On the other side of Konoha, Minato and his team were casually strolling through the village when they unexpectedly stumbled upon an unusual place.
"Is this a cemetery?" Obito muttered, staring at the sign in front of him. A mischievous grin formed on his face as a strange idea popped into his head.
Turning to Minato, he pretended to be serious and said, "Sensei, what if our tombstones are in there?"
Minato touched his nose awkwardly. "Considering we're in a different time and space, I wouldn't be surprised if something like that actually happened…"
Obito clapped his hands together. "Then that settles it! Let's go take a look! We should at least burn some incense for ourselves, right?" His excitement was palpable as he made his unique suggestion.
Minato chuckled, finding Obito's enthusiasm amusing.
Meanwhile, Kushina and Rin exchanged dumbfounded glances.
"What a strange idea," Kushina muttered.
Before anyone could react, Obito had already grabbed Rin's hand and dragged her toward the cemetery.
"Obito, slow down!" Rin yelped.
Despite her protests, she couldn't help but get caught up in Obito's excitement and followed him inside.
---
At the Gravesite
In front of the tombstones engraved with "Uchiha Obito" and "Nohara Rin," Hatake Kakashi stood silently, his thoughts heavy.
The stone monuments before him bore their names, a reminder of what he had lost.
After a long pause, he sighed, gently placing two bouquets of flowers at the base of the graves. Sitting down, he stared at the inscriptions and finally spoke in a soft voice:
"Obito, twelve years have passed in the blink of an eye. If you were still here… you might have actually become Hokage."
A self-deprecating smile crossed his lips.
"And Rin… I failed to protect you."
His voice wavered slightly.
"I'm sure you must be disappointed in me… I wouldn't blame you if you were talking behind my back about how useless I am."
He let out a bitter chuckle.
---
Watching from the Shadows
Not far from the gravesite, hidden among the trees, a figure cloaked in shadows observed the scene. A tiger-striped mask concealed most of his face, his exposed eye gleaming with suppressed emotion.
The masked man's fists clenched tightly as Kakashi's words reached his ears.
"Kakashi… what's the point of saying all this now?" he growled under his breath.
"I will never forgive you… never…"
His voice trembled with barely contained anger.
"Just wait. Soon, I will create a perfect world. And in that world, you'll have to face Rin yourself."
As he turned to leave, he suddenly froze in place.
His eye widened in disbelief.
"What…?"
There, in the distance, he saw something that should have been impossible.
A boy—himself, but much younger—running hand-in-hand with Nohara Rin.
The masked man's breath hitched.
They looked so happy. So… alive.
"Is this… a hallucination?" he whispered hoarsely.
He staggered forward a few steps, as if trying to convince himself that what he was seeing wasn't real.
How could it be?
He was nothing but a shadow now, a ghost that had long abandoned the light. The thought of running so freely, laughing under the sun—those things didn't belong to him anymore.
And yet, there he was.
Or rather, a younger version of himself.
The masked man's fingers twitched.
For a moment, a deep longing surged within him.
But before he could dwell on it, his younger self turned his head—his gaze landing directly on the tree where the masked man was hiding.
For a split second, their eyes met.
The masked man's breath caught in his throat.
How?
No one should have been able to sense him. He was hidden within Kamui's space. It was impossible for anyone to detect his presence.
"…Forget it."
He shook his head and clenched his fists.
"It doesn't matter. Once the Eye of the Moon Plan succeeds, none of this will matter anymore."
He forcibly tore his gaze away and prepared to leave.
But then—
Minato and Kushina passed by.
His body stiffened.
He saw them. He really saw them.
Minato and Kushina.
His teacher. His sensei.
And the woman who had been like a mother to him.
They were alive.
Smiling.
Laughing.
"How… how is this possible?"
A chill ran down his spine.
He could no longer tell if this was reality or some cruel illusion.
His mind was breaking.
He couldn't tell the difference.
I really can't tell the difference!
---
Meanwhile, Minato Noticed Something Strange
As Minato and Kushina caught up with Obito and Rin, Minato suddenly turned his head, his sharp eyes narrowing as he scanned a nearby tree.
A strange feeling washed over him.
"Is it just my imagination? I feel the presence of a Flying Thunder God mark…"
Minato frowned.
But that didn't make sense. Since arriving in this timeline, he hadn't used his teleportation technique once.
So where did this mark come from?
Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.
"Could it be…?"
The Flying Thunder God mark, once placed, never disappeared unless intentionally removed.
Could it be a remnant from his other self in this time and space?
Obito suddenly leaned in and whispered, "Minato-sensei, did you notice something?"
"You feel it too?"
Obito smirked. "Kamui's power is active nearby. Someone's using the intangibility ability."
Minato's expression turned serious. "But it's not you, right?"
"Nope," Obito said, shaking his head.
Minato exhaled. "What do you want to do? Should we intervene? Maybe we should ask Shinomiya Uzumaki first."
Obito waved his hand dismissively. "Nah, this is his territory. If he hasn't done anything about it, he must have his reasons."
Minato nodded. That made sense. Someone as powerful as Shinomiya Uzumaki wouldn't ignore a threat unless it was intentional.
"Forget it," Obito said. "Let's go mess with Kakashi instead!"
---
A Not-So-Pleasant Surprise for Kakashi
From where they stood, they could see Kakashi sitting alone, whispering to the gravestones.
Obito grinned mischievously.
"Minato-sensei, Kushina-san, wait here. Rin and I are gonna give Kakashi a little surprise."
Rin looked hesitant. "Obito, are you sure? This might not be a good idea…"
Minato chuckled. "You guys never change."
Kushina giggled. "Poor Kakashi, I hope he doesn't pass out from shock."
Obito smirked. "Let's find out."
He grabbed Rin's hand, and in an instant, they phased into Kamui and reappeared behind Kakashi.
Kakashi, still lost in thought, sighed. "Well, it's getting late. I'll come visit you both again soon."
Just as he was about to get up—
SMACK!
He felt two sharp slaps on his backside.
"You idiot, Kakashi!" a familiar voice scolded. "You came to visit but didn't bring anything good? Just some flowers? What am I supposed to do with these, eat them?"
Kakashi's body stiffened.
That voice…
It was impossible.
Slowly, he turned around, his heart pounding violently in his chest.
There they stood.
Uchiha Obito.
Nohara Rin.
Alive.
Smiling.
"Obito… Rin…"
Kakashi's breath hitched. His mind refused to process what he was seeing.
Was this real?
A dream?
A cruel illusion?
"Hey, you deaf?" Obito waved a hand in front of his face. "Say something already!"
Kakashi's throat went dry.
"Obito…"
Obito crossed his arms and huffed. "And you didn't even bring me any food. Do you know how hungry I've been in the afterlife? You expect me to survive off flower petals?"
He pinched Rin's arm. "Look, Rin's practically wasting away because of you!"
Rin blushed.
The atmosphere grew awkward.
They were definitely going to get caught.
--------------------------
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