Zabuza's Assault

"Everyone did quite well—except Naruto."

Kakashi Hatake tied the two Demon Brothers to the roadside, then began evaluating his Genin students' first real combat performance as their Jonin instructor.

"Wu Yu was the first to sense the enemies and came up with a clone strategy to lure them in—excellent judgment. Sakura cast her genjutsu quickly, and her timing was impeccable. Sasuke protected the client right away and coordinated well with his teammates... As for Naruto, well, he didn't get so scared his legs turned to jelly. For a kid, that's actually not bad."

Kakashi seemed to be deliberately using his sharp tongue to provoke Naruto. His words became blades and spears, stabbing Naruto straight in the heart.

Naruto clenched his teeth, bitterness filling his heart. I was completely useless... Even Sakura... And Sasuke, it was his first real battle too...

"It was your first real battle too, wasn't it? Weren't you nervous at all?"

Wu Yu's sudden question startled Naruto, who had been thinking the exact same thing.

Wu Yu wasn't Naruto, and Sasuke had none of that urge to compete with him. He merely smiled at the question. "Who told you it was my first real battle?"

"Huh?" Sakura was stunned. "Sasuke, before this, you...?"

The moment the words left his mouth, Sasuke had already regretted them a little. Facing the three pairs of eyes belonging to Sakura, Wu Yu, and Naruto, he said awkwardly, "Before, I went outside the village with my family to hunt in the wilderness... The fighting strength of large beasts isn't much worse than those two Mist Ninja."

Wu Yu smiled. "You look really pathetic trying to save face like that."

Sasuke snorted, shoving both hands into his pockets.

"Let me put it fairly," Wu Yu said. "If Kakashi gets a hundred for being calm and composed, then Sasuke gets twenty. I'd get ten, Sakura gets five, and Naruto... uh, one point?"

Sasuke was somewhat unconvinced. Was the gap between him and a Jonin really eighty points wide?

Sakura thought that was quite fair.

Naruto was stabbed through the heart once again...

Kakashi spoke up at just the right moment. "Being completely fearless in battle isn't necessarily a good thing. Absolute calmness is no different from numbness and dullness, when you get down to it. During real combat, maintaining a certain degree of tension and excitement often lets you bring out your abilities to the fullest, or even perform beyond your usual level."

"Alright, enough small talk." He looked toward their client, who had been tense and silent ever since the Mist Ninja appeared. "Mr. Tazuna, there's something I'd like to ask you..."

Wu Yu patted Naruto on the shoulder. Naruto jolted, then looked up at him blankly.

"If you regret it and feel unwilling to accept it, then use your strengths," Wu Yu said. "Shadow Clones aren't afraid of dying. And with the memories and experience you gain from their heroic sacrifices, you'll surely be able to become brave too, right?"

Sasuke smiled at Naruto. "Don't tell me even your Shadow Clones are too scared to move from where they're standing?"

Naruto immediately flew into a rage at Sasuke's mockery and formed hand seals. "Don't underestimate me! From now on, I'll keep sending Shadow Clones ahead to scout the way. I'll spot enemies even earlier than Wu Yu!!"

Sakura hurriedly said, "Ninja enemies have appeared. This is already beyond the scope of a C-Rank Mission, isn't it? We might not even continue carrying out this mission..."

"Sakura's right."

Kakashi Hatake overheard his students' conversation and quietly nodded.

C-Rank Missions did not involve fighting ninja. The reward ranged from thirty thousand ryo to one hundred thousand ryo. The Hokage had only approved Tazuna's application for the minimum thirty-thousand-ryo fee because of Wave Country's poverty.

Once combat with ninja was involved, it became a life-or-death mission, starting at B-Rank.

B-Rank Missions paid a minimum of eighty thousand ryo and a maximum of two hundred thousand ryo!

Asking his students to risk their lives on a B-Rank Mission while only receiving the minimum C-Rank pay made Kakashi, as their Jonin instructor, feel genuinely uneasy...

That was why, after restraining the Demon Brothers, Kakashi immediately went to have a word with Tazuna.

From the movements of the Demon Brothers during their assassination attempt, he had already confirmed that the two Mist Ninja had targeted their client, Tazuna.

Tazuna had actually prepared for this long ago.

Konoha ninja had a good reputation, so the old man immediately began emotionally blackmailing them!

Poor Wave Country was counting on him, a master bridge builder, to construct a bridge connecting it to the outside world and make Wave Country great again. But poor Tazuna—and all of Wave Country—had been targeted by that hateful shipping magnate.

Gato, the wealthy tycoon, was publicly a shipping industry magnate, but in secret he was a thoroughgoing mafia boss. Selling illegal drugs, hiring killers, extortion and robbery... there was no evil he wouldn't commit.

Without Konoha ninja to protect him, Tazuna dying would be a minor matter. At most, only his daughter and young grandson at home would be heartbroken. But if the bridge remained unfinished and Wave Country became completely Gato's plaything, that would be a catastrophic disaster for the people who were already poor and helpless.

"Hahaha! You can give up the mission and turn back now if you want!"

Tazuna laughed heartily. "An insignificant little island country like Wave Country loses ten or eight people every day. Konoha ninja must have seen plenty of that, so you surely don't care anymore! It's really just a few hundred families vanishing into smoke amid pain and despair. A small matter, a small matter!"

Kakashi indicated that he was actually fine with it.

He had experienced brutal war. When necessary, he could harden his heart.

But Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke, the three youngsters, were all sweating profusely after hearing that, feeling morally guilty... In a situation like this, they really couldn't bring themselves to turn around and return to Konoha.

"But Wu Yu..." From the corner of his eye, Kakashi observed that Wu Yu seemed not to care much at all about what Tazuna had said. Does he simply not care because he'll follow my final decision anyway, or is he the sort of person who feels nothing about the lives of strangers?

In truth, Wu Yu was just trying hard to recall something...

When did the Bloody Mist era end again? When did the Fourth Mizukage die, and what year did the Fifth Hokage, Mei Terumi, take office??

And was Kamui Bro in Kirigakure at this point or not???

"Fine, there's no helping it!" Going along with the flow, Kakashi spread his hands at Tazuna. "Then we'll escort you until you return to your country!"

Thus, the mission continued.

From then until they left the Fire Country mainland and entered the sea, they encountered no further ninja attacks... Which made sense. Hiring ninja was expensive. Two Demon Brothers were enough as expendable fodder; if there was extra money, it would be better to hire someone truly capable in one go.

The closer they got to Wave Country, the thicker the fog over the sea became, and visibility kept dropping.

In the sea mist, all was quiet. The sound of oars cutting through the water carried exceptionally far...

Soon, a small rowboat emerged from the dense fog. Seated aboard were the Wave Country boatman, Tazuna, Kakashi Hatake, Wu Yu, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno.

As for Naruto...

More than a dozen Narutos ran across the water around the front, back, left, and right sides of the boat. It was hard to say whether he was being neurotic or diligently responsible, but in any case, he guarded every direction like this, surrounding the boat as it traveled across the sea until they finally reached shore.

After bidding the boatman farewell, the group disembarked and continued onward.

As they passed through a stretch of coastal woods, a massive blade suddenly spun out from a blind spot, slicing Kakashi, Wu Yu, Sasuke, Sakura, several Narutos along the way... and Tazuna cleanly in half at the waist!

THUD!!

The Kubikiribōchō, which had spun through them like it was cutting vegetables, finally slammed sideways into a large tree.

Leaves drifted down as Zabuza Momochi used the Body Flicker Technique to land atop the blade's handle. He turned slightly, watching the bisected figures on the ground vanish one after another in puffs of white smoke...

They were all Shadow Clones, Zabuza Momochi thought.

The remaining Narutos made faces at him from below and shouted, "You fell for it, idiot!" Then they too vanished in puffs of white smoke as their clones dispersed.

Wu Yu's current scores (normal state):

Ninjutsu Proficiency 5, Taijutsu Proficiency 6, Genjutsu Proficiency 3, Tactical Intelligence 4, Physical Strength 2, Speed 2, Stamina and Chakra Reserves 2, Seal Proficiency 7