Hatake Harukaze's face took on a nostalgic expression as he said, "Uncle was the clan head respected by our entire family. Even now, I still respect him. I still remember what he looked like. He was a gentle person."
"But I don't understand why Uncle made that kind of mistake. The Hatake Clan had originally been respected by everyone, but after Uncle died, everyone began to shun us."
Uchiha Yuan crossed his arms and said, "Harukaze, do you think White Fang was wrong back then?"
Hatake Harukaze raised his head to meet Uchiha Yuan's gaze, only to find it as sharp as a sword, making his eyes ache.
He could not help turning his head away and said softly, "I don't know."
Uchiha Yuan asked, "After becoming a ninja, would you rather join White Fang's team, or form a team with a ninja who would abandon you at any time just to complete a mission?"
Hatake Harukaze opened his mouth to answer, but under Uchiha Yuan's gaze, he fell silent.
At last, he slowly said, "I want to be on a team with someone like Uncle."
Uchiha Yuan immediately broke into a bright, sunlit smile. He reached out and patted Hatake Harukaze on the shoulder. "Congratulations, you got it right!"
"Harukaze, your answer proves that you are the same kind of person as White Fang."
Uchiha Yuan smiled. "So, is cherishing one's comrades wrong?"
"No!"
Uchiha Yuan nodded. "Right."
"Then Uncle wasn't wrong back then."
Uchiha Yuan remained certain. "Right."
Hatake Harukaze said, both confused and anxious, "But that way of doing things is different from what the village taught us."
"Then that means the village was wrong."
Uchiha Yuan said this, then lifted his head and looked toward the distant Kage Rock, a mocking expression appearing on his face.
At those words, Hatake Harukaze's eyes widened. He stared at Uchiha Yuan, utterly shocked and at a loss.
The village was wrong.
How could the village be wrong?
For a moment, Hatake Harukaze found it hard to accept.
Uchiha Yuan withdrew his gaze from Kage Rock and looked at Hatake Harukaze solemnly. "Harukaze, you need to understand that before we are ninjas, we are first and foremost human."
"We are not cold, lifeless shuriken that know only how to kill under the village's control. We have feelings. When we are happy, we laugh; when we are sad, we cry. We can charge forward bravely, and we can also feel fear and terror."
"You train diligently and seriously—do you want to become a ninja with no thoughts of his own, one who only follows orders like a tool?"
"No, I don't!"
Hatake Harukaze hurriedly shouted.
Then Hatake Harukaze said worriedly, "Although Uncle wasn't wrong, he still caused the mission to fail and harmed the village's interests."
Uchiha Yuan said, "If a mission fails, it can be carried out again. But life only comes once. If it is lost, there is no second chance."
"We have parents, brothers, and sisters. Our most important mission is to protect our families."
"If we lose our lives so casually, then to the village, we are merely a name crossed off a roster. But to our families, it is an unbearable pain for the rest of their lives."
"Remember, after becoming a ninja, protecting your own life is what matters most. Perhaps only when we truly reach the moment of sacrifice will we gain some understanding of it. It should not be the village's so-called demand to complete a mission at all costs, making us casually throw away our lives. A mission cannot compare to the smiles of our families."
Hatake Harukaze slowly nodded as if he had gained some understanding. "Yuan, I think I understand a little now."
Then he remarked with emotion, "If the mission back then could be done over, Uncle might not have died."
Uchiha Yuan was silent for a while before saying, "I don't know what classified mission White Fang was carrying out back then."
"But I think that as an experienced elite ninja with Kage Level strength, White Fang would definitely have assessed the mission before making his decision. Even if the mission failed, it should not have had an enormous impact on the village."
Perhaps that so-called classified mission was itself a trap aimed at White Fang.
Uchiha Yuan thought to himself.
Hatake Harukaze said, "But the village said it suffered enormous losses because the mission failed."
A trace of ridicule appeared at the corner of Uchiha Yuan's mouth. "That depends on whether what the village said was true."
Hatake Harukaze asked in confusion, "If it was false, why would the village lie?"
"Who knows?"
Uchiha Yuan shrugged, then continued, "Actually, I found it strange even back then. White Fang's mission failed, and it seemed as if the entire village learned about it overnight. It was like the rumors targeting the Uchiha that suddenly appeared recently."
Hatake Harukaze asked, "What's strange about that?"
"Do you know what missions Kakashi-senpai usually carries out?"
Hatake Harukaze shook his head. "I don't."
Uchiha Yuan turned and began walking as he said, "Harukaze, think it over yourself. Remember, do not let our conversation leak out. I'm going back first."
Not long after leaving the clearing, Uchiha Yuan stopped as he rounded a corner. Then he turned to look at the large residence beside him.
This was Kakashi's home.
It was not far from the clearing. While training Hatake Harukaze, Uchiha Yuan had sensed a watchful gaze coming from Kakashi's residence.
He had keenly noticed a cold aura within Kakashi's home, one unlike that of any living being.
At that moment, he saw a transparent figure watching him from behind Kakashi's front gate.
The figure had the same silver hair as Kakashi.
It was Konoha's White Fang Hatake Sakumo.
As expected, it was him. What a familiar figure. It's been a long time.
When he saw Hatake Sakumo's transparent figure, Uchiha Yuan's pupils suddenly contracted, and he was slightly startled.
He had not expected to encounter Hatake Sakumo's soul!
This was a soul that had remained in the mortal world because of lingering obsession.
However, Uchiha Yuan's expression remained unchanged, as if he had not seen Hatake Sakumo at all. His gaze openly passed through Hatake Sakumo's spirit body as he inspected Kakashi's home.
"So this is Kakashi-senpai's home. What a large house, but it feels rather deserted."
Uchiha Yuan murmured softly.
A short while later, he stepped away.
As he passed Kakashi's gate, he brushed past Hatake Sakumo. The two were incredibly close, yet Uchiha Yuan's pace did not change in the slightest.
Uchiha Yuan gradually walked away. Hatake Sakumo remained motionless, staring fixedly at his retreating back until it vanished from sight, and then his own figure slowly dissipated.
When he sensed that the watchful gaze behind him had finally disappeared, Uchiha Yuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
He knew that Hatake Sakumo's soul had remained in the mortal world without moving on, but he had never expected to truly see Hatake Sakumo's soul today.
I wonder whether White Fang heard my conversation with Hatake Harukaze just now. Did he appear at the gate and watch me by chance, or... had he noticed me?
Before you continue