Chapter 5.
10 years ago
Obito was horrified on the advent of the End of Year Exams, this was no regular test, it was going to decide which university you will ultimately attend, he cannot afford to get mediocre grades. Only a few weeks ago, whilst visiting his family, his father had scolded him for his "apathetic approach towards excellence", lecturing him that it was a trait in his family to simply "be a league above everybody else". Conceited idiots, he thought to himself.
Only this time Obito wanted to excel—no, he had always wanted to, it's merely the fact that he accepted the truth that he would never be as intelligent or prodigious as his best friend Kakashi. However this time, he was desperate for it.
Therefore a very stupefied Kakashi stared at the Uchiha at bewilderment upon hearing a request from his normally-so-goofy-and-unconcerned friend on some extra tuition.
"You can't be serious."
"Of course I am Bakashi," Obito snorted.
"Um… alright I guess you can come with me to the library… just, pay attention and don't doze off."
The goofball groaned as he glimpsed at the mountainous pile of notes, textbooks and encyclopedias, like hell was he actually going to remain there until eleven at night.
"Come on Bakashi, can you please offer me some advice on concentration?"
"Just concentrate."
"I did, for the past 3 hours!"
"You can leave if you want to, I'm staying a bit longer."
"No but there is still something I want to ask you, page 76 question 10…"
After enquiring his friend on all that he is unsure of, Obito decided that he'd rather spend the rest of his night not hogged by books.
"Come on, are you serious? Two more hours? Take a break!" He blurted out; his friend's studious habits were honestly, very, very, vexing at times.
"No I need a little more time to finalize this…"
"Alright then, I'm going to find Rin-chan and the others, see ya! Bakashi."
"Don't call me that."
He saw her walking out of the girls' boarding house, probably to escape all that stressful revision.
"Hey Rin-chan!"
"Obito…" There was something off about her; he couldn't really pinpoint what exactly. Was it disappointment? Disenchantment?
The edges of her eyes were slightly pink and misty.
"Rin… what's the matter? Anything you want to talk about?"
"No… nothing really, it's not that bad," except seconds after speaking those words, tears sluiced down her cheeks.
"Are you alright?" Obito was actually starting to get worried.
"Yes… no, of course not!" She couldn't contain herself anymore, without even noticing it, she had inundated her friend in a torrent of rushing words," I just didn't know what to do, my parents were never really that rich, they did agree to pay for my university fees in America if I got in it, but I just feel, so… so… selfish! I couldn't help it, but being a doctor was my dream… And I really wanted a PHD—now that would be too much for my parents, what if…" her voice trailed off as it became drowned by sobs.
"Hey Rin-chan…" his voice was surprisingly soft," if being a doctor really is your dream, then you better keep pursuing it, don't ever give up okay? It doesn't matter if you don't get in a good university, because… because… you're just meant for this… all right? Don't let anything discourage you."
"Thanks Obito, I guess you're right, I'm going to become a doctor either way… but how am I supposed to decide?" Rin still appeared troubled, she was still crying, unknowingly, she started hugging him.
"Look, I've never been good with family relationships, but I'm sure of one thing, you're family, you're mum and dad… they'll always support you no matter what you do, they'll be proud of your choices, your decisions regardless of how circumstances turned out… and if it doesn't work out, then… I can try to help… I'll always be there for you…"
"Obito! Are you sure… no… I think I'll just have another conversation with my parents, thank you so much. Hey, I've been revising for quite a while, want to take a walk with me just to clear our minds of the mess?" She pulled herself together.
"Sure!" he beamed back at her, it was night but she could still vaguely perceive his signature wide grin and orange goggles that reflected the argent moonlight. She grinned back at him, it was nice to know that Obito always figured a way out of the paths of pessimism and whenever needed, he was still the same cheery goofball that she had befriended on orientation day.
They had only walked for a couple of minutes when they coincided with Asuma and Kurenai.
"So you guys are dating, Kakashi and I were right!" Obito bellowed triumphantly.
"Oh, and Mr.I-am-always-late had finally mustered the guts to ask Rin out," Kurenai responded with the same sense of elation glistening in her eyes.
"No Kurenai, Obito and I were just taking a break from all that studying, we're just hanging out really…" Rin fervently defended.
"Yeah right, normal friends don't go taking each other on night time strolls, it's reserved for couples only," Asuma chuckled.
"No, no, no, no, NO!" Obito was blushing furiously, he couldn't have been more grateful that the dimness concealed this from the rest of them.
"Ah well, denial," Kurenai sighed, glancing at Asuma, "that's what happened to us until a few days ago, we've finally decided to go out publicly."
"I don't see how this is public," Obito snorted.
"No, silly, we're going to prom together!"
"That's it, I completely forgot about prom!" Rin interjected.
"Well, girl, you need a date for that," Kurenai had started to tease her again.
"It's not mandantory!"
"Denial, denial…"
"After that, Obito and Rin went all paranoid about finding a date for prom, honestly, Rin had hinted multiple times that she wanted be to be with her by offering to help me with this and that, but I played ignorant while Obito had asked me for tips on how to ask Rin out… It was all hard work for him, along with the upcoming exams, those were probably the toughest two months of High School for that poor kid!" Kakashi was in one of those 'past' dispositions again. "It eventually worked, well I kind of told Rin that Obito had an undeniable crush on her and clearly stated that I saw her as a friend and nothing else. Somehow, those two managed to work it out…"
"Playing matchmaker?" Shisui questioned.
"You could put it that way! Though mind you, it was way more subtler…"
Anko slammed her desk in frustration, "look Ibiki, now their talking about silly prom dates!"
"Relax Anko!"
"Speaking of prom dates, I wonder who is Kakashi's…" she muttered to herself, only to hear her silver-haired ex say, "I just wasn't bothered to get one."
"I KNEW IT!"
Her colleagues sighed in annoyance as she surveyed every single nuance and tincture of movement on the screen. The message they got: she wanted to have a make-up talk with Kakashi.
Obviously Anko denied that.
5 and a half years ago
"Alright me lads!" Anko chirped at Kotetsu and Izumo, both frightened so much by her presence that it looked as if they would wet themselves. "Welcome to my unit, I'm your boss, our key assignment for the moment is too…" she did a convivial scan through her papers, which were in fact, crammed with legal matters and affair regarding to the law, which were Kakashi's expertise; they were something Anko herself could never fathom, she always preferred having her partner conduct that side of the job.
The two men gulped, first impressions: their boss was scary or at least dauntingly assertive. Fortunately, his assistant/ partner appeared relatively sane. They crossed their fingers and hoped.
"As I have mentioned, there have been signs of illegal experiments being conducted on people all across the city; biological experiments, from the evidence that Kakashi and I have collected, they were performed by the same person, or at least same team. I want you two lackeys to hand these samples down to the laboratory for proper analysis, because my assistant—"
"Partner," Kakashi made an attempt to correct her, smirking slightly beneath his professional veneer.
"Oh just shut up you prissy, you're my minion, everyone knows that. Anyways you two, Kakashi here—"
"Glad you're finally starting to refer me by my name—"
"Stop interrupting! Those two lads needa know your name for future co-operations and I'm taking the liberty to introduce it. Basically that guy," she made an irritated gesture towards her mildly amused assistant, "is afraid of dissection, corpses—you name it we got it—"
"In my defense if a police or detective were afraid of corpses they would be unfit for the job and care to explain why I have been your longest lasting partner?" That was partially true, corpses were no big scare, it was when the entrails started spilling, and the sheer sight of it caused Kakashi to convulse in disgust. "Then I think there's the necessity of reminding you that these biological samples contain neither entrails, blood nor flesh, they're chemicals that—"
"Whatever, since when did you get into the habit of consistently trying to correct me like a pedantic prissy. Look, I need you here to help me deal with a couple of crucial documents. And you two! Do as I say, take these samples to the lab, got it?" Her sadistic, imposing manner of speech immediately informed the two that there was no backing down. The police stations laboratory was… repugnantly gruesome. Enough said about it—Kakashi himself tried his best to stay away from it as much as possible, though Anko personally relished in the processes of dissection and surveyed the nuances of grotesque, hazardous chemical components with uncanny interest.
After Kotetsu and Izumo exited the room, Kakashi decided that he had been acquainted with his partner long enough to broach on the matter of the criminal on which Anko had much coveted to capture.
"Anko…"
"It's Miss Mitarashi or Mitarashi-sama for you," she replied brusquely, though not deliberately bellicose—her tone of speech was somewhat acquired through her tomboyish attitude and problematic past; the thing is, Kakashi noticed, Anko found the very concept of trust incomprehensible as well. "Scarecrow," she added for the sole purpose of teasing the man.
"This criminal you were always intent on arresting, you've never bothered to tell me his name, so far in our partnership, you've always referred to him as 'The Snake' or his criminal code name—"
"Orochimaru." Anko frowned impatiently. Why is the man beside her so frustratingly inquisitive?
"Excuse me…" Kakashi's voice trailed off.
"His name's Orochimaru, yes you heard it right. That guy practically ruined my life. Happy?"
10 years ago
The results came out today, as predicted, Kakashi had obtained a place in one of the countries top universities and much to her delight, Rin had gotten in one of the top Medical Universities in the USA. Obito himself was surprised at how well he did comparing to his usual grades—he had managed to make it into one of his parent's desired universities. All seemed well.
Except their separation.
With a sunken sensation, Obito knew his days with Rin and Kakashi were limited, sure they could still keep in contact after they each went their own ways, but it won't be the same anymore: Rin was virtually across the other side of the planet whilst he himself would be busy with everything and Kakashi, Kakashi still retained his tunnel vision when it comes to work.
However, two weeks of High School still remained, two weeks of carefree blitheness, two weeks of procrastinating around the route of life—Obito intended to make the most out of it. Besides, he grinned to himself, prom was coming up.
The entire night slipped away in a blur, spasmodic disco lights, the clinking of cups, the ubiquitous air of effervescence, the smell of alcohol, the awards of prom king and queen, the mouthwatering cuisines, the slow dancing, the lavish attires and Rin.
To be frank, poor Obito danced with two-left foot and his date, Rin, wasn't much of a dancer either. As a result he kept on tripping over her lavender gown, slipping and she had given up on restraining her laughter.
"Obito, you are just so adorable!"
"Meh… don't blame me I don't dance." He skulked.
He glanced at Asuma and Kurenai with a tincture of envy, those two were naturals, they had the fluidity, the suave and the chemistry.
"Obito-kun, don't worry about them!" she chuckled.
"Let's just join Bakashi and Gai in their drinking game."
Sure enough, only a few feet away, Gai had challenged his 'eternal rival' to a drinking competition, and by the looks of it, he was beginning to loose—it probably not a bright idea to challenge someone like that when you had one of the school's worst alcohol intolerances.
For the past four years, those two had carried out some of the most eccentric and extreme challenges, varying from as mundane as scissor, paper, rocks, to climbing trees, to basketball and now, drinking.
"Hey guys mind if we join?" Obito asked.
"Sure I hereby declare alcohol as unyouthful, my head feels dizzy!" Gai replied, his cheeks livid, one more shot and he'd probably drop down on the floor.
"Gai, you're alcohol tolerance sucks," Obito remarked flatly.
"Um… guys I've never really drank before…" Rin was a little embarrassed to admit.
"I barely do it, just on some family gathering occasions," Obito replied, while speaking he ordered a shot.
That night was the first time in their lives that they got drunk, Gai went first, immediately collapsing and breaking into a snore, then it was Kakashi who got completely wasted (perhaps the only time in his life) and disturbingly talkative, striking conversations here and there, earning incredulous looks from students who always perceived him as calm and reserved.
Obito felt a warm fuzz in his head and Rin's cheeks were a mild pink colour.
"Obito… mind if we go outside for a moment?"
"No problem!"
The ambience outside contrasted starkly with the vibrant dancing and singing, the humidity of summer was already manifested and the air was suffused with tranquility. There wasn't a sound apart from the occasional chirping of birds and grasshoppers, yet due to the pollution in the cities, the sky was almost devoid of stars. In response to their surrounding environment, both of them just kept on walking.
"Look, Obito," Rin smiled sweetly, this was the kind of smile that imbued Obito with bliss on the inside. " I just wanted to thank you, I mean you've been so supportive of me, I just… I just didn't know what I'll do without someone like you in university."
"You wanted to study medicine right? Then do it! I'm sure you'll make lots of friends there."
"You're right it's my dream, it's just… know that I'll miss you a lot okay? Kakashi too. You are my best friend—no, much more than that." She shook her head. Am I delirious? Thoughts collided with each other in turmoil, could I really be falling for him? No, but Kakashi… Yes I like Kakashi…
In a sense Rin had loved him but she had always dismissed it as sisterly love, or love between friends—all her romantic feelings were directed towards Kakashi. Yet now she contemplated, was that actually love or mere infatuation? No, Kakashi was still her really good friend, it's just, Obito was family, and he was someone she could completely relate too, regardless of the situation. Now those thoughts were tormenting her again.
"Right back at you!" Obito re-fastened his—in her opinion, rather comical and endearing—goggles. "Hey, I think I want to join the police, be some sorta safekeeper, you know? I was just thinking that once you returned from America, we can… hang out?"
Rin laughed good-naturedly. "Well thanks for mentioning that captain obvious!"
"Guys we have to get Anko away from the screen," Genma whispered to his colleagues, deeply unnerved, "or she'll go crazy."
True to his words, Anko was yelling at it impatiently, commanding Kakashi to speed up on his account.
"Some things just can't be rushed," Ibiki shook his head.
"Anyone up for lunch?" Izumo, who had recently risen in their ranks and had been a previous assistant of the frenetic woman, inquired.
"You guys go, I'm staying!" Anko spoke defiantly.
They all gulped, sometimes, there was just no reasoning with this woman.
"I'll stay too then," Ibiki said, "just to prevent her from barging in their interrogation."
"The rest of the term, went by pretty fast," Kakashi sighed, "those were the good old days."
"I have a question, why did you decide to become a member of the police force, instead of, you know, becoming a lawyer?"
"No idea, it just seemed the right job for me."
"But it sure is a lot of hard work and danger."
"So is being a lawyer, granted, it may be less dangerous…"
"You're a funny guy."
"Anyways, the day Rin departed for the Americas, me and Obito were there in the airport alongside her parents…"
Kakashi had seen his friend cry on several occasions, but none as serious as this, there was something a little wrong about his appearance.
"It's just… I'll miss her so much…" he sobbed, "but, I'm so happy for her at the same time."
Kakashi had never been an expert on comforting people, he was unsure on what to do.
Discerning a nuance of distress in his friend's eyes, he patted Obito on the shoulder, "you guys would see each other someday, I mean, she said she'll come back afterwards. Besides you guys can always use letters and email. It's not the end of the world."
Obito nodded, his eyes still red.
That was it.
His goggles were missing.
"Hey, Obito, where on earth are your goggles?"
"I gave them to Rin-chan when she asked for it, as a parting gift you know," he laughed.
"Obito, dear lord, you give the most peculiar presents to people!"
"Hey Bakashi, admit it, you loved—no, practically drooled over the Icha Icah Make Out Paradise series!"
Nervously re-adjusting her seat, Rin Nohara glanced pensively out of her window, above the clouds, the sky was always clear blue. She was anxious, apprehensive and slightly agitated about her upcoming prospect, a few days later, she would began a brand new phase of life, at a land which she knew so little about in person…
To ease her nerves, she clutched Obito's orange goggles and made a silent promise.
Obito, she assured herself, I'll be all right, I'll come back to you someday, meanwhile… just don't hurt yourself, I'm still watching you, you know.
And Kakashi… I'll miss you too, look after Obito okay? I know I've never got around to tell you that I love you, but… but, will you wait for me?
A/N: Well how was it? The scene with Anko took me quite a while to write up and I'm at least faintly satisfied with the outcome. Also, I'll be putting up a poll sometime next week about whether you would like to see Shisui or Anko as the fourth main character so send me your thoughts! One another note, how did you find the overall characterization, did I manage to distort the characters too much from their canon personalities?
Like seriously, do review, reviews help me a LOT and I do tend to go back and fix some inconsistencies that you all so helpfully pointed out and also, reviews are a source of inspiration that I fall back to when I get lazy or demotivated to write this.
And finally, I have a few Team Minato story recommendations:
The Mistakes He Made by SimplyUnmistakable
Summary: AU Something goes wrong with the Moon Plan and Obito is thrown back in time, back in his twelve years old body. It's another chance, but a chance to rethink your decisions doesn't mean you'll end up making the good ones. Obito/Rin.
My thoughts: It's a multi-chapter story so there's none of the frustration you get from one shots when you keep yearning for more. Obito's inner turmoils between who he was, what he had done and who he wants to be now that Rin's alive, the Rin in this story is simply fascinating, her character development from a vulnerable kunoichi to a strong-willed, independent thinker is pretty believable and some of the dialogue between the two had me a little teary eyed.
A Switch in Time by WDW Summary: Rin gets rescued, not by her teammates, but by two mysterious, strangely familiar men.
My thoughts: One shot, hilarious, leaves you longing for more.
Children's Folly by pinkfloyd1770
Summary: Death was easy. Kakashi never leaves the Iwa cave, and Obito shoulders the burden of a shinobi's life.
My thoughts: A very insightful, heart-wrenching one shot as to what might possibly have happened if Kakashi had died instead of Obito. A must read if you're interested in Team Minato AU's that are in Narutoverse.
Duplicity by WDW
Summary: Rin Nohara wasn't as perfect as everyone thought. A five part story and epilogue.
My thoughts: Cried again on that, a very interesting intake to a previous theory that Rin was a spy for Kiri and well... read more to find out.
Scarred by Bracken Light
Summary: With Rin dead and his life destroyed, Obito must face the numbness of everyday life with just his memories and the scars. But when a naïve, over-eager brat who refuses to give up walks in, he can't help but be intrigued. Torn between the past and present, Obito finds himself faced with a guy who wants to hear him say that he cares. And he'll do anything not to. Possessive!Obito AU
My thoughts: Like seriously, don't let the fact that this is yaoi put you off, the plot here is simply sumptuous and the author manages to incorporate all sorts of elements, characters of Naruto into a modern day scenario perfectly. Basically Naruto goes to work and Uchiha Enterprise and Obito's his boss, then we meet characters like Itachi, Sasuke, Zetsu, Sakura and even Tayuya (who, by the way is completely badass). If you must, I guess you can skip the smut scenes.