Haku

The moment the two Elite Jonin's weapons collided, their overwhelming killing intent erupted, nearly crushing everyone's ability to breathe.

Even Naruto was experiencing killing intent for the first time. It felt as though he had instantly fallen into a bottomless ice pit, his entire body frozen stiff and unable to move.

Sasuke and Sakura were no better off, both standing rooted to the spot.

Thick mist gradually rose around them as Kakashi and Zabuza faced each other in a deadly standoff, one blade against another, with no attention to spare for Naruto and the others.

Warm Chakra flowed slowly through his body. Naruto took only a few breaths to recover. He turned and rushed toward Sasuke and Sakura, smacking each of them on the back.

Almost at the same time, Sakura and Sasuke's eyes went blank for a moment from the blow.

Then they abruptly snapped back to their senses and sucked in sharp breaths, as though they had not breathed for a long time.

"A Jonin's killing intent is too terrifying." Sasuke's face was tense as he spoke, still shaken by the experience.

At the same time, he realized that Naruto had been the first among them to react, and that Naruto's intervention had freed both him and Sakura from their rigid state.

Sakura remained seated where she was, trembling uncontrollably.

Zabuza's killing intent was not something illusory. It was a tangible substance that spread outward with his Chakra and came into contact with their skin, instantly filling the three members of Team Seven with fear.

"Sakura." Naruto pulled her to her feet and said, "Quickly disrupt the flow of Chakra in your bodies. Do it the same way you break Genjutsu."

The moment he said that, Sasuke and Sakura understood. They each formed the Release hand seal. It worked immediately, and both of them broke free from their stiffness.

Meanwhile, Kakashi had already engaged Zabuza. But one of Zabuza's Water Clones suddenly rose from a puddle like a ghost and charged toward Naruto's group.

Even an Elite Jonin's Water Clone possessed at least Chunin-level strength.

"Watch out!" While fighting, Kakashi caught sight of Zabuza's Water Clone and hurriedly shouted a warning.

Logically, Kakashi could have left behind a Shadow Clone to protect Team Seven. But he clearly had no intention of doing so. Ninja had always been a profession where the strong preyed on the weak.

Kakashi did not need to warn them. The three of them had already seen Zabuza's Water Clone. Sasuke pulled Tazuna back, while Naruto grabbed Sakura and retreated with her.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted. "Quick! Shuriken!"

Three Shuriken shot toward Zabuza like streaks of light in response. Naruto immediately followed behind them, clearly intending to meet the enemy head-on.

"Sakura! Genjutsu!" Naruto ordered as he charged forward.

This was only their first real team battle, and they had never discussed a battle plan beforehand. Although Naruto was directing them now, they were fighting Zabuza's clone with all their moves laid bare.

Tazuna, who had been loudly boasting about being a bridge-building expert earlier, now stood trembling in place like Psyduck. Sasuke remained in front of him for the moment, guarding him with a kunai in hand.

Though Sakura was panicking when she heard Naruto's voice, her body still reacted in time. Naturally, her Genjutsu had no effect on Zabuza's clone, but it still distracted him for an instant.

And that instant was enough! A mechanical synthesized voice rang out in Naruto's mind!

Nine-Tails' Recognition 2.2%

Scarlet Chakra instantly enveloped Naruto's entire body. His pupils turned crimson in an instant, and surging power boiled within him.

With a bang, Naruto vanished from the spot mid-charge.

The next moment, Naruto appeared behind Zabuza's Water Clone like a ghost and shattered it with a heavy sweeping kick.

The Nine-Tails' power had been enough to leave the Fourth Hokage and a group of Elite Jonin helpless. Even though Naruto could only draw upon 2.2% of the Nine-Tails' power, it had already brought him close to the level of a Special Jonin.

Even setting aside the Four-Tails Lava Release he had recently obtained, the tiny fraction of the Nine-Tails' power alone was enough for Naruto to look down upon Konohagakure's Chunin.

"How could that brat be so strong?" Tazuna, the actual Psyduck standing there, could not help but sigh after watching Naruto cleanly dispose of the Water Clone.

Sasuke, standing in front of him with a kunai in hand, naturally heard those words. His expression immediately darkened.

If Naruto's first defeat of the Mist Ninja Demon Brothers who had been following them was merely good luck, then Naruto had also broken free from the stiffened state before him and defeated an Elite Jonin's Water Clone.

The repeated incidents had already proven that Naruto was indeed the strongest member of Team Seven. As for Sasuke, he was only somewhat better than Sakura.

If Naruto had been born into a major clan, enjoyed the best ninja resources, and trained diligently every day, Sasuke would not have cared so much.

But Sasuke knew very well that ever since he had met Naruto, that guy had always been the dead last in their class. Flashy in manner, bottom of the pack in strength.

Someone like that was not even worth him sparing a second glance. He had never wanted to become teammates with someone like that, yet...

It was as though Naruto had become a completely different person overnight. Not only had he graduated from the Ninja Academy with the top score, but he also knew so many secrets about the village's clans.

Those were not particularly major secrets, but to Sasuke, whose clan had been wiped out when he was young, and Sakura, who came from a civilian family, they already counted as obscure knowledge.

Whether it was sharing intelligence or improving his strength, Sasuke thought to himself, could that guy have been pretending to be like that before?

Being dead last every year was far too consistent.

Pretending to be a bad student?

Chaotic thoughts ran through Sasuke's mind, while Sakura let out a long breath. She clasped her hands together nervously and thought to herself.

Thank goodness Naruto is here.

If Naruto had not called out to her just now, perhaps she would have only stood there like a log again. At least she had cast Genjutsu and contributed something to the team.

After one Water Clone was destroyed, Zabuza had no mind to create another. He was currently locked in combat with Kakashi, and both had sustained injuries.

Seeing this, Naruto charged in without a second thought.

At that moment, Kakashi spotted an opening in Zabuza's defense and formed hand seals first. A Water Dragon Bullet shot straight at Zabuza's face. Zabuza barely dodged it, but he was still injured. Before he could move again—

Three Flying Needles suddenly flew out of nowhere and pierced Zabuza's neck. Kakashi immediately became wary, while Naruto's brows relaxed.

Was Haku finally about to make an appearance?

A masked youth suddenly emerged from the thick mist and leaped directly in front of the fallen Zabuza.

Naruto's pupils shrank slightly as he secretly mobilized the Chakra within his body.