Gato

"Did... did we win?..."

The scene fell into a deathly silence. Naruto felt as if he had just woken from a nightmare, unable to believe his eyes.

Suddenly, a shout of excitement from Tazuna shattered the stillness.

Tazuna trotted over to Sasuke, his demeanor overly enthusiastic, and grabbed Sasuke's hand, exclaiming, "Sasuke, this time it's all thanks to you!"

"Truly, a hero emerges from the youth! In the days to come, you must never forget your Uncle Tazuna! Hahahaha..."

He followed this with a burst of awkward laughter.

Sasuke stared at him, completely bewildered.

Has this guy figured something out? he wondered. Why is he suddenly being so enthusiastic toward me? And what's with 'the days to come'?...

"We should hurry and get Tazuna back home," Kakashi said cautiously from the side. "Although we are already within the borders of the Land of Waves, we aren't safe until we reach our destination."

Seeing the weariness in Kakashi's expression, Tazuna waved his hand dismissively and said generously, "Right, right! Let's all head to my house; I'll treat you all to a proper feast..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Kakashi clutched his forehead, his body swayed, his feet stumbled, and he collapsed directly onto the ground.

"Kakashi-sensei!..."

Team 7 and Tazuna cried out in alarm, sprinting over to Kakashi's side.

A few days later, at Tazuna's home in the Land of Waves.

"Ugh... have we finally reached our destination?..."

As he slowly opened his eyes, he saw Team 7 and Tazuna standing around him. He didn't know when he had been moved onto a bed.

Feeling his chakra reserves restored and full within his dantian, Kakashi propped himself up with his arms and sat up.

He looked at the group beside him and said, "My apologies, I've caused you all trouble..."

Hearing this, Sakura glanced at Sasuke before saying, "Sensei, it was Sasuke who insisted on carrying you back the whole way."

"The mountain paths were rugged; it wasn't easy at all."

"Yeah, yeah! Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke really had it rough..."

After all, Sasuke had been the one to step in and save the entire Team 7 this time. Plus, Sasuke had promised to treat him to all the ramen he could eat once they got back, so for once, Naruto nodded along in agreement.

At the mention of Sasuke, the previously hazy look in Kakashi's eyes suddenly brightened. He turned to Sasuke and asked, "Sasuke, that technique you used earlier—was that the Flying Thunder God Slash?..."

Flying Thunder God Slash?...

Sasuke hadn't even noticed until Kakashi mentioned it. His Dance of the Crescent Moon: Second Form, Star Treading, did indeed bear a resemblance to that space-time ninjutsu.

After a pause, Sasuke shook his head. Since they were on the same side, he chose to be completely honest and responded, "No, this is the Dance of the Crescent Moon: Second Form, Star Treading."

"Heh... Kakashi-sensei, do you want to learn it?..."

Although Gekko Hayate had previously asked Sasuke not to leak the Dance of the Crescent Moon, the technique had been enhanced by the system. Coupled with his own understanding of swordsmanship, the version he used now already differed from the original. Furthermore, since Kakashi wasn't a ninja from another village but one of their own from Konoha, teaching him this move wouldn't technically violate his oath.

However, good things required a trade. Free things always had their price marked in the dark.

"If your teacher Kakashi wants to learn it, then trade me Chidori for it, hehe..."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed slightly. Seeing Sasuke smirk after saying that, just like when he sneak-attacked Zabuza before, he suspected the boy was up to no good again...

Thinking this, he cleared his throat and cautiously replied:

"Uh... let's forget it... I don't have enough chakra right now, so you should keep practicing your swordsmanship yourself..."

Although Dance of the Crescent Moon didn't primarily require chakra to activate, much like the Eight Inner Gates.

But hearing this, Sasuke didn't insist. Instead, he changed the subject and asked:

"Teacher Kakashi, speaking of not having enough chakra, you suddenly fainted earlier. Was it because you overused the Sharingan and depleted your chakra?..."

Upon hearing this, Kakashi glanced thoughtfully at Sasuke and then nodded:

"That's right, it was because of the Sharingan."

"Sasuke, you also have the Sharingan. You need to be mindful of this in the future, so you don't faint mid-battle due to insufficient chakra..."

"Mhm, thank you, teacher..."

Sasuke replied cautiously, frowning.

But at that moment.

The door behind them was suddenly pulled open.

A young boy ran in.

He wore a straw hat, had a delicate face, and was dressed like Luffy.

As soon as he entered, he ran into Tazuna's arms:

"Grandpa, you're back..."

"Oh, Inari, my dear granddaughter, you're so good..."

Tazuna said, pulling Inari into his embrace, doting on her with a happy expression.

It was a girl...

Sasuke's gaze was odd. Honestly, he hadn't recognized her when he first saw Inari...

The little girl seemed to sense Sasuke's scrutinizing gaze. She turned her head, glanced at Team 7, and then said crisply to Tazuna:

"Grandpa, these guys are all going to die. They have no chance of winning against Gato..."

"Gato?..."

The four members of Team 7 froze. The little girl's words were astonishing and left them bewildered.

Seeing this, Tazuna looked at them with some embarrassment:

"Children say things without thinking, children say things without thinking, everyone..."

"This child is like this. She lost her parents at a young age and speaks without a filter. I apologize..."

Sasuke was the first to sense something amiss in her words and turned to ask:

"Uncle Tazuna, who is this Gato that Inari mentioned?"

"Why do I feel like this child is very afraid of him?..."

Hearing this, Tazuna sighed and replied:

"Gato is the boss behind the scenes who has vowed to destroy everyone involved in building the Mother Bridge this time."

"The Zabuza you encountered earlier was likely hired by Gato to kill me."

"Because of this, many people in the Land of Waves have already died at Gato's hands."

"Sigh... I might not be the first, but I'll probably be the last..."

His tone was helpless, his words bleak and dispirited.

This caused the others to frown in unison.

That's right!

Their escort mission was complete now, but it was better to avoid trouble if they could.

When Team 7 returned to Konoha, Gato, with his vast wealth, could still use the same tactics to manipulate Tazuna and his people however he pleased.

Thinking this, the four fell into silence.

But at that moment.

Naruto suddenly jumped out, gritting his teeth, and roared with unyielding defiance:

"Hey! You little brat named Inari!"

"I, Naruto, will become a superhero like the Hokage in the future!"

"I've never heard of any Gato or whatever!"

"I, Naruto, will never take a scoundrel like that seriously!..."