Might Guy's question was like a pebble thrown into a deep pool, creating complex ripples in Shira's heart.
He didn't answer immediately, but silently nodded, meeting Kai's eyes which had lost all their playfulness and were now filled with scrutiny.
"Um."
A single word, spoken softly, was enough to make the air in the training field freeze even more. Rock Lee and Naruto, standing nearby, seemed to sense the change in atmosphere as well, and even their breathing became softer.
The flush of excitement on Rock Lee's face faded, replaced by confusion and a hint of unease.
Naruto blinked his blue eyes, looking at Guy's serious face and then at Shira expression. He didn't quite understand what was going on, but instinctively felt that this wasn't the usual relaxed atmosphere.
Both of them were completely bewildered, utterly unable to understand the encrypted call between Shira and Kai.
Kai received confirmation, but his face did not show any approval.
His expression became even more complicated. His thick, dark eyebrows were tightly furrowed, his arms were crossed, and his gaze shifted from Shira's face to the grove of trees at the edge of the training ground, which was gradually being swallowed by twilight. His eyes seemed to drift away, as if they had pierced through time and space and seen something else entirely.
Memory Restoration Technique, activated!
Fragments of memory, carrying the smell of rust and dust, suddenly crashed into my mind.
Kai only remembered that he was on a mission with Kakashi and Itachi, who were both members of the Anbu. The battle ended quickly. The enemy was not strong enough; some died, some were injured, and the remaining few, seeing that things were not going well, threw down their weapons, knelt on the ground, and shouted their surrender with tears streaming down their faces.
Looking at those enemies who had lost their will to fight and were trembling with fear, I felt a sense of relief.
The mission is complete, the enemy has surrendered, and according to procedure, they should be taken back for interrogation.
He abandoned his Taijutsu stance and prepared to step forward to disarm the prisoners and bind them.
Just then, he caught a glimpse of two figures out of the corner of his eye.
It was his close friend, Kakashi, whose hands were still stained with the blood of his enemies, his eyes beneath the mask as calm as still water.
Meanwhile, another, younger boy, dressed in Anbu uniform and with strange red eyes, Uchiha Itachi, was also present.
Kai saw Kakashi walk forward, without asking any questions or hesitating. His weapon drew a cold arc under the gloomy sky, precisely piercing the back of an enemy who was kneeling and begging for mercy.
The enemy didn't even have time to utter a second pleas for mercy before his body stiffened and he collapsed.
Almost simultaneously, Uchiha Itachi, standing nearby, moved with equally swift and deadly precision, his blade flashing out to finish off another prisoner.
Kai froze, his hand, which was about to tie someone up, stopped in mid-air.
He stared wide-eyed at his best friend and the silent Uchiha boy, as if he were seeing them for the first time.
The raindrops hit his forehead and felt very cold.
" Kakashi! They've surrendered!"
He remembered shouting it out, his voice distorted by the sound of the rain.
Kakashi turned around, his exposed right eye looking at him, its surface devoid of any emotion, only the indifference of someone who had completed a mission.
"How could you call out the names of the Anbu who are on a mission?" Kakashi's voice was frighteningly calm. "These people are enemies, their hands are stained with the blood of their Konoha comrades."
"Surrender does not absolve us of our guilt. Taking us back would be a burden; things might change en route, and interrogation might not yield crucial information. Elimination is the safest option. It's also part of the mission."
Uchiha Itachi didn't look at him, but silently wiped the blood from the blade. His face behind the mask was obscured by the rain, and only his scarlet eyes reflected the blood on the ground that was quickly washed away by the rain.
Kai stood in the rain, watching the corpses on the ground rapidly losing temperature and bleeding, then looking at Kakashi and Itachi as they put away their weapons and prepared to leave.
Rainwater streamed down his hair and into his eyes.
Hiss, it's a bit astringent.
It was only then that he realized so clearly for the first time how different certain aspects of the ninja path were from the Taijutsu training he loved, a training filled with sweat and passion.
Some choices are not about right or wrong, but about reality, tasks, and survival.
Back to reality.
Kai abruptly pulled himself out of that damp and chilly memory, refocusing his gaze on Shira before him.
The sunset over the training ground was much warmer than she remembered, but Shira gaze vaguely overlapped with the almost cold, uncharacteristic image of Kakashi and Itachi when they sheathed their weapons.
He took a deep breath, the cool evening air of Konoha filling his lungs and suppressing the long-standing unease in his heart.
He looked at Shira, Sunagakure boy who was probably even younger than Itachi at the time, and asked the question that had been lingering in his mind, his voice low and inquisitive:
"You killed the enemy, didn't you?"
This scene is in the original work; I've added a little something to it, hmm. ⌓‿⌓