Kakashi shook his head, clearing away his distracting thoughts, and decided to put all that aside. His priority was to bring Obito back to the village. Everything else could wait.
"Obito, whatever you're thinking, you're coming with me today."
Holding the White Fang Short Sword, he shifted his grip from behind his back to his waist, lowered his center of gravity, and assumed an Iai stance.
Judging by his stance, Kakashi intended to use the most dangerous and lethal draw slash in White Fang Swordsmanship.
Although the draw slash was devastating, that power came at the cost of all defense. Kakashi hadn't used it even against Nagato earlier, a testament both to its danger and to how seriously he took Obito.
In Kakashi's heart, he could lose to anyone except Obito.
Watching Kakashi take his stance, Obito knitted his thick brows slightly. His eyes turned cold, and his lips curled with a hint of murderous intent. He turned so Kakashi could see only his profile, tilted his head up at a forty-five-degree angle toward the sky, and regarded Kakashi contemptuously from the corner of his eye.
"Kakashi, I don't want to fight you, and you're no match for these eyes. You don't know their power. Just leave."
Obito spoke calmly, as though he thought nothing of Kakashi, but beneath his cold exterior, his restless heart was brimming with secret delight.
He had bottled up some of those words for years. Because of Rin Nohara and his own lack of strength, he had never been able to stand tall before Kakashi, let alone find the chance or courage to say them.
He hadn't expected this opportunity to let him say them all today, and he couldn't help marveling inwardly.
*Looks like today's my lucky day. Thank you, Chihane. Thank you, Akatsuki.