AN: Awesome! I got the five reviews that I wanted! I'm sorry to the reviewee that did not want Zabuza to be a villain. I thought about it trying to make the idea fit in with the story and I just couldn't find a way. I want to keep the anime's villains so that the readers can picture it, I'm so sorry! Thank you for all of your reviews! The same rule applies for this chapter 5 reviews in order to update! ENJOY!

The Sharingan

Paralyzing. That was the feeling that encased the four young ninjas when they saw their sensei get ripped to pieces. Now they were on their own. No one was going to protect them. If they messed up, that same mistake would cost them their lives. If you didn't have the courage to fight then you would be an easy target. It was moments like these that tested their nerve by fire. In order to survive you had to have the iron will to do whatever it takes to be able to walk away from the fight. You couldn't freeze up afraid of the enemy, you had to let the rage overtake you, and despite the way your entire body trembled with fear, you had to suppress it and fight with such a ferocity, as if, you knew you were going to win.

Naruto was in that very predicament. He had never been in a fight of this intensity before, or so he thought. These rogue ninjas were going to kill him! His rational mind screamed for him to run and flee from this perilous danger. He didn't want to die! He was about to run when he happened to glance over at Hinata who was standing a few feet away from him. She was visibly trembling, her eyes widened in fear. She was just as terrified as he was. When he saw her frightened appearance, something awoke from within in him. It was like another presence, one that was strong and fearless, and one that wanted to protect Hinata with his life.

"What are you doing?" the voice ranted. You got to protect Hinata! Arrgh! Why are you being such a weenie! You'll never be Hokage if you keep acting like some pansy! That sure got the rational Naruto's attention. He wasn't emotionally retarded like Sasuke so he actually listened to the voice. He wasn't some pansy, Sasuke was! Besides, nothing would come between him becoming Hokage. He wasn't sure about the whole Hinata thing yet but hey why not, she needed someone strong like him to protect her right? Without a second thought, he raced over and stood protectively in front of Hinata, kunai drawn in a defensive position.

Meanwhile, Hinata stood there in shock. She had been petrified with fear. She couldn't move and could barely breathe. Those ninjas were going to kill her, and everything she had learned in ninja training seemed to slip from her mind. She felt weak and helpless. There was nothing she could do. Suddenly, someone was standing with his back to her. Her eyes widened a great deal when she saw that it Naruto who stood in front of her. Naruto…he's actually going to protect me. Something in her told her that she could relax now that Naruto was at her side. It was like some part of her knew through past experience, but yet… she had never been on a mission with Naruto before so how could she know that? She didn't have time to contemplate this when her heart lurched at the sight of the two ninjas heading straight at an unguarded Sakura.

Sakura looked on in horror as the ninjas headed straight for her. Somehow, they had figured out that she was probably the weakest out of the four. Why did this have to happen? She wanted to be a good ninja, really she did; it was just how was she supposed to fight ninjas that were clearly at a more advanced level than she was? With a shaking hand she pulled out a kunai and held it at chest level preparing to protect herself. She was just going to have to be her own knight in shining armor Her other hand slipped to the fang necklace and clutched the fang wishing that someone would protect her. A part of her just prayed that he would come and protect her like he had done so many times before. Where was her prince with crimson eyes? Prince with crimson eyes? Sakura couldn't believe it; she was going to go crazy before she was murdered. But some part of her knew that there was such a person. Still, now was not the time for this kind of nonsense.

Sakura tightened her stance. She would not be going down without a fight. They were almost upon her now. They had readied their weapons preparing to strike. This was it. However, something totally unexpected happened. It was like something out of a fairytale. All of a sudden, her prince, her knight in shining armor, was standing in front of her, protecting her with his arms spread wide, little did she know that the crimson eyes that she dreamt of, were now visible. Then, she would know that he truly was her prince, that he was the one that loved and adored her in her dreams. But, unfortunately, she could not, so therefore she was left to ponder and to hope that Sasuke did indeed care for her. However, a small part of her, her heart always somehow knew that Sasuke would always come to rescue her when she was in danger, because he would always be her prince and no matter what spell was placed upon them, she would always be his princess.

In that moment, Sakura felt safe despite the fact that two enemy ninjas were closing in fast. It would only be a few seconds before they would have to fight. She felt like she could do anything with Sasuke by her side. But…it was unnecessary, for just as they were about to attack Kakashi appeared in front of them and caught the ninjas around the neck with his arms, effectively knocking them out. Slowly their sensei turned to them like the whole ordeal was nothing. (Yeah I changed it Kakashi shouldn't have to put in so much effort.)

"Yo."

Sakura's whole face lit up like a Christmas tree. Her eyes were twinkling with happiness. She was elated. Sometimes her sensei was so cool!

"Wow Kakashi sensei's alright, and look at the way he totally took out those ninjas!" Sakura exclaimed looking like a giddy schoolgirl. Sasuke heard this and pouted. So what, it wasn't like he didn't do anything, he just protected her with his life and all she can care about is the way that Kakashi showed up.

"Showoff," he muttered. Little did he know, that the sharingan had deactivated and that his eyes had returned to normal, however, Kakashi had not missed spotting the familiar crimson eyes. So, he does care for her…Kakashi smirked underneath his mask. Things were going according to plan. Now he had to tend to the bigger problem concerning their attackers. Kakashi turned to Naruto who was still guarding Hinata.

"Good job Naruto, that was pretty good for your first time." Kakashi complemented. It was good that Naruto was regaining his memory as well.

"You too Sasuke, I didn't expect any less." Sasuke replied by simply shrugging. Their sensei dragged the two unconscious ninja and tied them to a tree.

"Hmm, by the looks of them and by watching their skill level I'd say that these two are chuunin." Kakashi spotted a familiar tattoo on the arms of both men. His eyes narrowed. In the ocean, the clan of naga that these two were from was notorious for their relentless attacks. Oroachimaru must have sent them. So it has begun…It will only be a matter of time before he sends more of his henchmen. All of a sudden he felt the signature chakra presence of someone that could not be forgotten from past experience. Kakashi scowled. This was not going to be pleasant.

"I didn't think you were one for hiding, Zabuza," Kakashi called standing to his feet. All four of his students looked at him in confusion, but instead followed their sensei's gaze. Out of the trees stepped a very tall and muscular man. Over his shoulder he carried a very large sword. One swipe with it could slice a man in half. One look into his wild eyes made the young ninjas' blood run cold. It was clear by the murderous glint in his onyx orbs that he was out for their blood. Suddenly, those other ninjas seemed like novices compared to this one assassin, and he had yet to make his first move. You could see a dangerous smirk form behind the bandaged part of his face.

"Long time no see, Kakashi," his deep scratchy voice sent shivers of pure fear down the girls' spines. The boys were hardly better. Still, they hid their emotions by a fragile wall of a cautious façade. Each of the four drew weapons and dropped into a defensive stance the boys standing protectively in front of their respective girl. Zabuza looked completely unfazed as his opponents prepared to do battle. Kakashi eyed him carefully.

"Indeed, but aren't you a long way from home? Let me guess, Oroachimaru? I didn't know you were one of his lackeys."

"I'm not. I just couldn't pass up the chance of finally taking on the legendary sharingan user, the copy ninja," Zazbuza said almost casually, yet the fierce determination in his eyes revealed that he was ready to kill the silver haired ninja at any moment. Meanwhile, Kakashi scowled. Because of that one little statement there would be a lot of explaining to do, explaining that he hoped could have waited until the end of their journey. He didn't have to look behind him to know that Sasuke had heard and was now processing the information that had just been leaked.

It was true, Sasuke's mouth had dropped open and he suddenly felt out of breath like someone had knocked the wind out of him. His whole body shivered involuntarily. He knew perfectly well what the sharingan was. It was a bloodline trait that was possessed by those…things. That meant, if what that guy said was true, then Kakashi…he was…Sasuke couldn't bear to think about it. He felt like he was going to throw up. All this time, he had lived with one of those creatures. Was that why he kept telling him that ridiculous story, to let him know what Kakashi's secret was? A bone chilling thought surfaced in his mind. Was that whole story true? Then that meant….NO! I am not a monster! I am not one of those things! I have led a normal life! I am an Uchiha and an avenger! But there was a terrifying feeling in the back of his mind that nagged him that what if it was true? His memories of the past were slowly but surely fading and these new hallucinations of another life as one of those creatures kept surfacing and what about that strange mark on his neck and what purpose did it have?

Sasuke shook his head. He couldn't dwell on these things. Right know he had to focus on the assassin in front of him. If he tried to escape, that advanced ninja would surely demolish him, so he would wait and if they won this fight then he could think about his plan of attack later.

Meanwhile, the others were just plain confused.

"Sharingan, what's that?" Naruto muttered. Hinata was rendered speechless and Sakura was in awe of the fact that her sensei must be very skilled and strong. Zabuza eyed Kakashi and was completely oblivious to the teens that accompanied him. Kakashi was no fool. The only thing separating those kids from death was him. If he wasn't there …he shuddered at the terrible fate that could have befallen them. Zabuza would have to go through him first. Still, this fight was going to be tough, he would have to use his sharingan.

The sharingan, the king of the naga kingdom had somehow blessed him with the incredible ability, for his extraordinary work as a ninja. He would use the gift he was honored with and would protect those four with his life. Besides, it was too late to keep the sharingan a secret so he might as well use it to his advantage. Slowly, he lifted his hand and began to raise the head band to reveal the scarred eye that was closed. His students looked on in awe as his left eye flashed open to reveal the deadly crimson with the black commas swirling in a circular motion around his pupil.

Zabuza actually smirked.

"The sharingan, I'm pleased that I got to see it. That's really saying something Kakashi. It's said that you have copied over one thousand jutsus. I would too if I had such an ability. To be able to see through and anticipate an enemy's jutsus and more importantly to copy an enemy's jutsu brings great power." The four teens stood in shock.

"The sharingan…can it really be that powerful?" Naruto asked in pure amazed disbelief. Zabuza brought the huge sword from off of his shoulder and started walking toward them as a thick mist started to spread around the whole area.

"Quickly, in diamond formation, defend yourselves but do not interfere with this fight" Kakashi warned. The four of them nodded and in an instant they moved so that they were in the shape of a diamond with their backs to each other.

"Enough talking, it's time I finished this," Zabuza sneered. He quickly reappeared on a large lake that was about twenty five feet away. He stood on the water like it was solid ground. The teens looked on in guarded amazement. Kakashi remained in a defensive stance, watching him with the all seeing sharingan eye. Suddenly, with a few hand seals, Zabuza had disappeared into the mist. Hinata shivered.

"He…he's g..g…gone!" she exclaimed in silent terror clutching her kunai tighter. Kakashi still seemed to be calm.

"Don't worry, he'll come after me first, but be careful, I haven't mastered all of the sharingan's techniques so there is still a chance that he may come after you first. Look at it this way, if we fail now, we die," he cautioned. The four gasped and shook in fear. Their hearts were beating so strongly that they could have sworn that they could hear the beats in the silent atmosphere.

"What!" Sakura called out in fear and slight aggravation. Somehow, they had been thrown into a mission that was way over their heads. This was truly certain death! How could she have gotten herself into this situation! Naruto seemed to be sharing the same overwhelming fear.

"The mist is getting thicker!" The fear was blatantly obvious in his voice. Slowly, the mist became so dense that even Kakashi who was only a few feet away became invisible to them.

"Sensei!" Hinata called out softly. There was no answer. Now it was just the four of them, with no one there to protect them except themselves. It was in those silent moments that each one of them wanted so desperately to cry out and run for their lives. The instinct to survive was screaming at them to run and get away from here as fast as possible. Still, there was another voice that reminded them that if they made one wrong move then they would surely be annihilated. It was all they could do to keep their feet planted to the ground.

Out of nowhere Zabuza's voice rang out telling them which arteies or organs he would slowly pierce in order to kill them. Directly after that a huge gust of wind was created blowing the mist away. There a few feet away, Kakashi was glowing blue with the amount of chakra that he was creating. His students looked on in wide eyed wonder.

"I don't think so. I will not let my comrades die," Kakashi stated like there was no room for argument. A snort could be heard from in the distance.

"Oh yeah?" All of a sudden Zabuza appeared in the small space where the teens' backs faced. He raised his sword and was bringing it down to chop off Sasuke's head. Kakashi saw this and in the blink of an eye had tackled Zabuza out of the way causing the students to jump to safety. Kakashi had Zabuza pinned with a kunai to his throat.

"Don't move, or I won't hesitate to kill you. It's over…" Kakashi hissed in his ear. Zabuza smirked.

"Is it?" In a swift move, he somehow was able to get his foot under Kakashi's chest and kicked the silver haired ninja off with such intensity that it sent him flying through the air like a missile and he landed in the water with a loud splash. It was clear that Zabuza was completely smug when he ignored the scared stiff teens around him as he walked straight toward the water's edge.

"Pathetic," he spat as he dived in after Kakashi.

"Sensei!" Naruto shouted out in fear for his teacher. Every one of them was thinking the same thing.

He got knocked down? Sakura thought in disbelief. Before, she had thought that with this so called sharingan that their sensei was almost invincible. Sasuke knew different.

This guy's strong in all forms of jutsu. Kakashi needs help, but what can we do?

Meanwhile, Kakashi had just surfaced, however, he seemed to be struggling in getting out of the water.

"What's with this water, it's so heavy," Kakashi muttered doing his best to free himself from the water's grip. What he didn't see was Zabuza standing directly behind him with his hands already in a hand seal.

"Water prison jutsu," Zabuza declared as a strange circular water-like substance formed around Kakashi in a constricting bubble.

"No!" Kakashi sneered trying to break free. Zabuza snorted in amusement his hand holding the water prison with ease.

"Fool, this a special prison that can not be broken out of from the inside, not to mention that in another minute all of the jutsus that you are performing at this moment will be terminated." Zabuza explained with an evil smile.

"That's right Kakashi, in another minute your precious students will see what you really are. They'll be scared witless at the sight of you, without even realizing that they're actually the same as you. Now Kakashi, I'll have to finish you later, for now, watch as I kill them off one by one," Zabuza taunted. Kakashi growled. There was no use hiding it now. Zabuza paid him no heed and made a water clone. The four's eyes widened in fear.

Suddenly, the mist grew thicker, and Zabuza was no longer visible. A few seconds later, he appeared in front of Hinata and backhanded her and sent her flying into a nearby tree instantly knocking her unconscious.

"Hinata!" Naruto screamed. But before he could move to rush to her side, Zabuza appeared in front of him and kicked him right in the gut sending him crashing against the ground.

Meanwhile, Kakashi couldn't bear watching each one of them get beat brutally.

"Quickly, you all have to run away from here! While I'm in this prison, he can't move, and his clone can't travel too far from him. You have to escape!"

On the other side, Sasuke clutched his kunai tighter. Fear had left him. His anger was growing with each passing second. He took one concerned look at Sakura and then looked back at Kakashi. No…we can't escape. You made sure of that when you got captured. If we try to run, he'll just track us down and annihilate us. Our only chance of survival is to fight and set you free. Without another thought, he charged straight at the Zabuza clone chucking a great number of throwing stars. Zabuza easily blocked them with one swing of his giant sword. At that time Sasuke had leapt high into the air and was preparing to bring his fists down on the clone's head.

"Idiot," the clone snarled. In an instant he grabbed Sasuke's neck in mid air. Sasuke struggled trying to free himself from the vice-like grip, but it was no use. The clone simply threw him on the ground, Sasuke skidding as he went. Sasuke couldn't help the groan of pain that escaped from his lips as he painfully made impact with the ground.

"SASUKE!" Sakura screamed in terror, her whole body trembling. Naruto who had just recovered from his own fall looked on in disbelief.

"Sasuke was…" Fear was paralyzing him now. Zabuza was standing in front of him with murder in his eyes. The feelings of dread and self preservation rushed through Naruto like a raging flood. He had to get out of here now or he was going to die. He was about to leap away when he took one last look at Sasuke who was standing in front of Sakura, and now Zabuza was approaching them at a steady rate. His heart suddenly raced with unknown emotions that quickly overpowered any dread that he possessed. They were feelings of loyalty and duty, of friendship. For some reason, he felt as if he had to protect Sasuke, like it was his duty or something but more importantly he had this incredibly strong feeling that he had to protect his best friend even if it cost him his life.

His inner self lending him his strength, Naruto leapt and appeared right in front of Sasuke with a kunai drawn, staring down Zabuza with a fierce look of determination in his eyes.

"Naruto, what are you doing?! Move!" Sasuke commanded angrily. Naruto looked back briefly to his best friend with his usual lopsided grin.

"Sorry, dude, for some reason, I just have to protect you. It's kinda weird don't cha think?" Naruto said in a playful mood despite the seriousness of the situation. Sasuke just scowled.

"No, it's just plain stupid! Instead of being reckless, why don't you use your head for once and help me," Sasuke replied walking to stand right alongside his teammate, and his secret best friend. Naruto was about to retort with some comeback but just shook his head and nodded, as a fiery resolve arose in him. They would free Kakashi. They would win!

With no regrets, the boys stood to face Zabuza in their personal showdown. But suddenly, they were distracted when a bright light came shining from the water prison where Kakashi was being held prisoner. Everyone who was conscious turned to look at what had happened inside the bubble. Zabuza smirked and the three team members gasped in pure astonished shock.