AN: "AS" stands for "After sage" and since there is no defined amount of time of how long the warring Clan's period lasted, I just made it up. I mean, it would make sense for it to be over 600 years if we assume the Villages are around 100 years old? And if is stated somewhere, well, eh, it's an AU then.


Chapter V

The Strongest: Wave

Late at night on the day of the team's official formation, Hyuga Hiashi was sitting in his study, going through the endless nightmare that was paperwork. How he cursed the work, he was a Shinobi, not some secretary to be spending days and nights at his desk. Oh, how he wished to return back to active duty, to at least get a good reason to take a break.

His prayers seemed to have been fulfilled as there was a knock on his doors. For a moment he wondered who it might be, after all, everyone knew not to disturb him while he was working. He silently once again cursed Minato for not sharing his secret and for making a short work of the paperwork. The Hyuga Clan head cleared his throat and ordered whoever was in front of his study to enter.

It was followed by the sound of the door sliding to the side and, to Hiashi's surprise, his heir was standing there with a troubled expression. It was highly unusual for Hinata to express emotions outwards, something Hiashi was still blaming himself for. As a Clan head, he was proud of how she carried herself with pride and elegance befitting of her position, but as a father, it hurt him to see his firstborn daughter like this. That is something that came with the position of a Clan head, he had to put the Clan first and sometimes even go against his own wishes.

"Father," The young heir greeted as she sat down in front of Hiashi with a small bow.

"Hinata, what's the matter, you should be resting," There was a short silence and the girl looked even more confused. Now that piqued the Hyuga Clan head's interest. While Hinata would sometimes break her facade in front of him and Hanabi, it was rare for her to have problems saying her thoughts to him.

"I met my team today,"

"I am aware. I am also aware that you passed. Is it about your Sensei? While Kakashi-san's tardiness might seem problematic, I can assure you he is one of the best Jonin in Konoha, even in the Elemental Nations,"

"No it's not about Kakashi-Sensei, it; 's about one of my teammates, Uzumaki Naruto," Hinata looked at her father with a quizzical expression when the man sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"He declared himself as the mighties?" The man asked, massaging his temples. The young Hyuga girl was slightly surprised that her father would react this way since it was one of the few rare times she had seen him show such an outward reaction.

"The strongest,"

"Ah, yes, the boy-wonder likes his titles," The man said dryly. "Am I to assume you wish to know more about him as well as why the knowledge about his strength is not well known in the Village?" Hinata nodded silently, making Hiashi arrange his thoughts for a moment in silence before he began to speak again

"Very well, make yourself comfortable, there is more to the boy than it seems,"


In the Uchiha Clan compound, more specifically in the Clan head office, Sasuke was looking through various folders on important personas in the Village. Ever since the massacre occurred a few years prior, Sasuke had not stepped into this part of his home, not being allowed to see the images of his parent's blood on the floor. However, after meeting his team and hearing what the annoying blood proclaimed, his curiosity won over.

"Uzu-, uzu-, Uzuki, no, Uzu-uzu, yes, Uzumaki- Kushina? No. This one, Uzumaki Naruto," he pulled the folder out and placed it on his father's desk, taking a seat at the very same place Fugaku once sat, whenever he was working from home.

Sasuke opened the folder and started reading the reports.

"Name: Uzumaki Naruto, birthday: October 10th, parents: Uzumaki Kushina and Namikaze Minato. He is the son of the fourth?" The Uchiha whispered with a surprised expression. "Uzumaki Naruto, shinobi registration number 012607 has graduated from the Ninja Academy at the age of seven. Teammates: Zenin Maki, shinobi registration number 012612. Jonin Sensei: redacted, shinobi registration number redacted,"

"Redacted? What does that mean?" Sasuke muttered under his breath with furrowed brows. As far as he knew even rogue ninjas didn't have their registration numbers redacted so what was this and why did it appear in the blond's papers? And seriously? Just one teammate?

"Chunin promotion age: eight. Jonin's promotion age: eight. Seriously, what's the deal with him? Two promotions in the same year, this is getting ridiculous! Missions assigned: 7 D-Rank missions, 26 C-Rank missions, 61 B-Rank missions, 38 A-Rank missions, and redacted S-Rank missions. Missions failed: 0. Note: The number of missions might be higher, last update 1st September, 762 AS."

"This file is from four years ago, just a few days before the massacre," Sasuke muttered darkly, gripping the folder with enough strength for rips to appear on the sides. He took a calming breath, trying to shove the face of his older brother away and focus on the file in front of him.

"Ranking: A-Rank, possible higher Rank. Profile: Uzumaki Naruto is arrogant, brash, and has a tendency to play around with his enemies. It has been noted that the stronger his enemy is, the longer will he drag the battle out. This stems from his desire to find someone who might challenge him and it might be his downfall one day. Shinobi who worked with Uzumaki Naruto has described him as jovial and open one moment and the next as a merciless and bloodthirsty butcher. It has been noted that he wears his glasses to lessen the burden on his brain from the superior perception of the Six-eyes, even though he uses Chakra to keep it fresh, should he not cover his eyes for a long period, he would get tired,"


"Naruto's first show of his bloodlines happened when he was four and already then, the Council and the Hokage knew that the blond's identity had to be concealed to avoid any potential assassinations. After, our rival great Villages had shown that were ready to kill for less than a bloodline, and the boy had two and was a son to two well-known, respected, and hated S-Rank Ninjas one of whom was the Hokage and the other was the sole Uzumaki survivor,"

"Even so, the boy rose through the ranks quickly and soon his name was out in the open. The Hokage ran damage control and restricted the knowledge about him to Jonin and above, but even now, we are unsure if any of the other Villages are aware of his full identity. It is not impossible, but the chances are low since the boy has been in ANBU for the past couple of years and the last year, he mostly did stealth, with reconnaissance and intel gathering missions, staying off the radar,"

"So, why is he in our team as a Genin?" Hinata asked, not understanding why someone like him was on the team. Hiashi sighed and looked at her for a few moments before deciding to tell her the truth.

"He has been assigned to your team as a precaution. Both you and the Uchiha are important to the Village and the council decided to push their agenda to make sure nothign happens to you two,"

"I see," It troubled, and angered her even that the council had deemed her weak enough to place an ANBU on her team. "What is his position in the Village?"

"That's difficult to say, for he is not a Clan head, for the Uzumaki Clan never had a seat on the council. But the higher-ups know his value, very much the same way they do with the three Sannins, so I would say he is in the same position as them. While he has no formal influence in the Village, most experienced Shinobi would follow his orders, while the council values his opinion and often takes them into consideration,"


A week had passed since their first meeting as team seven and in that time the Genin team spent their time training under Kakashi, focusing mostly on teamwork, at the insistence of Kakashi. The Genin were less than pleased by the development, Hinata and Sasuke wishing for more advanced training, while Naruto was annoyed and refused to take the training seriously.

When not training, the team was doing D-Ranks, at least two a day. The silver-haired Jonin said it was to build their teamwork even more, but honestly, he forced them to do this merely to see them suffer the nightmare that were the D-Ranks, especially Naruto, who despised them/

"Good job on another D-Rank well done again," Hiruzen said with a smile, seeing the members of team seven in his office. Both Hinata and Sasuke had scratches and cuts on their bodies, while Naruto was holding a fat orange cat.

"Can I kill this cat now?" Naruto asked with narrowed eyes, looking at the scared feline, while the other two members of his team were glaring bloody daggers at it. While he was not hurt by the demon cat, his pride was hurt, because Naruto, using everything at his disposal took two hours to catch the cat. Worse of all, at one point, the orange cat ran into the city, where many of Jonin's and ANBU saw the blond struggling to catch it, before bursting out laughing, the ones knowing him more than others.

"Now, now, Naruto, you can't kill someone your mission told you to catch," Kakashi berated with a gleeful smile under his mask. Ah, how great it was to see the blond being put in such a humiliating position after everything he put him through. After their first day as a team, Naruto decided it was high time for the silver-haired Jonin to stop lazying around and forced him to spar and train with him in the evenings.

Each day after that ended with bruises and sores for Kakashi and while he wanted to tell Naruto to leave him alone, for the training was cutting down his Icha-Icha time, he knew that the blond wouldn't listen to him and put him through an even more rigorous training regime. It made Jonin wonder if this was payback from the blond for the hellish training he put him through when Naruto first joined ANBU.

By the time Kakashi came back to the conversation in the Hokage office, he heard his team trying to persuade Sandaime to give them a C-Rank. As if the Hokage would let them take such a mission only after a week of being a team.

"We need more real experience,"

"It is important to see the outside world when it is still relatively safe for us,"

"I'm the strongest, don't worry about it,"

Kakashi had a sinking feeling in his gut when he saw the Sandaime sigh. No way, right? Sarutobi wouldn't cave in this easily. That's impossible! These thoughts left his head when he saw the old man reach for the scrolls labeled as 'C' and throw one at him.

"No way," The silver-haired Jonin muttered with a shadowed face.

"What is it, Kakashi?"

"Nothing, nothing at all. Everything is perfect," The Jonin muttered, unrolling the scroll and reading the mission details, while the Hokage told the general gist of the mission to the three Genin.

"Your mission will be to escort master bridgebuilder Tazuna back to his home and protect him until he finishes building his bridge. Please, let Tazuna in," The old man said to his secretary, and a few moments later, an old man, wearing a sleeveless shirt and a conical hat, entered the office.

"This is the shinobi protection I am paying you big buck for? One of them doesn't even look like a ninja!" The man raged, his breath stinking of cheap alcohol.

"I can assure you, mister Tazuna, that this is the best protection available in the Village,"

"I hope you are right,"

"There is nothing to worry about. My name is Hatake Kakashi, the Jonin of Team Seven. I can say with full confidence that bandits and missing-nin will not be a problem," Kakashi said with an eye smile, noticing how tense the old man got when he mentioned the latter, together with the information given to him in the mission scroll, it made Kakashi wary of what opposition they might encounter.

"Alright team, go home and prepare for the mission. We will meet tomorrow at eight in the morning at the main gate, don't be late,"


The next day, after they set out of Konoha and headed for Wave country, Tazuna's home, they got ambushed by two Chunin-level missing-nin's. After making a quick work of them and interrogating the bridge builder as to why they were after his head, they got the full story.

Apparently, a Tyrant businessman took over the country, gaining a monopoly on their fishing and export business, before draining the country dry. Since then, Tazuna tried to build a bridge to connect the island to the Fire Country mainland, to free his people from Gato's hold.

It took team Seven but a few moments to decide to continue their mission, all of them having their own reasons. For the Uchiha, it was because the mission would prove to him how strong he really was and show him he was making progress toward reaching Itachi.

Hinata, on the other hand, couldn't care less about the people's of Wave plight, but the Hyuga Clan's name was on the line. She knew that if the word that she, the Hyuga Clan heiress abandoned such a mission, it would greatly impact the Clan's prestige and would be a stain on their honor.

And Naruto? He thought liberating a country was a perfect opportunity to get his name in the open. After all, he wasn't sure how famous he was in the world, with all the redacting Hiruzen did a few years ago, but it was time to change it. It was time for the whole world to know the name Uzumaki Naruto and hear about his strength.

"Hum, hum, hum," The blond chirped cheerfully with a grin on his face. They were currently walking through a forest in the Wave country, a heavy mist all around them, making it hard to see a thing.

"Can you stop?" Hinata hissed, giving him a heated glare. They were in enemy territory, with unknown terrain and bad weather and the blond was acting like he was on a walk in Konoha. Naruto sighed and sent the Jonin a pointed look, making Kakashi raise an eyebrow.

"Hum, hum, hum!" This time, the blond did it more forcefully, staring at the silver-haired Jonin. At first, Kakashi wasn't sure what Naruot wanted from him before old memories of ANBU kicked in and his eyes widened.

'Humming means we are being followed,'

It took Kakashi this long to think about this because Naruto wasn't a sensor and the fog made it impossible to see far. But then it hit him, for the blond, the mist was not an inconvenience, his six eyes allowed him to see just as well as usual, even in those conditions.

Just then, a quiet whistling registered in Jonin's head, on pure reflexes gained through years of fighting and training, he jumped to the ground, pulling Tazuna with himself.

"DOWN!" Hinata and Sasuke quickly followed his orders and ducked, just in time as a large sword zipped past their heads. Naruto raised an eyebrow when the sword came barreling into him, before reaching out and catching it by the handle. To the blond's surprise, the strength behind the throw pushed him slightly back, something that happened rarely.

"Heh," Naruto smirked and turned towards the lake in front of them, on which stood a shirtless man. As the mist started to disperse and the other members of team seven stood up, Naruto saw the shock of their attacker at the sigh of Naruto casually holding the sword in one hand.

"Nice sword," The blond Genin complimented at the stumped assassin.

"Momchi Zabuza, A-Ranked missing-nin from Kiri," The silver-haired Jonin said, recognizing their attacker from his characteristic lack of shirt, short, black hair, and bandaged face.

Getting over his shock, Zabuza tried to play it off cool, crossing his hands and staring at them with a cold look.

"Kakashi of the Sharingan, two brats, and...?" He left the question open, making the blond happily introduce himself, while his teammates bristled in anger at being so easily dismissed.

"Uzumaki Naruto," The blond said with a wave, making the missing-nin narrow his eyes, before turning to the Jonin.

"We are both busy people Kakashi, so let's not get in one other way. Hand over the old man and I will let you and your team leave," Kakashi sighed and shrugged.

"Sorry, can't abandon our client,"

"A shame, then I guess I can't let you leave here alive," Zabuza said, killing intent rising, before turning to the blond. "Mind giving me my sword back?" Naruto shrugged, throwing the sword to the missing-nin, making his Sensei groan in annoyance, while his teammates and client cried out in outrage.

"Huh, didn't expect that. Oh, well, your funeral,"

"Alright, Kakashi, time to see if you got any better. Chop chop, off you go," Naruto stated, making the Jonin sweatdrop, before he turned serious and lifted his headband, revealing a Sharingan.

"Ho, the famous Sharingan right off the bat? You honor me,"

Soon, a short fight between the two Jonin ensued. At first, it looked like Kakashi had the upper hand, at least until he got knocked onto the river, where Zabuza trapped him in a water prison.

"Now, onto the brats," Zabuza said, creating three water clones, which stalked toward the Genin. Naruto rubbed his chin in thought, not noticing the resolute looks on Hinata's and Sasuke's faces or the scared expression on Tazuna.

"Well, not bad. Considering you were against Zabuza, one of the seven Swordsmen of the Mist, I would say it was not bad at all. I thought, a few years ago you would have won. It seems we need to up your training, Kakashi," The blond said with a grin, making the silver-haired Jonin groan in the water prison.

"Ha! You talk like you are leaving this place alive!" Zabuza laughed and the three water clones lunged forward, before the three of them burst, leaving only puddles on the grass. "Wha-?"

"Alright, now for the rescue," Naruto said and looked Zabuza in the eyes. "Clench your teeth," Before the missing-nin could respond, the blond made a single-hand seal, clenching his hands together, and instantly appeared in front of him. A powerful uppercut sent Zabuza flying before he skipped two times on the water.

Kakashi landed on the water and thanked the blond, before getting waved off.

"Don't worry about it. Now, off you go, I wanna play a little, the mission has been boring so far,"

A moment later, Kakashi appeared in front of the remaining two Genin and Zabuza rushed at the blond, his clever ready to cut him in two. Just as the sword was about to cut him, Naruto stopped the sword with his infinity, before lifting his hand.

"Wait a sec," He turned to the silver-haired Jonin and shouted. "Oi! Write down the fight for future references, would you?" No one except Kakashi knew what Naruto meant and was even more confused when Jonin took out a notebook and started writing.

"What?" Hinata asked, completely at a loss what was happening.

"Naruto likes to write down his fight so that Jiraiya-sama has good reference material for fight scenes in his books,"

Back at the lake, Naruto turned back to Zabuza, who tried to understand why his sword stopped suddenly.

"Okay, ready to continue?"

"Arrogant of you to turn your back to me," Zabuza hissed through gritted teeth, making the blond chuckle.

"Don't worry about it. After all, you're weak," Angered by the comment, the missing-nin pulled his sword back and slashed once again, putting all his strength into the attack, intent on cutting the breast in two.

Before his sword reached the blond, Naruto let out three fast punches to his chest, followed by a front kick that would have sent him flying if he hadn't caught Zabuza by the wrist. He squeezed hard, making his grunt and forcing his hand open, the giant's sword falling into the lake. Zazbua tried to counter, a fast puck flying towards the blond, effortlessly blocked before the blond pulled him in, landing a devastating uppercut to his gut, lifting him up and this time sending him flying with a roundhouse kick.

"Had enough?" Naruto asked when Zabuza went back to his knees, spitting away blood and glaring daggers at him.

"Enough?" The missing-nin growled, before rushing through hand seals, seeing that the blond was just observing him with this goddamned smug smirk. "Suiton: Water Dragon Jutsu!" Zabuza shouted before a massive serpentine dragon rose from the lake, its ominous yellow eyes glaring daggers at the blond.

"Cool Jutsu, let me show you mine. The divergence of Infinity. My reverse Chakra technique," Naruto pointed his right index finger at the dragon that was ready to pounce on him any moment, and a small, but very bright red orb appeared above his finger. The glow from the technique illuminated the whole clearing, giving it a red hue. "Uzumaki Hijutsu: Red!"

As he said those words, the dragon rushed at him, intent on crushing him whole. Naruto's Jutsu glowed even brighter, looking like it was about to explode with unbelievable power, before suddenly dying out.

"Wha-?" Tazuna asked stunned, followed by the blond's teammates and Sensei.

"I failed!" Naruto shouted with a stupid grin, the same instant the dragon barreled into him, creating a great explosion of water. Waves crashed mercilessly on the lake, while small droplets fell from the sky onto the clearing.

"Heh, too easy," Zabuza stated, standing up, only to hear a pop next to him, before a crushing punch sent him barreling through a couple of trees. Where once stood Zabuza, the spectators of the fight could see Naruto, unharmed with a pout.

"Amazing, he took him out in one punch," Tazuna muttered, looking at the broken body of Zabuza a few meters away from them. He noticed the missing-nin was trying to stand up, but he kept failing, his body devoid of power unable to lift his weight. Naruto walked over to him, a bored expression on his face, making the Demon of the mist even more angry.

"And now to end it," Before he could move for the kill, a pair of Senbon cut into the missing-nin's neck. Zabuza's eyes widened before he stopped to move, his body falling limp onto the soft grass. Naruto looked to his left, where on a tree branch stood kiri ANBU, looking right back at him.

"Naruto, what happened," Kakashi asked, noticing Zabuza's dead body, before seeing the ANBU. "I see,"

"Thank you for weakening Zabuza for me, I have been following him for the past few weeks, but wouldn't be able to take him down without your help," In a single leap, the ANBU landed next to Zabuza, their hand reached the body, before Naruto caught their wrist.

The ANBU jumped, turning to the blond. Keeping his eyes on the Kiri ninja, Naruto placed two fingers at Zabuza's neck, and feeling no pulse, he pulled back and grinned.

"No problem, ANBU-chan," The blond said with a wink, startling the Kiri-nin, who nodded uncertainly before picking up the body and vanishing without another word.

"Glad that's over," Tazuna said, releasing a sigh of relief.

"What do you mean? It's just staring," The blond ninja answered with a grin.

"What?" Sasuke looked at his teammate with a sceptical look.

"Well, the ANBU was working for Zabuza, that's obvious,"

"How can you be so sure?" This time, it was the unconvinced Hinata who asked.

"If she was a real Kiri ANBU, she would have cut off his head and burned the body,"

"Then why did you let her leave!?" A horrified Tazuna shouted, a look of despair on his face. Kakashi sighed at the grinning face of the blond and hid his Sharingan.

"That's obvious, next time they are fighting. After all, they need to pull their weight," Naruto stated, pointing at his teammates, and shocking them. "Besides, it's more fun this way. Don't worry, as long as I am around, nothing will happen to you, I am-,"

"The strongest," His team supplied as one in a dry voice, causing the blond to laugh and grin.

"Ding, ding, ding! Correct!"

"Alright, if that's settled, let's keep going. How far is your house, mister Tazuna?" Kakashi asked, pulling out his Icha Icha. He was convinced the danger had passed for now, so it was alright to relax.

"About fifteen minutes of walk,"

"Then let's go,"

As they walked towards the bridge builder's house and Village, Hinata looked at the blond with a curious expression.

"How did you know the ANBU was a girl?" The Heiress asked for she was unable to tell their gender. The clothes the ANBU wore weren't revealing a lot, making it difficult to make a deduced guess even for her.

"Hm? Ah, that's easy. It's thanks to my third Bloodline limit,"

"What?" Sasuke asked with wide eyes, making Kakashi smirk under his mask.

"Yup, I can tell whenever a cute girl is around without a fail," The blond explained with a massive grin. The last Uchiha looked at him with a deadpan, while Tazuna's eyes were filled with awe. Hinata, on the other hand, seemed to believe the blond and huffed.

"That could've been me," She said with a proud voice.

"Haha! Good one!" The blond burst out laughing, only to get a Juken to his shoulder from the furious female.

"And what do you mean by that?!"


Later that same night, deep into the forest of the Wave Country, in a small underground base, Zabuza opened his eyes, hissing in pain as the two Senbon were pulled out of his neck.

"You could be more gentle, Haku," He muttered, his voice weak. The ANBU, now without a mask gave him a beautiful smile.

"Don't be a baby, Zabuza-sama,"

"Hmph, that's cold," Silence ensued, his female companion treating his wounds, while he thought about the battle at the lake. "What do you think about him?"

"The blond?" A grunt was her answer. She thought for a moment before sighing. "He is very strong, maybe stronger than you,"

"Ha, that's an understatement," The demon of the mist answered, shocking his apprentice at the casual admittance of being weaker than a child her age.

"Zabuza-sama?" She asked, a worried expression on her face.

"Don't act like you didn't see the fight. I got thrashed, there is no other way to say it. It is a fact, that Uzumaki boy is stronger than me. It's the same as admitting that Yagura is beyond my scope,"

"Are we canceling the mission?"

"No, we need the money and while I hate working for Gato, he pays well,"

"Then do you have a plan to defeat him?"

"Hm, I think I have an idea, but it will require some preparations. In the meantime, I have to get back into shape, let's not forget there is still Kakashi to deal with,"

"And the two other Genin,"

"Please, they are harmless, it's the blond and Kakashi that is our only real trouble,"


"And then I sent him flying with a single punch!" They were in Tazuna's house, sitting at a table and eating a dinner made by Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami. Meanwhile, the blond was retelling the bridge builder's daughter about the battle with Zabuza, making her stare and him in wonder.

"You must be really strong, Naruto,"

"Of course, there is no one stronger than me," The blond grinned.

"Lies, Gato is stronger," Naruto looked to the left, where he saw a kid, looking at him with a glare.

"Huh?" The blond Genin asked with an annoyed look.

"You can't beat Gato! He is too strong!"

"Maybe for a brat like you," The kid, Inari, growled at the nonchalant tone the Ninja was speaking with, before slamming his hands on the desk.

"What do you know, huh?! You know nothing of our pain and now you come here acting all cool and strong, but you will end like all before you! Dead at Gato's feet!"

A silence followed, all eyes darting from the blond to the Tsunami's son. After a few moments, the blond leaned back in his chair and looked at Inari with a serious expression, slightly pulling down his sunglasses to make eye-to-eye contact with him.

"Then what do you say about a bet,"

"A bet?" Inari asked, staring at the sudden change in the blond's voice. Wherein before it was cheerful and warm, now it was completely serious.

"Yeah, I bet you that by tomorrow morning I will clear out all of Gato's thugs from the Village and keep them away until Tazuna finishes his bridge. If I win, you will acknowledge that you were just too weak to defend your home yourself,"

"And if I win?" The boy asked uncertainly, not wanting to admit to being weak to the blond.

"If you win? Well, I will be probably dead. What do you say?"

"Naruto..." Kakashi muttered, getting a glare from the blond before he turned to Inari. The boy nodded, his childish stubbornness forcing him to win it or fear admitting he was wrong.

"Okay, I accept,"

"Good. I am leaving, will be back later," Naruto stated, standing up and walking out of the house before being quickly followed by his Sensei. Outside, Kakashi saw the blond leaning on the raining on the porch.

"Why did you propose him the bet?"

"Why? Ah, you know how I am, I see a lot of my younger self in him. I can see in his eyes, no matter what he is saying, that he wishes for someone to save his home, but is too stubborn to admit it. Winning it and forcing him to admit I was right is the only way he will get his confidence back,"

"I... don't follow, where do you yourself in this?" Kakashi asked, making the blond sigh.

"Just like me, he is too stubborn to ask for help. I was the same when I was younger, but when he wanted someone to save him, I wanted to have friends and family. You remember my attitude back then, right? Trying to push others away, even when I longed for companionship. It's similar, in a way,"

"I see. What do you plan then?"

"Hm, will probably weed out all of the bandits in the Village tonight and then keep watch with shadow clones, make sure Gato doesn't send in more,"

"Understood. We will prepare for Zabuza's return, make sure you are ready to come back at moment's notice,"

"Yes, yes, make sure nothing happens to Tazuna, I have no intentions of breaking my perfect mission track with a failed C-Ranked mission," Without another word, the blond walked away into the forest, heading for the town. Kakashi watched him go with a frown, before walking back into the house, already thinking of a training regime for his other two Genin.


Haku yawned, bending down to pick herbs for Zabuza's treatment in the forest. It was early in the morning when she decided to depart, leaving their hideout once her master woke up, to not leave him in a vulnerable position.

it was a beautiful day, she noted. The warm rays of the morning sun made the forest look wonderful, the soft blowing of wind was not too cold or too warm. The delightful chirping of a bird, high in the trees, and the light snoring of someone really made it an enchanting moment. She closed her eyes, enjoying the tranquil moments, her sleepy mind ready to fall asleep on the soft grass underfoot.

'Wait, snoring?'

Her eyes shot open, muscles tensing. All drowsiness quickly left her body when she saw the blond Konoha Genin from yesterday sleeping peacefully under a tree.

Haku swallowed, quickly fishing out a single Senbon from her wooden basket before she hid it back. The blond didn't seem to have sensed her in any way and throwing a weapon could potentially wake him up. She bit her lip before slowly stalking towards him, her feet practically gliding on the grass, not making a single sound, just like she practiced for years.

A single slender arm reached for Naruto's throat and just as she was to grab it, she released a soundless sigh and shook his shoulder.

'What am I doing? He is the one who put Zabuza-sama in such a condition, I should kill him now and save us trouble later,' Even while she berated herself, deep down she knew she wasn't heartless enough to kill someone, especially in their sleep.

"Huh?" A drowsy voice muttered before the blond yawned loudly and sat up, wiping his eyes. Naruto looked up, curious as to who woke him and his eyes widened at the beauty in front of him.

Long, silky black hair, framing a most beautiful face with kind, brown eyes filled his vision. Pale, unblemished skin, soft lips, and a warm smile, with an amused twinkle in her eyes. She wore a sleeveless pink kimono with a black choker around her neck and wooden sandals.

"Am I in heaven?" The blond asked with a small smile. Haku blushed and pulled back.

"No, still in Wave country. Why were you sleeping out here?" Zabuza's apprentice quickly changed the topic, watching as the blond stood up and stretched his back.

"Decided to spend some time in the nature," Naruto answered with a grin, before looking at her basket. "What are you collecting?"

"Herbs for my friend, he fell ill,"

"Hm, need some help?"

"I would appreciate it,

The two spent some time collecting herbs and making some small talk along the way. They didn't talk about anything in particular, merely about some of their hobbies, interests, and homes.

"So, how is Zabuza?" Naruto asked, putting another few plants in the basket.

"Could be worse," Haku hummed before her eyes widened and she jumped back, pulling out a Senbon from the basket. She cursed silently under her breath, readying herself to flee at any moment, but to her surprise, the blond stayed in his position, looking at her quizzically.

"What's gotten into you?"

"You know I work for Zabuza-sama,"

"And? I knew it from the moment I woke up,"

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why didn't you attack me?"

"Ah, that's why. Eh, it's too early in the morning to be fighting. Besides, what kind of monster would I be if I attacked you and decided not to attack me first?" A short silence followed before Naruto waved her on. "Come on, you said you need a bit more,"

Haku hesitated for a moment, before relenting and crouching down next to the blond, who was collecting the herbs. In her mind, she knew she stood no chance against the blond, so there was no need for him to be deceitful and she doubted that someone as confident as him would even resort to such measures.

"Why?" She asked again, making the blond sigh and look at her from the corner of his eye.

"Do I need a reason to help a cute girl pick flowers?" He resorted to a smirk at seeing Haku blush again before turning away.

They continued in a tense silence, at least for the girl, Naruto seemed to be as relaxed as ever. Before long they had enough and Haku decided it was time she headed back.

"Thank you for your help. I guess next time we will see each other we will be enemies,"

"Well, if you want to meet before that, you know, to speak or something, I would be glad to see you again,"

"Why are you acting like this? You know as well, that in a few days, we will be trying to kill each other?"

"So? Is it wrong for us to enjoy the few peaceful days before that?" Naruto asked with a smile, shocking the black-haired girl before a small smile blossomed on her face and she nodded.

"You may be right, I would like to meet you again before we fight,"

"Great," Naruto grinned, turning towards the Village. "What do you say we meet again after tomorrow?"

"Here?"

"Yup, morning?

"Yes, that would be nice,"

"Alright, see ya," The blond waved before walking away, leaving a smiling Haku alone in the peaceful forest.

"Farewell," She muttered before heading back to her master.


Naruto smiled, looking at the bustling main square of the Village. It has been a week since he took care of all of Gato's mercenaries. In time, the people of Wave started living in peace once again and after telling them they didn't have to pay any taxes for Gato, assuring them that he would protect them, they were able to enjoy their lives again.

Gato tried to reclaim his territory a few times, sending more and more mercenaries, but after none of them came back, the man stopped. Naruto wondered if the man was readying an all-out attack, or if he was waiting for Zabuza to finish the job, but whichever it was, the people of Wave could breathe a sigh of relief for now. Tazuna said his bridge would be ready in another week, so until then his team had to deal with the matter of Zabuza and Gato before Wave was truly free.

In the last week, he met four times with Haku. They spent their time together talking about their lives, their thought on the shinobi world, and retelling stories of their past. Naruto really enjoyed her company, no matter how fleeting it might be, but that was something he came to treasure in this world, the few moments of peace and happiness before everything turned to chaos.

'Well, that's how this world works,' The blond thought before he heard a loud whistle coming from the bridge, loud enough that he heard from all the way here. 'I guess it's starting, no point in wasting time,' Naruto stood up from the roof he was sitting on, creating a single Shadow Clone in case something happened here and with a single hand seal, vanished.


Kakashi whistled, using Chakra to enhance the loudness of it, to make sure the blond heard it. Team Seven and Tazuna arrived at the bridge a few minutes ago, seeing all the construction workers who helped the bridge builder lying unconscious on the ground before a thick mist entered the area.

"Get ready," Kakashi ordered, his Sharingan already out, trying to pierce the Chakra-filled mist. Hinata turned on her Byakugan and Sasuke took out a pair of Kunai.

"Where is the blond brat?" Zabuza's rough voice echoed through the mist, before it dispersed slightly, showing him and the fake ANBU standing some distance away.

"Here," Naruto's voice rang loud, confusing all of them when they didn't see him. "Up here," They all lifted their gazes, and to their shock and amazement the blond was levitating in the air, hand in his pockets and his usual smirk plastered on his face.

"Hmph, good, it would have been a waste to bring our guest here if you ran away," Zabuza said with a savage grin under his bandages, making the blond raise an eyebrow.

"What?" A chilling laughter and massive killing intent filled the area. Hinata and Sasuke froze, Tazuna fainted and Kakashi had to steel himself not to fall prey to it.

'Who is this?!' Kakashi thought in shock as a third figure started to emerge from the mist, on the side of Zabuza.

"That's the brat that kicked your ass?" The man, or was it a shark, laughed loudly, before a massive bandaged sword hit the bridge.

"Eh? You've brought a fish to a fight?" Naruto asked, making the shark man grin, his bloodlust filling the area.

"I am Hoshigaki Kisame, brat,"

"Ho? An S-Ranked missing-nin from Kiri? Heh, not bad, name's Uzumaki Naruto," The blond turned to Kakashi, and seeing the state of his team, he knew they would be handicapped fighting in the same place Kisame was. "Oi, Kakashi, leave him to me, you take care of Zabuza and the cute ANBU,"

"Alright, watch out," Kakashi didn't want Naruto to fight Kisame alone, but he knew that the blond was the only one who would be able to fight him. Even as it pained him, the silver-haired Jonin had to admit that he would only get in the way of their fight.

"Don't worry, I will be back shortly," Naruto smirked, appearing in front of the S-Ranked missing-nin before placing a hand on the shark man's shoulder and both vanished.

"No matter how strong the brat might be, he had no chance against Kisame,"

"You should focus on your own fight Zabuza. Hinata, Sasuke, take care of the fake ANBU,"


They appeared in the forest where he met Haku for the first time and before Kisame could gather his thoughts on what happened, Naruto sent him flying with a kick, three trees broken.

"Not bad, brat. I see how you could have beaten Zabuza, but this will not be enough against me,"

"Heh, hopefully. I heard you were strong, so don't disappoint me,"

Kisame rushed in, swinging his sword horizontally. Naruto ducked launching a punch to Kisame's chest, which was blocked, before the blond shot out a kick to the missing-nin's head, that was dodged.

Kisame countered with a haymaker on his own, followed by two jabs and a powerful frontal kick, all of which were blocked before the blond caught his leg and threw him in the air. Naruto jumped behind the man, trying to grab his black cloak and throw him to the ground, but Kisame slapped the arm away and spun in the air, delivering a powerful falling kick to the blond.

Naruto smirked when the kick stopped, before grabbing his opponent's leg and throwing him back-first into the ground. The shark-looking man hit the ground hard, a small hole appearing under him and dust flew in all directions, but unlike many, that didn't stop him. He quickly jumped up to his legs and cut with his sword high, trying to catch the blond in the air.

Naruto smirked and didn't block, instead spun in the air, launching a powerful kick at the missing-nin, knowing his Infinity would stop the attack.

"Gah!?" Naruto grunted and flew away, his chest bloodied and shredded. He crashed into a tree and slowly raised back, glaring at the missing-nin. "How?" He asked, seeing that the wound was not too deep, but was bleeding quickly. Kisame cackled madly and the bandages around his sword fell down, revealing a scaly-looking weapon.

"When I heard your name from Zabuza, I knew the mission would be easy. After all, this sword, my Samehada was the perfect tool for killing Uzumaki, giving its previous name the 'Whirpool killer'," The missing-nin laughed loudly, before preparing to continue the fight.

'Samehada? Damn it, that's bad,' He knew of the properties of the sword, afterall, it was one of the few weapons that could counter his infinity. "Lucky hit," Naruot stood up and pointed his right hand at Kisame. "Uzumaki Hijutsu: Blue,"

Instantly, the earth around the missing-nin shot towards Kisame, trying to crush him. Kisame smirked and swung his sword, blasting the earth away before dashing to the left.

'Tch, he's fast,' Naruto notices and jumps to the left when Samehada crashes into the ground, before his hand shoots out, sending Kisame flying. He pointed his hand again and his Chakra flared. "Blue!" Kisame stopped midair before he shot towards the blond, he enhanced his fist with limitless and punched him in the chest, drilling him into the ground.

"Gck!" Kisame grunted, blood flying from his mouth, feeling several of his ribs breaking, before the blond lifted him up and delivered a crushing combo to him. Two jabs, a haymaker, an uppercut another three jabs finished with a spinning kick. Kisame flew away, his body hitting the ground, Naruto hot on his heels ready to finish the missin-nin off.

"You fell for it!" Kisame laughed and slashed at the blond. Blood gushed out as his whole chest got ripped to ribbons. The blond, tried to jump back in panic, only to be blindsided by the devastating punches from the fishman. His head pounded, his chest burned like never before, and the pain was unbearable, clouding his mind.

"Haha!" Kisame laughed maniacally, slashing the blond's right thigh open before with a single hand seal he spat a large water bullet. The blond was sent flying, blood painting the grass red, his back hit a tree, before Kisame appeared in front of him, his sword ready to carve even more of his flesh.

Through the haze in his mind, Naruto lifted his hand and shot a blue, trying to push the missing-nin back, but Kisame had no problem dodging the attack before his sword met the flesh on Naruto's neck. Naruto was sent flying, his body limp, before Kisame appeared next to him and elbowed him into the ground. The missing-nin spun, a Kunai twirled in his hand before stabbing the blond's leg repetitively, before piercing his chest and to end it all, the regular Kunai cut into his forehead.

The blond fell to the ground, a pool of blood under his body and Kisame smirked. Ah, another Shinobi added to his kill count, how he loved the feeling. Especially, when they were special and this one counted among them.

"In the end, you were nothing more than another arrogant brat," Kisame turned and started a leisurely walk towards the bridge, not like he was contracted to do anything else. Ah, Pein-sama will be pleased at the amount of money he will bring back. He would need to contact his leader and Gato for future contracts, the slimy man knew how to pay for professionals.


Back at the bridge, the battle between Zabuza and team Seven was still going fiercely. It had been around thirty minutes since Naruot departed to fight Kisame and the silver-haired Jonin was still tied in his fight.

Zabuza decided to stretch the fight as long as possible, not wanting to make a single mistake. His plan was to tire Kakashi out before going in for the kill, to make absolutely certain that the copy-ninja wouldn't pull out any surprises. His tactic, to Kakashi's dismay, was proving to be successful so far, as the Konoha Jonin was starting to lose ground.

He looked to his right, where inside a dome of Ice mirrors his two Genin were pushed on the defense. Thanks to Hinata's Byakugan and Sasuke's newly awakened Sharingan, these two were able to hold their ground so far, but it was a matter of time before the fake ANBU would tire them out and come out on top.

'Where are you, Naruto?' Kakashi thought and was forced to dodge, or else get cut in half by the massive Kubikiribocho. Just then, almost like his prayers had been answered, another presence appeared on the bridge. 'Finally, took you long enough,' The silver-haired Jonin thought with a smirk, only to get a sinking feeling in his gut when the mist started to clear out.

There stood a man, but it was not the blond from his team, but Kisame, grinning and bloodied, but not as much as his sword. Just then, Sasuke and Hinata found an opening and were able to escape the mirrors, thanks to the Uchiha's great usage of Katon Justu to cause a distraction for the fake ANBU.

Team Seven regrouped near Tazuna, who by now was kneeling on the bridge behind a set of metal bars. Kakashi looked around and asked how his Genin was holding out.

"I can still go on," Hinata answered, but the Jonin saw that her Chakra reserver was slowly diminishing, among many cuts on her body.

"Same," Sasuke's ragged voice claimed. The Raven-haired boy had even less Chakra left than his Hyuga teammate, but his body was less injured.

"Why are you here?" Kakashi asked, his eyes on Zabuza and Kisame, who seemed to talk about something, but he was too far away to hear what. He noticed the fake ANBU also regrouped with Zabuza and was standing near her master.

"Hm? Why? Ah, I see. because I killed Uzumaki Naruto," Kisame said with a grin, shocking Team Seven and Zabuza.

"No way," Hinata breathed out. While she found the blond annoying, he was still her teammate and she didn't want him to die. Furthermore, he was their strongest member and that spelled huge trouble. Sasuke clenched his fists, trying to calm his anger and fear down, but even so, couldn't stop them from slightly shaking. While no one noticed it, the ANBU's shoulders tensed for a single moment.

'Shit, shit, shit! Naruto is dead? No, focus, we need to get out of here now!' He turned to his team and rushed through hand seals. "Hinata, Sasuke, plan D!" A huge amount of smoke filled the bridge before dozens of team seven and Tazunas ran away in different directions. Zabuza cursed, running towards a group and cutting them down, only for them to dissipate in a haze.

"Bunshin escape?" Kisame laughed, it was a Genin tactic, but when your opponents had almost zero Chakra left, like now, even sensors would have a problem finding the right ones. Zabuza grunted in annoyance before turning to Haku.

"Come on, we need to finish them while they are tired," The missing-nin commanded getting a stiff nod from his apprentice, wondering what it was all about, before shrugging it off as hesitant to kill. "You're coming?" He turned to Kisame who shook his head.

"My contract specifies the blond brat and since he is dead I am going for the paycheck,"


Team seven ran as fast as their tired bodies would allow. Plan D was a total retreat to their latest resting place, in this case, Tazuna's house. While it endangered the bridge builder's family, it was probably the only place they could be certain no enemy would be waiting for them. Besides, the house was a good distance away from the Village, Zabuza's most likely place of searching for them first.

"What do we do now, Sensei?" Hinata asked as they landed in front of the house and quickly went in. Kakashi nervously scratched his head, trying to think of a way out of this predicament, before taking a deep breath and calming down.

"First, let's not assume Naruto is dead, it could very well be a lie to make us nervous," He saw his students' uncertain expressions but ignored them and summoned Pakkun, his Ninja dog.

"Yo, Kakashi," The small brown pug greeted with a wave, before seeing the serious look on his summoner's face. "What do you need me to do?"

"Find Naruto, you remember his smell?"

"Of course,"

"Be careful, an S-Rank missing-nin and A-Rank missing-nin are around, you need to be discreet,"

"Understood," The pug saluted before jumping out of the window at a speed that baffled the two Genin.

"What was that?" Tazuna asked, shocked to see a talking dog.

"One of my summons, he will try to find Naruto, meanwhile take these," Kakashi gave each Genin a small, brown pill. "These will replenish your Chakra, Tazuna, we need bandages,"

"Of course,"

"Rest for now, I will stand guard,"


Sometime later, Kisame was sitting and leaving Gato's mansion, annoyed that the slimy businessman was absent with all his henchmen. He could try to break in, but that cause problems for future contracts, so the missing-nin decided to meet up with Zabuza in the meantime while waiting for his contractor to come back from wherever he was.

As he walked down the cobbled road from the mansion, he lifted his hand, trying to shadow his eyes from the bright sun. He came to a stop, a confused expression on his face when he saw someone waiting in front of him.

"Hey, it's been a while," Naruto said with a smile, his right eye covered by his messy hair, his glasses nowhere to be found. Kisame looked at the blond with disbelief, not sure if he was seeing things.

"For real?"

"For real, real," The blond lifted the hair from his forehead, showing the place that was pierced by a Kunai. Kisame saw a small cave-in in the place, but there was no wound to be found anymore. "I am alive and kicking," Naruto said, his voice filled with excitement.

"Reverse Chakra technique?"

"Bingo! I knew you would know about it,' The blond confirmed, tapping his forehead with his thumb. "When you ripped my throat wide open I gave up on counterattacking and poured all my focus into the reverse Chakra technique. Chakra is created when you mix two different energies into one. While it can enhance the body and speed up the healing process there are limits to how much it can do. So you divide that Chakra into its base energies and force them to work separately at the same time, creating negative Chakra in your body. That's the reverse Chakra technique," Naruto explained, a mad grin on his face.

"Easier said than done. I hadn't been able to do so up until now myself. And I couldn't understand anything the scrolls about it said,"

'He's babbling on and on,' Kisame thought, his eyes narrowed on the blond. 'He's high,' The missing-nin looked at the blond Uzumaki, who was grinning madly at the sky, his arms spread out at his side, while his blue eyes sparkled with insanity.

"But I finally grasped it on the verge of death. The true essence of Chakra! The reason you are going to lose is because you didn't chop my head off and because you didn't use that sword of yours when you stabbed my head,"

'That sword can't stab,' Kisame thought with a small smile before taking it off his back. "I am going to lose? Our fight is just getting started,"

"What? Is that right? Maybe you're right. You're so right!"

Kisame rushed in and slashed down, and Naruto sidestepped the attack effortlessly. The missing-nin reversed the grip on the sword and slashed back, sending gusts of wind behind the attack, only to hit the air.

He looked over his shoulder with a surprised look, seeing the blond levitating upside down, two fingers lifted up and a small, red orb shining bright at their tips. The whole place was lit up in crimson light as Naruot smiled thinly.

"Uzumaki Hijutsu: Red," These words felt so right in his mouth, filling him with ecstasy. Kisame tried to block the attack with Samehada, hoping to disperse the technique as the red hit his sword. It soon was clear that Samehada was too slow at eating the Chakra and Kisama was sent flying at Gato's mansion.

The shark-man grinned from his downed position, holding his aching stomach while a cut on his forehead opened, blood flowing down his face. He watched the blond with the excitement of a worthy opponent. Naruto was levitating, his hands spread out, his back facing the earth, a blissful smile on his face.

"Monster," Kisame muttered and raised his legs, before stretching his back. 'No bones are broken,' The previous damage dealt long ago by Samehada. 'So, that was the Uzumaki's red, huh? He poured the Limitless technique with negative Chakra created by the reverse Chakra technique. One, the power to stop: the neutral application of Limitless, Infinity. Two, the power to attract: the amplified application of the Limitless technique, Blue. And three, the power to repel: the reversal of Bloodline Limit, Red. All things I can handle,' Kisame thought with a smirk, just as Samehada merged with him, granting him its ability to suck out Chakra.

'Something's off,' Kisame thought, watching the blond levitate as he finished the merging process. Naruto suddenly looked like him, looking almost like he forgot Kisame was around. Their eyes met and the missing-nin's smirk vanished.

'Something's off,'

"No, this is fine," His smirk returned and the manbeast prepared to attack. "I will kill you," Kisame vanished, appearing in front of the blond, his hand in a cutting motion, long nails, sharper than most swords went for a cut. Naruto moved his head to the side and the missing-nin fell to the ground. He jumped back, and his leg, with the power to crush Chakra-reinforced bones without a problem, lashed out. Naruto tilted back, the attack missing his face by inches, an unbothered look on his face. The sun shined brighter and Naruto lay back in the air again, staring at the sky.

'Sorry, Kakashi, Hinata, Sasuke, Tazuna. I know I should finish this quickly and go help you, but I can't even bother to care about any of you right now. It's just that the world feels so, so wonderful right now,' The blond thought with an absolutely emotionless face. He finally felt complete, he felt one with the world.

Naruto straightened up, his right hand lifted towards the sky, while his left was pointed towards the earth, right at Kisame, who was trying to find an angle to attack him.

"Throughout Heaven and Earth, I alone am the honored one," The blond stated with a grin, seeing Kisame rush through a lot of hand seals. 'The merit of having a technique that's passed down for generations is having a user manual,' The blond thought, his hand in his pockets as he watched with uninterested gaze as dozens of water Sharks rushed towards him, all stopped by his Infinity

'The demerit is that information about the technique is easily leaked. You were a member of the Seven Mist swordsmen, all trained to fight against the Uzumaki, Kiri's biggest rival. That's why you were certain your sword could pierce my Infinity. However, even in the Uzumaki clan-,' He put his right fingers in a completely new sign, making a loop with his thumb and index finger. '-only a scant few knew about this,' He pointed his right hand in Kisame's direction.

'Take the amplified and the reversal, then smash together those two different expressions of infinity to create and push out imaginary mass,' In the space where his index finger and thumb met, a small, purple orb appeared, bathing the area in a dark purple color. Kisame was a few meters away from him, jumping towards the blond with the intent to finish him off.

"Uzumaki Hijutsu: Hollow Purple,'

There was a purple flash, the sound of a building collapsing and the ground being shredded asunder. Naruto looked at the damage with a small smile before the cloud of dust cleared and he came down to the ground, next to an injured Kisame.

'I knew something was wrong, I had this feeling years ago when I first joined the Kiri ranks. Back then, I was defeated too, by an Uzumaki. Heh, it all comes around, I had lost to an Uzumaki the first time I ventured out of the Village and my last mission ended with an Uzumaki standing above my corpse, heh,'

Naruto looked dispassionately at what remained of Kisame, the Sharkman had a huge hole in his chest and abdomen and was missing his right hand. The sword, still merged with him died the same moment he did, confirmed by the glassy look in the missing-nin's eyes.


Kakashi huffed and dodged another attempt on his life by Zabuza, throwing the last of his Kunai at the missing nin. Sometime after they arrived at Tazuna's house, the Demon of the Mist, together with his fake ANBU, found them and attacked them without any remorse. Luckily, team Seven had a few minutes of rest, where they could replenish their Chakra some and loosen their muscles.

Another fortunate fact was that Kisame was nowhere to be seen, keeping the fight a three-on-two. But even so, the small injuries and exhaustion from the bridge and carried over to this fight, giving Zabuza the edge.

"What's wrong, Kakashi? Can't defeat me without the blond brat?!" The silver-haired Jonin clenched his teeth, unable to pinpoint where the voice came from before substituting with a log, that was cut in two in moments.

There was a strategy Kakashi could use, but it would leave him even more injured, to the point where should Kisame come to finish them, he wouldn't last even a moment.

"Sasuke!" The Jonin looked to his left, hearing Hinata's distressed shout, only to see the Uchiha fall to the ground, two Senbon in his neck. "You bastard!" In the heat of the battle, Hinata's emotionless mask slipped and she glared at the fake ANBU, before running in.

"You're getting sloppy, Kakashi!" Zabuza appeared in front of the silver-haired Jonin, his sword once again ready to cut his opponent in half. Kakashi jumped back out of reflex, saving his life.

'Damn it!' He clenched his stomach, where the sword cut through his Jonin vest, drawing blood. 'It's not too deep, well, I guess, it's time to finish this,' Kakashi threw a smoke bomb, cowering the area in thick smoke, thicker than the mist surrounding them, before rushing through hand seals and hitting the ground.

'Summoning Jutsu!'

Hinata rushed in, her previous defensive fighting style forgotten. She enhanced her body with Chakra, trying to muster all the speed she could in hopes of getting a hit against the black-haired ANBU. However, no matter how fast she went, her opponent was just too damn fast!

Haku weaved in and out of the Hyuga Heiress's attacks, trying to find a safe angle to put her in a death state like she did with Sasuke now and Zabuza a week ago. But it was getting difficult to do so, as Hinata's attacks were getting more ferocious by the minute.

'There!' Haku ducked under a palm strike aimed at her chest, diving towards the ground and touching Hinata's legs. Instantly, the ice started to form around the Hyuga girl's limbs, immobilizing her and Haku pounced. Two Senbon bit expertily into the Konoha-nin's neck, before she fell to the ground.

"Haku!" Zabuza roared and the black-haired girl looked towards her master, only for her eyes to widen in disbelief, seeing him being held down by a pack of dogs, all of them having bitten into his body.

"Zabuza-sama!" Haku cried out seeing Kakashi run towards Zabuza with his chidori. The brown-eyed girl poured all of her Chakra into her legs, hoping against all odds to be in time to save her mentor. When she closed half of the space between her and Zabuza, she knew she would be fast enough to take the attack for him, only to gasp when she was suddenly pulled back.

"Let me go!" Her hysterical cry sounded throughout the area and she looked back to what was holding her back. "Naruto?" She asked with a surprised look before it turned into one of betrayal. "Please, let me go!"

Naruto closed his eyes and ignored her please, letting her only when the sound of flesh being ripped echoed through the battlefield and Kakashi's Jutsu died out. Not wasting a second, the fake ANBU rushed towards her master, tears streaming down her face.

"Zabuza-sama, please, please don't go. I beg you, Zabuza-sama!" The girl sobbed, holding onto the grievously injured missing-nin. Kakashi sighed with a sad look in his eyes, before preparing to kill her too, only to notice Naruto's presence.

"You're alive," The silver-haired Jonin breathed out a relieved sigh, getting a solemn nod from the blond. "What of Kisame?" He asked, showing his surprise and concern over the bloodied and ripped clothes of the blond.

"Dead," Naruto answered and slowly walked over to Haku, who was crying loudly, trying to patch Zabuza's wound. "Haku," The blond placed a hand on the girl's shoulder, only for it to be slapped away as she glared at him, her once kind eyes filled with hatred.

"Don't touch me!" Naruto sighed and pulled back, watching as she tried to heal her master. The missing-nin groaned, blood staining the bandages over his mouth.

"Haku," He muttered weakly, trying to stop her from healing him. She looked at him with shock, not understanding why he pushed her hands away. "I lost, that's all. That's the world we live in,"

"No, no, no! Please, Zabuza-sama,"

"Heh, you're still as soft as the day we met, unable to harden your heart. You are not fit to be a Shinobi," A small, bloody smile revealed itself on his face, as the bandages from his face fell down. His eyes met Naruto's, conveying their seriousness.

"Brat, take care of her for me. Haku, go with the brat, he will protect you, I know it,"

"I am not going anywhere without you, Zabuza-sama!"

"That's my last order, do with it... what you... well," His eyes glazed over and his body became limp. An anguished cry filled the place, as the brown-eyed girl cried out towards the sky. A few feet away, Kakashi was crouching next to his other two students, looking at them with a saddened look, his Sharingan already hidden.

"It seems I have failed my team again," He muttered, hearing the blond join him.

"Not yet, they are alive," Kakashi turned to him with wide eyes, before lifting his forehead protector, looking at them with his Sharingan. True to the blond's words, Chakra still flowed through their bodies, just like it usually would.

"But, how?"

"Haku put them in a death-like state, just as she did with Zabuza a week ago, she is too gentle to kill someone,"

"You know her?" It piqued Jonin's curiosity how the blond spoke about Haku as she knew her. The blond nodded, taking out the Senbon from his teammate's necks.

"Yeah, met her a few times in the forest. We spent some time together,"

"Wha-?" A weak spoke up as Sasuke opened his eyes. Hinata groaned and slowly sat up.

"What happened?"

"You were put into a death-like state,"

"Is Tauzna...?" Sasuke left the question open and got a shake of of head from the Jonin.

"Tazuna is alive. Zabuza, on the other hand, well... you can hear,"

"What do we do now?" Hinata asked, glaring at Haku.

"We leave her alone for now," Naruto said seriously leaving no room for discussion.

"And the mission?" Sasuke added.

"There is still Gato to take care of," Kakashi said and the team stood up. "But let's rest for today,"

"Not yet," Naruto suddenly said, confusing his teammates. He looked towards the direction of the Village with a glare, before turning to his team.

"Gato is heading for the Village, he is currently at the bridge," Kakashi groaned, oh how he wished it would be over already.

"How certain are you?"

"A shadow Clone I left in the Village noticed him and dispelled,"

"I see, well it seems we still have our work cut out for us today. Can you two fight?" Kakashi asked, getting two nods in answer, before Sasuke looked at Haku, who by now stopped crying and was merely hugging Zabuza's corpse.

"What about her?"

"Let her grieve for now,"


Team Seven arrived at the outskirts of the Village just in time to see Gato and his army of mercenaries leave the bridge, heading for the main square. Kakashi, trying to get their attention, whistled loudly, making the small businessman stop and look at their group. His eyes widened before narrowing upon landing on the blond.

"You, blond brat, you were the one who was killing my mercenaries, right?"

"Hm, so what if I was?" Naruto asked with an annoyed look. He wouldn't lie, seeing Haku in such a state put him in a sour mood and he wanted to release some steam, especially since he was the reason things ended this way.

"Ha! Whoever brings me his head will get double, no, triple the pay!" Gato shouted to his henchmen, gaining a bloodthirsty roar of approval from the small army.

"Sasuke, Hinata, you know what you have to do?" Kakashi asked, although it was obvious. They needed to kill them, to ensure nothing bad happened to the Villagers, it was the lesser evil. Kill a lot of bad people, to save the few innocent ones, that's how it was in this world.

"Yes," Hinata answered, her usual cold mask was back on and hopefully she was ready to do it and wasn't just pretending. Sasuke nodded, taking out two Kunai wordlessly.

"Kill them!" Gato shouted and the small army charged at the four Shinobi.

"Let me thin them out," A red light filled the area. "Uzumaki Hijutsu: Red," One-fourth of the small army was instantly killed, crushed by the force behind the Jutsu before Naruto and Kakashi rushed in.

The Jonin took out two Kunai, slashing and rending the flesh of the mercenaries and bandits without mercy. Naruto was a bit more savage than his Sensei, using his hand to do the act. He crashed one man's head effortlessly, before punching through the chest of another, throwing his body at three other mercenaries with enough strength to kill them.

Hinata jumped behind her teammates, with the Byakugan on she danced around their attacks, tapping them ever so often on their chests or necks, before they started dropping like flies. Sasuke used his Sharingan to deflect and parry their attacks, making them kill their own allies, before using his Shurikens and Kunai to take them out in style.

Gato's eyes widened, unable to comprehend how the army he paid a fortune for was getting slaughtered. It was absurd, it was impossible! He shrieked when Naruto appeared in front of him, behind him a path of carnage. Gato wanted to beg, he wanted to reason with the blond even try and bribe him to let him live, but before he uttered a single word, Naruto punched a hole in his chest.

"Good riddance," The blond muttered, and the next moment he was back in the fight against the remaining bandits. They tried to run, to flee for their lives, but all of them were rounded and killed. As Gato watched the scene, blood pooling under him, he realized he made a mistake by ever coming into this shithole of a country.


Team seven looked at the Villagers, who came to bid them farewells on the bridge. With Gato dead, Tazuna was able to continue the bridge construction without any worries, this time even the rest of the Village came to help the old man. They have yet to see Haku since they left her back then. Once they came back, she was nowhere to be found, nor Zabuza's corpse, the only sign of them ever being in front of Tazuna's house was the pool of dried blood left there.

"Thank you all for your help, without you we would never be free from Gato's grasp," Tazuna said, bowing before team seven, quickly followed by the rest of the Village. The team all had different reactions yet all of them were genuine.

Sasuke smirked, happy that his efforts were recognized. Hinata tried to act all cold, but the small embarrassed blush on her face made it clear that she appreciated the farewell party. Kakashi gave them all an eye-smile conveying his happiness but otherwise didn't give any other reaction. Naruto, on the other hand, was grinning widely, sponging all the praises with excitement.

"Yes, yes you totally need to make us your national heroes or something!" The blond said with a grin, making the bridge builder laugh.

"Of course, my boy! Remember, we will never forget what you have done for us and once we get our things sorted out, we will contact the Hokage for a trade agreement,"

"I am sure Hokage-sama will be delighted to hear that,"

As team seven departed from the country, they could see and hear waves and cheers from the Villagers behind them. They traveled in silence with a leisurely pace, all of them wanting to appreciate the few last moments of peace before they would return to the Village and continue their journey. Once they entered the Fire Nation's territory, Naruto stopped, confusing his team.

"Something's wrong?" Kakashi asked, ready for another fight, but relaxed when the blond genin shook his head with a smile. They all turned to the left when they heard someone walking towards them from the forest.

"Haku," The blond greeted with a smile seeing his... friend? He was not sure if he could call her that, but he liked to think that somewhere during their meetings, they had sparked some kind of friendship between them. He noticed she was wearing the kiri ANBU clothes, consisting of the standard Kirigakure pinstriped outfit which stopped at her knees. Over this, she wore a green haori with white trimmings, and around her waist a brown sash with a fringed trail wrapped around her waist twice. She also wore light-brown platoon sandals with straps in the same color as her kimono and nail polish on her fingernails and toenails in matching blue-green colors. Haku's long hair was gathered in a white bun holder, while two locks of her hair fell loose framing her face, bound with metal hair cuffs at the ends and a black Kiri forehead protector around her forehead.

"Naruto," She greeted, a small smile on her face. She noticed he ditched his previous clothes and was currently wearing the usual Konoha ANBU outfit without the mask, most likely since he had no other clothes at hand.

"So...?" Kakashi asked, seeing the two of them look at each other and not being sure what to expect. After all, Haku could still pretty much blame them for Zabuza's death, someone she must have loved dearly from the reaction she had a few days ago.

'Will she attack us? No, that would be suicide, but does she have anything to lose?' The silver-haired Jonin analyzed, before blinking when the blond walked up to the brown-eyed girl and extended his hand. Haku looked at the hand for a few moments, before taking a deep breath and grabbing it.

"So, she is coming to Konoha with us?" Hinata asked with a glare, not having forgotten about the humiliating loss. If it was one against one, she could swallow her pride, but a two against one? No. No, no, no. That was unacceptable and the Hyuga heiress was nowhere near forgiving the Ice bitch for the beating she had gotten.

"I guess?" Kakashi blinked and shrugged. That was on Naruto, so if anything happened, the blond would be answering for this. Haku looked at Sasuke and Hinata before bowing her head.

"I apologize for our last fight, I hope we can still be civil with each other," Sasuke looked at her for a few moments before shrugging. Even if his pride was wounded, he at least awakened his Sharingan and was still alive. Besides, it was hard to harbor ill feelings when the girl looked so honest about the apology.

"Whatever," Hinata huffed and looked away with crossed arms, making the blond snicker, before she sent him a glare silencing him instantly.

"Glad to have you with us," Naruto said and the group started heading towards Konoha.

"Do you think Hokage-sama will let me join the Village?" She looked uncertain, almost afraid of the answer, but the blond placed a calming hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry about it, the old man may be delusional about some matters," The blond said with a smile, muttering something along the lines of 'Not understanding my greatness', getting a sweatdrop from the group. "But he is really kind, so there will be no problem,"

"And the council?" Kakashi asked, making the blond scoff.

"Like they have anything to say. And if they have a problem about Haku joining Konoha, I will deal with them,"