Momochi Zabuza

The gray, mist-shrouded sea stretched out around them as a wooden boat with no canopy drifted along.

When two rows of bridge pilings came into view, the boatman shut off the engine he'd added to the stern and picked up a long oar to row.

"We're lucky to arrive on a foggy day. I had to wait half a month when I went out to sea," Tazuna said.

The Land of Waves' gateway was a row of arched openings beneath the main road. The boatman steered toward an opening choked with aquatic plants along its edges, just wide enough for the narrow boat to pass through.

Team Seven stayed alert.

If they were attacked at sea with a volley of arrows or thrown weapons, they'd have to work hard to protect the boat.

The water rose and fell in gentle swells as the boat slipped through the arch.

Several trees with tangled roots emerged from the water. Boardwalks ran along either side, and farther on stood wooden houses with thatched roofs.

They pulled up beside a boardwalk, and the group disembarked.

Tazuna let out a long breath. "Come rest at my house, everyone."

Naruto had never been particular about his lodgings, so he didn't mind.

But then Tazuna counted them on his fingers and recalled how many spare rooms he had. He gave an awkward smile. "I'm afraid you two young men may have to share a room."

Sasuke's gaze sharpened. "Absolutely not!"

"Don't be so fussy." Naruto pursed his lips, then invited Haruno Sakura, "Little Sakura, you can sleep with me."

Haruno Sakura's face turned bright red, and she hurriedly shook her head.

Naruto headed beneath the trees and fell into step beside Kakashi. "Damn it, I wish girls' hearts were as easy to understand as strength."

Sasuke gritted his teeth.

Birds flew and insects chirped along the forest path. The undergrowth rustled now and then as Sasuke's eyes darted constantly in every direction.

Naruto had spotted the enemy earlier, while he hadn't reacted at all. He still couldn't get over it.

He had to spot the next enemy before Naruto did!

If he couldn't even surpass his classmate, how could he kill his brother, who had become a Chunin at ten and taken part in the Uchiha clan's extermination at thirteen?

Whoosh!

Sasuke's ear twitched. He hurled a shuriken into the undergrowth.

He rushed in, only to find a white rabbit with a shuriken pinning its chest.

"How could this be? I clearly heard someone moving."

Kakashi was about to soothe Sasuke's excessive tension, but one glance at the rabbit made him realize something was wrong.

It was a snow hare, whose fur changed color with the seasons, turning white only in winter when there was little sunlight.

But it was summer now, with the sun blazing overhead.

It had clearly been raised indoors.

A ninja was following them.

Kakashi kept his expression neutral and called Sasuke back so they could continue on their way.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

A tremendous rush of air split the silence.

Kakashi shouted, "Get down!"

A massive, dark iron object spinning fast enough to cover a person's entire body hurtled toward Tazuna's head.

A terrifying killing intent shrieked through the air, filling the woods in an instant.

Haruno Sakura, standing behind Tazuna, froze. She could only watch, unable to move.

Sasuke, barely three meters away, was also stunned by the killing intent. His bones and muscles felt heavy as lead. He trembled, drenched in sweat.

"Hey! What are you two doing? Are you idiots just going to stand there?"

Naruto's voice cracked as he shouted. He kicked off the ground and charged forward.

He shoved Tazuna aside with one hand and grabbed Haruno Sakura with the other, tackling them both to the ground.

The spinning object shot past Sasuke and buried itself in a thick tree trunk, revealing itself in full.

It was an enormous sword with a broad blade and a long handle.

A muscular man with a bare upper body stood with his back to them, one foot planted on the sword to stop it.

"I didn't expect to run into the famous Copy Ninja, Kakashi of the Sharingan."

The man had no eyebrows, only a pair of pale, wolfish eyes visible above the bandages tightly wrapped around his nose and mouth. His voice came out muffled and oppressive. "No hard feelings. I want that old man."

The forest had been bathed in bright sunshine just a moment ago. Now, white mist drifted through the trees, making the scene all the more sinister.

"Ha! So it's the Kirigakure rogue ninja, Momochi Zabuza of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist."

Kakashi's tone remained flippant, and he still had his hands in his pockets. But, unusually, he stepped forward twice, placing himself in front of Team Seven.

Sasuke's thoughts raced, but his body remained frozen, as if he had a degenerative disease. That's right. This is that feeling.

The feeling that I could be killed in the blink of an eye.

It was as if he could see that night all over again: he had opened the door a crack and found the floor drenched in blood. His brother stood beside their parents' corpses, looking down at him coldly.

The killing intent of a Jonin had made him feel like a lamb awaiting slaughter, helplessness consuming his entire being.

Thud!

Sasuke was kicked to the ground.

"I'm trying to save people, and you're standing there in a daze!" Naruto's eyes blazed with anger. "You're scared stiff as a turtle! What the hell are you so damn proud of all the time?"

Sasuke's fingers dug into the dirt.

Haruno Sakura's qipao was torn, and her fair knees were scraped red from the ground.

She wasn't a coward, but it was her first time facing a Jonin's killing intent. Without any mental defenses to fall back on, she crumbled.

But she hadn't expected that the genius Sasuke she admired would be just as helpless, while Naruto wasn't affected at all.

Momochi Zabuza turned around on the sword's handle and crouched. "I'm glad you've heard of me. So, will you hand over that old man?"

Kakashi knew this was just the pre-fight tough talk. Whether he handed Tazuna over or not, a fight was inevitable.

He was just about to speak when he heard Naruto yell from behind him, "Hand him over? Hell no!"

"Exactly!" Kakashi laughed.

"Protect our client. I'll take care of him."

Zabuza seemed to have expected that. His gaze remained impassive. "Kakashi, looks like I'll have to take you down first."

He raised his index and middle fingers in front of him, and in an instant, he vanished along with his sword, leaving only the tree trunk behind.

Splash!

Ripples spread across the lake at the edge of the forest. Zabuza stepped onto the water as if it were solid ground.

"Ninja Art: Mist Technique!"

Mist rose from the water and filled the forest, growing so thick that people and animals alike were hard to make out from ten meters away.

Kakashi didn't hesitate. He lifted his Forehead Protector and pulled down his mask, revealing a scar that ran vertically down the left side of his face, from his eyebrow.

His eyelid opened, revealing a blood-red eye with three black Tomoe circling its pupil. It turned slowly.

Then the same voice came from all directions.

"Eight vital points! The throat, spine, lungs, heart..."

Fear invaded their minds once more.

Sasuke couldn't stand it. Summoning every last bit of strength, he pulled out a Kunai and stabbed it hard into his thigh.

Blood seeped through his shorts and ran into the bandage around his lower leg.

The pain jolted his nerves and cleared his mind. At last, he could move freely again.

Haruno Sakura bit her lip, heart aching for him.

Naruto merely glanced over, then continued to guard against attacks from every direction.

The mist was infused with so much Chakra that the whole world seemed full of killing intent. Even he couldn't tell where Momochi Zabuza was hiding.

At a time like this, he had to rely on battle sense and put himself in his enemy's shoes.

If he were Zabuza, what would he do for his first attack? Who would he target?

Without a doubt, the best target was Tazuna. One strike, one kill.

But that was too obvious. Kakashi had surely prepared to defend against such an attack—he might even have told them to protect Tazuna as bait.

So Zabuza would kill one of the brats and force Kakashi to abandon his defense.

Driven by an animalistic combat instinct, Naruto moved. Even though he hadn't spotted anything, he immediately stepped in front of Sasuke.

"Two Hundred Thousand Volts of Strength! Hell Sword!"

A shadow burst through the mist. Guided by a pale, muscular arm, the two-meter-long broad-bladed sword thrust forward without a sound.

Its blade collided head-on with Naruto's sword-like hand, blasting a cavity through the mist.

At the same time, Kakashi appeared behind Zabuza, who was bent forward in a thrusting stance, and drove a Kunai toward his heart.