Silver hair, a wolf-shaped Anbu mask, and an aura of pervasive loneliness.
Kakashi, a genius who had also borne pain and darkness from a young age.
Hiruzen's thoughts couldn't help but return to not long ago.
That day, Might Guy, Sarutobi Asuma, Yuhi Kurenai...
Almost all the Jonin from Kakashi's generation stood before him, pleading for Kakashi's release from the Anbu.
"Hokage-sama, please let Kakashi leave the Anbu. If this continues, the flames of his youth will be devoured by darkness!"
Yes, Guy and the others were right.
And now...
Hiruzen thought of Sasuke.
One was the lone survivor of a massacred clan, shrouded in hatred.
The other was a genius Shinobi drowning in the pain of lost comrades, unable to free himself.
Two souls, both robbed of their childhood too early, both haunted by shadows.
Perhaps...
Instead of using one light to illuminate another darkness, it was better to let two similar darkness try to find light in each other.
"Kakashi." Hiruzen's voice sounded in the quiet office.
"Here." The figure in the shadows responded.
"From today, you are relieved of all your duties in the Anbu."
Kakashi's masked face lifted slightly, seemingly somewhat startled, but he did not ask any questions.
Hiruzen slowly stood up and walked over to him.
"I have a long-term mission for you."
Kakashi stood silently, waiting.
"Uchiha Sasuke. You should know of him."
Hiruzen's tone grew heavy, "This child, as you've seen, is in a very special situation now. I need someone to guide him."
He paused, looking at Kakashi's eye hidden beneath the mask, and continued, "This mission has no clear objective, nor a set completion date."
"I want you to become his teacher, to explore the true thoughts in his heart. Most importantly..."
"Before he is completely consumed by hatred, make him understand that besides revenge, there are other things in this world worth protecting."
The office fell into a long silence.
"Why me?" Kakashi's hand tightened slightly as he asked his first question.
"You and he are very similar, Kakashi."
"You both carry shadows, walking in darkness."
Sandaime's tone softened a little, "I hope that while guiding him, you can also find your own path."
"Teaching a student, experiencing the bonds between companions... this might allow you to rediscover what your teacher once hoped you would have."
"Companions..." Kakashi repeated the word in a low voice, a flicker of pain in his eyes beneath the mask.
"Yes, Hokage-sama." He ultimately accepted.
"Good." Hiruzen nodded and sat back down in his chair, "Starting tomorrow, you can try to make contact with him."
"Understood."
Kakashi's figure flashed, merging back into the shadows and disappearing.
In the office, Hiruzen looked out at the Hokage Rock and picked up his pipe once more.
Only, why did he have a sense of foreboding?
…
The night grew deeper.
Sasuke walked out of the Uchiha Clan's compound alone. Staying here held no meaning anymore.
As for attending the Shinobi Academy? Play those boring games of make-believe with a bunch of kids?
Just the thought of it filled him with disgust.
He wanted to leave the village, to search for traces of Itachi.
Once this thought arose, it could no longer be suppressed. He identified the direction and prepared to leave the village under the cover of night.
But just as he was about to set off, a slightly ridiculous sight caught his attention.
On the distant Hokage Rock, a small, thin figure was dangling from a rope, holding a paint bucket and brush. By the moonlight, he was engaged in an artistic endeavor on the stone faces of the Hokage.
It was that blond brat, Uzumaki Naruto.
Shodaime Hokage's face was adorned with spiral-shaped blush, Nidaime's Hokage sported comical whiskers, and Sandaime Hokage's face was covered in circles.
The most laughable was the Fourth Hokage's statue. Not only was it decorated with crossed streams of snot, but it was also covered in various nonsensical grimacing symbols, as if he had some deep-seated grudge against it.
Sasuke's steps halted. He looked at the scene, a rare flicker of speechlessness in his eyes.
'What a complete and utter idiot...'
Just as he was about to look away, an accident happened.
"Whoa!"
Perhaps Naruto was too carried away. His foot slipped violently, and the rope tied to the railing snapped instantly.
"Ahhh…!"
With a piercing scream, Naruto plummeted straight down from the dozens-of-meters-high Hokage Rock.
Meanwhile, on a hidden rooftop elsewhere, Kakashi was secretly observing Sasuke's every move.
When he saw Naruto fall from the Hokage Rock, his heart also clenched violently.
'That's... Minato-sensei's son!'
Without time to think, Kakashi's body turned into an afterimage in an instant.
He pushed the Body Flicker Technique to its limits, rushing towards the spot where Naruto was falling.
But the distance was too great. Even for him, it would be difficult to save him in time.
'Damn it, faster, even faster!'
Kakashi's mind went blank, leaving only the instinct to save Naruto.
Several seconds later, when he rushed to the open ground below the Hokage Rock, the scene before him made him freeze in place.
There was no expected scene of a bloody mess.
Naruto was lying safely on the ground, seemingly just unconscious from excessive shock, without even a scratch on him.
And standing beside Naruto was his mission target, Uchiha Sasuke.
Kakashi's pupil constricted sharply.
'What did Sasuke just do?'
Kakashi was certain that before he himself moved, Sasuke had been standing hundreds of meters away.
'How did he get from so far away to save Naruto falling from such a height?'
'A Body Flicker Technique faster than mine?'
A trace of solemnity flashed in Kakashi's eye.
As if sensing his gaze, Sasuke slowly looked up. Across dozens of meters, they locked eyes silently in the night.
Finally, it was Kakashi who broke the silence.
He jumped down from the roof and slowly walked towards the two.
Shifting his gaze from Sasuke, he looked at the unconscious Naruto, a complex emotion hidden in his eyes.
Sasuke glanced at him, withdrew his gaze, turned, and prepared to leave.
"Wait a moment." Kakashi called out to stop him.
Sasuke stopped and turned back, "Something wrong?"
"I'm Hatake Kakashi."
He gave a simple introduction, then pointed at Naruto, "I'm... sort of an old friend of this kid's father. Thank you for saving him."
He crouched down, checked Naruto's condition, and confirmed he was only unconscious before looking up at the messy graffiti on the Hokage Rock. He sighed with a headache.
"Really, causing trouble again. Why does he always do these things?"
Sasuke followed his gaze, also looking at the comical graffiti, then said something Kakashi hadn't anticipated.
"Because he wants to be seen."