Disclaimer: I do not, nor have I ever, owned anything related to Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto franchise.

Legend:

"A human is talking."

'A human is thinking.'

"A Tailed Beast or a Summon is talking."

'A Tailed Beast or a Summon is thinking.'

"A type of jutsu is being performed."

Chapter Eight:

-Land of Fire: An unnamed path-

As Anko turned away from her unconscious adversary, she was prepared to help her Genin fight off the other ambusher. She was quite surprised to see the three Genin react to the situation.

Hinata had quickly pushed Tazuna behind her before she slipped into the Gentle Fist stance. For the first time since Anko had begun teaching her, her Byakugan had activated without any conscious thought.

Shino had become he left point of Squad Eight's diamond formation. Even as the enemy approached, he stayed calm in the face of battle.

He had released a swarm of Parasitic Insects as the enemy started to force himself through Naruto's offensive Ninjutsu. When the enemy had broken through, he had used the Aburame's Secret Technique: Insect Sphere to completely trap him. The insects instantly began to devour the man's chakra.

At the first sign of danger, Naruto had begun preparing a water Ninjutsu. He launched it at the enemy as soon as the man had gotten within 40 meters of his position.

When the man had broken through his jutsu, Naruto had allowed his teammate to drain the majority of the man's chakra. He had then appeared behind their assailant, Samehada resting on his throat.

Naruto had then removed Samehada the instant the man fell unconscious. Their assailant had dropped to the ground, bouncing twice, before he settled on the dirt pathway.

The sound of applause brought the group's attention, heightened by adrenaline, to Anko. She stood in the middle of the pathway with a pleased expression on her face.

"You three handled that situation very well." Anko commended. "At the first sight of danger, you three reacted. You took steps to protect yourself and Mr. Kochi… You guys even managed to defeat your enemy without a scratch… I have to say that I'm quite impressed."

The three Genin each had their own reactions to Anko's praise. Hinata had blushed, Shino had nodded, and Naruto had rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish look on his face.

"I'm going to be gone for a little while… Don't worry; I'll be back in five to ten minutes." Anko said as she picked up Gozu, slinging him over her shoulder.

The purple-haired woman then vanished within a small cloud of smoke. When she had left, Naruto turned to look at Tazuna with a smile on his face.

"Still think we're just a "bunch of snot-nosed brats" Mr. Kochi?" He asked.

XXXXXXXXX

-Land of Fire: An unnamed path-

Anko reappeared about 10 ½ minutes after she had left with Gozu.

"I've left our "friends" under the watch of three Earth Clones. They will stay where they are until my message reaches the Hokage and an A.N.B.U. comes to pick them up." Anko said.

The snake-summoner than turned to Tazuna, her expression twisting with the anger that she felt. The Bridge Builder shivered as beads of sweat began to dot his brow.

"As I suspected, those two clowns were here for you!" Anko practically snarled. "The clowns were kind enough to inform me that they were hired to kill you... I suspect that you can tell us why they were after you Mr. Kochi."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Tazuna sniffed.

"I believe that you lied about the nature of this mission. It was assigned to us as a C-rank because you informed the Hokage that you were concerned about bandits and ordinary criminals attacking you on your way back to your homeland." Anko said. "Had we known that you were in danger from other ninja, this mission would be B-rank at best! Tell me why I shouldn't leave you here and take my team back to the Hidden Leaf!"

"You can't do that!" Tazuna replied

"Yes. I. Can. Mister. Kochi. You willfully lied to us and the Hokage about the nature of this mission. Willful deceit is grounds for terminating any mission within the Hidden Leaf Village. I will never put my Genin into a situation that they aren't ready for." Anko responded.

"Please don't!" Tazuna cried. "If you abandon me here, I'll be as good as a dead man!"

"We'll give you one chance to explain yourself. If you leave anything out, I will terminate this mission." The purple-haired woman said.

"I understand. I did know that there would be ninja after me when I requested the Hidden Leaf Villages' ninja services." Tazuna said.

"Why would you be dishonest?" Shino questioned. "Surely you would want adequate protection from the ninja after you."

"If I had told the truth it would have been assigned as a B-rank or an A-rank mission. I simply couldn't afford anything higher than an upper C-rank mission. The Land of Waves is to poor and I didn't have the funds available." The Bridge Builder answered.

"So you would hire a green Genin Squad to do a job that should be handled by a team of Chunin or Jonin?" Anko asked.

"I'm sorry but I had to do it; I'm desperate. A really scary and powerful man is after me." Tazuna confessed.

"Who is after you?" Anko responded.

"You've probably heard about him. He's the multi-billionaire known as Gato. He specializes in marine transportation." Tazuna replied.

"You mean the shipping and transportation tycoon? Gato, the founder of Gato Shipping?" Anko asked. "They say that he is one of the richest men in the world."

"He is also a murderous criminal who will break any law in order to turn a profit. He came to the Land of Waves five months ago under the guise of a business venture. He promised to increase our rate of importing and exporting goods by 25%." Tazuna said, disgustedly.

"What went wrong?" Naruto asked.

"A horde of mercenaries descended upon the Land of Waves to help enforce Gato's will. He quickly gained a monopoly on all transportation by killing anyone that stood in his way. As an island nation, our marine transportation is what keeps our nation going. With him in charge, our economy collapsed and Gato gained all of our money." Tazuna explained.

"That doesn't explain why he is after you." Anko said.

"He is after me because he fears what the completion of my bridge. If my bridge is completed, his monopoly will be broken." The gray-haired man responded.

"I s-see." Hinata said. "As the architect of the bridge and o-overseer of its construction, you are in his way. He sent those t-two ninja to kill you before you could return to your home and complete your bridge."

Anko let out a deep sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"I can sympathize with you, I really can, but my squad isn't ready for this sort of mission." She said.

"Who says that we're not ready?" Naruto challenged. "Weren't we strong enough to defeat one of those two ninja?"

"Those two clowns were Chunin Naruto. The next attack with involve either greater numbers of Chunin, a Jonin, or numerous Jonin. Do you believe you can do this?" Anko responded.

"Yes I do Anko-sensei. If we don't help Mr. Kochi and the people of the Land of Waves, they will continue to suffer. They need our help." Naruto said.

Shino and Hinata stepped up behind Naruto, showing their support, before all three Genin looked at their Jonin Instructor. Their gazes were full of rock-hard determination and the desire to help.

Anko sighed, once again pinching the bridge of her nose, before she turned to look at Tazuna.

"We'll continue the mission."

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-Land of Waves: Zabuza Momochi's Hideout-

Zabuza Momochi sat on a comfy, leather couch as he watched his employer, Gato, rant with an annoyed expression underneath his bandages. He was so tired of hearing the little man complain and whine.

"YOUR MEN FAILED?" Gato demanded. "I spent a lot of money on hiring your crew because I heard you all were skilled ninja!

Zabuza grabbed the hilt of his blade, Kubikiribocho, before he swung it towards Gato. The man's samurai had finished pulling their weapons when Kubikiribocho came to rest at Gato's throat.

A trickle of blood flowed from where Kubikiribocho had touched the gray-haired man's throat. He then pulled his weapon away from Gato's neck before he spoke.

"Stop complaining Gato." Zabuza ordered before he said. "I'll make sure to kill the Bridge Builder with Kubikiribocho."

"Are you sure that your men will be able to handle the job…? The Demon Brothers failed in the assassination so they'll be more cautious. It won't be easy to kill them now." The businessman asked.

"Who do you think I am?" Zabuza sneered. "I am Zabuza Momochi the "Demon of the Hidden Mist Village". Do not, under any circumstances, underestimate me or my comrades."

"I-I won't!" Gato promised.

"Good… Get out of my sight." Zabuza ordered.

Gato, knowing he had overstayed his welcome, quickly retreated. He may have hired the Rouge-ninja but he was still scared of him.

Jutsu:

1. Secret Technique: Insect Sphere; By using the bugs inside their body, an Aburame can surround his/her opponent with thousands of bugs. They will mak a globe of bugs around the opponent beforehand to completely trap them. Once trapped, the bugs will normally drain the chakra and swallow their victim. The bugs covering the victim's body prevent movement, but if they escape, the bugs will follow them

A/N: Author's Note:

Author: Well, that's the end of Chapter Eight.

Naruto: You said the battle with Zabuza was in this chapter!

Author: Oops!... Gotta Go!

XXXXXXXXX

Author dodges a blow from Kubikiribocho before using a conjoured blade to parry Naruto's Samehada. Author then jumps backward and avoids the teeth of Manda.

Anko: Darn it! You missed him!

Manda: You try to hit a man who controls the fabric of the universe!

Zabuza: Stop whining you giant worm! We have an author to kill!

Author *sweating*: Can't we talk about this?

Anko, Naruto, and Zabuza: No we can't!