The night was silent as the silhouette of the moon swayed across the room. The sheets around you stirred as you stretched heartily in content and rolled onto your side. The responsibility of saving Rin and Obito from that mission had plagued your mind for years, but now, you could finally rest.
Those days are long gone.
The soothing thought danced in your mind every night, serving as a gentle reminder of the overall wonderful impact you made on this world, and on Obito.
Then, one night, the realization finally hit you.
It was Madara and Zetsu who set up Obito's demise. It was because of them that Obito was kept hostage, and it was because of them that Rin was kidnapped and subsequently implanted with the power of the Three-Tails, which led to her death. Since that plan was foiled – what will they try next?
Your eyes snapped open and you practically leaped out of bed in terror.
"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. Madara and Zetsu are still out there! I completely put a wrench in their plans, but that was only because I knew about it ahead of time. I changed everything because of that mission. Everything I watched from the show is now worthless! Everything!"
The tips of your fingers began rubbing at your temples as you paced around the room. "Everything from this point on is completely new. That means I can't rely on my 'future vision' anymore. Madara and Zetsu could easily come up with a new plan and target Obito. Heck, they could even target me! Only this time I have absolutely no way to prepare for it!"
Oh my god. What do I do? I can't. I need to tell someone. But who?
You then stopped in the middle of the room, your pointer finger tapping against your chin in thought.
Obito is my best friend, but there's no telling how this would affect him.
Rin is – something. An acquaintance, maybe? Even if she were more, what could she even do about any of this?
Kakashi? Out of the question.
Lord Third would immediately be skeptical of what I saw. I don't want to be a target for the ANBU, either.
Fresh out of ideas, you shook your head and sighed.
I need help...
~~~
With your legs dangling and swaying off a nearby branch, you watched Team Minato at the training grounds from afar.
Maybe Obito was right. Maybe I really am a stalker, you joked to yourself in an attempt to calm your nerves.
No. You weren't there exclusively for Obito. You were there with serious business. You watched each member spar for some time, paying especially close attention to Kakashi's Earth Style techniques. Despite the harsh words he said to you that one time, you couldn't deny that Kakashi was talented. If he hadn't revealed his 'true' feelings for you that instance at his home, maybe you would have asked him to join you in perfecting your Earth techniques together. You sighed. You knew that he would have declined anyway. His techniques were already perfect.
After they had completed their training, you watched Rin start to patch up a gash on Obito's cheek. Immediately your eyes narrowed in puzzlement, noting that something was off. You saw that Obito no longer blushed when he was around her.
Come to think of it, I can't remember the last time he showed any signs of romantic feelings for Rin. Wait, I don't have time for this right now. I need to talk to Minato-sensei!
Hopping out of the tree, you gracelessly dashed to catch the team's attention before the famed Yellow Flash could disappear before your very eyes.
"M-Minato-sensei!" you managed to blurt out just before he turned to leave. You quickly but politely greeted the team, making sure to fist bump Obito before challenging him to a match with the stake of ramen later before turning your attention back to Minato.
Minato was the only one out of the group to notice your uneasiness.
"What is it, (y/n)?" he spoke softly.
"F-first of all, I wanted to congratulate you on being nominated for the next H-Hokage. You must be really nervous!"
Minato sported a knowing grin. "I don't think I'm the one who's nervous here, (y/n)." He calmly bent on one knee to your level. "You can tell me what's going on."
You cautiously surveyed the training grounds, feeling uneasy about openly discussing such sensitive and compromising information. Of course you trusted Obito with your life, but there was no denying that he can be brash. He wouldn't be able to handle the inconceivable notion of who he could have been. Immediately understanding your concern, Minato stood up and put his hand on your shoulder.
"I see. I know a location where we can discuss this further. Are you ready?"
You nodded, turning to Obito one last time and pointed at him. "You. Me. This spot. 6pm. Remember, ramen is at stake here!" you teased Obito, to which he responded with a wink and thumbs up.
"Be sure to bring your wallet with ya, (y/n)!"
Minato then teleported the two of you.
You closed your eyes for only a second before you were in an entirely new location.
This is one of the safe houses Minato has spread out through the Land of Fire.
You noted how this one appeared somewhat familiar, as if it were the same house he teleported to during the Nine-Tails attack. The attack that was never going to happen, you hoped.
"Minato-sensei, I have to come clean."
Minato blinked and kept a solid composure. "Go on, (y/n)."
"Listen, what I'm about to tell you is going to sound hard to believe, but this has to be taken very seriously. I don't know who else to turn to. I know you are probably the most levelheaded in the entire village. Not to mention, you're about to become Hokage so I really think you deserve to know."
You took a deep, slow breath.
"Minato-sensei, you know I'm an Earth-style user, but I have one more power that nobody – and I mean nobody else knows about, not even Obito. It's a form of future vision in a sense – I was able to see one linear path starting from the academy days up to even 30 years from now. But of course, some things happened that I didn't agree with, so I... well... changed some things. But the things I've changed were so drastic that everything I've seen up to that point is so unlikely to ever happen now, so I essentially just lost that ability. Well, that's not entirely true. How do I explain this..."
Get to the point, (y/n). You inhaled deeply once more.
"Madara Uchiha. He's still alive."
Minato squinted only for a split second, but it was enough to indicate his suspicion, so you continued.
"In the future I saw, Madara was partnered with a being called Zetsu, and they had a plan to essentially end the world. I saw that he 'kidnapped' and manipulated Obito by killing Rin, which fueled his hatred and despair, and then they used him as a pawn to start the Fourth Great Ninja War. He even had Obito –"
You paused for a moment, thinking back to the time you watched Obito, fueled by despair, release the Nine-Tails into the village, which ended Minato's and Kushina's life while simultaneously ruining their son's in the process. You decided to leave that part out. The rest of your story was bound to be overwhelming enough anyway.
"Well, the good news is I prevented Madara from getting a hold of Obito. The bad news – the really bad news – is that I didn't actually stop Madara himself. He's still out there, and I don't know if he or Zetsu will plan to target him again."
Minato watched your chest rise in fall rapidly as you began to take quick, shallow breaths.
"I feel like I messed up, royally. For years, I truly felt like I had control over what was going to happen. Now, all of it is gone. I'm so lost, Minato-sensei. I don't know what to do anymore. I'm – I'm scared."
For once, Minato was speechless. He had a hard enough time accepting that you could see the future in a way, and to think that the Madara Uchiha was still alive? A fourth great ninja war? Minato closed his eyes as he stood back up and stepped away from your frame with his back facing you.
"Well. That's a lot of responsibility for someone of your age to handle, wouldn't you agree?"
You blinked, unsure of how to respond.
"I understand why you decided to confide in me. I can't tell you if what you did was truly the right choice, but given the opportunity, you wouldn't change what you did, is that right?"
That's right. I wouldn't change what happened on that mission in the slightest. I was prepared to die that day if it meant that they carried on. I just wish I thought through the implications a bit more clearly so I could be more prepared for if Madara and Zetsu tried to strike again.
"Obito," Minato started, the name of your best friend drew your attention.
"You love him, don't you?"
"L-love him? Well I m-mean, of course I do! He's my best friend, it's normal to care about him this much!" you defended yourself, knowing full well that Minato was intelligent enough to see right through you.
"You love him enough to completely change the outcome of the ninja world. That appears to be a special type of love to me," Minato stated as he turned back around to face you.
"S-so what if I love him," you admitted. "Does that really matter in a situation like this?"
"I bring this up because your feelings for each other is exactly what is going to help us get through this."
"So you're essentially saying that we can beat Madara, regarded as a god of shinobi, with the power of – love?" you uttered almost disrespectfully.
Minato frowned when you decided to feign ignorance and he began to walk toward you.
"Here is what we can do. Since the war has ended I can try to instruct a team of higher rank shinobi to scout for Madara and Zetsu – but there are never any guarantees. Your role, (y/n), is to keep a close watch on Obito. From the sound of it, the bond you two share will keep him from falling under Madara's influences."
That's a good point, actually. The reason why Obito fell into despair in the first place was because he lost the only person he's ever cared for. With me in the picture, I can help him through anything Madara throws at us! But wait...
"But Obito doesn't love me back, Minato-sensei. What if he begins to fall and I can't pull him out of it?"
Minato simply smiled.
"Your connection with Obito is more precious to him than you think. Just have faith in him, that's all he's ever needed. And (y/n)," Minato placed a hand on your shoulder as he prepared to teleport you back.
"Don't ever regret what you did."