Year 44 of Konoha, an ordinary day.
At some point, a rumor began circulating around the village: the hero famed alongside the Sannin, the White Fang of Konoha, Hatake Sakumo, had abandoned a mission to save his comrades, inflicting enormous losses on the village.
The rumor, whose origins were unknown, grew more and more widespread, stirring up an unprecedented storm.
Many people condemned Hatake Sakumo, saying he was unfit to be Konoha's hero because he couldn't even complete a mission. Such malicious gossip even spread to the Academy.
Toru and Kurenai had both heard about it.
Kurenai asked, "Was the White Fang really not a hero?"
Toru answered her question. "The White Fang of Konoha was certainly a hero. Does being a hero mean you can't make mistakes?"
Yuhi Kurenai made a cute, enlightened expression and said, "That's true. Even heroes can make mistakes."
Toru added, "Besides, whether it was a mistake depends on the circumstances. The people spreading those rumors probably know no more than we do about what really happened. They're just using their mouths to insult a hero. They don't realize their contributions to Konoha might not even amount to one ten-thousandth of the White Fang's."
Kurenai agreed wholeheartedly with Toru, chiming in again and again.
They both thought it was just another disturbance in the village, one that would soon die down.
But neither of them expected the storm to keep growing, or that it would end in tragedy.
Konoha's White Fang, the legendary shinobi who struck fear into the hearts of the Shinobi World's enemies, Hatake Sakumo, had committed seppuku at home.
This was a result Toru had never imagined.
"The White Fang of Konoha was so unyielding that he was almost foolish. Why let that rabble get to him, to the point of taking his own life?"
"And are Konoha's leaders all idiots? They just stood by while the villagers attacked one of the village's heroes."
"Or is there more to all this?"
Toru was deeply shocked, and had a nagging feeling that things weren't as simple as they seemed.
So Toru decided to find Kakashi, the son of the person at the center of it all, and ask him what had really happened.
That evening, Toru told Kurenai he wouldn't be home for dinner, then went alone to Kakashi's house.
When Hatake Sakumo was alive, he had once invited Toru over for a meal through Kakashi.
So Toru knew where Kakashi lived.
As it happened, during that meal, Hatake Sakumo had asked Toru to keep an eye on his good-for-nothing son in the future.
He never expected those words to come true: Sakumo had taken his own life.
Now, by visiting Kakashi, Toru was doing his part to honor Sakumo's request.
Kakashi's house was a little like Toru's: both were large homes in secluded areas.
By the time Toru reached Kakashi's gate, dusk had fallen. Using his Six Eyes, he noticed Kakashi wasn't home.
Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long. Kakashi soon returned with three fish in hand.
Kakashi held up the fish and said, "What brings you here? Want to stay for dinner? I just caught these three."
Toru replied, "Sure."
They went inside, and Kakashi began preparing the fish for dinner. Toru glanced out the window, as if he had noticed something.
Kakashi spoke up. "You came to comfort me, didn't you?"
Toru admitted it readily. "I came to see how you're holding up."
Feeling his friend's concern, Kakashi choked up a little. "...I really am not used to being alone yet."
Tears glistened in Kakashi's eyes, and the knife in his hand trembled slightly as he gutted the fish, but he steeled himself and held back his grief.
"I lived like that for three years," Toru said calmly.
Kakashi paused. He hadn't known much about the family circumstances of the boy standing before him, the one who had beaten him twice.
He hadn't expected Toru to have lost both his parents, too—and to have been living that way for two years already.
Toru went on, "My mother died a year after giving birth to me. My father died when I was five. Before he passed, he entrusted me to the Uchiha Clan. That's how I got to where I am today."
"At first, it really was hard to live alone. There were all sorts of things I had to handle by myself. Cleaning, doing laundry, cooking—all of it got in the way of studying and training."
"But those were the easiest things to get used to. The hardest part was the loneliness."
"Living alone is painful."
"I thought that was how things would be from then on, but Kurenai's father asked me to have dinner with her every day, so we could keep each other company."
"At first, I didn't think much of it. But as time went on, I realized it really did ease my loneliness. I'm grateful to Kurenai and her father for that."
Toru showed an uncommon maturity, and his words struck a chord with Kakashi.
Kakashi sighed with a hint of envy. "Meeting Kurenai really was your good fortune."
Toru said playfully, "Isn't it the same for you? I have Kurenai, and you have Rin."
Kakashi gave a slight shake of his head, avoiding the subject and changing the topic instead.
He slit open the bellies of the three fish and removed their innards, then rinsed them under the tap. Turning to Toru, he asked, "If you were my father, faced with that situation, would you save your comrade or keep carrying out the mission? Was my father wrong?"
Toru looked at Kakashi and realized the boy wasn't as strong as he seemed.
His father's death had already shaken him deeply.
Still, Toru wouldn't lie just to spare Kakashi's feelings. He laid out his honest opinion. "I think your father was wrong, but not because he chose to save his comrades. He was wrong to take his own life because of the villagers' rumors."
"Saving a comrade might not have been the best choice, but it was your father's choice. Once he made it, it was no longer a question of whether it was right or wrong."
"As I see it, if I had to choose between a comrade and a mission, I'd weigh the circumstances."
"If the comrade were someone I barely knew, I'd complete the mission first, then try to save them afterward."
"But if that comrade were someone I treasured, like Kurenai, I'd abandon the mission and save them right away."
It was a quiet evening. Toru's words rang clearly through Kakashi's house and drifted outside through the open window.
Kakashi thought carefully about what Toru had said. Just then, a noise outside interrupted his thoughts and caught his attention.
"Come out. I'll make a little extra. You can eat with us."
Obito stood up from the bushes, rubbing his head sheepishly. "You caught me."
"Sorry," came a gentle female voice from behind Obito.
Obito turned around and jumped in fright, letting out a strange cry. Nohara Rin was standing right behind him.
"I didn't mean to hide... I just saw Obito and Rin hiding, so I hid too..." Another figure emerged from the bushes, right beside Nohara Rin. It was Yuhi Kurenai.
Yuhi Kurenai's cheeks were bright red. She had clearly heard what Toru had just said.
Toru wasn't surprised in the least. In fact, he'd noticed all three of them approaching the window with his Six Eyes, but hadn't said anything.
And so, four guests ended up at Kakashi's house that night.
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