Chapter 25

Evening primrose?

"Yes, Grandma, do you know where it grows?"

"Two days ago, when I went up the mountain to collect herbs, I think I saw an evening primrose that hadn't yet bloomed at the summit. But the weather has been terrible lately; the sky is overcast, so I'm afraid it's going to rain heavily, and there might even be falling rocks on the summit..."

Obito subtly observed his nominal older sister. Since graduating from the Ninja Academy, she had been constantly away on missions, and they rarely saw each other, even under the same roof. Right now, he was watching her inquire about the whereabouts of evening primrose from the villagers, and a surge of anger rose within him…

Such a mission doesn't need a Konoha celebrity like her... Obito clicked his tongue, turned his head away, and sulked.

On the other side, twelve-year-old Kakashi, though possessing the arrogance of a genius ninja, had received excellent guidance from Sakumo Hatake in matters of conduct. While gathering information from the villagers, he also observed the subtle interactions between Obito and Yuki. He vaguely sensed that Obito's feelings for Yuki were no longer merely the dependence of a younger brother on an older sister, after all, they weren't actually siblings.

Kakashi paused for a moment while asking the villagers questions.

As evening approached, the four of them gathered at the village entrance.

“The old ladies in the village say that evening primroses only bloom on the cliffs outside the village,” Lin said, raising her hand.

“My information is similar, and it only blooms on the day of the Autumn Equinox,” Kakashi added.

Xue nodded, lost in thought. The information they had gathered from the villagers was largely the same. Tomorrow was the beginning of autumn, so they had to collect evening primrose within the next two days, store it in a scroll, and then rush back to the Land of Fire.

Obito scratched his head, pulled down his orange goggles to put them on, and pointed to the distant cliff silhouette that could be seen not far from the village entrance: "Let's not delay, let's set off right away!"

The already overcast sky suddenly began to drizzle with raindrops the size of beans.

The four of them looked up at the same time, and Kakashi turned his head to look at Yuki, who was frowning.

The group had no choice but to stay overnight at a nearby villager's home. Xue briefly negotiated with the villager and paid for the night's lodging.

After the other three had fallen asleep, she looked out the window at the rain that was getting heavier and heavier, and it looked like a downpour.

She changed into a raincoat and a bamboo hat, and glanced back at the three sleeping people.

Xue never expected that when she arrived at the bottom of the cliff, she would see three people dressed in the same outfit as her through the rainy night.

"Sister Xue is too much! She actually wants to leave the three of us behind and complete the mission by herself!" Lin said angrily.

Kakashi chimed in, "They're treating us like kids."

Obito went straight up and grabbed Yuki by the collar, forcing Yuki to bend down and meet his gaze.

"Xue, what are you thinking?!"

"We are all ninjas, not flowers in a greenhouse!"

"Stop defining me with your so-called protection."

The rain kept falling, the slanting raindrops hitting Xue's face and then dripping onto Du's chin.

Xue frowned slightly. Had she done something wrong...?

"Alright, let's put this sibling rivalry aside for now. The priority now is to get the Evening Primrose." Kakashi, who was being subconsciously looked at by Yuki, stepped forward and separated the two.

Yuki said softly, "I'm sorry... Obito."

"Then I'll team up with Kakashi, and Yuki-neechan and Obito will team up," Rin suggested considerately. Obito just frowned but didn't object.

They split into two groups of two, and coincidentally, there were two paths leading to the top of the mountain.

Yuki and Obito braved the heavy rain and faced the challenge head-on. Yuki was about to say something when she looked up and a huge rock appeared before her.

Before she could react, Obito had already tackled her to the side. Yuki clutched her forehead, which had been hit by a piece of gravel, and hurriedly got up.

The two dodged the boulder, but Dai Tu twisted his ankle and hit his head on the ground, making it appear as if he had lost a lot of blood, although the wound was actually quite small.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that Obito had only fainted temporarily.

-

Outside the cave, torrential rain poured down, and lightning raged.

Xue was only wearing a vest and underwear. She had just gone out to collect herbs in the heavy rain, and her whole body was already soaked.

There was no need to wear wet clothes anymore, so he put the raincoat and straw hat aside.

She finally found a dry cave, settled Obito Uchiha in, and then used a fire jutsu, causing flames to rise.

Fortunately, the cave appears to have been inhabited, as it left behind a considerable amount of dried wood.

Xue used the round end of the scroll to pound the collected herbs into a paste, then set up a simple stove, added an appropriate amount of water, and stirred it into a medicinal soup.

Obito opened his eyes in a daze. He had been caught in the rain and then hit his head. The sudden high fever made him dizzy and lightheaded.

Xue noticed that he had woken up and quickly helped him up, letting him rest his head on her lap.

"Are you feeling better? Does your head still hurt, Obito?"

Obito instinctively reached out and touched it, because he had pushed the snow away at that moment.

At this moment, Xue simply bandaged her injured forehead with a bandage.

He asked, "Is it still raining?"

"Yes, it's raining heavily. You should rest first. I've gathered some herbs for you. Drink some after the medicine is brewed. Once the rain stops, we'll figure out a way to meet up with Kakashi and Rin."

Beside the warm flames, Obito's gaze gradually focused, finally noticing Yuki's attire. His blood rushed to his head, and his already lukewarm feelings intensified. His body, already flushed and inflamed from a fever, was now even redder. He stammered, "Yuki...why aren't you wearing any clothes!"

Uchiha Yuki remained calm. Since becoming a Special Jonin, she often went for half a month without showering, and would spend two or three days on missions in the rain, in mud, or in water.

It's just that I wasn't wearing an outer coat, what's the big deal? Besides, it's not like we're in front of strangers.

“I just went out to collect herbs in the rain, and I got soaked. Look.” She pointed to the side, where clothes were being warmed by a fire propped up by simple wooden blocks.

Obito Uchiha subconsciously looked outside the cave. The rain was pouring down, and a bolt of lightning flashed, illuminating the cave for a moment before immediately plunging it back into darkness.

He suddenly stood up and grabbed Uchiha Yuki's shoulders: "How could you... in such dangerous weather..."

What if something happens to you? They are each other's only family in this world!

But soon, he became weak from a high fever and collapsed onto Uchiha Yuki.

Uchiha Yuki sighed, settled him down, and sat down beside him with her legs bent, with Obito's coat under them.

"Didn't you tell Lin that saving you was the same as saving the world?"

"I only gathered herbs for you as a side project to save the world."

"After all, I don't want the future Hokage to die young because of a high fever, which would mean that my ability as a special Jonin to protect him is insufficient."

Obito Uchiha blushed deeply, and moreover, in the flickering firelight, her fair body made him completely unsure where to look.

Besides, how could a brother who couldn't even beat his own clanswoman become Hokage? He simply pretended to be dead and didn't respond.

Xue, however, began to speak to herself.

"Hey, hey, I got it. Actually, Kakashi and I were eavesdropping behind you two when you were chatting that day."

This kind of thing... eavesdropping is totally irrelevant!

"Okay, okay. I know you like Lin."

I do like Lin, but you are very important to me too!

More important than anyone else! They were the most, most important family members to Obito Uchiha!

The atmosphere suddenly became quiet.

Uchiha Yuki gradually hugged herself tighter, just like she was in her parents' arms.

Perhaps growing up is as painful as having one's tendons and bones ripped out. She stared at the blazing flames until her vision blurred.

Yuki sometimes feels that after using the Sharingan excessively, her vision gradually becomes blurry.

Suddenly, she was pulled into someone's arms, and a boy's muffled voice came from above her head: "You're clearly older than me, yet you still miss your mom and dad!"

"You always tell me to call you 'sister,' but now you're clearly not acting like a senior at all."

The black-haired girl looked up with her pure black pupils, her eyes devoid of any tears.

Obito Uchiha: "..."

"Obito, what are you thinking? How could I possibly cry in front of you? I'm your older sister."

The water in the pot was bubbling and boiling, mixed with the crackling sound of burning wood.

Uchiha Yuki pushed aside Obito, who was struggling to stay upright, carefully lifted the pot, and blew on it to cool it down.

Obito Uchiha sat cross-legged on the floor covered with a coat, scratching his hair as he tried to hide his embarrassment.

After letting it cool for a while, Uchiha Yuki slowly spoke.

"Drink your medicine quickly, or the fever won't go down. It'll make you stupid, and I don't want the future Hokage to be a big idiot."

Obito carefully picked up the still-warm pot, drinking his medicine while secretly glancing at Yuki Uchiha sitting to the side.

"What's wrong with you? You're clearly just concerned about me. Why do you have to say things like that? You used to always comfort me when we were little..."

Obito sensed that Yuki seemed to be in a bad mood today. Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew in, instantly extinguishing the flames. The cave was plunged into darkness again, followed by a "clatter"—the sound of a pot falling to the ground. Then, Yuki felt herself being suddenly embraced, and she sighed softly.

Uchiha Yuki took out a tinderbox from her tool bag, and a faint flame appeared, but she couldn't ignite the wood.

"Obito, if you keep hugging me like this, I'm going to tell Rin that the future Hokage is harassing his subordinate." Yuki Uchiha couldn't pry open Obito's arms, which were wrapped around her like an octopus, with one hand, and finally had to give up. "It seems like there's rain in the wind, and the wood is all wet. Let's go a little deeper into the cave."

"Okay." Obito Uchiha blushed and let go of her hand, nodding slightly in the darkness.

They ventured deeper into the cave. Uchiha Yuki picked out two or three pieces of firewood that weren't completely soaked and managed to light them with some difficulty. "If it burns slowly, it should last until the rain stops. Did you finish your medicine?"

The fire was much smaller than before, and the sudden drop in temperature gave Uchiha Yuki goosebumps. She moved closer to the fire and rubbed her hands together.

"You've finished drinking, Xue, are you cold?"

"A little, but it's alright."

Obito Uchiha took off his short-sleeved shirt and put it on Yuki's vest-clad upper body. Yuki was slightly taller and thinner than Obito, and the shirt fit her perfectly. Obito, shirtless, felt Yuki stare at him, and his ears instantly turned bright red. Feeling better after taking the medicine, he said fiercely as usual, "What are you looking at!"

Xue looked away and suggested, "Why don't you hold me? I heard that the combined body temperature of two people is constant. That way, one of us won't be cold and the other hot."

"Didn't you just say I was harassing you..."

"Don't worry, I won't tell Rin. You idiot Obito."

Obito Uchiha frowned and muttered under his breath, "Even if you say it, it won't matter..."

"Shall I hug you?" Obito reached out and wrapped his arms around her from behind, gently resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Um."

The feverish boy's body pressed against the warm girl's. Obito had slept with Yuki for a while when he was a child and followed behind Yuki, calling her "Yuki-neechan". After graduating from the Ninja Academy, he stopped calling her that and instead called her by her name "Yuki" or "Hey" every day.

"hiss--"

The girl's warm body temperature made Obito Uchiha gasp softly. Yuki Uchiha turned her head slightly to look at him behind her.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm fine!"

Uchiha Yuki was lost in memories, her thoughts drifting back to her childhood.

At that time, both of their parents died in the war, and Obito lived in her house ever since.

Over time, she got used to waking up every morning to find him at home.

"Obito used to pester me to call him 'older sister' all the time when he was little. He was just a tiny little thing back then. Now he's a Chunin and even has a girl he likes," Yuki said softly.

"What? I was just being silly back then. Besides, you and I aren't related by blood, so why should I call you 'sister'?" Obito muttered, not wanting to be treated like a child by Xue all the time.

The feeling of skin touching skin was strange to Obito; he didn't know how to describe it. He wished Yuki could kiss him like she did when they were children. Yuki's lips were always soft, and she smelled of lilacs, which was very pleasant. Sometimes, even Obito himself would catch a whiff of that fragrance.

Uchiha Yuki's voice was somewhat low, tinged with frustration.

"Obito, do you think Minato-senpai still remembers me saying when I was a kid that I wanted to be his wife?"

Upon hearing this, Obito Uchiha's face turned ashen in the dim light, almost instantly.

He hugged Uchiha Yuki tightly in his arms, burying his face in the crook of her neck from behind.

"He doesn't remember... then you can be my wife."

Uchiha Yuki paused for a moment, then said, "I'm three years older than you."

“So what? Minato-sensei is five years older than you,” Obito quickly replied.

"What about Rin?" Uchiha Yuki asked again.

Obito Uchiha's voice was low, tinged with a hint of melancholy: "Anyway, Rin doesn't like me..." After all, Rin liked Kakashi...

Uchiha Yuki fell silent. She had heard a little about the fact that Obito liked Rin and Rin liked Kakashi.

She doesn't know much about relationships, and she never had a romantic relationship in her past life.

If we're really talking about liking someone... then this was the first person she truly liked.

Perhaps it's Minato Namikaze?

"Let's get some sleep. By the time we wake up, the rain should have stopped. Then we can go down the mountain back to the Land of Fire, give the herbs we've gathered to the client, and finish this mission as soon as possible."

Obito Uchiha responded in a low voice, "Hmm..."

He hugged her tighter and tighter, as if trying to embed Yuki into his body. This embrace made Yuki uneasy, unsure how to respond, and she gently placed her hand on the arm that was embracing her from behind. Their body heat flowed through their skin, and the sound of the torrential rain outside the cave gave them the illusion that only the two of them remained in the world.

In the dim cave, the fire crackled and flickered, casting shimmering light on the stone walls.

Obito buried his face in Yuki's body, his black pupils slowly revealing a faint crimson color at the bottom.

How can I keep the snow by my side forever?

How can I avoid jokingly refusing his request?

If it's the wife, is there anyone who can separate them?