"Suiton—Daibakufu no Jutsu (Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique)!"
A sharp shout cut through the trees!
Zabuza stared at the surging torrent, disbelief written across his face.
BOOM!
With a thunderous crash, the massive water mass slammed into him.
As in the original tale, Haku appeared, took Zabuza away, and Kakashi collapsed where he stood. Naruto and Sasuke hauled him to the bridge expert Tazuna's home.
Only after both groups had left did three figures appear where Zabuza and Kakashi had fought.
"Zabuza-senpai really lost face. To get toyed with by that Konoha guy, Hatake Kakashi, to this extent," Ameyuri said with open scorn. At the name Kakashi, a naked killing intent edged her voice.
Though Zabuza was a Mist missing-nin, he had still been one of the "Mist Seven Swordsmen."
Had he lost head-on, Ameyuri might not have been this angry.
But to be beaten purely by tactics used by a guy named Kakashi?
To Ameyuri, that insulted the Seven Swordsmen's name.
Yuto stifled a yawn. Zabuza's loss was a defeat without excuse.
The Sharingan was famous across the shinobi world. Even if the exact details of a three-tomoe eye weren't known, its general capabilities could be inferred.
And Zabuza knew Kakashi's title—"the man who copied over a thousand jutsu."
Given that, what was so shocking about Kakashi mirroring his seals?
Maybe it was that so-called protagonist's halo, Yuto thought, amused.
"Suigetsu, you're awfully quiet today," Ameyuri said, brow lifting.
"Just annoyed by that black-haired brat. And those 'Mist ANBU' who hauled Zabuza off—something's wrong with them."
"Brat? You're a brat yourself," Ameyuri shot back, giving him a slow once-over while replaying the fight in her head.
Then she sneered. "Looks like he's in on it with Zabuza."
Yuto's eyes curved with interest. "Forget Zabuza. I'm more curious—when Kakashi collapsed, did either of you feel like killing him?"
"Kill Kakashi?" Suigetsu blinked. He honestly hadn't thought of it.
Ameyuri hesitated. She'd wanted to—but she held back.
If Kakashi died by their hands, Konoha would pressure Mist… maybe even war.
Suddenly her eyes widened as the thought clicked.
Yuto smiled faintly, reaching out to ruffle her hair. "That's right. We're here to spark a war. Not Mist vs. Leaf—Leaf vs. the other four villages."
His light voice brushed both their ears.
Ameyuri's cheeks colored at the touch, but her eyes burned. "War, huh? Sounds fun."
"I've never been to Konoha," Suigetsu grinned. "Looks like I'll get the chance."
Their excitement actually surprised Yuto. "You two don't seem worried."
"Heh. If it were the old Mist, we wouldn't dare pick a fight with Konoha. But with you here, Yuto-dono, what's there to worry about?" Suigetsu laughed, as if it were obvious.
Ameyuri nodded. Not just them—pretty much the entire Mist had absolute confidence in Yuto.
Yuto shrugged. "Let's go. Before the curtain rises, we'll kill a few."
"Who?" Suigetsu asked.
"Konoha shinobi, obviously," Ameyuri said, rolling her eyes at him.
In the next beat, the three vanished.
—
Near the Land of Waves border.
Four masked Root operatives in black uniforms scanned the surroundings with care. After confirming no one else was present, one spoke in a low voice:
"If the intel's right, Jirō Kinoshita has already entered the Land of Waves."
"Waves is an island nation, but if Jirō really wants to hide, searching will be a pain."
Silence settled over the four.
Danzo hadn't given them much time. The longer this dragged on, the more variables.
"Then we split. The moment you spot Jirō, signal. If combat breaks out… you know what to do."
The captain's tone was cold.
The other three nodded. It was the best option.
As they spoke, the mist around them thickened.
"Bad—Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hidden Mist Technique)!" one Root shinobi warned.
The other three stiffened, moving back-to-back to cover four directions.
"Fūton—Daitoppā (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)!"
One formed seals and exhaled a gale, trying to disperse the fog.
"Too late. Suiton—Mizu Teppō no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Gun)!"
From within the dense mist, Suigetsu's cold chuckle sounded. He raised a hand in a pistol shape and fired.
"Talkative idiot," Ameyuri muttered. Lightning raced along her twin blades; she kicked off the ground and flashed forward.
"Two of them. Not Jirō," a Root operative said flatly, feeling chakra coming from two directions.
The others eased a fraction.
As long as it wasn't Jirō, there was less to worry about.
"End it fast," the captain ordered, then lifted his voice toward the chakra sources:
"We're Konoha ninja on a special mission. Maybe this is a misunderstanding?"
"Konoha ninja?"
The voice that floated from the fog was indifferent.
Hearing that, slight smiles tugged at the Root masks. One whispered, "Location acquired…"
But before he finished, a chill voice slid into all four ears:
"You're exactly who we're here to kill—Konoha ninja."
Ameyuri had already appeared not far away. She hurled her thunder blade even as her hands flashed through seals.
"Raidōjutsu—Kaminari-mon (Thunder Blade Technique: Thunder Gate)!"
"Raidōjutsu—Rakurai (Thunder Blade Technique: Falling Thunder)!"
Dazzling light burst across the spinning sword. Arcing bolts lanced outward from the blade, spearing toward the four.
"Doton—Doryūheki (Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall)!"
One Root shinobi slammed both palms to the ground. A wall of earth surged up to block.
Fwish! Fwish!
The instant the wall rose, the four split in four directions.
The one fleeing east shouted, anger bleeding into his voice, "You're trying to start a war!"
"War?"
Ameyuri's lips curved coldly. She landed atop the earthen wall, snatched her descending blade out of the air—
So you want to lure me? Fine. I'll oblige.
Her body coiled; threads of lightning wrapped her calves, and she blurred eastward in an afterimage.
Elsewhere, the Root moving west scanned warily, inching forward through the soup-thick fog.
He didn't notice the low, creeping swell of water sliding toward his path.
SPLASH.
The instant his foot struck the puddle, Suigetsu rose from it, clamped him in place, and drove a kunai straight into his heart.
The Root's eyes flew wide. Blood welled at his lips; a heartbeat later, he went still.
"As long as you're in this fog, it's our home field," Suigetsu said, laying the body down before melting back into water.
On Ameyuri's side, lightning flashed again and again within the mist.
"Aaah!!"
A scream tore through the fog—then cut off. A streak of light veered toward another direction.
At the fog's edge, the Root captain burst free. Hearing the scream from within, his face tightened.
"Damn it. Whoever they are… we pull back for now."
He started to move—then froze. Not far ahead, a young man sat waiting, studying him with interest.
The captain snatched out a kunai, dropping into a guard.
"Oh? One actually made it out," a mild voice said—behind him.
When?
Cold sweat flooded his back. The youth in front had already vanished.
Yuto watched the captain whirl to fight and shook his head slightly. He lifted a finger and flicked the man lightly on the forehead.
The Root operative didn't even register it—just felt a hammer blow inside his skull. Darkness swallowed him.
Yuto pulled off the mask. An ordinary-looking middle-aged man.
He wasn't dead—Yuto's tap had simply wrecked his brain. The man was little more than a husk now—easier to bind in genjutsu.
Fwip. Fwip.
Ameyuri and Suigetsu swept out of the fog and stopped before Yuto.
"Two," Ameyuri said, pleased, shooting a glance at Suigetsu.
Suigetsu curled his lip and stayed silent—he'd only taken one.
"Yuto-dono, this one?" Ameyuri asked, eyeing the slack-faced Root operative beside him.
"To keep him from killing himself. And a fool's mind is easier to control with genjutsu," Yuto answered with a faint smile.
—
Tazuna's house.
"Thank you, oji-san. If you hadn't helped, we wouldn't have known what to do," Sakura said softly.
"It's nothing—just a small favor. I've been lodging here lately anyway. Since Tazuna-san hired shinobi, I should lend a hand," a warm voice replied. Then, puzzled: "Were you attacked by other shinobi?"
"Yeah! A really strong guy—the 'Demon' something— but I beat him!" Naruto's proud voice chimed in.
"Amazing," the warm voice said again, with a hint of surprise.
Half-conscious, Kakashi heard the exchange and slowly opened his eye.
"Kakashi-sensei's awake!" Sasuke said, relief flickering across his face as he sat by Kakashi's side.
Kakashi rubbed at his woozy head and pushed himself upright.
Overused the Sharingan…
"Kakashi-sensei, you're finally up!" Sakura and Naruto cried, happy.
"Sorry to worry you," Kakashi said, apologetic. He raised his head to check the room—
—and his pupil narrowed at the sight of a plain-clothed middle-aged man standing beside their client Tazuna.
"And you are?" Kakashi asked mildly, face unreadable.
Naruto started to introduce him, then faltered. For all their chatter, he didn't actually know the man's name.
"Nice to meet you, shinobi-san. You can call me Jirō," the man said with a gentle smile—Jirō Kinoshita.
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