The outpost hospital was busier than Kakashi had ever seen it. A triage station was set up where medics would evaluate the injured being brought and assigned them a color based on urgency and complexity. Yellow bands were assigned to life-impending injuries if not treated properly and were delivered to senior medics, blue bands were given to ninja with painful injuries to provide them with relief while green bands were given to those who could wait till the chaos wound down.
Critical cases were immediately rushed in, skipping the triage station all together. The inside of the hospital could not accommodate all the injured. Therefore, massive tents were raised in the open square in front of the tower, with flags fluttering above for all to see: yellow, blue and green. His squad mates were currently waiting in line at the triage station with the injured they had escorted back.
As for Kakashi, another booth was set up for ninja to drop the body preservation scrolls. And that's where he went. The two chunin manning the booth were asking for some details, wanting to know more of the battle that took place. The news of their victory had already made it back to the outpost and the main outcomes were already shared by the squads that had arrived before them. Still, the ninja that stayed behind for other duties were starved for details. A person on the Transport Team was sating their curiosity and sharing some of the action he witnessed. They were invested in the tale thus didn't spot Kakashi waiting. Kakashi ducked under the person's arm and deposited the bag on the counter, startling the three.
"By the Hokage's hat!" one exclaimed by the sudden sound.
"Thank you for your hard work," Kakashi eye-smiled, turned heel and left before they could gather their thoughts.
"That really spooked me," he heard another sigh.
"Kids…" an annoyed drawl followed.
With his assignment officially complete, Kakashi's body ached for rest, but he made a beeline to a spot under a tree towards the south side of the outpost. He chose that tree as it could shelter him from view but was close enough to the center that he could peek out and observe the activity. The tree was right in between two buildings: the gear supply and the provision supply warehouses. This made it so that only one those who walked at the other end of the buildings and peeked into the makeshift alleyway could spot him. However, the south side was also flush with activity and everybody that passed by was in a rush as they simply walked by briskly, perfect.
There was a dull ache in his right shoulder that was particularly annoying him. He had tried to relive the area during their short rest on the way back, but the ache remained. He pulled his right arm over his shoulder, grabbed his elbow with his left hand and pushed. The pain of the stretch was mingled with relief as the muscles slowly released tension.
He then tossed his saber on the floor next to him and rested his back on the bark. For the first time since they left for the skirmish, Kakashi felt it was safe to let down his guard. That said, he still had a job to do. Kakashi unpacked a scroll and ink, rested the scroll on the ground and began to draw. He made sure to use standard stationary that could be found anywhere in the elemental nations. The cacophony of noises around him faded into a constant din in the background as he made stroke after stroke on the paper.
Kakashi was by no means an artist. His creativity was reserved for battle tactics and the occasional experimental dish. He couldn't create, but he could copy images easily. He fondly remembered Rin's jealousy of this skill.
The incident happened early on in their team formation. Whilst waiting for Obito, she was studying medical ninjutsu and punctuated the silence with a loud sigh. The level of annoyance portrayed in the sigh was high enough that Minato had asked her what was wrong. She admitted to struggling in her attempt to draw an illustration of a heart in her notes. Minato had tried to give Rin drawing advice using his seal inking techniques and she listened with undivided attention. Getting bored of the art drivel, Kakashi had grabbed the notebook and drew the heart exactly as it was depicted in her book in an attempt to get them to stop. He fondly remembered the twitch of her eyebrows as her eyes settled on the perfect illustration.
"Maybe you should get tips from Kakashi instead," Minato was clearly amused.
"It's just copying lines," was Kakashi's matter-of-fact reply, which only agitated Rin further.
From then on, she had practiced illustration drawing frequently and even signed up for a short medical drawing course at the hospital at one point. He remembered her triumphant smirk as she showed Minato and Kakashi her illustration skills after that. Minato's praise made her beam with pride. Kakashi, in pure bratty fashioned, had asked why she wasted so much time on a non-essential skill. Rin's face fell but she explained that her goal was to eventually create her own techniques, whereby illustration was key to properly transfer and share her knowledge.
The Copy Ninja in more ways than one, Kakashi recalled fondly as he continued with his task.
Of course, Rin's irritation was nothing compared to that of the chunin working at the mission desk. When reporting S-ranked and A-ranked missions, his reports were well-written, detailed and included illustrations when needed. Anything below that and Kakashi wouldn't really bother; handing in reports with messy handwriting and filled with the bare-bone information. Since the desk ninja knew he could deliver professional reports, they always hounded him to repeat the low-ranked ones, but he'd just teleport away without acknowledging them. It was rare he was assigned low-ranked missions anyway; so, they could deal with it. The only exception was after he was assigned Team 7. He shuddered as he recalled the amount of D-ranked mission reports he had to fill out.
Once his illustration was complete, he used a simple wind jutsu to dry the ink. He tested the finish with a light tap on the ink lines and was pleased to see that nothing smudged. Satisfied, he rolled and bent the scroll to crumple it up a bit. After which, he rolled it completely and sealed the ends.
Done, he sat at the other end of the tree to observe the chaos and waited, eyes trained onto the incoming ninja. The main bulk of those approaching headed to the medical triage station while the other half made their way to their tents and were looking forward to a well-deserved rest. The captains and high-ranking players had yet to make an appearance.
However, high-ranking ninja that stayed back were all loitering in front of the Tower, two of whom were Nara Shikaku and Yamanaka Inoichi. Kakashi also made out some of others who were at the strategy meeting, the jovial Tatsuki and the Hyuga who greeted them when they first arrive and oversaw the patrolling teams. Their demeanor was relaxed, so Kakashi felt confident that nothing unexpected has happened.
After waiting for over half-an-hour, Kakashi's eyes began to droop. He jealously watched those entering the public baths around the camp. He was sure his aching muscles would love a dip in the hot water. Not to mention that he stunk. Of course, everyone who was still busy had the stench of battle hanging over them, so it won't make him stand out.
Kakashi shook his head and focused again. He spotted the Yamanaka that communicated with his sensei outside the Grass Gate and let out a relieved sigh. Aika, he recalled her name. If the woman was here, that meant everyone of importance should be arriving soon. He kept his eyes trained on the woman and watched her greet Shikaku and the rest with a tired smile. Inoichi bowed to her, despite being the heir to the clan. Guess she's someone important, but I don't remember her at all, Kakashi thought. It made him realize how clueless he was to Konoha's internal politics as a child.
He had trained in the art of lip-reading during his ANBU days and could make out her words. "All clear, the jinchuriki didn't follow. Keep double patrols for a while, just in case," she was instructing them. That was fortunate, his sensei didn't need to fight the jinchuriki after already having fought in the skirmish. His sensei did say he would rejoin them before he was forced into battle, but it was reassuring to hear that all the same.
Unfortunately, in facing her, Shikaku's face was no longer visible to Kakashi, so he had no way of knowing what the man's reply was. Furthermore, there was too much chaos and noise around them to hear, even with his advanced senses.
"Shigeru-san is behind me; he's talking to the lead patrol teams," he read Aika respond.
Another pause as Shikaku continued the conversation.
"Not sure," she messaged her forehead and a light grimace. "We haven't perused the materials we found yet. Nothing appears to be too special thou -" Kakashi cursed as someone walked in front of him. He quickly jumped to a branch to have a better view and managed to catch the rest.
"…when Minato-san found a sealed room, but it was bobby-trapped to explode. If it were anyone other than Minato-san," she left her sentence dangling for the rest to imagine the worst scenarios. "Anyway, luckily, he teleported away, and the bobby-trap triggered our own explosions and lit up the sky. It was a remarkable show!" Although he couldn't hear her tone of voice, her facial expression showed that her last remark was seeped in sarcasm. Kakashi winced at the thought of his sensei dying in such a way.
He waited to learn more, however, Aika only nodded to something Shikaku had said and pulled out two scrolls. A few more moments of silence from her end before she bid them farewell and entered the tower, scrolls still in hand.
Well, that answers that, they're gathering the materials inside. I can't go in without a reason, it'll be suspicious. I must wait for Minato sensei and follow him. If anyone asks, I can say I wanted to check in with my sensei, Kakashi planned.
Other high-ranking ninja started to arrive in small groups after Yamanaka Aika's arrival, whereby most would provide Shikaku with a quick update before entering the tower. Kakashi caught snippets of their updates, all of which mimicked what Aika had shared.
After a few more minutes passed he saw his sensei approach. His blonde hair was matted with dust and soot, yet he didn't appear to be injured. He was talking to Uchiha Noburo to his left, his face serious. Noburo had his arm in a sling but was otherwise in good health. They were still too far away to make sense of their conversation.
Instead of waiting as usual, Shikaku walked up to the two men. Kakashi didn't dare approach closer as it would be suspicious if he was spotted near Minato but only bothered to check in with him after the man entered the tower. It would also be suspicious if he arrived right as his sensei did.
Therefore, he settled on waiting as they stopped to converse with Shikaku. Fortunately, the conversation was brief. Minato and Noburo continued towards the tower, with Shikaku and Tatsuki in tow. Inoichi remained outside waiting for the rest to join. Kakashi waited another twelve minutes before he walked over.
Inoichi was currently in a conversation with some other ninja so he easily slipped inside unnoticed. The tower wasn't off-limits so there was nothing wrong with him being there. That said, he didn't want to risk Inoichi calling his sensei outside instead.
He stuck to the shadows and remained silent as he followed his sensei's fresh scent. The tower hallways were nearly empty and despite his light step, he could hear a light echo. Kakashi sensed some captains behind the doors of their chambers and imagined them sluggishly trudging about their rooms. This suited him.
Two ninja saw him coming from the stairs but barely spared him a glance. They clearly knew him as Minato's student and let him be. There was grief on their faces and his presence was the last thing on their mind.
With no one blocking his path, he easily made his way up the remaining level, down the hall and looked out to the main briefing room where the strategy meeting was held.
He paused at the top of the stairs, waiting. There were three people talking to Inoichi, would one of them come up soon? The sound of footsteps ascending the stairs after Kakashi came a few beats later, one person. That was more than enough.
Kakashi took a breath and walked over to the door slowly, making sure that the person coming up started approaching the room as well, as opposed to climbing another level. Satisfied, Kakashi knocked and opened the door.
There were seven people already inside all of whom looked up as he entered. His sensei was one of them, "Kakashi?" he asked confused.
"Sensei!" Kakashi pretended to look worried as he jogged over to his sensei. His sensei was right next to the table where multiple scrolls and papers were laid out. Relieved that he confirmed the location of the confiscated materials, Kakashi looked up to address his sensei, "I heard you were caught up in a huge explosion."
"Oh that," Minato laughed nervously, one hand on his hip and the other rubbing the back of his neck. "Don't worry, I teleported away just in time."
"It was too close for comfort," Noburo said with a grimace.
"Really, my heart sk—" Yamanaka Aika was interrupted as the ninja Kakashi had waited for entered the room. As the ninja turned to face the new arrival, Kakashi took the opportunity to quickly take out his scroll and placed it with the others. It was actually easier than he expected, as everyone's guard was down now that they were back at the outpost. They've been on high alert since they started planning the attack, and now most of the ninja in the room appeared tired and ready to relax.
"Glad to see you're all well," the man hummed. "Genji-san asked me to drop these off. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to shower and sleep for three days. Take care." He tossed the scroll in the direction of Shikaku who easily grabbed it, turned heel and left as quickly as he came.
A few snorted at the display while others blinked in shock. "Can't really blame him, I'm exhausted!" Aika laughed.
"You get some rest, I'll start sorting through this mess with Tatsuki and Inoichi," Shikaku spoke up. They weren't part of the battle and remained on standby, thus were still fresh and had the energy to analyze the items found at the Iwa camp immediately.
"It's our turn now," Tatsuki gave them a thumbs up.
"We'll take you up on that," Noburo said. The others took that as their cue to leave, so Kakashi trotted after his sensei and left the room. Everyone immediately left to go to their rooms as nobody was in the mood for small talk.
Minato only walked a few paces away before he turned to Kakashi, "Are you hurt?" he asked with worry.
"No," Kakashi reassured him. "Just a few bumps and scrapes, also some mild chakra fatigue. I should be fine with a day or two of rest."
"Your leg didn't act up or anything?" his sensei pressed.
"I'm fine sensei, you're the one who was in an explosion," Kakashi muttered and crossed his arms in faux annoyance.
"I was close to being in an explosion," his sensei corrected cheerfully. Kakashi gave him a deadpan look for his efforts, but that only served to make Minato's smile widen.
"Now that I know you're ok, I'm going to go rest," Kakashi sniffed. He really should let his sensei get some rest of his own. Kakashi knew that Minato will be busy over the next two days as well, unlike most of the forces.
"Rin will probably be busy with healing and Obito with patrols but maybe we can all have dinner at my quarters tomorrow. Things should have calmed down by then," Minato suggested.
"Ok, till tomorrow then," Kakashi replied and started to walk away.
"Oh, and Kakashi," Minato called out and waited for Kakashi to turn back and face him, "You were a big help. That was some jutsu, I was really impressed!"
This is weird, Kakashi thought as he saw the genuine pride in his sensei's eyes. In the original timeline our teamwork was abysmal, so I only got reprimanded by sensei when he saw Chidori. Then Obito died. Then Rin ran in front of it. Well… It's funny. We talked about the jutsu's technical aspects in detail, but this is the first time Minato sensei compliments Chidori openly. Why? I'm thirty. So why does it feel so good to receive praise about it from sensei? I made myself notorious with this jutsu. People across the five nations spoke about it with reverence and fear. I've heard praises song to it so many times. Yet, this is different.
He had refrained from smiling in front of his team to stay in character. However, a smile was threatening to break out, so he replied softly before his emotions got the better of him, "Thanks, sensei. It should have been a killing blow though. I really need to get faster."
"You already know that's something to work on. We'll work on that as soon as possible," Minato reassured him.
"I know," Kakashi sighed, pursed his lips and stuck his hands in his pockets, "next time I won't fail."
"You're too hard on yourself," Minato said. He knew that his student rarely accepted praise. In fact, whenever he complimented him, Kakashi would simply state that it wasn't good enough and he still needed to get stronger or shrug the compliment away. "No matter how you look at it, Gou went down quickly because of you."
"I guess," Kakashi appeased shrugged his shoulders.
"I'll see you for dinner tomorrow, yeah?" Minato didn't know what else to say. He added another item to the list of things to teach his student: how to take a compliment.
Kakashi nodded and left, although he doubted his sensei would have time for dinner tomorrow.
Because now, in that pile, lay a simple map with devastating consequences.
The scroll won't be from the first they'd check; it looked too simple and small to be of any importance. But when they do open it, it will set off another wave of motion.
All it would take was one look.
Just one look at the small rectangle marked with the words 'Kannabi Bridge'.