"Naruto..."
Seeing Naruto covered in blood, Sakura cried out in alarm, her eyes filling with both fury and grief...
She might have found Naruto a little annoying normally...
But that did not affect the bonds she shared with him. She saw him as a companion.
How could she possibly remain unmoved now that she saw Naruto on the brink of death?
"I'm sorry, Mr. Tazuna.
Sasuke and I have to avenge Naruto..."
Wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes, Sakura's pretty face was pale as she declared in a trembling yet resolute voice.
She formed Hand Seals with both hands, about to rush over and join the battle...
Elsewhere,
Kakashi froze at the sound as well, his expression changing drastically!
"This is the cruel reality of being a ninja...
Those two brats must be so worked up because this is their first time witnessing a companion's death.
But Kakashi, you seem rather nervous too...
That worthless brat was one of the subordinates you cherished too, wasn't he?"
Zabuza took the chance to mock and distract him, using psychological warfare to seek out an opening and defeat him in one blow.
But Kakashi had no mood to trade words with him. He immediately pulled out a summoning scroll, intending to end this quickly.
At the same time,
"Pfft..."
Just as Sakura took her next step, bursts of white smoke suddenly erupted from Naruto's body...
The Ice Blades and Ice Arrows embedded in Naruto's body were violently blasted away, while his wounds healed at a visible rate.
At the same time, scarlet Chakra erupted from Naruto's body and swirled around him.
Shattering all the surrounding ice, Ice Blades, and Ice Arrows into water vapor...
"No, how is that possible?!"
Haku, who stood closest, widened his eyes in disbelief at Naruto's eruption.
After an attack like that, how could he still unleash such terrifying and repulsive Chakra...
"This is..."
Sasuke's pupils suddenly contracted as his Dojutsu Power surged, two black Tomoe firmly settling within his scarlet eyes.
"That hurt like hell, Sasuke, you idiot...
You didn't even realize I was the real one—you grabbed my Shadow Clone and ran!
I almost got myself killed..."
Naruto opened his eyes again and shouted indignantly, completely ignoring the changes to the Chakra around his body.
[The Nine-Tails...
Of course Naruto wouldn't die here!
I really lost my head for a moment and forgot about the Nine-Tails cheat...]
Sasuke instantly calmed down and understood, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
It was good that Naruto was alive. The Ninja World would be far too boring without him...
"Naruto, you're okay..."
"Naruto..."
Hearing the commotion, Sakura and Kakashi both cried out in delighted surprise.
The situation had turned around!!
"Idiot, who told you to secretly switch places with your Shadow Clone..."
Sasuke leaped to Naruto's side and scolded him with a smile, his blazing gaze fixed on Haku.
From here on out, they had the advantage!
"Your eyes have changed...
Did your Kekkei Genkai grow because someone you cared about was hurt?
What enviable bonds...
But it seems we now have no choice but to fight an even crueler battle to the death!"
Haku stared at Sasuke's eyes with a complicated expression, immediately making the furious Naruto look at Sasuke with childlike curiosity.
"You talk too much...
Sakura, fall back and protect Mr. Tazuna.
Naruto, use Wind Style while you can..."
Sasuke snorted and immediately urged them on, preparing to strike first.
With the temporary surge of Nine-Tails Chakra, Naruto should be able to use Wind Style and exceed his usual limits!
"Huh? Again??"
Naruto's face fell as he stared at Sasuke's eyes and called out weakly, but when he saw Sasuke already forming Hand Seals, he could only follow suit.
Whatever. Since Sasuke was willing to trust him a second time!
He could only give it everything he had...
Sakura hurried back to protect Tazuna as well.
"The same technique as before..."
Haku instantly understood upon seeing this and formed Hand Seals as well, preparing a ninjutsu.
Almost at the same time,
"Summoning: Earth Style: Tracking Fang Jutsu..."
Kakashi shouted as he unleashed his ninjutsu. Eight Tracking Dogs instantly burst from the ground and clamped down on Zabuza, who was hidden in the mist.
"Now for my own original finishing move!
Sorry, Zabuza.
I have to deal with you as quickly as possible...
Lightning Style Chidori..."
Kakashi said coldly, rapidly forming Hand Seals as lightning flickered in his palm.
Naruto was fine now, but he had to quickly check whether there was a problem with the Nine-Tails' seal.
If the Nine-Tails broke through the seal, things would become a huge problem...
Haku, who had been forming Hand Seals to deal with Sasuke and Naruto, changed expression upon hearing the commotion here.
He immediately abandoned his Hand Seals and rushed toward Zabuza at top speed...
At that moment,
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique..."
Having completed his Hand Seals, Sasuke opened his mouth and shouted as a Fire Dragon roared forth once more.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough..."
Naruto's shout rang out at the same instant.
This time, nothing went wrong. A violent astral wind erupted in an instant...
Wind fanned the flames, and fire intensified the wind.
The raging gale instantly expanded the Fire Dragon into a Hurricane Fire Stream that filled the entire bridge, roaring like thunder...
Kakashi, who was about to unleash Chidori, frowned at the sight. Chakra burst from beneath his feet as he leaped into the air to avoid the attack's edge.
"Ice Style: Ice Prison: Dome of Ice..."
Meanwhile, Haku swiftly shielded Zabuza and unleashed his technique in an emergency.
In the blink of an eye,
A thick wall of ice rapidly formed in front of the two of them.
The next instant,
The blazing gale and flames crashed into the ice wall with a deafening boom.
Empowered by Naruto's high-intensity Wind Style fueled by Tailed Beast Chakra, the ice wall lasted only half a second beneath the gale's slicing force and the flames' scorching heat before melting into water vapor...
Seeing the danger, the Eight Tracking Dogs immediately vanished, and the lingering force of the ninjutsu slammed viciously into the two of them...
"Th-this is way too outrageous!"
As her vision suddenly cleared, Sakura stared at Haku and Zabuza, engulfed in flames, and cried out in shock.
"So Sasuke and I are this powerful when we work together...
No wonder Teacher Kakashi said this was the ninjutsu best suited for me."
Naruto was equally delighted, scarcely able to believe it.
"You two worked well together, Sasuke, Naruto..."
Kakashi landed beside them and praised them, his eyes locked tightly ahead as he prepared to finish them off.
[That's Chidori!!]
Sasuke glanced at the Lightning Style in Kakashi's palm, his eyes flickering as an idea came to him.
"Whew..."
As a sea breeze swept past, Haku and Zabuza's figures emerged once more.
"Haku, well done...
You truly are the tool I approved of!"
Zabuza supported Haku, whose body was covered in burns, and said coldly, his bloodthirsty eyes fixed on Kakashi.
Just now, Haku had used all his Chakra to shield him.
Other than the wounds from the dogs' bites, he had suffered no other injuries...
However, in their current condition, completing the mission was impossible.
"Kakashi, we'll meet again..."
After giving Kakashi and the other three a vicious look, Zabuza left behind this threat and prepared to leap into the sea to retreat for now.
"Zabuza, you got beaten into such a sorry state again...
And that brat bastard who broke my arm is almost dead by now, right?
What trash. I knew I couldn't rely on stray dogs like you..."
Sasuke and the others changed expression and were about to give chase when a voice suddenly rang out from the bridgehead.
Everyone turned to look, only to see Gato leading his men over...
"What kind of ninja are you? I still played you like fools...
Now that you've both been injured, I can kill you without paying a single coin.
Get them! Kill them all..."
Gato shouted arrogantly with a look of utter disdain, while his many thugs drew their blades, murderous gleams flashing in their eyes.
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