Revamped Series Edit Completed: 31 July 2017
Toying With The Past Is What We Do
Chapter Fourteen
Dogs Or Cats?
The sun had set a few hours ago, casting Konoha into shadows with only the moon and village lights as a guide through pitch black.
The two time-travelers are currently in an alley, doing… well, Obito doesn't know, really.
He knows he's bored and running out of patience, and while that was never a problem in his future, Kakashi destroys whatever forbearance Madara had instilled in him.
(It reminds him how Madara fixed and destroyed him simultaneously.)
Obito glares at the former-Jōnin who is looking over the crate they are hiding behind, ignoring Obito's restlessness. Eventually, he clutches Kakashi's scarf and yanks so the other boy lays on his back. He stares down with a vexed sneer. "What the hell are we doing here? I'm fucking bored, you know!"
I miss sweet, naïve Obito, Kakashi mourns. Aloud, he says, "Waiting. Duh."
The Uchiha's eyes narrow and bleed to crimson. He places a hand over the other boy's heart and phases, his hand going through Kakashi's body and the ground below.
"You wouldn't dare," Kakashi mutters.
Obito smirks, aligning their faces with evil intent swimming in his red gaze. "Try me…"
They stare each other down until Kakashi folds, rolling his eyes while drawling out a long "fine." He knows Obito won't kill him, but honestly, his friend is too unpredictable. He is certain Obito will do something involving pain if left in the dark for too much longer.
Obito helps him up and then crouches behind the crate, anticipation rising as Kakashi hand seals the transformation technique. The resulting smoke clears to reveal… a dog?
A small dog, with silver fur and a gray snout. It's actually adorable, and throw him over a cliff, he just called Kakashi adorable. How late is it again?
Kakashi rests his front paws on Obito's thigh, tilting his little head with his tongue lolling over his chin. Of course he has to go all out with this new appearance. It is not adorable, merely obnoxious, really. No way adorable.
Someone then walks by, an intoxicated middle-aged man with a sake bottle in one hand. He's mumbling under his breath, face flushed pink from the alcohol and tripping over his own feet.
That is just embarrassing, Obito thinks with a palm over his face. Where's the self-respect these days?
Kakashi quickly abandons his position on Obito's leg and rushes toward the man, barking periodically while swaying left to right in a drunken manner beside him. The man eventually stops and stares. He scratches his chin, baffled by the dog's behavior. Seeing it stop moving as well, he subsequently stumbles back three steps. The dog attempts to follow, only for its hind legs to bend inward, collapsing to its bottom. The stunned expression sets the man off in a fit of giggles and hiccups, falling to his knees and patting Kakashi's furry head.
The man finally staggers off, waving gleefully at the dog running in circles. Once he is out of sight, Kakashi negates the jutsu, throwing Obito double thumbs up.
Obito crosses his arms and sighs. "And what was the point of that, puppy dog?"
Kakashi grins big enough to be seen through the mask. "Let's just say there is someone special who never fails to walk this route, and I think they deserve a…" he giggles mischievously, "warm welcome. But until then…"
Curious Obito is, but vocal his friend is not. He abstains from an aggressive interrogation, deciding to accompany Kakashi's insanity, though not without some form of fight. He refuses to reduce himself to a dog of all creatures.
A few minutes later, another pair of footsteps near.
The time-travelling Uchiha is replaced by a cat with sleek obsidian fur, ears painted white as homage to his former-whitened hair and eyes colored blood red. With polished grace, the feline leaps onto a garbage bin and then a roof, readying for the person walking by. Its mutt of a companion watches intently in the shadows, and when a young woman strides by, the cat dives with a wide stretch of its limbs.
Their target is mentally occupied by boyfriend problems, visualizing possible reactions to a separation, so when a weight lands on her shoulder, she justifiably shrieks. Waving her arms frantically, the cat on her shoulder slips down her front, claws hooking into her shirt and unbalancing her. She does a one-eighty-degree skid and plunges to the ground, back first. Dazed, she does not shoo the cat off her, even as it nuzzles her face and leaves fur along her nose and cheeks.
"I know you did that on purpose," she drily comments with a sigh, petting along the forehead and its endearing white ears that flicker beneath her fingers.
As she stands and continues on her way, she realizes her anxiety has waned, no longer as debilitating.
…She should really pick up a cat from the pet shop this week.
Inu-kashi and Neko-bito bump their heads together as her silhouette disappears, and as more citizens are subject to their shenanigans, Obito can acknowledge this is actually a bit fun. It is a nice change of pace from the brooding and plotting of his previous life in the future.
He can almost pretend he is six years old again as he and Kakashi chase each other at the feet of a little girl. She twirls on her toes, giggling with jubilation when the black cat bounds over her head and the dog knocks its little head against her knees. A man hollers her name, and visibly disappointed, she reaches out for a quick pat on the dog's back while the cat brushes along her leg.
She vanishes into the distance as they undo the transformation.
Obito crosses his arms, begrudgingly saying, "I have to admit. She was cute."
Kakashi 'awws' and pokes the Uchiha's cheek. "Looks like Obito's going soft," he coos.
"Shut up," Obito snaps, slapping the digit away.
Just as the silver-haired ninja is about to reply with something provocative, jaunty laughter sounds behind them.
They flinch and, cursing their inattentiveness, whip around to see their former teammate.
Obito freezes for a moment, trying to regain some semblance of his long-forgotten infectious grin. He manages a feeble smile after observing Kakashi whose eyes go from cold to warm then back again, before deciding on a smile with his eyes crinkled shut. Rin responds to their convivial expressions by walking out of the shadows from a neighboring building.
When Rin comes up to them, she smiles back. "You guys were so adorable. It was really fun to watch."
Obito falters, trying to decide on a non-biting response, so accustomed to being the jerk Kakashi classifies him as.
He settles with a simple, "Thank you, Rin," his intonation borderline sad, which the girl doesn't notice.
Kakashi seems to have an easier time with social exchanges, not limited to Obito and his father, as he says, "But it's much more fun when you're the one doing it."
Rin's eyes widen, probably shocked Kakashi interacted with her in such a friendly manner. Although he had become cold and bitter after his father's suicide, before, Kakashi had still been somewhat of a loner, and rarely, if ever, intermingled with his classmates.
She recovers from her shock and shyly looks away with a slight blush, requesting, "Could I join in?"
They say yes, in the end, because even if they could not become her teammates, they could still be her friends.
Five minutes later, a familiar head of blond hair is seen.
Obito loses control of his facial muscles, jaw dropping when he registers the man – boy, he reminds himself, he's only fifteen here – is their former sensei, Namikaze Minato, a tiny notebook in hand and writing in a frenzy. He remembers their sensei had yet to master the Hiraishin, three years too early, which means he would be unable to flash away should they… greet him properly.
He glances at Kakashi to see thrilled anticipation just as he returns to his mutt form. He looks to Rin who grins eagerly before choosing to transform into a long-haired brown dog, its paws inked dark purple as to seem black without close view. As he shrinks into a cat, he realizes Team Minato has reunited, though far younger than when they had been assigned as a team previously. Almost like a family reunion, only with tragedy, betrayal, and manipulation in the background. Yep, one big happy family…
Obito and Kakashi crouch down and ready their paws, Rin following suit and waiting for their signal.
Even as the blond passes by with them shadowing him, he takes no notice of his stalkers until a sudden sequence of growls and hisses assault his ears. The target tenses and rotates, scanning his line of sight before bowing his head to locate the source. When blue eyes settle on the wide-open mouths framing their pointed canines, the pen and notebook slip from his paralytic fingers.
Minato gradually steps back only for the three animals to prowl forward, drool dripping from the dogs' muzzles. The sole feline crouches lower, its spine arching until the fur begins to elevate. He has a mere second to whimper before they pursue his sprinting figure. Panicking, he forgets he could easily jump to the rooftops, continuing to run through the main road and sometimes straying to the secret routes he had memorized over the years. At every abrupt corner, his sandals slide across the dirt in his haste, and every glimpse behind is greeted by the glowing eyes of the devil black cat and its savage minions.
All throughout the chase, he is screaming at a shrill decibel, inciting civilians to dart from their houses to point and laugh at his misfortune. Others are less amused, mainly parents, shouting with irritation and rage for causing such ruckus past dusk and 'think of the children.'
He misses the commotion around him, fleeing for an hour that is a mere fifteen minutes in real time. By the fortieth backward glance, Minato realizes the cat and silver dog have grown bigger, more menacing and demonic. Both his sides cramping and heart practically forcing itself out from his ribcage, he scurries to a lone tree in a farmer's yard, scaling the trunk and up to the highest, sturdiest branches.
By the time he looks down, the malevolent trio are at the base, tearing the bark with serrated claws and still snapping at him.
Minato can do nothing but weep into his hands, barks and hisses reverberating in his ears until the sounds could only be found imbedded in his mind, as the cat and two dogs have long since departed.
Fleeing from the scene, the three animals are encased in smoke to reveal the former Team Minato who collapse to their backs, heads touching each other in a circle, gazing at the starry sky.
Rin titters from leftover adrenaline, breathlessly saying, "You were right, Kakashi. It is more fun when you're participating."
Obito rolls his eyes when Kakashi titters along.
Had they always been this annoying? he wonders, but not without a fond smile.
"Though for some reason, it feels like you two had a grudge against that blond shinobi."
He and Kakashi maintain their silence in response to her observation, and in effect, their innocence.