Author's Notes: This just came to me while I was reading a book that had nothing to do with 'Naruto'. I thought it wasn't fair for Kakashi to grow up without a father despite everything… especially when he needed him the most. That's how this fic came into fruition, hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

Sakumo regarded the sharp projectile with a peculiar sense of calm. The gears in his mind were whirring quickly, giving him all the pros and cons of going through with his plan, just like they would when he was on a mission. A mission… where everything went wrong… when his world toppled from perfect to worthless in less than five minutes, with just one shout from his teammate, declaring in panic, "I missed!"

Sakumo willed his legs to move faster as he jumped from roof to roof. A messenger bird (because their ANBU were too busy protecting the village) had flown to his house mere minutes ago, informing him of an urgent summons by the Hokage. The letter did not contain anything about his newest mission, but Sakumo did not hesitate as he went through the methodical movements of bidding his young son farewell and ordering him to bed before he was bounding off into the early hours of the night. He landed soundlessly outside the mansion and greeted the ninja gathered outside.

There were three ninja in total, excluding the Hokage's secretary. One of them, Amasawa Keijo if memory served him right, was adept at genjutsu. Some people would even say he could rival the Uchihas' natural prowess. Sakumo had served alongside the man more than once and he could confirm that Keijo's talent was indeed as great as the rumors say.

His eyes scanned the next shinobi. He recognized the man from numerous encounters during the war (they had saved each other's lives more times than he cared to count) and could place a name on him almost immediately. It was Akai Jin. The man that was so good at handling any kind of weapon and wielding any type of sword. The great thing about him was that he hit his target every single time.

Sakumo's eyes flitted over to the last presence. A lovely woman with a heart-shaped face and dazzling green eyes met his gaze. The kunoichi raked a hand through her dark brown hair as they waited for the Hokage to grant them entrance. He recognized her to be one Soyokaze Suki. Contrary to the gentle meaning of her name, the woman excelled at making things explode. She had some medical expertise but nothing too major. She also had the ability to sense chakra over a certain radius.

He mentally started his analysis of the situation. If these three were to be his teammates, and he was almost a hundred percent sure they were, then the mission they were going on was going to be pretty dangerous. Dangerous enough to send the White Fang with a genjutsu expert, a weapons master and an explosion-causing professional. He also noticed that he had worked with each of them at some point in time. He leaned against the wall. Just what kind of suicide mission were they going to be sent on?

After what seemed like an eternity, though it couldn't have been more than ten minutes, a three-man squad exited the office. The secretary ushered the four shinobi inside not a second after the others had passed. The Hokage smiled kindly at the four Jonins as they greeted him accordingly. He took a long drag from his pipe and let it out slowly.

"I'm afraid that this mission I'm going to give you is one that will be rather difficult," Sandaime paused, "But I chose you four for this specific reason as I'm sure you'll be able to pull it off," he continued with a smile, "We got information from a reliable source that Iwa has many warehouses. These warehouses are keeping them fully stocked, medicine-wise and food-wise. Thus, while our stocks will end because due to us not being able to restock at the current time, theirs won't. That's why if the warehouses are kept intact, Konoha is sure to lose the war… if not now then in the near future," The Third continued seriously, "You are to destroy the warehouses… and under no circumstances should you fail!"

"Hai!" the four chanted together.

"You leave at dawn," the Hokage ordered as he handed Sakumo, the team leader, a rolled up scroll. The Jonins, then, dispatched to get ready, silently agreeing to meet at the Village Gates. Sakumo returned home relatively quickly. He checked on Kakashi and was happy to find his child sleeping in his bed, just like he told him to. He let a small smile cross his face before it was replaced by a more serious expression as he started getting a pack ready. The Hokage didn't tell them how long the mission would last, so he packed enough food rations for a couple of weeks. He filled his canteen with water and carried a few extra in case they took long to find a place to drink from. He checked his weapons' pouch before double-checking everything. His uneasiness, however, compelled him to check his pack yet again. After he was satisfied, he sat down and opened the scroll.

A cold vice-like grip grabbed hold of his heart as he read each word. He was expecting the warehouses to be inside Iwa's borders… but he didn't expect them to be that far in. They had to cross three watch towers, not to mention the place the battle was actually taking place. It would be easy to slip past their numbers where the warzone was generally at. Things were simply too chaotic for anyone to really see someone sneak past. That's why there were watch towers. Now those were the real problem. Especially when they had no clue how they were structured or what number and level of shinobi were located there. Sure, Intel said that the numbers were not great… but he couldn't help but feel anxious. What if the information was faulty? Sakumo sighed as he rubbed his temples. There were too many ways this mission could go wrong.

He shook his head and put on his gear. It was almost time to meet his team. He checked on his little boy one last time and summoned one of the smaller dogs to watch over him. He was sure he wouldn't need that one on this mission. With one last glance, he vanished and was on his way to the Gates. He arrived just in time to hear the last bit of chatter.

"What's up with you, Keijo?" That was Suki speaking, "You're practically glowing,"

"I just got wonderful news!" The genjutsu expert exclaimed, "My wife just gave birth! I'm a father now! I have a baby girl!" he said, his glowing smile as big as his face. The kunoichi congratulated him and promised to come see the baby after the mission was over.

"Congratulations, Amasawa-san," Sakumo said as he dropped beside them. Neither Jonin was surprised, which made Sakumo inwardly grin. Good to know that their skills were still reliable. He just hoped the man would live long enough to be by his daughter's side and watch her grow.

They didn't have to wait long for the third member. Soon, they were jumping from tree branch to tree branch as Sakumo assumed his role and explained the mission. Just as Sakumo thought, sneaking past the enemy was easy at the warzone, especially with the help of their fellow Konoha nin, who did a great job distracting their opponents. They skillfully kept out of sight and avoided any close encounters with the Iwa nins. It took them hours to see the first tower of three looming over the horizon. The tower stretched high into the sky and it had walls on its right and left sides so that it would be impossible to cross further into Stone's territory without entering through the watch tower first. It was more a defensive structure than a tower, really.

"Everyone ready?" he whispered once they stopped. Although they couldn't strategize, they could still try to gather information in order to come up with a possible plan.

"Hatake-san," the only female on the team whispered back, "I can't sense any form of human chakra from the inside," she said as she opened her eyes. The four shared quizzical looks. How could the watch tower be deserted?

"We'll scout the place… Exercise caution," Sakumo ordered, "Amasawa-san, Soyokaze-san, take the outer area of the area… Akai-san, we'll search inside," The three nodded in acceptance and the duos set off to their assigned tasks. Sakumo and Jin treaded carefully as they closed in on the gates. The Hatake fingered a kunai in each hand, his saber tied securely on the strap on his back. The weapons master settled for a sword he gripped with both hands. At Sakumo's nod, the other braced himself. The silver-haired man tried pushing the door slowly first. He wanted to keep their presence a secret from anyone who was in there… if there was someone inside, that is. He was surprised when the door opened easily. His eyes narrowed as he studied the interior of the tower. Other than a few upturned chairs, the place was barren. He tried to release genjutsu, but he wasn't under one. Jin was studying the footprints on the ground when he approached him.

"This seems like a major evacuation," he commented, "People were here yesterday or the day before,"

"Could they have known that we were coming?" Sakumo wondered out loud to which Jin answered with a shrug before their teammates appeared.

"All clear," the new father said, "Here too?" Jin nodded, but Sakumo was deep in thought. What should he do?

"Shall we move on?" the kunoichi asked, already heading to the other side of the building and into the enemy's territory again. The three males followed her, and soon they were at top speed again heading to the next structure. Just like the one before it, this second tower was abandoned. Sakumo's orders did not change, however, and they swept the area once more. Suspicious as he was of the Hokage's reliable source, now more than ever, Sakumo ordered a stop.

"We might have gotten information from an undependable source, as I'm sure you've figured out by now," he started, "It is impossible that the Stone did not put any defenses to protect the village… I'm guessing the forces that were supposed to be here were resituated to the last tower,"

"We're completing the mission, though," Suki said, "You heard what the Hokage said; we absolutely cannot fail this mission!"

"It would be suicide," Keijo remarked, "We're only four and they're probably over a hundred,"

"We're four of the best though!" The kunoichi exclaimed, minding the volume of her voice but not its cheery tone. Sakumo willed his mind to work up productive ideas… but he came up with a blank. The logical call of action would be to return back to the village. He reviewed what happened with them during the mission up till now.

They easily sneaked past the enemy's front lines. They got to the tower, only to find out it was empty. They reached the next one, yet it was vacant as well.

Sakumo's eyes widened as it finally dawned on him. They were being played… right from the very beginning. The reason why they were able to slip past Iwa was because they were letting them. They were drawing them in! The question was why. Why would they want a couple of Leaf shinobi? It wasn't like the Hidden Leaf would give up a war for the sake of four people. Not even when one of those four was the Legendary White Fang. He thought about it some more. If they got rid of the White Fang and a few other Jonins, the death rate of Iwa nin would most likely drop by at least ten percent. While the percentage may seem little, it is quite significant in a war, especially when only one of them was the cause of almost five percent of their deaths. In war, anything matters, anything goes. So this might tip the scales in Iwa's favor, even if it was by a small margin.

Going back to the village was out of the question. He was almost positive that Iwa has them surrounded. The only possible plan of action was going forwards. As he looked at his teammates, he knew they realized that as well.

Thus, forwards and onwards they went. They tried to come up with a plan as they headed to the site, and they did come up with a somewhat decent strategy. First, Keijo will mask their presence under genjutsu. Then, Suki would explode the tower from above, causing large chunks of stone to fall, and thus take a lot of the soldiers' lives. Next, Jin would aim at the close survivals with his weapons. Finally, all four will go in and kill any remaining enemies. It wasn't a foolproof plan; on the contrary, it had too many holes, but it was the best their nervous brains could come up with at the moment.

As they neared the area, Sakumo ordered a final halt for preparation. He checked his weapons again, his soldier and chakra pills, wire… everything was there. For this plan to work, Keijo would have to cast his genjutsu at precisely the right moment and at the exact level that would make it almost unnoticeable, Suki would have to sneak silently, for Keijo's genjutsu would mask their very presence but would shatter at the first loud sound they emit, and place her bombs before setting them off, Jin would have to be extra careful so that his weapons would hit their target, and Sakumo would have to be good enough to kill the remaining soldiers. Hopefully, they'll be able to pull it off. Sakumo touched the hilt of his tanto boldly before the team dispatched.

Once they were close enough, Jin called for them to stop. He kept his eyes shut for a few minutes, and all four could feel the slight tug of genjutsu. Jin assured them beforehand that while they would feel it, their would-be assassins wouldn't. The three trusted in his words and continued the operation. Suki's role started next. She treaded carefully between the ranks of the shinobi on the enemy's side. There were no ninjas on top, so getting her work done was easy. She got her explosives on a large area of the ceiling, making sure that they were placed in such a way that they would create big pieces that would fall on top of the soldiers. She nodded once she was done and returned to her team's position. The bombs she was using this time were only strong enough to break the ceiling, so her team was safe from them despite their close distance. She set her hands in a seal and activated her favorite weapons. The bombs emitted a loud boom and the ceiling started falling. Tortured screams echoed from inside and Suki could feel the number of people inside dwindling rapidly.

The soldiers outside watched with wide eyes as the toppled ceiling caused the walls of the building to collapse as well. Jin took that moment of distraction to launch a series of senbon aiming for the pressure points. Each senbon hit its mark and soon the bodies of the guards started falling one by one. Jin shot every shinobi or kunoichi that came out of the collapsed structure. When no others came out, the team moved inside. Blood was everywhere, which was to be expected, the bodies were crushed under the rocks, but the Konoha team had no pity for them. They were only doing their job.

No survivors were left alive. The squad of four worked ruthlessly and efficiently, Keijo's genjutsu long removed. They refrained from using jutsus in the small space in fear of causing what was left of the tower from collapsing. They could hear shouts approaching their location. Thus, without a word, they slipped away from the area and continued further into the other country's borders. By the time the reinforcements arrived, the team of uninjured four was already long gone.

"We're almost to the warehouses," Sakumo stated once they were far enough. His teammates nodded. This mission was proving to be easier than expected. He was sure that those ninjas weren't the only ones put to defend the village, the reinforcements being a prime clue. More were placed around the warehouses, no doubt about it.

"There they are," he heard Jin say and they skidded to a stop.

"I sense a lot of people in there," Suki commented, "Way more than the ones who were in that tower," Sakumo nodded, he already suspected that.

"Can we go with the same plan as before?" Jin asked, his eyes glancing at their last, out-of-breath teammate.

"I-I just need a few moments," Keijo said as he put his hands on his knees and panted loudly, "Genjutsu of that level just take a lot out of me, I'll be fine in a minute," he explained, "But even then… I won't be able to do it," Sakumo bit the inside of his cheek as he thought. Suki would not be able to get close enough to plant her explosives without Keijo's jutsu.

"If he can't do it, then we need some sort of distraction," Jin helpfully supplied, "Hatake-san, you're fast and strong, more than a few soldiers will run up to attack you. You're our best chance," Sakumo nodded, he was thinking of something like that himself, "Amasawa-san and I will cover you from here while Soyokaze-san plants her bombs," The four agreed on a signal after which Sakumo was supposed to retreat so that Suki's explosives could go off.

"Alright, let's do this," The four nodded to each other one last time before Sakumo jumped into the guards' line of sight. His team got into position, following him from behind the safe cover of the trees. When the soldiers from the upper level started firing at him with various kinds of weapons, Suki crept away from the others. She silently went up the wall, sending a kunai through a man's heart before he could scream for the others about her. She worked like a killing machine as she made her way to the top. Numerous bodies were left in her wake, all of which belonged to shinobi of low-Chunin level.

After what seemed like an eternity of dodging, Sakumo heard the signal. The previously unscathed man was now adorning various injuries of different sizes, but he wasn't too bothered by them, they weren't particularly deep. Fortunately, no poison-coated weapons were being flung at him. Once he was at a safe distance, Suki set the bombs off. The soldiers' attention shifted from the White Fang to the exploding warehouse. 'One down!' the four teammates thought at once, 'two to go!'

They knew the same plan wouldn't work twice on the enemy. Thus, they talked as Suki patched the Hatake up. Her green chakra was a relief to his system. 'Maybe some of them were deep after all', he thought with a grimace. They watched the remaining soldiers not bother with looking for them and divide into two groups each heading to a still-standing warehouse. The warehouses had a significant distance between them that it would take a lot of precious time for Suki to prepare each of them then explode them at the same time. When they asked if the other team members could prepare the others while she worked on one, Suki replied that she had to be the one who puts them so that they would react to her chakra. Apparently, her stronger explosives and the normal explosive tags were activated differently. Therefore, that plan was shot down.

Their plan this time was that they would use jutsus to bring down the warehouse. However, Keijo pointed out that the Stone probably had a defensive barrier around each of them. Nonetheless, he provided the solution as he popped a chakra pill inside his mouth.

"I think I can destroy the barrier for a limited time… but I can only do it once,"

"Think?" Jin questioned with a narrow of his eyes.

"It's the best we got right now," Sakumo replied with a sigh. He really hated missions where the information given was faulty. It made his life that much harder. With that said, Keijo got his jutsu ready.

"Now!" he ordered and all three of his teammates launched a strong jutsu. The warehouse toppled over, its contents burned, the hot flames becoming stronger as the night breeze reached them. The enemy was now distracted by the fire, but some of them were heading their way, now that they were in plain sight. Jin took out a few of them with his accurate hits, Suki and Sakumo were helping as well, but the last member was panting hard on the ground.

The enemies were just too many. Sakumo quickly half-dragged, half-carried his fallen comrade to safety as he ordered the others to fall back. The foreign ninjas were hot on their trail but they only followed them to a certain distance before going back to protect the final warehouse. Every time the Stone nin had an opportunity to run after them and possibly kill them, they would retreat back to whatever it was they were guarding. The only warehouse left was the biggest one of them. They really should have started with that one first and then worked their way to the other two. Now, they didn't have Suki's explosives or Keijo's jutsu to make it crumble. Or Keijo at all for that matter, Sakumo thought as he glanced at his still-panting teammate.

"What are we going to do now?" Suki's question was directed at the team captain. There was a ninety percent chance that they would die if they even got close to the biggest warehouse. However, if they were to turn tail and flee, the mission would be failed as Iwa will still have a source for supplies which was less than a day away from the battlefield. If they die, they will fail. If they escape, they will also fail. There was no hundred or even a fifty chance of success of the mission and getting back to the safe, safe village behind the protective walls.

Sakumo, then, found himself faced with only two choices. The first one was to go in anyway and try desperately to destroy the warehouse, killing himself and his teammates in the process and thus leaving his son and Keijo's newborn daughter without their fathers. The second one was to run away and save his comrades, saving both children from suffering through childhood without their fathers.

The White Fang was no fool, however. He knew that if he did choose the second choice, he would suffer dearly for his actions… Kakashi might possibly get drawn in his shame as well. The question he should ask himself was what was more important? The success of the mission and misery in two children's lives or the failure of the mission and misery in only one child's life? Never mind the fact that in both cases his son would be the one getting the bad end of the deal.

Sakumo nodded to himself as he made his decision. It was time to inform his injured comrades of his order.

Needless to say, everyone in the Leaf Village now knew what his decision was. He chose the second choice. Where only his son would have to bear with his failure. He thought that if they were both there for each other, things would be easier. The decision he took made perfect sense at the time. He thought that Kakashi would love to have his father around, despite his failure. He thought that Kakashi wanted him to be around, if only to have one of his parents alive and well. He thought that his comrades would be a tab bit more compassionate and stand by his side when everyone called him a traitor. He thought that Keijo would be glad-ecstatic even- to be given the chance to watch his daughter grow up.

How wrong he was.

His son immediately shut down when he learned of the terrible mistake his father had made. And suddenly, his hero was no longer his father. His comrades, instead of thanking him profusely for saving their lives, blamed him for the never-ending war and the many lives lost. His Hokage pulled him out of the ninja world, thus the only way he knew how to live was no more.

So here Sakumo was, handling his tanto that earned him his nickname. Kakashi was out training with his sensei. Minato was a good man. He even tried to reason with his only child once but to no avail. Sakumo turned the blade over in his hand. If he were to die one day, Minato would surely look after his son for him.

If this day were to be his death day, Minato would make sure Kakashi was properly taken care of, he was sure.

With determination shining in his eyes, Sakumo held the tanto, its hilt on the opposite end of him and the sharp end pointed towards his body. He brought it down in one fluid motion.

Then, it stopped a mere hairbreadth from his abdomen.

He wanted to end his life then and there. Partially because his family's honor would be restored. Partially because his son deserved better. And partially because he simply did not want to live a second more in this twisted world with its cruel ways.

But would it be fair? Would it be fair to Kakashi to find his father's cold body in a pool of his own blood, family tanto settled too deep in his gut? Would it be fair to Kakashi to live without his real father for the rest of his life? Would it be fair to Minato to be plunged into parenthood, to be a father of someone else's kid, at such a young age?

Sakumo watched his reflection on the blade. How different depression had made him look! He shook his head. What he wanted did not matter. What he needed did not matter. What was important was Kakashi.

With new vigor, Sakumo threw the tanto across the room and stood up. It had been a long time since he went outside. It had been too long since he trained. Getting depressed will not help solve anything. It was time he took action and counterattacked.

It was time for change.

Author's Notes: I hope everyone liked this story! Now this story is marked complete, but I can definitely continue, so if you want this story to be continued, say so in a review or a pm!

Thanks for reading!