So...just to share a little bit with you guys, I left work early because I wanted to come home and write this chapter. Sometimes I act on compulsion and make very bad choices BUT this is (maybe) not one of them. I had fun writing Obito's character- but I am always waiting for some feedback from you guys! Hope this isn't a terribly written chapter (sometimes i re-read previous ones and think oh my gosh how could i write such terrible shit). Anyway, thank you for reading this- also I have a music recommendation for Obito (because music helps me set the mood and write): Row by izzamuzzic
Enjoy!
A cacophony of sounds, familiar and alien, float their way to Michiko's unconscious mind; the flutter and swoosh of material, hot skin and cold finger tips, the sound of someone breathing gently, pattering rain and low rumbling thunder. The sounds are pleasant and nostalgic. For a little while, Michiko dreams of falling asleep on the porch as the rain pours down, the sound of her father carrying her to her room, her mother rustling the blanket as she drapes it over her sleeping-form.
"You brought her?" "Is she okay?"
"Is she breathing?"
The questions slither in like a running commentary to her dreams, disturbing the memories, distorting the visions of her home. For a moment, they sound like her parents and then, the voices morph into the raspy high-pitch of a stranger.
"Was she your friend?"
Silence follows, and Michiko is left undisturbed for several hours. Strange dreams materialize behind her eyelids and fade out of her memory like clouds of dust settling until the next mad dash through her subconscious.
'I don't know.'
Obito tries hard to think about his times with her. In earnest, he has always focused on Rin, on Kakashi, and any memory of Michiko is vague and blurred. He can hardly recall her face as a child, and what little he does remember comes to him in waves.
'She was always following me around.' He recalls, shaking his head, 'She was always helping people too.'
The harder he tries, the less he can remember. The only highlight he can recall is her father's funeral. He hears about it and sees Michiko in the Academy a few days later, looking quiet and sad. He remembers offering her his lunch and cracking jokes about competing to be Hokage.
'She didn't want to be Hokage.'
Zetsus conversation rouses him back to the present.
"She won't wake up for another few hours."
"I don't see why you brought her here." "Maybe she can be our friend."
"Maybe you like her."
The last statement earns some irritation, the young boy who has carried Michiko here glares at Guruguru.
"Maybe he likes her because she kicked your ass so easily." Black Zetsu says.
This elicits a laugh from Obito, a short, husky rumble that halts as soon as it starts. He sits cross-legged across from the girl, intently watching her. His mask has been removed, revealing rough scars on the right half of his face.
'There are more important things to address.' Obito reminds himself, going over the intel he has collected via Zetsu in the short amount of time that they have escaped from Konoha.
'Her mother must have been from Kirigakure if she has the Shikotsumyaku.'
Being educated by Madara and the Zetsus about the world of the shinobi, Obito has a vast resource of knowledge- He knows that the Shikotsumyaku belongs to the Kaguya Clan of Kirigakure, which is now extinct.
Revising the information, to be sure he asks Guruguru again, "She has the Shikotsumyaku?"
The swirl-faced man is watching the two from a safe distance- nobody likes to be torn into pieces, even if they can heal their body. He twitches uncomfortably as he registers the question.
"Come on, Tobi." White Zetsu calls to Guruguru, "Come here. She won't bite."
"Not while she's unconscious, at least." Black Zetsu adds, as a matter-of-fact.
"I asked you a question." Obito reminds, his soft boyish voice replaced by a deeper one. He feels annoyed at the divergence.
All the Zetsus fall silent and exchange glances, until Guruguru, also referred to as Tobi, finally replies.
"Yessssssss. She has the bones. I also heard her address the ability by its name." He sounds jittery.
Obito's eyes shift to him and back to Michiko- silence descends inside their homely cave.
Absentmindedly twiddling a strand of her short hair around his index finger, Obito probes some more.
"How well can she use it?"
For the last few years, he has ignored her because she has been insignificant to his plans. He has almost forgotten that she exists.
Standing amidst the ruins of Konoha, he remembers her only after he is about to return home, and that too by chance as she sprints into the periphery of his vision, outside the Uchiha Compound.
Obito impulsively decides he wants to take her after he places who she is.
Michiko is taller than he remembers her, and her long hair is gone, replaced by a chin length bob. Her eyes are sharper and there is a small scar running from above the bridge of her nose, down the inner-corner of her left eye to just above her cheekbone.
He doesn't remember the scar from when he was still 'alive'.
In truth, he reminds himself that there is little he remembers about Michiko. In their sudden encounter, the one thing that initially strikes him is her resemblance to Rin. When he sees her outside the Uchiha Compound, his heart stops for a second and he thinks it is his young teammate, reincarnated and alive.
The difference is first established in their eyes- where Rin's were gentle and doe-like, Michiko's gaze is predatory and manic- her eyes are big, but narrowed, and she looks mildly like a hawk.
It hurts him when their eyes meet because he realizes she is not Rin.
It makes him angry.
"She can manipulate it better than I have seen in a long time- without needing their dances." Tobi elaborates, breaking Obito from his trail of thought.
"Dances?" Obito turns his mismatched eyes to him.
"That's what the Kaguya refer to as their techniques- she was…free-forming extra bone most of the time. A waste of chakra and also very painful- but an efficient way to fight. Look at her scars, they haven't healed."
"Fascinating." Black Zetsu wonders if she would make a bony snack.
Bruised, battered and drained of energy, Michiko continues to sleep. Six hours pass, and the Zetsus are gone from the cave.
Obito bides his time, undressing and washing his hair, redressing and checking on Michiko. She is still asleep.
"I wonder about you." He speaks to himself as he sets about putting a little pot on a make-shift fire. "Will you recognize me?" He's speaking loud enough for an eavesdropper to think he's part of a conversation.
Michiko is struggling to wake up. The Mangekyo Sharingan has taken a lot out of her and each time she wakes, something pulls her back to sleep.
Eventually, she finds the energy and the courage to sit up. A mistake- her head begins to throb as if someone is squeezing her skull. She groans.
"Drink this." Someone whispers. She feels hot steam against her chin and with her closed eyes, obeys. Her head lolls forward and a firm, gloved hand cups her chin and presses the edge of a cup to her lips.
"Be careful." It warns, "It is very hot."
She sips it and burns her tongue. The sensation wakes her enough to be able to open her eyes.
"…" She stares dumbly at the orange mask in front of her, a single black eye staring back through it. A moment of stillness passes, and Obito realizes she is stiff from fear. He laughs, and that makes her narrow her eyes.
"It's not poisoned." He says defensively.
Michiko remains quiet. There is a blanket laid over her and her weapons are missing. Her chakra is exhausted.
She is weak.
Who is this creep? She blinks slowly, waiting for him to speak again. He is squatting in front of her, the warm cup in his hands. The only thing moving between them are the tendrils of steam.
"Where am I?" Her voice is steely and cold.
"In my home." He replies smoothly, extending the cup to her mouth again. She flinches away from his hands, looking revulsed. There is a brief moment in which both absorb her reaction, she hasn't meant to pull away from him so quickly.
Pulling his cup-bearing hand back, he throws it away from them. It whistles through the air and breaks loudly once it collides with rock, the sound echoing in the silence.
"Pity. That would have cured your headache." His voice is calm, and he is still squatting in front of her.
What the fuck.
Michiko is petrified.
"Sarutobi Michiko." He begins, sitting down on his bum and crossing his legs. She stares at him, words lost. "That is your name. Do you not remember it?"
The gentle, joking tone of his voice makes her wary. She simply nods.
"Your uncle is the Sandaime Hokage, yes?"
She nods again.
"Your father was his younger brother, yes?"
She nods again, this time tucking a strand of greasy hair behind her ear.
"Your mother was from Kirigakure, yes?"
Michiko knows this, yes. She also knows that this information is a secret- or at least, it is meant to be. She shakes her head. "No, she was from Konoha."
"She lived in Konoha- with you and your father. She wasn't from there."
"How do you know this?" Feeling braver, Michiko sounds sharper. She is angry. Who does this cave-rat think he is, spitting facts at me about my OWN family? Her blood begins to boil. She clenches her fists.
"There is much you don't know about Konoha." Obito's boyish voice has become deeper, more intimidating. "I can tell you. If you want."
Hesitating for a few seconds, Michiko is quick to make up lost time "What do you know?"
If I can, I should gather as much intelligence on this creep as possible… In her Anbu state-of-mind, intel and protecting the Hidden Leaf are at the forefront of her mind.
"So much." He says vaguely, "You can know it only if you really want to know."
"I…" Feeling stupid, she snaps at him, "Of course I want to know. What do you know about my mother?"
She knows that her mother abandoned her after her father died. She is a sore subject for Michiko.
"I know that if you come to Kirigakure, you will find answers."
Eyeing him silently, the wheels in her mind begin to turn.
What is this guy's connection to Kiri? He's an Uchiha. Is he traitor?
"You…" Uncertainly, Michiko slowly crawls out of the blanket until she has pushed herself off the little tatami-mat. "You're…an Uchiha from Kirigakure?"
Obito watches her with interest. It is too easy to manipulate her. He feels a little bored.
"No. Where I am from isn't a secret, but where you are from is."
Boldly, Michiko pushes, "Did you betray Konoha?"
"I belong to a land before Konoha existed. There was nothing for me to betray."
Attempting to distract him, Michiko tries to stand and manages it for a few moments- but she is dizzy so she staggers as her head spins. She reaches a hand out towards him as she stumbles forward.
What am I doing? He's going to kill me. I am going to die. Death by Sharingan.
"You are a traitor." She says, trying to ignore her dizziness until suddenly her vision seems to completely flip.
"Hey…I can't sta...n…d." She collapses.
In nanoseconds, Obito has moved to take hold of her falling form. 'The drug took it's sweet time.' He thinks, rather annoyed that he had to listen to her nonsense.
The second time Michiko wakes up, she is groggy, but less physically-exhausted. She begins to thrash around wildly. She is lying in a bed,in her own bed.
"What the fuck?" She cusses loudly, clambering out onto the floor to crawl to the light-switch. It is really dark.
The light switch isn't there.
Confused, she lets out a frustrated growl and when the light does flick on, the masked man is standing by the bed and his shadow falls over the sheets and over the floor dramatically.
"Are you okay?" He asks, concerned.
Alarmed, Michiko lunges at him like a feral animal with lightning quick reflexes. She hits the wall behind him with a crack. Her shoulder is dislocated.
Obito hasn't flinched. He turns partially to stare at her through his mask. Michiko glares up at him from her place on the floor and she can't tell if he's angry or if he's laughing at her.
"Don't do that again." He says firmly, losing the boyish touch to his voice.
Michiko isn't very obedient when she isn't tired, he notes.
She kicks at his ankles and he steps over her feet easily, amused as she finds her balance and begins to attack him. Her clothes are still torn, and she is filthy from not having showered for- Obito counts in his head the days he has kept her- three days.
With a hidden grin, he creates a water jutsu and releases it. Expecting her to dodge, he pre-empts her movements and throws her into the jutsu.
The water is ice cold. The thermal shock leaves Michiko shivering on the hard floor. Shakily finding her feet, she throws herself at him again. Her fore-arms are equipped with sharpened bone.
'Has her shoulder healed itself? Of course, it has.'
Obito is interested, he lets her attack him, her punches and jabs going through him as he pretends to evade.
Michiko lets out a frustrated growl, "How are you doing that?!"
In this moment of distraction, his hand shoots out and grabs her throat, pressing her to the wall. He holds her there, squeezing her throat.
Michiko feels pathetic and weak. Without forming any hand seals, she intitiates a more complicated version of her kekkei genkai- her ribs churn, sending shreds of pain through her lungs.
Unknowingy, Obito steps closer to her, sandwiching her between himself and the wall, the bones of her ribs invert and pierce his chest.
His grip loosens and his body shivers. His masked face peers down at the little bits of visible bone that have attached him to Michiko. He can feel the bones expanding inside, piercing his lungs. His single eye turns its gaze to the girl. Her pupils have contracted and a bead of sweat runs down her forehead.
"It's painful for you too, isn't it?" With a flicker, he has removed himself from her and she drops onto her feet, her ankles clicking in pain. The bones from her chest are covered in red blood; hers and his.
Huffing from the effort of ignoring the sharp pain, she grinds her teeth together. The bones retract slowly.
"You're not as talented as I hoped you'd be." He tells her, in a disappointed tone.
"Fuck you." She spits venomously, vanishing in a blink. Without moving, Obito reaches out a hand and grabs her out of the air, dispelling her attempt at shunshin-ing her way out of this room.
He throws her through the wall.
Fishing her out easily from under the rubble, he throws her back into the now ruined room. Rolling to a halt on the floor, she slowly rolls herself onto her front and shakily pushes herself up into a crouch. When she eventually staggers onto her feet with her fists in front of her, Obito disappears.
He moves faster than her eyes can follow, punching her square in the face, several times.
To give her some credit, she manages to dodge a few of his attacks and nips him in the face with her knuckles a few times.
Whipping back his arm, he elbows her in the face.
When she falls over, he rolls her onto her back with his foot, tilting his head as he observes that she is unconscious.
Her Anbu Uniform, or what is left of it, clings wetly to her body. Dust and powdered-debris cakes parts of her in a chalky grey. Her face is covered in blood.
To his surprise, her eyes flicker back open and she hazily mumbles something under her breath. He can't quite hear her.
A tiny, sharp whistle of wind slices up through the air, aimed at his throat. Luckily, he moves to evade it, instead slicing half of his orange mask. His other eye, a permanent rinnegan glares down at her, wide and enraged.
Michiko frowns.
"Who are you?" She finally asks, thinking he may as well tell her before he kills her.
His anger is dispelled.
Sighing heavily, Obito crouches to peer closely at her with his partially uncovered face, attempting to lie to her.
Michiko tries to place his face before he can say anything. He looks so familiar to her, that she almost doesn't believe it.
"O…Obito?"
Feigning confusion, Obito frowns "Who?"
"You. You're…no it can't be…" She trails off, trying to sit up desperately, "You look just like him, his face-" Her jaw hurts.
An arm is supporting her back and helps her sit up. She fists her hands in the sleeves of his shirt, her fingers digging into the material, and into his skin. The sensation sends a flush of blood through his body, and he suddenly feels aroused.
"You look like Obito." She whispers earnestly, studying the visible half of his face.
His eye, she blinks rapidly, what is that?
She has read about the rinnegan somewhere, but she can't remember what it looks like- maybe this is it?
Maybe he knows Obito- maybe they were related. Her brain is frozen in thought, half curious, half panicked at the sudden intimacy and lack of space between them- just a moment ago he has beaten her senseless.
He is an Uchiha too. Distractedly, her mind takes her back to the boy before her. She knows from his dark hair and the sharingan in his other eye.
"My name is Uchiha Madara." He says, holding her face between his gloved palms, studying her reaction very carefully. "If your friend was an Uchiha, it is likely he was a descendant of mine."
"Madara?" Michiko's eyebrows shoot up, "Like, one of the founders of Konoha Madara?"
Obito nods, his mouth set in a serious line.
"You're lying." She lets go of his shirt and her hands move to the rest of his mask.
Obito releases her face and takes hold of her wrists, squeezing them and admonishing her "Stop it."
'What an annoying girl.'
"You're lying." She accuses, "I know who you are." She stubbornly tries to pull her hands away but fails. His grip only tightens, sending pain through her already aching arms.
Irritated by her behaviour, Obito snaps- but his tone is calm and collected.
"Who was he to you that you so desperately wish I was him?"
"He was my friend." She says defensively. Tears slowly collect in her eyes and throw themselves down her dust stained cheeks.
"Why was he your friend? What happened to him?" Obito is curious to hear what she has to say.
"…He died protecting his teammates."
"And his death mattered to you?"
"I've lost a lot of people I love." She mumbled weakly, her resolve melting as she attempts to wipe her eyes with her hands. He doesn't let her, his iron grip keeping her very still.
"I'm sorry about that. The Shinobi world is…" He trails off, tilting his head thoughtfully, "It is broken."
Michiko agrees.
On the far side of the land, Konoha is in a post-battle scurry. Shinobi have been carried into hospitals, alongside injured civilians. A call has gone out for more medics because the present ones are overloaded.
Shisui is twisting the little embroidered wrap he gave Michiko months ago between his hands. It was tied to the hilt of her Wakizashi, and it is stained with blood. Kakashi has thoughtfully given the blade to him, ever since they discovered that she is missing in action.
In the Hokage's office, he has been discussing her disappearance with Hatake Kakashi, Danzo and reinstated Hokage, Sautobi Hiruzen.
"She has been missing for three days." Shisui says again, at the brink of his patience. He can't stress enough that her recovery is imminent, for him at least. He worries that in rebuilding Konoha, Michiko will be forgotten as a casualty of war.
Hiruzen has tried to maintain order- with Minato's death and a new Jichuuriki, there is much to be addressed.
At this point he cannot prepare himself for the worst. 'What if she's been killed?'
Kakashi is also on edge, although he hides it better. In his stoic silence, he has observed the nervous shake of Shisui's voice from time to time. He tries very hard not to fidget, his discomfort elevated in the presence of Danzo.
'Goddammit Michiko. Where did you go?'
The second Kakashi heard that she was missing, he deployed his Ninken. They could only track her scent between the Uchiha Compound and the Fire Temple, informing Kakashi that there was the scent of at least three other people; two in the forest between the Temple and the Village and one alien scent by the Compound.
"My Ninken couldn't find anything to help the search- it's like she vanished into thin air." He shifts in place, crosses his arms and peers at Sandaime. In all honesty, Kakashi is disappointed and frustrated.
His last memory is of her gripping his wrist.
'I'll see you when this is all over.' He is holding her to that vow.
Hiruzen clears his throat. The loss of his wife has made him realise his age, and he is still in mourning- he does not wish to entertain the thought of losing a child, after all Michiko is a daughter to him.
"She would never leave her wakizashi. That alone tells us she has been taken. My question…is why." His voice shakes slightly, "She wasn't…she wasn't that unhappy here. She had her family, she had...Shisui." Hiruzen gives the Uchiha a calculating look that leaves Danzo amused, "She had Team Ro. I doubt she would abandon the village."
Shisui stiffens. His relationship with Hiruzen is complex but favourable regarding all matters- save for Michiko.
"We should not jump to conclusions about her abandoning the Leaf, that is true- But Hiruzen, consider her purpose. Her allegiance was questionable from the day she was born."
Danzo does not regret his words, but Hiruzen slams his fist against the ancient desk, "Her loyalty is unquestionable. She has been raised by me as a kunoichi of the Leaf. Her blood does not pre-empt her loyalties- unless you are questioning my allegiance to Konoha too."
Danzo becomes quiet, turning his gaze to the window without betraying any emotion.
"I think," Shisui throws a cautious glance towards Kakashi, attempting to dispel the tension "It may have something to do with her Shikotsumyaku."
Not for a second does Shisui doubt Michiko's loyalty.
He watches the young Anbu captain curiously. Michiko had kept her kekkei genkai an absolute secret since she had discovered it, training with her ability in solitude or with her uncle.
Danzo looks just as surprised as the Hatake and barks a laugh.
"She has it? But the clan is supposed to be extinct!" Concerned, he points his open palms towards Hiruzen and shakes his head, "Nevertheless, I can see how that could be a risk for her, especially with the news on Orochimaru. It would be a shame if he, of all people, got his hands on such an ability."
Narrowing his eyes, Hiruzen assesses Danzo with apprehension. Since the birth of Root and his recovery of Tenzo from the organization, Hiruzen has little faith in his comrade.
He turns to Shisui, speaking calmly and with conviction. "Anyone would be a fool to touch my niece."
The men fall silent, until Kakashi speaks.
"I never knew she had any kekkei genkai." He is careful with his words and has very limited knowledge of this Shikotsumyaku. He makes note to ask Shisui later, in private.
"We spent most of our time on missions together- I don't see how anyone else could know she had it."
Facilitating him, Shisui nods. "She kept her abilities sealed all the time- save for when she trained with Saindaime-sama. Anyone else who saw it, had to be spying."
"And considering I am the only person she practiced with," Says Hiruzen, his voice rumbling in the stiff silence of the office, "It had to be a spy that went undetected."
Danzo nods. He has some intel on spies from Kirigakure that could conceal themselves in the surrounding environment, become part of the trees etc. Unfortunately, he decides that he will not be contributing this information.
He wants to use it for himself.
When he half-turns to assess the Hatake, he catches Shisui giving him a strange look. The Uchiha does not look away.
"We will discuss this after the funerals today." Hiruzen sounds tired, Shisui and Kakashi stand to leave, waiting for further orders.
"You are dismissed for now."