The Untold Truth Of Kakashi Hatake From Naruto

Kakashi looks enough like his legendary father Sakumo, nicknamed the White Fang of the Hidden Leaf, that Granny Chiyo tries to attack him, thinking he's the very man who killed so many of her villagers during the last Great Shinobi War. Yet Kakashi's relationship with his father is at best conflicted. It also influenced Kakashi's approach to his role as a shinobi at every step of his career.

When Kakashi starts in the academy, Sakumo is still alive, and no doubt has helped his son hone his skills. Yet Kakashi, despite being so talented, is derided for being too rule-abiding. This also has to do with his father. Sakumo was on a mission where he saved his colleagues but failed the objective. The village castigated him, including the very teammates he saved. The White Fang of Konoha felt so ashamed that he killed himself. For that reason, Kakashi strictly follows the rigid rules of being a shinobi, especially the idea that the objective comes before all lives.

Then Obito sacrifices himself for Kakashi and Rin and even gives Kakashi his Sharingan eye. This touches Kakashi so much that he sees that his dad was right. His first test for his team, including Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura, tests their willingness to break the rules for the sake of their teammates. This leads to his famous quote, "In the ninja world, those who break the rules are scum, that's true...but those who abandon their friends are worse than scum." His dad would be proud.