Synopsis: Naruto never asked for this... creature. He never asked to be marked as the vessel of a genocidal beast. What he definitely didn't ask for was to be tormented for a large part of his childhood for something that even he wasn't responsible for. That's why he snapped.
To become a Hokage? That's merely a part of his plan. What he plans is to rid his village of the human filth that tormented him for so long. A reform, where blood shall be plenty, and deaths common.
Disclaimer: What if I omit the disclaimer? What if? This entire website has a blanket disclaimer, already, so why should I waste my time trying to write a "funny" and "original" disclaimer just to show that I'm not boring? However, I'm not taking any chances. I've taken a liking to this story, and thus I'll try and protect it from the big bad people up in Studio Pierrot. At any rate, I don't own Naruto, except for that one copy of Naruto Shippuden: Clash of Ninja Revolution 3 that I bought for my birthday. I legitimately own that copy, and frankly, it's the only thing I've ever owned relating to Naruto.
Chapter 3
Journey to the land of the waves
An assassin by the name of Zabuza
"An assassin is but a killer unseen, and
thus, a seen assassin is but a shy killer"
-Falsk Feykneim, a totally real guy (I didn't make this quote up)
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In front of them and his teacher, he dumped both the assailant's heads. Sakura's heart leaped at the grotesque display, while Kakashi acknowledged simply that Naruto had done the deed. Sasuke had no real reaction other than admiration for the boy's pragmatism.
"Mr. Tazuna, we're going to have to rediscuss the terms of this mission," said Naruto in an authoritative tone of voice. Tazuna sighed, knowing that it would come to this. The only question was when. Sadly, it had to be now.
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Kakashi had, in the nick of time, evaded the coordinated attack of the Demon brothers of the village hidden in the mist: Meizu and Gozu. He used a substitution technique where he substituted himself with a log, but as a result, he was taken quite far from the battle. Had it not been for the two boys present, Tazuna could very well have been killed.
That was, however, where the issue lay. Tazuna was, from the get-go, targeted. It wasn't until Naruto confirmed it as he interrogated one of the brothers that they were, indeed, both men sent by the shipping magnate himself, Gatou Yanai.
"If I understood correctly, these fine gentlemen," began Naruto as he pointed at the heads that lay before his feet. "Were actually going to kill you, and to make matters worse, it was because Gatou had hired them". Tazuna looked down in half-shame and half-anticipation of what was coming. He had hoped that he could keep his charade until they arrived in the city, where he could do his best to convince the Leaf village ninja to continue aiding him.
"Unfortunately, they're both ninja, if their tactics, chakra or headbands was any indication. Fortunately, they weren't too strong, so the difficulty of this mission would rise to B at best. Of course, you know what that means, right?" he continued. Kakashi felt the need to continue Naruto's speech.
"According to the rules, a shinobi is allowed to opt out of the mission if the mission difficulty was fabricated, but if we continue and complete the mission, you are indebted to us, depending on the final difficulty that the mission carried, plus an additional fine of five hundred thousand Ryo," he said. Tazuna didn't budge. Instead, he displayed his intentions in a clear light.
"Alright. I'm guilty. However, I have already poured my heart out. There's nothing more you need to know about our plight, anyhow. It's up to you, now, to choose whether you'd still want to help me out," said Tazuna. Sakura interjected.
"If anything, I'd gladly still be of help," she said. Naruto hadn't known that their mission was going to become this volatile, but he loved the prospect of meeting new opponents.
"I'd gladly continue the mission," said Naruto. The old man stared intently at Sasuke, but he had simply crossed his arms in contemplation.
"It'd be quite an experience if I do say so myself," said Kakashi. "However, if Sasuke doesn't want to continue, we have no choice but to go home. We either complete the mission as a team, or we don't do it at all," he warned. Sasuke caved in.
"Fine, whatever," he said. The old man was relieved that they were all so willing to help him, and any trace of him being touched was skillfully masked by his laissez-faire attitude.
"I still have a question, though. How come you couldn't just pay for a B-ranked mission?" asked Naruto curiously.
"Our country is very impoverished. Even our nobles have too little money to spend. The common people that work on this bridge together with me don't have enough money to pay for a B-ranked mission. Even so, we sought help from you, knowing that the situation might escalate into the scope of a B-ranked mission or higher. And to that, I truly apologize. It was not my intention that any of you would come to any harm, but your strength has assured me that such an occurrence might not be possible," he stated. Naruto nodded but refused to follow the matter any further.
The rest of the journey was spent with double the haste. Tazuna had requested that they hurry up, lest his family came to any harm. Most likely it had been spurred by Naruto's grotesque display of violence and callousness that got him hurrying. If only a child could be that horrifying, the man had a lot to worry about. He was reasonably anxious, but his old visage did a lot to hide his obvious worry. Between breaks, Sasuke and Sakura continued training with Naruto, who had taught them chakra control techniques.
They had learned a lot for the past two weeks doing missions. Between the hours when Kakashi would be late, they utilized the time in training. Sakura had a natural affinity for chakra control, most likely due to her minuscule chakra reserve, which was, due to her intense training, actually expanding. While Sasuke was still mastering the techniques, his chakra outmatched Sakura's by far. This caused him great difficulty as he attempted controlling his chakra.
Sakura had already mastered tree-walking completely. She was moderate in grass-walking but tended to run out of chakra quite rapidly when water-walking. Sasuke had more than enough chakra for the task, but his control was lacking. As a result, he was lagging behind Sakura severely. When Sasuke finally mastered tree-walking, Sakura had already moved from grass-walking to water-walking. This only fueled the boy's anger. He spent a disproportionate amount of hours doing these training drills.
Of course, it was only a matter of time before their sensei, Kakashi, caught on to his students' abnormal growth in strength, especially when he hadn't administered any training regimen at the moment. The Jonin had then taken it upon himself to spy on the trio, effectively gathering that Naruto was teaching his teammates the subtle art of chakra control. Kakashi reminisced on what the Hokage had told him back then before he became the Team 7 sensei.
"Are you sure you want to teach this..." continued the Hokage as he waved a hand in disbelief at the pictures of the trio that were spread on his desk. "abomination of a team?" asked the Hokage in bafflement. "On the left, we have Sasuke Uchiha, the survivor of the Uchiha massacre. Almost the top of his class and he has already taught himself a basic ninjutsu! On the right, we have the genius of her class, Sakura Haruno. She is the de facto top of her class. On the middle, Naruto Uzumaki... First of all, I still have to ask you. Are these results mixed up with another student's?" asked the Hokage in pure disbelief. The silver-haired ninja sat comfortably on his chair, listening to the leader of the village.
"We can assure you that Naruto did score those marks. I've already gotten it confirmed by Iruka-sensei of the academy. And to answer your question, yes. As a matter of fact, I do believe that I'm the only one capable of handling this team," replied Kakashi with his leg crossed.
"Hmph... Naruto purposefully lowered his marks. He's no fool. Ever since I gave him access to my personal library, the boy's been nothing short of a genius. Whether he was seeking the affection of Sakura or gravitated towards the Uchiha who'd have quite a few things in common with him, the point still stands. And Kakashi, don't let your hubris cloud your judgment," he advised as he puffed some smoke from his pipe.
"I implore you not to rearrange the team. Despite the obvious power difference between team 7 and other teams, these students complement each other's abilities, which is the desired factor in deciding team arrangments," he paused for a moment. "But Naruto must have something in store, either way, and I feel inclined to see the outcome, and besides, I'd love to see the power of Konoha's Jinchuriki," said Kakashi, in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.
"Well... you are one of the strongest Jonin present who could become their sensei. If anyone, it's you who deserves the spot," he conceded as he stroked his goatee. "I trust you," he mumbled. A few seconds passes before Kakashi continued.
"If I'm not mistaken, Naruto aims to become a hokage, right? I mean, as his father is Minato Namikaze, it is his birth-right to inherit his father's will, no?" asks Kakashi in a casual tone of voice.
"Naruto is the descendant of that man, but every similarity afterward ceases there. I have no doubt that Naruto would make an... autocratic Hokage. This village does need some autocracy on a certain level," he let his remark float for a moment. "Naruto's got a noble ambition, but his philosophy is twisted. His end result involves ensuring this village's prosperity and general happiness, but he'd go to any length to see it through," he mused. "Naruto's the only logical choice at the moment. Despite his age, I would be more comfortable entrusting this village to him than to that wretched Danzo,". He faces upwards as he blows the smoke.
Kakashi had expected that Naruto was an above average shinobi, but for him to have thought of his team's strength before his own... no. His motivation was surely based on his own will to grow in strength. After all, a ninja team is only as good as it's weakest link. That particular lesson was always drilled into every aspiring shinobi's skulls. If he wishes to grow in strength, he needs strong teammates.
At any rate, Kakashi could relax, now, knowing that he had a trusty student to do his job for him. If anything, he was even more inclined to laze around, not worrying about training his team until it's absolutely necessary.
Naruto had been traveling with his team for three days, now. The journey was, for the most part, eventless, much to Naruto's chagrin. He'd hoped to experience another fight before not long, anyways, and the recent turn of events had bored him. He still had a team to train, though, so it was all well for him. Sasuke had learned to transform his chakra into the fire element long ago. He used his fireball technique a lot more efficiently, now that he has more experience with chakra control. Sakura had yet to learn any great techniques. Naruto had made it a mental note to gift her some Yin release scrolls that she could learn from. Her chakra reserve was minuscule, but her chakra control was by far outmatched, even against Naruto's. She'd make a legendary medical-nin if she applied herself properly, but more importantly, she would make a competent teammate.
Most of the journey through the forests of the Land of Fire was done with haste. Naruto and Sasuke had been forced to carry the old man on their backs in turns as he was too slow to keep up with the Leaf ninjas' inhuman pace. When he said 'double the haste', his escorts certainly perceived it differently. As a result, they arrived close to the shore separating them from the once-great Land of Waves. What's more was that it was early at dawn, just before the sunrise. From their field of view, they could spot a bridge which was on the brink of being completed, if it wasn't for a huge gap separating both ends.
From their field of view, they could spot a bridge which was on the brink of being completed, if it wasn't for a huge gap separating both ends. Tazuna's bridge thought Naruto. Indeed it was. Tazuna managed to signal a ferryman nearby such that they could cross the lake safely. Although there was little that could stump four ninja from simply walking or swimming over, Tazuna had enough of the indignant piggy-backs he was forced into due to circumstance. The ferryman arrived swiftly and took off even swifter.
"Tazuna, are these the ninja that you hired?" he asked in a hushed voice.
"Yes, what of it?" replied the old man in a casual voice, not bothering to pipe down.
"Thank the gods, we will be able to complete the bridge now, won't we?" he asked, jovially. Tazuna huffed in an annoyed voice.
"It's too early to celebrate, youngling. Pop the sake bottles only until we finish our task," he replied. After a pause, the man replied.
"Anyways, old man. You're in early! You were supposed to come in four days, or at least that's what you said," he noted. Tazuna couldn't reply to the man as he shuddered. The indignation he had experienced from being carried by two boys almost one-fifth his age was too much to have been washed off so quickly. At any rate, he was glad that his haste had proven to have been fruitful. Gatou wouldn't expect him this early, and neither would any other mercenary or assassin he sends the old man's way.
"Nevermind that! Just keep rowin'!" he yelled. The man, flustered as he was, began rowing even quicker. Tazuna had taken a deep breath and let it out in relief.
"Thanks. I mean that to all of ya," said the old bridge builder as he looked down at his feet. "I can't even begin to show you my appreciation. If all goes well, the incoming commerce will surely allow me to pay ya lot off," he almost mumbled. Kakashi was engrossed in his novel while Sakura simply looked outwards at the horizon, appreciating the rising sun. Both Sasuke and Naruto sat still, enjoying the scenery. Kakashi looked up at what the man said.
"Hm? Ah, the payment needs to be done within two months. If the payment won't be made, bad things might happen," taunted the sensei in a joke full voice. The old man simply grunted.
"Surprisingly, I don't even want to know what that entails. As for you three children, thank you for protecting me thus far," he continued thanking the genin team. Naruto looked towards the old man giving a ghost of a smile.
"Don't sweat it, Mr. Tazuna. It's just the job of a ninja, that's all," exclaimed Sakura enthusiastically. Both the old man and Sakura giggled in good spirits. All in all, their mission didn't seem quite dangerous thus far.
"Tsunami! Tsunami!" yelled Tazuna from the front of his house. The ninja team stood assembled with him. They were waiting for Tazuna's only daughter, Tsunami, to open the door. The inside sounded like a tornado. God's knew what was happening inside.
"Coming, father!" she yelled from inside the house. Despite them being separated by walls, her voice was almost too audible. A few seconds later came the young woman. She opened the door for Tazuna and the rest to step inside as she bowed to her visitors.
"I am so sorry if the house looks like a pig's sty. It's just..." she paused before throwing a mean glare at the old man. "Somebody didn't tell me that he'd arrive so early," she spat bitterly. "Oh, well. At any rate, make yourselves at home, ninja of the Hidden Leaf!" she exclaimed almost too enthusiastically. Their early arrival had obviously thrown the girl off somewhat, which could explain the entire awkwardness of this whole encounter.
"Anyways, let my daughter show you to your rooms. You must need some sleep after tirelessly bringing me all the way from the Hidden Leaf to here," he bragged. The four were directed to their rooms, but before that, they encountered the son of Tsunami, Inari.
"What are you guys doing here? You'll die!" yelled the boy distraughtly. Inari's mother, Tsunami grabbed hold of the child before pulling him out of the way angrily.
"Inari, that is no way to talk to our guests! Apologize!" she yells. The boy wouldn't show any remorse.
"Why should I? All they'll do here is die! Heroes don't exist!" he screamed as he ran away in tears. The mother shook her head as she held a palm to her forehead.
"I am so sorry for all that. Don't mind him, he's had a rough time," she apologized. The rest of the team waved it off like it was nothing much.
"Leave him be, people. Just go on ahead to your bedrooms. The young girl will share her room with my daughter while the rest'll bunk with me," he ordered. The ninja team continued on and found their respective beds to catch up with some lost hours of sleep. Their rest didn't last long before Kakashi rose his head from his pillow abnormally quickly, startling both the boys slightly. He signed a brief message with his hand. The message read Danger nearby; Jonin level. Short and concise, the sign language was built for brevity and subtlety. Both the boys nodded in understanding. Whatever the case, they had agreed to protect Tazuna. Sasuke darted out the room and took to the nearby balcony such that he could climb atop a rooftop. He could finally feel the incoming foe. The chakra he felt startled him as it was abnormally potent. He felt it, though, and he did his best to calculate when he would arrive.
While he did this, Naruto sat perched atop a treetop not far away from the house, where he'd gained a good vantage point over both the house and the forest it was facing to its front, past the docks. Kakashi had roused Sakura awake and briefed her on the details. Sakura left the room quickly and sat on another treetop opposite Naruto's, thus having triangulated the house together with her teammates. The enemy was only one according to her chakra sense, and because of this, she was at a slight ease. Kakashi formed the center of the triangle. Suddenly, a mist formed. It was a thick mist, and the way it was formed was unnatural. The water almost surrounding the house suddenly started steaming. The mist rose from the nearby lake slowly, and when it reached a high enough altitude, the mist spread out across the soon-to-be battlefield with the new arrival. The unknown foe slipped through the three genin's expanded triangle with ease, little to any of their concerns. There he stood face to face with Kakashi.
The man had bandages around his mouth, covering his lower face, almost mirroring Kakashi's style. What was most significant with him, though, was the large, pillar-looking sword he held at his back, despite him making no sound. What could be observed from his eyes was an intense glare.
"My target of assassination is behind you. I suggest you move... now," growled the assassin ominously.
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," he responded. "Team!" he yelled. "Triangulate the house. I'll tend to the new arrival," he stated, shortly. As the two figures leaped from their trees, the assassin was ready to intercept them. He leaped upwards and would have captured one of the genin if it wasn't for their sensei, who appeared right in front of the assassin, a kunai ready in his hands. They struck both their kunai at the same time, pushing each other back from the force of the encounter. Both the ninja landed deftly and faced each other once again.
Kakashi only prayed that his team had evacuated the bridge-builder in time, while the assassin's eyes glared lividly at the sensei.
"Kakashi of the Sharingan, huh? You're in my bingo book," he muttered in a half-whisper.
"Zabuza Momochi, I take it. A missing-nin of the village hidden in the mist? Whatever it may be, you won't be able to fulfill your mission, and if it comes to it, I'll personally see to it that you die," he replied.
"We'll see," he muttered before dashing towards the sensei at an unbelievable speed, striking hard with his kunai. Kakashi, with his inhuman reflexes, managed to draw his own knife and parry the oncoming blows, each parry conducted fluidly and precisely. Zabuza kicked backward, away from the leaf shinobi, before reaching to his back to draw his giant sword.
"Consider yourself lucky. Few have made me draw my Kubikiribōchō. Today I've made an exception," he stated proudly, wielding the giant blade, pointing it upwards as he held it with one arm.
"I'm flattered," replied Kakashi sarcastically. The assassin quickly pointed the blade backward as he dashed forwards, slashing the sword downwards vertically. Kakashi held his kunai upwards such that he could parry the blade, but the moment the blade touched the kunai, the small knife began splitting. Kakashi, in the nick of time, used a substitution Jutsu such that he could avoid the sure-kill blow. He appeared behind Zabuza, stabbing him in the back, but to Kakashi's surprise, what leaked from the wound was water. Kakashi quickly looked backward to see the real Zabuza, attempting a stab with his own kunai. Kakashi parried the kunai strike, which both pushed them backward, further away from each other.
"Unfortunately, I can't afford to drag this battle out any longer," announced Kakashi before pushing his headband upwards, thus uncovering his left eye, which was revealed to be a Sharingan eye.
"And neither can I. This ends here, Kakashi," declared Zabuza, sheathing his blade, once again. Zabuza was preparing to unleash a flurry of hand seals before Naruto suddenly appeared next to Kakashi, inexplicably.
"The bridge builder's been taken out for lunch with his family. The house is empty," said Naruto, deliberately filling his speech with double-meanings. Kakashi, not even bothering to look to his side, simply nodded in acknowledgment. Naruto then prepared to return to where he came from. With a swift body flicker, he took off, but not before Zabuza pursued him. His pursuit, however, was cut short by a kunai blocking his path. The kunai was held by Kakashi, as swift as ever. Zabuza, startled by the move, jumped backward, away from the kunai and faced his enemy once again.
"I suggest you don't go after him. Your fight is with me, and besides..." Kakashi paused for a second. "That particular genin would actually be able to kill you," he stated.
"Kill me? In his eyes, I saw darkness, yes. He's no ordinary genin, but do you really... even for a second think that he could kill me?!" he exclaimed in raw anger. A split second afterward, the assassin raced through a series of quick hand seals and unleashed a water dragon Jutsu, but fortunately, Kakashi, with his own Sharingan, mirrored the movements almost simultaneously. Kakashi's own water dragon Jutsu clashed with Zabuza's in a collision of serpentine water dragons. Zabuza's eye twitched for a second.
"So... this is the power of the Sharingan? A battle of attrition it is, then," he announced. He raced through his own hand seals again, but this time paying attention to Kakashi's own movement. To his utter shock, Kakashi mirrored his movements almost perfectly. He stopped the hand seals and began running circularly, and stopped abruptly. Kakashi followed suit nigh perfectly. He tried an obscure stance, which Kakashi followed almost completely.
"Kakashi, you bastard...!" he muttered almost silently. "Fine, then. No hand seals, it is," he whispered to himself. He summoned half a dozen water clones, who all charged at Kakashi simultaneously. Kakashi was surprised by the sudden change in tactics and was thus pushed back by the onslaught of attacks from the weaker water clones. After handling every water clone, the real Zabuza charged inwards with a double palm strike, which Kakashi blocked expertly, evening out the impact throughout his body, but unfortunately for him, he was launched backwards, towards the lake, which he landed on deftly, activating his water walking technique the moment he made contact with the water surface.
"You're in my world, now, Kakashi!" yelled Zabuza from fifty yards away, but he cut the distance short in a split second with an incredible dash. He managed to get close enough to Kakashi because he was still reeling from the double palm strike, and activated his water prison Jutsu. Water began covering the silver-haired ninja, keeping him enclosed and unable to move at all.
"You're dead!" he exclaimed. Zabuza couldn't move with the water prison Jutsu, so he created a water clone to finish the task. The water clone materialized and drew its own kubikiribôchô. The giant blade was held high, but the moment it began flying downwards, the clone was impaled from the back of its head by a flying kunai, dispelling the clone instantly. Around twenty yards behind the denatured clone stood the blond genin, with a smug smirk plastered on his face.
"Make all the clones you want. I'll kill'em just as fast. And then I'll kill you, ya know, unless you release my sensei," he stated, sending a small shiver down Zabuza's spine, but he regained heart just as quickly. "I believe the term I should be using when in this particular situation is... check mate?" he joked, which angered Zabuza even more.
"Come and get me, brat!" yelled the disgruntled assassin.
"I'll oblige," replied Naruto, who closed the distance one step after another. Zabuza only realized his situation a few seconds later, seeing the full depth of the boy's strength. With each and every step, he realized just how fast he could be killed, in his current defenseless state. He considered letting go of Kakashi, but realized just how much face he could lose. Could he ever let himself get over it if he cowered before a boy a third his own age, who hadn't even done anything, to begin with?
With each and every step, Zabuza's heart rate rose. He realized what he needed to do. If he were to live, he needed to let go of Kakashi and wait for another chance to strike, this time with his comrade. He prepared to let his right arm dispell the Jutsu. Naruto caught on to this, and dashed forwards, a kunai at the ready. Both their faces were inches away from each other.
"See you in hell," said Naruto, before going for a slash to the assassin's neck. What came right before, however, were two senbon needles seven inches long, which flew right into Zabuza's neck, causing him to drop, sinking straight through the water as he could no longer keep himself afloat. Naruto paused and looked towards the area in which the senbon was thrown. Atop a tree stood a masked ninja with a long braid. The ninja jumped upwards, towards the lake, and made a swan-dive straight downwards, after the sunken assassin. Moments later, the ninja resurfaced, carrying the very much dead assassin, Zabuza Momochi. Naruto grabbed hold of the ninja's shoulder.
"And who the hell do you think you are?" he asked, blood boiling with anger. The ninja looked back slowly, before turning around to face Naruto, but the blond hardly lets go of the ninja's shoulder.
"I am a hunter-nin of the Hidden Mist, and that's all you need to know about me, other than that this fellow is a missing ninja, and it's my duty to destroy him lest our village secrets are leaked," replied the androgynous hunter-nin. Naruto fastened the clench on the hunter-nin's shoulder, but Kakashi reached for Naruto's arm and patted it gently.
"Let it go, Naruto. Let the hunter-nin do his job," said Kakashi sternly. Naruto didn't release his hold.
"He was my target. I was just about to kill him, or in other words, do your job," persisted Naruto. The hunter-nin obliged the blond further by continuing to talk.
"It would be a dishonor to have a missing-nin from our own village to be killed by an opposing village such as the hidden leaf. Now if you'll excuse me," attempted the hunter-nin. Naruto lets go of his shoulder and allowed him to walk a few meters forward. The hunter-nin crouched down, preparing for the body flicker technique, but was cut short by another comment by Naruto.
"An awfully unorthodox way of assassinating someone, right sensei? I mean... senbon needles to the neck?" asked Naruto to Kakashi, but spoke in a manner which allowed the hunter-nin to overhear him.
"I have to agree on that one facet, but you can't begin to accuse anyone based on that, now can you?" continued Kakashi. The hunter-nin almost triggered the body flicker technique but was cut short by Naruto, who held the crouching hunter-nin down with a hand to his shoulder.
"I don't think we're done here, 'hunter-nin'," Naruto sounded the last phrase sarcastically.
"I'll have to ask you to back off, leaf-ninja, if not I'll be forced to attack you," ordered the hunter-nin, who was clearly angered.
"Sensei, aren't hunter-nin usually in squads? How come this one came alone?" asked Naruto teasingly. Kakashi began genuinely wondering.
"Naruto... you do have a point," he pauses for a second before approaching the hunter-nin. "Let me investigate a little," he muttered as he water-walked towards the hunter-nin. The hunter-nin quickly reached for his kunai, attempting a slash at the hand that was pinning him down. It was too fast for Naruto to avoid, earning him a hefty slash running through his palm, almost chopping it off if it wasn't for Naruto's reflexes. The young blond staggered for a second before reaching for his own kunai with his left hand, letting his healing factor take care of the slash, aided by his nine-tails chakra. Kakashi dashed towards the offending hunter-nin with his kunai, but with a swift body-flicker, the ninja disappeared.
"Not on my fucking watch," muttered Naruto silently to himself, charging for a dash towards the hunter-nin. With a quick dash, he caught up to the offending hunter-nin quickly. He jumped from a nearby tree branch and tackled the hunter-nin swiftly, causing him to fall along with his luggage. The hunter-nin shook Zabuza's body off of him and unleashed a flurry of senbon needles directed at Naruto. Naruto summoned a group of clones in front of him and substituted them for logs, making it such that the shuriken hit logs instead of clones. The clones were placed atop of trees due to the substitution technique. They rained down, armed with their kunai and explosive tags, in a bid to suicide-bomb their target.
The hunter-nin raced through a series of different hand seals before announcing his Jutsu.
"Ice release: Ice Rock Dome of Magnificent Nothingness!" he yelled, materializing a dome of ice surrounding both him and Zabuza. The clones hit the dome and let their explosive tags explode, but the dome didn't leave a single scratch. "And... Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!" he announced, melting the ice dome, but conjuring a multitude of mirrors arranged circularly, and stacked upwards. Naruto stood within the circle of mirrors, along with the hunter-nin and Zabuza. The hunter-nin jumped in through a single mirror and his reflection was seen throughout all mirrors.
"I'll end this immediately," he muttered silently to himself. He shot through one of the mirrors that stood behind Naruto, going for a flanking attack, and landing a senbon at his leg. Naruto grunted in pain and pulled out the senbon quickly. The hunter-nin released scores more senbon needles at Naruto, who was still shocked at what this technique even entailed, and was caught off-guard, much to the offending hunter-nin's benefit. The so-called hunter-nin obviously wasn't intending on drawing the battle out any longer than it needed to be, so he summoned his own squad of ice clones, designated to counter Naruto for as long as possible. The hunter-nin released the demonic mirrors and picked up Zabuza with haste, and dashed away along with two genjutsu pairs of himself and Zabuza, throwing Naruto, whom had already defeated the ice clones but was still recovering from the severe senbon wounds he was inflicted. Naruto, trying to attain a calm state, realized that the offending hunter-nin had succeeded in escaping for now. Not a moment after his escape, the silver-haired sensei arrived.
"I take it he managed to escape," summarized Kakashi using the obvious evidence that stood before him.
"If he wasn't so damn bent on getting away, I might have gotten him," lamented Naruto almost silently, staring at the ground in seething anger. "No... I just wasn't strong enough," he spat, in a toxic tone. Kakashi, sensing that there would be no more fighting that day, pulled his headband down, covering his Sharingan eye, once again.
Kakashi ignored the boy's complaints and simply ordered him to return to Tazuna's residence, along with him. A minute later, team 7 regrouped in front of the bridge builder's house.
"What happened to the assassin?" asked Sasuke in his trademark monotonous tone. Sasuke stood next to Sakura, who was holding a kunai tightly, still shaken up by the encounter, despite her not being there.
"Fucker got away, along with his buddy," spat Naruto, not bothering to mask his obvious anger. Kakashi rolled his eyes, exasperated.
"What Naruto meant to say was that the assassin got away with what a person that was most likely an accomplice of his, masquerading as a hunter-nin. He would have gotten away scot-free if it wasn't for Naruto's detective work, too," he stated, congratulating the blond on a low key. Sakura felt a mild sense of apprehension at the boy's anger, not daring to look him in the eyes for even a second, but Sasuke was indifferent.
"Doesn't matter anymore. What's done is done," admitted Naruto, momentarily after Kakashi's speech. Kakashi debriefed the three genin on the bridge builder's evacuation.
"And what became of the bridge builder and his family?" he asked. Sasuke took the initiative to answer.
"They were secured in a nearby town inn. All three of us were guarding it at the same time, so security was tight," summarized Sasuke, indifferently.
"Great. Now, for the rest of the mission, we'll take turns in guarding the bridge builder as he finishes his bridge. While waiting, I suggest you all continue your training, especially you, Sakura," he suggested, provoking a shocked reaction from the pink-haired kunoichi. Both the boys remained indifferent, though. Naruto was still calming down, but Sasuke simply didn't care.
"You... knew we were training behind your back?" she asked incredulously. Kakashi simply nodded shortly before drawing his erotic pocket novel and began reading it.
A/N:
I finally finished my two scientific essays (And a shitload of other assignments (even though they were two or more days overdue)) and I'm so sorry for the late update.
I have bullshitted through so much of my school work just so I could get a solitary hour of solid sleep, and frankly, writing the fic really wasn't that far ahead on my priorities list. But then I thought of the twenty or so beautiful souls out there, all over the world, who gave me the pleasure of following my story. I couldn't retire it just yet. I still have a story to tell, a story which Kishimoto Masashi surely will sue me for, since it'll overshadow his own work. (not so humble brag)
But in all honesty, thanks for still following my story, and as always, reviews are LOVE. *mwah*
Also, please, please, please! Please just tell me the things you DON'T like about my fic. I just can't bear having this weird feeling of unease that something cringy that I wrote is on the internet, so please just tell me what's wrong with my fic on the reviews so I'll be able to better my writing.
