No way.

There was just no way. I had to be losing my mind! There was no way in hell that my dad was a manga character! It was crazy! Ludicrous! Inconceivable!

Oh great. I felt like that small dude from that cruddy Princess Bride movie. I also felt like I had regressed back into a six-year-old. I felt insecure, hopeful, livid, and frightened all at once. I rushed down the stairs faster than I thought possible, Marie's manga still in hand. My mother had a shocked and worried look when I went up to her in a slight panic.

"Izuna, what is it?" she asked, concern shining in her grey eyes that matched my own. "What happened?"

"This!" was the only thing I could say as I opened the manga to the page Marie had shown me. "Tell me it's a huge coincidence!"

Her eyes widened when she saw the picture, though she remained silent. My heart was hammering in my chest, a sick sensation settling in the pit of my stomach. It had to be a fluke! This Kishimoto just happened to create a character that looked exactly like my dad in the only photo I saw him in! Just say it already, please!

"Izuna…" she said quietly. "I…There's…"

"Mom, please. Just tell me it's a coincidence," I insisted, desperation and panic slowly rising. "I mean…this is reality. Manga characters don't exist! Fantasy doesn't exist! You told me so!"

"…No, Izuna. It's not a coincidence."

My breath hitched. "What? How can…? But you said—!"

"Calm down, little ninja. I want you to sit down and take a deep breath."

I slowly sat down on the couch, doing what she told me. The buzzing feel of adrenaline still coursed through me, making me feel on edge. My mother sat down next to me, a far-off look in her eyes.

"There are some things I need to tell you."

Oh boy. Here comes "The Talk". I had been waiting for this conversation my whole live; the day Mom would spill the beans on everything. I was eager for it, but I was unsure at the same time. Did I want to know about Dad? Mom just admitted he was a manga character! Did she mean Kishimoto based this Madara off of Dad? Please be true, please be true, please be true!

"I wanted to wait until you were a bit older before I told you about…your father."

I unconsciously leaned in, hanging onto her every word. She looked sad, ruefully smiling at me. She placed a hand on my face, caressing it slightly in the way she always did when I needed comfort.

"You look so much like him. You are definitely your father's son," she said. "But because of that, there have been so many burdens placed upon you. I can't help but feel responsible for everything."

"Mom, you can't control what people think and do," I replied, hoping to ease her guilt away. "It's not your fault. It's Dad's for leaving."

"No. It was mine. I was the one who told him to leave."

I felt my eyes widen, my mouth falling open slightly. "Why?"

"Because…he didn't belong here."

"What do you mean he didn't belong? You loved him, didn't you? So why—"

"It's because I loved him that I had to let him go. He didn't belong here because this was not his world."

"…Wha…?"

"Your father…wasn't from our world; this reality. He didn't live here. He came from somewhere else; an entirely different place altogether."

"He's an ALIEN!?"

"NO!" she snapped. "He was from an alternate dimension parallel to ours. Due to some…unorthodox methods, he was taken from that place and brought here. Through some twist of fate, he came into my care."

I couldn't say anything. My voice box refused to work. Alternate dimensions? Was something like that possible? She wasn't pulling my leg in some sick joke, was she? No. She was dead serious. She'd never tell me something so absurd in such a serious tone. To be honest, I wished it was some really bad joke. The guilty look in her eyes intensified when I remained silent. With a slight quiver in her voice, she continued. A shrewd smile crossed her features.

"I still remember that first day we met. He threatened to kill me, I thought I had schizophrenia and that he was a hallucination, and he killed my peanut-butter bagel. He still owes me one for that."

I stuck my tongue out in disgust, making sickened groan. I hated peanut butter. I silently applauded this strange father of mine that I was slowly wishing I had never inquired about. Everything was getting infinitely more complicated than it needed to be.

"He…was an anomaly in my life. I hated him for creating a ripple in the normal balance I had managed to maintain up until that point. He was unable to return to his world, so I decided to look after him until he could. The longer I spent time with him, the more I connected with him. Before I knew it, I was falling for him. I chided myself for ever thinking someone like him could love a simple girl like me, but then he surprised me when he revealed that he loved me too. I was so happy. However, I knew someone like him didn't belong in a place like this. When a way for him to return home appeared, he wanted to stay here with me. I…destroyed everything for both of us that day. I…told him that he was needed elsewhere. There were too many uncertainties that I didn't want him dealing with. Before he left, we did…something together. It was one time."

"Mom…?"

"Yes?"

I bit my lip. "I was a mistake…?"

"Don't say that. You're not a mistake. You never will be. You're my baby boy and believe me when I say that I would never ask for anything else in life. You are the greatest gift God could ever give me."

"That's what you say," I despondently muttered. "I bet my father would think otherwise…"

"Izuna, I know him well. He would've loved you. Trust me."

"Trust you!?" I yelled, the huge dam of mixed emotions finally bursting forth. "I did trust you! You made me live a life of lies! I'm some alternate dimension spawn created by a stroke of pure luck! My dad is a frickin' evil manga ninja! Why the fuck should I trust you!?"

"Izuna, that's not—"

"Don't give me that bullshit! I'm sick of it! You can die in a ditch for all I care!"

I had never felt so angry and betrayed in my life. My own mother had been lying to me my entire life. My dad was Madara Uchiha? A part of me denied such an outrageous claim, yet the rest of me disagreed. Deep down, I knew what Mom said was true; and that thought appalled me. If I couldn't trust my own mother, the one person who had been with me since the day I came into being, who could I trust? I was alone. No one was worth trusting if all they would do is deceive you.

I hated it all. Why did the world have to be so fucked up, filled with equally fucked up sickos? It would be better if all of that animosity could simply disappear. People could stop being jackasses and actually get along for once.

I stomped back into my room, slamming the door with enough force to knock the one photo in my room off my bookshelf. It fell, shattering on contact with the ground. I was too pissed to care. Marie, who had decided to stay in my room while my mother gave me "The Talk", picked up the photo and looked at it.

"Wow. Your dad looks like Madara Uchiha!" she stated bluntly. "How come I never saw this before?"

"Shut. UP!" I snapped, throwing one of my pillows at her. "Just shut the fuck up!"

She shrunk a bit behind the pillow, looking genuinely frightened. I huffed in aggravation, breathing deeply and clenching my eyes shut. I pulled the other pillow off my bed, burying my face into it as I slid to the floor. I summoned all the power I could muster to stop the buildup of tears that were forming behind my eyelids. My dad was an evil ninja, I was a mistake, and I said a number of horrible and unforgivable things to the one person who gave my life meaning and tried to keep me happy to the best of her ability.

My life officially sucked ass.

I heard a slight rustling as I felt something thin being slipped into the back pocket of my pants. I didn't have to check it to know what it was. Marie had put the photo there since she had nowhere else to put it.

"Zuzu?" she timidly asked. "Are you okay?"

"Just peachy," I choked out. "I mean, every day you discover that you're the son of an evil freak. It's practically the norm!"

"Zuzu…"

"Why do I even bother anymore? My peers think I'm a wimp and an anomaly, adults consider me a defect of society, and my own mother lies to me. I can't rely on anyone but myself."

"You can rely on me!" Marie countered. "Don't worry, Zuzu. Things will be alright. They always do, don't they?"

"Maybe…" I replied, though it came out muffled. "I'm such a bastard…I can't believe I said those things to her. She's going to hate me for sure this time."

"Well, that was certainly entertaining. I didn't expect someone like you to be so…emotional."

I stiffened, my heart pounding fiercely against my chest when I heard the unfamiliar voice. I quickly brought the pillow down so it wasn't obstructing my vision. I hesitantly turned my head, seeing a pair of legs clad in what looked to be weird mishmash of sandals and boots. I slowly looked up, spotting a grown man sitting on my bed and looking down at me through a tiny hole in the swirly orange mask he wore. He was dressed in a black cloak with red clouds on it. Looking closely, I swore I thought his visible eye was glowing red.

I had no idea what to feel at that moment. Fear, uncertainty, anger, and confusion were all assaulting my brain at the same time that I was unsure of what action to take. Should I scream? Yell? Attack? I didn't have to choose since Marie acted out before I did. She gasped deeply, her eyes widening and her jaw falling open. She then let out a quiet, but VERY high pitched squeal.

"Tobito!" she said happily. "Zuzu, how did you get such an awesome cosplayer in here?"

"Wha…?" was all I managed to say.

She zoomed over to the stranger, immediately hugging his arm. The guy was apparently thrown for a loop by her actions judging from his reaction. She nuzzled her cheek against his arm. I could just imagine the mini hearts floating off of her figure as she continued to fondle the dude.

"Oh, this is awesome! My second favorite Naruto character!" she exclaimed. "If only there was a perfect Madara cosplayer. My life would be complete then!"

"Wha…?" I said again, still not understanding what the hell was going on.

"So you know of me," the stranger stated. "I can't allow that."

My eyes widened when I felt something akin to a giant vacuum cleaner hose sucking on my body. I watched in horror as Marie simply vanished into the guy's eye hole. I immediately felt an explosion of fear overtake me. I scooted as far away from the man until my back hit my closed bedroom door. I could feel myself trembling as the guy stood up and walked over to me. He knelt down to my level, allowing me to see the sickening red orb beyond his mask. He grabbed my face, staring at it with a deep focus. I couldn't move away from him. I felt like I had lost all power in my limbs.

"I can definitely see the physical resemblance," he noted. "Though the rest I believe will have to go."

"Who are you? What do you want with me?" I demanded, though my voice was shaking due to my fear.

"It doesn't matter who I am," he answered as he released his grip on my chin. "As for what I want…I'm merely a choice you can take."

"What?"

"You do not belong here, Izuna," he said. "Surely you have noticed by now that you are different from the rest of the humans here?"

"Okay, Citrus Lollipop; just how the hell do you know that?" I growled at him. "You were spying on me?"

"You interest me, boy. You're wasting your potential by living this life."

"Potential?"

"Do you not believe your mother's words about the identity of your father?"

"Not really…I don't really know what to believe anymore. What makes you think I can trust your words any more than hers?"

"Because I know your father personally."

My eyes widened. "You do?"

"Yes. I—"

"Okay, this better not be some sort of trolling Star Wars 'I am your father' bit; because if it is, I'll kick you."

Citrus Lollipop paused, probably frowning confusedly behind that mask. A dark and condescending chuckle came from the masked man.

"Straight and to the point. I guess that's another trait you inherited from him. At least you're no fool, Izuna."

"I'll ask again. What do you want from me?"

Citrus Lollipop held up two fingers. "I'm giving you a choice. Either you can stay here in this…pitiful world and remain oblivious and ignorant of the truth," He lowered one finger. "Or you can come with me into mine. I can show you everything I know, and you'll achieve heights as a shinobi known to only a spare few. Your…morals have no meaning here and you can unleash the monster you keep locked up inside your heart however you please."

He paused and, once again, I could see the red glow behind the eye hole. "So, what'll it be, Izuna Uchiha?"

What sort of weird shit did I get myself into this time? There was no way I was hallucinating. He knew way too much about me, even that destructive urge that I have had for as long as I could remember. This dude was for real. How else could he possibly know so much? But the question remained…

Did I want to go?

I didn't get time to think when I heard a hesitant, but urgent knocking on my bedroom door. I froze completely.

"Izuna? May I come in?"

I heard Citrus Lollipop chuckle again. "Impeccable timing."

The door pushed me aside as my mother walked into the room. I heard her gasp as she pointed a finger at Citrus Lollipop.

"You!" she shouted in revulsion. "How are you here!?"

"I'm here on personal business," he shrewdly answered. "And you just sealed a deal for me."

I felt the same sucking sensation and my mother disappeared before my eyes. The terror I felt in my being increased substantially and anger also began to course through my body. I stood up, sizing up to the masked freak. I was a few inches shorter than he was, most likely due to an age difference. I glared at him, clenching my fists.

"Leave my mother out of this! She has nothing to do with anything!" I yelled at him.

"She's involved now," he stated nonchalantly. "She became another bargaining chip for me, just like your friend. If you want to see either of them alive again, you'll accept my offer."

I growled, biting my lip in the process. I didn't want to leave home, but at the same time I wanted to see what else was out there. I didn't want my mother or Marie getting hurt, even though they both aggravated me on so many levels. I couldn't let anything happen to them. They meant everything to me. Without them, I'd be nothing.

"Fine…you win," I answered reluctantly. "I'll go with you, but only if you promise not to harm my family."

Citrus Lollipop nodded. "Very well. You have my word."

"One more question. What do I call you? Or would you prefer Citrus Lollipop?"

Seemingly amused, he let out a sinister laugh and I nearly reeled when his single red eye glowed from behind the mask. "Just call me 'Sensei'."

Suddenly, I found myself being sucked into his…whatever it was, the feeling likely akin to being sucked into a vacuum. I could hardly breathe, but it seemed that my brain decided to be merciful since I was knocked out before I was aware of anything else.


Everything was going according to plan, Tobi mused darkly. When he heard about Madara's "excursion" in a supposed other dimension when he first met him as Obito Uchiha, he was more than a little skeptical. Even after…Rin's death, it still seemed farfetched in his mind.

That was until he discovered what his Kamui was capable of later after experimenting more with his Mangekyou.

To think there were arrays of separate but connected dimensions that existed out there. Zestu nearly balked when they learned of this new discovery. Black Zetsu in particular was most curious about this new revelation. The possibilities in each one were endless. What a day it was when he happened to find the specific dimension Madara visited that he had hinted at throughout his stay with the old man. It was true to every word: vastly superior technology unlike anything he had ever seen before and people that relied on heavy artillery to do their fighting rather than jutsu. In fact, the people were incapable of using jutsu. Even though they had chakra, their chakra networks were too underdeveloped for any of them to be able to use jutsu properly.

So the dimension had its strengths and flaws, but he could only imagine what it would be like to live there. Ignorance was bliss. The people lived in relative peace worldwide. It was this peace that Madara desired for all people in their own dimension. It was the peace Obito had wished he could have lived to see with Rin by his side, even if she never returned his feelings for her. But it was not to be. Rin was gone and so was Obito. This current world was meaningless. That's why he would create a world where Rin could live and enjoy that peace.

Madara had also mentioned "his Rin" had lived in that world. He could sort of understand why. Compared to females in their dimension during Madara's time, the females in that one were not afraid to show their guts and demanded respect from men even though their physical capabilities were inferior. They were strong and diligent; not frail little porcelain dolls that couldn't do anything. They were like the kunoichi that were seen today without the risk having your skull split apart by their ferocity.

Then he found him. That boy.

Either Madara left that little tidbit out or he truly had no idea he had left behind a son. That boy was the only one with a fully developed chakra network, not to mention he was the spitting image of his father. He stuck out like a sore thumb, which was made all the more obvious by his peers. He saw the rage and hatred the boy kept hidden underneath his detached demeanor. Those were the signs of the makings of a true Uchiha. He had no doubt the boy would possess the talent of his predecessor. If he could sway the boy under his control, he'd be an overwhelming force to be reckoned with. If not, he would still make a fairly good pawn.

He needed a safety net in case things didn't go according to plan. What better way to do that than with his master's son? No one knew about him. That meant no one would see it coming.

So, using his Kamui, Tobi trailed the boy back to his home and watched in amusement as he fought with his mother. Apparently, she had kept this little secret all to herself and the boy was conflicted.

Tobi smirked. Yes, conflict was good when manipulating someone as it made it easier to play on their weaknesses. The boy, Izuna's (Tobi hummed a little at the name), weakness was his anger, a trait he undoubtedly shared with his father. Except, unlike Madara, he wasn't trained to hone that anger or keep it under wraps until it was needed.

Those feeble emotions would be the first thing to go. If Izuna were to be an effective pawn in Tobi's plans, he would have to be trained to detach himself from useless emotions that would get in the way of battle, as well as the morality everyone in this dimension seemed to share. Though ninja did have their morals, an aversion towards killing was only going to end badly.

The look on Izuna's face when he revealed his presence was quite amusing. He reacted quite like the undisciplined sixteen-year-old he truly was, quite differently than he would have expected the son of Madara to act. Another thing he mentally noted he needed to fix.

He then was essentially glomped by an older teenage girl who proceeded to rub her cheek against his arm. Not only that but she knew his name. That just wouldn't do. Using his Kamui, he abducted the eccentric girl and decided she would be a bargaining chip towards ensuring Izuna's loyalty.

He gave Izuna an ultimatum: either stay ignorant in this peaceful world or come with him and explore the endless possibilities of his heritage, of the world of shinobi.

It really wasn't up to the boy either way as Tobi wasn't going to take no for an answer.

Izuna's mother's interruption played right into his hands and all but ensured that Izuna take his offer, lest he never see either of his loved ones alive again. The boy fell right into his hands as planned. It would only be a matter of time now to change the innocent fool into a stone-cold, seasoned warrior.

With a quick Kamui, he brought the boy to his secret base in Amegakure. Izuna landed on the ground with a loud thump, kissing the ground face first. With a pained groan, the boy started twitching slightly. Tobi walked over to the boy, grabbing him by the hair and forcing him to look up. The boy's tense grey eyes glared back at his Sharingan through the hole in his mask.

"Give me some warning next time, Citrus Lollipop," Izuna snapped at him.

"There will be no further warnings for you in the future," Tobi stated with a merciless voice. "Starting right now, your shinobi training will begin. I will not tolerate failure or disobedience from you."

"Suck my dick, you bitch!"

The sickening sound of a fist crashing into a cheekbone echoed off the cave walls. Izuna placed a hand against his now severely bruised face, hissing loudly at the pain he felt. Anger sparked within those grey pools. The fury only increased when he noticed the slightest uplift of Tobi's eye.

Excellent.

"I told you I would not tolerate any disobedience from you. You shall do as I say and you will do it without hesitation. If you decide you'd rather let your loved ones suffer for your sake, by all means continue defying me. Unless you want to live knowing your actions killed your mother, you would do well to obey me."

Izuna growled, biting his lip hard enough for it to bleed. His fingers dug into the soil, clenched hard enough for them to shake.

"Why me?"

"You were an anomaly that no one accepted. Even your own mother treated you like a ticking time bomb. Your differences are what make you who you are. You are the son of one of the greatest shinobi in history. If trained correctly, you can bring out the skills you were always meant to learn. It is your destiny to be a shinobi, one that could potentially surpass your father. Is that not every son's dream is to be as great as his father before him?"

"If I even knew the bastard…maybe I would…"

"The world is cruel, isn't it? Taking away parents from children, losing loved ones through petty conflicts, and discriminating against those who are different from the norm; it is a shame these things must exist. Wouldn't you agree with me, Izuna?"

"I suppose…"

"I can give you the power to change these things, Izuna. It starts…by accepting your role."

The boy was quiet, glaring at the ground. After several minutes, the boy had a look of defeat in his grey eyes. His bangs shadowed his eyes, giving the child a disheartened look.

"…Fine."

Tobi smirked beyond his mask. Now it was time to corrupt the child and break him down piece by little piece.

The Izuna before him would no longer exist by the time he was through with the boy.


Forgive me! I had writer's block for the longest time. Many thanks to my friend kitsunelover300 for jumpstarting me and helping me get this chapter done. I don't know what I'd do without you. Hope this chapter was worth the long wait I made you all go through.