"Did Sakumo-sensei really commit suicide because of something like this?"

It was after the funeral that Ayane approached Shiraishi alone and asked this question.

From Ayane's point of view, it was impossible for Sakumo to commit suicide because of such a boring question about which one is more important, companions or missions.

The Sakumo I knew would never be such a man.

This is what Ayane is confused about, and she hopes to get the answer from Shiraishi.

"What do you mean?"

"The cause of death of Sakumo-sensei."

"This is no longer important."

Bai Shi glanced at her and said.

"I feel worthless for Sakumo-sensei."

Ayane felt uncomfortable and let out a long breath.

"Sakumo-sensei is not suitable to be a ninja. He is just one of the tragic products of this ninja era."

Ayane was a little overwhelmed by Shiraishi's words and looked at him in astonishment.

"The question you are wondering about has no answer from the beginning. The task is professional ethics, and the companion... is a human choice. Which one is the right answer, or they can all be wrong. The key lies in how the upper management defines this

thing."

"But Teacher Sakumo gave up the mission and cost the village..."

At this point, Ayane discovered the problem.

I am even more confused.

What is the mission that Sakumo performs?

What did the village lose?

The higher-ups did not provide any explanation, but allowed the villagers to imagine freely.

In other words, the question of which one is more important, companions or tasks, does not exist from the beginning.

It is true that Ayane knows that Sakumo attaches great importance to his companions, but since the entire mission is based on a scam, there is no point in choosing which one.

Ayane understood what Shiraishi meant.

Both of these answers are correct and both are incorrect.

It doesn't matter which one you choose, what matters is how the upper level defines it.

Today the companions can be greater than the tasks, and tomorrow the tasks can be greater than the companions.

In the eyes of the higher-ups, this is just a political battle regarding the election of the Fourth Hokage.

It has no other meaning.

With the bond as the core, everyone is the will of one family member - the will of fire. Unknowingly, it has become a political tool for senior officials to compete for power and control the voice of the village.

It is no longer the faith and soul of a village.

The villagers were unaware of this and participated in it with a playful smile.

There is no more desperate fact than this.

Ayane shuddered a little.

She could imagine the despair Sakumo faced at that time.

This is just a ridiculous political fight.

How to choose tasks and companions has never been the problem.

Sakumo didn't commit suicide because of this problem at all.

He just saw a village that had completely deteriorated.

"When did it start?"

The root cause of this decision will definitely not be because of this incident.

The seeds were planted a long time ago, but what makes Ayane confused is when Sakumo became disappointed with the village's higher-ups.

Seeing the confusion on Ayane's face, Shiraishi sighed and asked:

"Ayane, don't you think that Mr. Sakumo knows nothing about the mission a few years ago?"

Ayane's face was startled.

She knew that Shiraishi was talking about the mission incident that broke out between them and the roots four years ago.

"Sakumo-sensei..."

"How could a person like him not understand Orochimaru's abnormal order? He rested in the village for two months because of his injury. What kind of injury can allow someone to rest for two months? If it was really that serious, he would just withdraw from the battlefield.

That’s fine. Returning to the battlefield will only drag others down.”

Shiraishi picked up a leaf from the ground, played with it in his hand and observed it with interest, while saying this to Ayane.

"Did you start to have doubts at that time? I thought the three of us had passed the test."

Ayane smiled bitterly.

"There is no problem with our acting skills. If the three of us had not returned to the battlefield alive and kicking, but were missing arms and legs, and tried to dress up as miserable as possible, Sakumo-sensei would not be suspicious."

Shiraishi held the leaves tightly in his hands, looked at the gloomy sky, and whispered these words.

"The so-called protection of companions does not mean choosing between companions and tasks, but protecting everything that must be protected. This is the core bond of the Will of Fire. It has never been a tool to serve political struggles, or even used to

Something to persecute and fool your companions.”

Shiraishi guessed that Sakumo must have learned something. Whether the Sannin revealed something to him or he learned about it through other channels, it was no longer important.

The life of the ninja named Hatake Sakumo ended here.

And when he decided to leave, the will of fire he followed in his heart completely collapsed.

"I still can't imagine what kind of mood Sakumo-sensei had when he committed suicide."

"You don't have to imagine it, because for people like us who don't believe in the will of fire, we can't understand that kind of despair."

"Will the higher-ups wake up?"

At the end, Ayane became suspicious.

"If you understand, there won't be this political struggle. That's why I say that Mr. Sakumo is not suitable to be a ninja. He is too pure and too ideal. He is suitable to be a teacher, teaching and educating people, and

Not a ninja."

This is also where Shiraishi feels sad for Sakumo.

Unexpectedly, he is such a pure and ideal person, and is a powerful ninja, who also threatens the layout of the Fourth Hokage.

The senior officials indeed had no intention of forcing Sakumo to death, but this method was the most unacceptable to Sakumo.

He knew Ayane couldn't bear it, but this was Sakumo's own choice.

It's something that no one can stop.

The moment his faith was shattered, Konoha White Fang was already dead.

"Yes, now I can only hope that a great Hokage will appear in Konoha and discover this vicious cycle."

Shiraishi wasn't convinced either.

Among the current high-level officials in Konoha, is it really possible to cultivate a Hokage who is not blinded by the desire for power and has the courage to reform all of this?

Therefore, Sakumo's determination is clear through death, while Shiraishi's pessimistic attitude.

However, Shiraishi was not very interested in this.

His path didn't lie with Konoha from the beginning.

Whether there will be a Hokage like Sakumo expects in Konoha in the future has nothing to do with Shiraishi.

The story of Konoha White Fang ends here, but his life has just begun.

◎

"Senior Shiraishi, companions or missions...which one is more important?"

Returning to Sakumo's tomb, only Kakashi was left standing here.

When Shiraishi and Ayane came here, their hearts sank when they heard the question asked by Kakashi.

"When Mr. Sakumo made his choice, he never regretted it."

"But he is dead..."

"Death is just a relief and does not represent a mistake."

"Yeah?"

After Kakashi murmured these words, he walked away in despair, like a walking zombie.
To be continued...