"Talking"

'Thinking'

Jutsu/ Bijuu/ Summons

Flashbacks, Letters, and Setting

I don't own Naruto

Chapter 23: Mission to Wave Part 3

Haku had come out late at night to not be seen by anyone. The woods had some medicinal herbs he needed to make some salves for the demon brothers' injuries.

Haku was surprised to see a redheaded girl lying under a tree, sleeping as she hugged a sword, at the spot he was planning on picking the herbs.

He quickly realized it was one of the targets from earlier. Probably the one who gave Meizu all of those cuts. Haku slowly crept up on Narumi, as he contemplated what to do.

'I should just get rid of her now and spare Zabuza-sama the trouble.' Haku thought to himself as he formed a senbon out of ice.

He hated hurting people, but knew it was something he had to do. He forced himself to move the sharp needle of ice closer to her throat.

"…mmm… nii-chan… I'm sorry… I wish I wasn't a burden to you…" Narumi mumbled out in her sleep.

Haku froze when he heard that. It reminded him of himself. He couldn't bring himself to kill the young girl outside of battle, cruelly assassinating the poor girl as she slept. He didn't have that side in him. He made his ice senbon disappear.

Haku shook the girl awake.

"Hmmm… wha… what happened?" Narumi said as she woke up from her sleep.

Haku giggled. "I'd like to ask you the same thing. I found you sleeping out here in the woods. It's cold out. You shouldn't be sleeping here."

Narumi scratched the back of her head. "Hehe, right, right. Guess I must have dozed off after training."

Haku pointed at Narumi's sword. "Are you a samurai or ninja? Why are you training so hard?"

"I'm a kunoichi! I was training out here… so I can become stronger I guess." Narumi answered.

"You already look strong enough to me. Tell me, what do you think makes a person strong?" Haku asked.

"Umm… hard work?" Narumi replied, unsure what Haku was asking.

Haku giggled again. "I meant what motivates someone to be strong. To go beyond their limits and show their real strength."

"Oh. I guess if you have a dream you want to accomplish you'll show that kind of strength." Narumi replied.

"I see. So, what is your dream?" Haku asked.

"My dream? My dream is to become the Hokage! And to protect those that I care about, and to make the world a better place!" Narumi declared. Though the person speaking to her was a complete stranger, she didn't sense any negative emotions, and guessed it would be fine telling her these things.

Haku gave her a smile. "I see. That is an admirable dream. I believe a person becomes truly strong when they want to protect someone precious to them. I'm certain you'll become very strong one day."

Narumi gave her a big smile. "Thanks!"

She then realized she didn't even know the person's name, and what she was doing out at this time.

"I just realized we didn't even introduce ourselves, and here we are talking about dreams and all." Narumi chuckled. "Hi! I'm Narumi! What's your name?"

Haku giggled again. He was enjoying her bubbly personality. "I'm Haku. It's nice to meet you Narumi-san."

"Please! Just call me Narumi. I don't really like all that formal stuff. Anyway, what are you doing out here at this time? It's pretty late."

"I was trying to pick some medicinal herbs to treat some people." Haku replied.

"Really? That's really nice of you! Are they the precious people you were talking about earlier?" Narumi asked.

Haku stopped to think for a minute. The demon brothers weren't really people he considered precious of the top of his mind like Zabuza was, but now that he thought about it, they had been with him and Zabuza for quite a while now.

"I guess so. Never really thought of them that way, but I guess they could be."

"Cool! Mind if I help you?" Narumi offered.

Haku giggled again. "Not at all. I'd actually appreciate it."

The two spent some time picking the herbs in a comfortable silence, talking to each other every once in a while. They had only just met, but they just felt comfortable around each other.

"I think that's enough for now. I'll be heading back now. Thanks Narumi." Haku said to Narumi.

"No problem! Us girls gotta help each other out when we can, am I right?" Narumi replied.

Haku froze when Narumi said that.

"I'm actually a boy." Haku told Narumi.

Narumi just gave him a smirk. "Right. And I'm a tree. I know you're lying, Haku. I know a girl when I see one."

Haku blushed. "I'm serious! I'm a boy!"

"Oh yeah? Prove it." Narumi said mischievously. "Show me any proof that you're a boy."

"Wha-what?" Haku froze. He couldn't prove it, because Haku was actually a girl. She tried to disguise herself as a boy to not be looked down on and to keep perverts away, but her pretty features made it hard to fool anyone.

"…How did you know?"

Narumi laughed in victory. "Of course you're a girl! I've never seen a boy as pretty as you! Besides boys don't giggle like you do, ya know. Maybe you should practice your boy laugh if you want to trick anyone."

Haku stood their in silence. Crap.

"Please don't tell anyone." Haku asked Narumi.

"Of course. Your secret is safe with me, Haku-kun." Narumi responded with a mischievous grin. "Though I doubt many people will fall for your "disguise"."

"I really must be leaving now. It'll be morning in a few hours." Haku told Narumi.

"Right, right. I need to get back too. My nii-chan must be getting worried about me. It was nice meeting you Haku-chan! If you're here for a while, we should hang out sometime!" Narumi offered.

"I'd… like that." Haku confessed. She hadn't had any friends that were close to her in age before, as she stayed on the move with Zabuza.

"Great! Guess we're friends now! Anyway I'll come here after dinner every day to train! If you have time you should come! I'll introduce you to my friends!" Narumi offered.

Haku smiled at her offer. She nodded in acceptance. The two girls headed off in their respective directions.

A third person saw the whole scene and smiled. A mop of blonde hair trailed both girls, all whilst hiding their presence.

Naruto had come back from his reconnaissance and found his sister missing, and Sasuke told her where she was.

He had arrived on the scene when Haku formed a senbon of ice to kill Narumi. He was about to intervene, but Haku changed her mind. Naruto decided to stay hidden and observe their interaction, and was interested in what he saw.

He formed a shadow clone to trail the girl and see if she would lead him to Zabuza. He had recognized her chakra signature from before after all.

'Haku is it? So you're one of the last survivors of the Yuki clan, huh. I wonder how these events will affect the confrontation to come… How interesting…' the clone thought to itself as Haku arrived at her hideout, before it disappeared in a puff of smoke.

At Zabuza's Hideout, the Next Day

Gato angrily stormed into Zabuza's hideout, flanked by his bodyguards, Zori and Waraji, 2 former samurai trainees turned thug.

"Well?! Any explanations as to why Tazuna is still alive? I paid you good money for this!" Gato demanded.

"He's gone and hired ninja of his own, Gato. Strong ones. I'm waiting for these two to heal so I can have some back up." Zabuza replied as he pointed at Meizu and Gozu who were wrapped in bandages after being treated by Haku.

"Hmph! Excuses! Either way, I want him dead soon! Otherwise, I'll get someone else who can do the job!" Gato threatened.

"Zori! Waraji! Let's go!" The three turned around to leave. "Demon of the Mist my ass, he's too scared to do the job. Pathetic…" Gato quietly mumbled to himself, when a massive sword sliced a tree next to him in half.

"Z-Z-Zabuza! Wha-What is the meaning of this!?" Gato stammered out in fear.

"I'll get that job done when I'm ready." Zabuza told Gato. "And if I hear you threatening me again, it won't be a tree I'm chopping down." Zabuza warned Gato as he held up the impossibly massive blade with one hand. "Now get out of my sight."

Gato and his bodyguard scrambled away, tripping over themselves in fear.

Zabuza watched the cowards run away. 'Heh. Still got it.' He thought to himself.

Days later, at the Bridge

Tazuna and his crew were working on the bridge, making good progress. If this continued, they'd be able to complete the bridge in a couple weeks.

It was looking like a day like any other, another busy day of working on the bridge, when a thick mist began to roll in towards the bridge.

Naruto smirked. 'So it begins.' He thought to himself.

The silhouettes of 4 figures appeared in the mist, before Naruto decided to ruin their entrance with a jutsu of his own.

"Futon: Toppa! (Wind Release: Breakthrough)"

The mist was blown away by his stronger-than-it-should-be wind jutsu, revealing Zabuza, the demon brothers, and a shorter shinobi wearing the Kiri hunter-nin mask.

"Ah, so you finally decide to show up. I was beginning to worry you would never come." Naruto shouted out to Zabuza.

Zabuza pointed his massive blade, the Kubikiribocho (executioner's blade), one of the 7 legendary swords of Kiri, at Naruto.

"Are you ANBU Fox of Konoha's Ghost Squad?" Zabuza asked.

There was a tense silence before Naruto broke out in to laughter.

"Ghost squad! Hah! Now that's an awesome name! Who's supposed to be on this "Ghost Squad"?" Naruto asked.

Zabuza considered not answering before deciding to indulge him. "You know what I'm talking about. The team with Dog, Crow, Fox, and… the other Dog."

Naruto broke out into laughter again. Man the ANBU really needed to design better masks. People were getting confused these days. He decided to tease Tenzo and Kakashi about this when he got back.

"Maybe I am. Why do you want to know?" Naruto responded once he got all the laughs out of his system.

Zabuza was now sure of 3 things. 1st, this was indeed Fox. 2nd, he could use at least 2 elements, from what he heard and just now saw. 3rd, Zabuza stood no chance in an all out fight.

He decided to take a different approach to give him better odds. He had heard that Fox was a master swordsman. Now that was intriguing. Being a master swordsman himself, he was dying to see how Fox's skills added up. He was going to challenge Fox to a swords only duel.

"I hear you're a master swordsman. Is this true?" Zabuza asked.

"Geez, you're gonna make me blush." Naruto replied in a joking tone.

"I mean, I don't want to say it with my own mouth, but I guess I'm not too shabby."

"No need to be modest. Tales of your skills have reached my ears. As one of the 7 swordsman of the Mist, I challenge you to a duel as swordsmen. Kenjutsu only. If you win, we'll leave. At least the rest of my team. If I win, I'll let the rest of your team leave if you die. What do you say?" Zabuza proposed.

Naruto's Genin looked at Naruto nervously, wondering what he was going to do. Now that there were 4 enemies, one of them a member of the freaking Legendary 7 Swordsmen of the Mist, things were looking a bit more tense. It was a team of Chunin vs a team of Genin. Not the ideal match up.

All eyes were on Naruto, waiting to see his response.

Naruto responded with a grin. "A chance to test my skills against a member of the 7 Swordsmen of the Mist? Now how could I turn down such an enticing offer? I accept."

Zabuza grinned, though it was hidden behind the bandages he wore around his face. He had just evened the odds.

Their generation had been known as the strongest generation of the 7 Swordsmen, and even amongst them, Zabuza was the most skilled swordsman. Sure Kisame could beat him, but that was because of his skill in ninjutsu and his insanely high levels of chakra. His monstrous sword that absorbed chakra didn't hurt Kisame's chances either. However, in pure kenjutsu skill? Zabuza was undisputedly the best in Kiri, which, along with Kumo, was a village renown for it's top tier swordsmen.

Fox had fallen into his trap. He was sure he could beat him if Fox wasn't allowed to use his huge arsenal of techniques. Zabuza doubted Fox had prioritized his kenjutsu.

The people on the bridge cleared a space in the middle for the two to duel it out.

Narumi was nervous and was chewing on her nails. What if her nii-chan lost? What if… he died? How would she deal with that? This Zabuza guy looked scary, and had the intimidating aura to match. She didn't feel comfortable with this situation.

Zabuza and Naruto stepped towards the makeshift ring that had just formed and stared each other down.

"For someone who claims to be a swordsman, I see that you're lacking a sword. Maybe that redhead girl can lend you hers." Zabuza told Naruto.

Narumi scurried over and tried to give him her blade.

When Zabuza saw the Damascus patterns of silver and a coppery-red metal on the katana, he recognized it immediately. His eyes widened in surprise.

"That's! That's the Red Whirlpool!"

Naruto smirked. "Don't worry. I don't need such a fancy blade. I've got my own"

He unsealed his ANBU chokuto, which helped confirm that he was indeed ANBU, at least formerly, to Zabuza.

"You sure you can fight him with that nii-chan? I mean look at his sword… it's huge…" Narumi asked in concern.

"Heh, don't worry about your nii-chan. Looks like he's compensating for something, don't you think?" Naruto commented.

"Huh?" Narumi asked, not understanding the innuendo.

"Ah, don't worry about it. Go back to the others and enjoy the show." Naruto said quickly, trying to cover up his slip up. He didn't need, or want his sister to know or think about such things.

Zabuza had a vein twitching on his forehead. How dare he! He was going to show this asshole of an opponent no mercy.

The shinobi with the hunter-nin mask stepped up and yelled "Hajime!" and the duel began. They sized each other up briefly, before the two fighters charged at each other with their swords drawn.

Zabuza was shocked by Naruto's speed, as was everyone else watching, including his own Genin. Only Sasuke had seen this level of speed, back when Naruto fought against Itachi, and that was a long time ago too. Naruto had gotten stronger and faster since then.

Sparks flew between the two fighters as steel met steel. Naruto's sword was a blur, moving faster than the spectators could visually process.

Surprisingly, Zabuza was able to parry his strikes, using minimal movement while maximizing the use of his blade's massive size.

It was looking like a pretty evenly matched fight, neither landing a strike on the other. However, it only looked like that to the spectators.

Zabuza was hard pressed to defend, and didn't have the luxury of attacking as often as he would have liked, with the barrage of blows that were coming his way. He didn't have time to make more than the occasional counter attack, because any time he wasn't spending on defending was time that Naruto's lighting quick slashes and stabs would be striking him.

Naruto wasn't just fast either. His form was perfect and crisp. His footwork was immaculate, as he danced around Zabuza, weaving between Zabuza's strikes to deliver his own.

What unsettled Zabuza the most however, was that slightly unhinged smile Naruto had on his face.

All shinobi fought. It was just an unavoidable part of their job. However, not all of them enjoyed fighting. Some fought because they were ordered to, some fought because they were attacked, and some fought because they thought what they were doing was right. Some shinobi however, loved the thrill of flirting with death. His former comrade Kisame was one of those people.

He saw a similar smile on Naruto's face, and realized he was enjoying this deadly dance of blades.

Zabuza grinned under his bandages. He hadn't had a fight like this in ages. The inner demon that had been dormant inside him began to stir. He too, was one of those people who truly awoke when flirting with death.

Zabuza was putting up a good fight; in fact it was the most trouble Naruto had had while fighting someone, at least when it came to kenjutsu. Naruto had to keep his senses razor sharp to dodge or parry the surprisingly fast strikes that Zabuza was able to deliver effortlessly with that massive sword of his.

Naruto was finding it difficult to find cracks in Zabuza's defense, despite his blistering speed. It took a true master to overcome such a difference in speed with pure skill. It was like a puzzle Naruto was trying to solve, one that could get him killed with a single mistake, figuring out patterns to Zabuza's movements, while trying not to give away his own. Naruto's smile grew wider and wider. He hadn't this much fun in a long time.

Naruto unbelievably began to speed up, and Zabuza began to slow down as he started to receive minor cuts here and there. None of the individual cuts were crippling blows, but they were beginning to stack up.

'Tch, I didn't expect him to be this good, or this aggressive. I doubt any of the 7 swordsmen could beat him one-on-one in a sword fight. He could probably beat 3 of the weaker ones simultaneously… Maybe if me and Mangetsu teamed up…' Zabuza was thinking to himself before he had to lean back to avoid a blow that came for his face.

Haku was experienced enough to know her master was on the back foot. It looked like it was a fairly even fight to the civilians and Genin watching, but Zabuza was making less than a 4th of the amount of offensive strikes than the blonde man was, and hadn't landed any successful hits. The Konoha Jonin was clearly the aggressor, and had the upper hand.

'Shit. If this keeps up, I'm gonna lose for sure. If I can just get one good hit on him… I can still win.' Zabuza thought to himself, counting on the bigger knockout power and extra reach the Kubikiribocho had.

He jumped back to create some space. He was planning to make one last attempt. He would bet it all on this one blow.

Naruto noticed Zabuza's actions and realized what he was thinking. Zabuza was planning to rush him with a decisive blow, similar to an Iaido clash between samurai. Naruto smiled. He would oblige him.

He also jumped back and the two swordsmen looked at each other as they briefly considered strategies. The two suddenly exploded into motion, almost moving in unison, responding to each other by reading the twitching of each other's muscles.

The spectators were on the edge of their figurative seats as they watched the dramatic final clash. Narumi couldn't bear to watch anymore and closed her eyes as she muttered a prayer to keep him safe.

Sasuke was scared for his sensei, but was also thrilled to be able to spectate such a fight. Even the fight between Naruto and Itachi hadn't been this dramatic or exciting, though it was mostly because they weren't going all out with their jutsu, and Itachi wasn't as skilled as Zabuza when it came to kenjutsu.

The two swordsmen ran at each other, and slashed at their opponent.

They passed by each other and stood with their backs facing each other.

The spectators didn't know who won that last clash, as everything happened so quickly, until a red line appeared on Zabuza's chest and blood started to seep out. He dropped his sword and fell to his knees.

Naruto had used his blazing speed to subtly sidestep and strike at the same time, using the blunt edge of the sword to smash Zabuza's fingers holding the blade. He then used the momentum of his sword bouncing off of Zabuza's fingers to power his next strike into Zabuza's chest.

"Y-you win… you were... the better swordsman." Zabuza admitted.

Naruto turned around and prepared his sword to finish off Zabuza.

Haku watched nervously, torn between protecting the person who was most precious to her, or following his wishes and allowing him to keep his honor.

Naruto reached Zabuza and brought up his blade from behind him. He started to bring his sword down to cut him down, when Zabuza suddenly turned around and exposed his chest and neck by spreading his arms wide open. He had accepted his fate.

Naruto halted at the sudden move.

"What are you doing?" he asked in surprise.

"Wounds… on the back... are a swordsman's shame." Zabuza managed to say between his pants.

"Besides, you were the best swordsman I have ever fought against. A worthy opponent like you… shouldn't have to stab someone in the back like a coward. You deserve to kill me with honor."

Naruto smiled when he heard that. He began to laugh.

"We're shinobi Zabuza-san, not samurai. Honor shouldn't mean all that much to us." Naruto commented.

"You're a damn fool, Zabuza, talking all this nonsense about honor and all. Not very becoming of a shinobi you know." Naruto told Zabuza as he raised his sword.

Haku's heart broke when she heard the blonde man say that. This was it. She needed to make a decision. Was she going to let him die, or was she going to taint his honor?

Naruto angled his sword and brought it down.

Zabuza closed his eyes, waiting for death to take him, like it had taken so many of Zabuza's previous opponents. He had made peace with his death. At least it would be at the hands of a worthy adversary.

He was surprised when the blow he expected never came. He opened one eye to see what happened.

Naruto had sealed the sword back into the advanced storage seal he had on his hand, one of the last things taught to him by Kushina before she passed.

Zabuza opened his other eye as well and looked up at Naruto, questioning him with his look.

"You're a fool, but I like you." Naruto said to everyone's surprise. "Guess that makes me a fool too. I'm gonna let you live."

Zabuza and everyone else watching were flabbergasted. Zabuza wasn't even able to speak.

"Besides, if I tried to strike you down, I don't think Yuki-chan over there would have thought twice about putting that senbon in the back of my skull. Isn't that right, Haku-san?" Naruto said teasingly as he turned to look at the masked shinobi, who had her hands tightly clutched around a senbon she had thought about throwing at Naruto to save Zabuza.

"Haku? What do you mean?" Narumi asked, utterly confused.

The shinobi sighed and took off her Kiri Hunter-nin mask, exposing her pretty face.

"Haku? You were with Zabuza this whole time? He-he's your precious person?" Narumi asked in shock.

Haku nodded. "I guess it's time I tell you the truth." She told Narumi.

"I'm one of the last of the Yuki Clan, as your sensei pointed out, due to the bloodline purge in Kiri, which is what the civil war over there is all about. My mother hid her identity and married my father, and they lived happily together, and gave birth to me. We weren't that well off, but everything was still fine, until one day I discovered my powers." Haku demonstrated by forming a flower out of ice, shocking everyone but Zabuza's team and Naruto.

"My mom scolded me and told me to never show my powers to anyone ever again, but it was too late. My father, a supporter of the bloodline purge, discovered this fact and killed my mother. I was forced to kill him with my powers when he tried to kill me next. I lived on the streets, wandering aimlessly, and wanted to die. Zabuza-sama found me and took me in. He gave me a purpose to live again. To be his tool, serving him dutifully."

"Hey! People aren't tools! Sure you might work for him, but that's because you want to! Tools don't get to choose that, you baka!" Narumi shouted out.

Haku stood still as she processed what she just heard. She had never thought about it that way before. She had lived as his tool, but she thought she had done so out of obligation. Narumi made her realize it went beyond that. She was staying with Zabuza by choice. She turned to look at Zabuza.

"I don't need a soft tool like you, Haku. You'd rather heal people rather than kill. Not fitting for the Demon of the Mist to have such a weak tool. Go follow your own dreams or whatever. I don't need you anymore, and you don't need me anymore either." Zabuza told Haku, trying to sound tough but people still recognized what he was trying to say. He wanted her to follow her own dreams. It surprised her and the demon brothers. It seemed the near encounter with death had softened him.

"Heh, who would have thought the Demon of the Mist was such a softie inside." Naruto joked, causing Zabuza to glare at him. What an asshole.

Haku thought about what she wanted to do, as everyone looked at her, wondering what she would do next. Nobody had expected these turn of events, and though most of the people had no idea what this was all about, it was pretty dramatic and caught their attention. They didn't know why they were so invested in the personal lives of some strangers, but it was still interesting, and they were curious and wanted to see what happened.

"I… I want to continue serving you Zabuza-sama. I wish to be by your side, to help you achieve your dreams. Your dream of overthrowing the tyrant of Kiri." Haku softly confessed.

Zabuza was glad his face was covered in the bandages, as he would have killed anyone who saw the sappy smile he had on his face.

"But first, can I… please have some time to hang out with my new friend? Just for a little bit?" Haku asked Zabuza for a personal favor for the first time ever. This whole thing of being Narumi's enemy and friend at the same time had been eating her up, preventing her from seeing Narumi after their first meeting, but now they were no longer enemies, as Zabuza was giving up on this mission.

"Way to ask me that as I'm left here on my knees with all these injuries." Zabuza said sarcastically, trying to cover up his slip up of revealing his emotions. "But sure. Go ahead. Just leave me here to die from my wounds I guess."

Naruto and Narumi chuckled at the scene as Haku awkwardly tried to say she obviously meant to do so after she treated Zabuza.

The bridge builders and the rest of Team 7 were smiling at the scene, when suddenly the warm atmosphere was interrupted by slow hand claps.

Everyone turned to see who was clapping, and they saw a short man in a business suit standing in front of what looked to be at least 200 thugs armed with all sorts of weapons, from swords, spears, to clubs.

"Bravo. What a heart warming display from the pussycat of Kiri. Call yourself a demon and can't even kill a single old man. Pathetic. Oh well. I was planning on killing you afterwards anyway. You were too expensive. But I guess now that pretty boy over there has done half of the job for me, it's time to finish the job, unlike you who couldn't." Gato said sarcastically and hatefully.

"Gato! You dare backstab me!?" Zabuza yelled out in fury. He stood up to fight, but his wounds were taking a toll on him. Still, the Demon of the Mist wouldn't let a few "scratches" keep him away from a fight.

He grabbed his huge sword, which now required both arms due to his fatigue and injuries, and began to walk over to Gato.

Gato thought Zabuza would be close to death by now, and was scared senseless by Zabuza's sudden approach. He scurried behind his men.

"Kill him! Kill everyone! Whoever kills Zabuza and the Konoha ninja will be paid double! No, triple!" Gato squealed out in fear.

The thugs smirked an evil and greedy smile as they began to step towards Zabuza, believing in their numbers, but Zabuza didn't back down against their superior numbers. He stepped forward to meet them in battle, when suddenly Naruto's arm cut off his approach.

"Why don't we let our cute little Genin and Chunin handle this one? Hmm? They're mere thugs and brutes anyway. It won't require the Demon of the Mist's valuable time and attention, wouldn't you agree?" Naruto suggested with a small grin on his face.

Zabuza looked over at the 6 other shinobi that were present. If looks could kill, Haku would have killed half of the thugs with her stare alone. How dare they try to backstab her master! Her kind and compassionate side was taken over by a fury that demanded blood.

Narumi stood next to her new friend in support, brandishing her mother's sword, while the other 2 members stood behind her in support. The demon brothers stood further behind, observing how this would all go down. Zabuza reluctantly agreed to Naruto's suggestion.

"You, disgusting robbers, bullies and rapists." Haku growled out menacingly.

"I've had to put up with you scum for the sake of my master, but not anymore. How dare you try to backstab Zabuza-sama!" she was shaking with rage.

Zabuza and the demon brothers had never seen her this angry, and were wondering what she was about to do.

The thugs were furious that this girly looking boy dared to talk to them like that. They raised their weapons and began to run towards her.

"Hyoton: Tsurara Rendan! (Ice Release: Icicle Barrage)" Haku yelled out as she formed hundreds of sharp icicles out of the moisture from the humid air and the water nearby, and sent them flying at the charging thugs like a volley of arrows.

The first few rows in the front were mowed down by the jutsu, immediately halting their momentum and movement, as they tried to process what just happened.

Naruto let out a whistle, impressed at the effectiveness of the rare Hyoton bloodline, and Haku's skill with it, while Zabuza looked on proudly. Scratch what he said earlier. She definitely had what it took to stand by his side in battle.

Sasuke gave his teammates a look, and they nodded. It was time to try out one of their formations.

Sasuke was itching for a chance to prove himself in combat, and didn't want to be outdone by Narumi's new friend who just displayed an impressive jutsu.

With the huge number of opponents he was facing, he decided he would pull out a jutsu he had been working on with his mother.

He channeled chakra into his legs to jump high into the air as he weaved his hand seals.

"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Technique)" Sasuke yelled out, as he spit out numerous balls of fire that began to rain down over the thugs.

Their numerical superiority counted for nothing the moment they foolishly walked onto the bridge to attack, and they had no room to dodge the fireballs that rained down over many of them. Some of them burned to death, while many of lucky ones got away with just burns.

Sasuke landed in front of Haku. He wasn't done yet. He flipped through even more hand seals. Time to show off the fruit of his hard work. He would make his sensei proud.

"Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Dragon Flame Technique)" he bellowed out, as flames travelled up the ninja wires that were attached to the shuriken that were hidden in the fireballs of his earlier attack.

"Using the Hosenka no Jutsu to set up his Ryuuka no Jutsu… brilliant." Naruto muttered to himself as he proudly watched his student wreak havoc.

Zabuza was amazed that a Genin was showing so much proficiency with elemental jutsu. He looked over to Naruto, clearly impressed. The blonde Jonin had Genin that fit his caliber.

The formation of the thugs were thrown in to disarray, as the trails of fire consumed the unfortunate souls that were in the way. From Haku and Sasuke's opening attacks, nearly a 4th of them had been killed or incapacitated, and they no longer had any semblance of order.

Narumi and Hinata sprung into action next, charging into the mass of people who were completely disorganized. The two resembled a storm, as Narumi sliced her way through the thugs, while Hinata quickly put down thugs with rapid strikes to critical pressure points, mopping up the survivors in the front ranks. Sasuke and Haku decided to join in, drawing kunai and jumping into action.

The thugs were no match for the 4 shinobi that were carving their way through, and they slowly began to be pushed back.

That was when the demon brothers sprung their attack from the rear, using their bladed chain to mow down the thugs in a pincer attack. The thugs were now sandwiched between a storm of angry Genin and Haku, and a literal chainsaw hacking their way through from behind.

Gato was hidden behind some trees, far from the action where he felt safer. He watched his small army of thugs get mowed down, and he felt a chill crawling up his spine. This was not how things were supposed to go. Now all he could do was hope his backup plan to get the bridge builder's family as hostages worked out.

Naruto wished he had some popcorn as he watched his team make short work of Gato's men with skill and good teamwork, when he felt a tingle on a seal on his arm. He smirked when memories of what happened returned to him. That fool Gato. Did he think he wouldn't have any contingencies for protection back at Tazuna's house?

Naruto decided he had seen enough. He didn't need his Genin to have 100s of kills in their body counts just yet.

"Team 7! Fall back! I'll take over from here." Naruto ordered his Genin.

The team obediently fell back. They didn't enjoy killing people that much anyway, which is why Hinata knocked them out or crippled them instead if she could, though a few had died from internal damage to their organs from her jyuuken strikes.

In a manner of minutes, they went from having never killed anyone before, to having dozens of kills under their belts. They didn't feel too great about it, but Wave's terrible state brought on by these people, who were killers, robbers, and rapists, made the Genin feel a little better, feeling like they had some sort of justification.

When Zabuza's team saw Team 7 pulling out, they began to fall back as well. The thugs were more than happy to get a moment of reprieve, and to gather themselves. They thought the worst had passed.

They couldn't be more wrong.

Of the 200 thugs that had come with Gato earlier, only about a quarter of them remained. They regrouped, hoping to find an opening to escape. They tried to leave, only to have their escape cut off by a blonde man.

"Get out of our way or we'll kill you!" one of the thugs yelled out. "It's one of you versus all of us! This isn't a fair fight! Get the hell out of the way!" another yelled out.

"You're absolutely right. It definitely isn't a fair fight." Naruto said with a smirk.

He pulled out several kunai and threw them at the mob in front of him, forming seals with one hand as he pulled out his chokuto again. "Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

The handful of shuriken multiplied into hundreds with the amount of chakra Naruto put into the move, and tore into the rows closest to him, cutting them to shreds.

They had no time to react, as Naruto and 2 shadow clones appeared amongst them immediately after, and began their assault.

The Genin and Chunin present, as well as everyone else watching, looked on in fear as the 3 Naruto's moved in a blur. Blood sprayed into the air, more and more blood flying into the air before the previous spurts of blood could even hit the ground. Limbs and head were flying around, like chaff being blown by the wind, and the blood began to form a mist around the carnage.

The Genin realized how skilled Zabuza was to fight on somewhat even grounds against their beast of a sensei for so long. None of Naruto's movements were wasted, each strike sending someone to the afterlife, though only Zabuza's trained and experienced eyes were able to truly appreciate what they were seeing.

Back at Tazuna's House

Tsunami was doing the dishes when she heard someone knock at her door.

"Who is it?" Tsunami called out, but the people at the door didn't reply, only continuing to knock at her door aggressively.

"Alright, alright. I'm coming." Tsunami said to herself, as she dried off her hands and headed to the door.

When she opened the door, the door was roughly slammed open by the people on the other side. It was Gato's henchmen. Zori and Waraji.

They forced their way in and grabbed her by the wrist. "Come with us quietly and spare us the trouble, will ya?" Zori said to Tsunami with a smirk.

Waraji meanwhile had other ideas as he lecherously looked up and down Tsunami's body. "Boss just told us to bring her. He never said we couldn't have some fun first."

Inari had been hiding behind the entrance to the living room, but he wasn't about to let these thugs have their way with his mom while he did nothing. He grabbed a broom and rushed out to attack the intruders.

Waraji easily sliced the broom in half with a quick slash of his sword.

"Looks like you decided to spare us the trouble of looking for you. How nice of you, brat." Waraji sneered as he grabbed the boy by the throat.

"No! Please! Let my son go. I'll come with you quietly!" Tsunami begged in tears.

"Nah, we were ordered to bring both of you. But we won't hurt him unnecessarily if you submit." Zori told Tsunami as he grinned perversely.

Tsunami shed tears at the dilemma she was faced with. She didn't know what to do.

"Close your eyes, Inari." Inari heard a voice quietly tell him with authority. He felt compelled to obey.

"Who was tha-" Waraji was unable to finish his sentence when his head was removed from his body.

The last thing he saw before he lost consciousness was Zori's decapitated head on the floor looking back at Waraji's own decapitated head in confusion, before his eyes glazed over.

Naruto escorted the two frightened people away from the bloody mess.

"N-N-Na-Naruto-san!" Tsunami managed to stammer out through her shock, as she fell into his arms.

"Shhh. Everything will be ok. I'm just a clone the real me left behind just in case. I was hiding in your house just in case something like this might happen." The clone explained.

After all of the shocking events that just occurred, it was not difficult for the woman to accept the strange explanation.

The clone then turned to Inari. "You were very brave there kid. You knew you had no chance of winning, but you went in there anyway, because you knew trying to protect your mother was more important than the actual outcome."

Inari was speechless, mostly because of shock, but also because he didn't know how to respond. Here was a man he thought was a jerk, but now he was complimenting him?

"Now you know how Kaiza felt when he stood up to Gato. He's no idiot. He's a hero. And today, you were too." Naruto warmly told the boy.

Inari was stunned. Maybe Hinata was right. Maybe this Naruto person wasn't just a dick. He was moved with emotions and began to cry when Naruto ruffled his hair like Kaiza used to do.

"This is the start, Inari. You've finally gotten over the victim mentality. You're learning how to take your destiny into your own hands, instead of just taking the blows life gives you laying down." Naruto said encouragingly.

"Now, are you gonna let some foreign jerks come and save your home, or are you gonna do something about it?" Naruto asked.

"Bu-but what can I do? I'm just an 8-year-old kid." Inari said meekly.

"Do you want to help?" Naruto asked the boy who nodded vigorously.

"Good. Then go and gather the people of Wave and come to the bridge. It's time to show Gato who Wave really belongs to." Naruto told Inari.

Inari looked up at Naruto in awe for a second, before he realized he was wasting time and ran out to town.

Naruto proudly watched as Inari ran off, when he felt a soft hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you. Thank you for saving us. And thank you for giving us hope again." Tsunami told Naruto with a sincere smile on her face.

"All in a day's work Tsunami-san." Naruto replied.

"Now… about that mess at my entrance…" Tsunami asked sheepishly. She wasn't too fond of the sight of blood.

"…I'll clean that up." Naruto sighed out as his shoulders sagged. What a drag.

Back at the Bridge

The body of the last thug dispatched by Naruto hit the ground. It had only taken a minute for him to kill over 50 people. His handsome appearance was hidden by the gore that covered him.

That was the sight that greeted Inari and the villagers when they arrived on the scene. Many thought he was a demon when they saw the carnage that surrounded him.

"Oh. Hey! You're here!" Naruto cheerfully waved at Inari, forgetting the fact that he looked like an insane serial killer right now. It had been a long time since blood stopped bothering him.

When Gato saw Inari and the villagers, he knew it was over. He tried to slink away quietly.

'Damn it! Why did those damn Konoha ninja have to get involved! They ruined everything!' Gato thought to himself as he tried to sneak away.

He was looking over his shoulder as he walked into the forest when he bumped into what he thought was a brick wall.

"Huh? What's a wall doing in the middle of…" Gato's words died in his throat when he saw Zabuza staring down at him with Kubikiribocho slung over his shoulder.

"Going somewhere?"

*Author's Note*

And that's part 3 of the Wave Arc! I'll wrap things up in the next chapter.

I was pleasantly surprised to see everyone ok with Sasuke staying as a brother figure to Narumi. I guess I really wrote him deep into that brother zone, huh? Lol, if I'm being honest, when I first started writing this story, I was planning on pairing the two, but seeing where the story has come, I think they'll be better with their sibling dynamic. I wonder who I should pair Sasuke with now. Ino? Hinata? Haku? I'll see how things go. I don't think I'll start another vote for him, seeing how messy that all was, but feel free to give me suggestions! If you can give me a good reason why or how he ends up with someone, I'll see if I can try to add it to my story.

One thing I wanted to address in my Author's Note, was what happened with Hiashi and Hinata in Chapter 21. Some people were saying he had no right to forbid her from going on a mission, and only the Hokage had the right to assign missions.

Now, that… is true. BUT, I feel like I could explain. Does Hiashi have the right to forbid her from going? Technically no, but I feel like he could in some ways.

I feel like Konoha gives clans a lot of autonomy, seeing how they can't do away with the caged bird seal on the cadet branch of the Hyuuga, despite it being a literal means to literally enslave and control shinobi who are technically under the Hokage. Their loyalty goes to the main branch before the village or the Hokage in that sense.

Another thing is Hiashi's influence in the government of Konoha. He is the clan head of the most powerful clan in Konoha, now that the Uchiha and Senju are a shell of their former selves. They are strong when it comes to numbers, importance due to their kekkei genkai, they have influence in the council, and connections with influential people that go all the way to the Fire capital. He could easily convince Hiruzen that Hinata, his official heir, was not fit to leave at the moment, and her past as a target for kidnapping would make her a risk. Imagine if Kumo snatched her up on a mission and got their hands on the Byakugan. It's a pretty dicey situation.

Also, the way Naruto got the C-rank mission in the first place was rather… unofficial? Unconventional? In my story, I wrote it so that it was either the rule, tradition, guideline, or convention for Genin to complete at least 30 D-rank missions before getting a C-rank, so a clan head could definitely raise some questions on preferential treatment or something along those lines, which could have been used to convince Hiruzen to pull Hinata out.

At the end of the day, there could be many ways to explain why Hiashi thought he could ban her from going. I guess I'll leave it up to you to imagine what the reasons could be. It might require a degree of suspension of disbelief, but I wrote it like that, so I guess it is what it is. I'd say it's somewhat believable, but it's up to you how you interpret it.

Anyway, here are the votes for Narumi. I'll keep Sasuke and Haku's votes, but consider them mostly out of the race for now.

Sasuke 56

Shino 11

Shikamaru 36

Gaara 36

Haku 51

Kiba 1

I think I'm leaning towards either Shikamaru or Gaara right now. Do you guys have any other interesting suggestions?

Anyway, thanks for reading the latest chapter of the Jinchuuriki's Brother! I hope you guys enjoyed it!

Let me know what you think in a review or comment! Always feel free to ask me anything or make any suggestion!

Stay safe and have a good day everyone! Until next time!