Kakashi scanned his surroundings before leaping down into the pit.
Soon after, another figure in an Anbu uniform and a cat mask jumped down after him. They were short and seemed quite young.
A rumbling sound immediately echoed from below.
Kawasaki walked to the edge of the hole, stroking his chin.
Was that Yamato who just went down? Oh, right, he's called Kinoe now.
Did Danzo send him to take Kakashi's eye?
I really can't tell if Danzo is overconfident or just an idiot. Or maybe he just has too much faith in Yamato's Wood Style?
Suddenly, Kawasaki sensed something was wrong and leaped into the trees.
Three Root members appeared at the edge of the pit in a flash.
Two of them concealed their presence, while the third jumped down.
So that was it. Danzo had a backup plan. He had surveillance and a replacement team ready. If Kinoe failed, others were there to take his place.
"A mission isn't everything. If the mission is to kill a comrade, then that mission is wrong."
"Kakashi, the man who let his comrade die, has no right to object to such an accusation. But I never... I never wanted to kill Rin!"
"I failed to protect my comrade, and that's why Rin died. This Chidori couldn't protect her... It couldn't protect her..."
"Kinoe, abandon the Root mission."
"It seems Root members are indoctrinated to abandon all emotion."
"Not just emotion. They abandon their names, their pasts, and their futures, living only to complete their missions."
"I am your enemy. It would be perfectly reasonable for you to leave me to die."
...
Kawasaki waited a while. The Root member who had been tailing Kinoe emerged first, pretending to wait for him at the entrance.
Before long, Kinoe leaped out.
Kinoe produced an eyeball preserved in a jar, and the two exchanged a few words.
Kawasaki was all too familiar with this part of the story. Kakashi had already won Kinoe over. Kinoe had created a fake Sharingan to report back to Danzo. Later, Kakashi and the Third Hokage would forcibly retrieve Kinoe from Root, renaming him Tenzo. After the Kazekage Rescue Mission, he would adopt the codename "Yamato," and everyone would gradually get used to calling him that.
"You dare to fake it!"
A loud shout pulled Kawasaki from his thoughts. How did they find out it was fake so soon?
"Move!"
The other three Root members leaped out in a flash.
"Lord Danzo truly doesn't trust me," Kinoe murmured to himself.
Kinoe offered no resistance, allowing one of them to bind him. The remaining three jumped into the pit, presumably to deal with Kakashi.
"Well, well. How could you try to deceive us?"
Kinoe's eyes were hollow, betraying neither joy nor sorrow. He simply asked in a low voice, "Heh, I just don't understand anymore. What's the point of a mission to kill one of our own? So I gave up."
Hearing this, the other Root member, Otsu, flew into a rage. "A mission assigned by Lord Danzo is a matter of utmost importance!"
"But Captain Kakashi is a Leaf shinobi too! He's our comrade! Could you really bring yourself to do it?"
Otsu violently shoved Kinoe to the ground. "You listen to me! Here, your only comrades are us—the members of Root!"
Kinoe gritted his teeth and said defiantly, "Doesn't Root also serve the Leaf?"
Otsu's expression was as devout as a zealot's. "Root is like the unseen network of roots that silently supports the great tree of the Leaf. A tree has parts above and below ground. The roots naturally form their own system."
"A Root shinobi has no name, no feelings, no past, and no future. There is only the mission."
Suddenly, Kinoe began to struggle with all his might. "That's wrong! I am a Leaf shinobi! I am not just a part of Root! I have branches and leaves—I am a part of the entire Leaf Village! All the shinobi of the Leaf are my comrades!"
Otsu's gaze turned to ice as he held Kinoe down. "Who has been feeding you this nonsense?! I'm taking you back to Lord Danzo for some proper re-education!"
"Heh... who else but Danzo could have brainwashed him so thoroughly?" a calm voice drifted from an unknown direction.
"Who's there!"
Otsu broke into a cold sweat, shocked that someone had gotten so close without him noticing.
"Ngh!"
Before Otsu could even turn, a sharp pain shot through his head, and he collapsed, unconscious.
"Get up," Kawasaki said, untying the ropes binding Kinoe.
"Who are you?" Kinoe didn't recognize Kawasaki, but he saw the Uchiha clan crest on his clothes.
"My name is Uchiha Kawasaki," Kawasaki said nonchalantly, mentally debating whether he should go down and help Kakashi. Then again, maybe he should just let the Root members take his Sharingan.
"You're the Vice-Chief of the Uchiha Clan?! Why did you save me?" The name Uchiha Kawasaki was one he had heard before—the man who had given Danzo endless trouble and had recently cost him his position as a village elder.
"Me? I just enjoy opposing Danzo. Who you are is irrelevant."
"However..." A slight smirk played on Kawasaki's lips. "I do know a few things about you."
"What do you know?"
"Weren't you one of the sixty infants Danzo stole all those years ago?"
"What!" The words struck Kinoe like a bolt of lightning. "Stolen by Lord Danzo?!"
Kawasaki nodded. "That's right. Danzo stole you all, and Orochimaru was in charge of experimenting on you. From the looks of it, you're the only one who survived."
"What proof do you have!" Kinoe demanded, his voice trembling.
Kawasaki raised an eyebrow. "I have my own sources. I have no intention of proving it to you. Believe it or not, that's your choice. For years, Danzo has been gathering followers, using the pretext of protecting the Leaf to fulfill his own selfish ambitions."
"This..." Kinoe was stunned. The man he had pledged loyalty to was someone like this?
A sharp, chirping sound echoed from the pit below—the unmistakable sound of Chidori.
"Oh no! Captain Kakashi!" Kinoe finally remembered that Kakashi was still trapped down there.
He rushed toward the hole but was stopped by Kawasaki. "Don't worry. He's about to come up."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Kakashi leaped out of the pit.
Kawasaki glanced over and saw that Kakashi's Sharingan was unharmed. Though he had some injuries, he was largely fine.
Tsk. Kawasaki inwardly scoffed. Danzo's Root is useless. Three against one and they still couldn't get the job done. Do they even know how to fight?
As soon as Kakashi landed, he saw Uchiha Kawasaki standing by the pit and immediately adopted a fighting stance. "Lord Kawasaki, what are you doing here?!"
Despite his disappointment, Kawasaki had no plans to take Kakashi's Sharingan by force.
"You two should get to the Third Hokage. More of Danzo's men will be here soon."
Without answering Kakashi's question, Kawasaki flickered and vanished.
"Captain Kakashi! Are you alright?!" Kinoe hurried over to check on him.
Kakashi staggered slightly. "I'm fine. But why was Kawasaki here?"
Kinoe supported him. "This isn't a safe place to talk. Let's go find the Third Hokage. I'll explain on the way."