Valentina's POV

I finished my hot shower and stood in front of the bedroom mirror. I lightly traced the stitches Kakuzu had sewn on a couple of hours ago on my wound. Everything felt so real, and I was unsure of when I would be able to time travel back to the future. I obviously wasn't going to kill Lilian.

My eyes looked out the sealed shut window. The white falling snow contrasted with the dark night. Snowing nonstop. I was supposed to be dead. Why did I have to travel back to this era of my life? Itachi's and Lilian's daughter wasn't even born yet.

As the room became colder, I changed to a pair of pajamas Lilian had gifted me. I quickly lay down under the thick bed covers and immediately felt horrible. How could I have killed Lilian? Lilian was a good person. The worse part is that Lily really missed out on having a good mother like Lilian.

I needed to distract myself from my thoughts before I killed myself. The guilt was tormenting me. Now, looking back at it, I realized that everything was my fault. I had condemned myself along with the child I was forced to raised to a bitter life all because I couldn't get a man by my side.

I got on my feet and walked to my bedroom door as the intrusive thoughts grew louder. I was going insane. I was going to scream.

Then everything went silent.

Maybe this was what I was supposed to do. Kill myself. Maybe I was supposed to kill myself in order to prevent the deaths of Lily's parents.

Orochimaru stood me up. I really believed that he would help me in the situation, but instead he sent me on a suicide mission that required time traveling to the past.

Faint footsteps could be heard traveling up the stairs of the mansion causing me to retreat from opening my bedroom's door.
My heart began pounding loud and my intrusive thoughts silenced at the thought that Leader-Sama could be making his way to my room.
I used to be terrified of him. His piercings, his deep voice lacking any emotion, and the sad blue-haired who always silently stood by him.
I had been fearful of them for years, but now that I had traveled back in time and was 13 again, I was terrified of them once more.

I hid under the covers and shut my eyes closed as the door to my bedroom opened quietly.
The weight of someone climbing my bed and laying next to me along with a pair of strong arms hugging me caused my heart to accelerate even more.

"Valentina," the sound of Obito's real voice sounded like a melody to my ears. "You're okay. You're alive."

I uncovered my face and was greeted by a dark room and Obito, who was laying by my side.

The pale moonlight illuminated Tobi's bright orange mask. "Tobi." I reached to touch his mask. "My love."

My comment made Obito sit up on the bed and completely pulled away from me. He looked down at me trying to adjust his eye to the darkness, but was quickly pulled down towards me.

"I have so many things to tell you" i whispered to him as my arms embraced him.

Once again Obito tried to freed himself from my grip.

"Please don't leave." His attempts to leave hurt me deeply to the point that I was not afraid to beg. I had always been a proud woman, but not at the moment. Not when I had the opportunity to be reunited with the man I loved. With the man that was killed before he could even have the opportunity to have a life with me.

"I time travelled back in time." I finally told him as we made eye contact once again. My hand was firmly holding his arm afraid that he would disappear again.

"Oh Valentina-Chan! You must have hit your head when you were attacked ! Time traveling is impossible!!" Obito finally exclaimed using his cheerful and childish voice after what felt like a long pause. My words seemed to concerned him.

"I am being serious." I assured him. Maybe I shouldn't have told him. He wouldn't believe me. It was dumb of me to try.

Obito freed his arm from my grip, and avoided looking at my heartbroken face as he got to his feet.

"I'm not lying. I did travel back in time."

"Tobi is not dumb! Everyone knows time traveling does not exist! Tobi doesn't like when Valentina-Chan lies." He over exaggerated the sad tone in his childish voice. He seemed in a rush to leave my room as my words seemed to have weirded  him out.

I lay back down feeling heartbroken at the fact that Obito was not going to drop his childish Tobi act. Why couldn't he just love me back?
"Whatever, Obito." The name slipped from my lips before I could realized what I said.

Obito was then on top of me. His body weight fully on me and his hands pinning my wrists to the side of the bed with unnecessary force, too afraid that I would run off.
"Where did you hear that name." It wasn't necessary for him to stay in character anymore.

"You're hurting me, Tobi!!" I struggled to get him off me. His tone and unnecessary force scared me. It wasn't my intention to upset him. The name slipped.

"Where did you hear that name?!" Now one of his hands pulled on my hair, desperate to get an answer. "Did Uchiha Itachi tell you?!"

"No. I travelled back in time."

My broken voice and watery eyes made Obito release my wrists.

"I know you're Obito Uchiha. The real leader of the Akatsuki."

I felt his body tensed up as I wrapped my arms around his neck.

"I know this because I travelled back in time," I continued whispering in his ear, followed by pressing my mouth against his mask.

Obito lifted his mask and I kissed his soft lips.
Obito did not kiss me back at first, but I calmed him down by running my hands through his hair and back.

"I love you, Obito. I've always loved you," I whispered between kisses. Before either of us died, I wanted to tell him everything I felt for him.

He finally kissed me back and I forced any bitter thoughts I had about him and the fact that he didn't love me back out of my mind. And if Obito did love me at some point in his life, it wasn't nearly as much as he loved Rin.

Obito's breathing got deeper as we kissed. He pinned my wrists to the side of the bed as he began to kiss my neck, but I quickly began to struggle.

"No please," I begged him trying to freed myself from his grip. "I want to feel you."

He let go of his grip and I wrapped my arms around him and kissed him. The room didn't feel cold anymore.

"I've always wanted to," I whispered between kisses.

"Wanted what?" Obito looked at me confused.

I refrained from responding and instead kissed him. The answer was self-evident. I had yearned for him for years, but I couldn't express it yet since every time I spoke or thought about him, Rin flooded my mind as well.

My mind went blank as the kiss becoming deeper and deeper and I grounded myself by feeling his muscular arms and back. It was real. Being in his arms was exactly how I always imagined. Like in one of my  fantasies.

I slowed down my kissing pace as I began to feel out of breath. To the point where I completely pulled away from the kiss gasping for air.

"What is it?" Obito's voice became concerned as I abruptly pushed him off me and sat on the bed gasping for air.
"Lay down, whats wrong??"

"Obito." i struggled to say as my vision faded and Obito quickly took me into his arms. "I can't breathe."

I began coughing water as I felt myself being pulled out of the river.

"Valentina." Orochimaru began.

"What happened?" I sat up on the dirt and scanned my surroundings.

"You've been gone for less than 10 minutes. It seems you failed the first opportunity to prevent the death of Lily's parents." Orochimaru explained.

"I can't do this," I wanted to cry. "I saw him."

"Who did you see?" Orochimaru's snake eyes looked at me attentively.

"Obito. I saw Obito. I couldn't contain myself and I told him about the time traveling." Tears began to escape from my eyes. "I love him so much".

"Valentina, you're almost a 40-year-old virgin. You haven't dated anyone since the death of Obito during the war. Believe me, I know how much you love him, but this isn't about you. I allowed you to test this jutsu for me to prevent the death of Lily's parents. To prevent Lily's suicide," he reached for my hand.

I took my hand away and watched the dirt I was sitting on turn into dark mud. It wasn't fair. When would I have my happy ending?

"Lily stabbed you, then herself, before jumping off a cliff to her death. She loved you so much that she tried to kill you and then killed herself, believing you were dead."

"She loved me so much she tried to kill me?" I interrupted Orochimaru rolling my eyes. "Yeah, Sasuke must have loved you so much when he killed you years ago."

"Enough with your sarcasm, Valentina. That child loved all of us. That child loved you to death, Valentina. I know....WE all know you never developed a mother instinct despite raising her since she was three years old, but this is the least you can do for her! The least we can all do for ruining her family and causing her to commit suicide," Orochimaru hissed like a snake. His voice went from threatening to soothing and I began shaking from the cold and fear. Orochimaru had never talked to me in such a threatening tone.

I nodded too afraid to protest or disagree. "You're right. She deserves a good mom and dad."
Lilian was a good person. A really good person. And Itachi? The sacrifices he would make for his loved ones.

Orochimaru helped me get back to the river.
"You only have 2 more opportunities. Mess up more than that and you run the risk of getting stuck in the past or dying."

"Understood."

"Valentina," he grabbed my hand. "Please be careful. This jutsu is very dangerous. Focus only on Itachi and his wife to avoid more mistakes."

"I'll be careful," I assured him.

"Make me proud," he whispered, and I nodded forcing a smile before submerging completely under water.

Valentina, if we had met in different circumstances I would have fallen in love with you, the phrase Obito had told me the day before he died repeated in my head nonstop.