“A little anticlimatic, isn’t it?” the man in the fox mask asked, standing next to the simple door opposite Itachi as if to keep the door between them. When Itachi stayed silent, the man added, “Well, just because it’s the Anbu doesn’t mean it’s all dangerous missions. Guarding the Hokage is a legitimate mission, too.”
“I know that,” Itachi replied, matter-of-factly. Like the man, his face was covered with a fox mask. In contrast with the almond eyes of the man’s mask, however, the holes that opened up in the position of Itachi’s eyes were round.
The name of the man in the mask with the almond eyes was Hatake Kakashi. He was the leader of Anbu Team Ro, and Itachi’s direct supervisor. Although he was still young, at twenty years old, he had already been a member of the village’s elite Anbu for eight years. He was talented, and the Hokage trusted him implicitly. Itachi had known about him for a while.
The time Tenma died …
It was this very Kakashi who had come to help Itachi. And if he had shown up a little sooner, Tenma might not have died.
Ninjas focused only on reality and results. The fact that Tenma was dead was something that could not be reversed. Itachi had no intention, at this late date, of thinking about these sorts of “what-ifs,” and layering on the reproaches.
“You remember the basic tactics of the Anbu?” Kakashi lobbed an innocuous question his way. He was a good supervisor, carefully considering the feelings of his young new subordinate.
Friend-killer.
The phrase of choice for people looking to badmouth Kakashi. Itachi had heard it any number of times since he joined the Anbu.
However, every time, it had been from someone older than Kakashi satisfied with their subordinates. It was nothing more than an insult stemming from annoyance or jealousy.
“If it was to complete the mission, Team Leader Kakashi would even kill his friends.” The faces of those uttering this ugly abuse were always mean.
But on a day-to-day basis, Itachi had never heard a single world against their comrades from Kakashi. In fact, it was actually notable how careful he was to pay his respect to the bonds he shared with them. At that very moment, Kakashi was being extra attentive to Itachi, who had only just joined the Anbu; he was intently searching for a way to start a conversation.
“I’ve got the basics in my head,” Itachi noted, standing straight, and not looking at his kind team leader.
“No surprise there.”
For Itachi, who had read every document he could get ahold of on the use of small ninja teams, the particular strategies of the Anbu were extremely fascinating. Four-person teams, three-person teams, two-person teams. Even what action to take as a solitary ninja. The list of practical tactics—from constant offensive positioning, to exploring the possibilities for the completion of the mission—was comprehensive, including every situation a ninja might encounter on a mission. Everything from feints and disturbances to defensive formations and cooperation had been honed and specialized to crush the enemy and execute the mission. Spurred on by his intellectual curiosity, Itachi had devoured the thick Anbu tactical books in a single night.
“There’s clearly a reason why they called you a prodigy when you came to the academy,” Kakashi said.
“I’m not sure if the youngest graduate ever can really say anything here.”
“When I graduated, it was in the middle of the Great War, and they needed ninjas. The situation’s different now.”
Now that Kakashi mentioned it, the current system at the academy was different from how it had been when Itachi graduated. The Great War and its aftereffects still lingered when he graduated. Because of that, once his actual abilities were recognized, he was skipped ahead, leading to his early graduation. But now that it was a time of peace, the Hokage was determined that ninjas must be carefully cultivated over a number of years, and it was no longer possible to graduate in a short time, as it had been in the past. Thus, no matter how talented Sasuke was, he couldn’t become a ninja until he was eleven years old.
“It’s only in my head. Once I actually try moving with my comrades, I won’t be able to say that I studied anything.”
“You’ll be fine,” Kakashi said, almost as though he had seen it already. In his voice, Itachi heard no excessive expectation or irresponsibility from carelessness or pride. His voice was completely casual. Which was exactly why it was mysteriously persuasive. “I’m hoping that the Anbu will become a place of pride for you.”
“Thank you.”
A supervisor I can count on … There was something about this man Kakashi that made him think that.
No matter how many times I come here, I never grow to like it …
In the main building of the shrine, dominated by heat, Itachi took a deep breath through his nose. Filling the space all around him were the brethren of the clan.
The regular meeting.
Now that Izumi was a genin, she was there, too. Since she was the same age as he was, and because he was still a novice, Itachi was in a lower seat in the same row as her, separated by a few people. Perhaps overwhelmed by the heat, she was still, her face lowered. He wanted to call out to her, but with the heat, and the main building actually falling silent at that moment, there was a wordless pressure that would not allow him to do anything so rash as that.
“Well, then, let’s begin.” His father stood up from his seat in the front row, and turned toward everyone gathered in the hall. Those present held their breath, and waited for Fugaku to speak. The scene was like the founder of some religious sect and his believers.