Chapter Text
“You wish to see me, Lord Hokage?”
Kakashi wafted a hand to beckon Gai closer as he pored intently over the muddled papers on his desk. Gai chuckled, hands on his hips as he regarded his usually so lazy friend. This job certainly was a strange one - all that power and yet Kakashi found himself readily able to be just as lazy as he wished.
“I see you are hard at work! I do not wish to interrupt while you are on a roll, I can return later if you need-“
“No, Gai. Stay. I have something important to discuss with you.”
Gai’s chest puffed up, bristling like a peacock with the pride of having Kakashi include him in Hokage business. Even if it was just a mission or an errand, Gai was honoured as always that Kakashi had picked him. Without another word, the Hokage slid the uppermost sheet of paper across the desk. Gai approached, picked it up and barely had the time to read a few words before-
“I'm going blind.”
Gai looked up at his friend for a moment and then back down again, skimming the words as if looking for the punch line to this awful joke. He could recognise Lady Tsunade’s handwriting straight away, the way the strokes of her brush dipped and fell in a messy kind of order; messy, yet defiant and certain. Somehow he couldn't bear to read it all properly, instead picking out certain phrases – deterioration, overworked, sharingan, failure – that told him all he needed to know.
“I understand!” he cried, whipping a thumbs up out of nowhere as he cast the medical report onto the table in what he’d intended to be a nonchalant manner. It was as though the paper had burnt him.
“You wish to send me on a mission to find a cure! No need to worry, rival, you can count on me!”
“Gai-“
“I have the perfect remedy in mind! All I’ll need is-“
“Gai, listen...”
“Alright, then perhaps the medicine balls I prepared for Lee? Those are sure to get you back to your full recuperative might, and then Lady Tsunade can-“
“Gai!”
Gai quietened, hand frozen in a fist of determination. Kakashi had put the tips of his fingers to his forehead, shielding his scarred eye as though it still needed an eye-patch. The nostalgic view almost made Gai smile... but the man looked troubled, so his expression remained firm and resolute; professional.
“I didn’t summon you here to send you on a mission.”
Gai’s fist dropped. Kakashi’s hands were shaking.
“I called you in here to break the news to you first. I’m going blind. There’s nothing to be done.”
Kakashi finally looked up at his friend, and when he did Gai saw that his once so vibrantly red dual-sharingan eyes were now skimmed with white.
“It’s too late.”