The Fourth Hokage smiled faintly, his gaze carrying a hint of approval. "I didn't expect you to run into those people. I'm glad you're all right. But Kakashi, you really did well. You dealt with the threat posed by all five of those ninja. You've been a huge help this time."
"No, I..." Kakashi tried to say more.
But the Fourth Hokage continued with a smile. "Pakkun told me everything. You did a good job as the team leader this time. Of course, Obito, Rin, and Yang Xing did well too."
The look in Minato Namikaze's eyes only left Obito more bewildered. He scratched his head, clearly unable to wrap his mind around it. "Wait, Lord Fourth Hokage, those people...?"
"All five ninja were taken out. That also prevented Konoha from being attacked. Well, that was all thanks to Kakashi, wasn't it?" The Fourth Hokage smiled broadly at Kakashi. His gaze held not only approval, but respect as well.
Obito was startled by this and couldn't help shouting, "Kakashi, you jerk, when did you go out and do something like that? You didn't even tell us, you bastard!"
"I..." Kakashi's words caught in his throat, and he couldn't get them out. Especially when he saw Yang Xing not far away, looking unconcerned and fooling around with members of another team. Kakashi could only let out a deep sigh and mutter, "Well, it's nothing."
He lowered his head, a faint, bitter smile tugging at his lips.
"How can it be nothing?" The Fourth Hokage didn't understand what had happened, but his expression remained serious. "I know those five. Even an elite jonin would have a hard time stopping them. If they'd gotten through, they certainly would have endangered Konoha. You've been a huge help this time. You could even call this a near-S-rank mission."
"Lord Fourth Hokage, you didn't call us here just to tell us that, did you?" The praise made Kakashi's face redden. He really didn't want to hear it, and couldn't explain what had happened, so he could only change the subject.
"Anyway, Kakashi did a good job this time. Well, let's leave the matter of credit aside for now. That's not what I wanted to talk to you about." Minato Namikaze's expression turned serious. After composing himself, he continued, "Actually, I wanted to tell you about the villages near the border."
Before anyone could answer, Minato Namikaze continued, "This time, the invasion wasn't limited to one place along the border. Other areas were breached too. There are probably a lot of people involved, and we've just received reports that several villages have been attacked."
The female jonin who led and taught Anko's team stepped forward beside them and nodded. "Yes, the villages have suffered extensive damage. And judging by the direction of their advance, their destination is probably Konoha."
Minato Namikaze nodded and fixed his gaze on Kakashi. "That's why I called you here. I want to form another special operations squad to carry out a very important mission."
His gaze swept over the four of them. Before anyone could speak, a fleeting, bitter smile crossed Minato Namikaze's lips.
"Kakashi, Obito, Rin, and Yang Xing, I'd like you to get some rest. But Konoha is going through a very difficult time, and it needs people to defend it. On top of that, the border has been damaged, and some of our chunin and jonin are already on missions. So this isn't an order. I'm asking you as your teacher—will you help Konoha?"
"Yes, Lord Fourth Hokage. I'd be glad to!" Obito answered eagerly.
The Fourth Hokage looked to Kakashi for an answer. Kakashi gave a listless nod.
"What about you, Rin and Yang Xing?"
"I'm fine."
"Yeah, I'm good with it too."
"Good, then it's settled. You'll join these four to form a squad. For the details of the mission, ask this jonin instructor. Also, I'm sorry, but I have other matters to attend to over the next couple of days, so I won't have time to teach you. I really am sorry." Seeing how exhausted Minato Namikaze looked, it seemed Konoha really was in for a rough time.
After giving them a few necessary instructions—mostly about forming the special squad—Minato Namikaze didn't stay to catch up with Yang Xing and the others. He left again.
An Anbu Ninja called him out, and he hurried off toward the distance with a serious expression.
It seemed the Fourth Hokage was always busy.
Only the two different teams remained in the room. After a brief silence, it was the more outgoing Anko who broke the quiet.
She crossed her arms, narrowed her eyes, and walked straight over. The first person she looked up and down was Kakashi. "Oh, so you're the one who wiped out five of their elite in one go. Looks like you're the strongest in your team."
She glanced over them and, before Kakashi could speak, waved a hand dismissively. "Well, just don't hold our team back."
"Anko, greet them properly. They're going to be our teammates," the female instructor called out, making Anko rein herself in a little.
"Yeah, yeah!" She walked over as if she couldn't care less and held out one hand to someone. "As a sign of goodwill, why don't we shake hands? We're from two different teams, after all."
"Me?" Yang Xing glanced at the people beside him and saw that she really was addressing him.
But why did this girl have such a sly look in her eyes?
With everyone watching, Yang Xing had no choice but to reach out and clasp her slender little hand. It was small, but surprisingly strong.
Yang Xing hadn't even applied any force, but Anko had already tightened her grip around his hand. Bending down, she spoke in a voice that was clearly threatening, low enough for only the two of them to hear. "Kid, you look like the weakest one on your team. Don't say I didn't warn you—don't mess with me, or you'll regret it."
Yang Xing: "..."
"Let's all get along from now on!" Anko called out cheerfully, dispelling the tense atmosphere. Nobody around them could have guessed what the two of them had just said to each other.
Yang Xing was baffled. He could only scratch his head and treat her words like nonsense.
The conversation that followed was brief. The teams introduced themselves, then went their separate ways.
They had all just come back from a mission, after all. Even with Konoha in crisis, they still needed some time to rest before setting out on their next assignment.
To recover from their fatigue, they agreed to meet at noon the next day. Then everyone split up beneath the Hokage Building.
After a tiring day, Yang Xing just wanted to go home, lie in bed, and get a good night's sleep. He didn't want to think about anything else. But just as he was about to leave, someone called out to him.
"Um, Yang Xing, there's something I'd like to talk to you about." It was rare for Kakashi to speak up first.
But Yang Xing merely turned his head slightly and waved him off without slowing his steps. "Some other time."
"Yang Xing!"
Yang Xing leaped straight onto the rooftops ahead and quickly disappeared into the distance. Kakashi could only watch him go with a helpless expression, sigh, and turn away.
There was nothing he could do when Yang Xing didn't want to talk to him.
It looked like it would take some time for the Fourth Hokage's misunderstanding to be cleared up.
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