Obito Uchiha (うちはオビト, Uchiha Obito) was a member of Konohagakure’s Uchiha clan. He was believed to have died during the Third Shinobi World War, his only surviving legacy being the Sharingan he gave to his teammate, Kakashi Hatake. In truth, Obito was saved from death and trained by Madara, but the events of the war left Obito disillusioned with reality, and he inherited Madara’s plan to create an ideal world. Resurfacing under the names of Tobi (トビ, Tobi) and Madara Uchiha himself, Obito subtly took control of the Akatsuki, using them as a means to advance his machinations, eventually going public and starting the Fourth Shinobi World War. However, towards the war’s conclusion, Obito had a change of heart and, as atonement, sacrificed his life to save the same world he sought to replace.

Obito grew up not knowing who his parents were; in the anime, he was left in the care of his grandmother. Feeling alone in the world, Obito dreamed of becoming Hokage so that the people of the village would acknowledge his existence. He enrolled in the Academy to help him achieve that goal, where he developed a one-sided rivalry with Kakashi, whose natural talent and popularity he was jealous of. He also became a close friend of Rin Nohara, whom he eventually fell in love with. After finally graduating some years later, Obito, Rin, and Kakashi were placed on a team under the leadership of Minato Namikaze.

In the anime, as a final qualifying test, Minato gave the team a bell test to test their cooperation skills. Obito could not accomplish this on his own but, by joining forces with Rin and Kakashi, they succeeded in taking the bells, teaching Obito the value of teamwork. The team later participated in the Chūnin Exams, where Obito was defeated in the third round in a one-on-one match with Might Guy. Kakashi would go on to defeat Guy in a subsequent match, promoting him to chūnin and impressing Rin. Eager for Rin’s attention, Obito trained relentlessly, eventually rising to the rank of chūnin himself. His excitement was short-lived as Kakashi soon afterwards became a jōnin, once again earning Rin’s praise and Obito’s resentment.