"Well?"
"They're pretty damn good, Hokage-sama. I passed them."
"You don't expect me to believe that you'd fail your own son?" Hiruzen asked, disbelief coloring his question.
"Without hesitation, Hokage-sama. Especially since he's my son, I'm not letting him go out there till he's more than ready for what being a Shinobi entails." Kakashi leaned against the wall of the Hokage's office, absently playing with a kunai.
"Something bothering you?"
"Yeah. What's the reasoning behind forming such a team? Naruto and Hinata are both prodigiously talented kids. I would've thought it better to split them up. This Sai's a total unknown. I ran a background check myself, and I couldn't find anything other than what was listed in the personnel file."
"We placed Naruto-kun and Hinata-chan on the same squad as Iruka-kun believed that they complement each other well, skill set wise, and they have quite good pre-existing chemistry. Hiashi, oddly enough, also requested that his daughter be placed in your team. He seems to have faith in your ability as a teacher."
"Well I can testify to the chemistry part. They fight well together. Still, you don't think it leaves the other squads understrength?"
"This batch of graduants is amongst the most talented in Village History, perhaps since my own students' generation. It's almost as if virtually all the clan heads conspired to have their children in the same year. The Ino-Shika-Cho combination has proven to be devastatingly combat effective, and with my son as their Sensei they will do well. Yuuhi-san's team is no slouch either. The Inuzuka boy was not that far behind your son, Kakashi-kun, and Shibi speaks highly of his heir." Hiruzen puffed away at his everpresent pipe.
"I read the files. Who's this Haruno?"
"She's the daughter of that merchant. First ninja in the family, I believe. She performed passably in the Academy. She won't drag the team down, if her grades are any indication."
"I guess so, Hokage-sama. I still have no clue who this Sai is. Random orphans popping up in the force once in a while isn't unheard of... but he gives me some weird vibes."
"How so?"
"He used some sort of weird ink technique on me. I've never heard of anything like that, even amongst the Jōnin Corps or ANBU. Some sort of Kekkei-genkai? He appeared in the system eight years ago at the South-West District Orphanage. He showed some aptitude in the Shinobi arts and was sponsored at age eight to begin training. His benefactor was redacted in the training files, but that isn't unusual. Loads of shinobi don't like having their infidelity broadcasted for the world to see." Kakashi verbalized his analysis for the Hokage.
"I don't know, Hokage-sama. Maybe it's my paranoia."
Hiruzen sighed.
"Most orphans have sketchy backgrounds, Kakashi-kun. Our village is huge, larger than any other Hidden Village, and our civil administration is in dire need of reform. I will request for additional information from the orphanage for you. In the meantime, do treat him like you would any other student."
"Definitely. He's pretty sneaky, and willing to work in a team. Kid's got great potential. All three of them do, actually." Kakashi sniffed.
"I heard of how your son passed the bell test." Hiruzen smiled.
"I've raised a monster. He found out about the bell test after he saw the photo Minato-sensei took of us. Bribing Pakkun? My own ninken? ANBU material, if I say so myself." Kakashi couldn't help the tinge of pride that entered his voice.
"A ninja is more than his Jutsu, Kakashi-kun. You've raised him well."
"Maybe a little too well." The copy-nin snorted.
Jiraiya's neck prickled. There was a terrible eeriness in this place, an oppressive gloom that pressed in from all around him. The Toad Sage moved carefully, fully alert for the first sign of danger. His footsteps, though quiet, echoed in the emptiness, boxed in by the metal walls and hard surfaces all around him.
The hideout in Sound had been hard to find. One of his informants had reported spotting Orochimaru less than a week ago in the area, and another had gotten his hands on a shipping manifest from Wave. Who else would need industrial grade chakra resistant material out here in the badlands of Sound country? The subterranean facility had been abandoned, long enough to look decrepit, but not long enough for the stench of snake to recede. It seemed the Snake Sannin had been spooked, he must have received word that Jiraiya had arrived in the area and fled without destroying the hideout, or the evidence all around him.
Jiraiya stepped through an open door into what looked to be the main floor of an abandoned laboratory. Definitely Orochimaru, judging from the twisted look of the contraptions and equipment that was scattered about. Jiraiya picked up a file that had been carelessly left on one of the consoles, flipping through its contents.
'What the hell is this...' Jiraiya wondered, taking in the scene around him. Orochimaru had been working on some sort of corrupted genetic material to implant in the form of a Fūin, Jiraiya surmised. Typical of the sick, conniving bastard. The glinting edges and wicked looking arms of the machines around him were chilling, even sterilized, they reeked of agony induced and pain inflicted. Orochimaru had never believed in ethics or good practice, Jiraiya shook his head.
Jiraiya left the lab, exploring the other portions of the abandoned base. He found basic living quarters, evidence that the projects run had substantial teams working on them. His old friend was building himself quite the personal army it seemed. The residential areas were barebones, stripped of anything apart from living requirements, uncomfortable looking beds and lockers and spartan aesthetics, but looked well lived in. How long had Orochimaru been running these laboratories beneath Hiruzen's nose?
It was his last discovery, however, that brought his blood to boil, as he stepped into what seemed to be a torture chamber. Dried blood was splattered about the room, staining a bare metal surgical table in the center of the small chamber. The table wasn't that big, not long enough to hold an adult, and the restraints seemed adjusted to fit a child no older than twelve or thirteen. A chill settled into Jiriaya's bones as realization began to sink in. He picked up another file, trembling hands avoiding the ominous looking faded crimson stain on the cover page. Orochimaru had truly grown careless, or dangerously arrogant in his insanity, to leave so many clues behind.
'Subject was responsive to reconditioning. Likelihood of continued insubordination; low.'
'Attempt to unlock additional stages of Sharingan through pain therapy was unsuccessful. Will look into alternative methods of stimulating duress necessary for maturation of subject's dōjutsu.'
'Extreme emotional trauma must be inflicted in order to trigger gene markers that are critical for the development of the Mangenkyō stage in the Sharingan's growth. Subject already displays textbook post-traumatic stress disorder, and has slipped into catatonia when psychological stress points are pressed. Alternative methods required.'
'Subject has shown attachment to Kimimaro. I have allowed this relationship to develop, as the Subject has shown typical trauma-induced need for companionship. Possible exploit to create conditions necessary for Mangenkyō? Will look in this further.'
'Subject displayed signs of disobedience this afternoon at 1420hrs. Was unresponsive to reconditioning, despite three hours of exposure. Will proceed with solitary confinement and sustenance depravation. Pavlovian methods seems ineffective.'
Jiraiya could read no more. He burned the cursed place to the ground.
"This is stupid! Why can't I use my shadow clones? I could do every single D-ranked mission in the village myself!" Naruto half whined, half sulked.
Kakashi sat on top of a pile of recently filled sandbags, arms crossed.
"D-ranked mission aren't just about fulfilling their objectives, Naruto. There's more to it."
"Perhaps concentrating on shoveling instead of complaining would be more productive, Naruto-san." Sai observed, wiping the sweat from his pale brow, before lifting another shovelful of earth into a half filled sandbag.
"Hey, what are you trying to say?" Naruto protested.
"Naruto-kun, Sai-kun, please stop arguing." Hinata firm voice put an end to the two boys' short lived argument.
"Only thirty more sandbags to fill, and we're done with D-ranks for the day. I hope you kids aren't too tired because we still have a long training session ahead of us!" Kakashi's tone was positively humorous, even as his kids toiled away. Two months had passed since the bell test and the official formation of Team Seven, and Kakashi had had them grinding away at the endless pool of D-ranks the Village generated daily ever since. It was mind-numbingly boring, especially for Gēnin as talented as his three, but D-ranks were still considered missions for a reason. They were as important for the village as they were for the team, a steady source of income for the Shinobi Corps as well as critical to the day-to-day functioning of the village and Fire Country at large. The mission they were toiling away at today, for example, to fill enough sandbags to reinforce the river levees in the south-west border with River Country, was critical to ensure the survival of the farms and farmers in that area who supplied a great deal of grain to the rest of Fire Country. That his precocious squad could not appreciate that fact was not Kakashi's problem.
"Naruto, if you don't fill those sandbags, the price of wheat is going to increase six months from now when the monsoon season hits River Country and the backwash destroys the farms downstream in Hi no Kuni." Kakashi drawled.
"Yeah yeah, I get it. Bunch of farmers need sandbags to dyke up some stupid rivers." Naruto grumbled. Hinata straightened, evidently having enough of her friend's churlish attitude.
"Naruto-kun, do you know what is the primary ingredient in creating your precious ramen?" Her eyes glinted dangerously.
"Uh... noodles?" Naruto offered.
"Wheat, baka. If the prices of wheat go up, the price of ramen will go up. If you don't finish this mission, you pocket money will go down. If the price of ramen goes up and your pocket money goes down, you will eat less ramen. Understand?" Hinata barked at her teammate.
"Got it! Filled sandbags coming right up!" Hinata nodded, going back to tying up the sandbags and adding them to the pile. Sai remained silent throughout the lecture.
Kakashi grinned under his mask. Naruto was the heart and soul of his squad, that was true, but Hinata was deceptively intelligent behind that demure, gentle heiress facade that she put up, and had the growing confidence to make herself be heard. She would make a fine, fine kunoichi.
Kakashi looked at the sun, judging the time. It was just past noon now, the sun beginning it's slow, lazy descent. After the mission was complete they would return to Training Ground Seven to train until sundown. It was a grueling schedule, far more rigorous than the other Gēnin squads, but Kakashi surmised his kids were capable of handling it. They had the talent, but talent alone only got you killed out in the field, and Kakashi would be damned if he let his kids be killed under his watch.
The sunset in Konoha was truly one of the marvels of the Elemental Nations, the setting sun casting a magnificent orange and yellow glow over all of the village, a veritable pallete of hues that painted the buildings and trees with a beautiful, calming aurora. Kakashi took it all in, paying little attention to his exahausted Gēnin who lay scattered about Training Ground Seven.
"Are we done for the day, Sensei?" Naruto's tired voice broke his appreciation of nature.
"Hm? Naruto? Asking for a break? That's rare."
The aforementioned blonde battery lay limply in the dust, soaked in sweat and breathing heavily. The boy had been engaged in a truly brutal exercise that Kakashi had concocted for him, engaging both Hinata and Sai's little squad of constructs in an extended taijutsu battle while trying to keep a leaf stuck to his forehead with his chakra. Kakashi had explained that with Naruto's ungodly chakra reserves, the boy would never have to worry about running dry. That said, maintaining tight control over said massive reserves would assuredly be challenge, especially in the heat of battle, and Kakashi wanted him to work on it till the point of such pinpoint control being reflexive, subconscious.
For Hinata, he had her working on doing as much damage as possible with a single strike, by having her engage Naruto but forcing her to avoid using any of the intricate combinations that Jyūken emphasized on. A true Jyūken master could put men down with a single strike to a vital point, shutting down entire chakra circulation systems with one hit, and Kakashi wanted Hinata to develop some semblance of that fearsome ability. Her less robust physicality and smaller chakra pool necessitated any fight she engaged in with a physically superior opponent to end quickly, and Naruto was the perfect training dummy for her to wail on without any worry of seriously hurting him. She was making good progress in that regard, strikes carrying enough power that even the blonde juggernaut of a Gēnin that his son was had begun taking considerable precaution to avoid being incapacitated. Combine that stopping power with her speed and technique, and Hinata was quickly becoming a lethal force up close.
With such an effective close quarters duo in his son and Hinata, Kakashi had set Sai to increasing his control over those ink constructs of his, and was impressed that in the two months the team had been together, the boy could already create and manipulate five individual contructs, up from the two he originally was limited to. This made him particularly effective at covering ranged threats and indirect combat, as his animations could autonomously engage targets at range. Kakashi had also begun guiding the boy in the more subtle, 'dirty' forms of Shinobi combat, setting up booby traps, ambushes, and full on assasination. He had a natural aptitude for it, taking easily to those less glamorous aspects of the ninja arts.
Kakashi was pleased with the overall progress of his squad. They were well on their way to being one of the best teams in the village, and they covered each other's weaknesses well. They were ready for a C-ranked mission.
"Ano... Kaka-sensei... I do not think additional training today will be productive, considering the state we are in." Hinata panted.
"I concur. The physical fatigue I am currently experiencing would prevent me from applying myself fully to any new lessons at the present time." Sai's odd speech patterns hadn't improved despite the two months of close interaction with his team, it seemed.
"Very well. We'll call it a day, I want you three well rested for tomorrow. I believe we're ready for a higher ranked mission." Kakashi eye smiled.
"Alright! Finally we're going to get to kick some ass together!" Kakashi's announcement appeared to have ignited a second wind in his son, the boy coming to his feet grinning.
"C-rank, Naruto. Nothing to do with enemy ninja or anything really dangerous." Kakashi tempered his boy's excitement.
"Anything's better than catching that hellspawndemon cat. I hate cats!" Naruto exclaimed, even as he helped Hinata to her feet.
"I suppose so. Come on, kids. Let's have dinner. Ichiraku's?"
"Hell yes! This evening keeps getting better!!" Naruto's energy was fully restored. Really, the boy was a fusion reactor of stamina.
Team 7 made their way out of the Training Ground, smiling and chatting all the way.
"I asked for ninja, and you give me children?" Tazuna, the bridge builder from Wave protested.
"Hey, who are you calling children!" Naruto's temper flared.
"You would be wise not to speak to the Hokage in such a manner, Tazuna-san." Hinata spoke, tone neutral.
Kakashi stifled a laugh. It seemed their client had already gotten off on the wrong foot, offending his team. The aging man wasn't very impressive himself, short and a little on the meaty side, his clothing rather shabby. His facial hair was unkempt, a silvery stubble sprouting along his chin and neck. He didn't cut much of a striking figure for supposedly the premiere bridge builder this side of the Elemental Nations.
"If you desire a higher level of protection, Tazuna-san, you are welcome to pay for it. A C-ranked mission does not carry the risks, nor the payment necessary to warrant anything more than an advanced Gēnin team." Hiruzen admonished the civilian.
"Ah.. it's fine. There's nothing dangerous about this trip anyway... I suppose it's nothing these squirts can't handle." Tazuna waved his hand dismissively, but Kakashi instantly took note of the way his eyes shifted. The ANBU Captain in him was immediately on alert, his paranoia rousing itself.
"I assure you, Tazuna-san, that my 'squirts' are more than capable of protecting you from whatever bandits we may encounter on the way to Wave, and if they are not, I am quite capable of handling anything else. Unless there is something you are not telling us?" Kakashi finally spoke, voice deceptively friendly.
"Sure... the wannabe who dresses like you doesn't look so impressive." Tazuna singled out Naruto.
"He is my son, Tazuna-san. And I assure you, he is most capable of handling himself." Kakashi allowed some coldness to bleed into his voice. He did not miss the slight puffing of the chest that his son displayed at his father's praise.
"If you say so. I want to get moving as soon as possible. When's the earliest we can leave?" Kakashi did not appreciate the civilian's bad attitude, but a mission was a mission.
"Right now, actually. We have all we need."
"Right then... let's get going." Tazuna shuffled to the door, briefly thanking the Hokage. The three Gēnin followed, a short non-verbal cue from Kakashi all that was needed to get them moving.
"Something wrong, Kakashi-kun?" Hiruzen asked his Jōnin.
"I don't like it Hokage-sama. He isn't telling us something." Kakashi's good eye narrowed.
"I came to the same conclusion. That said, we are looking to increase our presence in the Land of Waves now that Kirigakure is out of the picture and this would be an excellent way to do so, Tazuna-san is very influential there." Hiruzen said.
"Any chance of backup?" Kakashi asked.
"Nothing substantial, I'm afraid. If you feel that the mission is compromised, you may call it off as the commanding officer, Kakashi-kun." Hiruzen assured him.
Kakashi nodded.
"Hai, Hokage-sama. I will see you in two weeks then."
The copy-nin vanished in a swirl of leaves.
"I'm just saying, if we get good enough, there's a chance we can convince Kaka-sensei to nominate us for the Chūnin Exams this year! It's going to be held in Konoha too, imagine that! Whooping ass and looking cool in front of everybody!" Naruto's less than discreet chatter was loud along the more or less deserted road. They had been on the move for three days now, more than three quarters to Wave. Any ninja worth his salt could make the journey in a day or less, but escorting the civilian necessitated moving at what was practically a crawl.
"That is true, Naruto-san. However, I do not have any friends or family to impress, and hence I do not find said reason very compelling." Sai never missed a beat.
"Sai-kun, please don't say that. We're your friends, aren't we, Naruto-kun?" Hinata chided her pale teammate, subtly nudging the Hatake scion.
"Uh, yea! Of course Sai, we're your friends!" Naruto caught on.
"That is satisfactory. Thank you, Hinata-san."
"You know, one day I'm going to get you drunk, Sai. And it's going to be amazing." Naruto's cerulean eyes shone with suppressed mirth, throwing an arm over his awkward teammate's shoulders.
"I would be surprised if Kakashi-sensei allowed you to drink, Naruto-san." Sai deadpanned right back at the blonde.
"Hey! I'm a grown ass..."
"Twelve years young, young man." Kakashi interrupted his son from where he walked, just a little behind Tazuna.
"Old enough to kill, old enough to drink, Dad!"
"I'll be the judge of that, Naruto." Kakashi replied, hands still in his pockets, relaxed.
"I doubt my father would let me drink." Hinata added, smiling, while sidestepping to avoid the puddle of water that had collected in a pothole on the road.
"Yea, I doubt so too. Your dad's pretty uptight." Naruto eye smiled. Team Seven and their civilian charge continued to travel, banter uninterrupted. That is, uninterrupted until Kakashi whirled and threw a kunai at the puddle of water.
"Sensei?" Naruto started, shocked, before lessons drilled into him by his father took over. He grabbed Tazuna, hauling the old man into the middle of the impromptu defensive formation he and his teammates had moved into on instinct.
The kunai was not met with the expected splash of water, instead meeting a metallic surface with a loud clang and a burst of smoke. A wicked looking shuriken-chain came hurtling through the smoke, the ends attached to two figures that blurred towards the Gēnin team.
"Naruto, duck!" Hinata cried, but her blonde teammate was already moving, dropping to his knees in an instant, the chain buzzing above his head by an inch.
"Doton: Mud Wall!" Kakashi's voice was heard through the smoke, and his chakra flared through the ground. An earthen barrier rose up from the ground, blocking off the advance of the twin assailants. Naruto took advantage immediately, forming three Kage Bunshin and moving to engage without hesitation.
The two enemies, encumbered by the heavy chain that linked both their arms, were quickly driven back to their wall by the onslaught of shadow clones.
"Now!" Kakashi called out, withdrawing his chakra. The wall sagged, robbed of the chakra that had empowered it, and then exploded, a massive Ink rhinoceros bulldozing its way through the weakened barrier. A blur of lavender followed through, and the missing-nin on the left found himself under assault from a Byakugan-guided, Jyūken-wielding Hyūga. Naruto's clones converged about the target on the right, pummeling him into the ground.
And just like that, within a single minute from the kunai being flung, the short-lived battle was over.
"I'm calling this off. Gozu and Meizu are chūnin ranked Nuke-nin formerly of Kirigakure. I don't know why the hell you have former ninja hunting you, Tazuna, but that's already beyond the parameters of a C-ranked mission." Kakashi was brusque, in a bullish mood.
They had tied the brothers to a tree in the middle of nowhere, both unconscious, but the interrogation had been swift.
"I... I can make it up, I promise! I had no idea that they would send Ninja after me!" Tazuna stammered.
"I can up the payment to an B-ranked mission? It's all I have, but please! You have to understand!" Tazuna launched into a sob-story about greedy shipping magnates and economic hardship in Wave, and some life changing bridge. Kakashi didn't care.
"Gatō may be cruel, but that's none of Konoha's business. If you want it to be our business, you can pay Hokage-sama the ten million ryō for an S-ranked mission and I can remove him for you myself. You did not pay such an amount, therefore it's not my problem. I will not risk my squad for something beyond the mission's original parameters." Kakashi was ice cold.
"I... we can't afford that. Please, Hatake-san! At least help me return to Wave. We'll do whatever we can to pay you! You can leave the moment we cross the border!" Tazuna was practically on his knees begging. Kakashi considered for a moment. He glanced at his kids, stood attentively around the two prisoners. They would benefit tremendously from the experience, it was true, and the chances of encountering any more enemies on the short remainder of the journey to Wave was small. He stared hard at the bridge builder.
"B-ranked payment. My team and I will escort you across the strait to Wave, and no further." Kakashi could not keep the disgust from his voice.
"Praise Kami-sama. Thank you so much, kind sir!" Tazuna's sycophantic gratitude filled Kakashi with contempt.
"Move." He barked.
The boat touched down on the shore of Wave, and Kakashi stepped off behind his three kids. They were tense, alert, following the example of their Sensei. The remainder of the trip had been uneventful, the boat ride peaceful, but Kakashi could not shake the foreboding in his gut.
"The main road is only a quarter hour's walk inland from here. Wave is a small country." Tazuna offered.
"We will take our leave there. Lead the way." Kakashi gestured. He was in full ANBU mode now, hyperaware of everything and anything around him. This was a bad op, everything about it screamed at him to get the hell out of dodge and to take his vulnerable Gēnin with him. They were good, but this place screamed of danger. The cold mist that had gathered, obscuring the late afternoon sun chilled Kakashi's blood and filled him with a dread that they were in over their head.
"Yes, please, follow me." Tazuna began walking along the dirt path that wound from the small private pier off into the light woods. Team Seven followed.
"The weather in Wave is usually quite pleasant, you know. Nice and breezy. Not as sweltering as Fire Country!" Tazuna was babbling now, nerves causing sweat to collect along his forehead.
"What I'm trying to say is that we don't usually have mist this time of the year. Rather odd, actually!" Tazuna's anxious attempt at levity had no effect on the tense Konohan squad. The forest was quiet. A little too quiet for Kakashi's liking.
A rustle in the leaves, a slight shift in the air, and a whistling that stood out painfully in the idyllic ambience of the woods was all the warning Kakashi needed to react.
"Down!" He yelled at his team, tackling Tazuna to the ground as well. A massive butcher cleaver came slicing and spinning through the air, clearing through the space that his three Gēnin had just a moment ago vacated, before embedding itself to a tree with a sickening thud. A crushing killing intent began to fill to air, leaking out a murderous desire for slaughter.
A figure landed atop the handle of the brutish sword, nonchalant and full of the deadly swagger of a born killer.
"Well, well, well. Sharingan no Kakashi. This will be very, very fun." His voice was harsh, ragged, but carried a confidence that spoke of a lifetime of hard battle and blood soaked triumph.
"Momochi Zabuza. Demon of the Mist." Kakashi answered him, coming to his feet.
"You know of me? How flattering." Zabuza actually sounded surprised.
"Enough to know that Tazuna-san here is going to die. By your hand or mine." Kakashi's fury was palpable, his own killing intent rising to meet the former Kiri-nin's own potent aura.
"Naruto, stay back, guard him. This is way beyond you now. If I fall, run, and don't stop till you are across the strait." Kakashi spat Tazuna's name with venom, before giving quick instructions to his son. He lifted his headband, revealing his vaunted Sharingan, and drew his tantō, readying himself for a fight to the death.
"Ninpo: Kirigakure no Jutsu."
The light mist in the air began to thicken, rapidly becoming an obscuring fog that reduced visibility to near zero. Kakashi swore, this was the worst case scenario. A Jōnin level enemy on foreign soil, with three almost helpless kids to protect? Kakashi had n doubt that he could put down the so-called Demon of the Mist if they tangled one on one, but they were far from alone!
"You should know, Hatake, that I specialize in the art of Silent Killing. I don't need to see you to kill you!" A murderous chuckle cut through the air. Kakashi tensed, ready to move.
"Or your kids!" The Demon roared.
A glint of light off of the massive blade of Kubikiribōchō was all the warning the three Gēnin had before they were instantly decapitated by the ruthless killer that had appeared within their defensive formation.
"I would have though you trained them better than this, Kakashi!" Zabuza taunted, even as the corpses of his Gēnin crumpled to the ground. The expected eruption of blood did not follow.
"What?" Zabuza spluttered as a dark, sticky ink exploded all around him, coating him and blinding him.
"For a Silent Killer, you talk too much." Kakashi hissed, tantō parting the fog as he went for a killing stroke. Obito guided his blade true, and he separated both arms from the former Mist Jōnin's torso, only for the ink covered form to burst into water.
'Mizu Bunshin?' Kakashi started, before the massive decapitating blade lived up to its namesake, removing his head from his shoulders.
"You copied me? Even through the mist? That's real cute, Kakashi!" His foe's voice rang through the mist even as his own water clone wet the ground.
"Found you!" The demon roared, bringing his massive blade down with terrifying force. Kakashi didn't bother blocking, sidestepping the blow and turning with his body's momentum, bringing his blade around to reply. Zabuza brought the oversized cleaver back around with frightening speed for a sword of that size, parrying Kakashi's stroke with the flat of Kubikiribōchō. Kakashi pressed his advantage, driving back the Demon with a flurry of strikes. His Sharingan spun furiously, reading the mist-nin's movements, giving Kakashi the edge. They broke through the mist, finding themselves on the shore of a small lake.
"Right where I want you!" Zabuza grunted, planting his sword in the ground and pushing off, backflipping onto the lake. He remained standing on the surface of the water, hands flying through seals. Kakashi winced, instantly knowing what was coming.
'Of course the Suiton user is standing on a lake.' Kakashi groaned.
"Suiton: Great Crashing Wave!" Zabuza roared, and the lake surged in response to his chakra. A tremendous wave formed and sped towards Kakashi, gathering speed and volume as it raced towards the Copy-Nin. Kakashi flashed through his own set of handseals, channeling his chakra for his response.
"Raiton: Lightning Arrow!" Kakashi muttered, feeling the charge building in his right arm. He released the bolt of pure lightning chakra that burned its way through the air, instantly ionzing the air in its path, filling his nostrils with the acrid pang of ozone. It exploded into Zabuza's colossal wave of water, instantly neutralizing the water-natured chakra infused within, slicing through and releasing a devastating shock through the lake.
Zabuza reacted in the nick of time, jumping up off the surface of the lake and narrowly avoiding being fried. Kakashi responsed instantly, leaping off the ground to catch Zabuza in the air, raising his blade to impale the swordsman.
Again, the nuke-nin was saved by the skin of his teeth, turning in the air to parry Kakashi's tantō and following through on his momentum to kick the silver haired Leaf-nin back down towards the water. Kakashi did not even want to consider the sheer strength turning and wielding that monster of a sword in mid-air required.
"Got you, Hatake!" Zabuza's hands were a blur, as he called out the name of his Jutsu.
"Suiton: Water Prison!" Kakashi swore as he plummeted towards the surface of the lake. A bubble of water rose to meet him, capturing him instantly. The water was chakra-enhanced, weighing him down and stopping him from breaking out. The only thing Kakashi could do was hold his breath. He had underestimated the brute's tactical nous, and now he paid for it.
Zabuza landed on the surface of the lake beside his water prison, hands still forming the seal that kept him trapped.
"I think your head will fetch me a pretty penny, Kakashi. Enough to fund my coup. I heard the Tsuchikage has quite the bounty on you." Zabuza's voice was guttural, predatory.
"Your kids are slippery, I grant you that. But how are they going to get away from me without their Sensei to protect them?" Zabuza's gloating mockery was painful to listen to, Kakashi surmised. Faced with death, Kakashi was surprisingly calm. He had ensured his son and team would get away cleanly. This was the cost of his arrogance and complacency, ignoring his mission's standing orders. He had no time to think about the myriad of regrets that haunted him, not with his demise staring at him in the eye.
"Hey asshole! Over here!" Naruto's distinct voice broke through the unnatural stillness that death's shadow had brought. Zabuza turned, almost stunned at the audacity and stupidity of the Gēnin.
"Just kidding, over there!" Naruto waved.
Zabuza had no time to react as a enormous Ink Bird came plummeting at terminal velocity from the sky, another screaming Naruto riding it all the way down.
'What the fuck?' Kakashi could only gape in shock as his son kamikaze dive bombed the Demon of the Mist.
A/N
Aaaaand cut! Had loads of fun writing this chapter. The Wave Arc's gonna be quite a shift in tempo for the story, and I'm really looking forward to writing more.
Sorry for the lack of uploads the past few days, I was very busy in church during this Easter Weekend. I'm back in camp for the week though, so the updates should pick up once more.
Thank you all for the overwhelming response this story has received, and please keep the feedback coming!
Till the next chapter,
Read and Review!