Chapter 3: And the Curtains Unveiled

"I am not a wolf in sheep's clothing. I'm a wolf in wolf's clothing." ~Ricky Gervais

=X=

To say Kakashi was shocked was truly the understatement of the year. He was petrified, he was stunned, he was paralysed, and he was sure that his jaw dropped so far that his mouth looked like an overgrown cavern. He was openly staring at his former best friend, he knew, all the while ignoring the offered hand, and when he saw the corner of Obito's twitched in amusement when his gaze lingered too long, the silver-haired student quickly tried to avert his eyes elsewhere; he immediately latched onto the huge, blue figure that was standing behind the raven-haired man. His shadow loomed over both of them, casting a malicious signal. "Do you know this little lamb, Boss?" The shark-like man asked, still grinning that horrible smile; one that was full of teeth. Kakashi wondered absent-mindedly in the back of mind if the weird man ever stops doing that.

Probably not.

The Uchiha did not heed the question. Obito coughed at the back of his throat, still not withdrawing his hand. His red-tinted irises, a pair that the Hatake had not laid his eyes upon for a very long time, glittered intimidatingly beneath the ray of sunlight. Behind the redness, there was also a hint of… horridness, perhaps? Before Kakashi could ponder about it any further, he was pulled to his feet by the young man himself, two hands gripping the side of his jacket so suddenly that the silver-haired man barely had time to utter a word or a gasp when he was lifted from his seated position on the ground. Kakashi could only look down to Obito in shock at the feat of strength. Obito only smirked in response, before placing him back down.

In order to avoid eye-contact with Obito, the young Hatake bent downwards to brush the smudge of earth from his pants. It was not that he was shy, but nervousness and anxiety seem to control him the very moment he saw his former best friend. He patted the fabric for a good while. The dirt was gone, though traces of it could clearly be seen, but he opted to keep his vision lingering on his shoelaces.

The following silence was uncomfortable.

He almost jumped when Obito laughed nervously, apparently rubbing the back of his head. The familiar gesture almost calmed his racing heart, and a small smile bloomed on his face, though unseen by the other. Kakashi decided to finally break the ice for he lifted his head to give the raven-haired man a full assessment, eyes half-lidded. For a full second, he took in the tall, broad shouldered adult, no longer was he a scrawny, little boy. He had cut his hair, the forehead bangs now shorter, but otherwise remain the same. His eyes no longer were wide and round, instead they had shaped into a narrower, almond mound. His jaw ended with a sharp, strong chin, and he was now wearing a full suit, which consist a crisp, white shirt, black trousers and a red tie, covered with a button-up shiny dark jacket. All in all, Obito looked every bit at home with his persona as one of the members of a prestigious clan that is feared all across the globe.

Kakashi almost looked away. A heavy feeling settled in his heart. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what it was. He was disappointed; Obito had changed, so had he. They could maybe learn to reconcile after this long, but there would a part where nothing would ever be the same again. And with Rin gone…

"Yes, we know each other, if that's what you're asking," Kakashi said to Kisame, who was silently watching alternatively between him and Obito, waiting for a reaction to occur. The blue-skinned man blinked when he received the answer to the question he thought had been ignored in the heat of the moment, tilting his head with wonder plastered to it. He looked at Obito, who graciously swept into the one-sided conversation.

"Right, we are childhood friends. Since we were about…six years old, I think?" The raven-haired man glanced at his friend for silent confirmation. The other man kept his silence. So, Obito still thought of him as his friend, or was it just sarcasm and politeness since his subordinate was standing right beside him? "We parted ways when we were twelve, and haven't seen each other since."

Kakashi spoke up, no longer being held by apprehension. He looked Obito in his eye. He watched as both of the Uchiha's eyebrows were raised when he noticed the different colouring of his left eye; how his eyes trailed down to observe the long, vertical scar resting over the left eyelid and cheek. Obito was intrigued, the silver-haired could tell, by the mark he left by his own hands. "I looked for you, you know," the Hatake began quietly, "after you...left, I tried to find you. I couldn't leave how things settled between us back then. I even joined ANBU." Kakashi lowered his gaze. "Where were you…Obito?"

The red-eyed man was startled. He let out a tiny squeak at the back of his throat, eyes wide. He paused for a moment, motioning for the blue-skinned man beside to leave them alone for a minute. With reluctance, as well as a bit of a grumbling, the man did so, taking several, long strides back to the house. He was met halfway by a man with long, tied blond hair and vibrant blue eyes. If it weren't for a deep voice letting out loud shouts and yells, Kakashi would have honestly thought the blond is a woman.

The silver-haired man blinked with surprise as a pair of large, calloused hands placed themselves on his shoulders. His eyes met with those of Obito's, their heads so near to one another that Kakashi could felt his best friend's hot breath hitting his face.

Obito was wearing a pacified look on his face –a frown pulling at his lips. "First of all, I want to say that I am sorry, Kakashi. For the…eye, as well as everything before that. I was…a rebellious teenager, and….huh, ya know, with…er, all that teenage hormones and all that stuff, so I…when I heard the thing about Rin, I snapped. I couldn't take it. You were the closest thing at the time…" He couldn't take it anyway and looked away, his cheeks burning with shame.

Everything was silent for a short while. Kakashi's face softened as he observed the turned face in front of him, the stretching muscles in a strong neck. The silver-haired man raised his arms softly, gently, before placing them on the wrists of his friend, gripping them with a soft amount of pressure. When he felt the touch, Obito turned to the Hatake in shock, crimson eyes widened.

The mismatch-eyed man had to look up slightly to look his friend in the eye. His face was determined, eyebrows lightly furrowed. No longer he could beat around the bush as such was not in his nature. The younger him, one from their childhood days, was a bold, cold-hearted, even arrogant brat, who disregard other people feelings as if they were mere nothing. Now, reaching the ripe age of twenty-two, his personality had drastically changed, albeit his iciness and sharp tongue cut deep into people sometimes. Yes, he had felt guilty, anger and self-pity when Rin had died, but he can't keep holding on to those negative feelings forever. He wanted to move on and he needed Obito's consent in order to do so. Their friendship had come to an abrupt stop a long time ago, but time cannot be count as a hindering factor to reconcile. They might not be on friendly terms after this, but that doesn't mean that they have to disregard the memories that they had. Rin shall be remembered for she was when she was alive, not when she had died.

That was enough to act upon, was it not?

Kakashi said, "I forgave you a long time ago, Obito. Granted, giving you my forgiveness will not give me back my lost eye, nor erase the scar on my face, but that is mere water under the bridge now. There was a reason why you acted back there, or maybe there was none at all, drove merely by devastating emotions and …err, teenage hormones. Even so, I will not ask. For that I had forsaken my promise, and I, in return, ask you for forgiveness, as I had broken my word to you. Even if there was nothing I could do to save Rin, a promise is a promise. And…" he smirked with humour, "apology doesn't suit you, Dope."

The look on Obito's face was priceless.

With his mouth wide open, he looked like a gaping fish, eyes wide in shock and surprise. Maybe he thought that Kakashi had changed otherwise in appearance, given his unusual show of shyness earlier. Although the Uchiha had a makeover in appearance, against all odds, he seemed to keep his uniquely-disfigured personality, which would have driven a younger Kakashi up a wall. But now, even as the silver—haired man let out a comment at him to close his mouth lest a fly flew in (which had happened once before), all the Hatake could feel was a sense a calm. He released his grip on the other's wrists gently, in which they fell limply at their owner's side.

Obito blinked a few times. He smoothed his face into a grimace, rubbing the back of his neck in a nervous manner. He let out a few tiny chuckles, which died off quickly. "…Well, you're still a dickhead after all these years, Bakakashi. Do you even know how hard it is for me to even utter the word 'sorry'? Have some courtesy, will you?" He sent a mocking glare at Kakashi.

Dramatically, the Hatake rolled his eyes in return, silently enjoying this little banter. "You know as well as I do that courtesy is the last thing on my mind. Grow some balls, if you have not already." He paused, scowling. "…You're still taller than me, Obito. God damn, I thought all those bottles of milk that I had drunk in High School would at least do me some good."

The dark-haired man guffawed, amusement twinkling in his ruby-tinted eyes. He wiped some tears from the corner of his eye. "Y-you did what?! Damn, I thought you had gotten past that phase already! The last time you went into that shorty syndrome of yours, you spent at least 30 dollars on milk alone! You would have gotten more if the whole store hadn't run out!"

His face felt hot; he knew that he was blushing furiously from the memory alone. "S-shut up! Like you didn't do anything stupid when you were young! I distinctly remember that a certain someone tried to get back at me by drinking my cup of hot chocolate except that it was coffee that you drank and you got so caffeinated that you took off your clothes-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence-"

"-and attempted to seduce a plant…" Kakashi finished lamely, pretending to cough in a clenched fish to hide his chuckle.

Obito glared at him in a threatening way.

"In consolation though, that blueberry bush is a reallll beauty." The Hatake drawled out, trying to look as if he was also interested to proclaim his love to a bundle of leaves.

Obito poked Kakashi right on the bridge of his nose, making the other lightly scowled. "You talk too much now, Bakakashi. I don't suppose you would want to come in and filled that mouth of yours with something other than dry humor and sarcastic words would you?" The man gestured his right hand towards his old house in a silent beckon for the other to come inside.

At that the silver-haired man paused, his eyes watching his friend. He eyed the way his red eyes gleamed underneath the glimmer of sunlight; he observed the way the spiky ends of his friend's hair rustling gently amidst a soft breeze; his gaze trailed from the tan palm that was presented to him, along a cladded muscled arm that led him to focus on the softened look and the small smile.

A smile that reminded him of better days. A smile that presented hope and happiness. Against his better judgement in the presence of the man –no, friend, the silver-haired Hatake began to relax, his own expression taking that of a mild content expression. He could almost imagine that everything was alright, that the Uchiha was fine and so was he and the only person missing from this picture of bliss was Rin but Kakashi was sure that the girl would be watching over them from above, as she always did when she was alive.

Without putting much thought into it, he said, "Sure, why not?" And as he walked past the man, he missed the impetuous huge feral grin on the other's face.

=X=

Apart from the slight intrusive layer of dust on every available surface, as well as the questionable muskiness in the air from the lack of ventilation, the stampede of muddy footprints scattered all the marble floor of the living room area and the loud guffaws of one bluish shark humanoid echoing from somewhere deeper in the house –if the sounds disturbed him more than it should be then it's business but his own. Surely Obito would make fun of him over such trivial fears- the interior of the Uchiha Mansion remained pretty much the same if his memory serves right; the arrangement of the furniture unchanged down to the usual rich, extravagant colour of the wallpapers.

When he stood still in front of the entrance doors, taking in the familiar sight, Obito wrapped an arm around his shoulders, that usual lopsided grin plastered to his face, and ushered him to sit on one of the luxuriant deep sea green-coloured sofas, which was accompanied by a low mahogany coffee table, a single potted plant used as a decoration.

He was unprepared from the sudden slamming of a door, the piece of wood almost flying off its hinges. The walls reverberated with the force; Kakashi jumped slightly in his seat, while Obito rubbed his forehead in an almost tirade manner, eyebrows furrowed as a high-pitched screeching voice filled the air, accompanied by exasperated yelling of another one that Kakashi identified as the blond man-woman from before. There was an avalanche of loud footsteps, before the blond popped into the room, limbs tangling with that of an albino. The Hatake stared at the couple as another screaming match erupted.

"Hidan, you fucking piece of shit! Calm your tits down, you stupid airhead!" The blond-haired man yelled, teeth gritting with exasperation. His face was half covered by a long fridge of golden locks, but Kakashi could see the angry crystal blue of his right eye even as the man took a swing at the white-haired man's head. There was a loud, painful tump, but the albino just laughed crazily, pushing the blond's cheek with a palm.

"You're the one that's a fucking piece of pussy, Deidara!" Hidan screeched, grinning. He took long strides to where Obito and he were at, dragging the other man with him unwillingly. "I wanna see the next one! You even told me that this is the one that Boss was looking for! I wanna see the little shit for myself with my own two eyes!"

"I just told you what Kisame presumed! And don't go yelling shit like that in front of the next-"

"Hey, you're the new little fucker, right?" Freezing as Hidan's unique magenta swept over his form, glittering with some sort of crazed euphoria, Kakashi could only release an unintelligible hum at the back of his throat, puzzled at the conversation and its crude language. He scratched the nape of his neck, looking at Obito for enquiries, but the man crossed his arms and stood over his subordinates before he could say anything.

"Deidara, Hidan." Obito said coolly, radiating an air full of confidence and dominance, regarding the two men in front of him with two crimson orbs. The air began to thicken with tension and…fear? Were they afraid of little old friendly Uchiha Obito? Though his black-haired friend was exhibiting a different persona now…

The blonde one slammed his fist into the Hidan's temple again, while the latter screamed something about 'the great Lord Jashin', and Obito rubbed his eyes, exasperation shining through. He then muttered something, a finger pointing to the direction of the kitchen, and the blond looked almost scandalised, hitting the silver-haired man again when he released sharp barks of laughter. Deidara seemed to be protesting something, but quieted down when Obito gave him a commanded look, albeit giving an angry glare of his own. He dragged Hidan with him, muttering obscenities under his breath, his living luggage wheezing from the tight grip.

Five minutes later, Kakashi found himself awkwardly sipping hot tea, the liquid bland and tasteless, though he was more distracted by the scorching of his tongue to determine what kind of tea it's supposed to be. Obito sat across him, in an armchair of his own, a leg crossed over the other as he laced his fingers. He was watching Kakashi with unusual interest, the shade of his crimson retinas darkened even when the living room was well-lighted. For a split second, their eyes met, and Kakashi's guts twisted and his heart began heavy with stones. He quickly settled his gaze back to the rim of the teacup, lips pursing.

Obito gave a cough, seemingly to catch his attention. He settled the teacup back onto its platter, now empty but a few tiny drops.

"So, how's life?" Kakashi rolled his eyes; that was how Obito planned to start a conservation? And people labelled him anti-social.

The Hatake spoke of his administration into the famous ANBU University, a private institution that you can only get into if you either have extreme talents plus outstanding academic performances, or have applied and gotten the Hokage scholarship, which pretty much demanded you of the same requirements. The University provided the students with the latest and high-tech facilities, and have a wide range of subjects of which they can committed themselves into. The dormitories were okay, classy even but Kakashi was more focused on the club activities, particularly in Kendo and Art, so he was almost always absent from his room.

He excelled in the art of sword-swinging, one of the best thanks to his natural talents even though he was only a freshman. And it was during a sparring match that he met Tenzo, albeit the friendly introductions started after he smacked the brunette in the face. Afterwards, he found himself accompanied by the man after class hours, be it a walk around campus or studying in the resource centre together even though they majored in very different subjects; with him taking up sciences and the other more interested in agriculture and architecture.

(Tenzo was certainly a good friend, but Kakashi wasn't blind that the almond-eyed man held the desire of wanting Kakashi more than just a friend.

It was not like Kakashi hated Tenzo or anything, in fact, the mismatched-eyed man found himself at ease when in the other's man presence; the brunette knew when to keep his distance during one of his foul moods, bringing coffee and taiyaki every time in order to appease him. He was knowledgeable enough to hold intelligent conversations with the Hatake when he needed to be, and have the patience of a saint to be able to put up with Kakashi's tantrums when others would pull away. )

"As you would remembered, I moved away to the eastern regions to live with my old wrinkly grandfather, Uchiha Madara." Obito began to tell his side of the story, leaning into the comfortably soft cushion of his armchair. He had listened with rapt attention to Kakashi's, so the silver-haired man would honour the same. The Uchiha had bristled when Kakashi mentioned Tenzo, which made him puzzled, but he pushed it aside, contributing it to being just one of the man's enema.

The dark-haired man continued, "He was a bastard, that guy. A little crazy even. He took me in with a lot of grumbling, have all these weird rules that I have to follow to the letter, or else I would be send to bed without any dinner. Being the rebellious teenager that I was, I got sent to my room a lot. An old-fashioned guy, old man Madara was, and he was a loner and lived in a mansion even bigger than this one, the walls and the floorboards so old that it creaked very loudly even if you tiptoe. And the servants? Even weirder, and jackasses they were. They were ghostly pale and always asked me these stupidly humorous questions that make even you look like an extrovert. Don't look at me like that, Bakakashi.

But as fucked as Madara was, he was…brilliant. He was a genius, and when he saw my potential, he shared with me his views and thoughts. The old man trained me, pushed me through my limit, taught me, and paid for my tuition fees." Obito looked at him, a wide grin on his face. "I became even better, stronger, smarter and managed to look at the world at a different perspective. I aced my way to the top, no longer being held back by my own stupidity. I destroyed those who beneath me. Madara…he gave me a gift, he showed me the true way. He was proud of me, took me under his wing, and used my abilities instead of shunning me. He accepted me for who I am, shaped me to be who I am today. And when he passed away, I not only inherited his views, but also his company. The corporation that will lead the world to a better future, to a new era, to a new daybreak. Akatsuki…"

Absorbed in his own words, Obito slapped a palm over his face, attempting to cover the crazed expression on his face, to no avail. Alarmed, Kakashi jumped to feet, almost knocking over the tray of tea set. There was a rolling noise, before the Uchiha released a horrible yet erringly familiar sound reminiscence of a hyena's yelp. Kakashi's muscles locked up, his expression taken that of terror as it struck to him where he have heard the sound before.

Red hot pain seized him, flaring his nerves to the limit. His head pounded, particularly the area of his left eye, where it was penetrated by a glinting blade, its metallic surface covered by his blood and bits of flesh.

He clawed the floor in a fervent struggle. He screamed, but as loud as it was, it was nothing compared to the animalistic sounds coming from Obito as he pinned his thrashing limbs down. The Uchiha gave a maniacal smile, pushing the blade down even further. Blood continued to splatter.

"Ack!"

Gripped by the terror of the past, the silver-haired man didn't notice the fast movements of the current one until he got the wind knocked right out of him, as he flew right over the sofa and was slammed onto the marbled floor with such force that his vision swam. He went to rub the forming welt on his back of his scalp, but the movement was stopped by a shaking large hand restricting around his wrist, gripping tightly with power that Kakashi could not hide his pained whimper. But the sound constricted in his oesophagus when the Uchiha draped over his body with his own heavier one, pinning him effectively to the floor. Hot, staccato breaths hit his cheek as Obito knocked heads with him, that maddening red gaze bore into his grey ones, spiralling with untold insanity. But panic only truly consumed Kakashi after he caught sight of the object that was in Obito's free hand, held high above their prone forms.

"This world is cruel, Kakashi." Obito whispered with a soft tone, face devoid of any emotions, but his eyes could not fool the silver-haired man with its murky depths. His raised fingers moved, creating three clicks and a familiar blade casted a sinister glint, its surface clean and spotless but Kakashi knew that it was the same one that had taken his left eye away from him ten years ago.

"And I want you to suffer through it."

=X=

Cliffhanger, dun dun dun!