Eyes awoke in a confined space full of darkness. A small light beamed in from a crack, and soon the small beam turned into a blinding light. A door of some kind opened and revealed just what he'd been in, a coffin. He stepped out of the coffin and saw that he was in an underground lab of some kind. He looked at his hands and noticed that they were old and frail. Very much unlike his young body.

"It finally worked," a strange voice said. The man had purple marks on his eyes and had snake-like eyes. "The final test was a success."

The reanimated Shinobi's eyes darted around the room, "Where am I?" The gruff and jagged old voice echoed throughout the room.

The snake-like man smiled, "Welcome back to the land of the living, Madara Uchiha."

Madara looked at his attire seeing that he was wearing his armor from his battle with Hashirama, "You've revived me using the reanimation jutsu?"

The snake man nodded, "An immortal body for the strongest Uchiha. Pretty genius I dare say."

Immortality was something Madara wanted but in this form, it wouldn't suffice. He was old, heavily weakened, and restricted from seventy percent of his power. This form would not do at all.

"My name is Orochimaru, I am a member of the Akatsuki and rogue Shinobi. I have brought you back to help me destroy the Leaf." The snake man introduced himself.

Madara didn't care for what Orochimaru was saying, he was thinking, and planning. Perhaps maybe the reanimation jutsu was a blessing in disguise. "Orochimaru was it? I'm afraid I have more pressing matters to attend to."

Orochimaru was confused, "Pressing matters?" His confusion turned into anger, "What could a long-dead man possibly have to do? I am the one who summoned you, my needs are your needs!"

Madara looked away from Orochimaru, "Your petty squabble means nothing to me. I have a much grander vision than your revenge. But I do need to go to Leaf Village for a quick stop."

Orochimaru having enough of the dead Uchiha planned to control, "I thought you'd be happy to destroy the Leaf but it seems you'll have to be a thrall." He held his finger up to his face and exerted his chakra.

Madara felt the chakra and began laughing, "Oh? Do you think that even in this weak form you have power over me? Well, you are gravely mistaken." Madara's Sharingan turned into the Eternal Mangekyou and manifested his partial Susanoo, the blue skeletal arms smashed the ground with blades and caused a cave-in. Dust filled the air and Madara's Sharingan was the only thing that could be seen. Madara knew that Orochimaru hadn't died but that didn't matter, he had to visit Obito and then he would meet Nagato.

"I'll make you regret having betrayed me, Obito," Madara said to himself as he jumped up through the exposed ceiling, his speed was lacking in his old form. Madara didn't like this, but it wouldn't hinder him. After all, Madara had the Rinnegan in death, and he knew all of its abilities. The one that would help him in this instance would be the preta path.

Because it was a Saturday, Obito made his way to Naruto's apartment. He knocked on the door but no answer. Seeing that he had no other option but to enter forcefully. He created a key made of wood from the tip of his finger and inserted it into the keyhole. After a couple of seconds, he was successful in unlocking the door.

The door opened and Obito was able to see the inside of the small apartment. A small table with two chairs, a kitchen with a small fridge, and a bed that barely stood above the ground. It was similar to what Obito had but worse.

And there laid on the bed was Naruto wearing pajamas, sprawled out on the bed with his blanket lying on the floor. Obito stepped in and felt several eyes on him, probably some Anbu agents overwatching Naruto. With what Obito wanted to do he shouldn't do it with them watching but Obito needed to see Minato.

Obito stepped towards the sleeping Naruto and placed his left hand on the boy's stomach. Then he was transported to Naruto's mindscape.

A place black and dark with bars standing in front of him with a paper seal. What lay beyond was the nine tails, that was certain with the dark red eyes. The growling only reinforced this.

The nine tails leaned down to see Obito. "You... I remember. Have you come to release me again only to shackle me with your eyes?"

"No. I've come to see the Fourth Hokage."

"He's dead, why would you find him here?"

Obito hummed and then was thrust intoa blank space of white. Obito looked around and wondered where Minato was.

"Obito, you've come back." He turned around to see Minato, he was cautiously curious.

"Minato-sensei, I'm glad to see you." He took his mask off.

Minato saw a different look on Obito's face, it was full of sadness, not full of hate and anger. "Obito, you seem different."

Obito looked at Minato but couldn't look him in the eye, seeing him now he was having second thoughts. "I know that no apology will change what I've done but I wanted you to know that I'm sorry, for everything I did." Obito closed his eye and waited for Minato's response but none came.

Suddenly he felt two warm hands wrap around him, he opened his eye and struggled to respond. Obito thought for sure that Minato would be mad, "You're not mad at me?"

Minato tried his best to prevent himself from crying, "How could I be mad? I was only saddened to know that you lost yourself."

Minato's words hit Obito like a truck, his actions filled him with more regret and guilt than he had before.

There was a time when Obito looked up to Minato, and there was a time when he resented him. Right now all he saw was the only man who even gave a damn about him and was killed by his actions. But Minato wasn't one to hold grudges, not even against the one who killed him, his student no less. The pure fact that Minato was this kind almost caused Obito to shed a tear.

Minato could feel the turmoil of emotions swelling in Obito, he had to ease Obito's mind a bit. A simple question might work, "What changed your mind?" A reassuring smile on his face.

Obito took a minute to respond, "The easy answer? It was a girl." He seemed almost embarrassed.

Minato could see things around Naruto from time to time, he once saw a woman with blue hair and Obito treated his son to some ramen. At first, Minato thought Obito was trying to warm up to Naruto and then capture him, but now...it seemed that it was more than that. "What's her name?"

Obito smiled for a moment thinking about her, "Konan. Her name is Konan."

"What's she like?"

"She's kind, warm, loyal, and even fierce. I didn't like her much when I first met her, she was standoffish and quiet, and it was all to defend her friend. Now I find myself having feelings for her. And recently I've had lucid dreams with her."

Minato chuckled, he was smiling. "You really like her, huh?"

Obito looked at his left hand, symbolizing his younger more lighthearted self who always struggled with emotion. "I was scared of loving someone ever since Rin's death, that fear never went away but at least it's dulled a bit."

Minato placed a hand on Obito's shoulder, "The fear of losing someone never goes away, it's just a part of life. Whether we lose that person or not doesn't matter, the question is what will you do for that person and what would you do once they're gone."

Obito looked into Minato's blue eyes, "Is that what you told yourself with Kushina?" It wasn't in a condescending manner.

Minato nodded, "Since she was a jinchuuriki there was always the chance that the nine tails would break her seal. I trained myself to be strong enough to subdue the nine tails and learn many of the village's sealing jutsus for her sake. But I couldn't account for everything, some things were just out of my control and I had to accept that or else I'd end up like... Madara." He didn't intend to make a jab at Obito.

"And that's what Madara exploited about me," Obito added.

Minato nodded and continued, "He exploited your caring and selfless nature to get what he wanted. A man like that has never understood love and that's why he lost to the First." Minato stopped and backed away, "Obito, believe in yourself and protect everyone you can. You can still fulfill your dream of becoming Hokage, just don't lose your light."

Obito understood that Minato's time was almost up, he had one question. "Minato-sensei, before you go can you tell me what to do for a jinchuuriki woman?"

Minato chuckled and smiled, "Konan's a jinchuuriki? Well, my advice is just to help her whenever you can. You'll have an easier time preventing her from coming to harm than I did with Kushina." The white space started to dissipate, "I guess I won't have to protect Naruto now that I know he's in safe hands." The smile on his face was full of pride in his student. His body started to dissolve starting at his legs.

"I'll try my best to live up to your legacy and protect the ones closest to me," Obito vowed.

Minato's smile faded for a moment, "Oh, I almost forgot. Do be careful with Konan, women who are jinchuuriki tend to have a lower temper than normal." A nervous smile was on his face just remembering Kushina's quick to anger personality.

Obito laughed, "I'll remember that, Minato-sensei."

Master and Student bowed to each other as one returned to reality and the other was swallowed into a shinigami's stomach. Obito saw Minato's soul sucked into the deathly specter's stomach, there was no afterlife for him, and that was the fate of all users of the reaper death seal.

Obito returned to reality and removed his hand from Naruto's stomach. He sighed at himself before he turned around.

"Don't move." A girl in Anbu gear said as she pointed a katana at his throat. Several other Anbu agents were standing behind her.

Obito was expecting this, "Is Tobi in trouble?"

"Very," the woman replied. A little bit of purple could be seen from behind her mask. "Our orders are to bring anyone who tries to interact with the nine tails jinchuuriki's seal to the Hokage, we will take you willingly or by force."

Obito looked back at the still sleeping Naruto and back at the Anbu, "Willingly." A needless fight would only wake the child.

Hiruzen was in his office overseeing requisition requests from many of the villagers and reading letters from the Fire Daimyo.

His reading was interrupted by a group of six Anbu surrounding Tobi, they were holding onto him like a prisoner.

Hiruzen looked to the leader to see that it was one of the more recent members of the Anbu, Yugao Uzuki. She was assigned with the assignment to oversee Naruto so that no harm would come to him. But why was there a platoon of Anbu and Tobi? "Seeing this many at one time can never mean anything good."

Yugao nodded, "I'm sorry to inform you but Tobi was trying to interact with the nine tails' seal. At the time it was just me, but I called for reinforcement because I doubted I could apprehend him alone."

Hiruzen narrowed his eyes at Tobi, "Is this true, Tobi?"

Obito nodded, "Yes, Lord Hokage."

This news came as a shock to Hiruzen, he had high hopes for Tobi, to possibly surpass the First and Fourth when it came to their expertise. "Why did you interact with Naruto's seal and how did you know that he was the nine tails jinchuuriki?"

Lies and misinformation wouldn't help in this instance, if he said even one falsehood then Hiruzen would likely want to fact-check it by taking him to torture and interrogation where Inoichi Yamanaka would peer into his mind and memories. "I wanted to see him once again and apologize for what I did."

Hiruzen leaned forward, Tobi's reply was vague but certain, it only made Sarutobi want to know more. "Apologize to who?"

This was it, there was no turning back, and the consequences were final. Obito stepped forward, "My master, Minato Namikaze."

The room erupted into gasps. A million questions flooded the minds of the Anbu and Hiruzen, but one stuck out like a sore thumb, who was Tobi?

"Take his mask off," Hiruzen ordered. The Anbu agent to Obito's left grabbed a hold of the orange mask and lifted it over Obito's head.

His face was bare for all to see, Hiruzen could tell by his features that the boy was a Uchiha, and the Fourth only had one student from the Uchiha clan.

"Obito Uchiha," Hiruzen said aloud. "You were killed in action during the Third war."

Obito bowed his head, "I should be dead if not for my slimy benefactor. He repaired my body and set me free but not before instilling his beliefs on me and shattering my own. I did terrible things for the sake of his plan, but now my vision is clear and I am filled with guilt and pain."

Hiruzen stood up and stepped around his desk, he walked toward Obito. "What did you do that filled you with pain?" He suspected by Obito's previous words but he needed verbal confirmation.

Obito looked up, sadness spread on his face. "I was the one who caused the nine-tails attack."

The information made everyone silent, everyone in the room had lost someone that night and the man standing in the Hokage's office was the attacker who caused all the death and destruction. Hiruzen felt the betrayal hard, it wasn't because Obito and him had any relationship but rather Hiruzen selected Minato to train Obito. Obito killed Minato and Kushina, along with Hiruzen's wife.

Hiruzen was furious thinking about his wife's death, he tried to hide his anger but Obito knew that's all he felt.

"No apology will ever be able to make up for my actions. I will accept any punishment." He was ready to bear the consequences of his actions.

Hiruzen looked at the boy and his scars, he couldn't help but think of the goggled boy in blue and his dream of being Hokage, how far he'd fallen to attack the village. He started reminiscing about a conversation he had with Minato.

Almost eight years ago, when Hiruzen's hair still had color, he called Minato to his office to discuss his team of genin.

Minato was a nervous mess back then, being given the responsibility of protecting young kids was a first.

Hiruzen sat in front of a small table where his tea and kettle were, Minato was wearing the Jounin uniform and kneeling on the other side of Hiruzen.

Minato had followed others into war and was a genin himself under Jiraiya's tutelage, but leading children and worrying about them while worrying about himself caused him immense anxiety.

"Lord Third, although I wish to become Hokage one day, is leading and training a bunch of kids really necessary? My talents are better suited for the front lines after I mastered Lord Second's jutsu."

Hiruzen lifted his teacup, "To become Hokage one must first learn to look to the future." He took a sip and Minato sighed.

"The kids you mean," he had started envisioning his students dying on the battlefield because he wasn't strong enough.

Hiruzen sensed the apprehension, "You remember when you were a genin, yes?"

He nodded, "Of course, Lord Hokage. Master Jiraiya was my mentor then."

"Then you know how important it is to be a role model to the next generation."

Minato nodded, a little more eased. "Yes, Lord Third."

Hiruzen smiled and sipped his tea, after doing so he cleared his throat. "Now, let's discuss your genin. First is the top-rated boy, Kakashi Hatake."

"The son of the White Fang?"

"Correct. His case is tragic but his background has not stunted his determination to be a Shinobi.

Now, onto your second student, Rin Nohara. She comes from a civilian family and she's not particularly gifted, though medical ninjutsu is something she's interested in so keep that in mind."

"How would I help her with medical ninjutsu? That was always Lady Tsunade's thing."

"Just because you aren't a specialist doesn't mean you still can't help.

Now, onto your third student. Obito Uchiha is an orphan from the founding clan with no skill at all. He had the lowest score in the history of the academy. But even though he seems like a lost cause just remember that even the most unlikely of people can do extraordinary things given the proper motivation."

Minato started thinking about this Obito kid and the way Lord Third was speaking about him. "Are you saying that he could become a candidate for Hokage?"

Hiruzen started pouring tea into his cup, "The Uchiha have been long overdue for representation. However, the boy would have to be molded into a proper Hokage by the previous Hokage."

Minato thought he misheard him, "I'm sorry Lord Third, did you say previous Hokage?"

Hiruzen smiled, "There needs to be a Fourth before a Fifth. However, you are still quite young and lack the necessary mettle to be noticed by The Fire Daimyo."

Everything Sarutobi said was true and only led to Minato accepting his duty as a teacher. Minato stood up, "I think I've heard enough, Lord Third. I'll do my best to train and watch over these kids."

Hiruzen pulled out another teacup and some tea, "Sit down and drink. You'll need it."

Hiruzen missed Minato and wished he hadn't died five, almost six years now. If Obito was telling the truth about his role that night then it almost mirrored Hiruzen's relationship with Orochimaru. But the difference between Obito and Orochimaru was that Obito seemed like he wanted to redeem himself and pay for his misdeeds. Hiruzen would allow that, after a long session with Inoichi.

He looked over at the orange mask being held by the Anbu agent, reached for and grabbed it. Sarutobi placed it back on Obito's face. Obito was confused, but Hiruzen explained himself. "If what you say is true and that you wish to atone then I will pardon you of any and all misdeeds. But I will need someone to peer into your mind to confirm that it's true."

Obito was unsure how to react, he'd killed Hiruzen's wife and yet he was so willing to forgive. "..." He didn't reply as nothing came to mind. Hiruzen then walked through his office door and he was then followed by the Anbu moving Obito. Hiruzen would send for Inoichi to interrogate him and discover the truth.

Obito was unsure how to react, he'd killed Hiruzen's wife and yet he was so willing to forgive. "..." He didn't reply as nothing came to mind. Hiruzen then walked through his office door and he was then followed by the Anbu moving Obito. Hiruzen would send for Inoichi to interrogate him and discover the truth.