Zabuza, Your Bandages Are Loose!

Zabuza looked at the thin stone shard in his hand and infused it with a trace of Chakra.

Poof!

A white mask covered in strange patterns, with the character "Zan" written in the middle, appeared in his hand.

With a gentle press, it fit his cheeks perfectly, generating a considerable suction force as it directly interacted with the Chakra inside his body.

The principle was like walking on water or climbing walls. There was no need to worry about it falling off just because he had no bandages.

At the same time, the vision gained through its interaction with his Chakra seemed even clearer than his own eyes.

Zabuza's expression turned slightly complicated. Ever since obtaining the mask, he had never used or studied it.

With a slight tremor, a voice sounded in his ear.

"How does it feel? This is the communication function!"

Through their Chakra connection, the vibrations traveled to his eardrum and became sound, as though someone were speaking beside his ear.

Zabuza's expression shifted slightly. Haku did not seem to react at all, as if she could not hear it.

This brief demonstration alone made Zabuza realize how terrifying the other party's organization was.

How exactly had they achieved such technology?

And then there were the Ninjutsu on the exchange list, varied and dazzling. He knew full well how tempting they would be to ordinary ninjas.

Ordinary ninjas could only learn basic Ninjutsu freely. If they wanted to learn anything else, they needed sufficient contributions, or even a considerable amount of money.

Sometimes, even if they wanted to learn, there was no one willing to teach them. That was the sorrow of civilian ninjas.

The only free path was probably finding a master. Only a master would teach them without conditions.

Unfortunately, among ninjas, who would dare become a teacher so casually?

With a complicated look, Zabuza removed the mask and stopped supplying Chakra. With another poof, it turned back into a white stone-chip necklace.

"The mask has many functions. You'll experience them slowly in the future, and it will continue to be improved."

Neji had already considered making organizational uniforms later. At the very least, their style had to be unified.

They would not be as powerful as Germa 66's Superhuman Scientific Wear, but they could at least provide some defensive capabilities.

"What is our mission?"

Zabuza's question made the corners of Neji's lips curl slightly beneath his mask.

It's settled!

"Your mission is to eliminate Gato. I'm sure you know more about that man than anyone else."

The two nodded. Having worked under Gato, they had learned quite a bit about him.

"Eliminate Gato, take over his merchant association, seize his trade routes, and open up trade in the Land of Waves!"

"Complete this mission, and you will receive one hundred contribution points. How you divide them is your business."

One hundred contribution points made Zabuza frown slightly. It was not a small amount; it could even be exchanged for a weaker B-rank Ninjutsu. But compared to one thousand points, it was indeed little.

"Don't think it's too little. There's barely any danger in this mission. You just need to run around a bit and deal with a few people. It's already a good deal."

Seeing through Zabuza's thoughts, Neji added that final blow, and Zabuza accepted it.

He only had a handful of B-rank Ninjutsu in total, pitifully few. One of them was even Taijutsu, while another was Genjutsu.

"I don't care how you do it. Trade in the Land of Waves must be opened up. Otherwise, the mission will be considered a failure."

"Understood!"

Zabuza's gaze darkened. Gato, don't blame me.

As a ninja, Zabuza did not reject this sort of contribution-point system. On the contrary, he was used to it, since many villages used similar systems.

"In a few days, we'll leave. This place will be entirely in your hands."

After giving his instructions, Neji prepared to leave with Izumi. However, the Kubikiribōchō that flew up and landed before him seemed to have other ideas.

"Hm? Do you have some unnecessary thoughts? I think I can help you with them."

He kicked the Kubikiribōchō up, sending it flying back into Zabuza's hand, his tone faintly displeased.

Zabuza smiled and lifted the Kubikiribōchō before his body, but a surge of ripples immediately swayed his chest, throwing off his balance.

Zabuza's expression froze, and all his imposing momentum vanished.

Haku reminded him quietly, "Zabuza, your bandages are loose!"

"Then hurry up and fix them!"

Slightly embarrassed and annoyed, Zabuza lowered his head to look at his chest. A woman's body was such a damn hassle.

Haku stepped directly behind Zabuza, slipped her hand into his shirt, and gave a hard pull, making Zabuza's chest tighten again.

"Too tight!"

"I'm sorry, Zabuza."

Neji watched the scene speechlessly. Whatever murderous atmosphere there had been was completely gone.

"Fine, take your time messing around with that."

"Don't leave!" Zabuza swung the Kubikiribōchō. "Let me see your strength. I don't want to become someone's subordinate for nothing."

"If you're not strong enough, then don't blame me!"

His strength had mostly recovered over the past few days, and he had long wanted to find a chance to test them.

Unfortunately, the two were elusive, never giving him a suitable opportunity.

Today, he had finally caught one. If they ran off, he would never accept becoming the subordinate of people whose strength he did not even know.

Neji smiled inwardly. An experience pack had delivered itself to him, so he would not be polite.

Stopping Izumi, who wanted to teach them a lesson, Neji looked at Zabuza and Haku. "Come at me together. Don't waste time."

He walked to the center of the training ground and looked at them without assuming any stance, simply standing there.

"Lord Nen seems quite confident."

"Haku!"

Zabuza snorted and strode forward with the Kubikiribōchō in hand, Haku following at his side.

The battle began in an instant. With a swing of his arm, Zabuza hurled the Kubikiribōchō like a shooting star.

Neji tilted his head slightly, dodging the Kubikiribōchō's fierce wind. He turned, caught it in one hand, and held it upright before him.

Sharp clanging rang repeatedly against the blade as Haku directly flung out senbon needles.

"Mist Technique!"

With a low shout from Zabuza, thick mist began spreading throughout the training ground.

Hiding his sound and scent in the mist was Zabuza's classic opening move.

"This is useless against me!"

Before Observation Haki, this Chakra-filled mist was no different from nothing.

Using the Kubikiribōchō as a projectile, Neji hurled it directly at Zabuza, who was hiding within the mist.

The force was tremendous. A piercing whistle split the air, and even the dense fog was torn open into a clear passage.

Zabuza was startled. Neji had seen through his location immediately—how was that possible?

"Ice Release: Ice Rock Dome!"

Haku gave a low shout, and an ice wall rose before Zabuza. The flying Kubikiribōchō instantly shattered through it.

Scattered shards of ice revealed Zabuza's startled face. He flashed aside and grabbed the Kubikiribōchō.

Yet the remaining force still shocked him. So strong!

Was that merely a casual throw?

It seemed the other party's physique far surpassed his own!

He could not fight head-on.

For a Moment, Zabuza assessed the situation. His movement toward Neji changed, and he formed hand seals.

"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"

A towering wave surged forward. In this training ground, which was not all that large to begin with, it seemed incomparably cramped.

Neji gave a low shout. "Good water!"