Infinitus
Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me.
Rose-eyed Fiend
At age twelve, Uchiha Obito dreamt of sunlight and red-eyed monsters that held him down, digging his eyes out of their sockets with the tinted glass shards from his broken goggles. He always woke choking on air, disturbed but relieved upon finding his goggles whole and Minato-sensei watching him speculatively.
Kakashi, in a rare show of tact and camaraderie, made no mention of his dark-haired teammate's nocturnal disquiet.
Serrated Blue
Obito cannot recall the exact date it took place, only the lingering scent of blood and wind that clung to his teacher's clothes when Obito reached over to wake him. In retrospect, he should have expected it, but Obito was unprepared for the sudden rush as the all the air was knocked from his lungs, and the razor-sharp shuriken that was pressed against his jugular in one smooth moment, too quick for the naked eye to process.
It was over an instant later, Minato-sensei pulling him to his feet, apologising diplomatically as he replaced the kunai, but Obito never forgot the look on his face, or the stray thought that had flashed through his mind.
In that moment, Minato's blue eyes were far more terrible than any of the Sharingan-eyed monsters from his nightmares.
Rapid-fire Surrender
Obito was not a witness to the Yellow Flash's abject slaughter of the platoons of Iwa-nins, and was glad of it. He had seen his bright-haired sensei in combat, moving with that terrifying speed in wraith-like silence and was wryly relieved that he would never find himself opposing the man in battle.
At age thirteen, Obito could not have predicted the events of that particular October tenth, years in advance.
Favoured Fool
Upon joining Team Minato, Obito had always believed, despite Rin-chan's assurances to the contrary, that Minato-sensei's favourite pupil was Kakashi. After all, their teacher's pride in Kakashi's advancement with elemental manipulation, and quick rise through the ninja ranks seemed obvious. However, years later Obito reconsidered his theory.
"My team will be legendary, sensei." Minato-sensei had stated, fondly ruffling Obito's hair as the white-haired Sannin looked on sceptically.
"I said the same thing about my team, kid." Jiraiya had responded, cutting an impressive figure as he stood beside his former student. Minato-sensei's lithe form looked small by comparison, but Obito wondered about the outcome of a fight between the two.
He had pondered the unsaid implications in both statements, and eventually dismissed them.
They went down as legendary because they died gloriously. Died young.
Secondary Life
Now Obito fights for a dead childhood sweetheart, facing down Minato-sensei's defiant, bright-eyed son, and muses that he never did discover what the Yellow Flash was fighting for, when he maimed his former student and sealed the Kyuubi.
Not for honour, not for glory, and not for his dead love.
Naruto? The supposed Child of the Prophecy? Perhaps. But perhaps not. Obito decides, because he knows that his former sensei had other options, and for all his apathy towards Konohagakure even he must acknowledge that the dead Yondaime Hokage was brilliant. Yet, not even he could have survived the Shinigami's touch.
But it is irrelevant now. Obito reasons. Soon the Infinite Tsukuyomi will fall into place, and the ideal illusion will become reality. There will be peace. A tribute to a dead teacher, and a dead childhood love.
Author's Note: Set as a sort of companion fic to Sobriquet, and Deluge.