Currently, the place where Jiraiya was buried is guarded by toads from Mount Myōboku, making it inaccessible to ordinary people for obtaining the Book of Crimson Moon. Therefore, Minato, Kushina, and Lin Nan are dispatched.
Tsunade's intention is clear: to have Lin Nan provide backup. She doesn't expect Lin Nan to notify the organization. So, was his effort in vain? However, since this matter concerns him directly, he doesn't feel entirely like a tool.
Minato and Kushina have just returned and are not in a hurry to leave; Menma is waiting for them at home. As for Lin Nan, he has nowhere to go.
Walking through the nighttime Leaf Village, Lin Nan wanders aimlessly, only to suddenly hear a call.
"Senpai!"
"Afu?" Lin Nan turned his head and blurted out.
Obito appeared in Lin Nan's vision, looking confused and asking, "Who is Afu?"
"No one, what are you doing here?" Lin Nan asked.
Obito chuckled and pulled Lin Nan into a sake house. Seated inside were a man and a woman. The man wore a mask and had white hair, while the woman had long black hair and two purple markings on her face. It was Kakashi and Rin.
Indeed, if Rin hadn't died, none of the events in reality would have unfolded like this.
"Young Master Lin has returned too!" Kakashi greeted him. Rin, being more shy, merely nodded at Lin Nan.
"Huh? Kakashi, how do you know Senpai?" Obito asked, full of confusion.
A flicker of panic flashed in Kakashi's calm eyes. Lin Nan's expression immediately turned peculiar. If his guess was correct, he often returned to Leaf Village in this world, so most of its inhabitants knew him. But Obito was different. It was akin to a company where Lin Nan was management, frequently taking leave or arriving late under the guise of business trips. Obito, on the other hand, was like an intern or an old employee, given how long he had been in the Akatsuki. He worked diligently, even putting in free overtime, and barely returned home throughout the year, as if living at the company. Lin Nan felt a pang of shame at this blatant exploitation. The Akatsuki, it seemed, were first-rate in this regard, regardless of the world.
Kakashi seemed to know about this but didn't mention it. At this moment, Kakashi was just like his childhood self. In the original story, Kakashi only began to live more like a normal person after Obito's "death." Before that, he was similar to Sasuke, a prodigious genius, aloof and unapproachable.
Kakashi looked at Lin Nan for help, clearly unsure how to explain. So, Lin Nan spoke up, "When I was on a mission, I shared a place with Kakashi!"
"Oh, I see!" Obito nodded, believing him.
Lin Nan shook his head and chuckled. It was quite amusing how the personalities of this trio hadn't changed since childhood. It was precisely because Obito rarely returned that they would have small gatherings whenever he did. During these gatherings, they would inevitably drink too much, with Obito making a fool of himself and boasting about his exploits in the Akatsuki. Lin Nan, after a few drinks, was also happy to witness this scene.
"You guys continue, I'm going to relieve myself!" During the gathering, Lin Nan took the excuse of needing to urinate to leave the sake house.
"Hey, Senpai, there's a toilet inside, why are you going out to pee on the street?" Obito excitedly wanted to follow. Kakashi, however, stopped him.
Blowing in the cool night air, Lin Nan lightly leaped onto the sake house, as if weightless.
"Come out, Afu!"
"You really can't hide anything from Senpai!" a low voice responded, though it was no longer Madara Uchiha's voice, but Obito's own. An Akatsuki robe appeared, but his form was somewhat ethereal, clearly Obito's spiritual body.
Lin Nan looked at Obito's "Afu" attire and his Sharingan slowly spun. "Why are you dressed like this? Do you still have some lingering nostalgia for the past you abandoned, Obito?"
"At this moment, I am merely a wisp of a spiritual clone, drifting outside this world!" Obito said. "So you can only see me, no need to exert yourself!"
Lin Nan fell silent for a moment, then looked down at the sake house and smiled slightly. "This is my dreamscape, and is it not also yours?"
"Therefore, this is why I want to create the Infinite Tsukuyomi!" Obito's voice was devoid of emotion. "When the light of the Infinite Tsukuyomi covers the land, all dreams will become reality!"
Lin Nan couldn't be bothered to engage with Obito. He knew that anything he said now would be useless; Obito was completely deranged. Strictly speaking, there was a significant difference between the Infinite Tsukuyomi and the Limited Tsukuyomi. One had their body still present, their consciousness entering a dream; the other went in entirely. It was a fundamental difference.
"Senpai, this is a world of the Limited Tsukuyomi I've created for you. Here, there is no tragic past, no painful experiences; everything is as you dream it to be!" Obito spoke again. "So, since all dreams have been realized, why choose to leave? Why inflict suffering upon yourself?"
Lin Nan glanced at Obito. "If I'm not mistaken, the 'person who harms the ninja world' should be me in this world, right?"
"As expected, nothing can hide from you!" Obito's tone was mocking. "So, how will you deal with yourself, Senpai?"
"..."
Lin Nan pondered for a moment, and the next instant, when he looked at Obito again, the patterns in his Sharingan had changed.
"Tsukuyomi!"
Mental attack against a spiritual clone, he wondered if it would have any effect. At least in the original story, Itachi Uchiha had scared Obito away with a single glance.
"I told you, this is of no use!" Obito's ethereal body remained motionless, simply watching Lin Nan. This thing was somewhat similar to the black shadow seen during the day. That black shadow was clearly not Obito, and he had no reason to play coy. That meant the black shadow, which didn't exist in the original plot, might be related to Lin Nan. Perhaps it was even Lin Nan of this world.
Obito perhaps guessed Lin Nan's thoughts and sneered, "Senpai, this world holds surprises far beyond your imagination. Just wait and see!"
"What do you mean?" Lin Nan's heart jolted.
"My meaning is very simple. Here, you have everything you yearn for. You can stay here completely. As long as you don't seek the so-called 'Book of Crimson Moon,' I guarantee that nothing you don't want to see will happen!"
"Oh? If that's the case, why would you go and arrest the tailed beasts of this world?" Lin Nan asked playfully.
Obito shook his head. "No, it's not me! This world itself contains some unstable factors. Find them out, Senpai. I may not be able to convince you, but if you insist on continuing down this path, the outcome for you will be..."
"Very interesting!"