Chapter 9: Bloody Waves Pt. 1
The next morning, the members of Team Seven as well as Tazuna were by the main gate waiting for the arrival of their sensei. The three woke up and had an early breakfast together before proceeding to the main gates.
Along the way, they had met Team Ten who were on their way to the Hokage Tower for their missions and Sakura couldn't help but gloat at Ino about her position.
Shikamaru and Chouji had to literally drag a fuming Ino away before she could do any bodily harm to her friend and rival.
"So where IS that instructor of yours? Is he always this late?" Tazuna growls out as he shifted uneasily from one foot to another. It didn't help that he was seriously hung over.
Sasuke looks at his watch and shrugs. "Hmm.... It's only eight thirty in the morning so it's still pretty early for him to show up."
"Eight thirty?" Tazuna asks incredilously. "Aren't we supposed to meet here by eight? What kind of leader is he?"
"Kakashi Sensei is a special case so please be patient with him." Naruto stated as he leaned back against the gate, playing with a kunai. Of course, he didn't mention that Kakashi always spent some time in front of the memorial stone every morning.
The team had discovered this little habit of their sensei when they had, one day, searched for him after growing tired of his tardiness. It had been a rainy day then and they found him standing in front of the memorial stone and later found out that Kakashi went there each and every day early in the morning and did nothing but stare at the memorial stone for hours at a time. It was probably the cyclopean jounin's way of remembering his fallen friends and comrades.
Since then, they didn't give him too much of a hard time everytime he came in late because they understood why he did it.
"Wave Country is an almost three day journey on foot Tazuna San." Sakura pointed out, though not bothering to mention that had it been ninjas unburdened by civilians that were traveling, they could probably make it there in less then half the time. "There's no telling what we may encounter along the way even though this is just a simple C class escort mission so Kakashi Sensei must be doing some last minute preparations." The kunoichi explained, hoping to appease their client. Tazuna could do nothing but grumble at this then opted to sit down while he waited.
Fifteen minutes later, Kakashi appears in front of the group in a puff of smoke. "Yo! Good morning guys." He said with a lazy wave.
"You're late!!" Tazuna said before Naruto and Sakura could say it themselves.
"So what's your excuse this time sensei?" Sasuke asked. "A black cat crossed your path? Or an old lady needed your help?"
"Hmmm...." Kakashi said as he stroked his chin. "You know what? I actually haven't had the time to think of an excuse yet today." He stated with an eye smile, glancing at Tazuna who was giving him an incredilous look.
"Well at least he's being honest about it." Naruto mutters.
"And he IS a bit early today." Sakura added.
"And these are the guys who are supposed to protect me? I'm a dead man." Tazuna concluded.
"All right you guys, knock it off." Kakashi stated goodnaturedly, being already used to his student's ribbings. "We've still got a job to do so lets get to it."
The genins of Team Seven nods at this and instantly positions themselves around Tazuna with Sasuke and Sakura on either side in front while Naruto brought up the rear. Kakashi himself took point so if ever there was a problem, he'd be the first to confront it.
"Team Seven, let's move out." Kakashi ordered as he led the way going outside Konoha.
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Hours later into the trip, the contingent were walking along a forest path. But Tazuna's constant grumblings and complainings wasn't making the trip any more bearable and were grating on the team's last nerves. So they were understandably NOT in the best of moods.
Unfortunately for the infamous Demon Brothers of the Mist, it was in this state of mind that they discovered their targets which their intel said consisted of the old bridgebuilder accompanied by a jounin and his genin team..
As the seemingly oblivious Konoha contingent passed by the puddle which was actually the masked Demon Brothers formerly from the village of the Hidden Mist in disguise, the devious duo emerges, wrapping the chain which connected their clawed gauntlets together on a masked Konoha nin with a covered left eye whom they assumed was the jounin leader and pulling on the chains violently, seemingly tearing the unsuspecting man to pieces.
"One down...." Both whispered as they turned to the genins. But instead of them cringing in fright like they expected, the masked duo are surprised to see the three react like a well oiled machine with the two boys charging towards them with drawn kunais while the slightly shaken looking female member stepping in front of the old bridgebuilder with drawn kunai of her own. The two boys attacks ferociously and the Demon Brothers were hardpressed to defend against the relentless assault.
But the Demon Brothers were experienced and ruthlessly efficient shinobis. Once they saw an opening, they managed to wound the blonde brat and knock him away.
But as the blonde flew back, he manages to toss a few kunais through the chain links which imbedded itself on a tree. A moment later, a brace of shurikens join the kunai and further pinning the chains and by extension, the brothers to the tree. The dark haired genin then appears standing on the chain then split kicks the Demon Brothers in the face.
But the resourceful siblings unhooks the chains from their claws and launches a two pronged attack directly at the kunoichi and the bridgebuilder before anyone can react as they said. "Time to die old man." But before the Demon Brothers could reach them, a pair of strong arms wraps around their necks and violently sends both skulls crashing against each other.
"Ahh.... Good work team." A very much alive Kakashi said as he unceremoniously drops the unconscious Demon Brothers to the ground.
"You could've stepped in anytime you wanted to Kakashi Sensei." Sasuke muttered. "We wouldn't have complained."
"There was something I needed to see for myself. Besides, you guys managed to hold your own well in a fight against experienced opponents and kept them occupied long enough for Sakura to do her thing." Kakashi said then looks at Sakura and Tazuna. "Speaking of which, you can drop the genjutsu now Sakura." 'Sakura and Tazuna' shimmered for a moment before disappearing completely before the genuine articles comes out of hiding from behind a large bush. She then notices Naruto holding his bleeding hand.
"Naruto! You're hurt!" she exclaimed, running towards her teammate as she takes out a field medical kit from her pouch.
"I'm ok Sakura Chan. It's just a scratch." Naruto said through gritted teeth.
"You should have Sakura take a look at it anyways." Kakashi said. "The Demon Brothers are known to dip their weapons in various types of chemicals so I assume those claws are also poisoned."
"So you know these losers?" Sasuke asked as he finished tying the brothers up. "What the hell are they doing here and why are they attacking us?"
"Good question." Kakashi said, staring at Tazuna who shifted uncomfortably. "The Demon Brothers are high chunin class missing nins from Kirigakure and there's no way they'd take on a job like killing some old drunk unless there's more here then meets the eyes. Care to enlighten us on what it is before any more 'surprises' pop up Tazuna San?"
Tazuna sweatdrops as he feels the glares that the Konoha shinobis were giving him and sighs in resignation as he said one name.
"Gatou."
Kakashi raises an eyebrow at this. "Gatou? As in the filthy rich shipping mangate?"
"The one and only." Tazuna confirmed with a frown. "Wave gets of their business and income from the mainland via the ships which Gatou owns so he basically has a stranglehold on all our livelihood."
"And that concerns you how?" Kakashi pressed on.
Tazuna was silent for a moment before answering. "I was contracted by Wave Country to build them a bridge which would connect them to the mainland in order to faciltate merchants who wants to deal directly with the village."
Sakura's quick mind immediately grasped at the implications of this. "And if that happens, Gatou would lose his monopoly on your livelihoods."
Tazuna nods at this. "That's right. And not only that, he knew that once we have the bridge built, we would be able to hire skilled and disciplined protection of our own and not rely on his goons which are just a bunch of vicious and unruly thieves who's much more trouble then they're worth."
Kakashi nods at this knowingly. "That pretty much fits Gatou's profile. He is widely known to have his hands in a lot of shady dealings but so far, there's no concrete proof. But why don't you hire ninjas to drive him away instead?"
"Because Wave is a poor country." Tazuna replied grimly. "I told you that Gatou has a stranglehold on our economy, right? He keeps all the money to himself and treats our village like his own private kingdom. We barely have enough to live by much less hire skilled ninjas for protection."
"You're aware that you're in violation of our contract, right?" Kakashi stated. "All we were hired for was to protect you from thieves and local riffraffs and not against a tyrant wannabe who has the resources to hire infamous missing nins as backup muscles and assasins. With that kind of odds, this C-Class mission has just been upgraded to at least a B-Class mission which my team is unprepared for. And it may be possible that it might be upgraded again to A-Class, depending on who Gatou might hire."
"Please.... You're all we have right now." Tazuna pleaded. "I swear that I will pay you the proper amount once the mission is over and whenever we've gotten back to our feet."
"I don't know Tazuna San.... We do have an injured genin who needs to get treated for poison and..." Kakashi starts before he hears Sakura exclaim. "What are you think you're doing Naruto? Don't do that.... Stop...."
"SCHNICKT!!"
Kakashi looks back in concern and just in time, sees Naruto stab his hand where his wound was and allowed blood as well as the black viscous substance which he assumes is poison to flow out of the wound.
"Kakashi Sensei, we accepted the mission so we should see it through till the end." Naruto gritted out with determination. "I always keep my word no matter what and a scratch like this...." Naruto raises his wounded hand for emphasis. "....Won't stop me. That's my nindo."
"So it's agreed then?" Kakashi asks looking at his students. Sakura looked a little shaky but nods at him firmly. Sasuke's expression was deadpan as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. "Fine. This mission is now tentatively upgraded to B-Class and we will continue on. Just don't forget your promise to us Tazuna."
Kakashi then walks over to Naruto and whips out a bandage from his pack. "Now lets wrap that 'scratch' up before you lose any more blood, ok Naruto?" Kakashi said with an eye smile. Truth be told, the wound was already closing up as he was wrapping it but of course, he didn't need any unwanted questions which he couldn't afford to answer from their client.
Kakashi then makes his way towards the trussed up Demon Brothers who were just regaining consciousness. "Now then. Maybe these gentlemen can enlighten us on what else we can expect on this trip, eh?"
"We don't know jack." The bigger one growls out. "And even if we did know something, we ain't telling you a single damned thing."
"I see. That's too bad then." Kakashi stated as he takes out a blank scroll and writes something on it before rolling it up again and cuts his thumb with a kunai. He slams his bleeding hand to the ground and calls out. "Kuchiyose No Jutsu!!" A small pug wearing a vest and a Konoha hiate appears from the smoke and Kakashi hands him the scroll.
"Pakkun, deliver this to Ibiki ASAP. He'll know what to do." The pug nods and promptly disappears before Kakashi turns to the Demon Brothers again. "I guess you guys will have to wait here till my comrades arrive to take you in. It shouldn't take them more then a couple of hours to get here and pick you two up."
"Hold on! You can't just leave u...." The smaller Demon Brother started before both were knocked back into unconsciousness courtesy of swift chops to the back of the neck by Kakashi who said with a hidden grin. "In the meantime, sleep things off while you have the chance boys coz where you're going, they're gonna be keeping you up all night long."
Kakashi then turns to his companions with an eye smile. "All right then. We can continue with our trip to Wave Country."
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After crossing a large river in a boat navigated by a decidedly nervous fishermen and getting a view of the largely uncompleted bridge up close, the contingent finds themselves in a rather misty part of the woods.
"This place is creepy." Naruto stated nervously. "It's like something out of a horror movie."
"Maybe we should stop for now and continue with our trip after the fog subsides?" Sakura suggested.
"That's a good idea Sakura." Kakashi stated and looks up the darkening sky then around the clearing. "This should be an ideal place to camp out and rest for the night, if that's ok with you, Tazuna San?"
The old bridgebuilder nods at this. "I guess it's fine. It's not safe to travel around here at night anyways."
"I guess it's decided then." Kakashi said, shrugging off his pack and starts issuing his orders. "Sasuke, gather some dried timber and start the campfire. While you're at it, look around for edible fruits or berries we can supplement with our provisions. Naruto, create some shadow clones and put up the tents and makeshift mess hall. Sakura, you're in charge of cooking our food for tonight and guarding Tazuna. I'll scout around the area for a little bit."
The genins nods and goes about performing their duties as Kakashi promptly poofs away to survey the area. Within ten minutes, a stew prepared by Sakura was already simmering away in a fire made by Sasuke. Meanwhile, Naruto and his clones finishes setting up the tents as Kakashi reappears in the campsite and reports that the coast is clear.
About half an hour later, the Konoha nins and the old shipbuilder sat around the campfire after their meal.
"That was an excellent meal Sakura, given what little you had to work with." Kakashi told his pink haired student. Sakura blushes at the compliment and was about to speak when the rustling of the bushes to her left catches her attention. Quick as a flash, she brings out a kunai and throws it towards the bushes. Naruto and Sasuke springs up and rushes towards the bushes with drawn kunais but only sees a shivering little white rabbit with Sakura's kunai lodged just above it's head and brings it out for everyone to see.
"What the hell do you think you're doing girlie?" Tazuna demanded. "You almost killed the poor, defenseless animal. Are you ninjas always THIS damned jumpy?"
The pink haired kunoichi had to restrain herself from throttling their client while her inner persona was going ballistic. "LEMME AT THAT CROTCHY OLD BASTARD!!! I'LL KICK HIS DRUNKEN ASS ALL THE WAY TO HELL!!!" Inner Sakura ranted as the real Sakura forced herself to calm down and explain the situation to the old bridgebuilder.
"Tazuna San.... First of all, this rabbit is a snow rabbit and is not indigenous to this area." Sakura said, holding up the rabbit. "Secondly, this rabbit is not wild. It's relatively tamed and well trained and small animals like these are often raised and used by shinobis for one of their more common techniques which is the Kawirami No Jutsu or Subsitution Technique."
Tazuna realizes what the kunoichi was implying. "Wait a minute.... If that's true, that means...."
"....Yeah. Somebody was watching us from the very beginning and when the person inadvertently gave away his position, used Kawarimi to switch position with the rabbit." Kakashi confirmed grimly.
Kakashi then thinks for a little while before coming to a decision and looks at his team. "We'll stay here till dawn, break camp then continue with our journey to the village. But somebody has to be awake al all times to keep watch so we'll take turns. Sakura will take the first watch followed by Sasuke, Naruto then me. Rest up people, we have a long day tomorow."
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The next day, Team Seven and Tazuna are walking through the woods on the way to Tazuna's village. The fog hasn't subsided yet but at least it was considerably brighter.
"At this pace, we're just a couple of hours away from the village." Tazuna said, looking around nervously. "Hopefully, we'll get there before dinnertime."
"That's good to hear." Kakashi said, looking around as well and alert for any possible danger. He notes with satisfaction that his team were equally watchful for any possible threats.
"Is it always like this here?" Sasuke asks. "A civilian would be a sitting duck for thieves and hooligans and even trained shinobis will have a hell of a time inside all this mists."
"Thieves are the least of your worries here while Gato's in charge coz I can guarantee you that whatever hired muscle that he's got on his payroll is way worst then any ol' thugs." Tazuna stated.
"I'm starting to seriously not like this Gato guy." Naruto mutters darkly. "He sounds like a really major scumbag."
"He's the biggest one around." Confirmed Tazuna with a sad smile. "And there's not a damned thing we can do about him ever since we lost Kaiza."
"Kaiza?" Sakura asks curiously. But before Tazuna can answer, a whizzing sound can be heard throughout the woods.
"Do you guys hear that?" Naruto asks with a frown. "What do you think it is?"
"Whatever it is, it's getting closer." Sakura comments as she looks around.
Without warning, Kakashi suddenly shouts out. "Everybody down!!!" He then quickly pulls Tazuna to the ground. The genins also reacts quickly, dropping down to the ground as an ominous objects whizzes past their heads and imbeds itself on a tree.
Looking up cautiously, Kakashi saw that the object was a large zanbatou. And on the end of the giagantic sword stood a figure wearing grey camou pants and arm warmers and had bandages covering the lower half of his face. But it was the zanbatou and the hiate of the Hidden Mist which clued Kakashi in on the identity of the attacker.
"Momochi Zabuza."
Author's Notes: Ok guys. The next chapter of Narutimate Legends: Reload is now history. Tell me what you think guys.
I also need help with something else though. Should Haku be a boy or a girl here? What do you guys think?