A/N: Word count is ~4.5k

Rating: T for language and dark themes. Also, somewhat descriptive text about burn wounds. Kinda?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Chapter 2 - Broken Souls

Hatake Kakashi was not someone known for his patience.

Prowess, sure. Innate genius, of course. Strength and potential, indubitably.

Patience? … Well, he could admit that he needed some work on that.

Which was precisely the reason why he had dreaded the very moment he found out that he was on a team with Uchiha Obito, the loud-mouthed, always-late, presumptuous, lame, annoying, black-sheep, and downright idiotic dead last. And he still did. Whether it was a matter of staying quiet, arriving on time, doing something—anything right, the boy always had a way of irking Kakashi. Sometimes, he would struggle immensely to maintain his aloof facade. And it was all Obito's fault.

Today was one such day. The dead last always had a habit of being late to missions, even when Minato specified that tardiness was not an option.

Now, this time Minato had told Obito to arrive an hour earlier (therefore making sure that he would be right on time, as he was customarily exactly one hour late), just to give Team 7 that much-needed cushion of time. Sadly, today seemed to be the day where Obito went above and beyond his idiotic-idiosyncratic habits.

The silver-haired Chūnin looked up at the rising sun, ignoring the nervous side-glances from his female teammate and the exasperated sigh from his Jōnin-sensei. It was almost noon, and there was still no sign of their teammate. His eye twitched.

"Minato-sensei." The addressed man looked up from a scroll he had taken out while waiting. "The idiot is almost two hours late. Can we just go without him?"

With a tired sigh, Minato closed the scroll and shook his head, earning him a scowl from Kakashi. "No. This is a team operation, and if Obito isn't here, then we need to go find him." The blonde turned back towards the direction he knew Obito's house was situated and mumbled under his breath. "He's never been this late…"

Kakashi supposed that he wasn't meant to hear the blonde's mumbling, but he replied anyway. "But he's always been late. Because he's Obito. He might be taking advantage of the fact that you never really scold him for it, sensei."

Minato gave an easy shrug as he readjusted his backpack. "I don't think Obito is that kind of person, Kakashi. Let's go check on him, though, he might've gotten himself in trouble." He began walking at a slow and seemingly relaxed pace, but not without the hint of tenseness.

"Yes, sensei," both Kakashi and Rin chorused, falling into step behind the man.

When they were within fifty meters of the Uchiha's house, Kakashi wrinkled his nose as the faint smell of smoke accosted his senses. It wasn't the smell of barbeque or a fireplace. There was a faint smell of wood, but it was not strong enough to be identified as a nearby forest fire. He sniffed the air a few times to identify the source. No, the smoke had a chemical smell to it, fumes from paint and scorched cement…

Wait, what?

His head whipped around to Minato, who had frozen in place with wide eyes. Suddenly, the blonde darted forward and Kakashi followed with Rin closely behind, their eyes fixed on a growing cloud of smoke situated right above a certain street. A certain apartment complex. Where a certain Uchiha boy lived.

Despite himself, Kakashi found that a sickening worry had made its way into his stomach, settling like a leadened rock.

Obito was stupid, but surely he wouldn't have ended up in the fire? He was a Shinobi, and he would've been able to escape from a small house fire…

Right?

As they neared the burning building, the group of three were mortified to find that it truly was Obito's apartment complex that was the source of the flames. If the boy really was in there, then there was no doubt that he would have trouble escaping without the use of Shunshin, Hiraishin, or a technique similar. The flames had fully engulfed the old and decrepit building, turning it into a splendid display of bright yellow and orange dancing with the searing heat and charged air.

Kakashi's eyes narrowed. The air. There was no doubt. It was faint, but there was the smallest hint of chakra, an amount too minute to identify, surging through the air. It originated from the growing flames, and it was obvious then that the fire was not simply a domestic house fire, but the result of a technique.

He turned to Minato to voice his opinion, but before he could so much as open his mouth the man had disappeared in a flash of gold and dark green. Alarmed, Kakashi turned to Rin, who looked equally surprised.

"What… What is he doing?" He turned away to face the flames, his fists balling up in frustration. "We should have used a Suiton technique to douse the flames, at least!"

Rin grabbed Kakashi's arm just as he was about to head into the burning building himself, her eyes wide and distraught. "Sensei, he—he probably had a reason. Kakashi, I'm worried, and I can't… I can't sense as well as you, o-or sensei. Is Obito—"

She didn't need to finish her statement. Kakashi immediately reached out with his senses, trying to find the smallest hint of the familiar, if not annoying, presence.

He hadn't felt the boy's presence, and almost sighed in relief—that is, until his sensei appeared beside them, carrying a bloodied, charred, and almost dead boy in his arms. The only details identifiable were the boy's messy mop of black hair, and the picture frame he protectively held in his chest.

Without another word, the two students grabbed onto Minato's arms and disappeared in a flash towards the Hospital.

It was a hideous sight.

In order to operate on Obito, the nurses had to remove the splintered frame from the boy's hands. It was painful and excruciating to watch, as some bits of the metal had been soldered to his skin, and the charred remains of the epidermis made vile cracking noises similar to the splintering of wood as the nurses peeled it away.

Ultimately, the rest of Team Seven had been sent outside to wait, and wait they did.

It was four hours later that Minato had finally left, but not to rest. He went to investigate the site of the fire, to try and find the reason behind it. Kakashi had informed him of the chakra he sensed, but it was an unnecessary reveal on his part since Minato had already noticed the detail himself.

(Of course he would. He was their sensei, after all.)

When Minato returned, he shared with them the fact that there was no explicit sign of a third party—information that Kakashi did not like, as that meant that the one responsible was either extremely good or it was just Obito who had gone and done something stupid—and that Rin and Kakashi should go home. Neither of them took particularly well to the suggestion.

"What?" Rin started, worry laced in her voice. "No! We can't! Not yet, Obito is still in there—"

Minato held up a hand to stop her. "It's late, and you two have had a long day. I need to stay and take care of a few things."

"Why? Why do we have to leave? The nurses haven't kicked us out, and it's fine that we—" Kakashi reached out to grab his teachers arm, but quickly stopped when Minato winced. His eyes narrowed dangerously. "… Minato-sensei, are you injured?"

Rin looked up at the blonde in alarm, causing the man to chuckle nervously. "I'm fine, Kakashi, really…"

The addressed Chūnin paid no heed to Minato's prevaricating words and tore the sleeve, revealing the blistering skin. Rin gasped in horror, and Kakashi glared at Minato.

The blonde simply looked remorseful at his now-torn sleeve. "I only have a few of these left and it's my favorite shirt…"

His muttering went ignored. "Why did you charge in there?" Kakashi asked, the tension in his tone rising with his voice. "You shouldn't have done that! What if you hadn't been able to make it to Obito in time? The only reason why you made it out was because you had probably placed a Hiraishin mark on the ground or on one of us, but you charged into the fire without even a little preparation!"

Minato's brow furrowed. "Kakashi, there was little else we could do, and Obito was—"

"But you charged in recklessly!" Kakashi fisted his hands in the material of his pants. "We should have used a Suiton! It was too dangerous for you to—"

"I acted as I should have, Kakashi," Minato replied evenly, quickly cutting Kakashi off before he became more incensed. "The building was in less than perfect condition as you saw, and dousing it with water would've undoubtedly made it collapse on itself. With Obito still inside." He lowered his voice and gestured to a few stern-faced nurses that looked like they had bitten into something terribly bitter. "We should keep our voices down, by the way. This is a hospital after all."

Kakashi's eyes widened and he looked away, a shame-induced redness coloring his thankfully-hidden cheeks. It was unlike him to act so emotional, even in a situation that could've cost him a sensei and teammate had it turned out badly. He really, really cared for and respected Minato-sensei, and though he would never admit it, he didn't really hate Obito all that much either. Two hands on his shoulders made his eyes wander forward, meeting his teacher's own.

Minato smiled. "I'm happy that you showed concern for your teammate and sensei, Kakashi, but it's important to think of these things. I didn't charge in recklessly as you had first assumed…" The blonde leaned back, scratching his head sheepishly. "… Though I admit, there probably were other, safer alternatives that wouldn't have left me with first-degree burns. But the important thing is that we are all alive and safe now, right?"

Kakashi had opened his mouth to reply when a cheery nurse walked up to them, a clipboard in hand and a smile in place. "Namikaze-san, you and your group here have been waiting for Obito's status, yes?"

At this, Kakashi and Rin stiffened. Minato simply nodded in affirmation. "Yes, we are. How are things looking? His condition?"

The woman continued to smile. "He's made it through the surgery and is already on the road to recovery. While the burns may leave some scars, there will not be many, and he should be able to move about normally within the month. Aside from the second, plus a few third-degree burns, there were no other injuries or complications. He should wake up within the week, and thanks to our medics, he will be able to resume Shinobi life without any lasting issues."

Minato nodded.

"I must ask, however… As I stated, other than the burns there was no other sign of injury." The nurse's smile faded and was replaced with an eerily dark look. "What happened, exactly?"

Kakashi and Rin winced as Minato's own expression darkened, though anyone that wasn't familiar with the blonde wouldn't have noticed the subtle change. "I'm not quite certain," he began quietly, "my team and I had arrived at his apartment when we realized that he was late—later than usual. His apartment complex was on fire, and I immediately headed in when I detected his faint chakra signature. I found him in the middle of his room, curled up on the floor, holding a picture frame."

That bit of information unsettled Kakashi. That didn't sound like someone who had been practicing a new jutsu, or someone that had been attacked. But maybe he was over-thinking it? Maybe someone else really did set his apartment on fire, and seeing no escape, Obito decided to accept…? The unwanted images of blood, his father, and disgrace flitted through Kakashi's mind and he shook his head, trying to force the unbidden memories out of his head. He really, really didn't need to think about that at the moment.

"I see. Thank you for informing me. You and your team should go home and rest, we shall have someone contact you when the boy shows signs of waking." The nurse bowed, and with a smile, turned to walk in the opposite direction.

Minato turned to his two students, a tired smile in place. "Well, you two heard her. You should probably head home now, it's getting late."

"Only if you go get your own injuries checked out," Rin stated lowly. "Otherwise, I'll tell Kushina-san." Kakashi nodded and turned to Minato for emphasis.

The blonde sighed before shaking his head. "Yes, I don't doubt that you two will," he murmured. "I'll go get them treated, but only once you two leave."

Rin looked like she was about to protest, but Kakashi placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. He knew that Minato wouldn't skip out on getting his injuries checked, if only to give his students and wife peace of mind. Rin seemed to realize this and nodded, murmuring a quiet, "goodbye" to the blonde.

The two uninjured members of Team 7 walked out of the hospital and departed in the directions of their respective houses, engrossed in their own thoughts. Kakashi, in particular, quickly Shunshin'd home to escape the haunting thoughts that threatened to overtake him.

They had gone to visit Obito daily at staggered intervals.

Rin typically brought flowers for the boy, and as a result also alerted Minato and Kakashi when she visited. Kakashi visited once a day, between lunch and training. Minato, who probably felt the most responsible for the incident, visited frequently and for hours at a time. It had only been a few days, but the deepening of the black lines under the blonde's usually bright eyes worried Kakashi, Rin, and Kushina. Over all, everyone that knew him felt the impact of Obito's absence, the lack of his exuberant behavior and idiotic tendencies.

It was an odd team dynamic that Team 7 had, and most likely no one realized just how much the Uchiha contributed until he was gone, albeit temporarily. Without Obito, no one filled the quiet atmosphere during missions with useless banter. Kakashi had no reason to talk to his teammates, unless requesting medical supplies from Rin or asking Minato a question. Minato had no reason to mediate a fight, since most of the quarrels were between Obito and Kakashi. The day that Rin went against Kakashi was the day that the world would end.

Needless to say, in the short while that Obito was not part of Team 7, it felt as though a gaping hole had been ripped through their team. Loathe Kakashi was to admit it, not to mention about the dead-last idiot, Obito was an important and irreplaceable member of their team. And if the past few days were any indication of what it'd be like without him, then he honestly didn't want anything bad to happen to the boy.

It was on the fifth day since Obito's admittance to the hospital that it happened. The remaining members of Team 7 had gotten back from a minor C-Rank mission, and went to the hospital to visit their absent member. Kakashi had been dreading the encounter, as they had received word that Obito was showing signs of waking up. Immediately, his thoughts were weighted by suspicions and worries that he hadn't wanted to think about, that had been shoved aside for later speculation. Now, it was "later."

The silver-haired Chūnin bit his lip as they entered the room. Had Obito attempted suicide? There had been no signs, at least from what he had seen. He knew that Obito had some… Issues, with his family. He knew that he had a sort of inferiority complex that was mostly directed towards himself.

But suicide? Why would he do that? Obito wasn't the type to simply give up on a challenge, let alone give up on life… Right? Then again, it was always the most cheerful that typically had something to hide. Or so it was said. Still, Obito wouldn't just decide to kill himself after so many attempts and failures to come out on top. He just wasn't the type to give up, and that was something that Kakashi both hated and—he would never admit this outwardly—admired about the boy.

As Rin and Minato took the spare seats situated by Obito's bedside, Kakashi opted to stay near the doorway. He didn't want his teammates to realize that he was actually afraid of the possibilities. Afraid of Obito. Though, something in the back of his mind told him that Minato had similar suspicions, if his behavior was any indication.

A quiet groan caused all the occupants in the room to tense, and Kakashi's attention was immediately directed at the prone form of his teammate. He watched with a mixture of nervousness and dread as Obito's eyelids fluttered open, his hand reaching for his face as though checking for his eyes—or possibly shielding them from the light.

"Obito!" Rin called out, a mixture of happiness and frantic worry in her tone. "What happened!? You were rushed into the hospital because of the fire, and you were right in the middle of it! Did someone attack you? Was there an accident? Who—"

Kakashi rolled his eyes as Minato interrupted the girl. Honestly, sometimes Rin had moments where she could rival the idiot of their team in the "loud-mouth" category. He watched as the blonde shifted in his seat and tried to get a better look at Obito. "Do you remember what happened, Obito?" The boy turned his head away from them, and Kakashi's eyes narrowed.

'… What the hell?' He thought quietly. 'You'd think the idiot would be grateful that we visited him.' He let out a sarcastic scoff, earning him a glance from Rin and a pointed glare from Minato. "The idiot was probably experimenting with his clan's Jutsu and set fire to the place. It's not like he hasn't done it before."

"Kakashi! This is a serious situation! There were traces of chakra in the remaining flames, but we couldn't identify who was behind it. It could've been Obito," Kakashi winced. Yes, Minato definitely suspected, and that didn't help Kakashi's own dark suspicions. "But what if it wasn't? What if he's in danger?" The silver-haired boy held an impassive look. The latter possibility was one that would be easier for him to deal with. Then, he'd have someone he could hunt down to vent his anger on. He honestly didn't want to think of the possibility of suicide, and he was rather close to grabbing the injured boy and yelling at him to answer, demanding that Obito tell them what happened and why he did it. But he knew that most of his frustration over the matter was because of his past, and he was a Shinobi. He was mature. He could keep his emotions in check—

The sound of a powerful slap wrenched Kakashi out of his thoughts and he immediately looked up, his body tensed and prepared to attack and subdue. He was left rather confused, however, when he realized that it had been Obito—and he had slapped Rin's hand away. Rin. The girl Obito had a rather obvious crush on. Apparently he wasn't the only one surprised, and both Minato and Rin had frozen in place.

A tense silence fell before she ventured to break it. "… Obito, I need to check your injuries since they aren't fully healed yet." Most likely, she just wanted to check on her own to confirm the reports. It wasn't like she was going against protocol, as she was a certified medic-nin in training and simply checking was allowed. "Not only did you have second and some third degree burn wounds, but the lacerations from the glass of the frame you were holding are als—"

"Where!?" Obito had immediately turned to face them, and Kakashi felt himself stumble. It wasn't killing intent, but the boy exuded such an oppressive air that it may as well have been. The look in his eyes, it was feral, powerful, but not unlike that of a cornered animal. "Where is it!? What did you do with the picture!?"

Rin's trembling hand reached into her bag to withdraw the picture. "I-I have it, h-here—"

It was unceremoniously snatched away from her hands and for a few moments, he looked over it as though inspecting it for damage or forgery. He then hugged it—yes, he hugged the picture—and closed his eyes as though wishing away a bad memory as he clutched onto the charred parchment.

Kakashi stared, bewildered. The way Obito behaved was as though he were someone clinging to a memento, a lasting memory of something that didn't exist any longer. But it was a picture of them. An idiot, that's what Obito was. There they were, the rest of Team 7, visiting him because he had a near-death experience. And yet, he was acting as if they had been the ones to experience it… and died.

Minato was the one to finally break through the tense atmosphere. "Well… I'm sad to inform you that that picture is the only thing to have survived the fire." He rubbed at the back of his neck. "Everything else was burnt to a crisp, including the apartment complex. I've talked to your… Family, but Hokage-sama and I have decided that it would be best if you weren't placed somewhere that's near the clan compound."

Kakashi glared at Obito. He wasn't paying attention, and he knew that Minato noticed this as well. He continued anyway. "Sadly, there isn't enough in the orphan fund for you to be given new lodging, so you'll be living with me for the time being."

That had apparently gotten Obito's attention, because he blinked and murmured the word, "what?" under his breath.

Minato looked like he was about to reply, but the raven-haired boy whirled around to face him, a barely-concealed glare in place. "… What… did you say?"

"I said, you'll be living with me—"

"NO!" Obito shouted, and the vehemence in his tone once again shocked everyone present. Kakashi felt pity for his sensei for the briefest of moments before turning a glare to the Uchiha. "I'm not going to be living with anyone! I'm not even supposed to be here! Stop LYING!"

Kakashi blinked. '… What? "I'm not even supposed to be here"? What does that mean?'

"Obito, what do you mean by that?" Minato questioned, looking for clarification.

The addressed boy seemed to consider something before narrowing his eyes. "Don't act so familiar with me." His voice held such deep-seated resentment, but that wasn't what caused Kakashi's voice to hitch. That wasn't what caused his sensei and female teammate to gasp, either. Suddenly, Obito's eyes bled into a familiar red that was associated with his clan; the dōjutsu that they didn't know the boy had access to yet. "You don't know a thing, and I don't need to explain shit to you imposters. I don't belong here."

'"Imposters"?' Kakashi thought bemusedly. 'Again, saying that he isn't supposed to be here. What is going on?'

Rin's back was tense, and she began to speak. Her voice sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "Obito, wha—"

"Shut up and leave." There was no cheer in his voice, and his tone was one that implied there was no room for argument. Kakashi felt a feeling of discontent bubble forth. "There is nothing for me here. Nothing." A bitter grin stretched across his face and he glared up at the ceiling, a motion that wasn't missed by any of the bystanders in the room. "You expect me to believe this shit, Kaguya!? You really think that you can trick me, Uchiha Obito," he gestured angrily around the room with his hand, "with this?"

"Well… I hate to disappoint," a bitter laugh escaped his lips and he turned to the others in the room, a sneer in place. "I'm not going to conform to your fucking illusion."

'That's enough,' Kakashi thought, trying to quell the anger that threatened to burst forth at the dejected slouch his female teammate had adopted and the pained expression on his sensei's face. He needed answers, and he needed them now. Kakashi slowly approached Obito, his hand inching towards his kunai pouch in case the boy proved to be a threat. Teammate or not, he was a potential threat, and threats needed to be subdued or eliminated. "… Obito," he started slowly, eyes never leaving his face. "Just what the hell is going on—"

"Shut up, just leave me alone already. Let me die. Just let me fucking-die." Kakashi felt his heart lurch at the words, but his eyes were riveted and he watched with sickening fascination as Obito's Sharingan eyes spun into blood-red pinwheels. He had never seen a Sharingan that looked like that, and his senses all but screamed at him to run away or to stop the Uchiha from doing whatever the hell he was planning. "Is that really so much to ask?"

Before anyone could react, Obito was engulfed in what looked to be black flames—and Kakashi couldn't help but think that they were flames from hell. Obito let out a strangled cry as he fell backwards against his sheets, and while Minato and Rin panicked, the former uncharacteristically frozen in shock and the latter heaving gasps, Kakashi could only look on in horror.

Just as Kakashi was about to… What? He didn't even know. He might've run away, he might've shoved the kunai he had a death-grip on through Obito's throat, he might've used a Suiton (though something told him it would've been useless), he might've pulled Minato and Rin away. All he knew was that the black, vicious flames were dangerous, and that they were all in danger. And, just as he was about to act on his first instinct, they vanished—just like that—leaving Obito only slightly charred this time, and the rest of Team 7 bewildered.

For a while, they just stared at the unconscious form of Uchiha Obito, trying to make sense of what had just transpired.

And when Minato quietly said, "… We need to figure out what happened," Kakashi couldn't do anything but nod. Because what else could they do?

Kakashi didn't know. He sure as hell didn't know.