Sasuke: I Also Have the Advantage of One Hand

Zabuza's lair, much like Tazuna's new home, was located deep within the dense forest. The thick canopy of leaves drastically reduced visibility, making it feel like dusk even in the early morning.

Kakashi and the other two hid in nearby bushes, constantly scanning their surroundings.

"Looks like there are no traps around for now," Naruto said softly to the other two after looking around.

Kakashi nodded and said gravely, "I'll make the first move. You two are responsible for holding off that masked youth. If anything goes wrong, retreat first."

Naruto glanced to the side and saw Sasuke's body trembling slightly. He chuckled, "What, got Parkinson's?"

"No," Sasuke shook his head, his expression filled with excitement instead. "I'm just excited."

"Alright, you can fight Zabuza later then."

"...It's not impossible."

Naruto felt like Sasuke's tail would be wagging furiously if he had one right now. He couldn't help but look forward to seeing who would get beaten up, Haku or Sasuke.

Sasuke's current strength was higher than in the original story, so he couldn't be judged by normal standards anymore.

Suddenly, the three of them heard dense sounds coming from the forest.

Dark figures emerged like mushrooms after a rain, and began searching the surroundings.

Most of these figures were wearing ninja headbands!

"This is bad," Naruto muttered to himself. The situation had deviated from the original story again. He couldn't help but suspect that Gato was like a cockroach.

These enemies were too good at 'multiplying'...

Kakashi signaled for them to hold their breath and gestured for them to continue waiting.

They couldn't alert the enemy yet.

Naruto couldn't help but ponder that Zabuza, with his temper, probably wouldn't be willing to cooperate with so many people. His own combat style was also geared towards assassination.

Well, if he ended up fighting Zabuza later, he'd use Talk no Jutsu to sow discord between him and the other ninja.

Just then, all three heard a man wearing a headscarf in the middle shout to the surroundings, "Aren't you coming out yet?"

Naruto's scalp tingled. Was he being called out?

No way, how would they know about their surprise attack time?

Another person nearby scoffed, "Retainers, are you so sure they're hiding here?"

"The Commander's foresight is absolute; there's no mistake," the man in the headscarf said, his eyes as firm as if he had joined the party.

"Watch me force them out. Fire Style..."

He began forming hand seals at lightning speed!

Naruto felt all the hairs on his body stand on end and quickly whispered, "Oh my god, they're serious, Boss, what do we do?"

Kakashi: "Let's retreat."

Just then, the man in the headscarf finished his hand seals: "...Fire Dragon Bullet!"

Instantly, the surrounding temperature began to rise. Naruto scattered immediately, but his position was also exposed.

Kakashi quickly pulled down his headband, about to cover Naruto and Sasuke's retreat, when he felt a giant blade appear behind him: "Heh, your opponent is me."

Zabuza, appearing from nowhere, held his large sword and pressed the tip against Kakashi's back.

"Zabuza..." Kakashi's eyes instantly became extremely serious.

"Don't turn around. If you dare to point your Sharingan at me, I'll cut you in half right now," Zabuza narrowed his eyes.

Naruto dodged several Shuriken and roared at Zabuza, "Zabuza, have you become Gato's dog now?!"

Zabuza turned his head sharply, his eyes looking like he wanted to chop Naruto into eight pieces: "The commissions I accept must succeed, not fail!"

He then gave Kakashi a playful smile: "Moreover, Gato still has some value to exploit."

"What do you say, retainers?"

Although he knew Zabuza's intentions, Naruto still felt terrible. Couldn't he speak without being so creepy?!

Is he really going to pick on the retainers?!

Naruto's respect for Gato's brainwashing techniques increased again. He even suspected that if they interacted for a few more days, Zabuza would change his attire to a Korean-style trench coat...

Meanwhile.

Clang! Sasuke spun continuously, using a Kunai to firmly control the enemy's flying needles.

"Not bad speed," Haku commented indifferently on Sasuke's taijutsu, as if his progress was not worth mentioning.

Sasuke glanced at Zabuza and gritted his teeth, "Are you guys crazy, supporting that devil Gato!"

"I only obey Mr. Zabuza's orders," Haku's tone was as cold as ever. "Mr. Zabuza's orders are absolute. Rather, my life belongs to Mr. Zabuza..."

Sasuke grew impatient. He flashed out with a flying kick, creating distance between himself and Haku, and instantly completed his hand seals.

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"

A massive fireball instantly engulfed the ninja beside Sasuke. Compared to the fireball he released in front of Fugaku earlier, it had almost doubled in size!

Like Naruto, his control and use of Chakra had improved rapidly during this period!

Haku dodged like a phantom, then instantly appeared in a dead-end spot on the tree trunk, throwing several needles towards Sasuke.

The needles accurately aimed for the vital points on the back of Sasuke's neck!

But Sasuke, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, dodged with a light sideward roll, looking at Haku with disdain.

"You keep mentioning Zabuza this and Zabuza that, don't you have any opinions of your own?" Sasuke's tone was harsh; he detested Haku's worldview to the extreme.

Once upon a time, he too had followed someone like a shadow, only for that person to betray him and cause his clan to perish in their homeland.

It was precisely because of blind trust that he lived in immense pain after their relationship shattered.

Sasuke resolved to use the strongest force to thoroughly 'correct' Haku's worldview.

He dashed to Haku's side with instantaneous speed, while Haku calmly caught all of Sasuke's moves.

"I have at least one advantage right now," Haku said calmly. "I've completely restrained you with just one hand, which means my other hand can pose a threat to you."

With that, Haku began to form hand seals with one hand.

Seeing this, Sasuke couldn't help but recall what Naruto had said during their tree climbing training that day.

"Sasuke, that masked guy's methods are incredibly strange. I've thought about it a lot and came up with a universal solution."

Sasuke glanced sideways at Naruto. "What good idea could a dead last like you possibly come up with?"

"Stop acting tough in front of me," Naruto waved his hand. "Let me put it this way, Zabuza plays with water. If the masked youth followed Zabuza from a young age, then the jutsu he uses is likely related to Water Release too."

Naruto: "So, what can counter Water Release?"

"You're wrong about one thing. I was also restraining you with one hand," Sasuke said, looking coldly at Haku. He then yanked a nearly transparent wire from his other hand.

"BOOM!!!"

"BOOM!!!"

The ground where Sasuke and Haku stood instantly erupted in a massive explosion, engulfing both of them in black smoke!

"So, what can counter Water Release?"

"Fire," Naruto said, shaking the Explosive Tag in his hand. "Although Water Release counters Fire Release, if the fire is big enough, it can evaporate all the water. Of course, this is a prerequisite, that you first use Fire Style Jutsu to dry the surroundings."

"Fighting in a damp environment, we'd likely be at a disadvantage."

What Naruto didn't say was that Haku would freeze the water on the ground, making the fight even more difficult.

"Explosive Tags, interesting," Haku emerged from the black smoke. The hem of his clothing was scorched by the flames from the explosion, and he had lost his previous elegance and composure.

Sasuke walked out calmly from the other side, his eyes clear and full of determination.