Chapter 300 is very important.
Kakashi Hatake didn't give her a chance to argue and interrupted her.
Your eyes can't lie to me.
While Haruko was in a daze in the morning, Kakashi Hatake ran his hand down her long, shiny black hair until he touched the corner of her eye.
His tone carried a subtle hint of bitterness.
"You looked into my eyes, and they were exactly the same as Haruko's when she was seriously ill in bed and asked me who I was. Helpless and confused."
This gesture was somewhat presumptuous, but it only made Haruko Hayama feel comforted and cherished.
Just when she was at her most confused and helpless, the seemingly aloof but actually sensitive silver-haired youth quietly approached her.
He embraced her with those all-seeing eyes that held a gentle tenderness within them.
Suddenly, Haruko's eyes welled up with tears, blurring the image of Kakashi Hatake in her vision.
As the tears slid down her cheeks, a gentle touch of the fingertip at the corner of her eye wiped away the glistening moisture.
The warmth on her face finally helped Haruko Hayama break free from that overwhelming sense of desolation.
She hurriedly stepped back, dodging Kakashi Hatake's hand, and hastily wiped her eyes a few times with her sleeve.
Kakashi Hatake ignored her hesitation and withdrew his hand from the air.
"I told you I would keep your secret."
His calm yet profound words completely opened Haruko Hayama's heart.
After wiping away her tears, Haruko's eyes were abnormally red, and her attempt to smile was both fragile and stubborn.
She tried to speak in a normal tone.
"Kakashi-sensei is really perceptive; it seems like he can't hide anything from you!"
“That’s right, I don’t remember. The images I saw were only revealed because my pupil technique was unstable.”
"I didn't understand how she felt after going through everything. It was like watching a movie where I was the main character, strange yet real."
"Therefore, I can't completely become her."
After hearing her confession, Kakashi Hatake showed no disappointment.
On the contrary, because he could see the melancholy and sorrow in her heart, Kakashi Hatake finally felt that his dull eyes had become valuable.
Haruko sniffed and continued.
"My childhood dream has been to live a peaceful and tranquil life."
"I don't need to achieve great things, just live happily. To put it nicely, it's called cherishing life; to put it bluntly, it's called being afraid of death."
"I've already been very selfish. Even if I'm a ninja, I don't want to sacrifice myself for world peace or the greater good."
"I... I want to live. I don't want to become some kind of android or something neither human nor ghost, but... but..."
"My life force is waning... This is the only path I have left..."
As she spoke, her voice choked with emotion, and she kept wiping away her endless tears with her sleeve.
Despite her usual strong and cheerful personality, she often overlooks her sensitive inner self.
They conceal all their fears and anxieties, building a calm and cheerful facade, just so as not to bother others.
That's a bit too gentle...
Kakashi Hatake's gaze towards her remained unchanged throughout the entire encounter.
Whether before she confessed or after she revealed her true feelings, Kakashi Hatake's gaze towards her was always uniquely gentle amidst its cool and quiet demeanor.
This is also the aspect of Haruko that he subconsciously learned from her that is most similar to her.
Kakashi Hatake stepped forward, closing the distance between them once again.
He reached out and gently pulled Haruko's hair back with one hand, drawing her head towards him, and then casually stroked her black hair.
His extremely reassuring gesture caused the suppressed sobs of the black-haired girl in his arms to gradually grow louder.
Kakashi Hatake, in his usual nonchalant voice, said, "As your beloved student, I will give you my life force."
Haruko, who was immersed in releasing her emotions, was stunned and looked up at him with her face covered in tears.
Amused by her adorable yet somewhat comical expression, Kakashi Hatake smiled slightly and patted her head.
"After all, we made a promise: you protect me, and I'll protect you. This time, don't exclude me from your plans again."
Haruko frowned; she didn't understand.
She could understand if any of the people she had saved in her memory had said these words, but it was only Kakashi Hatake who said them.
She never saved Kakashi Hatake, nor could she be considered the most important person to him, so why would he expend his own life force and even risk his death to keep her alive?
Since she couldn't figure it out, Haruko asked directly.
"Kakashi-sensei, why...why did you go to such lengths?"
"Actually, I originally had something very important I wanted to tell her in person after her project was finished. I wanted to say..."
Looking into Haruko's clear, bright eyes, Kakashi Hatake hesitated, unable to finish his sentence.
The next second, he continued speaking as if nothing had happened.
"I want to tell her once again that she is who she is, whether she has experienced many hardships or is still innocent and carefree, she is always just herself."
Compared to the regrets she didn't express when she was young, perhaps what's most important to her now is to gain recognition once again.
After all, he had promised that if anyone was unsure of who they were, they should ask him.
Fate brought them together, and a promise bound them together.
The hidden affection that blossomed in the youthful exuberance of adolescence eventually traversed countless years, transforming into a mature and restrained statement from a young adult.
You are you, the you I know.
＊
In response to the Akatsuki's attack, Jiraiya, at the Hokage's instruction, took Naruto Uzumaki away from Konoha.
To prevent Naruto from insisting on staying to protect the village, Jiraiya didn't tell him the truth. Instead, he used the excuse of teaching Naruto Sage Mode to trick him away with almost no effort.
Having been involved with the Konoha Police Department for a long time, Uchiha Sasuke naturally guessed something from the village's increasingly heightened security.
Considering his age and the fact that he would eventually join the police force, Fugaku Uchiha agreed to let him participate in this mission for the police force.
At Tsunade's insistence, Haruko Hayama temporarily moved into Orochimaru's research base.
After confiding in Kakashi Hatake, her mood improved considerably, and she returned to her optimistic and cheerful self.
After taking the medicine they provided on time every day, Haruko found that her physical condition had indeed improved a lot after a few days.
Almost all the Jonin remained at their posts under the Hokage's reassignment, ready to fight.
Except for one particularly striking, overly thick eyebrow.
Kakashi Hatake, with his dead fish eyes, leaned against the railing and looked down at Might Guy, who had been running around Konoha countless times.
"Kai, at a time like this, let's put running aside."
Upon hearing his nemesis's voice, Matt Kai stopped running and started running in place.
He looked up at Kakashi Hatake, revealing his signature eight teeth that shone brightly in the sunlight, and gave him a thumbs-up.
"Kakashi, my job is to patrol the surrounding area, so it won't interfere with anything!"
"...Aren't you tired? You run from morning till night every day. How many laps have you run today?"
Sweating profusely, Matthias answered in a strong, resounding voice: "The 20,165th lap!"
That's a terrifying number...
Kakashi Hatake felt he needed to take some time to remind the medical team to prepare.
"I've never seen you run this... this hard before, have I?"
Not knowing how to describe it, Kakashi Hatake could only pick "effort".
To everyone's surprise, Matt Kay said, "This is the punishment I set for myself!"
"punish?"
Under Kakashi Hatake's puzzled gaze, Might Guy raised a smile full of guilt and regret.
"Yes! I don't know what's wrong with my brain, I've completely forgotten everything about Haruko..."
"I feel so guilty towards Haruko, so I've set a goal for myself to run 100,000 laps around Konoha every day as punishment!"
He was jokingly called a hot-blooded idiot, and he took full responsibility for forgetting all his friends.
Kakashi Hatake straightened up. No wonder he hadn't seen Might Guy rest since returning to Konoha.
If he hadn't asked, probably no one would have known that this sincere and passionate fool was atoning for his sins in his own way.
"Let's not talk about Kakashi for now, or we won't be able to finish our run today!"
After saying that, Matt Kai ran off into the light.
Kakashi Hatake was left alone, gripping the railing, watching intently as the lone figure gradually disappeared.
Everyone is atoning for their sins in their own way.
He is too.
Or rather, he was grateful that he had found a way to atone for his sins.
Suddenly, a ninja on duty appeared on a rooftop not far away, shouting, "The barrier team has sent word! There's unusual activity!"
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