That Big Dummy Was Actually You!!

The light in the living room made the gaudy cover of the magazine look particularly glaring.

Kou slammed the book shut. He straightened his spine, his expression as righteous as a lawyer standing in court to defend himself:

"So I've already said, this book isn't mine. It must have been... no, it definitely was brought over by one of my subordinates and forgotten here!"

"I am really not a lolicon!!"

Obito watched him struggle to justify himself, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly beneath his mask:

"...I never said you were."

"You don't need to explain; I understand."

As Kou listened to Obito's response, the taut string in his heart had just begun to loosen, only to be pulled tight again by Obito's next words.

"Of course this book isn't yours. After all, the type you like is a tall girl with a big ass, right?"

Obito said in a raspy, teasing voice, a glint of mischief flashing in the eye visible through the mask's hole:

"I still remember, you know. That magazine I saw under your bed back then—you were just a teenager, yet so precocious."

Kou's face turned bright red in a flash.

"Ha?!"

He reflexively retorted:

"Isn't this the pot calling the kettle black? You were the one who knelt and begged me to be your wingman to chase Rin! You're the last person who has the right to say that to me! You stalker!!"

As the words fell, the living room plunged into a deathly silence.

The rare, relaxed atmosphere from just a moment ago, which felt like a return to the past, was extinguished without a trace.

Both Obito and Kou fell into silence.

Damn it, I forgot to turn off my verbal recoil!

Kou, realizing he had made a grave mistake, couldn't help but feel annoyed.

The atmosphere had been too relaxed, feeling just like it did many years ago—back in Konoha, back when they were just two kids throwing shuriken at each other on the training ground.

The feeling was too familiar, so familiar that he had unconsciously let down all his defenses, and then—he had dug his own grave.

Is it because the pressure decreased after awakening the Mangekyo? I actually made such a low-level mistake.

Kou muttered in his heart, feeling a lingering fear:

Even I have started to get cocky; the Uchiha genes are truly too powerful...

He carefully raised his head to observe Obito, who had not said a word since that moment.

Obito stood quietly where he was.

His posture was upright, and his Black Cloak with Red Clouds shimmered with a dim light under the dusky lamp.

That orange spiral mask hid all his expressions, revealing only his right eye.

But at this moment, what surfaced in that eye were distant memories from many years ago.

Konoha, the Uchiha compound, Kou's room.

Outside the window, the cicadas of summer chirped, and sunlight squeezed through the gaps in the curtains, drawing a thin golden line across the wooden floor.

The air was filled with the lazy, youthful scent of boyhood.

Obito lay on Kou's bed, his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling.

His goggles hung crookedly around his neck, his clothes were wrinkled, and his whole person radiated a "I don't want to move" kind of lethargy.

"Hey, Kou, what kind of girl do you like?"

His voice carried a cautious tension, as if he were testing something.

At the desk, Kou did not turn around.

He looked at the scroll in his hands, his brows slightly furrowed, and replied irritably:

"Instead of having the time to ask that, you should hurry up and finish your homework.

School starts next week, and you haven't even touched your assignments yet!"

"Hey! Don't bring up such sad things!!"

Obito sat up abruptly from the bed, his voice full of protest.

"Where is the sadness in that?"

Kou finally turned his head, glancing at him with those black eyes, his gaze full of disdain:

"Isn't school starting the perfect time to see Rin, the girl you pine for every day? That's a good thing."

Obito was stunned:

"Hiss... you're not wrong about that. Then let school start quickly!!"

"Love-struck fool, you're invincible."

Kou shook his head and turned back to continue reading his scroll.

"Hey, hey, Kou—"

Obito's voice rang out again, this time quieter and more cautious, as if he were asking a question of great importance:

"Tell me, what kind of guy do you think Rin would like?"

Kou's movements paused for a moment:

"Do you want the truth or a lie?"

"The truth, obviously!!"

"...Someone like Kakashi."

"Hey!!"

Obito's consciousness slowly pulled away from the memory.

Those images dissipated before his eyes bit by bit, like smoke scattered by the wind.

He closed his eyes, and the exposed eyelid trembled slightly, as if suppressing the surging emotions within his heart.

After a long while, he slowly opened his eyes, the emotions within them having returned to calm.

He looked at the Kou before him.

The boy who had once lain on the Konoha training ground counting stars with him had now grown into a mature man.

Compared to his memories, he had become more mature and even more handsome.

Yet, the weariness hidden beneath the flamboyant facade in his brows had never changed from beginning to end.

Kou was still the same Kou as before.

But he himself was no longer the Uchiha Obito of the past.

"...I'm leaving now."

His voice returned to its habitual indifference, as if the silence that had just passed never occurred.

Watching Obito show no aggressive reaction, the taut string in Kou's heart finally relaxed.

But a flash of surprise immediately crossed his eyes:

"Aren't you going to ask what Nagato said to me?"

"There is no need."

Obito responded indifferently, his tone carrying a hint of disdain:

"He is merely a puppet with backdoors planted all over him by that old thing, Madara.

There's no need to even think about it; it must be some childish tactic to sow discord."

His voice was filled with mockery:

"In the end, he is just a naive brat."

Hearing Obito's disdainful words, the corners of Kou's mouth twitched slightly.

Calling him a brat when he's five years older than you—you've really gotten into character, haven't you? You've truly convinced yourself you're Uchiha Madara...

He muttered in his heart, a complex emotion flashing through his black eyes.

However, if he didn't pretend to be Uchiha Madara, the Uchiha Obito I once knew would never have been able to commit such beastly acts.

Self-hypnosis? Schizophrenia? Regardless, this guy right now is definitely not a normal person...

He whispered in his heart, though his expression remained unchanged.

"I'm going to carry out an Akatsuki mission next."

Kou's voice returned to its usual casual tone:

"I'll leave a Shadow Clone in the Mist Village. If you don't have anything else to do, you can stay here and keep watch over the Mist Village for me."

This way, I can avoid this guy and, after the mission is finished, take a detour to investigate those Uzumaki ruins.

He added silently in his heart.

Obito nodded, his exposed eye revealing no emotion.

He turned around, preparing to leave.

Kou waved his hand perfunctorily:

"Take care, I won't see you out."

Obito's hand had already risen, intending to wave back before preparing to activate Kamui.

His hand stopped.

"Kou."

"Hm?"

Kou looked at him, a flicker of confusion crossing his black eyes.

Obito remained silent for a moment.

"...It is nothing."

He said indifferently.

Then, he activated Kamui.

A vortex-like spatial distortion emerged around him, swallowing his figure bit by bit.

His silhouette vanished from the room, as if he had never existed at all.

"...Inexplicable."

Kou muttered to himself.

He let out a long sigh, as if trying to expel all the stagnant air from his chest.

Kou stood up and walked to the window, pushing it open.

The night breeze surged in from outside, carrying the dampness and slight chill unique to the mist, blowing against his face and clearing his muddled head a little.

"Next, as long as the work in the Mist Village is arranged, I can take action."

He whispered, a flash of sharp light crossing his black eyes:

"It's just going to be a bit hard on that girl Mei Terumi. To keep her from noticing anything, I'll have to increase her workload for these next few days."

The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, his smile holding a hint of pleasure and a hint of anticipation.

Everything was proceeding smoothly according to his expectations!!

He thought this to himself, then turned around, preparing to return to his bedroom for a good night's sleep to welcome a hopeful tomorrow.

Outside the window, the mist continued to churn, and the night remained deep.

The next day.

Mist Village Assistant Office.

Kou sat behind his desk, staring in bewilderment at Mei Terumi, who was handing him a leave request.

A sense of foreboding grew stronger:

"It... shouldn't be such a coincidence, right?"