Chapter 151: Fighting for an Idea
"As a ninja, shouldn't missions be the top priority? Aren't missions the most important thing?"
Walking out of the Hokage Building, Kakashi recalled Nagatomo Toda's expression earlier in the office. The man's face lingered in his mind—tired, angry, and disappointed.
Kakashi had told him he was a qualified ninja for completing the mission, yet Toda had looked at him with a mixture of fury and grief.
If they hadn't been in front of the Hokage, Kakashi felt Toda might have said much more.
But Kakashi couldn't understand—why was Toda angry with him? His teammates had died, yes, but Kakashi hadn't killed them. The enemy had. He had only spoken the truth.
"Could it be that the lives of one's disciples matter more than completing a mission?" Kakashi muttered.
If Toda truly believed that, then Kakashi thought it was for the best that he had stepped down as an instructor. A man with such emotions wasn't a qualified ninja at all.
A qualified ninja should complete missions at all costs… even if it means losing comrades.
That night, as Kakashi sat alone in his dark house, his words echoed faintly in the still air.
Once, Kakashi had a father who made him proud.
Sakumo Hatake—the legendary White Fang of Konoha—had been one of the most formidable men in the Second Shinobi World War. He had slain countless enemies and earned the village's respect and fear alike.
Kakashi had admired his father deeply. He had wanted to be strong, reliable—just like him. He graduated from the academy at five, became a chunin at six, following in his father's footsteps.
But when he was seven, everything changed.
During a crucial mission, Sakumo chose to save his comrades instead of completing the objective. The mission failed, and Konoha suffered heavy losses.
The entire village condemned him. Even the comrades he saved turned on him, accusing him of betrayal.
Then one evening, when Kakashi came home after training, he found his father lying lifeless in a pool of blood. The same White Fang Short Sword that had taken countless enemy lives had taken its master's.
From that day, the proud figure Kakashi once looked up to disappeared.
To him, Sakumo Hatake was no longer the strongest or most qualified ninja—he was a man who had let emotions cloud his duty and caused Konoha great harm.
And as a father, leaving behind a seven-year-old child… that, too, was unforgivable.
From then on, Kakashi took pride in no one—not even himself.
He opened the door and began cleaning the house from top to bottom. After more than a month away on missions, the place was covered in dust.
With the help of a few Shadow Clones, he finished quickly. Soon, the place looked just as it always did—cold and spotless.
"Should I train next?" he wondered. Dinner had already been taken care of on his way home, so there wasn't much left to do.
In the end, he did nothing. He lay in the courtyard, eyes fixed on the moon above.
"Kakashi, are you home?"
A familiar female voice called from outside.
"Maybe he went on another mission already, Rin. Let's just go have fun by ourselves," came a familiar, impatient male voice.
Kakashi got up and walked out calmly. "Is there something you need?"
"Damn, he is home," Obito muttered under his breath, visibly disappointed.
"If nothing unexpected happens, I won't be going on missions for a while," Kakashi said flatly.
He suspected the Hokage hadn't assigned him to a new team yet—and probably wouldn't, at least until new graduates came out of the Academy.
"Well, after such a long mission, it's fine to rest for a bit," Rin said kindly with a gentle smile.
Kakashi shook his head. "That's not the reason."
"Then what is it? You can't just slack off, Kakashi," Obito said eagerly. Deep down, he wanted Kakashi to go on more missions—he wanted a chance to catch up.
"There's no team for me right now," Kakashi said plainly. "My teammates died, and the captain decided to stop being an instructor."
Obito froze.
Hearing Kakashi say that so casually sent a chill through him. He still remembered seeing those two teammates about a month ago. They had laughed, trained, and fought side by side. And now… they were gone.
Two living people—just gone.
Obito felt the weight of it. For the first time, he truly understood the cruelty of being a ninja.
"I… I'm sorry," he said quietly, guilt creeping into his voice.
Rin's expression softened as well. "Kakashi… I'm so sorry for what happened."
But Kakashi's eyes remained calm, his tone unshaken. "You've misunderstood. I'm not sad. My teammates' sacrifice wasn't in vain—the mission was completed."
"What?" Obito's head shot up. "Kakashi, what do you mean? Is a teammate's death really worth it… just for the mission?"
He didn't know Kakashi's teammates well, but he could tell—they weren't bad people.
That day, Kakashi's teammates could have simply informed him and left, but they didn't. They even reminded him in advance that the mission would be difficult and told him to prepare well.
"Compared to mission failure, a teammate's sacrifice is easier to accept," Kakashi said calmly.
"You—! I really can't bring myself to like you at all!" Obito's blood pressure shot through the roof. He couldn't hold back anymore and threw a punch straight at Kakashi.
"Because you're not a ninja yet," Kakashi said, catching Obito's fist without flinching. "In the shinobi world, missions always come first. Ninjas who act on emotion are unqualified."
"Then let's fight! I'll knock some sense into you!" Obito shouted furiously.
Kakashi threw him back and immediately counterattacked. "You're the one who's not thinking straight. A student who hasn't even graduated wants to lecture me, a chunin?"
Driven by anger, Obito activated his Breathing Technique, enhancing his physical power and speed. He was determined to make Kakashi eat his words.
But Kakashi had no intention of holding back either. He fought seriously from the start. Earth Release and Lightning Release jutsu flowed seamlessly with sharp, efficient taijutsu strikes.
Even with Total Concentration Breathing, Obito struggled to keep up.
"Damn it!" Obito yelled as Kakashi knocked him down once again. He gritted his teeth, unwilling to lose to someone like Kakashi.
"If you still cling to those naïve ideas, then give up on becoming a ninja," Kakashi said mercilessly. "Do you feel it? The gap between you and a real shinobi?"
Though Kakashi's tone was cold, a flicker of surprise passed through his mind. In just over a month, Obito's progress had been remarkable. His Fire Release and taijutsu had improved noticeably, and the fact that he could endure this long against him was impressive.
"I just don't want to lose to someone like you!" Obito roared, his fists trembling with frustration.
"What do you even think your comrades are!" he shouted again, his voice echoing through the clearing. His breathing deepened, each inhale sharper than before, power surging violently through his body.
"Flame Breathing — Total Concentration!"
Obito's figure blurred and vanished. In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside Kakashi, his fist crashing forward like a blazing hammer.
Kakashi barely had time to react before the punch connected, sending him sprawling to the ground.
"He can still get stronger?" Kakashi thought, stunned. He had never encountered someone who suddenly became this much stronger mid-fight—especially after shouting like that.
Still, Kakashi wasn't one to panic. His combat experience ran deep. He had faced life-and-death situations before—this wasn't enough to throw him off. He quickly steadied himself and regained control of the fight.
By now, the clearing had turned into a chaotic battlefield. Sparks of lightning and bursts of flame clashed violently, scorching the earth and leaving small craters everywhere.
"You two, stop it already! If this keeps up, you won't even be able to move later!" Rin called out anxiously.
Sensing the seriousness in her voice, Obito began to calm down. He knew he still wasn't strong enough to defeat Kakashi.
Kakashi also halted, lowering his arms. He hadn't wanted to fight this much to begin with.
"Honestly," Rin sighed, walking up to them and brushing off the dust from their uniforms. "If you have different opinions, you can talk about it. Why do you have to start fighting right away?"
"It's because what he said was infuriating!" Obito said angrily.
"Getting angry only shows how childish you still are," Kakashi replied in his usual calm, flat tone.
"You—! Do you want to go another round?" Obito's temper spiked again.
"If you want to be taught another lesson, I don't mind," Kakashi said indifferently.
"You two—if you keep this up, I will get angry," Rin warned, placing her hands on her hips.
The memory of Rin punching a thick tree clean in half instantly flashed through Obito's mind. His mouth shut on reflex.
Seeing him fall silent, Rin nodded in satisfaction. Kakashi, not wanting to prolong the matter, said nothing further either. His mood that day was already far from calm.
Still, after that fight, there was no peace between them.
If Kakashi bought grilled fish from a food stall, Obito would comment that the fish looked old and probably wasn't fresh.
If Obito bought tempura, Kakashi would remark that the oil must have been reused too many times and was unhygienic.
In short—everything the other did was wrong. Even the way they breathed seemed to irritate each other.
Rin could only sigh and play mediator, unable to find a better way to keep them civil.
"It's almost the end of the term. Another semester gone already—time really flies," Rin said softly, trying to ease the tension.
"Yeah, another semester and then graduation," Kakashi replied. "If some people keep those childish ideas, though, I really worry for the village."
"Whoever ends up as your teammate will have the worst luck in the world," Obito shot back without missing a beat.
Rin: "…"
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