"It’s impossible to completely cooperate with them. They care too much about irrelevant things, often being distracted by external information. A ninja only needs to complete the task."
Kakashi said this.
"Have you heard of the barrel principle?"
"I don’t want to hear your long lecture here, and as someone who just became a Chunin, you have no right to preach to me. If you want to lecture me, wait until you’re a Jonin."
"..."
This unintentionally touched on Hakushi’s sore spot.
"Besides, if they can continue fighting, I would naturally help, but if they can’t form combat power, abandoning them is the right choice. As a ninja, completing the task is the priority. If necessary, abandoning comrades is something nobody has the right to criticize me for."
Kakashi continued with an extremely cold tone.
"Is that really what you think?"
"The person who chose comrades is already dead. I don’t want to repeat his mistakes."
"..."
With solid reasoning, Hakushi found it difficult to argue back.
"But your colleagues dislike you, don’t they?"
"That’s none of your concern. I’m just following the rules that a ninja should abide by."
Kakashi said this.
"Is that so?"
Hakushi knew it was impossible to dissuade Kakashi’s mentality, which was on the brink of collapse.
He took a bag from the Ninja Tool Bag and placed it in front of Kakashi, saying, "These are special Soldier Rations Pills and some Antidotes I made. Take them. Since you’ve chosen to prioritize the mission, you must protect yourself. If you get injured during the mission and lose your combat and movement abilities, your comrades will abandon you too."
Kakashi was slightly stunned, looking up at Hakushi but not taking the bag of Soldier Rations Pills and Antidotes from the table.
"What? Isn’t this the path you chose? A path completely different from Sakumo’s. Now is not the time to hesitate."
Hakushi calmly met Kakashi’s gaze, smiling slightly.
Kakashi silently took the bag, softly saying, "Thank you."
"You’re welcome. It’s what I should do, as I’ve watched you grow up. Now that Sakumo is no longer here, I’ll take care of you out of both affection and duty. If necessary, I’ll talk to Ruri about you joining her team for missions."
"No need, that would trouble you too much. I’ll take care of myself."
Kakashi shook his head, refusing Hakushi’s suggestion.
Hakushi said nothing, quietly eating his dumplings.
"If there’s nothing else, I’ll go train."
Kakashi stood up from his seat, preparing to leave, when Hakushi’s voice sounded from behind:
"Kakashi, do you think Sakumo made the wrong choice back then?"
"Yeah, that’s why I’m walking a different path from him."
With that, without waiting for Hakushi to speak again, Kakashi walked out of the dumpling shop with a cold demeanor.
Saying that sentence already denied the path his father Sakumo walked.
A mistaken path.
And the path he now walks is the one a ninja should take.
"The psychological issues seem more serious than I imagined, this unlikeable brat. Are he and Sakumo truly father and son, being opposites? Did Sakumo take the wrong child from Konoha Hospital back then?"
Hakushi watched Kakashi’s figure disappear from sight, muttering and complaining as he continued to eat his dumplings.
Although Kakashi was never particularly likable before, he wouldn’t have coldly uttered such hurtful words.
But perhaps it will be soon, the time when he starts questioning the Will of Fire.
Or perhaps, experiencing these events, his heart might have already begun to waver.
The coldness on his face is just the strength he uses to disguise and hide his true emotions.
The contradictory thoughts in Kakashi’s mind are inseparable from the current environment in Konoha.
A boring and twisted village.