The codename "White Fang" had once belonged to Kakashi's father.
The man who, during wartime, abandoned a mission in order to save his teammates—causing Konoha to suffer losses in the war—and ultimately, under the pressure of public opinion, took his own life.
What that name meant to Kakashi, Natsuhiko knew very well.
He also clearly understood why Kakashi had come to the Anbu.
After the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, took office, Kakashi was reassigned to the Anbu.
The reason was that he had personally witnessed Obito's death—and later, with his own hands, killed his other teammate.
Such blows would have been unbearable for anyone, let alone someone as sensitive as Kakashi.
Right now, the man radiated deathly stillness. There was almost no trace of vitality about him. Describing him as a walking corpse would probably be the most fitting.
Minato didn't want his student to fall into ruin, nor to sink endlessly into the sorrow of the past. So he simply sent Kakashi to the Anbu.
Anbu missions were heavy and relentless. There was no time for Kakashi to dwell on grief.
At the same time, Anbu assignments involved plenty of killing. By becoming accustomed to such bloodshed, Kakashi might eventually come to terms with everything that had happened.
Still… why assign this guy to my squad? Is it because we used to be classmates?
As Natsuhiko received the mission details, he pondered silently.
As an Anbu operative, missions would never be interrupted over minor matters.
This time, his task was simple: hunt down a spy who had already been identified—an enemy agent infiltrated within Konoha.
After eliminating him, they were to bring back the body.
The spy had disguised himself as a Konoha ninja and was currently outside the village "on assignment"—though it would be more accurate to say he was transmitting intelligence.
This kind of mission was among the simplest. Over the past five years, Natsuhiko had carried out at least fifty similar operations. He was thoroughly experienced.
However, this time there was an additional objective: take Kakashi along.
Only the two of them would be deployed for this mission.
Since Natsuhiko's squad originally had four members, Kakashi's insertion meant the others had to be temporarily reassigned.
At the same time, Kakashi needed to learn the operational procedures of the Anbu.
"Well, he's here already. If he's assigned to me, then he's assigned to me."
In truth, Natsuhiko and Kakashi weren't as close as one might think. Though they had been classmates, Kakashi had graduated early.
Natsuhiko, on the other hand, avoided the first wave of "cannon-fodder selection," and just before the second wave arrived, he entered the Anbu.
Aside from less than a year of shared time in the academy, they barely had any real interaction.
Obito, on the other hand, had been someone Natsuhiko interacted with quite a bit.
That guy had basically been a Naruto prototype—his personality and overall demeanor were genuinely good.
Of course, Natsuhiko couldn't deny that part of his interaction with Obito had been motivated by leaving himself a backup option for the future.
After receiving the mission, the two of them wasted no time and headed straight toward the target location.
Kakashi remained silent the entire way, following quietly behind Natsuhiko, seemingly indifferent to what the mission even was.
But that attitude made Natsuhiko uneasy.
He knew this was the hardest period in Kakashi's life. The man was practically a living dead.
Still, considering that he intended to make his way in Konoha long-term, he had to maintain a good relationship with Kakashi.
After all—Kakashi would one day become the teacher of the world's savior.
"Kakashi, come to think of it, it's been a long time," Natsuhiko said after a moment of thought, using the gentlest voice he could manage.
Even though he was wearing a mask, Natsuhiko felt that he must be smiling quite nicely right now.
However, Kakashi didn't respond. He didn't even glance at him, which made things a little awkward for Natsuhiko.
Fortunately, with the mask on, no one could see his expression. So he continued:
"You might not remember me, but I remember you. We were in the same class. You graduated early, though. I entered the Anbu when I was eight."
"Classmates…?" Kakashi finally reacted a little. He slightly turned his head toward Natsuhiko.
"Yeah." Natsuhiko nodded gently, his voice still warm. "I still remember some of our classmates—Guy, Kurenai, Asuma… Oh, right. And Obito. And Rin…"
At that point, Natsuhiko paused. His gaze shifted toward Kakashi before he spoke again, slowly and deliberately.
"It's a pity about them. But they were heroes. If I have the time, I'd like to bring flowers to their graves."
He fell silent after that.
Kakashi turned to look at him.
After a long moment, he gave a slight nod. "Thank you, Captain."
"Call me Natsuhiko," he replied, his voice even softer now. "I wonder… do you remember me at all?"
Truthfully, Natsuhiko didn't know whether Kakashi remembered him. Back at the Ninja Academy, he had kept a relatively low profile.
He wasn't an Uchiha, so he didn't need to worry about being targeted for being too outstanding—but the Senju weren't in a good position either.
As for being too low-key and ending up forming a "dead-last duo" with Obito?
Forget it. He didn't think he had Obito's kind of luck.
Obito had been one of the most marginal members of the Uchiha clan, yet during Konoha's most difficult period—when the academy began pulling "qualified ninjas" straight to the battlefield—he managed to survive until actual graduation before being deployed.
Then he ended up with an unbelievably good team leader and somehow even became the Hokage's student.
Obito had the template of a protagonist—just with slightly low intelligence and the typical Uchiha emotional instability, which eventually led to his fall into darkness.
If Natsuhiko had performed that poorly, he probably wouldn't have survived the first round of "cannon-fodder selection."
So at school, Natsuhiko maintained performance slightly above average. He was competent but not exceptional—not someone who stood out.
"Natsuhiko…" Kakashi seemed to think for a moment. Soon, something clicked. "Sorry. I might not have paid much attention back in school. But I've heard Guy and the others mention you."
"Is that so?" Natsuhiko chuckled lightly. "Then I guess I owe Guy my thanks."
Guy and Natsuhiko had gotten along fairly well. In fact, he maintained decent relationships with most of Konoha's future pillars.
They were classmates, after all. And Natsuhiko intended to continue surviving in Konoha.
Besides, he had to consider the possibility that one day he might have to flee.
If that happened, the ones sent to capture him would likely be them.
With such relationships in place, perhaps they might show a little mercy when the time came.
With that opening exchange, Kakashi appeared slightly more at ease.
Though the cold aura around him was still heavy, the fact that he was willing to speak was already a positive sign.
The two of them moved quickly, chatting lightly as they traveled.
Natsuhiko guessed that, on Kakashi's side, his favorability rating was probably increasing at a steady rate of "+0.01."
After all, Kakashi's heart right now was like solid ice.
Breaking through it wouldn't be easy.