Carrying Zabuza's heavy "corpse," Haku bounded away and vanished completely into the thinning mist.
The very next second after they disappeared-
Thud.
A dull sound rang out.
Kakashi, who had been standing perfectly straight, suddenly lost all strength in his legs and dropped to his knees on the muddy shore.
"Kakashi-sensei!"
Sakura and Naruto jumped in alarm and hurried over, supporting him on either side.
Sasuke stayed where he was, but a flicker of anxiety crossed his eyes.
"Hah... hah..."
Kakashi panted heavily, his forehead covered in a fine sheen of cold sweat.
He kept his scarlet Sharingan tightly shut, his face as pale as paper.
"Sensei, are you all right? Are you hurt somewhere?" Sakura asked, her voice trembling with tears.
"N-no... nothing serious."
Kakashi waved weakly, his voice terribly hoarse.
"I just overused my Sharingan and exhausted my chakra."
Kakashi smiled bitterly to himself.
Dealing with Zabuza alone had already drained a considerable amount of his strength.
Then, to guard against Sen's terrifying Wood Release, he had pushed his Sharingan's perception almost to its limit.
He had needed to stay wary of Zabuza while also diverting his attention to analyzing Sen's utterly absurd chakra flow.
For someone who wasn't from the Uchiha Clan, the strain had been far too great.
"I just need... a little rest."
Leaning against Naruto, Kakashi gulped down fresh air as waves of dizziness washed over him.
Meanwhile-
Sen Senju, the only member of the team with "nothing to do,"
strolled toward the lake with both hands in his pockets.
Although he had dispelled Deep Forest Emergence with a wave of his hand earlier, enormous waves still rippled across the lake.
The churning water battered the rocks along the shore with a rushing roar.
Sen watched the rolling water, his gaze growing thoughtful.
In