The cold drizzle brought a touch of chilliness, and the desolate wind flowed past fingertips toward the distance.
Pure white hair swayed before ink-black eyes, obscuring the indecipherable gaze within.
Here.
In the empty and desolate cemetery, Kakashi and a young girl dressed in black stood together.
Compared to the past, the current Kakashi rarely visited this place anymore.
Even so, Kakashi still came three times a year.
His father's death anniversary, his teacher and mistress's death anniversary, and Rin's death anniversary.
Aside from the first time when he forgot his dead old man, Kakashi had brought four bouquets of white chrysanthemums every year since.
The wind stirred the two bouquets of white chrysanthemums before the tombstone, and long, thin white petals drooped onto the green bricks that had just been wiped clean and dampened by the rain.
For six years, this was the first time Kakashi had come to this place of lingering sorrow on a day that wasn't anyone's death anniversary.
He had just come to tell his glass-hearted dead old man a piece of news.
"I'm getting married."
Kakashi crouched down, reached into his robe, and took out a roasted chestnut, placing it before Sakumo Hatake's tombstone.
In his memories, his dead old man liked this kind of roasted food, and he always liked to tease him with it, thinking he liked it too.
Hikari stood silently to the side, quietly watching Kakashi's movements.
Sakumo Hatake, Kakashi's father.
In the future, he would be Hikari's father, too.
The Uchiha Hikari of the past was already history; in the near future, she would likely change her name to Hikari Hatake.
After bidding farewell to Sakumo Hatake's tombstone, the two arrived before the tombstones of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki.
This time, Kakashi didn't linger as long as he had at his dead old man's grave. He simply placed two bouquets of white chrysanthemums, tossed down two candies, and then pulled Hikari along to the next location without looking back. At the end, he tossed out a sentence:
"I'm taking pretty good care of Naruto for you two. He even calls me 'Dad' now. Don't worry down there, and remember to watch over me."
Only then did it dawn on Hikari.
So, that kid who was always jumping around was the son of Kakashi's teacher.
No wonder Kakashi was so attentive to Naruto.
The final location was another tombstone.
The Grave of Rin Nohara.
Hikari stared at the smiling, brown-haired girl on the tombstone.
She had seen this girl's appearance before.
On the group photo of Team 7 at the head of Kakashi's bed.
This was Hikari's first time visiting Rin's grave.
Truly...
This girl named Rin, her eyes were exactly like Kakashi's.
Just as pitch-black and pure.
It was just...
Hikari glanced at the silent Kakashi beside her and spoke with a tone carrying some inexplicable implication:
"Aren't you going to say something?"
Kakashi looked at Hikari, finding her reaction a bit baffling:
"What am I supposed to say?"
"'I'm getting married, and the bride isn't you?'"
???
Hikari felt the urge to hit someone.
Heh, it's not just "the bride isn't you," even the lover isn't you, right?!
Hikari knew perfectly well that Kakashi still had Kurenai on the side.
Looking at the Great-Grandma whose face had puffed up like a bun, Kakashi chuckled softly and patted her head.
"Let's go, it's time to head back."
Hikari shook her head, trying to fling off the paw on her head, but found that whatever she did was futile.
"Don't touch my head; you're making it seem like you're petting a child."
"I am many years older than you; you should be calling me Great-Great-Great-Great-Grandma!"
Watching his hand being swatted away, Kakashi smoothly took that soft hand in his own and smiled.
"Doesn't that make it even more exciting?"
???
Pervert!
Having read countless books, Hikari immediately understood the implication in Kakashi's words and couldn't help but blush.
"Hey, isn't there one more?"
Hikari pulled back on Kakashi's hand and looked toward another tombstone not far away.
Obito Uchiha.
This person was also in Kakashi's Team 7.
"I didn't bring enough flowers today. Let's leave it for later."
"Besides... I really do want to give this guy a bouquet of white chrysanthemums."
Hikari found this odd; it felt like there was a hidden meaning in Kakashi's words.
If you really wanted to give him white chrysanthemums, why didn't you buy an extra bunch when coming here?
But Hikari tossed this doubt to the back of her mind a moment later.
Right now, she wanted to go home and start making wedding invitations.
Heh heh, I'll send the first one to that woman, Kurenai!
Let her die of anger!
So what if she's pretty? So what if she's good-looking?
The person Kakashi is finally marrying is still me, Hikari Uchiha?
No, wait. In the future, I should call myself Hikari Hatake.
Uchiha Household
A black-haired boy, merely six years old, stared at the two black-and-white memorial portraits on the table, his expression dull and dazed.
Dad, Mom.
The once stern father and gentle mother had become cold portraits overnight.
This caused a violent shock to Sasuke Uchiha's heart.
When he received the news at the time, he had cried until he fainted.
He thought it was just a painful nightmare, but when he woke up, he found it was not a nightmare, but cruel reality.
"Sasuke..."
Sliding open the wooden door, Itachi Uchiha looked at his younger brother with heartache.
Itachi Uchiha's words were met only with a deathly silence.
"Brother... can you let me be alone for a while?"
Young Sasuke did not continue to cry; he merely spoke in a lifeless tone.
Seeing this, Itachi Uchiha could only sigh and silently leave.
After Itachi Uchiha left, the room returned to tranquility once more.
Immature hands clenched together tightly, his whole body trembling uncontrollably.
Sasuke, who had just been putting on a brave front before his older brother, finally couldn't hold it back in this moment. Bean-sized tears slid from his eyes, wetting the tatami mats on the floor.
Sasuke knew. It was Dad and Mom who made a mistake, so they died.
But, but... those were his Dad and Mom.
Because of this, even if Sasuke wanted revenge, he couldn't find anyone; he didn't know who to take revenge on.
Take revenge on the Lord Hokage?
No, that wasn't right.
Lord Hokage was protecting the village, and Big Brother also said the clan had been making mistakes all along, until they did something irrevocable.
Big Brother said Lord Hokage was right.
Big Brother wouldn't be wrong.
But?
I don't have a Dad and Mom anymore.
Sasuke didn't know when he had fallen asleep, but when he woke up, he found himself lying in bed, covered by a quilt with the corners tucked in.
"Sasuke, you're awake!"
A familiar and pleasantly surprised voice came from beside him, and two heads of different colors squeezed in front of his face.
Gold and pink.
It was his deskmates.
Naruto Uzumaki and Sakura Haruno.
One idiot, one love-struck fool.
"Naruto, you idiot, don't get so close! That's very rude."
"Hehe, I saw Sasuke sleeping for so long, it was too boring. Of course, with Sakura here, no matter how dull things are, they become interesting!"
Two idiots.
Listening to the noisy chatter by his ears, Sasuke looked out the window.
The day had dawned.
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