The Dream Devourer (Kakashi X OC)

The Fight for Konoha

Kakashi realized too late what had happened.

That Chiisai hadn't known all of the power she had possessed, and Kuroi did. He had snuck inside of Kakashi's mind with ease, even while awake, and taken over his body, casting him into the back of his mind, surrounded by his memories, chained to the ground.

But Kakashi wouldn't be fooled again. And this time, he had Chiisai's chakra, and an infinite world of possibilities.

Kakashi slammed the palms of his hands to the ground. Her chakra funneled through them, and he grunted as sizzling heat radiated from the chains, decorating his skin with a ring of burns.

He grit his teeth, centered himself, and studied the chains. He flexed his Sharingan eye, but the chains didn't disappear. It was made with chakra, and he couldn't use his own chakra to break them, it seemed.

Visions of finding his father's dead body flickered in front of him, but he ignored it, focusing on the task at hand.

His lips formed a tight line as he changed the positions of his hands. He had only done this once before, and it had been painful, so he braced himself.

Using the pressure of his cuffs, he dislocated his thumbs. Next, his pinky fingers. Pain pulsated up his arms, but he continued on, slowly maneuvering his hands out of the cuffs.

Memories of death and screams and blood echoed around him, and he took a deep breath, focusing on escape.

The chains fell to the ground, and he snapped his fingers back in place with a grunt. He turned a blind ear to the faint whisper of Rin's voice, of Obito's dying breath, of the sound of a sword piercing flesh over and over.

But then images burst forth from the ground, coming to life around him and blocking him in. Rin, Obito, Minato-sensei- they stood in front of him, and Kakashi blinked to find himself in Konoha on a crisp spring morning, the scent of leaves and fresh air being carried by the breeze.

"Kakashi!" Rin smiled, grabbing his wrist. The wind caught in her short brown hair, and her eyes were bright with life. "You're finally here!"

His sensei said, "It's not like you to be late, Kakashi." His blue eyes were kind, his posture laidback.

"Ha, I even beat you!" Obito grinned, widening his stance.

Kakashi looked between all of his comrades, their faces tugging on emotions buried deep inside of him. He stared down at his hands, and they were smaller, his clothes different.

Minato laid his hand on his shoulder and crouched down to face him. "Everything alright?" he asked.

Kakashi swallowed and squeezed his eyes shut. "This isn't real," he breathed, whispering to himself.

"Oi, you do look kinda sick," Obito said.

This wasn't real.

No matter how much he wished it, desired it- his comrades were gone. This was a trick.

"Kakashi?" Minato asked.

Dead. Minato sensei was dead. This reality was a lie. He wouldn't be fooled.

Kakashi opened his eyes, taking one last look at his fallen team.

Then he activated his Sharingan. The images around him fractured like glass, and Kakashi's chest rose and fell with each hard breath.

He had one comrade that still needed to be saved, and there was still a chance he could make it in time.

He extended his hand, thinking of Chiisai. She had made it look so easy in the dreamworld, summoning a portal with a single thought.