When his captain questioned him.
"There seems to be a broken surveillance camera. Should I go check it?"
Itachi replied, concealing his uncle's act of sabotaging the camera.
The Uchiha clan's reputation was already bad enough. He didn't want Dan to further reinforce the negative impression Kakashi and the others had of them.
"No need. You stay here. This kind of tiring errand is, of course, for an old man like me."
Kakashi pressed a palm to his chest and said earnestly.
He glanced at the surveillance screens, already understanding what had happened, then turned and walked out of the room.
Beside him, Tenzo rubbed his tired eyes and complained, "Kakashi's good at making it sound nice, but really he just wants an excuse to sneak out and have fun."
Itachi said nothing.
He figured that, given his uncle's unruly and arrogant personality, there was a good chance he'd come to blows with Kakashi over the slightest disagreement.
If that really happened,
Itachi sincerely hoped Kakashi would win and give Uchiha Dan's arrogance a good beating.
Kakashi strolled down the street.
With one hand in his pocket and Icha Icha Paradise in the other, he walked along reading.
Every now and then, he stopped to play with a little cat by the roadside. He even dropped by the Shueisha Bookstore to ask the owner about the sequel to Icha Icha Paradise.
He was the undisputed king of slacking off.
"Hey, Kakashi!"
A hearty voice suddenly rang out behind him, and a figure charged up to Kakashi at a hundred-meter-sprint pace.
A bowl cut, exceptionally thick eyebrows, and a green, skin-tight jumpsuit.
Only Might Guy, Konoha's Blue Beast, could pull off such an outrageous style with ease. He was so thick-skinned that he never cared what ordinary people thought of him.
Some time ago,
in hopes of spending every day with his best friend Kakashi, Guy had applied to join both the Anbu and Root, only to be rejected by the Third Hokage and Danzo in turn. For a while, he'd even questioned his life.
Fortunately, he soon picked himself back up.
"Phew, phew..."
Guy was drenched in sweat, and even after reaching Kakashi's side, he didn't stop moving. Instead, he continued running in place, lifting his knees high.
"My eternal rival, Kakashi! Our record in past contests is twenty-nine wins and twenty-nine losses. Today, I'm going to be the first to claim our thirtieth victory, so... race me and let's settle this once and for all!"
Guy shouted to his best friend, brimming with enthusiasm.
"Sorry, I'm on a mission."
Kakashi gave Guy an uncaring glance, flatly refused, and turned to leave.
"How can you treat my enthusiasm like that?!"
Guy yelled after Kakashi. His best friend's cold attitude left him looking heartbroken and indignant.
Kakashi walked a few steps, then seemed to remember something and looked back.
"By the way, I seem to remember you once saying you knew a guy named Uchiha Dan?"
"Why are you suddenly asking about him?" Guy was startled and stopped his high-knee run.
So he really did know him.
From Guy, Kakashi learned that
Guy's father, Might Duy, had been a member of the Physical Transformation Department while he was alive. He'd been friends with Uchiha Dan, and often took young Guy to the Fitness Gym to train.
Later, though, Duy and Dan had gone their separate ways after a disagreement over their beliefs and ideals, parting on bad terms.
Since his father had died in battle, Guy hadn't gone back to the Physical Transformation Department.
"Wait, you're not going to see Uchiha Dan, are you?" Guy came to his senses and asked.
"What's wrong?" Kakashi asked, puzzled.
Guy frowned, his expression turning unusually serious.
"Dan's a very dangerous guy. You'd better not go alone. How about this—I'll come with you. I was going to look for him sooner or later anyway."
"What are you looking for him for?" Kakashi was even more confused.
Guy took a deep breath and clenched his fist.
"I've always wanted to prove to Dan that the way of the ninja my father upheld all his life was right and honorable! He died a hero, not a fool!"
The more he spoke, the more worked up he became, fire blazing in his eyes.
Though his father, Might Duy, had been only a Genin, Guy saw him as a tough man who'd held fast to his passionate spirit and sung the praises of youth.
But that Uchiha Dan had mocked his father to his face.
All these years,
Guy had trained relentlessly so that one day he could defeat Dan with his own hands, proving the way of the ninja and the convictions his father had passed down to him with his life.
Kakashi hadn't expected the Might family and Uchiha Dan to have such a history between them.
"I guess I don't have a choice."
He shook his head. He'd planned to keep slacking off and just ask a couple of questions at the Fitness Gym. But with Guy involved, he couldn't very well treat the matter lightly.
So,
twenty minutes later,
the two of them arrived at the Physical Transformation Department.
Kakashi glanced at the broken surveillance camera in the tree. Then he exchanged a look with Guy and pushed open the door.
Inside, they spotted Samui dozing at the front desk.
"Hello," Kakashi greeted her.
Startled awake by the sound, Samui hurriedly stood and gave a slight bow. "Welcome, you two."
"Sorry, we're not customers."
Kakashi smiled and waved his hand, his eyes curving into crescents. "We're here to see someone. Is Mr. Dan around?"
As he spoke, he discreetly put away Icha Icha Paradise.
Showing off an adults-only book in front of such a beautiful, gorgeous woman would seem rather frivolous.
Hatake Kakashi was a serious ninja, after all.
Samui hadn't noticed Kakashi's little movements. Instead, she furrowed her brow slightly.
"May I ask who you are?"
In fact,
as a seasoned spy,
she'd recognized Kakashi and Guy the moment she saw them, but she pretended not to know who they were.
"We're with the Anbu."
Kakashi explained who they were and why they'd come, then reassured Samui, "Don't be nervous. It's nothing serious. We just need to ask Mr. Dan a few questions. As long as he cooperates, that'll be all."
"Oh, that's a relief."
Samui patted her chest lightly and let out a breath, her acting improving by the day. "The Gym Director is in the Meditation Room. Please follow me."
She walked ahead, leading the two of them.
With both hands in his pockets, Kakashi looked with interest at the various pieces of equipment in the gym as they went, finding them quite novel.
Guy, meanwhile, wore a deeply troubled expression and didn't say a word.
They arrived.
Samui stopped in front of a door and signaled for Kakashi and Guy to wait. Then she raised two fingers and gently knocked with her knuckles.
Knock, knock.
"Gym Director, an Anbu ninja named Kakashi is here to see you. He says he has some questions."
"Come in."
Dan's voice came from inside. He said only one word.
"Please, go ahead."
Samui pushed the door halfway open, stepped aside, and gestured for them to enter.
"Thank you." Kakashi smiled and thanked her again, then walked into the room with Guy.
Creak.
The door slowly closed.
Samui didn't leave right away. A glint flashed in her eyes, and she pressed herself against the door like a cat, cocking her ears to listen for what was happening inside.
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