“Even though I knew you’d be late, aren’t you taking it a little too far, Kakashi-sensei?”
Naruto rolled up the scroll lying on the desk and slipped it into the ninja pouch at his waist.
Kakashi walked into the classroom and lazily surveyed his three students.
Even his voice sounded somehow more lethargic than the rest of him.
“Well, you see, on my way here, I came across an elderly woman who needed help crossing the street…”
Halfway through his excuse, Kakashi suddenly froze.
He remembered the person who had originally used that ridiculous excuse.
He remembered the intelligence contained within Naruto’s future memories.
And he remembered the man who was now hiding somewhere behind a mask, biding his time in the shadows.
Although Kakashi had learned the truth long ago, the sorrow in his heart had never faded.
Naruto noticed the subtle change in Kakashi’s expression and quietly watched him.
Sasuke’s eyes shifted slightly.
So it really is Kakashi…
He recalled what Naruto had told him during lunch.
Most people would never believe a claim as absurd as “I saw the future.”
But Sasuke had spent nearly every day of the past six years with Naruto.
For him, it was not entirely impossible to accept.
Over those six years, the two of them had fought no fewer than two thousand times, large matches and small.
During those battles, Naruto had repeatedly offered him advice—sometimes directly, sometimes indirectly, sometimes openly, and sometimes hidden between seemingly casual words.
Naruto had never told him to abandon his hatred.
Instead, he had urged Sasuke to calm down, think carefully, and remember.
The Uchiha clan had been one of Konoha’s most powerful and prestigious clans.
Could the complete destruction of such a family in a single night truly be so simple?
Even if Uchiha Itachi was an unparalleled genius—not merely within the Uchiha clan, but throughout Konoha and perhaps the entire shinobi world—could one man truly slaughter every member of such an elite clan without making the slightest disturbance?
And finally—
“Do you really believe that the kind older brother you once knew could do something like that?”
Yes.
Itachi had once been the brother Sasuke admired, respected, and loved more than anyone else.
And yet—
Whenever Sasuke thought about that night, an uncontrollable rage still spread through his chest.
The memories always returned.
His father and mother lying in pools of blood.
That man standing before their bodies, a bloodstained blade hanging from his hand.
His expressionless face.
His merciless voice.
The blood staining his clothes.
The terrifying pattern within his Sharingan.
The cold air.
The silent, bitter chill of that night.
Every detail stabbed into Sasuke’s heart like a knife.
Again and again.
Cutting deeper with every memory.
“Sasuke.”
Naruto placed a hand on his shoulder.
Sasuke turned toward him.
A faint crimson gleam flickered within his eyes before disappearing.
He slowly exhaled and forced his turbulent emotions back under control.
Hinata curiously studied their new instructor.
Unlike Naruto and Sasuke, she knew absolutely nothing about the jōnin standing before them.
Her first impression was—
Is this teacher perhaps a little unreliable?
Kakashi had no idea that the innocent young girl under his command had already begun questioning his dependability.
He casually raised one hand.
“First, follow me up to the rooftop.”
…
“Let’s begin with introductions.”
Kakashi leaned against the railing, facing the three new subordinates seated on the steps.
“Tell us your name, what you like, what you dislike, your dreams for the future… things like that.”
Naruto secretly laughed.
Kakashi-sensei really hasn’t changed this routine at all. Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping.com.
He cleared his throat.
“My name is Uzumaki Naruto.
I like training and reading.”
He thought for a moment.
“As for what I dislike… I suppose it would be ending up exactly the same as the future version of myself.”
Then Naruto adjusted the forehead protector on his brow.
His expression became solemn.
“As for my dream…”
His clear blue eyes shone with conviction.
“No matter how dark or complicated this village may be, I am still Uzumaki Naruto—a shinobi of Konohagakure!”
His voice rang firmly across the rooftop.
“I will become a Hokage who surpasses every Kage who came before me!”
Every word carried unshakable determination.
Hinata, seated to Naruto’s left, tilted her head and looked at him.
She studied his clearly defined profile and the brilliant light in his blue eyes.
The village… darkness…
Naruto-kun, what have you been racing against all these years?
She had always felt as though something invisible was pursuing him, constantly driving him to work harder without ever allowing him to rest.
Kakashi’s single visible eye curved upward.
Although the lower half of his face was hidden behind a mask, he was probably smiling.
“All right.
What about you, Sasuke?”
Sasuke sat on Naruto’s right, supporting himself with both hands against the ground behind him.
He gazed up at the blue sky and drifting clouds.
After a moment, he spoke.
“Uchiha Sasuke.
My interest is training.
There isn’t anything I particularly dislike.”
His voice remained calm.
“As for a dream… it would be more accurate to call it a goal I must accomplish.”
Sasuke paused.
A sharp light flashed through his upturned eyes.
“I will find that man, make him tell me the truth…”
His voice turned cold.
“…and then take my revenge.”
Kakashi stared at Sasuke for a long moment.
Only then did he turn toward the remaining member of the team.
“And you, Hinata?”
Hinata jolted.
She quickly faced forward and answered nervously.
“Y-Yes!
My name is Hyūga Hinata.
I like tea ceremony and flower arrangement.
What I d-dislike is… being late…”
She suddenly remembered that Kakashi had only just arrived late himself.
Perhaps he was someone who was habitually late.
Hinata cautiously looked up.
Sure enough, Kakashi was staring at her with a single lifeless, fish-like eye.
There was no way Hinata could withstand that kind of pressure.
Her face instantly turned bright red.
“N-No!
That isn’t what I meant!”
She hurriedly waved her hands.
“I mean that I dislike being late myself and making everyone wait, because that would be very impolite…”
Naruto and Sasuke both broke into a sweat.
At the same time, they glanced toward Kakashi.
He casually waved it aside.
“And what is your dream?”
Hinata felt as though she had just been granted a pardon.
She hurriedly answered—
“My dream is to earn Naruto-kun’s acknowledgment!”
The entire rooftop fell silent.
A gentle breeze passed between them.
Only then did Hinata realize what she had blurted out in her panic.
In an instant, embarrassment surged from the depths of her heart and shot straight through the top of her head.
Her vision went black.
Hinata fell backward.
Naruto quickly reached out and supported her back before she could hit the ground.
He turned his head.
Both Sasuke and Kakashi were staring at him with indescribably strange expressions.
Naruto scratched his head and spoke with complete innocence.
“This has nothing to do with me…”
“Well, anyway…”
Kakashi acted as though nothing unusual had happened.
“Tomorrow, you’ll be participating in a survival exercise.
Here are the forms.
The time and location are written on them.”
He took out three sheets of paper and handed them over.
Kakashi was just about to form the hand seal for the Body Flicker Jutsu when he remembered something.
“Sasuke, make sure you bring your sword.”
He raised one hand in farewell.
“That’s all.
You’re dismissed.”
Poof!
Kakashi disappeared.
Several seconds passed.
Naruto was still supporting the unconscious Hinata when something suddenly occurred to him.
“Wait a minute…”
His eyes widened.
“Kakashi-sensei never introduced himself!”
“Hmph.
He probably rushed home to read one of those books.”
Sasuke snorted.
He was thoroughly dissatisfied with the lifestyle and habits of their nominal teacher.
And yes—
That was exactly what had happened.
Two years earlier, after the Third Hokage gave Kakashi a condensed version of the information from Naruto’s future memories, Naruto shamelessly begged him to instruct Sasuke in the use of the Sharingan.
At the time, Sasuke’s chakra reserves were not large enough to learn a powerful Lightning Release technique such as the Raikiri.
The remaining Fire Release techniques of the Uchiha clan were already more than enough for Sasuke at his current level.
After giving the matter some thought, Kakashi tossed Sasuke the swordsmanship scrolls left behind by his father, the legendary White Fang of Konoha.
Once Sasuke’s sword training was properly underway, however, Kakashi vanished from sight except for a single scheduled lesson each week.
Thus, Sasuke had experienced ahead of schedule the horror of having an instructor completely enthralled by the works of the great literary master, Jiraiya.
Naruto carefully lowered Hinata onto the rooftop.
“You can go on ahead.
I’ll find you after Hinata wakes up.”
He remembered the way Hinata had panicked and blurted out her answer.
A quiet laugh escaped him.
She really was adorable.
Sasuke, however, did not stand.
Instead, he looked sideways at Naruto.
“Since Hinata is unconscious…”
His dark eyes narrowed.
“Why don’t you continue telling me about this so-called ‘future’ of yours?”