Inside Kamui's Dimension, that hoarse voice calling out "Rin…" belonged to none other than Obito Uchiha—the one Kakashi had carried in his heart for half a lifetime.
"Do your best, Obito! Let me see you save the world in a really cool way!"
Rin's voice was still as clear as it was in his memories, yet he could no longer imagine what she would look like as an adult.
No matter how powerful an illusion was, it was ultimately a form of mental manipulation based on the consciousness of both the caster and the target. Anything that neither side could imagine simply couldn't be constructed.
That realization filled Adult Obito with an unfamiliar sense of dread.
...
On the other side, at Minato Namikaze's request, Yamato—who lived next door and was responsible for watching over the group of missing-nin—came over to teach Young Obito Wood Release.
It wasn't the first time Yamato had seen this strange kid who tucked his goggles outside his forehead protector. Still, every time they met, Yamato couldn't help but stare at him closely, trying to figure out what made him so special. After sacrificing himself to save Kakashi, this boy had caused that senpai to visit the Memorial Stone day after day for more than ten years.
Stared down by Captain Yamato's expressionless face and those pitch-black eyes, Young Obito took two frightened steps back and immediately complained to Adult Kakashi that something was off about this guy.
Adult Kakashi clapped a hand onto Yamato's shoulder. "He's all yours. Make sure he learns Wood Release within one day. I've got high expectations for you, Tenzō~"
"One day?!" Yamato went stiff. "Kakashi-senpai, do you think awakening Wood Release is like opening a blind box? And please call me Yamato."
Adult Kakashi gave him a solid slap on the back, sending Yamato stumbling forward half a step.
"Have some confidence. You can do it. You're a junior I trust a lot, Yamato."
Praised like that, Yamato somehow found himself dragged onto the pirate ship. He patted his chest and swore to Kakashi that he would give it everything he had to train Obito Uchiha. He even boldly guaranteed that Young Obito would awaken Wood Release that very day, that the Flowering Trees would descend the day after, and that the day after that they'd already be pulling off True Several Thousand Hands, Top Transformed Buddha.
Young Obito stared at the much taller Kakashi, completely speechless.
Was this some kind of office manipulation tactic or what?!
You're this amazing, and the me in this world doesn't even know about it?
Inside Kamui's Dimension, Obito Uchiha: "..."
...
Wood Release, of course, wasn't that easy to learn.
At the very least, after the first day passed, Obito Uchiha still hadn't figured out how to balance the three forces within him: his own power, the neutralizing influence of the White Zetsu components, and the power of Hashirama's cells.
Adult Obito sat cross-legged inside Kamui's Dimension. Out of sheer boredom, he picked up a book nearby and flipped through it casually.
He opened to a random page and skimmed it at a glance, but the more he read, the more wrong it felt…
'Tomorrow we part ways. On the battlefield, blades have no eyes. How long can our happiness really last?'
'Her lovely face appeared before my eyes at such a moment, followed by her smooth skin, slender waist, long legs, and that soft, breathy gasp when she teased me.'
'Though we stand in opposing camps, neither of us can restrain our hearts.'
'I realized it was truly her who had come to my side. Under the bright moonlight, we…'
We…
Finally, Adult Obito couldn't take it anymore and hurled the book straight out of Kamui's Dimension.
"What is this garbage supposed to be?!"
You useless piece of trash who can't even keep your promises! All you know how to do is kneel at the Memorial Stone and repent!
"Who the hell would want to listen to him read this crap ten times?! Who?!!"
In his rage, the Masked Man subconsciously replaced the person who had promised to read it ten times with the Adult Kakashi from his own world and exploded on the spot.
What he didn't know was that the Icha Icha Paradise he threw away just happened to be picked up by his other self from another world.
After practicing the balance between Wood Release and his own body for a full day and night without learning a thing, Young Obito was feeling frustrated when he spotted that erotic book Kakashi loved so much. Muttering about how something like this shouldn't be thrown around so carelessly, he picked it up, intending to return it.
By chance, he noticed a scene on the open page, where the male lead used chakra to revive a withered rose and win the beauty's favor.
He grumbled inwardly that, for something written by that shameless pervert, the book actually had some substance to it.
Coming up with ways to use chakra just to win a girl's favor was impressive in its own twisted way.
Reviving a wilted rose and making it bloom again… was that Wood Release used for flirting?
Thinking about Wood Release again made his mood lift slightly.
He had heard that the version of himself in this world once used Wood Release to kill more than fifty Kirigakure assassins. He had no idea how that guy had managed to learn it.
By coincidence, earlier that morning he had seen Rin getting ready to replace the flowers she bought two days ago from the Yamanaka flower shop on Konoha's shopping street. Obito Uchiha, whose mouth was always faster than his brain, casually blurted out that once he learned Wood Release, he could make those lifeless flowers grow bigger and prettier.
Then, under Rin's expectant gaze, cold sweat immediately started pouring down his back.
He cursed himself silently.
Idiot, idiot, idiot!
Standing in front of the clay vase on the wooden table, Obito thought to himself that if he couldn't do it, Rin would definitely be disappointed, wouldn't she?
But Rin was so gentle. Even if she felt disappointed inside, she would never show it. She would still encourage him with soft words.
And precisely because of that, he didn't want to let her down.
He wanted to keep his promise. He wanted to become stronger than Kakashi, stronger than Minato-sensei, even stronger than his ancestor Madara Uchiha. He wanted to protect Rin, Kakashi-sensei, Minato-sensei's family, and the Uchiha clan…
Thinking about the next time travel, where Rin and Kakashi might end up in danger, made his chest tighten. It wasn't just him. Minato-sensei and the Kakashi from the other world had been anxious lately as well.
Young Obito didn't want to keep dragging everyone down.
He wanted to…
change the future of their world…
"Obito!"
Rin's excited voice snapped him out of his tangled thoughts.
"Huh?"
Letting out a dazed sound, Obito followed her line of sight to the vase in front of him.
It was an old vase from the Hatake family's former home, made of clay and carrying a simple, rustic feel.
Because of this vase, Rin had made a special trip to the flower shop to buy flowers to put in it.
Girls were always more attentive to details, bringing a sense of everyday ritual to a house full of men.
And if there was anything that could make Rin this happy right now, it could only be this. The flowers that had already drooped and lost their freshness were now blooming beautifully again under the influence of Obito's Wood Release?!
Obito looked even more shocked than Rin.
Just yesterday, after training all day, he hadn't even stepped through the door of Wood Release. And now, early this morning, he had actually used it to make flowers bloom again?
Rin clapped her hands, delighted.
"Just like Madara-sama from another parallel world said, Obito is actually a hidden genius! Your talent is really amazing!"
"Rin…" Young Obito was completely flustered by the praise.
Rin leaned closer, her beautiful eyes looking straight at him.
Her voice was gentle. "Keep it up, Obito. You'll definitely be able to change the future of our world and save Kakashi and me. I'll always be watching you."
Obito panicked, at a complete loss for what to do, yet Rin's words made him feel strangely saved.
"N-no, this… this is all thanks to you. If… if it weren't for you… for always watching me…"
"Hm??"
Just as Obito was happily thanking Rin and even thinking about making a tiny, awkward confession, Minato Namikaze sensed the unique space-time chakra from the mission scroll and arrived using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
"Your mission is complete?" Minato asked. One glance at the flowers in the vase was enough for him to immediately understand what had happened.
Hearing the noise, both the young and adult Kakashi arrived, along with Sasuke Uchiha dragging over a still half-asleep Naruto Uzumaki. Sakura, who had been helping prepare breakfast in the kitchen, also came over.
Still a little shaken by Minato-sensei's sudden appearance, Young Obito opened the mission scroll.
[Mission Rank: A-rank]
[Mission Objective: Master Wood Release]
[Mission Status: Completed]
Minato spoke up, "Everyone, get ready. The space-time chakra around us is getting denser and denser. It looks like we'll be leaving soon and returning to our parallel world."
Though they were young, the kids here were all ninjas.
Sakura tore off her apron, while Rin reminded Obito not to rush in recklessly again.
Young Kakashi rotated his wrist slightly. It was wrapped in white bandages, put there by Rin after two days of overtraining with Shiden and the Hatake sword techniques, to protect his muscles.
Young Obito still felt uneasy inside. Making flowers regain their vitality didn't really count as a practical Wood Release technique. Two days had passed since their last time travel, and his strength hadn't improved much at all.
The only thing he could rely on was the powerful regeneration granted by Hashirama's cells.
Sasuke and Naruto echoed Minato Namikaze's call with a loud, "Oh!"
Everyone's gaze hardened as they waited for the time travel that would begin in just a few seconds.
Hidden inside Kamui's Dimension, Adult Obito—who had only just arrived—cast a glance at the Adult Kakashi of this era. Unlike the others, Adult Kakashi didn't look prepared at all. His expression was tense and restrained, his movements cautious, bearing none of the pride and brilliance Obito associated with that so-called genius.
What Obito didn't realize was that, if someone had been standing beside him, they would have noticed that Adult Obito himself wasn't nearly as calm as he pretended to be.
He didn't know whether he would be dragged into this time travel as well. And if he was, what kind of role would he even exist as?
A few seconds later…
Including Adult Obito within Kamui's Dimension, Minato's team, Kakashi's team, Captain Yamato from next door, and the entire room full of missing-nin—all of them vanished from the house at the same time.
...
They arrived on a barren stretch of rocky land. Smoke hung thick in the twilight air, making it clear that a battle had taken place not long ago.
The orange-red sky met the reddish-brown earth. Smoke curled upward, and bodies littered the ground—shinobi from Konoha and Kirigakure, including Kirigakure ANBU.
This was Yamato's first time experiencing time travel. Before he could even ask what was going on, he noticed that both versions of Kakashi were visibly shaken.
The moment Minato Namikaze arrived, he immediately began counting heads.
Young Kakashi spoke up urgently.
"Minato-sensei! Rin and Obito aren't here!"
"Same as last time," Minato said grimly. "Rin and Obito must have been transported to a different location."
Looking at the fallen Konoha ninja nearby, Minato's expression darkened further. He wished he had arrived sooner.
"Ka… Kakashi…"
A weak voice came from behind a rock, drawing everyone's attention.
Young Kakashi immediately vaulted over.
It was a Konoha ninja, badly injured.
Sakura, the only one present who could use medical ninjutsu, rushed forward at once to treat him.
The young Konoha shinobi, who looked a bit older than Young Kakashi, thanked Sakura and struggled to sit up.
When he saw Minato Namikaze, hope instantly lit up his eyes.
Because missing-nin weren't allowed to wear forehead protectors, even seeing Itachi and Kisame didn't alert him to anything unusual.
Zabuza and Kisame, however—both from Kirigakure—raised their eyebrows at the field of corpses.
"Minato-sama… cough… have you come to provide reinforcements too?"
"Yes," Minato replied quickly. "Explanations can wait. Report the situation here immediately."
The Konoha ninja gritted his teeth.
"Captain! Since reinforcements have arrived, please don't worry about us. Go save the medical ninja first!"
Young Kakashi, who had just arrived, was completely lost.
Save her how?
Which direction should they go?
How long ago was she taken?
What condition was Rin in at the time?
What was the enemy's objective?
With Kirigakure ANBU corpses covering the ground, were they really supposed to believe this was just about kidnapping a single Konoha medical ninja?
Only an idiot would believe that.
Standing nearby, Adult Kakashi had frozen the instant he saw the injured shinobi.
He hadn't been wrong.
This was the exact day Rin was taken by Kirigakure ninja.
Stopping his younger self, who was panicking due to the lack of information, Adult Kakashi said firmly,
"No time to explain. We'll talk on the way. I know where Rin is."
As soon as he finished speaking, he bit his finger and summoned his eight ninken.
Young Kakashi, who had been flustered after arriving here and not seeing Rin or Obito, suddenly remembered something important.
This future version of himself from another parallel world was right here. And with the ninken, most of the information they needed could be tracked down.
"Hey, Kakashi," Pakkun said lazily, "it's not time for your weekly pet spa yet, is it?"
After the Land of Waves, the ninken had already met Minato's team from another parallel world, so they weren't surprised by Minato Namikaze or Young Kakashi.
Adult Kakashi spoke quickly, cutting off the chatter.
"Jokes later. We've gone back fourteen years—to the moment Rin was taken. I need you to help me find her as fast as possible."
Though he roughly remembered the route, this was no time to gamble. Compared to his past self who always arrived too late, he trusted Pakkun and the others' noses far more.
"What? Fourteen years ago?!" Pakkun snapped.
He immediately dropped his joking tone and shifted into the serious working mode expected of a Hatake ninken.
Shiba, Bisuke, Akino, Guruko, Ūhei, Urushi, Bull, and Pakkun—all eight ninken pressed their noses to the ground. Moments later, they took off at full speed.
Minato Namikaze, Adult Kakashi, Young Kakashi, and Kakashi's team—Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura—along with Captain Yamato and the missing-nin squad under his command, all followed close behind.
...
Elsewhere, Young Obito Uchiha once again came face to face with Obito—the "Masked Man."
…
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