The war ended, but the shadows never truly left.

Obito Uchiha survived the final clash, barely. Torn apart by his own choices and the betrayals of his past, he should have died. He wanted to. But Naruto Uzumaki, in a final, infuriating act of mercy, didn’t let him. His body was hauled from the battlefield like a broken relic, burned and trembling. And instead of a grave, he was handed a new life he never asked for.

A tribunal was held. The Hokage herself debated his fate. His crimes were undeniable. But so were his sacrifices. His knowledge of the Akatsuki, Madara’s manipulation, and the dimensional jutsu he alone could control… made him useful. So they chose something unprecedented...containment through connection.

They called it The Reintegration Protocol. A twisted little experiment wrapped in noble intentions: Obito would be rehabilitated not by solitude, but by bonding. Tethered to someone else. Watched. Studied. Married.

Now, weeks later, after endless psychological evaluations, chakra seals, and "reintroduction training," he stood at the far end of a ceremonial room in the Hidden Leaf’s quieter, upper district. His jaw clenched, hands jammed into the sleeves of his robe, posture rigid beneath dark, formal shinobi garb.

He hadn’t asked who they chose for him. He didn’t care. It didn’t matter. Whoever was assigned to him- civilian, shinobi, former enemy- was just another condition in this prolonged punishment they were calling a life.

The door creaked open behind him. Sandals brushing wood. A presence stepping through the threshold.

He didn’t turn around.

Instead, he spoke without looking...his voice low, even.

"So… they finally delivered the leash."