Letting out a slight sigh of relief, Kakashi looked at Takumi with concern.
"So-called comrades are the people you trust the most, the ones you can confidently turn your back to."
"Is that so?"
Takumi nodded thoughtfully, then asked,
"Then who were Senpai's comrades? Was it Might Guy-senpai?"
"For me, all Konoha's shinobi are comrades. After you graduate, you'll be my comrade too."
Kakashi smiled and ruffled Takumi's hair, giving a vague answer.
"But, Kakashi-senpai must have had comrades you graduated and grew up with, right? Could you tell me about them?"
Kakashi felt a pang in his heart: "Why?"
"Because I feel... I'm very similar to Kakashi-sensei."
"I think if I could learn how Kakashi-senpai interacted with his comrades back then, I might learn something from it."
"…"
'He really had to bring up the sore spot!'
Kakashi's face showed struggle.
Forget his comrades, even his teacher and his teacher's wife were all dead!
However…
Seeing the sincerity in Takumi's eyes, Kakashi could only shake his head helplessly.
"Alright, you got me."
Sighing, Kakashi began to recount slowly.
"I once had two comrades I trusted the most."
"Once?"
Takumi expressed confusion appropriately.
"Yes, once."
Kakashi's expression turned somewhat lonely.
"But... they both died in battle."
"Ah, this... I'm very sorry, Kakashi-senpai."
Takumi bowed deeply in apology, looking full of remorse.
"I didn't know it was like that. I'm sorry for making you recall sad memories."
"It's nothing, it's all in the past."
Kakashi waved his hand nonchalantly.
"And, having someone to talk to about the past occasionally isn't a bad thing."
"Then, what kind of people were they?"
Takumi looked up, a hint of curiosity in his eyes.
As they walked, Kakashi smiled and said, "Guy is indeed a trustworthy comrade, but we've always seen each other more as rivals on our path forward."
"Both comrades and rivals… a strange relationship."
"But when I was your age, my teammates were others."
Takumi thought to himself, 'Perfect.'
But he still pretended to be curious and asked, "Who were they?"
"Come with me, I'll take you somewhere."
Hearing this, Takumi was overjoyed inside.
Go with him?
Wasn't that exactly what he wanted?
The plan was working!
"Where are we going?"
Takumi remained well-hidden, showing a curious expression.
"You'll know when we get there."
Kakashi said with a smile.
A few minutes later.
The two stopped.
"This is my place."
Kakashi smiled, pointing his thumb at the house behind him.
"Senpai's house is so big!"
Takumi looked amazed.
Although the Hatake Clan had declined in Konoha, they still owned a residence like this.
It's just that the entire estate had only Kakashi living in it, without even a single cleaning servant.
The yard was overgrown with weeds, and the house looked somewhat dilapidated.
"It looks a bit messy. Sorry about that."
Kakashi was used to living here and usually didn't pay much attention.
Now that he had brought someone over, he realized his house looked rather shabby and messy, so he scratched his head apologetically.
"Not at all, this place is much better than where I live."
Takumi put on an envious expression.
"I've always wished for a yard this big… it would be so convenient for training."
"Is that so?"
Kakashi smiled and led Takumi into the house.
He took Takumi to the master bedroom.
On the most prominent spot on the bedside table sat a photo.
The photo was framed. One could see that one of the people in it was a young Kakashi.
"Are these Senpai's comrades?"
Takumi stepped forward excitedly, leaning down to look closely.
"That's right."
Kakashi nodded.
"Huh? This person looks familiar?"
Takumi pointed at the young blond man standing behind the three.
Of course he knew this was Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato, also Naruto's father.
"Of course you'd find him familiar. You've probably seen him many times on that rock face."
Kakashi said nostalgically.
"Rock face?"
Takumi looked thoughtful for a moment, then said as if realizing,
"The Hokage Rock!"
"Correct. He is the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato."
Kakashi's eyes instantly softened, lost in distant memories.
"He was also my Jonin Instructor."
"To be chosen as a student by the Hokage, Senpai and your comrades must have been exceptionally talented geniuses at the time, right?"
Takumi guessed.
Hearing this, Kakashi snapped out of his memories. Thinking of someone's dead-last abilities, he couldn't help but chuckle lightly.
"That might be different from what you imagine."
"See this guy?"
Kakashi pointed at the goggled boy in the photo.
"This comrade of mine was named Obito."
Kakashi recalled.
"He wasn't a genius, he was the dead-last of the whole class."
"Just like the Uzumaki Naruto in your class."
"Is that so?"
Takumi pretended to be surprised.
"I thought all members of the Hokage's team were geniuses."
"Hahahaha..."
Kakashi chuckled lightly, then fell silent.
"Perhaps you're right. We were all geniuses."
"What's wrong?"
Noticing the change in Kakashi's mood, Takumi asked cautiously.
Kakashi glanced at him, then adjusted his emotions, pretending to be relaxed.
"I just told you, this dead-last named Obito... he was actually... from the Uchiha Clan."
"The Uchiha Clan?"
Takumi said, puzzled.
"I remember they all..."
"Yes, now only Sasuke remains of the Uchiha Clan, but the Uchiha Clan was once one of the most powerful clans in Konoha."
Kakashi said slowly.
"But Obito was completely different from the usual Uchiha."
"He wasn't gloomy like those Uchiha, instead, he was lively and active, and he loved helping others. He was a very kind guy."
"He sounds like a very good person."
Takumi's face showed shock.
'This Kakashi, he really was deeply attached to Obito.'
'But he absolutely would never dream that Obito was actually still alive and had become a dark, twisted character.'
'And was about to attack Konoha!'
Takumi swallowed hard, his expression calming slightly.
Then… he showed a look of yearning and said,
"Could you tell me more about this Obito-senpai?"
"Alright."
Kakashi thought for a moment before speaking slowly.
"I remember back then, we were probably about your age, maybe a bit older. The Shinobi World was at war, and all the kids had to go to the battlefield."
"At that time, we were on a mission to destroy a bridge. That bridge was called the Kannabi Bridge, a very important supply line for the Iwagakure forces we were fighting then."
"And the team executing this mission was our Team Minato."
"The situation was critical. Minato-sensei went to support defense forces in another area, leaving the task of blowing up the bridge to the three of us, with me, who is already a Jonin at that time, acting as team leader."
"But we were ambushed."
Kakashi narrated the events of that time in a calm voice.
Although Takumi had seen the intensity of that battle from the Anime before, hearing one of the people involved, Kakashi, tell it in such a flat tone gave him a different feeling.
If he didn't know Obito had been saved by Madara, he would indeed consider Obito a true hero.
Or rather, the Obito who wasn't saved by Madara was indeed a hero worthy of respect.
But unfortunately, under the guidance of Madara and Zetsu, Obito still walked a path that made him despised.
The respected and beloved Yondaime Hokage died because of him. His or the Akatsuki's figures could often be seen on various battlefields.
And the reason he did all this was simply to recreate a world where Rin existed.
To achieve this, he was willing to sacrifice everyone in this world.
One could only say that Obito was a maddened pitiful worm, and this pitiful worm possessed extremely powerful strength.
Listening silently until Kakashi finished, Takumi finally seemed to find a chance to breathe, letting out a long sigh.
"He was a hero."
Takumi said decisively.
"Yes, he was a hero."
Kakashi nodded in agreement.
Playing his part to the fullest, Takumi stepped forward and bowed respectfully to the group photo of the four.
Then, he pointed at the girl in the photo, Rin, and asked,
"And this girl? What was her name?"
"Her name was Nohara Rin. She was a very gentle but also very strong girl."
"Gentle and strong?"
Takumi pretended to be confused.
"I can see she's gentle, but where was her strength?"
Kakashi fell silent, unsure if he should tell Rin's story.
Or rather, if he told Rin's story, what would Takumi think of him?
Even though Rin had thrown herself onto his Chidori back then, from an outsider's perspective, how was it any different from him killing Rin?
However, after a long silence, he decided to tell the story.
After telling Obito's story earlier, he clearly felt a sense of relief inside.
These past events suppressed in his heart for so long, while he hadn't paid them much mind, had indeed become a very heavy burden on him.
And only now did Kakashi realize that these past events had unknowingly become his burden, weighing him down physically and mentally.
Perhaps choosing to confide in Takumi now was a form of redemption for him.
"Her name was Nohara Rin. She was a Kunoichi skilled in Medical Ninjutsu, with a gentle and kind personality, very tolerant."
Thinking of his former self who looked down on everyone, Kakashi's eyes softened.
"But she was also a strong girl."
"After Obito's death, we all grew up a lot. Rin became somewhat silent, but she was still a kind girl."
"However, during an accident, Rin was captured by the enemy, and they placed... a trap inside her."
Kakashi hesitated but still didn't say 'Biju' out loud.
He had seen the strength Takumi displayed and recognized his talent. He knew Takumi would inevitably learn about the Biju in the future.
But at least for now, Takumi, who hadn't even graduated from the Academy, didn't have the necessity or clearance level to know about Biju.
"A trap?"
Takumi put on a guessing expression.
"Did they plant lots of explosive tags inside her body?"
"No, it was much more terrifying than that."
Kakashi's expression turned extremely serious.
"If that trap were to activate within the village, countless people would die or be injured. It would heavily damage the village and cause a significant loss of vitality."
"Rin knew this, so she refused to return to the village."
"But I insisted on bringing her back to Konoha for treatment."
"She was very determined. While I was attacking the enemy, she rushed over and blocked my attack..."
At this point, Kakashi fell silent.
After waiting a moment, Takumi couldn't help but add the final blow.
"So... she died by your hand, Kakashi-senpai?"
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FOR EVERY 50 POWER STONES, I'LL UPLOAD ONE CHAPTER