Sakura felt like absolute crap. The mysterious bandaged man across from her really didn't know how to watch his mouth. His words cut even deeper than those of her two sharp-tongued teammates.
Sasuke, for his part, couldn't hold back his laughter as he watched Bro Sakura's face turn green.
Credit where credit was due: Sakura was definitely qualified as the team's mood-maker. She brought the squad plenty of laughter, and when there was nothing else to do, she was easy on the eyes too.
"This is Sakura Haruno, a rising star whose potential caught Lady Tsunade's eye. Her physical talents and aptitude for Medical Ninjutsu are absolutely unparalleled."
Raising his eyebrows, Sasuke promptly returned the favor with a bit of mutual professional flattery.
Zabuza frowned. Something wasn't adding up.
He had never heard of anyone like her. The intelligence Konoha had officially released was extremely detailed, covering everything from the return of two of the Konoha Sannin to the outstanding figures of Kakashi's generation, all the way down to Sasuke and Naruto's generation.
Thinking back carefully, Sakura had indeed received a passing mention in that intelligence. But that was all it was-a passing mention, nothing like the lengthy coverage Kakashi, Naruto, and Sasuke had received.
Or rather, the sheer detail of the intelligence was itself suspicious. Ninja warfare was a war of information, so why had Konoha done the opposite and voluntarily made so much intelligence about its village's future public?
Zabuza couldn't figure it out. What exactly was the Third Hokage trying to do?
Had he lost his mind like the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura? That shouldn't be the case. Talent had withered away in Kirigakure, so even if Karatachi Yagura really had gone mad, he couldn't do anything to Zabuza. But Konoha was different.
Zabuza felt his thoughts