"What if I told you..."
"This information was about your [close friend]?"
But just then,
Chen Xiaoxi suddenly sat down across from him at the table, then gave him a mysterious smile and chuckled.
"...Hmm?"
At those words, Kakashi's head snapped up almost instantly. He furrowed his brow slightly and said,
"Guy?
Did that guy get himself into trouble somewhere again?"
At the mention of a close friend,
he naturally thought of the one he had back in Konoha,
the passionate man, Might Guy.
But to his surprise, Chen Xiaoxi shook his head and smiled.
"Wrong."
"The friend I meant was the one who once gave you the Sharingan..."
"His name was... Obito Uchiha."
"?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Kakashi's pupils contracted. His breath caught, and his hand tightened around the book.
"Y-you said...!"
"Obito?"
Kakashi's heart nearly stopped.
He had never imagined that, at a time like this and in a place like this, he would suddenly hear the name he had buried in the deepest part of his memories!
Obito Uchiha!
"That's right."
Chen Xiaoxi nodded, then curled his lips into a smile as he watched Kakashi.
"So, shall we make a trade?"
"After all, Kakashi-senpai, it seems you don't even know that he's still alive, do you?"
"?"
What?
Obito was still alive?
Hearing Chen Xiaoxi's words, Kakashi's eyes widened. He was completely stunned.
Kakashi, the man known as Five-Five Split,
had always been a very laid-back person.
Unless he heard that name, he rarely ever let his emotions get the better of him.
Because that name
represented one of the most painful memories of his life.
And Chen Xiaoxi knew that, of course, so he had chosen it as his opening.
Looking at Kakashi, he continued with a smile.
"Kakashi-senpai, just give me the book you're holding."
"And I'll tell you some information you want to know, like his new identity, for example."
"..."
After a long silence,
Kakashi's expression slowly began to recover from its utter shock.
But he kept his eyes fixed on Chen Xiaoxi, gritted his teeth slightly, and said in a low voice,
"I... don't even know who you are or what you want."
"How am I supposed to trust your information?"
Hearing this,
Chen Xiaoxi tilted his head slightly and smiled.
"You don't trust me?"
"Then, goodbye!"
As he spoke, Chen Xiaoxi stood up, put his hands in his pockets, and turned to leave.
"...?"
Kakashi was stunned at the sight.
Who negotiated like this?
You were going to walk away just because he didn't agree right away?
Couldn't you at least try a little harder?
"Tch."
After hesitating for a brief moment,
Kakashi gritted his teeth, finally stood up, and called out urgently,
"Wait!"
At his words,
Chen Xiaoxi stopped with his back to Kakashi. A smile of satisfaction appeared on his face, as if he had expected this, and he turned around.
"What is it, Kakashi-senpai? Changed your mind?"
"..."
Kakashi said nothing. He gave the book in his hand, Icha Icha Paradise, one last reluctant glance, then closed it and tossed it over.
"Smack."
The yellow book traced an arc through the air and landed squarely in Chen Xiaoxi's hands.
A satisfied smile immediately spread across Chen Xiaoxi's face.
Got it!
"Ding! Congratulations, host. Side quest completed!"
"Collect one of Jiraiya's novels, Icha Icha Paradise (1/1). Complete! Reward: Reiatsu +1000!"
The notification sounded at once, and Chen Xiaoxi immediately felt a slight increase in the spiritual energy within him.
"Go on..."
"Tell me about this 'information' you mentioned."
Kakashi sat down again and spoke as calmly as he could.
But
his voice trembled faintly.
Years.
It had been several years since he had heard anyone say "Obito."
Throughout all of Konoha,
throughout the entire Uchiha Clan,
it seemed everyone had long since forgotten the dead failure who had fallen in the war.
But Kakashi would never forget.
Ever since the Battle of Kannabi Bridge, he had always remembered everything about Obito.
And the Sharingan he carried was the last gift Obito had left him.
So even though he didn't trust this brown-haired, golden-eyed boy at all, he still wanted to hear what information he had.
Perhaps he was so fixated on this because,
more than death,
he wanted to believe... that Obito was still alive.
He had already lost everything important to him: his father, his teacher, Rin...
If Obito was still alive,
then Kakashi had to find him, no matter what!
"..."
Seeing how serious Kakashi looked, Chen Xiaoxi's heart stirred.
But he didn't sit back down. Instead, he smiled and said,
"What I'm about to tell you may be completely different from what you expect, Kakashi-senpai, so..."
"Please try not to be too shocked."
"..."
Kakashi lowered his gaze and gave a slight nod. He said nothing.
Chen Xiaoxi, still smiling, spoke at an unhurried pace.
"Just as I said before..."
"Your close friend, Obito Uchiha, didn't actually die in the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. Instead, he was rescued by a kind old man."
"After that, under the old man's careful guidance and brainwashing, he survived with a completely new identity and a new life."
"So, if someday in the future,"
"you see a man wearing an orange spiral mask and a Red Cloud Black Robe, who calls himself 'Madara Uchiha'..."
"then don't hesitate—"
"try hitting him right in the face with a Chidori."
"Because once you smash that mask, you'll probably see... a familiar face."
As he finished, Chen Xiaoxi's smile deepened.
"That's all the information I have. Until next time, Five-Five Split."
As soon as he finished speaking,
Chen Xiaoxi raised his hand and snapped his fingers.
"Snap."
The instant his fingers snapped, Chen Xiaoxi's figure turned into a blur and vanished from the noodle shop.
But Kakashi, still seated, had gone completely rigid.
His eyes were wide, his pupils had shrunk to pinpricks, and his heart seemed to have stopped!
He didn't know why the boy had misread his name as "Five-Five Split," but there was no doubt—
those words had struck him like a bolt from the blue!
A short while later.
On the street outside the noodle shop,
Chen Xiaoxi walked along, slowly flipping through a yellow book in his hands, a satisfied smile on his face.
He had done a good deed today.
The light of justice shone across the lands of the Ninja World~
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