Logically, three Jonin would have been enough for this mission. Bringing him, a Chunin, seemed a bit superfluous no matter how you looked at it.
"There's an important task I need to entrust to you. You can complete it, right, Kakashi?"
Minato's friendly and serious expression was very convincing, and Kakashi immediately nodded in response.
"Yes, I will do my best."
...After the team delved deeper into Roran, Kakashi left alone with his mission orders. Minato and the other two, after initial investigation, verified the accuracy of the existing intelligence.
Roran was located deep in the desert, yet its buildings showed no obvious signs of aging, indicating they had indeed been built only in recent years.
Furthermore, the city was filled with highly mobile combat puppets that would employ extremely drastic measures to eliminate any intruders they discovered.
As a small country with a sparse population and scarce resources, Roran should not have been able to construct high-rise buildings and powerful puppets.
The only possibility was that the minister "Anrokuzan" had, as the intelligence stated, developed and utilized the Dragon Veins, and the technology was already very mature.
If he wished, he could initiate foreign wars at any time, sparking the Third Great Ninja War.
If those endless combat puppets were to launch an invasion, with the almost inexhaustible energy from the Dragon Veins as a supply, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi's mission for Minato and his team was to thwart Anrokuzan's ambition and seal the Dragon Veins.
It was midday, and the Queen of Roran—Sara—appeared on the tallest tower in the center of the city, waving to the people of Roran.
But the strange thing was that among the "people" gathered below the tower, there were no living beings; they were all ordinary puppets dressed in civilian clothes.
The so-called greeting was merely a play orchestrated by Minister Anrokuzan himself, to make Sara believe that all was well in Roran.
However, Anrokuzan's arrangement of this play also indicated that, given Sara's temperament, if she knew the truth, she would certainly not agree to wage war and would strip Anrokuzan of his administrative power.
At that point, their intervention would be logical and reasonable.
With a general plan in mind, Minato and the other two waited for the right moment, intending to find an opportunity to speak with the Queen during her next appearance... Meanwhile, on the other side.
After a night passed, the sky was bright.
Kakashi emerged from his hiding spot, skillfully evading the patrols of the puppets, and continued to set up exploding tags in concealed locations.
Nearing noon, he happened to pass near the main gate of Roran and keenly spotted a Ninja-dressed man lying outside the gate. Approaching closer, he also saw the Konoha symbol on the man.
Could it be that others were also on a mission in Roran?
If this continued, he would eventually be discovered by the puppets. Looking at the man's condition, he didn't seem capable of continuing to fight.
Kakashi considered it briefly, then cautiously carried the man away, finding a safe place to put him, and leaving a Shadow Clone to guard him.
This way, if the man woke up or something else happened, he would always be aware of the situation.
Busy until the afternoon, Kakashi received the memories transmitted by his Shadow Clone's release.
The Ninja had woken up. After verifying the secret codes and various ciphers, it was confirmed that he was indeed a Konoha Ninja.
But strangely, when he first saw the Shadow Clone, he stared for a long time, then blurted out, "Kakashi-senpai," and then anxiously asked how old he was now.
If it weren't for all the ciphers and secret codes matching up, Kakashi would have tied up this eccentric guy's hands and feet, stuffed a rag in his mouth, and left him to dry.
Upon learning that Kakashi was now ten years old, the Ninja finally breathed a sigh of relief and said he had something important to discuss with him, urging his original body to return quickly.
--Perhaps the Village had new instructions for this mission?
To be safe, Kakashi once again performed a Shadow Clone. He sent the Shadow Clone to temporarily handle the tasks at hand, while he himself returned to the location where the Konoha Ninja was placed to meet him.
The man looked rather dull. He said his name was "Yamato," and despite being much older than Kakashi, he called him "senpai," explaining that he had already gotten used to it.
Kakashi leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, interrupting Yamato's endless rambling.
"So, what exactly do you want to tell me? I'm busy."
"Actually, I don't know how to describe it... But this is very important to you! Extremely important!"
Seeing that Kakashi was not satisfied with the answer and was about to leave, Yamato quickly grabbed his arm, his expression more serious than ever before.
"I'm not very clear about the specific cause and effect; no one told me much."
"But I remember you once said, 'I wish I had made up with him sooner.'"
"Kakashi, if you have regrets, you must make amends early!"
That last sentence pierced Kakashi's heart. His pupils suddenly constricted, and he instinctively pulled away from the other person's hand, stepping back two paces.
Although Yamato's words were vague, Kakashi had a gut feeling that the statement referred to... Naraku.
--Who exactly is this guy called Yamato?
--Why does he act as if... he knows I will regret it in the future?
Kakashi lowered his gaze to hide his trembling eyes, and a bold conjecture surfaced in his mind.
Yamato, however, mistook Kakashi's reaction for impatience, as he didn't understand what the other person's temper was like in his youth.
Recalling the Kakashi he had once seen, Yamato looked at him with both urgency and sadness, not even bothering to consider the proper address.
"I once saw you like that, Senpai. To be honest, you looked very calm, but in reality—"
An unfamiliar Chakra abruptly appeared beside the two of them, and Yamato closed his mouth.
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