newbobooks Chapter 636 Blood at the Corner of the Mouth
Chapter 636 Blood at the Corner of the Mouth
He looked at Kakashi lying on the ground, blood trickling from his mouth, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes. There was anger towards Kakashi, but even more so, regret and self-blame. He knew he had lost control; he had injured Kakashi, someone who also deeply loved their teacher.
He slowly walked forward and knelt down in front of Kakashi. Kakashi looked up, his eyes filled with a hint of confusion and pain, but even more so with worry for Zhang Hai.
Zhang Hai didn't speak, but simply stretched out his hand, a soft green chakra light emanating from his palm, covering Kakashi's cheek. The refined medical ninjutsu quickly took effect; the bloodstains at the corner of Kakashi's mouth soon disappeared, and his pale face regained some color.
"I'm sorry." Zhang Hai's voice was hoarse, tinged with weariness. He withdrew his hand, his eyes no longer filled with the previous rage, but instead with deep sorrow and an undisguised confusion.
Kakashi gently shook his head, indicating that he was alright. He knew that Zhang Hai's anger was not directed at him personally, but rather a roar against fate and a cry for loss.
“Tell me… how exactly did my teacher die?” Zhang Hai’s gaze fell on Kakashi’s face, his eyes filled with unprecedented seriousness and solemnity. “Tell me all the details, and… how he passed away.”
Kakashi took a deep breath, closed his eyes, as if suppressing the pain in his heart. After a moment, he slowly opened his eyes, his gaze filled with exhaustion and helplessness. He began to speak, his voice low and slow, each word seeming to tear at his soul.
He recounted the dark rumors circulating within Konoha Village, the villagers' suspicions and accusations, and the pressure and abandonment the higher-ups exerted on the teacher. He described the teacher's despair after completing a mission, enduring everything alone, being isolated, slandered, and abandoned by the entire world.
Zhang Hai listened quietly without interrupting, his fists clenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms, yet he felt no pain. His gaze grew increasingly cold, as if a deeper darkness was brewing within his eyes.
When Kakashi recounted how his teacher ultimately chose to end his own life, Zhang Hai's body trembled violently. He felt as if an invisible giant hammer had struck his chest, the pain making it hard to breathe.
"The cemetery...where is he?" Zhang Hai's voice was terrifyingly low, each word seemingly ground between his lips and teeth.
Kakashi paused for a moment, then understood what Zhang Hai meant. He raised his hand with difficulty and pointed in the direction outside the window: "The memorial stone on the edge of the village."
Having received his answer, Zhang Hai said nothing more. He stood up, and in a flash, he vanished before Kakashi's eyes, leaving only an empty room and Kakashi's face, etched with pain and worry.
……
The memorial stone on the edge of the village appeared exceptionally silent in the night. Moonlight filtered through the sparse clouds, casting a cool, silvery glow that gilded each stone with a sorrowful hue.
Zhang Hai appeared silently in front of the memorial tablet. He immediately spotted the stone tablet engraved with the name "Hatake Sakumo".
He walked forward stiffly, like a soulless shell, his fingertips trembling as he touched the cold surface of the monument. Every stroke of the name on the monument was like a branding iron, fiercely imprinted on his heart.
"teacher……"
A soft whisper escaped his parched throat, carrying endless sorrow and despair. He could no longer suppress his grief; his legs gave way, and he knelt before the tombstone. Tears blurred his vision, but could not wash away the pain in his heart.
“I should have known…” he murmured dejectedly, his voice filled with deep regret. “How could I have been so foolish… I clearly sensed something was wrong with you, I clearly saw the weariness and despair deep in your eyes… but I chose to believe in your strength, to believe you would pull through…”
He pounded the ground violently, sending fallen leaves and dust flying. "I hate myself! I hate my own stupidity! Why didn't I stop you? Why didn't I notice sooner?!"
He recalled how he had toiled in the darkness for so-called "intelligence," for those "righteous causes," for those ideals that now seemed utterly ridiculous. He thought everything he had done was to change the world, to prevent people like his teacher from suffering injustice. But what was the result? The result was that his beloved teacher died in the world he hadn't yet changed, died in a way that was unexpectedly "foreseen" by him.
Ridicule, the ultimate ridicule. He felt like a complete joke.
Zhang Hai suddenly pulled out rolls of sealed intelligence from his pocket. These were things he had painstakingly acquired at great cost. They contained the village's shady secrets and evidence that could easily overthrow power.
But now, in his eyes, this intelligence is worthless, more so than any garbage.
"This whole thing... is a fucking joke!"
His crimson Sharingan reappeared, this time not with anger, but with profound despair and nihilism. Black flames ignited in his hands, and without hesitation, he reduced the precious intelligence to ashes. The flames soared into the sky, illuminating his face, contorted with grief. The scalding ashes scattered in the wind, as if burning away all his hopes and efforts into nothingness.
As the last flicker of light died down, Zhang Hai sat motionless, like a lifeless puppet. He slowly drew the White Fang Blade from his waist, its blade gleaming coldly in the moonlight. Instead of sheathing it, he forcefully plunged the tip deep into the soil before the tombstone.
This knife, which symbolized the teacher and embodied the village's highest honor, was now planted alone in front of the tombstone, like a silent sacrifice, or an eternal vow.
He sat motionless before the tombstone, letting the cold night wind caress his face. The dark soul power within him resurfaced, this time no longer violent or angry, but like an endless abyss, radiating loneliness, death, and emptiness.
Inky chakra spread silently, enveloping the entire cemetery. All sound, all life, seemed to be swallowed by darkness in that moment. The moonlight was obscured, and a silence deeper than the night fell around the memorial tablet. Only Zhang Hai, like the core of this darkness, bore the excruciating grief alone, letting loneliness completely envelop him until only endless emptiness remained in the depths of his heart.
Konoha Village, Hokage's office.