Shadow Clone Technique

Zabuza's residence wasn't far away.

He was a rogue jōnin from Kirigakure, and he was very powerful.

Even Gato treated him with the utmost respect.

Yuki Haku led the way, with Su Yu following behind him. They arrived at a house.

The two of them went inside.

Yuki Haku stopped in front of a room.

"Lord Zabuza, a shinobi from Konoha wants to see you."

"A shinobi from Konoha?" a man's voice came from inside the room.

The door opened right after that.

Zabuza appeared before Su Yu.

He saw the Konoha Forehead Protector on Su Yu's head, and his expression turned cold.

"Lord Zabuza, greetings. I'm one of Lord Orochimaru's pawns, as well as a Konoha Genin." Su Yu bowed to Zabuza.

"Orochimaru's pawn?" Zabuza's eyes showed some surprise.

Who came out and said something like that right away?

"Lord Zabuza, I came to see you for one reason: I want to work with you to take out Gato and plunder his vault." Su Yu lowered his voice.

Zabuza was taken aback by his words.

Take out Gato?

"Lord Zabuza, Gato is just a short-sighted merchant who can't see the value of the Land of Waves. With your strength, why remain under someone else's thumb? If you get your hands on Gato's wealth, you could accomplish a lot. For example, you could establish a shinobi village, just like Lord Orochimaru." Su Yu continued.

"Establish a shinobi village?" Zabuza's pupils narrowed.

"The Land of Waves is small and easy to manage. Once that bridge is finished, life here will improve. You could use the bridge to negotiate with the people who govern this place and convince them to provide the funds to establish a shinobi village. With your strength and reputation, Lord Zabuza, I doubt they'd refuse—and they wouldn't dare refuse you." Su Yu spoke slowly.

"How can I be sure you're telling the truth?" Zabuza asked after a moment of silence.

"All you have to do is create a thick fog tomorrow morning. I can take out Gato and find his vault. Have Haku accompany me, and I'll take only forty percent of the wealth. The remaining sixty percent will be yours." Su Yu spoke each word carefully.

Zabuza looked uncertain.

"Afterward, I can also tell you some secrets about the Bloody Mist Era," Su Yu added.

Zabuza looked Su Yu over carefully.

"I hope your secrets will interest me."

"You'll be shocked. You'll hate them."

A smile touched Su Yu's face.

Then he looked at Yuki Haku.

"I need a sparring partner to help me train."

"Haku, train with him," Zabuza said indifferently.

"Yes." Yuki Haku obeyed.

Half an hour later.

In the forest.

"Do you know how I found you?" Su Yu asked, looking at Yuki Haku.

Yuki Haku shook his head.

"Byakugan, activate!" Su Yu activated his Byakugan.

Yuki Haku froze, looking surprised.

"This is my biggest secret. If Lord Zabuza found out, he'd definitely try to kill me and take my eyes," Su Yu said earnestly.

Yuki Haku opened his mouth, but no words came out.

"I'm telling you because I know you're a kind person. You were born into an ordinary family, but your family was torn apart when you awakened your Ice Release bloodline. After that, you wandered the streets of the Land of Water until you met Zabuza, who needed you." Su Yu looked at him.

Yuki Haku stared at Su Yu in disbelief.

How did he know all that?

"I know a lot of things. Unfortunately, I'm too weak to change anything," Su Yu said regretfully.

"You're not weak," Yuki Haku said softly.

"You don't understand what the future holds. Our enemies may be at Kage Level. If we aren't strong enough, we won't even have the courage to face them." Su Yu shook his head.

"Our enemies are at Kage Level?" Yuki Haku was stunned.

"Lord Zabuza's enemy isn't just someone with Kage Level strength. They also have the Mangekyō Sharingan. If we want to capture them, we'll have only a split second to act," Su Yu said quietly.

"The Mangekyō Sharingan!" Yuki Haku remembered Zabuza once telling him that there was an Uchiha Itachi in the Shinobi World who possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Could that Uchiha Itachi be Lord Zabuza's enemy?

"I want to get stronger not just to deal with our enemy, but to protect myself, too. Your Kekkei Genkai is special. If you make good use of it, you can definitely help Lord Zabuza." Su Yu looked Yuki Haku in the eye.

"I'm Lord Zabuza's tool," Yuki Haku replied.

"You're not a tool. The two of you share a bond. If you died, Zabuza would grieve." Su Yu's expression turned complicated.

"Lord Zabuza wouldn't grieve. I'm just a tool." Yuki Haku shook his head.

Su Yu didn't argue with him.

They would only understand each other's feelings when it happened—and by then, it would be too late.

As the sun was setting.

Su Yu returned to Tazuna's house.

He'd eaten the dinner Yuki Haku had prepared in the forest, so he wasn't hungry at all.

After Uzuki Yugao finished dinner, she saw Su Yu standing on the water.

There was a hint of approval in her eyes as she walked up behind him.

"Teacher Uzuki Yugao, could you teach me the Shadow Clone Technique?" Su Yu asked.

"The Shadow Clone Technique? Of course." Uzuki Yugao considered it for a moment.

Su Yu turned around and watched Uzuki Yugao perform the Shadow Clone Technique. Then he copied the hand sign.

Two shadow clones appeared.

"Your chakra is already close to a Chunin's level. A few more days of hard work should do it," Uzuki Yugao reminded him.

"I understand." Su Yu could feel it himself.

Chakra could be extracted from one's cells. Through constant training and conditioning the body, one could increase their chakra.

With the bloodline of the Uzumaki Clan, he was like someone sitting on a mountain of gold, able to keep digging for more.

The deeper his Uzumaki Clan bloodline awakened, the more chakra he would have, and he could gain other abilities as well.

For example, his sensory abilities would improve, his Sealing Jutsu would become more effective, and he could even learn Medical Ninjutsu.

Su Yu sat cross-legged and began to refine his chakra.

The two shadow clones began sparring, honing their Taijutsu.

Uzuki Yugao watched Su Yu train hard, then quietly left.

A long while later.

Su Yu opened his eyes. His chakra had increased by about ten percent.

The two shadow clones vanished.

His head felt heavy as memories of the two clones fighting came back to him. His chakra was still plentiful.

"The Uzumaki Clan's bloodline is really useful," Su Yu thought.

When night fell.

Su Yu left a shadow clone behind and quietly slipped away.

His real body appeared not far from the Gato Building.

Many wandering samurai were gathered here. It was also where Gato lived.