"You little brat. I'll kill you!" Zabuza's eyes burned with anger and murderous intent. He couldn't stand Genya—this spoiled kid who looked useless but acted unbearably arrogant.
If he could move, he would have ended Genya himself.
Extorting the Uchiha clan's money no longer mattered to him; right now he only wanted to kill this filthy whelp who dared to hop around in front of him.
" Ha. You think you can kill me? Sorry, you can't!" Genya stood before Zabuza with a mocking smile that made Zabuza want to punch him even more.
At that moment Hinata, worried, hurried over and, after confirming Genya was unharmed, looked at Zabuza.
"What should we do with this assassin?" she asked.
Genya shook his head casually. "He seems a little disrespectful. Beat him up first, then tie him up."
Zabuza gritted his teeth in secret; he hadn't expected to be forced into such a situation by a brat.
Especially that Uchiha kid—he looked incapable of fighting, yet his words made Zabuza grind his teeth, and he actually wanted to beat him.
" Kid… you dare let someone hit me?" Zabuza exclaimed in shock. Before his words had even finished, Hinata's fist had already come down.
Bam.
"You—" Zabuza stammered. Bam bam bam. He tried to resist, but Hinata's relentless barrage of attacks overwhelmed him.
" Is everyone all right?" Kurenai stepped forward, shielding Tazuna as she spoke with concern.
Hinata and Shino shook their heads and relaxed into faint smiles. Hinata had already started binding Zabuza to make sure he couldn't move, though his swollen cheek showed he had paid a heavy price.
Genya still stood where he had been, that same insolent grin on his face. "Sensei, Zabuza should be worth quite a bit, right? Why don't we sell him?"
Zabuza twitched at the corner of his eye when he heard this, and his anger flared even more.
When he looked at Genya, the killing intent in his eyes was almost overflowing.
This kid really held grudges. Knowing that he was going to be used as ransom, he actually tried to sell me instead!
"Heh. He better pray he doesn't fall into my hands, or I'll make sure this brat suffers worse than death!" Zabuza thought furiously.
Kurenai glanced at Genya but ignored him, turning to Hinata with a smile. "Thanks to you this time, Hinata. Otherwise, we might have faced a tough fight."
As he spoke, he also acknowledged Hinata's strength.
Hinata lowered her head slightly, feeling a bit embarrassed. "I'm just doing what I should. Besides, I'm part of the team too!"
Genya smiled faintly and scanned the surrounding fog before speaking slowly. "Alright, let's get out of this thick fog first."
After speaking, Genya took the lead, choosing a direction and stepping forward.
Tap tap tap~~
The soft sound of footsteps echoed in the dense fog, slowly moving outward.
Kurenai, Shino Aburame, and Tazuna followed Genya closely, keeping pace.
Hinata also dragged Zabuza, who had been tied up, at the end of the group.
"That Uchiha brat can see even in this thick fog?" Zabuza thought in shock.
During previous battles, his Hidden Mist Technique had been nearly unbeatable, but in what seemed like a simple mission this time, two people had seen through his jutsu.
He had underestimated them!
Still, although Zabuza was bound, he showed no sign of tension, calmly observing everything as if he believed nothing could go wrong.
After walking some distance, when the footsteps finally stopped again, the group had already exited the thick fog.
"The fog around us has finally thinned!" Tazuna looked ahead, finally allowing some of his tension to ease.
His luck had been incredible this time. Even though they had encountered a top killer from the Hidden Mist, he had survived.
If another team had led him, his old bones probably wouldn't have made it.
"Really out now? Hmph." Zabuza, dragged at the back, sneered, but his tone was unusually calm, and he even smiled more. "The farce should be over now!"
"What are you smiling at?" Hinata asked, looking at Zabuza, unable to hide her curiosity. But the moment she spoke, she became alert. "Are there other ambushers?"
Thinking of this, Hinata quickly scanned the surroundings, cursing silently.
Earlier, she had been careless. After restraining Zabuza, she hadn't continued observing the area.
What if some of Zabuza's allies attacked from around? That would be dangerous.
As Hinata's words fell, several shurikens suddenly flew out of the thick mist, heading straight for her!
Hinata quickly swung her kunai, blocking the attacks with swift movements.
But at that moment, a small figure wearing a mask suddenly appeared in front of her, sweeping their shuriken across and forcing Hinata to step back a few paces.
Seizing the opening, the masked figure rushed forward, untying Zabuza, and then put some distance between him and Hinata's group.
"Hinata, you were careless!" Genya called out, his tone teasing as he watched her trying to chase after them.
In fact, Genya had noticed Haku from the start, but he hadn't warned Hinata.
Some lessons had to be experienced firsthand for her to learn how to avoid mistakes in battle.
It could be said that Hinata was already doing quite well, but unfortunately, her combat experience was still too limited.
At this time, Zabuza had already moved to stand a dozen meters away from the masked figure, watching cautiously.
"Are you alright?" the masked figure asked, their voice cold and clear.
"I'm fine. I was a bit careless just now. The little girl from the Hyuga clan is unusual," Zabuza said, wiping the blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, his tone carrying a hint of seriousness.
"The little girl from the Hyuga clan?" The masked figure's gaze fell on Hinata.
Indeed, although it had been just a brief skirmish, he had already realized that Hinata's strength was not to be underestimated. She was very strong.
However, with the little girl's power, trying to subdue Zabuza would still be quite difficult.
How could he have subdued him?
"Haku, you hold her off for now. I'll deal with the others first!" Zabuza said calmly after a moment, giving Haku his orders. "Then we'll take care of this little girl from the Hyuga clan!"
Then, he turned his gaze toward Kurenai and the others, a trace of coldness flashing in his eyes.
With Haku keeping Hinata occupied—someone who could see through the mist—the rest would be easy to handle.
As long as no one could see through the mist, he was invincible!
"Understood," Haku nodded. Beneath the mask, his eyes locked back onto Hinata, a faint blue chakra radiating from his body. "I'll hold him off!"
From the start, Haku had intended to use his Kekkei Genkai. After all, to be able to win against Zabuza, he had to take this fight seriously.
[Note: Haku's gender is unclear. Some say the bond between Zabuza and Haku surpasses ordinary brotherhood, while others claim Haku is female.]
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