Well, on the bright side, her headache had vanished. Apparently, all she needed to cure a hangover was to get the life frightened out of you.
God damn it.
Kakashi hadn't felt him closing in on them at all. How could she have been so reckless as to let her guard down like this?
Kakashi's fingers tightened around the glass container. Of all the people she could have encountered in this era, why did it have to be Madara Uchiha?
She had known, of course, that meeting him was a possibility. She'd simply hoped to avoid it for as long as humanly possible.
Evidently, fate had other plans.
He looked younger than she remembered for obvious reasons.
Even his presence felt different. The man before her was still dangerous, undoubtedly, but he hadn't yet grown into the terrifying figure etched into her memories.
It was a strange thing, seeing someone who had haunted your nightmares standing before you with a face that looked almost unfamiliar.
Almost.
The eyes were still unmistakable.
Her gaze flickered toward the two boys. They were young, inexperienced, and nowhere near strong enough to survive a fight between her and Madara. If things went badly, they would be the first to pay the price.
She couldn't let that happen.
Kakashi took a slow breath and forced herself to relax her shoulders. Panicking wouldn't help. Neither would picking a fight with the man who had once been feared across the entire shinobi world.
She needed to get the boys out of here, preferably before Madara decided to turn them into collateral damage.
"Sensei?" Itsuki's voice came from somewhere to her left.
Kakashi barely resisted the urge to tell him to shut up. Not because she was angry with him, of course. The boy had done nothing wrong. She just didn't want him to draw attention to himself.
Shū, to his credit, had gone completely silent. His hand rested near his kunai pouch, but he hadn't drawn a weapon. Even he seemed to understand that attacking a stranger who had appeared without making a sound was probably a terrible idea.
"You're rather calm for someone caught holding stolen Uchiha eyes." Uchiha Madara's gaze remained fixed on the small glass container in Kakashi's hand.
"I understand how it looks," Kakashi said carefully, positioning herself between Madara and her students. "But I have no interest in stealing eyes from your clan."
His eyes slowly shifted to lock onto Kakashi. "You have a funny way of showing that, don't you?"
Kakashi knew in that moment that Madara had no interest in listening to her. He didn't want an explanation because he had already decided the outcome of this encounter.
There was no way she could evade this fight. All she could do right now was distract him while Shū and Itsuki ran.
"The-" Kakashi didn't get to finish speaking before his killing intent crushed down on them.
Kakashi quickly shook it off.
"Shū, Itsuki, you two need to run," Kakashi told them, but she didn't hear any answer. She worried and risked taking a look at the two of them, only to realize they were petrified in place.
Madara's killing intent was too much for them.
When she turned back to Madara, she saw him forming hand signs. "Fire ball jutsu." New chapters come out on g.com first.
Kakashi immediately moved to intercept it. "Water style, Water wall."
The water wall surged between them just as Madara's fireball tore through the forest.
Flames crashed against the barrier with a deafening roar. Steam exploded into the air, swallowing the trees and turning the world into a wall of white.
That was enough to snap Shū out of his terror. "Kakashi-sama!"
Kakashi gritted her teeth, forcing more chakra into the technique. "Take Itsuki and get out!"
"But-"
"Shut up! That man is Uchiha Madara, and he has no interest in hearing us out, so I will have to fight him!" Kakashi yelled. "You two being here is a liability! I order you to leave."
Thankfully, the boy didn't argue with her any longer, and Shū grabbed Itsuki by the arm and forced him to move.
Hearing them run away, Kakashi forced herself to refocus on the monster ahead of her.
The flames finally subsided. Her water wall collapsed, sending a cascade of water over the road and soaking everything in its path.
Kakashi barely had time to catch her breath before Madara appeared through the thinning steam. His foot connected with her side. She let herself roll with the impact, deliberately letting the glass container holding the eyes go.
She wanted to see whether he'd prioritize retrieving the eyes or kill the person he believed had stolen them. Perhaps she could even learn something about how much he still cared for his clan.
If so, this younger version of Madara might be easier to predict than the man she remembered.
She landed several paces away, her hand already reaching for a kunai.
Madara straightened, inspecting the container to ensure its contents were intact. Only then did his gaze return to her.
"You have some skill," Madara remarked, looking almost amused. "Most shinobi would have been reduced to ash."
"How flattering," Kakashi said drily. "I wasn't the one to steal from you, and you have your priority back, Uchiha, so leave us alone."
"Why should I believe you're not involved?" Madara remarked, slipping the container into his armor.
Kakashi wanted to punch him so bad. "The only reason I had been holding those eyes was that I found them on a dead man being dragged down the road by two criminals."
"Yeah, right." Madara scoffed at her, and his Sharingan spun.
Kakashi felt the familiar pressure of an Uchiha's gaze. Well, she wasn't surprised that diplomacy wasn't going to get them very far. If she was being honest, she wasn't trying very hard right now.
"Look at me."
Kakashi's eye twitched. Does that ever really work? Just ask nicely, and your enemy would happily look into your eyes?
"Hmm, I guess I will just have to make you then." Madara moved.
Kakashi barely had time to register the shift in his stance before he appeared in front of her, a fist driving toward her face. She leaned back, the blow passing close enough to stir the hair beneath her scarf, and brought her kunai up to intercept his follow-up strike.
Madara twisted his wrist, forcing her kunai aside, then drove his knee toward her stomach, but Kakashi jumped backward before it struck her.
Kakashi ducked beneath a sweeping kick and thrust her kunai toward his side. Madara twisted away, catching her wrist before the blade could reach him.
Madara's head tilted just enough to let her elbow pass his chin. Before Kakashi could retreat, his hand clamped around her upper arm.
Oh, you have got to be kidding me.
He yanked her forward.
Kakashi went with the pull rather than fighting it, twisting her body as she closed the distance. Her free hand shot toward his throat, forcing him to release her arm and lean away. She planted a foot against his chest and kicked herself backward, putting several paces between them.
Her boots scraped against the damp earth.
Madara glanced down at the muddy footprint she'd left on his armor, then slowly looked back at her.
Kakashi squirmed. Please don't take that personally. It really wasn't like she had done it on purpose!
Unfortunately, judging by the expression on his face, he was very much taking it personally. Considering that this armor was the same one he had worn to take on the entire shinobi world, she couldn't say she was that surprised.
Madara smiled at her. "Your Taijutsu is impressive," he observed out loud. "I wonder who exactly sent you?"
Kakashi did not like that smile one bit, and she bit back a groan at the question. "No one."
"Is that so? Then which clan do you belong to? The way you fight doesn't match the Hagoromo…"
"Yeah… after this warm welcome you give me? I'm not answering that."
"Well, your answer doesn't matter. I'll just kill you first, then go find the two who were with you. One of them would certainly be willing to share."
For one terrible moment, Kakashi couldn't hear anything but the blood rushing in her ears.
It was as if cold water had been poured over her head, clearing the last of her hesitation. She hadn't forgotten who she was fighting. But a part of her had hoped that this younger Madara, not yet the man she remembered, might be a little softer.
What a stupid thought that had been. Even if he was softer, that didn't change his true nature.
This was a man who stuck his disgusting fingers into her eye socket to rip out Obito's gift to her.
Madara vanished.
Kakashi barely managed to raise her arms before his fist struck her guard. The impact sent her skidding backward.
Kakashi dug her heels into the earth, her forearms screaming in protest.
Before she could regain her footing, Madara's chakra surged. His hands flashed through another series of signs.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
Damn it! He hadn't given her enough time to recover, and the enormous fireball was already bearing down on her.
Heat scorched her exposed skin, and the blast sent her tumbling across the dirt. She rolled, came up on one knee. Her scarf had caught fire, the fabric blackened and falling apart around her head. Beneath it, silver hair clung to her forehead, singed at the ends.
Kakashi slowly rose to her feet. She tore off the remains of her burning haori to reveal the dark shirt beneath.
She smiled beneath her mask. It wasn't a particularly pleasant smile.
"Okay, now you really pissed me off."
Killing intent poured from her in a sudden wave, and lightning crackled in the palm of her hand.