As the first light of dawn broke, Itachi and Kakashi were already geared up and heading out of the village.
For Itachi, traveling to the Land of Water was a familiar journey.
With a mindset of play wherever you are, he wasn't particularly burdened with thoughts.
"What technique are you teaching Naruto?"
The two had slowed their pace once outside the village, leisurely making their way.
…
"Rasengan."
Kakashi didn't bother hiding anything when Itachi asked. He kept walking without looking back, casually responding.
"Impressive."
Hearing Kakashi's reply, Itachi muttered to himself, unsure if he was marveling at fate or destiny.
At barely ten years old, Naruto was already learning the Rasengan. Coupled with his potential, his future seemed limitless.
Someday, I should swipe Kakashi's Chidori and gift it to my foolish brother as a little boost…
Itachi's mind began to wander.
If he had a lightning affinity, he'd try Chidori himself. The blue electric light was just too cool.
As for the Rasengan, Itachi wasn't confident he could achieve Naruto's mastery.
Even though he knew the steps and could probably learn it quickly, he wasn't particularly interested. To each their own.
…
"Have you mastered the Wood Release I taught you? Can you use it now?"
Itachi pulled himself from his thoughts and asked Kakashi, who was walking ahead.
"It's coming along. I know what you're aiming for. I can build us a campsite for tonight, but perfecting the technique will take time."
Kakashi's response, almost as if reading Itachi's mind, revealed the latter's intent directly.
Itachi was momentarily taken aback.
Kakashi understood Itachi's thoughts as soon as the question was asked. After all, with their level of skill, Itachi wouldn't inquire unless it was for practical reasons.
"…You know me too well…"
Itachi found himself at a loss for words.
Still, he couldn't hide his mild disappointment. Several days had passed, and Kakashi hadn't mastered even a basic Wood Release technique.
But then Itachi recalled the past few days and realized—Kakashi had been engrossed in his Make-Out series books, leaving no time to study Wood Release.
…
"You know, your logic is always so bizarre. But unfortunately, I can already guess your next thought," Kakashi said, clearly annoyed by Itachi's remark.
"And have you considered that your logic isn't exactly straightforward either?" Itachi retorted, silencing the conversation for a while.
The two didn't speak another word until late afternoon.
Finally, Kakashi broke the silence to ease the tension.
"Hungry yet? Should we—"
…
"Find a few cute critters?" Itachi interrupted before Kakashi could finish.
"I want fish," Kakashi said, almost petulantly.
"Fish, huh? That works. Grilled fish smells great, and I haven't had any in a while," Itachi replied, oblivious to Kakashi's sulking tone—or simply pretending not to notice.
Come on, you're a grown man. Don't be so sensitive.
At this rate, Itachi thought, he'd end up taking charge of everything like some overbearing leader.
…
"I'm starving. I could eat three fish. Want to make it a contest?"
The two reached the riverbank as the setting sun cast its golden glow over the water, creating a breathtaking scene.
Kakashi's competitive streak flared.
The thought of Gai crossed his mind—this mission was to rescue him, after all. Subconsciously, he mimicked Gai's tendency to propose a challenge.
Usually, Gai initiated these contests, and Kakashi would begrudgingly accept.
In truth, Kakashi enjoyed these little competitions, even if he pretended otherwise.
If he didn't, there's no way he'd have indulged Gai so many times.
…
"What kind of contest? Who can pee farther?"
Itachi, staring at the scenic view, responded without missing a beat, conjuring an amusing mental image.
"Hashirama, I can already pee—uh, ahem—fight across to the other side…"
Itachi's words left Kakashi momentarily stunned. Since when did Itachi develop such a weird sense of humor?
"Let's compete to see who catches three fish first."
The thought of the two of them competing like this sent a chill down Kakashi's spine.
Was it just his imagination, or had reading too many romance novels and spending countless long nights dulled his edge?
A sudden, unsettling thought crossed his mind: would he one day end up peeing downwind and soaking his shoes?
Shaking off the absurd and baseless fears in his head, Kakashi tried to correct Itachi's slightly eccentric thought process.
"Oh, catching fish? Is that even something you can compete at?"
Hearing Kakashi's response, Itachi gave him a peculiar look.
Was this really the same Kakashi he knew? He hadn't expected Kakashi to suggest such a childish activity.
"The rules of the game are pretty simple. We can't use chakra or go into the water. We can only use other methods to catch the fish."
At this point, Kakashi himself was starting to lose interest. It no longer seemed like such a fun idea.
Sometimes, ideas are only exciting for a moment.
But after a long day of traveling, Kakashi was thoroughly bored. Catching some fish, roasting them, and passing the day sounded much better than pressing on. Plus, he hadn't had a decent night's sleep in days, and he was starting to feel it.
Besides, he'd already brought it up, so might as well see it through.
A ninja never gives up easily—it's a way of life.
It definitely wasn't because he wanted an excuse to slack off and drag Itachi into his plans…
"Oh, I see…"
Itachi didn't say much about Kakashi's enthusiasm.
After all, plenty of people genuinely enjoy fishing or catching fish.
It's not about loving fish; it's about loving the process of catching them.
Itachi hadn't traveled like this in a long time and wasn't too keen on the endless walking either.
Since Kakashi had suggested it, he decided to reluctantly agree. He'd take this chance to show Kakashi some real skills—so he could understand what true technique looked like.
"Let me tell you, whether it's fishing or catching fish, doing it without using chakra is a great way to train your reflexes and agility…"
Seeing Itachi's lackluster reaction, Kakashi felt compelled to muster a bit more energy and pitch the idea in a more enticing way.
Sometimes, people beat around the bush instead of saying what they really want.
"Uh…"
Itachi looked at Kakashi, speechless.
Was Kakashi really trying to lower his IQ on purpose? Not only was this an insult to his intelligence, but it felt like Kakashi wanted to drag his IQ down to the floor and grind it into dust. This didn't feel like something a decent person would do.
Seeing Itachi's expression, Kakashi opened his mouth to say something but found he couldn't continue.
It was frustrating when someone didn't play along. It made Kakashi feel like a clown performing solo.
Throwing flirtatious glances at a blind man—it was truly a helpless situation.
"Fine, let's do it…"
Noticing Kakashi's awkwardness, Itachi finally spoke softly, as though all the energy had been drained from his body.
Without waiting for Kakashi to respond, Itachi bent down and started picking up small stones from the riverbank.
Seeing Itachi take action, Kakashi felt a spark of energy return.
A few minutes later, as Kakashi looked at the fish in front of both of them, he began to ponder. Maybe this was too hasty.
"Sigh… You win. As the loser, I'll handle dinner tonight."
Kakashi discreetly nudged one of the fish by his feet to the side with his foot.
He was back to his usual tricks—buying time.
No matter what, he wasn't planning to continue traveling before nightfall. His pride was intact, and he avoided the awkward topic of why he seemed so sluggish.
Traveling? Not happening.
For a good night's sleep, he was willing to go to any lengths—even if it meant embracing his darker side.
"Alright, I'll leave it to you then…"
Since Kakashi had volunteered, Itachi saw no reason to argue.
If Kakashi could set aside his pride and share his true thoughts, they might've already caught enough fish, eaten their fill, and been preparing to sleep.
After all, Itachi wasn't new to this game. He was a seasoned pro at slacking off. Who did Kakashi think he was dealing with, pulling stunts like this?