Evening, Konohagakure.
With his hands in his pockets, Kakashi strolled lazily down Konoha's streets, half his face wrapped in the usual cloth mask.
Ever since he was the only one left from his original team, he'd grown noticeably more indifferent. If he could be late, he would be late. If he could slack off, he would slack off. It was like he no longer had any direction in life.
When both his sensei and sensei's wife died, and their orphaned son—the child of heroes—was wrongfully blamed for the Nine-Tails attack, accused of destroying Konoha and killing its citizens and shinobi, it left him bitter. For a long time, Kakashi harbored resentment toward the Third Hokage.
That was when Lord Danzo approached him, acknowledged the darkness in his heart, and invited him to join the Root—an underground organization devoted to silently protecting Konoha from the shadows.
Back then, Kakashi was so lost in despair he didn't care anymore.
His father was gone. His best friend was gone. Rin was gone. And now even his sensei and Kushina-sensei were gone. What did he have left to care about?
So yes, it was only natural that he carried darkness in his heart.
He resigned from the ANBU and was directly admitted into the Root. But to his shock, the human experimentation scandal that once rocked Konoha had ties to the Root as well. Complete experiment logs and data were there—even though the Hokage had claimed everything had been destroyed.
Even Sensei had said the matter was resolved.
Then why were these things still around?
With doubts in his heart, Kakashi went to question the Third Hokage. Hiruzen explained it to him.
The Uchiha clan was too dangerous, too hard to trust.
To prevent another Nine-Tails rampage—or the jinchūriki from losing control—Konoha needed someone with Wood Release. That experiment had been approved by the village's top brass. It was only stopped later due to heavy casualties. Hiruzen, with his conscience, had called it off... but behind his back, some of his subordinates and even his students had continued the research.
The Third Hokage expressed deep regret and shame. He even apologized to Kakashi for the oversight, admitting his failure as a leader.
Then he talked about the Will of Fire.
That reignited a spark within Kakashi's heart. The darkness that once consumed him began to lift. He finally understood what the Will of Fire truly meant.
To show his loyalty to Konoha and his faith in Hiruzen, Kakashi revealed Danzo's suspected plans to stage a coup. He pledged his unwavering support to the Third Hokage's leadership.
In return, Hiruzen had Kakashi remain undercover within Root to continue gathering intel in secret.
The plan was a success. Danzo's scheme was foiled, and Konoha was spared yet another painful loss and internal chaos. Peace and stability had been maintained.
Stretching lazily, Kakashi stopped in front of Ichiraku Ramen. He paused in silence for a moment.
Guess I'll grab a bowl before heading out.
Back then, after every mission and before heading out of the village, Sensei would always bring them to Ichiraku for a bowl of ramen.
Back when… they were all still there.
Lifting the curtain, Kakashi took a seat at the counter and looked at Teuchi, who was busy behind the stall.
"Haha, Kakashi! Long time no see. What'll it be tonight?" Teuchi grinned.
"The usual," Kakashi nodded, already used to the man's enthusiasm. "And add an—"
Before he could finish—
Whoosh!
Two ANBU operatives suddenly appeared beside him. Kakashi frowned, then looked apologetically at Teuchi.
"Sorry… looks like the Hokage has something urgent for me."
...
Sage of Six Paths above!
Look at that—your mother just showed up!!
If the Sage of Six Paths appeared right now, the tailed beast would've grabbed him by the collar and screamed, "Old man! Didn't you say the seal was rock-solid? That even after a thousand years there'd be no problem?! Then what the hell is THIS?!"
It was terrifying!
The tailed beast stared at the woman with rabbit ears in front of it. Then looked to the side at that infuriatingly calm man, arms crossed behind his back—the one with the charming face, dashing aura, and overwhelming presence. The Fourth Kazekage.
It had to admit… it was tempted to work for this guy.
Not because it was scared. No, not at all!
It was simply thinking about earning some money and becoming self-reliant.
Of course… if there was no pay, that was okay too. It could always learn a skill or two.
Shukaku regretted how arrogant it had been earlier. If only it hadn't played hard to get this afternoon—maybe the boss would've even given it a raise. He seemed like a kind guy, handsome and gentle.
Why did it have to be so hung up on money back then?
Truly regrettable.
Why hadn't it just admitted that deep down, it really wanted to get a part-time job?
Just then—
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya gave Shukaku a cold glance, saw that there was nothing more for her here, and vanished without a word.
"...So? What's your answer?"
Rasa asked, very pleased to see the dumbfounded expression on Shukaku's face.
"Willing to accept the offer now?"
"Hmph! I, the mighty—"
"Hmm?"
"I'll do it!!"
"No pay, though."
"Don't need it!"
This is humiliating... how dare you treat me, Shukaku-sama, like this?!
"No running away. No snitching to the other Tailed Beasts either."
"I'm not that kind of tailed beast!"
"Good. Because if you try anything, I'll throw you straight into the Ten-Tails' husk."
"..."
Shukaku fell silent, staring at the casually threatening Rasa. Now that that terrifying woman was gone, it said coldly,
"Do you even know what you just released? Do you realize how dangerous she is to the entire shinobi world?!"
"Relax," Rasa waved dismissively, smiling confidently. "If I have the power to summon her, I have the power to control her. Besides… I know your tailed beast secrets. Keep your mouth shut, behave, and maybe… just maybe, you'll have nothing to fear."
"..."
Shukaku went quiet again.
It thought about its siblings—the other tailed beasts. Could it really betray them?
No. Never.
So it snorted, raised its head arrogantly, and muttered:
"Fine… I'll work for you."
"Excellent." Rasa nodded, satisfied. "I'll release the seal shortly. But be warned—if you cause trouble, I'll throw you into the Ten-Tails' husk."
After all, Kaguya could only appear at night, and her powers weren't at full strength. He still had to be cautious.
...
Meanwhile, at the Hokage Tower in Konoha—
"...4WD car?" Kakashi stared blankly at the Third Hokage, who was puffing on his pipe.
A beat passed.
"Lord Hokage… I don't know anything about that."