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Iruka looked at the rowdy students before him, sighed, and raised his voice to drown out their chatter.
"This afternoon, you'll be introduced to your Jōnin-sensei. Until then, you are dismissed!"
*****
The Land of Waves wasn't far. After several days of rapid travel, Kagaya and Haku finally arrived.
After making some inquiries, they learned that there was a company in this country called Gato Company, which operated in maritime transport.
Kagaya gave a slight smile to the elderly man who had provided the information. "Thank you."
Then, he and Haku headed towards the so-called Gato Company.
That brazen, nouveau-riche sounding name left little doubt. This was undoubtedly the company of that man, Gato. In Kagaya's recollection, Gato had amassed enormous wealth by controlling maritime shipping, hiring numerous samurai. His immense financial power and military force allowed him to become the true ruler of this island nation.
Kagaya glanced back over his shoulder.
'Back in Konoha, Naruto and the others should be undergoing Kakashi's test by now, right? In a little while, that old bridge builder will probably head to Konoha to submit his mission request. When that time comes, we might just meet again. Hah.'
"Hey, you there. What are you doing?"
Suddenly, a middle-aged man wearing a kimono, a katana at his waist, approached and addressed Kagaya.
Kagaya frowned slightly.
'Carrying a sword? Looks ordinary, not memorable. A samurai under Gato's employ?'
"Do you have business with me?" Kagaya replied coldly to the man.
Given his strength, dealing with someone like Gato was a trivial matter he could sweep aside. He had no need to play polite games with a mere hired sword.
The samurai looked displeased. "Listen here, punk! I'm the one asking the questions here!"
As he spoke, the samurai placed his right hand on the hilt of his sword, adopting a posture suggesting he was about to draw.
Haku's brow furrowed, and he took a step forward, ready to act.
But Kagaya raised a hand to stop Haku and spoke to the samurai. "Right now, I am asking you a question."
Who was questioning whom? Only the stronger party had the right to ask questions. Was this samurai stronger than Kagaya? That was impossible.
The samurai sneered. "Looks like you're an outsider. You don't know the power of Lord Gato, and you certainly don't know the might of those of us who serve under him. Die!"
With that, the samurai instantly drew his blade and slashed at Kagaya!
Gato was the de facto ruler of the Land of Waves. The samurai he hired served as his guards and held considerable status. Having grown accustomed to acting with impunity in the country, they saw someone like Kagaya, dressed strangely in a black cloak with red clouds, and boldly strode over to interrogate him, believing themselves the absolute authority to whom Kagaya must answer.
When Kagaya refused, the samurai flew into a rage. Without another word, he drew his sword to kill Kagaya.
Given his high standing, even if he killed a few people in the Land of Waves, Gato would declare him innocent.
The blade fell. Blood sprayed.
"So I said, I'm asking you a question," Kagaya stated calmly.
He tossed away the sword he had seized from the samurai and looked at the man, now missing an arm.
"Can you answer properly now?"
Excruciating pain surged through the samurai in an instant, and he couldn't suppress a scream.
"AAAAAAHHHH!!!"
'When?! WHEN?!'
He hadn't even registered the movement. His sword had been snatched away by the person before him, and it had been used to sever his own arm.
"You bastard! You bastard!"
The samurai stared at Kagaya with terror and hatred. Mid-sentence, his gaze shifted to his own bleeding stump.
"I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'll die! You bastard! You bastard! You're coming with me!"
Hatred momentarily overpowered fear. The samurai bent down, used his remaining arm to pick up the sword Kagaya had discarded, and swung it at Kagaya once more.
"You're coming with me!"
Before the blade could descend, a shuriken pierced the samurai's throat.
Kagaya looked disdainfully at the blood-stained sword in the samurai's hand.
"This time, I won't bother taking your sword. Go to your death clutching it."
A samurai in Gato's service like this one undoubtedly had numerous lives on his hands. Kagaya felt absolutely nothing killing him. Moreover, even if the man had been a saint, the moment he harbored the intent to kill him and attacked first, Kagaya would have eliminated him without hesitation.
He was no saint. While he wouldn't kill indiscriminately, expecting kindness was futile.
Witnessing such a bloody scene, the people around them covered their mouths and hurried away, faces pale.
Kagaya clicked his tongue. Judging by their reactions, the people here still feared such violence. Yet, the fact that no one screamed suggested that these samurai under Gato's command had done their fair share of "good deeds."
"Hey, kid. Are you a shinobi?"
At that moment, an elderly man wearing small spectacles approached and asked Kagaya.
Kagaya turned, paused for a moment in surprise, then narrowed his eyes, studying the man carefully.
The old man shivered. "What's with you, kid? You don't have some... unsavory interests, do you? I'm not exactly young anymore!"
Kagaya rolled his eyes and pointed at the samurai's corpse. "Aren't you afraid?"
Kagaya had already recognized who this was. His close inspection was to confirm. Now, he was certain: this was Tazuna!
The master bridge builder of the Land of Waves. He aimed to bring prosperity to the country by constructing a great bridge. However, this bridge-building endeavor threatened Gato's interests.
What was Gato's business? Maritime shipping! For an island nation like the Land of Waves, surrounded by sea on all sides, many things relied on maritime transport. That's how Gato amassed his fortune and controlled the country.
But once a bridge was built, creating a land route, Gato's shipping company wouldn't necessarily collapse, but it would suffer a significant blow. Gato's status would plummet!
How could he allow that? So, Gato hired Zabuza to assassinate Tazuna. In desperation, Tazuna went to Konoha to submit a mission request, hoping for the help of Konoha shinobi.
That was Tazuna's story.
But currently, it seemed Tazuna hadn't yet gone to Konoha. Instead, Kagaya had run into him first.
Tazuna snorted dismissively. "Nothing to be afraid of. And I asked, are you a shinobi or not?"
Kagaya smiled slightly. "I am."
The way Tazuna answered Kagaya's question first before asking his own was much more agreeable. Kagaya detested forceful dialogue that demanded you answer their questions and only their questions.
"Shinobi from which village?" Tazuna continued asking.
Kagaya couldn't help but smile again. He knew his next answer would likely make Tazuna back off.
"From Konoha..."
A look of delight appeared on Tazuna's face. A shinobi from Konoha? That was perfect!
But Kagaya wasn't finished.
"...a missing-nin!"
Tazuna was shocked. "A missing-nin? W-well then... n-never mind. I-I'd better be going!"
In most people's minds, the term "missing-nin" was associated with cruelty, ruthlessness, and evil. Hearing it, Tazuna naturally wanted to flee.
He had been preparing to set off for Konoha to submit his mission, hoping for Konoha shinobi's aid. Before leaving, he saw Kagaya easily dispatch a samurai and was overjoyed, thinking he might be a shinobi from some village whom he could potentially hire to help defend against Gato's assassins.
Upon asking, he discovered the guy was a missing-nin!
That scared Tazuna into making a hasty retreat.