Chapter Text
Kakashi’s latest mission has taken much longer than it should have.
It is not that Obito cares about his whereabouts, no individual Shinobi matters in light of the future he has planned for this world, but he does find himself… irritated, by the hole in his information network.
That is all it is.
So, When he once more spends the better half of a meaningless day waiting by the memorial stone for his old failure of a teammate– only for the bastard to, once more, not show up– irritation is all he feels, and nothing more
He doesn't worry, for that would be childish. Habit and perhaps a healthy curiosity are the only things that lead him to pay a visit to Kakashi’s dreary little apartment, a simple check-in, that is all it is.
And when he breaks into Konoha’s archives after finding said apartment so empty and devoid of life that it feels abandoned, what drives him is boredom, and boredom alone. He is in the village already, there is no reason not to indulge in the information gathering he’d originally come here for, since he was unable to achieve it through his conventional means
Kamui opens into the always so dark archive-room of the Hokage tower, Obito quickly finding his way to the cabinet with this month's mission, making him ever so appreciative that he had taken the time to learn his way around the room prior to this, seeing that the filing system in Konoha was quite the mess.
The last time he'd seen Kakashi the man had been in his own apartment, still awake even in the last few hours before dawn, washing his hands under scalding water until they went sore and bruised.
Of course, they weren't dirty to begin with, so his scrubbing and the hot water were doing very little besides tearing at his skin. Obito hadn't thought it through properly when he’d begun to activate his mangekyo.
Hidden in the shadows, Obito crept up behind Kakashi and used the mirror’s reflection to Genjutsu him into deep, dreamless, sleep– he will dream plenty enough once the Tsukuyomi is upon him, for now, he doesn't deserve to– Obito had almost moved him from the floor before his better judgment had finally caught up to his actions and forced him to stop.
Kakashi shouldn't be left hints of his break-in, lest he would surely figure out something was wrong. Obito shouldn't have even entered in the first place, but what Is done cannot be undone so he will have to play for damage control
What difference does it make to him if Kakashi suffers from waking nightmares now, when soon enough Obito will give him, and everyone else, a world in which no such suffering is possible to live under?
That is what Obito had told himself back then, and it had sufficed to calm his worries, just the same, his carelessness left a bitter taste in his throat– he hadn't dared step foot in the village for a week after what had happened.
When he had finally come to Konoha once more he found that, no matter how much he searched, he couldn't find Kakashi anywhere. His old teammate wasn't on the training grounds, nor at the cemetery, much less at his own apartment or the ANBU headquarters. Obito had deduced he'd been sent on a mission and would soon be back to his pitifully empty life, still, his disappearance after it had been such a long time since Obito had last seen him was... Questionable
And now it has been two weeks with no sign of him still, of course Kakashi is no foreigner to missions that stretch themselves on and on for months on end, but just the same Obito would like to confirm the root of the issue for himself.
Shinobi do die, after all, especially ones that are involved in such dark corners of the Shinobi world like Kakashi has been ever since he was integrated into the ANBU– another one of the many failures of their late teacher, who had been the one to recommend suck organization to Kakashi
Obito meticulously scans each and every last document, and yet there is nothing to be found. No file under Kakashi’s name, no missions taken by him in these past weeks. Obito feels his fists clutch around the scrolls that he unfurls in his anger, crumpling the paper, despite his best interests in leaving no traces of his presence
Damned ANBU, with their damned confidential missions. Now Kakashi has disappeared off somewhere for an undetermined amount of time and Obito remained ignorant to what he could possibly be doing there and how it may bode for him.
Amidst his annoyance, Obito had the clarity of mind to recognize that he would do better channeling all this energy elsewhere, onto something that is actually important, so he goes to Kiri, leaving Konoha’s paperwork at peace so he may focus on his own, much more interesting, one. There is plenty to be done today and if an irrelevant foot-soldier from a village he has no ties with anymore hasn't been home for a while, well, that does not come before Obito's work which concerns the building stones for a perfect reality.
Kakashi will be back soon enough, he is sure of it, can still feel him through their connection, can still see through his eyes when he closes both of his own, though in the moment all he sees is the familiar stale darkness of an eye-covering
He will be back, and Obito will find him whispering the same meaningless words in front of an empty grave like he has many times before.
But then a month passes and he still has no news of Kakashi.
This is rare– an undocumented mission that takes such a long time to be completed. Surely, this would mean that Kakashi’s task is related in some aspect to subterfuge, likely of political nature, which could be dangerous to Obito’s carefully constructed and maintained status quo.
This is what he tells Zetsu one evening, staring the creature in its eyes while it smiled ominously, not taking Obito seriously– Zetsu never did, to them, Obito wasn't another master who steered the wheels for the moon’s eye plan, but rather a simple extension of Madara’s will just as they were
They could be right.
Regardless, this was an utmost important matter, how could Zetsu not see that was beyond him. Kakashi’s mission could be anything, but what it certainly was not, was harmless– Shinobi like Kakashi did not get assigned harmless work.
One way or the other, this will mess with Obito’s careful planning, taking his pieces out of place on the chess-board. Kakashi has always known how to be most inconvenient to him, how to be just one step ahead, close enough that you believe you can reach out for, only to be left in the dust without a second though.
But he is not that little boy anymore. The one who Kakashi knew back then, the one who would always fail when it mattered most, the one who wasn't worth a second glance because no matter how much he ran he could not reach the sun. Uchiha Obito is dead, and the sun will be worth less than the dust he’d been left behind on when compared to the endless shine of the blood-red moon once he reaches the eternal night he had promised the world.
Kakashi won't beat him now, he won't ruin things for him. Obito will not let him
“For all we know he is in Kiri at this exact moment, perhaps spreading rebellious sentiments to weaken our hold on the people” Obito reasons, running his hand through his hair as he paces “keep a look out for him, Zetsu, any information you get, anything you know. I need it. Just a few paws out of place could cause years machinations to crumble, I know you understand that better than anyone”
Zetsu gets a funny look on their face, they tilt their head slightly to the side and grin, though it is more of a slight quirk of the lips on the side of Madara’s will.
“Heard and noted, we will find this ‘bakakashi’” white Zetsu sings cheerily, while black zetsu only hums. consideringly, he says, just as they are disappearing “mayhaps it is time to take back the eye that is rightfully yours”
Obito's Chains down towards them before he can truly process his own actions, his eyes crimson red and his chakra burning hot, but there is only empty air to meet them
A week after his conversation with Zetsu, Obito assists Uchiha Itachi to complete the massacre of his own kin, their own kin
The world does not stop for anyone, after all, won't until Obito wills it to.
It was a dauntingly quick affair, Itachi had worked very efficiently, as expected from the Uchiha’s golden child. And while he slaughtered the civilians in their sleep, Obito easily took care of the military forces.
It was ironic, he thought, that the black sheep turned out to be the wolf that brought upon their clan’s doom. No matter, they will be bought back with Tsukuyomi, too. The ones who matter will, at least…
He glances at Itachi, no more than a boy, the same age Obito himself had been when his team had been sent on that accursed mission to Kannabi bridge, and he has to keep himself back from asking after his old teammate, a meaningless question that would only fray his lies at their edges
Itachi might have the answers he so seeks, just as well as he might not. Kakashi was his superior officer, after all, he can just imagine the shock the bastard would experience once he came back from his vicious little voyage.
Still, Obito doesn't have a real justification for making such a sudden question. Uchiha Madara, after all, has no reason to inquire after some irrelevant little Anbu's whereabouts… unless…
“There is one more Sharingan left among Konoha’s foot soldiers,” he points out, breaking away from their silence. Itachi shifts uncomfortably by his side, staring at Obito’s face impassively in spite of this “I assume you’re not referring to my brother’s” his eyes narrow dangerously and it is almost cute how he believes that he can do anything against him.
Obito tilts his head, smirking under his mask “of course not, that will come in due time. The one I speak about is the copy-ninja, Hatake Kakashi”
Itachi looks at him, a frown etched into his face, and Obito struggles to discern what might be running through his head.
They spend a moment of silence, a thing so common between the two of them
“You don't know.” Itachi finally speaks matter-of-factly, sounding distraught by this. It is clear that he hadn’t expected such a lack of Intel from Madara.
It is in equal parts frustrating as it is gratifying. Obito had, after all, put in the work to make himself seem just what Itachi sees him to be; omnipotent, all knowing. Someone whose power stretches deeper than is seen, who is inescapable.
However this nonchalance, this confirmation that Itachi knew something he didn't. It grated at Obito, the very idea that Kakashi’s whereabouts were common knowledge to a bigger than previously thought group of people of which he took no part in was nauseating.
Kakashi’s secrets were his to know and keep, never meant for such vile creatures as the other ANBU he shared a department with or Konoha’s wretched council. This information should never have been kept from his reach, it was as if they were specifically attempting to keep him out.
Keeping it confined from Obito's eyes so he can be caught off guard, running in circles around him so he may not know what was in his right to. The utmost truth is; Itachi should have never known Kakashi’s whereabouts so easily when Obito had tried for so long to come across such information without succes.
It seems Kakashi was hiding from him, unweaving his plans from behind his back to a willing audience, making a fool of him
Well, his house of cards has fallen, he could never have expected his little kouhai would fall right into his enemy's grasp.
Obito’s fists clench at his sides, his voice comes out in a cold, shrilling, growl “where is he?” and Itachi knows just as well as he does that this is not a question that can go unanswered.
Itachi’s frown seems to become a bit softer around the edges, as he tilts his head in an imitation of Obito “I cannot be sure, all that I know is that he disappeared from Konoha a month ago”
Disappeared. Surely Itachi was not implying such a preposterous thing such as defection.
“I believe that the last people who saw him before he was declared missibg were a few patrol guards, he said he was on a mission and they hadn't questioned him much further because they knew him well, I believe they were fired as a result” Itachi shuffled around, his gaze distant as he spoke about Kakashi’s disappearance
Incompetent fools, Obito wanted to laugh but could only shake in anger.
”Konoha sent a few teams after him, but only one ever got close. They were quickly subdued however, Captain– Kakashi forced them to retreat and then disappeared again. That was three weeks ago, I estimate that by now no one has any leads as to his current whereabouts…”
Impossible. It was laughable, really, to think anyone believed a man who had made a reputation out of parading himself as the most perfect, dutiful, little soldier would just suddenly up and leave one day.
“Where was he last seen?” Itachi did not answer, only leveling him with a look, as if trying to discern Obito’s actions with his Sharingan, not understanding why he wanted to know and hesitant due to it “Where was he last seen?”
Itachi frowned more deeply, the creases of his face becoming further pronounced, then he sighed. “I believe he was nearing the crossing between grass and waterfall, Konoha has searched around Taki but he seems to have already left”
Waterfall. Either he was heading towards iron or he went to earth. Yet, both options make absolutely no sense, had he been heading to Iwa, there was no reason no to use Kusa and Taki's border, had he been going to iron he could have gone there directly.
In any case, Obito would imagine he is in earth country, it would be a reasonable plan of action– Konoha would have to risk a lot if they wanted to search around earth, and Obito is sure they would rather not let the other villages know that one of their most well-renowned Shinobi had gone rogue
If what Itachi is saying is correct, Kakashi could truly be just about anywhere, assuming he’d been traveling at Shinobi speed he could have visited all of the four great villages already.
But he wasn't traveling at Shinobi speed, was he? Over a week and he hadn't left Kusa, what was he trying to do?
Akatsuki has a few hideouts in grass, is it possible he has unearthed them–
No. It is not. Madara would known had that been the case, after all, Zetsu takes care of doing weekly reports regarding Akatsuki’s bases and would have surely been able to tell if one of them had their wards broken into, Beyond that, Kakashi would have surely recorded something with the Sharingan had that been the case and Obito would be able to tell, then
Though, he would have to concede, Kakashi had always been good at dismantling wards and then putting them back in place as if nothing had ever happened, a memento of their late mentor
Obito doesn't like to admit it, but Kakashi going rogue becomes more and more likely to be true by the second, only missing-nin would take time wandering around instead of heading straight for their objective.
Which begs the question, what is his objective? Obito can hardly say Kakashi is the type of person that would decide to desert for the sake of travelling around aimlessly, there needs to be some logical reason behind his actions.
Maybe, Obito clenches his fists hard enough it would be likely to draw blood had it not been for his gloves, he was being threatened by something inside the village.
If that is the case Obito has the perfect suspect already in mind.
“Have I said something to upset you?” Itachi asks, not quite satisfied but not worried either, his sharp eyes not failing to notice Obito’s altered state.
He breathes in and slips back into Madara's headspace. It doesn't matter, either way, weather Kakashi is in Konoha or at the tail-end of the world he is still scum, will always be a product of this world until Obito can create a reality capable of accommodating the real version of him. If Kakashi lives or dies, it only matters so far as how it interferes in his machinations
Everyone, everything, in this failed mockery of reality is meaningless
“Of course not.” He states, confidently and sternly, leaving no room for further questioning “I was only reminiscing, it was nothing of importance”
Now, to make sure that Kakashi’s actions will not interfere with the Tsukuyomi.
Zetsu knew.
He feels anger boil inside him, but his face remains a cool mask of indifference while the realization washes over him.
This whole time, he decides- staring at Zetsu’s satisfied grin as Obito updated him about the situation, explaining why he needed to arrange a meeting with one of his informants back in eastern earth country, he had kept it from him
“I believe,” he told Zetsu, controlled, recalling their earlier comments “you should understand your role better. I am following Madara’s plans, any projects which I deem to pick up on the side are none of your concerns”
It doesn't matter that he had been visiting Waterfalls for the past week, especially when some of Akatsuki’s most promising possible recruits hail from there. And if he had been asking about a traveler, about a man with silver hair, well. it didn't matter.
It didn't matter that he had found eye-witnesses saying they saw him head to frost, it didn't matter that he had been scouting the country in between his meetings with Nagato and Konan and his check-ins with Kiri.
“I trust you not to be so foolish as to imply I am not interested in our plans. Everything I do is for the Tsukuyomi, don’t forget it”
Hadn't it been Zetsu, after all, who had made the point of reminding Obito of the counter to his abilities provided by his other eye? Monitoring Kakashi serves a purpose, he is dangerous. For example; Obito has a few tie-ins with the hidden frost’s leader, usurper that he was, and the copy-nin himself has his reasons to hold a grudge against the man.
A failed mission, Obito believea, a few years ago. It wasn't confirmed, but the men had spoken of a Konoha Shinobi with hair like the snow. Should Obito not be concerned about losing his control of frost’s inner-circles?
Black Zetsu chuckled darkly, hissing “you are blinded”, yet still smiled, as if this was all to be expected “but we won’t interfere if that is what you wish”
Meanwhile, white zetsu only leveled him with a curious look, “hadn’t you found a lead to frost, anyways, so why do you need to search in earth as well?”
Obito scoffed deridingly, Zetsu did not know Kakashi like he did, understand the way his mind worked like Obito “it could be a false lead, he is a searched man, after all, he has as many reasons as needed to create a false track”
Which he could have done even earlier than imagined, he didn't say. When conducting an investigation too many points of interest were actually more detrimental to the progress than they were helpful, spreading his attention would only slow the process of finding him.
“I see” White Zetsu smiled, that foreboding smile of his “well, good luck!”
“I don’t need your endorsement” he spits, angry and vicious. His back turned to them as he felt the familiar swirl of his Kamui wrap around him “and Zetsu?” Obito said, one last thing before leaving for good “Make no mistake. I don't need you like you need me. if you know where he is and are refusing to tell me I will dispose of you”
His existence flickers between this plane and the next, always changing, forever foreign to this world of shadows “remember that the next time you think of withholding information from me again.”
Obito’s first real lead had been on earth, way up north by one of the hunting towns. An informant of Kakuzu’s who Obito had borrowed
It was of no surprise that the trail through frost quickly became as cold as the peaks of the mountains that riddled that dreadful place, leading Obito to circulate back and forth to nowhere. On earth, Obito had followed whispers and drunk babbles of a weird traveler hitching a ride with a farmer or trekking up a mountain with a single hand
Neither of those were certain, but his path has led him to conclude Kakashi was going into the Northernmost corner of earth country, though it escaped Obito as to what moved him to go there in the first place, it was hardly the type of place he would choose to spend his time right after blindsiding everyone he knew by going rogue
In that way, Kakashi’s penchant for gaining the favour of those around him without placing any effort into it that Obito had so hated as a child became a valuable asset. It was difficult to miss the man of starlight hair that shrouded himself in mystery.
He couldn't be sure all of the leads pointed to him, but it was likely; fact was, for as good a Shinobi as Kakashi was, he couldn't help but draw attention of the people around him whenever he traveled in free day-light, even if he himself didn't notice.
Obito sits down by the man in the bar, donning a simple Genjutsu that made him look inconspicuous, only another traveler looking for for a short reprieve of their wandering
The man ordered a drink, Obito asked for the same he did and, at the man’s curious gaze, he smiled.
“Do you need anything?” that man asked, an eyebrow raised in suspicion as he scrutinizes Obito with his stare. Short brown hair and stubble, he wears plain clothes and some clay clings to them, likely some type of artisan as his main source of income, Kakuzu hadn't disclosed that part.
“You could say so” Obito replied critically, training his eyes on the bartender as he prepared their drinks “have you seen a man with silver hair around here, by any chance?”
Their twin brews hit the table, but the man does not grab his, instead he holds his hand out to Obito expectantly.
A bag of ryo is slipped between them, the man judges the weight of the sum, an considerable amount of money that would a right fool would pass on, before accepting with an easy grin “the masked kid, huh? Weird guy…” he murmurs to himself
Obito rolls his eyes, that much was a given. “came by a few weeks ago, he stayed a few days working on a mission for one of our hunters. Something about a dangerous animal in the woods giving the townspeople some trouble, yeah? I live on the other side of town, so I only know about it from hear-say”
Annoyance bubbles under his skin, this information is worthless to him. Not worth even a single ryo of this bag. Kakashi's Involvement in pointless D-ranks is the least of his concerns
“Seems he took care of the problem very efficiently, left as soon as he got his money, even though he seemed genuinely altruistic when i spoke with him– just to scope the stranger for myself, near the end of his stay” Obito feels his hands clench around his glass, threatening to break it “did he say where he was going?”
“No. I did try to ask him but he waved me off, something about ‘walking the road of life’, he didn't say anything more” The man answers simply, taking a large swing of his drink. Great. Another pointless endeavor that got him no closer to finding Kakashi, Obito begins to get up to leave, “but he did seem to be heading down south”
Oh? Had he come up north only to dodge iwagakure and was perhaps planning to visit fang, but then, why not go directly to his destination? Why go through northern earth at all?
“Interesting. I assume you gleamed that from which direction he walked towards and nothing more?”
The man shrugged, all but confirming Obito’s statement, right as Obito was getting up to leave he seemed to remember something, he grins “you know, it’s real funny that someone’s looking for him”
Obito narrows his eyes, tilting his head as he urges the man to explain himself “when we talked, well, he asked me some silly questions. About the people around town and the trees, Then about some nameless shinobi, seems to be searching for someone himself, how ironic is that?”
Searching for someone?
Maybe this had really been an elaborate plot the whole time and Konoha had sent Kakashi on a searching mission that would last years, covering for his absence with the excuse of him going rogue. It would not be unheard of, in fact, Obito had intervened in one such situation before, though the honour had been that of a kumo-nin
There is no one, after all, that Kakashi could be searching for. All those that he knew were within the bounds of the village’s four walls, much like a caged bird only allowed out of its cage to be reminded of how scary the world was outside is.
Those who Kakashi knew outside of Konoha were his enemies, he had no reason to search for them, had he wanted them dead they would have fallen within the first meeting.
“Can you tell me more, then? about the one he searches for?”
If he finds them first, and he is sure he will be able to, all he will have to do is wait for Kakashi to catch up to him. Kakashi was a tracker, after all, a damn good one at that, he will find his target sooner or later and Obito will only need to be there to intercept him.
Perhaps, even, he could intervene in his mission. Kill the target before Kakashi can get his hands on them, make this endeavor as fruitless as all things are in this deceitful world, there is only one truth and Kakashi will not see it until Obito shows it to him
This little triumph he could get over Kakashi, it makes his muscles clench in anticipation of the satisfaction that will wash over him once he beats the man at one of his specialties, proving how much he has improved, how he is no longer behind Kakashi but above him.
Taking the win from Kakashi after having the same done to him his whole childhood would be delightful.
The man hums, shutting one eye as if it helped his thinking “he said they had long dark hair, though that might have changed by now as their only meeting had been a long time ago”
He didn't know the gender of the person, then, likely not a public figure or an enemy he had actually engaged with in combat. Intriguing, and also frustrating because, had they been a political figure, Obito could have found them so easily. It could even have been one of the many he had under his thumb.
“How long?” The informant shrugged, Kakashi hadn't told him– it isn't surprising “did they have any specific characteristics?”
The man shook his head, taking a final swing of his beer until there was no drops left “didn't seem like he knew much about whoever it was. All that he said was that the person possessed the mokuton, unrefined as it was, and that they were a ruthless entity capable of killing dozens of shinobi within the blink of an eye. Seems like a mysterious s-ranked-nin who has escaped the bingo-book to me”
Wood-style? Now that is interesting, Obito knew of only one person beyond himself that possessed such nature, an experiment of Orochimaru’s– the only surviving test subject from the attempt– but they couldn't be the one that Kakashi searched, as last Obito checked the Shinobi had been in Kakashi’s own ANBU team.
Unless… He defected? But that doesn't sound right, it couldn't be him, Kakashi knew the boy too closely to be so scarce in describing details. It was possible that Orochimaru had tried again, or even succeeded before that experiment
But no, he would most certainly know if Orochimaru was playing with such nature again, and would probably have heard Perhaps a lost Senju has managed to keep themselves off-record so as to avoid persecution? It would slot nicely into place with the long dark hair.
The ruthlessness is not surprising, Obito himself had easily torn through Kiri’s forces back when he’d lost himself to the reality they were forevermore trapped in, from him had sprouted sprawling branches that thinned into knife-sharp edges, that night had been brutal, bloody, a reflection of what this world had done to him and–
And Kakashi had been there, a few feet away, passed out as he was.
Obito feels his blood run cold, mind grinding to a halt as a disturbing possibility is suddenly laid in front of him– surely it couldn't be- after all, he is sure that Kakashi had been unconscious back then. He couldn't remember what had happened, could he?
“Did he say anything else?”
The man frowned “yeah, but it was all weird. Vague. Something about pale skin lumps that hung to them, though he doesn't remember from where they sprouted. Sounds more like a monster than a man to me, the type of thing you hear when sharing campfire stories"
Unbelievable
Obito wanted to laugh, just as much as he wanted to scream. In the end, he did neither, only standing in silence as he considered the information.
His fists clenched as he thought back at how the man had described his use of mokuton. Unrefined? Kakashi had called his wood style unrefined? What would he know? Was he drawing a comparison to that accursed experiment? Did he think that boy was better than him?
Kakashi has always known how to get under his skin, to find the places which would break and poke at them until he lashed out. Even without knowing it had been dead last Obito, even when only recognizing him by his carnage, Kakashi still looked down on him.
It seems no matter what he does, Kakashi is bound to only see his flaws. Obito will never be good enough for him. figures.
Obito took a deep breath and contained himself, Kakashi's opinion about his abilities were irrelevant when Obito knew he could bring the other man to his knees now “interesting, I will keep that in mind”
Kakashi’s misplaced derision was not the thing to take away, rather, he should be asking himself what it was that Kakashi searched for from him. Perhaps he had heard stories of a Mokuton user on the underground of the Shinobi world and it had reminded him of that day in the past.
Did he seek his strength, even as he disdained him? Or did he know about one of Obito's ventures that would endanger Konoha? Regardless, he cannot help but smirk at the irony as he steps into the cold of earth’s alleyways, hidden from view as he swirls himself away.
Little does Kakashi know, it is for him that he searches. The thrill of knowing something Kakashi doesn't, knowing that he has something Kakashi needs, courses through him even as Obito understands the banality of it, he shouldn't care.
He doesn't care.
At least, finding the one Kakashi seeks, the one he wants, will be easier than he had initially thought
Obito soon found that to be the only easy part of his plans, it seems Kakashi was still just as slippery as Obito remembered him.
Even knowing his motives, the man's pattern was difficult to trace– of course, this came as no surprise, when his objective was quite literally to visit as many places as possible to inquire after someone whose whereabouts Kakashi should have no clue towards.
there was no straight path to be taken, no logical route– this, in combination with his deliberately scattered pattern meant to discourage pursuers and extensive knowledge of tracking, Made it so Kakashi was near impossible to find.
Obito had, by now, searched for him across all of the land of earth, From bar to bar, town to town, he had visited them and instructed each and every one of his own spies to look out for the masked man with silver hair, but the informations they had collected were not particularly helpful, not at all!
Eventually he became certain Kakashi had left earth, this was bad for Obito, as while he had plenty of informants among the five great nations, more civilian countries were ones he had never paid much mind to while stringing his web of connections.
Of course, he still had his moles. An easily bribed noble in Fang's lower court, an impoverished clan in stone, groups of missing-nin who he had backed in the past, he had his allies, but they were scarcer, not enough.
His search came to cold days, Obito had briefly considered planting moles with information that would direct Kakashi towards the right path, the one that led him right into Obito's impatient hands, ending both of their searches.
But that would be too risky, if Kakashi had found a unidentified masked man at the end of the road where he’d been told his target had last been seen, well, the connection would be too easy. even after Obito had cut his hair, even when he had no plans to make use of the Mokuton.
So he simply had to wait, patiently. He could not devote all of his time to this endeavour, though securing Kakashi's location was of great importance to prevent him from further spreading rumours of Obito's kekkei genkai that would undoubtedly lose him fighting advantages in the future, there were plenty of other matters to attend to.
Kiri is in disarray, as it always is these days, Amegakure has the need for his attention if he hopes to keep Konan’s loyalty by his side and his network must be maintained if he intends to use it in the near future. He has just left a meeting regarding Akatsuki's budget, matter of fact.
Beyond all that, there is the matter of Danzō. Obito had long suspected that the man had made attempts to steal Kakashi’s eye even after the dismantling of his organization, though Kakashi has other reasons for leaving he refuses to discredit such theory.
This is the perfect chance, after all, with Kakashi’s betrayal of the village, Danzō would be able to move any attempts of thievery onto the light and yet still have public support, the Uchiha clan has fallen, Konoha needs it’s last sharingan back
He would not allow that to happen, of course, Obito’s gift is not for the keeping of disgusting men such as Danzō, it is Kakashi’s burden to bear.
Danzō, Zetsu, whoever may it be. His last decision as Obito will forever stay, they would not dare to infringe upon such a fact, for as much as Madara has left his material will onto the world past his passing, Obito has left his own with Kakashi.
Obito is Madara’s will, but Kakashi is Obito’s, no one will change this, he will kill anyone who dares to try–
“we bring you important news” white Zetsu shrills from behind him, Obito does not betray his surprise, as it shouldn't exist in the first place; Zetsu has a knack for always appearing the instant Obito thinks of them, almost ad if they can peer into his thoughts
Obito turned to them, equal parts expectant and impatient. It is unlike Zetsu to delegate any information they wish to tell him.
They stand there, grinning at Obito in satisfaction at his reaction, but he can parse the danger that lingers beneath it
It is black Zetsu that speaks next, “We have found your Sharingan near the border between fang and wind, he was heading north, though it is possible he has diverted his path by now”
Wind? Kakashi is in Wind?
“Now that you know, it is expected that you will go back to your regular duties with no further distractions, you are welcome”
Obito ignores Zetsu’s meaningless drivel, he was never distracted, after all. Wind. It couldn't have been more perfect “where. Show me to him”
He supposed this was only logical, he had little reason to go back through earth once he had already left it, the only way to travel east would be either through Wind or rain, and both of those options would lead him right under the Akatsuki's eyes.
“We can show you where he was when we found him, he should already have found a town to stay by now, however, probably the country's very capital, if we had to guess”
“How long?” for how much time have they kept this from him, for how long have they been able to find him but refused to even attempt? He takes a menacing step towards Zetsu, fury alight in his veins "Zetsu, how long have you kept this to yourself!?"
“five days.”
eyes swirling and unfurling into deep crimson red, he grasps Zetsu by their stupid plant-like appendage, hauling up to stare at Obito’s Sharingan dead on, to taste his anger raw “why did you withhold such a fact from me, didn't you heed my warning?”
They only continue grinning, entertained, as if they were above him, even as Obito shows himself to have no qualms of making true on his promise “you had many matters to attend to, the impatience would distract you even further, your efficiency would have taken a heavy toll” they shrug.
“I am not distracted” he reiterated, throwing Zetsu to the side with unnecessary force, the thing's body crashing against the walls of the corridor they were in with great impact. It was convenient, of course, that Ame’s main building seldom have visitors. Zetsu winces in pain, yet still he is not taken seriously “sure, sure, aah, Obito-kun is soooo scary when he is angry!” White Zetsu chirps, black Zetsu only stares.
“You better watch yourself” Obito growls, standing over them imponent, “I can still kill you” he reminds them, Sharingan swirling under the void of his mask, a warning and a threat. Itching to make good in his promise even if he understands it as unwise
Zetsu grins, tilting his head “you should still be able to find him, but only if you leave soon” black Zetsu speaks, and white zetsu sing-songs after he is done “tick-tock-tick-tock”
Obito does not entertain their taunts, turning around with not a word before he allows himself to be whisked away by his jutsu
“Do not attempt something like this again”
Kamui wraps around him like a cloak, soon he finds himself atop one of the tallest trees inside the daimyo's court, still hidden by Kamui his eyes fleet over the crowd, searching for starlight silver.
Obito jumps over to the roof-top of a nearby building to head to the center.
It was five days ago when Zetsu had found him, they had claimed him to be close to the border of wind, with the leisure pace he had calculated Kakashi is walking at he should have arrived only last evening.
It is not unlikely that he had, then, spent the night in one of the ins and headed out only this very morning. He would still need to restock supplies, there is no reason why he would go to such a notorious locale had he not been planning to, Obito can catch up to him, Kakashi is just within reach.
Not finding him among the streets, Obito weaves a simple henge and quickly makes his way to one of the ins.
Sasori’s network of spies was one of Akatsuki’s most valuable assets, though he had attempted to keep it to only himself Obito was easily able to seize it as part of his own, of course they are still Sasori’s men before they were his own, but when he has their contact under his thumb it is only logical that the men come along.
Obito has eyes all over wind, as a result, besides Rain and Mist, there is no place he is better suited to investigate on.
Kakashi had gone through the crossing of fang, likely he would not be heading towards Suna, his patterns so far seemed to avoid strong Shinobi settlements. The most probable was, as Zetsu said, that he would be heading to the capital, planning to restock his supplies, then either he would likely head to rivers or back to earth, though rivers was more likely– the only issue was whether he would swerve around Suna to southern Rivers or head straight to northern rivers
Obito leaves the noble side of town, the only one with the luxury of trees to take cover in. It was unlikely that Kakashi was there. He finds the nearest lodging station and makes his first stop.
There were little people mulling about, and they quickly cleared upon Obito’s entrances with hushed whispers and fearful glances. Obito pays them no mind, finding convenient the way they flee, as he makes for the attendant
She is not fearful with him, likely used to working with unusual Shinobi, but very shortly Obito realizes that her nonchalance extends to her not quite understanding the urgency of the situation in which he finds himself in, as she continues to fiddle with her papers, taking annotations and barely paying him any mind
“The silver-haired man?” She hums, almost dismissively, “he isn't lodged here, but I do believe he recently took a mission for some merchants, something to do with carrying supplies to the next town over”
“Which town?” she briefly stops writing, and Obito starts to hold out hope that she will start to treat this with the severity it deserves, but soon she shrugs and goes right back to ignoring him “I'm not sure, I only heard it in passing from a few patrons yesterday, you would have more luck talking to them.”
“do you know how long ago he left, at least?” He must be travelling at civilian speed, as he had been so far. Even still, Zetsu had kept his location from Obito for too long, at this point it would not be unreasonable for Kakashi to be somewhere far away from both here and this mysterious town he headed to.
The woman shrugs again, “three days, I believe. Look. You’re clearly not going to check-in, so can you do me a favour and leave, go to the bar down the street. Someone there would know something” Obito could argue, however he hardly has the time for that, so he does as she says.
It doesn't take a long time to find someone speaking about the strange traveller that had arrived earlier this week, Obito once again had Kakashi’s strangeness to thank for this fact.
He stills, his racing mind, slipping into a better mindset to get information without setting off alarm bells, his mask already does a fine job of that.
None of the men talking by the barstool are informants of his, neither were they Sasori’s, which is rather inconvenient. Just the same all it takes is a bit of polite conversation and indulging in their complaints regarding trading routes for them to fill him in on everything he needed
Once he has a direction to follow and estimate times of travel to work with, Obito leaves before anyone can think of asking him what he needed to know those for
There he is, Obito wishes he could say he feels his chakra before he sees him, but he does not. Kakashi is expertly suppressing his signature, whether it is for the sake of the civilians who find Shinobi frightening or his own sake in hiding himself, Obito is unsure.
It is a pity, Kakashi's chakra has always been beautiful.
But just seeing him, finally, after such a long time in which Kakashi had been evading him with infuriating experience, sinking Obito’s time and feeding on his effort, always eager to be a bother to him, well, he would be remiss to say that he doesn't feel the ghost sensation of static running like lightning through his veins, the feel of a storm.
Maybe it is their connection, Obito muses– looking onto Kakashi’s face to find his Sharingan surprisingly uncovered by his hitai-ate– maybe they share in this too, maybe Kakashi can feel him, even if he knows not of his identity
Let him, he should know that he lost the game.
The lack of hitai-ate is a surprise and a given at the same time, Kakashi doesn't want to risk making it noticeable that he is a Shinobi, but surely it must not be comfortable to keep one eye closed at all times– his hair and the thin bandages only doing so much in shielding Obito’s gift
He wants to see it open, find himself in Kakashi’s face, because so long as that eye is making its home in his body Kakashi will never be able, truly, to run away from him, Obito will forever trail after his silhouette like the ghosts that haunt him.
He allows his eyes to trail down, down from Kakashi's silver hair, even messier now than it was customary, and the scar he had gained on Obito's behalf once upon a time. Kakashi wears an overcoat Obito had never seen in him before, likely something bought during his travels to shelter him from the cold winds of northern earth, under it lies only his standard tank-top that connected to his mask.
The remainder of his clothes seems to be his standard Shinobi wear, the only point of interest being a leather messenger bag slung around his shoulder, another newer addition to his wardrobe, Obito wonders what he keeps inside it.
Perhaps that is where Konoha's emblem lies, Obito feels the urge to open it and confirm for himself whether the ever-so familiar slash of a missing-nin was present in it, the proof that Kakashi had truly abandoned his beloved village.
But that will have to wait.
No matter, Obito adjusts himself more comfortably to watch the scene. Kakashi is helping the men unload their produce while talking, well, to say that he is talking would be quite the exaggeration– Kakashi listens, he listens and only speaks once every few minutes so that his silence isn't noticeable.
Just the same, Obito finds the scene bizarre. To see Kakashi perform such meaningless tasks that he hadn't seen him indulge in since their childhood days, back when they were no more than three fresh genin helping the farmers harvest their crops and complaining all the while.
But this is different, Kakashi is not doing this out of obligation to his village, he has chosen it, has chosen it above any other work that would surely fall right into his lap had he just tried searching for it
There were, surely, a myriad of options at his disposal in the capital, he could have picked from them, indulged in the mirror of his old work but Kakashi chose not to.
This isn't the only time, either. He has heard tales from his informants, of Kakashi's little missions, of Kakashi's favours he had paid the civilians.
What a good heart, he thinks sarcastically, what does he plan to gain from this little endeavour?
Does he not see? That it is pointless to attempt to fix the little things when this world is so flawed you could spend a lifetime of good deeds while barely making a dent? Like an ant in the grand scheme of things, Kakashi runs aimlessly in an attempt of bettering insignificant aspects of the Shinobi world, but it will never scrape off the rot right beneath it.
He is only wasting his time, his kindness that is already so lacking. Wasting himself, giving himself away for nothing. None of this will matter when Obito is able to actually fix the world
It doesn't matter how much he tries to play innocent. So long as Kakashi exists in this reality he will have the mark of a Shinobi. In the scar slashed across his face, the one he got on Obito’s behalf as in the mark engraved onto his very flesh in ink.
The reminder sets Obito’s expression into a bitter frown, the urge to rip away at Kakashi’s sleeves and display the symbol of his blind obedience, the mark of ownership on his body that will stay with him no matter his distance to the ones he pledged such loyalty to.
Bile rises to Obito’s throat and, not for the first time, he angers himself over Kakashi's pitiful weak resolve, not for the first time he wills himself back from removing skin from muscle with the flicker of a kunai, removing every last bit of the wretched seal.
He settles himself more comfortably in his hiding spot, reels back his irrational anger, and like that everything falls back into routine. watching Kakashi go about his day, watching him walk the streets and chat with the locals with empty hopes that one of them will know about Obito, watching him leave them with warm goodbyes and no more information than he had before.
He follows him to the in he had been instructed to search for in the middle of the road and when Kakashi finds himself done for the day Obito watches him sleep, too.
Obito watches Kakashi, and watches and watches and watches until he is satisfied, until it is evident that independent of what he endeavours in he remains the same loyal, duty-driven, dog he has always been
Until he can feel with certainty within himself that Kakashi will never escape his gaze again, that he will never again be able to elude him in such a manner.
When he is sure Kakashi won't awaken merely from his presence, though he keeps it as concealed as he can, Obito finds himself looking through the bag which Kakashi carries with him. sure enough, in it he finds Kakashi headband, a scrape against the metal showing the truth of his defection.
Obito allows himself to run his hands through it, to prove to himself that this is all very real.
he had never thought Kakashi capable of something like this, and for him, no less.
His curiosity not yet sated, Obito rummages though the other contents of the bag, taking to his hands a notebook filled with annotations, a map and some documents woven in between it's pages.
Kakashi's annotations are mostly useless, the journal functions primarily as a travel log, describing with great detail some of the landscapes Kakashi had seen in his journey, though he does include bits and pieces of information that he has gathered.
Obito reads through it and finds him to be on the wrong track to find him, though that is of no surprise. He reads though quotes, descriptions of curious things, and even has notes on some information regarding completely separate things from his search, even if a lot of that information is not quite correct– at least to Obito's knowledge.
There are also quite a few recipes here, Obito reads them through despite knowing he will never attempt any. He has not cooked even once since the age of twelve, and even back then he had never been good at it, turns out becoming a living ghost that lacks the need for food and rest helps very little with this.
He remembers Kakashi’s cooking, however, and knows he will be able to do these justice.
If, of course, he gets a chance to cook again, a rarity while living the life-style he has chosen for himself.
Obito continues to browse, recording with his Sharingan the information that seems relevant. Kakashi doesn't even know, but he had played into Obito’s hand with this. Now everything that he knows, Obito does too. If he lacked information on this side of the continent before, now he has at the least learned a few important facts.
Useful, without meaning to be.
Among the pages there is also some information on Ame, all seemingly collected when he travelled near its borders. He considers erasing the information– at least the parts that are accurate– but judges it unwise. Kakashi has likely already recorded it all, ridding him of it would only serve to alert him of Obito’s presence
Which does beg the question; what is the purpose of writing it down to paper, when this could only arise problems for himself if someone gets their hands on it?
Does Kakashi keep it only to organize his thoughts? That seems so uncharacteristic of him. Perhaps the arrogance of his youth had never gone away, truly, and Kakashi believes himself invulnerable.
But that isn't true any longer, Obito knows now, he is not invulnerable. Not in the way he should have grown to be, not when this world was so imperfect.
Not when he could but watch as Rin died, when he failed to keep his word
Not in this reality.
Waving away the thought, Obito turns to the map, but it is blank. A simple representation of the continent with nothing written on it, this seems wrong, out of place, Obito cannot figure out what the issue may be, so he puts it back and doesn't think about it any further.
Any more time and he will be at risk of Kakashi awakening, as he was prone to in the middle of the night, and catching him. So, carefully, Obito puts back everything just as how he had found it and slips away into the night.
There is much to be thought about, much to be taken care of. Tomorrow he can come to watch Kakashi depart after the ware trade Obito has scheduled near lightning at the break of dawn.
There is no danger of Kakashi getting so far that Obito would not be able to find him, especially while walking around in a country with little to no suitable hiding spots and so many of Obito's spies.
If he really wants to, Obito can even considering finding a tracker that even someone like Kakashi would be unable to notice, just to make sure Obito will be able to find him no matter where he goes– something he should have done a long time ago, it would have certainly saved him from a lot of headaches.
now that he has Kakashi, Obito will not lose him again so soon.