Hatake Sakumo knew nothing of the plots unfolding in the shadows. He only felt the air around him growing more and more oppressive, each breath weighed down by a crushing pressure.
He had even started avoiding going out during the day, preferring to wait until nightfall before venturing briefly through the silent streets like a ghost.
One day, he happened to pass a training ground and saw several young ninja engaged in a heated discussion.
" if you ask me, a mission is a mission! Failing it is dereliction of duty!"
"But isn't saving your comrades the right thing to do? Isn't the Will of Fire about protecting your comrades?"
"That depends on the circumstances! It was an S-rank mission, one that affected the lives of so many people. Sacrificing the greater good for one person is irresponsible!"
"Lord White Fang might have had his reasons..."
"What reasons? I say he was just abusing his strength to do whatever he pleased!"
The young ninja weren't speaking loudly, but their words struck Sakumo's heart like heavy hammers.
Did even the younger generation see him that way? As reckless? Irresponsible?
Hatake Sakumo silently turned and walked away, his shadow stretching long beneath the moonlight, steeped in loneliness and desolation.
When he returned home, Kakashi was already back and was fixing himself something to eat in the kitchen.
Watching his son's prematurely mature, silent figure, Sakumo felt a sharp pang in his heart.
Had Kakashi heard those rumors too? What did he think of him as a father?
Hatake Sakumo opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, nothing came out.
What could he say? Tell his son that his father had abandoned a mission to save his comrades and was now being blamed by the entire village?
He could