Chapter 50: Father and Son Reunite
The morning in Konoha was gentle, with mist like a thin veil softly draping over the village as it slowly stirred to life. The first rays of sunlight pierced through the haze, casting warm golden patches across the rebuilt houses and the fresh green shoots. The air carried the crisp scent of earth and morning dew—quiet, peaceful, full of life.
Rubik walked through the morning light toward Naruto's modest little home. After a long night of exhausting battles, this rare moment of leisure felt especially precious. He rubbed his sore lower back with a groan.
"Tch. Good thing I'm an Uzumaki…" he muttered under his breath.
He pushed open the creaky door, and the familiar faint smell of instant ramen broth—Naruto's signature scent—wafted out. The blond kid was sprawled out on his bed, blanket kicked to the floor, sound asleep with a tiny trail of drool hanging from the corner of his mouth.
"Hey! Sun's already up!"
Rubik walked over without ceremony and gave Naruto's belly a firm slap through his pajamas—hard enough to jolt him awake, but not hard enough to hurt.
"Mm… who's there… gimme five more minutes…"
Naruto mumbled groggily, not even opening his eyes, curling back into the blanket like a sleepy caterpillar.
"Five minutes?"
Rubik raised an eyebrow and grinned mischievously, leaning down close to Naruto's ear and drawing out his words slowly.
"Then I guess I'll just have to enjoy that extra-large special chashu tonkotsu ramen all by myself, huh?"
"Ramen?!"
Those two words hit like a magic spell. Naruto's blue eyes snapped open, his drowsiness vanishing in an instant. He shot up like a launched rocket.
"Where?! Where's my ramen?!"
Rubik burst out laughing at the sight of Naruto frantically scanning the room.
"Relax, you just woke up and you want something that heavy? Go wash up first! Breakfast is bread and milk. Ramen's for lunch."
"Ehhh—no fair!"
Naruto deflated like a popped balloon, but he obediently hopped off the bed and shuffled toward the bathroom, running his fingers through his messy blond hair.
While Naruto washed up, Rubik deftly pulled out bread and milk from the cupboard—fresh, not expired—and heated them up quickly. He sat at the table, watching the quiet Konoha morning outside the window. After life-and-death battles, these ordinary little moments felt unusually warm and comforting.
"Hey, Rubik!" Naruto plopped down across from him, stuffing a slice of bread into his mouth and speaking through the crumbs. "Is the Old Man Third okay?"
"Yeah, he's tough," Rubik said, pushing the milk closer. "Slow down, you'll choke."
Naruto took a big gulp of milk, washing down the bread, and let out a satisfied little burp.
---
Warm sunlight streamed through the window, painting the wooden floor in patches of gold. The lingering scent of toast still hung in the air. Rubik finished clearing the table and glanced over at Naruto, who was sprawled lazily in his chair, rubbing his round belly.
"Any plans today?" Rubik asked. "More youth-and-sweat training at the field?"
Naruto yawned like a cat sunbathing and stretched dramatically, his golden hair catching the light.
"Ahhh—I've been training so hard my bones feel like they're falling apart! Think I'll just take it easy today. Sleep in. Hehe."
Rubik nodded understandingly. "Yeah, balance is important. Too much tension and the string snaps. Rest up so you can come back stronger."
He hung around for a while, joking with Naruto, before glancing at the empty fridge and sighing.
"Looks like someone's been skipping his veggies while I was gone… Alright, I'll head to the market and rescue your poor nutritional balance."
After saying goodbye to Naruto, Rubik strolled leisurely through the quiet Konoha streets, savoring the rare peace. At the bustling morning market, he picked through fresh greens, and soon his basket was piled high with crisp vegetables.
Just as he was heading back, a familiar figure burst around the corner like a whirlwind of panic, nearly crashing straight into him.
"Sasuke?"
Rubik steadied himself, looking at the dark-haired boy in front of him—pale, gasping for breath, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
"What's wrong? Why are you running so fast?"
"You—why are you here?!" Sasuke's head snapped up. His dark eyes were bloodshot, churning with hatred and fear, but above all, burning with desperate worry for his friend. He nearly screamed, his voice cracking. "Why aren't you at Naruto's place?! That man—he's back! He's targeting Naruto!"
At the words "that man," Rubik's smile vanished instantly, and his gaze turned razor-sharp.
Itachi. Uchiha Itachi. Today.
"Tch. So it's this day, huh…"
Rubik's voice was cold, knowing. He glanced at Sasuke, who was still trembling from the frantic run and emotional overload, and frowned.
"You're… too slow."
Without giving Sasuke any time to react, Rubik's left hand kept a firm grip on the heavy vegetable basket, while his right hand shot out like lightning, grabbing Sasuke by the waist and locking him securely to his side.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Flash!!!"
Zzzzzzt—!!!
His body transformed into a blinding streak of electricity that split the air! The pedestrians on the street only caught a blur, a gust of wind rushing past like a blue bolt of lightning tearing across the ground—aimed straight at Naruto's home.
---
Meanwhile, at Naruto's house…
The sunny little home from moments ago now felt as if a shadow had swallowed it whole. The air had turned icy cold.
Uzumaki Naruto stood frozen in the doorway, his hand still reaching for the handle, but his entire body was paralyzed—his pupils contracting in sheer terror!
A tall, imposing figure stood blocking the entrance, his back to the light. He wore a black coat embroidered with red clouds, and a large bamboo hat hid most of his face—but the massive, bandage-wrapped hilt of a sword slung across his back radiated a suffocating pressure that made the air itself tremble.
"Kid…" A low, gravelly voice grated out like sandpaper, dripping with bone-chilling coldness. "The Nine-Tails'… jinchuriki?"
Kisame's shark-like face twisted into a malicious grin as he towered over the rigid Naruto, like a giant shark sizing up a panicked little fish. He tilted his head toward the silent dark-haired man beside him and rumbled:
"Mr. Itachi, this brat… is the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki? Looks pathetically weak. Can't even handle a bit of killing intent."
Naruto trembled, his hands and feet numb as if they weren't his own. The killing intent radiating from Kisame was like deep-sea pressure—heavy, viscous, pressing down on him from all sides, locking every muscle in place.
Uchiha Itachi's gaze was calm, as still as the bottom of a frozen lake. He glanced at Naruto briefly.
"Confirmed. Target is him. Take him."
His voice was flat, as if stating the most ordinary of facts.
"Ah, amazing! As expected of Itachi-senpai and Kisame-senpai!"
A man beside them, wearing an orange spiral mask and calling himself "Tobi," immediately started bouncing around with exaggerated enthusiasm, his tone almost comically worshipful.
"You found the Nine-Tails jinchuriki so fast! Tobi's truly in awe! Gotta learn from the best!"
"Shut up, intern!" Kisame growled impatiently, waving his hand like he was shooing a fly, the massive Samehada shifting on his back. "No idea why we brought you along! If you hadn't been getting in the way earlier, Mr. Itachi would've already dealt with that annoying Hatake Kakashi!"
"Ahaha! Sorry, sorry, Kisame-senpai~" Tobi immediately clasped his hands together, twisting his body in exaggerated apology. "I really just wanted to help! Didn't mean to mess things up…"
"Enough, Kisame."
Itachi's voice cut through, calm as ever. He knew exactly what kind of terrifying existence lurked beneath that orange mask and paid no attention to the clownish act. Without another word, he stepped forward, extending a pale, long-fingered hand toward the paralyzed Naruto with undeniable authority.
---
Just as Itachi's fingers were about to brush Naruto's collar—
"Wind Release: Vacuum Great Ball!"
A sharp shout split the air!
BOOM—!!!
A highly compressed, screaming sphere of wind—like an artillery shell—slammed into the ground between Itachi, Kisame, and Naruto! The blast of wind pressure erupted violently, sending rocks, dust, and debris exploding outward in a brief but effective barrier!
The shockwave forced Itachi and Kisame to instinctively step back. Kisame swung Samehada in front of him defensively. Tobi, with a dramatic "Waaah," crouched down and covered his head, pretending to be caught off guard.
Through the swirling dust and smoke, a figure appeared like a ghost in front of Naruto, shielding him firmly!
The newcomer's left hand was still in a hand-sign position, while his right hand held a dark-haired boy. The most eye-catching thing, however, was that he also had a heavy vegetable basket clamped in his mouth!
"Phew…" Rubik released his hand sign and casually set Sasuke aside. Taken by surprise, Sasuke stumbled and landed flat on his butt.
Rubik shook out his wrist, a roguish grin on his face, and mumbled through the basket handle at the terrified Naruto behind him:
"Yo. I'm back. Miss me?"
"Rubik—!"
At the sight of that familiar figure standing in front of him, Naruto's overwhelming fear was instantly replaced by a rush of relief. His blue eyes lit up with admiration, his voice shaking with excitement at being saved.
But Rubik's grin froze the moment his gaze swept across the three figures opposite them—and locked onto the one wearing the orange spiral mask, still crouched in his "cowering" pose.
Clatter.
The vegetable basket fell from his mouth, and a few cucumbers rolled out onto the ground.
Sasuke, who was rubbing his sore rear and about to complain, felt Rubik suddenly radiate an aura of immense gravity—tinged with shock and suspicion—and forgot his pain entirely, staring up at him in bewilderment.
Rubik's heart slammed against his ribs. All his focus, all his senses, were fixed on that single dark eyehole peering out from the spiral mask.
He could "feel" it—that man was staring back at him with equal intensity.
Beneath the mask, that single exposed eye—which had just been playfully wide—was now fixed on Rubik. The masked man's posture had gone rigid; his exaggerated "cowering" pose now looked utterly absurd and stiff. All traces of comic relief had vanished, replaced by an icy, crushing pressure that spread silently through the air, so heavy it seemed to solidify the atmosphere itself.
This presence was so overwhelming that it even drowned out Kisame's deep-sea killing intent. Naruto shuddered involuntarily and instinctively pressed closer behind Rubik.
"Tobi?" Kisame was the first to notice his partner's sudden change. He gripped Samehada tightly, his shark-like eyes narrowing as he darted wary glances between the masked man and Rubik. The aura this "intern" was suddenly giving off sent a chill down his spine—it wasn't something a weakling could possess.
"What's wrong? That kid over there… an old acquaintance of yours?" Kisame's voice was probing. His suspicions about "Tobi's" identity seemed to be confirmed in that moment.
Uchiha Itachi's Sharingan rotated slightly at the change in the masked man's aura. A barely perceptible flicker passed through his crimson eyes. Unlike Kisame, he didn't ask directly, but subtly shifted half a step to a position where he could observe both the masked man and Rubik.
His gaze lingered briefly on Rubik's face—young but bearing an unusual firmness—before returning to the mysterious man beside him who called himself "Uchiha Madara."
Itachi was far more astonished than he let on. He knew exactly what kind of monster lurked beneath that mask. For "Madara" to lose his composure like this… just who was that boy holding a vegetable basket, the one who'd just rescued the jinchuriki?
Silence.
The air turned into thick, sticky mud, each breath a labor. Time stretched, every second an eternity.
Finally, the orange spiral mask shifted just slightly.
A low, hoarse voice—weary as if it had traveled across ages, laced with disbelief—seeped out from beneath the mask. It was cold, detached, yet carrying an unfathomable complexity:
"You… what's your name? Who… are you?"
"Rubik… what's wrong?"
From his angle, Naruto couldn't see the masked man in front of Rubik clearly.
Rubik drew a slow, deep breath. His solemn expression didn't waver. He slowly raised his empty left hand—not forming a seal, just spreading his fingers slightly, as if feeling the suffocating weight in the air, or perhaps silently answering the masked man's question. He met that piercing gaze and curled the corner of his mouth.
"Who am I?"
Rubik's voice dropped low too, carrying an uncanny resonance that reached everyone's ears clearly, shattering the oppressive silence.
"That question…"
He spoke each word deliberately, every syllable heavy with the weight of fate.
"…isn't that something you should know best?"
As the last word left his lips, the dormant chakra inside Rubik erupted like an awakened volcano! A surge of vitality—distinctive to the Uzumaki bloodline—burst outward, kicking up dust and rustling his hair!
Chakra Burst (royalties paid to Tobirama last night).
At the same time, Rubik's black eyes instantly shifted to crimson—three pitch-black tomoe slowly spinning within the blood-red pupils!
The Sharingan. He was declaring his identity to the man before him.
"In your eyes… who am I? 'Tobi-nii'…?"
At that long-forgotten, intimate childhood nickname, the masked man's body went rigid! The fragments he had buried deep in the abyss of his memory—the ones belonging to "Uchiha Obito"—came surging back like a breached dam!
Shock! Panic! Joy! Confusion! Pain! Guilt! Regret… A storm of emotions—so tangled, so intense—clashed and tore through the heart of a man who had worn another's identity for over a decade.
His gaze was no longer on Rubik. It had dropped, unfocused, as if his very mind had been shattered by this unexpected blow.
He lifted his head with visible difficulty, staring at this face—both familiar and foreign—as if he wanted to say something. But in the end, nothing came out.
Then, space around him silently twisted into a vortex, and the man—Uchiha Obito—vanished completely from that place, leaving only silence and a flood of unanswered questions.
This man, who had roamed the shinobi world for over ten years, had fled—like he was running away.
Rubik stared at the empty spot where he'd stood, and a silent, bitter laugh tugged at his lips.
It was unclear whether the laugh was mocking himself for still harboring a faint, foolish hope in that instant—or expressing disappointment in the man who had ultimately chosen to escape and disappear.