Konoha Village — Training Ground Near the Ninja Academy
On a long bench leaning against the fence, a boy around four or five years old, wearing a pair of goggles, slowly opened his eyes.
Just now, a flood of new memories surged into his mind.
His original memory told him that his name was Uchiha Obito. He was five years old, a first-year student in Class A at the Ninja Academy. Ever since he had enrolled six months ago, he had ranked dead last in every assessment. He was the class clown — the infamous underachiever.
His dream was to become Hokage. He often helped old ladies cross the street, and his favorite person in the world was Nohara Rin, his childhood friend.
However, the new memories painted an entirely different picture.
According to those, he was Uchiha Obito, the ultimate schemer of the ninja world. He had infiltrated Konoha, orchestrated the Nine-Tails' attack, and caused the deaths of both his sensei and his sensei's wife. He manipulated Nagato, the wielder of the Rinnegan, plunging him into darkness and giving rise to the second generation of the Akatsuki.
He took part in the Uchiha clan massacre, single-handedly decimating the Police Force. He secretly gathered the tailed beasts, sparked the Fourth Great Ninja War, and ultimately became the second Sage of Six Paths, battling the entire ninja world by himself.
In the end, he repented and sacrificed himself for Naruto Uzumaki — the Child of Prophecy, the reincarnation of Asura, and the son of his beloved Minato-sensei.
His dream for the longest time had been to activate the Infinite Tsukuyomi, to create a world where Rin could live happily. From the shadows, he plotted endlessly, and throughout it all, his heart belonged to the same girl — Rin, who had died at the hands of Kakashi...
The two sets of memories — aside from their mutual love for Rin — were complete opposites.
For a moment, Obito was overwhelmed with mental chaos. The memories clashed and churned, eventually merging into a single, coherent timeline.
Uchiha Obito had been reborn.
He stared at his hands in disbelief. What met his gaze were soft, tiny hands — the hands of a child.
His expression morphed from confusion to utter shock.
"I... I actually traveled back in time? Back to the past?"
And then...
A familiar surge of energy stirred within his eyes. Driven by instinct, he activated it.
Instantly, his eyes turned blood-red. His pupils transformed — first one tomoe, then two, then three...
Finally, the three tomoe spun into a large pinwheel made of three scythes.
Mangekyō Sharingan. A complete pair.
His Double Mangekyō Sharingan had awakened!
He was only five years old. At this age, even Uchiha Madara would've been shocked enough to unleash his Perfect Susanoo.
Was it due to the shock from his memories? Or had he somehow brought his future eyes back in time?
Whatever the reason, Obito activated the power in his right eye.
At once, the space around him twisted like a vortex. His body disappeared from the real world as suddenly as a chalk drawing wiped away.
Kamui's Dimension
Obito reappeared in a monochrome world — a realm sketched in black and white. This was the resting place of his soul in his previous life.
"As expected," he murmured. "With both eyes, Kamui's transfer speed is nearly instantaneous. It may not be quite as fast as Minato-sensei's Flying Thunder God, but it's close."
He marveled at the power.
The Mangekyō Sharingan only reached its full potential when wielded as a pair. In his previous life, he had operated with just his right eye for a long time. Though he eventually regained both, it was too late. His body was already in poor condition, and he had to confront Kaguya Ōtsutsuki — the originator of chakra. He hadn't had the chance to fully explore the combined power of his eyes.
But now, in this second life, he had the chance.
Yet just as he prepared to test his powers, a sharp pain shot through his right eye.
Blood trickled down from it — a line of crimson tears.
Clutching his eye, he grimaced.
"I forgot... I don't have Hashirama cells anymore. I can't suppress the Mangekyō's side effects."
He looked down at his small frame.
"I'm only five... still too young. Using Mangekyō for extended periods will put a serious burden on my body. If I'm not careful, I'll end up like Itachi — talented but frail. I need to conserve my power."
With that, he deactivated his Sharingan.
A wave of uncertainty hit him.
He had died once. After that, he met Rin and slept beside her in what seemed like eternal peace. That ending... hadn't been too bad.
So why? Why had he returned?
What was the point of being reborn?
Then, the thought struck him.
At this moment in time, Rin, Minato-sensei, and Kushina-neechan were all still alive. Nagato hadn't turned evil yet. The Uchiha clan was still intact and respected.
A manic laugh escaped his lips.
"Hahahaha! Hahaha..."
He laughed wildly, but soon his voice cracked, turning hoarse. Tears poured down his face.
He knew he could change the future.
He had vast knowledge of events to come and wielded Double Mangekyō Sharingan. In his past life, with only one eye, he had terrorized the entire ninja world. Now, with two?
He couldn't even imagine how he could possibly lose.
But that was what made everything feel so absurd.
After the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan fell apart, he finally understood something:
He wasn't a savior.
He was an executioner.
All the sorrow and destruction — the fall of Minato and Kushina, the end of the Uzumaki clan, the Akatsuki's corruption, the Uchiha massacre, the devastating Fourth Ninja War — all of it... had ties to him.
All because of one moment: when he watched Rin die and awakened his Mangekyō in despair.
"Oh, my Kamui... even now, I can't hide these tears."
He had become the greatest beast in the ninja world.
That's why he had sacrificed himself for Naruto — not as redemption, but as a small gesture of atonement. He knew it wasn't enough, but it was all he could offer.
And yet, now, the universe gave him a second chance. The beast had returned to the past.
It was ironic.
"Good people die without reward... but the worst of us get a second chance?"
It was laughable. Who decided this?
He didn't deserve such mercy.
Not when he had bathed the world in blood.
Not when he had extinguished so many futures.
In this timeline, none of that had happened yet. No one had known that pain.
Jiraiya's ideals still held weight — the belief that people could understand each other.
Perhaps, if he changed, people would forgive him.
But he couldn't forgive himself.
Those memories — the horrors he created — were seared into his soul.
Not even time travel could erase them.
But...
If a beast returned to the past and did nothing, then he was worse than a beast.
"Even if I don't deserve forgiveness, I can still act."
He would do everything in his power to change fate.
Minato-sensei, Kushina-neechan, Naruto — he would protect their happiness.
He would reshape the Akatsuki into a true dawn for the world, not an organization of bloodshed.
He would prevent the Uchiha from being slaughtered.
He would never let Rin die.
He would make a world where Rin could smile freely.
That was his new purpose.
No longer to rewrite the world through illusion — but to redeem it through action.