#any convolutedness is obitos fault

[yellowocaballero]

HOLY SHIT THE TITLE DROP. WE ALL THOUGHT IT WAS REFERENCING SAKURAGAKURE SOMEHOW BUT IT WAS ALL ABOUT KAKASHI FINDING HEAVEN WITH OBITO STILL BROKEN BUT WHOLE, IN KAMUI... OMG...

HAHA ABOUT THAT TITLE DROP

Title drops are so sexy. But this is a weird example - I was working hard the entire story to find a way to drop that line, 'cause it's actually a reference to one of my favorite games and a lot of precious childhood memories (bonus points if you know what I'm referencing - you can actually compare/contrast the two games pretty well). When I started trying to dredge up a title I was having a lot of trouble, so @lazuliquetzal suggested that I use that line. I was kind of resistant, 'cause I do not like using song lyrics as the titles of my own fic (and poetry is on thin ice), but since I could tell what an influence the game itself had on the fic it felt alright.

It also directs the reader to a question I want them to ask themselves throughout the story - 'you call this a utopia?' makes you ask 'what makes a utopia at all?'.

The bait and switch is on the foundation of that question. The Q feels as if it's coming from a human mouth, and at first glance it has to be a person looking at Sakuragakure and denying that it fits the definition. Of course it's not Obito who asks, because Obito thinks he knows. The movement of Obito's character arc is towards asking himself that question - is towards him being challenged on his own beliefs, and accepting a different point of view. 'This' wasn't Sakuragakure - it was the shitty world that they lived in, and it was the space between Obito & Kakashi that caused them so much pain.

How could you call this imperfect world a utopia? How could you name your suffering as happiness? How could you look at the mangled remnants of the person you loved and call him perfect when he's hurt so many people? Why would you ever prefer the messy present to the nostalgic past - this cruel reality over a perfect dream?

Why indeed. To answer any of those questions, you have to ask what a utopia even is. Hopefully the reader has been asking themselves that question. I know my answer, but that's been informed by my own history and far too many years of niche Buddhism. I think it's a decent question to ask. I hope your answer is informed by the moments of perfect happiness you've had in your life. Thanks for the ask!