Kakashi seemingly appeared out of nowhere, calmly standing behind his ANBU squad. As the four people in the room turned to look at him, he noticed that only two of them weren't surprised: Mouse and the Yondaime, his old sensei. As his eyes surveyed their faces, he caught sight of his ANBU mask, lying on the Hokage's desk, displaying his guilt.
"Kakashi…" began the Yondaime.
"This child is unfit to remain in the ANBU," Mouse interrupted, despite the looks of shock on the others' faces, "Not only will he end up getting himself killed, he will, without doubt, put someone else in danger."
The young Hokage looked over to the silver-haired shinobi, trying to read the expression that was burning in the teenager's mismatched eyes. Frowning, he looked down to the mask that lay on the table, the words of the other squad members repeating themselves in his mind. Looking once again to Kakashi, he half expected him to counter Mouse's judgement, but the boy said nothing.
"Surely that's an exaggeration, considering his mistake was that he did not summon his Ninken?" the blonde-haired Yondaime said softly, looking once again to the adults.
"In the ANBU, that's unacceptable. Our missions are dangerous, and the smallest mistake could prove lethal and bring failure to missions that simply cannot fail," Kenji answered, glancing over to Kakashi as he paused, then continued, "Maybe he's just too young; after all, seeing that he left his mask behind could be a sign that he doesn't really understand what the consequences from lack of responsibility could cause."
The Yondaime didn't answer right away, still silently pondering. He had faith in Kakashi, he knew that he could handle the responsibility of being part of the ANBU squad. However, what he deliberated in his mind was a manner of response that would please all parties. He couldn't straight out punish the boy, not since he hadn't done anything serious, along with it being his first offence; on the other hand, he couldn't just let him go, the others, especially Mouse, would not take kindly to it.
"I'll deal with Kakashi. The rest of you are dismissed."
Haya seemed relieved, despite the fact that throughout this entire meeting, she hadn't said a word. Kenji looked a little annoyed, but he didn't say anything. Mouse looked ready to break something, and he tore his gaze from the Hokage to the boy ninja, with Kakashi staring straight back at him. As the ANBU member left the room, they all could feel his rage as he left. The other two left after him, looking back at the silver-haired Kakashi before they disappeared, closing the door behind them.
"Thanks, sensei," Kakashi murmured, though he knew that it wasn't quite over yet.
The blonde man frowned, observing the younger shinobi before he spoke, "Are you alright? After all, the demands of being an ANBU member are quite high."
"I'm fine. I don't know why they made such a big deal out of this. Do they really expect me to use the Ninken for every mission?"
"They're not right in expecting that of you, yes, but isn't this only your third mission? I can't blame them either for assuming you'll need more time before you, and they, felt comfortable with you attacking solo."
The silver-haired teenager dropped his gaze, staring at his sandals. So his sensei agreed with the rest of them that it had been Kakashi that was in the wrong. At the sound of a quiet scraping, his head shot back up, and saw that the Yondaime had stood up, and had slid the dog-like ANBU mask towards him.
"Don't let them bring you down, Kakashi. You have much potential, and without a doubt, the ANBU will make you stronger," The Yondaime said with a small smile, though he then added to himself, or it may break you.
With mismatched eye he stared at the white and red mask, and his detached expression changed into one of determination. Grabbing the mask with his left hand, he stared at it, and his thoughts raced. To him what had seemed ages, and in reality only had been a moment, he looked back up to the Hokage, and said, "I'll show them."
With those words, he turned and disappeared in a slight puff of smoke.
The Yondaime stared at the place where Kakashi had last been for a long time, unmoving as a statue. Once he finally moved, he sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. Kakashi worried him. His father's death had much impact on him, but Obito's death had really influenced him. In the Hokage's eyes, Kakashi didn't seem very stable at all. Maybe it hadn't been the best idea to allow him to join the Black Ops, maybe he should have taken this chance and gotten him out of the ANBU.
His thoughts on Kakashi didn't last long, since a shinobi burst open the door, his wide eyes staring at the Hokage.
"Yondaime, sir! It's what we feared!"
It was winter, and there still wasn't any snow. Did it disappoint him? Kakashi wasn't sure. All he knew was that he wasn't fond of the upcoming festivities. He hadn't enjoyed them for a few years now, the last time being the year before his father… took his life. Shutting his eyes tightly, he tried to focus on Obito's words:
"In the world of the ninja those who violate the rules and laws are called trash.
However... those who don't take care of their comrades are worse than trash"
Sighing loudly, he looked down to the ground, letting his legs swing from his perch on a tree branch. Obito… if Kakashi hadn't been so useless, so absorbed in the regulations, he wouldn't have died. He thought maybe joining the ANBU would have given him a chance to redeem himself, but so far, it hasn't quite worked so well.
He was still deep in thoughts when he was suddenly shaken out of his thoughts. Kakashi jumped to his feet, and unsheathed the sword on his back, and looked down. Seeing who had kicked the tree, he muttered to himself, sheathed the sword and sat down against the tree trunk, ignoring the one down below. Although, he was somewhat annoyed at himself for being surprised yet once again.
"Hey, hey, hey!" an unpleasantly cheerful voice called from down below. "You owe me a match!"
Kakashi groaned slightly, tilting his head back slightly against the tree trunk. Maito Gai. They had fought a friendly match before, and he had beat him. Ever since, Gai had been going after him for a re-match. Kept saying that Kakashi was a worthy rival.
"Not today, Gai," Kakashi murmured, his eyes dropping from Gai's gaze.
The chuunin cocked his head, and could sense the silver-haired ninja's unease. He decided to let it go for today, though he wondered what was wrong with the boy jounin. Jumping up to the branch that he was sitting on, he sat down, and looked over to Kakashi. Opening his mouth to speak, he never did get to say anything.
"BOOM!"
Kakashi erected, his eyes widened. Hopping to his feet, he stared at Gai for a moment, then towards the sound. There was a gray cloud there now, and it seemed awfully quiet, but soon enough, another explosion could be seen. He placed his dog-like mask on his face, and then streaked off towards it.
Whatever it was, he was going to find out.
TO BE CONTIUNED