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𝟎𝟑𝟗 ── exam 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐳𝐮𝐳𝐮_𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐳
━━━━━━━━━━━
THE FOLLOWING WEEK, I stayed home. From what Deidara had told me, there was no point in attending school anyways. It was currently 2 a.m., and I found myself sitting in the common area of our base, wrapped in a blanket with a cookie I had scavenged from the kitchen. Despite how exhausted I was, sleep eluded me.
I perked up at the faint sound of approaching footsteps. Turning slightly, I glanced over my shoulder and saw Tobi standing there. My shoulders instinctively tensed—because when we were alone, he wasn't Tobi. He was Madara. Quickly, I turned back around and fixed my gaze on my toes, which were peeking out from under the blanket.
"I always seem to find you awake at night," he said, his voice deep and commanding—so different from the high-pitched, goofy tone that everyone else heard. If anyone else overheard him now, they'd think he was a completely different person.
"Couldn't sleep," I replied simply.
"This seems to be a habit for you," he observed.
"The timing of missions has messed up my sleep schedule."
For a while, neither of us spoke. The silence between us wasn't entirely uncomfortable, but it carried a strange weight. The faint hum of the room seemed louder in the absence of conversation.
"Do you ever wonder why we were sent here? Or how?" I finally asked, my voice quiet as I continued staring at my feet. "It's all so odd to me. The fact that, after we all died, we reappeared in this place—together, at the same time. I think everyone else notices it too, but they're too busy clinging to this 'new start' to talk about it."
Another heavy pause filled the room, punctuated only by the soft shuffle of feet. Normally, his movements were silent, but he seemed to make them louder this time—almost deliberately.
"You should get to bed," he finally spoke up, his tone firm, "We have mid-term exams tomorrow."
With a sigh, I stood, tightening my grip on the blanket as I padded across the cold floor, "Goodnight, Madara," I said, pausing to glance back at him. He stood motionless, his masked face unreadable.
"Obito," he corrected after a moment, his voice softer now.
