"Over here!"
Naruto counterattacked with a swift turn!
Zabuza, who had suddenly appeared in the middle of the trio, was caught off guard and could only use his kunai to block Naruto's strike.
Clang!
A grating sound of metal on metal echoed.
Zabuza's eyes widened. The force transmitted through his arm was unbelievable.
Such immense strength. Is this brat really a taijutsu ninja?
"Haa!"
Seeing Zabuza appear, Sasuke lunged forward with a flying kick, but it was effortlessly caught by Zabuza's other free hand.
A Jonin was truly a Jonin.
Like Kakashi-sensei, he easily handled their freshly graduated Genin in taijutsu combat.
Just as Zabuza was about to kick Sasuke away, Naruto, with a pre-emptive strike, interrupted his move with a kick of his own.
Seizing the opportunity, Sasuke used his caught leg as a pivot and delivered another kick, only to be directly thrown by Zabuza and slammed onto the ground.
"Watch this!"
Naruto delivered an iron mountain lean, then fiercely pushed off the ground with his right foot, gaining momentum.
Boom!
The ground beneath him caved in, and he shot into the sky, his airborne right foot aiming for Zabuza's chin!
"Mystical Palm Technique: Rising Dragon Kick!"
Too fast! Zabuza couldn't even discern Naruto's speed; he only heard.
Splish!
Zabuza actually turned into splashing water.
It was just a Water Clone.
"Are you okay, Sasuke?" In the midst of the battle, Naruto showed concern for his teammate.
"I'm fine."
Sasuke got up, cautiously looking around. In his mind, he had already decided to learn more taijutsu tonight.
If that didn't work, sword fighting would do.
In short, he had to make up for his shortcomings in close combat.
"That was just a clone?"
At this moment, Sakura finally arrived with Tazuna. She looked around, feeling as though Zabuza could be hiding anywhere.
Seeing her nervous expression, Naruto comforted her, "Don't be afraid. It's just a Jonin. I believe our squad can handle it."
If worse came to worst, he, Naruto, would step in.
With that, Naruto looked at Kakashi.
"Kakashi-sensei, you don't need to interfere this time. The three of us are enough."
Naruto intended to let his two teammates get some experience. He had the dueling arena, so his combat experience was already extensive.
Only Sasuke and Sakura remained. Their sparring in the training space at night was merely about refining combat techniques, devoid of any real bloodshed. Actual combat experience would allow them to improve rapidly.
Moreover, with him there, even if they died, he could bring them back, let alone just getting injured.
Besides, how could they grow without experiencing some storms, seeing a bit of blood, and getting a few injuries?
"You guys..."
Kakashi was about to refuse, but then he saw Naruto patting the bag on his back. Kakashi understood; it must be a backpack full of pills to restore energy.
Where does this kid get so many "Happy Pills"?
Kakashi was a bit puzzled. The village only allocated him two red pills for this mission, and with what he bought himself, he only had seven in total.
Naruto, however, was clearly well-stocked.
"Be careful, all of you."
Kakashi finally cautioned them. He knew the three youngsters needed to grow, and he was ready to intervene at any moment.
"Brat, your sensory abilities are indeed good, but you three think you can stop me? Who gave you such courage?"
Zabuza climbed out of the water, his voice coming from all directions.
The surrounding mist was still so thick that one couldn't see a hand in front of their face, making it impossible to tell where he was.
Now, Naruto probably knew why Zabuza was from the Hidden Mist Village of the Land of Water.
There was so much water.
No, the fog was so thick.
No wonder it was called Hidden Mist. Could all ninja from this village have this fighting style?
Naruto pondered for a moment, then knew what to do next.
Since he had already tested taijutsu, it was time to try ninjutsu!
"Get down!"
Shouting a warning to the trio, Naruto leaped high into the air with all his might.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
The strong gale dispersed the thick fog, simultaneously exposing the hidden Zabuza!
"This brat!" Zabuza glared fiercely at Naruto. This single Wind Stylejutsu had negated his advantage, making the upcoming fight difficult.
"Hm?"
Zabuza then saw the blond brat making hand signs in mid-air again.
"Wind Style: Vacuum Sphere!"
There was no strong wind, no outward signs, yet a terrifying surge of chakra clearly approached.
This was an almost transparent Wind Styleninjutsu!
Not good!
After several consecutive leaps, Zabuza finally dodged the attack.
Boom~~~ Boom~~~ Boom~~~
There was no explosion, yet it was more destructive than one. The violent, surging airflow dispersed, completely blowing away the surrounding, even thicker mist.
Looking back, Zabuza saw that all the large trees where he had stopped during his escape were gone, leaving only a dozen-meter deep pit in their place.
This violent chakra blast had actually shredded the trees and the very ground beneath them.
Zabuza broke out in a cold sweat.
This kid! Is he really a Genin?
"Naruto!" Sasuke was quite displeased. What's going on? He's completely leaving me no chance to perform!
Naruto landed on the ground, smiling innocently, "Just a reflex, hahaha."
Sasuke walked to Naruto's left, facing the enemy. "What kind of ninjutsu was that?"
That move was truly quite cool. He, Sasuke, wanted to learn it too.
"It's Wind Release nature transformation. You can't learn it yet."
"Hmph!" Sasuke felt a touch of envy for Naruto's mastery of all five elemental natures. He himself had only just begun to dabble in Lightning Release nature transformation and was striving for more advanced nature transformation.
Three years. Within three years, I'll master all elemental natures!
On the other side, Sakura took her stand to Naruto's right. Looking at the two of them, her gaze grew resolute.
I can do it too! I can't be a burden!
Squad Seven, charge!
In the ensuing battle, Naruto primarily played a supporting role, no longer actively attacking, but assisting the other two in combat.
Even with the support, Zabuza dared not underestimate him. He was constantly wary of Naruto, which led to a third of his attention being involuntarily diverted.
This allowed Sasuke's attacks and Sakura's newly learned Mystical Palm Technique to frequently land hits.
Zabuza was in agony, being beaten back step by step.
Finally, exhausted, Zabuza was forced against a large tree, with no room left to retreat.
"Chidori!"
Sasuke unleashed his ultimate move, ready to finish off Zabuza.
Suddenly.
Swoosh~~~
Two senbon flew through the air, striking Zabuza's neck.
Blood spurted, and Zabuza fell to the ground, his fate unknown.
Sasuke's Chidori was a step too late, only hitting the tree and creating a huge hole.
"Huff... What happened?"
The panting Sasuke was very displeased. No one would feel good about having their hard-earned kill stolen.
"You can't tell? It's that motherf***er who came to steal the kill."
Naruto looked up at the person.
The person stood high on a tree branch, wearing a strange skirt and a mask with the Hidden Mist symbol. Their hair was very long. It was unclear if they were male or female.
In his perception, this person had arrived long ago, just watching from the sidelines.
Initially, Naruto thought they were just passing by.
After all, countless ninjas passed by in his perception every day. Who knew this one would come to steal a kill?
"Indeed, he's dead," the person said mockingly.