Sasuke remained silent, leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, though his gaze drifted lazily across the clearing. Training had been intense, even by his standards—Kakashi had pushed them through evasion drills, tree-climbing exercises, and a sparring rotation that left all three of them breathless.

Naruto shot up from the grass like a rocket, fist pumping the air.

He scrambled to his feet, brushing grass off his orange jumpsuit, when something glinted in the dirt near where he'd been lying. He froze, squinting down at the small object half-buried in the scuffed earth.

He bent down and scooped it up, turning it over in his palm. A ring. Simple and silver, catching the light as it twisted between his fingers. It wasn't flashy—no gems, no intricate carvings, just a clean polished band with something engraved along the inside.

Sasuke's eyes flicked toward the ring, studying it with quiet interest, but he said nothing. The silence stretched for a moment before Sakura turned toward the tree where their sensei still sat.

Kakashi lowered his book. His one visible eye moved from the ring in Naruto's outstretched hand to the space on his own left hand, where a familiar weight was missing.

He walked over, casual as anything, and plucked the ring from Naruto's palm. Then, without hesitation, he slid it onto the fourth finger of his left hand, where it fit perfectly. As if it had always been there.

Naruto's brain seemed to short-circuit visibly. He stared at Kakashi's left hand, then at his masked face, then back at the ring.

Kakashi tilted his head innocently, the picture of nonchalance.