Disclaimer: Again, I don't own anything or anybody except Tomoko, her family, and Nagareboshi Cafe. Any concepts/ideas mentioned in this fanfiction that seem to be borrowed from another media/piece of continuity - note that I don't mean to plagiarize anything or anybody in any way! This fanfic was made for entertainment purposes, not for pissing off others! So yeah!
The theme for this chapter is actually split between two songs.
First, the Acoustic Version of Time To Say Goodbye featured in the RWBY Volume 3 Soundtrack, once again done by Casey Lee Williams and her father, Jeff Williams. This song has been on my favorites list for a while, and considering the situation everyone is in, I found this fitting — especially since piano and stringed instruments sounding similar to violin and cello are featured in the piece! The song could also be seen as being sung and performed from Tomoko's point of view on the ninja world and her friends, because she's left waiting at home, hoping that they're okay.
The second is again from RWBY, being Wings from the Volume 1 Soundtrack. There is also a piano cover done by Jess A. on YouTube for this, so please go listen to that too! I found that this song serves as a good backdrop for the finale of this chapter, especially when considering the themes of Civilian Pianist as a whole.
Please enjoy!
Chapter 44: Not Time To Say Goodbye
The first time I started visiting the village gates was around a week after Team Minato had left.
It wasn't much of a visit if anything in the beginning. Mama just needed to buy groceries, and I took it upon myself to go get them. Coincidentally, the village gates were on the way to the market, so I found myself taking a few moments to glance at them.
The same large emerald doors, the silver arch around them, and the painted red Konoha symbol at the top of the opening.
Along with the bored Chunin sitting at the gate posts, thumbing through entrance records and what have you, there was nothing worthwhile to note.
And then I came the next day. And the day after that. By the time another week had passed, I had set up a routine for myself in checking the village entrance for any sign of my friends.
My Team Minato.
But with how Kannabi was in terms of war importance, my friends wouldn't be back for a while. I should've known this. But the disappointment running through my veins was obvious.
The worry and concern just couldn't stop flowing through my thoughts, no matter how much Hisako worked on taking them out. Whether it was the usual trash bag collection or even forming said thoughts into Heartless for her to whack with a Keyblade, she worked almost relentlessly while reaching over to mentally pat me on the head whenever she could.
You did what you could, dear. Trust in them. Trust in Kakashi.
I wanted to believe it.
So then why did my heart say otherwise?
Uchiha Obito wasn't sure on whether to curse his luck.
It should've run smoothly. At least, that's what Kakashi originally predicted.
Going west instead of the original east did turn out alright initially. There weren't as many traps, they had more time to set up camp when night fell, and by the time another week had passed, Kannabi Bridge was already coming up in the distance.
Being a simple stone bridge, it was easy to forget that it was their main target to destroy.
"…You see it too, Rin?" he had said.
The medic didn't even flinch, only turning towards him and away from the sight of the bridge with a sheepish smile. "I do. I-It's a whole lot bigger than the map block and how the mission made it out to be."
"It's a supply line for the enemy, of course it would be big." Kakashi added dryly, pushing some of the bush foliage back to glance around. "But be careful. I can smell a few Iwa nin around here. We're going to have to be quick."
"How much time do we have? Moments or minutes?" Rin questioned quietly, shuffling to get a better view from over Kakashi's shoulder.
"Probably moments, depending on how many enemies there are." Kakashi's nose twitched, and then a palpable frown showed through his mask. "I'm estimating about 20-30 shinobi."
Obito tried not to shiver. "So we'll dart in, blow it up, and head out as fast as we can, right?"
Kakashi glanced at him before nodding curtly. A pause followed as the three met eyes.
This was the moment.
Then, Kakashi sighed, concern easily showing through the poker face he was wearing. "…Will you two be okay?"
Obito wasn't expecting that question, and when glancing at his fellow Chunin, Rin wasn't either. It almost was like they were called out on something, and Obito tried not to fumble. "W-well, I think?" Even when keeping his voice to a whisper, the Uchiha couldn't stop his voice from cracking, and he gulped. "We've come this far from home, with everyone helping us up until this point. W-We just have to do it."
But judging by the glance Kakashi was sending in his direction, Obito knew that his fear was obvious.
I don't want to die today. I don't want anybody to die today.
"To be honest, Kakashi?" Rin interrupted with a quiet voice, and Obito found his attention drawn towards the medic. To his surprise, she looked almost as scared as he was, instead putting on a brave face to keep the clamminess of her cheeks away. If not for her tightly clenched fists, Obito would've sworn Rin looked more brave than he was doing right now. "I-I'm not sure. There's just…so much at stake here, and it's not just our lives anymore. But we're here, together, as Team Kakashi. We have to finish this mission if we want to come home and hopefully help end this war. We have to do this now."
Obito's heart was starting to calm.
Rin's scared too.
Kakashi sighed again, a longer and more tired sigh this time. "I can't say much to argue against that. Even if I'm nervous too." The new Jounin's voice shook at the last few words, and Obito could've froze.
When was the last time Kakashi sounded so vulnerable?
Then Kakashi extended his right hand towards the center, silver Wayfinder sparkling. "Alright then. Let's go, Team. Let's destroy this bridge and then scatter as fast as we can to get back home. Together."
Finally, Obito found himself smiling as he extended his own right hand, putting it on top of Kakashi's. Rin did the same, finishing the team 'hand huddle' with a small grin of her own.
"Roger that!"
If only Obito had known at the time that hand huddle would be one of the last times he would be enjoying a time of peace on any mission at all, he would've treasured it a whole lot more.
Setting up the explosives felt almost torturous to Kakashi. Even if he was supposed to be the leader of this mission.
Sure, he was with Obito and Rin, two of his longtime teammates that he trusted more than anyone right now, but this wasn't just any other mission.
This could be a turning point for Konoha in the war. And with the way Hokage-sama presented it, this was life or death.
Why else would Uncle Judai test them at his full strength? For Tomoko to be so teary when letting them go?
He just had to focus on the mission. Then it was getting home. He had people waiting.
The small black balls that would serve as the bombs still weighed heavily on his back.
But heck, sneaking past the many guards stationed at the bridge felt somewhat like a challenge if not for his previous training, darting in and out of the forest and various bushes to get closer and closer to that stone bridge.
The bridge was so big, they had to be careful on where to place the bombs for the sake of truly destroying it while not compromising their cover. It was only with the most recent team meeting that they decided to aim for the main underside of the bridge. With its shading, large surface area, and a surprisingly small amount of guards on that specific part, it would be simple to set the bombs up there and let them do their work.
It was just distracting the other guards at the two main entryways of the bridge so that they could get to that center underside.
So the plan was simple. Obito and Rin would use a mix of smoke bombs and senbon (the minimum amount of supplies they agreed on using without risking anything) to quietly dispatch the guards while he would dart in to plant the explosives. Then, if anything happened so that they couldn't communicate with one another, his ninken could come in as backup as long as they took off their headbands and jackets. Considering the low amount of foliage around the area though, Kakashi limited himself to his three smallest dogs.
Pakkun, Bisuke, and Shiba.
Pakkun would be with Kakashi while Obito and Rin would take Bisuke and Shiba respectively.
It worked.
On a side note though, seeing his summons again after going through the various hand-signs for the Summoning Technique did remind him that the entire pack needed to meet Tomoko at one point. He only vaguely remembered the girl meeting and snuggling Pakkun, and that was a few years ago at best.
Darn.
He shook his head.
"Ready to go, boss?" Pakkun interrupted with his usual gruff voice, looking a bit more miserable than usual because of taking off his usual gear.
Kakashi shook his head again so that the pianist wasn't intruding on his thoughts anymore. She could wait a bit longer. "Of course I am."
Obito and Rin locked eyes with him before nodding.
Then, with a simple hand signal, they all scattered.
Planting the bombs should've been simple. At least, that was what Nohara Rin originally expected, considering her joint job with Obito in distracting the sentry guards around the bridge. Her aim had increased exponentially since the first time she had started using senbon, so dispatching of her share of enemy ninja was fairly easy.
Her medical training certainly came in handy when it came to targeting weak points on a body. The enemy didn't even know what hit them until the senbon found their marks in their necks. Rin didn't even realize Obito was silently cheering when they keeled over, leaving themselves open to a quiet attack from the Uchiha's kunai.
It was only when they had ducked back into the forest to check on the situation long after all visible guards were dispatched that things started going wrong.
Sure, Kannabi Bridge blew up as scheduled. In a very big, satisfying BOOM, even.
Rin was sure that Obito wanted to take a picture for some strange reason.
But the last thing Rin, or heck, her other teammates were even expecting were the loud shouts of surprise from the surrounding areas after the bridge started to crumble into the river below.
"The fuck was that?!"
"It came from the bridge!"
"Damn it, the enemy then!"
"Let's go find and kill the bastards!"
Bisuke and Shiba whined quietly while Rin glanced at Obito.
Oh no.
Obito's deer-in-headlights look in his eyes literally screamed, I thought we took care of everyone!
Rin didn't even have words to describe their current situation.
Why…what…
Soon enough, with a quiet puff of smoke, Kakashi appeared before them, looking more frazzled than before with his wide eyes and somewhat messed up hair.
"Kakashi!" Obito whispered, panicked. "What the hell happened?!"
"We have to go. Now." He said frantically. "I thought we covered everybody too, but it seems like there was at least two squads of reinforcements just about to come over the bridge from our side when I set the bombs. Our mission is done, so we need to go!"
"Boss, there's about 40-50 shinobi closing in on us right now," Pakkun interrupted, nudging Kakashi's left hand while doing so. "Bisuke, Shiba, and I can try distracting them for you all to get out."
Kakashi turned towards the small pug with a curt nod. "Go on, Pakkun. Dismiss yourself if it gets too much."
"Roger that," the pug responded dryly, and then nodded towards his fellow pack members. Bisuke and Shiba nodded in return before the three ran off in the direction of the bridge, barking wildly.
Judging by the sound of enemy yells, it looked like the dogs' barks did something. Rin wasn't sure. The adrenaline running through her was scary enough already.
Then Obito grabbed her hand. Rin tried not to jump, and instead looked up to see the Uchiha and Kakashi share a glance.
"Run back where we came, guys!" Kakashi yelled quietly, and then it was pushing her feet forward.
Rin held onto Obito's left hand as tightly as she could, focusing on her teammate's back and warmth instead of the yells behind her.
The enemy had noticed them.
Ohshit, ohshit, ohshit, whattheheckhappened?!
If someone had decided to peek into the mind of one Uchiha Obito at that very moment, that was a mere snippet of what was running through his head.
The mission was supposed to have been a success. And in a way, it still "was."
Kannabi Bridge still went BOOM.
The only problem was…
"There they are!"
"Kill them!"
"Wait a second — Holy shit, they're kids!"
"Well then, that makes it easier, doesn't it?!"
Obito forced himself to run faster, leaping onto tree after tree, holding onto Rin while doing so.
When did this mission turn into a run for their lives?
"Keep running! Don't fall behind!" Kakashi whispered fiercely, untying the knot around his right hand to grip his Wayfinder tightly. It took only a mere moment for the blue chakra blade to extend from the silver star's lower half, and Kakashi brandished it in a defensive position. "Try to defend yourselves!"
And then the first ninja charged from the side. Obito wasn't really sure of the enemy's ranking, because all that really registered in his head was the man's Iwa hitai-ite and the red sleeves common of a Rock ninja's attire before they were closing in.
On him and Rin.
His heart beat hard.
Gotta move —
And then Kakashi slashed upwards.
Obito never thought he would see so much blood in his life. But there it was, spurting out of the enemy's new chest and face wounds accompanied by the man's accompanying shriek that sounded like something otherworldly.
"ARRRRRRGGGGGGHHH!"
With a final glare in their direction, he fell down to the bottom of the forest foliage.
Obito didn't bother remembering the sound that came after that, because he wanted to focus on running, not throwing up.
And yet despite the scene, Kakashi didn't even flinch, swiping the stray flecks of blood off his person with his left glove before jumping forward.
Obito gulped and grasped his own Wayfinder, trying not to fumble before ultimately ripping it off his jacket. The chakra came out almost naturally afterwards, curving in such a way that made it easy to stab an enemy approaching him from behind with the new blade. Rin seemed to get the idea as well, letting go of his hand to do the same with her former bracelet, slashing at another enemy from the side.
This was war.
He didn't like it, but Obito knew that kindness wouldn't work now.
They had to fight.
And they had to survive.
"Don't second guess yourself. When danger comes around, act, not react."
Uncle Judai's words seemed to resonate so much more now on the battlefield than they did originally when he was back at home. Kakashi forced himself to keep moving, slashing at any enemy that came at his way with the chakra blade.
Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub.
SLASH, SLASH, SLASH.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"
His heart pounded against his chest as cold adrenaline ran through him.
Another one down. A small part of him counted off mournfully as he continued to move forward through the ever growing crowd.
And yet the new weapon in his right hand seemed to be the only warm thing in the area aside from the presence of his teammates and the spray of blood.
For such a small star, the enemy didn't seem to expect that it could be such a deadly weapon. Kakashi didn't either when first receiving the gift, but for once, he was grateful having the thing on him, because it certainly did its job.
If this was what Uncle Judai felt like when swinging his signature tanto, then Kakashi could easily understand why the old Bingo Books gave the retired Jounin such a nickname in the first place.
The Unscathed Hero.
Kakashi wasn't sure if he was a hero. Unscathed or not. Getting away uninjured seemed slim at best. And if anything, he was just another ninja, trying to run home while fighting off any Iwa nin on the way back from completing their mission objective.
But when his nose caught the scent of a foreign intruder homing in on Obito and Rin, he didn't even think.
He just reacted.
"Obito, behind you!"
Kakashi somehow made the distance between himself and his teammates seem that much smaller as he jumped in between Obito and the new enemy to pull up his chakra blade.
It wasn't in time.
SLASH.
"Kakashi!" He could vaguely hear Obito and Rin yell in unison.
"Gck!" Waves of pain assaulted his left eye almost instantly, but Kakashi still had his right eye to help him focus on who just tried to lop his teammate's arm off. His adrenaline could handle the immense amount of throbbing and what-the-fuck-that-hurt-goddammit feeling that was running through his brain. From the looks of it, a bulky man with short black hair was staring at him with wide black eyes, and before he could disappear from whence he came, Kakashi used his other hand to pull out the old tanto hanging on his back to swipe.
ZWOOM.
"…!" Blood spurted out of the new chest wound he had just created, and Kakashi had to hide the small smirk of triumph at the man's look of panic before he proceeded to fall to the forest ground below.
And then his brain had to bring reality back. Even with the enemy closing in on them, he couldn't deny that his left eye was sending far too many pain signals for him to even concentrate. Kakashi tried to move, but he couldn't deny the fact that every part of his body just wanted to stop moving.
Which unfortunately forced him to take a tumble into the nearby tree, nearly dropping his weapons in the process while irritating said eye (or what was left of it) and leaving him lying face up towards the sky, wincing.
"Kakashi!" He could distinctly hear Obito yell.
Goddammit, I need to move —
And then the only thing his ears could register was the wet sound of a blade hitting a human target. But…huh? He didn't feel any other pain except the main signals hitting his left eye, so what…?
"T-That can't…be…" A new gruffer voice said, almost weakly. Was someone stabbed? "What kind of…eyes are those…?"
Kakashi tried to sit up as soon as Rin spoke for him.
"Obito?"
"From now on…" The Uchiha retracted his chakra blade from the new enemy so quickly, the man didn't even have enough time to respond before falling over and into the foliage below the tree branches. "I'll protect my friends too!"
"Obito, you…" Kakashi didn't know what else to say. "You…" In the end, a small, dry chuckle left him as he sat up to look around. "You unlocked your Sharingan, huh? Congrats."
"Yeah, I can see the flow of my own chakra now…this is the Sharingan, huh?" Obito started, his eyes clearly red from his new Bloodline Release while glancing down at his hands. "It's…really different than how the books made it out to be."
And then Kakashi found himself wincing again. His left eye — or what was left of it — was clearly not happy with him, and he instinctively put a hand over that side after grabbing and sheathing his tanto.
"Kakashi!" Rin's voice, more worried this time, reached his ears as he could now register the feeling of warm streams of blood flowing down his hand as he sat up. Trying to hold back his pain wasn't working anymore, so he forced himself to breathe deeply. "Are you okay?!"
"Kakashi!" Obito, echoing his name in a similar manner to Rin, and the sound of sandals hitting the trees reached him before two arms pushed his back to help him sit up. "…Oh man…" He could hear Obito breathe. "Kakashi…your eye…"
"I'm not dead yet, Obito, even if my eye is gone." Kakashi tentatively pulled his hand away, only to wince at the amount of blood covering his left glove. With that much red, he already knew that he was blinded on his left side for good. "And the battle's not over yet. I can treat myself with Rin's medical kit before we go."
"…" Obito then stood up as soon as Rin ran over with her palms glowing a soft blue. Apparently the med kit could wait, judging by her determined face. "I'll cover for you then."
Even with the residual signals of pain being sent to his brain and Rin taking up most of his left side to start the healing process, Kakashi found himself smiling in Obito's direction. "Take them out then, Obito. Be the Uchiha elite you always wanted to be."
Obito tensed. Then, he wiped his sleeve over his eyes, and Kakashi stayed faithfully silent. "Yeah…Yeah…" Obito said quietly, brandishing his chakra blade again. The Wayfinder handle sparkled a soft orange hue from the forest lighting. "I will. You clean yourself up and take care of Rin."
"Um, I can take care of the both of us too, Obito," Rin interrupted, glancing up from her work on what was left of Kakashi's eye with a clear frown. "I'm not chopped liver."
A wind passed through the clearing.
Even with his back turned, it was easy to see that Obito was blushing with his red ears. Kakashi had to hide a snicker as Obito brandished his Wayfinder instead, shaking his head. "S-Sorry Rin. Just focus on healing Kakashi."
Another few enemies jumped from the foliage in front of them.
Obito took a fighting stance. "I'll take care of them."
The fighting seemed almost endless to Rin. Even with the small interval of time that Obito provided, she knew she had to work fast, despite her heart wanting to do everything but that.
Then again, seeing a teammate lose their left eye was already telling as is for their situation.
If Kakashi noticed her panic, he didn't comment much, only staying still for her hands to properly inspect the damage with a quick Diagnostic Jutsu.
What really threw her off guard wasn't the sounds of various enemies falling to Obito's blade.
Instead, Kakashi looked up at her with his remaining eye, smiling sadly.
"I'm sorry, Rin," was all he said.
She held back the first signs of tears. "W-What are you apologizing for? It's not your fault at all…"
But she couldn't say anything else. Instead, she focused on channeling the chakra in her hands, allowing the soft blue to change to the familiar green as she brushed her feelings away.
What mattered was doing her job. Fixing what cells she could and making sure the eye — or what was left of it anyways — wouldn't bother her teammate anymore.
She couldn't prevent Kakashi losing his left eye. That much was true. She was too far away to reach him when it happened.
But the light pink Wayfinder on her left wrist said more than enough.
Rin could, at least, still keep her team alive.
That is why she didn't even hesitate to decapitate an enemy aiming for her own head with the same Wayfinder right behind her. Turns out channeling chakra was enough to channel the blade - without even detaching it from her wrist. Even with Kakashi staring at her with a wide eye.
The blood didn't bother her as much as she thought about it initially.
I'm going to protect my team too!
Rin was just hoping a certain pianist and her retired ninja father would be proud of her.
They had come this far. They couldn't just die now.
Obito was beginning to dislike Iwagakure now.
Scratch that, detest them.
Even more so when one of their ranks had gone on to hurt his teammate. His friend.
That in itself was unforgivable.
So then why was his body starting to ache? Why was it starting to hurt?
He wasn't sure how long he was fighting off enemy after enemy. Even when protecting his own back and that of Rin and Kakashi, seconds seemed like hours.
Not to mention his repeating a certain fighting pattern.
Kick, punch, slash, dodge, the occasional FireBall Jutsu.
Obito was honestly doing everything he could until Kakashi could get back to his feet. So then why was his limbs aching? Why was his mind screaming everything but, "Let's keep doing this shit!?"
Which was why when the sword came down on him, he didn't see it until his body screamed otherwise.
It was a sensation that Obito never expected to feel, but felt anyways.
"AAAARRGH!" was the best way to put it.
As if a hot knife had seared its way through his arm, Obito knew not to look at his left side. The fact that he couldn't even feel his left hand anymore was hard enough as is.
His elbow, sure. He could wiggle it as much as he wanted.
But…But the place where his hand was…
Why was it suddenly empty? Why did it feel like something was missing?
How much was he going to lose today?
His friend lost his left eye, and now…
Even with the pain shooting through every single nerve in his body, Obito held back his loudest scream yet to grasp his fallen Wayfinder and channel as much chakra as he could. Then he used the blood coming out of him as a cover, throwing what would usually be spilling out onto the ground to instead distract whoever had just did what they did.
From the looks of it, it was an older man, taller than him by nearly two heads, with a brown afro and two arm swords that he barely noticed at first glance aside from his loud shriek.
"AHHH! DAMN YOU, BRAT!"
Once the bright red covered his opponent's eyes, Obito made sure to grab the nearest explosive tag he could get to set off with the Wayfinder's chakra before tossing it in the man's direction.
The bastard didn't even have time to fully wipe at the goo covering his eyes until the flame was already lit.
Obito jumped away as soon as smoke covered him.
BOOM.
He didn't even realize he was rolling away into the soft grass below the trees until warm hands stopped his fall.
"—ito. Obito. OBITO!"
Rin. That was Rin's voice. Was she holding him up?
The pain was blinding. He couldn't even feel his left hand or properly open his eyes because everything in his body was screaming, Danger, DANGER.
What in the…
The sound of sandals hitting the grass graced his ears next. "Holy shit, Obito," he could vaguely make out Kakashi this time, sounding more emotional than he could have even imagined in dreams alone. "Y-Your arm…"
Obito opened one bleary eye after deactivating his Sharingan to look up. Even without looking at his side, he knew that the sight alone must've been horrible. Kakashi's horrified expression, as well as Rin's shocked gasp, was more than enough.
"H-Hey, guys…." he tried, weakly smiling in the slightest hope that it could amend the situation. "You okay?"
"Y-You should be asking yourself that, jerk!" Rin shouted instead, and Obito found himself taken aback for the second time that day. The insult was the least of his worries. Why was Rin sounding like… "You're w-wounded! K-Kakashi lost one eye already, and now you…"
Is…Is Rin crying?
Obito ignored every urge to look at his left side and instead turned in Rin's direction, only to freeze.
The thick, pearly tears streaming down the medic's dirty, wounded face said more than enough.
"Rin…" he said softly.
"Why…? Why…?" Rin covered her face with her hands, shaking her head as soon as he tried reaching out to her with his remaining hand. "Why did it have to be you two…? Why couldn't I have… Why couldn't I have…"
Every single nerve in his body immediately agreed that this was the time to do something.
Well. Aside from backup from all the pain and collapse.
Hug her, kiss her, do something, dammit! His mind screamed. Do something other than just sit there on your ass like a frozen fool!
Obito opened his mouth with a soft, "Rin…!"
And then Kakashi twitched. "Oh no," he muttered.
Obito and Rin both glanced at him. "What?" They said in unison.
Kakashi shook his head, mouth now in a deep grimace through his mask. "It looks like my ninken just dispelled themselves. And that there's more than 100 Chunin to Jounin-level shinobi coming our way."
Cold dread flooded the area almost immediately.
Oh hell no.
Heck.
"Oh no" doesn't even cover this!
"W-We have to move…" Obito ignored every single one of his nerves screaming otherwise, and used his remaining hand to stumble to his feet. "W-We can't…we can't be caught here…"
Rin immediately ran up to him to loop his arm around her neck. "Let me help," was her quiet response, taking on most of his weight without even flinching. "Just focus on holding onto what weapons you have and moving your feet." The medic then looked up in Kakashi's direction with the most determination Obito had ever seen her have, even with tear stains on her face. "I saw a cave on the way here. We can take shelter there for the night."
"Agreed," Kakashi said immediately, gripping his Wayfinder a bit tighter in his right hand. "I'll cover your back. Help Obito over there."
"O-Oi…I-I'm not…" Obito winced as soon as Rin's other hand started glowing green over…over his left side.
"Don't argue, Obito," Kakashi muttered flatly as he glanced around, checking the surroundings. "You're just as wounded as I was, if not worse. Let Rin do her work and let's get out of here. No one's dying today."
With the many bloodstains left on his beloved navy blue and orange jacket and the damp emptiness on his left arm, Obito fell silent.
Nohara Rin found herself tired by the time they had set up camp. With night falling, every single part of her wanted to fall asleep and pretend this was a dream.
That…That her teammates weren't hurt in such a way that she knew she couldn't fix.
But with the bright light of the campfire, she had to face them head-on. And that's what hurt more than anything.
Kakashi was officially blinded in one side, the diagonal scar going down his left eyebrow and eye only the tip of the damage she saw earlier that day.
Obito…Obito wasn't well off either.
When she wasn't looking, when she was focusing on healing Kakashi, a ninja was able to… to…
"Rin, don't worry, I'm still alive," he interrupted quietly.
She tried not to jump at the sudden intrusion to her thoughts, looking to the side only to see Obito smile wryly. Even with…even with half of his left arm gone, leaving bloodied bandages in its place, how could he smile like that?
How could he…
The Uchiha then reached over to touch her hands with his right, grinning a bit wider.
"It's because of you that I'm still here and not dying from blood loss, so don't look so sad like that," he said softly, squeezing her hands tightly. "Take some pride in knowing that we're all still together."
"Obito…" Rin held back the first signs of tears to nod. "Y-Yeah…yeah…"
When did Obito's eyes become so bright?
He had always been there, even back in the Academy days, but Rin was sure that those black eyes weren't so shiny before…
And when did he get so close?
A long sigh accompanied by the sound of footsteps snapped Rin out of the moment before she could think on it anymore. Obito jumped before scooting back, his hand going up to rub…well, what was left of his left arm as Kakashi made his presence known with his large shadow covering the cave walls via the fire.
"I just finished putting up the traps outside, but," he shook his head, clenching his fists, "We're not in a good situation. It looks like our opponents have set up their own camps at least ten meters or so away from us. Next morning almost guarantees a full-out attack from a minimum of 50 shinobi alone."
Dread filled her again.
We still have to fight, don't we?
"…How bad is it?" Obito asked softly, gripping his upper part of his left arm a bit tighter.
Kakashi shook his head again as soon as he took a seat in front of the campfire near them. "Considering this cave has two entrances, we could use the back one for escaping. But there isn't a guarantee that they'll not swarm us from the front." He then clenched his fist again, bunching up some of his pants while doing so.
"We'll need a decoy."
Rin's heart could've stopped at that alone.
"Shit," was Obito's tense response.
Rin tried not to tear up and checked her pockets, frowning. "I still have enough medical supplies to treat the both of you if something happens. But…with 50 on the other side…"
"We're outnumbered," Kakashi finished dully. "Literally."
Silence followed as the words sank in.
"…Wait, Kakashi," Obito raised a hand with a frown.
"What?" was the Jounin's moody response.
For once, Rin was seriously wondering how Obito wasn't even breaking down from this whole thing. What was going through — "What about Minato-sensei? Shouldn't he be able to do something about this?"
Out of all things he could've said, Rin wasn't expecting that. She blinked as Kakashi's jaw promptly dropped.
…Well, it dropped as much as his mask could allow it, but that wasn't the point.
"What brought that on, Obito?" Kakashi said incredulously, caught between shaking his head and crossing his arms. "Minato-sensei is far away at the front lines! It might take at least half a day for us to reach him!"
"Here's the thing," and Obito motioned to his own weapons pouch on his back with a shrug, "You have something that Rin and I don't."
What does he mean by—
Kakashi's eyes widened at the same time as Rin's. Then the medic watched as Kakashi fumbled with his pockets, pulling out the familiar tri-pronged kunai. "You mean—"
"Minato-sensei gave you that kunai for a reason, Kakashi," Obito continued, a brighter smile on his face. "And he's the Yellow Flash, right? So he should be able to do something!"
Could it…
Rin wasn't sure.
It would've been a good idea, if not for the shadows suddenly coming over Kakashi's face.
"…Obito, you don't get it," said Kakashi after a few moments of silence.
"Huh? What don't I get?" Obito asked almost obliviously despite the undertone of confusion.
Rin was tempted to glance between them and just facepalm.
Instead, she only watched as Kakashi clenched his free fist tighter, and she didn't miss the first drops of blood seeping from his fingernails. "It's true that Minato-sensei is fast, but he's on the front lines. In the worst case scenario, he might be kept up by the enemy there and unable to reach us, kunai or not." The Jounin went on to grip the kunai tightly, gritting his teeth. "And I have no fucking clue how to get to him with this. It may be his kunai, but…but…"
Obito fell silent.
The center fire continued to burn.
"I'll be the decoy," Kakashi said finally.
Rin's heart dropped into her chest as soon as she raised her head. "What?" she squeaked.
Obito immediately got to his feet. "What the fuck, Kakashi?!"
Even with the Uchiha's shout, Kakashi didn't even flinch, only glancing to the side as he gripped the kunai a bit tighter. From her point of view, all Rin could make out was his bandaged left eye. "It makes the most sense in our situation. Rin's the medic — we can't sacrifice her," the words seemed to stab her with each passing second, "And you're wounded, Obito." Kakashi looked down at his Wayfinder, refastened to his right hand. "Even with an eye gone, I can still at least be a distraction for you two to make it out alive."
"No way, Kakashi!" Rin tried not to jump at Obito's shout and could only watch in horror as he proceeded to stomp over and take Kakashi up by the scruff of his shirt. "No fucking way am I allowing you to do that! You'll die!"
"Who else am I supposed to go to for this then?!" Kakashi yelled back, clearly torn about the whole thing, almost as if the whole weight distribution wasn't even an issue. "We're on our own here, Obito! At least if you and Rin make it out, you could possibly make it to Minato-sensei, and then—"
"I'm not leaving you to sacrifice yourself, asshole!" Obito angrily let Kakashi go with a tough push, only to shake his head vigorously. "I know you didn't share the full contents of your Wayfinder message, but everyone back home is waiting for us! All of us! Not just me and Rin! Don't just sell yourself out!" Obito grit his teeth.
Rin opened her mouth, only to freeze at her teammate's next words.
"Tomoko-chan's waiting for you too, so don't even dare think about dying on her either!"
Kakashi froze too, clearly not expecting the statement either. "O-Obito…"
If that was the Jounin's way of inputting his opinion in the situation, it wasn't working. Rin could obviously tell that Obito was getting angrier. "Don't even say my name like that, Bakashi! You should know better than anyone that she loves you, you ass! Tomoko-chan. Loves. YOU! So don't sacrifice yourself! Not when you still have to answer her!" Then Obito cursed under his breath. "And I was the one to point out the whole thing to you last time…"
Rin wasn't even sure of what to say at this point. Even with the green monster curling in her stomach.
Another pause followed as the fireplace flickered with uncertain heat.
Kakashi sat himself down again, slowly straightening his shirt collar. "…Alright," he said quietly. "What's your idea then, Obito? Even with all that said, it doesn't change the fact that our enemy will attack the front of the cave tomorrow. One of us will have to go out the front so that the others can get out safely through the back to hopefully get reinforcements — and I would prefer not to send out either you or Rin."
Obito stared at Kakashi for a moment before unclenching his fist. "…You're serious, aren't you? Heading out there and being the decoy?"
Rin glanced at Kakashi. She didn't want to see his answer, but knew he was going to nod anyways. And sure enough, he did, with the most determination she had ever seen him have in a while. "…Do you still have a problem with that? Even with my being the leader?"
Obito surprisingly clicked his tongue before looking away, gripping what was left of his left arm again with a frown. "I do. But from the looks of it, I can't convince you otherwise, can I?"
The following silence said more than enough.
Then, Obito pointed to his left eye, and Rin didn't miss the two tomoe swirling through the new red hue. "Take my Sharingan then, Kakashi."
If Rin wasn't already shocked from the day's events, she would've been tempted to faceplant herself into the cave floor.
Kakashi's reaction did it all for her. "What?" he said shakily. Then he suddenly stood up, clenching his hands tightly. "Why, Obito?! You just got your Sharingan, and now you're offering it up like a prize?! What the fuck is up with that?!"
"Kakashi, I'm not going to let you head out and be the decoy unless I know you're going to survive!" was Obito's hot answer, the same determination shining in his eyes. "And I know with my arm gone, I can't support you as well as I used to! Not to mention…" he then glanced to the side, breaking off the eye contact for a moment. "With this left arm gone, I know I'll be off the combat roster for a while. I won't be able to go out like I used to…well, anymore really, so it's better to give a friend something I have to make sure he comes home with us too."
Kakashi's remaining eye widened in pure shock. "Obito…"
The Uchiha then grinned. "Besides, you're going to go a lot farther than this, aren't you? You'll need both eyes to get around! And then I can kinda go along with you! Be your eye or something!" Rin didn't miss how Kakashi was slowly relaxing at the banter, shoulders loosening. "Oh, and you'll need a good nickname to remember this whole thing by. Hmm…" Obito then put his hand to his chin to pretend-think, humming. "What about Kakashi of the Sharingan?" He then turned to Rin with a warm smile. "How about it, Rin?"
Even with the tears budding her eyes, Rin found herself giggling. "T-That does have a nice ring to it…" She then wiped at her face so that the tears wouldn't come out. "But I'm guessing I have to do the procedure, hm?"
"You're the only medic here we trust, Rin!" Obito was grinning even brighter, and Rin was honestly wondering where he got that energy from. She surely needed a dose of it right now. "So, please?"
The puppy eyes in her direction was unnecessary, but adorable.
The Sharingan doing said puppy eyes nearly made her bust a gut.
Kakashi was looking between the both of them with a conflicted eye. "…When did we turn into kids again?" he said finally.
"…We've always been kids, Kakashi," Obito interrupted, glancing at the masked ninja with a more solemn smile. "But on top of it all, we're teammates. And I'm not abandoning a teammate out there to go be a decoy alone without help." Obito didn't even need to ask the next question Nonetheless, he did, turning to her with a shrug. "Right, Rin?"
"Right," Rin said firmly.
The dread was gone. For now, the green beast in her stomach was gone.
The Wayfinders all three possessed glowed in their respective colors.
Silver. Light pink. Blue.
Would everyone back home be okay with this too?
"…Alright," Kakashi said finally, sitting himself down again with a sigh. "I'll…I'll take you both up on that. But this will be my first and last order on this mission as Jounin of Team Kakashi." Rin steadied her shaking hands to focus on him. Kakashi took a deep breath before looking at them both with a stoic silver eye. "Live. Escape, avoid, whatever you can do. We have people waiting for us — we can't let them down."
"Roger that!"
Namikaze Minato knew that a kunai marker was tugging on him long after his students separated from him.
But never to this extent.
The pull this time felt like a rope was pulling on his very being.
Was it danger? Did something happen?
What did Team Kakashi get into this time?
No matter how many calculations he did in his head, it didn't stop the sweat from pooling into the palms of his hands.
Yep. Something happened.
Which meant he had to clean house fast.
He wasn't known as The Yellow Flash in the Bingo Books for nothing.
"All of you, please toss these kunai at the enemy," Minato made sure to look back at the four remaining Konoha nin while preparing one last kunai. "I'll take care of the rest myself."
"That's reckless!" One man shouted out, clearly disbelieving from his voice and expression alone. "Minato-san, not even you alone could—"
"Shut up and do what he says!" Another shouted back, a smirk slowly coming up on his face.
Minato made a hand sign, poker face naturally sliding into place.
"We'll get to see how Konoha's Yellow Flash works in battle!" the same man continued, grin coming into his voice. "Just don't blink or you'll miss it."
The fifty Iwa nin on the other side didn't even stand a chance.
Nor did the 100 surrounding his students as soon as Minato teleported afterwards without a word of warning.
"…Did he just kick so much ass in about 15 minutes and leave us here to clean up the mess?" the first man said idly afterwards.
A pause followed. Then, a hand of recognition was raised in the air. Anyone could do this now considering that no kunai were flying around and the immediate area was clear of enemy fire. "…Yep. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do." The other finished dryly. "Now, c'mon. We have to start sooner or later."
"…For the fastest guy alive, I'm surprised he doesn't finish the job. I bet he has his girlfriend in mind."
"…Nah, I bet his kids."
"He has kids? I thought he wasn't even married."
Minato had to hold back a sneeze as soon as he arrived in the forest vicinity surrounding the Kannabi Bridge area.
Not that it provided Iwa any time to run though.
In the background, Kakashi was left wondering whether or not he should've used the kunai sooner.
"…We're really uncool, huh?" Obito said slowly. "We should've done this, like, yesterday."
"Uh-huh." Kakashi agreed.
"Tomoko-chan, don't worry, they'll be coming home soon," Mama said quietly, hand landing on my head. "You don't have to keep visiting the gates every day."
Even with all that in mind, I still shook my head otherwise, gripping the hem of my skirt a bit tighter. "B-But I want to, Mama. Especially if they do come home today!"
Stubbornness can leave a lasting impression on someone.
Loneliness and worry too, now that I think about it.
By that Sunday morning, with Mama going out with me grocery shopping, it had been about a month and a half since I had last seen my friends. Even when busying myself with the cafe and my piano music, I didn't feel all that happy considering there was almost no news coming in about what happened.
Considering it was Kannabi Bridge, I wasn't surprised.
Asking around didn't help.
"Eh? Kakashi and the others? I'm sure they're doing fine, Tomoko-chan, so keep your chin up! Don't waste your youth worrying otherwise!" was Guy's response, accompanied by a warm thumbs-up and an offer to go jogging together. I ended up taking his offer.
"You really worry too much, Tomoko-san. Just take a breather and do what you do best," was Asuma's reply, shrugging it off before walking elsewhere. My best guess was that being the current Hokage's son meant being emo. Boruto was a huge example in canon already.
Trying Kurenai was a bit more relieving, if not distracting. "How about you and I get dango together with Anko-chan so we can get your mind off the subject, Tomoko-chan? I'm sure some sweets will help you feel a bit better."
How Kurenai at this age was more into dango than Anko herself, considering their canon selves anyways, I wasn't sure.
Ebisu and Genma weren't really options, considering their distance from Guy at moments.
Raido? I didn't even see him around, despite canon saying otherwise, so for all I knew, he was just another masked ANBU.
I wasn't even sure if Kotetsu and Izumo were out of the Academy yet. Anko was a special case considering her status as…welp, Orochimaru's student, but nonetheless.
Yugao and Hayate weren't around the cafe that much either, so I had no clue.
In the end, I was just pacing around the village gates hoping to see a familiar face, much to Mama's visible chagrin.
"…Tomoko-chan, should I head back first?" she said finally, hefting the brown shopping bags in her arms so that they would sit on her shoulders.
Heat flooded my face as I stopped walking only to look up at her. "U-Um…please? I want to wait a bit longer, Mama."
Thankfully, she smiled, walking over before depositing the bags on the ground to hug me for a moment. "Alright dear, just stay safe and come home soon."
Without even hesitating, I hugged back, just as hard if not more so. "I love you, Mama. Thank you."
"I love you too, sweetie," and with that said, Mama kissed my forehead before picking up the bags again and walking away into the crowd.
You sure about this, dear? Hisako kicked away another stray thought with the bottom of her sneaker. You might be here for a while.
Just for half an hour, Hisako. I think I'll be okay.
My other self huffed, but fell silent anyways.
I glanced around, pacing again while fiddling with my Wayfinder necklace. The sky blue hue shined almost mournfully despite the bright sunlight, and I tried not to bite my lip.
Where are they…?
And then I heard it.
"—oko? Tomoko?"
I would recognize that gravelly voice anywhere.
I looked up, letting my Wayfinder fall and rest against my shirt, only to find my breath catch itself in my throat.
Orange goggles. Silver hair. And…
Tears were filling my eyes before I could stop them.
"…Guys?"
Minato-san, looking far more bloodied than I had ever seen him, simply raised a hand in greeting at me while smiling. "Tomoko-chan!"
And…And Rin-chan, scratched and battered with dirt, pink apron skirt torn, but she was smiling too. "Tomoko-chan!" She waved a hand at me, her other holding up…
Obito. Obito was…
Obito was alive, alright. I couldn't see his left arm nor his left eye (that case was obvious with the bandages covering his left side), but he was grinning at me too. Even without his hitai-ite on and his signature goggles drooping from his neck, he still seemed to be as bright as ever while his right arm was swung over Rin-chan's shoulders. "Hi, Tomoko-chan! We're back!" he crowed finally.
Every single part of me wanted to move. To hug him. To hug everyone.
And…And…
I was already running towards him before I could stop myself.
"Kakashi!"
Even with his almost-limp on one leg and hitai-ite covering his left eye, my best friend didn't even flinch at the sight of me, opening his arms long before I ran into them.
And sure enough, we crashed. I wasn't even intending to put in that much force, but once I wrapped my arms around his neck, Kakashi fell backwards, and I found myself staring into half of Kakashi's hair and the stone pavement.
Bahahahaha! Hisako bellowed. Ohmigosh, Tomoko-chan.
"O-Ow," was Kakashi's first words.
The tears were already flooding me now. "K-Kakashi…Kakashi…" I buried my face into his shoulder, trying to hold back the first signs of sobs. "Y-You're…y-you're…"
"I'm home, Tomoko, I'm home." A hand reached up to my hair as my best friend sat up from the ground. "I'm back. Quit crying already."
"I-I can't…" Sniffles left my lips instead of the proper words. "I-I can't just do that so easily, y'know!" Even with my voice raising in volume and pitch, the grip on me only tightened as an arm wrapped around my waist. "Y-You guys were gone for more than a month, and noonewassayinganything, sowhatwasI — ugh — supposedtoassume?! I-I…" A sob left my lips. "I-I…"
A warm, tired breath tickled the side of my neck. "…I know. I know." The hand on my head started running through my hair. "I'm sorry for taking so long, Tomoko. But I kept my promise."
Nearby, I could hear the smiles of Team Minato around us.
He did, y'know. Keep his promise, I mean. Hisako sounded almost solemn while mentally touching my hair. Kannabi was a success.
…Yeah…yeah…that's right, isn't it?
I hesitantly pulled away from the hug to make eye contact with my best friend for what felt like the first time in forever, only to notice the slash cutting through the left side of his mask underneath his hitai-ite. "K-Kakashi…" Without meaning to, I found myself reaching over to touch his left cheek. "Y-Your eye…"
Even with his mask on, I could see Kakashi's wry smile. "I-It's a long story, Tomoko. We all can tell you on the way back." Then he looked past me to grin. "Right, Obito, Rin?"
"Y-Yeah…" Obito slowly let go of Rin, and my heart nearly stopped at seeing the bloodied stump that was left of his left arm past his elbow. "It might be a bit too soon to start here though. We still need to submit the mission report."
How is he…
And then Obito and Rin both pulled out their Wayfinders, grinning. "We did it, Tomoko-chan!"
As if this was a starry reunion, no pun intended, Minato-san loomed over both Chunins' shoulders before pulling out his own yellow one, grinning just as much if not more so than his students.
I glanced at Kakashi, only for my heart to start beating again at the sight of his own silver Wayfinder pinned to the front of his shirt. "... We did it, Tomoko," he repeated quietly.
A watery smile came across my face as I held up my own necklace to display proudly to him.
"…I missed you," I said finally.
Kakashi smiled again. "I missed you."
The tears were already streaming down my face for the umpteenth time again as I pulled him into another hug.
"Welcome back, team…Welcome back."
My Team Minato was finally home.
Author's Notes: First up, an apology. I did not mean for this chapter to take a little over three weeks to finish, but considering all the emotion and drama going into this chapter, welp. Empathy didn't help.
Not to mention, long-time planning doesn't mean much if you don't know HOW to put it into words. That's what I had to deal with for a while, and with my road trip and coming home, it's been a long few weeks. I'm still surprised that Chapter 43 came out so quickly since Kannabi is the place for all the shit to happen. Hearing "Update soon" in reviews didn't really help — so for future reviewers, please leave that phrase out of your commentary. Much appreciated.
And since you've made it this far, you're probably wondering about some of the plot twists that happened in here. Most of the chapter came from long-time help Josh and Leo, but I also have to give credit to Lang and Beta from CYB fame. :) I wouldn't have made it this far without any of them around — especially Beta since they helped me with figuring out Obito's situation.
And a shout-out to Sarette, because your private message really cheered me up when I was getting down about writing the dramatic parts of this chapter. Continue being that lovely person you are~
Also, to all that have reviewed since Chapter 43, thank you. It's because of you guys that I feel better about writing for so long. Thanks again.
As of August 22, 2017, when this chapter is first published, CP has 857 reviews, 1,205 favorites, 1,439 followers, and 325,386 hits! You guys are awesome.
This is Writer-and-Artist27 signing out to plan more of CP past this point! Love you guys!
