Chapter 40: Chapter 39 A Seed
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That's Sakumo Hatake's sword. You're not qualified to use it.
These words of Satoru Hyūga grated on Kakashi's ears. It was like a bomb going off, making him flush with anger and shout hoarsely.
"What do you know! What do you know, you outsider!"
"He was a coward. What if he abandoned the mission? Even if he was insulted by his comrades, why did he commit suicide? Why!"
Perhaps he had endured too much in these two ryo, or perhaps it was the humiliation of being publicly defeated by Satoru Hyūga. Kakashi actually lay on the ground and cried and wailed in front of everyone.
"He didn't have to die. Even if he was scolded by the villagers, he still had me. Why did he choose to commit suicide? Why..."
At some point, the crowd suddenly fell silent. Kakashi's cries were so piercing in this environment.
"So this is what you care about?"
Satoru Hyūga let out a sigh.
It seemed that his father's suicide had caused Kakashi great grief. In these two ryo, he had been brainwashing himself. The thought was that "a man who couldn't even complete a mission was just a coward", and he used this to numb the pain in his heart.
It wasn't until now, after being publicly defeated by Satoru Hyūga, that the defenses in his heart were completely broken.
The surrounding ninjas all fell silent, their heads slightly lowered. Many of them had participated in seriously injuring Sakumo Hatake. Malice nourished the rumors and gossip, making them spread widely. When things finally settled down, they realized that the person was already gone.
So, tacitly, they no longer mentioned it.
"Neji Hyūga..." Neji Hyūga couldn't help but clench his fists. He had never seen Kakashi like this, vulnerable, grief-stricken, and powerless...
Satoru Hyūga wore a complex expression and said, "I haven't seen Lord White Fang with my own eyes, but I've heard of his deeds. I think his choice at the last moment was to uphold his own will."
"Uphold his will?"
On the ground, Kakashi's eyes lit up, and he looked up at Satoru Hyūga.
"He died to prove his resolve. I think that's what he had in mind. He didn't die out of cowardice or fear. Instead, he used his own death to silently convey his will."
"Maybe he even had a smile on his face when he plunged the ninja sword into himself?"
"I see..."
Kakashi stopped crying and fell into deep thought.
Interpret his own will... The image of that smiling man emerged in his mind.
Father, was this your thought at the last moment?
All this time, he had believed that his father committed suicide out of guilt. However, Satoru Hyūga's words had slightly altered his perspective.
Although this change was slight, it was like a seed planted deep in his heart...
Hokage's Office.
Satoru Hyūga's voice passed through the crystal ball on the table and clearly reached the ears of Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was sitting in silence.
After a long while, he stared out of the window with a melancholy expression, and the image of that gentle white-haired man materialized in his mind.
"Sakumo..."
Satoru Hyūga's words were like tentacles, gently disturbing his state of mind.
"Did you really choose to commit suicide to fulfill your own will?"
He murmured, sighing.
In front of the mission management office, Satoru Hyūga secretly shook his head, thinking to himself.
In fact, as a transmigrator, he knew very well that the truth of this matter was far more brutal. It was involved in the internal power struggle among Konoha's high-ranking officials and the candidacy for the Fourth Hokage...
And he could only make Sakumo Hatake's back appear as majestic as possible. After all, his words were not just for Kakashi to hear.
As soon as he arrived here, he noticed a faint, spying gaze. With a little speculation, he knew that Hiruzen Sarutobi must be watching this place.
He wondered what the Hokage, who indirectly forced Lord White Fang to death, would think after hearing his words.
Bringing his thoughts back, Satoru Hyūga turned his gaze back to Kakashi and said coldly.
"I know you must have a hard time accepting today's defeat. Anytime you think you can defeat me, you can come and challenge me at any time."
"I'll be waiting for you."
After saying that, leaving Kakashi in a daze and the crowd around silent, he turned around and left.
"Hey, Satoru, wait for me." Anko suddenly came to her senses and shouted as she chased after Satoru Hyūga.
Uchiha Rin looked at Satoru Hyūga's handsome departing figure and couldn't help but raise her eyebrows slightly.
"That Satoru guy is really cool."
Kakashi stared at Satoru Hyūga's leaving back, and his mind was still replaying his previous words. No one knew what he was thinking.
When he reached a deserted place, Satoru Hyūga leaned against the wall and suddenly grimaced, shouting.
"Damn it! It hurts like crazy."
His body felt as if thousands of needles had pierced into it. Even the slightest movement was extremely painful.
Pretending to be cool for a moment, but paying the price later.
His body hadn't fully recovered yet. To avoid exposing more of his abilities, he only used Magnetic Storm Fist during the fight with Kakashi, which put an even greater strain on his body.
Just then, Anko ran over and asked worriedly, "Satoru, are you okay?"
Satoru Hyūga turned around, grabbed her wrist, pulled her to his side, and gritted his teeth as he whispered.
"Quick, give me that."
That?
The unique smell of a male body wafted into Anko's nose, instantly making her face turn red from the roots of her ears, like a ripe red apple.
"Satoru... here? What if someone catches us?"
"If not here, then where? Do you want to go somewhere else?"
Anko's face became even redder, and she shyly buried her face in her hair.
"If Rin finds out, she'll get mad, right?"
"What's it got to do with her?"
"Forget it. Stop talking nonsense and quickly give me a healing jutsu!"
"Huh?"
The Hokage's Office.
After calming his emotions, Hiruzen Sarutobi recalled the scene of Satoru Hyūga defeating Kakashi effortlessly and couldn't help but smile slightly.
"It seems that the title of the strongest among the new generation undoubtedly goes to Satoru Hyūga."
Furthermore, he was acutely aware that Satoru Hyūga possessed a terrifying Bow & Arrow ninjutsu. If he were to unleash it, Kakashi would likely be defeated even faster.
"What a shame. He's from the branch family."
He couldn't help sighing.
If he weren't from the branch family, he would seriously consider cultivating Satoru Hyūga to be part of the Hokage succession line. With his perfect talent and the words he spoke to Kakashi that interpreted the Will of Fire, such an outstanding talent even made him consider taking him as a disciple.
However, since he was from the branch family, any decision regarding Satoru Hyūga needed to be made more cautiously.
Shortly afterwards, he thought of Kakashi again and couldn't help letting out a soft sigh.
"We can't delay any further with Kakashi. Let Minato instruct him! We need to find some teammates for him, and we can only select from those who are familiar with him among his classmates. Hmm..."
"Obito Uchiha's personality is very suitable. Maybe it can counteract Kakashi's gloomy disposition. As for the remaining one, Rin Nohara, a medical ninja from a civilian background, would be a perfect match."
After pondering for a while, Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded with satisfaction.
"Alright, then let's inform Minato to come here now."