Naruto: The Chosen Undead

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Chapter no.28 Kakashi Hatake

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The Copy Ninja

The man with a thousand jutsu. The prodigal son of the White Fang. Genin at age five, chunin at six, jonin at twelve, and ANBU captain at thirteen. The one who cut through lightning itself. The last living student of the Fourth Hokage.

That's the person they saw.

When people looked at him, they saw fame and power. They saw something larger than life—mythical, even. A legend. But when Kakashi looked at his reflection, all he saw was a man defined by his failures. And no matter how hard he tried to look away, that reflection never changed.

"Cursed Kakashi." He sometimes called himself that, half-joking. A joke that stung every time it whispered through his mind. Everyone he cared about seemed to die. His father, Rin, Obito, Minato-sensei… a parade of ghosts haunting him at every step, lingering in the corners of his vision, never far away. That's why, for years, he convinced himself that keeping his distance was the safest option—for him, and for everyone around him.

But distance came with a price.

It left him empty. Detached. Untethered from anything real.

Then there was Guy. His loud, obnoxious, overenthusiastic "eternal rival." The man who could somehow see straight through Kakashi's carefully crafted walls. Despite all his absurdity, Guy persisted, refusing to let Kakashi shut himself off completely. And, strangely enough, it was Guy's insistence that pushed Kakashi to even consider becoming a jonin instructor.

It wasn't like Kakashi thought he'd be any good at it. If anything, he expected to fail spectacularly—just like he had at everything else that mattered. But in a rare moment of weak optimism, Guy's ridiculous persistence wore him down, and Kakashi agreed to give it a shot.

Since then, he'd never passed a single genin team. Not one.

Every year, he waited. He observed, evaluated. But none of the groups ever had it—that intangible something he couldn't quite describe but always recognized when it was missing. Maybe it was conviction. Or an unspoken willingness to carry the kind of weight most people couldn't handle. Whatever it was, they never had it.

But this year was different.

This year, his focus was on Team 7. He'd spent time poring over their academy reports, dissecting each name.

Sakura Haruno. A civilian prodigy. Rare enough in its own right, but Kakashi wasn't expecting much from her. Still, if she worked hard enough, maybe she'd surprise him.

Sasuke Uchiha. A traumatized child—just what Kakashi needed. The boy carried a burden heavier than most, and Kakashi knew he'd be expected to help shoulder some of it. Whether he wanted to or not. Sasuke reminded him too much of himself. Maybe taking Sasuke on would be his way of honoring Obito, fulfilling a promise he'd made far too late.

And then there was Naruto Uzumaki.

Minato-sensei's son. A topic Kakashi had spent years avoiding, mostly because it terrified him. Not because of the Kyuubi. No, that wasn't it. What truly scared Kakashi was the thought of getting him killed. Minato and Kushina had entrusted Naruto to the village—to him. Failing that trust would break something inside him that couldn't be fixed.

So he'd stayed away. Kept his distance. Watched from the shadows. And yet, even as he distanced himself, Kakashi never truly let Naruto out of his sight.

When Naruto's status as the Kyuubi's host was revealed in those early days, Kakashi was there, unseen, making sure no harm came to him. If anyone tried anything, he handled it before it got out of hand. As Naruto grew, Kakashi kept track of him through rumors, watching from afar, convincing himself that staying hidden was enough.

It wasn't healthy. But then again, what in Kakashi's life ever was?

If he was honest with himself, Kakashi wasn't particularly excited about this team.

It felt too familiar—too much like history trying to repeat itself. Team 7. The same name as his old squad. And coincidentally, a trio that mirrored his past too closely for comfort.

Kakashi snorted. He wasn't exactly a religious man, but at this point, it felt like divine intervention trying to warn him. A sign from the gods that he was about to screw this team over, just like he had before.

Still… he was willing to give it a chance. If they could prove themselves, maybe this wouldn't end in disaster.

Kakashi turned the page of his novel, his focus drifting as he tried to distract himself from the nagging doubts. The new Icha Icha novel was a masterpiece, as expected. At least Jiraiya-sensei hadn't lost his touch.

"Enjoying the new Icha Icha, I see."

Kakashi blinked, snapped out of his thoughts by the voice of the Third Hokage. He glanced up to see the older man standing before him, looking as tired as ever.

"10/10. Would recommend," Kakashi replied, holding up the book without looking away from the page.

Hiruzen sighed, his expression softening despite the exhaustion in his eyes. It was the look of a man who carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. And Kakashi, for a brief moment, wondered how long it would be before the same look found its way into his own reflection.

"Do you think this will be the year you finally pass a team?"

Kakashi turned the page of his book, keeping his single visible eye fixed on the words. "Time will tell," he replied with practiced indifference, though his mind wasn't nearly as relaxed as his tone suggested.

Hiruzen studied him for a moment. "Hmm. I sometimes wonder if you even want a team."

"Wanting and needing are different things, Lord Third. You know that better than anyone."

Hiruzen didn't respond immediately, and Kakashi turned back to his book. He giggled—an overly dramatic sound—just loud enough to draw a disapproving look from the Hokage's secretary. The glare of pure disdain on her face was almost amusing.

Kakashi could practically hear her thoughts: Reading that trash in front of the Hokage? Really?

Not that I blame her, Kakashi thought. No respectable woman would approve of a guy openly reading Jiraiya-sensei's… cultural masterpieces. Well, maybe Anko, but she was an outlier in every possible way.

Most people assumed reading these books in public was some kind of eccentric act, a carefully crafted persona to make him seem carefree or quirky. It wasn't. Kakashi genuinely enjoyed the books. They were a distraction, a way to fill the void. A better addiction than alcohol, at least. Most shinobi turned to the bottle to numb themselves from the horrors of the world. Kakashi chose words on a page. Everyone had their coping mechanisms.

"Kakashi," Hiruzen said, his tone shifting, growing heavier. "Have you ever thought about the balance between what's right… and what's necessary?"

"All the time, Lord Third. But it's a line that gets harder to see the more you walk it."

Hiruzen nodded slowly, his face unreadable for a long moment. "Today, I intend to find that balance."

"Is there something you need from me?"

Hiruzen motioned toward his office. "Come inside. We'll talk there."

The moment they stepped into the office, the atmosphere changed. The air felt heavier, and Kakashi's instincts immediately went on high alert. He glanced at Hiruzen, who didn't speak. Instead, the Hokage snapped his fingers, and four ANBU agents materialized around them, surrounding the room in a square formation.

Ninja Arts: Four Barrier Nightfall!

Kakashi's visible eye widened slightly as a shimmering barrier sprang up around the room. An A-rank technique. Here? In the heart of Konoha? This was reserved for warzones or high-stakes covert missions—not the Hokage's office.

"Hokage-sama," Kakashi said slowly, his voice carefully measured. "Has the village been compromised?"

Hiruzen shook his head and handed the white-haired jonin a scroll.

Kakashi unrolled the scroll, his eye darting across the words. At first, the contents seemed mundane—reports on Naruto's academy instructors, his assignments, his training regimen. But as Kakashi's sharp mind pieced the details together, a darker picture began to form.

The cracks in Naruto's training weren't accidental. They were deliberate. Small enough to be dismissed as oversight, but deadly enough to sabotage him in the field.

Kakashi's grip on the scroll tightened. "This…" he began. "This wasn't incompetence. This was…"

"Sabotage," Hiruzen finished for him.

"Who?"

"Inoichi investigated thoroughly. These are the names of the instructors involved. Their minds were read, and their motives were… petty."

Kakashi scanned the list, his expression darkening.

Honestly, it would've been easier if it had been some shadowy scheme—a mastermind plotting from the shadows, a conspiracy led by a rival village. But no, the culprits were Konoha's own shinobi. They didn't see Naruto; they saw the Kyuubi. Their revenge wasn't against the boy, but the beast sealed within him.

Inoichi's report had been thorough, marking the culprits with transferred rage syndrome—a condition where grief and anger twisted into irrational hatred, latching onto a convenient target. For them, that target was Naruto.

"Konoha Strict Correctional Facility?!"

"Life imprisonment for treason," Hiruzen confirmed.

"They deserved worse," Kakashi muttered, the anger in his voice barely concealed.

"Death would be a mercy, and I'm not in the mood to be merciful."

Kakashi said nothing, but something still didn't add up. This was a serious matter, yes, but not one that warranted the use of an A-rank barrier.

The Third Hokage suddenly seemed to have read Kakashi's mind as he began weaving a series of hand seals with incredible speed, his movements precise and fluid. Kakashi recognized elements of Yamanaka techniques but quickly realized this was something else entirely.

"Ninja Art: Theatre of Memories," Hiruzen said.

There was a reason the Third was said to have mastered every jutsu in Konoha. It wasn't because he knew them all—that was impossible given the sheer number of secret clan techniques. It was because he could break down any jutsu to its fundamentals with a single glance and create his own version.

A blend of Yamanaka mind techniques and his unparalleled understanding of chakra, Theatre of Memories projected the caster's recollections like a film, allowing others to experience them directly.

Thin threads of chakra extended from Hiruzen's fingertips, glowing with a faint blue hue as they drifted toward Kakashi. The strands moved like living tendrils, weaving through the air before gently connecting to Kakashi's temple. His vision blurred, and then, suddenly, he wasn't in the Hokage's office anymore. He was there, inside Hiruzen's memories.

Everything that had happened since last night ran through Kakashi's mind like a vivid nightmare. He'd experienced the memories firsthand through Hiruzen's jutsu, felt the weight of every moment. And honestly, if he hadn't seen it for himself, he doubted he would have believed it.

"This… can't be real!"

"I wish that were the case, Kakashi. But reality," Hiruzen's voice dipped, "is often stranger than fiction."

Kakashi gave a slow nod. The proof was in the pudding.

"I consulted Inoichi about all of this," Hiruzen began. "He offered an interesting diagnosis. Two possibilities."

"I'm listening."

Hiruzen held up a hand. "The first—and least likely—is that these changes in Naruto happened recently. That he only began developing these abilities in the past few months."

"Highly unlikely."

Hiruzen nodded in agreement. "Indeed. Considering what we've seen, Naruto's chakra—the foreign Yin energy present within him—isn't something one acquires overnight. Then there's his fully fitted armor, his advanced fire jutsu…"

"Not to mention the space-time ninjutsu," Kakashi added, his tone sharpening. "And that fire jutsu… that's not something you just stumble into. Learning elemental chakra conversion takes at least six months of focused, intensive training—and that's just the basics. For him to not only develop a handheld fire jutsu but to wield it with that level of precision? Naruto would have to be an exceptional genius even by Konoha standards to pull that off. And somehow, he kept it hidden under the facade of being an airheaded, book-dumb prankster. That doesn't just happen."

"Which leaves us with the second possibility—one far more concerning."

Kakashi waited, his body tense. He already had an idea where this was going, and the thought alone made his stomach turn.

"This may have been happening for years," Hiruzen said gravely. "And someone has been facilitating Naruto's development in secret."

The words hung in the air like a curse. Kakashi's hands balled into fists at his sides.

"If that's the case," Hiruzen continued, his voice dropping lower, "then Uzumaki Naruto has been intentionally downplaying his skills and abilities this entire time. For what purpose, we don't know. But it's possible—no, likely—that he knows far more than he lets on. About his father. About what's sealed inside him. Perhaps even more than we do."

Kakashi felt his jaw clench.

"When children are out of their depth," Hiruzen said softly, leaning forward slightly, "or when they seek answers, they naturally look to the adults around them for guidance. But if Naruto already knows the truth—his heritage, the Kyuubi, why the village has treated him the way it has—and he's chosen to keep quiet about it?" Hiruzen's voice grew colder. "Then we have a problem."

"A big problem," Kakashi muttered.

"From a psychological standpoint, it's…" Hiruzen hesitated, searching for the right word. "Terrifying."

Kakashi gave a single, tense nod.

It meant Naruto was more dangerous than anyone realized. And not because of the Kyuubi, but because of his ability to keep all of that bottled up. If he'd been acting like everything was normal, while secretly carrying all of this knowledge—alone—it marked him as a greater flight risk than Sasuke ever could be.

Kakashi exhaled sharply through his nose, the tension in his body reaching its peak. There was only one question he could think to ask. "Do you think Naruto is against Konoha?"

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[ Personal Note: First off, thanks a ton to all of you for sticking with this story. Seriously, you guys are awesome. Now, if you're interested in supporting me on P treon, let me just say that over there, I post these massive 5k-word chapters. But heads up, if you're jumping to P treon, you'll need to start from Chapter 16, since that's where this chapter lines up with the content there.

To everyone here just reading along, please don't forget to leave a comment! Honestly, your comments make my day, and they let me know you're as invested in this story as I am. So yeah, thanks again, and I hope you have an amazing rest of your day!