Konoha Anbu.
After eight hours of monitoring duty in the Anbu, Youhu was getting ready to clock out and go to bed when Kakashi made him stay.
Kakashi told him to familiarize himself with Anbu patrols first, then head home and get some proper rest at dawn,
Youhu hated overtime and complained:
"Captain Kakashi, when I was in the Guard Division, I only had to work eight hours a day. Why does the Anbu have a twenty-four-hour work schedule?"
"That's why your Uchiha clan is so resented..."
Kakashi shrugged helplessly, then said with complete seriousness:
"The Anbu is a special assassination unit, an army in peacetime. Do you think we'd still be combat-ready if we worked eight-hour shifts? The Anbu can only serve its purpose if we stay at our posts around the clock."
"Captain Kakashi, you make a very good point."
"Why don't you apply to join the Guard Division, Captain Kakashi? You could enjoy getting off work at a normal hour for a change."
Youhu nodded slightly. Unable to come up with a counterargument, he could only take the opportunity to recruit Kakashi.
But the Guard Division really was too comfortable. Once he had control of it, he would make sure to whip his clansmen into shape instead of letting them lounge in luxury.
If even the Anbu, who answered directly to the Hokage, worked this hard, what excuse did the Uchiha who wanted to seize power have to slack off?
"You want me to join the Guard Division?"
Kakashi pointed at himself, wondering if he had heard wrong. You wanted an Anbu squad captain to join the Guard Division? If it was really that great, why didn't you join?
"Captain Kakashi has a Sharingan, so you're practically half Uchiha. If you joined the Guard Division, Brother Obito would be very glad, even from beyond the grave."
Youhu nodded with a perfectly serious expression.
"..."
You sure do care about Obito.
With Obito involved, Kakashi could only sigh and change the subject.
"Let's not get into all that. We have a mission to carry out. Yamato, Itachi, stick to the original patrol plan. I'll take Youhu around the village myself."
"Yes, sir."
Yamato and Itachi promptly acknowledged the order and vanished with the Body Flicker Technique.
After they left, Kakashi said, looking a little tired, "Youhu, could you stop asking questions that are hard to answer? There's no sense in a subordinate trying to recruit their superior."
"I don't want to ask those questions either. I just thought Captain Kakashi might be bored."
Youhu looked as though he cared deeply about Kakashi, then said, "By the way, Captain Kakashi, now that Yamato and Itachi are both out on missions, could you tell me what happened between you and Brother Obito after you graduated?"
"If you promise not to blurt things out from now on, I'll continue telling you Obito's story."
Kakashi laid out his condition, then asked curiously, "I don't know why you're so interested in Obito. As I recall, he wasn't very popular among the Uchiha."
"Because Brother Obito was a Hero of the village. And unlike the other clansmen, he was a true Uchiha who wanted to become Hokage. It was so cool of him to sacrifice himself to protect his teammates."
After he finished, Youhu gazed at Kakashi with admiration, as though Obito, who had sacrificed himself for the village, were his hero.
"I see..."
Kakashi smiled sincerely. It had been a long time since anyone had mentioned Obito, and even longer since he'd seen an Uchiha regard him as a hero.
Youhu really was different from the other Uchiha.
As he thought this, Kakashi began to tell him what had happened afterward:
"After I graduated early and became a full-fledged ninja, Obito and I gradually drifted apart. It wasn't until three years later that we worked together again."
"Back then, Obito, Rin, and I became Teacher Minato's subordinates..."
As Kakashi told his story, Youhu followed behind him on patrol. Their assigned route covered the part of Konoha near the Back Mountain.
There was a barrier here, but no Ninja Clan settlements nearby, making this a weak point in Konoha's defenses.
When they reached the Back Mountain, Youhu kept his eyes open. The sensory abilities he'd gained from awakening the Mangekyo let him search the area for any White Zetsu hiding nearby.
He didn't mind if White Zetsu heard him chatting with Kakashi, but what they might overhear was another matter.
As it turned out, Youhu sensed White Zetsu's location. The enemy was hiding underground, eavesdropping on his conversation with Kakashi.
Youhu didn't attack White Zetsu. Listening to Kakashi's story, he asked, "Captain Kakashi, during the Battle of Kannabi Bridge, did Brother Obito really awaken his Sharingan to protect you?"
"Yes. Unfortunately, Obito died in another battle not long afterward. This Sharingan was the last gift he gave me."
Memories of that day came flooding back. Kakashi showed Youhu the Sharingan he could never close and sighed with regret.
"If Brother Obito hadn't died, with his talent and his standing as the Fourth Hokage's Disciple, he might have joined the village's High Officials by now. The relationship between the clan and the village might not have come to this."
Youhu sighed too, his face full of regret.
In a way, he wasn't wrong. If Obito hadn't turned evil and become the Second Uchiha Madara, he wouldn't have caused the Nine-Tails' Rampage, and the Fourth Hokage wouldn't have died in the line of duty.
With the Fourth Hokage in power, the conflict between the Uchiha and Konoha would never have reached this point.
"Yeah. If only Obito and the others hadn't died."
All Kakashi could do was sigh and hate himself for being so weak.
When Obito, Rin, and Teacher Minato died, Kakashi had been nearby each time, yet he hadn't been strong enough to change their tragic fate. He had even killed Rin with his own hands.
To this day, he still couldn't wash the blood from that night off his hands.
After making a circuit of the Back Mountain, Kakashi and Youhu sat down on a Blue Stone. They planned to rest for a while before patrolling the next area.
Just then, Youhu noticed a figure moving by the stream not far away.
Looking closely, he saw a blond child fiddling with a fishing rod. A few tiny fish, each about the size of a thumb, lay in the bucket beside him.
"Captain Kakashi, it's nearly ten o'clock. Why is there still a kid around here? I'll go ask what he's doing."
"Youhu..." Kakashi started to say something, but Youhu had already vanished, leaving only a rustle of wind where he'd been.
"Squad Captain! Should we—?"
After Youhu left, an Anbu ninja recognized Kakashi and appeared to ask what he wanted them to do.
"He's new to the Anbu. He doesn't know Naruto's identity yet..."
Kakashi waved a hand, signaling the Anbu ninja to stand down, then used the Body Flicker Technique to hurry toward Youhu and Naruto.
Just then, a rustle came from the bushes, and a wild boar the size of a calf emerged.
The boar sniffed the air, caught the fishy smell from the bucket, pawed at the ground with its hind legs, and charged toward Naruto.
Immersed in fishing, Naruto hadn't noticed the danger at all.
One second, then two.
Just as the boar was about to slam into Naruto, Youhu sprang into action.
A flash of steel, and the boar collapsed. Youhu came to Naruto's side, frowned, and said, "You brat, what are you doing out here so late instead of going home?"
"Aren't you afraid of being attacked by wild animals?!"
Before you continue