Better Equipped

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

: Thoughts

Chapter 5 – The Great Naruto Bridge

Kiba and Hinata seemed to be doing very well in their training that Kakashi thought they were now able to protect Tazuna at the bridge. With three of his students their, he wouold have a chance to read his book. Unfortunately, Naruto decided to stay behind so that he could sleep in a bit more after having breakfast. As the next morning came, Tazuna, Kakashi, Kiba, and Hinata left to the bridge. The Genins were excited since they haven't seen the bridge since they came to the village. From what Tazuna said, the bridge was almost finished.

A few minutes later, two samurais barged in the house.

The f#k? They came right when I'm still eating breakfast?

"Hey, don't barge in here like you own the place," Naruto stated. "Say, if you are here, does that mean Zabuza is attacking at the bridge today?"

"We're not telling you!" said the samurai with the hat. "You must be one of those loser ninjas that Tazuna hired."

Inari ran on to the room when he heard the loud commotion. He then saw two big goons with swords. "What are you doing here?"

"We came here for the lady of the house," said the same samurai. He was a bit more educated than his partner. "She's your mother right? Tell her to come out so we don't have to use force."

Inari got scared. The kid looked at Naruto who didn't seem to pay attention to the situation. "Naruto, aren't you going to do something?"

"I thought you said that we're all going to lose anyhow so why try right? So let it be and leave me to eat in peace before we all die."

At this time, Inari's mother also came out. "What is the meaning of this? Who are you people?"

The samurais quickly came towards her and grabbed her hands.

Inari stared in shock. Replay of his father's death kept playing in his mind. He felt so hopeless about how he wasn't able to do anything for his father. Thinking about what Naruto had told him, he really needs to work up some confidence and stand up for himself. If not, his mother would be taken away from him too. Inari suddenly charged at the samurais but was knocked down. This time when he got up, he looked around the room to find a weapon that could help him. He saw a kitchen knife on the table and grabbed it. Before he had a chance to charge at the kidnappers again, they stopped him and told how they will kill his mom if he tried anything. This time, Inari really felt like there was no hope in the world.

"I'm very proud of you Inari," said his mother. "You finally showed some courage. Keep it up okay?" With that said, she took out two kunais and twirl around twice between her captors. The sword dance she displayed was graceful and deadly. Several deep cuts were made on the samurais and made the lose balance from the pain. She then shot to web lines from each hand at their heads and pulled. She moved away from the center and let the samurais get into a head collision.

"It was great being tall." With a poof of smoke Inari changed into Naruto and then dispersed after waving to Inari.

"What just happened," the young boy asked. He then saw his mother entered the room. "Mom? You're okay!"

Inari's mom nodded to her son. "Naruto came into my room and told me what was happening. He then turned into me and came out."

"While you were busy talking to the samurais, I created a Kage Bushin and pretended to be your mom so it would lower the enemies' guard," Naruto stated. "A hero usually acts during the last minute." He chuckled a bit. "It looks like you understand your father now and what he represents." He saw that the boy was about to cry. "It's alright to cry now because you are happy. You are now the heart of the village. Bring some courage to them ok? Hand me some rope so I could tie them up. Cool, free swords!"

Naruto was traveling as fast as he could. He channeled chakra into his legs so he could sprint faster.

Kiba and Akamaru were both stuck inside Haku's Makyou Hyoushou (Demonic Ice Mirrors Formation). Their opponent was just too fast for them. They never got a chance to use any jutsu inside since it always gets interrupted by Haku's ice needles.

Hinata was protecting Tazuna alone while Kakashi was squared off with Zabuza.

Zabuza attacked Tazuna by launching some kunais, which were deflected by Kakashi.

Tazuna noticed that the female ninja of the group was getting worried for her other teammate who is trapped inside the ice dome. He then told her it will be okay if she wanted to check on him. After seeing that she shook her head 'no', he reminded her of her duties. "You are supposed to protect me right? Which means that wherever I go, you must follow. If I wanted to check on your teammate, you would be obliged to come with me."

"Thank you Tazuna-san" said Hinata. She then followed him towards Kiba.

Where are you Naruto-kun?

As Hinata gotten there with Tazuna, she noticed that both Kiba and Akamaru were lying on the ground. Kiba had several needles plunging onto him. Some even went through the body. A lot of blood was on the ground which formed around Kiba.

"Go save them. The bridge is almost completed. The bridge wouldn't be completed as much if it weren't for Naruto's help so I owe him. You both are his teammates so I don't want either one of you to get hurt."

Hinata wasn't sure if she could take on the masked boy alone. Kiba whom she believed was stronger than her failed to win, so what could she do. She then remembered all the times Naruto cheered her on and told her to be more confident. "Byakugan!"

She withdrew two kunais and aimed it at two different ice mirrors but Haku went out and deflects the weapons at incredible speeds. It was like he was at two places at once. She then gotten two more kunais from her pouch and secretly wrapped explosive tags that Naruto gave her last night on them. She also got two shurikens out. She threw the shurikens and made it so that they would separate and hit the ice mirrors from different sides of the dome. She then immediately threw the two kunais towards the ground, inches away from the mirror. As Haku appeared to block the second shuriken, Hinata activated the tags. The result was a loud boom and half of the ice dome had been destroyed.

Not wanting her enemy to have the time to rebuild the dome, Hinata went into action. "Kiba-kun, please look after Tazuna-san!" Using her newfound speed she gotten through training with Naruto, she attacked Haku using Juuken, her clan's Gentle Fist style.

Haku regains his composure and sent a number of ice needles at the girl. Her eyes are not normal, he thought.

Seeing the incoming needles, Hinata began to release chakra from her body and spin. "Hakkeshou Kaiten!" The needles were knocked away from her attack. She then stopped spinning and grabbed the needles that were idly in the air before hitting the ground. She took the ice needles and threw it back to its owner and was disappointed that the boy evaded it.

Tazuna stared in shock as he watched Hinata spun around with a trail of blue energy. She managed to block the enemy's attack but also damaged the bridge by forming a crater.

Haku decided to bring the combat closer to the girl and hoped she wasn't skilled in taijutsu.

A smile came to Hinata's face upon seeing that her opponent was coming towards her. She quickly made the first attack as soon as her opponent got closer. See aimed for all the crucial chakra points within the body as Naruto instructed her. She sent her chakra from her hands into Haku's body damaging his internal chakra system. She would attack his arms when he made swings at her. She would attack his legs whenever he kicks. When he didn't make any motions, she attacked his body.

Kiba had just woken up from his short unconsciousness. His eyes widen as he saw how Hinata fought. Her shy nature was completely gone and it seems like she was winning. Is this the results of Naruto's training, he asked himself. He shucks his head to bring some oxygen in. He had also gotten stronger from Kakashi's training so it wasn't like he was left behind. He finally heard Akamaru barking at him telling him that Hinata asked him to look after Tazuna who was left unguarded. He understood.

Haku knew he was in a jam. He made a very bad decision wanting to fight this girl in close quarters. Every hit she made hurts even when she didn't touch him. Even when he dashed away from her, she managed to follow him. This isn't good if this keeps up, he thought. He then concentrated all the chakra he had left and ran away from Hinata.

The heir to the Hyuuga Clan couldn't believe how fast the boy was. She didn't even see him move. Her Byakugan told her that his chakra system was damaged and he wouldn't be able to use chakra effectively for awhile.

The fight between Kakashi and Zabuza were not as active. The two high rank ninjas waited for a chance to attack the other. Ninjas were supposed to surprise their opponents and use jutsus when the other isn't looking. That is the basic principal of being a shinobi. Kakashi got serious a revealed his Sharingan to Zabuza. The Missing-Nin of the Mist however explained that Haku had figured out a way to fight against that bloodline ability. Making a set of seals, Zabuza summoned a heavy fog around the area which quickly became a nuisance to the Sharingan user.

Being a master of the silent kill, Zabuza concentrated on hearing Kakashi's movement. After zooming in on his opponent's whereabouts, he dashed in with his huge sword.

Kakashi saw Zabuza a second too late and got slashed in the chest. Luckily he avoided the attack at the last minute but still received a flesh wound. He went back on alert after seeing that Zabuza hid himself again. No one could actually see it but he was smiling beneath his mask.

Chunnins and Jounins of all Hidden Villages wears special designed vest that enables them to carry many ninja tools. Kakashi opened up a pocket and took out a scroll. He waved it around gracefully and slides his thumb across the scroll with the blood dripping from his chest. The blood on the scroll along with the hand seals he made activates the jutsu he prepared for these types of situations.

"Looks like our Hinata is an equal match for your boy Zabuza. You underestimated us too greatly."

"It does look like I have, didn't I?"

"Hinata is a from the Main House of Konoha's noble family, the Hyuuga Clan."

"Hyuuga?" Zabuza asked in surprise.

"Kiba and Akamaru are from the Inuzuka Clan. Although he ranked the lowest in the academy, he's the most arrogant Genin in the Leaf Village."

"And what's so special about being arrogant."

"Absolutely nothing."

Kiba sneezed. Is someone talking behind my back, he asked himself.

"The final member of our team is Uzumaki Naruto. He's the number one rookie of this year's class. You faced him before."

"That blond brat that hit me into the lake?"

"Enough chit-chat…let's finished this soon Zabuza."

"And how are you going to do that when you don't know where I am? I on the other hand know exactly where you are Copy Ninja Kakashi. Don't forget that I am a master of the silent kills."

The ground around Zabuza started to shake and dogs began appearing everywhere. The dogs were summoned by Kakashi. They were able to track the enemy from its owner's blood scent that is on Zabuza's sword. Each dog bites a part of Zabuza, immobilizing him.

"Your ambitions were too great," Kakashi told Zabuza. You threw away this town's hope when you align yourself with Gatou." He then made another hand seal. "Chidori! You are too dangerous to leave unchecked. You were going to destroy this town's courage with your greed. A ninja is not supposed to put their needs above others. Surrender now!"

"I fight for my own ideals and that will never change."

"Your future is death."

Naruto had watched everything that happened unnoticed. Hinata was doing so well that he was afraid he would stop her growth if he interfered. But it looked like it was now time for him to intervene before it was too late. Gather chakra to his legs again, he ran towards Haku. As he got there, he saw that the innocent boy was in the middle of performing hand seal to teleport himself to save his master. But before Haku had a chance to finish, Naruto had already made it there to knock him aside.

Zabuza heard Haku's loud scream and became worried. Somehow, he found the energy to evade a death blow from the incoming attack. There was a deep hole in his shoulders as Kakashi had driven his attack into it, severing his left arm in the process.

Kakashi was surprised that he had miss his intended kill. But the blow was still fatal if not treated right away. He quickly took out a kunai and damaged the other arm which left the Devil of the Mist defenseless. Seeing that the man can't fight back now, Kakashi stopped attacking further since it was apparent that he had won the battle. "The fight is over."

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata greeted him.

"Good job Hinata! I saw your fight. It was totally awesome!"

"Zabuza-san…" Haku said from the ground.

It was then that Gatou and his goons appeared. "You call yourself the Devil of the Mist? I am going to enjoy paying you and that boy back for humiliating me."

"I'm not going to let you talk like that to Zabuza-san!" Haku yelled.

"Stop Haku!" Zabuza ordered.

Gatou looked at the ninjas without any fear in his eyes. He shouldn't have to since he had many hired goons on his side. "You are pathetic Zabuza. You came to me and promised that you will take care of the job but look at you now. Burning my money away would be wiser than trusting you. Men, see to it that you get his and the boy's head."

Zabuza looked at the Copy Ninja. "Kakashi, it looks like we no longer need to fight. My contract with Gatou has just been terminated. Do me a favor and lend me a kunai." As the kunai fell from Kakashi's hand, Zabuza quickly caught it in his mouth and dashed towards his ex-employer.

"All of you stop him! I'll pay double of the amount if you kill him!"

It seemed the number of people still didn't matter any as Zabuza went through the hired goons leaving a trail of dead bodies. He was stabbed multiple times since one arm is gone while the other was useless. His own blood was running out like a river. He soon made his way to Gatou. "You and I are going to hell together. In hell, I can become a real devil!" With that said, Zabuza used the kunai in his mouth and sliced Gatou's throat. The body fell down from the bridge into the water. His last mission was done and now all was left was to return to Haku, however his legs failed him.

The hired goons began to get rowdy and demanded blood from the group because they haven't been paid yet. Naruto looked at them and smiled. Inari showed up and sent and arrow to stop the goons from approaching any further. Behind him was the entire village readied and armed.

Haku was getting impatient and summoned his ice mirrors around the thugs. If they weren't going to leave right now, he will kill them instantly.

"I know you want to see Zabuza but this isn't the way. Enough blood has been shed today, don't you think?" Naruto then looked at the thugs with a serious face. "Kage Bushin no Jutsu!" A huge number of Narutos appeared that triple the number of the thugs.

The thugs quickly made their getaway on the boat near them. They were pushing and shoving each other and some fell in the water.

Haku made his seals and performed Kiri Shunshin no Jutsu (Mist Instantaneous Body Skill) and teleported beside his master. "Zabuza-san."

"You've always been a nice kid. You were never meant to be a ninja that kills. Forgive me."

"All I have done had always been by my own choosing."

"You're free now…."

Kakashi walked up to his subordinates and gave them compliments. "You have all grown so much in a short time." Seeing how Hinata and Kiba were both looking away from Zabuza, he told them to look straight at them. "Don't look away. Zabuza is a man who led a difficult life."

Thinking about it again, I haven't really done anything in this fight. Is that considered uncool? Kiba and Hinata fought Haku while Kakashi was pit up with Zabuza. Hinata actually fought equally to Haku. What's up with that? I got nothing.

The four ninjas raised their hands and said goodbye to Tazuna and his fellow villagers. Inari was crying since he was sad that Naruto is going. He was also going to miss Akamaru who was very playful. His last dog ran away from him after he failed to save him from the bullies who kidnapped him.

"We need a new name for this bridge," said one of the villagers.

"Since Naruto gave Inari courage to stand up against Gatou who in return gave courage to the village, let's name the bridge after a young man who will be well known throughout in the short coming years," said Tazuna. "We'll call it The Great Naruto Bridge! What do you think? He and his clones sure helped a lot. We wouldn't have got this bridge finish this fast without him."

"To think a big sword like Zabuza went missing," said Haku. "I wonder where it went?"

"I have no idea, Haku. I don't have a clue at all." Inside one of Naruto's pocket is a scroll where he seals all the weapons he found or stolen. It is one of his hobbies to collect weapons.

Author's notes:

Next, I'm thinking of writing the saga of the Hero Water. It's a special anime episode that won't be seen in the manga. The special wasn't as good as I hoped and based on the special skills they used, the event occurred before the Chuunin Exam.

The story has changed much from the original timeline so I ended things faster.