Rewind

Rin stayed by her team's side all day long during their Rasengan training. She was happy to see Obito and Kakashi work together, even though it was mostly Obito doing the hard work. Kakashi simply repeated the instructions over and over again. The first two days, Minato and Jiraiya came by to start their training but ultimately decided to watch over them from the sidelines, just to make sure everything was peaceful and quiet. It's been two weeks, and just recently, Obito moved to the last balloon, and it was clear he was having none of that.

"Guys! Let's take a break!" She clapped her hands to invite the two boys for a lunch break.

"No! I think I got it! I think this is the one!" Obito argued, looking at the rubber ball. "Did you see? It moved!"

"You blew on it, Obito," Kakashi pointed out.

"Oh, come on, Kakashi! Give me a hint!" The Uchiha pleaded.

"I told you the answer. You don't have to work alone," Kakashi rolled his eyes, walking toward Rin.

"That doesn't make any sense! How can you do something together when you told me I couldn't do it with you?!" Obito snapped, throwing himself on the ground.

"You won’t have anything done by staying on the ground," Kakashi sat down to eat. "You need to figure things out on your own."

Kurama’s loud laughing drew attention from the young Hatake.  

"This Uchiha reminds me of a friend. He couldn't figure things out even if his life depended on it."

"Really? How did he become a ninja then?" Kakashi asked, looking at the Bijuu.

"The solution was handed to him on a silver plate," Kurama replied. "If you want to teach him, maybe it's best for you to actually tell him the real deal."

"He can't always get the silver plate, Kyuubi. He needs to figure things out on his own. Critical thinking is an important skill for a shinobi."

"Kakashi?" Rin tapped his shoulder, whispering. "Is there an enemy? Someone's watching us?" She gently asked in a whisper.

"No. Why are you asking?" Kakashi asked, looking behind as if to double-check.

"You suddenly turned around and weren't paying attention to us." Obito joined the group and sat down.

"I was simply talking to the Kyuubi," Kakashi shrugged. "Maybe because he's behind me, when I talk to him, I simply turn around."

"You talk to the Kyuubi? I thought you didn't want to be a Jinchuuriki or use it in battles," Rin commented in surprise.

"I don't. That doesn't mean I can't talk to him. It's quite... helpful to have him talk to me, even though it's just in my head," Kakashi shrugged.

"How is he? Kushina-san told us that he was never quiet and always cussed her out, threatening to escape and kill her." Obito took a sandwich from the bento box.

"He’s not that bad. Most of the time, he just lays there watching, but when he talks, he’s not that bad," Kakashi shrugged. "And while sometimes he loves to tease me, he doesn’t seem to want to kill me yet." Or at least, that’s what he understood during their first time. The Kyuubi wasn’t seeking control over him—*not yet*, at least. "He told me he chose me, so I guess he needs my help or something. The thing is, he’s not trying to kill me," he finished.

"So, it’s a boy. The Kyuubi is male? Or does it change based on the Jinchuuriki?" Rin asked.

"He sounds like a boy. A very old man, in fact," Kakashi confirmed.

"Hey! Who are you calling old?!" Kurama growled from the depths of Kakashi's mind.

"And how is it?" Obito asked with interest. "Talking to him, I mean."

"It’s like thinking. You can hear yourself think, and the voice replies. Sometimes I get moved into my mindscape, and it’s like talking to you or Rin. He’s just there, and I can see him. It’s not that weird," Kakashi continued. Noticing Obito opening his mouth again, he proceeded with what he thought Obito was about to ask. "The mindscape is like this giant sewer. The Kyuubi is in a room filled with water, above there are pipes, and he’s behind a cage."

"That’s so cool!" Obito spoke in amazement. "Is it really big? Or is it like you two are small? And how can you have a Bijuu inside you without it breaking your body?"

"The Kyuubi is just chakra, Obito. He’s made of chakra. He takes a form similarly to our jutsu. Our chakra changes shape when we use it, and his shape is a nine-tailed fox. He’s not made of flesh and blood," Kakashi explained, finishing his lunch.

"Rin, I was thinking. By your training, you don't know any jutsu yet, right?" Kakashi asked, as Rin’s cheeks turned red.

"I don’t. But I’m a medical ninja, and... I was told that medical ninjas don’t need jutsu," she looked at her fidgeting hands.

"Whoever told you that is a liar. Medical ninjas need to be able to defend themselves too. Yesterday, the Kyuubi suggested I teach you how to break out of genjutsu on your own, just in case. However, I’d rather start with something more useful, like a jutsu you can actually use. If I’m not wrong, soon enough you'll have the Chunin Exams, and you’ll need a better arsenal of weapons in your pocket. You can’t rely on us to help you out whenever you need it. The Chunin Exams also include a solo battle, and it sounds stupid to go and fight without jutsu."

"But Gai fights without it," Obito pointed out.

"That’s because Gai is good in taijutsu. He knows how to counter jutsu and weapons. He doesn’t need anything else," Kakashi explained.

"Alright then! I’ll try!" Rin got up excitedly.

"Here. Hold this chakra paper, both of you," Kakashi handed a chakra paper to both kids. "Try to infuse your chakra into it. The paper will react in five different ways according to your chakra affinity. It burns with fire, becomes wet with water, turns to dust with earth, gets cut in half with wind, and crumples with lightning," he explained, taking a piece of paper and infusing his own chakra into it. He didn’t expect the paper to crumple first and burn seconds later.

"What does that mean?" Rin asked.

"It’s when multiple chakras are detected. It does two things based on the chakra. My chakra is lightning, but I guess the Kyuubi is fire," he explained.

"That’s so cool! I want to try!" Obito concentrated on his paper, which immediately burned. "I have fire, right?"

"Yes. Rin, your turn," Kakashi looked at Rin, who did the same. It took her a while, but eventually, the piece of paper was cut in half before becoming nothing but wet paper. "Wind and water?" she asked Kakashi, who nodded.

"Wait. Then how can I learn Rasengan? Isn’t Sensei a wind user? How did you learn Rasengan?" Obito asked.

"First of all, the Rasengan is nothing but chakra rotating in your palm. But chakra isn't one-sided. That’s why it’s called chakra affinity. Your affinity is fire, which means you can learn fire jutsu more easily than other elements. But it doesn’t stop you from learning all of them. There are combinations of chakra you can have, but some of them are Kekkei Genkai," Kakashi explained. "Let’s take the Hokage for example. He can use all five elements of chakra. If we take Hashirama-san as an example, we know he was a wood user. It combines water and earth together. But if I try to combine water and earth, nothing comes out because wood needs a certain bloodline. The Shadow Possession Technique that the Nara clan uses is a Yang-based chakra. The Byakugan is a Yin-based chakra. They are all Kekkei Genkai. Everything going beyond the five elements is referred to as Kekkei Genkai. Or at least, this is what I’ve been taught."

"I see! So water and wind combined give ice, but I won’t be able to form it?"

"Exactly. You’ll be able to use them together in a jutsu, but it won’t form ice. Understood, Obito?" he asked.

"I’m not stupid, you know?! I understood!" Obito blushed, offended.

"Then let’s resume the training. Go back to the Rasengan. You, Rin, let’s try to focus on your own training and come up with a jutsu on your own," he told her.

Too bad that the time didn’t seem sufficient. Obito still hadn’t figured out his last Rasengan balloon, and Rin couldn’t figure out what kind of jutsu she wanted to perform. Kakashi felt like he was teaching babies.

"Alright, stop it!" He snapped. The Chunin Exams had already started. They passed the first test, and now the second trial awaited the two, yet they still had nothing to go on.

"Obito. The solution is easy! Don’t do it alone means you have to do it with someone. Obviously, it cannot be me, or Rin, or anyone else. What can you do to have another like you?" He asked, and when Obito looked at him, lost, he sighed. "Make a clone! Let your clone help you. You aren’t alone this way, and you aren’t taking time from anyone else. In a battle, I cannot assist you in the creation of the Rasengan, but you can create a clone that can do it with you," he explained. He was sure he could see a light bulb appear over Obito’s head.

"Of course!" Obito got up, creating his clone. "How didn’t I think of it earlier?" He asked, smirking and starting with his work again.

"Rin. You are a smart girl. I don’t have to tell you this. When creating a jutsu, you need to know exactly what you want. What kind of jutsu do you want to have? Is it going to be offensive or defensive? Is it going to defend you or defend others? How would it attack your enemy? Otherwise, you can wave hand signs all you want, but it won’t do anything," he sighed in defeat.

"I... I’m not good with attacking," Rin looked at the lake in front of her. She was working on her water style jutsu. "So I guess defending?" She looked at Kakashi.

"Very well. How would it defend you?" He asked, almost as if adding pieces to a puzzle.

"Maybe something like your mud wall. This way, I can actually imagine it," she looked back at the water.

"That’s a start. So do it. Stop doubting yourself. Remember what you told Obito. You’re always watching him to make sure he becomes Hokage, right?" He asked, as Rin nodded.

"Then do it," he sat down.

It seemed his words had worked. Obito had managed to snap the balloon and finally started working on actually performing the Rasengan. Rin, on the other hand, had managed to raise the water, making it as tall as she was.

"Seems your words worked," Kurama’s voice echoed again.

"I can't believe them. How stupid do you have to be to perform a jutsu?" Kakashi asked in defeat.

"Not everyone is born a genius, Kakashi. And I can tell you now, don’t rely too much on Minato to teach them jutsu. I already know he never did that. You learned Chidori on your own. Maybe if he had put some time into your training, none of that would have ever happened. The Fourth Ninja War wouldn't have happened if he had just paid more attention," the Kyuubi closed his eyes.

"I think you're getting confused. My father started the war, not Sensei. I don't know if you know how to count, but we’re in the Third Ninja War," Kakashi looked at him.

"The First, the Third, the Fourth. What difference does it make anyway? They’re still wars, with the same motivations and the same interests," Kurama didn’t even open his eyes.

"I know that! That’s why I won’t be using you to stop this war," Kakashi argued.

"Why? You know I can do it."

"Then what? Another war will start over you Bijuu. Other kids will lose their families. Out of desperation, people will turn against their friends, and this cycle won’t ever end. I’m not going to do the same thing. I won’t make the same mistakes my father did."

"I think you got it all wrong, kid." Kurama finally opened his eyes. "No matter what you do, people will still hate you. That’s human nature. No matter what you do, they’ll find a reason to hate you. Your father saved his friends, yet they found a reason to scorn him. You never paid attention to your teammates. You did exactly what they expected from Sakumo, and where did that lead you? To be moved from team to team. You were just a kid, and by being a Hatake, you were hated. Now you're a Jinchuuriki, and they’ll hate you for that. No matter what you try to do...they’ll hunt you for it. My suggestion is... look inside yourself and try to find what you care about. Where your power lies. What can you do with your team, and what can you do alone? You can hate your teammates all you want, you might not care, but in the hour of their greatest need... I can assure you, you won’t turn your back on them. It’s not in your nature. It’s not who Kakashi Hatake is."

Kurama closed his eyes, severing his contact with the kid.

Kakashi was observing his two teammates on the battlefield, working with a complete stranger. Yet somehow, they seemed to get along just fine. Obito was serious, and Rin was leading the group with much more ease. The third member didn’t even seem to care about the well-being of his team.

That’s when it happened. Kakashi didn’t know why or how, but when the stranger attacked Obito out of the blue, breaking his arm, Kakashi felt anger building up inside him. He was seriously considering going over there and beating the crap out of him.

"Calm down, Kakashi. Your chakra is flickering. You can’t lose control here," Jiraiya reminded him as the Hatake scoffed. Yeah, being a Jinchuuriki was no fun.