To be honest, Kakashi had been truly devoted to Sakura and the others. Despite knowing so many secrets, he had never reported them to the Third. Instead, he chose to stand by Sakura's side and help protect her secrets. Naturally, Sakura regarded him as family in her heart; otherwise, she wouldn't have brought him into her Inner Space.
"What a shame," Zabuza said after hearing that. He saw right away—there was no chance these girls were joining him. A surge of killing intent darkened his expression. "If you won't become allies, then I'll just have to leave you all here!"
"You want to kill us? Not gonna be that easy."
As Sakura accelerated her attacks, Naruto and Sasuke also picked up their pace. Sasuke's Three-Tomoe Sharingan continuously predicted Zabuza's movements in advance. The White Fang tanto in his hand pulsed with lightning chakra—[activating his signature technique]. Slash after rapid slash forced Zabuza to stop talking entirely and focus seriously on countering their assault.
Naruto wasn't great with swords, but he was a beast at Taijutsu. Especially with his Danger Sensor ability, he relied purely on instinct for both attack and evasion, making it extremely difficult for Zabuza to predict his next move.
Standing beside Tazuna, Kakashi watched the three Genin battling fiercely against Zabuza, his gaze filled with pride. For three Genin to reach this level was already impressive. Although the trio could quickly defeat Zabuza by going all-out, doing so would rob them of valuable combat experience. A ninja who hadn't experienced life-or-death battles could never truly grow stronger. The fact that Sakura and the others were choosing to hone their skills rather than take the brute-force approach made Kakashi genuinely happy.
Chapter 137: Haku vs. Motoi [Continued]
"You kids are actually not too shabby," Zabuza remarked as he forced the three back with a single slash. His brow furrowed deeply. Their teamwork was just too tight—attack and defense flowed together like they were reading each other's minds. After such a long struggle, he still couldn't gain any advantage.
"Phew, thanks for the compliment," Sakura and the others each took a short breath, exhausted yet satisfied. This fight had been very rewarding—at least their battle experience had improved significantly. Previously, when sparring with Kakashi or Guy, it had always been controlled matches without real danger. But going up against Zabuza? That was the real deal—life or death, every second mattered. From this battle onward, their teamwork grew even more synchronized.
"As much as I admire your talent, my mission comes first. So, I'm afraid this ends with you dying."
Zabuza's hands moved rapidly through seals. Water erupted from the nearby river, soaring skyward before crashing down like a tidal wave on Sakura and the others.
[Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!]
[Water Release: Water Encampment Wall!]
Seeing this, Sakura gripped her blade in her right hand and formed a single-handed seal with her left. A wall of water immediately enclosed the three of them. The torrents of the Great Waterfall Technique slammed into the water shield but caused no damage.
"Naruto, Sasuke, Plan Two."
"Got it!" Naruto and Sasuke responded in unison, sheathing their weapons and forming seals with both hands.
"Oh? Abandoning taijutsu to attack with ninjutsu instead? What a foolish choice!" Zabuza sneered. If they'd kept up their synchronized taijutsu attacks, it would've been a bit of a pain. But now that Sakura and the others had switched to ninjutsu, Zabuza thought they were just being reckless. They were rookie genin—how many jutsu could they even know?
[Multuple Shadow Clone Jutsu!]
Ignoring Zabuza's taunt, Naruto summoned dozens of shadow clones, forming a massive encirclement. At its center stood the lonely figure of Zabuza.
"What?! How is that even possible?! So many shadow clones?!" Zabuza's eyes nearly popped out of his head. Setting aside everything else, Naruto's sheer chakra reserves alone were enough to shock him.
[Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!]
However, Naruto's next move nearly made Zabuza curse out loud. All the shadow clones simultaneously pulled out shuriken from their Ninja Tool Pouches and hurled them toward Zabuza. The shuriken multiplied mid-air, increasing exponentially in an instant. In the blink of an eye, countless shuriken filled the sky like a dark storm cloud, rapidly descending upon Zabuza.
"Damn it!"
Cursing under his breath, Zabuza swung his Cleaver Sword without hesitation, its gleaming arc acting like a shield that deflected all incoming shuriken. The clinking sound of metal striking metal rang like music, and from afar, one could only see a dazzling whirlwind of sword light, with no sight of Zabuza himself.
Kakashi silently lifted his Forehead Protector. Those troublemaker kids—he had barely praised them in his mind for working on their weaknesses, yet now they were back to overwhelming force. Thinking about his sparring sessions with Sakura and the others, Kakashi silently offered his sympathy to Zabuza.
[Water Release: Water Fang Technique!]
Just as Zabuza managed to deflect all the shuriken, before he could even catch his breath, Sakura launched her attack. A high-pressure jet of water erupted from her mouth, cutting down every tree in its path.
"Bastard!"
Zabuza muttered a curse and bent backward into an Iron Bridge stance to dodge the Water Fang Technique.
[Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!]
Seizing the moment, Naruto's shadow clones performed simultaneous hand seals. Chakra shaped like bullets shot from their mouths. With dozens of shadow clones releasing Vacuum Spheres together, the end result was a barrage of wind-elemental bullets raining down indiscriminately across the entire encirclement.
[Water Release: Water Encampment Wall!]
Without hesitation, Zabuza plunged his Cleaver Sword into the nearby ground, formed seals with both hands, and summoned a wall of water to surround and protect himself.
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
Want to read the subsequent content in advance?
Please follow my Patreon:patreon/Tansnovel
Tans Novel - The Fastest-Updating Naruto Fanfiction Account
Read 100+ chapters in advance, with at least 3 new chapters updated every day! More free chapters! 20+ Naruto fanfictions!
Just three steps:
1. Download and open the "Patreon" app
2. Search for "Tans Novel"
3. Click on the collection and enjoy to your heart's content
<><><><><><><><>