The first slash swept past Naruto's scalp, stirring a gust of wind.
He kicked off without stopping and shot forward low over the bridge planks.
Nearly half a day separated this slash from the last. The sun had slanted west, the light on the lake had dimmed, and the mist had thinned enough to make out figures three meters away. The guards and workers remained rooted in place. No one dared move.
Near the center of the bridge, Sasuke snapped open the blades of the Fūma Shuriken, its four points clacking together.
Naruto ran toward him in a shallow arc.
Sasuke kept his hands moving. He had been waiting for him.
White smoke flashed, and Naruto transformed into a second Fūma Shuriken.
The white smoke inside the iron ring had yet to clear. One of the guards stepped back, his heel striking a bridge plank with a knock.
One real, one fake, they flew from Sasuke's hands in succession, spinning toward the center of the bridge, one behind the other.
The first flew high, forcing a raised blade. The second skimmed the water, hidden in the first one's shadow.
Someone shut their eyes, unable to watch the throw.
Zabuza drew his sword and knocked the first one away. The metal spun into the bridge railing and quivered twice.
The second followed close along the back of his blade and transformed in midair. Naruto flipped out of the iron ring and hurled a kunai straight at his face.
Zabuza turned aside to dodge.
The hand holding the sphere of water withdrew.
The water prison collapsed. Kakashi fell onto the bridge planks, choking up a mouthful of water.
He pushed against the planks twice before managing to hold himself up.
The sword strikes that had kept the guards pinned down all this