"You don't even have a full head of hair, and you think you can fight me?"
Lock smirked as Asuma stormed off, clearly unfazed by the boy's empty threats. He was younger than Asuma, but that didn't stop him from mocking him like an older brother.
"Lock, wait up! Let's go to your shop—I'll help out."
Obito came jogging up, his usual grin plastered across his face.
Lock raised an eyebrow. He knew perfectly well Obito was just looking to sneak in another free meal, but he didn't mind. "Fine. You're in charge of today's bowl."
"No problem!" Obito replied cheerfully.
It had become routine. After class, Obito would show up at the Fujiwara snack shop. He never sat idle, though—he always helped with odd jobs, waiting tables or washing dishes, earning Yuzu's affection. Even Lock, who often rolled his eyes at Obito's antics, had to admit that the boy's kindness was genuine.
That evening, Lock stayed behind with his mother to help run the shop. Business was booming; their food had become popular even with shinobi. The only downside was that the place was too small to serve everyone who came.
While cleaning up, Lock caught fragments of a conversation from a table of chūnin. Their hushed voices carried just enough for him to piece things together.
"Did you hear? Lord White Fang failed his latest mission. The losses to the village were heavy."
"I heard the same. It's hard to believe—this is the first time Lord White Fang has ever failed since becoming a shinobi. He's supposed to be unstoppable."
"There's nothing strange about it. No matter how strong, everyone makes mistakes. I heard he abandoned the mission because he chose to save his comrades' lives. That kind of failure isn't entirely his fault."
"Careful. Don't talk about him too much in public. It's dangerous gossip."
The voices faded as they lowered them, but Lock's chest tightened.
He remembered this. Hatake Sakumo—Konoha's White Fang—didn't fall on the battlefield but under the crushing weight of slander and betrayal. Kakashi's father, once the hero of the village, would be driven to despair, abandoned even by those he had saved.
Lock clenched his fists. So it's already happening.
Outsiders knew Konoha for its strength, its prosperity, its harmony. But living inside its walls revealed the truth—politics and factions cut deeper than any blade.
The rivalry between the Third Hokage and Danzō never ceased, shaping the village's every shadow. And in times like this, even heroes could be destroyed by whispers.
Over the next weeks, the rumors spread like wildfire. What had begun as quiet murmurs became a storm. The narrative twisted: White Fang had abandoned his mission, disgraced the village, caused untold losses. People who once revered him now sneered behind his back.
In less than a month, the man once hailed as Konoha's protector was condemned as its greatest liability.
Even worse, one of the comrades Sakumo had saved—rather than standing by him—publicly denounced him. Shortly after, that shinobi ended his own life. The blame fell squarely on Sakumo, making it impossible for him to defend himself.
Kakashi stopped coming to the academy altogether. Lock never saw him again in class. The once-proud boy vanished into the silence of his family's compound.
And then, the inevitable happened.
After months of isolation, Sakumo Hatake ended his own life one silent night. When his body was discovered the next morning, it was already cold.
Lock didn't hear the news immediately. The village hid it carefully, perhaps to protect the clan or to bury the shame. By the time he learned of it, days had passed.
The funeral was quiet, almost secretive. Only a handful of people were allowed to attend. Lock had wanted to go, to see with his own eyes the man who had once been the strongest in Konoha—but children like him had no place at such a gathering. He could only regret never meeting the legend face-to-face.
Yet the truth could not be hidden for long. Word of Sakumo's death spread across the entire ninja world.
In Konoha, silence fell heavy. To lose such a man not in battle, not to an enemy's blade, but to the venom of his own people's words… it was a tragedy too bitter to put into words.
Beyond the village, the reaction was the opposite. The rival nations rejoiced. Every hidden village that had suffered under White Fang's blade during the Second Great Ninja War cheered the news. Sakumo had been so feared that entire strategies had been drafted solely to counter him.
And now, without lifting a finger, their nightmare was gone.
Konoha had destroyed its own White Fang.
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