57

~~60 years ago~~ Year 19 of Konoha~~

It is during the first great shinobi war that he was born. In the maternity ward of the largest hospital in Konoha, the legend Sakumo Hatake first took his breath.

When a child is born it is a joyful occasion but his birth is treated with nothing but cold indifference on the borderline of hate.

Usually, a nurse would hold the child – but there were no parents to hold him. The father died a month ago on the front line, and the mother died a few minutes after her son's birth, she too, was the victim of the war.

The child had no name. Only a family name left by his mother's side, Hatake. A certain doctor placed him into an orphanage built recently, at the very edge of the village.

Sakumo was the name they gave him, he is one of many, an insignificant creature who is not worth anything till he is older. The orphanage is crowded, filled to the brim with children who have lost their parents in the war, were abandoned by their remaining family members, or are simply unwanted.

They were children who were meant to be used, toyed with, and forced to submit to the wishes of their more fortunate clan members.

Most of them were civilian-born, and are worth nothing in the eyes of these clans. Some are the fallen clan members. Sakumo was one of them, the last remaining heir of the Hatake clan.

He was not the youngest or the oldest nor he was given any special treatment. He was like all of them, abandoned, and unwanted, with no parents. But he is the only one who tries to survive.

...

Sakumo watched as some of the children were lured away by shinobis, returning broken and haunted, young children were bought with money by masked ANBU members.

Once in a while, an elder – sometimes accompanied by a chunin or Jonin – comes for a visit, looking intently for children who hold promise to become ninjas... to become the tools to gain greater power. They would take them away and make them into shinobi for the clan.

Sometimes many children are taken all at once by an elder. They are the ones he never sees again.

Sakumo avoids them as much as he can. He did not wish to die out there like a nobody or be broken like these kids.

But his wish turned out to be a mere fantasy. They came back more often. The war has claimed many lives. This time they take any children available – those whose absence would not be missed greatly.

Sakumo was drafted into the group. Children were crying in fear. Some older ones are joyful to be able to become a ninja. Some boast of their relations to some Senju ninja. 'Fools', he thought, what is the point of fame if you will die before achieving it?!

They were led into a cave and then underground forced into killing their fellow orphan brothers and sisters, Sakumo survived, he is the only one left standing. At that time the oldest of the kids was merely 4 years old.

Sakumo was three and a half when he experiences death head-on once and again, but this would not be the last time.

He claimed many lives, the lives of prisoners of war. Their screams and blood filled him, tamed him, and taught him. The fear that he had felt from his childhood began to subside and give way to hate and vengeance. He hated everything he saw: the ANBU, the shinobi, the village, the clan system, and his own flesh.

Some nights, he is unable to sleep for the screams of his victims. He is haunted by the memories of their faces.

...

There was no academy to train them, and kids like Sakumo were sent to the front line to fight for the village. He killed his enemies using every bit of strength he got. Short blade, long blade, Jutsu, anything he could find, he used every dirty trick in the book to stay alive, and at the end of the day, he was always covered in the blood of his enemies.

And soon they had to cut him open and stitch him back up, and then after some basic healing, he did it again, fighting and killing his opponents on the front line.

His dreams were filled with blood and fear, the taste of the warm blood he had swallowed down, the smell of the blood that seeps through his hair and clothes.

Sakumo Hatake was given the power to kill his enemies by his masters. A treasure blade that gave off a white streak of chakra when it was swung, they said it was left by his mother's family. It was a family heirloom passed down in the fallen Hatake clan forever.

But his pain and suffering were unbearable. His mind feels like it will be torn apart. He wakes from his nightmares when the village is attacked again, this time by a group of genin led by the jonin and chunin of some unknown village.

...

Food becomes scarce as the war continues and he is soon drafted into the newly built academy to get official training. He is one of the few kids who is accepted.

He goes without a fight because he wanted to live. And because he wondered when life became so meaningless to him.

By the time he grew a little older, he started losing it, he didn't find a reason to continue living no matter how hard he tried, the fairy tale he read was a lie; there was no happy ending... there was only him and the endless darkness it follows.

Till he found it, his happy ending, a black hair hotty who took pity on him and share her lunch with him, she leaks the overwhelming killing intent just like him. Surely another victim of war like he was.

Her name was Nozomi. The girl who later became Kakashi's mother.

...

~~Present~~

"What nonsense!!", Elder Homura roared at Fugaku, "I think this is what I should expect from an Uchiha anyway. You and your entire clan are just...

"Elder, I suggest you keep your voice down", Tsume interrupted.

"Inuzuka Tsume, watch your tone!!", Elder Koharu said with a frown, looking at Hokage who watched all this without saying a word.

Shikaku too was watching Hokage with interest, how come Hokage is just watching everything without a word?!

"The one who should watch their tone is not her, but you", Fugaku said calmly, like it didn't have anything to do with him.

"Hokage sama, can I continue?!"

Hokage nods his head, "Continue"

"SARUTOBI!!", Homura yelled at the Hokage.

But the old man said nothing further. It's as if even Hokage was looking at the dead man. What in the world is going on here? Why isn't this man doing anything to protect the elders?!

Tsume growled fiercely at Homura and began to walk forward again, "Don't you dare talk to Hokage sama like that. Who do you think you are?!"

"Stop! You don't know what you're doing. Assaulting an elder means..."

Tsume was shaking all over with rage. Homura realized he didn't need to say more. Tsume already knew what happened with Sakumo that year. The anger she is feeling right now is no doubt just waiting to burst.

"In Konoha's 54th year, Anbu commander Hatake Sakumo received an important task. Hokage sama, who was at his peak back then, asked him to lead the team to retrieve a scroll from Kirigakure"

"Enough of this nonsense!" Koharu snapped at the table and stood up.

Fugaku didn't care about them and just continued, "His team successfully reached the hidden mist village. But things didn't go according to plan. It was a trap from the very start. There was nothing for him to bring back!"

Koharu roared with all her strength, "ENOUGH!!! WITH MY AUTHORITY AS AN ELDER I ORDER YOU TO...

"Danzo traded Sakumo san's life for the war material. At that time everyone feared Hatake Sakumo, his blade never failed to reach its target. So when Kirigakure saw the chance they took it"

"An army encircled him and his squad, directly led by the third Mizukage", Fugaku raised his voice and kept on talking.

Kakashi trembled, he has always been the son of the criminal Sakumo Hatake. Not even knowing what his father did, he just believed what others told him. His life has been lived in darkness because of his father's name and reputation.

"In that battle, Konoha did not suffer many casualties. White fang managed to rescue his companions and safely retreated back to the village", Fugaku said

The entire room fell silent as everyone realized what was going on.

"But Sakumo san could not be left alone, not after this, taking advantage of his position Danzo got together with the rest of the elders and slandered his name, rumors began to emerge under the elders' manipulation. Everyone believed in the "truth" you so carefully planted. No one believed him, thus leading to his death"

"The elders here will not permit any further slander against us", Homura roared with a sudden snap.

"You might think Danzo is your confidante but he did not trust you two", Tsume said and her clan member gave her a big scroll.

"Here is the evidence that we collected from the secret base outside Konoha that Kakashi found, that suggests what we said is absolutely the truth. Everything is recorded by Danzo personally using the seals as proof of insurance", Tsume showed them a scroll.

The elders at the table were all stunned in surprise. Hokage, Homura, Koharu, and others all stared at each other.

The scroll has many pictures and voices recorded inside, and there was one that caught everyone's eye. A root shinobi under Danzo Shimura trading Sakumo's information with Kirigakure for enough war materials.

Homura and Koharu's faces went pale as they looked at the scroll when they discussed the rumors to slander Sakumo's name.

Kakashi felt a sense of loss in his heart. His heart ached like it was being pulled out. How could dad not notice anything back then? He must have figured it out based on his abilities... but still that old man decided to stay loyal. How could he...!

Fugaku sighed, "A shinobi is nothing but a tool to be used by elders and Kages, if they can't be used, they are to be discarded. And such was the result of the white fang back then"

Homura glared at Fugaku and screamed, "I will not allow you to slander-

Tsume growled and held the elders' necks with her growing claws, sticking them against the walls, her ninkens growling, and barking, ready to tear the elders apart, "You talk too much for being some petty criminals"

"Stop it Tsume", Hokage said.

But Tsume was trembling violently, and her face was full of rage.

"Tsume stop it", Hokage frowned and yelled...

Tsume growled at them once again and let them both fall to the ground. They coughed up blood. She gave the elders a look of absolute contempt before letting go of them and turning away.

Koharu was pale and looked at Homura in a daze. Fugaku watched the scene calmly without saying a word.

"Your orders Hokage sama!!!", Fugaku said turning to Hokage.

"Take them!!!"

Hokage raised his arm and four Anbu members stepped forward to take the elders and they were dragged away.

"Leave everything here", Hokage said to everyone present and then asked them to leave.

Everyone left the room, leaving Hokage and Shikaku alone inside the office.

"If you have no further business, I shall be returning to my office", Shikaku said to Hokage and bowed his head.

Hokage sighed, "Why aren't you asking anything?! I know you must have figured it out, my name was never mentioned in it, with your abilities you should have known the mastermind behind this is me"

"..."

"The truth behind Sakumo Hatake and Danzo Shimura... what they said just now is not entirely true. It was not Danzo who traded Sakumo's life for war material", Hokage shook his head as if he couldn't believe his own words

"I don't need to know Hokage sama, and I don't think I will ever want to know. Because if I do, I would have to question my own morals", Shikaku answered calmly.

Hokage didn't answer and Shikaku went on, "But still, I am curious about one thing... why were you quiet during the entire process?! Were you sure that your name will not come out?"

"Ghost visited me last night..! He asked for my cooperation!!"

Shikaku gets the answer he wanted as he bowed again and turned to leave.

The old man looked at his advisor for a moment before he sighed, "Do you know why I made Danzo my right-hand man, why I gave him the leadership of root?"

Shikaku stopped and turn to look at the old Hokage.

"Because I was not like those fools. I saw him for what he really was. I knew what he was capable of. And I knew it would end badly one day. But there was no one else that could enter the darkness like he could and still protect the village, so I had to take the risk"

The old man stare at Shikaku for a bit before continuing, "Without darkness, there is no light"

Shikaku nods and then left leaving the old man alone in the office.

...

~~22 years ago~~ Year 51 of Konoha~~

Nurses laughed and smiled at the 38-year-old silver-haired man, walking up and down the corridors of the hospital like a kid, stopping to tell them that he was having a son and giving them the sweets he purchased.

Everyone congratulated him and smiled at him before they walked off again. The nurses would give him the warmest smiles, telling him how wonderful it is to have a child.

Sakumo's heart felt as if it would burst when he heard the baby's cry for the first time. It was a sweet and innocent voice he had never heard before.

He entered the maternity ward as soon as he was allowed to enter. His eyes glistened as he looked at the white hair infant in his wife's arms. It was a beautiful sight, a sight he had wished for so long.

The nurse wrapped the boy – now a newborn – into a pink blanket and placed him on the man's chest. His wife whispered something into the old man's ear that made him feel warm and happy all over.

"Kakashi. Kakashi Hatake", Sakumo uttered and the infant cried

"Don't cry", He told the little boy in his arms with overwhelming emotions, "Daddy is here..."

And just like that, a new name was born, and a new family was formed...