Author: quietbun

Chapter 10: Recovery

Obito paced the hallway like a caged animal, glaring at any servant who got near. He knew he was being unreasonable, and sulking, but he was upset that he had been left behind at such a critical moment. That mixed with the tight knot of anxiety at the bottom of his gut had him high strung. It had been nine hours since Kakashi and the others had left and Obito was starting to think the worst. He liked to tell himself that he was angry at being left behind and not afraid. He was angry! Really angry! But it was because for all he knew Kakashi could be dead and he would have no way of knowing. And that. That made him scared. He lashed out angrily at the wall, kicking it violently and accidentally shattering part of the ancient wood and sending splinters flying everywhere.

"Oh! Fuck!" He exclaimed, jumping back, and colliding with someone. "Shit!" He spun around, hoping one of the servants hadn't just watched him destroy half a wall; they were already afraid of him as it was. When he turned around to see who he had run into his eye widened when it met the familiar flinty grey one.

"I thought the point of doing the sealing in the cave was to avoid destroying the manor." Kakashi's voice was strained, but still managed to be amused tone.

"You—!" Obito clenched his fists as he tried to process what to say. "You jerk!" He finally huffed as he pulled his friend into a rough hug and buried his face into the crook of Kakashi's neck so the other boy couldn't see him cry. He didn't let go for a long time, so relived was he that Kakashi had come back alive, and that the resealing had seemed to make things better. At least for the moment. He looked better. Maybe it was the fact that he had been standing on his own, or that his skin no longer looked so ashen.

"O-obito… You have to stop crushing me…" Kakashi wheezed, and Obito pulled away sharply, his eyes still watery.

"Ah! Sorry!" He yelped, feeling heat rush to his face. "I guess I don't know my own strength huh?" He said sheepishly, glancing at the remains of the wall.

"Guess not," Kakashi grumbled, swaying a little then leaning heavily against the wall. Obito fluttered anxiously around him.

"Are you okay? How'd it go? The seal's all fixed? And what took so long?"

"It was... kind of a process. I didn't wake up for a while. And the medics wanted to make sure me and- and sensei were stable before we moved." Obito didn't miss the hesitation, or how Kakashi ducked slightly at the mention of their teacher.

"What happened to Minato-sensei?"

"I don't… really remember," the other boy mumbled. "They said he'd be alright, but I hurt-"

"There you are! Kakashi don't disappear like that dattebane! You shouldn't even be up!" Kushina interrupted, sliding the door open much more loudly than Kakashi had. Slightly out of breath herself, she glanced between Kakashi and Obito for a moment before a wide grin split across her face. "Ohhhhhh, so that's why you were in such a hurry Kashi-kun." She teased with a wink in Kakashi's direction and Obito could have sworn he saw his face redden beneath his mask.

"I just wanted to tell him I wasn't rotting in some cave in the middle of the forest, don't make it weird Kushina." He snapped back, crossing his arms across his chest. "Minato-sensei was too exhausted to use Hiraishin anyways."

"I'm surprised you're not exhausted as well Kakashi. You walked almost all the way by yourself." The level voice of Minato added, as he came to stand next to his wife. He looked worse for wear and there was a splint on his left forearm. Bandages peeked out of his long sleeved shirt. Obito didn't comment. Even if the injuries didn't look too bad he knew Kakashi must feel awful about it.

"I took lots of breaks." The white haired boy insisted, color creeping up into his ears and the uncovered bridge of his nose.

"Yes, well. We're here now, so how about we all sit down for an actual meal? You can too if you feel up for it Kakashi." Minato suggested.

"Sounds good to me, I was getting really tired of those dried rations. I should've packed a lunch," Kushina complained, already walking in the direction of the grand dining room. Kakashi grunted in agreement and Obito rocked back on the balls of his feet in happiness. Maybe from here on out things would finally start to get better.

"Hey, Bakakashi, do you think I should cut my hair?" Obito asked out of the blue one day, a month after the fateful resealing as he and his friend trained in the summer heat.

Shirts had been discarded early in the day as the two boys sparred and practiced in an open grassy area near the manor. Obito was only on his eighth handstand pushup when the thought of cutting his hair came to him. His brow was already sweat soaked and the dark hair that he normally wore up in a tight knot now fell messily into his face, sticking to his forehead and back.

As far as Obito could tell, things had been going pretty well with the Sanbi. According to Kakashi his demon hadn't made a peep since being sealed up. It was a little unnerving knowing that something so dangerous was lurking in his friend… not that he would ever tell Kakashi that. And it wasn't that he was afraid of him! Obito had just seen firsthand how much that monster could hurt other people its Jinchuuriki, and though he had been good at hiding it Minato-sensei's arms were hurt badly during the resealing. Not to mention what had happened to Rin.

According to Kushina beasts were quiet almost all the time, so Kakashi had been allowed to start training again once he had recovered enough. Mostly he just did physical exercise since becoming a Jinchuuriki had messed up his chakra control. Obito felt bad about it later, but the look on Kakashi's face when his first clone jutsu failed miserably was priceless. Minato-sensei and Jiraiya handled his chakra training for the most part now while Obito was happy to have someone to work out and spar with.

Kakashi glanced at Obito with disinterest as he raised an eyebrow and continued to do sit ups. "Why do you ask that now? Your hair has been long since you came back." Obito still heard the slightest bit of hesitation before the words 'you came back' and it still made him feel strange.

"Yeah, but it's so hot! I've always had short hair; how was I supposed to know it would be like wearing a coat all year long?!" He whined, pushing himself up into the air once more, his arms straining.

"Cut it if you want dumbass, it makes no difference to me. Other than it's easier to grab onto in a fight." Obito stuck out his lip in a pout.

"Rude Kakashi! You're supposed to say 'You'll look great no matter what Obito! Wow it's so cool that you even managed to get your hair that long!" Obito was too busy glaring at the mass of hair that had pooled on the ground to notice Kakashi glance at his bare chest, then to his scared face, then turn away again, his face beneath his mask red from more than just the heat and the sit ups.

"It's not like it takes effort to grow hair."

"Shut up! I'll keep it long then, ha."

"Whatever you want. It's fine either way."

Kakashi was silent for another moment, leaning forward to grab his knees and staring pointedly at the creek. "Uh, yeah. Anyways. Kushina heard that the local village is holding a summer festival or something tonight and she is probably going to force both of us to go, since Minato-sensei doesn't think I'll flip my shit and demolish the place anymore. So, I've already said I would go but I figured I would ask you before she did, just to take that satisfaction from her, so do you uh, want to go with me to the festival?" The Jinchuuriki finished lamely. Obito blinked in surprise and toppled down from his handstand. Kakashi let out a sharp bark of laughter as Obito ate a face full of grass.

Obito spat out the dirt in his mouth before he glared at his friend.

"Asshole." He huffed, finally realizing what Kakashi was asking. A summer festival sounded fun and his stomach was already growling at the thought of all the delicious festival foods. Neither he nor Kakashi had left the manor since they had arrived, so this was a rare chance to visit the nearby village. He was just about to say that the festival would be fun and he would totally kick Kakashi's ass at the fish catching game, when a new thought dawned on him.

Don't couples usually go to festivals together? Like. People who are dating? The thought made Obito blush bright red and he quickly turned away from Kakashi to take a long drink from his water bottle. Oh fuck. Was Kakashi asking him on a date? Did he want Kakashi to be asking him on a date? Should he say yes? What if people thought they were dating!? He rocked back and forth from foot to foot before finally glancing back at Kakashi, who seemed just as disinterested as before, but with what could be confusion on his face as well.

"Are you asking me on a date Bakakashi? Are we gonna watch the fireworks together and hold hands?" He asked teasingly, not knowing how else to put the question. Kakashi's visible eye widened, and this time Obito saw the blush the spread over his bare shoulders and up to ears as the other boy remained silent. That was not the reaction Obito was expecting, and his mouth fell open like a stupid fish as Kakashi shrugged.

"If you… want it to be." He finally muttered, standing up quickly and grabbing his shirt up from off the grass. The long haired Uchiha stood there gaping at his friend for a long moment, trying to figure out if he was kidding or not while Kakashi turned away from him and took a drink from his water bottle.

"Are you being serious?!" Obito finally demanded, striding up to the shorter boy. Kakashi turned back to face him, mask back in place, eyebrow raised curiously.

"What do you think?"

"I don't know! That's why I asked." Obito retorted, furrowing his brows.

"It's not a big deal Obito. If you don't want it to be it doesn't have to, and if you do it can." Kakashi said calmly as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

"You…. You idiot! The only way I would ever go on a date with you is if you actually wanted to!" Obito clenched his fist over his chest and shook his head. "I don't want to go if you don't care!" His heart was pounding wildly in his chest and he squeezed his eyes shut tightly.

In the time since he'd come back and Kakashi had become a Bijuu vessel Obito had thought, well mostly hoped, that they had become better friends. It was so hard to tell with Kakashi, who only showed emotions through his fricken' eyebrows! Maybe if he was better at expressing what he felt then Obito would have an easier time figuring out what the heck he'd been feeling recently.

Two weeks ago Kakashi finally managed to summon his Ninken. He had disappeared under a pile of squirming dogs for no less than ten minutes, and even after that none of the dogs left his side, making comments like "Boss you smell weird!" and "Obito has a tree growing out of him can I pee on him?" and "We missed you so much!" That was the first time Obito had ever seen Kakashi smile so genuinely, and even though it was behind his stupid fabric mask it still made Obito's heart skip a beat.

Ever since he'd had a hard time concentrating anytime Kakashi was nearby. He would space out for entire chunks of Minato-sensei's lectures about Mokuton or Bijuu or Mangekyo just to notice the way Kakashi's hair fell and curled in some places. When he was called out on it Obito's face would turn about as red as Kushina's hair.

Another change was that he had started sleeping in the massive Hime room bed with Kakashi. They used to sleep next to each other all the time on missions so it really shouldn't be a big deal. Obito claimed that it was because the mattress was softer, but in all honesty sleeping alone scared him shitless because it always left him with the most vivid nightmares his brain could possibly produce. Only in Kakashi's bed could he sleep soundly. He was halfway sure the other boy had nightmares too because sometimes he would be woken in the night by Kakashi's labored breathing, followed usually by the sound of him running a bath. Neither of them ever talked about it. With all of those changes happening it made sense that Obito would think that he and Kakashi were at least friends.

The problem was Obito knew he got attached easily. Rin was one of the first people to show him any sort of kindness and he had instantly claimed she was the love of his life. His family made sure to remind him how pathetic that was, and to inform him regularly that her blood line was civilian and therefore trash in their eyes. Just remembering their words made him doubt his own feelings- was he just a bother to Kakashi? To Minato and Kushina? Did they all think he was annoying, and only put up with him because they pitied him? When Rin was… When Rin was alive he used to ask her all the time if she really liked him, even if it was just as a friend at the time, and she would always smile and tell him of course. He only asked Kakashi the question once since he had returned, and the other boy and just rolled his eyes and replied with "What do you think dumbass?" which had left him feeling even more miserable and confused than before.

"I do want to go with you Obito." Kakashi's voice was firm and cut through Obito's spiral of thoughts. He blinked tears away and stared down at his feet. "I want to go as… whatever it is we are, and if that's dating then that's fine with me. If it's just friends that's also fine. That doesn't change the fact that I like you alright?" Kakashi grumbled so quietly he was almost inaudible. "Geez dumbass, you make me spell everything out for you."

"So… You do… want me around?"

He snorted and nodded. "I wouldn't have put up with you for so long if I didn't." Kakashi said, doing his best to look anywhere but at Obito. The smile that spread across Obito's face was so bright it put the sun to shame. He curled his toes into the grass of the lawn and bounced happily.

"Awesome! I'm so excited! We're gonna do all the games! I'm going to catch way more fish than you Bakakashi!" And with that he grabbed his shirt and sprinted off to get ready. The grass could be seen growing longer wherever his feet touched down, flowers blooming as he grew near and wilting as he left, growing only at his touch.

"BA-CHAN CHECK ME OUT!" Obito howled, his voice sounding through the whole manor as he leapt out of his room, his yukata tied around his waist leaving his chest bare. Kushina looked unimpressed as he spun around to brandish the writing painted onto his back. "Isn't it cool? I look like some wild thug from the Yakuza!"

"You look wild alright, but unfortunately THERE'S NO WAY YOU'RE LEAVING THE HOUSE LOOKING LIKE THAT DATTEBANE!" She ended with a shout, punching the boy hard on the arm.

"OW! Why not you crazy hag!?"

"What was that?" She had an iron grip on Obito's ear when Kakashi entered the room, dressed in a simple black and white yukata.

"You two are too loud. Also Obito, you do know the writing on your back says 'Toad Face' right?"

"Aw What! Jiraiya told me it said 'tiger heart!"

"Well he lied. Now go get dressed like a normal person please, we're late as it is." Obito stuck his tongue out at his teammate before going back to his room and washing the ink off his tanned back. Both he and Kakashi's yukatas had been found in the Uchiha closets and Minato said it was okay to wear them. While Kakashi's had just boring black and white stripes, Obito's was a brilliant blue, decorated with pin-wheels. "It kinda looks like our Mangekyo doesn't it?" He had exclaimed when he found it, and claimed it immediately.

Kushina didn't let any of them leave until she had convinced Obito's hair to sit in a somewhat messy bun at the top of his head, the Kanzashi holding the hair in place.

"It's the best I can do for right now, but at least you don't look like a homeless child anymore." She said with a sigh.

"Yeah yeah, now can we go please?"

"Alright brat let's get going." All of the servants and Shizune had left for the festival at least an hour ago, so it was just him, Kakashi, and Minato, Kushina, and Jiraiya walking to the village. Them, and the squadron of ANBU Obito could now sense following them closely. Probably for the best.

They could hear the music before they reached the village, and Obito was already bobbing his head along with tune. The drums players were pounding heavily and Obito could feel the festivities in the air. Obito bounced along the road, until he couldn't take it anymore and started to sing.

"Tailed Beast Counting Song!"

"All right, here we go!" Kushina grinned as she recognized the song she had taught Obito to remember all the names of the Bijuu. It was strangely popular out in the countryside.

"One, "Sleep is better than humans,"

says Shukaku.

Two, Burning in fire, Matatabi.

Three, Leave the water to Isobu."

Kakashi had tensed at the mention of the three tails, but Obito grabbed his hands and began to spin him around in what could only roughly be considered a dance.

"Four, Hot as lava, Son Goku.

Five, Always on the run, Kokuo.

Six, Taking it easy and

not in a hurry, Saiken.

Seven, The flying leaf insect, Chomei.

Eight, "Yeah!" is all it needs, Gyuki.

Nine, "Ko-kon" cries the mighty Kurama."

Obito could see the grin playing on Kushina's face as he spun Kakashi around the road, almost careening into the other festival goers as he belted the song.

"All the Tailed Beasts have

finally come together.

They're a little hard,

but they're nice names.

They're all splendid names.

They're all wonderful names!"

When he finally let go of Kakashi he was panting and out of breath but grinning so hard his cheeks hurt. Kushina had told him the song was about when the Sage of the Six Paths created the nine beasts out of the ten tails, and Obito liked it a lot.

"You're an idiot." Kakashi grumbled as he regained his composure.

"So are you! Now let's go! I want taiyaki and you're buying!"

Alternate chapter title: everything is happy and nothing hurts. Give it up for quietbun the fluff master!

Naruto sings the tailed beast song in Shippuden episode 330. It's very cute and if it isn't a children's song in Narutoverse it should be. It's on youtube here: watch?v=p3pwMQA33r8

Wow okay that took a long time to update huh? Good news is that I went through and did a bunch of editing on all of the previous chapters. I feel like they're finally starting to get cleaned up and presentable. Don't worry, I never change plot points with edits so you don't have to reread anything (unless you want).

Uploaded: 1/29/15