underestimate Naruto
Chapter 7
"Obito, you . . ."
The man interrupted Kakashi with a snarl. "You killed Rin!"
Kakashi did nothing to hide his naked shock, his eyes widening and his mouth falling open. The battle was now at a standstill, completely frozen with the revelation of the man in the mask.
Uchiha Obito.
The man laughed, his scars rippling across his features. "What? Nothing to say now? You're not going to—"
BEEP.
Kakashi frowned. Obito's mouth was moving, his lips twisted in utter fury, but no sound was coming out.
"Obito, I can't hea—"
BEEP.
Kakashi's world shook as the sound got louder and louder, and around him, Obito, Naruto, Gai, and Bee all looked like they were screaming at each other, but Kakashi couldn't hear any of them.
BEEP.
His eardrums felt like they were about to burst, and—
BEEP.
His mind was turning to mush.
BEE—
Kakashi's fist crushed the alarm clock on his dressing table. He stared at the broken husk of the machine, watching as it sputtered with sparks before finally dying.
He sighed. That was the fifth one this week. He collapsed back onto his bed, drenched in a cold sweat.
Why was he dreaming about something so ridiculous? After all, Obito was just a moron who made it a point to be late to everything. There was no way he could—
His thought's trailed off as his head rushed to meet the pillow in a glorious embrace. He was asleep in seconds.
"You're late again, moron."
Obito adjusted his orange goggles angrily, as if in preparation for an impending fight. "Shut up, you jerk! I had to help old man Yatsuko with his garbage! And then Mitsui-san's cat got stuck in a tree, so I—"
"A real shinobi would never be late. It's one of our rules. Those who break the rules are nothing but scum."
Obito turned red, and just as he was about to utter a scathing retort, Kakashi heard something else.
Those that break the rules are trash—
The voice sounded strangely familiar, seeming to come from nowhere, but it was interrupted by Minato-sensei's efforts in peacekeeping.
"Now, now, don't fight, boys. We have a long day ahead of us."
Kakashi shook off the disorientation of apparently having been the only one to have heard the disembodied voice and glared suspiciously at his smiling sensei.
Obito was far less cautious. "Whoo! Are we gonna go do something totally awesome?"
Half an hour later:
"This sucks! We're cleaning out latrines?!"
"Maybe we'd have gotten a better mission if you weren't so late."
Obito was just about to reply with an angry and heartfelt 'Screw you, asshole!' when the lovely Rin added in her own two cents. "As much as I hate to say it, Kakashi-kun is right, Obito. We'd get much better options for our missions if you arrived just a little earlier."
She couldn't help it. Even she was ticked off with having to clean thirty latrines in the outskirts of Konoha for the construction workers to use.
The Uchiha boy blushed a bright red and went silent. He didn't speak again for the rest of the mission, too shamed to so much as make a sound.
Kakashi stared at the memorial stone, his black eyes tracing over the smooth surface with held the names of Konoha's fallen.
Unnoticed be him, his hand began tugging at his headband in a reflexive motion until it had entirely covered his left eye.
'Why . . . am I here?'
His gaze found the name of the coward who had once been his father, the former hero who had chosen to abandon him and die after sabotaging a vital mission. That he saved his comrades did not matter. The mission always comes first.
Kakashi glared, hands raking through his hair, and his gaze found his father's name, one inscribed alongside thousands of thousands of shinobi who had died in service of Konoha.
Hatake Sakumo.
Kakashi sneered. 'You don't deserve to be on this stone,' he thought.
A splitting headache immediately ambushed him, eliciting a cry of pain.
Those who break the rules are trash—
Kakashi was rolling on the grass now, his hands clutching at his head. It was like someone was driving screws through his skill from the inside. And whacking them for good measure. Kakashi couldn't help it. He screamed.
He woke to white linen sheets and the scent of bleach.
Obito and Rin were asleep at the foot of his bed, but Minato-sensei was nowhere to be seen.
Kakashi stared with a strange sense of . . . longing. Was this what it was like to have a family?
He immediately quashed the sensation. It would bring weakness, he was sure.
His checking out of the hospital went relatively smoothly, even if Obito made himself a nuisance by calling Kakashi a wimp for passing out while not even doing anything hard.
Kakashi punched him.
Obito returned the favor, or at least tried.
Minato-sensei didn't return for another five minutes, as he had gone off to check in with his new wife, and poor Rin had no idea what to do.
When Minato returned, he found the results of a VERY one-sided battle.
He couldn't help but sigh.
Kakashi found himself at the memorial stone again, fingers tracing over the carved names like sacred words that had to be memorized. And oddly, they also traced over blank portions of the stone.
Kakashi felt an odd sense of apprehension.
He sighed. Why was he out here again? Did he really have nothing to do other than sit here and trace the names of dead men and women?
This was an ineffective, irresponsible way to waste his t—
—but those who abandon their friends are worse than trash.
Kakashi's eyes bulged, and he turned away to regurgitate his lunch. Unfortunately, it was in the koi pond. Strangely enough, the fish liked the additional meal.
The silver-haired teen watched as his reflection rippled with fish after fish, most simply seeking a bit of food, although there were a few curious ones that simply wanted to see this strange creature which had invaded their home.
He sat like that for several minutes.
When he looked up, a single eye glowed red.
