A/N: My personal progress has outpaced this story. I turned my paperwork in a month and a half ago, and met with a nurse to discuss medication several days ago. Today is my second day on mind medicine for ADHD. It's going great so far! Basically, it seems to be boosting me up to the level I'm at when I'm having a really good day. Tasks that I do take 2/3 the time and energy they normally do. I can express myself easier. The background noise of my mind is easier to deal with or not there anymore. I didn't realize how much of a struggle it was to keep it back. Ahh. I don't feel very different, moodwise. Not happier. But I feel more relaxed. Everything's just easier.

Can't wait to see how that affects this story. And now, onto the part you've (probably) been waiting for...

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Obito

Obito's heart pounded. He didn't know what to think. He wanted to sit somewhere and digest what he'd been told. Thankfully, the group of strangers broke up. The large man with the green and red eyes explicitly told everyone not to be intimidating. After much deliberation through gestures, refusing to speak aloud, they somehow agreed to leave the man with the hand mouths behind as a tour guide. Deidara. Obito would have felt more comfortable with the orange-haired man, but was too shy to say so.

"So, what do you guys want to check out first?" Deidara asked. He fiddled with his ponytail. "Or just hang out, or…" He didn't seem to know how to be a tour guide.

"We'll wait for your friend with the orange hair to finish sending his updates," Black Zetsu said.

Deidara looked hurt. "Okay. Yeah, I guess he would be better, yeah." It was unclear how long they were going to be waiting, so he leaned back against the desk and continued to fiddle with his ponytail. "I gotta admit something, yeah. I, uh… I was arguing with Kakuzu, yeah. The big guy with the stitches. He's a stick in the mud who doesn't like change. I thought inviting over new friends would be like a big Fuck You to him. Not that that's all I - I mean, I am interested in getting to know you guys, yeah. But I just wanted to see the look on his face. Now that the big moment's over, I don't know what else to do. Yahiko's way better at making new friends than I am, yeah."

"It's okay," White Zetsu said with a huge grin. "I can totally understand!" Black Zetsu groaned.

"Can I ask a question, yeah? Uh… Black Zetsu, when you speak, why don't I see your mouth move?"

"Not sure he has one," White Zetsu said before his other half could get out a word.

Black Zetsu growled. "He was talking to me. To answer the question, I don't share a mouth with him. I speak independently. I'm not sure how. It's irrelevant next to everything else."

"Cool." Deidara pulled out his phone in a series of disjointed, hesitant movements. "I'm just gonna… Make sure Yahiko knows…"

Obito let out a sigh. They're not all super confident. I might be okay. He watched Deidara blush while texting and felt relieved. And the way they all banded together to keep Hidan safe… They can't be bad people. His thoughts were hopeful, but his body remained unaffected. He could not bring himself to do anything other than stand where he was and look around nervously. I hope people like Kakuzu are okay with us…

Yahiko returned shortly. Before leaving, Deidara told him, "I'm gonna go check on the, uh, pets with Itachi." Yahiko nodded. He glanced at Zetsu, then away, rubbing the back of his head. He acted just as shy as Deidara.

"Are we going to get any kind of actual tour?" Black Zetsu asked.

"Uh, if you want one, sure! We…have a game room," Yahiko said, pointing down the left hallway. "You know what, visiting the game room is a really good idea. Let's do that." He walked away without waiting for a response. He did glance back to see if they were following him. They were.

Obito gasped at the sight of the dolls. He hadn't been expecting them. His heart raced. He began to sweat all over. Were his thoughts going loosey-goosey, or was that just a normal effect of stress? How much control did he have over his arms? His whole body shook. No! Not this soon!

Yahiko

Yahiko picked up a couple of the dolls. Therapy dolls! That's just what I need to make everyone comfortable. He cradled one in his right arm and turned and held out the other one. "You guys can -"

The man in the orange mask jumped. His arms flew apart. "Eek!" he squealed. He clasped his hands together. "So cute!" He darted forward and snatched the second doll from Yahiko's hand. He held it up and spun in circles. "So, so, so cute!"

Zetsu stepped out of the way. Yahiko's jaw dropped. Wow! He's not nervous at all anymore! These dolls work wonders! He burst out laughing. "Yeah, they are!"

Obito clutched it to his chest. "Can I keep it?"

"Uh…" Should I tell him about the living ones or not? They need to know eventually. He seems like he's not going to freak out. "Hold on," Yahiko said, holding up his hands. "You haven't seen anything yet. I'm going to show you my personal favorite doll. When you've seen him, then let me know what you think." Yahiko put down the doll he held, then darted out the door, down the hall, into his bedroom. Little One was jumping on the bed. "Come on, Little One, I know someone who'd be very happy to see you," Yahiko babbled while scooping him up mid-jump. He ran back to the game room. He squeezed Little One perhaps a little too tightly under the armpits and thrust him forward. "Ta-da!"

Obito tilted his head. "Oh?" He wasn't squealing with excitement anymore, but his voice still hadn't come down to its former pitch. And he hadn't gone back to acting the slightest bit shy.

Little One waved his arms. Yahiko put him down. Little One continued to wave his arms for a few seconds. Then he looked up.

The resulting scream nearly took the roof off the building. Yahiko closed his eyes and covered his ears. When he opened them again, he found the masked man racing in circles around the room. "WOW! Omigosh omigosh omigosh yayyyyyy!" He stopped immediately - chakra had to have been involved - and crouched down before Little One. "Hello. I am Tobi. Can we be friends?"

Tobi? Yahiko realized that the masked man really was acting like a totally different person. He even sounded like one. Oh. That makes sense. He smiled.

Little One looked shy. Yahiko crouched down beside him and patted his head. "This is Little One. He's the quietest and calmest of the four dolls we brought to life. I'm afraid he doesn't like running around or loud noises very much. Warlic's probably more your style. The others are in the backyard."

Tobi straightened up and clasped his hands together again. "Ooh! Let's go see!"

Yahiko picked up Little One and cradled him gently. Little One turned and clung to his shoulder, just like a toddler. Tobi tilted his head. "Mm…" He sounded stressed. He looked back and forth between Little One and the door, swaying on his feet.

Yahiko blushed. Is he going to say something about me holding a doll like it was a baby? But only a second or two later, he realized, Of course not! He wants to hold Little One too! Yahiko pried the doll off his shoulder and held him out again, mumbling something about being gentle. He was sure that eggs could have been fried on his face.

Tobi squeaked and took Little One from him. Tobi held the doll gently, as instructed. He tilted Little One on his back and held him in his arms like a baby. He sang, "Rock a bye baby, on the treetop. When the wind blows, the cradle will fall…"

Yahiko's whole body went limp as he watched Tobi do this. Tobi was completely un-self conscious. He wouldn't mind. He wouldn't say anything. Yahiko found himself making the handsigns for Transformation Jutsu. He experienced a brief spasm of fear immediately after performing it. But only a brief spasm.

Tobi looked up. "Oh, pretty! How are you a pretty lady?"

"Magic," Yahiko replied. "It's real."

"Can I do the magic?"

"Yeah. Anyone can teach you Transformation Jutsu. You can transform yourself into, like, frogs and stuff."

Tobi gasped. "Even an elephant?"

"Yeah."

"Cool!" Tobi stared off into space, pondering the possibilities. Little One seemed to enjoy being held like a baby very much. With a twitch, Tobi came back to the present. "Right! Other little ones in the backyard!" He lowered Little One softly onto the floor, then took off at a speed to rival Hidan's.

Yahiko stared after him. "Wow. Tobi's…" So cool. The best person ever. Like me. A flood of protectiveness surged over Yahiko. His hands tightened into fists. "Super adorable." He ran out to the backyard.

He found Tobi already in the backyard, sitting on the largest of Deidara's spiders and cuddling Warlic, who was fighting to get free. "Da fuck?" Deidara asked. Itachi looked on. Kisame and Kakuzu stood on the porch, watching.

"Stop trying to run away, we're gonna be friends," Tobi told Warlic.

Yahiko walked down the steps onto the grass and cleared his throat. "Attention, everyone!" he called in his loudest, most commanding voice. He was startled to hear it sound masculine, despite his female form. Everyone, even Tobi, looked up at him. Warlic seized his chance to escape into the grass. Yahiko walked over and laid a hand on Tobi's shoulder. "This is Tobi. He's adorable. Everyone is to treat him accordingly."

"Woah!" Yahiko allowed Tobi to get up and dart over to Kisame. "Are you a shark? That's cool! Were you a human, and then some witch tried to curse you, but she wasn't a good enough witch to do it all the way? Or were you a shark, and a magician tried to make you human, but you escaped before the spell was over? Can you breathe underwater? Can you speak shark? Which ocean did you live in?"

"Uh…" Kisame leaned away from him. "Uh…"

Kakuzu rolled his eyes. "Great," he muttered. "Another -"

Yahiko used chakra to zoom right up into Kakuzu's face. He glared. Kakuzu's eyes widened.

"Another?" Tobi asked. "Another what?"

"...Another time," Kakuzu answered. "There are going to be many rounds of questions, because we're all very interesting people. It's going to take time to answer them. You don't have to ask all your questions at once."

"You and Zetsu are gonna be best friends!" Tobi told Kisame. He ran back to Zetsu, who stood just outside the back door. "Don't you think so, Zetsu?"

"Sure," White Zetsu replied.

"Come here, best friend!" Tobi chased after Warlic, who abandoned his hiding place behind a rocky platform and ran away. Tobi scooped him up and cuddled him ferociously. Winds began to howl and whip around the yard. Tobi didn't seem to notice. Kisame finally shook himself free of his shock and ran over to tell Tobi that the dolls preferred to be held gently. Tobi looked down at Warlic, then flipped him over to lie on his back like a human baby. Tobi sang, "Hush little dragon, don't say a word. Mommy's gonna feed you a mockingbird. And if that mockingbird gets stuck, cough up a feather for good luck." Warlic stopped struggling and lay still. Tobi tickled his belly, making him wiggle.

Itachi nodded. "Adorable indeed."

"Is he, or she, or they, like, seven years old, yeah?" Deidara asked Zetsu. Zetsu shrugged.

Yahiko grinned as Tobi sat down in the grass and made gootchy-gootchy-goo sounds to Warlic. Wow. Tobi's really something. He's so confident and unafraid, so happy, so loving, so… His smile faded. How could anyone take that away from a kid? He was no longer thinking of Tobi. I didn't deserve to be yelled at. How could I have deserved it? I was just a kid.

He turned his head towards Kakuzu. Kakuzu met his eyes. Yahiko stared back, not flinching away. "Don't," he said.

Kakuzu smiled, just a little. "Understood," he replied.

Zetsu

This is great! We have nothing to worry about, White Zetsu thought to his other half.

Don't be so sure. Tobi might be popular, but Madara…

We'll burn that bridge when we get to it.

They watched Tobi play with her doll. Deidara stepped closer to whisper, "Seriously, how should I refer to Tobi?"

"However you want," White Zetsu whispered back. "Obito thinks he's a boy. Ani and I think she's a girl. We've tried asking Tobi if they're a boy or a girl, but Tobi never says anything. And they live in Obito's body, so it's impossible to check."

"First of all, you can't check for gender identity, yeah. Second, dude. Checking a kid?"

"Oh, yeah, that stuff that's in the news lately," White Zetsu said. "We don't watch or read the news."

Black Zetsu glared at Deidara. "You get to complain about the idea of checking for a person's sex when you stop putting flowers on display at every public event."

Deidara blinked. "Oh. Damn, I never thought about it like that." He flushed bright red. "I, I, I didn't know there were plant people. Plants don't usually, like, complain about stuff."

Black Zetsu snorted. "If someone doesn't complain, that gives you free rein to treat them however you'd like? So selfish. We stay away from wider society, especially politics, for a reason."

"Sorry," Deidara murmured.

I want to learn more about what he was saying about gender identity, Ani. But before White Zetsu could ask, the woman with the paper butterfly burst out into the backyard. She looked deeply, deeply unhappy. They were very glad not to be in front of her. "Attention," she barked.

"What is it?" Kisame asked. "Has something happened?"

Yahiko gasped. "Hidan!" She spun around. He? Yahiko had said they wanted to be referred to by the same pronouns all the time. "Hidan is an empath," Yahiko explained to Tobi and Zetsu. "He feels other people's feelings. Tobi probably overwhelmed him. Konan, this is Tobi. Tobi, Konan. He's adorable and about seven years old and we're all gonna treat him accordingly."

Tobi put Warlic down and zipped over to Konan. "Ooh, pretty! I like flowers too! I gather them and sometimes put them in hair. I've never made any out of paper though. Very fancy!"

Konan froze. Her face went blank and her whole body language stiffened. Black Zetsu narrowed his eye. What's her problem with Tobi? White Zetsu asked, feeling hurt. Konan blinked. "Yes, I appreciate flowers," she said in a very neutral, bland voice.

"Would you like to see the flowers I gather?"

"Not especially. I'm very busy. But Yahiko would."

Tobi left to ask Yahiko about flowers. Konan relaxed. What is her problem with Tobi? Black Zetsu thought. She seemed alright with Obito, but that could have been putting on a tolerant face for the sake of her friends. It's not exactly difficult to tolerate Obito, as quiet as he is. But Madara.

She's scary, Ani.

Doesn't matter. We promised Obito we'd look after him. As much as I hate to say it, that means protecting Madara. Ugh. I can't believe I just said that.

They said Hidan's alter is creepy and antisocial too, White Zetsu remembered. Maybe they'll be more comfortable with Madara than you think.

I don't care what the rest of them think. That woman is very different from the rest of her group. She talked like she'd come swooping in from somewhere else, like she wasn't part of their extended acquaintanceship. I don't trust her farther than I can throw her sharky friend. Not even that far.

Konan confirmed that Hidan had gone bananas at the same time as they heard Tobi's scream. She wanted to investigate the scream immediately, but had to calm Hidan down first. That took a great deal of struggle and, she implied, some brute force. Hidan was in someplace that she called the sunroom, trying to stay calm while she found out where the burst of hyperactive joy had come from. Konan bowed her head and said she would return with her findings. Black Zetsu kept his eye on her all the way to the door.

"That's why we were out here too," Kisame said, gesturing to himself and his stitched-up friend. "Good to know it was a happy scream."

"Yes, yes, I love these living dolls!" Tobi replied. She held Warlic against her stomach facing outward in much the same position as the doll had earlier tried to escape from. She must have been gentler this time, as Warlic did not struggle. She waved at the other two dolls, who huddled together near a giant white spider as if frightened. "Hello! What are your names?"

"The one with the yellow dot is Solis, and the red star is Manta," Itachi answered. "Manta is very protective of Warlic. I do not know why he didn't attack you. Solis is more reserved. He is sociable and often plays with the others, but prefers quieter activities like Little One does."

Tobi waved hard enough to shake her whole body back and forth. "Hello friend dolls!"

Zetsu went down the stairs and tapped Yahiko on the shoulder. Yahiko joined them on the porch up against the wall. "Tobi's a superstar!" Yahiko whispered. "Don't worry. I was yelled at as a kid for liking girly things, for not acting like your typical boy. I won't do that to anyone else, and I'll make sure nobody else does that to him. People in this group listen to me. They'll treat him well."

"Most of them," Black Zetsu murmured back. "Did you notice how your group leader reacted to Tobi? She doesn't seem to like him. She put on a polite face and fobbed him off on you, but I can't help but wonder if she's going to be a problem."

Yahiko looked shocked. "Why would she not like Tobi? Hidan's hyperactive and acts like a young kid sometimes, and she likes him. I don't know what that's about. I'll find out."

"Good," Black Zetsu replied. "I want to know more about her. The rest of your group seems to be alright. But she's not like the rest of you, is she?"

"Ahem." The large man with the stitches made his presence known before coming close enough to hear their discussion. "What's going on here? It sounds like something serious."

"They're worried that Konan doesn't like Tobi," Yahiko said. "We should talk about this somewhere else. Everybody's looking at us." Deidara was busy explaining to Tobi that anything anybody insisted on talking about very quietly was really important and really private, so they should be left alone. The stitched man nodded, raised a hand to tell his shark friend everything was alright, and led them inside. Zetsu momentarily debated whether or not they should leave Tobi alone with the strangers. They decided he would probably be alright. It was more important to find out what Konan's problem was.

Yahiko took the lead, finding an unused bedroom and closing the door. "Kakuzu isn't Konan's biggest fan," he told Zetsu. "He likes practical things and staying safe and not taking wild chances. He's cautious. He's the perfect person to help you find out if she has a problem with Tobi and why."

Kakuzu sat on the bed. "I noticed her freeze-up too. It doesn't mean what you may think. If she's angry, you'll know it. Freezing up like that is more likely fear. Tobi might be accidentally reminding her of something from her traumatic past." He looked at Yahiko. "Which is much more dangerous than if she were angry at him. If she's angry, at least she's in control of herself. But if she goes into a flashback, she can inflict serious harm without realizing who she's fighting or where she is. Keep Tobi away from her. To be safe, keep Obito and anyone else who lives in that body away from her, too. I'll rope in Hidan to figure out what's going on and how to stop it. She nearly killed Yahiko once because of a flashback. I can't allow that to happen again."

"That said!" Yahiko interrupted, stepping in between Kakuzu and Zetsu, "she is a kind and decent person. She has her struggles, but she is struggling with them, trying to get better. She's not an angry person or a bomb waiting to go off, and please don't treat her like one. She just has a complicated past. She, um, comes from a place very far away from here. A place with a very rigid and violent culture, where you do what you're told and you're usually told to fight. She was trained to fight and, and, kill from a young age. She's still learning how to live a peaceful life and how to relax and go with the flow. But she is learning. Please don't treat her like a monster."

Both of Zetsu's eyes widened. A child soldier? Black Zetsu thought. Ouch. I can see why Tobi acting like such an innocent, carefree kid would disturb her.

Oh, how sad!

That said, she can't be allowed to hurt them. I agree with Kakuzu here.

"That sounds awful," White Zetsu said aloud. "We feel bad for her. We're still gonna go along with this guy's plan though."

Kakuzu nodded. "Konan is secretive. She doesn't talk about her past any more than she has to. But I can force her to talk about this."

"Ani thinks Tobi acting so happy and innocent reminded her of her own lost childhood," White Zetsu chirped.

"You guys can share thoughts?" Yahiko asked. They facepalmed. "Of course you can, you literally share a brain. Sorry."

"Hey, speaking of, can you tell me more about this gender stuff? We don't watch the news."

Yahiko blushed and said they would be happy to talk about it. Kakuzu rolled his eyes and left the room. Zetsu sat down on the bed with Yahiko and listened attentively. They soon discovered that the matter that Deidara and Yahiko were so careful about was a matter related to being seen inaccurately by society and having a different body in one's mind than in the outer world. I think we found a way to identify safe people, Ani, White Zetsu thought. Anyone who's understanding and careful about gender is probably okay with Obito and his situation too.

Black Zetsu said nothing, but felt greatly relieved. They had never found a way to identify safe people without revealing Obito's secret and watching the results. This was a great part of why they avoided society in general. It felt…nice to not have to carry the burden of looking after Obito and the others alone. Any indignation Black Zetsu felt about being coerced into hanging out with these strangers just because Tobi was friends with them vanished. They might be nice to spend time with. He didn't dare hope they would be like a family, but he allowed himself to hope for friends for the first time in his life.

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A/N: Dear gods I love these new characters! I'm especially happy for them that they were introduced after I had learned to write well. They don't have to deal with the vagueness and lack of direction I used to have. Great for them! I'm so happy to be able to treat them well from the beginning.

Poor Obito, getting quite possibly the shortest scene I have ever written for a character. I can't wait to revisit him next chapter.

I've given up on adding any new headings besides character names and General. It's just too much work and feels like being too fancy to have two or three viewpoint characters in a scene where there are more characters than that present. If I'm going to have a bunch of people together, either there's one viewpoint or it's getting labeled General. That said, I am happy to have a character name that encompasses two characters. I wanted to try having multiple viewpoint characters in a scene for a reason. I thought it would be interesting. It's great to be able to do that without having to get too fancy by making up new pair names like Gemini or something. That was a cringey idea and I'm glad I didn't do it. Zetsu is cool.

So, yeah. I had a main cast of ten. Let's just go ahead and add five more characters. Surely increasing the number of main characters by half again won't be a problem. What could go wrong?

Edit: Also, I was wrong. Upon looking at the original publication date of this story, I see that it was July 14th. This chapter, then, is not the last chapter of the fourth year. The next chapter will be. I don't go by 52 weeks = one year, I go by the actual calendar date.