"Zabuza, it's Naruto."
Hearing Naruto's voice rather than Haku's, Zabuza's hand trembled as he shoveled manure, sending a scoop of wet dung onto the dry pile.
"Zabuza, what's wrong? Something on your mind?" Naruto stepped forward, pointed at the wet dung atop the dry pile, and said, "Separate the wet from the dry."
"Sorry, I'll separate them right away." Zabuza hurriedly shoveled the wet dung aside.
After Zabuza finished, Naruto looked at him and said, "Zabuza, I came to see you about something. Let's be friends."
Zabuza's breathing hitched. It seemed that some things would still come down upon your head even if you did nothing. Remembering what Haku had said earlier, Zabuza nodded numbly. "Yeah, I'm willing."
Ten minutes later, Zabuza lay bruised and battered on the ground, his eyes lifeless.
"Zabuza, get up. The ground's dirty." Naruto helped Zabuza onto a wooden stump, then said cheerfully, "All right, Zabuza. You're my friend now. Work hard here from now on, and if anything comes up, you can come to me."
Zabuza's eyes lit up at once. "Um, Naruto, there is something I'd like to ask your help with."
"Oh? What is it? Go ahead." Now that Zabuza was his friend and a diligent employee of his Breeding Farm, Naruto did not mind helping him with anything within his capabilities.
Rather than making his request directly, Zabuza asked, "Naruto, you know who I am, right?"
"Aren't you a rogue ninja from Kirigakure?" Naruto looked at Zabuza in confusion. Could he be like me, the child of some generation of Kage?
"That's right. But Naruto, do you know why I defected from Kirigakure? It's because the current Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, has been relentlessly persecuting Kirigakure's ninja, especially those with bloodline limits. That was why I decided to assassinate Yagura. When the