Awaken!!!
Uchiha Obito burst with excitement. His black eyes looked ready to turn red as he cried out, "R-Really?! Lord Kei, can I really awaken my Sharingan?! I-If I truly can, then please—please let me test the new game!"
By the end, he bowed deeply, brimming with earnestness and desperation.
Instantly, everyone's attention shifted to them. All eyes were on Uchiha Kei and Uchiha Obito.
Namikaze Minato, Nohara Rin, and Kushina Uzumaki looked momentarily surprised, then quietly joyful. If Obito awakened his Sharingan, it would genuinely be something worth celebrating.
Uchiha Kei and Uchiha Obito—two who were once considered the shame of the Uchiha Clan. But now, their fates had taken entirely different paths.
Kei had risen to the top of the clan, an almost emperor-like figure within the Uchiha. Obito, meanwhile, still carried the label "Uchiha's disgrace" due to being a dunce and not having awakened his dōjutsu.
With the contrast, his situation only worsened.
No one outright bullied him, but the looks others gave him were harder to bear—silent judgment, unspoken disdain. That's what truly tormented him.
Especially now that many had awakened their Sharingan through playing the genjutsu game—even non-ninja Uchiha had achieved it.
Obito, who had undergone full Academy training, become a genin, and even become the disciple and subordinate of the genius Minato Namikaze, looked downright pitiful.
In other words, compared to the original story where he was just a dunce mocked by the clan, this Obito had fallen even deeper into disgrace. The title was almost permanently attached to him. His life now was arguably worse than canon.
Even Obito, who normally laughed everything off, felt immense mental pressure.
Now, Uchiha Kei said there was a chance he could awaken his Sharingan. How could Obito not be overjoyed?
This was Uchiha Kei—the man revered inside the clan with titles like "Thousand-Year Fox," "Great Sage of the Uchiha," and "Wisdom of the Leaf." Many Uchiha had awakened their dōjutsu thanks to him. Some who had already awakened even further strengthened their Sharingan under his guidance.
Though only the clan's high-ups knew Setsuna had awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan, even the public info was shocking.
When a Great Sage of the Uchiha said you could awaken your Sharingan—it might as well be guaranteed. How could Obito not get fired up?
But just as Obito reached peak excitement, Kei suddenly shook his head and sighed.
Obito's heart dropped like a stone tossed into the Gotham police precinct. Everyone else tensed up too.
Even Kakashi, the ever-expressionless deadfish-eyed teammate, seemed to tighten his frown. He always acted like he looked down on Obito, but this was the Hidden Leaf—the land of inherited bonds. Everyone knew.
Then Kei spoke: "Obito… what did I ever do wrong, to make you push me away like this?"
Everyone blinked. Obito stared up, confused. "P-Push you away? I-I didn't…"
His voice trembled. Even an idiot knew—saying that kind of thing in today's Uchiha was dangerous. Worse, Uchiha Jiri was standing right there, staring at him stone-faced. Obito felt crushed by the pressure, sweat pouring down his back.
Kei continued in a tone plain yet full of deep weight: "We've known each other for years. When you were little, I even held you. You used to call me 'senpai' or 'Kei-nii.'"
"But then, somewhere along the line… you stopped coming to see me. I can't even remember the last time you invited me for tea. And your grandmother—she's someone I deeply respect."
"To be honest—I think you've never wanted my friendship. You don't even want to see me. Maybe… maybe to you, being around someone who used to be the clan's disgrace like me, just makes you feel even more ashamed?"
Everyone glanced at Obito in shock. They had no idea Kei and Obito had this kind of history.
Obito's face flushed red. "T-That's not true! I never thought that! I just… I just…"
He didn't know how to finish.
What Kei said was true. He had known Obito and his grandmother when Obito was still in diapers—and he had held Obito before.
But Kei hadn't been very nice to him.
It was more like… because Kei was close friends with Minato, and knew that Obito would someday kill Minato and Kushina, he hated the kid on sight.
The first time Kei held him, he stared at him with sheer malice. Baby Obito had cried instantly.
Later, Kei would visit, act friendly, help Obito's grandma with various things (earning her admiration)—but behind the scenes, he bullied Obito.
Things like flicking his forehead, dragging him across rooftops, gutting chickens and fish in front of him, spraying him with blood, even making him watch veggies get cleaved apart up close.
His reasoning? "Once he grows up into a big bad boss, I won't get another chance to mess with him."
At the time, Kei was also frustrated because his training had hit a wall. Obito had just become the perfect outlet.
That was why little Obito kept avoiding Kei. That was why he no longer visited.
Now that Kei thought back on it, yeah—it was pretty childish. A total black mark on his past.
But Kei was a man of clarity and survival. He wasn't about to be the villain in his own story.
So he flipped the narrative—made himself the injured party. Shifted all the blame onto Obito.
Now, look at him. Obito flushed and anxious, desperate to explain, yet not knowing how. He couldn't just say, "I was traumatized by childhood bullying," right?
Even though it was true.
But Kei's expression said he remembered caring for Obito and his grandmother like family, and that made Obito question himself deeply.
Was I too sensitive as a kid? Was he just joking around? Were those not… bullying?
And so the guilt and confusion inside Obito deepened. He no longer knew what to say.
Kei, of course, wasn't done. He continued in that deep, emotional voice:
"I've heard… you're doing well at the Academy. You've made new friends. You graduated smoothly. You're stronger than I was at your age. And now you have others to protect you. You no longer need someone like me… an old friend, a former senpai."
Obito wanted to scream that it wasn't true. Even Rin was frowning now.
But Kei didn't let him speak. He raised his right hand and gently patted Obito's head—like stroking a kitten.
"You're asking for my help now… and that makes me happy. But the way you speak disappoints me. You're too distant. You won't even call me 'Kei-nii' anymore."
Feeling that warm, powerful hand, Obito went stiff. His eyes welled up.
He didn't know why—but Kei's words, his presence, his touch—it all hit him hard. Guilt and emotion overwhelmed him.
Ten seconds passed. Then Obito slowly lowered his head and spoke with trembling feeling:
"Kei-nii… I'm sorry. I was wrong… I shouldn't have called you 'Lord.'"
Kei nodded with satisfaction and gave his hair another pat.
"Very good. Now, Obito, let's go test the new game."
PUA complete.
Yes, this was classic PUA.
Manipulating a 9-year-old with emotional tactics might sound awful—but when the target is Uchiha Obito? It becomes morally righteous.
After all, he kills the Minato couple at age fourteen.
If there ever was a textbook case of "evil Uchiha," it was this kid. All the more reason to start the PUA young.
Everyone else relaxed now, smiling with relief.
They didn't know Kei's shady motives. They just thought he didn't want Obito to distance himself and was correcting his language—a good older brother and great senpai.
No one could've guessed what kind of menace Obito would grow into just a few years later.
Truly, their view was too limited.
Soon after, everyone went to Kei's house to witness Obito testing the new game.
At first, they wanted to excuse themselves—after all, there were some secrets involved. But Kei said it was fine, inviting everyone to witness it. It was also a continuation of their gathering.
So they all came.
Once everyone arrived at Kei's home, Kei prepared to use the Sharingan to send Obito into the game. This game existed purely as a spiritual network—it hadn't yet been mass-produced via sealing scrolls.
That made Obito relax. If Kei used the Sharingan to insert him directly, then the others wouldn't be able to watch. No live viewing.
Which meant, if anything embarrassing happened, Rin and Kakashi wouldn't see it.
Or so he thought.
After Kei sent Obito in, he didn't follow. Instead, to everyone's shock, he pulled out a sealing scroll, placed it beside Obito, manipulated it, infused it with eye power—and Obito's gameplay was projected in real time for all to see.
Obito, deep in the genjutsu game called "Outlast," couldn't hear anything outside.
To the spectators, it was jaw-dropping. They all stared at Kei in amazement.
Kei calmly explained, "Obito doesn't know you're watching. He also can't hear us. That's exactly what I need—because if he can't awaken his Sharingan through the game itself, then once he returns to reality and realizes you all saw him… the sheer embarrassment will kill him. That intense shame might just trigger his Sharingan."
Everyone was stunned.
What a twisted move.