I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 658 There's always a filter applied to deceased friends, making people unconsciously remember their good qualities.

In the instant before the Wood Release laboratory opened, Obito felt incredibly uneasy, unsure how to face the "newcomers," especially since he had practically changed his goals.

In a sense, it's like half a person has been replaced.

Moreover, he has caused so much trouble for everyone. He even complained before about why the teachers didn't come looking for him. Now that he thinks about it, he really is a terrible person.

The laboratory door slowly opened, and the single eye hidden beneath the scar slowly looked down at the people who were still waiting here in the middle of the night.

Kushina, her eyes filled with heartache and relief, yet feigning a threat, raised her hand. Minato Namikaze, as gentle as ever, now showed a hint of guilt. The first thing she saw upon waking up was Tsunade and Nono-senpai examining her.

There was also Tenfeng, who only knew how to grin foolishly; the clan head, Uchiha Fugaku, who looked fierce but was holding a sleeping child and waiting there; the Third Hokage; and several advisors.

Kakashi, head bowed, almost unable to look directly at himself, no longer the arrogant man he once was, radiating guilt from within, and Rin, her large eyes sparkling with tears that shone beautifully in the moonlight.

The moment Obito saw Rin, he instinctively took a step behind Tatsuma, burying his head and tucking his hands in, as if he didn't want Rin to see him like this.

"Obito!"

It was that very pleasant voice, and though it was only a few words, it had a feeling of coming closer from afar. Before Obito could react, he felt as if he had been pulled back, and Tatsuma, who was blocking his way, moved aside.

This was the embrace from Rin that Obito had always dreamed of. Holding Rin, Obito couldn't control his tears and they kept flowing. He wanted to raise his hands, which were pressed against his sides, and hug her back, but he timidly stopped in place.

"Sigh~"

Kushina sighed, looking at Rin who was hugging Obito openly and Obito who was so careful that he didn't dare to move at all, and couldn't help but feel sorry for Obito.

To ease the awkwardness, she stepped forward and hugged the two children. Then Minato went to Obito's other side and gently held his head. Only then did Obito dare to raise his hands and hug everyone.

Even Kakashi dawdled over, but he didn't join in the hug. After a while of fidgeting, Kushina noticed and pulled him over as well.

After a long while, the group finally relaxed their embrace. Rin raised her hand and gently touched the scar on Obito's face. Obito turned his head to avoid it, but Rin pulled him back with her hand. Rin looked at the scar on Obito's face, and Obito, with his eyes downcast, asked dejectedly:

"It's ugly, isn't it?"

"Won't."

Rin gently touched the scars and said, "You are a hero, these are your medals. Of course, if you don't want them, I will help you remove them. Although I don't know how yet, I will ask Lady Tsunade for advice."

I don't know if it was my own tears or the touch of Lin's fingertips, but the pain in the scar, almost etched into my soul, suddenly disappeared. It didn't seem so painful after all, if only I could get Lin's attention.

Kakashi looked at Obito's other eye, which was wrapped in bandages. He knew it must be hollow and sunken. He pursed his lips and said, "Obito, now that you're back, I'll return this Sharingan to you."

But as soon as he said that, Tatsuma frowned instantly, and the elders such as Hiruzen Sarutobi and Akimichi Torifu also looked a little ugly. Fugaku's gaze swept over Kakashi, Obito, and Tatsuma.

After feeling relieved, Minato realized something. He subconsciously looked at Tatsuma and saw Tatsuma's furrowed brows. Minato knew that his perception was correct.

If Obito had given Kakashi something else, even his entire inheritance, returning it would have been perfectly normal. But the Sharingan is different.

Especially when Obito returned, the first person to deal with him was the Fourth Hokage, Tatsuma; the second person was Tsunade's team; and the third person was Orochimaru.

These people all share a common characteristic: they are the Hokage and the Hokage lineage. Although the Hokage lineage and the Uchiha clan are no longer rivals in Konoha, they have not yet reached the point of true fusion.

If Obito accepts Kakashi's offer to return the money, it's inevitable that some people will maliciously speculate that it's compensation from the Hokage's faction, or hush money.

However, Obito could not refuse, otherwise it would be interpreted as him swallowing his pride and giving up his eyes due to the situation.

Ideally, Kakashi should not bring up this topic, at least not at this time. Instead, he should wait until Obito returns to a normal life and reintegrates into the village before raising the issue of whether to return the property.

Bringing this up now puts everyone in a difficult position, including Fugaku Uchiha, the head of the Uchiha clan, since he is responsible to the entire Uchiha family.

Kakashi had already spoken, and now the situation had become somewhat awkward. Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head slightly. Kakashi was still too young, and Sakumo had neither the political acumen nor the talent to pass on to Kakashi.

Perhaps these things can be made up for later in life, but how much can teenagers really learn?

Not to mention Kakashi, even Minato Namikaze, a genius with all-around talent, had to study for a considerable period of time, and he was learning from Tatsuma, who seemed to have a natural talent in this area, in order to have the awareness, talent and vision he has at such a young age.

But Kakashi shouldn't be blamed for any of this; he simply made a good mistake.

Just as the group was racking their brains, realizing that Kakashi's good intentions had backfired, Obito waved his hand and said, "Kakashi, what do you take me for?! I said it was a gift for you, so it's a gift for you!"

I'm giving you a Sharingan because I'm afraid you'll be surpassed by me too quickly! After all, my talent has finally awakened, hahaha~

"you"

Kakashi gritted his teeth. Sure enough, there's always a filter on dead friends, making people unconsciously remember their good points, but living friends are all bastards!

Obito looked at Kakashi and continued, "Or are you saying you look down on my Sharingan?! That it's not good enough for you?"

"I don't"

"Then don't say things like that again! Even if I only have one eye left, I will prove that my talent is greater than yours, and then surpass you to marry and welcome a new life!"

After almost spitting out his words, Obito quickly shut up.

Kakashi had never felt so frustrated. As expected... the dead Obito was his true friend, and this living one wasn't! He touched the eye Obito had given him and said:

"I won't let you surpass me. A loser will always be a loser! Even activating the Sharingan won't change that!"

"Hmph! We'll see!"

The bickering exchange between the two actually eased the worries of Tatsuma, Minato, and Hiruzen Sarutobi. Sometimes, one has to admit that the one who tied the knot must untie it.

What was a problem that was difficult to solve from their perspective was very simple for the person involved, so simple that Obito didn't even realize the problem existed before it was solved.

That's a great answer. If Obito had just said that he would never get back what he gave away, others might have said something else. But Obito brought up the dignity of the Uchiha clan and the bet between the two boys about their future.

Then this will be a wonderful story. The stronger the two become in the future, the more legendary this past event will become. Chenma smiled, and Okizuki nodded.

Obito isn't particularly bright, but sometimes, a sincere heart is more powerful than any amount of scheming.

Fugaku Uchiha also breathed a sigh of relief. Although he was inclined to believe that Kakashi's Sharingan was a gift from Obito, he could not ignore the voices within the clan.

Now that Obito himself has corroborated this, those voices will surely subside soon.

It's even estimated that a large number of Uchiha clan members would be eager to impart all their knowledge to Obito, just to prove that the Sharingan is the strongest only in the eyes of the Uchiha.

Putting aside everything else, Tianfeng, whose eyes were shining at that moment, had probably already come up with countless training plans in his mind.

It seems that Obito, who has just been reborn, is about to fall into hell again.

But this is fine too, since the Uchiha clan will ultimately benefit anyway, which is good for Fugaku as the clan leader.

The clan now has too few high-end combatants available to the outside world; on the surface, there's only Uchiha Tenka, which is not what Fugaku wants to see.

Over the years, Fugaku has become a mature clan leader. He knows that for a ninja clan to develop healthily, in addition to having hidden trump cards, it must also have cards to show to the outside world.

Otherwise, if others have any ideas, the clan will have to reveal their cards one by one, and eventually lose all their cards, which is unacceptable.

Young talents like Tianfeng, Obito, and Shisui need to grow quickly and become the clan's trump cards to the outside world. At the same time, they also need to cultivate more hidden trump cards, such as...

Fugaku tightened his grip on the sleeping Itachi, who murmured a few words unconsciously before turning his head to continue sleeping.

He originally intended to raise his children to be his own public asset, but now he thinks it's unnecessary. Even if Obito and Shisui can grow to the level of Tianfeng they are today, it would be enough.

At the very least, it can serve as a considerable deterrent, extinguishing the ill intentions of some people both inside and outside the village.

As for one's own children, they are raised as trump cards, and are not played until the very end.

Thinking of the Uchiha clansmen he had killed two years ago, and their repeated attacks, Fugaku could not shake off the sense of urgency in his heart. This ninja world harbored enemies he did not know about, enemies who harbored malice towards the Uchiha!

Tsunade then walked over to Tatsuma and asked, "What happened to Obito? The thing on him shouldn't be a product of your and Orochimaru's research, right?"

Although it wasn't explicitly stated, most people understood what Tsunade meant. Tatsuma shook his head and said, "It wasn't Orochimaru and me who did it, but someone else...whom you wouldn't expect."

"unexpected?"

At this moment, everyone, including Hiruzen Sarutobi, frowned. An unexpected person from a village, but very likely someone who possessed a more advanced Hashirama cell transplantation technique than the village itself?

Who could it be? Where did he obtain the Hashirama cells from? What is his purpose? Is he friend or foe to the village?

But ultimately, it all boils down to one thing: Konoha cannot tolerate such people and events. Hiruzen Sarutobi asked, "Who exactly is the Fourth Hokage?"

Tatsuma looked at Obito and asked, "Why don't you answer?"

Obito didn't think too much about it, nodded and said, "He said he is Uchiha Madara."

"Uchiha Madara?!?"

(End of this chapter)