Konoha: The Female Ninja Fell Apart After the Diary Was Exposed

"Well... I wouldn't say I know him. I've only heard of him."

"Zabuza Momochi. An S-Rank Missing-nin from Kirigakure who once tried to assassinate the Fourth Mizukage. He's a true Elite Jonin."

"During his Graduation Exam, he killed every other student in his class by himself. Kirigakure had no choice but to change the exam rules."

"His weapon is the Kubikiribōchō, one of the seven Ninja Blades that made Kirigakure famous throughout the Shinobi World."

"In short, he's extremely dangerous!"

Kakashi Hatake spoke slowly.

"Against an enemy like you, it looks like I'll have to go all out."

With that, Kakashi Hatake pushed up his Forehead Protector, revealing his left eye.

There,

a crimson Three-Tomoe Sharingan stared back.

"That eye..."

"Could you be Kakashi Hatake, Konoha's Elite Jonin known as the Copy Ninja, who's mastered over a thousand ninjutsu?!"

The sight of Kakashi Hatate's Sharingan drew a look of surprise from Zabuza Momochi.

"What?"

Hearing their exchange, Sasuke Uchiha looked torn between shock and fear.

He had killed every other student in his class by himself?

And he was an S-Rank Missing-nin who had tried to assassinate the Fourth Mizukage?

Just how strong was this man?

Yet,

even someone so ruthless

had looked surprised when he learned Kakashi's identity.

Kakashi-sensei...

Was he really strong enough to stand against someone like that?

And another thing—

why did Kakashi have a Sharingan?

Wasn't that a Kekkei Genkai unique to the Uchiha Clan?

For a moment,

Sasuke Uchiha felt as though his head might explode.

Compared with Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno looked far more relaxed.

Right then,

she was reading the Diary and nearly burst out laughing.

[Oh, come on. Are they trying to outdo each other at being awkward? Is this the legendary mutual hype?]

[They could've just said each other's names, but no, they had to pile on all those titles first...]

[An S-Rank Missing-nin? Compared with the S-Rank Missing-nin who show up later, he doesn't deserve the title at all.]

[The Copy Ninja? Mastered over a thousand ninjutsu? What's the point when he runs out of chakra after two moves?]

[Showing off in front of a naive little fool like Sasuke feels great, doesn't it?]

[Look how tense Sasuke is. Tsk, tsk... Poor Uchiha Sasuke. He's swallowing every word.]

After writing a few complaints in the Diary, Naruto Uzumaki saw that neither man had started fighting and finally spoke up.

"Hey, you two..."

"Isn't there a limit to how much you can hype each other up?"

"Think about the rest of us, will you!"

P.S. A new month has begun! Wishing everyone a fortune. Please send flowers, rating votes, and any other support you can!

A Mere Konoha Genin

"Ahem... Naruto, you three look after Mr. Tazuna. I'll handle Zabuza."

Kakashi couldn't help blushing at Naruto Uzumaki's jab.

Showing off in front of his students had felt great, but now that his little act had been called out, he couldn't keep it up.

"Kakashi, want me to get rid of this mouthy brat for you?"

Zabuza, equally annoyed, gave Naruto Uzumaki a cold look.

"No need. As long as I'm here, you won't kill anyone today."

"Is that so?"

"Then I'll have to take you out before I can finish my mission."

Zabuza gave a cold snort and used the Body Flicker Technique.

The next instant,

he appeared on the lake nearby.

"Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Technique!"

At his low cry, thick mist spread rapidly from where Zabuza stood.

Soon,

it swallowed everything around them.

Zabuza was confident in his strength, but he never let his guard down.

He had chosen this battlefield with care.

This lake

would let him fight at his best.

"Fog's rolling in."

Sakura and Sasuke kept Tazuna firmly behind them, their faces tight with unease.

Only Naruto Uzumaki's expression remained unchanged from start to finish.

In truth,

with his extraordinary sensory abilities,

the thick mist made no difference to him.

"Damn it. Where did that guy go?"

All around him, silence reigned. Sasuke Uchiha felt as though he could hear his heart pounding.

The mist seemed to block more than sight.

It muffled sound as well,

and the pressure on him was unlike anything he had ever felt.

Sakura was little better off.

She knew Naruto was watching over her, yet she still couldn't stop herself from growing anxious.

"The heart, the throat, the liver, the carotid artery, the lungs..."

"Where should I strike first?"

Zabuza's low voice drifted through the mist.

He sounded as though he didn't consider them a threat at all. The only reason he hadn't attacked was that he couldn't decide how to kill them.

"Such intense killing intent."

As Zabuza kept up the pressure, Sasuke Uchiha's fear mounted.

He felt

that even moving his eyes might give Zabuza an opening to kill him.

The Sharingan he took such pride in was useless in this mist.

Under that crushing tension,

Sasuke Uchiha even thought of killing himself.

"Naruto... I'm scared."

Sakura's voice trembled on the verge of tears.

Under this pressure,

she felt close to breaking.

"As long as I'm here, nothing will happen to you."

Naruto Uzumaki patted Sakura on the shoulder and stepped in front of her.

At the sight,

Sasuke couldn't help looking at them with envy.

Just then,

the sharp Kubikiribōchō burst out of the mist.

Clang!

A steel kunai struck the Kubikiribōchō, sending sparks flying.

"Na... Naruto, you saved me?"

Sasuke Uchiha stared at the Kubikiribōchō inches from his face and stumbled back two steps.

That had been too close.

If Naruto had reacted a moment later,

his head would already have been severed from his body.

"Sasuke, what happened to you in just a few days?"

Naruto Uzumaki teased.

Sasuke Uchiha gave a disgruntled snort at his words.

The only reason I got distracted

was you!

Did you have to flaunt your romance right in front of me?

Bastard!

His first strike having failed,

Zabuza vanished into the mist again.

"Was that luck?"

Zabuza muttered to himself, then shifted his angle of attack.

"Hmph!"

"Brat, I won't miss this time."

Once he was ready, Zabuza swung at Naruto Uzumaki with all his strength.

Clang!

Sparks flew again.