The instant the answering round began, Live Chat Group One filled with responses.
[Kakashi Hatake: C!]
[Fourth Raikage: E!]
[Sasuke Uchiha: B!]
[Chiyo: A!]
[Neji Hyuga: B!]
[Naruto Uzumaki: D!]
[Chojuro: A!]
[Kankuro: A!]
[Kurotsuchi: D!]
[Might Guy: C!]
[…]
[Answering Period Over]
[Correct Answer: C!]
[Correct Respondents: Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy]
The moment everyone saw that Kakashi had chosen C, many of them immediately regretted their own answers.
Unfortunately, it was already too late to change them.
Everyone had made their choice within a fraction of a second after the round began.
[Fourth Raikage: As expected of Konoha’s Copy Ninja.
Your reactions were even faster than mine!]
[Kakashi Hatake: You flatter me, Lord Raikage.]
[Kankuro: Seriously?
Sakumo Hatake wasn’t famous for kenjutsu, but taijutsu?]
[Chiyo: Taijutsu?
Did I actually remember it wrong?]
[Sasuke Uchiha: Damn it.
I managed to answer in time, but I picked the wrong one!]
[Naruto Uzumaki: Hehe!
At least I was pretty fast!]
[Sakura Haruno: Naruto!
If you don’t know the answer, stop guessing randomly!
You just wasted one of the limited chances that someone could’ve used to win a conversation with the dead!]
[Shikamaru Nara: I still don’t get it.
How did Sakumo Hatake earn the name “White Fang” through taijutsu?
Dad, your generation must know something about it, right?]
[Shikaku Nara: I do.
Sakumo Hatake possessed a terrifying taijutsu technique.
Most people assumed his title came from his blade or his white hair.
What they didn’t know was that his real claim to fame was one of Konoha’s secret taijutsu techniques—Thousand Years of Death!]
The chat fell silent for a moment.
[Rock Lee: Whoa!
A secret taijutsu technique!
It must be incredibly powerful!
No wonder Guy-sensei knew the right answer.
He must know the technique too!]
Might Guy stiffened.
He had only chosen C because taijutsu was his favorite option.
But with Lee looking at him with such admiration…
There was no turning back now.
[Might Guy: Uh…
I…
Hahaha!
Of course!
That’s exactly right!
I was able to answer because I too have trained in the legendary taijutsu technique once used by Sakumo-senpai!]
[Might Guy: I can still remember the sweat of youth I shed while mastering it!]
[Rock Lee: As expected of you, Guy-sensei!!!]
As the commotion continued, everyone began wondering whether the promised reward was actually real.
If the mysterious screen had only been teasing them, the disappointment would be enormous.
Then another message appeared.
[Kakashi Hatake, state the name of the deceased person you wish to speak with.]
[You have one minute to decide.
The opportunity will be forfeited when the time expires.]
In a corner of the plaza, excitement flickered in Kakashi’s visible eye.
He really had won.
A chance to speak with someone who had died.
But that immediately created another problem.
Who should he choose?
His father?
He could finally tell Sakumo that he understood the choice he had made all those years ago.
Or should he choose Obito?
He could apologize for failing him.
For failing to protect Rin.
For failing to keep the promise entrusted to him.
Suddenly, Guy slapped Kakashi firmly on the shoulder and flashed him a broad grin.
“Kakashi, I know exactly what you’re thinking!”
“Go talk to Sakumo-senpai.
I’m sure he’s been waiting to hear from you too!”
“As for…”
Guy scratched his head.
“That Uchiha Obito who somehow seems to have a problem with me…
I’ll use my chance to apologize to him for you!”
Kakashi’s eye immediately grew misty.
But he shook his head without hesitation.
“No.”
“You must have things you never got the chance to say to your father too.
Don’t waste such a precious opportunity because of me.”
Guy immediately raised his thumb.
“Don’t worry about it!
We’re eternal rivals, remember?”
“And besides…
my father already gave me the most important lesson I could ever ask for.”
Guy’s smile softened.
“Self-imposed rules.”
For a moment, Kakashi could say nothing.
Then he nodded, his voice slightly unsteady.
“Then…
I’m going.”
Kakashi sent the name into the chat.
[Selected Deceased Person: Sakumo Hatake]
[Please Confirm]
[Kakashi Hatake: Confirmed.]
The next instant, a new scene appeared on the giant screen.
Everyone could see Kakashi and Sakumo.
[A dim, silent space.]
Kakashi slowly walked toward a faint glow in the distance.
A small fire burned ahead.
Beside it sat a man on a stone, his back facing Kakashi.
Then the man spoke.
“Kakashi?”
Kakashi stopped.
He knew that voice.
He quickened his pace.
“So this is where you were.”
Sakumo turned slightly toward him.
His voice was gentle.
“Will you tell me about your life?”
Kakashi nodded.
“Yeah.”
“It’s a long story, though.”
“I’d like to take my time.”
A warm smile appeared on Sakumo’s face.
“That’s fine.”
Kakashi hesitated.
Then, for the first time in many years, he said the word he had kept buried deep inside his heart.
“Dad…”
And so Kakashi began telling him everything.
The pain.
The happiness.
The people he had gained.
And the people he had lost.
His closest friends, Obito and Rin.
His teacher, Minato Namikaze, who had cared deeply for him.
One after another, precious people had disappeared from his life.
But Kakashi had not been left completely alone.
He had Guy, who never stopped encouraging him.
He had comrades who trusted him.
He had people who continued pulling him forward even when he wanted to stop.
Eventually, Kakashi lowered his gaze.
“Dad…
there’s something I’ve wanted to ask you for a long time.”
Sakumo turned fully toward him.
Kakashi looked into his father’s eyes.
“You were the White Fang of Konoha.
Everyone respected you.”
“So why did you break such an important rule and abandon the mission just to save your comrades?”
“If you hadn’t done that, no one would have blamed you.”
“You wouldn’t have been pushed into a corner.”
Kakashi clenched his fist.
“It always felt so unfair.”
Sakumo lowered his head.
“Yeah…”
“You must have suffered a lot too, Kakashi.”
There was regret in his voice.
But Kakashi shook his head.
“Still, Dad…”
“No matter how things ended, you did what you believed was right.”
His voice became firmer.
“I understand you now.”
“You broke the rules because you refused to abandon your comrades.”
“And now…”
Kakashi smiled faintly.
“I’m proud of you.”
Sakumo froze.
His eyes slowly widened.
For years, an invisible weight had remained buried in his heart.
And with those few words—
it finally disappeared.
“Thank you.”
Just then, Kakashi noticed a faint green glow beginning to surround his body.
He looked down in surprise.
“This is…”
Sakumo smiled.
“Looks like our time is almost over.”
“Dad!”
Sakumo looked at him with complete contentment.
“I’m glad I got to speak with you.”
“Thank you for forgiving me.”
“Now I can finally move on without regrets.”
Kakashi’s body dissolved into soft green light and disappeared from the strange space.
Sakumo slowly rose beside the fire.
A peaceful smile appeared on his face.
“Looks like I can finally go see your mother.”
]
When the scene ended, the entire shinobi world fell into stunned silence.
The reward was real.
The mysterious screen truly possessed the power to let the living speak with the dead.
That realization changed everything.
If another opportunity like this appeared…
No one intended to miss it.
Even if they didn’t know the answer, they would still fight for a chance.
After all—
sometimes, all it took was one lucky guess.
Back in the plaza, the coldness that usually lingered in Kakashi’s expression had faded.
He raised his head and stared quietly at the sky.
“Goodbye, Dad.”
“You can finally move on now.”
“Don’t keep Mom waiting too long.”