"Kakashi happens to be training at home right now. You came at just the right time."
Sakumo Hatake smiled as he led one adult and two children into the house.
As Uchiha Maí walked in, she casually observed the layout of the Hatake residence. Compared to the Uchiha compound, it was indeed much smaller - but for just two people, it felt more than spacious enough.
Aside from a few flowers and plants, the courtyard was filled with various training facilities, clear proof that this was a ninja household with real lineage and inheritance.
In the yard, Kakashi - silver-gray hair, face mask on - was gripping a short blade and practicing the Hatake sword style. He slashed and thrust in steady rhythm, sweat pouring down as he trained relentlessly.
Many people later claimed that the swordsmanship Kakashi trained in as a child wasn't very useful to him. That was a misunderstanding.
The techniques he developed afterward - Chidori, Raikiri, and the like - weren't directly related to the Hatake sword style, true. But the way those techniques were applied in real combat relied heavily on the underlying principles of that style.
One could even think of lightning chakra condensed around the hand to form a lightning blade as a reinforced, upgraded version of a short sword.
In Boruto, after Kakashi lost his Sharingan and his perception declined significantly, his short-range piercing Raikiri was refined into Purple Lightning, a technique focused more on sweeping slashes - something that depended even more on his swordsmanship foundation.
"As expected of my eternal rival, Kakashi! Even when he's home alone, he trains this hard!"
Guy was instantly fired up, eyes brimming with emotion as he passionately planned his evening routine.
"I've decided! After dinner tonight, I'll sprint ten kilometers! If I can't finish, I'll do a thousand push-ups! If I still can't finish, then a thousand sit-ups - !"
He'd gone and moved himself to tears again.
"Intense exercise right after eating isn't recommended," Minato Namikaze said with a gentle smile.
Hearing that familiar voice, Kakashi snapped out of his training and looked up, noticing Maí and Guy standing behind Minato.
Sensei had said he was going to recruit two new students from the Academy today… so it was them?
Kakashi remembered both of them quite clearly.
As for Maí - she was the one who had completely overwhelmed him in looks back at the Academy, with several times more admirers than him.
Of course, the number of admirers didn't truly reflect their appearances. Kakashi was probably about half as handsome as Maí - but unfortunately, he'd been wearing a mask ever since enrollment.
There were even ridiculous rumors floating around saying Kakashi had buck teeth or sausage lips. Those baseless stories had severely damaged his reputation and absolutely crushed his chances with admirers.
As for Guy, ever since they met over a year ago, his strength had grown at an astonishing pace. From someone who barely knew any ninjutsu and had mediocre taijutsu at best, he'd become a capable ninja who could genuinely threaten Kakashi - at least in pure hand-to-hand combat.
So this is my future team, huh… interesting.
"Hi."
Maí smiled and waved, her friendliness completely uncharacteristic of an Uchiha.
"Mm."
Kakashi nodded in response.
"Kakashi, Maí and Guy will be your teammates from now on. You already know them," Minato said.
"If you're free, go get ready. We're heading out to eat."
"Understood, Sensei. I'll take a quick shower first."
Kakashi sheathed his blade and headed straight for the bathroom.
While Kakashi was washing up, Maí was already working her honeyed words, smoothly building rapport with Sakumo Hatake, delivering sincere greetings and concern on Fugaku's behalf.
Both Sakumo and Minato were relatively straightforward people - nothing like the political types such as the Third Hokage or Danzō - making them much easier to get along with.
Besides, Maí didn't have any hidden agenda. She simply asked about small things, mission experiences, and listened attentively, acting exactly like a normal admirer.
Before long, Kakashi finished showering, changed into clean clothes, and came back out.
Just as they were about to leave, Maí suddenly asked,
"Senior Sakumo, if during a mission a teammate were to fall into danger… would you continue the mission, or abandon it to save your companion?"
"I would save my teammate first, then continue the mission," Sakumo answered without hesitation.
Good.
Maí felt genuine respect - so he was the same kind of person, someone who wanted everything. But that wasn't the answer she was actually looking for.
"If the mission were extremely urgent, saving your teammate would cause you to miss the optimal opportunity and result in mission failure," Maí added, setting stricter conditions.
"Maí, why are you asking something like this?" Minato asked, puzzled.
"I've been thinking a lot lately about how the Will of Fire should be understood," Maí replied smoothly.
"So I wanted to seek guidance from a respected senior who has carried out many missions."
She was making it up on the spot again. Honestly, who actually believed in that kind of thing?
Sakumo fell silent for a long time. After some thought, he seemed reluctant to answer, but eventually said,
"If you ever face such a choice, I hope you abandon your teammate and continue the mission.
We are ninja. Carrying out missions is our duty."
At this time, Sakumo Hatake was serving as the head of ANBU. He couldn't give Maí a clear answer - because any honest answer would directly contradict the responsibilities of his position.
ANBU, the Special Assassination and Tactical Unit, answered directly to the Hokage. Their primary duties were protecting the Hokage and carrying out missions to preempt external threats.
Some fan works claimed Sakumo's death was the result of conspiracy, that public opinion had been manipulated, and that his mission hadn't really been important.
Maí disagreed.
There was likely some conspiracy involved, and someone probably did manipulate public opinion. But considering the timing and the nature of ANBU's work, the mission Sakumo had carried out must have been critically important - important enough that even dying to atone for its failure wouldn't be excessive for an ANBU commander.
In other villages, there were already rules allowing the likes of Sakumo Hatake or Minato Namikaze to abandon missions if necessary. Even Shippuden hinted that during escort missions, encountering overwhelming enemies justified abandoning the objective to preserve one's life.
Executing missions was a duty. Abandoning them was also common. Whether to fulfill the mission or preserve oneself depended entirely on how important that mission was.
Sakumo Hatake wasn't an idiot. He wouldn't have felt guilty enough to commit suicide over some trivial task.
"I understand," Maí nodded - though in truth, she didn't understand at all.
One adult and three children left the Hatake residence, heading toward Konoha's commercial district under the glow of the setting sun.
Minato flipped through his wallet and asked,
"So, what do you want to eat tonight?
I heard a ramen shop just opened over by the market…"
Ramen was cheap. Even with extra toppings, it wouldn't cost much. Minato really knew how to manage his money - especially since he had already decided to marry Kushina.
As the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki, Kushina couldn't go on missions, so Minato's mission rewards were the household's only source of income.
A wedding, a new house, renovations - all of it required money. So Minato handed over most of his earnings, receiving only a small monthly allowance from Kushina.
"Oh!"
Guy suddenly slapped his palm, eyes lighting up.
"I know, I know! There's a super popular barbecue place right across from that ramen shop!"
"My dad said a lot of high-level ninja in the village hang out there all the time.
Sensei Minato, you're planning to take us there, right?"
Low emotional intelligence.
Minato's smile froze instantly, and the hand gripping his wallet trembled violently.
Ah… this is bad. What do I do now?
(End of Chapter)
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