"Seems like... it wouldn't get in the way."
Only a fool would tear down the bridge. Wasn't collecting tolls too good an opportunity to pass up?
"Then what else is there to worry about?"
Thinking it over, that did make sense. Even if the bridge was built, who would it belong to?
Everyone had paid for it, so of course it belonged to everyone. But wasn't that just a technicality?
At most, people wouldn't have to pay tolls anymore. But the other end of the bridge was in the Land of Fire. Could you stop them from collecting tolls over there?
So no matter who owned the bridge, it seemed like it made little difference.
Keiichi's suggestion had genuinely tempted Tazuna. He didn't care who the bridge belonged to. All he cared about was whether it could be built and whether it could bring new life to the impoverished Land of Waves!
"Mr. Tazuna, think of it this way. If you give the bridge to the Leaf Village as payment for the mission, then the bridge belongs to the Leaf Village. We can forget about whether this counts as a mission or not. Surely the Leaf Village can protect its own bridge, can't it? No matter how powerful Gato is, can he really be more powerful than the Leaf Village? Believe me, if we raise the Leaf Village's banner on the bridge, Gato will have to take a detour from now on. He won't even dare look at it."
Those words finally put Tazuna at ease.
So what if he really was spending money to make the Leaf Village his palu?
He was happy to be their palu!
While the iron was hot, Keiichi immediately took out a blank scroll and drafted an agreement, settling the matter then and there. The bridge connecting the Land of Waves and the Land of Fire would serve as payment for the mission. Valued at three million ryo, it would become the property of the Leaf Village.
The extra five hundred thousand ryo would cover the labor costs.
Keiichi couldn't stop smiling as he left with the agreement in hand.
He had every reason to be happy. There was far too much to gain from this.
Chapter 16: Kakashi's Dilemma
Don't forget, in the original story, this bridge was named the Naruto Bridge.
But now the naming rights belonged to the Leaf Village. Who would name it the Naruto Bridge?
This had been a momentous event in the original story. Wouldn't it earn him a huge pile of Magic Modification Points?
To be safe, he had even specified the bridge's name in the agreement: "Leaf Bridge"!
Sure enough, the moment the agreement was signed, fifty Magic Modification Points landed in his account, making him grin from ear to ear.
Even more remarkably, the plot modification percentage jumped to 0.43290%, the biggest increase in history.
And that wasn't all. With nothing but his silver tongue, he had saved the Leaf Village from a major economic loss. When he reported this to Hiruzen, could he possibly go unrewarded?
The mission was certain to be upgraded to A-rank, and the reward would be substantial. He could also improve the High Command's opinion of him—an intangible asset, but an asset all the same.
Next, all he had to do was deal with Zabuza, and everything would fall neatly into place.
And he already had a plan for that.
The Land of Waves was poor, so there wasn't much in Tazuna's house to serve his guests. Everyone hurriedly ate a simple lunch, then began their pre-battle training.
Kakashi, leaning on his crutch, began teaching his students the fundamentals of chakra control. He also devised a tree-climbing exercise to help them practice. Keiichi watched from the sidelines without joining in.
He could tell that Sakura had the best chakra control. She barely needed any training before easily meeting Kakashi's requirements.
No wonder she would inherit Tsunade's legacy in the future. Medical Ninjutsu demanded the most precise control.
That was a natural talent of the Haruno family, and something others could only envy.
Naruto and Sasuke weren't bad either. Their competitiveness spurred them to push one another, so they made rapid progress.
Once Kakashi had assigned each of his students their exercises, Keiichi finally went over and asked with a smile, "Lord Kakashi, when are you going to teach me the Water Clone Technique?"
"Huh? Haven't I already taught you?" Kakashi looked surprised.
Keiichi's smile turned bitter. He knew his own abilities. How would he know the Water Clone Technique? That was something the system had given him.
It looked like Kakashi planned to wriggle out of it... No, that wasn't quite right. Kakashi had agreed to vouch for him, not to teach him.
Besides, as far as Kakashi was concerned, Keiichi should already know the Water Clone Technique. Why would he need Kakashi to teach him?
"Fine, you're right..."
"Was there something else?"
"There's something I don't quite understand. Why are you only teaching them the basics instead of showing them some powerful ninjutsu?" Keiichi asked curiously.
As someone who knew the future, he knew perfectly well that, despite all three of them being Kakashi's students, Sasuke was the only one who learned anything from him: Chidori. Kakashi never taught them another technique.
Some might say Chidori was Lightning Style, so Naruto and Sakura couldn't learn it.
But don't forget who Kakashi was. He was the Copy Ninja who had copied over a thousand techniques. Surely he could find some ninjutsu suited to Naruto and Sakura?
Yet after being their teacher for so long, Kakashi hadn't passed on a single technique.
Kakashi looked a little surprised. He gave a bitter smile and waved his hand, unwilling to answer.
That single expression was enough to make Keiichi understand.
It was precisely because Kakashi was the Copy Ninja that he didn't dare teach them.
Look at how cautiously the great shinobi villages handled the bodies of their ninja. They assigned people specifically to retrieve them, all to prevent the villages' secret techniques from leaking out.
And Kakashi's ability to copy other people's techniques made their weaknesses and counters plain for all to see, didn't it?
That alone was a serious taboo. If he dared to pass on the techniques he had "stolen," he wouldn't be far from death. He would have the whole world against him.
So he only dared to teach Sasuke his own Chidori, because it was the only technique he could openly pass on without breaking any taboos.
Thinking about it that way, Kakashi's willingness to vouch for him over the Water Clone Technique was a far bigger favor than Keiichi had realized. Kakashi was risking his own life.
Keiichi suddenly realized how badly he had underestimated the severity of the era's closed-door thinking. Even someone as esteemed as Jiraiya, when he became Naruto's teacher, started by teaching him a technique created by the Fourth Hokage. That was simply returning what was rightfully his.
Then look at how wide the gap between Naruto and Sasuke had become when Naruto returned three years later.
Orochimaru, on the other hand, had no qualms about passing everything on. He really did dare to teach his student everything he knew.
Of course, he may have taught a little too much. The saying about a student starving his teacher to death could wait.
So perhaps Sasuke had seen something in his quest to become stronger and his decision to defect from the Leaf Village. Given Kakashi's teaching abilities, by the end of their three years, he might not even be able to beat Naruto.
He had been overconfident back then. Revealing that he knew Fire Dragon Flame Bullet had been far more dangerous than he'd imagined. Luckily, he had gotten through it without a hitch.
Kakashi had no idea that one expression of his had led Keiichi to make all these connections. He was still worried about the threat Zabuza posed.
"Lord Kakashi, I actually have an idea that might solve the problem with Zabuza," Keiichi said, getting down to business.
"Oh? Let's hear it."
"Zabuza was hired by Gato. If we take Gato out, won't Zabuza have no reason to get involved in all this?"
Keiichi pointed in a certain direction, brimming with confidence.
Kakashi followed his finger. A magnificent, gleaming building stood out starkly in the village, which otherwise resembled a slum. It was the headquarters of the Gato Shipping Company.
"If only things were really that simple," Kakashi said with a bitter smile.
"What do you mean?"
"Gato is one of the richest men in the world. With wealth like that, do you think no one has ever set their sights on him? So why is he still alive and well?"
"That is strange. His men are nothing more than a bunch of down-and-out samurai. They might be able to deal with ordinary people, but how could they possibly stand up to us ninja?" Keiichi furrowed his brow.
For that matter, was the Akatsuki really so busy raising money that they hadn't noticed a fat target like Gato?
They could send anyone after him and make him behave himself.
"Remember those two Kirigakure Ninja we met at the start? They're actually listed in our Anbu records. They're called the Demon Brothers."
"Does that mean..."
"They belong to Kirigakure's Anbu. Like our Anbu, they answer directly to the Kage and are usually responsible only for protecting the village and the country."
Keiichi suddenly understood. The Demon Brothers were members of Kirigakure's Anbu, yet they were being used by Gato. Who would believe he had no connection to the Mizukage?
"So Kirigakure is backing Gato?"
"Exactly."
Though Kakashi had seen a lot in his time, he hadn't thought much of it at first. It wasn't until he encountered Zabuza that he suddenly put the pieces together.
"That doesn't make sense. If that's true, why would Zabuza, a Mist Village Rogue Ninja, become one of Gato's men?"
"You could say that's exactly why Zabuza had no choice but to work with Gato after defecting. Gato was the person he knew best." Kakashi spoke with absolute confidence.
Gato surely wasn't content to be the Mizukage's puppet. His decision to control Zabuza rather than hand him over might well mean he planned to carve out a domain of his own.
Keiichi's thoughts went further. He knew that the Mizukage at this time was actually being controlled by Obito, while Gato was the Mizukage's purse. By extension, wasn't he the Akatsuki's purse too?
No wonder the Akatsuki weren't interested in a fat target like Gato. He was already meat in their own bowl!
Chapter 17: Drawing a Strong Woman and Calling Her a Man
With that, Keiichi's plan fell apart. He had thought that taking out Gato would solve the problem with Zabuza, but things had turned out to be much more complicated.
Still, he couldn't bring himself to wait until both sides were back at full strength and then follow the original story into a brutal final battle.
Was anyone going to let him earn Magic Modification Points or not?
If they wanted to get stronger, couldn't they stop following the script for once?
Kakashi was out of commission, but so was Zabuza. They were both recovering. It was the perfect time to take advantage of Zabuza's weakness.
But who knew where Zabuza was recovering?
No. Someone did know—Gato, for example.
But after hearing Kakashi's explanation, Keiichi didn't dare storm Gato's headquarters. Who knew how many swordsmen from Kirigakure were hiding inside?
After pondering it for a long time, Keiichi decided to try his luck. He vaguely remembered that Zabuza's hideout was somewhere in the forest. The Land of Waves was surrounded by sea on three sides, with a forest only to the east.
While Team 7 trained, Keiichi came and went from dawn to dusk, dispatching Shadow Clones every day and searching the entire forest without sparing his chakra.
But even by the third day, he still hadn't found anything. The forest was much larger than he'd imagined. Searching it like this was no different from looking for a needle in a haystack, and his anxiety kept mounting.
Meanwhile, Tazuna, who was overseeing construction of the bridge, had run into trouble of his own. One after another, workers had asked to resign in recent days. Now even the friend who had supported him the most couldn't go on.
"Give up. You know how powerful Gato is. There's no way we'll ever finish this bridge."
"How can you give up when we're so close? The happiness of the people of the Land of Waves depends on this!" Tazuna urged him.
"But I'm afraid I'll die here first! Haven't you noticed? Quite a few people in the village have gone missing lately. They're all supporters of the bridge project. It must be Gato's doing!"
"Don't be afraid. This time, I've hired ninja from the Leaf Village. They'll protect us."
"Don't joke around. You mean those four brats? You really expect them to take on Gato? Do you know how many men he has?"
"No, I can assure you that no matter how many men Gato has, he wouldn't dare touch our bridge!"
"What are you talking about? You're crazy! Is there anything Gato wouldn't dare do?"
"I'll tell you the truth. I've already sold the bridge to the Leaf Village. Its name is the Leaf Bridge now."
"What?!" His friend grabbed Tazuna by the collar, visibly worked up.
Tazuna closed his eyes, ready to take his friend's furious Friendship Face-Breaking Fist.
But the expected pain never came. Instead, he heard his friend's voice, full of excitement and emotion—
"Is that true?! You really sold it?"
"Yes, I sold it..."
"Wonderful! You did exactly the right thing. Now, would Gato dare touch our bridge? How did you come up with such a brilliant idea?"
Tazuna had never expected his friend to react like that. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The news spread quickly. All the workers on the bridge gathered around. When they heard, their faces lit up with joy, and they tossed Tazuna into the air again and again, letting their happiness spill out.
They didn't care who owned the bridge. They only knew that all their hard work wouldn't be wasted, and that the Land of Waves really would be saved this time!
"Quick, quick! Put up the Leaf Village's emblems all over the bridge!" Tazuna finally came to his senses and hurriedly gave the order.
"Yes!" This time, they were more enthusiastic and eager than ever.
Tazuna wiped the sweat from his forehead. He had always felt that something was off, and wondered whether he'd been tricked by the ninja named Keiichi. But in that moment, he suddenly felt that he had made the best decision of his life.
The bridge had been worth selling!
Before you continue