Will Of Fire ~KakashixOc (Editing)

Tobi Ch. 32

This may seem random, but I was looking at female Japanese names and I came across Akatsuki. Apparently it means brilliant helper.... I think I remember reading somewhere that Mashashi Kishimoto chose to name the organization that on purpose. Lmao, the irony is killing me!

Whenever I opened my eyes, I found myself in the same hallway as normal. This is probably the starting point of my experiences here, wherever I may be. I roll my shoulders, preparing myself for my adventure. Something brushed against my foot, leaning against me. I jump in shock, looking down to see what touched me. Raiden stares up at me with his startling electric blue eyes, confused by my reaction.
"Den? What..." I kneel beside him, lifting him in my arms. "What are you doing here, Bubba?" I put him on my shoulder, in the nape of my neck.
"You'll have to come with me then. It's gonna get cold, so sit here in." I pull up my hood, letting him curl inside. I talk to him as we adventure further down the hallway.

"We're going to meet up with someone, Den. His name is Tobi. I'd just met him last night so I don't have a lot of information I can provide you. I didn't get a good look at him 'cause the room was too dark." I recall his broad shouldered silloette and the dip of his nose. His white teeth that flashed white in the darkness. His deep voice that had rumbled in my ears. The feeling of his hand in mine. "Maybe he'll dream of better lighting tonight."
I laugh and ignore the cold air that clung to my cheeks and bit the tips of my nose and fingers. After a while, I started to recognize where I was.
"His dream should be around here somewhere..." I say, searching along the doors. My fingers skim each one, searching for the feeling that I'd gotten before. As I walked, my finger tips heat up and I stop mid-step. I lay my hand flat on the door and I reach up and ruffle Deb's fur.
"I think this is it." I smile, turning the nod.

My eyes widen, taking in the warm light that brightened my skin. This dream wasn't in a room, persay. I stood in a forest, the sun in the middle of the sky. Trees swayed gently in the wind, dancing to a silent song. Den squirms in my hoodie, head held high as he takes in our new surroundings.
"Don't wonder off." I whisper, setting him on the grass next to my feet. His nose instantly drops to the dirt and he takes deep breathes, embracing the scent of the rich dirt. I take this moment to look around, admiring the scenery. We were in some sort of clearing, surrounded by trees. Wild flowers sprung from the grass around us and birds sang from somewhere deep in the woods. Gentle wind brushed against my cheek, ticking my nose.
"It's beautiful." I smile, hands on my sides. "This is a big step up compared to his last dream."
"This one is a little different, isn't it?" His deep voice rang in my ears. Den's head raises and his ears prick up. I turn around, eyes searching for Tobi. Den barks once, confusion echoing in his throat.
"Where are you?" I ask, scanning the area for him. His voice had come from this direction, but I couldn't see him anywhere.
"I'm right here." His voice came from right in front of me, making me jump.
"What the hell?!" I yell, clutching my chest. There wasn't anyone there, just empty air. "Are you a ghost or something?!"
His laugh settles my heart rate.
"I was about to ask you the same. I can't see you either."
"Huh? That's weird." I say, reaching out in front of me. I take a couple of steps forward and my hand lands onto something solid, but invisible. My eyes widen in wonder. My hand sat flat on a plane of solid muscle. His chest, maybe? "Is this you?"
"Yeah." He says, voice coming from a little higher than where I stood. He must be taller than me. Something flicks against my forehead, making me wince in pain.
"Ow!" I yell, thumping him lightly on his chest. "That was my forehead!" Den barks, standing guard at my feet. His eyes were glued on the invisible person in front of me. I look at my puppy in shock.
"You can see him, Den?!" I ask, bewildered. Den looks up at me, head tilted.
"Is that puppy with you?" Tobi asks, making me even more astonished.
"You can see him as well?" I pick Den up in my arms, lifting him in the air slightly. "What the heck..?"
"Is this the dog you'd mentioned yesterday, Raiden?" Tobi asks, curiously. Raiden's fluffy head perks up at the sound of his name. I laugh, nodding.
"Yep. You can call him Den. It may be confusing to hear you refer to me as Raiden."
"Well, hello there." Tobi greets him, "Nice to meet you, Den. My name is Tobi."
Den barks happily, tongue flopping out of his mouth.
"Do you want to hold him?" I ask, offering Den in the air.
"Sure." Tobi says, invisible hands lifting Den from out of my grip. Den seemed to be suspended mid-air, levitating. I laugh, shaking my head.
"You know what? This is the weirdest thing I've witnessed in a long time." I smile, standing next to floating Den.
"This is pretty strange." Tobi agrees, handing Den back to me. I set him on the ground, letting him frolick in the flowers. Mud stains the bottom of his paws and an idea flashed in my head.
"Hmm...." I kneel down, digging my fingers in the soft dirt. It must have rained recently, because the soil was a wet, mud-like consistency. I rub some on my palm, raising my hand into the air. "Can you see my hand, Tobi?"
"Yeah.... What about mine?" He asks, a mud covered hand appearing out of thin air.
"Holy cow! This is crazy!" I beam, digging some more mud up. I smear some on my face, rubbing it into the planes of my cheeks and forehead. I'm careful to get every inch. As I'm doing this, mud covered arms appear in front of me.
"Why'd you cover your face?" Tobi asks, "Doesn't the dirt bother you?"
"Nope." I smile, shaking my head as I pull off my sweatshirt. I was wearing a t-shirt underneath. I start to coat my arms. "Isn't it supposed to be good for your skin or something like that?"
Tobi laughs, mud hands smearing his own face. I watch as a strong jawline appears, carving into a nice pair of lips and a slightly upturned nose. He covered his eye-lids but, when he opens them, I could see through them. It was a little unsettling, but his mud face was not unattractive in the least. I wish I could admire his face without the mud covering him. I burst into laughter, almost doubling over.
"Why are you laughing?" He asks, lips tugging downward.
"It's just that..." I take a breath, trying to calm myself down. "We're grown adults, covering ourselves in mud for no apparent reason! It's actually kind of creepy when I can only see a floating face and a pair of arms!"
"It was your idea!" Tobi defends himself, lips tugged upward. I grin, shaking my head.
"Let's try and find somewhere to wash all of this off." I grab his hand so he knows where I am and tug him in a random direction. "Come on, Den!"
Den trips over his paws to catch up. He weaves through my feet, tongue flopping happily. I lead us through the woods and scan for any sign of water.
"Did you dream of any sort of pond or stream?" I ask, still leading him through the brush.
"Hmm... No, I don't think so." He goes quiet for a second and then he feet plant into the ground, stopping me from leading him any farther. Den trips over an invisible foot and tumbles into the grass with a small yip. "I could come up with one, couldn't I?"
"That's a great idea!" I exclaim, excitement building in my chest. I still know barely anything about this dream realm and this would be a great chance to see what we could do. "Try and come up with a big pond!"
Tobi goes still next to me, assumably in concentration. I wait patiently, fingers crossed in hope that this would work. After another second or so, Den perks up on the ground. He stumbles to his feet and takes of in a direction through the woods.
"After that puppy!" I yell, laughing happily as I drag Tobi through the woods. Soon, I wasn't dragging him any longer. My arm went slack as he ran beside me, keeping up with my pace. I grin, seeing this as a challenge. I pick up my pace slightly, tugging gently on our intertwined hands. "Can you keep up?"
"Can you go faster?" He fires back, a little breathless. I laugh, shaking my head.
"I don't think that you'd be able to keep up with me." I smile as I weave through the trees in pursuit of Den. Tobi laughs and my hand starts to move in front of me, as if I were to one being dragged. My eyes widen in astonishment and I gape at Tobi's invisible form.
"What the hell?! You think you can challenge me, Tobi?!" I tease, pushing myself harder. I quickly move in front of him again. "Please, you're nothing! I could easily bea-" I stop mid-sentence whenever I feel Tobi running along side me. This man... His actually keeping up with me. I'm not using any chakra or anything and neither is he. It's really impressive that he's able to keep up with my pace for this amount of distance. I'm not pushing myself as hard as I can, but it didn't feel as if Tobi was either. His breathing was even along with mine. We jump through a wall of undergrowth, reveling a small pond.
"Ha!" Tobi celebrates, pumping his arms. How did I know this, you may ask. Well... He was pumping his arms, still holding onto my hand. I laugh, my arm almost being ripped out of it's socket. Waiting for him to settle down, I admire the pond that Tobi dreamed of. It looked familiar, the mix of willow and cherry trees and the large flat boulder that hung just above the small, crystal clear swimming hole. I frown slightly, taking in my old secret training spot.
"Oh! Den's already going for a swim!" Tobi laughs, letting go of my hand. After a few seconds, a large splash explodes in the water. Den slashed in the shallows, nipping the water playfully. I smile, shaking the previous thoughts in my head. This pond is similar to my on, but there's no way it could be the same. I toss my sweatshirt to the ground and I slide off my joggers.
"What was that?!" I ask, taunting Tobi. "That was a pathetic splash! Watch the master!"
I sprint down the boulder and spring into the air. I push myself forward, doing a couple of flips, even though no one could see me but Den. I hit the water with a satisfactory smack and I dive deep into the water. It was warm at the top, but the bottom was as cold as ice. I quickly jump back to the top, gasping.