Mission or Comrades?

Kakashi's hollow gaze shifted almost imperceptibly.

He slowly turned his head.

Half a step behind him, Higashino Shinichi stood quietly, holding an ordinary dark umbrella over him, shielding him from the torrential rain.

Shinichi wasn't looking at Kakashi. His gaze rested on the newly erected headstone ahead, calm and distant.

"You..."

Kakashi's lips moved faintly beneath his mask, as if he wanted to say something. But in the end, he said nothing. He turned his gaze back to his father's headstone, as though that was the only thing in the world he could anchor himself to.

Shinichi didn't speak, offer comfort, or ask questions. He simply stood there in silence, holding an umbrella over his former opponent—his classmate, who perhaps needed one more than ever.

The rain battered the cemetery, and in that corner, all that could be heard was the steady drumming against the umbrella and the frozen silence between the two boys.

"For a shinobi..."

After a long while, Kakashi's voice came through the rain, hoarse and dry.

"...is completing the mission more important, or protecting your comrades?"

At that, Shinichi fell silent for a moment. His eyes remained fixed on the cold headstone as he slowly began to speak.

"The First was born in the Warring States Era, a time of constant warfare. Shinobi clans slaughtered one another, and even children were forced onto the battlefield. Life was as fleeting as the morning dew... The loss of comrades was an everyday occurrence."

"Even the First, mighty as he was and later revered as the God of Shinobi, experienced the pain of being unable to protect those he loved in that cruel era." Shinichi's voice was soft. "The records say that the young First lost several family members. He experienced firsthand the helplessness of watching those closest to him die before his eyes. That's why he understood more deeply than anyone how difficult—and precious—it was to protect others."

"That was why the First gave everything he had to build a different world: one where children wouldn't have to march off to battle at such a young age, and comrades could entrust one another with their backs. At its heart was the legacy later known as the Will of Fire—to cherish the village, protect one's comrades, and safeguard the next generation so the legacy could be passed on."

"So you're saying comrades are more important?" Kakashi turned his head, his gaze stabbing sharply toward Shinichi.

Shinichi still didn't give a direct answer to the either-or question. He continued:

"Shinobi are a profession and a system. The reason they can function, and the reason mission rules are strictly obeyed, is that they uphold the order and trust that allow the village to endure. Completing missions and protecting the client's interests safeguards Konoha's reputation and peace. That, too, means protecting the village and all the comrades who live in it."

"So you think the mission is more important?" Kakashi's voice dropped.

"No, Kakashi." Shinichi gave a slight shake of his head. For the first time, he looked away from the headstone and toward the rain-blurred cemetery beside them, as if he were also gazing into a more distant future.

"What I mean is, I don't know."

"I've never faced the desperate situation Lord Sakumo faced. I've never borne such a heavy choice. Perhaps only when I'm truly pushed to that point, in a split second, will I know what my instincts choose. Until then, any judgment made by someone who isn't involved is rash."

"But..." Shinichi's tone shifted, calm and resolute. "Before that day comes, there's one thing I'll do with everything I have."

He turned and looked Kakashi in the eyes.

"I'll work to become stronger! Strong enough to avoid being forced into that kind of either-or choice whenever possible."

"Strong enough to keep searching for a way to complete the mission and protect every comrade, even when we're cornered. Strong enough that someday, perhaps, I'll have the power and wisdom to influence—even change—some of the rules. So that I, the comrades I cherish, and the next generation won't have to face so many cruel dilemmas."

"That's what the First did. Perhaps he couldn't fundamentally change the cruelty inherent in the shinobi profession, but he used every bit of his strength to try—to build a framework that could protect what mattered as much as possible and push the world in a better direction."

"And the Second, the Third Hokage, and countless nameless predecessors in Konoha, who carried on his legacy, have all done everything they could in their own positions."

"I don't know whether Lord Sakumo made the right choice, because I wasn't there. But I know that if we just keep debating whether the mission or our comrades matter more, we won't change anything. The only way forward is to become stronger than we are now—strong enough to have the right to change the terms of the question."

"What if you face this dilemma before you've become strong enough?"

Kakashi's tone suddenly turned confrontational. Before Shinichi could answer, he hurriedly added, as if trying to block off every escape route:

"Suppose you're the team leader right now, and I and several others are your subordinates. Our mission is to escort vital secret intelligence back to Konoha. We're being pursued by the enemy and have been driven into a desperate situation."

"As the team leader, if you abandon the mission, the village will suffer a huge loss. If you choose to complete it, you'll have to leave one or even several team members behind to hold off the enemy—or even kill a teammate who might be captured to prevent the intelligence from being leaked."

His gaze fixed on Shinichi, his voice full of urgency.

"Higashino Shinichi! Tell me, what would you do?!"

"I'd stay behind."

Shinichi's voice wasn't loud, but it was firm and decisive.

"If that day really comes, then of course I, the team leader, should cover our teammates and take on the greatest risk." He looked Kakashi in the eyes and spoke each word clearly. "And you, Kakashi, from this moment on, you're the team leader. I'm entrusting the intelligence to you. You'll lead everyone back."

For a moment, the air beneath the umbrella seemed to freeze.

After a long while, Kakashi abruptly came to his senses and gave a cold laugh. "You... you're still just avoiding the question!"

Before the words had even left his mouth, he seemed unable to bear the space beneath the umbrella or the person before him any longer. He spun around and plunged into the downpour, running off without looking back. He soon disappeared into the gray curtain of rain.

Shinichi didn't chase after him.

He remained where he was, but the faint, uncanny feeling that had been stirring in his heart since before he arrived at the cemetery had not faded. Instead, it had grown clearer and more intense.

[Good Omen (Green): Your fortune has just begun to brush against the mysterious. You may occasionally sense small auspicious signs and promising developments.]

Just as he'd expected, after he held a lively farewell banquet for his teacher in the style of a communal feast, unlike anything in this world, his [Swordsmanship Apprentice] had soon advanced to [Swordsman], and he'd gained a chance to draw a green trait.

Good Omen was the new trait he drew, one that seemed to involve the mysterious workings of fortune.

However, when he first obtained it, Shinichi hadn't noticed any changes at all. Not until just now...