By the time Orochimaru and Diarmuid returned to the base in the Land of Birds, Rin Nohara had already woken up.
Against all odds, yet somehow within reason, she had been brought back to life. However, she herself was utterly bewildered. She clearly remembered the sensation of Kakashi's Chidori piercing her heart, she had experienced death vividly, yet here she was, alive again.
The impact of that brush with true death on Rin was profound. At the same time, she was shocked to discover that the Tailed Beast within her was gone.
To be fair, the reason she had originally chosen to die was partly because she knew her time was up anyway. The Hidden Mist Village's plan was ruthless. In truth, according to Madara's original script, he hadn't necessarily calculated that Kakashi would kill her; he had intended for Obito to watch Kakashi "rescue" Rin and bring her back to Konoha. Then, the Tailed Beast would have gone berserk, destroying the village from within.
That was the script he wrote.
Though the performance had deviated from his choreography, it didn't matter. He had successfully triggered Obito's descent into darkness.
Rin knew that going back to Konoha meant certain death. Even if the village were merciful, a Jinchūriki typically dies once the Tailed Beast is extracted. Furthermore, the Hidden Mist would surely have come to reclaim their "property." No matter how she looked at it, the end of her story was a single word: death.
Because of this, she had chosen to die a hero's death at Kakashi's hand, fulfilling her final bond. She had no idea that her death had not only shattered Kakashi's psyche but had also caused Obito to transform into a "Great Demon King" hell-bent on destroying the "hell" of this world.
"Yo, little girl, we meet again!" Diarmuid said with a chuckle as he walked into the room where Rin had been settled.
Rin had woken up before Diarmuid's return. For the past two days, she had been in a state of total confusion and anxiety. After all, this place didn't exactly look like a sanctuary, it was a gloomy, subterranean cavern.
She had encountered a "scorpion spirit" who looked like anything but a "good guy" (Sasori in his Hiruko shell), a "stitch-man" who was supposedly her savior but couldn't be bothered to talk to her (Kakuzu), and finally, a killer with red tattoos on his mouth who looked like he might eat someone and spent all day sharpening a massive broadsword (Jūzō).
She was a kunoichi, yes, but she was still just a young girl. Being stuck with those three all day would scare anyone. Moreover, her freedom was restricted. While she could wander the cavern base, she was strictly forbidden from leaving. It felt like being a prisoner.
Rising from the dead, being mysteriously imprisoned in a cave, surrounded by freaks... Rin was terrified. She had tried to gather information, but no one would acknowledge her existence beyond providing three square meals a day.
She did, however, recognize Jūzō as one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, the type who had defected from their village. As for the others, despite the fame Jūzō and Kakuzu had gained in the underworld over the past year, Rin simply didn't know them.
Hearing a somewhat familiar voice, Rin spun around toward the doorway and nearly burst into tears of relief. Finally, a normal person! And a very handsome one at that!
She immediately recognized the man wearing the haori and hakama, a blade at his waist, holding a smoking pipe in his hand.
"Rodriguez Diarmuid-san!"
He had lived in Konoha for some time and had maintained a good relationship with the village. At that moment, Rin understood why she had been saved. She figured the great Diarmuid must have been passing by, saw her in trouble, and decided to lend a hand based on their previous acquaintance. After all, Rin had searched her own mind and couldn't find any other "value" she possessed.
From a standard perspective, she was just an ordinary ninja, not from a prestigious clan, though she wasn't a commoner since she had a family name.
"Diarmuid-san!" Rin greeted him hurriedly. "Did you save me? I am beyond grateful..."
"Ah, it's fine. I just lent a hand. It was mostly Orochimaru and Kakuzu who saved you," Diarmuid said with a smile.
"Orochimaru-sama?" Rin blinked, stunned.
In Rin's world, Orochimaru was a legendary figure. Her sensei, Minato, was always very respectful toward him. Orochimaru was of the same generation as Jiraiya, who was Minato's teacher. Minato knew Orochimaru was his master's "best friend," so he naturally showed deference. To Rin, Orochimaru was essentially a "grand-master" figure.
But she wasn't stunned by his status, she was stunned by his identity. If she remembered correctly, Orochimaru was a Konoha shinobi. And so am I! So, why did Orochimaru-sama save me only to keep me in this place? Shouldn't I have woken up in a Konoha hospital?
"Regardless, thank you so much, Diarmuid-san. But I... Konoha..."
"You want to go back to Konoha, right? To let that brat Kakashi know you're safe?" Diarmuid said, chuckling.
Rin looked a bit embarrassed. She had loved Kakashi, but he had subtly rejected her, believing that since he had once "abandoned" her, he didn't deserve her love. She hadn't pushed the issue. In the days following Obito's supposed death, Rin had gradually come to realize that she cared for Obito too, perhaps even more. Kakashi was a genius, a figure of admiration for both her and Obito; her "love" for him was more of a youthful yearning for excellence.
In contrast, what she felt for Obito... might have been the real thing.
"May I?" Rin asked, nodding.
"No. In fact, for a long time, you cannot go back to Konoha. You cannot even let the world know that Nohara Rin is still alive," Diarmuid stated.
"Why?" Rin asked in shock. "I'm just an insignificant ninja. It shouldn't be too much trouble for you, Diarmuid-san, right?"
"It's no trouble for me. I'm just worried it'll be a problem for Obito, and an even bigger problem for the 'Great Demon King' standing behind him," Diarmuid said, exhaling a plume of smoke.
He looked incredibly cool. But Rin wasn't like Anko; she wasn't swooning over his looks. Instead, she asked with breathless disbelief, "Obito? Uchiha Obito?"
"That's right. One of the two Sharingan heroes of the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. The one everyone thought died under the rubble... Speaking of which, after you 'died,' Obito actually held you. He cried quite the river, let me tell you," Diarmuid said.
Rin was bewildered again. What do you mean after I 'died,' Obito held me? That sounds so eerie!
"Obito is alive!?" Rin ignored the strange details and asked excitedly.
"He's alive. It's a long story. Do you know where we are right now?" Diarmuid asked.
"I'm not sure," Rin shook her head. She'd been confined since she woke up.
"Not too far from Kannabi Bridge, within the Land of Birds. Near the spot where the three of you met your end... It was a bit of bad luck, really. I was busy killing a Daimyo in the Land of Earth at the time, otherwise I might have noticed your trouble. Out of respect for Orochimaru, I might have saved you all. A pity," Diarmuid mused.
Rin felt a bit dizzy from the information but nodded instinctively, offering a polite "thank you." She wasn't even sure what she was thanking him for… for killing the Earth Daimyo? Her dazed, confused expression was actually quite cute.
Diarmuid smiled at her. A cute girl always improves one's mood. While he had no intention of having some "special story" with her (he wasn't that twisted), he genuinely liked the girl's character.
"While I didn't save him, my neighbor saved that boy, Obito," Diarmuid added.
"Neighbor?" Rin blinked. Is it a trend for legendary figures in the Shinobi World to live in caves nowadays?
"Yes. But unlike us 'good people,' my neighbor isn't a good person at all..." Diarmuid nodded.
Rin opened her mouth, desperately wanting to ask, "Do you have some kind of misunderstanding about the concept of a 'good person'?" but considering Diarmuid was her savior, she kept the thought to herself.
"Uchiha Madara, a madman intent on destroying the world. He saved Obito's life and has been trying to trick him into helping him destroy the world. At first, Obito refused. After all, he was still in love with you. He was thinking about recovering quickly so he could return to Konoha, show off his power with the Sharingan, reach the pinnacle of life, marry a 'cutie' like you, and become Hokage," Diarmuid said with a chuckle.
Hearing about his "crush" and being called a "cutie" made Rin flush red. She lowered her head in embarrassment. But she quickly snapped back. "Then what happened? How is Obito now?"
She didn't doubt Diarmuid. Perhaps she believed he had no reason to lie to someone as small as her, or perhaps, in her heart, she desperately wanted to believe Obito was alive.
"Obito refused because he still had hope and expectations for this world. Naturally, Madara had to destroy everything he cared about to make him change his mind," Diarmuid said softly.
Rin wasn't stupid. In an instant, she seemed to understand. She gasped. "So when you said Obito held my 'body'... you mean he saw what happened? He was there? He saw Kakashi kill me?"
"Correct. Madara arranged the whole thing. The Mist shinobi, Kakashi, and you, you were all tools he used to crush the kindness in Obito's heart," Diarmuid said.
He paused, and before Rin could speak, he continued: "Without a doubt, you are the only light Obito has in this world. Kakashi is his only friend. Now... his best friend has personally killed the girl he loves most. Tell me, would he still care about this world?"
"What is he going to do!?" Rin asked, her face twisted in grief.
Diarmuid sighed and answered, "He's going to create a world where you exist."
Obito, this old man can only help you this much.
Though he didn't like the heartless version of Obito that resulted from the "blackening," Diarmuid possessed a certain level of respect for the boy's devotion.
The sentence was simple, but Rin couldn't hold it together. Her tears burst forth instantly. "I have to find him! I have to tell him I'm not dead! It's so good that he's alive... This world isn't truly full of despair!"
"You'd likely be killed by Madara before you reached him," Diarmuid said bluntly. "Or, you'd be killed alongside him when Madara's plan fails and everything turns to dust."