Falling In Reverse

They heard Hashirama's laugh the moment they reached the entrance to the cave and stepped over the boundary of the wards. It was just another temporary shelter, a few days pit stop during their endless hide-and-seek game with their enemy.

The trio shared a glance. Minato looked exasperated, Kakashi looked amused, and Naruto was simply curious about what made the Shodai guffaw so merrily. All possibilities promised to be equally hilarious.

They entered the yawning hole in the side of the mountain. Assured footsteps shuffled through the narrow passage using only a dim glow of the concealing seals painted on the walls to light their way. Hashirama's laugh rang in their ears as the three men approached. They could already see the light spilling through. The pleasant heated air warmed their chilled skin.

Soon, the path opened up into a spacious cavern. The bonfire in the middle cast myriads shimmering shadows all around it, merging and morphing the various shapes and forms of stalactites and stalagmites dotting the great expanse of the cave's interior into something eerie and obscure.

The trio shared another glance between each other as they saw Tobirama and the Kyuubi's clone sitting at the opposite sides of the shogi board.

No one paid attention to the team that just returned from their recon mission.

"You can't just—" Tobirama protested, motioning speechlessly at the board in front of him, searching for the correct word. It was kind of bizarre seeing the usually collected and serious Nidaime this flustered. "—do that!"

Kurama's fur along his topline bristled. "And why not?" he growled, lips pulling back into a sneer, red eyes narrowed, dangerous. "These," he tapped two pieces with his nails, "should be able to move wherever they want on this rotten scrap of wood. It is ridiculous to assume that they would be hindered by such a measly distance."

Minato chuckled quietly under his breath. A slight hue of pink dusted Naruto's cheeks as he stared at those two specific shogi pieces. The king and the golden general.

"And this one," the Kyuubi tapped another piece, a silver general this time, "would never be far behind the other two. He would tear through the enemy like a bolt of lightning to reach them."

Kakashi's awkward cough got drowned by another explosive bout of Hashirama's laugh, his body shaking with the force of it. So much that Naruto worried that he would really undo the Edo Tensei Jutsu this time. Just a bit more and he would probably be rolling on the ground.

The Bijuu straightened up, pride and grace etched in his every motion. "Besides," he said, "this imitation of a battlefield is incomplete."His mouth stretched into a toothy grin, all razor sharp. "It is missing the most important thing—someone great and powerful looking after the King."

Tobirama stared at the fox with utter incredulity.

Obviously pleased with his reaction, Kurama puffed his chest, his tails swaying and moving to one side and then another. It reminded Naruto of Kakashi's ninken wagging their tails when they were particularly happy.

With trained stubbornness, he ignored the pang in his chest at the thought of their fallen four-legged companions.

The Nidaime took a long breath to calm himself and gather his wits. "It's not in the rules," he tried to reason.

"Screw the rules!" The stone walls vibrated with the sheer defiance packed into Kurama's snarl as the chakra beast rose from his seated position, angry and imposing. All nine tails thrashed wildly in every direction, responding to their owner's sudden ire.

One fluffy tail swept forward and accidentally shoved the shogi board. It tumbled across the hard rock, a sound echoing around the cavern.

Silence.

Everyone stared at the scattered pieces with various expressions. Somehow, by some weird stroke of uncanny luck, one king and its two generals ended up grouped together on the floor.

"Ha!" the Kyuubi cheered in triumph, leering down at the man in front of him. So much vicious glee made Tobirama's scalp tingle, despite his lack of actual nerves to feel such a thing.

Naruto smiled at the scene, melancholy swirling in his blue eyes.

He remembered this moment. The Nidaime Hokage decided to teach the Kyuubi shogi while they were out scouting. Right now, Hashirama should ask which type of pieces he and his brother would be. What followed was one of the very rare occasions when Tobirama completely lost his cool after Kurama picked two random pebbles instead of actual shogi pieces.

Naruto watched intently as the Shodai opened his mouth—

Shadows moved and twisted.

A colossal silhouette loomed over them.

The red glowing eye stared down.

—someone screamed. There was a smell of blood. It hurt.

Naruto glanced down at the torrent of blood gushing out of his wounds. His hands flew up to cover the most serious ones, but someone caught his wrists. And broke them. He looked up.

Black tomoes dancing in red, an ocean of anger and hatred, a burning passion for destruction.

Obito.

Naruto roared. His fingers wrapped tightly around his enemy's throat, another hand rearing for an attack, wind Rasengan already singing for the enemy's blood.

A strong yank threw him back. The jutsu slipped harmlessly through his fingers. A short disorienting fall later, he landed straight into the pile of fluffy fur, tails instantly enveloping him into a cage of warmth.

"Let me go!" Naruto screamed and struggled. To escape, to get out, to kill his enemy, because if he didn't—if he didn't, Obito was going to hurt him, to kill him after he killed his last few precious people still alive. He tried to do it, oh, he tried so many times. "Let me—Let me go!"

"Snap out of it, Naruto!"

—too suffocating, too much air in his lungs, he couldn't breathe, couldn't… couldn't find him, couldn't defend, couldn't protect, couldn't escape—

"It was a dream, kid."

Naruto stilled.

"Obito is not here, he cannot hurt you anymore."

A massive voice, surrounding him from all sides, but at the same time gentle, reassuring. Chakra humming faintly against his sweaty skin, so refreshing, soothing, and full of life. This was nothing like that man's chakra, perverted and disgusting.

A constant thrum of terror in his veins slowly ebbed away to the corners of his mind.

The teen looked at the fiery crimson eyes watching him, echoes of worry and protectiveness rippling through that gaze. Not Sharingan, not a glaring single giant orb. Not Obito, not Madara, not Juubi.

He breathed out a soft, "Kurama…"

"I'm here."

Naruto relaxed and let his body sink further into the safety of his friend's tail. "I freaked out again." It wasn't a question, just a dry statement.

"It was not your fault. You dozed off as we stopped for a rest and you were fine until that damn Uchiha decided to wake you up," Kurama finished with a furious growl, hackles rising. "I will take over. You rest here."

"But—" One stern look from the giant fox and his jaw closed shut. "Okay," the boy conceded. "But I want to see."

Kurama observed him for a few seconds. A displeased, "Fine," left his mouth in the form of a warm puff of air into his Jinchuuriki's face.

Naruto's lips twitched up slightly at the victory in their argument. A small one, but a victory nonetheless.

The situation was not good. It could have been worse, Minato thought. The boy could have not stopped and Obito would have been injured.

Oh, who was he kidding. His student would have been dead for sure. Wind Rasengan would have ripped him apart and no one was close enough at that exact moment to stop it.

Minato shouldn't have let Obito wake the boy up, but the Uchiha was so excited once he heard that this blond teenager truly was Naruto. He was supposed to be the young Namikaze's sensei after all and loved his son like his own. That was why Minato caved in, despite his knowledge of Naruto's dislike towards his overeager student.

And now they were in this situation.

Obito was pinned to the tree with his throat in Naruto's powerful clutch. While it wasn't quite choking him, he was visibly uncomfortable. The Uchiha held the kid's wrist and had the kunai pointed at his heart.

Minato held the boy's second hand, the one that just a few moments ago had a deadly chakra ball still spinning. Too close, still too close to his student. If he decided to reactivate the Rasengan, the consequences would certainly be disastrous.

Naruto wasn't moving, he just stood there as still as a statue. Minato doubted that several blades threatening the numerous parts of his body were a real reason why. He had to tighten his grasp on the three-pronged kunai, but the slight trembling in his grip persisted.

This… This was his son. Maybe not his real son, but his son nonetheless. And he had his weapon pressed to his son's throat, ready to defend the meager remnants of what he could call his family.

The world truly loved to play with him.

Minato tried to steel his heart for what he might have to do. Would he really be able to do it? He sincerely had no answer to that.

The man looked at those red vulpine eyes, weirdly focused on Obito but obviously not seeing him. His gaze flicked to his student who had his brow furrowed in confusion above slowly rotating Sharingan eyes. The Uchiha stayed perfectly motionless, not wanting to aggravate the teen even more.

Kakashi's eyes burned a hole in Minato's head. The blond could see the man's own hesitation in the angle of his katana, poised to strike the kid down, but at the same time not quite.

Rin stared at her sensei, a silent plea in her wide eyes, all the while her hand rested on a vital point of the teen's body, green chakra coating her fingers, ready to take a life away rather than save it.

The rest of their five companions surrounded them, dojutsu activated, minds alert and bodies ready to enter the battle at any given moment.

This was bad. Naruto was a well-trained ninja with vast experience and a Jinchuuriki on top of that. A Jinchuuriki who had the full support of his Bijuu. The fight with him would be devastating. Not just from a physical aspect.

This was his son. A ball of sunshine and a bundle of energy that everyone loved and cherished back at a time when the world still made sense. They would still fight Naruto if needed, of course, but it would break their hearts irreparably. Their morale was already so low.

Minato clenched his teeth and cursed in his mind.

Naruto blinked.

Everyone's eyes instantly snapped back at the boy's face, muscles tensing.

The young blond's lips twisted into a cruel snarl. "Uchiha scum."

A chill slipped down Minato's spine. That was definitely not the kid speaking. He recognized that deep, vile voice.

The Kyuubi.

Panic coursed through his veins. This was so, so bad.

Naruto leaned forward, completely unbothered by the sharp edge of the older blond's kunai biting deeper into his flesh. Blood pooled at the line of contact and then trickled down behind his collar.

Minato almost dropped his weapon when the handle suddenly felt like molten metal. He had to muster all the willpower not to fling it as far from him as possible.

Obito was stiff as a board, red of the Sharingan clashing with the demonic red. The Jinchuuriki was close enough now that he could feel the boy's hot breath on his face and it put his already frayed nerves even more on edge.

"Do not come near Naruto," the Kyuubi warned, his tone deceptively soft but decidedly more lethal. "Or next time I will not stop him."

"W-Why me?" Obito asked, his tone cracking ever so slightly. "Why does he hate me so much?"

The sudden influx of the overwhelming killing intent almost dropped the majority of their group to their knees. The fox's crimson irises held the Uchiha's gaze firmly, the pressure of his fingers around the latter's throat increasing ever so slightly.

Minato himself could feel sweat gathering on his skin. Rin looked like she wanted to puke her guts out and there was fear imprinted in Kakashi's grey eyes, his katana shivering against Naruto's neck.

The Kyuubi didn't seem to notice any of it. "Because," he drawled the word out, "there was a man who killed everyone he knew. Burned his whole world down. The humans, the villages, the trees, the sky." He leaned even closer and whispered into his ear, "Can you guess what his name was?" At the display of utter horror on the man's face, Naruto's sneer changed into a savage grin. "Correct. His name was Obito Uchiha."

The silence that followed that revelation was absolutely deafening. Everyone looked at the Jinchuuriki with the expressions of aghast disbelief.

"You killed his parents on the day he was born. You hunted him for years. Hurt him beyond your imagination. Tortured his sensei right in front of him." He snarled then, a guttural, feral sound that had no place coming from a human's throat. "Your presence, your smell, your accursed eyes, everything. We hate everything about you."

Obito's face was as white as a paper, crestfallen and crushed by that information.

"Stay away from Naruto," the Kyuubi demanded with finality. "If you have to approach him, send Kakashi or Minato. Those two will do." He finally let the Uchiha go, yet no one made a move to return the gesture. He shot a pointed look at the older blond. "Do you really want to slit your son's throat?"

Minato didn't step back nor did he flinch. He all but jerked away violently. Everyone else also backed off, shaken and weary, to let the Jinchuuriki retreat.

And Naruto… No, the Kyuubi clearly reveled in all of their despair, mockery and resentment dripping from every single line of the boy's juvenile features.

After that oddly civilized first meeting, they had seemed to let their guards down and delude themselves. The Kyuubi was an immensely powerful being of pure chakra, centuries old, famed as the embodiment of fury and malice. He didn't stop being one just because he made an effort to be somewhat polite.

It seemed that the single thing that prevented the Kyuubi from slaughtering them all was his friendship with Naruto, his wish to give him a place in this new unknown world. For the same reason, Obito was spared multiple times now. If they killed him, there was no way that any of them accepted the boy.

Minato tried to calm his shaking hands. The unsuccessful ordeal for he couldn't tear his eyes from the thin streak of red just under Naruto's chin.

He spilled his own son's blood.

The realization sunk into his soul like a chunk of ice.

He was protecting his student, sure, but he still pointed his weapon at his son and prepared to cut him down if required.

Just what kind of person he had become? If Kushina was still around, she would have absolutely pummeled some sense into him, no doubt. She would know what to do in this situation.

God, he missed her.

The man's heart twisted painfully at the memory. At the blood and tears. The image of his wife desperately hugging their son's cold corpse as her own life slowly trickled into nothingness, the image that still haunted him every time he closed his eyes to rest.

He lifted a hand and placed it over his eyes to try and reassembly himself into some semblance of Namikaze Minato, the previous Yondaime Hokage and the current leader of the rebellion that people desperately needed in these dark times.

Rin's compassionate voice reached Minato's ears as she murmured reassuring words to greatly distressed Obito. Someone touched his shoulder and he quickly snapped his eyes to see Kakashi staring at him. Stressed and worn out. Worried.

Dammit, he had to get a grip on himself. His people needed a leader, not some self-loathing failure.

"Stop flaring those disgusting eyes at me!" the Kyuubi growled suddenly. Then paused and stretched his host's lips into another predatory grin. "Or don't. I will gladly recreate the Uchiha Massacre in your world. That would be fun."

Five Uchihas dropped their gazes in a flash, discussing something amongst themselves in hushed voices and sharp hisses.

The Bijuu didn't even try to disguise his disappointment at their immediate compliance. He tsked and slinked to the edge of the clearing where he leaned against the tree with his arms folded in front of him, watching agitate humans with the sort of smugness that only an ancient being possessed.

Uchiha Massacre. Wonderful.

Their own dimension was already this messed up, just what sort of history Naruto's world had to go through? What kind of life his son had? Apparently, he was orphaned from his birth and went through a lot of hardships. Oh, and Minato's student, one of the most kind-hearted people he had ever pleasure to know, was evil. Wasn't that a cheerful piece of information.

"Sensei."

Minato sighed, rubbing his own forehead. They had already decided to leave the inevitable narration of their respective histories once they returned to the main camp. Those white things—Zetsu, as Naruto called them—might have easily infiltrated their current home. His people and their families were in grave danger.

Without his son's ability to tell the enemy apart, they had no chance of survival this time.

Minato let an air rush out of his lungs, giving his inner self a good shake. "We'll have to be more careful," he said, pursing his lips. Gradually, gears in his head started to turn again. "Obito was their enemy and it's obvious that his presence feels similar to them. If we look at it from their point of view, their hostility is understandable."

"It should be fine if we keep Obito away." Kakashi scratched the back of his head thoughtfully. "Er, I guess all the other Uchihas too? Just in case."

"Yes," the blond agreed. "Though I think Obito is the main issue here."

Minato's gaze unconsciously flickered at the idling blond teen nearby. Judging by the color of his irises, the Kyuubi still had mental control over the body. Concern sprouted inside his chest. What happened to Naruto?

"He's resting."

Minato and Kakashi suppressed a flinch at the statement that none of them expected.

"I will be accompanying you for the time being instead of Naruto." The corner of the Jinchuuriki's mouth curled up. "Take care of me."

Minato narrowed his eyes at the Bijuu, but received only an innocent blink in return. Quite disturbing, to say the least. The Kyuubi was obviously toying with them, but it felt more like... He wasn't even sure what it felt like. 'Almost teasing' came to his mind, but he dismissed it as soon as that idea popped in his head.

Kakashi appeared equally unnerved by an abrupt change of the Kyuubi's attitude.

The Bijuu rolled his eyes dramatically, however, offered no more comments.

Minato shook his head. The Kyuubi from the parallel dimension was truly giving him a headache. He caught Obito's dark eyes fixed on him, so he walked to him to make sure that his student was okay.

Knowing Obito, he was most likely already drowning in misplaced guilt about whatever his alternative version did to Naruto. And he probably had every intention to do all he could to make up for it, given a chance.

Obito could pester someone relentlessly with his impulsive friendliness and overwhelming kindness until he found his way through their walls and defenses and into their hearts. Kakashi Hatake was a prime example of his stubbornness to befriend someone.

"Obito," Minato called softly. "How are you feeling?"

The Uchiha's eyes instantly dropped to the ground.

Rin groaned in frustration. "Sensei, please tell this idiotic husband of mine that he shouldn't feel guilty of what happened to Naruto."

"Obito, it's not your fault."

"But—"

"But what?" the blond question sternly. "Do you want to take all the sins done by someone else upon yourself?"

Obito's head shot up, mouth opening and his blustering outrage seemed to swell to bursting point. It never did though. After a moment, he deflated, going from eruptive anger to a sort of meek, dejected state. "Me from Naruto's world is really… evil. I mean, the Kyuubi said that I killed his parents," he trailed off, a strange expression crossed his face and he looked at his sensei, eyes lost and pleading for an explanation. "Why would I do that? Aren't we the same person? Why—How could I have killed you or Kushina-san? That's just—"

"The you from that world did all that, but listen, Obito," Minato spoke, giving his student's shoulder a light squeeze of support. "Every person is shaped by their experiences, the choices they make during their lives. Something must have happened that derailed that other Obito's path from yours and you two turned out as completely different identities."

"But what if—" The Uchiha gulped. "What if I turn evil?" he whispered. "If the other me did, what's to say I won't?"

Rin scowled at him. "Don't be ridiculous, Obito."

With such a genuine fear written all over his face, Obito looked so young, Minato mused. Not at all like a man over thirty years old. He knew why he felt scared and his heart went out for him. If there was a possibility, regardless of how small or plausible, of him turning against his family and friends, that would certainly shake him greatly. Especially with Naruto's obvious hate towards him despite them not being the same person.

"Our worlds are not the same. The same people turn out differently, Obito," Minato said, unable to hide the sadness that emerged in his blue eyes. "This teenager version of my son is the best example of how diverse they can be."

The Uchiha wilted with a different kind of guilt.

"You also have to remember that this boy participated in an active battle just a few days ago. He still lives in it," Minato continued to placate his student's worries. "Give him time. He'll come to know you and see that whatever version of Obito he knew, you are not him."

"Maa, I don't know about that, Sensei," Kakashi piped in. "Obito is bent on making my life as miserable as possible. That's a clear sign of someone real eeeeevil~"

Rin smiled when Obito flared at the obvious teasing. "Shut up, Bakakashi."

"Not to mention that Icha Icha that he keeps hiding under—"

"Gaaaah! Shut up!" Obito shrieked, face going red to the very roots of his hair. "Or I'm gonna shut you up myself!"

Kakashi shrunk away from him. "I knew that you're really someone e-e-evil!" he stammered out. One didn't need to be a ninja to see straight through his fake cowering.

Obito glared, but then an idea came to him and he smiled slyly. "Wouldn't reading Icha Icha means that you're evil too?"

The other jounin tilted his head, pondering. "Oh. I guess you're right." He straightened out, slouching lazily with his hands in his pockets. "So, we can be evil buddies then. Or something."

"Before that," a sweet, sweet voice chimed in. So sweet, it made their teeth ache. "Obito, honey, what's this about Icha Icha? And don't tell me that you left it somewhere where our son can find it?"

"Of course not!" Obito defended indignantly. He broke into a cold sweat at his unintentional admission of doing the deed—actually hiding porn. "R-Rin, calm down. I can, uh, I can explain." His wife simply raised an eyebrow. "It's his fault."

Kakashi spluttered. Turning livid eyes onto his friend, he looked at the man in betrayal.

Minato watched the three of them, the blue of his eyes bright with amusement. His team was okay now. They had each other, so they would continue being okay. He turned towards a silent shadow standing next to him. "Itachi, are we ready to leave?"

"Yes, Minato-san," the young clan head replied. "We already packed up the whole camp."

The blond sent him a glance that was full of gratitude and apology. He was glad that Uchihas gave them a moment to sort themselves out.

"So."

They both froze at the deep voice right behind them.

The Kyuubi was grinning from one ear to another, way too gleeful for it to be an accident.

"Can we finally get moving?"

A/N

Kurama is being Kurama. He's not cuddly at all if you're not Naruto :P

So, Naruto's not okay. Minato's not okay. Obito's not okay. Seriously, no one is okay here. Eh, maybe Kurama, he seems more than okay with various opportunities to entertain himself in this new world.

Also, I suck at writing Obito's character. I'm sorry.