This is the first part of Kakashi's tale from the past. And the meaning of what he told Sasuke to try to lead him away from hate and vengeance is about to be revealed. Turns out that in the times of the 3rd ninja war, Konoha was in constant battles with the other villages. There were very few warriors available to fight, as all were busy in the war. Hiruzen and the council were forced to send young chunin to battle. The Hokage decided to send Minato's team to destroy the Kannabi bridge close to Iwagakure, in order to stop the advance from the ninjas of Hidden rock village. And so, starts the mission. Minato Namikaze, the future 4th Hokage, is a blonde young powerful jonin (and Naruto's father), known as the yellow lightning of Konoha. He leads Kakashi, recently promoted to jonin, Obito Uchiha, and Rin Nohara, a medic ninja. But of the three, roles are slightly reversed if compared to future team seven. Kakashi is a loyal rule follower who bothers Obito for not following them. Obito uses to get late to the team meetings, and is always behind Kakashi's shadow. His excuse is that he helped an old lady to cross the street, or things like that (which the adult Kakashi is going to use with his pupils). And though he's an Uchiha, and a chunin, he's as young as his teammates, and his Sharingan is not awake yet. Anyway, on the meeting day, Minato is the kind gentle leader who believes Obito's excuse or reason to be late, and tells Kakashi to not be rude. The boys dislike each other, and Rin usually tries to stop their fights. To celebrate Kakashi's promotion, Minato gifts him a sealed kunai, while Rin gives him a special medicine pack. Obito is upset and doesn't give him a present, so Kakashi simply belittles him. Minato stops their discussion and tells them about the mission: to suceed they will have to separate at the border, he will be at the front line battling the enemy along other Konoha ninjas, while the three infiltrate behind the line in order to sabotage the bridge. As Kakashi is the jonin, he will lead the other two. In the road to the border, they spot an enemy and some clones. Kakashi decides to test himself and rejects Minato's advice to let him manage the situation. The Hatake uses his new jutsu, the chidori, and charges at each enemy clone, while Minato saves Obito and Rin. But when Kakashi finds the real ninja, the chidori fails to defend him, so Minato rushes to the rescue while he leaves a seal in the enemy's foot. Then, with his stelar jutsu, kills him. Later, he explains Kakashi (who is healed by Rin) that the chidori may be fast and powerful, but is incomplete because doesn't allow him to see the enemy's counterattack. He also tells Obito to never let his guard down, and to Kakashi that rules are not everything, sometimes he must consider the situation. Before they leave, he finishes the lecture by saying that teamwork is the most important. During the night, Obito goes to talk to Minato who was watching, while his pupils sleep. Obito says that he knows about teamwork, but he can't get along with Kakashi. So Minato tells him the reason of why Kakashi is the way he is: he's the son of Sakumo Hatake, a legendary ninja from Konoha, acclaimed in the past during the war. Kakashi admired and loved his father, who could be compared even to the Sannin. But one day, Sakumo had a mission to infiltrate in the enemy's territory, and to succeed, he had to abandon his comrades and let them die. He didn't, and saved his teammates, but when he returned, the people in the village was disappointed, as other persons died because the mission failed. At the end, they chastised him, even his saved teammates abandoned him, so Sakumo at the end commited suicide. This changed Kakashi, who then became a loyal rule follower, always prioririzing the mission over the rest. Minato asks Obito to try to understand Kakashi. In the morning, they reach the border and part ways. Now Obito accepts Kakashi's leadership, and they go to their target. But in the road, they find two enemy ninjas from the rock village. One of them camouflages and captures Rin, while the other attacks the duo. Obito protects them with a ball of fire, but then they see that Rin was taken. A discussion starts: Kakashi thinks that Rin will be safe because she's a medic ninja, and orders to keep with the mission. Obito says that Rin's safety is the priority, she always healed them, if it wasn't for her they wouldn't be alive. Besides, Kakashi doesn't know for sure what's going to happen to her. But the jonin insists on following the rules, the mission is ahead, and if they don't complete it, other persons will die, Rin is a sacrifice he's willing to accept. Obito can't believe him, and asks if that is really what he thinks. Kakashi doubts and remembers his father, but at the end, confirms. So Obito decides to rescue Rin, he believes that Sakumo Hatake was actually a hero (surprising Kakashi), and says the famous line that those who abandon their teammates are worst than scum. They seemingly part ways, as Kakashi turns back, thoughtful.
This episode was pretty complete, perfectly written, excellent story, with each detail being important. Minato is shown as a great gentle man, kind, powerful, serious, like no other character in Naruto. The mission the team had was difficult, and the reasons to let a trio of young ninjas get into war territory seem coherent. Then, Minato's idea to separate may have contributed to the unsafety of the trio, but he also is choosing to assist other ninjas from Konoha. Anyway, the big part here was Kakashi's background. When he said to Sasuke that he already lost all the persons he cared about, his beloved ones, he never lied. First, looks like his mother died when he was really young. And then, years later, his only guide, his father, committed suicide. His sensei died in the Kyuubi incident. And as anyone know from the mention in the Hokage's funeral, he lost Obito. Kakashi had a tragic past, but he kept living, and didn't turn into a dark path like Sasuke did. Now it's clear why Obito's words were always on his mind.
This episode was pretty complete, perfectly written, excellent story, with each detail being important. Minato is shown as a great gentle man, kind, powerful, serious, like no other character in Naruto. The mission the team had was difficult, and the reasons to let a trio of young ninjas get into war territory seem coherent. Then, Minato's idea to separate may have contributed to the unsafety of the trio, but he also is choosing to assist other ninjas from Konoha. Anyway, the big part here was Kakashi's background. When he said to Sasuke that he already lost all the persons he cared about, his beloved ones, he never lied. First, looks like his mother died when he was really young. And then, years later, his only guide, his father, committed suicide. His sensei died in the Kyuubi incident. And as anyone know from the mention in the Hokage's funeral, he lost Obito. Kakashi had a tragic past, but he kept living, and didn't turn into a dark path like Sasuke did. Now it's clear why Obito's words were always on his mind.
