A/N: Oh hey look at that, we broke 500 reviews… Oh fuck it I can't act apathetic about this. I love you guys ;A; *cue Springtime of Youth backdrop and simultaneous cringes* Word count is ~10.1k. Ow my brain. So much for keeping an even 4-7k chapter limit.

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Chapter 22 - Conflicting Resolutions

Minato stared at the pitifully blank scroll before him with tired eyes.

He wasn't sure about how long he'd been pouring over the empty parchment, but he would guess it had been a few hours since he had initially sat down. Opening up the blank mission report scroll, Minato had sat down at his work desk in his room to attempt to fill it out, but immediately found that his hands refused to replay the events that he could picture so vividly in his mind. He then moved to the living room, hoping that the change of scenery (and his wife's presence nearby) would allow him to relax and write with ease.

It didn't work.

With a sigh, the blonde dropped his pen on the coffee table before placing his elbows on his knees, staring at the scroll that refused to fill with the words he knew had to reach the Hokage. That refused to relay the events and revelations that their C-turned-A-Rank mission had dredged up from the depths of what was arguably hell. His eyes glazed over as he, for what was very well likely past the fiftieth time since then, remembered his decisions and what he had been prepared to do.

At first, during the mission… He had found his resolve. Originally, he had chosen this delivery mission specifically because if he confronted Obito and something had resulted from said confrontation, Konoha wouldn't be in trouble. It would've also been simple to defend his other two students should the need arise, and he had placed jutsu shiki on both Kakashi and Rin, periodically marking trees and rocks on the way to the outpost as well.

He had been prepared. All that was left was to wait, to observe Obito and to make the final judgement.

Minato had always suspected that Obito had potential, that was certain—the boy wasn't anything particularly stellar, but with the right motivation—his rivalry with Kakashi—he had improved by leaps and bounds. This was something Minato couldn't take credit for, at least not completely, as he could actually see that Obito was not the idiotic dead last and failure to his clan that so many had pinned him as. This belief had been further impressed in the blonde's mind when Obito had shown such a sudden surge of power less than half a year ago, when he had apparently activated his Sharingan. Worry had overtaken the morbid curiosity that Minato held about the exact extent of his underestimated student's potential, but the question had always lingered in the back of his mind.

That, if he thought about it, was likely the cause of him pushing the confrontation itself to the last minute. Perhaps as a teacher, Minato wanted to believe that his student truly could overcome the boundaries that everyone had limited him to—after all, despite his supposed genius, Minato was also a sort of underdog at a young age due to his apparent lack of valor and charisma (two things he had decidedly floored all his naysayers with, as he "had bravery in spades" as Jiraiya once said). Minato had always had suspicions, some seemingly unfounded and some not, but he had attributed them to his wary Shinobi mind, at the time.

He had always suspected that Obito was powerful, but… To take down a Jōnin-level Shinobi with such ease?

Minato had been deathly worried. He had seen the kunai flying at Rin, and had noticed the until-then concealed chakra signature of yet another Jōnin-ranked foe. Fear gripped him and he was already reaching out to the jutsu shiki he knew were on his two students to block the kunai and counter the fourth Jōnin, but yet another disturbance had snagged his senses, demanding his attention. He'd been the first to notice when Obito's chakra shifted. And he had watched as the space around the fourth Jōnin seemingly distorted, before the kunai was veered off course and lodged in his throat and the man was suddenly on the ground without legs.

Pure shock could be felt from everyone—everyone except Obito. And Minato himself had no room for shock, as he had turned to watch the Uchiha, realizing that this was what he had been waiting for.

His eyes catalogued every movement, every brief flicker of emotion in the otherwise void expanse within Obito's onyx eyes. He watched the ease the boy contained as he brutally executed the enemy Shinobi, the way he used the perfect amount of chakra and control to burn any traceable evidence of who the Kumo Shinobi once were. It hadn't been overuse or excess of chakra, no, Obito's eyes were too hardened and focused for panic.

He had killed them with a purpose. He had methodically burned any defining traits, wiped away their existences while fully knowing what he had done.

Minato was almost disgusted with himself when he realized that he had inwardly noted the efficiency of his student, the way the raven had thought of such an obscure addition to vengeance for attacking their team. Many died in war, after all, but most were at least catalogued—the way Obito had killed them, there was no hope for any retrieval team to identify them with certainty.

After the one-sided battle—the slaughter, really—Minato had walked up to Obito and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. It was an action that could be conveyed as worry to Rin, Kakashi, and… The boy himself. But the blonde had to make sure that he could defend his team and subdue an enemy if needed; he had read "Obito's" chakra and found that it was sufficiently drained. It ceased to bother Minato that his Chūnin student had above Jōnin reserves because he had already made his choice the moment he saw the entity reveal those blood-red eyes and kill with them.

Deep down, Minato didn't want to suspect the boy. But there were too many chances to be taken, too many risks if he were to turn a blind eye to the boy's ability. Though small, there had been many, many clues that pointed to "Obito's" potentially harmful presence. Minato had an obligation, and the death of a Jōnin by Obito's hand had been all the blonde needed to make his final decision.

(Because, even though Obito showed no violent tendencies directly towards Konoha, the only real factor that had been keeping Minato from confronting the boy was because he believed that he could kill him if needed. He truly believed that, at the very least, Obito—or whoever it was in his student's body—was incapable of harming them. But he had just proven that he was actually quite qualified to challenge Minato in ability and kill Rin and Kakashi. Even if he had never shown any violent tendencies towards them, he still had the ability. Knowing that he was an unknown, it was a chance Minato could not take.)

Minato had decided to stop running away from (what he had thought to be) the truth. So, he steeled his nerves and confronted the boy.

And yet… What he had found out was not at all what he had expected. He had braced himself for the possibility of betrayal, a spy wearing Obito's face, the possibility that the boy he knew was dead.

In all honesty, Minato had expected the worst, what with the confrontation in the library a while ago. "Why was he studying body-replacement jutsu?" It made him think of the morbid workings of Orochimaru, who always left a cold feeling in the pit of the blonde's stomach—a feeling that was confirmed not too long ago, leading up to the ex-revered Sannin's defection. Not to mention, the Sandaime's revelation to him. It would have made sense, as much as Minato wished it not to, for this Obito to be a mere shell—to be an enemy, a sick, twisted enemy wearing his skin.

But… Time travel?

He had been so shocked by the concept, by the answer the boy had given him—and he hadn't even been given the chance to move on from shock to incredulity and righteous anger. What was he supposed to think?

Part of him rejected the very idea of it, the very concept of Obito being from the future. It was illogical, and possibly one of the most improbable and foolish claims from captured enemy Shinobi since "I have amnesia."

But Minato was a Fūinjutsu master. As such, he had a rather open-minded thought process, and took in multiple kinds of information—literal, factual, potential, figurative, objective, subjective; everything.

If he thought about it, really thought about it, objective mind of a literal thinker aside… It made sense. In a strange, everything-is-full-of-holes manner of speaking.

The concept of a body-snatcher made sense for the sparse evidence provided by the Hokage and Minato's own encounters with Obito, but they had never figured out the Sharingan. There were far too many questions regarding the dōjutsu, but what he had confirmed was that a great emotional burden was needed for the activation of the Sharingan—an immense loss for the Mangekyō, consequently. Why would a body-snatcher suddenly have the most powerful iteration of the Uchiha clan's dōjutsu, when the original owner of the body hadn't even activated the most basic form? They had been minor, seemingly unrelated questions that Minato had dismissed, due to his reluctance to give himself hope. He had found these details too few and inconsequential, and had therefore leaned towards the "body-snatcher" idea, which didn't fit the whole scheme as much as he had originally thought.

But the concept of time travel fit.

After all, why not? Such an outlandish situation, completely out of Minato's—Konoha's—hands, caused by such an outlandish feat supposedly impossible to achieve.

The blonde shook his head, placing his middle and pointer fingers on his brow as he fought back the oncoming headache.

The Kyūbi. A strange, random tangent for his mind to wander off to—until he remembered what the fox said, something that actually wasn't so random and unrelated as he first thought. In the beast's ominous warnings, he had pointed out a "traveler," though this was a detail easily glossed over due to the apparent lack of connection it had to anything compared to his other words.

How wrong Minato had been. How wrong he, Jiraiya, and Kushina had been, for that was perhaps the most stunning revelation of all—however concealed it was. Part of Minato hypothesized that Obito wasn't who the fox was talking about, but he quickly shoved the thought away. What else, who else could the Kyūbi have been talking about? Its words corroborated Obito's own in his confession, as well as his actions. Obito didn't seem to be a threat, and the fox had surreptitiously given support to this idea… But what kind of evidence from a beast of hatred could possibly hold any weight?

He was conflicted. Utterly, completely, devastatingly conflicted; his hopes and his conditioned reflexes battling, his hardened yet weak heart and his trained, Shinobi mind, at an impasse. He was just as confused and without direction as he was conflicted.

Because those who should be his enemies are amicable… And those who should be on his side have unknown allegiances.

But.

The fact stood, that despite all of his warring thoughts and emotions, Minato had brought Obito back to Konoha. Not dead. Not bound. Not sealed. Free.

Even if what the Kyūbi said was not the truth (which, if the blonde were to be perfectly honest, he was starting to believe—his chiding conscience as a Shinobi aside) and even if he still didn't know the full truth behind Obito, he had brought him back. Minato was painfully aware of the fact that, despite his suspicions, he still trusted Obito to an extent.

In fact, the most prevalent emotions in his mind were not suspicion and fear, but… Regret. Hesitance. And disappointment. Not in Obito, not entirely at least—he wished the boy would've told him sooner and told him everything, but he couldn't quite make an accurate judgement until he knew the full truth—but in himself. If he were to accept the concept of time travel…

What had he done wrong? Why did Obito have to suffer so much? He was only grasping at information, but why did Rin die? Why did he die, letting his beloved die as well, and abandoning his remaining two students (who needed guidance and support the most) to fend for themselves?

Minato needed answers, answers that Obito wasn't willing to give—that Minato wasn't willing to attack his student for, again.

He had already done so once, which had been difficult enough to muster up the courage for. To do so again, when he still didn't have solid evidence that Obito was lying, that he was truly a threat… With the possibility of incriminating an innocent? One who happened to be Minato's student? He couldn't do it.

Especially after so many displays of loyalty Obito had shown, that Minato had shoved to the back of his mind after silently passing judgement on the boy during their C-Rank. The most recent, being just before their confrontation.

Obito had glanced at his indisposed teammates—Kakashi and Rin sleeping, Minato's Kage Bunshin feigning unconsciousness—and ran. At the time, Minato had felt seething rage at the cowardice of Obito before correcting himself, saying that he couldn't blame him. After all, it wasn't Obito but some thief wearing the boy's body. He had truly thought Obito had abandoned them.

However. As he thought about it, considering the supposed true mental age of the boy… It was very well likely that Obito had realized that his attacker was after him, that, despite being a supposed unknown enemy, his priority was Obito. And, sensing the danger, decided to move the battle to more neutral grounds in the hope of protecting his teammates.

The blonde couldn't help his traitorous thoughts (but which ones? The ones condemning "Obito," or the ones telling him to trust the boy?) and only found it increasingly difficult to make this judgement, again. Especially when he knew what the next step would be if he went along with the idea that Obito was a threat. Minato wasn't willing to actually subject his potentially innocent student to T&I—and now that the concept of time travel was thrown into the equation, it was very well possible that—even if Obito was innocent—he couldn't give Minato the answers he wanted. Not when regarding something as volatile and precarious as time, when no one knew what repercussions could rebound as aftereffects.

And yet, he still couldn't fully accept Obito, either.

Unbidden, a memory of when Minato had no doubt, no particular worry about his student not being who he was supposed to be surfaced to the forefront of his mind.

"Of course, Minato-sensei," Obito had stated with such an innocent, trusting grin. "And I trust you, too."

With a grimace, Minato sat back and allowed his head to recline back, tightly closing his eyes as though trying to ward away his worries. 'That's just it, Obito,' he thought quietly, his hands balling into fists beside him. 'I… I don't know if I can trust you, anymore.'

"Any reason why you look like you're suffering from the after effects of painful constipation, 'ttebane?"

The only sign of Minato's surprise was an uncontrolled twitch of his eyebrow, before he sat up to regard his wife. Kushina walked over and sat on his left, observing him with a critical eye all the while. "… What's wrong?" She questioned quietly, the teasing tone from earlier gone.

Minato opened his mouth to speak, most likely to say something about being fine for fear of worrying her—but paused, thinking against it. After all, this wasn't exactly a problem he wanted to bring to the Hokage yet, not when the man and the village itself was a major contributor to his overall worry.

"It's about Obito, isn't it?" The blonde felt brief surprise at his wife's insightfulness but the feeling dissipated quickly; though she liked to act the opposite—loud, rambunctious, foolish—Kushina was still a Jōnin, and an individual that, despite not being able to match him perfectly in battle, was still someone he was proud to have by his side.

Especially in cases such as this.

Clearing his throat, he forced himself to relax as he turned to face the scroll before him, not quite able to face the redhead. He couldn't tell her the full truth, he refused to subject her to the likely punishments that would follow if his final decision was to withhold information from the Hokage. If. "… Yeah, it's about Obito." Through his peripherals, he saw her violet eyes narrow. "I… I think I've failed him. He's changed so much, in a way that I can't fully recognize him anymore. It's clear that he's suffered, and because I don't understand—because he just won't tell me, there's a rift. A rift I cannot cross, and I'm at a loss at what to do." He closed his eyes in silent resignation. "… I think it's my fault."

A not-quite-tense but not exactly comfortable silence fell as Kushina stared at him. Minato opened his eyes to stare at the coffee table before him again, resisting the urge to fidget.

"… There's obviously more to this than you're letting on, but… I think Obito is fine, dattebane." The blonde sent her a questioning glance, and it was Kushina's turn to avert her eyes in silent contemplation. "Obito… He's always been a tough boy with strong convictions, always able to pick himself up after a nasty fall. People were never able to see these rare and noteworthy qualities, though, because they were too busy sending him scathing glares and demeaning remarks." She placed a comforting hand on Minato's arm, turning back to him with a small smile. "Even though Obito has changed, I don't think it's necessarily a bad one. He's grown, matured, and his childish antics have become more refined with age and a sharper mind."

A contemplative look crossed the red-head's face. "You've noticed, right? He has this… This determined air about him, and he's even more adamant about defending his loved ones. It was worrying at first, because such strong conviction is usually a result of loss," Minato inwardly noted; yet another small hint in favor of the time travel theory, "but it was unmistakable. The Will of Fire is strong in Obito, however clouded in darkness and sadness it sometimes seems. He definitely could've had a happier childhood, and he should've had a family that loved him for who he was. But he is still strong."

Though Minato saw the conviction in Kushina's eyes, her words hadn't quite worked for him. She seemed to think Minato's worries were completely founded on the idea that he had failed Obito—which, to be honest, were true, but he wasn't worried about how strong the boy was so much as…

"That… It isn't that, I know that Obito is strong—" A fact that he was acutely aware of he noted, inwardly wincing as he remembered their confrontation, "—it's just that he's… Different. He's hiding things, and I just… I don't know what to do anymore. Yes, there is conviction in those eyes, and while I want to believe it is with good intention, I still can't find the exact root of his behavior." He swallowed thickly, his voice falling to a whisper. "I can't tell if he's a threat. And if that were the case… If Obito turns out to be a threat to Konoha…"

Minato wasn't sure he'd be able to handle it.

Yes, he was a Jōnin of Konoha. Graduated from the Academy at the age of ten as the rookie of the year. Promoted to Chūnin not even a year later, he was sent into ANBU not long after that, and was finally given the position of Jōnin at sixteen.

Namikaze Minato was a Shinobi, a trained killer of Konoha, who knew how to kill foes in the most conspicuous of ways, able to assassinate targets and make it home well before anyone was alerted, able to torture information out of even the most hardened of veterans. But he was still a human with a conscience, and just because he had been able to bleed, torture, and kill others with deceptively blank looks—just because the nightmares had long ago stopped being an issue, he still had his morals.

It was one thing to desensitize oneself from killing nameless individuals who he knew had families but he didn't personally know. It was another to commit the same acts against someone one had accepted as a sort of family member.

"… But," Kushina's voice brought the blonde out of his musings, and he turned to her with a tired gaze. She placed her cool, soothing palm against his cheek and stared him in the eyes. "Even though Obito is hiding things, even though he may seem suspicious, is that really so bad? Just because someone hides something doesn't mean it has to be nefarious or with ill-intent."

She sat back, her eyes taking on a far-off look. "After all, think back to the beginning of our relationship. Did we know everything about each other from the get go?" Perhaps sensing his slight confusion, she elaborated. "The Kyūbi. I had kept my status as a Jinchūriki from you because I was afraid. Afraid of being judged and… Hated, by you, for being what other people would call a monster."

Minato opened his mouth to speak, but after a moment, closed it as he considered her words. They made sense, actually, and lifted a bit of the weight of his burden from his shoulders. After all, Obito had spoken about darkness—about how he was tainted, in a distinctly self-deprecating tone. It was a logical deduction that Obito would feel self-conscious about his teacher judging him, if he had ended up being "swallowed by darkness" in the future as he stated.

He felt the return of Kushina's cool palm as she smiled at him. "Shame on you," she chided playfully, her lips curling into an amused smirk. "You shouldn't be having doubts and such dark thoughts, 'ttebane. It's not like you, Mr. Sunshine."

The blonde chuckled as he turned back to the scroll, though it was without real humor. "… I think I know what the issue is. I think that part of me actually hopes that… That he isn't Obito. Hopes that it wasn't Obito who I had threatened, who I abandoned and betrayed." His elbows still resting on his legs, he cradled his head in his hands and sighed. "It was… It was so much easier to accept the idea that it wasn't him, to think that he was an enemy, instead of someone that I cared for, that I had wronged… Someone that I, ultimately, failed."

Another silence fell.

Eventually, Kushina sighed. "… There is a lot, isn't there?" The blonde winced, but nodded anyway. He felt her hand rest on his arm in a reassuring gesture. "Well… If you really fell like you've failed him, then there's really only one thing you can do for him, 'ttebane."

Minato turned to her, his azure eyes staring at her through his unruly bangs. "… What?"

A bright smile formed on her face, her eyes sparkling. "Be there for him of course, silly. Even if he is strong, he is still only human, and there will be times that he needs someone to help and aid him. Be a constant support for him, make sure you are there to listen to him—to help him. Make him understand that, even if he were to enter the darkest time of his life…" Minato was sitting up straight, now, and Kushina's hand drifted down to his own. She intertwined their fingers and a determined glint shone in her eyes. "… You will always be there to help him survive it."

In a moment with his inhibitions cast aside, Minato's eyes widened.

Of course. He had been so focused on what he dreaded, on the possibility of a nightmare come true that he had forgotten. Hadn't he told himself that he would be there to protect Obito, after the boy had tried to kill himself? Hadn't he promised that he would always be there for him, responsibility be damned?

How… How could he have forgotten something so important?

Yes, Obito had shown oddities. Yes, much of what he had done paved the road towards less-than-positive thoughts, especially when placed in the mind of a trained Shinobi. But… trained stubbornness aside, Minato could see that the boy was still Obito, the small actions, the intricacies that were completely Obito, and the attentive, almost obsessively protective manner the Uchiha regarded his team. Minato had been so focused on incriminating evidence that he had shoved aside the smaller details, categorizing them as delusions of his hopeful mind.

A startled, yet relieved and relaxed—when was the last time he had felt uninhibited mirth like this?—laughter burst from him, even as a curious, but slight moisture pricked at the corners of his eyes. He turned to her, smiling ever so slightly as he held her hands in his own. "You've really adopted my team, haven't you?"

Kushina gave a small pout. "Of course! And don't get distracted, you better make it clear to the Uchiha block-head that you are there for him, dattebane." Her features softened into a smile mirroring Minato's own. "He'll need to know that he has someone in his corner."

The blonde's smile grew. "Like you, for me?"

In response, Kushina hugged him tightly, closing her eyes. "Like me for you, and like you for me."

"Why, Obito?"

The addressed Uchiha turned to the two interlopers that disturbed his reverie.

… Well, actually, he was sitting atop the Hokage Monument—where Minato's face would join the Shodai, Nidaime, and Sandaime Hokage one day—and they weren't trespassing on anything that he wasn't. And he probably should have been relatively thankful—his "reverie" was more like him reliving his darkest parts of his life. So no, it wasn't pleasant, but at least he could stew in disgusting self-pity and anger in peace before the Konoha government descended upon him like the Akimichi to a buffet.

Regardless, he looked at them with an unimpressed look. "Kakashi, Rin. What do you want?"

The brunette turned to Kakashi with a look of nervousness. "See, I knew this wasn't a good idea. He doesn't want—"

Kakashi stepped forward, ignoring Rin's incessant tugging at his sleeve. "What the hell, Obito? Why—"

"We should just give him the time to open up himself—"

"Like that's really worked out!" Kakashi growled, causing the medic-nin to flinch back slightly before she frowned with determination.

Obito merely raised an eyebrow. He was right there.

"Anyway," the silver-haired Chūnin began again, turning to face Obito with narrowed eyes. "I think it's time you told us everything. Why have you been so distant? You don't tell us anything anymore unless forced—you used to tell us everything from your dinner the previous night to your latest prank without prompt—and you're always hiding something!" His shoulders were stiff and frustration was evident, by the pained grimace on his face. "It—It got even worse after the mission. That was two days ago and suddenly you won't even talk to any of us! Just what the hell happened five months ago, and what are you hiding!?"

He demanded it. And for some reason—a reason likely irrational and foolish, that couldn't quite be placed—it bothered Obito.

He was tired of this.

"You have no right to know," he stated bluntly as he shoved his hands into his pockets, turning away from the two of them with a faux disinterest.

Kakashi faltered, and Rin looked to him with wide, confused eyes. "… What?"

The Uchiha sighed, glancing back at them. "Look, Kakashi. You are still burdened by your past. You refuse to talk to anyone about it, to move on, and to actually live in the now."

"Wha…" The Hatake looked positively scandalized, stepping back briefly before taking two steps forward with a glare. "Th-This isn't about me, this is about—"

"Like I said," Obito interrupted, turning to face Kakashi fully. "You don't have a right to know. As long as you yourself are still burdened by your own past… What makes you think you have a right to know what my problems are?" He snorted. "Why the interest, anyway? You are so good at avoiding your own issues and shoving them aside, it stood to believe that you wouldn't even bat an eyelash at the problems of others."

Kakashi looked at him with a curiously blank look, as Rin looked between them hesitantly. Realizing that he probably wouldn't get an answer, Obito shrugged and turned around, planning to find another place to fall into his thoughts. He couldn't remain here, obviously, because two of the contributors to his worries were there. He couldn't return home—to Minato and Kushina's apartment—because of the exact same reason. Obito tilted his head up at the sky, debating his options. He could go to the Forest of Death considering very few people went there, or, he could even slip out of Konoha and linger in the surrounding forests, as he would have fewer worries about encountering someone he didn't wish to talk to. Oh, but an even better idea was to go into his Kamui dimension, as he was the only one capable of accessing it in this time—

"DAMNIT!" Obito jumped slightly at the voice, and turned to see Rin just as startled, and Kakashi seething—staring pointedly at the ground. He'd never seen the boy so blatantly angry like this, before. Irritation, yes, boredom, yes, reticence, definitely. Hatake Kakashi had always been the type to hide his emotions and keep them on a tight leash, but this…?

"Fine. Fine, you want to know? You want to know about my past!?" He shouted, once again startling the other two with the raw, unrestrained emotion in his voice. "I was scared, Obito, I was scared. This—this team, it was—no, is—my constant, what keeps me grounded. But you, you changed, you were never supposed to be the type to just give up like that. You guys are my—my e-escape," he choked on the words and sneered, "from my past, from the haunting memory of Hatake Sakumo, who was a fool an idiot, and a fucking coward. Team Seven keeps me balanced, always has."

He looked up, his piercing gaze locking with the Uchiha's. "So why…? Why… Why did you have to change? Why did you have to ruin…"

Obito stared at his two teammates with wide, baffled eyes. Kakashi's shoulders were stiff, with a slight, fearful tremble to them—and never had the boy seemed so… Fragile. His eyes were slightly shadowed by his bangs, and though he wore his usual mask, the time traveler could see the lines of stress and barely repressed emotions written so clearly on his face. And as usual, Rin… She was caught in the middle—at a complete loss of what to do to placate her two volatile teammates, despite her constant efforts to be the glue to bind them and keep the peace.

This breakdown hadn't occurred last time, but who was to say it wouldn't have? In his eyes… In Uchiha Obito's eyes, Kakashi was always a goal, a wall to be overcome. Hatake Kakashi was his rival, the near-insurmountable rookie of the year in his grade, that was a prodigy through and through, destined for greatness as a powerful Shinobi. But underneath it all, he was still human, still a boy, and terribly, terribly lost.

Maybe if he had been more open-minded. Maybe if he had paid more attention to his teammates. Maybe if he had been more receptive to his teammates, Obito couldn't help but think, then maybe he could have made Kakashi see the truth sooner, something that only his death had managed to do, previously. (Because he always thought that what truly made his stubborn, idiotic teammate see the truth wasn't his words so much as the impression his own death had left. Because out of everyone of their year and age, Kakashi was the most likely to take the words of a dead person to heart.)

Shaking his head, Obito made his way back over to his teammates and gestured pointedly to the ground. They looked at him with questioning gazes. "Sit," he commanded lowly, but without threat. Gently.

Though confused, Rin sat down, and Kakashi followed reluctantly. Obito sat cross-legged as well, frowning when the silver-haired Chūnin ducked his head lower so that his eyes were completely concealed by his unruly hair.

The Uchiha couldn't help the faint grimace that formed on his countenance as he read his friend's body language. He had always known that Kakashi was a broken sort of individual—he had spent his years as Madara's shadow knowing this, watching, sneering in disgust at the weakness the then aged adult displayed so openly at the memorial stone. It had started with his own apparent "death," then Rin's, and the crushing blow to Kakashi's already unstable self were the deaths of Minato and Kushina.

It appeared that, even before that particular chain of events… Kakashi had broken even before that. From the death of his father, Hatake Sakumo.

An understandable result, considering his age at the time—he was six, and though a genius, he wouldn't have understood the reasons behind his father's ultimate choice.

Now wasn't the time for Obito to stew in his own feelings of self-pity and regret, he realized. He could do that another time, when it wouldn't affect his team. They needed him right now, and he sure as hell would be there to help for as long as he was able.

"… You know, your father was a hero to me," he finally began, causing the other two Chūnin to look up at him. Kakashi's gaze, which was despondent just mere seconds ago, suddenly had a sharp, bitter glint to it. "Willing to sacrifice a mission in order to save his friends; he saved many, many families from having to grieve over their loved ones in that regard."

Kakashi stiffened. "… He broke the rules. He was shunned for it, and then he committed suicide to escape the negativity! He was just a coward, who couldn't put his own guilty conscience aside and do the right thing—"

"Do you think what he did was wrong?" Kakashi opened his mouth to reply in affirmative, but halted the automatic reaction when he saw the steady, unflinching gaze of his teammate. "Do you really think that, Kakashi?"

The Hatake was stunned, from surprise and from the no-doubt confusing line of questioning. He was unable to answer. "… I don't think he was wrong," Rin began quietly, and the other two Chūnin turned to her. She fisted the material of her skirt in her hands. "I… I think I would have made the same decision, if I were in his position."

"But a Jōnin of Konoha has a duty," Kakashi bit out irritably, inciting a flinch. "He was made the leader of his mission, and he was entrusted with the task of seeing the mission through to the very end, no matter the casualties. He didn't, deciding to save the lives of the others—who would have gladly laid down their lives for the village—all because he was too damn weak to make the right decision."

"Even though we're Shinobi, we're still human!" Rin shouted with force, surprising Obito slightly. "Your father, he made a sacrifice so that his team wouldn't have to. I can't… I can't imagine what would happen, if…" She swallowed, eyes suspiciously damp. "If I were left here, and found out that you two and Minato-sensei died… I…"

Both Kakashi and Obito sat in shock as their team's medic burst into tears, helplessly attempting to wipe away and hide the result of her own emotional breakdown. The Uchiha recovered quickly, however, and cradled Rin in a comforting embrace as he turned to regard the Hatake.

"Do you see, Kakashi?" He mumbled, not quite making eye contact. "Like Rin said, we're still human, and because of that we have emotions. No Shinobi can truly kill off their emotions."

"What… What are you talking about…? The best Shinobi know how to kill off their emotions!" Kakashi shouted through his shock and hesitation, a hint of unrestrained panic in his tone. "The best can turn into heartless machines, tools, to carry out their tasks with utmost efficiency—"

"Kakashi," Obito interrupted, pinning the boy with a stern glare. "Listen to me. Those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are even worse than trash."

"But… But, the rules—"

The time traveler gave a bitter smile, the action alone being enough to halt Kakashi's words. "Because what's the point of fighting if we abandon our comrades? Abandon the people we care about? Yes, we Shinobi carry out our tasks for the good of Konoha—but Konoha is not just a village, but everything we wish to protect. We fight to defend our loved ones, our home, our families. If we abandon them, then we have nothing." He watched the silver-haired Chūnin for a moment before continuing. "So tell me, do you really think the rules are so damn important? Would you be willing to sacrifice my life, Rin's life, and Minato-sensei's life to obey your rules?"

A look of utter horror and morbid understanding crossed Kakashi's face as he fully understood the implications. "N-no, I wouldn't, I, I—"

Not allowing him to finish his statement, Obito grabbed Kakashi's arm and pulled, forcing the boy into an awkward tangle of limbs that constituted as a "hug." He watched with bemusement as Rin pulled Kakashi into the hug as well, obvious tear marks on her cheeks. The Hatake remained completely still, however, a frigid stiffness lining his shoulders.

"We know, Kakashi. Rin, Minato-sensei and I, we know, and we'll always be there for you." He lightly pat both of his teammates on the back, the action somewhat difficult due to them leaning on him. He could feel them both relaxing, though, and it made the action worth it. "Of course, we'll expect you to be there for us, too, when the time calls for it."

When he received no reply, he stared down at the silver hair obstructing a good third of his view, another third blocked by chocolate brown. "… Oi," he called out with faux disapproval, poking his teammate as he did so. Kakashi tensed. "You will be there for us, too, right?"

After a moment, the third of Obito's vision obstructed by silver shifted, indicating that the boy nodded.

Obito realized, then, that he was more or less stuck where he was. Rin had her arms around both Obito and Kakashi, at least half of her weight against the former. The latter was much the same, only his arms rested limply by his sides, clearly refusing to participate fully in the impromptu act of intimacy, despite having clearly needed it.

The time traveler sighed. Even though there were other things he felt he had to do, he decided that he'd let his little teammates have this moment. After all, it wasn't as if he hated it or found it unpleasant. No, he rather enjoyed it, in fact—it was a little strange, certainly, considering he had minimal positive contact with anyone for the latter two-thirds of his previous life, and even as a little tyke, he wasn't exactly a beloved child. But it was still an enjoyable experience.

Obito smiled sadly, his eyes drifting up to the cloud-less sky. It was the least he could do for them, to provide them this brief comfort. Especially since he had a feeling that it was going to be one of the last things he'd be able to do for them.

'I know, but please. Don't take this away from me just yet.'

He echoed the words in his mind to no one in particular.

'Just a little longer.'

Obito returned "home" well after the sun had set, that night.

He hadn't wanted to infringe on Minato and Kushina's time at home, so as he had been planning earlier, he made for his Kamui dimension to meditate. Instead of allowing his emotions to take hold of him again, however, he planned and structured potential outcomes of the future.

Over and over, he went over the possible scenarios that would follow after confronting Minato once again. He could remain for as long as necessary, and he wouldn't mind being placed in the hospitality of T&I—only, he would leave as soon as a Yamanaka was brought into the equation. He wanted to remain in Konoha for as long as possible, but as he had resolved before, he could not let Konoha become too involved.

So, he mulled over the likely outcome of him becoming a missing-nin once again. He contemplated faking his death, or claiming to be a body-snatcher (as was the apparent popular belief) in order to selfishly keep his own name clean. What he would do after that he wasn't entirely certain, but it went along the lines of hunting down Orochimaru to halt his experiments and plans, going to Madara and killing the man, and as for Kaguya…

… Well, Obito wasn't quite sure about her little shadow. All he knew was that Madara had thought he "created" Black Zetsu during the time traveler's stay, but that was something that clearly wasn't the case. What Obito didn't know was what Black Zetsu had done prior to that. He highly doubted the being had truly stayed in the Jūbi's husk for the thousand years since Kaguya's sealing, and the thought worried him.

Regardless, after deeming that an acceptable amount of time had passed, he left the confines of his dimension and returned home.

Obito, with minimal usage of chakra and with utmost caution, entered the homely apartment through the window. He briefly scanned the perimeter for movement before nodding to himself, deeming it safe to make his way to his room—

"Obito."

The addressed Uchiha started, not having expected—or sensed—the man walking over to him. He eyed Minato with a wary sort of caution, and his gaze was returned with a grim look. "If I could have a word."

Forcing down the near automatic wince, Obito nodded mechanically. He didn't want to hear it. He really didn't want to hear it, and he had dared to hope that the confrontation wouldn't happen—after all, it had been two days, a much longer span of time than he had expected. He didn't want his peace to shatter, and yet…

He sighed, an understanding resignation taking place in his eyes where caution once lingered. He didn't know what his fate was—whether or not he was going to be tried, executed, exiled… He didn't know. Whatever was the case, he still had tasks to accomplish, loose ends to tie. If he was to be imprisoned, then he truly had no choice but to become a missing-nin.

Obito repressed the snort that threatened to sound at the thought. How ironic. Just as the Kyūbi had said, he came to the past, but he was simply reliving his unhappy life, even if it was in order to dispose of the threats to the people he cared for.

He was getting ahead of himself, however, and he wasn't sure what was going to happen. They were simple musings of what could, but could he be blamed? He refused to get his hopes up, and it was safest—for his already fragmented mind of questionable sanity—to simply assume the worst.

That thought in mind, he lifted his wrists, his eyes glued to his hands, and he missed the raised eyebrow from the blonde.

"… I understand," Obito stated quietly, thinking that the prospect of imprisonment was becoming more and more plausible—something he couldn't quite judge if its rate of chance was due to his own clouded mind or the truth. The plan, however—he would stay in Konoha, just until the point where a Yamanaka was needed. "Just… Before I'm tried, before my sentence is handed out, I would like to have one request." He scowled in displeasure at the slight wavering of his voice, not noticing how both of his sensei's eyebrows were raised. 'Calm down,' he thought harshly. "I would appreciate it, if for just one day… Can all of you—"

—pretend that we're still a team?

It was a request he knew wouldn't be fulfilled, especially if his next destination was T&I or prison. Still, it was worth a shot to ask—not to mention, he wanted one last day with everyone of Team Seven, the Team Seven that he remembered so clearly. Kakashi, the cold but secretly caring bastard. Rin, the kind girl that was always unfortunate enough to get caught between the spats created by her two teammates. Minato, the powerful, revered Jōnin that all three of the Chūnin looked up to with great respect, admiration, and care. He didn't want his last memory of Team Seven as a whole to be the tense atmosphere of all of them avoiding him.

In reality, however, he wasn't even able to complete his meager request, as two strong hands clapped down on his shoulders and he flinched, eyes wide when they met Minato's. "Stop."

The word—command, really—caused Obito to do just that. In fact, he was fairly certain he stopped breathing for a moment, waiting to hear the man's judgement.

"You… You are just…" Minato mumbled, and the time traveler braced himself with each word spoken. The blonde seemed to notice this, as he shook his head and sighed, before relinquishing his hold on Obito's shoulders and placing a hand on the boy's head, instead. "Stop, Obito. You are over-thinking things. I'm not going to drop you in T&I."

Onyx eyes blinked with thinly veiled astonishment as Obito regarded the man—his eyes spoke the truth, and there was even underlying… Remorse. 'Misplaced,' he couldn't help but think. Instead of voicing the thought, he settled for a neutral question. "… What do you mean?"

Minato stared at Obito, and for a moment the latter's eyes darted as he catalogued the possible escape routes. The blonde's sigh interrupted his calculations, and he suddenly found himself being led over to a chair in the living room. Minato had him sit down as he himself took a seat on the couch, gaze unmoving.

"… If I were to be honest," Minato began, interlacing his fingers as he sat back, "I'm not quite sure what I mean either. But what I can say with certainty is that I believe you."

The time traveler shoved aside the relief and hope that the words instilled and narrowed his eyes. "That's rather different from what you were saying before, sensei. What exactly chang—"

"I'm not playing this game with you, Obito." Minato was slightly tensed and his words cut like steel, a certain edge to his tone—stern, but lacking in an actual threat. He relaxed minutely, a wry smile forming on his lips. "… Though, I understand your hesitance to believe someone that had almost killed you less than a week ago."

Bitter. Regretful. These words were what Obito felt described the tone his sensei used. Minato relaxed fully, perhaps forced, and gave a more genuine smile. "It may be strange, but I… I believe that you are a time traveler now, Obito. But I need you to understand, others won't without hard evidence—" The Uchiha stiffened at this. "—so we will need a Yamanaka to perform a mindwalk to verify all that you have said."

"Why?" Obito questioned with a forceful tone.

Minato gave a faint grimace. "Obito, it is a necessary procedure for future preparation, even though I knew you wouldn't be receptive to it. We can ask a friend of mine, Yamanaka Inoichi, to handle the procedure. He wouldn't be bound to go to the Hokage with whatever he finds immediately, giving us a window of time, and—"

"No." At his forceful tone, Minato went wide-eyed for a moment before all emotion was wiped from his features—by now, Obito knew to be worried about the look. He quickly added, "I have a—there's a reason why I haven't told you, or anyone, everything in explicit detail." No there isn't, not really. It's just fear. "It's dangerous, and it could speed up certain events that we are not prepared for. But I will tell you—and whoever else needed—everything I can, eventually."

He chanced a glance at his sensei, who was still terribly unreadable. The only clear sign of what was possibly going through the man's head was the way his fingers had the slightest twitch—as though he were forcing them to remain on his lap, to remain relaxed.

'… Ah, I get it, now,' Obito though quietly, turning his eyes back to azure. It wasn't that Minato trusted him, but he believed that he was a time traveler. Emphasis on the fact that he was not from the current time period. Minato, through some means, had found solid evidence to prove Obito's status—apparently evidence that could not be shared—but did not have evidence on his loyalty. So naturally, the man was still guarded.

Obito released a quiet huff of breath. He was given an opportunity, and it would be foolish to throw it away because of simple cowardice. He could give the truth to alleviate the man's worries and clear himself to an extent, simply… Concealed.

"Konoha is in no immediate danger," he started quietly, surreptitiously measuring Minato's reactions through his peripherals. "Unfortunately, most of what I know pertains to a far off future, and I can't remember much from this time. I never was the most attentive as a child, and as a result, I don't have much to report in that regard." His voice was punctuated with a higher volume. "As far as I know, Konoha is in no danger."

It was a minor threat, one veiled as concern and truth. As far as he knew, Konoha was in no danger. However, should his hand be forced, should he divulge the events of the future, and should anyone make a move to change said future… The safety of the village could not be guaranteed. It was a flimsy warning at best, but time was a fickle concept; untested and unknown. Volatile. Obito knew that Minato was a cautious-enough man to know—unlike a certain progeny of his—that prudence was actually rather important.

For a few brief moments, Minato continued to assess him, look for any hint of lies, concealed truth, nefarious means. He relaxed slightly shortly afterwards, but an almost sorrowful expression settled on his features—something the time traveler had not expected.

"You know, that… That doesn't tell me much."

Obito couldn't tell if the sorrow was aimed at the sparse information or at him. And he couldn't tell if, in the case it was aimed at him, it was the sort of, "your argument is too sparse to save your guilty ass," or, "it's unfortunate that our source from the future has so little information that could aid Konoha," or of a more relatable background.

Unbidden, Obito's guard fell and he stared at Minato with near-lifeless eyes, clouded so with resignation that he didn't notice the near imperceptible flinch the blonde gave at the look. He was tired. Very, very tired, so much so that he couldn't even find the motivation to keep up his usually automatic facade, his mask.

Physically and emotionally, he was completely drained. He had spent much of his previous life surrounded by enemies, constantly needing to look behind himself to ensure he wasn't given an untimely end. At the time, that had been his own choice—he had decided that the world was cruel and needed to be made anew. He had abandoned all hope of conforming to the real world, and had decided to place his hopes in an illusionary, fake world. And now, when he came back to the past, now that he had a new resolve to try and save the people he cared for… He was still alone. A fact he couldn't even quite bring himself to feel doleful about, as all that he truly felt was an immeasurable void where emotions likely should have been.

Movement caught his eye, and he looked back up to see his sensei leaning on his knees, staring at the ground. "I… I understand." The words hadn't brought relief as Obito had expected, but a strange amalgamation of regret, hope, and disappointment. Bittersweet. "There is nothing you can do if you can't remember, but… This isn't a demand, and I understand if you do not wish to say. I understand if it isn't my place to ask, but… Please. If you can. Tell the truth now, what happens in the future, what events you keep referencing, and what happens to Rin, Kushina, myself, Konoha—everything."

Obito simply stared. He understood? His place to ask?

Minato sighed, no doubt taking the Uchiha's incredulous silence as something else. "If what you're worried about is confidentiality, you don't need to worry. I have no intention on telling the Hokage everything that I learn."

His words incited a feeling of discontent, and Obito couldn't mask his skepticism. "Why?"

The blonde smiled—a radiant, cheerful look that the time traveler hadn't seen in what felt like an eternity. "Because I want to trust you, Obito. You are earnest with your words, and… And you aren't a threat that needs to be reported. Sure, the circumstance of encountering a time traveler is something that would be reported immediately, but…" He shrugged casually, all traces of the earlier tension gone. "Some things are worth a little insubordination, in my opinion."

Minato's words… They gave hope. It was all Obito could truly say about them, and he felt as though he actually had a chance, that there was still a distinct possibility of him being happy, living in Konoha with the people he cared for. They gave him a sort of lightness that he hadn't experienced so clearly in a while, and he was greatly thankful for them… But on the other hand—and how Obito cursed his darker thoughts proving him unable to enjoy the moment at face value—a part of him practically screamed at him that he could not leave things as they were.

That he could not quite fit in this world.

The thought baffled him for a moment, but his mind quickly made the connections behind why he felt this way, and why Minato's words had instilled both hope and disappointment.

He wasn't fit for the future, where he was truly nothing more than a cancerous cyst attempting to drag everyone down due to his own selfish ideals. Here, he was a disturbance that set the lives of everyone around him off balance—he disrupted the lives of the people he cared about, and not in the positive manner he had hoped for.

He had made ripples, certainly. That had been his plan all along; to change the tragic past of his team and of Konoha as a whole, to lead everyone to a brighter future.

But that wasn't what happened at all.

No. After all, what was it that he had managed to do? He managed to attract Danzō's attention to Itachi and Shisui far sooner than previously. He had accelerated Orochimaru's defection from Konoha, giving the man even more time to plot and plan for the village's destruction. Certainly, there had been good changes as well, but they were far and few between compared to the monstrosities he had incurred.

Rin, perhaps because of the sudden change he underwent, seemed even more uncertain of herself and her abilities than last time.

Kakashi, who always had a firm grasp on his emotions before, had completely lost it earlier. That was what Obito had been aiming for, thinking it was for the best… But what if it wasn't? What if, somehow, Kakashi's reticence and avoidance of his past was what kept him strong, striving for more power? What if he ended up being underprepared for the future this time, even more so than before?

Even his once, seemingly infallible sensei, the man who had managed to kill his own heart and seal a tailed beast into his own, orphaned son—all because he knew that it was for the good of Konoha—was changed and weakened because of him. The Namikaze Minato he had known, the man he had betrayed, faced off against on Naruto's birthday, battled again during the war was a kind, benevolent leader, and one who understood what his position entailed. But this man, the one sitting before him, was willing to chance insubordination for his student that still had questionable motives?

Obito was not a fool that would fall back into the pattern of rejection, saying that he was not Namikaze Minato because of this, however. Because he knew where the root of the problem rested, and exactly why the man he had so respected changed.

Minato was still Minato. Just as Rin was Rin, and Kakashi was Kakashi was Kakashi. Just as Konoha was the village he had loved, however, tainted by its shadows and destruction it was.

And still, Obito knew that there was no way that Minato would let things escalate as they had previously. He would no doubt make a charismatic, charming Hokage, able to sway even those brainwashed by Danzō's suggestions. The man wouldn't let the citizens of Konoha die, the Uchiha would not be seeing a massacre, and as such, Itachi's family would be safe. Minato's team would be safe. Kushina. Naruto.

Naruto would be safe. Maybe he'd even have a happier life this time, surrounded by the love of his parents and of the village.

The world would move on, continue to live and thrive as it headed for its new future, because it would still have its ray of sunshine: the Child of Prophecy. The shadows would always be there, and there was no need for yet another.

Obito looked into Minato's eyes, bitter resolve displayed plainly as he altered his original plan. He made his decision.

It was time for him to stop running away. It was time to stop ignoring the truth, to stop hiding behind useless falsities and hopes that clouded his mind. He was still far from absolute clarity, but at least he knew of a solution that would keep his coveted world—the real one, this time—untouched.

He had his time to enjoy the illusion of peace and happiness. He had two decades that could have been spent trying to reclaim a happy life on striving for a false dream, and spent almost half a year living the life he had always wanted to go back to. And now… It was time to pay it all back. It was time to stop running away, to accept the truth.

Obito smiled, though it didn't fully reach his eyes. Instead, the conviction from earlier was held, but with sadness and realization residing alongside it. "Thank you, Minato-sensei, but… I still can't tell you. Not yet."

He had once said that he would do anything for his precious people. Anything.

His decision was made. Two birds with one stone, everyone would be solved. He would fall, and he wouldn't be dragging his village down with him.

After all, he'd dodged death for long enough.

'I will die for my precious people.'

A/N: I was able to read some reviews and it seems the general question seems to revolve around Zetsu. I wanted to touch on this subject on a later chapter, but I suppose I can address part of it now: he will not be part of this story. Around the beginning of this story's creation, I had already begun plotting scenes for a sequel (which would obviously need an antagonist of some sort) and, you guessed it. Zetsu was going to be a major player in that. The issue right now is that I'm still debating what I'm going to do, however; I never intended this story to be longer than 180,000 words, and everything is already scripted. But conversely, I don't like sequels, and I'm still hesitant about writing one for this. But we'll see, I suppose.

Also, just to clarify, for those of you who have been worried. I HATE tragedies. Sure, some are actually good and well-written, but that doesn't change the fact that I absolutely LOATHE when I finish a story and feel a intense anger, sadness, or just… Void. I absolutely detest it, and I'm running out of impacting words to describe just how much I hate them. But I like this fanfic, however crazy and slow-paced it may be. So, take this note in stride, and make your own guesses from there. *spoilerific author's note is spoilerific*