Sasuke finally took a step on the dock as he got off the boat. He and everyone else had reached the Land of Waves.

"Okay, take me to my home, and I mean get me there in one piece." Tazuna instructed and everyone else nodded. As they walked down a path, Sasuke saw something rustle in the bushes. He threw a kunai at it and the mystery figure in the bush squeaked. It was clearly just a mouse.

"Why did you do that Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked, looking over at the bush in slight disgust. Suddenly, Natsumi and Kakashi turned around and Natsumi threw a kunai at that bush.

"Can you dwarves stop scaring me!?" Tazuna shouted.

"Shh! I smell something!" Natsumi whispered as she twirled another kunai around her finger. Kakashi looked at her and then at the bush. "Someone's following us again..." Kakashi walked over to where Natsumi killed and Sasuke could see it was a white rabbit. The kunai missed the rabbit by an inch. It most likely dodged. Natsumi walks over as well.

"That's a snow rabbit," Kakashi said. "But the color. They only have white fur during the winter, when the days are short and there is little sunlight..." Kakashi slowly turned around and intensely stared at a tree with a hand lazily on his hip. "This rabbit was raised indoors, away from the sunlight, which could be for only one purpose. A replacement technique." Kakashi looks around, suspicious of his surroundings. Natsumi turned around just in time to see a figure jumping from a tree branch.

"Look out!" She yelled. The figure threw a giant sword at them, but fortunately, all of them were able to dodge it by dropping down in the grass. The giant sword embedded sideways into a tree and the figure landed in the hilt of the sword.

The figure in some ways looked like Kakashi. His face was covered by bandages styled in a way that was suited for a mask. He had spiky dark hair and an unusual skin color that looked gray. Kakashi was the first to stand up and everyone else did the same. Kakashi walked up to the figure with his hands in his pockets.

"Well, well, if it isn't Zabuza Momochi, rogue ninja from the Village Hidden in the Mist." Sasuke clenched his fists.

'I'm not going to lose to Natsumi this time.' He began walking towards Zabuza too but then Kakashi put his hand to the side, blocking him.

"You're in the way," the Jonin said. "Get back." Sasuke scoffed slightly.

"But why?"

"He's not like those other ninja. He's in a whole other league. He paused and moved his hand to where his ninja headband rested, covering his left eye. "If he's our opponent, I'll need this."

"Kakashi of the Sharingan Eye. Did I get that right?" Zabuza asks in a very deep voice with his bare back facing everyone. Sasuke's eyes widen as he stares at Kakashi intensely, letting out a louder exhale.

'Sharingan...? How is that possible? Only Uchihas can possess the Sharingan eye...'

"It's too bad, huh?" Zabuza asked. His back faced them still, but he turned his head again so they could see his face—well, that part of his face that wasn't covered. "But you'll have to hand over the old man," he said, referring to Tazuna.

"Now quick!" Kakashi yelled. "Manji Formation! Protect the bridge builder and stay out of this fight!" Kakashi orders. "I taught you teamwork. Now is the time to use it. Be slowly pushed his ninja headband up, so it sat there normally to reveal a scar going down his eyebrow and eye under his mask along with light red splotches on his skin that looked like burns from many years ago. He opened his eye to reveal a Sharingan eye.

'How... is this possible!?' Sasuke was an Uchiha; Kakashi wasn't. How could Kakashi have the Sharingan?

"Well, looks like I get to see the Sharingan in action," Zabuza said. "This is an honor." Zabuza turned so his entire body was facing them.

"Everyone keeps saying Sharingan... but what's a Sharingan?" Sakura asked.

"A rare power that resides in the eyes. The user of this visual jutsu, or doujutsu, can instantly see and comprehend any genjutsu, and then copy it to the smallest detail," Sasuke quickly explained. It started to get severely foggy once again.

"As for you, Jonin, in the assassination unit of the Hidden Mist, we had a standing order to destroy you in sight. Your profile was in our Bingo Book. It called you, 'The man who copied over one thousand jutsu.' Kakashi, the copy ninja." Zabuza smirked.

'Hn. Never expected someone like him to be so well known...' Sasuke kept staring at Kakashi. 'The Sharingan only occurs in the Uchiha Clan, my clan. Could he really be...?'

"I need to exterminate the old man, now," Zabuza said and crouched on a sword that was still stuck inside the tree trunk. The three genin immediately scrambled towards Tazuna. Sakura was on his left, Sasuke was in the middle in front of him, and Natsumi was on his left. Sasuke and Natsumi pulled out kunais while Sakura adjusted her gloves, ready to attack. "So I'll have to eliminate you first, eh, Kakashi? So be it." With his foot, he launched his giant sword out from the tree. Somehow, without making any noise, he landed on the water and stood, not sinking. He stood on the water and his sword was sling over his back. Water swirled around Zabuza as he did several hand signs. "Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu!" The fog came back thicker this time and the three genin had to squint their eyes to see. Kakashi walked in front of them.

"Sensei—" Sakura began.

"He is going to come after me first," he said.

"But who is he?" Sakura asked.

"Zabuza Momochi, the ex-leader of the Hidden Mist Assassination Unit. He's a master of the silent killing technique."

"S-silent?" Kakashi stares in front of him, anticipating an attack.

"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," he instructs. The genin nodded and gulped slightly, seeming a bit nervous. "Well, if we fail, we only lose our lives," he said casually.

"How can you say that?" Natsumi snapped slightly. Kakashi did not answer and just looked around slowly, trying to figure out where Zabuza was. Natsumi sighed.

"The fog is blocking out my scent..." she said slowly, looking around as well. She pinched the bridge of her nose as the mist continued to thicken. "At this rate, I won't be able to smell anything..." she muttered. Eventually, Kakashi was no longer visible because of the thick mist.

"Sensei?" Sakura spoke. He didn't answer.

"Eight points," Zabuza said in his deep voice. "Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular, subclavian artery, kidneys, heart." Everyone gulped slightly. "Now, which will be my kill point?" Everyone looked around, trying to see where he was. The air grew cold and stiff and Sasuke saw Natsumi stiffen and she didn't even breathe. Kakashi cast a jutsu and everyone was now able to see him as the surrounding fog thinned. Natsumi brought her kunai closer to her and the point faced her. Sasuke stared in shock. What had gotten into her?

'Maybe it's the environment...' Both Jonin's had an intense thirst for blood. It was chilling "What are you—"

"Natsumi!" Kakashi shouted. How did he know who through seeing her? Natsumi snapped out of her and stared at him, surprised. "Calm down. I'll protect you with my life. All of you. I will not allow my comrades to die." He turned his head towards them and did his eye smile. "Trust me."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Zabuza said. Suddenly Zabuza appeared in between the genin and right in front of Tazuna.

'How did he get past?'

"It's over," Zabuza said. Kakashi turned around and stared at him with his red Sharingan eye. He jumped and tackled Zabuza while everyone else jumped out of the way to avoid being trampled. Tazuna didn't fall back, but moved back several yards. His eyes were wide as the sound of water being poured out could be heard. Kakashi had managed to stab a kunai into Zabuza's stomach. Another Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi.

"Behind you, Hatake!" Natsumi shouted. The Zabuza in front of Kakashi disappeared and the one behind him swung his sword at Kakashi.

"Die!" He shouted and then Kakashi got cut in half by his sword. No blood appeared, though instead it was only water. Kakashi must have copied Zabuza's jutsu, the water clone jutsu. "Even in the mist... he saw through my illusion and copied it in an instant." Zabuza said, amazed. The water dispersed and then a kunai was pressed against Zabuza's throat as the real Kakashi stood behind him.

"Don't move," he said. "Now it's over." The wind began to howl as Zabuza stood there, limply holding a sword. Everyone was sitting, sprawled on the ground from when Kakashi charged in. "You're finished." Sakura smiles to herself and Sasuke and Natsumi nod, smirking. Tazuna just watched, not wanting to be optimistic yet. Their happiness was cut short when Zabuza started to chuckle before bursting into laughter.

"Finished? You really don't get it, do you? Your technique is nothing but a crass imitation. I'll never be defeated by a mere copycat ninja like you." Kakashi grunted slightly and Zabuza chuckled again. "You are full of surprises, though. You'd already copied my Water Clone Jutsu 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." He turns his head and looks at Kakashi. "Nice try..." Once again, another Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi and his eyes widened in surprise. "But I'm not that easy to fool." Kakashi quickly elbowed the Zabuza in front of him and it dispersed, only leaving water as its remains.

"That one was a clone too..." Natsumi mumbled, rubbing the bridge of her nose. Kakashi turned around just to see Zabuza wind up his sword and swung it over Kakashi's head as he crouched down. It swung behind him and embedded into the ground. Zabuza turned around just to face Kakashi again as he kicked Kakashi's shoulder, sending him flying up into the air.

"Now!" Zabuza said and grabbed his sword, pulling it out of the ground. He began sprinting towards the falling Kakashi just to skid to a stop. "Makibishi spikes." He scoffed. "Trying to slow me down." He turned around. "Hmph. Foolish." Kakashi fell into the water and bobbed back up to the surface shortly after. He examined his hand.

"This isn't normal water. It's dense... Heavy."

"Ah, fool." Zabuza sprints behind him again, running on the water, holding his sword. He quickly did several hand signs before shouting, "Water Prison Jutsu!"

"No!" Suddenly a water ball appeared around Kakashi. He grunts in frustration. "Escaping into the water—bad mistake." Zabuza chuckled.

"This prison is made of water, but it's stronger than steel. It's hard to fight when you can't move. So much for the great Kakashi," he mocked as he kept a hand in the prison, most likely to keep it in effect. "I'll finish you off later. But first, your little friends will have to be eliminated." He turns towards the genin and they stagger to their feet, glaring at him. "Water Clone Jutsu!" He chuckles, and the clone approaches the genin. "You think wearing a headband makes you ninja. When you've hovered between life and death so many times that it doesn't faze you, then you may be called a ninja. When you've become so deadly, your profile is entered in my bingo book, then you may have earned the title ninja." He brings his finger to his mouth, clearly about to cast a jutsu. "But to call upstarts like you ninja is a joke." Natsumi growled and glared at him. Zabuza disappeared again just to appear right in front of Natsumi and he kicked her in the face—hard. So hard she went flying back and landed on the ground, meters back. She staggered to her feet. "You're just brats." Sasuke and Sakura gasped and quickly looked towards Natsumi.

"Natsumi!" Sasuke shouted.

"Listen! Get the bridge builder and run!" Kakashi shouts through the water prison. It came out distorted. "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!" He shouted. Sasuke scoffed.

'Run away? Not an option. That became unthinkable the moment you got caught. No matter how fast we run, or how far we go, he'll take us down... and wipe us out. If we try a Manji Defense Formation, he can get around it in an instant. In the end, if we're on our own, we're finished. Our only chance of survival is to rescue you.' Sasuke then sighed. "We've got to do it," he said to himself and then shouted, running towards Zabuza. As he sprinted, he threw shuriken at him. However, Zabuza deflected every single one with his sword. This, though, covered his face so that gave Sasuke time to jump up with his kunai. "Now!" Zabuza scoffed.

"Too easy," he said, chuckling. As Sasuke began to come closer, he simply grabbed his throat with one hand, holding him up in the air. Sasuke groaned and tried to pry himself off. It was no use, though. Zabuza yanked Sasuke's headband and threw him to the ground, trying to further prove his point of what it meant to be a ninja. Sasuke slid back over to the group. Zabuza dropped Sasuke's headband and stomped on it, digging his foot into it.

"Sasuke! No!" Sakura shouted. She quickly rushed over and helped him up. Zabuza approached Natsumi again. She gritted her teeth together and sprinted to him.

"Natsumi! No!" Kakashi shouted. Sakura shouts too.

"Natsumi! What in the world are you doing?!" Zabuza chuckled.

"Fool." He kicked her in the face again and she went flying back. She landed on her stomach and didn't get up.

"What are you thinking, charging at him by yourself?!" she shouted, concerned for the blonde. "Even Sasuke couldn't get to him! We're only Genin! We can't defeat a Jonin! What did you think you'd accomplish by that?" She groaned and staggered to her knees revealing Sasuke's headband. Everyone stared at her in confusion. She slowly got to her feet and blood drizzled down her mouth as she panted and gasped.

"Hey, you... the freak with no eyebrows—put this in your bingo book: the ninja that will become the strongest shinobi in the world and become Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves..." She gave Sasuke his headband and he nodded with gratitude. She then smirked and Zabuza shook in a slight rage.

'Why did she do that?'

"She never backs down. Her name is Natsumi Saito." She then looked at Sasuke. "Listen up, I've got a plan." He scoffed.

"So you're finally thinking about teamwork, huh?" He tied his headband on again and she nodded.

"Mhm. Get ready. Let's go wild," she said, smirking.

AN:

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