The Fourth Hokage

After two days of proper rest, Xia Yan woke up on time again on the day his leave ended.

Those two days off had actually been rather boring for Xia Yan. Although he had no trouble adjusting to being on leave, completely relaxing clearly did not quite suit his identity as an Anbu member.

His spar with Kakashi had only been a little diversion, but it had also helped patch up the hole Kakashi had created, along with some issues surrounding his identity.

At least I don't have to worry about people constantly asking me what I've been doing all these years.

Standing in front of the mirror, Xia Yan thought to himself as he washed up.

There really were quite a few questionable points about his identity. For example, exactly where he had gone after leaving the Academy at eight was something well worth questioning.

Xia Yan was not Kakashi. He did not dare publicly reveal his Anbu identity, especially since he was also a descendant of the Senju Clan. That involved even more serious problems.

Now, however, those problems had been resolved to some extent, even if the solution was not perfect.

Kakashi might genuinely have been unaccustomed to calling him by his name, so Xia Yan had simply gone along with the mistake, using Kakashi to fill the gap left by his "disappearance" over the years.

By showing a little of his strength in a spar, he would at least live up to Kakashi calling him "Captain."

When the time came, he could easily say that he had been on the battlefield all along and had even teamed up with Kakashi to complete missions.

Once he had finished making himself presentable, Xia Yan put on his mask again and walked straight out the door.

Today, however, he headed not toward the Anbu base but toward the Hokage Building. He had not forgotten that he was meeting the Fourth Hokage today.

Xia Yan had waited two whole days for this meeting, even though he knew that little of substance would come of it.

But he could confirm certain things, and even use today's meeting to judge a great deal of what would follow.

Hopefully, it'll be a good outcome...

With that silent thought, Xia Yan soon entered the Hokage Building.

Aside from Hokage Rock, the Hokage Building might have been Konoha's most symbolic landmark. From a distance, it hardly seemed very large.

Only upon entering did one discover that this place truly deserved to be the central hub of Konoha's power.

It contained numerous offices. Even Konoha's most important department-the Administrative Affairs Department-was housed within the Hokage Building.

Xia Yan also knew that the Hokage Building had a large conference room capable of holding over a hundred people.

He had once carried out a guard assignment in that enormous conference room, and he would never forget just how grand it was.

He silently headed toward the building's top floor, where the Hokage's office was located.

After a round of checks, no one gave Xia Yan any trouble. Perhaps word had been sent ahead, or perhaps it was because of his Anbu identity. In any case, he entered the office without difficulty.

"Lord Hokage."

Looking at Minato Namikaze seated upright behind the desk, Xia Yan gave a slight, respectful bow.

"Hello, Xia Yan." Minato Namikaze raised his head, a gentle smile appearing on his face.

Seeing was believing. Xia Yan had to admit that Minato Namikaze, known as the "Little Sun," truly possessed a warmth like the sun's.

Xia Yan had never seen such an approachable manner in the Third Hokage. It was just a bit of a pity...

"Lord Hokage, please just call me Nightingale." Xia Yan felt somewhat moved, but he still spoke cautiously. "Anbu members are best off not revealing their real information..."

"Sorry, sorry. That was my mistake."

Minato Namikaze admitted his mistake without the slightest hesitation. He seemed to put on no airs whatsoever.

"Well then, Nightingale, the main reason I wanted to see you this time was to properly thank you for everything you've done for Kakashi."

He stood up and looked at Xia Yan sincerely, without the slightest affectation in his manner.

"Kakashi is my student, and now he's my only student. As for the others..."

At that point, he suddenly gave a soft sigh and stopped speaking. In truth, even without him continuing, Xia Yan understood perfectly well.

Among the younger generation in Konoha who knew Kakashi, there were probably few who did not know what he had been through.

Minato Namikaze was so young and had been in Konoha all along. He really had not had many students; his only students had been the members of Team Minato back then.

Now Kakashi was the sole remaining member of Team Minato, and everyone knew full well just how terrible his condition had been before.

His state, like that of a walking corpse, and his attitude, as cold as solid ice, seemed to declare that this former genius had fallen completely into darkness.

Minato Namikaze had sent him to the Anbu in the hope that it might help, hoping its heavy mission load would leave Kakashi no time to wallow in the past.

He had also hoped that the Anbu's rules would help Kakashi come to terms with everything that had happened before.

Yet he truly had not expected that, so soon after Kakashi was assigned to Xia Yan's team, this former classmate of Kakashi's would actually bring about an improvement in him!

That improvement was fundamental. Even if Kakashi had not yet fully returned to the state of a normal person, he had begun moving toward becoming one.

"In any case, thank you, Nightingale." Minato Namikaze took a deep breath, then stood up and said earnestly, "If not for you, I don't know what would have become of Kakashi."

"There's no need to thank me, Lord Hokage." Xia Yan shook his head slightly, his tone exceptionally modest and gentle. "Kakashi was my classmate, and he's also my teammate. I didn't want him to remain in that state either. It was what I ought to do."

"That may be true, but I've still decided to give you a reward." Minato Namikaze smiled. "I heard from Kakashi that you want to learn Sealing Jutsu. Is that right?"

"Yes, Lord Hokage." Xia Yan lowered his head slightly, and a smile appeared on the face hidden beneath his mask.

It looks like this meeting is going much better than I'd actually expected.

There was nothing strange about Minato Namikaze knowing that he wanted Sealing Jutsu, because Kakashi would certainly have reported these things.

Now that Xia Yan had been asked this question, he had no need to guess what would happen next.

However, their conversation remained entirely formal up to this point, without touching on anything else. Minato Namikaze had not even asked about that underground laboratory.

Xia Yan guessed that perhaps Minato Namikaze thought he knew nothing either, or that his rank was too low for him to be involved, or perhaps it was still not something he could freely ask about.

But Xia Yan did not mind, because he felt that this matter was probably not over yet.

The Anbu were one of the most important components of a Kage's power, yet all along, very few of the orders they received had come from the Fourth Hokage.

Not only that, but even while Minato Namikaze and Xia Yan were meeting in a private capacity, these Anbu were still "dutifully carrying out their responsibilities."

That really did give one something to think about...