The Case-Book of Kakashi Hatake

The Beginning {Part 9}

I stepped into the police station, going from crisp and smoky morning air to the cloying thickness of the indoors. A lamp was on in Shikamaru's office as I knocked on the door.

"Come in."

The young inspector was sitting up very straight in his chair, hands clasped together in front of him on his desk and a professional sternness about his face. When his eyes landed on me, however, all pretenses fell as he sighed and slumped back into his seat.

"I thought that you were Morino," he croaked, groggily.

"No such luck, sorry. I'm afraid it's just me," I replied as I took my usual seat across from him. "Any new leads pop up yet?"

"None." A dejected sigh followed by a deeper slouch. "And your end? Find out anything exiting last night when you spoke to that 'old friend' of yours?"

"I did, actually."

Before I could elaborate, there was another knock on the door and Shikamaru straightened his back and squared his shoulders once more like his life depended on it.

"Come in."

Chief Inspector Morino strode into the room, eyes landing sourly on me before sweeping across the room to pin down Shikamaru.

"Nara, Hatake, would the two of you mind," his calm façade shattered in an instant with an almost audible crash, "telling me what the actual bloody hell is going on?! I walk out of my front door this morning to come face-to-face with some posh, government delivery boy, and not just any bloody courier, but one from the office of the Hokage. And do you know what he does? He pulls out a letter with the Hokage's official seal, the seal that goes on diplomatic envoys and peace treaties and what have you, and the messenger bows and says that the Hokage 'kindly asks' that I read this letter. So there I am frozen in my front yard, gaping like a bloody fish, and then it only gets better from there! I open the damn thing and inside is a letter written by the Hokage himself, not an aide, not a secretary."

He pulled a fine piece of stationary from his coat pocket and opened it up as he began to read, "'To Chief Inspector Ibiki Morino, Konoha Police, Station Four,'" his eyes lifted off the letter to glare daggers at me before darting back down to the page. "'I hope that this letter finds you and your station well, and I would like to begin by congratulating you on having the highest number of closed cases amongst all the stations in the city, a truly extraordinary distinction. Regarding more pressing matters, it has come to my attention that your detectives are currently handling the murder investigation of Asuma Sarutobi, my late son. As you can well imagine, this is a matter of great importance to me, and I wish that you do not find it presumptuous if I make a request. While I do not question the merits of your own exceptional force, arguably the best in the whole of Konoha, I would like to make a personal addition to the investigation: a recently retired agent of mine by the name of Kakashi Hatake. I guarantee that he will prove an invaluable service during the course of the investigation; his impeccable record alone in the service of this country speaks to his qualifications with one of the most remarkable and awarded tenures in the entire military history of this great nation. Furthermore, he is a true friend and confidant, one whom I trust implicitly in all matters, both state and domestic. Most sincerely, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Hokage,' and then there's his official seal and all the other state mumbo jumbo." The letter was folded back up quickly. "Well, I can't keep you from investigating now, not when the Hokage himself has personally asked for your involvement and vouched for your honor."

I nodded, feigning innocence and ignorance, intentionally avoiding answering Morino's unspoken questions. "Yes, the Hokage spoke to me about this. Apparently, he has no other operatives to spare with the war going on, but since I'm recently retired, my skills are ready to be at the disposal of the Konoha Police."