Tricking White Fang into Coming Out

Guy didn't rush to allocate his points.

He lay on the ground, turning his head to look at Kakashi.

"How is White Fang doing right now?"

Kakashi was silent for a moment.

"He has locked himself in his room and won't come out."

Guy was stunned.

"How many days has it been?"

"Three days." Kakashi's voice was muffled. "He won't eat, and he won't speak. I knock on the door, but he doesn't respond."

"That won't do."

Guy propped himself up into a sitting position and looked at him.

Kakashi didn't speak.

"The best way to move past pain and doubt is to step out first."

Guy's expression was earnest and serious.

"Staying locked in a room will only amplify the pain."

Kakashi froze.

He turned to look at Guy, his eyes filled with a strange expression.

This boisterous, bushy-browed guy, who fought like a lunatic just a moment ago, could actually say something like this?

"How... do you know that?"

Guy scratched his head.

"My dad told me."

He shifted the blame directly onto Might Duy; it wasn't as if Kakashi would go and ask him anyway.

Kakashi was silent for a while, then suddenly sat up.

"Then what should I do?"

He stared at Guy, his eyes shining with an intense light.

"Teach me!"

Guy felt a bit uncomfortable under his gaze.

"I teach you?"

"Yes!" Kakashi grabbed his shoulders. "You were right just now, things can't go on like this. But I don't know what to do, you have to teach me!"

Guy looked at him.

That usually cold-hearted genius now had red-rimmed eyes, his gaze filled with anxiety.

Guy thought for a moment.

"How about this, you get your dad to come to the school first, and then we'll..."

He whispered a string of instructions into Kakashi's ear.

Kakashi looked suspicious. "Will this actually work?"

Guy shrugged. "Whether it works or not, it's still better than staying at home all the time, right?"

Kakashi fell silent.

Indeed.

His father hadn't left his room for three days.

If this continued...

He gritted his teeth.

"Fine. I'll try."

But immediately after, he ran into a dilemma.

"But how do I call him? He won't come out for anything."

Guy grinned, pointing at the bruised and battered Kakashi. "These injuries on your body are the best excuse."

Kakashi was stunned.

He looked down at himself.

His clothes were torn, his arms were covered in bruises, his knees were scraped raw, and there was a bloody gash on his face.

He looked at Guy, who was in an even worse state.

He was covered in blood, and his face was swollen like a pig's head.

Kakashi suddenly understood.

He looked up at Guy.

"You... you had this planned all along?"

Guy shrugged, saying nothing.

Kakashi watched him, silent for a long while.

Then he spoke.

"Thank you."

Guy didn't reply.

He simply gave a thumbs-up, flashing his White Fang.

The moonlight shone on his swollen face, and the smile was incredibly ugly.

Yet, Kakashi felt it was the best thing he had seen all day.

Supporting each other, the two slowly walked out of the woods.

The next day.

Early morning.

At the gate of the Ninja Academy.

Students walked in by twos and threes, some arriving on their own, others accompanied by their parents.

White Fang stood at the entrance, his expression complex.

He didn't want to be here.

For three days, he had locked himself in his room, not wanting to see anyone.

Those gazes, those whispers, those pointing fingers...

He couldn't stand it.

But this morning, Kakashi had knocked on his door, knocking with particular urgency.

"Dad! Dad!"

White Fang didn't respond.

"Dad! I got into a fight with a classmate!"

White Fang's heart tightened, but he still didn't open the door.

"Dad! I'm hurt! I'm covered in injuries!"

White Fang couldn't sit still anymore.

He pulled the door open, looked down, and saw Kakashi's miserable state.

White Fang's pupils constricted.

"Who did you fight with?!"

Kakashi kept his head low.

"A... a classmate in my class."

White Fang crouched down to examine his injuries.

They weren't light.

Although they were all superficial wounds, for a six-year-old child, it was painful enough.

But that wasn't the point.

"How badly was the other person hurt?" White Fang asked, frowning.

Kakashi froze for a moment, recalling the miserable state Guy had been in last night.

"...Worse than me."

"As I thought..."

White Fang fell silent.

His son was a genius, capable of using the Three Body Technique at six years old.

He had seen all the children in Kakashi's class.

As far as he knew, no one was a match for Kakashi.

Now that even Kakashi was injured, what must that other child look like?

"Dad, Umino sensei wants you to come over..."

White Fang sighed.

He really didn't want to go, but looking at Kakashi's appearance and thinking of the child he had beaten, he had no choice.

White Fang finally compromised.

"Let's go."

Kakashi looked up at him, his eyes brightening for a moment.

"Father, you..."

White Fang said nothing, taking his hand and walking outside.

At this moment.

At the school gate.

The moment White Fang appeared, the surrounding gazes drifted over.

"That is..."

"White Fang!"

"Why is he here?"

"Have you heard? He failed his mission..."

"Abandoning the mission to save a comrade, tsk tsk..."

The voices were not loud, but every word drifted into his ears.

White Fang's footsteps faltered.

Those gazes pricked his body like needles.

He instinctively wanted to lower his head, turn around, and flee back to that dark room.

Then he saw the person standing at the gate.

Might Duy.

That eternal Genin, wearing a faded green jumpsuit, stood at the school gate like a guardian deity.

White Fang froze.

He looked down at Kakashi.

"Is that the hardworking kid you beat up?"

Kakashi's eyes darted away, and he said nothing.

White Fang wanted to lecture him, but he opened his mouth and nothing came out.

He simply sighed.

His face was numb.

He let go of Kakashi's hand and walked toward Might Duy.

The surrounding gazes intensified.

Parents dropping off their children, villagers passing by, and several teachers arriving for class.

They all stopped, watching White Fang.

Whispering.

"That's him..."

"Konoha White Fang? I heard..."

"How shameful..."

White Fang's steps grew slower and slower.

Those words were like knives, carving into his heart one by one.

He was suddenly a little afraid.

Afraid to walk up to Might Duy, afraid to hear what he might say.

The dignified Konoha White Fang, who had killed countless enemies and carried out so many dangerous missions, had never known fear.

But now, he was afraid.

Might Duy watched him approach, watched his numb face, and watched his evasive eyes.

His heart suddenly ached.

Is this still the White Fang he once knew?

The White Fang who led him on missions back then and never once said he was holding them back?

The White Fang who smiled and told him, "Everyone has their own way of living"?

Might Duy was about to speak.

"Screech----"

A harsh sound of electricity exploded from overhead.

Everyone looked up.

A large loudspeaker hung from the utility pole beside the school gate.

It was usually used for announcements.

Now, the speaker was pointed directly at the crowd.

"Testing, testing..."

A voice emanated from the speaker.

It was the voice of Might Guy.

Everyone was stunned.

White Fang was stunned as well.

He looked up at the speaker.

Then, Guy's booming voice echoed through the entire school entrance via the loudspeaker.