No Teamwork at All

Kakashi stared silently at the gift in front of him.

Rin Nohara seemed to notice Kakashi's confusion and patiently explained.

"It's a personal medical kit."

"I've modified everything in it to make it easier to use."

Kakashi accepted Rin Nohara's gift without expression and gave a casual thanks.

Then Kakashi turned and held out his right hand to Obito Uchiha.

Obito looked thoroughly annoyed. "I don't have a gift for you, Kakashi."

Kakashi withdrew his hand. "Forget it. It doesn't matter. Anything you gave me would be useless anyway."

Kakashi continued sarcastically, "Knowing you, it might even end up weighing me down."

Obito pointed at Kakashi, furious. "Honestly, I can't believe someone like you became a Jonin."

"That's not for you to judge," Kakashi shot back.

"Dead last."

Obito trembled with anger.

"I'm Obito Uchiha of the Uchiha clan!" he shouted. "One day, I'll surpass you, you smug jerk!"

"Once I awaken my Sharingan, I'll definitely surpass you."

Kakashi looked at him with open disdain. "Aren't all members of the Uchiha clan supposed to be elite? Shouldn't you be strong without relying on that?"

"So whether you awaken your Sharingan shouldn't matter, should it?"

"You're the Uchiha clan's dead last, and you're still one of them..."

"Who are you calling dead last, you arrogant white-haired freak?" Obito roared.

Rin Nohara saw that Kakashi and Obito were about to come to blows.

She hurried between them.

Holding Obito back with both hands, she said anxiously, "Stop fighting, both of you. Kakashi, Obito..."

Minato Namikaze had seen enough. "It's time to go over the mission. We're close to the border."

"This is no time to fool around."

Only then did Kakashi and Obito stop arguing.

They all turned toward Minato, their expressions serious.

Minato spread a map on the ground.

He patiently explained each route marked on it.

Then his expression turned grave. "Our enemy this time is Kumogakure."

"According to our intelligence, they already have thousands of ninja on the front line."

Seated around the map with the others, Obito stared at the red marks in surprise. "Their front line has advanced a lot farther than before."

"After all, the Land of Fire and Kusagakure have opened their borders to each other," Minato explained.

"Then it'll be too late if we just wait for them to attack," Kakashi said.

Rin Nohara, seated on the other side of the map, added, "If they've advanced this smoothly, their operations in the rear must be running smoothly too."

She looked gravely at Minato. "Right, sensei?"

Minato nodded. "That's right. Our mission is at Kannabi Bridge, on the most dangerous route."

He paused.

Then he pointed to the route on the map. "The ninja at the front will have to withstand attacks from large numbers of enemy ninja."

"That means those of us disrupting their operations must work in small teams of elite ninja."

"I'll handle that disruption."

"Is that clear?"

"So the three of us are responsible for the infiltration mission?" Kakashi asked.

Minato nodded. "That's right. Kakashi's team..."

"You'll infiltrate the area behind enemy lines."

"Destroy the bridge they use to transport supplies. That will cut off their support completely."

"Once the mission is complete, withdraw immediately. Do not stay a moment longer."

Minato emphasized the point once more. "The instant you complete the mission, withdraw."

"Do not linger. Otherwise, large numbers of enemy ninja will surround you, and then..."

Rin, Kakashi, and Obito understood how dangerous the mission was.

They all nodded.

The four-person team defeated countless enemy ninja along the way.

Kakashi's performance stood out.

Rin Nohara did well too.

Only Obito Uchiha kept holding everyone back.

While using Chidori, Kakashi was ambushed by a Kumogakure ninja and nearly killed.

At the last possible moment, Minato used the Flying Thunder God Technique to save him.

Even so, Kakashi suffered a slash across his chest.

Rin hurried over and began treating him with Medical Ninjutsu.

Meanwhile...

Minato dealt with the Kumogakure ninja, then quickly returned to the three of them. "Kakashi's wound is serious. Let's retreat for now and regroup."

"I'm fine," Kakashi protested.

"How can you be fine?" Obito Uchiha cut in.

"This happened because you wouldn't listen to sensei."

Kakashi gave him a cold look. "You're in no position to lecture me. Which elite Uchiha was so scared just now that he almost cried?"

Obito faltered at the taunt.

"It... it was just dust in my eyes," Obito Uchiha said defensively.

Kakashi ignored his strained expression. "You know rule twenty-five of the ninja code?"

"A Ninja must never cry."

"That's rule number one!"

"Please, both of you, stop arguing," Rin Nohara pleaded.

Minato Namikaze's temper finally flared. "That's enough, you two."

Kakashi and Obito fell quiet at the severity in Minato Namikaze's voice.

All three turned toward Minato Namikaze.

"Kakashi, rules and discipline are important," Minato Namikaze said.

"But they aren't everything. I've told you that before."

"Sometimes you need to adapt to the situation."

After Minato Namikaze finished speaking, Kakashi turned his head away and fell silent.

Seeing Kakashi at a loss, Obito quickly began to gloat. "See, Kakashi? Ha-ha!"

Before Obito could finish speaking, Minato Namikaze cut him off.

Minato Namikaze continued, "And Obito, the same goes for you."

Obito immediately stopped mocking Kakashi and listened attentively to Minato Namikaze's lecture.

"You're wearing goggles. Sand and dust can't get into your eyes."

"Self-control isn't just something you talk about. You need to make your heart stronger too."

Obito fell silent.

He knew Minato was right.

Minato Namikaze looked back at Kakashi and thought, One more thing, Kakashi. Don't use that technique called Chidori again for now.

I can see it's a killing move that puts everything into a single strike.

It certainly has tremendous power and speed.

But!

Moving that fast also keeps you from seeing your opponent's counterattack.

You haven't perfected the technique yet, have you?

"Before we split up, I'll say it once more: for ninja, nothing is more important than teamwork."

Rin Nohara, Kakashi, and Obito all lowered their heads in shame.

They knew how badly the mission had gone.

They had shown no teamwork at all.

As team captain, Kakashi felt ashamed too.