Hatake Sakumo and Uchiha Kō sat down in their chairs and placed the ramen on the table. Hatake Sakumo pressed his palms together and said, "Let's eat!"
Uchiha Kō had only ever seen this formal gesture in anime. This was his first time doing it in person, so he copied Hatake Sakumo.
Then the two of them began slurping their noodles. As soon as Uchiha Kō took his first bite, his eyes went wide. This flavor is incredible! And the texture of these noodles! His eyes lit up. This is delicious!
Seeing this, Hatake Sakumo smiled faintly. "Kid, what's your name? Judging by your Uchiha attire, you must be from the Uchiha Clan."
Uchiha Kō paused and swallowed his noodles. "To answer you, Lord Sakumo, my name is Uchiha Kō."
Hatake Sakumo's eyes lit up. Uchiha Kō! He had heard about him from the Hokage and from members of his own clan who had taken part in the great battle in the Land of Rain.
The reports had all been glowing: a master strategist, someone who could turn the tide with a small force, a once-in-a-generation genius! He had even earned a title: God of War.
"Oh? Uchiha Kō? The God of War?" Hatake Sakumo said with a smile.
Uchiha Kō scratched his head. "Those are just rumors people made up. They're not true."
Hatake Sakumo shook his head. "That's what the Hokage told me when I went to pay my respects at the Hokage Building just now. Are you saying the Hokage made it up too?"
Uchiha Kō drew in a sharp breath. He hadn't expected Sarutobi Hiruzen to think so highly of him. But when he thought about how he'd sided with Sarutobi Hiruzen on behalf of the Uchiha the very first night after returning, it didn't seem so surprising.
After all, they were in the same boat. Building up Uchiha Kō's reputation would also help Sarutobi Hiruzen's rule. See how amazing the God of War is? Pretty amazing, right? And he's one of my people!
Even so, Uchiha Kō remained modest in front of Hatake Sakumo. "Lord Sakumo, I was just lucky. Lady Tsunade deserves most of the credit. If they hadn't given me the chance to try, I might not have succeeded."
Listening to Uchiha Kō, Hatake Sakumo nodded to himself. He was so young, had accomplished so much, and yet remained so humble. Uchiha Kō seemed like someone worth getting to know.
"Could I call you Kō?" Hatake Sakumo asked with a smile.
Uchiha Kō nodded. "Of course."
"I've received a mission, and I'd like your help thinking it through." Hatake Sakumo's expression suddenly turned grave.
Uchiha Kō paused, then glanced at the people nearby. "This isn't the place to discuss it." He continued eating.
Hatake Sakumo understood from Uchiha Kō's words that he was willing to help him analyze the mission, just not here. He, too, hurried through his meal.
After they finished eating, Uchiha Kō asked, "Lord Sakumo, would your home be a convenient place to talk?"
"Certainly." Hatake Sakumo rose and led Uchiha Kō to his home.
It took them only about twenty minutes to get there. Uchiha Kō looked at Hatake Sakumo's house: an ordinary two-story building.
Uchiha Kō couldn't help but marvel. Were all capable people this low-key? Thinking of the houses in the Uchiha Clan Compound, he shook his head.
The houses there were quite grand, but for now, the only one who could really be considered a powerhouse was Uchiha Hirotomo. As for the rest... best not to mention them.
Hatake Sakumo knocked on the door. A woman's voice came from inside. "Who is it?"
"It's me, Meiko. I've brought a guest home!" As Hatake Sakumo said Meiko's name, tenderness filled his eyes.
The door clicked open, and a beautiful woman peered out. She looked at her husband first, her eyes lighting up, then noticed Uchiha Kō and quickly composed herself.
"Please, come in!" She took out slippers and set them by the door, then ushered her husband and Uchiha Kō inside.
Uchiha Kō couldn't help thinking that Sakumo was a lucky man to have such a considerate wife.
But in the anime, Kakashi didn't seem to have a mother and had lived with his father alone. That meant Mrs. Meiko must have met with some misfortune and passed away.
"Kō, come in," Hatake Sakumo said with a smile, pointing toward the study.
Uchiha Kō nodded, put on the slippers, and went into the study. Meiko brewed a pot of tea, then left the room and closed the door.
She knew the conversation that followed wasn't something she should hear. She even locked the door, so that no one could come in immediately if they arrived.
Uchiha Kō gestured for Hatake Sakumo to explain the mission. Hatake Sakumo didn't hold anything back. "According to a report from one of our spies in Sunagakure, a family there has information about the army's current deployment and strategy."
"Lord Hokage ordered me to set out tonight, capture that family, and make them give up the information. If they won't talk, I'm authorized to eliminate them!" After speaking, Sakumo handed over the map and confidential letter returned by the spy.
Uchiha Kō was on the Hokage's side, so there was no problem with this. As long as the two of them kept quiet, who would know?
Uchiha Kō examined the letter and frowned. The handwriting showed signs of imitation, and some parts were poorly written.
Then he looked at the map. Good grief, was there only one house in all of Sunagakure? Why wasn't there a map of any other houses? Are you kidding me?
"What do you think, Kō? Have you figured anything out?" Hatake Sakumo asked, puzzled. He had looked it all over himself and sensed that something was off, but the Hokage had given it to him, so he could only come up with reasons to explain away the doubts.
For instance, wasn't it normal for the map to show only the target? And if the handwriting was uneven, perhaps the spy had run out of ink?
Uchiha Kō set down the letter and map, then looked up at Hatake Sakumo and chuckled. "The intelligence is both false and true."
Hatake Sakumo was confused. What did he mean, false and true? What was he talking about?
Seeing Hatake Sakumo's expression, Uchiha Kō stopped teasing him. "The intelligence is false because the handwriting was clearly altered to imitate our spy's. That's why some of it looks clumsy."
"The intelligence is true because the map shows only one house. That house is real, and people live in it."
"But does it really hold any army secrets? Lord Sakumo, if you were the commander and had troops under you, would you keep your military orders hidden in your home?" Uchiha Kō said with a smile.
Hatake Sakumo froze. Right. Why would army intelligence be hidden in someone's home? Commanders and senior officers kept such information in their heads or close at hand.
Hiding it in a house made little sense. Thanks to Uchiha Kō's hint, Hatake Sakumo finally understood what he meant by the intelligence being both true and false.
"Then what's their goal?" Hatake Sakumo asked, puzzled. With his knowledge of the story and the letter and map in front of him, Uchiha Kō had already determined that this was a planned leak.
The real informant might already be dead, and the information they'd received was merely the product of a power struggle within Sunagakure. They wanted to use Konoha to kill the people in that house!
Uchiha Kō explained his theory to Hatake Sakumo, who fell silent.
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