Ideals × Persuasion

Nara Dan had tried to learn the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist secrets before,

but back then, although he had a good relationship with both Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga, he hadn't yet demonstrated the strength and value he had now.

So they had politely turned him down.

"You'll always be a good friend to our Hyuga Clan. We're happy to maintain friendly relations with you, and there's no problem with sparring or exchanging ideas. Discussing Taijutsu is fine, too.

"But if you want the core secrets of our clan, sorry, no way."

But later, Nara Dan had demonstrated talent that surpassed the clans, and the Hyuga had no reason to keep their virtue intact. They hurried to send him a woman to show their loyalty.

So the person he had expected to see today was Hyuga Nana.

"Let Kakashi in."

Nara Dan nodded. Although the person he had been waiting for hadn't come, he still had a favorable impression of Kakashi.

Not only because of the character from his previous life; in this life, too, he and White Fang had exchanged thoughts on training and become friends.

Even if White Fang hadn't died, though, he wouldn't have had much more to do with him beyond training.

Their natures were incompatible. If Nara Dan was a self-interested seeker of the Way, then White Fang was the purest heir to the Will of Fire.

When it came to the Will of Fire, no one in Konoha surpassed him.

"If it were Hashirama Senju, he'd definitely admire White Fang."

"After all, he was the kind of man who could say he'd make an enemy of anyone for the sake of the village."

As Nara Dan thought this, Kakashi came to stand before him.

"Teacher Nara."

Kakashi called out in a subdued voice, then fell silent.

A six-year-old child might be clever, but he certainly wouldn't have thick skin.

"Did you come because you want me to guide your training?"

Nara Dan watched Kakashi with interest, an amused look on his face.

After a moment of silence, Kakashi slowly nodded.

"Lord Hokage said you're a shinobi who's no less capable than my father."

Nara Dan shook his head at that.

"Lord Hokage was wrong. As a shinobi, your father was much better than I am."

"White Fang was the kind of man who inspired respect the moment you met him."

Indeed, when it came to being a shinobi, there was probably no one in Konoha better suited to be a weapon than White Fang. He obeyed his superiors, treated his comrades kindly, and showed no mercy to his enemies.

It was a shame that Third and Danzo had gone too far and crossed the line for a shinobi. Even so, that weapon hadn't turned on its master. Instead, it had chosen to end its own life.

"So..."

Kakashi slowly forced out the word, one syllable at a time. He seemed to be struggling to shape even the simplest sentence.

"Was he right?"

Normally, Kakashi wouldn't discuss this with anyone.

But Nara Dan was different.

Not only did he possess overwhelming strength, he also had a calming presence.

And he had been a friend of his father, White Fang.

Kakashi had a feeling that Nara Dan would give him an answer unlike anyone else's.

That was why he had come.

"This has nothing to do with right or wrong."

Nara Dan shook his head again. Children always talked about right and wrong. That was why Third and the other Jonin found the matter so difficult.

"Being a shinobi starts with being human. Everyone is a person first, and a shinobi second."

"People are different. They all have their own thoughts."

"Your father's talent as a shinobi was admirable, but in my eyes, his way of thinking was foolish—almost ignorant."

As he spoke, Nara Dan smiled disdainfully, almost laughing aloud.

To him, White Fang's choice was a foolish joke. That was why Nara Dan had never tried to change White Fang's death, even though they had been on good terms.

Their differing ideals had destined them to become strangers.

"There's no doubt he wasn't a good father, but he did follow his own ninja way."

"In that respect, he deserves respect."

Not everyone could calmly face death for the sake of their ideals.

"Ninja way..."

Kakashi was lost. Something so profound was beyond his understanding. At his age, the idea of a conviction seemed abstract.

"That's right,"

Nara Dan said.

"My ninja way is strength!"

"As long as I'm strong enough, I won't have to choose."

"Tasks or comrades—that's a question only the weak need to answer, isn't it?"

"I can complete the task and solve the problem by myself. I always have."

Nara Dan spoke slowly, his voice carrying a strangely captivating allure as he revealed the unchanging truth of this world.

"The strong make the rules in this world. If you're strong enough, no one will dare spread rumors or criticize you."

"Strong enough..."

Hearing those words, Kakashi was deeply shaken. His eyes widened as he took in something he had never heard before.

He tightened his grip on the White Fang Blade at his waist, his mind full of conflicting thoughts.

That's right. My father wasn't strong enough. He wasn't strong enough to avoid having to choose, strong enough to ignore the rumors.

Nara Dan's gaze was bright, and his presence was as vast and unfathomable as the sea, as though he could see through the world.

"By the rules of the village, the Hokage isn't Hokage because people approve of him."

"He's approved of because he's strong enough."

"So come pursue strength."

Suddenly, Nara Dan reached out and placed a hand on Kakashi's forehead. An aura like that of an Evil Ghost radiated from him, ensnaring Kakashi's young soul.

"You don't need to feel lost. The strong don't lose their way."

"Your father was both strong and weak—a weakling in spirit. Compared to what you're facing, how insignificant was death?!"

"He claimed to follow his ninja way and chose to die, leaving you to bear everything on your own."

"You're the one destined to become strong."

By the time he finished speaking, Kakashi had fallen to his knees, his body convulsing. He set the White Fang Blade he had been gripping so tightly on the ground. His expression beneath the mask was impossible to see.

His feelings were a tangled mess. It was as though he'd been struck right in the nose: sourness, sweetness, bitterness, and heat all spilled out together, and the emotions he'd bottled up burst forth completely.

He wanted to cry, but couldn't. Or perhaps his soul was already crying, but his body couldn't accept it.

Nara Dan neither stopped him nor said anything. He knew Kakashi was undergoing a transformation—a transformation of his inner world, a rebirth through an explosion within his soul.

Ordinary words or actions would have had no effect on Kakashi's half-world-weary state of mind. They might even have made it worse.

His rational and emotional worlds had both collapsed. Even the Kakashi of the future had only begun to recover through the steady influence of Minato's team.

It wasn't until the soul-shaking scene of "Obito's death" that he finally changed his outlook and acknowledged the importance of comrades.

But Nara Dan had no intention of slowly working on him, changing him bit by bit, or even sacrificing himself for the so-called Will of Fire.

And the Kakashi of the future never wanted to think—or perhaps didn't dare think—about why, if comrades really mattered, White Fang had still killed himself.

Because that went against human nature.

Was the Will of Fire not progressive? No. In this world, it was already an exceptionally advanced ideal.

Just look at how many outstanding shinobi had been brainwashed, then died for it. It didn't matter whether it was Itachi, Tsunade, or Jiraiya.

Even powerful figures on the level of the Kage were trapped in this situation, unable to escape.

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