Kakashi was unmoved by Hakushi's remark, remaining solely focused on his swordsmanship training.
"What's the matter? Even after all this time, you still haven't fully calmed down?"
Hakushi leaned against the courtyard wall, smiling as he asked Kakashi.
Kakashi's hand, mid-swing with the sword, suddenly halted, and the air grew still.
"You've become a Chunin; you shouldn't be that fragile, right?"
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
Kakashi turned his head and sighed helplessly.
He couldn't shake the feeling that Hakushi's words held hidden meanings.
But since the other was his father's former subordinate, he couldn't be disrespectful.
"I promised Sakumo-sensei that I would take good care of you after he passed away."
"As you can see, I'm doing just fine now."
Kakashi replied indifferently.
Compared to the so-called care Hakushi mentioned, he believed more in the power wielded by the blade in his hand.
"That may be so, but if you continue like this, fewer and fewer Jonin will accept you until you can't find a place in Konoha. Will you persist with your mission-above-comrades philosophy?"
Having gone through so many changes, even a fool should realize some parts of this are incredibly contradictory.
His father saved a comrade at the cost of a mission, and as a result, he was shunned by the village people and, overwhelmed by rumors and slander, took his own life.
And yet, when he chose the opposite path, valuing missions over comrades, he was still ostracized by his peers in the village.
This was a fact Kakashi had come to realize firsthand, not just a wild conjecture.
Though Kakashi's expression hid it well, a trace of hesitation and doubt flickered in his eyes.
He doubted the true cause of his father's death.
The truth showed… whether choosing the mission or the comrades, it was a mistake.
And it might not be the reason behind his father's suicide.
At six, Kakashi was a Chunin, both in combat prowess and theoretical knowledge, and he couldn't be treated like an ordinary child.
Though his thoughts occasionally hit a dead end, when considering this matter and its causes and effects, it was logically inexplicable.
There were too many doubts and points worth scrutinizing.
"You've done well."
Hakushi suddenly remarked.
"What?"
"It seems you've genuinely calmed down, at least enough to know how to think dialectically."
Hakushi chuckled. If it was the previous Kakashi, perhaps he would have already donned a cold face and walked off irritated.
In the past six months, he had plenty of time to personally experience the village's contradictions.
The typical villagers and ninja couldn't perceive such contradictions because they hadn't lived through it.
And unfortunately, Kakashi had undergone the entire process.
His father's suicide and the path he now chose were, to some extent, ideas that couldn't be accepted by the mainstream of the village.
Then, what was right? What was wrong?
"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just following…"
"Do you want to know the true cause of Sakumo-sensei's death?"
With Hakushi's words, the atmosphere changed completely, and a menacing killing intent erupted from Kakashi, making the air around them heavy and breathing difficult, like being trapped in a quagmire.
"Don't talk nonsense here!"
It was as if something had provoked Kakashi, and his body moved abruptly, disappearing from the spot, cutting a brilliant path through the darkness.
However, he stopped in front of Hakushi.
Sweat covered his face, and he stared at Hakushi with eyes full of fright.
Somehow, a large number of thin shadows had wrapped around him, like solid iron chains, binding him entirely and preventing him from moving.
Around him, more than a dozen spears and swords formed of shadows paused at his throat, heart, and the back of his head—lethal positions.
Just a nudge forward, and the shadow blades could easily claim his life.
And Hakushi, still leaning against the courtyard wall with a relaxed demeanor, hadn't moved an inch.
"What… are you?"
"Chiba Hakushi, Konoha Chunin, assistant instructor at the Ninja School Medical Ninja Experimental Class."
Hakushi laid out all his information without any fabrication.
Kakashi was silent.
Chunin?
Don't kid me.
Even his current team-leading Jonin wouldn't be able to put him in such a life-or-death trap unnoticed.
Yet, not until these shadows emerged, surrounding him and pressing shadow blades to his lethal spots, did he realize it.
If there was any malice toward him, he could be killed silently and mysteriously at any time.
Such strength, not even an ordinary Jonin could achieve.
"At 0:00, three days from now, come to this place, and I'll tell you the answer. Of course, if you don't show up, it doesn't matter. You'll just have to find the answer on your own."
Hakushi took out a card, walked up to Kakashi, gently slipped it into his pocket, and with a subtle smile on his face, spoke.
The shadows disappeared from Kakashi and the surroundings.
Kakashi's body seemed drained of strength, and he collapsed on the ground, still anxious about the brush with death he had just experienced.
The White Fang Short Knife lay nearby, seeming to have lost its luster.
"Don't forget our agreement."
Hakushi left this note as he walked away.
Before he had left the courtyard, Obito returned and immediately saw Kakashi sitting on the ground, starting in surprise:
"Hey, Kakashi, what are you doing sitting on the ground?"
"Clearly, it's from overtraining exhaustion. Anyway, it's about time; we should get going too."