Kakashi's voice gradually faded before the memorial stone.
He stared at those two familiar names, as if he could see through the cold stone and return to the tragedy at Kannabi Bridge.
Obito crushed beneath the boulder.
Rin throwing herself onto his Chidori without hesitation.
The memories surged like a tidal wave.
"Obito… Rin…"
There was a trace of confusion in Kakashi's voice.
"If you were still here… what would you think of that child?"
The wind howled softly, as if answering him.
After a long while, Kakashi straightened his back, his eyes regaining their resolve.
"No matter what… I won't let anyone make use of your memories like this. I'll uncover the truth."
With that—
He vanished in a flicker.
Only the white flowers remained, quietly blooming in the fading sunlight.
And the two names on the stone continued to gaze in silence at the village they had once sworn to protect.
...
Not long after Kakashi disappeared into the dusk—
The space before the memorial suddenly distorted.
Like ripples spreading across water.
A figure emerged soundlessly.
Black cloak.
Orange spiral mask.
Uchiha Obito.
He stood there, his gaze coldly sweeping over the direction Kakashi had left, before settling on the white flowers.
A flicker of undisguised disgust crossed his eyes.
That useless man who couldn't protect Rin… coming here every time to play the part. Disgusting.
As always—
Obito picked up the flowers and casually flung them into the bushes until they were no longer visible.
"Hmph…"
"Lost in confusion over a child? Still the same useless fool."
A mocking curve lifted beneath his mask.
That indecisive weakness—
Was no different from the boy who once hesitated between mission and comrades.
The space around him began to twist.
His gaze lingered one last time on the name Nohara Rin.
His figure was swallowed by a spiraling distortion.
Only a whisper remained, carried away by the wind.
"Let me see… what exactly this child is."
...
Night deepened.
At the edge of the Uchiha district, in a quiet courtyard—
Uchiha Rin was training under the moonlight.
Her movements were smooth and precise.
A kunai struck the center of the wooden target with perfect accuracy.
Outside the courtyard—
Within the shadow of an old tree—
A faint ripple passed through space.
Obito stood in the gap between Kamui space and reality, silently watching the small figure within the yard.
So this is the child Kakashi couldn't stop thinking about?
Just… a Uchiha brat.
But when his gaze truly settled on her face—
Something felt… wrong.
That face… really does resemble Rin.
No—
Not just resemblance.
In that instant—
Something deeper struck him.
Something primal.
As if something dormant within his blood had been awakened.
A strange resonance formed between him and the girl.
What… is this?
Obito's pupils shrank.
His Sharingan spun instinctively to its limit, trying to pierce through the absurd sensation.
He stared at her.
The subtle expressions between her brows.
The texture of her black hair.
The slight tightening of her lips as she controlled her breathing…
Beyond Rin's gentle outline—
He saw something else.
A trace of himself.
This wasn't simple resemblance.
It was something deeper.
A faint pull from within the blood itself—
Like a weak current crossing even the barrier of space.
Absurd.
Completely absurd.
Rin had died before his eyes.
At Kakashi's hand.
And he—
Had nothing left.
How could there be any bloodline left in this world?
A surge of rage erupted—
Mixed with a sliver of unease he refused to acknowledge.
Who did this?
Who dared to defile Rin's memory—
And mock him in such a way?
Obito's gaze turned deadly.
Like a beast ready to devour its prey.
Locked onto the unaware girl in the courtyard.
His earlier indifference vanished completely.
Replaced by cold scrutiny—
And killing intent.
But years of restraint held him back.
Destroying her would be easy.
But the truth mattered more.
He needed to know—
What this girl was.
Who created this… existence that carried both Rin and himself.
Inside the courtyard—
Rin finished her final set of movements and let out a soft breath.
She put away her kunai and walked back into the house.
The wooden door closed gently behind her.
The night wind was shut out.
In the shadows—
The distortion faded.
Obito remained where he was—
Gazing at the closed door.
Slowly—
He raised his right hand.
In his palm—
Several strands of black hair lay still, roots intact.
"Uchiha Rin…"
"I'll see for myself… what you really are."
His fingers closed.
His figure vanished into a spiral of space.
...
Far beyond the borders of the Land of Fire—
Deep within remote mountain ranges—
An underground laboratory flickered with candlelight.
Glass containers and instruments lined the space.
Orochimaru stood at the experiment table, deftly handling various tools.
Scrolls and notes were scattered around—
Records of forbidden techniques and bloodline research.
Since leaving Konoha—
He had wandered across many lands.
Eventually establishing this temporary lab—
And joining that mysterious organization.
Though…
"Hmm?"
Orochimaru suddenly paused.
His golden, snake-like eyes narrowed.
His gaze shifted toward the center of the floor.
The stone surface began to writhe—
As if something was emerging.
"How rare…"
The movement intensified.
Then—
A head wearing an orange spiral mask popped out of the ground.
Followed by the rest of the body.
The figure bounced lightly upon landing—
Like a spring-loaded doll—
Patting off imaginary dust.
"Yaho~ Orochimaru-senpai!"
The man calling himself Tobi greeted him in a cheerful tone completely out of place in the eerie lab.
He skipped forward, waving both hands.
Orochimaru set down his tools.
"Did Pain send you?"
"As expected of senpai!"
Tobi spun three sealed sample tubes in his hand like a magic trick.
"Boss asked you to analyze the relationship between these samples—quickly!"
One was his own cells.
One… preserved from Rin.
Something he had kept—
To remember.
And the last—
Hair taken from Uchiha Rin.
"I see."
"Come back in three hours."
Orochimaru took the tubes, waving him away like an annoyance.
"Okay~ see you in three hours!"
Tobi sank back into the ground—
Disappearing without a trace.
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