A... A Tobi??? (Need a Little Support)

Clusters of white clouds drifted across the sky, their shadows cast by the sun falling over Konoha's Memorial Stone.

A silver-haired figure wearing an Anbu mask stood before the Memorial Stone. It was Kakashi Hatake.

Kakashi placed the two bouquets in his hands before two separate gravestones.

As the view drew closer, the two adjacent gravestones came into focus. One read "Rin Nohara," and the other, "Obito Uchiha."

What Kakashi did not know was that someone in the distance had been watching him all along.

Though he could not hear what Kakashi was saying.

"Heh, bringing flowers again and putting on an act. Is that guilt in your heart? Are you trying to atone for your past mistakes? Too bad it's already too late, Kakashi."

As dusk approached, Uchiha Qingfeng, having finished a day of training, went out of his way to buy two bouquets.

It had been nearly a year, and he had not come here even once to see his family. To keep anyone with ulterior motives from noticing anything strange, he had come to pay his respects, just to be safe.

This body had awakened the Sharingan because of an older brother named "Obito," and his parents had gone missing on a mission. It was time to go "visit" them.

Just as he was about to reach the Cemetery, Qingfeng stopped.

With Kushina about to give birth, security within Leaf Village was extremely tight. Obito would not risk sneaking into the village at a time like this, would he?

It can't be that much of a coincidence, right? Once he went in, he would put down the flowers and leave immediately. Qingfeng quietly bolstered his courage.

At last, he took the first step.

His parents had disappeared during a mission and never returned. A gravestone had been erected here merely as a symbolic gesture.

He quickly set down the first bouquet. "Konoha and the Uchiha are both doing well. You don't need to worry!"

Then he hurried off to find Obito Uchiha's gravestone.

All of this fell into the eyes of the masked man hiding in the shadows.

A trace of tenderness flashed through his eyes. "Qingfeng, you've grown up. You've gotten taller too." Then his expression turned cold again.

For another peaceful Ninja World, everything would be reborn there. He would never allow anyone to stand in his way.

Qingfeng finally found the gravestone bearing the name "Obito Uchiha."

At first glance, he noticed something was wrong. A freshly bought bouquet had clearly just been placed there, but the flowers had already been scattered messily across the ground.

The gravestone beside it, bearing the name "Rin Nohara," had received the same treatment.

A huge word—danger—flashed through Qingfeng's mind.

It can't really be that much of a coincidence, can it? Calm down. I have to stay calm. Maybe he's already gone.

Qingfeng forced himself to calm down and act normally.

First, he put down the flowers in his hands. Then he picked up the scattered flowers, arranged them properly, and placed them back before the gravestone. He did the same for Rin Nohara's grave beside it.

"Big Brother, rest easy. Konoha is very safe, there's nothing dangerous here, and the clan has been taking care of me. You don't need to worry about anything. I'll live well, carrying your share with me."

He put on a hypocritical performance and said a pile of mushy words, hoping that if some Mask person happened to be listening, the added weight of family affection would soften his heart and stop him from doing anything extreme.

At last, the performance was over. Next came the exit. Please, don't let anything go wrong at a time like this.

Before he had even left the Cemetery gates, he suddenly sensed a faint fluctuation of Chakra behind him.

Qingfeng had already looked around carefully while searching for the gravestones. He was the only person in the entire Cemetery. There was no one else at all. So without question, his bargain-bin older brother Obito had really appeared.

It felt as if there were even more danger signs hanging over his head.

Qingfeng resisted the urge to turn around. That fluctuation did not seem like an attack Ninjutsu. Those mushy words must have moved him. Everything would be fine.

He remembered the System mission: "Survive the Nine-Tails' Rampage." The Nine-Tails' Rampage had not even begun yet, so he definitely would not die here. He searched for every possible reason to believe he would survive.

Qingfeng knew that Obito's Moon Eye Plan was "a peaceful world, a world with Rin."

In other words, Obito believed that Rin would be resurrected in the world of the Moon Eye Plan. His bargain-bin little brother would surely be resurrected then as well.

There was a very real possibility that Obito would act personally now, sending this bargain-bin little brother to another world with his own hands.

The footsteps drew closer and closer.

Then a figure appeared beside Uchiha Qingfeng. Qingfeng pretended he had only just noticed and cautiously turned his head for a glance.

It was a Konoha Ninja wearing a Headband. He looked like nothing more than a genin.

Obito still thought Qingfeng was just an ordinary person. He had used the most basic Transformation Jutsu, believing Qingfeng would not see through it.

So that Chakra fluctuation just now had been from him using the Transformation Jutsu?

Since Obito did not intend to make a move yet, Qingfeng decided to properly play along with this little act of "brothers meeting without recognizing each other."

"Hello, I'm Tobi. Are you here to pay respects to family too?"

Seeing Tobi speak sorrowful words while wearing not the slightest trace of sorrow on his face gave Qingfeng an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

"Hello, I'm Qingfeng."

Tobi beside him clasped both hands behind his head and kept looking around. He seemed like nothing more than a youth curious about everything.

"You're still so young. Because of war, we both lost our family. One day, the Ninja World will be peaceful, right?"

Qingfeng softly agreed, "Permanent peace will definitely be achieved."

Tobi seemed to think of something and suddenly let out a cold laugh, nearly scaring Uchiha Qingfeng into running for his life.

The two walked along slowly. Qingfeng had to deliberate over every word before answering. At a time like this, he absolutely could not provoke the "Tobi" beside him.

"That was my older brother. Since he was young, his dream had been to become Hokage. Sadly, he died on the battlefield while protecting Konoha. He was always my pride."

Tobi showed no particular reaction after hearing that.

"Hokage?? Pride?? Then is your dream also to become Hokage, just like your brother?"

Qingfeng felt the danger sign over his head appear again. Everyone who wanted to become Hokage was an obstacle in the way of Obito's success.

"Although I'm proud of him, becoming Hokage was my brother's dream. I only want to live well in the place he fought so hard to protect, carrying his share with me."

Qingfeng silently gave himself a thumbs-up. That one sentence contained "admiration," "praise," and "family affection." If even an answer this perfect did not work, he could only run for his life.

He stole a glance and saw that Tobi had no intention of attacking. The tension in his heart finally eased a little. They had already reached the street, and with more people around, Tobi would have fewer chances to make a move. Qingfeng's odds of survival were greater.

Obito was also somewhat moved. Leaf Village really was the place everyone had fought desperately to protect. It was everyone's home.

The place he had once fought desperately to protect was about to be destroyed by his own hand. The hero he once was would ultimately become an evil dragon. Perhaps that ending was not so bad after all?