Chapter 19 — The Weight of Eyes
"Everyone! Fall back! Stay together!"
The instructors' voices thundered across the training ground as ANBU operatives appeared in a blur of black, circling the area where Kakashi and Akira stood.
Children huddled in trembling groups, some crying, some wide-eyed with awe. The ground still bore scars — kunai buried in dirt, broken branches, and faint trails of blood leading into the forest.
"Medical team, now!" one instructor barked.
But the two boys at the center of it all didn't move.
Kakashi still had his blade drawn, chest rising and falling steadily, eyes locked on the trees as if the enemy might return.
Akira, his golden Byakugan faded back into calm amber, stood quietly at his side.
"…You both are unhurt?" An instructor crouched low, checking them over, disbelief etched across his face. "Two children… facing three Iwa assassins and surviving…"
Kakashi said nothing. He sheathed his blade with a sharp click.
Akira's lips curved slightly, but his voice was soft. "We didn't survive. We fought. There's a difference."
---
Later that evening, inside the Uchiha compound, whispers ran wild.
"Did you hear? Fugaku's nephew fought off Iwa ninja—"
"No, no, it was Hatake Sakumo's boy, the prodigy!"
"Both of them, together! They say the enemy retreated in shame—"
Children whispered in awe, parents muttered in worry, and elders debated in silence.
---
In the shadowed depths beneath Konoha, Danzo listened as a Root operative reported.
"…Golden Byakugan," the masked man said. "Not Hyūga — something else. The child controlled it perfectly."
Danzo's single eye narrowed.
For weeks, Root had marked Akira as unremarkable — overshadowed by Hatake Sakumo's son, by Fugaku's pride, by the clan's own prodigies.
But tonight changed everything.
"…So the boy hid his power," Danzo murmured. "Interesting." His bandaged hand tightened on his cane. "Perhaps too dangerous… or perhaps, useful."
---
Meanwhile, atop the training ground's wooden fence, Kakashi sat with his legs dangling, silent as the night air.
Akira climbed up beside him, carrying two rice balls wrapped in cloth. He offered one wordlessly.
Kakashi hesitated, then took it. "…You're strange."
Akira tilted his head. "Because I brought food?"
"No," Kakashi muttered, staring at the horizon. "…Because you don't look scared."
Akira smiled faintly, eyes glowing under the moonlight. "Maybe that's because… I'm not afraid of fighting, as long as I'm not alone."
Kakashi glanced at him, lips pressing tight — but he didn't look away.
For the first time, Hatake Kakashi realized that Akira Uchiha wasn't just another clan heir.
He was someone who could stand beside him.
---