The mist around them continued to thicken until they couldn't see their hands in front of their faces. Even Kakashi couldn't pinpoint Zabuza's location with his Sharingan.
From within the dense fog, Zabuza's voice rang out from every direction, accompanied by a powerful killing intent:
"Throat, spine, lungs, liver, carotid artery, subclavian vein, kidneys, heart... Which one do you want me to attack?"
But the four people in front of him reacted completely differently from what Zabuza had expected. They didn't even look the slightest bit nervous.
"'Silent Killing Technique of the Hidden Mist,' huh? If I were on my own, this would be pretty hard to handle."
Kakashi muttered under his breath, then raised his voice. "Naruto, blow this mist away!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!" ×10
The gale tore through the thick fog, ripped up the earth, and toppled trees.
Zabuza stood not far away, staring in astonishment at the scene, which looked as though a natural disaster had just swept through.
"Is that brat a monster? Just how much chakra does he have?!"
Zabuza cursed inwardly. He glanced at the surrounding area and realized things were going badly. "I've lost Kubikiribōchō, the trees around here have been blown away, and Haku won't be able to sneak up on them... Fighting the Copy Ninja and that monster brat under these circumstances puts me at a huge disadvantage. I need to find a way to retreat and come back prepared."
Kakashi had a rough idea of what Zabuza was thinking. He rushed toward him with a kunai in hand. "I won't let you escape."
"Tch!"
Zabuza made an irritated noise, casually pulled out a kunai, and began a close-quarters fight with Kakashi.
Sakura glanced at Tazuna behind her, then asked Naruto and Sasuke, "Are we just going to stand here and watch?"
Sasuke's expression was grim. "For now, there's no opening for us to get involved."
"Don't worry. Kakashi-sensei has the advantage right now."
Naruto looked relaxed. "Zabuza's probably used to wielding a big sword. He's stronger and faster without it, but his movements are a little awkward. And making all that mist just now must have used up a lot of his chakra."
As if to prove Naruto right, Zabuza started to suffer wounds after more than ten exchanges, while Kakashi remained unharmed.
"I see it."
Kakashi suddenly spoke. The three tomoe in his left eye slowly spun, seeming to draw people in. Then, as if he could see the future, he moved half a second ahead of time to dodge Zabuza's attack and stabbed his kunai through Zabuza's left forearm. "Your future: you die here."
Kakashi didn't need to say it. Zabuza could feel death closing in. But as long as he ran fast enough, death couldn't catch him!
Zabuza tensed his muscles and used brute force to make Kakashi retreat a little. Then he leaped backward, enduring the pain in his arm as he rapidly formed Hand Seals.
Kakashi widened his left eye. His hands began moving on their own, forming the same seals as Zabuza at the same speed.
"They're going to use a large-scale attack jutsu."
Sasuke frowned and looked behind him. "Naruto, do you know any defensive jutsu?"
"No, but it's fine."
Naruto stepped in front of them. "If you use it the right way, an attack jutsu can also work as a defense."
They formed Hand Seals and got ready.
Kakashi and Zabuza completed their jutsu almost simultaneously and shouted in unison, "Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
The nearby seawater surged upward, transforming into two enormous water dragons. They faced off for a moment before letting out a silent roar and crashing into each other.
They were only made of water, but there was a huge amount of it, and the chakra that strengthened them made the impact from their collision incredibly powerful. The ground shattered over a wide area around the point of impact, while the seawater crashed outward like raging waves, slamming into everything around them.
Naruto released a jutsu at just the right moment. "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough."
A powerful whirlwind burst from Naruto's mouth and met the onrushing seawater head-on, scattering and deflecting the water in front of them, as though an invisible "wall of wind" stood between them and the sea.
"So Wind Release can be used like this, too."
Sasuke watched the seawater being held back by the invisible wall of wind around them, wondering whether any of the jutsu he knew could be used in a similar way.
Sakura looked at Naruto with envy. "Having lots of chakra really is great!"
The aftershock from the two water dragons' collision took a full two minutes to die down completely.
Kakashi returned, drenched from head to toe. His Forehead Protector had been pulled down again, and his voice carried a note of exhaustion. "He still got away."
"He probably used that jutsu specifically to escape."
Naruto understood. "By the way, Kakashi-sensei, why did you use up your chakra so quickly? You didn't even use that many jutsu."
"Maybe it's because of the Sharingan. It's a power only the Uchiha Clan can use. When other people use it, they always have to pay a price."
Sasuke speculated, "But why does Kakashi-sensei have a Sharingan?"
"A friend gave it to me as a gift. It was also his keepsake."
Kakashi gently rubbed his Forehead Protector with two fingers, his tone calm. "As Sasuke said, although I can use the power of this Sharingan, I can't stop using it, so it keeps draining my chakra. I cover it with my Forehead Protector most of the time to reduce the chakra it uses a little."
"Your own power really is the most comfortable to use."
Naruto sighed, then asked, "Have you ever tried using Sealing Jutsu to control the eye?"
Kakashi nodded. "Sealing Jutsu can stop the Sharingan from continuously draining my chakra, but after applying the seal, I'd have to undo it every time I wanted to use the eye. That might not be possible in the middle of a fight."
"That's not what I meant."
Naruto explained, "I meant carving the sealing formula onto your Forehead Protector. That way, you could control the eye simply by moving the protector. It wouldn't completely stop the chakra drain, but it should be possible to reduce it by seventy or eighty percent."
"That does sound feasible."
Kakashi thought it over, then shook his head. "But I don't have that kind of skill, and there's no one in the village who can do it either."
"Hmm..."
Naruto pondered for a moment. "I can ask my master. If he doesn't want to do it himself, I should be able to manage it if I spend some time practicing."
"It's the thought that counts."
Kakashi smiled and ruffled Naruto's hair. "I've gotten used to it after all these years."
The five of them rested where they were until Kakashi had recovered, then set off to escort Tazuna home.
The Land of Waves was very poor, and Tazuna's family was in a similarly bad situation. Even so, his daughter did her best to host them.
Only Tazuna's grandson acted like a hopeless brat, sneering at Tazuna for building a bridge to resist Gato and mocking them for escorting Tazuna.
Tazuna apologized for his grandson and explained why the boy had become like this.
"I see. Then this is simple."
Naruto smiled. "My master once said that courage is easy to find and easy to lose. Even if you lose your courage, something can happen to rekindle it right away."
Tazuna hurriedly asked, "What do you mean by something?"
Naruto looked at Tazuna. "The bridge you're building."
Sasuke was the first to understand what Naruto meant. "Before the bridge is finished, Gato will definitely try to sabotage it."
Sakura understood, too. "When that happens, if we deal with Gato, Inari might be able to find his courage."
Naruto wanted to say that wasn't actually what he meant, but explaining it in detail seemed like too much trouble, so he said nothing.
That afternoon, Tazuna called on several workers he knew and continued building the bridge. Team 7 quietly stayed at the site to protect them...
Before you continue