"Snort..." Obito bit his lower lip, clenching his fists at his sides, his eyes red.
Qiyun carefully wiped away the sweat and dust from the wound with a cotton swab, distinctly feeling the child's trembling.
"Want to cry again, Obito?" he said with a soft chuckle.
"I... I do not!" Obito hurriedly raised his voice in defense, but the tears that had been welling up in his eyes spilled over all at once.
Qiyun chuckled again, and Obito hurriedly blocked his face with his arm.
"Knowing the pain is good," Qiyun said lazily. "That's the consequence of pushing yourself."
With that, he pressed down slightly harder with the disinfectant-soaked cotton ball.
"Sting, sting, sting, sting, ouch!" Obito instinctively tried to pull back his leg, but Qiyun firmly pinned it down, keeping him completely motionless.
Obito: QAQ
"Anija!"
Having thoroughly defeated Kakashi in all the events Gai had proposed, Kakashi couldn't wait to tell Qiyun about it—only to see his older brother half-kneeling in front of Obito, who was sitting in a chair, gently tending to his wound.
"How did it end up like this?" Kakashi first glanced at the wound on Obito's leg, asking in bewilderment.
"This idiot insisted on running the last fifteen laps even after he fell and got hurt," Qiyun said, clapping his hands together and standing up after bandaging Obito. "You'd better thank Rin Nohara for carrying a portable medical kit, otherwise you'd be going home looking like a total mess."
"I'm sorry..." Obito sniffled, cautiously watching Qiyun's expression from below.
"What are you apologizing to me for?" Qiyun said helplessly. "Wasn't this your own choice?"
He gestured vaguely at the bandage tied around Obito's knee. "This is the price."
"But I don't regret it." Obito stared fixedly at Qiyun with wide, stubborn eyes.
If... if he hadn't held on until the end, what difference would there have been between him and the others in Qiyun's eyes?
"...Whatever you say." Qiyun sighed.
Kakashi looked at Obito's stubborn face, then at his own brother, suddenly feeling as though something had subtly slipped beyond his understanding. But having no idea what it meant, he could only frown and say, "Let's go home, Anija."
"Alright." Qiyun threw an arm around Kakashi's shoulders, and the atmosphere between the brothers instantly grew close and inseparable.
Seeing the two of them about to leave, Obito anxiously stood up. "Wait for me... Ah!"
Moving too suddenly, his legs instantly turned to jelly and he pitched forward. Watching the ground rush closer, Obito instinctively closed his eyes and braced for the impact.
Instead, he fell into a lemon-scented embrace—the exact same one as when he crossed the finish line.
"Really, why are you always so clumsy?" Qiyun steadied Obito, then naturally stepped back to put some distance between them.
Obito clutched the hem of Qiyun's shirt, his eyes darting away. "I'm coming with you guys."
Seeing Obito's hand, Kakashi suddenly had a flash of realization: this guy was trying to steal his brother!
"Hey, my house isn't in the same direction as the Uchiha Clan Compound," Kakashi said, crossing his arms—the implication being there was no need to tag along with them.
"Is the school gate not in the same direction either!" Obito puffed out his cheeks, glaring unhappily at Kakashi. As expected, he and the jerk Kakashi just didn't get along!
"Do you have to cling to my brother for just this short walk, crybaby?" Kakashi emphasized the words *my brother*.
Provoked by Kakashi's mocking tone, Obito's temper flared, yet he couldn't think of a single retort. Aggrievedly clutching Qiyun's hem, he unhappily pulled down his goggles.
Qiyun was practically at a loss for words with these two brats. *Hey, hey, am I some kind of prize to fight over?*
"Alright, it's just walking together, nothing to argue about," Qiyun said, turning back to Obito. "Do you have—uh..."
Obito had taken a pretty nasty tumble, and then ran over a dozen laps under the blazing sun. Making him limp home all by himself really was rather pitiful. More importantly, Obito didn't have many close friends in class, and since Rin Nohara was a girl, it wouldn't be appropriate for her to walk Obito all the way back to the Uchiha Clan Compound.
"Never mind, let's go." Qiyun reached his hand out to Obito.
"Yeah!" Obito's eyes lit up as he linked arms with Qiyun, practically hanging off his entire left side.
Kakashi: ...
*Give him an inch and he takes a mile!*
Unwilling to be outdone, he immediately grabbed Qiyun's other arm.
From a distance, Qiyun looked like a man flanked by two arm candy.
Qiyun: ...
He stood right in the middle with a blank expression.
Sakumo, coming to pick up the two boys after school, witnessed this hilarious scene.
The silver-haired Jonin couldn't help a chuckle. "What's going on here?"
"W-White Fang!" Obito's cheeks rapidly flushed red at the sight of his idol.
"Dad." Kakashi quickly let go of Qiyun's arm, putting on a mature facade.
"Nothing much," Qiyun shook his head, saying to Sakumo, "This is Uchiha Obito, a classmate of mine."
"We're friends!" Obito turned his head and declared firmly.
Qiyun paused, then obediently corrected himself. "Mm, friends." That finally satisfied Obito.
"An Uchiha, huh..." Sakumo's gaze swept over the neatly tied bandage on Obito's leg. "Qiyun, I'm cooking dinner tonight. What do you want to eat?"
"I want more meat." Qiyun blinked.
"Alright," Sakumo smiled. "But you have to eat your vegetables, too."
"Okay." Though he usually liked to tease Kakashi, Qiyun was always quite sensible in front of Sakumo.
Then, under Obito's envious gaze, Sakumo's eyes landed on him. "And what about you, Obito? What would you like to eat?"
Obito's expression instantly went blank.
"What are you daydreaming for?"
It wasn't until Kakashi's impatient voice rang out that Obito widened his eyes and pointed at himself in bewilderment. "M-Me?"
"Yes," Sakumo said with a smile. In truth, he was pleasantly surprised by Obito's appearance. His own two rascals—one mature, the other proud—didn't act like children at all. While that made Sakumo proud, it also left him feeling a tinge of defeat.
*Sigh, even without a dad, they'd probably get along just fine...* Sakumo couldn't help thinking.
Still, it was wonderful for them to make friends their own age.
"I—I'm not picky at all! Anything is fine!" Obito said excitedly.
"Old man, Obito has a sweet tooth," Qiyun noted.
"Eh?! Qiyun, how did you know?!" Obito whipped his head around, reacting strongly.
*C... Could it be that Qiyun... has been keeping his eyes on me this whole time too...*
At that thought, a blush rapidly bloomed across Obito's cheeks.
Qiyun had no idea the Uchiha boy was currently conducting an elaborate internal fantasy sequence. He had simply noticed that the customers who frequented the village's sweet shop the most were that group of red-eyed rabbits, and Obito also carried a faint scent of sweetness. Only someone who truly, deeply loved sweets would naturally pick up their fragrance like that.
"Oh dear, I'm not very good at making sweet dishes," the salt-loving Hatake scratched his head. "Would sweets from Sweet Red Bean Soup shop be okay?"
Obito nodded so fast his head became a blur. "Sweets from Sweet Red Bean Soup are my absolute favorite!"
Sakumo clapped his hands with a smile. "Settled then. Obito, why don't you stay at our house for the night? Will your parents be alright with that?"
"It's fine, I... there's no one else at home anyway." By the end, Obito's expression turned somewhat dim.
"Ah... I'm sorry." Sakumo hadn't expected that. Though, come to think of it, it made sense; the Second Great Ninja War had ended only a few years ago, and the Uchiha clan had lost a considerable number of elites in the conflict—no doubt Obito's parents were among them.
"Ahaha, it's actually not too bad. The clan gives a stipend for orphans like me, so it's really no big deal..." As he went on, Obito's voice trailed off into a whisper.
"Idiot, how could it be no big deal," Kakashi muttered, watching Obito's dejected look.
Qiyun patted Kakashi on the shoulder, then smiled at Obito. "In that case, you should come over and hang out at our place more often. With three of us, you won't feel lonely anymore."
"I... Is it really okay? C... Can I?" Obito asked, a mix of eager anticipation and lingering doubt.
"Of course it's okay." Sakumo patted Obito's spiky hair, his handsome face filled with gentleness.
Obito sniffled, feeling his nose sting and the sudden urge to cry again.
Qiyun was just too nice! Truly worthy of being the White Fang! And Kakashi... well, Kakashi was reluctantly a decent guy, he supposed.
In the end, Sakumo held Kakashi's hand, while Qiyun supported Obito as they walked back to the Hatake estate.
Visiting the Hatake household for the first time, Obito looked thoroughly excited, his eyes darting around in wonder.
Qiyun placed the tri-colored dango bought from Sweet Red Bean Soup onto the coffee table. "Here, your favorite sweets."
"Oh! Thanks!" Obito excitedly picked up a skewer of tri-colored dango, bit off a piece, and wore a blissful expression. "Mm-mm... delicious!"
"Qiyun, Kakashi, you guys have some too." After finishing a skewer, Obito noticed neither brother had touched any and offered them around.
"Too sweet." Kakashi, a devout lover of savory food, shook his head. To him, tri-colored dango was much too sweet and cloying—definitely not to his taste.
"Sure." Qiyun didn't mind; he liked strong, rich flavors, a habit carried over from his past life.
"Hmph, at least Qiyun has good taste." Obito squinted slightly, waving his toothpick.
"Hah, you really don't treat yourself like a guest, do you," Kakashi muttered under his breath.
"You're talking bad about me again, aren't you, Kakashi!"
"Tsk."
"Tsk what! You jerk Kakashi!"
"Hah? Big talk coming from you, idiot Obito!"
"Jerk Kakashi!"
"Idiot Obito!"
Qiyun: ...
He turned away speechlessly, only to find Sakumo watching the scene with a smiling expression.
"Old man," Qiyun called out.
"Hmm?" Sakumo tilted his head.
"When Kakashi and I used to bicker, did you look at us the same way?" Qiyun half-lidded his eyes.
"Ahahaha, it's totally normal for kids to act like that," Sakumo said with a laugh. "You can let loose and relax sometimes too, Qiyun."
"Mmm~" Qiyun put his hands behind his head. "I'm already plenty relaxed."
"Is that so? I always feel like Qiyun is constantly overthinking things," Sakumo recalled Qiyun's usual demeanor. "You're mature far beyond your years, not like a child at all."
"And who do you think is to blame for that?" Qiyun retorted. "Is the Hokage's ANBU work really that busy? You don't even get days off."
Back when the brothers were completely incapable of caring for themselves, Sakumo had stayed home as a househusband. But the moment they grew a bit older, he returned to the ANBU, becoming a man whose return dates were always uncertain.
That was precisely why Kakashi relied on Qiyun so much. No matter how smart he was, he was still just a child; naturally, he would lean on his twin older brother and loathed the idea of anyone else coming along to steal his brother's attention.
At the mention of this, a guilty flicker crossed Sakumo's face.
"Well, you see... Lord Third said he needed me..."
"So you left your two-year-old sons behind to go work for the great Lord Hokage?" Qiyun loaded the words *the great Lord Hokage* with sarcastic heavy emphasis. "Or is Konoha completely out of people, and you're the only Jonin left?"
Sakumo offered an embarrassed, hollow laugh, entirely speechless in front of his son.
There was simply no refuting it. Though Sakumo was seen as a pillar of reliability by his colleagues and superiors, he had indeed run away when it came to managing his family.
Sakumo had deeply loved his wife, but she had died of severe postpartum hemorrhaging, and his two boys looked so much like her. He was only a mortal man; sitting alone in the dark by the crib staring at the two infants, he couldn't help wondering if his wife might still be alive had they never been born.
Seeing that Sakumo offered no defense, Qiyun let out a cold snort and looked away—only to find Obito and Kakashi, who had been loudly bickering moments ago, now staring at him with looks of absolute awe.
"You two done arguing?" He raised an eyebrow. "Then let's eat."
Obito and Kakashi nodded simultaneously and obediently took their seats at the table.
Because of the exchange between Qiyun and Sakumo just moments before, the atmosphere at the dinner table was somewhat subdued, leaving only the crisp clatter of bowls and chopsticks echoing in the room.
"Tsk." Qiyun set down his chopsticks and spoke first. "I shouldn't have brought up a topic that put everyone in a bad mood while eating. My fault."
"No, Qiyun, you weren't wrong," Sakumo hurried to say. "Over the years, I haven't fulfilled my duties as a father, and I've let you and Kakashi bear too much."
"You say that, but you still can't let go of village matters, can you?" Qiyun shrugged.
His gaze swept lightly over Obito, who was sitting up straight—his darting black eyes pretending to study the food before him while actually keeping a close watch on the situation between Qiyun and Sakumo.
"You should be more careful, Old Man," Qiyun said with a meaningful undertone. "Not everyone can survive the undertow when a tower collapses."
Sakumo was indeed strong, but he hadn't reached a level of infallible invincibility. If someone truly plotted against him, he wouldn't even know how he died.
Thinking of the benevolent-looking Third Hokage he had seen at the entrance ceremony, Qiyun let out a soft tsk. That old man full of the Will of Fire was no simple character.