Chapter 263 - 263 (2/2)
”I doubted my purpose…”
”Purpose?”
”Yes! All my life, I've always thought of myself as a Ninja as a tool for performing task. Everything I've built in life was revolving around fulfilling my duty. That is, until I've chosen to give up on all of that to rescue my companions.”
”Why did you make that choice at the time?”
Sakumo recalled those days, smiled and said: ”First of all, one of them was my good friend, and probably because he was also a father!”
Kakashi blinked, and he did not understand what Sakumo was saying.
”When we went out on missions at the time, he often mentioned his child to me. Every time he did so, I though back of you. I guess, I did not want his son to grow up without a father, so I chose to give up on the task to save him.”
Kakashi did not expect that this would be the reason behind Sakumo's abandonment of the mission, and he did not know what to think.
”I kept wondering if I did the right thing. When I saved them, I went against my own purpose, and broke the rules of this world we're living in. A Ninja giving up on the task for a Ninja… the idea sounds ridiculous. When back in the village, how the ones I saved blamed me made me even more certain that I did wrong. Someone who doesn't live for his purpose does not deserve to live… I was not going to live for the same reason I broke the mission for, so I chose to kill myself.”
”But dad, why have you changed your mind after being saved?”
”Because that helped me find a new purpose.”
Kakashi's eyes lit up and he anxiously asked: ”New purpose?”
”I am a guardian. I'm guarding the village and the people I love. At the time, after he saved my life, Ryo used his clan's techniques to communicate with me, and I had already died once; such a thing could change one's perspective. That and Ryo helped me understand that executing mission was not the purpose of a Ninja; the power of a Ninja should be used to protect one's loved ones…”
”Protect one's loved ones!” Kakashi murmured Sakumo's words, and then fell into thought.
Sakumo did not say anything, turned around, and left Konoha's hospital.
...….
After Ryo left the Hospital, he immediately went to the archives room, and wanted to find out some information about Izumi's father.
All he knew was that her mother was an Uchiha. While it was a bit more common for the Uchiha men to marry foreigners to their clan, it was rare for their women to do so. Finding him should be a breeze.
Sure enough, after Ryo talked to the management of the archive, they gave him access to the doc_u_ments that he requested. They gave him five scrolls of non-Uchihas marrying Uchiha women. Out of the five, 4 were Jonins, and only one was a Chunin.
Ryo picked up the registration form and looked at his photo, just to smile after a while.
He then took Izumi's father name to Sakumo, and asked him for help getting information about him.
A while later, an Anbu brought back a scroll. It did not contain much information about him; after all, he was just a Chunin.
Ryo opened the scroll and quickly went through it. When he saw more about this man, and how he was an orphan, he became more and more certain of his presumption.
”Sakumo san, I think I know why Lain's Wood Release went out of control.”
”Is it related to this Ninja?”
”Yes, this is Uchiha Izumi's father. Lain said that she had sensed a special Chakra from her body before her Wood Release went out of control. Seeing this man, I think I know what was behind that!”