What Will You Choose?

At this point in time, the Third Great Ninja War had only just begun.

The spark that set it off was Sunagakure losing the Third Kazekage. Then they blamed Konoha and brazenly launched a war!

This Great Ninja War had erupted with unusual suddenness. Compared to the past, the period of recovery before the fighting began had been exceptionally short!

Only a little over three years, and less than four, had passed between the Second Shinobi World War and the Third Great Ninja War.

The Five Great Shinobi Countries were all caught off guard. None of them had expected war to return so soon.

Konoha was especially unprepared!

They had been far too optimistic in their expectations of peace, and were caught completely off guard when a new Great Ninja War broke out.

Now they had been forced into the fighting, and many missions had come together in an extreme hurry.

Like the mission Kakashi, Obito, and Rin had just received: infiltrate the Land of Rain and confirm Amegakure's stance on the war!

Konoha's misjudgment of the war's course had shown itself in all sorts of ways. Three years ago, for instance, they hadn't tried to stop Tsunade from leaving after the war ended. Two years ago, when the White Fang took his own life, no one had sensed that anything was wrong.

And during those three short years of peace, their control over the neighboring small countries had weakened to a dangerously low level.

That was why Konoha, which had managed to keep the enemy outside its borders throughout the Second Shinobi World War, had now been invaded with ease right at the start of this one.

And now, the mission given to Obito, Rin, and Kakashi was, in essence, an effort to pay off their debts.

To repay the debts they had accumulated by living too comfortably over the past few years.

Kakashi had realized how difficult the mission would be on the very first day.

"All the outposts marked on the old maps have been dismantled. This area of the Land of Rain has changed so much over the past few years.

"Why does the village know so little about it? We reached this place during the last war."

In the previous Great Ninja War, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade had fought Hanzo the Salamander in the Land of Rain and managed to hold him to a stalemate. That was how they earned the title of Sannin, a name that resounded throughout the Shinobi World.

Even though the Sannin hadn't managed to defeat Hanzo together, Konoha had at least held the strategic initiative throughout the conflict. That had left a wound the Land of Rain would never forget.

But who could have expected that, in just a few short years, the situation here would have changed so much that it had slipped entirely out of Konoha's control?

"Maps that are almost useless from being outdated, village layouts that have completely changed, and that new organization called the Akatsuki we heard about earlier...

"We're missing far too much intelligence about this place. We have to move faster with the mission!"

Thinking about it gave Kakashi a headache.

He wanted to speed up the mission, but his teammates were still at odds with him.

Even without climbing down from the branch, he could hear Obito complaining loudly below.

"That Kakashi acts like he's at a funeral every time we go on a mission. He even says the mission matters more than your comrades, and anyone who can't complete a mission is a failure. Rin, tell me, is that any way to act?!"

Nohara Rin, walking beside Obito, could only manage a helpless smile as she tried to comfort him. "Obito, give it a rest. You know what Kakashi went through two years ago. He's just having a hard time coming to terms with it."

"But I still can't forgive him for thinking that way! How can he say that about his own comrades? To me, someone who abandons their comrades is worse than a failure!"

Obito said it with great conviction, both to strike back at Kakashi and to look cool in front of Nohara Rin.

Unfortunately, some people were destined to stay cool for less than a second.

The moment he finished speaking, a sudden, violent gust of wind swept past him, as if something had shot by at incredible speed.

When he came to his senses, Obito heard a low voice.

"Well said."

He turned around and was horrified to find Nohara Rin gone!

He instinctively reached for a kunai in his Ninja Tools pouch, but a sharp pain suddenly shot through his stomach!

Shiba Seika, whose ambush had succeeded, kicked him hard and sent him flying!

At that moment, Shiba Seika couldn't help wondering if he had just avenged future Big Sister Konan.

As expected, when you wanted to mess with a big boss, you had to do it early.

"Your comrade is in my hands now."

Hearing Shiba Seika's words, Obito flew into a rage. Unfortunately, at this point in time, he was still just a weak little rookie.

"Damn it! Give Rin back to me!!"

The only thing worthy of praise was probably his cockroach-like tenacity and his obsession with Rin.

Unfortunately, Shiba Seika had planned this attack for a long time and gave him no chance. The instant he seized the hostage, he handed Rin over to Big Sister Konan.

"Big Sister Konan, restrain this girl!"

Konan followed Shiba Seika's instructions without question. She immediately used her Paper Ninjutsu, layering and curling sheets of white paper into chains that firmly bound their captive, Nohara Rin.

Ever since they had completed Ando's mission a little while ago, Konan had developed an intense, almost instinctive reliance on Shiba Seika.

Perhaps it was because his theories sounded profound and impressive, leaving Konan deeply shaken. Or perhaps, over the days they had spent together, Shiba Seika had firmly established himself in her mind as someone dependable.

Whatever the reason, Konan was increasingly used to following Shiba Seika's instructions.

Just like this time, when they had happened upon an "unfamiliar" Konoha squad on their way back. Shiba Seika suggested attacking, and Konan agreed at once without asking a single question.

She had followed his orders throughout the fight, doing whatever he told her to do.

Even Yahiko had never received that kind of treatment!

Shiba Seika's plan to break up the Akatsuki's trio was already showing its first signs of success.

Back to the battle at hand: after safely leaving Rin in Big Sister Konan's custody, Shiba Seika raised his head and faced the streak of lightning hurtling toward him from a high tree branch!

Kakashi, charging in, was filled with anxiety and regret.

He shouldn't have stayed up in the tree by himself just because Obito was annoying!

Now Rin had been put in danger because of it!

Anger and remorse gnawed at him.

Yet the enemy seemed to know him inside out, taking precise advantage of his anxiety.

Shiba Seika threw a homemade paper kunai concealing an Exploding Tag.

He knew perfectly well that Kakashi, who hadn't yet obtained the Sharingan, couldn't control his Chidori with precision.

And with the negative effects of anger and impatience weighing on him, Kakashi ran straight into the paper kunai flying toward him.

"Boom!"

A deafening blast!

Kakashi, who had been holding a streak of light and wielding lightning, was blasted into a soot-covered mess. He leapt back in disarray, emerging from the smoke.

"Damn it!"

He cursed under his breath.

The boy hailed as a prodigy had perhaps never before suffered such a major setback at the very start of a fight.

And yet worse torment was already on its way!

Seeing that he had driven back Kakashi's first attack, Shiba Seika's lips curled up. His smile grew more and more delighted.

"I just overheard some of your conversation. If the mission really comes first, shouldn't you abandon your comrade and retreat now, preserving as much of the intelligence you've already gathered as possible?"

As soon as Shiba Seika finished that psychological attack, Obito, who had just gotten back to his feet, immediately exploded.

"What?! Kakashi, if you're planning to abandon Rin, we're through! I'll never forgive you for the rest of my life!!"

At that moment, Kakashi's pupils contracted sharply, while Shiba Seika's smile grew even more delighted.

What will you choose, Kakashi?