Kakashi should have seen it. He should have stopped it. Every day since that horrible day he has cursed himself for not seeing it, not stopping it.
He should have known the second that Sasuke named his sole ambition as to kill someone. He should have known.
He didn't.
He should have realized when Sasuke used an assassination technique on his teammate. He should have realized.
He didn't.
At every turn, his dark-haired genin's actions rang a faint bell of familiarity. Where had he seen this before? What does this remind me of? This rashness, this coldness?
At every turn, he dismissed it, quieting the bell and pushing the thoughts to the back of his mind. Sasuke is a prodigy, he is bound to have a few eccentricities.
Isn't he?
So as Kakashi's hands flew through seals, he felt the puzzle pieces start to shake loose and fall into place.
No. He shook his head as his thrown kunai resulted in a spray of blood.
No, it can't be.
Once again, he pushed those puzzle pieces back into the box, muffling the bell that was telling him that something is not right.
So as he leapt from branch to branch, Kakashi was hastily pulling those pieces back out, forcing the bell to toll and tell him what is going on.
He sent his dogs out to search and followed Pakkun's call. As he slid into the clearing, rain weighing down his unruly hair, he saw. Naruto lay there with one forehead protector too many and a halfway healed hole in his chest.
He finally understood.
I do not own Naruto.