"Uzumaki Naruto, you should feel honored to receive an invitation from me. Don't mistake kindness for weakness," Obito warned darkly.
Beside him, Konan spoke more gently. Her voice and composure carried a quiet, intellectual beauty.
"Uzumaki Naruto," she said softly, "at least listen to the Akatsuki's plan first. You might find it interesting. If our plan succeeds, tragedies like those you faced in childhood will never happen again."
"By then, there will be no more wars in the ninja world—everyone will live in peace."
It was clear that Konan genuinely believed in what she said.
She was different from Obito. She had truly lived through hunger and cold.
Before meeting Yahiko, Nagato, and Jiraiya, she had begged for leftovers to survive.
And during that period, in the Land of Rain, orphans like her were everywhere.
That was why she later became the "Angel of the Rain"—bringing gifts and food to children who had nothing.
To them, Konan was like a living myth, a saint that appeared only in stories.
In a sense, Nagato and Konan's Akatsuki wasn't exactly evil.
They had power—but lacked education.
Their hearts were pure, but their ideals naive.
First manipulated by Obito's lies… then easily swayed again by Naruto's words.
But this Naruto didn't need talk-no-jutsu.
In this world, strength spoke louder than any argument.
Facing the three, Naruto slowly shook his head.
"The idea isn't bad," he said calmly. "But you're too weak."
That one sentence made both Nagato and Obito snap their heads up.
They—the men who thought they could reshape the entire world—being called weak?
Unacceptable.
Obito, emboldened by his Kamui intangibility, stepped forward.
His tone sharpened into a threat.
"Don't think that defeating Kumogakure and capturing a few Tailed Beasts makes you invincible."
"Today, you either join Akatsuki… or die. There's no third option!"
His words dripped with menace.
Naruto sneered—and suddenly widened his eyes in fake surprise, glancing behind Obito.
"Oi! Rin Nohara! What are you doing here?!"
Obito froze as if struck by lightning.
He turned his head stiffly, heart skipping.
Nagato and Konan, however, didn't move. Their faces turned oddly amused as they watched Obito's strange reaction.
Naruto's tone had been deliberately exaggerated—and with their level of perception, they knew instantly no one could've approached unnoticed.
Especially not Nagato with his Rinnegan.
When Obito turned around and saw only empty air, realization hit him like a punch to the gut.
His jaw clenched, rage and shame flaring.
Rin—of all things—was not something to joke about.
And Naruto had used her name to toy with him—and worse, he had fallen for it.
His pride burned away.
But then another chill ran down his spine.
'How does he even know Rin's name? And that using it would provoke me…?'
He glared at Naruto, suspicion darkening his tone.
"What do you mean by this?"
Naruto's smile widened. "Still pretending? You think Madara Uchiha would react like that to some girl's name?"
"There's only one name that would make the real Madara flinch—and it's not Rin Nohara."
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Obito snapped, trying to hold composure.
Naruto's grin deepened.
He could see the cracks forming.
His resentment toward Uchiha Obito ran deeper than toward even Danzō.
With a clap of his hands, Naruto summoned a jutsu.
Using a small squirrel nearby as the offering, he performed Edo Tensei—the Reanimation Jutsu.
A wooden coffin rose silently from the ground behind Obito.
Naruto tilted his head, feigning surprise once again.
"Huh? Rin Nohara, what are you doing here this time?"
Obito didn't turn around.
His fists trembled.
"Uzumaki Naruto!" he roared. "Enough! Don't think we won't kill you!"
Nagato and Konan exchanged a look.
Their expressions grew stranger still.
Because behind Obito, they could see her—a young girl with short hair, violet face markings, and a gentle, innocent smile.
Naruto snapped his fingers.
The girl's once-dull eyes flickered with life.
Her expression softened, though faint cracks marred her otherwise lovely face—a telltale sign of reanimation.
"Obito… is that you?" she said softly.
"Where are we? I thought I was…"
She looked at his back, confused—but his voice was unmistakable.
When that familiar, kind tone reached him, Obito froze.
He turned.
And when his eyes met hers—those same eyes that had haunted his dreams for years—his composure shattered.
"Rin…" he breathed, his voice trembling.
The way he said her name carried all the longing he'd buried since that day.
Rin's eyes brightened.
"Obito, it is you! You've grown so much—like a real adult now!"
She smiled sweetly, just like she always had.
Seeing her, hearing those words—Obito's heart ached.
Even knowing she was a reanimation, he couldn't stop the flood of emotion.
It was Rin's death that had awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan in the first place—proof enough of how deeply he'd loved her.
"Obito?" Nagato and Konan both turned toward the masked man.
And in that moment, the truth was obvious.
This wasn't Madara Uchiha—just a pretender hiding behind the name.
Obito's eyes wavered between fury and grief.
Finally, he clenched his teeth and whispered bitterly, "Rin… you shouldn't exist in this form."
Then his gaze turned bloodthirsty, locking onto Naruto.
"Uzumaki Naruto! You're courting death!"
To summon Rin—his Rin—like some puppet of the dead… it was unforgivable.
Killing intent burst from him like wildfire.
He no longer cared about recruiting Naruto—he wanted only to destroy him, to end this desecration before Naruto could command the reanimated Rin to do something unspeakable.
His goddess could not be defiled.
Watching Obito lose composure so spectacularly, Naruto felt immensely satisfied.
'Totally worth the trouble of collecting her remains.'
After all, it hadn't been hard.
After Kakashi's emotional confession years ago, Rin's body had been brought back to Konoha and buried in the memorial grounds.
A quick visit there had been enough.
Naruto's eyes gleamed with mockery.
"Heh… so you're Uchiha Obito, huh?"
To him, Obito's fury was nothing but entertainment.