Third person pov

Taking the emotionally unstable teenage girl who'd just lost her father out to train seemed like a less than good idea. In fact, you could even say it was a horrible one. Literally everyone on Team Minato had been against it. Even Kakashi thought Ethelia should be staying inside. What if something set her off and she blew up? That would be the end of the Leaf Village, that's for sure. Ethelia, however, had insisted. She knew staying cooped up forever wasn't going to help her. She may as well get to it. They'd gone out to eat with no issues, so training shouldn't be an issue.

"You don't have to do this, you know." Obito said for what had to be the millionth time. Ethelia was .2 seconds from cracking his skull open via curb-stomping. She knew he was worried and she appreciated it, but she was starting to get annoyed with his constantly doting. The brunette was well aware she really was in no position to be ungrateful. And she wasn't! She was just... tired. 

"Shut up, Obito. You've said that eleven times already." Kakashi snapped. Though it wasn't directed at him, he was clearly getting annoyed with Obito's hovering as well. Even Rin's brow was twitching. Minato appeared to be the only one unaffected, his smile still shining bright. Ethelia still found that to be incredibly creepy. 

"Hey, I'm allowed to be worried!" Obito fussed. "Ethelia is in a fragile state! She needs support!"

"Your skull is going to be in a fragile state if you don't shut it." Ethelia grumbled under her breath. Rin inhaled sharply, indicating that she'd heard. Whatever. Ethelia didn't give a shit. This whole thing was just exhausting. She felt angry, resigned, and exhausted all at once. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt herself become so emotional. Sure, it was justified, but that didn't mean she had to enjoy it.

"Calm down, everyone. If Ethelia thinks she's ready to get back to it, we should take her word for it! No one knows her better than she knows herself." Minato lectured. Obito immediately fell silent. Kakashi just nodded obediently, shooting his Uchiha teammate a smug look. "We'll start out easy today. Just some light jogging to get the ball rolling again. What do you guys think?"

They all nodded, murmuring their agreement. Ethelia felt her hands curl into fists. This was what she'd been hoping for. Their jogging route, if they kept it the same, would run right past Ryuki's house. Ethelia had some... words for him. It wasn't the most mature of her to want to start a fight. Yes, she literally wanted to throw hands with Mr. pretty boy rich kid. It just felt like it would be a means to an end. The dose of medicine she needed to combat this sheer shittiness. 

The only issue was Obito. She was pretty sure he wouldn't try to stop her, but having him along could still cause issues. Who knows how he'd react to her veering off to sneak into Ryuki's house and see what the hell was up with him. No, really-- what the hell was up with him? He'd had men chase her, had meddled in her life, had clued her father into something Ethelia hadn't been ready to tell him. Yeah, he'd gone to her house for that. Something wasn't adding up. It was like he knew about the massive amount of chakra she had. Hell, maybe he did!

They started off slow. Kakashi and Rin quickly pulled ahead, shooting unsure looks back at Ethelia. She made sure to give her flattest expression in return so that they'd push their doubts aside and go ahead. She didn't want them constantly orbiting around her, waiting for her to blow up. A glance behind her told her Minato wasn't jogging today, but instead waiting at the training spot for them to get back. Probably doing paperwork of some sort. Ethelia was glad. One less obstacle.

"I'm really glad you decided to get out, Ethelia!" Obito babbled. He'd missed jogging with her! She seemed a lot better. The bags under her eyes weren't as deep, and her hair wasn't as tangled after she'd practically beat it into submission. Thinking about it still made Obito shiver. Girls were scary, but their hair was certainly scarier. He was going to have nightmares about that! How was her scalp not bleeding? No, better yet, how was she not completely bald? The ripping sounds... no, he couldn't. He'd think about it later. 

"Yeah." Fuck, why was she still so out of shape? She'd only taken like a week off, if that. She sounded like a twenty-year-old chihuahua with asthma that just wouldn't fucking die. "Hey. We're friends, right?"

"Yeah, of course we are!" Obito chirped, face lighting up. He looked like a kid on Christmas. 

"And friends do things for each other, right?" Ethelia continued as calmly as possible as they drew closer to where Ryuki's house would be. Obito nodded eagerly, his eyes alight. Ethelia felt bad about sort of using him. No, she wasn't using him. She just needed his help. Hopefully, he supported her. If not... well, she was sure she could figure out a way to take him off guard and knock him out. Maybe. She guessed she'd be finding out if this all went south. "Great. Follow my lead."

"Wait, what?" Obito blurted out, but it was too late. Ethelia was grabbing his arm and dragging him off their designated track and into the trees to the side. She didn't want to risk Ryuki seeing her from his balcony, so she decided veering off a little early was probably for the best. Obito stumbled after her, nearly losing his balance in the process as he sputtered. Ethelia felt too focused to pay attention to him and his pinwheeling arms, creeping forward to peek through the bushes.

Obito inched forward too, his mind spinning. What was she talking about? He was glad she finally saw them as friends. He still got excited anytime she acknowledged it, even if he maybe sort of had a crush on her. He'd take what he could get! That was beside the point right now. Ethelia had an extremely serious look on her face. He almost wanted to look around for danger because of how tense it was. Was he missing something? Did he miss something? Maybe this was a prank. Ethelia didn't seem like the pranking type, but you never knew. 

"I know this is out of the blue, but I need you to trust me on this one." Ethelia glanced at him as he scooted up next to her, taking a look through the bushes. His confused face settled when he saw just what she was looking at. Ryuki's massive house stood there, looking more ominous for some reason. Maybe it was the gathering rain clouds, or maybe the air had just changed due to what had happened with Ethelia's dad. Either way, Obito's attitude soured at the sight. He didn't know why Ethelia had pulled him aside for this, but he knew she had to have a good reason. 

Ethelia watched Obito tensely as he seemed to roll the situation over in his head. This was definitely out of the blue, but Ethelia had to know. Something was up. It had to be. Why else would he target her? He'd never been weird at school. It was only after she left that his personality flipped. It was very off. He was so much different than how he acted at school. At first, she thought it was just a mask he was wearing to fool everyone into thinking he was the cool, popular kid, and not a lying snake. Now... well, she wasn't so sure. She'd had a lot of time to think while staying with Obito. Ethelia had come to the conclusion that she either wanted to punch Ryuki right in his smug little face, or she wanted answers. Maybe both.

"...Alright. Let's go." Obito agreed after a good long moment of debate. Ethelia felt herself deflate with relief. Alright, good. This was good. She'd already had a mental plan to kick him in the balls and then chop him in the back of his neck while he was down, but this was much better and more convenient. 

They took another look outside the bushes, scanning the area for signs of anyone. Ryuki didn't appear to be on his balcony, and the doors to it were closed. That was a promising sign. Checking along the visible part of the house's perimeter, it was determined that Ryuki was probably at school, inside, or out. Not the most exact, but it was better than him being outside to catch them literally breaking into his home.

Ethelia tried her best to stay quiet as they approached. Obito was much better at it than she was. They crept up to the house until they were right below the balcony, keeping their eyes peeled for any signs of... well, of anyone. Ethelia wondered if Obito's heart was thundering as hard as hers was. He looked fine. Maybe he'd done illegal stuff in the past. He'd told her about some of the pranks he'd done. Thinking a bit more in-depth about them, they actually did sound like things he could be arrested for.

"Alright, listen." Ethelia said in a hushed tone. Obito turned his attention away from the treeline to her instead. "I want you to run up there. I can't climb things with chakra safely yet, so I'm going to float up. I need you to catch me so I don't drift into the sun."

Obito's expression twisted, but he nodded anyway. With a quiet thumbs-up, he made quick time darting up the wall. How did ninjas get their speed? They looked like blurs when they ran. Etheliea could literally never. Was it chakra that did it? It didn't seem like it was something that could be taught. You either knew how or you didn't. Maybe she needed to hunch over and put her arms behind her. She'd look like a dumbass, but perhaps that was the method to the madness. 

Obito's head poked over the side of the railing, and Ethelia loosened gravity's grip on her.

The girl was careful to focus on her breathing as to not flip her shit and blow everyone up. She thought about happy things. Puppies, kittens, and the sweet satisfaction that would come with punching Ryuki in the face. Just the idea made her want to smile. She could see it now. Her fist flying. The crack his nose would break when she nailed him. Blood dribbling down and staining his perfect shirt that was somehow free of all wrinkles. That was the fantasy alright. Ethelia was so lost in thought that she almost jumped when Obito leaned over and snatched her out of the air.

"Thanks." Ethelia whispered as lowly as she could, allowing her feet to touch down on the ground. She carefully pushed her chakra away. It was sensitive right now thanks to her emotions. She seriously needed to fix that. Obito's chakra didn't flip out every time he was minorly inconvenienced. 

"What do we do now? Are we looking for something in particular?" Obito asked quietly, crouched low. Ethelia shook her head. She had literally no idea what they were looking for. If they got caught inside his house, they were fucked. Especially if Ethelia assaulted him. But could Ryuki prove anything if she did? Obito was fast enough to get them both down and on the fast track back to Minato before the Uchiha police department could get there. Ethelia could just play the grieving teenage girl and get out of it. It would all be fine.

"I have no idea, but something is off." Ethelia kept her tone down. She glanced at the closed doors leading into the house. "And I sort of want to punch him."

Obito snorted loudly. Ethelia elbowed him back into silence. No need to get caught early on. They had houses to break into. Things to find out! If Obito ruined that, she'd knee him where the sun didn't shine. Maybe throw him off the balcony as a sacrifice. To what, she didn't know. All Ethelia did know was that she wasn't in the mood right now.

They silently crept to the door. It was the kind composed of gridded panes of glass framed by sleek white wood. They both tentatively peeked inside. It definitely led into a boy's bedroom. Ryuki's, Ethelia had to guess. The lights were off and everything inside seemed still. Ethelia shot a glance at Obito, who nodded. There wasn't anyone here right now. Maybe further in the house, but Ryuki's room was clear. Which was just what Ethelia needed.

Obito reached up to try the doorknob. Ethelia tried her side too. Her's didn't budge, but his clicked open with ease. Nobody ever locked their balcony doors. As though robbers and rapists couldn't climb. Ethelia was sort of glad right now, though. The idiocy was working in their favor. With a nod, Obito pushed it open. It gave a rather creepy creak as it did so, thumping lightly against the wall. They both stuck their heads inside.

What hit immediately was one of the worst things Ethelia had ever smelt. Her hand immediately flew up to cover her nose and mouth, and Obito did the same, turning to her with wide eyes. Ethelia gave a sharp shrug, her eyes also wide. She didn't fucking know why it smelled like something had died in there. Was she supposed to? It smelt like a garbage disposal clogged with old eggs and expired milk. Ethelia was glad she had a strong stomach. Did Obito? Glancing at him, she wasn't sure. He was looking a little green. 

"That's fucking nasty." Ethelia hissed out. Obito didn't have the words to speak. He just nodded vigorously in agreement to convey just how true her statement was.

They both shuffled in. It was warm in the room. Boiling hot, almost, like someone had left the heater on. The sound of flies buzzing only seemed to make the smell worse in her mind. She stood up completely. If anyone could stand to be in a room with this stench, they weren't human. She'd be glad to get caught. Hell, she'd ask to be thrown off the balcony just to get away from this! Obito stood up too, looking like he was probably holding his breath. Ethelia couldn't blame him.

Nothing stood out in particular. The room was like any other bedroom, barring the stench. Ethelia looked around wildly for the source of the smell. Obito did too, his eyes falling on the flies. They were all buzzing around the closet. Not comforting. Had something died in there? Ethelia had found a dead raccoon in her closet after school once. The neighborhood cats had clearly ganged up on it, and it had crawled up through her window and died in there. Nastiest thing she'd ever seen. She had to get Mark to take care of it. 

Glancing at Obito, she nodded. They moved forward.

Ethelia almost didn't want to know, but they were too far in. Was Ryuki a murderer? He sure seemed like he was one. The brunette stood back at let Obito stalk forward and grab the handle. He was sweating like crazy, glancing back at her in a way that told her he really didn't want to do this. Ethelia didn't give two shits or a fuck. There was no way in hell she was doing it. Call her a wuss; she drew the line at dead things. And there was clearly something dead in there. 

Obito took one last breath through his hand before pulling the door open. Ethelia felt her world still, his hand falling from face. Obito's did too, his eyes wide. He turned to gawk at her. Ethelia blinked owlishly back. Ethelia felt sick to her stomach. Maybe she would've vomited if she weren't so shocked.

Curled up in the corner of the closet was a corpse. A human corpse. It looked to be at least a month old, if not older. Ethelia's stomach turned. Obito took a few steps back until he was next to her, his hands clenching into fists.

"I...If that's Ryuki's corpse." Ethelia swallowed, her heart rate increasing exponentially. She felt her chakra fluctuate. She was too distracted to care. Though the corpse was decaying, that was without a doubt the very classmate she'd come here to find and beat the shit out of. Only he was dead. And clearly had been for a while. "Then who's been harassing me this whole time?" 

Obito didn't know. Ethelia turned around and ran to puke over the side of the balcony.