MINATO

When Minato arrived in the clearing to meet his students, Kakashi was the first to notice him. Beside him, Rin glanced over a second later, catching the attention of Obito–

Obito?

He stared at the unexpected member.

Minato pulled his limbs to controlled strides. His pace slowed considerably, but it was still mindfully natural – just slow enough to give him time to gather his wits.

It was common knowledge that Obito was dead, having sacrificed himself for Kakashi's sake. … apparently, it appeared, that was not actually the case.

There was an upward stretch on Obito's lips when he spotted the blond closing in – one of relief and uncertainty and untold longing. "Surprise?" Obito said, turning towards him.

Minato let out a held breath. "I would appreciate it if one of you explained the situation?"

"Umm, I'm not actually dead? I was saved," Obito tried unhelpfully, before jerking a thumb over at the fourth man standing behind the three teammates.

Minato hadn't overlooked him, this white being whose chakra pulsed in a fashion unlike any human Minato met before. Minato wasn't even entirely certain the being was human, considering the lack of facial features. But none of his students seemed wary at its presence, so Minato allowed himself to seem accepting as well. – Seem, of course, was very different from actual acceptance, because Minato's senses had been trained on him throughout the entire conversation, and he had weapons palmed and chakra swirling just under his skin, should it make any unexpected movements.

Kakashi lifted a hand to rub his left eye where his sharingan laid. "It's Obito," he confirmed, quick to understand what Minato truly wanted to know.

Minato nodded, guard lowering – but not completely; never completely. Not that he didn't trust his precious students, but lies and deceit did not have to be deliberate to still be considered as such. A shinobi could never be too careful.

He turned to the white being at last. "You were the one to save Obito?" he probed cautiously.

He didn't quite expect the hollow, cheerful voice that echoed back towards him. "Ah ha ha, yup! Well, sort of. Just following orders," he said and gave a thumbs up.

"Orders?"

"Guru guru and the others are some sort of artificial humans made from a statue by Madara," Obito offered naively. "And I know that sound unbelievable since he's supposed to be dead and all, but he's not. Just old, wrinkly, and sleeps a lot."

There was only one deceased Madara who Obito would know of. "Why exactly did Uchiha Madara give these orders?" Minato said carefully, eyeing them both.

The white being was silent.

"Uhh, I think he wanted help with his goal," Obito replied quickly, dismissively. "Something about a world where nothing bad happens? Honestly, I didn't pay much attention; I just wanted to go home," he glossed over.

He turned towards the artificial being as if looking for confirmation.

But the one who spoke up next was not Guru guru, but Kakashi, in a voice prickling with hardness. "It's the Infinite Tsukuyomi, isn't it?" he said, glancing up briefly towards the sky, leaving Minato to wonder what Kakashi knew that he hadn't shared with the rest of them.

How had he immediately gathered that this 'perfect world' was code for genjutsu, and known which exact jutsu had been intended to be executed?

The white being was equally impressed.

"Ehhh? How do you know about the plan? Obito never said Bakakashis can read minds!" It made exaggerated movements that were likely the norm, considering the way Obito ignored it all. "Madara is going to save everyone. It'll be a good dream," it continued eagerly, nodding, "where no one will die and be sad."

"It'll be a dream with no free will," Kakashi refuted, because genjutsu were anything but. However, his words meant nothing – perhaps the artificial human was just not human enough to understand that living peacefully was not truly living without the ability to make conscious choices.

It dismissed Kakashi's words and when no one else spoke up to defend Madara's goal, it visibly sulked and turned to leave. It sunk into the ground, seamless and instantaneous.

Kakashi spun sharply towards it.

"Kamui," he growled and then staggered alarmingly limp as the being swirled through a void in the air.

Minato caught the teen before his knees struck the ground. The feel of Kakashi's chakra reserves fluttered too low for Minato's liking.

Kakashi shoved off him to sway on unsteady feet. "I know my limits," he cut in, before Minato could reprimand him, though knowing his limits and knowing to act safely within those limits were two separate things. Minato frowned wordlessly at him. "Madara needs to be stopped. I sent him away before he could convey our disapproval of his plans to Madara," Kakashi continued doggedly, as a distraction to his own matter, no doubt.

Beside them, Obito was silent – had been since Madara's plan was being laid out by Kakashi.

"I- It can't be that bad-" Obito argued, frantic eyes gazing from Kakashi's tense form to Rin and Minato's displeasure as the explanation had progressed. "When the old man explained it, it didn't sound that bad." He turned towards Rin. "I would never let him do it," Obito insisted desperately.

"Of course not, Obito," Rin pacified. "We know you."

"You know now to make an informed decision," Minato contributed.

Kakashi was oddly silent.

"W-wait! He can still talk to Madara," Obito said anxiously over their comforting words. He paced weakly, fingers clenched over the white stump of his right arm, gaze wrenched away from the three. He spoke to the ground. "Guru guru told me he can speak telepathically to other artificial humans, and there're others by Madara's side-"

Minato stretched his senses, in case the man decided he wanted Obito back. Surely Madara hadn't spent all that time healing Obito just to let him walk away – not that Minato understood what was so special about his student in the first place.

Trees rustled, the wind howled in their ears.

"It's fine," Kakashi cut in. Minato turned sharply over. Kakashi moved idly under his intense gaze, tapping his left eye. "He's in the kamui; he can't communicate with anything outside," he explained.

Minato listened in wonderment.

Kakashi was remarkably confident of his knowledge pertaining to the white being and that pocket dimension of his and Obito's shared sharingan eye. There was sureness in his tone as he described how the kamui was utterly impenetrable to everyone except Obito and himself. Kakashi was much too collected for these facts to be mere guess-work or inferences. Except it shouldn't've been anything but, considering Minato knew this kamui was only a recent development.

"Are you certain?" Minato pressed.

"Yes."

"How do you know?"

"I have a lot of experience," Kakashi said – and was that cheekiness in this tone?

The answers were elusive and meaningless, as far as Minato was concerned. If anything, he got more from Kakashi's rare teasing attitude, though what that meant, Minato couldn't be sure of yet. He systematically filed away the oddness, opting to deal with one problem at a time.

"I wouldn't call one day a lot," Minato commented, keeping on track, certain it couldn't have been longer than that.

Kakashi blinked slowly at him, before his lip quirked upward. "No," he agreed. Then, "Perhaps I should mention I've had it for-" he glanced up into the sky thoughtfully, "barely two hours?"

Minato wanted to heave a loud, lengthy sigh and bury his head into his hands. Instead, he allowed his gaze to burn onto Kakashi's unflinching form, watching him for faults. Yet, all Kakashi did was smile gently back at him.

It seemed he had yet another puzzle piece to file away to be further studied - except how crucial were these quirks, and would Minato regret not addressing them right away? Once was insubstantial, twice was happenstance - but on the other hand, as ninjas, nothing should be taken for granted.

Minato turned to Rin, bidding for time.

There was a couple seconds of silence as Minato worked on her unstable seal, inwardly cursing the Kiri's attempt at ruining his precious student, before he turned back to Kakashi and took the final plunge: "Where are you getting your information from?" because young prodigy knew too much for his suspicion to settle.

"Mmm, did I forget to mention I'm from the future?" Kakashi replied lightly.

There were twin looks of disbelief on Rin and Obito's faces, with a raised eyebrow and eye roll, respectively.

Minato, however, held back from reacting.

The wrongness of the response was the first thing that struck the man. Of all the years Kakashi spent under his tutelage, the teen was never one to tell any jokes. Nor with Kakashi's sense of professionalism would he attempt one during such a serious enquiry.

The blond's mind flipped through multiple possibilities to explain this unanticipated response, though many fell short. The likelihood of an imposter was doubtful, considering the familiar summon Kakashi had sent to deliver the message to him, and Kakashi's possession of Obito's sharingan. Neither could it be a lie to mislead unwanted ears, because no discernible codes were weaved into that succinct response.

Perhaps most telling was from the stare Kakashi had locked onto him as he gave his answer. There had been nothing mischievous in their depths, only an odd combination of resignation and determination; a promise of truth.

Time-travel?

It was an absurd notion, and yet the longer he lingered on the thought, the greater the possibility seemed plausible, especially considering all the little ticks Minato noticed on Kakashi that were familiar yet not. He saw the strong affectionate gaze Kakashi couldn't hide from their sights, so much more perceptive and appreciative of those around him than ever before. He saw the wound of heartbreak that haunted behind Kakashi's expression, but it was wispy and fleeting, like he'd already been given the closure he desperately needed.

It was an unexpected answer, and one that became remarkably more believable than Minato would've expected prior to this day, but that still didn't mean Minato believed without proof. Whether Kakashi's words were a truth or a lie, Minato couldn't allow himself to assume arbitrary; not during these warring times. It was an ugly habit to suspect and scrutinise everything, including the smallest oddities in his precious students, but safety overruled that flood of emotions swirling in Minato's chest.

Uchiha Madara's existence was already inexplicable, and Minato didn't need any more unexplained uncertainty in his life. He planned to get to the bottom of this, with no vague or unspoken words hanging between them.

"You and I are going to have a long talk when we get back," Minato said firmly.

Kakashi shrugged, nodded, and then settled his limbs to one of harmless submission for Minato's sake. Out of consideration, he continued to hold it that way until they made it back home, lest he became viewed as a threat.

By that time, Minato had long prepared himself from being startled by anything.

.

(Anything except for the sight of Kakashi pouting in disappointment from the way Minato stoically listened to everything he then revealed to him, it turned out.)

a/n: This is post-series Kakashi. He's had a fulfilled life and already made peace with Obito, Rin, and Minato-sensei at the end of the war. He's too old and retired to deal with this shit of secrets and hidden identities. :D