"I said, let's go rescue Lin."
Obito Uchiha's voice rose a little higher, with a kind of uncontrollable anxiety.
"Did you see? She was captured by those two bastards! Let's catch up now--"
"No."
Kakashi Hatake's voice came from behind, like a nail nailed into Obito Uchiha's heel.
Obito Uchiha stopped, but did not look back.
His shoulders were shaking slightly, and his breathing was getting heavier and heavier, like a beast in a cage.
He thought Kakashi Hatake would follow and go with him to save Lin.
That's Lin, the companion of their team, the Lin who brings them lunch every time, the Lin who rushes up first when Kakashi Hatake is injured.
How could Kakashi Hatake not save her?
"We can't save Lin."
Kakashi Hatake said it again, his voice still calm.
Obito Uchiha turned around suddenly.
"What did you say?" His eyes were as red as red-hot coals, and his voice was squeezed out of his throat with an uncontrollable trembling, "Say it again?"
Kakashi Hatake stood there with his hand hanging by his side. The right hand that had been used by Chidori was still shaking slightly, but he did not let it stop.
His eyes were fixed on Obito Uchiha, on the shaking shoulders, and on the white-clenched fists.
"I said, we can't save Lin."
He spoke word by word, each word was like a nail hammered into Obito Uchiha's chest.
"Why!" Obito Uchiha's voice was almost roaring. He raised his fist and put it down, put it down and raised it again. He didn't know where to hit it.
"Why are you refusing to save me? Lin is our companion! She--"
"Because we have a mission."
Kakashi Hatake interrupted him, his voice suddenly rising a little higher.
"Our mission is to blow up Kannabi Bridge."
Kakashi Hatake said, his voice regained its calmness.
"Minato-sensei attracts the enemy's attention on the frontal battlefield and creates opportunities for us. If we go to rescue Lin now, we will waste time."
"The people of Iwagakure are not fools. They will soon realize that our real purpose is not to attack from the front, but to cut off their supply lines. When the time comes, Kannabi Bridge will send additional defenders, and our mission will not be completed."
He paused and looked into Obito Uchiha's eyes.
"If the mission is not completed, Minato-sensei will become passive on the front. More people will die. Do you not care about the lives of those Konoha Ninja on the front battlefield?"
Obito Uchiha opened his mouth, unable to speak a word. His mind was in a mess, as if someone had poured a bucket of paste into it.
He knew that what Kakashi Hatake said made sense, every sentence made sense, and every word made sense.
But there was a fire burning in his heart, which made his chest hurt, made him breathless, and made him want to smash everything in front of him.
"A ninja."
Kakashi Hatake's voice returned to that calm tone, as if he was stating an ordinary fact.
"If it can't complete the task, it's useless."
Obito Uchiha was stunned.
He looked at Kakashi Hatake, at the face that was mostly covered by the mask, and at the eyes that were as calm as if nothing had happened.
He suddenly remembered that a long time ago, when Ninja Academy, Kakashi Hatake also spoke like this.
At that time, he felt that Kakashi Hatake was right, the task of a ninja is to complete the task, and completing the task is everything.
At that time, he thought Kakashi Hatake was very cool, very strong, and very powerful.
Although he was also unhappy with it.
But now, he only feels cold.
The coldness coming from the bottom of my heart.
The wind blew from the other side of the canyon, blowing on Obito Uchiha's face, making it cool.
He stood there, looking at Kakashi Hatake, and was silent for a long time.
Kakashi Hatake also looked at him, without urging or speaking, just standing there, waiting for him to make a decision.
Obito Uchiha lowered his head.
He saw his hands. Those hands were still stained with the ashes left by Great Fireball Technique just now. There were several burns on the knuckles, which were red and a little painful.
His hands were shaking, not because of the cold, but because the fire was still burning in his heart, making him tremble from the inside out.
He slowly reached into his pocket and took out something.
That's his Forehead Protector.
Konoha's Forehead Protector, with the coat of arms of leaves engraved on it, was rubbed over and over again by him, making it so bright that people could be seen.
He never takes it off and wears it when sleeping, because it is Konoha's Forehead Protector, which is proof that his Obito Uchiha is Konoha Ninja.
He tied Forehead Protector on his head and tied it. Then he took out something else from his pocket.
That goggles, the one with a broken leg, he was never willing to throw away.
He pushed up the goggles and stuck them on Forehead Protector. The lenses faced the sky and reflected a small gray cloud.
Kakashi Hatake looked at his movements and frowned slightly.
"Obito Uchiha--"
"You're right."
Obito Uchiha raised his head and looked at him. The eyes were still red, but the fire inside did not go out, but burned even brighter.
There was an expression on his face that Kakashi Hatake had never seen before.
It's not anger, it's not impulsive, it's something very heavy, so heavy that Kakashi Hatake was stunned for a moment.
"Everything you said is probably right."
Obito Uchiha's voice is hoarse, but every word is clear.
"The mission is very important, Kannabi Bridge is very important, and winning this battle is very important. Everything you said is right."
He took a deep breath and clenched his fists.
"But."
He looked into Kakashi Hatake's eyes and spoke word by word.
"I think people who don't value their partners are worse than trash."
The wind blew between the two people, picking up ashes and debris on the ground.
Obito Uchiha's hair was messed up by the wind, and the lenses of the goggles flashed in the sun, then darkened again.
Kakashi Hatake was stunned.
The exposed eye opened slightly, and something moved deep in the pupil.
He was speechless.
He wanted to say, "You will die if you go," he wanted to say, "Lin wouldn't want you to be like this," and he wanted to say, "The mission is more important than a person's life." He had said these things before, to everyone, and he never needed to hesitate.
But at this moment, he couldn't say a word.
Because of Obito Uchiha's eyes.
Obito Uchiha, who was always late, always talked big, and was always compared to him, was standing in front of him now, with something in his eyes that he had never seen before.
It's not strength, it's not skill, it's not talent. It's something dumber, stupider, and more illogical.
But that kind of thing made Kakashi Hatake's mouth feel like it was sewn shut, and he couldn't say anything.
Obito Uchiha didn't look at Kakashi Hatake anymore. He turned around and walked in the direction where the two Iwagakure Ninja disappeared.
Kakashi Hatake stood there, watching the figure walking further and further away.
People who don't value their partners are worse than trash.
He thought of his father. He thought of his father's knife, its white blade, white hair, and white back.
I think of my father's silence when others were talking about him, of the deserted home after my father's death, and of myself kneeling in front of my father's soul, holding the knife.
Tell yourself.
Ninjas don't need emotions, just completing the mission is enough.