"Lord Third, the first squad has gone missing."
In the Hokage's office, Kakashi knelt on the floor and spoke with a pained expression.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression was grim as well.
"What happened? Did they run into Orochimaru?"
That was the last thing he wanted to see, yet it was also the most likely possibility.
"Yes. The area has already been investigated. There were numerous snake carcasses, confirming it was Orochimaru."
The first squad had only been sent to scout ahead. No one had expected them to be unlucky enough to run into Orochimaru right away.
Kakashi had personally led the second squad.
When he followed the marks left by the Anbu to the site and saw the snake carcasses scattered everywhere, he'd immediately led the squad back to Konoha.
Orochimaru wasn't a merciful man. He wouldn't spare them out of regard for their past ties, either. If Kakashi had been alone, he might have tried to hold Orochimaru off for a while, but he had Anbu teammates behind him. He couldn't send them to their deaths!
"We still can't be sure what happened to them. I didn't find any bodies at the scene, so they... they might still be alive."
Kakashi added this, though the odds of it were lower than the chance of his eye ever returning to him.
"You don't have to comfort me, Kakashi. I can imagine perfectly well what's become of them."
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and sat back down in his chair.
"Put the pursuit mission on hold for now."
"Lord Third..."
"Don't say it. I know what you're going to say, but Orochimaru isn't an ordinary rogue ninja. Unless Konoha can send a large force of shinobi at once, we'll only be sending people to their deaths. If the Uchiha want to join forces with Orochimaru, then let them. I doubt their alliance will last. And Orochimaru... Knowing him, the Uchiha are one of his targets, too.
"As long as we don't push them too hard, I'm sure it won't be long before trouble breaks out among them."
Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up his pipe and analyzed the situation as he smoked.
Of course, they couldn't leave the Uchiha unchecked. But Orochimaru was no pushover, either. No one could predict what sparks would fly when the two sides met. Still, drawing on his experience and his knowledge of both parties, Hiruzen believed they would struggle to coexist peacefully. That was why he wasn't as worried as he'd seemed before.
"By the way, how has your eye been lately? The hospital has plenty of donated eyes. You can get a new one. You can't go on like this."
Hiruzen Sarutobi brought the conversation back around and looked at Kakashi's face with concern.
"My eye..."
At his words, Kakashi raised a hand and touched the spot where his left eye used to be. There was now an eyepatch there.
Unlike before, there was nothing beneath it now—just a dark, empty socket.
After someone stole his left eye at the Uchiha Compound, many people had suggested that he get another one, but he'd turned them all down.
The eye that had been stolen was a gift from his friend, given to him before his death. It was one of Kakashi's most precious possessions. Now that someone had taken it, all he could think about was getting it back. Replacing it with a new one felt like a betrayal of his friendship.
But there was a very practical problem: having only one eye seriously affected his field of vision.
Losing his field of vision meant losing his combat strength.
If both his eyes had been intact, he wouldn't have retreated so quickly this time. It was only because his strength had been compromised, leaving him at an even greater disadvantage against Orochimaru, that he'd had no choice but to lead the squad back.
Otherwise, he would have been gambling with his teammates' lives.
At the same time, his comrades from the first squad, who'd encountered Orochimaru, were now missing and their fates unknown. Kakashi was already beginning to regret his decision.
Now that Hiruzen Sarutobi had brought it up again, Kakashi hesitated for a moment before finally giving in to reality.
"All right. I'll ask about it later."
"Good. All right, go get some rest."
"Yes, sir. I'll take my leave."
Kakashi stood and bowed, then turned and left the Hokage's office, heading home.
As he passed through the shopping district, he stopped to buy some food. While paying, Kakashi suddenly paused and glanced in a certain direction, but he didn't see anything.
Frowning, he took his change from the shopkeeper and continued on his way.
After he'd gone some distance, Obito slowly emerged from behind a large tree nearby.
"Could it be you, Kakashi? Have you already mastered Kamui to this extent?"
Not long ago, Obito had accidentally entered the Kamui Dimension and found some pieces of wood inside.
He remembered clearly that they hadn't been there before.
Only Kamui could open a way into that other dimension. If he couldn't recall anything about something inside it, then there was only one answer.
The other eye had opened a Kamui Dimension!
This surprised him, because as far as he knew, no one outside the Uchiha could use the Mangekyo.
For one thing, the terrifying chakra demands alone could drain an ordinary Jonin to death.
And yet there were things in his Kamui Dimension that hadn't been there before. So he had no choice but to suspect that Kakashi had used the Mangekyo.
"You really are a genius... But it won't help you, Kakashi. You're not an Uchiha, after all. Using the Mangekyo from time to time will only hasten your death... I'll be keeping an eye on you. Sooner or later, I'll take back the eye you have."
Obito watched Kakashi's retreating figure, then slipped into the Kamui Dimension before Kakashi could sense him again and disappeared.
In the distance, that faint feeling of being watched vanished, and Kakashi let out a breath of relief.
Without his Sharingan, his sensory abilities had also taken a serious hit. He only knew that someone was watching him, but couldn't tell where they were.
I hope it isn't one of the surviving Uchiha. Konoha can't take any more trouble right now...
"Konoha is even stronger than I imagined!"
Inside the Shadow Space, it was time for the weekly "Remembering Hardship and Cherishing the Good" meeting again.
Well, that was a name Uchiha Arashi had made up on the spot. He hadn't bothered to check whether it fit.
The meeting was mainly meant to remind his younger siblings of Konoha's strength and make them recognize the gap between the two sides, so they would stay on their toes and not slack off.
"Today, we'll talk about another clan: the Aburame Clan. They're a famous clan of insect users throughout the Ninja World. They raise insects inside their bodies and release them in battle... There are many different kinds of insects, each with its own uses. The most basic and important are the Kikaichū..."
Half an hour later, Uchiha Arashi finished the lesson and left the Shadow Space. Coming toward him was Uchiha Ayatsuki, who had come to move some books.
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