Will you protect me?

Uzumaki Hayashi stopped with one foot already over the threshold.

Kakashi Hatake as his Guiding Jonin?

Wait.

Wasn't this guy supposed to be Team 7's future Guiding Jonin? Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura-that was his team!

If I joined Kakashi, what would happen to those three? Would someone get shoved out? Who? Sakura? Wouldn't Naruto and Sasuke come after me?

Besides, if I squeezed my way in, the plot... pfft, the whole team would be a mess, wouldn't it? If everything got scrambled, could it even be called Team 7 anymore?

But turning him down...

A top-tier bodyguard delivered right to my door, complete with lifetime after-sales service. And I'm supposed to push him away? It's not like someone stabbed a Kunai into my brain.

Graduation's coming up in a few days anyway. We'll have to get assigned to teams. Does it really matter who I follow?

At least I know what I'm getting with Kakashi. My life would be safe, and I could keep an eye on those three nearby. Nobody would get in anyone's way.

As for where those three would end up...

That's a headache for the Third and Kakashi. It's not something a twelve-year-old kid like me needs to worry about.

For a moment, Uzumaki Hayashi's mind was in an uproar.

But he couldn't say any of that aloud.

Keeping one foot inside the doorway, he looked back and asked with a deliberately blank expression:

"Jonin Kakashi, what's... a Guiding Jonin?"

Playing dumb? He knew that game.

Get some information first, then make a plan. Know yourself and your opponent, and you could figure out just how far to push.

Kakashi looked visibly relieved and waved a hand. "After you graduate from the Ninja Academy, a Jonin takes you into a three-person squad, and you go on missions together. It's nothing complicated. Don't overthink it."

At that, Kakashi paused, then added, "It's just... if you're willing to join me, I'll go ask the Third for approval. But when the time comes, this squad might be a little unusual."

"So... would you like to join?"

Then the world fell silent.

The setting sun hung in the west, bathing the doorway in warmth.

A breeze passed along the street, swept up a leaf or two, then set them down again.

The street was so quiet that someone taking in their bedding could be heard. Somewhere in the distance, a dog barked twice, then fell silent.

The red-haired child simply looked back at him, motionless, without even bothering to turn his body around.

One second, two seconds...

Kakashi sighed inwardly.

This was clearly an unspoken rejection.

Fair enough. Why should he agree? How many times have we even met? All I've done is deliver a scroll and have him bandage my hand once-oh, and trick him once, only to get caught on the spot.

And with that little connection, I actually had the nerve to ask.

He opened his mouth, letting the words "It's fine if you don't want to" roll around in his throat. In the end, he couldn't bring himself to say them.

He was just considering laughing it off and changing the subject...

Just then, Uzumaki Hayashi turned his head away, once again putting his back to Kakashi.

He couldn't let Kakashi see his face. One look, and the act would fall apart. Right now, he couldn't squeeze even a drop of fear into his eyes.

His voice, though, could put on a little performance.

"Then... Jonin Kakashi."

He heard his own voice tremble just the right amount.

"Will you protect me?"

Kakashi froze.

What... what kind of question was that?

He couldn't see the boy's face or guess what was going through the child's mind. But in that softly spoken question, he heard an unfounded fear, along with dependence.

So... had he been afraid all this time?

Kakashi's heart clenched. He had been too hasty.

How many days had this child even been in Konoha? His clan had been wiped out, he'd fled, and he'd held on alone until he reached Konoha. He'd only just managed to enjoy a few peaceful days... I don't even know if he can sleep at night.

And here I am, opening my mouth and asking, "Do you want to join me?"

Join me for what? Go on missions with me, head onto battlefields with me, put his life on the line with me?

He couldn't do anything about the life the child had lived before. But he had to look after the life the child would have from now on.

Still, how he did that would have to depend on what the child wanted.

Never mind anything else. If this child didn't want to go on missions, and Lord Third wanted to support him for the rest of his life, Kakashi wouldn't utter a single complaint.

Kakashi hurriedly snuffed out those thoughts and gave a laugh.

"Of course."

He made his voice relaxed and gentle.

"I'll definitely protect you."

After a pause, he added, "It's all right, Hayashi. If you don't want to go on missions, we don't have to. Being a teacher like Iruka sounds pretty good to me, too."

Kakashi still had his mouth open, the rest of his words not yet spoken...

When Uzumaki Hayashi slowly turned around, there wasn't the slightest trace of fear left on his face.

He smiled at Kakashi.

It was a dazzling smile. How had the heroines in those idol dramas he'd watched in his previous life smiled again? He piled every one of those smiles onto his face.

Then he opened his mouth without making a sound and mouthed, "Okay," to Kakashi.

After that, he looked at Kakashi for another couple of moments before turning around, stepping briskly inside, and pulling the door behind him...

With a soft thump, the door closed completely.

Kakashi was still standing where he had been.

That smile, wrapped in the sunset, had hit him head-on and left him dazed.

The boy's delicate face seemed so unreal in the light that it might melt away...

"Okay"? He said "okay"?

By the time he came to his senses, the doorway was empty, and the door was shut tight without even a crack.

"...What was all that?"

Kakashi stood facing the door for a long while, sorting through his emotions.

Even after all those years he had spent alone in the ANBU, nobody had ever stirred his emotions like this with a few words and a smile.

Strangely enough, though, it didn't feel bad.

He knew perfectly well that the little rascal was playing tricks, yet there was nothing he could do about him.

Besides, he was willing to play along.

Behind the door.

Uzumaki Hayashi leaned against the door, ears pricked as he listened to the sounds outside.

Kakashi Hatake's footsteps grew more distant, one step at a time.

Now!

The dazzling smile vanished from his face in an instant.

That whole performance had been smooth as flowing water, all in one seamless stretch. He almost wanted to applaud himself.

He had committed every word of Kakashi's "I'll definitely protect you" to memory.

What an amazing deal!

He had secured himself a top-tier bodyguard, too. If he really did leave the village on missions in the future, having this man around would send his safety rating straight to the max.

Then, brimming with smug satisfaction, he raised his voice in his mind and let out a howl...

"System! Get out here!"

"Does this mean I've met the requirement?!"