"Rin…"
Obito automatically ignored Kakashi and Minato in the photo. His entire mind was focused solely on Rin.
"It feels a little awkward," he muttered.
Just as he was about to secretly kiss the picture, he suddenly remembered how Kakashi had caught him last time.
He looked left and right, making sure there was absolutely no one around. Then he once again pulled out tape and some tissues.
He used the tape to cover Kakashi's face in the photo frame, so he wouldn't accidentally feel like he was sneaking a kiss on Kakashi instead.
After finishing all that, Obito grabbed the tissues, planning to secretly kiss Rin's photo again.
It was fantasy time now!
"Rin…"
Overwhelmed by emotion, Obito couldn't help calling out Rin's name.
"Uh… Obito, I'm here."
To Obito's utter shock, someone actually responded.
And the voice was the one he yearned for day and night.
It was over!
Obito's hand tightened around the tissues as his gaze slowly moved upward.
Standing by the window were two figures.
One was Rin.
The other was Kiyohara.
"Ahem, Rin, Kiyohara, it's you two."
Obito instantly shifted positions naturally, pretending to wipe his nose with a tissue as if nothing strange had happened.
"What were you doing just now, Obito?"
Kiyohara looked at the picture frame in Obito's hand. Even without seeing the photo clearly, he already knew exactly what it contained.
"Nothing. Just reminiscing."
Obito replied hastily. With Rin standing right there, he shot Kiyohara a pleading look, silently begging him not to expose the truth.
"Remember to take care of your body and… you know… exercise some restraint, Obito."
Kiyohara said earnestly.
Secretly kissing a photo—this level of obsession surpassed even the most hardcore anime fans.
"Take care of my body?"
Rin blinked, confused, not catching the hidden meaning in Kiyohara's words.
Obito widened his eyes and said:
"How can you just slander me like that out of nowhere!"
"Really? Weren't you just secretly kissing Rin's photo?"
Kiyohara's smile was half-amused, half-teasing.
Honestly, Obito should have studied under Jiraiya. One liked peeping at bathhouses; the other liked secretly kissing photos.
Obito's face flushed red, the veins bulging as he protested:
"There was dust on the photo! I leaned down to blow it off! How can performing an act that maintains bonds between comrades be called secretly kissing?!"
Then Obito went on rambling about the Will of Fire and bonds and all sorts of lofty phrases.
For a moment, the entire atmosphere was filled with lively, absurd air.
Rin assumed Obito and Kiyohara were joking, so she didn't think too deeply.
"Obito, if you don't set out soon, you'll delay the mission. Kakashi and Minato-sensei are already waiting."
Rin parted her lips gently as she spoke.
Seeing that Rin wasn't angry, Obito finally relaxed.
His heroic and majestic image must never be tarnished in Rin's eyes.
"I know." he said, quickly strapping on his field pack and shinobi tool pouch, then adjusting his yellow goggles.
He had long been ready.
It was only Rin's beauty that made him lose track for a moment, delaying him.
"Let's go."
Rin saw Obito prepare in just a few seconds, so she went to stand by the window, waiting for him to come out.
As Obito returned the photo to its original place and planned to pack an extra kunai, Rin noticed Kakashi's face taped over.
"…Why did you cover Kakashi's face?"
"This way… there's no dust."
Obito blurted out the first excuse he could think of.
"I… see."
Rin found it strange but still nodded.
This should be Obito's last time secretly kissing Rin's photo,
Kiyohara thought silently.
Once Obito gets half his body crushed by that boulder and split in half, he'll definitely be missing at least one… essential piece.
Whether that "sausage" would be crushed entirely or split in half—that depended on which side Obito usually kept it on.
Either way, Kiyohara figured Obito wouldn't be able to indulge in such fantasies again.
After all, the White Zetsu body he would later receive didn't come with those particular features.
"Let's go."
After greeting his grandmother, Obito stepped outside.
Right away, he noticed Kiyohara looking at him with an oddly sympathetic expression, leaving Obito utterly puzzled.
...
At Konoha's main gate—
"You're late again, Obito."
Kakashi said coldly at the boy rushing toward them.
"So, what if I'm a bit late?"
Obito muttered. Was a few minutes really that big of a deal?
"A true shinobi follows the rules. Anyone who doesn't is trash," Kakashi declared without mercy.
In his creed, the rules of a ninja were absolute. His father had broken those rules, choosing to save his comrades instead of completing the mission, and that failure had led to tragedy.
"Alright, Kakashi. Don't say it like that."
Minato stepped in to ease the tension.
Ever since the death of the White Fang, Kakashi had become like this.
Minato, who knew at least some of the inside story, didn't say much more.
He was a shinobi—his duty was to obey orders.
"During missions, everything else must wait until after the mission is complete," Minato said firmly.
Team unity was crucial. He didn't want to see them arguing.
"And remember, this mission is classified. I can only reveal details once we reach the border…"
Kiyohara listened from the back as Minato briefed them.
He still didn't understand why every mission had to begin with everyone gathering at the main gate.
Perhaps it was simply a ritual of the shinobi.
"Oh right… does the future me ever get a girlfriend?"
Kiyohara casually asked the missing-nin version of himself living in the urn in his mind.
After a slight shake of the urn, Missing-nin Kiyohara's spirit drifted out.
"No. Surviving alone is difficult enough. Where would I find time for that?"
Missing-nin Kiyohara shook his head.
He had actually tried finding someone, but the only people a missing-nin shinobi could realistically date were other missing-nin shinobis.
Not everyone was like Sakura—who knew Sasuke was an S-class missing-nin and still followed him with hopeless romantic obsession.
Well… unless one had Sasuke-level looks, it was practically impossible.
Although Missing-nin Kiyohara's appearance wasn't bad, he looked far too worn and aged.
"I see."
Looking at his tragic future, Kiyohara quietly resolved that his own fate must not end up like that.
Soon, Minato finished his briefing and then said:
"Move out."
All the shinobis began setting off together.
Days passed as the sun rose and fell.
During the day, the group traveled through the forest; at night, they camped to rest.
Since everyone was traveling light, their speed was extremely fast, and they soon reached the area near the border.
"We're almost there,"
Kurenai said, leaping from branch to branch to speed their journey. This was the common way shinobi traveled, allowing them to cover ground faster.
"I wonder if we'll actually be able to complete this mission,"
Kurenai said to Kiyohara as she moved.
"We'll just do our best."
Kiyohara replied.
If a mission failed, the worst they'd get was some punishment.
But if they died… then they were really dead.
He was only receiving the stipend of a genin—the lowest tier of shinobi.
Honestly, who risks their life for three thousand a month?
Three thousand in wages, yet expected to do the work of thirty thousand?
Kiyohara thought he was already doing great by not slacking.
But many shinobis were driven by the so-called Will of Fire, choosing to suffer for their beliefs.
"Let's stop here," Minato said, seeing the situation was suitable.
They halted in a wide meadow, where the wind bent the grass low as if bowing their heads.
(End of Chapter)