Chapter 8

All that echoed off of the waves in the fog-infested channel was silence. Nothing disturbed this place.

At least, that's what we wanted everyone to think.

All of us in Team 7 with Tazuna and one of his friends from the Land of Waves were making our way through this very channel in a long boat. We were all hoping to arrive safely in the very place where many ninja wanted to kill our client so that he could never finish building a bridge that would change the country forever.

I was anxiously waiting behind Naruto and sitting across from Sasuke as we waited to be able to catch our first glimpse of Tazuna's bridge through the thick fog around us. Naruto was starting to get twitchy and I knew that Sasuke was growing impatient. I know that neither of them really liked to travel by boat very much. Not many people in the Land of Fire do like this mode of transportation. Being from Mount Ryuumoto myself, I much rather prefer traveling by air, but that's just my opinion.

"The bridge isn't far now," Tazuna's friend announced softly as he continued to propel us forward with an oar from the back of the vessel. He was trying to be as quiet as possible so as not to alert any ninja that may be lurking in the mist. I couldn't say that I blame him since he is just a civilian and they were all up against ninjas for hire.

"Our destination's just ahead… the Land of Waves."

Just after hearing this, I could see the mist clearing out in front of us. Beyond the boundary of this fog was a large structure, and I had to assume it was the bridge Tazuna was building.

It was spectacular! I had never come across anything quite like it in this world! It definitely wasn't the Golden Gate Bridge, but for the technology that was virtually nonexistent in this world now, it was an impressive feat to build this.

"Whoa! It's huge!"

I sweat dropped at Naruto's tactlessness. He just couldn't remember to keep his voice down. As the boatman griped at him for being so noisy, I couldn't help but sigh in exasperation at Naruto, who seemed to always forget that a ninja's greatest asset was the element of surprise and concealment.

Oh, well… I thought.

My thoughts returned to the present when I heard Kakashi-sensei begin to make an inquiry to our client. "Mr. Tazuna, before we reach the pier, I want to ask you something. The men who are after you, I need to know why. If you don't tell us, I'm afraid I'll have to end this mission when we drop you ashore."

I glanced at Kakashi-sensei with a little hesitance. Did he really expect us to just leave Tazuna alone when there were dangerous ninja after him? I certainly hope not.

"I have no choice but to tell you," Tazuna replied, but then rethought his last statement. "No, I want you to know the truth. Like you said, this is beyond the scope of the original mission. The one who seeks my life is a very short man who casts a very long and deadly shadow."

Images in my mind snapped by quickly as I listened to Tazuna. A midget-sized man with a cane standing at the top of a river of blood and bodies. He was smiling. I could hear people screaming. I could see someone who wore a rope as a headband and a cross-shaped scar on his chin smile as he was cut down, and I heard a child's agonizing cry as the images faded out. I wanted to cry, but I knew that this moment was not the time or place for it. Whoever this man was, he was someone that I wanted to help defeat.

"You know him," Tazuna continued. "At least, I'm sure you've heard his name before. He's one of the wealthiest men in the world, the shipping magnet, Gato."

Kakashi-sensei appeared to be quite surprised by this information. "Gato? Of Gato Transport? He's a business leader. Everyone knows him."

Well, strike one for Kakashi-sensei, because I didn't know who the guy was. However, I had heard of Gato Transport before. Konoha used his company to transport civilian supplies from across the oceans to our village all the time. I felt sick knowing that our village was using this man's company, and he just hurt others to get what he wanted. I had to hope that Konoha didn't have any knowledge of his wrongdoings.

"Gato is a very powerful tycoon from a famous company, that's true. But below the surface, with the same ruthless methods he uses to take over businesses and nations, he sells drugs and contraband using gangs and ninja."

Tazuna glanced up. "It was one year ago when Gato first set his sight on the Land of Waves. He came to our island and used his vast wealth to take control of our transport and shipping. Anyone who tried to stand in his way simply disappeared. In an island nation, a man who controls the sea controls everything: finance, government, our very lives. But there's one thing he fears: the bridge. When it's complete it will join us to the land, and that will break his control."

Now looking to Kakashi-sensei, Tazuna's face was filled with determination for his people. "I am the bridge builder."

I could see everyone else made the connection as well. "Since you're in charge of the bridge, you're in the way of his continued control over the people and land…"

"That means, those guys we fought in the forest, they were working for Gato," Sasuke surmised.

Naruto just continued to look confused about the situation, but now as both Sasuke and I were talking, he seemed to contemplate the severity of the mission for not only Tazuna, but also for the Land of Waves as well.

"I don't understand," Kakashi-sensei retorted. "If you knew he was dangerous, knew he'd send ninja to eliminate you, why did you hide that from us?"

Isn't it obivious?

Everyone looked my way. For a moment, I only looked back at them. With a blush of embarrassment, I realized that I must have said this aloud instead of exclusively in my own thoughts.

"W-well, I-I mean… The Land of Waves isn't a large nation, and Tazuna just said that Gato was in control of all of the sea, which means he controls the nation. So that would include all of their finances. To maintain this vice grip on a nation that depends on the sea, he would probably tax them just to bring in what little food they could catch for the day, for transporting goods such as supplies for this bridge, or even residential taxing so they can keep their homes and belongings. All of it would compound and would result in a depression of the wealth of the land."

At the end of my explanation, Kakashi-sensei seemed to be mildly impressed with my fast thinking. Tazuna looked a little amazed that I could quickly read the situation that the Land of Waves was facing from what small amount of information he had already given. Naruto and Sasuke… they were giving me blank stares. If this were a different situation, I might have laughed at their identical expressions.

I decided to make it simpler for them. "In other words, no one really has the money to pay for anything above a C-rank mission. They had no other option."

Tazuna nodded to me. "If you end the mission when you drop me ashore, there will be no bridge. They'll assassinate me before I reach home."

My eyebrow started to twitch slightly. Okay, I get it, but does he have to rub it in?

"But don't feel bad about that. Of course, my sweet little grandson will be upset. He'll cry, 'Grandad! I want my Grandad!'" Tazuna tried to imitate a child's voice. I was growing more irritated by this man by the second. He just really wanted to rub this in with some salt and watch us squirm a little, didn't he?

I could see Naruto not faring much better than I was. Even Sasuke seemed to be annoyed. I had assumed he would have just ignored all of Tazuna's attempts to make us stay. But he was pouting and had a bead of sweat on his face as he faced away from my gaze. Softy…

"Oh!" Enough already!

"And my daughter will condemn the ninja of the Hidden Leaves, denouncing and blaming you for abandoning her father, and living her life in sorrow."

Ugh!

"Oh, well. It's not your fault. Forget it."

Groans could be heard all around from our team. Tazuna knew how to lay it on thick. Kakashi-sensei decided to answer for all of us.

"Well, I guess we have no other choice," he shrugged his shoulders with a sweat drop. "We'll have to keep guarding you."

I couldn't help but feel totally conned…

It was just a few minutes later that we came to a tunnel in the side of the wall which lined the edge of the port, just where the bridge started. After we entered the long tunnel, I noticed that the fog didn't reach all the way into the space and the air was clear. There was a light at the end which let me know that there were clearer skies waiting for us at the other end of the passage.

When we emerged, bright skies were ahead and dark mists were behind us, beyond the wall. Trees gathered around each other as they reached above the water, resembling small islands in the bay. A short distance from the shore, there were docks which also had homes adorning them. But these homes looked like they had seen better days. Plus, it was just too quiet. There were no sounds of people anywhere. I couldn't hear anyone, not even any children. It was surprising. Despite how early in the morning it now was, there should still be someone up and about.

I said nothing though as we finally reached the dock and got off the long boat. Tazuna thanked the boatman for getting us this far and turned our way.

"Take me to my home, and I mean get me there in one piece."

"Right," we all responded.

Later, after we had been traveling for a few minutes, Sasuke and Naruto seemed to be competing with each other. Sasuke had gone ahead of Naruto, which caused him to want to catch up, and so on.

Geez! Can't the two of them just be friends already?!

I was about to end things, but Naruto suddenly ran ahead of us all. He got into a stance and began looking around. What was he doing?

"Over there!" Naruto pulled out a kunai and swiftly threw it into the trees on our right side. He stayed down in his throwing pose for a few seconds before he tried to look cool. He then announced, "It was just a mouse."

Sasuke had an unimpressed look on his face, but I knew that deep down, he was amused by all of this showboating that Naruto was doing. I, on the other hand, was not pleased. Their bickering has caused me many headaches, and I was close to my breaking point.

"Naruto, those are kunai knives. They're dangerous!" Kakashi-sensei scolded him.

Tazuna growled at Naruto as well. "Stop trying to scare me, you scruffy little dwarf!"

Ignoring everyone, Naruto continued to look around him. "Is someone hiding over there? No! They're over there! Over there!"

Huh?

Turning towards us, Naruto threw his other kunai into the trees behind us. "Over there!"

What was that…?

Tazuna had enough of Naruto's antics and went over to scold him with a punch to his blond cranium. Normally, I would have been the one disciplining him on his manners and then giving a talking to Sasuke for egging him on as well. But something wasn't quite right.

I saw Kakashi-sensei go into the bushes and take a look at who, according to Naruto, was following us. It turned out to be a solitary snowy rabbit who seemed like he was about to have a panic attack at almost losing his life by a kunai knife above his head. Again, Tazuna had a few choice words to say about animal abuse and such things. From the corner of my eye, I could see Sasuke give a small smirk at what was happening. He was like the sibling who riled up the other sibling and watched him get in trouble by the parents. But I would revisit this parallel later in my brain.

I couldn't help but look around us in the trees and amongst the bushes. I could feel Kakashi-sensei doing the same a small distance from where I was. He must have felt it too. There was a spike of chakra nearby, and I was also curious about the rabbit's color.

It was white.

That only happens in the winter, when there isn't a lot of sunlight and there is snow on the ground. It makes it easier to blend into the surroundings.

But it wasn't winter… So what was going on?

Growing more apprehensive and curious, I closed my eyes and stretched my field of perception so that I could run a sweep of any chakra signatures in the area. I could almost picture each person in the clearing in my mind. There was Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, Sasuke, and Tazuna as well. Now, I stretched it even further. And widened my field mo—

There's someone else here!

"GET DOWN!"

I grabbed the person closest to me, which happened to be Naruto, and brought him down to the ground with me. Just a split second after this happened, a large object went whistling over our heads. It looked like a—a sword of some kind. A very large one at that!

It was a Kubikiribōchō, a decapitating carving knife! It was like a massive broadsword which resembled a giant form of a butcher's knife. This thing was meant to take people's head clean off in a single sweep. And this gigantic sword had lodged itself in a tree.

Then, standing on top of the handle of the sword was a man. He was facing away from us (making some sort of cool guy entrance!) and he atmosphere of his chakra made me want to crawl in a hole and cower away. Not that I would actually do that…

As I caught a glimpse of his face, he suddenly became familiar in more ways than one. I had met this guy before!

"Well, well," Kakashi-sensei started. "If it isn't Zabuza Momochi, rogue ninja from the Village Hidden in the Mist…"

From beside me, I could see Naruto glancing at Sasuke and then at Zabuza. His expression morphed into one that I knew well from the Academy days. It was a look of determination with a hint of nervousness involved as well. I instantly knew that he was going to try and take on Zabuza. I couldn't let this happen, but Naruto ran ahead of me before I could protest to this insane idea. Thankfully, Kakashi-sensei intervened just in time.

"You're in the way. Get back."

"But why?" Naruto almost whined.

"He's not like those other ninja. He's in a whole other league." Kakashi-sensei closed his one visible eye in exasperation. "If he's our opponent, I'll need this." He was then reaching for his headband near his hidden eye. I could hear Naruto gasp and I could practically feel Sasuke tense up from where I was standing. I already had an idea from the story what was hidden behind Kakashi-sensei's headband, but I couldn't help but become transfixed to this moment when everyone on Team 7 would finally see just how awesome our sensei really was.

"Kakashi of the Sharingan Eye… Did I get that right?"

Stepping closer to Sasuke, I wanted to be near someone I trusted in this situation, and Sasuke happened to be closer than Naruto was at the moment. As I got near him, his eyes never wavered from their narrowed glance at our sensei. I knew he must be wondering about the Sharingan right now. About how Kakashi-sensei had it.

"Now quick!" Kakashi-sensei suddenly called. "Manji Formation! Protect the bridge builder, and stay out of this fight. I taught you teamwork. Now it's time to use it."

Now everyone could finally see what was behind Kakashi-sensei's headband. His eye was marred with a thin vertical scar that seemed to run from his forehead to past the barrier of his mask. But he had now opened his hidden eye, a red eye with a black iris and three comma mark type of signs spaced around the iris. This was the Sharingan eye.

"Well," Zabuza remarked. "Looks like I get to see the Sharingan in action. This is an honor."

Naruto had enough of being ignorant. "Everyone keeps saying Sharingan, Sharingan. Will someone please tell me what a Sharingan is?!"

"Sharingan."

Everyone turned their gazes over to Sasuke. I knew the significance of this information to him, as I can imagine that Kakashi-sensei did as well. The Sharingan eye was something that was passed down genetically within the Uchiha clan. Sasuke's clan. Which means that the Sharingan is a Kekkei Genkai, or a bloodline limit. I would even hazard a guess that this is the very reason that Sasuke was placed on Kakashi-sensei's team.

"A rare power that resides in the eyes," Sasuke continued to explain. "The user of this visual jutsu, or doujutsu, can instantly see and comprehend any genjutsu, taijutsu, and ninjutsu, and reflect the attack back on the attacker. The Sharingan is a special, rare form of doujutsu. However, there's more to the Sharingan than that. A lot more."

"You got it right, boy."

Now my attention was solely on Zabuza.

"But you only scratched the surface. The Sharingan can analyze an opponent's technique, and then copy it to the smallest detail."

Isn't that what Sasuke basically said? "Reflect the attack back on the attacker"…

Suddenly, a fog rolled into the area. It was getting hard to see anything in front of us.

"As for you, Jonin, in the assassination unit of the Hidden Mist, we had a standing order to destroy you on sight. Your profile was in our Bingo Book. It called you 'the man who copied over 1,000 jutsu'. Kakashi, the Copy Ninja."

There was an air of amazement coming from Naruto and Tazuna, who directed their attention to Kakashi-sensei. I was just glad that none of the attention was on –

"And I can't pass up the chance to cash in on the bounty for the last of the Morimoto clan, Akina Morimoto, the daughter of Tsubasa Morimoto, kunoichi of the Hidden Mist."

I spoke too soon…

Gasps came from my team. I didn't want to see their shocked expressions. I didn't want to see the suspicious glances from them. I couldn't handle it.

I felt a hand on my shoulder suddenly. Turning my head to my right, I saw Sasuke give me a look that plainly said, "idiot". He didn't look at me with an expression I had anticipated. His eyes instead said that he trusted me, that he had my back, and that he was there for me. Gaining some courage from this, I swiveled my head over in Naruto's direction, and saw a similar expression on his whiskered face.

I couldn't be more thankful for my friends than I was in this moment.

"Seems the brats don't care that your clan is originally from the Hidden Mist… Oh, well. Enough talking. I need to exterminate the old man now."

With this being said, all of us Genin in Team 7 surged into motion. We surrounded Tazuna in the front, creating the Manji Formation. Sasuke was in front of Tazuna, I was at Sasuke's right side and Naruto was at his left. All of us facing the other way so that we had a wide field of vision in case Zabuza decided to attack the bridge builder, and to look out for any other ninjas that Zabuza might have lurking in the foliage. Kakashi-sensei was straight in front of us all, prepared to take on the ninja we could see.

"So, I'll have to eliminate you first, eh, Kakashi?" Zabuza thought aloud. "So be it."

Using his strength in his legs, Zabuza pulled his giant sword free from the tree it had been encased in, and leapt to the river near our path. I ignored Naruto's comments about how Zabuza was now standing on the water. If this were any other situation, I might have retorted about how biblical this moment was (other worldly joke), but I knew that he was merely using his chakra through his feet to stay on top of the surface. All higher class ninja knew this trick.

What I was concerned with at the moment was the large chakra that Zabuza was bringing to the forefront of his system. I could feel the energy increasing like as if I was standing next to an inferno, but it wasn't hot. This feeling brought deadly chills to my mind, just like I remembered Zabuza to be.

Zabuza suddenly unleashed this chakra and spread it into the area surrounding his body and then throughout the clearing. I knew that this was the Hidden Mist Jutsu, which helps conceal an enemy and makes it hard for a Sensor, such as myself, to pinpoint a ninja's location since the air is so saturated with chakra now. How was I meant to track his movements now?

Kakashi-sensei was walking away from us now, towards where Zabuza was last seen.

"He'll come after me first."

"But," Naruto wondered, "who is he?"

"Zabuza Momochi," I remarked before Kakashi-sensei could reply. "He was the former leader of the Hidden Mist's Assassination Unit. Which means that he is a master of the Silent Killing Technique."

That made Naruto nervous. "S-s-s-s-silent?"

Kakashi-sensei took over now. "As the name suggests, it happens in an instant. Without sound or warning of any kind. It's so fast, you pass from this life without realizing what has happened. The Sharingan cannot fully neutralize it, so don't lower your guard."

I gulped. I knew just how dangerous Zabuza was. Who knew that someone from Mother's past would wind up being an enemy of mine now. I really didn't want to think of what he would do if he did eliminate all of my comrades and take me back to the Hidden Mist.

"Well, if we fail, we only lose our lives."

Thanks for the positive enthusiasm…

After this was said, the fog started to become even more difficult to see through, which made Naruto exclaim quietly for once. This made Tazuna remind him of the fact that they were surrounded by the ocean on this island nation, so fogs were common. But it was more than that. I could feel the chakra in the air, clouding my Sensor abilities.

Then, right before our eyes, Kakashi-sensei vanished. This made me nervous. Not only was it hard for me to pinpoint Zabuza, but I couldn't discern Zabuza's chakra from Kakashi-sensei's at the moment. I couldn't focus.

I was terrified.

"Eight points."

I almost gasped out in terror.

"Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular, subclavian artery, kidneys, heart…"

Those are—

"Now, which will be my kill point?"

Suddenly, there was another burst of chakra, this time in front of us. The chakra acted as a gust of wind and I could finally see since the mist was cleared from the clearing. I could see our sensei ahead of us again. But with this chakra came the feeling that this was a real ninja showdown. I could feel Kakashi-sensei's Killing Intent. That atmosphere that creeps into your skin and slowly makes its way into your very soul, letting you know that death is imminent.

Since it was our sensei, I knew that he would never direct this towards us. However, I could almost feel Sasuke trembling beside me. I glanced his way to see beads of sweat running down his face and a terrified expression on his face. The very fact that we had both seen death made this situation even more real.

His hand was clutching tightly around his kunai knife, but then he began to bring his other hand up as well. I almost shrieked out loud realizing that he was about to harm himself just to escape the Killing Intent in the air.

My hand flew to his shoulder to stop him from using his kunai, and I heard our sensei call out Sasuke's name as well.

"Calm down. I'll protect you with my life. All of you."

I had to admit, our sensei was cool.

"I will not allow my comrades to die. Trust me." Kakashi-sensei looked back at us with his signature eye smile, telling us that everything would be okay in the end. I was instantly relieved to have our sensei there. I also realized that I couldn't freeze up now. I also had promised to protect my comrades, and I would do this.

"I wouldn't be so sure."

He was behind us!

Zabuza was directly in the middle of our Manji Formation, between all of us and Tazuna, our only weak spot. And it was too late to do anything. I would never be able to turn around in time to block his sword, even if I could match his strength.

But I didn't have to.

Kakashi-sensei was suddenly there, pushing away all of us from Zabuza's reach, and blocking his attack on the bridge builder. As I regained my composure from being knocked back, I turned to see that our sensei had lodged a kunai right into Zabuza's side. But there was something wrong with this picture. I didn't see any blood. It was…water…

Then, from the mists, I could make out another Zabuza as he was preparing to use his deadly weapon. "Sensei," Naruto called. "Behind you!"

The Zabuza that Kakashi-sensei had run through instantly turned into water.

It was a Water Clone?!

And now, the true Zabuza was swinging his sword at our sensei. The result was Kakashi-sensei being chopped in half. I would have called out to him if it weren't so easy to spot now that I knew what I was looking for. And I was proven to be right when Kakashi-sensei's form suddenly turned into water as well.

Sensei had been able to see through the mist and simultaneously copy the Water Clone Jutsu that Zabuza had used as he broke through the Manji Formation. Now, Kakashi-sensei had a kunai knife to Zabuza's throat, aimed for his jugular.

"Don't move. It's over."

The rest of us were looking at this spectacle with amazement. I had seen my dragon family fight before, but that was usually with spars, so no one was trying to kill each other. I slowly got up from where I had landed after being pushed back, away from danger.

"You're finished."

"ALRIGHT!"

Naruto was cheering on the other side of Sensei and Zabuza, happy that this was all over with now, but I was a little more skeptical. Believe me, I didn't doubt Kakashi-sensei's skills, but this just seemed too easy. Zabuza was an S-class rogue ninja, who had previously held an ANBU rank in the Hidden Mist. That was a whole rank above Jonin…

Kakashi-sensei was an ANBU too, Akina, my brain was telling me. But I just had this feeling in my gut that I couldn't shake.

My suspicions were confirmed when Zabuza started to laugh. "Finished? You really don't get it, do you?"

I narrowed my eyes at Zabuza. What was he thinking?

"Your technique is nothing but a crass imitation. I'll never be defeated by a mere copycat ninja like you."

Why, you—

Zabuza laughed again. "You are full of surprises, though. You already copied my Water Clone Justu when you made your little speech. Very skillfully executed. You made your clone say those words to draw my attention while you hid in the mist waiting for me to make my move."

If he had all of this figured out, then—

It was a trap!

"Nice try, but I'm not that easy to fool."

The Zabuza that Kakashi-sensei had cornered had also been a clone! I had been too relieved to take a closer look at the fact that he had also felt the same as the other Zabuza clone. Now there was another Zabuza right behind Kakashi-sensei, and he was in the perfect position to deal some real damage to our sensei.

"Hey!" Naruto exclaimed. "That one's a clone, too!"

Just as Zabuza was swinging that almighty sword horizontally at his enemy, Kakashi-sensei ducked down, narrowly missing decapitation.

But the rogue ninja was prepared for this. Using his grounded sword as an anchor, he pushed off of it so that his kick to Kakashi-sensei's face would be that much stronger. This attack caused the Jonin to go flying away from us all, into the water.

"Sensei!" both Naruto and I cried at the same time.

"He has great physical skill, too," Sasuke muttered.

Not only that, but Zabuza had also jumped into the river as well. And Kakashi-sensei was still in there!

As Sensei made it to the surface, he examined the water, as if confused by it. I couldn't take it any longer. I made a beeline for the river, trying to stop this from happening.

"GET OUT OF THE WATER!" I yelled as I made my way to him. "There's way too much chakra for it to be normal!"

"The girl is correct. Water Prison Jutsu!"

No! Zabuza was right behind Kakashi-sensei, making hand signs. In an instant, he was encased within a ball of swirling water. I knew that this water would be impenetrable to any outside force, or internal force as well.

Kakashi-sensei was trapped!

"So much for the great Kakashi… I'll finish you off later." I could hear the smirk in his voice. "But first, your little friends will have to be eliminated."

I had stopped by the water's edge before, but now I quickly leapt back as I saw Zabuza gather chakra for another jutsu. Forming from the water in front of where he held our sensei captive, a new Zabuza stood and made his way to the shoreline.

"You think wearing a headband makes you a ninja. When you've hovered between life and death so many times it doesn't faze you, then you may be called a ninja."

I quickly got in front of Naruto, who stood frozen in fear at this situation at hand. I wanted to be his first line of defense, and if he got over this fear, he would have my back as well.

"When you've become so deadly, your profile is entered in my Bingo Book, then you may have earned the title ninja." Now he formed a hand sign once more, calling forth the mists around him, and disappearing before our eyes. "But to call upstarts like you ninja is a joke."

Somehow, he got behind me and in front of Naruto. I couldn't turn around in time to help him as Zabuza kicked him back like he had done to Sensei. As he went flying back, Naruto's headband had fallen from his forehead, landing near Zabuza's feet. To make this situation even more infuriating, Zabuza had the gall to stomp down on Naruto's precious headband that he had received from Iruka-sensei.

"You're just brats."

Having enough of this, I finished turning around towards the enemy. I did a quick maneuver of ducking down and propelling myself up to place a strengthened kick at Zabuza's face. He caught my foot as it drew near my target, but I knew that he would do that. I remembered this move that Sasuke had taught me, and I decided to try it now.

With my left fist, I brought it up to his face, prepared for him to catch it too. Now he had no hands to block with, so I brought up my left leg and prepped my right fist with a large amount of chakra to enhance my strength. As Zabuza unexpectedly blocked my kick with his elbow, I was now upside down from all the maneuvering I had done, and I had a clear shot at his stomach. I began to bring my fist forward to deal him a world of pain, but I felt like I was suddenly on a merry-go-round as I was swung and then thrown into the air.

Before I could go crashing into a tree nearby, I spun in midair to position my feet towards the tree. When I made contact, I bent my knees to compensate for the force behind my being tossed by a rogue ninja, and lightly hopped to the ground at the base of the tree. Glancing up to where Zabuza was, I quickly saw that despite my best efforts, he was completely unscathed from my attempt to take him on. I was largely disappointed in this. I had hoped I could make some small difference from what I had seen in my flashes of memory. I didn't want to be useless weight to my team.

"Listen! Get the bridge builder and run!"

I zoned in where Kakashi-sensei was trapped inside of Zabuza's jutsu, wondering why he was telling us to flee.

"You can't win this fight! He's using all his power to keep me in this prison. So he can only fight you with his Water Clone. But the clone can't go far from his real body. If you get away from him, he can't follow. Now run!"

That's great in theory, but I won't let that happen. I myself use Water Clones, so I know exactly how they work. While it's true that after a certain amount of distance, an opponent's clone will disperse, it isn't an exact science. If the ninja trains hard enough with their clones, they can learn to increase that distance. It is still limited, but being Genin, we might not get far enough away before Zabuza overtakes us.

We also have another problem.

Running away from someone precious is completely against my own philosophy.

"We've got to do it!"

I turn my gaze over to the side and see Sasuke charging at Zabuza.

Idiot! A charge is never going to work!

Sasuke quickly threw several kunai in Zabuza's direction. When Zabuza went to swipe away the oncoming weapons, Sasuke must have known that his opponent would have a moment of blindness to whatever was directly in front of him due to the sheer size of the sword blocking his field of vision. As this happened, Sasuke leapt into the air above Zabuza's head.

Bringing a kunai into his two hands, Sasuke let out a battle cry.

However, Zabuza was an experienced ninja. He stretched out his hand and expertly grabbed Sasuke by the throat before any damage could be done to him. Then he threw my teammate just as easily as he had thrown me away.

Sasuke went sliding across the ground and I couldn't help but feel shocked. I knew a direct charge wouldn't work, but I still had faith in Sasuke. To see him be so easily beaten by this assassin from the Hidden Mists, I could barely wrap my mind around it.

And a new fear crept into my skin. Would I be able to protect everyone?

To my other side, I heard a pained gasp. My eyes widened as I turned to see what was going on, fearing that Zabuza had created another clone…

But it was Naruto…

Staring at his hand…

His injured hand…

As Naruto struggled to get up from the ground, I started remembering that moment we had shared with his oath of pain. The one moment when we both made a promise to each other and ourselves.

Without warning, Naruto released a battle cry of his own and charged for Zabuza.

"Stop!" I cried. "A frontal assault won't work!"

"Naruto, no!" Kakashi-sensei hollered through the water.

Rushing towards his opponent, Naruto executed a slide towards Zabuza's feet to possibly trip him up and then strike, but it wasn't good enough. With a powerful kick, Naruto was sent crashing back towards us. As the dust settled, I could see Naruto groaning in pain from the hit he had taken. Seeing him like this made me so angry at myself for not being able to help him, but I also was so worried about him when he had pulled his stupid stunt.

"What the hell were you thinking?! Sasuke and I couldn't take him on our own either! It just proves that we need to work together! How could you recklessly just—"

I stopped when I saw Naruto struggling to get up once more. It was his hand that had made me stopped me from worriedly scolding him. I was now looking at my best friend in confused amazement. In the same hand he had made an oath upon, was his Hidden Leaf headband.

Rising to his feet, Naruto suddenly had a completely different attitude from before. "Hey, you, the freak with no eyebrows… Put this in your Bingo Book: the ninja that will become Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves…"

Standing up straight now, with the confidence I always knew Naruto had deep within him, Naruto took his headband and started to tie it up in its proper place on his forehead.

"He never backs down! His name's Naruto Uzumaki!"

Damn, Naruto…

"Alright, Sasuke, listen up. Can you hear me?"

I could practically hear the internal scoff in Sasuke's mind. "Yeah, I hear you."

"I've got a plan."

As Sasuke deliberated for a few seconds, I couldn't help but feel like Naruto was finally growing up and starting to think about using teamwork with someone other than me. But now he's leaving me out of the picture?

I made a pledge too.

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Flashback…

"Upon this wound, I make this pledge, ya'know… I will never back down again and let someone else rescue me. I will never run away, and I will not lose to Sasuke or Akina. I will never run away."

Blood began to drip down from his hand to the ground. I grew concerned again, but I began to understand what Naruto was doing, and I knew that I shouldn't stop him.

I was so in awe of Naruto right now.

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This unbelievable knucklehead just popped into my life one day…

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"You mean you've never had ramen!? What's wrong with you? Ramen is the food of the gods! You can't just not try it!"

"Okay, okay. I'll try it! But it better be good, Naruto, or else," I threatened him playfully.

Naruto was not able to wait patiently. "And?"

"This is the food of the gods."

I quickly clamped my hands over my ears as he hooped and hollered in victory. He even ran to the street and back in his excitement, to the dismay of some passersby.

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He helped me become more confident in myself and, because of this, I was able to make more friends…

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"Sure, Sasu-chan. We can be friends," I grinned evilly.

Sasuke groaned at the nickname. "I'm going to regret this, aren't I?"

"Maybe," I chuckled in response.

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"That's what happens on a mission," Kakashi said with a gentler tone. "The enemy takes a hostage, and you've got an impossible choice. And someone ends up dead. On every mission, your life is on the line."

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"You pass…"

We all were in shock. What just happened?

"In the ninja world, those who break the rules are scum. That's true, but… those who abandon their friends… are worse than scum."

I could hardly believe my ears. We had passed, and Kakashi just said the most inspirational thing I had ever heard in all of my life in this new world. I just might have to start calling him Kakashi-sensei…

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I was able to become the ninja I always wanted to be. The one who protects others, and the person who is needed by someone.

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As Kakashi-sensei proceeded to tie up our enemies, I stepped beside Sasuke. He glanced my way and looked away with what I thought was a slight pout on his face.

Giggling to myself internally, I asked him a question. "Was the strong, silent, emo-boy Sasuke worried about little ol' me?"

"Hn," he still refused to look at me. Chuckling out loud this time, I looked over to where sensei was almost done with tying the ropes.

"I'm not going anywhere."

Sasuke still looked away from me, but he hesitated. After a moment, he looked back in front, still looking away from me, and nodded his head slightly. I smiled a little at him, no longer smug. Seeing the vulnerable side to Sasuke was something that let me know that he cared for me. And, despite what some of the fangirls may think, Sasuke and I were not together. We were the brother and sister duo that looked out for each other.

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And because of him, I can't back down either! I refuse to be left behind!

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"You know what my dream is, don't you?"

Naruto looked back at me confused for a second before his eyes widened in sudden understanding. He had a tiny smile that was starting to show on his face now.

"'My dream for the future is to be the greatest kunoichi I can be so that I can protect my precious people,' do you remember that?" I asked him. "Because that includes knuckleheaded best friends like you. You will never have to prove yourself to me. I know what a great Hokage you are going to be, and I can't wait for everyone else to see what I see in you already. I've always believed in you, and I need you here with me too. Without you, I wouldn't have any friends. You were my first friend, so it's only natural that I want to protect you."

"Akina…"

"So I make my own pledge. I will never let my friends suffer or die as long as there is breath left in me. I will never betray my friends' trust in me, and I will not back down from my promises. This is my new path, one I will walk with my friends, ya'know."

End Flashback

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I'll show them both just how much we need each other. I will not be useless weight!

Forming my hands into the proper hand signs, I molded my chakra in a very familiar way to perform my jutsu. I slammed my palm to the ground, creating a formula to bring a friend here to help out. "Summoning Jutsu!"

My exclamation had surprised everyone in the clearing as a puff of smoke appeared in front of my body. When it cleared, it revealed a creature which hadn't been seen by ninja in over 12 years.

A dragon.

Granted, it was a small one. But she was still a dragon.

Her name is Hisa, and just like her name means, she is an enduring dragon with the ability to create unbreakable shields. Quickly, she flew over to Tazuna's side, and wrapped around his neck loosely. He didn't seem to appreciate this at first, but when Hisa expelled her shield from her form so that it encased Tazuna in a protective barrier that no one but someone from the Morimoto clan could break, he calmed down.

"Don't you think…" I began, gaining my teammates' attention. "That you can leave me out of this. I am still a part of Team 7, and we work together!"

Naruto and Sasuke looked at me with surprise, but then Naruto smirked, wiping the blood from his face. "Alright! Now, guys, let's go wild!"

I smirked myself, knowing that Naruto was now including me in his plans too. We could do this, we could rescue Kakashi-sensei, together.

Sasuke and I both nodded at Naruto, prepared to take on this rogue Jonin. I didn't know how this battle was going to end, but I didn't care right now. I was so proud of Team 7.

We were ready to face anything. As long as we were together.

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Author's Note

Thanks again to all of those who have favorited and followed this story! I hope you enjoy this big chapter. I also ask that you leave a review down below (they seriously are a big help, and they help inspire me too!). Let's see if we can get 3 or more reviews just for this chapter ;)

Also, I am on spring break right now (I know, it's really early for spring break...). Since it is spring break, I do plan on using some of this time to write, so I'm hoping to be able to post again this week. Be on the lookout for that.

Again, thanks for everything, guys! :3 You all are amazing!