Self-sacrifice

Kakashi Pov

Kakashi slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring at a white ceiling. He squinted slightly, trying to adjust to the bright light. Then he carefully sat up, feeling that his body had fully recovered from the recent events. However, even physical well-being couldn't hide the strain on his nerves and his emotional exhaustion.

Reflecting on the past, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his left eye. It reminded him of what had happened, and with a wave of pain, he collapsed to the floor, clutching his chest and trying to hold back tears.

Kakashi: Rin! - the name escaped his lips, his eyes filled with tears.

Kakashi: I gained such a strong body, but I still couldn't protect her! - he whispered, covering his left eye with his hand.

Rising from the floor, Kakashi headed for the exit of the ward, passing by patients, doctors, and nurses. He walked, absorbed in his thoughts, but suddenly heard someone call his name.

XX: Kakashi? - a gentle female voice sounded, catching his attention. Slowly turning his head, he saw a familiar face.

The girl holding a basket of fruit was tall, with red hair and violet eyes. Her face expressed complex emotions. She ran up to Kakashi and hugged him tightly.

Kushina: Kakashi, I'm so sorry! - Kushina whispered, starting to cry.

Kakashi, holding his left eye with one hand, freed himself from her embrace and hugged her back. In this tender gesture, he suddenly felt warmth that seemed lost.

Kakashi: Can I be alone for a while... - he said, looking with a lifeless gaze. Seeing his state, Kushina immediately let go of him.

Kushina: Don't leave, Kakashi. I know you're in a lot of pain right now, but I've been told that your friends were badly injured and are lying in the ward. Don't you want to visit them? — she asked with a small smile, though her eyes showed immense sadness.

Kakashi: Alright, - he agreed. They headed to one of the wards where his friends were.

Approaching the door, Kakashi covered his left eye with his forehead protector. Standing next to him, Kushina handed him the basket of fruit. Kakashi sighed and slowly opened the door.

As soon as the door swung open, the room was filled with a friendly atmosphere. People were chatting and examining something.

Guy: I was the last to lose, so that means I'm stronger than you guys, he-he-he! - Guy chuckled, giving a thumbs-up.

Asuma: Find a reason to be happy, Guy. Better thank God that we all survived, - Asuma said. But as soon as the door opened, everyone in the room turned their gaze to Kakashi, and Guy was the first to react.

Guy: Kakashi brought us a basket of fruit! - he smiled, with a large bruise on his right eye.

Kakashi looked around and noticed serious injuries among many of them.

Asuma sat with a cast on his arm and bandages on his head. Ebisu and Kurenai were bruised, and both Guy and Asuma had sustained serious injuries.

Kakashi: It's good that you survived, - he said, placing the basket of fruit on the table.

Genma: We didn't survive, he gave us a chance to live, - Genma stated, suddenly appearing behind Kakashi.

Kakashi: You're not injured? - Kakashi inquired, addressing Genma.

Genma: I would have died if the attacker hadn't given me some kind of liquid. After I drank it, I recovered, - Genma explained.

Kakashi: I see, - Kakashi responded, and he began to ponder the liquid that could heal wounds.

Genma: Guys, I went to town for some fruit, but I see Kakashi already brought you some, - Genma added, placing another basket of fruit on the table.

Genma: By the way, I heard some news from a vendor. One of the great Sannin completely crushed the Hidden Mist Village's forces and the person we lost to. Because of him, the hospital is now overflowing with our people, - he continued.

Guy: Is it true we defeated the Hidden Mist? - Guy exclaimed, joy in his eyes.

Genma: Not exactly. They say the Hidden Mist shinobi fled like cowards on ships, leaving one shinobi behind to stop our advancing ninjas. That shinobi has the power to send 40 Konoha shinobi to the hospital, - Genma recounted.

Asuma: Sent to the hospital, but not killed? It seems he was the one who attacked us! - Asuma remarked, recalling their previous defeat.

Kakashi: So what happened to those who sailed away on the ships? - Kakashi asked, feeling this was related to him.

Genma: Almost half of the ships were sunk by a giant snake, - Genma described, using his hands to show the size of the snake.

Kakashi: Who told you all this? - Kakashi asked before heading to the exit of the ward.

Genma: Almost the entire village knows about the victory over the Hidden Mist, - Genma replied.

Kakashi left the room and looked around. At the information desk, Kushina was talking to a nurse. Then he noticed the first shinobi, approached him, and started a conversation. His face was tired, his arm in a cast, and he was sitting near the trauma ward door. Wanting to know more about the situation, Kakashi headed towards him.

POV Uchiha clan

Meanwhile, in the Uchiha clan area, children, elderly, and women who hadn't gone to war were outside. They watched as several clan members led a person, who had many parts of his body bandaged. He limped on one leg, and his eyes showed hatred and rage.

One of the elders asked a young shinobi who was accompanying the chained man: Yuta, who is this person?

Yuta: The commander of Konoha's forces, Orochimaru, ordered him to be held in custody in the Uchiha clan. He is important and highly valuable to the Hidden Mist because of his rare Kekkei-Genkai, - Uchiha replied.

Elder: I see. Then we should inform the clan leader, - said the elder.

Yuta: Alright, Grandpa, I'll deliver the message to the clan leader after he is secured, - the young Uchiha agreed.

Two Uchiha entered a large house where the clan's top officials held their council. This building had a basement. They tied the person to a table, and one of them began covering his body with seals. One of them went to report to the clan leader, while the other stayed to watch over the prisoner.

Lifting his head, the prisoner saw a notification from the system.

From Sam's Perspective.

His head was spinning, he was slowly dying from multiple wounds, and the system was trying to heal him. Slowly but surely, the wounds started to regenerate. But one wrong move, and the wounds would reopen, and he would die from blood loss. Sam felt his life slipping away, his anxiety vanished, and his body relaxed. Sam's life hung by a thread.

Sam: What should I do? - he thought. The will to fight Orochimaru had completely broken him. He had lost; Orochimaru had utterly defeated him without even using a quarter of his strength. His fighting spirit was shattered, and Sam watched as the retreating Hidden Mist ships were sunk. Hundreds of people were killed, and the rest fled.

Sam didn't even want to fight anyone now, even if he fully recovered, because this village had very strong shinobi that he couldn't defeat, even with artifacts or powerful skills. The best thing he could do in this situation was wait for the right moment to escape.

Sam opened his inventory with a thought and put on the System headphones. Then he slowly addressed it: System, did you know I would be captured and that my entire plan would fall apart before my eyes?

System: Yes, I knew, and I was constantly analyzing your actions, predicting the outcome, - the System replied.

Sam: Show me the result, - he asked in a hoarse voice.

System: Mission results: Delay Orochimaru [Failed]

[Live] - 10%,

[Die] - 90%,

The System displayed: Yes, the System always knew you would lose this battle. You were too confident in your abilities.

Then the System continued: The healing process is slow due to your mental state and the immense moral exhaustion caused by your defeats in this battle. You took responsibility for a large number of lives but suffered a major 'Failure'. You blame yourself for their deaths, which harms your health. The System needs to reprogram your brain if the System Owner consents, - the System explained.

Sam: I refuse. Enough about this, - he said, removing the headphones from his ear.

There was no light source in the room, and Sam's eyes were always engulfed in darkness. But thanks to the system clock, he knew how much time had passed. Two hours later, while in captivity, a figure entered the room. Sam saw nothing but heard the sound of heels clicking.

Sam: Is it a girl? - he wondered.

She approached, stood next to Sam, and said in a quiet voice: "This is food, open your mouth." Sam opened his mouth and was fed with liquid soup, bread, meat, and hot tea.

Sam: Thank you, - he said to the figure.

Girl: It's noon now. I'll be back in the evening, in about six hours, - she said and left. When she exited, the door was locked again, and a shout was heard from behind the door: Don't even think about doing anything against our lady!

A lot of time passed. Despite the meal, Sam still felt hungry and sleepy.

The person outside the door hit the iron door with a metal rod every five minutes, causing him to wake up. These actions prevented him from resting.

This was torture for Sam...

At the hospital.

In the hospital, all the injured were healed within a few hours, as the wounds were light, but each of them had a clear desire for revenge against the enemy. The Hokage himself came to the hospital with two of the best bodyguards from Anbu.

Anbu: The prisoner did all this. He used tricks to quickly defeat sensory ninjas like the Yamanaka clan, but he couldn't deal with clans like Hyuga and Uchiha. So he immediately targeted smaller groups like Genin and Chunin, - Anbu said, reading the report.

Hokage: What happened to him? —the Hokage asked.

Anbu: Commander Orochimaru-sama placed him under the custody of the Uchiha clan after discovering his main vulnerability - Genjutsu, - Anbu replied.

Hokage: Alright, but why would Orochimaru keep him alive? - the Hokage inquired.

Anbu: The report states that he has a special Kekkei Genkai that can store items in a certain space. He also has a high ransom value. Additionally, the report mentions he has two swords from the Hidden Mist, - Anbu continued reading.

Hokage: I see... Continue - the Hokage said, puffing on his pipe.

Anbu: Commander Orochimaru-sama nearly sank all the enemy ships, but a few managed to escape. He is now heading to the front where Minato-kun is, - Anbu concluded the report.