"Lord Fourth Mizukage, the Kaguya Clan's rebellion has been put down."
"From today onward, the Kaguya Clan no longer exists in this world." Yagura had a baby face and looked young, but in truth, he already had grandchildren.
Yagura had green hair and purple eyes, with an unhealed, stitched-up scar beneath his left eye. "Everyone can return to the village. Zabuza, come with me."
Zabuza Momochi obeyed Yagura's command.
"The daimyo of the Land of Water has issued a mission to protect a wealthy merchant. Go take care of it."
Dragging the Kubikiribōchō behind him, Zabuza agreed without hesitation.
Kirigakure's development depended on the support of the daimyo of the Land of Water.
Yagura had confidence in Zabuza's strength.
Amid the thick fog, Kirigakure slowly came into view.
After reinforcing the village's defenses, Yagura headed to his office alone.
Suddenly, a vortex appeared in front of him.
"Sharingan Genjutsu." Uchiha Obito appeared and immediately activated the ocular power of his Mangekyō Sharingan, trapping Yagura in an illusion. His hatred spread through the surrounding area.
Yagura had no time to fight back. His eyes glazed over as the genjutsu took hold.
"Kisame, you did well," Uchiha Obito said hoarsely.
Kisame Hoshigaki came out carrying Samehada, the greatsword. With his shark-like face and towering build, he said, "I agreed to join Akatsuki and help you carry out your Eye of the Moon plan."
Uchiha Obito said, "Go to the Land of Rain. Akatsuki will receive you there."
"Things are about to get interesting." Kisame used the Body Flicker Technique and vanished.
Uchiha Obito stared at Yagura's face, and the memory of Rin's death surfaced in his mind. "Yagura, I'll make you destroy all of Kirigakure with your own hands. Let's see how despair feels!"
Uchiha Obito used Kamui and left without a sound.
Yagura used the Body Flicker Technique to reach the outskirts of the village. Poisonous gas poured from his body and mixed with the mist.
From then on, without Yagura's permission, no one could enter or leave Kirigakure.
After three days on the road, Naruto finally set foot on the land of the Land of Water.
However, it would still take Naruto a little time to pinpoint Kirigakure's exact location.
It wasn't that difficult. Kirigakure's shinobi still came out to take on missions. Naruto sensed the area for chakra, then picked out shinobi wearing Kirigakure Forehead Protectors. After questioning them by force, he learned that Kirigakure lay deep in the mountains, surrounded by thick fog.
"Four people currently have Ninja Swords. I'll just take one from whoever I run into." Naruto thought making a plan would waste too much time. He only needed to collect one Ninja Sword to complete his mission, and he didn't have enough time to collect all seven.
Naruto bought three servings of fish sushi from a street corner. As he walked toward the end of the street with the bag in hand, he saw three beggars who looked about ten years old kicking a little beggar.
"Picking on someone smaller than you? That's not right."
Naruto pushed off lightly and shot forward, knocking the biggest beggar flying while holding back.
The beggars crashed into the wall beside them. They stared at Naruto in terror, then screamed and ran away.
"Are you okay?" Naruto asked with concern as he helped the little beggar up. The moment his right hand touched the other child, an Ice Needle suddenly pierced his skin. "Yikes, a jutsu?"
The little beggar raised his head in a panic. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. They were trying to steal my food. I just didn't want to go hungry."
He seemed quite cute. Naruto could tell from the shape of the little beggar's face, even though he was filthy from head to toe and had blood smeared across his face.
The wound on Naruto's hand healed in the blink of an eye. "It's okay. I just bought some sushi. You can have it. The food in your hands smells rotten. You can't eat it."
The little beggar seemed suspicious.
Naruto took a piece of sushi and ate a bite. "I can tell you're no ordinary kid, and neither am I, so don't worry. I won't hurt you."
The little beggar was so hungry that the last of his doubts disappeared. He immediately grabbed the sushi and ate it in big bites, tears streaming down his face as he ate.
On the road, he had begged, been beaten, and gone hungry.
He understood how hard it was to stay alive.
"I'm Naruto. What's your name?" Naruto sat down on the ground.
Haku told him his name.
Naruto asked one more question. "Are you a boy or a girl?"
His clothes made him look like a boy, but his face looked like a girl's.
After eating the sushi, Haku had regained his strength. "A boy."
Naruto held out his hand. "Haku, come with me from now on! Someone with your abilities shouldn't starve to death on the street."
Haku looked a little timid. "I can't control my body. I might hurt you. You're a good person."
He could use jutsu without making Hand Seals. Naruto thought he'd run into a child with a Kekkei Genkai. If he took Haku back to Konoha and had Kushina teach him, perhaps Haku could find a clearer path, just like Karin.
Naruto put Haku's worries to rest. "I can teach you how to control it. Come on, I'll take you to get cleaned up and find you some fresh clothes."
Haku let Naruto take his hand.
Naruto's hand was warm, and Haku seemed to come back to life.
To realize one's own worth, hard work mattered, but meeting the right person mattered just as much.
Haku had spent some time begging in the Land of Water and knew the area better than Naruto did.
After getting cleaned up, Haku revealed a spotless face. He really did look like a gentle little girl.
"Kirigakure is in those mountains, Naruto-kun. There are lots of powerful shinobi in Kirigakure. Why are you looking for it?" Following Naruto's guidance, Haku quickly learned to control the flow of chakra in his body, which stopped his Kekkei Genkai from activating at random.
Naruto could already see thick fog covering the area ahead, just as the intel had described. "Haku, if I hadn't come looking for Kirigakure, I never would've met you. It was all fate. But more importantly, I'm interested in Kirigakure's Ninja Swords. I came to take one and play with it."
Haku's gaze was resolute. "Naruto-kun, I'll help you."
Naruto smiled. "If you want to help me, first you need to protect yourself. Let's go into the mountains."
Kirigakure had been built here not only because of the fog that blanketed the area year-round, but also because of the powerful beasts in the mountains. Ordinary people who wandered in would usually end up as food in a beast's belly.
"Take this!" Naruto used the Body Flicker Technique and kicked a black bear hard in the head.
Heavy iron weights were strapped to the soles of Naruto's shoes. He could train his body with them at any time, and now they could double as a weapon.
Economical and practical.
The black bear's head was bleeding. It fled in fear.
"Fighting monsters doesn't even earn experience. Having one charge out every few minutes is a huge waste of time." Naruto carried a compass to keep himself from getting lost in the fog.
Haku focused on forming Ice Needles. He was making rapid progress.
Naruto grabbed Haku and leaped behind a large tree, landing beside its trunk. "There's a chakra presence. Let's wait here and see."
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