Hello once again to SOSP Reborn. Now that I'm on fall break, I have more time to update this story! :D In the last chapter, Team 7 got the C-Rank mission they asked for. But will they regret it? We find our heroes heading towards Wave Country with knowledge of an A-Rank missing-nin and his apprentice waiting for them along the way. What will become of our heroes? You will have to read on to find out. I do not own Naruto.
Chapter 6
Team 7 was currently walking down the road towards Wave Country, keeping their eyes peeled for any sign of the Demon of the Mist. The road was clear most of the time, but suddenly, a heavy rolled in, obscuring their vision. "Damn, where did this fog come from?" Sasuke asked no one in particular. Naruto sensed something nearby and threw a kunai to where he sensed the disturbance.
When Naruto decided to look for his missing kunai, he found that he nearly killed a white rabbit. 'Wait, white rabbit?!' 'They're supposed to be brown this time of year!' Naruto's eyes widened as he yelled, "DUCK!" and threw himself to the ground. Everyone else followed suit, as a giant sword embedded itself into a tree. "Good reflexes, gaki." A voice complemented."I didn't expect a Genin to figure out my trap so quickly" Team 7 looked for where the voice was coming from, when a tall, muscular man with pale skin, short spiky black hair, brown eyes and small eyebrows. Bandages covered his mouth like a mask. He wore his forehead protector sideways on his head. He was shirtless, with baggy pants with a striped pattern and leg warmers.
After recovering from their initial shock, Team 7 stood up. Kakashi recognized the man as Zabuza. "Zabuza Momochi, A-Rank missing-nin from Kiri. Former member of The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. Defected after a failed assassination attempt on the Yondaime Mizukage. Also known as The Demon of the Bloody Mist." Kakashi stated. Zabuza chuckled, "Kakashi Hatake, better known as Kakashi of the Sharingan, said to have copied over 1000 jutsu." "We were expecting you to show up." Kakashi said. Zabuza groaned. "No wonder the Demon Brothers failed. They should have retreated once they saw you. "I didn't kill them, Naruto here interrogated them and they told us you were waiting for us." Kakashi said while looking over to Naruto. Zabuza laughed, "You expect me to believe a mere Genin took out the Demon Brothers? Don't make me laugh, Kakashi!" Zabuza exclaimed. When he saw that Kakashi wasn't laughing, Zabuza's eyes narrowed. "You weren't kidding were you?" Zabuza asked. "You would be a fool to underestimate Naruto, Zabuza. When I tested his skills the day he became Genin, he forced me to reveal my Sharingan." Kakashi stated. Zabuza looked towards the blonde, and saw that he radiated a deep power. "I see… if you don't mind, I'll be taking my sword." Zabuza said to the blonde .Naruto extracted the giant sword from the tree and promptly threw towards Zabuza with ease.
"Looks like I'll have to go through you to get to the geezer, eh?" Zabuza sped through hand seals and shouted, "Hidden Mist Jutsu!" then the entire area just got foggier. Kakashi's eyes widened. "Stay on guard! Zabuza is a master of Silent Killing. You're dead before you realize what's happening." Kakashi said. Sakura and Sasuke were frozen at the amount of killing intent Zabuza was radiating. Then out of nowhere, Zabuza listed the vital areas in the body he could hit. "So many choices… it's hard to pick just one." Zabuza said while chuckling. "Protect Tazuna! I'll take care of Zabuza!" Kakashi commanded his team. Then Zabuza appeared in the middle of the group surrounding Tazuna. "Too late! You're dead!" Zabuza shouted as he made to decapitate Tazuna. But just as the blade soared to the bridge builder's head, a hand grabbed it by the blade, and a foot collided with Zabuza's chest, sending the swordsmen away from the group. Naruto stood there, Kubikiribocho (1) in his hand. Zabuza had a look of shock on his face. 'He blocked my strike?! But how?! He can't be this powerful, can he?" Zabuza's mind raced.
"You should really watch where you're swinging this, Zabuza. Someone could get hurt." Naruto said with a smirk. "I'll admit you're good, gaki. But you're still not a match for me!" Zabuza shouted as he ran through hand seals. "Water Release: Great Waterfall Justu!" then a giant vortex of water came flying towards the team. "Water Release: Water Encampment Wall!" Naruto shouted as a wall of water rose up to defend the team. Kakashi decided to make his move. He charged Zabuza, kunai in hand, and proceeded to fight Zabuza in a taijutsu battle.
As the battle was raging, Naruto sensed another presence in the trees. 'That must that Haku the Demon Brothers were talking about.' Naruto thought. "Guard Tazuna. I have something I need to take care of. Sasuke and Sakura nodded, as Naruto made his way to the trees. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as twenty clones appeared. Each clone threw a kunai with explosion tags on the end. They all detonated the tags at the same time, and a huge explosion rocked the area. Kakashi and Zabuza jumped away from each other, to find the source of the explosion. 'Crap, he found Haku!" Zabuza thought. 'Kakashi was right about not underestimating him.
The explosion caused Haku to come out of the trees and go on the offensive. 'Here she comes' Naruto thought as he got into the Whirlpool taijutsu stance. Haku made to kick his chest, but Naruto ducked under the leg and countered with his own. Haku was awestruck at the grace of Naruto's movements. Haku stood up after the blow Naruto delivered to her stomach. Haku reached into her pouch and took out several senbon needles. She threw them at Naruto who dodge most of the senbon except for two that grazed his cheeks. 'Her accuracy is almost flawless.' Naruto thought. 'A few centimeters closer and I would have lost an eye.'
Naruto charged Haku who was still in the process of creating hand seals. 'Crap, he's so fast! Can't make the hand seals in time!' Haku screamed in her mind. A split second later, it felt like a boulder smashed into her at a hundred miles an hour. Haku was sent back a hundred meters away. Her ribs felt like they were on fire. 'He's so powerful! How do I beat him?' Haku thought. Then realization dawned on her. 'I could use that technique!' Haku thought. 'But they'll know how I fight if I manage to get through this.' 'But Zabuza-sama needs me!' I have to do it! With that, Haku proceeded to make hand seals and called out, "Ice Release: Demonic Ice Mirrors!" Suddenly, mirrors of ice started to surround Naruto, trapping him.
'Damn it, I knew I should've studied on the Ice Release!' Naruto mentally scolded himself. But Naruto's courage did not waver. 'Good thing I have Kurama with me!' Naruto thought with a triumphant smirk. Haku was confused by the blonde's actions. 'Why is he so confident? Did he figure out this jutu's weakness already?' Haku thought.
"Hey Kurama, I'm gonna need some of your chakra." Naruto called out to the fox. "Very well then, Naruto, sending you some chakra now." Kurama replied. "Thanks Kurama" Naruto said as a red cloak of chakra started to form around his body. Haku was sweating bullets when she saw the mysterious red chakra twist and turn into the shape of a grinning fox. 'What is this power?!' Haku thought. 'I've never seen chakra like this before!'
Zabuza and Kakashi were exchanging blow for blow, neither one letting their guard down. That's when they felt the killing intent wash over them. Both Jonin looked towards Naruto and Haku, inside a circle of ice mirrors. 'Where is that coming from? Zabuza thought. He looked towards Kakashi. 'It's not Kakashi, and I know for a fact that it isn't Haku. Could it be the blonde one?' All these thoughts ran thorough Zabuza's mind as he looked on in wonder at the circle of ice mirrors.
Kakashi was getting worried now. 'Is the seal weakening?' Kakashi thought. Unknown to Zabuza or Kakashi, Naruto had full control of the fox's chakra. The fox's chakra started to melt through the ice mirrors that Haku had created. "I don't want to have to kill you." Naruto said. "We can work things out. Or else this chakra that I am emitting will melt through the ice mirrors." Haku thought this over in her mind. 'What he's saying is true. If this battle drags on longer, I might not last.' "Alright then, I will listen to what you have to say." Haku stated. Naruto gave her a smile. "Very well then" Naruto closed his eyes as his Rinnegan activated. He pointed his hand towards Zabuza and called out," Heavenly Pull" then an invisible force pulled Zabuza towards Naruto. Meanwhile, Sakura and Sasuke were wondering what their teammate was doing.
Once Zabuza was inside the circle of ice mirrors, Naruto decided to start his plan. "Hey there, Zabuza." Naruto said with a smile. Zabuza looked at the blonde in confusion. "What is it you want, gaki?" Zabuza asked. "I want to make you a deal." Naruto answered. "What kind of deal?" Zabuza asked. "In exchange for leaving Tazuna alone, I will kill the man that is hiring you to kill him, therefore releasing you from your contract." Zabuza and Haku gasped in shock. 'How does he know about Gato?' they both thought. "You are probably wondering how I know about Gato, correct?" Naruto asked. When saw them nod, he said, "When we were assigned this mission, I decided to study on what Wave's current condition was."
"I found out that Gato of Gato Shipping had taken over Wave and led them to near broke. So, I figured that Gato might have ninja crawling around the village. Then I figured out that he might have at least one A-Rank level ninja in his army. But he would need a lot of money to hire one. So, in exchange for letting Tazuna go, I will get rid of Gato so that you may have your freedom." Naruto concluded.
Zabuza and Haku talked about the idea with each other. "We could finally have freedom, Zabuza-sama!" Haku said excitedly. Zabuza saw the smile behind Haku's mask then smirked. He turned towards Naruto and said, "We accept your deal, gaki. In exchange for leaving the bridge builder alone, you will take care of Gato for us." Zabuza answered. Naruto gave them a genuine smile. "I'm glad you agreed. I will take out Gato tonight, and then you'll finally be free of his wrath." Zabuza scoffed, "Wrath? The only things scared of that midget's 'wrath' are roaches." The three of them let out a laugh, and then Zabuza and Haku made their leave.
Few minutes after Zabuza and Haku leave
Kakashi walked up to Naruto and looked at him with narrowed eyes. "What was that all about?" he asked. "I just completed the entire mission for us." Naruto stated. Kakashi was confused, "What do you mean you completed the mission for us?" "We don't have to deal with Zabuza and Haku anymore." Kakashi looked shocked. "Y-you mean you convinced them to leave Tazuna alone?" Naruto nodded, "Yup! In exchange for killing Gato, of course." "You're going to kill Gato?" Kakashi asked. Naruto nodded. "They have been serving him for far too long, Sensei." Before Kakashi could reply, his eyes closed and he fell flat on his face. Naruto sighed, "Must me from overusing the Sharingan." Naruto looked towards his teammates and the bridge builder. "How far is it to your house, Tazuna?" he called out. "Just another mile!" Tazuna called back. Naruto nodded then motioned his teammates to follow him while he carried Kakashi.
At Tazuna's House
After they got Kakashi to Tazuna's house, Team 7 met Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami. Naruto explained to Sasuke and Sakura that he would be killing Gato at midnight. Sasuke and Sakura nodded their heads in understanding after Naruto told them about the deal he made. They were in the living room currently eating dinner. "Why do you try so hard?" a soft voice asked. Everyone in the room looked towards the voice and saw a small boy wearing overalls with his head down. "Try so hard for what?" Naruto asked. "Why do you try so hard to beat Gato? He's invincible!" " This is my grandson, Inari." Tazuna introduced the boy. "You're just going to get killed!" Inari exclaimed. Naruto waved him off, "Don't worry Inari, we just took care of one of Gato's more powerful men." "Getting rid of one man isn't going to help! Gato has a whole army!" Inari retorted. Naruto scoffed. "That army isn't as strong as my Will of Fire." Naruto said. This statement took everyone in the room aback. "Will of Fire?" Inari wondered.
"It is the belief that if you protect those precious to you, you will truly be strong. You must protect those important to you with your life. Even if there is something holding you back, you must push through it! If you can't do it on your own, ask a friend! Friends always help friends!" Naruto stated with a grin.
This seemed to gain a new hope. Inari turned around, and headed towards his room, with a lot to think about. Naruto got up slowly. "Now is the time I finally take care of Gato." Naruto said. He look towards his teammates. "Sasuke, Sakura, guard Tazuna until I get back." Naruto declared. They both nodded, and with that, Naruto jumped through the window, and sped off towards Gato's base.
After a few minutes of running, Naruto saw a giant building in the distance, and realized that it belonged to Gato. Put his hands into a cross seal, Naruto created a hundred clones to take care of the thugs while Naruto took out Gato. Once they went their separate ways, Naruto silently jumped into Gato's office, and snuck behind him. Gato was currently ranting about Zabuza and Haku's failed mission to kill Tazuna. That's when Naruto tapped him on the shoulder. Gato spun around in his chair and a look of shock spread across his face. "W-Who are you?!" Gato asked in fear while backing up. "I am the one who will end your reign of suffering once and for all, Gato." Naruto said in a calm tone. "P-Please don't hurt me! I'll give anything you want! Money, women, anything! Just please don't kill me!" Gato pleaded, practically drowning in sweat. Naruto activated his Rinnegan, and extracted Gato's soul from within his body. After that, Naruto looked into the many filing cabinets in Gatos' office. He found several bank account papers, and over a million ryo in Gato's safe. He sealed them all into sealing a scroll, and made his leave. After he had left the area, he commanded his clones to disperse, once they had finished putting up Explosion tags everywhere. Naruto made a hand seal, and giant explosion rocked the village. Naruto's end of the deal was done. Naruto returned to Tazuna's home, noticing everyone had gone to sleep.
The next morning…
When everyone had woken up and ate breakfast, Naruto told them about his mission to Gato was a success. Inari was speechless. The man that had killed his father was now gone. Inari cried into Naruto's chest and thanked him. Naruto pulled out the sealing scroll with the money and handed it to Tazuna. "That scroll contains all of Gato's money and the rights to his company." Naruto said. When Naruto unsealed the contents just make sure they were there, Tazuna's face was imitating a fish. "L-Look at this money! This could cover for everything Gato had done! "Tazuna exclaimed with tears in his eyes. "Thank you Naruto! You truly are a hero of this country!" Tazuna cried.
Once the bridge was finished Inari said goodbye to Naruto and Team 7 as they were leaving. "We still have to name the bridge, grandpa!" Inari said. Tazuna chuckled, "And I have the perfect name for it! The Great Naruto Bridge!" Tazuna exclaimed with a wide smile. Everyone who had gathered to see their hero's departure let out a cheer. Once Team 7 returned to Konoha, Kakashi said that he would submit the mission success to the Hokage and would mail them their pay. Before Naruto left to go back to his apartment, Sasuke called out to him. "Hey Naruto! Could you… train me?" Sasuke asked stressing the last part. Naruto gave him a smile. "Sure Sasuke! But be warned, I won't go easy on you!" Sasuke gave him a smirk. "I can handle anything you throw at me!" Naruto chuckled. "H-hey Naruto, could you train me as well, I don't want to feel useless to this team." Sakura stuttered. Naruto gave her a wide smile. "Alright then! Team 7 boot camp starts tomorrow!" Naruto exclaimed which made Sasuke and Sakura gulp.
That's chapter 6! Sorry if you feel like this is being rushed. The Chunin Exam Arc starts on chapter 8! The time where Naruto will be training Sakura and Sasuke will be the three week s before. Hope you enjoyed! Review, Fave, and Follow ^_^