Momochi Zabuza

The climate at sea could not be judged by experience on land.

May in the Land of Fire was usually bright and sunny, with pleasant weather.

Yet near the borders of the island nation known as the Land of Waves, cold, damp fog blanketed the entire sea. It hardly felt like May.

Within that thick fog, a small boat moved slowly and cautiously.

Aboard were Tazuna and the members of Konoha's Team 7, who had been assigned to protect him.

Naruto sat at the bow, staring into the fog-shrouded distance where nothing could be seen.

The weather of the Land of Waves was much like the nation's unseen future.

The Land of Waves, made up of more than a dozen scattered islands of various sizes, had had its transportation rights seized by the wealthy tycoon Gato a year ago.

Gato had illegally siphoned away the country's wealth, reducing the Land of Waves to extreme poverty.

Violence, darkness, disorder—this was the Land of Waves, ruled by the violent organization Gato had formed from rogue ninja and wandering samurai.

And once Tazuna, a bridge-building expert, completed the sea-crossing bridge, Gato would lose his transportation rights—and everything he had in the Land of Waves.

That was why ninja had been sent to assassinate Tazuna.

The impoverished Land of Waves could barely afford the cost of building the bridge. Tazuna simply had no extra money to pay the commission for hiring ninja—

—this was why, after Team 7 had agreed to continue the mission, he had come clean about falsifying the mission details.

On the surface, it was merely an ordinary case of oppression.

But without the Third Shinobi World War more than a decade ago, Gato could never have hired enough rogue ninja and wandering samurai to suppress and rule an entire country.

And there were countless people like Gato throughout the shinobi world.

Since the Third Shinobi World War... no, since the Warring States Period, hatred and violence had always been the main theme of the shinobi world.

Like a curse, it had long surrounded everyone.

After an unknown amount of time, the boat finally reached the shore.

"I'll take you no farther."

The boatman spoke quietly, as if he feared the gloom lurking deep within the fog.

Naruto looked around at where the boatman had docked.

This was not a normal ferry landing. It was a secluded route only experienced boatmen who had spent years navigating the waters of the Land of Waves could find.

It was not their originally agreed-upon destination at all.

"Thanks for your hard work."

Tazuna did not blame the boatman for breaking their agreement. He stepped ashore first and waited for the members of Team 7 protecting him to disembark one after another.

Now that they had arrived in the Land of Waves, Tazuna was not only Team 7's protection target, but also their guide through this unfamiliar land.

When Kakashi came to his side, Tazuna adjusted his reading glasses. "Thank you for being willing to continue the mission."

Kakashi casually went along with him.

Still, even with his face hidden behind a mask, the annoyance in his heart was easy to see.

Once ninja accepted a mission, they would find a way to complete it.

The public credibility of a ninja village was maintained through that principle.

But if there was a valid reason and the assigned ninja reached a unanimous decision, they could also terminate a mission unilaterally.

Tazuna's mission was one that ninja could cancel under the rules.

The moment Team 7 reached a unanimous decision, Kakashi would take Tazuna back to the Hidden Leaf Village by the same route.

Once back in Konoha, Tazuna would either cancel the commission or raise its rank to its proper B-Rank difficulty.

At that point, Team 7 would have nothing more to do with it.

Kakashi had originally thought that if anyone on Team 7 objected,

it would be Sasuke, who was eager to grow stronger;

or Naruto, who dreamed of becoming Hokage and earning everyone's recognition in the village.

Or perhaps both of them would oppose ending the mission.

Given Naruto and Sasuke's personalities, Kakashi would not have found such a choice surprising.

What Kakashi truly had not expected was for Sakura to want to continue the mission.

Kakashi could roughly guess why Sakura had made that choice.

Before the Demon Brothers attacked them, Sakura had, as usual during missions, clung to Sasuke and chatted with him.

But after they decided to continue to the Land of Waves, Sakura had remained silent.

It seemed that fighting the Demon Brothers had made Sakura see the gap between herself and Naruto and Sasuke, and it had put pressure on her.

That was why Sakura could not give up this rare chance to grow stronger.

As Kakashi watched the surroundings and protected Tazuna, he also observed the condition of Team 7's three members.

Since they had decided to continue the mission, Kakashi considered ways to deal with any enemies they might encounter based on Team 7's actual abilities.

The enemy had been able to send out two Chunin while Tazuna was still within the Land of Fire.

Now that they had reached the Land of Waves, the enemy's base of operations...

The next attacker would certainly be a ninja at the Jōnin level, stronger than a Chunin.

Team 7's earlier battle with the Demon Brothers had already proven that they possessed the strength to protect their client.

Although a Jōnin-level enemy would be difficult for them to handle, such an enemy could not attack Tazuna while Naruto and the others protected him without first dealing with Kakashi.

Hopefully, the road after we land will be uneventful.

That was what Kakashi hoped.

Unfortunately, things going against one's wishes was the norm in this world.

An unusual sound came from the forest, so faint it was even quieter than Kakashi's own breathing.

Yet Kakashi sensed the danger at once.

"Everyone, get down!"

Kakashi's sharp battle instincts made him decide in an instant.

At Kakashi's command, Sakura and Sasuke immediately dropped down before confusion could even rise in their minds.

Tazuna had not reacted quickly enough to Kakashi's order, but Naruto pressed down on his head and forced him flat against the ground.

That was the difference between ninja and ordinary people.

In battle, they had to trust their leader's orders completely while maintaining their own proper judgment.

The instant the three members of Team 7 and their client hit the ground, a terrifying whistling sound reached everyone's ears.

A massive blade spun through the air at high speed, slashing toward the place where they had been standing.

Had Kakashi not shouted the warning in advance, that blade would have cut them in half at the waist!

Having failed to strike its targets, the blade finally embedded itself in the trunk of a tree before Kakashi.

At the same time the tree stopped the blade, a man appeared standing atop the handle of the blade that had been driven sideways into the tree.

He was the man who had attacked them.

A strap used to secure his massive blade ran diagonally across the man's bare upper body.

He had black hair, while white bandages wrapped around his mouth and nose, covering half his face.

His forehead protector was worn at an angle, and the four wavy marks upon it—two above and two below—revealed his identity.

Just like the Demon Brothers from before—a ninja of the Hidden Mist.

"I never expected you to be in the Land of Waves... Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Hidden Mist and a rogue ninja."

Kakashi focused his gaze and identified the man.

Remaining wary of Zabuza, Kakashi gave an order to Team 7 behind him, who had assumed combat stances. "He isn't someone you can handle. Form a defensive formation and protect Mr. Tazuna."

When he finished speaking, Kakashi raised the forehead protector he wore like an eyepatch over his left eye, exposing the eye he had kept hidden.

Within the socket of his left eye, marked by a vertical scar, was a crimson, eerie, extraordinary eye with three black tomoe spinning in its pupil.

"I didn't expect the one protecting that old man to be the famous Copy Ninja—Kakashi of the Sharingan."

Zabuza spoke as though he knew Kakashi inside and out.