The fighting at the front had become increasingly fierce.
At this stage, Sand Village had already made peace with Kumogakure and was keeping to itself.
Now, Konoha was practically fighting three countries alone, clashing with the Three Great Shinobi Villages: Kumogakure, Kirigakure, and Iwagakure.
Under such immense pressure, Konoha was desperate to break the deadlock. It was preparing to send an elite squad on a surprise attack.
To ensure the squad had enough combat power, a Medical Ninja was essential.
That was why Namikawa Yū had been selected.
"But Yū is only eight years old..."
The people from the medical department tried to change the decision. "Let me go in his place."
"No need, Mr. Murakami."
Namikawa Yū spoke softly, then said plainly, "As a Konoha Ninja, serving Konoha is my duty."
"I accept this mission."
His expression remained calm, unchanged by the assignment.
He knew that from the moment the order had been given, there was no changing it.
Rather than struggle pointlessly, he might as well accept it without fuss.
Besides, he hadn't spent this time idly. He had made some preparations of his own.
Even if something did happen, he was confident he would be fine.
After accepting the mission, Namikawa Yū returned to his usual work. He acted just as he always did, showing no signs of change.
He seemed as normal as ever, without any of the heaviness one might expect.
Before leaving, he went to Kakashi's lodgings, as he always did.
"Come in."
At Kakashi's voice from inside, Namikawa Yū entered the hospital room.
Inside, Kakashi still looked as listless as ever. He sat on the bed, his whole body radiating a sense of death.
But after spending so much time with Namikawa Yū, he had gradually grown familiar with him. He would sometimes even respond to Yū's voice.
"I'll be leaving for a while."
Facing Kakashi, Namikawa Yū wore his usual smile and acted as he always did. "While I'm gone, I hope Senior Kakashi will take good care of himself."
"Leaving?"
At Namikawa Yū's words, Kakashi abruptly raised his head, almost as if he'd been startled. "Where are you going?"
After losing his teammates one after another, Kakashi was undoubtedly in a state of despair.
But his keen instincts as a ninja remained. He immediately realized something was wrong.
Under normal circumstances, as a Medical Ninja, Namikawa Yū should have stayed at the camp to treat the wounded.
There was only one reason he would suddenly leave now.
He was going to carry out an important mission.
At the thought, Kakashi's already sorrowful heart tightened again.
"Ah, I'm going away to carry out a mission."
Namikawa Yū's expression remained calm. "Don't worry. It's just an ordinary mission. It shouldn't be anything serious."
As he spoke, he left something with Kakashi.
It was a photograph.
In it, Namikawa Yū and Obito were forming the Seal of Reconciliation.
The Ninja Academy could be clearly seen in the background.
Namikawa Yū had had someone take it after their test. At the time, he'd simply wanted a keepsake.
After all, barring any surprises, Obito would become a different person in the future.
So preserving a memory of his sunny, carefree self had seemed like a nice way to remember him.
That was what Namikawa Yū had thought back then. He hadn't expected the photo to come in handy in another way now.
"What's this?"
Kakashi looked at the photograph in his hand, puzzled.
"I've heard that the names of ninjas who die fighting for Konoha are engraved on the village's Memorial Stone."
Namikawa Yū smiled as he spoke. "If I don't make it back this time, please place this photograph in front of the stones for Obito and me, Senior Kakashi."
"If possible, it would be best to put our stones next to each other."
"Perhaps that would be a fine resting place."
"Yū, you idiot..."
An indescribable feeling welled up inside Kakashi. In that moment, as he looked at Namikawa Yū before him, he was deeply moved.
All sorts of feelings rose in his heart. He seemed to want to say something, yet couldn't find the words.
"Don't grieve for us."
Namikawa Yū spoke softly. "A ninja's fate is to fight. If we can die on the battlefield without regrets, perhaps that isn't such a bad thing."
"The dead have already fallen into their eternal sleep. Those who live must still bear their burdens and press on."
He smiled faintly. "Please take care, Senior Kakashi."
"After tomorrow, we may never see each other again."
As he finished speaking, he smiled and waved to Kakashi, then left the room.
Behind him, Kakashi's eyes widened as he stared at Namikawa Yū's retreating figure.
If he could, he would have liked to call Namikawa Yū back and tell him not to leave.
But his discipline as a ninja held him back. In the end, he said nothing.
At last, he could only slump onto the edge of the bed, staring fixedly at the photograph in his hand.
Without realizing it, the deathly aura around him seemed to grow even stronger.
[Obtained 100 Reincarnation Points.]
Outside the room, Namikawa Yū looked at the prompt that appeared before him and couldn't help smiling.
Just as he'd thought.
Simply interacting with characters from the story could earn him Reincarnation Points, but how could these little gains compare to giving those characters a direct emotional jolt?
Just like now.
Namikawa Yū hadn't done much at all. He'd merely given Kakashi a little push, and Kakashi had dropped a hefty pile of coins.
One hundred Reincarnation Points was quite a lot, enough for Namikawa Yū to do plenty.
Unfortunately, he couldn't use this trick too often.
Otherwise, life would be much easier for him.
He might even be able to gather enough points to send his main body through to the world where the Land of Ancestors was and rise straight to the top.
The next day, Namikawa Yū packed everything he needed and went to the departure point.
Many people were already waiting there.
"Three to a group. Stay alert."
The leader glanced at them, then calmly assigned them to their groups.
Namikawa Yū was assigned to a Jonin.
He had two teammates.
One of them had a striking pair of Byakugan and wore Konoha's Forehead Protector. He immediately stood out.
This was Hyuga Fu, a member of the Hyuga Branch Family and an elite Chunin.
The Hyuga Clan of Konoha served the village, so seeing a member of the Hyuga Branch Family among Konoha's ninjas wasn't particularly strange.
But given the Byakugan's strategic value, a squad with a Hyūga Clan member was generally considered an elite unit.
However, the other teammate's arrival surprised Namikawa Yū even more than Hyuga Fu's.
She was a girl named Kurenai Yuhi.