Rewind

"I'm sorry," Obito raised his hand after a three-hour discussion between the elders of the clan. "What am I doing here?"

His clanmates didn't seem to appreciate his interruption, but after three hours of political discussion, Obito was getting extremely bored. He wasn't supposed to be here; he wasn't the one invited to clan meetings, ever. He wasn't even the prodigy of this clan. More often than not, he felt like he would be so much better away from it.

"Shut your mouth, brat!" an Uchiha member next to him hit his head.

"Stop it!" Fugaku raised his voice. "Don't you dare hit him."

"What?" Both Uchihas asked, surprised by his words. Obito was bullied by every single Uchiha with a few exceptions. Having Fugaku protect him in front of everyone was unexpected.

"Please, Obito. Come here and stand next to me," Fugaku invited him. "We have a matter of life and death, and you, my dear Obito, are our ace."

Obito got up, looking around and hesitantly walking up to Fugaku. Surprisingly, the clan let him walk through without even making him fall. By their whispering, it was clear there was sheer confusion and disagreement.

"Let's get to the point of this meeting," Fugaku started. "The Hidden Leaf Village has a new Jinchūriki. The young Hatake. I offered my help with his training to the council of elders, but my idea was rejected."

"I'm not surprised," one of the elders decided to chirp in. "After Madara's actions, our clan has been antagonized for years. They don't even trust us with an important asset."

"That is true. However, this is where Obito gets in," Fugaku placed his hands on the young Uchiha's shoulder.

"Do you want me to ask the Hokage to let Kakashi train with you?" Obito asked, confused and fearful. He doubted he had any chance of winning the cause.

"No. Not at all," Fugaku stated. "You're going to keep an eye on him and his progress. Once a week, you'll report to us."

"But Kakashi doesn't want that. He already told us he doesn't want to use the Nine-Tails," Obito shivered slightly. "And I was told not to tell anyone about it."

"You're choosing your teacher over your clan, Obito?" Fugaku tightened his grip on the young Uchiha, who looked back at him, sweating.

"No. That's not it. I'm just..."

"Then you'll do as told," Fugaku interrupted him. Obito swallowed hard, looking down. This was going to be a mess. If he did as told, would he be treated as a traitor? Would he be kicked out of the village? And what about Kakashi? Why did Fugaku want to be updated on his progress? Kakashi had already expressed his unwillingness to train with the Kyuubi, so what could he do about it?

"Obito! Watch out!" Rin yelled as Obito snapped out of his trance, barely dodging a kunai heading his way. In doing so, he slipped and hit his head pretty hard.

"Obito!" Rin rushed to his side, concerned as usual.

Obito didn’t react. He had asked Rin to help him with training, but the memory of the meeting was still messing with his mind. He was supposed to inform the clan tonight. What was he supposed to even say? He hadn’t seen Kakashi all week. He didn’t know what he was doing with his Bijuu or where he even was. Minato and Jiraiya never even mentioned him, as if this was a huge secret to keep.

"I'm alright, Rin," he sat up. "Sorry for wasting your time," he added, getting up and walking away without even greeting her.

Rin had noticed a change in Obito's behavior. He was less focused on training and more focused on overthinking. Every time they sparred, she would always win, no matter what or how. She had thought it might have something to do with Kakashi, but then again, she’d see him hesitantly walk to the Uchiha compound as if the problem lay there. Maybe she had let it slide for too long to ignore it anymore. Obito entered the compound, looking around as if expecting someone to jump on him. And in a way, someone did. Three Uchiha jumped in front of him, blocking his path.

"Can you move? I'm heading home," the young Uchiha stood his ground.

"You mean to the meeting?" one of the three asked.

"No. I mean home. I'm not going to the meeting," the young Uchiha continued.

"Didn't you hear Fugaku's words? This is a matter of life and death."

"And I don't see how that is true. I already told you, I'm not allowed to talk about it," Obito argued back, drawing his kunai. A useless move, considering the taller of the three just grabbed him by his jacket.

"Did you forget that you're an Uchiha? You are the reason your parents are dead. Would you do the same to the rest of us?!" they growled, shocking Obito.

It wasn’t clear how his parents died. He wasn’t sure himself, and when asked, his grandmother would simply brush it off as something unimportant. But to Obito, it was important. To him, it was important because apparently, it wasn’t him being the black sheep of the clan—the problem was something to do with his parents. Something he did.

The kunai in his hand fell to the ground as a female voice raised:

"Leave him alone!" Rin drew her kunai out. "You stupid, horrible bullies!"

"Who the hell is she?" one of the group asked.

"Rin! Get out of here!" Obito cried out to her, but Rin wasn’t moving.

"Hey. No one taught you not to get into private conversations? Seems like you need a little lesson in respect," the same voice spoke, and the Uchiha walked toward Rin.

Obito panicked, but that same panic allowed him to react in a way he hadn’t before—he hit his head against the Uchiha holding him, getting free from their grip. He was quick to get up and run toward his teammate, grabbing her by the hand and running off.

They had little time to look back, noticing the three Uchiha still following them.

"I have an idea!" Rin took the lead, running into an alley, with Obito following closely behind. He understood her plan the moment the house came into view. Their sensei’s house.

"Sensei! Open up!" Obito yelled, banging on the door. Minato wasn’t quick to open it. Maybe he wasn’t even inside, or at home at all, even though the lights were on.

"Are you done running?" the three Uchiha asked as Obito teared up.

"Please. Let us go. Let Rin go at least. She has nothing to do with this!" Obito pleaded.

"Obito!" Rin argued.

"Why? Aren’t you the one talking about teamwork? Don’t you know the rule number one? If one falls, the others fall too."

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" The door slammed open, and an angry Kushina stepped outside, her hair floating and a pan in her hand.

"Kushina-san!" Rin chirped happily at their salvation.

"You two are late! Get inside before I smack both of you!" Kushina played along as if she understood the assignment. "The cake won’t get prepared by itself."

Her anger seemed to scare off the three Uchiha, who left. Obito was somehow relieved, but upon asking for clarification, he didn’t utter a word—he just asked for a crash at Kushina’s house. Rin, on the other hand, decided to go home. The fear of the Uchiha after her was still lingering, but she was confident they wouldn’t bother her. She had a mission of her own, though.

Kakashi was cooking his own dinner when Rin knocked at his door. He was clearly surprised but didn’t argue with her staying there.

"What is it?" Kakashi asked as Rin sat down.

"Kakashi-kun, I know you don’t like Obito, but... I came here to ask you a favor!" She started, trying to build confidence. "Can you teach him a jutsu? I know I’m not the one who’s supposed to ask, but it’s Obito. We were attacked by his clanmates. They told him nasty things, and he couldn’t do much to help himself. All week long, he kept losing to me. He never loses to me."

"That's because you let him win every time. How is this a problem of mine?" Kakashi asked, raising his eyebrow in clear annoyance.

"It’s not! I mean... I think it would be best if you teach him. You’re the one with the most jutsu up your sleeve, and I thought... you can help him improve. The competition he has with you made him improve his chakra control and Fireball Jutsu. I’m just... What if we aren’t there for him? One thing is him dying on the battlefield, but another is not being able to protect himself from his own clan. It’s not fair!" Rin argued back, her voice rising with emotion as Kakashi sighed.

"I’ll see what I can do. I don’t promise anything."

"Thank you, Kakashi-kun!" Rin chirped happily, her smile wide. She didn’t stay over long before leaving Kakashi to eat dinner alone.

"So, what kind of jutsu will you teach him?" Kurama’s voice raised in his mind.

"I don't know yet. Maybe something fire-based," Kakashi replied, eating his food. Kurama hadn’t been talking much to him, especially over the past week. It seemed like he only entered conversations that interested him the most.

Kurama’s voice rumbled in Kakashi’s mind, low and teasing, but there was a hint of seriousness behind it.  

"You know, kid, I’ve been thinking. You should teach Obito Chidori. It’s a technique that could really suit him, especially if he ever awakens his Sharingan."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, surprised by Kurama’s suggestion.  

"I don't think so. Chidori is a jutsu of mine. I invented it, and it isn't perfect yet," he argued. "Besides, Obito isn’t known for his intelligence. And it’s dangerous if he makes a mistake."

"Are you really worried about it?" Kurama chuckled darkly. "Think of it, kid. Chidori is a fast-working jutsu. It’s extremely strong too. When launched, it lacks precision—not because of something wrong with it, but because your eyes can’t keep up with the speed of the jutsu. Obito will awaken his Sharingan, sooner or later. I’m pretty sure you already know what the Sharingan is capable of."

Kakashi opened his mouth to argue, but honestly? Nothing was justifiable for his lack of will.

"Don't tell me you're jealous of your jutsu, kid," Kurama continued. "Don’t you think it’s fair for someone else to use it to its fullest?"

"I'm not jealous," Kakashi argued back. "I’m just… it’s Obito! That guy can’t get better if his life depended on it."

"Or maybe it’s you who doesn’t see it. Obito is weak compared to you, but he has all the potential to even surpass you. Haven’t you listened to ‘Purple Stripes’? He thrives when given a challenge. He improves because you improve. Because you give him a challenge. His mastery in Fireball Jutsu came from the will to defeat you, and you have the power to create the next legendary team."

Kakashi sighed. The morning came too fast, and he couldn’t believe he let himself be convinced by the Kyuubi. Obito was going to be late, as usual. He was going to get distracted and probably fail over and over again. It would have been easier to teach a squirrel.

"Kakashi!" Obito ran toward the training ground, followed by Rin. "Sorry we’re late! Kushina-san was very demanding!"

"For once, Obito... you aren’t late," Kakashi crossed his arms.

"So why did you call us? What's the emergency?"

"I sent you that note hoping the emergency would avoid you getting here late. Seemed it worked." Kakashi closed his eyes before looking back at his friend. "I was told about your encounter with your clanmates yesterday, so I decided... I don’t want you dead on the first mission we get. I’m going to teach you a very powerful jutsu, a jutsu only you can learn."

"Really?!" Obito teared up, not even caring that Rin spoke up for him. "What is it?"

"It will be a secret for now. I should wait for your Sharingan to awaken, but we can’t have that. First, we’ll work on a jutsu that will help you master the change in chakra nature." He opened his palm, and the Rasengan swirled to life.

"You're teaching me the Rasengan?!"