White Fang hurried toward Konoha along the route he remembered, countless emotions stirring within him. Scenes of his suicide all those years ago echoed in his mind, and he felt somewhat lost about what he should do now that he had been reborn.
Partway through these thoughts, he smiled freely and murmured to himself, "Heh, why trouble myself? The ninja of Anyo's generation have all grown up. The future belongs to them. Whether I remain a ninja really isn't all that important."
Having passed through life, death, and rebirth, White Fang now saw many things differently. Although he had never asked how he had been brought back to life, he could imagine the hardships involved.
Regret welled up in his heart over his decision to take his own life. His death had indeed freed him, fulfilled his own ninja path, and kept the village from suffering because he had abandoned the mission. But for Kakashi and Anyo, that decision had been far too cruel.
After running for some time, White Fang reached a stretch of ruins, and a puzzled look immediately crossed his face. "How strange. Where is this? If my memory serves me right, I should already be within Konoha."
He continued forward for a while and gradually saw many injured people lying on the ground, with members of the medical team coming over to treat them from time to time. Only then did White Fang recall what Anyo had just told him, and his heart jolted. Could Konoha really have...
With no time to think further, White Fang joined the rescue effort, taking a stretcher from the medical ninja and helping transport the wounded.
Although the medical personnel found him unfamiliar, his eagerness to help was genuine, so they began giving him instructions. "Here, and those two wounded