Sage Mode, and Kakashi's Slightly Embarrassed Moment

Naruto looked at the two before him, his gaze darkening as he asked:

"Do you know what matters most when building up a force?"

The bonfire in the ruined temple crackled and popped.

Zabuza's entire body stiffened.

He had been an assassin all his life. He only knew how to swing a blade, kill people, and take jobs. He had never dealt with managing any kind of force. His brows twisted into a knot, and after opening his mouth, he could only shake his head with a hoarse voice.

Haku lowered his head even further. His world had always contained only Zabuza. He had not even fully grasped the rules of the Ninja World, let alone these methods of power and strategy. He could only shake his head softly, his eyes full of confusion.

Naruto was not surprised by their reactions. He stepped forward, his voice quiet, yet every word struck straight at their hearts.

"If you want to get things done, first you need people, and second, you need money!"

"From now on, I'll collect ninjutsu from across the Ninja World and strengthen our foundation."

"And the two of you will gather those war orphans with nowhere to go, as well as civilians driven to desperation by feudal lords and villages."

Naruto paused, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes.

"There's a saying that makes sense: with money and people, anything can be done. We'll dare to make the sun and moon shine on a new world!"

Zabuza's breathing suddenly halted.

He understood.

What Naruto wanted was not a group of ninjas who only knew how to kill. He wanted people wounded beyond repair by this world, people willing to follow him and overturn this rotten sky.

People like him and Haku.

Seeing the realization on his face, Naruto suddenly smiled, his tone carrying a casual sort of ruthlessness.

"Aren't you employed by Gato? That bastard has been sucking the blood of the Land of Waves' civilians and piling up all that wealth. It's perfect. He can make a contribution to our Heaven Organization."

Before his words had even faded, Naruto raised a hand.

Warm golden chakra carrying immense pressure surged from his palm, instantly wrapping around Zabuza's entire body like a tide.

Zabuza felt an indescribable warmth flood through every limb and bone. The broken bones, torn muscles, and drained chakra pathways left behind by his life-and-death battle with Kakashi all healed in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, he had returned to peak condition. Even the amount of chakra within him was several degrees greater than it had been at his strongest.

"Th-This... what kind of chakra is this?!"

Zabuza stared wide-eyed, touching his completely uninjured chest. His voice was filled with stunned disbelief.

He had lived in the Blood Mist Village for half his life. He had seen countless Bloodline Limits and the Tailed Beast weapons of Hidden Mist, yet he had never witnessed such terrifying restorative power. This was no longer ninjutsu—it was power bordering on a miracle!

Haku covered his mouth in shock. He had personally seen Zabuza injured so badly that even the hand holding his sword had trembled. Yet now he looked as though he had never been hurt at all. Haku's eyes were filled with shock and relief.

Naruto slowly withdrew his hand. He did not explain the secret of the Nine-Tails. He merely looked at the two of them and drove the roots of the Heaven Organization into their hearts, one word at a time.

"What earns people's trust is never power or strength. It's the kindness of giving them a bite of food when they can no longer survive."

"Remember the Heaven Organization's ideals. This is the core of how we recruit people and establish our roots."

Those words were like a blade that cleaved through the darkness sealed within Zabuza's heart for half his life.

Haku and he had been people struggling in hell when Naruto handed them a warm steamed bun.

Naruto had not forced him to bow through strength. He had given him the hope he had sought and never found in his entire life.

Naruto said nothing more and turned to leave.

The boy's figure disappeared into the night outside the ruined temple in only a few steps. Only his voice drifted back in on the sea breeze, clear and resolute, carrying an unquestionable command.

"In three days, I want to see all of Gato's assets, as well as the first group of people willing to follow us."

The ruined temple fell completely silent.

Zabuza slowly rose to his feet. Looking at the empty temple entrance, he gripped the recovered Executioner's Blade in his hand.

This time, his sword would no longer be used to kill. It would be used to protect the world the boy had promised—a world without blood mist or war.

Haku walked to his side and spoke softly. "Zabuza, can we... really see a world like that?"

Zabuza turned his head and looked at the child who had respected him his entire life. His throat moved, and for the first time, he spoke with absolute certainty.

"We can."

"Following him, we definitely can."

The next morning, the group returning to Konoha walked along a small road in the Land of Waves.

Kakashi walked at the front, occasionally glancing back at Naruto at the rear of the group. His brows were furrowed tightly enough to crush a mosquito.

Something was off. Extremely, undeniably off!

Zabuza was famous for holding grudges. After suffering such severe injuries, how could he possibly make no move to retaliate?

When Kakashi looked back at Naruto again, the boy was strolling along with a foxtail grass stem in his mouth. He looked completely relaxed and even had the leisure to bicker with Sasuke, without the slightest tension of someone who had just escaped death.

Kakashi's heart skipped a beat, and he could not help muttering to himself.

"Did Zabuza really let this brat Naruto kill him? No way... is he really that strong?..."

The more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed. His Sharingan turned slightly, yet he could not see through the careless-looking disguise Naruto wore.

After they returned to the temporary camp at Konoha's border, Kakashi followed the original plan and prepared to teach the three of them the core of chakra control—tree climbing and water walking.

He had just finished explaining the rule of "attaching chakra to the soles of your feet and precisely controlling the output." He turned around, about to demonstrate, when he heard two soft sounds behind him.

Kakashi whipped around.

Naruto and Sasuke had already stepped onto the straight tree trunk and casually walked up to the top, more than ten meters above the ground.

Sasuke stood on a branch, gave a cold snort, and flickered down to the ground, landing steadily. Not even a speck of dust rose beneath his feet. His chakra control was precise to the extreme.

Naruto was even lazier. He simply leaped from the treetop, stepped twice through the air mid-fall, and descended slowly as though walking on flat ground. The foxtail grass in his mouth did not even sway.

Kakashi froze on the spot.

Behind his mask, his mouth opened and closed, then closed and opened again. He could not squeeze out a single word for a long while.

His thoughts went wild.

What the hell... these two?! Isn't tree climbing and water walking an advanced introductory lesson for ninjas? It took me three days to fully grasp it back then, and these two figured it out on the spot?!

Being a genius's teacher is really hard!

Beside him, Sakura stared wide-eyed. She looked at the treetop, then at Naruto and Sasuke's calm expressions, then at her own hands. Her face was filled with despair.

So in all of Team 7, she was the only real dead last?

It took Kakashi a long while to recover. Then he cleared his throat and tried to salvage his dignity.

"Um... Sakura, your chakra control foundation is relatively weak. For the next period of time, Sasuke will lead your training."

Sasuke frowned, about to refuse, when he saw Naruto raise his eyebrows at him with an annoyingly smug expression. He immediately swallowed the refusal and gave a cold snort. "Got it."

Sakura's face instantly turned red. She lowered her head and picked at her fingers, feeling both nervous and happy.

After arranging Sakura's training, Kakashi called Naruto and Sasuke aside for separate instruction.

He looked at Sasuke first. His Sharingan turned slightly, and his tone became serious. "Sasuke, your Sharingan has awakened. Your foundations in taijutsu and ninjutsu are solid enough. For your next stage of training, I'll make specific arrangements to help you improve your strength quickly."

Sasuke nodded, his eyes full of longing for power. He did not say another word.

Then Kakashi turned to Naruto.

His gaze carried complexity, curiosity, and a trace of helplessness that he himself had not noticed.

He knew better than anyone what Naruto had been like before. A dead last who could not even learn the most basic Clone Technique. But now, not only could the boy stand against Demon of the Hidden Mist Zabuza head-on, his chakra control had reached such an advanced level.

This boy was definitely hiding an enormous secret.

Kakashi spoke, his tone probing.

"Naruto, what... what do you want to learn? To be honest, I feel like there isn't much left that I can teach you."

Looking at Naruto's somewhat smug expression, Kakashi slapped his forehead, feeling slightly helpless.

"And... your teacher feels pretty embarrassed today, so try to hold back a little!"

As soon as he said that, Sasuke abruptly lifted his head. His Sharingan activated instantly as he stared fixedly at Naruto.

He also wanted to know what kind of power this dead last, who had grown up beside him, wanted.

Naruto knew perfectly well.

He wanted to learn Sage Mode, but he was afraid Kakashi did not know it. Wouldn't it be awkward to ask? After all, Kakashi had been his father's excellent student.

The thought flashed through his mind, and Naruto immediately put on a carefree, expectant expression. Scratching his head, he spoke.

"The Summoning Technique! I want to learn the Summoning Technique! Kakashi-sensei, you definitely know that, right?"

"Fine. I'll teach you."