Made a Choice

Kakashi, during the course of the battle, had undoubtedly faced the enemy's leader—a ninja capable of using Wood Release.

Wood Release, a signature technique of Hashirama Senju, had once suppressed an entire era single-handedly. It could be said that a person's reputation preceded them. Even though the masked ninja before him appeared to be of similar height and looked like a youth, Kakashi would not let his guard down in the slightest.

However, he knew in his heart that the person before him was most likely from Root.

For some reason, Kakashi wanted to spare his opponent.

After all, for Konoha Village, a ninja capable of using Wood Release meant a great deal.

Even if he was from Root, Kakashi believed the other party could still find their way back.

Meanwhile, Root, after their surprise attack failed, knew that their plan to attack the Third Hokage had failed. Especially when the battle had already begun, yet the Third Hokage was nowhere to be seen, they understood an even harsher truth.

Flee, or die.

While the leader was being held back by Kakashi, the other Root ninja began to suffer casualties.

The ambushers were ambushed. The Root ninja had never expected such a situation to occur.

What was even more unexpected and difficult to accept was that the intelligence error had been made regarding Yuzuru Hyuga.

"Gentle Fist!"

Blue Chakra fluctuations, like bullets with homing capabilities, precisely covered the Root ninja on the battlefield, and their power was astonishingly great.

Compared to the limited range of Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm, Yuzuru Hyuga's Gentle Fist had a very long fluctuation range, its speed comparable to a thrown kunai. Even more deadly, although distance would reduce the damage of his Gentle Fist, it could not weaken the special effect of Gentle Fist—pressure point striking.

Alone, he seemed to have turned into a human-shaped Gatling gun on the battlefield, firing paralyzing bullets. Wherever the Gentle Fist Chakra went, the Root ninja could only avoid its edge.

It couldn't be helped; the other Anbu were not just standing around. In battle, a single second of hesitation could lead to death, let alone the paralyzing effect of Gentle Fist!

"Deal with him first!"

The Root ninja realized that if they couldn't restrain Yuzuru Hyuga, they would all likely be left behind, unable to find an opportunity to escape under the sweeping bombardment of Gentle Fist.

Did the Hyuga Clan's Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm have such a disgusting restrictive effect?

They didn't know, but they tacitly split into two and attacked Yuzuru Hyuga together.

As long as they could restrict Yuzuru Hyuga's ability to comfortably control the battlefield from behind his teammates, the other Root ninja would have a chance to escape!

"Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!"

"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"

Two advanced Ninjutsu were used almost simultaneously. Terrifying flames, aided by Wind Style: Great Breakthrough, shot towards Yuzuru Hyuga in an instant, transforming into a sea of fire, truly astonishing.

"We hit him!"

The voices of the two carried a hint of surprise. They hadn't expected this attack to hit directly. They clearly saw a figure within the flames seemingly turning into charcoal in agony.

The expressions of several Anbu members changed slightly. The next moment, they saw a young figure descend from the sky.

Substitution: Shadow Fold!

This peculiar Substitution Technique combined an effect similar to Shadow Clone, often able to confuse unsuspecting opponents into making wrong judgments.

And in battle, what would happen if wrong judgments were made?

"Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms!"

Before Yuzuru Hyuga even landed, his hands were already in position.

An invisible Eight Trigrams domain seemed to envelop the surroundings. His Byakugan focused on two slightly slower Root ninja.

"Two Palms!"

With his hands spread, the faint blue Chakra in Yuzuru Hyuga's hands struck the chests of the two directly. In an instant, they felt their scalps tingle. The young man's white eyes were like condensed frost, flashing with a terrifying light akin to a death star.

The Gentle Fist Chakra accurately hit the major pressure points on their chests. In an instant, their entire Chakra circulation stopped, and they fell into a state of rigidity.

"Eight Palms!"

"Sixteen Palms!"

"Thirty-Two Palms!"

In the air, continuous and swift Chakra-fluctuating punches transformed into a blue barrage, wildly flying up and down, bombarding the chests of the two ninja.

"Sixty-Four Palms!"

Though called Sixty-Four Palms, Yuzuru Hyuga, who had actually unleashed far more than a hundred Gentle Fist Chakras, slowly exhaled. The chests of the two Root ninja had already caved in. Before their chests collapsed, their hearts had already been shattered by the Gentle Fist Chakra.

They swayed like broken wooden stakes, then crashed to the ground, lifeless.

It didn't hurt much, because before the pain could reach their brains, their bodies were already paralyzed and had lost all sensation.

Yuzuru Hyuga watched it all with a detached gaze, feeling an unexpected calm. Perhaps it was because he had imagined this scene, or even countless more brutal scenes like this, happening around him countless times in his mind before all this had even begun.

Compared to the shocking scene of these two 'Konoha colleagues' dying, what Yuzuru Hyuga paid more attention to was his own system.

[Killed one ninja, gained 1299 Free Experience Points.]

[Killed one ninja, gained 1320 Free Experience Points.]

[Assisted in killing one Root ninja, gained 370 Free Experience Points.]

[Assisted...]

[Battle concluded. In this surprise attack, you not only assisted your teammates in controlling the overall situation but also executed a brilliant double kill, clean and efficient! You have gained 1029 Free Experience Points.]

Such high experience points!

Just two opponents at the Jonin level, and each of them could provide him with over a thousand points of free experience.

On top of that, he even received points for assists.

Not only that, but judging by the system's final message, his outstanding performance in the battle would even earn him additional experience point rewards!

If he could truly fight an incredibly beautiful and exhilarating battle on the battlefield or during a mission, he might gain as much free experience in one battle as he would normally train for in a month or two!

"Well done."

An Anbu member praised in a low voice, having never seen anyone from the Hyuga Clan perform so brilliantly in battle.

This strange and unique Gentle Fist also left a deep impression on them. It was truly an anomaly; no one had ever utilized it this way before.

The Gentle Fist, a pure close-combat Taijutsu, had been forcefully transformed into a mid-to-long range, area-controlling Taijutsu. Furthermore, in close combat, it displayed even more terrifying close-quarters power than the usual Hyuga techniques.

Combined with Rotation, a famous 'absolute defense' of the Hyuga Clan, some ninja couldn't help but fall into thought – even now, this genius seemed somewhat too invulnerable.

"Mission complete, returning to Konoha. We will rendezvous with the Third Hokage and depart."

Kakashi's figure arrived belatedly.

Just as Yuzuru Hyuga had subdued two Root members, Kakashi and Yamato, oh, now referred to as 'Kinoe' the Wood Release ninja, had also finished their battle. Kakashi, holding back, didn't use Raikiri to blow off Yamato's head. Instead, he spared his life, considering his Wood Release abilities.

It was hard to imagine that Danzo, who always claimed to be for Konoha, would use such a precious Wood Release ninja as a suicide operative to attack the Third Hokage at this moment. Kakashi, who was always known for his cold demeanor, had actually spared his opponent for the sake of the bigger picture.

The other Anbu members, who were further away from the Third Hokage, only then realized that the Third Hokage, who had been missing, had actually returned to Konoha Village alone at this moment.

Perhaps, the Third Hokage knew better than anyone who the mastermind was.

Kakashi let out a long sigh.

He pulled down his mask, slightly concealing his Sharingan, and glanced at Yuzuru Hyuga, "Good performance."

Without waiting for Yuzuru Hyuga to reply, he turned and headed back towards Konoha first.

However, Yuzuru Hyuga followed him, saying meaningfully, "Do you think the Third Hokage knows who attacked him?"

Kakashi didn't reply.

"Then do you think the mastermind will pay a price?"

Kakashi frowned slightly, turning to look at Yuzuru Hyuga, "What are you trying to say?"

Yuzuru Hyuga merely smiled faintly, "I'm just curious. If this mastermind is one of our own, and even such a killer can be forgiven, then what about the Konoha White Fang predecessor from back then..."

"Maintain silence during the mission," Kakashi reprimanded him with a somewhat stern tone.

His cold eyes carried a strong warning, filled with killing intent.

Yuzuru Hyuga's eyes behind his mask blinked. There was no need for further explanation; he knew his objective had been achieved.

For Kakashi.

As long as he remained in Konoha.

As long as he still held hope and love for this village, then there was a cruel reality that he could never bypass.

The Konoha White Fang.

Kakashi's mood continued to worsen. Just hearing the words "Konoha White Fang" caused some facts he had tried his best to forget to resurface in his mind.

That strong father, that powerful father, who could not be defeated by any enemy, who was invincible on the battlefield – did he truly become so fragile as to commit suicide just because of the doubts and insults from ordinary people in the village?

Impossible!

Kakashi remained silent. Deep down, he had long ago formed his own speculations about the matter, and even possessed some of the facts. But what good would that do?

What could he do?

The reason his father chose to die to make a statement, rather than simply defecting from Konoha in anger, or drawing his sword to question the Konoha higher-ups for allowing rumors to fester, was because he loved this village dearly until his death! He had his own firmly believed Will of Fire, believing that one day, the people of Konoha would eventually understand that his suicide was a glorious martyrdom.

He would rather die than prove to the people of Konoha what the so-called Will of Fire should be.

What exactly was the Will of Fire that his father believed in?

Kakashi's mind was in turmoil.

He hadn't thought about these questions for a long time, not out of heartlessness, but because he couldn't find a perfect answer or a solution to these problems.

All he could do was move forward step by step. Where would he go? Where would the answer appear? He didn't know, but now, having lost everything, he truly lacked the courage to think any further, because all that thinking would ultimately lead to destruction, either destroying himself, or...

He was lost in thought for an unknown amount of time. Suddenly, he looked up and saw a pair of smiling white eyes directly facing him.

That brat...

What was he thinking?

Kakashi withdrew his gaze, a cold sneer suddenly forming in his heart.

He almost fell for that kid's trick.

His eyes turned icy. He met Yuzuru Hyuga's gaze again, the previous concern and gentleness of a 'senior' completely gone.

Yuzuru Hyuga's smile only grew brighter upon seeing this.

Kakashi.

As long as there is still an obsession in your heart, a problem you cannot solve.

Then there is still a spark in your heart, and one day it will ignite.

The group returned to Konoha Village in silence. At this very moment, the Third Hokage, already in Konoha Village, had made his choice, as expected.

PS: Since everyone has different opinions about Shisui's Kotoamatsukami, I will consider the opinions and set it myself in a reasonable way. If you have different views, just consider it my secondary creation.