~ Every 100 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter! Your votes keep this climbing. Thanks!
Kakashi held the documents detailing Qianyu's supposed crimes. His eyes scanned the pages.
Hiruzen Sarutobi watched him closely.
Kakashi's pupils had shrunk to pinpricks. His hands trembled slightly. He looked… shattered. Utterly disbelieving.
"No… This can't be right." His voice was a strained whisper. "Sensei… He would never do this. Never."
He kept shaking his head, denying it.
Hiruzen exhaled a cloud of smoke. Conclusion reached. Kakashi truly hadn't known. Good.
"I understand how hard this is to accept, Kakashi," Hiruzen began, his tone heavy with manufactured grief. "Believe me, I felt the same when I learned of it. Qianyu… a hero who contributed so much to Konoha, committing such heinous acts. It's unthinkable.
"But the evidence is before us. We must face the truth, however painful. I do not doubt his loyalty in the past, when he fought for the village. But now…" He let out a weary sigh. "Ah, perhaps this is my failure as a teacher. Qianyu's master was Orochimaru. And Orochimaru has fallen completely into darkness. Under that influence, is it any wonder Qianyu became so… extreme? So cruel? So cold?"
He slid another file across the desk. "These are Orochimaru's crimes. Read them. Qianyu and he are deeply connected. Partners. Collaborating on these… inhuman experiments."
Kakashi snatched the new documents. His eye devoured the pages.
Hiruzen's voice was thick with false regret. "I failed to guide Orochimaru. Orochimaru failed to guide Qianyu. I do not wish to see you walk the same path, Kakashi. It's not too late. You can still turn back. Stop yourself from falling any deeper."
Kakashi's whole frame shook. He couldn't speak.
"However," Hiruzen continued, leaning forward, "I have no intention of pursuing these charges against them."
Kakashi's gaze lifted, blank and confused.
"Think, Kakashi," Hiruzen said, his expression pained. "Think of Konoha's current state. If Qianyu and Orochimaru's actions were made public… the blow to the village would be devastating. So, I want to give them one more chance. I will… hint at my knowledge. Gently remind them. If they cease their activities, I will let the matter rest.
"This is for Konoha. And for you, Kakashi. I don't want to put you in a difficult position. I want them to remain loyal. To continue serving the Leaf."
He delivered the final offer. "That is why I ask you again, Kakashi. Join the ANBU. Become my direct subordinate. What is your answer?"
Silence stretched. Long, heavy seconds. Finally, Kakashi looked up, his right eye dull and lifeless. "Lord Hokage… My mind is… a mess. I need time. A few days. To think."
Hiruzen nodded, a picture of grandfatherly understanding. "Of course. This is a lot to process. Go home. Think it over. I will be waiting for your decision."
Kakashi stood. He moved like a ghost, drifting out of the Hokage's office without another word.
The moment the door clicked shut, the benevolent mask melted from Hiruzen's face. His eyes turned hard, calculating. He tapped the desk twice.
Two ANBU materialized, kneeling.
"Hare, Baku. From this moment, 24-hour surveillance on Hatake Kakashi. Every move. Report to me directly."
"Hai!"
They vanished.
Hiruzen didn't fully believe Kakashi's performance was an act. But caution was a habit he never broke. If Kakashi went straight to Qianyu now, then the entire display had been a lie.
Even if it was, Hiruzen mused, even if he runs to tell Qianyu everything I said… it changes little. He'd declared his intent to let the matter drop. Someone as sharp as Qianyu—or Orochimaru—would analyze Konoha's fragile state and know he spoke truth. For now.
If Kakashi was genuine, however… that would be ideal.
"Don't disappoint me, Kakashi," Hiruzen murmured into the empty room.
Outside the Hokage Tower, the shattered, disbelieving boy was gone.
Kakashi's eyes were ice.
He knew everything. Every single thing Qianyu and Orochimaru had done. They'd never hidden it from him.
After Qianyu had pulled him from the abyss, when his hatred for Konoha burned white-hot, his sensei had taught him a vital lesson.
'When you lack power, you learn to hide. You learn to act. Don't let them see the hatred. Make them believe you love the Leaf. That is how you survive. How you grow strong. Until the day you no longer need the mask. No longer need the performance.'
Travelling with Qianyu across battlefields, infiltrating enemy lines under disguise—those missions had forged his skills. He was an excellent actor.
But the true rage, the one that simmered deep in his gut, came from Hiruzen's sheer audacity. To use his father's name. To speak of the Will of Fire. As if they hadn't betrayed the man who lived and died by it.
Kakashi took a slow, controlled breath. He pushed the fury down, sealed it away. Then, he extended his senses.
There. Two presences. Following him. Hare and Baku. Of course.
A cold smirk touched his mind. Expected. It would have been stranger if the old man had trusted him.
Fine. If they wanted to try and turn him? Let them. Using him would come at a cost.
He didn't head to Qianyu's house. He didn't go home. He walked into the training woods.
Then, he erupted.
He drew his tanto. The blade flashed, a silver whirlwind of rage. He slashed at trees, carved trenches in the earth—a perfect picture of a young man venting his shock and inner turmoil.
Unseen by his watchers, in a blind spot created by his own violent movements, his hands formed a single, subtle seal.
Shadow Clone Jutsu.
A duplicate split off, immediately weaving another sign. Transformation Jutsu.
A small, ordinary snake slithered away into the undergrowth, heading unerringly toward a specific house.
At the Qianyu residence, Uzumaki Kushina was asleep. Qianyu was not. He sat on the living room sofa, waiting.
He didn't wait long.
The front door opened before the knock could land. Qianyu stood there, a faint smile on his lips. "Took you long enough. Get in."
The clone—now back in Kakashi's form—stepped inside and sat across from him.
Qianyu's smile widened. "If it's your clone visiting… then Sarutobi has you under watch. Correct?"
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
Read up to (100+ ) advanced chapters on Patre\on
Visit us here: patreon.com/GoldenLong
Happy reading, everyone!