He thought he did it. He thought he was already the perfect ninja.
He thought that those rules, those tasks, and those cold logics could block all the wind, all the rain, and all the pain.
But Obito Uchiha left. Obito Uchiha went to save Lin alone. Obito Uchiha will die.
Kakashi Hatake Close your eyes.
What Obito Uchiha looked like just now came to mind.
The goggles should be pushed up on the forehead, the belt should be straight, and the waist should be straight.
The Obito Uchiha who was always slow in everything, the Obito Uchiha who was always laughed at, and the Obito Uchiha who couldn't even give out gifts, at that moment, was more like a real ninja than him.
Kakashi Hatake Open your eyes.
He moved.
His body was faster than his brain, and by the time he reacted, he had already run out more than a dozen steps.
His legs were sore, his lungs were burning, and the wind rushed into his mouth, making his throat hurt.
But he didn't stop, not even a step.
He ran past the charred wood remains, across the pitted gravel fields, across the dew-wet grass, and into the Obito Uchiha disappeared woods.
The shadows of the trees quickly receded in front of him, and the sunlight leaked through the gaps in the branches and leaves, casting broken light spots one after another on his face.
His breathing became heavier and heavier, but he gritted his teeth and did not slow down a step.
he shouted in his heart.
Obito Uchiha, stop here. Obito Uchiha, you will die if you go alone. Obito Uchiha--
He caught up.
Obito Uchiha was squatting on the branch of a big tree in front of him, holding his hands on the trunk, lowering his head, and adjusting his breathing while his shoulders were rising and falling.
His goggles were pushed up to his forehead, revealing his black eyes, currently staring at a hidden cave entrance ahead.
The entrance to the cave was not big and was covered by a few bushes. If we hadn't gone around at this angle, we wouldn't have discovered it at all.
Kakashi Hatake slowed down, approached the tree silently, then lightly jumped onto the branch next to it, squatted down, and held his breath.
He didn't call out Obito Uchiha, he just looked at the back and was silent for a moment.
Obito Uchiha didn't find him. Obito Uchiha focused all his attention on the cave.
He took a deep breath, raised his hand, and patted his face.
Snap, snap, two sounds, very clear and loud, especially loud in the quiet woods.
"It's okay." Obito Uchiha whispered to himself, his voice was as low as a mosquito's cry, but every word was said with force, "You can do it. You will definitely be able to do it."
He patted his face again, making his cheeks turn red and the fire in his eyes burning even brighter.
"Okay, let's get started."
His body leaned forward slightly, preparing to jump off the branch--
"Where are you going?"
A voice suddenly came from behind Obito Uchiha. It was sinister, like a snake spitting out a message.
Obito Uchiha's body froze.
He didn't have time to turn around, he only felt a gust of wind coming from behind, carrying a cold murderous intent.
His pupils shrank suddenly, and the hairs all over his body stood up--
It's too late, it's too late to hide--
A flash of silver light flashed.
Ding!
The sound of metal colliding exploded in the woods, as sharp as if it was about to pierce a person's eardrum.
Obito Uchiha felt his eyes blurred as a white figure stood between him and the Kunai.
White hair, white dagger, and white clothes are fluttering in the wind.
Kakashi Hatake.
He didn't know when he jumped over from the nearby branch and used the White Fang short knife left by his father to hold the Iwagakure jounin's Kunai.
The friction between the two blades produced a string of sparks, which was particularly dazzling under the dim shade of the trees.
The Iwagakure Jonin was bounced away a step and landed on the opposite branch. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Kakashi Hatake.
He only wore a pair of gray tights, and his face was covered with a scarf, revealing only a pair of narrow eyes.
He was thin and small, but standing there, he looked like a mist that could dissipate at any moment.
His eyes fell on Kakashi Hatake's hair and the White Fang short knife in his hand, and his pupils shrank slightly.
"You..." His voice was hoarse, with a hint of uncertainty, "Is it White Fang of Konoha?"
Kakashi Hatake stood in front of Obito Uchiha, with the short knife across his chest, and the residual warmth from the collision still remained on the blade. His breathing was a little unsteady, but the hand holding the knife was very steady.
"This is my father's relic," he said.
That Iwagakure Jonin was stunned for a moment, and then he laughed. The laughter was very soft and cold, like the wind blowing through the empty valley.
"White Fang's son."
He said, "Then there is nothing to be afraid of. White Fang has been dead long ago. How promising can his son be?"
His fingers flew and made a seal.
"Camouflage Concealment Technique."
His figure is like an ink stain washed away by water, fading little by little and disappearing little by little.
It blended into the air silently, as if it had never existed.
Kakashi Hatake's eyes scanned the surroundings, and the hand holding the knife tightened slightly.
The woods became quiet. The wind stopped, the birds stopped chirping, and even the leaves stopped shaking.
The whole world seemed to have been pressed on the pause button, and only the breathing of three people was left.
Obito Uchiha's is urgent and heavy, Kakashi Hatake's is light and steady, and there is another person who can't be heard or found, floating in the air like a ghost.
Kakashi Hatake closed his eyes.
It's not about giving up, it's about changing your approach. What you can't see with your eyes, feel it with your skin.
The flow of air, subtle changes in temperature, and fluctuations in chakra.
That person's chakra was like a thin line, floating in the air, vaguely present, but he could feel it.
That line is moving. It's going around from the left, around to the back, around to--
Kakashi Hatake opened his eyes suddenly and turned his head.
"Obito Uchiha, be careful - behind you!"
Obito Uchiha's body instinctively turned to the side. It was this move that saved his life.
The Kunai passed over his shoulder, scratching his clothes and skin, but it did not penetrate his vitals.
But Kakashi Hatake had no time to rejoice.
Because the moment he turned his head and shouted Obito Uchiha, his eyes left the front.
That Iwagakure jounin has been waiting for this moment.
Kunai stabbed from the other direction, as fast as a gray lightning.
Kakashi Hatake wanted to hide, but his body had nowhere to rely on in mid-air, so he could only try his best to tilt his head.
Kunai crossed over his left eye.
It hurts.
That kind of pain is not the pain of being cut by a knife, but a pain that is deeper, more intense, and makes people want to scream.
It was as if something exploded in his eye sockets, splitting his world in half.
The warm liquid flowed down from his face, down the bridge of his nose, down his cheeks, dripping on his hands, dripping on his knife, and dripping on the branches.
That wasn't sweat, that was blood. A lot of blood.
"Kakashi Hatake!"
Obito Uchiha's voice was shouting, urgent and high-pitched, with a crying tone.
He saw that Kakashi Hatake's left eye was closed, and blood was pouring out from the slit of the eyelid, flowing down the pale face, dyeing the mask dark red.
Kakashi Hatake's lips were pursed tightly and he didn't scream, but the hand holding the knife was shaking, and his whole body was shaking.
"It's okay." Kakashi Hatake said, his voice hoarse like sandpaper rubbing against wood, "I'm okay."