"Uchiha Obito," Namikaze Kirito said flatly.
Then he gave a faint chuckle, almost amused.
"The disgraced Uchiha. You know, the funniest part is that everything you've said, everything you've done, has been inside someone else's plan from the very beginning. And you still stand there acting like you're the one in control."
He smiled.
"That's what makes you ridiculous."
Obito's voice immediately rose, sharp with anger.
"Namikaze Kirito... what I hate most about you is that smug look on your face. Like you already know everything."
But beneath the anger, something else flickered inside him.
A thought he never wanted to face.
He had been nobody. A failure. Dead last.
So why had Madara chosen him?
And Rin… dying by Kakashi's hand… even now, it still felt wrong. Like everything had been pushed in that direction from the start.
Obito had thought about it before.
Only for a moment.
Then he buried it.
Because if he ever forced himself to face the truth, if he ever truly understood what had happened... then everything holding him together would shatter.
He had survived this long by clinging to Rin.
To the memory of her.
That obsession was the only thing keeping him from collapsing completely.
Which was why every time Kirito called him a puppet, it hit harder than Obito wanted to admit.
Kirito looked at him, still calm, still smiling.
"Obito, you say you want to create a world of peace, right?"
"I know all about your so-called Infinite Tsukuyomi."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"But in the end, this isn't about peace at all. You just want a world where Rin is still alive."
Obito's expression twisted instantly.
"You do not get to say her name!"
The moment Rin's name left Kirito's mouth, Obito lost control.
That name was a wound he never let anyone touch.
Not far away, Kakashi and Minato had arrived without interrupting.
Both of them heard Kirito's words.
And both of them froze when they heard that familiar name.
Obito.
Uchiha Obito.
For a moment, neither of them could fully believe it.
The masked man in front of them was too different from the boy they had known. Too twisted. Too far gone.
But then Kirito said Rin's name.
And they saw the reaction.
That was all the confirmation they needed.
Kakashi's eye darkened.
Back then, even before everything fell apart, he and Minato had both known how deeply Obito cared for Rin.
And now...
Thinking of Rin's death, Kakashi felt something heavy settle in his chest.
Neither of them had been saved.
Not Rin.
Not Obito.
A quiet bitterness passed through him.
Obito... I'm sorry.
On the battlefield, Kirito watched the barely restrained madness in Obito's eyes and spoke again, his tone casual.
"So Rin's name is forbidden now?"
He gave a cold little smile.
"And yet everything you've done... every step you've taken... has been for her."
Then the smile faded.
"Obito, I can almost admire that kind of obsession."
His voice dropped.
"But there's one thing I'll never forgive."
A chill passed through the air.
"You should never have laid a hand on my family."
The night of the Nine-Tails attack flashed through Kirito's mind.
At the time, he had been powerless.
Too weak to protect himself.
Too weak to protect anyone.
That memory had never left him.
And because of that, there were many people he could have chosen to hate.
But Obito?
No.
Obito was the one he would never forgive.
And Kirito had no intention of settling for a simple death.
If Obito wanted a dream where Rin still existed...
Then Kirito would drag that dream right in front of him and crush it with his own hands.
Just imagining the look on Obito's face made it worth it.
Obito's voice came out harsher this time, tinged with something dangerously close to panic.
"Namikaze Kirito... what are you planning?"
Kirito's smile returned, faint and unreadable.
"Nothing much."
His tone was almost gentle.
"I've just been preparing a little gift for you."
Obito's pupils shrank.
"A gift? What gift?!"
Kirito didn't answer him.
Instead, he turned his head toward Orochimaru.
That was enough.
Orochimaru immediately understood.
With that same eerie, knowing expression, he gave a signal.
A moment later, a girl in a Konoha ninja outfit was brought forward.
She looked soft and gentle, with a bright face and warm eyes.
Every little movement, every expression...
It was Rin.
Minato went completely still.
Kakashi's breathing caught.
Both of them stared as if they'd stopped understanding what they were seeing.
Even Obito froze.
This wasn't his real body, only a White Zetsu clone carrying his will, and yet the moment he saw her, it felt like his whole world flipped upside down.
His hand trembled as he slowly reached forward.
"Rin...?"
His voice cracked.
"Is that... really Rin?"
Rin ran forward with a bright smile on her face.
For one impossible moment, Obito saw the past.
Saw the girl he had loved.
Saw the person he had built his entire broken world around.
"Rin... Rin!"
Without even thinking, he reached out toward her.
And then reality tore him apart.
Rin ran right past him—
and threw herself straight into Kirito's arms.
She smiled up at him, bright and affectionate.
"My lord, what are you doing out here? You haven't come to see me in so long."
Kirito wrapped an arm around her and gently stroked her hair.
"Sorry, Rin. I've been busy lately."
It should have looked warm.
Comforting.
But to Obito, it was like someone had driven a blade through his chest and twisted.
His voice exploded out of him.
"Rin! Rin, what's wrong with you?!"
Then he turned on Kirito completely.
"Namikaze Kirito! What did you do to her?!"
His voice wavered. The anger was gone… replaced by something emptier.
Kirito didn't even bother answering.
Instead, the Rin in his arms lifted her head, stepped forward, and looked at Obito with a cold, unfamiliar expression.
"Who are you?"
Her voice was sharp.
"And how dare you speak to the King like that?"
Obito stared at her as if he'd been struck.
"Rin... it's me. It's me!"
There was hesitation in her eyes.
Confusion.
She really didn't recognize him.
Kirito had never erased Rin's memories completely.
He had only changed one thing.
He placed himself at the center of them.
At the center of her heart.
No matter what happened, Kirito would always come first.
Always.
As for Obito...
The man standing before her now was nothing like the boy she once knew. Different voice. Different body. Different presence.
He looked like a stranger.
Obito lowered his head slightly, his voice suddenly unsteady.
"I'm... Obito."
He didn't want to say it.
Didn't want to face her like this.
Didn't want her to see what he had become.
And yet the words still came out.
Rin's eyes widened.
"Obito?"
For a moment, pure joy appeared on her face.
"Obito... it really is you? You're alive?"
Her voice trembled with emotion.
"That's wonderful... I thought... I thought you were really gone..."
For an instant, Obito's dead, hollow heart almost started beating again.
But then the warmth disappeared from her face.
Her expression turned cold.
"Obito, I'm happy you're alive."
Her voice became firm.
"I'm happy Team Minato can be together again."
Then her eyes sharpened.
"But that doesn't give you the right to disrespect the King."
Her next words hit harder than any blade.
"How dare you call my lord by his name?"
Obito stood there in silence.
Looking at the Rin he loved, the Rin he had lived for, the Rin he had destroyed himself to protect—
and realizing that the person in front of him still had her face, her voice, her smile...
but no longer stood on his side.
That was the moment something inside him finally snapped.
--------------------------------------
Support me at patreon.com/Arthorain and read upto 50 Advanced Chapters and R-18 Content!
--------------------------------------
Update schedule: 7 chapters/week
Every 200 power stones = 1 Extra Chapter
By voting with [power stones], you can easily get double the number of chapters.