The Kubikiribōchō, a Rather Useless Blade / Borrowing the Fox's Might

Especially after he got a clear look at Haku's face, he felt even worse.

Though they had met only once, he'd taken a liking to this "big sister." Talking with her had felt like looking at his past self.

He knew she'd killed so many villagers, yet somehow he just couldn't bring himself to hate her.

Now she was dead by his hand. He didn't exactly regret it, but the pain was real.

He felt hollow inside, as if he'd lost something.

What should I do now?

Keep killing, and finish off Zabuza?

The thought filled Naruto with revulsion. He didn't want to kill anyone again. Not at all.

But just because he didn't want to kill didn't mean Zabuza wouldn't want to kill him.

He hadn't noticed that Zabuza's gesture of seeming to kiss Haku on the cheek was actually meant to take the hairpin she used to tie up her hair between his teeth. At last, he'd gotten the weapon he wanted.

You'll die with Haku!

Zabuza ignored his injuries completely and appeared in front of Naruto in an instant. He twisted his head, aiming to drive the hairpin through Naruto's neck, and Naruto was completely unprepared!

But in the next moment, a hand blocked the hairpin at Naruto's throat, stopping it by the narrowest margin.

The hairpin had pierced straight through his palm.

Naruto jumped in fright. Only then did he realize how close he'd come to death, and he hurriedly backed away.

"Keiichi!" He finally saw who had saved him.

As he looked at Haku's lifeless body on the ground, Keiichi seemed not to feel any pain at all. Instead, he smiled at Naruto.

"Nice work, Naruto."

Nice work? That was an understatement!

The moment Haku died, Keiichi received a notification from the system:

A killing spree! Naruto, who had never killed anyone before, was forced to kill. Gained 50 Magic Modification Points.

This was the biggest windfall he'd ever gotten. How could Keiichi not be happy?

He even felt much more warmly toward Naruto now. The way he looked at him was like the way someone looked at an elite monster that dropped gold!

What was a little injury in exchange for that?

Once Haku was dead, Keiichi knew the fight was all but won. Zabuza might have looked like a cornered beast, but his movements had reopened his wounds. Blood soaked through his bandages and dripped onto the floor. If he kept fighting, he'd bleed to death before long.

Badly wounded and without the Kubikiribōchō, Zabuza couldn't possibly fight at his peak. He could barely even hold a kunai, and had to attack with the hairpin clenched in his teeth. How much of a threat could he really be?

His arms were trembling. Even if he had time to form Hand Seals, he probably wouldn't have been able to manage it!

Keiichi handled him with effortless grace. The Sharingan saw through every move, allowing Keiichi to dodge one attack after another with ease.

Zabuza might have been able to kill a few small fry in this condition, but he was nowhere near a match for a ninja!

Before long, Zabuza collapsed and stopped moving. The adrenaline rush had briefly made him forget the pain, but once it wore off, he became like a rusted machine, slower and clumsier by the second.

Looking at Zabuza's dying state, Keiichi felt a pang of sympathy. If he'd really been given another week to recover, perhaps he could've returned to elite Jonin level.

But what could he do? Keiichi had found this place early.

"Kill me. I don't want to..."

"Sure." Before Zabuza could finish, Keiichi slashed his throat.

Zabuza, the Demon, died in Keiichi's hands, without ceremony.

Once the tension drained away, Naruto slumped to the ground, staring blankly at the two bodies.

Just as Keiichi was about to seal the bodies in a scroll, Naruto suddenly spoke.

"I want to bury them myself."

"Do you know how many secrets about their jutsu they're carrying? Taking them back to the Leaf Village would be the best choice."

"I know, but I..." Naruto grabbed at his hair in frustration, unable to find a reason that would convince Keiichi.

"All right. We'll do it your way."

"Huh...?" Naruto looked surprised.

"We took advantage of them. If we don't give them a proper burial, I'm afraid they'll come back as ghosts and haunt us." Keiichi stuck out his tongue, putting on a frightened expression.

"Heh... heh..." Naruto tried to laugh, but couldn't quite manage it.

In the end, Keiichi burned the entire hideout down. He and Naruto dug a large pit nearby and buried the dead villagers along with Zabuza and Haku. Then they took the Kubikiribōchō as a trophy and retraced their steps.

By the time they got back, dawn had finally broken. It had been an unforgettable night.

When they returned to Tazuna's house and saw Kakashi sitting at the entrance with a dark expression, they both guiltily looked away.

Chapter 23: The Kubikiribōchō, a Rather Useless Blade

Sakura had returned first, carrying the unconscious Sasuke on her back. Clearly, Kakashi already knew what had happened.

"Keiichi, I heard this was all your idea," Kakashi said, his tone very unfriendly.

"Here's what happened..." Keiichi had already prepared his explanation and began to lay out his reasons.

He started with Naruto's encounter with Haku, then explained that he'd noticed Haku's steps weren't like those of an ordinary person. They showed signs of ninja training, so Keiichi had grown suspicious and followed him. He hadn't expected to find Zabuza's hideout.

After confirming that Zabuza had lost his ability to fight, he'd decided Haku was the only enemy they needed to deal with. Kakashi was badly injured, too, so the only ones who could still fight were the four of them.

They were all the same age. Surely they could win in a four-on-one fight!

So they'd gone straight there. If they succeeded, they'd be making a huge gain.

Besides, what if they failed? From the day they became ninja, they'd been prepared to sacrifice themselves at any moment.

Keiichi's explanation was logical and convincing, but Kakashi didn't see it that way.

Keiichi had come from the Cannon Fodder Class, where their teacher had drilled into them a fearlessness in the face of sacrifice. Of course, he didn't care if people died.

But did he understand how important Naruto was?!

He had no idea!

But that was exactly what made Kakashi so frustrated. He couldn't explain to a twelve-year-old why Naruto was different from the others.

The only thing that comforted him was that Naruto was still alive and kicking, and they'd even won.

They'd won!

It was unbelievable!

From Sakura's account, that guy named Haku had been a Kekkei Genkai user. Kakashi had thought he'd taken the threat seriously enough, but he'd still badly underestimated it.

Haku had been a Jonin-level opponent!

If Kakashi had known beforehand, even his most optimistic guess wouldn't have been that four inexperienced Genin could beat a Jonin.

Just making it back alive would've been impressive.

And yet they'd won, with every single one of them surviving.

What did a few injuries matter? They'd recover after a couple of days in bed.

The outcome was good, but Kakashi still felt annoyed. Keiichi was nothing but trouble. He had far too many ideas, and he actually dared to act on them. He was nothing like a cautious ninja.

Of course, his three students weren't exactly easy to handle, either. Put those four together and they could punch a hole in the sky.

They'd succeeded this time entirely thanks to luck. They might not be so fortunate next time.

All he wanted now was to finish the mission and return to the Leaf Village as soon as possible. He couldn't let his students spend any more time with Keiichi. Who knew what else they'd get up to?

"Keiichi, we have to distinguish between merit and fault. As your squad leader, I should have been the one you reported that vital information to. You disobeyed orders and acted on your own. The outcome was good, but you still have to accept punishment. Understood?"

"I accept."

"Good! You'll stay here for the next few days. You're not going anywhere until the mission is over."

Ah, he was under house arrest...

"Yes..." Keiichi replied listlessly.

"What are you hiding behind your back?"

"Just a lousy sword." Keiichi looked a little guilty.

"A lousy sword? This is one of the Seven Ninja Swords of Kirigakure, and it can even repair damage on its own. It's the Severing Sword. Though it's your battle trophy, do you really think you can keep it?"

"If the sword is really that important, why not take it out and trade it with Kirigakure? I'm sure it could win the Leaf Village quite a few benefits." Keiichi's eyes shifted as he said this with a smile.

"You're willing to hand it over?" Kakashi looked surprised.

This wasn't just an ordinary ninja tool. For someone like Keiichi, a cannon-fodder type, wielding it could completely change his fortunes and send him straight to the top.

"It's just a possession. If you want to get stronger, what matters most is yourself." Keiichi shook his head and casually tossed the Kubikiribōchō to one side, not even looking at it.

More importantly, he knew that compared to the other Seven Ninja Swords, the Kubikiribōchō was the worst by far. It was practically there to make up the numbers.

Aside from repairing itself with blood, what else did it have going for it?

The 50 Magic Modification Points were the most valuable thing he'd gained from this fight!

Besides, the Kubikiribōchō was much too heavy for a kid like him.

By the time he was old enough to use it, the Fourth Great Ninja War might already be over.

It was of little use, but too good to throw away. Trading it to the Leaf Village for some benefits was the more practical choice.

Kakashi nodded. The kid really was clever. He knew exactly what he wanted, and if he kept growing at this rate, who knew what the future might hold?

After getting Keiichi settled, Kakashi devoted all his attention to Sasuke. He hadn't expected the boy to come out of this with his Sharingan awakened.

That made Kakashi the most suitable teacher for him. When it came to using the Sharingan, there was no one in the entire village who understood it better.

Naruto had grown a lot, too. Even if he'd had some help, killing an opponent like Haku was no easy feat.

Thinking about it, it seemed Keiichi's decision to act on his own had brought nothing but benefits. Could he really be a lucky star?

But when Sakura asked him to teach her medical ninjutsu, he found himself in a difficult position.

It wasn't that he couldn't teach her. He didn't dare.

Long ago, Lord Hiruzen had told him how difficult it was to follow the path of the Copy Ninja. If he didn't want to make enemies, he absolutely shouldn't share the things he'd "stolen."

Fortunately, he couldn't copy the secret techniques of Kekkei Genkai. Otherwise, he wouldn't have survived to this day after angering all those Kekkei Genkai clans.

What should he do? Kakashi fell into thought.

When Sasuke woke up, he couldn't wait to try activating his Sharingan. He succeeded at once, and was beside himself with excitement.

But when he found out that while he'd been unconscious, Haku and Zabuza had both died at the hands of Naruto and Keiichi, he fell silent again.

From then on, Sasuke trained every day despite his injuries, even more diligently than before. It was as if an invisible whip were driving him from behind, and he didn't dare stop for a moment.

Before Kakashi's injuries had even fully healed, trouble broke out at the bridge.

Gato suddenly stormed the construction site with a large group of men, beating anyone they saw and forcing the workers to stop.

It was all because a sudden, thick fog had blocked their view. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been caught without time to escape.

Tazuna hurried back to report what had happened. As soon as Sasuke heard, he couldn't sit still. Without even saying goodbye, he headed straight for the bridge.

Sakura hurried after him, unable to hide the worry on her face. Sasuke's injuries hadn't fully healed yet.

Kakashi found out too late and couldn't stop Sasuke, so he lifted Keiichi's house arrest and told him to hurry over and help.

Naruto had gone into town early to buy supplies. Otherwise, having one more person there would've made them a little safer.

Gato wasn't strong, and his men were just a bunch of useless thugs, no matter how many there were. The real headache for Kakashi was the Kirigakure Ninja behind Gato.

They'd taken down Zabuza and Haku, but that didn't mean the rest of the mission would be easy.

Chapter 24: Borrowing the Fox's Might

The villagers thought flying the Leaf Village flag would scare Gato away. They were sorely mistaken.

Was Gato afraid of the Leaf Village?

Of course he was.