000
Kakashi
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The rain falls gently on his shoulders, fat droplets that eventually end up soaking him to the bone even through the special grade material of his uniform. He doesn't attempt to move away or shield himself from the torrent, standing as still as a statue and letting the skies weep over him, unbridled.
He finds it easy to fall back into old habits.
The Memorial Stone stands just as still, staring back at him with its cold gaze. Colder than the rain, capable of freezing his insides even on the hottest of Konoha's summer days.
It had been miraculously spared during the Pain incident, many years ago.
There are three names carved into the smooth granite block that he is profoundly familiar with—would know where to find them with his eyes closed. He looks at them with a cloudy gaze, vision almost blurry from the water falling into his eyes.
And those eyes… It still feels wrong to be here and watch the Memorial Stone with his own two eyes. But it has been too long since he last came here and Obito's eye was still his, when Obito was still only the idolized memory of the teammate who had woken him up to reality with his sacrifice.
The latter part hasn't really changed, after all.
He allows himself to think about them, about Obito and Rin and Minato-sensei. He allows himself to think about all of their sacrifices, about what they gave up along with their lives so others could live on.
His chest feels rather heavy.
"I suppose…" he talks aloud, but his voice is quiet and drowned out by the relentless downpour. "We didn't get that much time together. As a team… We had much left to learn, Minato-sensei. I'm sorry. I feel like I can finally understand you now, how you tried your best to bring us together. Rin too…"
It was his stupid stubbornness that had kept him from seeing that. Obito, too, had understood what it meant to be a team, long before he did. If only he had been able to see, to realize—
With a long sigh, he cuts off that train of thought. He has been down that lane many times before and the only place it led him was towards spiraling darkness and voracious guilt. It is long past the time to stop wallowing.
He clears his throat and shakes himself, aware how stiff his body feels after spending hours without moving. He must be truly out of practice, he thinks. How long has it been since he last spent his full mornings like this, in front of the stone? Too long, perhaps.
His feet carry him closer to the stone, until he is close enough to touch.
"I will have to go soon," he tells them, hand gently brushing over the names carved there. "It is an important day today… Minato-sensei, you would be really proud. And you too, Obito."
He can't help his own feeling of pride swelling in his chest. His eyes close into crescents as a smile forces its way through on his expression.
"Kakashi-sensei! There you are!" The admonishing voice of his student rings loudly from behind him, even through the loud roar of the rain. "We've been looking everywhere for you. You are late!"
"Maa, Sakura-chan, the Hokage is never late. Everyone else is simply early," he says without turning around. His hand still lingers on the wet granite.
He hears furious muttering about 'old man' and 'never changes' and 'use that excuse while you still can', and silently laughs at the way he can still rile up his cute now-adult students.
"Come on, sensei. You will never hear the end of it if you're late to Naruto's inauguration. You are supposed to give him the hat." Sakura walks closer until Kakashi can see her properly in his peripheral vision as she stands there with arms crossed over her chest, tapping a foot impatiently on the damp ground.
He draws out an exhale and lets his shoulders slouch when he finally tears his gaze away from the memorial and smiles placidly at the kunoichi.
"Let's go then. Wouldn't want to keep our number one knucklehead ninja waiting, now would we?"
Sakura gives a breathy laughter and they start trekking away, back towards the village.
If Kakashi used to have a dream, he doesn't quite know what it used to be. But somehow, sometime along the way, his team's dreams – Naruto's, Sakura's, Sasuke's – have become his own, and he thinks about his old team and what their dreams could have been, hoping – knowing – that they would be proud of his kids and everything they have accomplished that the four of them could not—that they didn't get a chance to.
Streaks of dark clouds finally part away, bright sunshine breaking through the overcast sky triumphantly. A golden sun ray falls onto the Memorial Stone.
The rain ceases.
The day is warm.