"Yo, you seem to have forgotten about me!" At this moment, a voice familiar to Naruto also rang out behind Zabuza.
"Kakashi!" A sharp kunai sliced across Zabuza's arm, and crimson blood spurted out.
Zabuza twisted at an incredible angle to avoid Kakashi's fatal blow.
"As expected, there isn't a single elite jonin who's easy to deal with. I'm still far from it." Naruto sighed while watching these two taijutsu-type elite jonin's back-and-forth battle.
He'd originally thought his strength was quite good, but who would have thought that even with malice perception ability, Zabuza still got close to him. If his reaction hadn't been fast enough, that hit would have killed or severely injured him.
"To actually fool me with a water clone - I still have much to train." The Zabuza standing in the distance earlier had turned into a puddle of water the instant he attacked Naruto and retrieved the cleaver sword.
Water Clone - a technique with one-tenth the main body's ability. Inferior to Shadow Clone in many ways, but better in low consumption.
"Hey, idiot Sasuke... how long are you going to keep being afraid?" For Naruto, who frequently saw the Nine-Tails and experienced its terrifying pressure, Zabuza's killing intent wasn't much.
But for Sasuke, executing a mission outside for the first time, the lethality was very strong. If someone's will wasn't firm, they might even be driven crazy by killing intent.
This wasn't a joke. During ninja wars, many genin died this way. The battlefield's oppression, the enemy's killing intent - who knew how many seemingly talented people died on it daily.
The ninja world never lacked geniuses - what it lacked were geniuses who grew up.
"Idiot Naruto! I won't lose to you!" Awakened by Naruto, Sasuke immediately gritted his teeth and tried hard to control his body.
For Sasuke, Naruto was both his close friend and an object of comparison to surpass.
Since Naruto could overcome that killing intent, so could he! With an unyielding momentum, he forcibly endured it.
"They... why are they so persistent? Clearly they could just leave the enemy to Kakashi-sensei to handle! We're... we're just genin! Why? Why try so hard!" Unlike Sasuke, Sakura was still collapsed to one side. At this moment, Sakura felt so distant from the two.
She'd always said she liked Sasuke, but she didn't understand him at all.
Never before had Sakura so hated her weak self.
"Because I'm going to be the man who becomes Hokage!" A hand reached toward her. Looking up, she saw a sunny, gentle smile.
"Never give up - that's my ninja way. We're comrades! Can I entrust my back to you?"
At this moment, Sakura's tear ducts collapsed.
"Mm."
Perhaps after experiencing this event, Sakura would become different - more reliable.
"Worthy of being Konoha's Number One Technician, Kakashi. Since defecting from Mist Village, I haven't encountered such a formidable opponent in a long time." Zabuza, breathing somewhat heavily, swung his large sword to force Kakashi back.
"But too bad - although you're powerful, you're still somewhat inferior to me."
"The Demon Zabuza, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, also lives up to his reputation. His taijutsu is quite powerful." Kakashi also replied not to be outdone.
"Kakashi-sensei, please go all out. With your current state, there's no way to defeat Zabuza. Be careful not to capsize in the gutter." Naruto said to Kakashi. Although Zabuza was strong against Kakashi using his Sharingan state, he temporarily had no way to win.
"Right, what Naruto said is correct. If I still reserved strength facing an enemy like you, I might very well be counter-killed. I didn't expect even that Naruto kid would see through it."
"Bluffing." Zabuza curled his lip disdainfully. He didn't believe Kakashi, who had fought him so long, had reserved strength.
But out of caution, he still maintained high alert toward Kakashi.
"Then Zabuza, are you prepared for death?" Gently lifting his left forehead protector, he revealed those three-tomoe Sharingan.
"That eye is—" Zabuza was also a man who had experienced ninja wars. Although he hadn't faced the Uchiha clan, he had heard of these famous eyes.
As the saying goes: you may not have eaten pork, but haven't you seen pigs run?
For those cheat-like kekkei genkai, expert-level elite jonin were very familiar with their appearance information.
Though ability information was rather sparse.
"Hmph, our Uchiha clan's Sharingan." Sasuke looked at Kakashi somewhat unwillingly. An outsider could actually evolve his clan's kekkei genkai to three-tomoe level - it must be said Sasuke still somewhat admired Kakashi.
Unfortunately, the truth behind that three-tomoe Sharingan's evolution relied not on Kakashi's talent, but on Obito.
"This eye can see through the future. Your future is only death!" Kakashi, bullying Zabuza's ignorance of Sharingan abilities, began boasting wildly.
However, due to Kakashi's overconfident showing off, he actually intimidated him.
"Impossible! Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!" Identical jutsu collided together.
"Damn, Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
"Damn, Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!" The same tone and same jutsu collided together once more.
Combined with Kakashi's quite amazing acting, even a jonin like Zabuza who had experienced great storms momentarily fell into panic.
Kakashi, deeply knowing the old saying "strike while the iron is hot," launched fierce attacks on Zabuza. From being slightly disadvantaged in the previous battle with Zabuza, it became the current situation of suppressing Zabuza.
Each of Zabuza's attacks, Kakashi anticipated as if he knew beforehand.
"Could he really see the future?" Cold sweat continuously appeared on Zabuza's head. There was no way to win against such ability.
However, Sasuke and Naruto on the side, basically understanding Sharingan abilities, looked at Zabuza with contempt.
Actually, if Zabuza calmed down and thought, he'd understand - if three-tomoe could see the future so amazingly, wouldn't the Uchiha clan have long since dominated the ninja world?
You could believe such nonsense. But as the saying goes, bystanders see clearly while the authorities are confused.
Kakashi wouldn't give Zabuza time to react.
Just as Kakashi was about to succeed, a long senbon penetrated Zabuza's neck. With a "thud," Zabuza collapsed to the ground.
"He's already dead." A person wearing a white mask appeared in everyone's field of vision.
"Who? So strong - killed Zabuza in one move." Sasuke glanced at the masked man and became secretly alert.
Although the opponent acted to eliminate Zabuza, with unclear friend or foe, it was better to be careful.
"When did he appear?" Naruto looked at the opponent with surprise. The opponent hadn't revealed even a trace of malice.
Looks like he couldn't rely solely on the Nine-Tails' malice perception. Otherwise, just anyone could approach him.
"Huff... looks like Mist's Hunter-nin squad." Kakashi sighed in relief seeing that signature white mask.
Although using Sharingan made him very powerful, completely suppressing Zabuza, for him as a jonin with very scarce chakra, the previous consumption was truly too great.
"Who are you?"
"I came to hunt this person down. Can you hand him over to me?" The white-masked Mist Hunter-nin member said.
"Don't be nervous, Sasuke, Naruto. Should be Mist's Hunter-nin squad. This person can be handed over to you." The last sentence was directed at the white-masked man.
After all, Zabuza was a Mist rogue ninja. Handing him over to the Mist Hunter-nin squad for disposal couldn't be better.
"Thank you." After thanking Kakashi, he shouldered Zabuza and rapidly departed.
Naruto had no ill will toward this person who had no malice toward him. Seeing Kakashi say so, he didn't suspect otherwise.
For someone like Naruto who completely didn't love studying, what ANBU, Hunter-nin squad basic principles like only cutting off heads - expecting him to remember? That would be strange.
Even personally trained by Meruem, it was the same, because Meruem also didn't thoroughly understand these ninja principles.
"Hehe, quite young, right? The ninja world is like this. In this world, there are many ninjas younger than you but more formidable than me." Seeming to see Sasuke's unwillingness, Kakashi said to him.
Younger than me, more formidable than you? Konoha elite ninja Hatake Kakashi - graduated from ninja academy at five, chunin at six, jonin at twelve. Teacher, are you kidding me?
And many... do people even get to live?
Naruto listened with a head full of black lines.
Combined with how Zabuza was completely fooled earlier, Naruto deeply admired his teacher's ability to talk nonsense.
The highest realm of bragging was saying lies as if they were true.
After saying this, Kakashi instantly fainted.
"Don't worry, just exhausted his stamina." After the three bustled about in a flurry, they discovered Kakashi had only exhausted his stamina.
"Sigh, as a man, his stamina is really terrible." Naruto said while touching his nose. Among those present, only he was qualified to say this - this overly energetic pervert.
"Hey, old man, let's hurry to your house now." This was said to Tazuna, the person Naruto was protecting in this mission.
"Not good... Zabuza might not be dead!" When Kakashi woke up again, he was already in Tazuna's house.
"..." After hearing Kakashi's explanation, the three looked at him with contempt for a while.
Fine if the three genin didn't notice, but you're at least Konoha's elite jonin - how are you also this unreliable?
"Whatever. Perfect. Next time I really want to compete with him properly." The corner of Naruto's mouth curved up.
(End of Chapter)
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