Chapter Text
As he felt his body disintegrate into fragments to save Naruto who ought to make his former dream reality, Obito knew it, he was going to die. At least, he saved Kakashi from death, again. He would never regret that because Kakashi should stay here. He would be a burden in the Pure Land and this would satisfy Kakashi, which Obito really disagreed on.
When he opened his eyes, he found himself in an entire different space and in front of him ? Rin. After all this time, she hadn’t changed at all. Still as sweet and kind as he remembered. He would finally rest in peace by her side.
“I’ve been waiting for you.” She said.
The mere thought of her, standing in front of him without a ounce of letdown nor any negative sentiment toward him was almost unsettling if he were honest with himself.
After becoming a person he would have never thought he could become, he couldn’t look at Rin, he really could not because he wasn’t the Obito Uchiha she had once known. In fact, he had even forgotten himself after subduing to violence, utterly manufactured by Madara who turned out to also be a pawn in Zetsu’s plan. He had been the idiot Kakashi had called him long ago.
“Don’t worry Obito, you did good.” She said heartily. She took his arm. “You know, I’ve seen everything.”
She saw everything. She should know how he had been throughout his tarnished life. He couldn’t help but cry until he couldn’t see the face of the one he had loved, the face of someone who somehow, still supported him despite the path he had taken for the sake of a fantasy. He didn’t know why. The reason escaped him. Rin had always been so sweet for as long as he could remember. He wouldn’t know why.
“But you know…there’s still a way for you to undo what you’ve done.” She spoke. “I can make you travel back in time.”
Obito startled. He was dead and how was time travel even possible ? Moreover, he didn't want to live again. All he wanted now was to seclude himself from reality after all the damage done. Still, he trusted Rin like he had always done. He knew that she would always be trustworthy no matter what.
She tightened her grip on his hand. It was firm, like her will to watch over him throughout these years. “Trust me Obito. You deserve a second chance.”
But this was the problem, he did not. He had been manipulated and had spent his entire life causing chaos within this world for an absurd objective, in vain because Zetsu had lied to him and Madara. He didn’t deserve such a blessing. Scum like him should be in hell like he had thought he was and didn't deserve a second chance.
She simply smiled, fondly. “Don’t worry, Obito. What matters most is that you redeem yourself.”
He nodded. She wasn’t so wrong after all. Although he had caused so much harm in a world that already fueled itself through violence and had almost put an end to the world, Naruto and Rin had let him another chance to redeem himself. They had given him a chance to take the right path again.
He should not refuse, especially from Rin. So he accepted, accepted that he could do better, in another reality. If it were up to him, he would have judged to keep the present as it was. But he needed to be objective, if he succeeded, it would be for the better.
He clearly had no idea of how she would do that. In fact, he didn’t feel it. He fell unconscious as he silently accepted the offer. Perhaps, this would lead him toward a better future, where he could save her and live a peaceful life with his dear friends like he had wished before.
[…]
The funeral of Minato-sensei and Kushina had now ended hours ago. And yet, Kakashi was still grieving, now in front of Obito’s memorial. Once again, he had failed to protect those he loved.
He should have known that. Kushina was pregnant, while being a jinchuuriki. She had been in danger, he had failed at protecting her in the shadows. That was the only moment he had taken the time to rest and stroll within Konoha’s streets and had trusted his sensei with the process. He knew better than that. And yet, still no better than before.
How should he even explain that to Obito ? Minato and Kushina died. He shouldn’t be vague, but he should also be tactful and honest at the same time.
“Obito, I failed again. Now I also lost Minato-sensei and Kushina after Kyuubi’s attack. Sorry, I…” He shook his head. No apologies could defend that. They couldn’t come back. He had said the same with Rin but he knew that Obito would have never forgiven him for that.
Instead, he stayed silent. That wasn’t like Obito would have accepted that anyway. Now he was the only one alive in his team, the one that deserved it the least. Rin would have been the greatest medic-nin in the world, better than Lady Tsunade herself. Minato and Kushina the best parents that Naruto could have ever dreamed of. And Obito ? Of course, the best Hokage that Konoha would have ever known in its history.
Kakashi was just a simple and perfect soldier that had accepted he couldn’t do anything except serve a flawed village because he was just a cog in the machine.
[…]
Kakashi probably stayed the entire morning and afternoon here. He had also given Rin flowers. He didn’t know which one she loved so he took what he had judged to feel like her in the Yamanaka shop. For Obito, the same dangos as usual. He would have devoured them if he were still here, he thought. He hadn’t planned anything for Minato and Kushina. He would think about it tomorrow.
He turned around to leave the graveyard but something caught his eye in the shadows of the trees nearby. There was a silhouette peeking from the bushes. Kakashi headed toward it instead.
A man was laying on the ground, a boy, Kakashi couldn’t tell. He was face down, wearing a long black cloak and there were many porcelain smithereens scattered around his head along with a black cloth above it.
Whoever he was, whether he was unconscious or awake, he couldn’t leave him like that. He should bring him to the hospital. But before that, Kakashi should see how he looked like, in case it was a trap or anything else like he had been taught in ANBU.
He removed the piece of cloth, shifted him so his head wouldn’t be hurt by the porcelain on the ground and turned him over.
What caught his attention first was his scarred face. The scar was only on the left side of his face, the other being unharmed. He seemed young, almost as young as Kakashi and now that he thought about it, he seemed familiar.
The hair, the scar and the way Kakashi could almost recognize someone he had known in the past—
“Obito ?” He muttered as it dawned on him. This could only be him, but he was supposed to be dead. How could he have survived when the boulder had completely crushed him ? Kakashi put these thoughts aside.
He defintely had Obito in front of him. Now he was older and taller, but still Obito. He had no doubt about his identity, which convinced him even more to bring him somewhere else where he would be safe. Kakashi could not lose him again.
[…]
Obito opened his eye as he slowly woke up, only to find himself on the bed of a hospital because of that scent of antiseptic and how plain white the room was.
Now that his consciousness was more lucid, this reminded him of something else, more important : Did the time travel work ?
Because of course, he woke up again, which meant that it worked. But did it really work perfectly ? And how did Rin do that ? Anyway. For now he just needed to know what was going on here.
If it worked as expected, he should see Rin again, along with Kakashi, Minato-sensei and Kushina of course. He hadn’t done that for nothing after all.
This was why he slowly rose from the bed, wincing as he remembered that his scar used to hurt more at that moment. He had forgotten about that. When he looked at himself, he was wearing a black cloak, like that night. However when he touched his hair, it was short. For as long as he could remember, when he had left Madara, his hair was still long. It could only mean one thing, he hadn’t been teleported before Rin’s supposed death, but just after the Nine Tails’ attack. Only Kakashi was alive at that moment.
The time travel hadn’t happened as he had thought and he couldn’t do anything whatsoever. This was a nightmare. He would have to restart his life from a completely pointless moment.
Obito should know that it was for the better but somehow, he couldn’t help but be mad about something he couldn’t fix, which made him realize that he was acting like his fifteen years old self again, just with the memories of a life that didn’t exist anymore except in his own mind.
If he saw Rin again and that even after she had given him a second chance, he would have also failed, perhaps she wouldn’t hide her disappointment this time. She had never done it before her death but…what if it would actually happen this time ? He couldn’t support that thought.
At that moment, Kakashi had already let him down by letting Rin die from his own hand. Akatsuki had already been corrupt and the Uchiha’s lives were already on stake. Too many damage had been done that he couldn’t entirely repair because of his own younger self.
He would try his best despite the unfortunate moment he had been transported to. Nobody should know that he was a time traveler, this would completely distort the timeline and put him in danger. He needed to make up a lie to justify his return. But, if he was here, did it mean that someone had already found him ? All of that was unclear for now.
He suddenly snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the door sliding and familiar grey hair coming from outside.
“Kakashi ?”
“Obito, you’re awake.” He said mildly.
Obito hadn’t seen Kakashi in this way in a while, back when he used to stalk him at all moment when he was free from his miscellaneous missions within Akatsuki or Kiri. Kakashi was still in ANBU and was slightly shorter and younger than during the war. Kakashi wasn’t the type of person to really age, he thought.
What followed next was just an awkward silence. Pretty obvious when Kakashi wasn’t supposed to see him again until his Akatsuki days as “Tobi”, at least in the other timeline because in this one, he wouldn’t do anything wrong whatsoever.
Obito stared at Kakashi as he entered in his room, dragged the chair nearby toward his bed and sat down.
“Obito, just…why did you never come back ? What happened ?” He asked faintly.
And this was where things would get more complicated. First time where he would have to think up. He couldn’t say the truth. Kakashi wouldn’t believe him anyway, wasn’t it ?
He could say he had been with Madara, it wasn’t wrong nor a lie. The problem was that they would check his emplacement and this could arouse suspicion. He needed to remain discreet.
Speaking of Madara, how to get rid of that seal ? What about Zetsu ? That bastard would have to pay and he would find it suspicious how he had mysteriously disappeared to come back to Konoha. He had been a worse stalker than him in that other timeline after all.
When he thought about it, so far, nothing had happened with it. If everything were still happening according to his memories, he should have heard voices telling him to focus on the plan instead of doing nothing and especially, being in Konoha for nothing else other than missions.
Obito would never know how that time travel exactly worked nor how did Rin come up with that.
Instead he tried to fudge the actual reason. He could come up with a lie later, once properly awake. “Bakashi I’m back you know.” He rolled his eye, which probably looked awkward. He would never take back Kakashi’s eye though no matter what the clan could say about that.
Kakashi said nothing. Instead he looked at the view outside as the sun began to set and as the sky took an orange tone. Obito looked back as if it would wane the awkward tension within the room.
He tried to read Kakashi’s expression but it just seemed like a jumble of confusion, relief, sadness and serenity, as if he couldn’t put a word, an emotion on the fact that Obito was here again. Obito knew how Kakashi would feel, he had seen it in another life, one that had failed at putting a word to their relationship. He would not fail this time despite the unfortunate time. Kakashi would not mourn ghosts his entire life anymore. Obito would ensure that.
Yes Obito was back, and honestly, Kakashi could have not asked for anything better. This just shocked him how he was here again as if he hadn’t disappeared for two years. Moreover, he didn’t even answer him.
This eased a burden Kakashi wasn’t even aware he had been carrying. The thought that he wasn’t so alone relieved him. He loosened his shoulders and slightly slumped on the chair.
They didn’t need to talk so much, for now. They both knew that it wasn’t the moment for that. If they had to talk, they would have so much misunderstandings and problems to clarify. Kakashi didn’t want that. He didn’t want his reunion with Obito to be tense when they had barely had any moment to rest before the incident.
The mere presence of Obito was already enough to make him forget about what was waiting for him outside of this hospital, and what had happened yesterday. He couldn’t fix any of that. How should he even explain that to Obito ? He softly exhaled to brush off the thought.
They stayed silent for an entire minute, along with the ticking clock, louder as they remained utterly silent and the rattling hospital beds in the corridor, reminding Kakashi of the catastrophe and how much victims it had caused. He had been used to it after the war, even more after joining ANBU forces.
Now that he thought about it, Obito was completely fine, no injury or anything whatsoever except for the fact that he had found him laying on the ground, without any reason for now. Moreover he was at the same place Kakashi had been and he was probably the first one to have ever seen him. This was suspicious, if he were completely objective, but it was Obito in front of him. Kakashi trusted him more than anything. Obito had always been right for as long as he could remember.
“Kakashi ?” Obito interrupted their silence. Kakashi raised his head. “I…” He faltered and looked away as he spoke again, quieter. “I found out about Rin and Minato-sensei… I’m sorry for them.”
Kakashi’s breath hitched. “Wait, how do you know about that ?”
“I don’t know how did I fall unconscious but when I wanted to come back to the village, I found you all grieving Minato-sensei and Kushina. I didn’t see Rin so I guess that she also died ?”
Kakashi suddenly stared at the floor. Obito hadn’t found out about who had killed Rin and he didn’t want to explain because he didn’t want to lose Obito’s trust. He had already lost him once.
“No matter what happened to her…I won’t blame you. I know that you aren’t doing so good Kakashi. You deserve better than that.”
Kakashi startled. He would have not thought that Obito would not want to know about that, about how Rin died. He loved her more than anything. Kakashi had seen it during the Kannabi bridge mission. He had risked his life for the sole sake of saving Rin, unlike Kakashi who had acted like the selfish scum Obito had called him out to be. He had been about to abandon one of his comrades and now he regretted heavily how foolish he had been.
“Kakashi, Rin would not want to see us like that. Look, I’m still here. She would have been happy to see the two of us again together.” Obito smiled faintly.
He was right. The past could not be changed and so, Rin could not come back. Therefore he couldn’t do anything but moving forward, hoping things would happen for the better. He would not have to solely cling on those who were already dead because in fact, he still had Obito.
Kakashi needed to know that he shouldn’t feel guilty because of the past anymore. Obito had seen enough years ago, too much. He had lived through Kakashi’s eye after all. He needed not to think so much about how Rin died because of him. Obito had made peace with that despite everything.
Kakashi rose from the chair as he seized the doorknob. “I should leave you alone.”
“No I’m fine, I can leave this room.” He retorted.
“Really ?” Kakashi turned back and raised an eyebrow. “Fine then.”
Obito got out of the bed and left the room along with Kakashi. He had much more important problems to deal with rather than rest, especially when some people needed his place more than him. He would have to deal with Naruto being a neglected orphan and the Uchiha clan slowly losing their credibility until they would have to be eradicated by Itachi’s hand eight years later.
The current situation was way too tense and fragile for Obito not to do anything against it. He knew how it would end. Nothing would happen like the other reality again.