Chapter 3

The title "White Fang" once belonged to Kakashi's father.

That man, during the war, abandoned his mission to save his teammates, causing Konoha to suffer a defeat in the war. Ultimately, he was forced to commit suicide under public pressure.

Xia Yan was well aware of what this title meant to Kakashi.

He also knew very clearly why Kakashi had joined the Anbu.

After the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, took office, Kakashi was transferred to the Anbu.

The reason was that he had witnessed the death of Obito with his own eyes and then personally killed another teammate.

Such a blow would be unbearable for anyone, let alone for someone as sensitive as Kakashi.

This guy now seemed lifeless, almost devoid of any human vitality. Describing him as a walking corpse might be the most fitting.

Minato Namikaze did not want his disciple to fall into despair or to be endlessly trapped in past sorrowful memories, so he had Kakashi join the Anbu.

The Anbu's missions were heavy, leaving no time for Kakashi to dwell on his past.

Moreover, the Anbu's missions involved a lot of killing. By getting Kakashi used to such killings, he could become accustomed to everything that had happened.

"Just why was this guy assigned to my team? Is it because we were classmates?"

Xia Yan thought to himself as he accepted the mission.

As an Anbu, their mission could not be interrupted by a minor incident.

His mission was simple: to hunt down an enemy spy who had been thoroughly investigated and was currently hiding in Konoha.

After completing the mission, he needed to bring back the spy's body.

This spy was disguised as a Konoha ninja and was currently on a mission outside the village—more accurately, he was passing on information.

This kind of mission was one of the simplest. Xia Yan had carried out at least fifty such missions over the past five years, and he was very familiar with the process.

However, this time, he had an additional task: to take Kakashi along. The mission would involve only two people.

Since Xia Yan's team had four members, with Kakashi joining, the others had to be reassigned.

Similarly, Kakashi needed to be familiarized with the Anbu's mission procedures.

"Whatever, since he's here, he's here."

Xia Yan and Kakashi were not as familiar as one might imagine. Although they were classmates, Kakashi had left school very early.

Xia Yan, on the other hand, had avoided the first wave of "cannon fodder selection" and then joined the Anbu just before the second wave.

Apart from the brief period of less than a year, they had not had much interaction.

On the other hand, he had had quite a bit of interaction with Obito.

This guy was essentially a carbon copy of Naruto, with a good personality and all.

Of course, there was also the consideration of leaving some room for himself in the future.

After receiving the mission, the two did not linger at all and immediately set off for the mission site.

Kakashi was very quiet, silently following behind Xia Yan, seemingly indifferent to the mission he had been assigned.

This made Xia Yan somewhat uncomfortable. He knew that this was the most difficult time for Kakashi, who was essentially a living dead man.

However, considering that he needed to get along well with Kakashi in the future, he had to try to build a good relationship, after all, Kakashi was the teacher of the savior.

"Kakashi, it's been a long time since we last met," Xia Yan said after a moment of thought, in the gentlest voice he could muster.

Although he was wearing a mask, Xia Yan felt that he was smiling nicely.

However, Kakashi did not respond, not even looking at him, which made Xia Yan a bit awkward.

But with the mask on, no one could see, so Xia Yan continued, "You might not recognize me, but I recognize you. We were in the same year, but you graduated early, while I joined the Anbu at the age of eight."

"Classmates... from the same year?" Kakashi finally showed some reaction, turning his head slightly to look at Xia Yan.

"Yes, that's right," Xia Yan nodded gently, his voice still gentle. "I still remember our classmates, like Guy, Kurenai, Asuma, and Obito, and Rin..."

At this point, Xia Yan paused, looking at Kakashi, and then said slowly, "They were a bit unfortunate, but they were all heroes. If I have the time, I would like to visit their graves and lay some flowers."

After saying this, Xia Yan stopped, and Kakashi turned to look at him.

After a long moment, he nodded slightly, "Thank you, Captain."

"Call me Xia Yan," Xia Yan's voice became even gentler. "Do you remember me?"

Xia Yan was unsure if Kakashi remembered him. In the ninja academy, he had been quite low-key.

Although he was not from the Uchiha clan, he did not need to worry about being too high-profile and attracting attention, but the current situation of the Senju clan was not good either.

As for being too low-profile and forming a bottom-of-the-class duo with Obito?

Forget it, he did not think he was as lucky as Obito.

Despite being a marginal figure in the Uchiha clan, Obito managed to avoid being drafted as a "qualified ninja" during Konoha's most difficult times and only went to the battlefield after truly graduating.

Moreover, he had an excellent team leader and somehow became a student of the Hokage.

Obito was the template of a protagonist, albeit with slightly lower intelligence and the Uchiha's unique condition, which led to his darkening.

If Xia Yan had performed as poorly as Obito, he might not have survived the first round of "cannon fodder selection."

Therefore, Xia Yan's performance in school was basically above average. He was competent but not outstanding, and not particularly noticeable.

"Xia Yan, right?" Kakashi seemed to be in deep thought, and soon he recalled something. "I apologize, but I might not have paid much attention in school, but I have heard about you from Guy."

"Is that so?" Xia Yan laughed lightly. "Then I should thank Guy."

Guy and Xia Yan had a good relationship, or rather, he had a good relationship with Konoha's future core members.

After all, they were classmates, and Xia Yan wanted to stay in Konoha. He also had to consider the possibility of running away.

If he did run away, those who might capture him would be them.

With such a relationship, they might show some leniency.

With this start, Kakashi seemed a bit more natural.

Although the cold aura around him was still heavy, the fact that he could speak was a good improvement.

The two moved quickly, chatting as they went.

Xia Yan guessed that his favorability with Kakashi was probably increasing by "0.01" at a time.

After all, this guy's heart was like ice, and breaking it was not an easy task...