"Obito, the coming battle will be fierce. There's something I must say."
Uchiha Obito was at that moment shrouded in a strange entity—like wearing a living suit of bio-armor. The creature itself was speaking to him.
This "armor" wrapped around Obito was none other than Tobi , one of the rarest and most unusual individuals among the many bodies of White Zetsu.
"What is it?"
Obito's heart was in turmoil. He had just learned that his goddess, Nohara Rin, and his dear friend Kakashi were surrounded by Kirigakure elites.
All he wanted now was to reach Rin as quickly as possible.
"Right now, your strength is far below mine. And you're still injured. I'm the one protecting you."
"If battle breaks out, leave it to me. As repayment, when this is all over, you must finally tell me what using the toilet feels like."
Tobi's ability was peculiar: by wearing him like a suit, the host's power increased dramatically.
Even a mere genin could display strength beyond that of a jōnin.
It was, in a sense, the shinobi world's version of a biological iron suit.
"…Fine." Obito agreed without hesitation. He had long since seen what Tobi could do. With his aid, problems that once seemed impossible became manageable.
"But Kakashi will be there too. He has my other eye. If I can find him, then with the two of us working together, we'll be able to take down those Mist-nin."
"I want to try protecting Rin with my own strength first. If I fail, then I'll rely on yours."
Tobi only gave a short grunt of acknowledgment, then fell silent.
So the idiot finally has a moment of clarity. Seems that girl Rin really is that important to him…
What a shame. That precious girl is about to disappear. Aside from toilet jokes, my favorite thing is watching humans gain hope—only to plunge into despair. Keh keh keh…
On the other side of the forest, Rin had already come face to face with Kakashi.
"Kakashi… kill me." Rin's eyes were serious, her voice unwavering.
She had regained just enough control of her body to speak—and in the fewest words possible, explained everything that had happened.
"Rin, I promised Obito I would protect you." Kakashi's voice trembled. He didn't dare meet her gaze. Before Obito's death, he had vowed to protect Rin. But through his negligence, she had been captured again. And now… she was asking him to kill her.
He couldn't do it. He truly couldn't.
"Kakashi! There's no time!" Rin shouted.
The Mist shinobi pursuing her were drawing closer. If Kakashi didn't act, it would all be over.
"Do it, Kakashi." Rin's determined eyes carried only resolve as she looked at him with pleading expectation.
Kakashi's hand shook as he raised it. Lightning sparked at his fingertips, the shrill cry of Chidori filling the air. His palm hovered before Rin's heart. But no matter how he tried, he couldn't bring himself to thrust it forward.
Rin smiled apologetically. Then, closing her eyes, she leaned into Kakashi's hand.
Blood and lightning burst together. The sound of Chidori echoed through the forest.
To protect Konoha, Rin chose to die by the hand of the one she loved.
Naruto's shadow clone, having just arrived, witnessed the scene. That sentence surfaced unbidden in his mind.
"So this timeline… it's the end of the Third Great Shinobi War—the death of Rin?"
But it wasn't only the shadow clone. From another angle of the forest, Obito too "just happened" to arrive—just in time to see it.
In that instant, the boy's entire world collapsed.
Obito's right eye, and Kakashi's left, transformed together. From that grief, one of the most dreaded pairs of Mangekyō was born.
With Rin's fall, Kakashi too collapsed, as if every last ounce of strength had drained from his body.
The Mist-nin closed in, and Obito charged into them like a madman.
Wood Release pierced through bodies with ease. First one, then another, then another—the Mist shinobi fell like cut wheat.
Rain trickled from the sky. But now, it was drowned in blood.
As Obito slaughtered his enemies, the shadow clone slipped silently to Rin's side. His presence was so perfectly suppressed that, unless seen directly, even Obito could not sense him.
"At this point, Obito has already been saved by Madara, but he still wanted to return to Konoha. When he learned Rin was in danger, he rushed here without hesitation. He's still the same good kid who once made himself late to help an old lady cross the street…"
"If Rin hadn't died, Obito wouldn't have fallen. The Obito who never walked into darkness still had hope. But… in this world, Rin still died."
Shaking his head, the clone turned to leave. But as he stepped forward, he caught something faint.
"…A heartbeat?"
He leaned closer.
It was the Three-Tails—struggling desperately to keep Rin alive with its chakra. She was its jinchūriki. Even with an incomplete seal, her life was bound to the beast's.
If Rin died, the Three-Tails would die with her.
And while tailed beasts would eventually resurrect, that cycle carried dangerous consequences. Otherwise, why would they fearlessly be used as pawns of war?
The clone's eyes spun mischievously. He was about to act—but then a tug, like a call from afar, pulled at his mind.
"Tch… seems my time's up."
"Can't return empty-handed, though." His gaze fell on Rin, her life fading again.
"Well, she can count as a souvenir from this world."
With that thought, the clone used Yang Release to stabilize her wounds. Then, hefting Rin over his shoulder, he sprinted toward the light summoning him.
A damaged heart like this is beyond me. I'm just a shadow clone. Let the original deal with it.
Moments later, a blood-soaked Obito staggered into the clearing where Rin had fallen. His eyes widened in horror.
Her body was gone.
"Whoever stole Rin's body… I'll tear them apart piece by piece."
At the ruins of Roran, another pillar of light surged skyward.
From it, Naruto's shadow clone emerged—carrying a near-dead girl on his shoulder.
Naruto blinked. "???"
The clone laid Rin gently down, then turned to him.
"I don't feel like explaining. You figure it out."
With a puff, it vanished in smoke.
Naruto stared at Rin, dumbfounded.
"…A souvenir?"
As the clone's memories flooded into him, he activated Yang Release and began healing Rin, muttering with a conflicted face:
"My shadow clone isn't quite right."
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