"Huh?! You... what are you babbling about?! Idiot! I don't... I don't have such a nonsensical idea at all!"
As Kakashi expected, Satsuki instantly broke down. She suddenly jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her cheeks rapidly turning red at a visible speed, and even wisps of white smoke began to rise dramatically from the top of her head.
Her eyes darted around in a panic, refusing to look at Kakashi, and her voice seemed a bit incoherent.
"Hey, hey..." Kakashi complained in his characteristic lazy tone, "If you want to refute someone, at least show an expression that's a little more convincing, right? The way you are now, everyone will just think you have a guilty conscience."
"Really... really!"
Satsuki stomped her foot in anger, trying to turn the tables on Kakashi, "It's clearly because you're always reading those inappropriate books that your head is full of these messy thoughts! Don't think everyone else is like you!"
"Regarding that, I'm afraid you have some misunderstanding about me." Kakashi waved the "Icha Icha Paradise" in his hand, "This is just a regular romance novel, although there are indeed some... erm... artistic embellishments."
"Besides, the main point of the problem right now isn't what books I read. Please answer my question directly."
"Really! I already said I don't have those thoughts!" Satsuki was still making her final struggle, "I am a descendant of the Uchiha Clan! I am someone who must shoulder the heavy responsibility of revitalizing the clan! How could I... how could I spend all day thinking about such... such boring things!"
Her rebuttal sounded fierce, but in Kakashi's eyes, it was utterly unconvincing.
"Your current situation, rather than fiercely opposing, looks more like you're pouting." He clearly repeated the core question, "So, admit it, you like Naruto, don't you?"
"...Mm."
A few seconds later, all of Satsuki's defenses and pretenses melted away as quickly as snow under the sun.
Ultimately, the result was even simpler than Kakashi had anticipated. Satsuki only held on for an extremely brief moment longer, instantly transforming from a bristling kitten into a girl immersed in shyness.
Looking at this student who had just been incredibly stubborn but was now adorably honest, Kakashi's mouth under his mask couldn't help but curve slightly upward.
This child... seems even more straightforward than he imagined.
"If you like Naruto, why don't you just go and tell him directly?" Kakashi looked at Satsuki, who was almost curled into a ball, and softened his tone, "I see that guy is quite considerate of you too, maybe he has the same feelings?"
"No! Absolutely not!" Satsuki suddenly looked up, with clear panic in her voice, "What if... what if he rejects me?! You should understand that principle too! If... if I get rejected, maybe we won't even be able to maintain our current relationship! In that case... in that case..."
She couldn't imagine what kind of awkward distance would be created between them if Naruto explicitly rejected her; just thinking about that possibility made her heart feel as if it were being tightly squeezed.
"So that's what you're afraid of..."
Kakashi pondered, trying to encourage his student, "You could actually have a little more confidence in yourself. I remember you were quite popular in class, weren't you?"
After Kakashi left Anbu, because he had to lead Genin, he would occasionally visit the Ninja Academy and naturally knew that this beautiful and powerful Uchiha Miss had quite high popularity among the boys, even though she mercilessly rejected all boys who tried to approach her.
"Popular?"
Upon hearing this, Satsuki's face showed a confused expression, seemingly not understanding what Kakashi was saying at all.
"Mm," Kakashi nodded, explaining further, "Besides Naruto, you must have received many advances from other boys, right?"
"Did I?"
Satsuki tilted her head, the confusion in her eyes even more evident, her expression completely unfeigned.
Kakashi was a bit stunned now. He carefully watched Satsuki's reaction and suddenly realized a somewhat cruel truth—for Uchiha Satsuki, anyone other than Uzumaki Naruto probably hadn't left any trace worth noting in her heart.
Those so-called "suitors" were probably no different from pebbles on the roadside in her eyes, so she naturally wouldn't remember them.
"..."
Kakashi was momentarily speechless and had to change his approach, trying to enlighten her, "Well then, let's think from a different angle. Satsuki, you like Naruto, you've already admitted that. But your current state, this anxious, hesitant way of only watching from afar, does it truly make you feel satisfied? Are you really content to continue like this, in this state of unrequited love?"
"I already said! Even if I can't maintain our current relationship! I can't cause trouble for Naruto!"
Satsuki's emotions became agitated again, with a hint of a sob in her voice, "The current situation... the current situation isn't bad, is it?! This feeling of liking someone... how can one unilaterally put pressure on others?!"
The more she spoke, the more agitated she became, trying to persuade Kakashi with reason, "If it's just a feeling of admiration, that impulse won't last long! If it's true love... you also have to consider the other person! So... so like this now... being able to stay by his side... being able to watch him is already very good... there's nothing wrong with this situation continuing..."
However, as she spoke, her voice gradually lowered, her originally forceful arguments becoming increasingly weak, until they almost turned into choked self-talk.
Tears rolled uncontrollably from her dark eyes, and she hastily raised the back of her hand to wipe them away.
"As long as... as long as I can stay by his side... I'm already very satisfied... really..."
Finally, she almost whimpered this deepest, most humble wish buried in her heart.
"..."
Looking at this student who had just been stubbornly arguing, and in an instant was crying profusely and revealing her true feelings, Kakashi was completely speechless, and a complex emotion welled up in his heart—both a little amused and tinged with an indescribable sympathy and emotion.