The morning mist had not yet dissipated, but Training Ground 3 was no longer quiet.
Sasuke slowly sheathed his sword, repeating the monotonous motion of drawing and striking.
The Hatake Clan's Kenjutsu… he had practiced it for four years. It was ingrained in his bones.
Just then, a familiar figure appeared soundlessly at the edge of the training ground, watching him quietly.
It was Kakashi.
Sasuke merely glanced at him but didn't stop his movements, continuing the cycle of drawing and striking.
But today's Kakashi was... off.
He didn't call out his usual lazy greeting. He just stood there quietly, emanating a heavy, somber aura.
Sasuke's movements halted. He slowly turned around, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.
Kakashi seemed to sense Sasuke's gaze. He took a deep breath, jumped down from the tree, and attempted to force his usual carefree smile.
"Yo, Sasuke. You're here early." His voice held a hoarseness he himself hadn't noticed.
Sasuke didn't respond to the greeting. He just looked at him calmly.
"You haven't found that person yet?" He asked, cutting straight to the point.
The smile vanished from Kakashi's face.
He instinctively avoided Sasuke's gaze, letting out a self-mocking laugh.
"All files related to that mission have been classified as top secret and permanently destroyed."
Kakashi spoke slowly, his voice filled with powerlessness, "And any related public opinion records, mission reports... they've all vanished without a trace. As if they never existed."
While there was no direct evidence, this very act of 'trying to cover something up' was the best evidence in itself.
Kakashi raised his head, his gaze shifting past Sasuke's shoulder to the majestic Hokage Rock in the distance. His eye became incredibly complex.
"I think... I can guess what happened."
His voice was soft, as if talking to himself, yet also as if confiding in the Sasuke before him, "Back then, with his illustrious military achievements, my father's reputation in the village reached its peak. It even surpassed that of the current council elders. He was one of the strongest candidates for the next Hokage."
At that time, everyone believed the brilliance of 'Konoha's White Fang' would illuminate the village's future.
"A hero whose merits overshadow his master, and who is uncontrollable..."
A bitter smile appeared on Kakashi's lips, "To some people, such a hero is probably more of an eyesore than an enemy."
He thought of Hiruzen's face, always full of helplessness. He thought of those village's elders always hidden in the shadows.
"So, a 'perfectly timed' mission failure, a 'logical' public outcry... that was enough to pull a hero down from his pedestal, ruin his reputation, and ultimately make him an outcast abandoned by everyone."
This also explained why Hiruzen, who was Hokage at the time, chose to remain silent and let the tragedy unfold.
Because it was for the stability of the village. For the smooth transition of the 'Will of Fire'.
For the so-called greater good, individual sacrifice always seemed taken for granted.
"What a ridiculous 'Will of Fire'." Kakashi murmured, his voice filled with indescribable weariness and disappointment.
Sasuke listened quietly, not interrupting.
He had long anticipated this kind of darkness within the village.
He only stepped forward after Kakashi finished speaking, looking directly at him, giving him no room to dodge.
"So?" Sasuke's voice was icy, "Who is the culprit responsible for your father's death?"
Kakashi instinctively took half a step back. He hadn't expected Sasuke to be so direct.
He scratched his head, his voice hesitant, "Sasuke, this matter is very complicated. It involves village's higher-ups from many years ago... It's not something you should worry about."
The words were full of dismissal and an attempt to push him away.
Sasuke's eyes turned completely cold. A mocking smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
He knew Kakashi wanted to protect him, to keep him out of it.
But this self-righteous protection seemed somewhat laughable to him.
"It's Shimura Danzo, right?" Sasuke stated the name calmly.
The question made Kakashi freeze completely. His one visible eye widened with shock and disbelief.
"How... how do you know that?!" He blurted out.
'How could Sasuke, a twelve-year-old boy, know that name?!'
"It seems I guessed correctly." Sasuke's voice held no triumph, only a cold disappointment, "You clearly know it's him, yet you can do nothing."
He paused, then pointed his sword at Kakashi from a distance.
"Since you already know the truth, what's the point of wallowing in the past?"
"What you need to do now isn't lamenting here. It's to pick up your sword, and then kill him."
Kill that enemy.
Use your own way to prove the glory of the Hatake Clan.
Kakashi stared blankly at the look in Sasuke's eyes. In them, he saw a killing intent entirely different from his own.
"No." Kakashi's voice trembled. He shook his head. "Sasuke, you don't understand. Danzo, he…"
"I don't understand?" Sasuke interrupted him, the mockery on his lips deepening, "Of course I understand."
He slowly withdrew the sword pointed at Kakashi, his tone becoming abnormally calm.
"Because the culprit who gave the order to massacre the entire Uchiha Clan... is also him."
Kakashi stiffened on the spot, staring intently at Sasuke as if trying to discern the truth of his words from his face.
"What did you say?" Kakashi's voice was hoarse.
"The Uchiha Clan's massacre wasn't carried out by Itachi alone." Sasuke's voice was quiet, "It was Danzo who, under the pretext of 'preventing a coup', ordered Itachi to exterminate the entire clan."
"Itachi was merely the sharpest blade in his hand."
Sasuke raised his head. His dark eyes reflected Kakashi's shocked face.
"Now, do you still think I don't understand?"
After hearing everything Sasuke had to say, Kakashi's emotions finally spiraled out of control. He stepped forward, his hands gripping Sasuke's shoulders heavily, his eyes filled with a near-pleading urgency.
"Sasuke, listen to me! Even so, you can't go after him! That man has the entire weight of Konoha behind him!"
"So what?" Sasuke met his gaze calmly, allowing the trembling hands to hold him, "So you're just going to endure the hatred for your father's death like this, and continue protecting this rotten village?"
Kakashi's breath hitched violently.
"You and I... walk different paths, Kakashi." Sasuke's voice was soft, but it cut into Kakashi's heart like a knife.
"Your 'Will of Fire' has you firmly bound to this village. Even though it devoured your father and trampled your dignity, you still can't break free."
He raised a hand and gently pushed Kakashi's hands off his shoulders.
"But I am different." Sasuke's eyes were terrifyingly calm, "I have nothing I need to protect. Therefore, nothing can bind me."
He turned, leaving his slender back to Kakashi.
"The things you cannot do, I will do."
"The darkness you cannot sever, I will sever."
"Whether it's Danzo or..."
Sasuke's steps paused slightly.
"Uchiha Itachi."
"You just need to watch."
With that, he didn't hesitate any longer. Step by step, he walked into the morning mist at the edge of the training ground and disappeared.
Kakashi stood alone, rooted to the spot.
'What was I even doing?'
'I was teaching Sasuke to become stronger, yet I was restrained by the fear that he would turn to darkness.'
'I longed to avenge my father, yet I was hampered by the fear of the village's rules.'
"How... pathetic." Kakashi slowly raised a hand, covering his eye, letting out a suppressed, self-mocking laugh.
'Perhaps, compared to Sasuke, I'm the one who had always needed saving the most.'
'Father is dead.'
'What I should do now wasn't to dwell on an unchangeable past, but to...'
Kakashi stood there, lost in thought for a long time.
'Since Sasuke had made his decision, and Naruto was now under Jiraiya-sama's protection, it seemed there was nothing left for him to worry about.'
As for Guy... he could handle himself.
With that thought, his figure flickered and vanished.
He was going to a place.
A place that held his father's belongings, and also buried his past.
He was going to retrieve it. To bring it back.
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