Naruto’s voice rang out through the clearing, sharp and indignant. “YOU ARE LATE!” His finger pointed squarely at the man sauntering in without a care in the world. Sakura stood beside him, arms crossed, pouting in quiet disapproval. I watched from the sidelines as Kakashi strolled in, thirty minutes late. Not a minute earlier, not a minute later.
Of course, he’d been here before. I’d seen him lurking, perched in the shadows, watching us like a cat with half-lidded eyes. He’d arrived ten minutes before, silent as death, observing. But that didn’t change the truth of it. The man was late.
“Good morning, class,” Kakashi said, his voice mild, disinterested. He pulled a scroll from his flak jacket and laid it down on one of the stumps scattered through the clearing. A flick of his hands, a series of seals, and the scroll exploded in a puff of smoke. When it cleared, an alarm clock and three bento boxes sat on the stump.
Ping.
Kakashi straightened, pointing to the clock. “I’ve set this alarm for noon. I have with me two bells. Your task is simple. Steal these before the timer goes off. Fail, and you’ll be tied to one of these stumps to watch me eat your lunch.” His voice was so casual, it almost sounded like a joke.
Sakura went pale, the weight of it sinking in. “So that’s why you told us not to eat...” she murmured, the words trailing into despair. “…But I’m on a diet. I haven’t eaten since last night.”
Kakashi’s eye crinkled, that strange hidden smile beneath the mask. “No problem. Just get a bell. But since there are only two, one of you is going to miss out.”
He leaned back, casual again, the air of intimidation gone. But it had already worked. Sakura trembled. Naruto too, though he puffed himself up to hide it.
“You can use any method. Come at me with the intent to kill, or you’ll never get the bell.”
Naruto yelled, fists clenched in some half-hearted show of bravado. “I’m not gonna lose!”
Kakashi looked at him for a moment, then sighed. Reaching into his pouch, he pulled out a small orange book, Make Out Paradise, the cover blaring in bright, gaudy letters.
“Get on with it,” he said, flipping the page.
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KAKASHI
“The essence of being a shinobi is to become invisible,” Kakashi’s voice was low, steady. His eyes didn’t lift from the book as he spoke, the page turning quietly between his fingers. “To strike from the shadows when the enemy least expects it.”
But neither of the boys had moved. Both stood in the clearing, Naruto grinning like a fool, Sasuke still as stone.
Kakashi flicked his gaze up from the book. “Didn’t Iruka teach you this much?”
Naruto laughed, loud and brash, his fists planted on his hips like some hero out of a child’s story. “Who cares about all that! It’s time for a match! A real battle, worthy of legends!”
Kakashi resisted the urge to sigh again. His eyes drifted over to the Uchiha boy, who stood silent and still, his arms hanging loose by his sides, headband glinting in the sunlight. He looked calm. Too calm.
“What about you, Sasuke? You waiting for a ‘legendary battle’ too?”
The boy blinked, his dark gaze sliding to Kakashi’s without any real interest. “No,” Sasuke said. “I’m not interested.”
"Then why are you here?"
"I don’t understand."
Kakashi paused, brow furrowed. “Why are you standing—"
A gust of wind blew through the clearing, and the boy dissolved, fading like smoke into the air. A clone. Gone.
For the briefest moment, Kakashi stood frozen, a cold thread of realization weaving its way through him. He’s gone. The book snapped shut in his hand, his body tense, alert. Unconsciously, he had retrieved the kunai in his pouch. Realising this, he slipped it back, embarrassed at his own reaction.
Naruto’s shout broke the quiet. “Stop ignoring me!” He launched himself at Kakashi, a flying kick aimed straight for the Jōnin’s face. Kakashi tilted his head slightly, letting the attack sail harmlessly past.
“Ah, sorry,” Kakashi muttered, rubbing his head.
Naruto huffed, irritated, before he dropped into a crouch, forming a series of hand seals with a speed that surprised even Kakashi. “Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!” he shouted, and in a flash of smoke, fourteen Narutos filled the field, all racing toward Kakashi with their fists raised.
Kakashi, still scanning the treeline for any sign of Sasuke, sighed again. His eyes flickered to the clones charging him. “Let me teach you your first lesson,” he said quietly. “Taijutsu. The art of the body.”
As the first clones reached him, Kakashi moved. His hands shot out, grabbing two Narutos by the ankles and using them like bludgeons to swat two more out of existence. He stepped aside, dodging a flurry of punches, while his eyes tracked another Naruto trying to flank him from the left.
In a blur, Kakashi’s fist connected, dispelling the clone before he let one latch onto his leg.
“Hehe,” the clone chuckled, holding tight. Another clone jumped up, wrapping itself around Kakashi’s arm. “Gotcha!”
A third Naruto came barreling in from behind, fist raised, aiming for the back of Kakashi’s head. “This is payback!”
Kakashi didn’t flinch. He wasn’t even there anymore. He’d substituted, vanishing into the trees before Naruto even realized he’d been duped. The Jōnin’s attention was focused elsewhere. Somewhere in the forest, Sasuke was hiding, and Kakashi intended to find him.
Naruto stood in the clearing, confused and alone, the last of his clones puffing into smoke beside him.
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It had been thirty minutes, and Kakashi still hadn’t caught a single trace of his missing student. It was as if Sasuke had vanished into the wind, leaving nothing behind. After a while, the Jōnin stopped searching. There was no point, he reminded himself. Sasuke still needed a bell to pass the test, and since both were currently clipped to Kakashi’s waist, he would eventually have to come out of hiding to steal one.
Kakashi’s eyes shifted to a Naruto clone bumbling toward a trap he’d set under a tree a short distance away. Whether it was dumb luck or a rare stroke of genius, using the clone to grab the bait-bell was one of Naruto’s smarter moves. As expected, the clone charged toward the bell. Moments later, the orange-clad doppelgänger found himself hoisted upside down, caught by the ankle and dangling helplessly in the air.
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“ACK! What the heck?!” Not-Naruto yelped, flailing wildly.
Kakashi strolled over, hands in his pockets, shaking his head in mild disappointment. “To fall for such an obvious trap, Naruto… Stupid.”
“Hey!” the clone protested, still struggling, his fingers just barely brushing the bell out of reach. Kakashi bent over casually, back turned, leaving himself wide open—purposefully baiting Sasuke from the shadows. His attention stayed sharp, panning the treeline in search of the elusive Uchiha.
“Shinobi read the hidden meanings within the hid—”
Kakashi froze. For the second time that day, he noticed something wasn’t right. He narrowed his eyes at the Naruto clone hanging before him, only to find it staring back with a pair of Sharingan spinning in its eyes.
In an instant, Kakashi leapt back several meters, hand snapping to his headband as he yanked it up to reveal his own Sharingan. He pulsed his chakra, breaking the Genjutsu Sasuke had subtly wormed into his mind.
“Useful, isn’t it?” Not-Naruto said coolly, slipping gracefully out of the trap and landing on his feet, his voice suddenly different—controlled. Calculated. “That eye of yours. No wonder the Hokage was reluctant to return it to where it belongs. It would be quite the loss to the village if you ever gave it up.”
“…Sasuke.”
The Genin didn’t respond, his focus narrowing as he reached into his pouch, flinging a handful of shuriken toward Kakashi in a blur. Kakashi dodged, but only barely, as Sasuke leapt forward, launching a rapid barrage of kicks mid-air. Kakashi blocked them all, only for the boy to reach for the bells at his waist. Before Kakashi could react, the rustle of leaves behind him alerted him to danger. He sprang into the treetops just as a kunai trap exploded beneath his feet.
Kunai whizzed from every direction in the canopy above, their trajectories set to intersect precisely where Kakashi would land. He didn’t stop to think. His body reacted on instinct, forming a quick tiger seal to enhance his speed with chakra, and he shot out of harm’s way. His boots skidded across the forest floor as he regained his balance, eyes locking onto Sasuke, who stood still, calm, Sharingans spinning in his eyes.
Another volley of kunai came his way, one of them wrapped in an explosive tag. Kakashi dodged, but the tag detonated mid-air, rocking the forest with a loud blast. He tumbled backwards, catching himself by latching onto the trunk of a nearby tree with chakra-infused wires. Within seconds, Kakashi had woven a new web of booby traps, layering them between himself and the young Uchiha. He retreated another few meters, leaving a minefield of explosive tags behind him.
Smoke rose from where Sasuke’s explosive tag had gone off, and Kakashi scanned the area quickly. Naruto and Sakura were still far from their battleground, safely out of range. But Sasuke had disappeared again. Kakashi glanced down at his waist. The bells were still there, thank goodness. Losing them would’ve been embarrassing.
“…This was a terrible idea,” the Jōnin muttered to himself, shaking his head.
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Kakashi stood, cycling his chakra in short bursts as he faced Sasuke, who had reappeared in the clearing, his Sharingan spinning lazily. A stiff wind stirred the boy’s long silken hair.
“Tired?” Kakashi asked, one hand resting on his hip. T
“Yes,” Sasuke replied calmly. “You? Keeping your Sharingan active must be draining for you, Sensei.”
“Cheeky brat,” Kakashi muttered, though there was a hint of amusement in his voice. Sasuke smirked but didn’t move from his spot.
“Aren’t you going to try stealing a bell again?” Kakashi asked, raising a brow. “Or have you given up?”
“I might. If it becomes necessary.”
“Necessary?” Kakashi echoed, curious. “What are you waiting for?”
“...Naruto.”
Kakashi blinked, genuinely confused. “Naruto? Why?”
“He hasn’t found his bell yet.”
The silver-haired Jounin froze. His chakra flared as he cycled again, dispelling any possible Genjutsu Sasuke might’ve slipped over him. At that moment, Sasuke’s Sharingan faded, and the bells at Kakashi’s waist vanished from his senses.
“…You bypassed my Sharingan?” Kakashi asked, incredulous.
“Yes.”
“How?”
“I’m better at using it than you are, Sensei.”
“…Since when?”
“A while ago,” Sasuke said casually. “It was tricky at first, but once the Genjutsu took hold, knocking the bells off while distracting you was easy.”
Kakashi’s eyes narrowed. “But you have no bells of your own. You’ve failed the test. I hope you remember the consequences.”
“I do,” Sasuke said, his voice calm. “But the objective was achieved. The bells are no longer in your possession. The rest is moot.”
Kakashi sighed, rubbing his temples. “You ate breakfast before the test, didn’t you? Even though I warned you not to.”
“…Yes.”
“And of course, you were never worried about being sent back to the Academy.”
Silence.
Kakashi turned away, trudging toward where Naruto and Sakura waited. “Let’s go,” he sighed. “This was a terrible idea.”
Already, he was regretting agreeing to the Hokage’s request.
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It’s been several months—almost half a year—since our first exercise with Kakashi. Apparently, our performance was so far below the Jōnin’s expectations that he seriously considered stepping down as our instructor. Fortunately, the Hokage managed to talk him out of making such a rash decision.
Contrary to our earlier expectations, we found we now preferred that Kakashi remained close to us. His Sharingan, despite not being his by birthright, resisted the influence of ours far longer than we expected. This wasn’t just any ordinary eye, it seemed. Keeping watch over the eye seemed like a prudent move to make.
In the weeks following that initial test, we were assigned our first missions—D-rank, of course. Menial tasks, but useful for integrating ourselves into Konoha’s civilian network and forming connections with key members of the village. Even with Kakashi’s watchful eye and our ever-present ANBU shadows, capitalizing on this opportunity was hardly a challenge.
Over the years, we had refined the art of subtle Genjutsu, a weapon indispensable for extracting sensitive information undetected. It worked even on Jōnin, as our encounter with Kakashi during the bell test had shown. Though, in hindsight, openly experimenting on him was a misstep. We could feel unseen forces nudging us away from more profitable targets, likely in response to that blunder.
Still, it wasn’t a significant loss. Few things were, these days. We finished wiping the last specks of dirt from the kitchen cabinet, setting aside the cleaning supplies. Washing our hands, we dried them with a towel, leaning against the door to inspect our work. The house was spotless, the day’s chores completed.
Satisfied, we headed for the bathroom. Nine minutes and thirty-four seconds later, we emerged, fresh. It took five minutes to change into clean clothes, and seven more to comb through the knots in our hair. Grooming was a deliberate, methodical process—a ritual.
For us, it wasn’t just about personal appearance; we represented the Uchiha clan. To present ourselves in anything less than perfection would be dishonourable.
After leaving the house, we made our way to Naka Shrine to pay respects. Inside, a Mitamaya bore the names of our fallen clansmen, engraved in stone. It had been a year since we last performed this ritual. From the sleeve of our kimono, we retrieved a Fūinjutsu scroll. Tossing it into the air, we bit the tip of our thumb, flashing through a series of hand signs. The scroll unfurled as it fell, revealing a blank inner surface where we painted on kanji with our blood. Chakra churned within us, and the scroll exploded in a cloud of white smoke, erecting a barrier around the shrine. The presence of the ANBU watching us vanished, the barrier cutting us off from the outside world.
Relieved by the privacy, we knelt before the stone tablet, an incense stick materializing in our hand. Whispering a prayer for the fallen, the orison lasted only a few minutes. Rising, we approached the seventh tatami mat in the room, folding it aside to reveal a mundane-looking stone tile. But appearances could deceive. We formed the snake seal, our Sharingan activating as we performed the Naka Shrine Pass Technique.
Our chakra drained steadily as Fūinjutsu markings emerged on the floor. The stone tile rumbled, lifting into the air to reveal itself as a massive slab, two meters thick. Beneath it lay a flight of stairs leading into the shrine’s foundation. We descended into the darkness, moulding chakra into fire. A small flame appeared in our palm before splitting in two, flying toward a pair of torches at the far end of the chamber.
The hidden room was small, with two Uchiha uchiwa painted on the opposite wall. Beneath them was a blank stone tablet. At our silent command, our Mangekyō Sharingan emerged, the tablet’s ancient message unravelling in its divine light:
“Seeking stability, one god was divided into yin and yang. These opposing forces, together, create all things in existence…”
We read, and read. But a few things things stood out to us. Names. Titles.
The Sage of Six Paths.
Kaguya.
The God Tree.
They all seemed quite important…
At least as important as mortals went.