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i think we really need to stop pretending that rin was some perfect innocent angel. she was one of minato's students, you don’t survive being on the same team as kakashi and obito while in a war zone and stay soft. she was just as ruthless as the rest of them

she wasn’t "good". she was a product of a world that chews up kids and turns them into soldiers ready to sacrifice themselves at any moment

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YOUR SON LOOKS LIKE A GIRL @ MADARA

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i usually like to avoid fix-it aus, but the concept of onesided obito/nagato in a world where no one dies, the akatsuki has a friendly working relationship with minato's team bc nagato and kushina are cousins, is extremely funny to me

like yeah everyone's still traumatized because child soldiers and war orphans etc etc. but nagato’s more relaxed. his therapy is working. he’s making friends. he says one (1) nice thing to obito and obito immediately goes "oh no. oh god. It’s happening. that’s my soulmate right there"

funnier if kakashi is sitting in the corner also harboring a onesided crush on obito, watching in horror as obito develops yet another crush on someone who isn't him. like what is he doing wrong??? rin said to just say nice things to him, but kakashi already does! what do u mean calling him a useless disaster during training isn't considered nice?

meanwhile yahiko is enjoying the drama. he’s quite invested! likes to tease nagato about it

konan hates obito. as is the natural order of things, she thinks he’s an unhinged demon child.

nagato is blissfully unaware. he's just happy to be here :) treats obito like a scrappy little brother who keeps following him around like some lost duckling. but obito can work with this, he'll win him over he's sure!

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About this panel:

itachi is wrong lol. i don’t mean that as “my personal interpretation is that itachi is wrong”. i mean that he is intentionally and explicitly meant to be wrong.

itachi is portrayed fairly heroically or at least tragically throughout the latter half of shippuden. ive talked about how the concept of legitimate genocide is ridiculous, how there needed to be some self reflection on his part on the sheer scale of suffering he caused, even if he was ultimately a tool and not the primary instigator (and obviously also was a child)

but the one thing itachi holds himself accountable for is his treatment of sasuke:

itachi’s insistence on seeing sasuke as a “blank canvas” with no thoughts and opinions of his own is, in his words, his failure. for a long time, he didn’t even see sasuke as capable of individual thought, to the point where he plotted to brainwash him into serving konoha - he feels he has the right to control everything in sasuke’s life, because sasuke’s own point of view is apparently non-existent or possesses no value.

here, he admits that had he approached sasuke as an independent human being from the start, the outcome of his life would be significantly less fucked

additionally: a quote i often see in conjunction with this panel sticks out to me. it’s Kishimoto saying sasuke is a “pure” person who basically “does what he wants” without thinking of right or wrong. i don’t think that’s exactly what he depicted in his actual writing, sasuke doesn’t totally disregard right or wrong - but the key here is that he at least has a fierce desire to “do what he wants” which is in contrast to itachi’s belief that he’s a blank canvas for others to project their will onto

sasuke resists orochimaru’s manipulation almost entirely. i mean, he uses him for power yeah, but then he kills him and frees all his prisoners. he retains a moral code while orochimaru’s other victims are thoroughly brainwashed (look at taka, and later chino, and the way they approach human life).

he doesn’t swallow obito’s words instaneously either, and confirms his story with danzo, itachi, and the kages later on. frequently being targeted by manipulation doesn’t mean he is somehow inviting it or especially susceptible to it. even in this panel, exhausted and emotionally drained from “killing itachi”, he’s still resistant

i just think “blank canvas” is an interesting and also really fucking creepy description that really captures itachi and sasuke’s entire relationship. the tragedy of their bond is that itachi does love sasuke, but fallaciously assumed he would remain frozen in time as an impressionable 8 year old, incapable of making his own decisions. itachi was wrong, and for once the manga doesn’t shy away from acknowledging it.

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do you think obito would of lived if he didnt get the attention of the enemy so quickly by slapping his face?

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missed out on my chance to accept raphael's deal to take the orphic hammer. so now i have no choice but to side with the emperor bc i know i'll never survive the house of hope fight lmao

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Swamp Star | Baldurs Gate 3

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i'm so fucking cooked

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Hi! I like your analyses and would like to know your thoughts about Obito and Minato relations as Sensei and student. :)

I was rereading the chapter where Obito’s dream is shown where he returns to Konoha and he is with Kakashi all the time, his fellows are shown, team 7, but there is no Minato there, only as a rock in the background in one frame. Obito in his dream was 5th hokage, and there could be a frame where Minato passes him hat, but no, no Minato, he is not there even when they are standing at the Rin’s grave.

I know that he was bitter that Minato was always late to rescue them or wasn’t there for them, he said it to swirly zetsu and then during the war said it to Minato, but I wonder if he was that much bitter that even in his dream where he returns to konoha, he still can’t imagine Minato with them.

When he was in cave, I can’t remember did he even mention Minato? Because it always was Rin and Kakashi.

Hi. Thanks so much for the great question, I'm happy to see that my posts are pleasing you!

I was recently re-reading the specific Naruto arcs (Paine's attack, Naruto's birth, Madara and Obito's meeting in the cave, the kamui battle, and Kakashi and Obito's conversation) and I too noticed what you're asking about. When I watched the anime years ago, I got the feeling that Obito and Minato(+Kushina) had a very warm and trusting relationship. Several of their interactions and conversations were shown and it really looked very cute. The common dream, the love for the girl, the desire to protect. They're even both orphans, in fact. Everything literally hints that Minato should become a close person to Obito. An adult you can trust. Like Iruka, Kakashi and Jiraiya are to Naruto.

But it's all in the details. Contrary to what Kishimoto wants to tell us (Obito is Naruto who couldn't), he paints a completely different picture in the details. I'll explain it in a moment.

As I said above, Naruto had several adults in his life that he could trust and rely on. Iruka, Jiraiya, Kakashi, yes even Tsunade and Hiruzen to some extent. Naruto was an orphan, but he was open to forging new social contacts and relationships. But Obito is the complete opposite of him in that respect. Yes, he helps the grandmothers, but is he close to any of them? Or any of the other adults? We haven't seen anything like that.

In fact, it's so surprising. Despite being an orphan, Obito has absolutely no attraction to adults. Yes, he wants to help them, but he doesn't want help from them. He's an orphan, and orphans are taught to rely only on themselves. But at the same time, they always want adults to love and help them. Because that's what society does, you know? Parents give their children affection and love, and when children who are deprived of that see something like that, they can't help but be jealous. Think of Nagato, Yahiko, Konan and Jiraiya. All three haven't been with Jiraiya that long, probably less than a year, but even after almost twenty years, they see him as a father figure. They're blunt about it. This is what happens to other orphans as well. They meet someone who becomes like a father/mother to them and remember him warmly for a long time. Minato had Jiraiya, Haku had Zabuza, and so on down the list. Even Kakashi had Minato, though that has its own nuances there too. But who did Obito have?

Obito doesn't actively seek out Minato's company. Yes, he once asked him about Kakashi's behavior and teamwork, but that's it. Obito is left to his own devices, though not really. Rather, he's split the role and responsibility he has to attribute to Minato and the other adults to Kakashi and Rin.

If you start reading the Minato team chapters carefully, you'll see how interesting their dynamic is in terms of responsibility for each other. Rin heals and shows concern for the boys, she acts as a mediator for them and as if she needs protection just about all the time. Kakashi is directly responsible for them, he's among all three kids the most powerful as a shinobi, he's kind of the brains of the trio. Obito, well... He's kind of there. He needs Kakashi's protection too, but he also protects Rin. His status on the team is really hard to describe. I'm not saying he's weak and useless, rather he doesn't have a clear role and responsibility.

Their dynamic reminds me of a family in some ways. Not in the sense that they act like mother, father and son, but the way the internal balance of the team is structured. They're clearly in lockstep with each other. You see, even when we're shown flashbacks of Kakashi's story (chapter 239 of the manga and continuing) you know which page comes first after the intro? This is basically Obito's debut in the story, by the way.

We see the way he quickly runs to the meeting place and worries about someone killing him. That's Kakashi. He's worried about what Kakashi will say. Not Minato. Not only because Kakashi's opinion is more important in Obito's eyes, but also because Kakashi acts as an adult to Obito. The one who scolds him. The one who worries about him and is always lecturing him. The one who protects him.

Yes, they argue and fight a lot. Yes, they insult each other and try to humiliate each other. But Obito still listens to Kakashi and looks up to him as an authority.

Look at him. He questions Kakashi several times to see if he really means what he says. Why do you say that? Why do you do this to me? I thought we were on the same side. Aren't we as important to you as you are to us?

Obito doesn't think of Minato here or later. The nice anon is very correct in pointing out that Obito doesn't think of Minato in the cave and doesn't see him in any way in his life. When Obito is in the cave, he only thinks about Rin and Kakashi. I'd like to point out that he thinks of them on the same level. He doesn't leave either of them out and puts them as equals in his mind. And when we see his dream where he's back in the village, all we see is that he always has Kakashi by his side. Absolutely always. He's never a step away from him. And that's a very important point, actually.

When Obito was still in the cave, he was very clear about how he sees their future team. He, Kakashi and Rin will always be together. But where was Minato here? It seemed like only one mission away from them. But in Obito's mind, he isn't. To Obito, the team is Rin and Kakashi.

I want to emphasize how Obito has different attitudes towards Kakashi and Minato. Obito blames Kakashi for letting Rin die. Obito also blames Minato for not being there for them and such a tragedy happened to their team. That said, when Obito talks about how he doesn't care if his teammates are alive or dead, he is very much lying. Because Obito was always trying to keep Kakashi alive. He didn't kill him the moment he saw his hand piercing Rin through, he didn't kill him during the attack on the village at Naruto's birth, he didn't kill him in the kamui or any other time. That said, Obito killed Minato in the first available moment. And not just killed, it was damn revenge. Obito forcibly dragged the biju out of Kushina, blanketed Naruto with explosive marks, and took Kurama to destroy the village and wreak havoc. None of this was necessary, but Obito did it nonetheless. Why?

What. About. Minato.

Because Obito blamed Minato and couldn't forgive him. Because Obito blamed the whole world, the shinobi system, the villages, and Konoha in particular for this happening to him. That said, Obito had forgiven Kakashi. Even more than that, Obito shifted all the blame from Kakashi to the world and Kiri and went to take revenge on them already. But in Obito's eyes, Minato is not Kakashi. Obito is willing to sacrifice Minato for the beautiful future he wants to build, but Obito isn't willing to sacrifice Kakashi. It would be so easy and simple to take Kakashi's other eye and get all the power of the kamui, but Obito didn't even think about it. Because Kakashi is important to Obito, too important no matter what Obito says to himself.

Kakashi and Rin mean the world to Obito. Literally. They are everything to him. His teammates, his friends, his family. Obito relies on them too much. Too focused on them. Too dependent on them. That's what ruined him.

Minato and Obito wanted to be hokage, but their dreams are based on different goals. Minato wants to help the village and protect it. But Obito wants something else. I don't think he wanted recognition from the villagers like Naruto. As I explained above, he doesn't care much about other people. And it doesn't matter if they're adults or children. Just like Obito doesn't reach out to adults, he didn't have any close friends anymore except for his teammates. Obito wanted recognition from Kakashi and Rin. He wanted them to see him as a powerful shinobi. Someone who could protect them. Someone who could take care of them. Just like they cared for him.

Extra: while Minato was always late and never around, Kakashi tried to help. I'll just leave it here:

There were still reasons why Obito was so much in love, ahem, sorry, admired by Rin and Kakashi. They're Obito's support and backbone. Not Minato. And it's sad.

That's why this page of the manga is so important in Kakashi and Obito's conversation. No amount of people would be enough to fill the void in Obito's heart. And he never intended for it to be that way. He's not Naruto.

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So, it's news to no one that the Sharingan is representative of trauma. That's a level one Naruto fact. But I think not enough fans really appreciate how that's represented through what the Sharingan actually can do. Between projecting hellish nightmares into someone's mind and perfectly recording whatever the Uchiha sees, letting them flawlessly replay it over and over again... its main abilities seem to stem from PTSD symptoms. That's the core of what the Sharingan is and why it's so tragic.

The thing that *I* think is really cool about the Sharingan is that it has two branching evolutions. The Mangekyou Sharingan and the Rinnegan. A lot of people seem to think that the Rinnegan evolves from the Mangekyou, but that isn't really true, it is connected to the basic Sharingan and that's because the Rinnegan and Mangekyou are two different methods of processing trauma. The Mangekyou Sharingan doubles down on trauma and makes it integral to one's character. The visions it can project are even worse, the user grows in power with every negative thought and the user will gain two abilities directly feeding from their own personal trauma. Obito and Sasuke have different Mangekyou Sharingan abilities because the way that their worlds were destroyed were completely different. Obito feels like a ghost floating through a fake world, while Sasuke believes that the world is very real. It just need to be burned down and reshaped from the cinders. The one ability shared between every Mangekyou Sharingan user is Susano'o. It isn't a coincidence that the Kanji for this technique breaks down into "He With The Ability to Help Through All Means". It's the Mangekyou user's best friend.

Their own chakra.

Formed from hate.

And it brings them immense pain.

It's an incredibly lonely ability, the end of wallowing in hate and being unable to heal from trauma. Pain and Blindness are the only things that awaits someone who awakens a Mangekyou Sharingan, it's one of the most bleak and cynical things in the series.

So, is the Rinnegan a better way to conquer trauma? Lol. Lmao. So, whereas the Mangekyou Sharingan seeks to exploit the user's own trauma for drive and power, the Rinnegan is the rejection of trauma and all worldly matters. The rejection of death, the rejection of humanity, the rejection of basic rules that govern our world. It is complete and utter detachment with the end goal of becoming God and just leaving it all behind. But... it's cope. Madara was the only human character to naturally possess two Rinnegan. Nagato tried to be a god, but couldn't succeed because the eyes weren't his. Obito tried to become a God, but always kept his Mangekyou Sharingan because he couldn't let go of his trauma, he didn't want to. As unhealthy as it was to cling to this, Madara's goal is even worse. Even Sasuke who gets a Rinnegan independent of Madara, notably only gets one because he doesn't want to sever his ties to the past and wants to remember his trauma, remember what he wants to preserve and why. Only Madara's insane ass is truly resolved to leave it all behind in the name of becoming a God.

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accidentally got mayrina killed 😟

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@kkobweek | Day I: Firsts

-- Kakashi is feeling experimental--

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Considering the Uchiha were moved to the outskirts of the hidden village, had no freedom of choice when it came to deciding where to live within the village, had no political representation for decades, were kept under surveillance by ANBU forces which they had no power over despite a portion of their population ran the 'police force', were ultimately annihilated in the massacre... I'm curious to understand why they shouldn't be considered as an oppressed group.

Generally speaking, oppression precedes genocide. The thing is, genocide doesn’t spontaneously occur, it’s not an auto-combustive process that discharges out of the blue, it’s never unpremeditated. Every holocaust had years, if not decades, of unambiguous underhand planning, racial profiling and isolationism which preceded it.

Why can't the same logic be applied to the Uchiha? If they're not an oppressed group, what are they? If they're not an oppressed group, then why were they eliminated from existence? Why wasn't Fugaku and his collaborators simply arrested and the rest left alone, for example? I've occasionally read (and not just on this platform) that the Uchiha clan was privileged. How so? In what did their privilege consist, exactly? What economic advantages did they have over other clans? Did they receive special treatment? If they did, how so?

I don't get it.

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took me 300+ hours to realize that the statues in the shattered sanctum are unstable and that you can drop them on your enemies

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accidentally got volo killed before he could perform the ice pick lobotomy on me. guess from now on i have to cast see invisibility on myself like some useless clown 😔

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No way Obito pulled out his katana from his eye like that! That was so clean and sick! They just had to make him so OP, powerful and deadly like that even in different universe

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almost got my ass beat by the goblins guarding the blighted village of all people