Naruto: Starting with EMS

Chapter 11: Hatake Kakashi

In front of Nan stood a twelve-year-old boy with silver-white hair.

The boy wore a mask that covered the lower half of his face, a short sword strapped to his back, and was dressed in a black one-piece ninja outfit.

Around his waist was a belt with a ninja tool pouch hanging at the back. This was the person Nan had been waiting for—Hatake Kakashi.

At this stage, Kakashi wasn't yet wearing the iconic Konoha flak jacket, nor was his forehead protector used to cover one eye.

His gaze still carried a youthful brightness, untainted by the indifference he would wear in the future.

Though the Kakashi before him didn't perfectly match the version from Nan's memories, that unmistakable silver hair and distinctive mask left no room for doubt.

Seeing a beloved anime character from his previous life come to life before his eyes, Nan couldn't help feeling a surge of excitement.

Of course, excitement aside, Nan didn't forget why he was here. As he saw Kakashi heading into the hospital, he quickly moved to intercept—after all, he'd waited long enough for this meeting.

"Yo, if it isn't Kakashi. Long time no see!"

Kakashi turned, surprised to be greeted by a child. But upon recognizing the speaker, his expression softened. It was Uchiha Nan—the genius of the Uchiha clan.

A prodigious medical-nin who had treated his injuries a few times in the past.

"So it's you, Nan. It has been a while. I stopped by a few times before but didn't see you. Where've you been this past year?"

"I've been in Konoha the whole time," Nan replied with a smile. "Just busy with classes at the academy. What about you? Looks like you just got back from a mission outside the village."

Nan was curious about what kind of mission had kept Kakashi away for over two months, though he knew better than to expect a real answer—most ninja missions were confidential.

Surprisingly, Kakashi actually offered a bit of insight. He even complained a little, saying the mission had originally been a simple one, but things changed halfway through, making it far more complicated.

What should've taken half a month ended up dragging out for over a month.

This puzzled Nan. Was the original Nan really that close to Kakashi? Why would Kakashi be so open with someone he wasn't tight with?

What Nan didn't know was that Kakashi had always held a good impression of him.

Kakashi, after all, had graduated from the Ninja Academy at the age of six—a genius who set the record for the youngest graduate in Konoha history.

But being a genius often meant being alone—isolated at the top.

Then, one day, after getting injured during training, Kakashi ended up in the hospital, where he was shocked to discover the medic treating him was just a young child.

After asking around, he learned more about Nan and was astonished to find that Nan might be even more talented than himself.

From that moment, Kakashi felt a subtle bond—an unspoken sense of kinship between prodigies.

He began paying more attention to Nan, even seeking him out personally for treatment whenever he came to the hospital.

Then one day, Kakashi noticed Nan had seemingly vanished. Multiple hospital visits yielded no sight of him. After some inquiries with the doctors, he found out Nan had become an orphan.

This hit close to home.

Kakashi had lost his mother at a young age, and after his father's suicide, he too had been left to fend for himself.

But Nan had lost his parents even earlier. In a way, he had suffered more.

This time, Kakashi had sustained minor injuries during a rushed mission—injuries that hadn't been properly treated due to the urgency of the assignment.

Worried they might lead to complications, he came to the hospital as soon as the mission ended.

He hadn't expected to run into Nan again—and naturally, he wanted to catch up.

Nan was still a bit surprised, but he now realized that his predecessor's relationship with Kakashi was better than he had assumed.

That was good news—it gave him a better shot at asking Kakashi for help with Lightning Release training.

"You're here for treatment?" Nan asked.

"Yeah," Kakashi nodded. "Got a few injuries that weren't properly handled. Didn't want to risk anything."

"Well, perfect timing. I'm free—I'll treat you."

Kakashi didn't hesitate to accept the offer.

Nan led Kakashi to a quiet spot where they could sit. As he tended to Kakashi's wounds, they chatted casually—talking about how each other had been, how life had changed over the past year.

Once Nan was confident that Kakashi had a good impression of him, he casually brought up his own training struggles.

"By the way, Kakashi," Nan said as if offhandedly, "I heard you specialize in Lightning Release, right? I was wondering if I could ask you a few things about chakra nature transformation—specifically for Lightning Release."

"Lightning Release?" Kakashi blinked. "Isn't the Uchiha clan all about Fire Release? Why are you training in Lightning techniques?"

Kakashi was puzzled. He knew Nan was a medical-nin. If he were going to train in ninjutsu, wouldn't it make sense to start with what his clan excelled at?

Nan explained that he had already reached a high level in Fire Release techniques.

But after discovering that he had a knack for Lightning Release as well, he wanted to develop that further.

Upon learning that Nan also had a natural talent for Lightning Release, Kakashi—one of the few Lightning-style users in Konoha—felt an unexpected sense of kinship with him. Still, he offered a word of caution.

"Nan, you haven't even graduated from the Ninja Academy yet. Isn't it a little early to be training in a second chakra nature transformation?"

Most Genin rarely touched chakra nature transformations, let alone a second nature. Typically, that kind of training didn't begin until one reached the rank of Jonin.

Even Kakashi himself had only recently started training in Fire Release—because he was preparing to become a Jonin soon.

From his perspective, the fact that Nan had already mastered one chakra nature at the age of six was astonishing. There was no real need to rush into learning another.

"Sigh…" Nan let out a soft sigh and began explaining his situation.

His ninjutsu and genjutsu training were progressing smoothly, but due to his young age, he hadn't made much headway in taijutsu. That's when an idea had struck him—what if he combined Lightning Release with taijutsu, creating something entirely new?

Then, a thought flashed through Nan's mind:

In the original story, Kakashi developed Chidori in Konoha Year 47, just before becoming a Jonin. And now, it's Year 46...

That meant Kakashi had likely already begun working on Chidori.

Nan seized the opportunity. He briefly described the basic theory behind the lightning-infused taijutsu technique he wanted to develop—hoping to gauge how far along Kakashi was in his own research.

Sure enough, Kakashi was visibly shocked upon hearing Nan's idea. The technique Nan was proposing bore a striking resemblance to what Kakashi himself had been conceptualizing.

What's more, Nan's theory was even more developed than his own.

"Nan," Kakashi said urgently, "you won't believe this—but I've also been working on a technique just like the one you described."

He then elaborated on his idea: a Lightning-style jutsu that combined overwhelming piercing speed with destructive power—a technique that could obliterate an enemy in a single strike.

Nan's heart stirred with excitement. Just as I thought—Kakashi really has started developing Chidori!

He had intentionally shared his concept in the hopes of drawing Kakashi into a joint effort.

Feigning surprise, Nan said, "Really? In that case, why don't we work on it together?"

While Nan was confident he could eventually develop this taijutsu technique on his own after mastering Lightning Release, having an experienced Lightning-style user like Kakashi on board would drastically shorten the process.

Likewise, Kakashi also recognized the benefit. To develop Chidori successfully, he'd need someone with an in-depth understanding of the human body—someone who could figure out how to channel chakra in a way that maximized stimulation while minimizing physical harm.

In the original story, that person might have been his teammate—Rin Nohara, a medical ninja.

But now, Nan clearly made for an even better candidate.

Kakashi had the same thought, and the two quickly agreed to collaborate on developing the technique.

Nan was thrilled. What had started as a simple attempt to get Lightning Release training from Kakashi had turned into something far better—Kakashi would now personally help him train.

That was far more efficient than training alone.

Kakashi had his own reasons too. Since he was currently training in Fire Release, he figured he could learn a thing or two from Nan about the Uchiha clan's fire-style techniques in return.

After settling their plans, and with Kakashi's wounds properly treated, the two said their goodbyes—agreeing on a time and place for their next meeting.