Everyone's Doubts

After dealing with these matters, Naruto didn't linger, turning and walking out, his figure quickly melting into the night.

Watching Naruto's receding back, Zabuza stood in place, his heart filled with a complex mix of emotions.

He marveled at Naruto's decisive and efficient actions, truly beheading Gato overnight and controlling the situation with a detailed plan.

He was even more shocked by the precision and thoroughness of the information Naruto possessed.

It was to a terrifying degree; even the professional intelligence organizations of the Five Great Ninja Villages might not have such detailed information.

And then there was the grand goal of unifying the ninja world.

At the same time, a hope he hadn't felt in a long time quietly began to rise in Zabuza's heart.

Although he didn't know... if this seemingly unbelievable young man could unify the ninja world.

He knew for sure that he could, one day, lead him back to Kirigakure and end the fate of the Bloody Mist Village.

Thinking of this, Zabuza unconsciously tightened his grip on the Kubikiribōchō.

Deep within his eyes, the fighting spirit that had been extinguished for years after failing to assassinate the Fourth Mizukage quietly reignited.

By the time Naruto quietly returned to Tazuna's home, it was already past midnight.

Everything was within plan.

The Shadow Clone Naruto had left earlier had been acting according to the needs of Naruto's main body.

After training with Sasuke, he returned to Tazuna's home, then "slept," awaiting the escort mission the next day.

Only when the Shadow Clone silently lay in bed and sensed the main body's return did it quietly move to a secluded corner outside.

The moment it met the main body, with a soft "poof," it turned into a puff of white smoke and dissipated.

Naruto's face showed a slight look of fatigue as he rubbed his temples. He then returned to his room and casually pushed open the door.

He intentionally let the old door make a slight creaking sound before tumbling onto the makeshift futon and falling asleep almost immediately.

The next morning, before dawn, sounds of activity began to emerge from the house.

Tazuna's daughter was already preparing breakfast.

The sounds of others waking up made Naruto's eyes snap open, and he quickly rolled over and sat up.

Kakashi leaned against the wall, holding the Icha Icha Paradise that never left his hands, his gaze never straying from the text.

"Alright, after breakfast, we'll escort Mr. Tazuna to the bridge," Kakashi said lazily, sweeping his visible eye over his three ready students. His voice carried its usual tone as he instructed, "I don't think Gato will give up so easily. He might send his samurai or remnants of his gang to cause trouble."

Sakura, while tidying her hair, couldn't help but ask curiously, "Then... what about you, Teacher Kakashi? Aren't you coming with us?"

"Me?" Kakashi's eye corners crinkled. Even with most of his face covered by his mask, it was clear he was smiling. His tone became deliberately mysterious, "Of course, I have more important things to handle."

Naruto watched it all with a blank expression, his heart unmoved.

He knew all too well what "more important things" meant.

It most likely meant finding a comfortable spot where he could sunbathe and remain hidden, continuing to indulge in his inappropriate reading material while remotely monitoring the mission's progress.

After all, the strength he had displayed clearly made this teacher feel that on-site supervision was somewhat redundant.

However, Naruto couldn't be bothered to expose it. This kind of unspoken understanding was convenient for now.

The group sat together and had a simple breakfast with Tazuna, his daughter, and his grandson, Inari.

Inari was unusually quiet at the table, eating with his head bowed.

He was a completely different child from the rebellious, sharp-tongued boy in the first timeline.

Naruto understood the reason. In the first timeline, when Inari returned home as usual and despaired over his father's sacrifice protecting the bridge, he had taunted the Konoha ninja present.

But because Naruto and Sasuke had altered the original circumstances of the first timeline yesterday and chosen to leave, Tazuna and Kakashi's dual efforts in educating and comforting him had led to his quiet demeanor today.

This had clearly worked.

Naruto thought this was for the best; it saved him a lot of time.

The Land of Waves, though nominally called a "country," was actually small in territory and lacked resources.

Based on his experiences in the first timeline and countless reincarnations, Tazuna would bring them back home for lunch every day instead of eating at the bridge.

On the way to the bridge, they would pass through a small marketplace.

Naruto's gaze calmly swept over this marketplace he knew all too well.

The scene was as dilapidated as ever. On the stalls lining the street, whether selling fish or vegetables, the merchants had pitifully little merchandise, their eyes hollow and numb.

The occasional pedestrians, adults and children alike, were mostly sallow, clad in rags, with little vitality or hope on their faces.

While the Land of Waves was poor, it wasn't to this extent.

Naruto knew that the root of all this stemmed from the man named Gato and the reign of terror and economic plunder he brought.

However, all of that had quietly begun to change starting last night.

Things should change in the next few days.

Upon arriving at the magnificent, unfinished bridge, Tazuna immediately threw himself into work, directing the laborers to begin their tasks.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, meanwhile, could only wait around idly. Nominally, they were guards, but in reality, they had nothing to do.

At this stage, it was indeed impossible for any danger to arise, especially after Naruto had personally intervened last night, decisively dealing with Gato and arranging for Zabuza to take over his forces.

Sakura leaned against a pile of lumber, letting out a small yawn. Her gaze occasionally drifted to Sasuke, who stood silently beside her. Idly kicking a pebble on the ground, she grumbled, "Seriously, I thought Gato would actually send someone to interfere with the bridge's progress... but nothing happened. And he calls himself a rich man?"

"Indeed... it's too quiet. From Tazuna's account, Gato shouldn't give up this easily."

Sasuke crossed his arms, his sharp gaze scanning their surroundings, maintaining a vigilant posture. Hearing Sakura's words, he added in agreement.

Sasuke had heard a bit about the history of the Land of Waves after returning last night.

To control the Land of Waves and intimidate its people, Gato even killed people in public – namely, Inari's father.

Yet, the Daimyo of this country dared not utter a single word.

Tazuna and other commoners had to find a way, and eventually resorted to deception to hire Ninja from Konoha.

But now that the hired Ninja had arrived, Gato was making no move, which was truly strange.

Naruto leaned casually against the bridge, tilting his head to gaze at the distant scenery where the sea met the sky, and said in a flat tone, "Perhaps Gato ran into other troubles."

In his heart, however, he thought, Of course.

After all, it was the "trouble" Naruto himself had arranged last night.

From now until the bridge was completed, Gato would be incapable of making any reaction.