In the center of the bridge
The remains were mangled and bloodied, a blood-red mess.
Bridgehead
Enveloped in shimmering flakes and a chilling aura.
Zabuza his Kubikiribōchō, splattering the remaining Kekkei Genkai onto the ground, leaving streaks of blood.
Looking at the headless corpse at his feet, Zabuza's eyes were filled with indifference.
Gato, protected by a group of wandering ninjas, looked like he had died with his eyes wide open in disbelief.
He died unable to understand why, despite handing over all his possessions, he still couldn't escape death.
The previous procedure wasn't like this...
" Kakashi-sensei... are all missions outside the village like this...?"
At first, I didn't notice anything unusual.
After the battle ends,
Looking at the pile of corpses, Sakura and Naruto, who was on his first mission, felt a chill run down their spines.
"Yes..."
"This is true ninja combat."
"This isn't the kind of friendly sparring or training you do at school."
Kakashi looked at Sakura, whose body was trembling, and said in a deep voice, "It's not too late to give up being a ninja now."
You'll see many more scenes like this in the future.
"That's right, little girl!"
"If you're scared, you should go back to the village and open a shop."
Suigetsu held the broadsword horizontally behind her neck, her hands dangling at Shibuki's sides, and swaggered over.
"Opening a shop might be a much better career prospect than being a ninja."
Suigetsu glanced guiltily at Haruma not far away and whispered.
Sakura looked up at Suigetsu, who was grinning mischievously, especially at the large sword still covered in bits of meat...
Sakura trembled involuntarily, immediately lowered her head, and did not respond.
Our mission is complete.
Kakashi turned to Zabuza, who was also approaching, and said, "If there's nothing else, we'll leave."
As the Kirigakure converged around him, Kakashi remained tense.
If he hadn't been with three students, Kakashi would have retreated long ago while the Kirigakure Village was fighting.
Although there were only seven Kirigakure, this was far fewer than the number of wandering ninjas from before.
But if they really took action, Kakashi wasn't confident he could protect his students.
Even the certainty of escaping unscathed...
It's not certain.
Zabuza did not respond, but glanced at Haruma, who was standing by the railing looking down at the bridge, as if waiting for further instructions.
Their sole focus was on whether to extend the construction of the Rich Man Bridge to the Haruma of the Land of Waves.
Noticing a brief silence, he waved his hand and said without turning his head, "Let's go together, we're going the same way anyway."
Zabuza could speak, Suigetsu said with a smile, "Looks like this journey won't be so boring."
As Suigetsu spoke, her mocking gaze lingered between Naruto and Sasuke.
Please, please, please give me your guidance!
Chōjūrō sheathed his twin swords and bowed respectfully to Kakashi and the others.
Kimimaro and Sasuke remained silent, while Haku gave Naruto and Sakura a faint smile.
Zabuza, seeing Kakashi's serious and puzzled expression, explained:
"This group consists of Genin who are going to participate in the Konoha Joint Junior High School Kirigakure Examination."
So, it really was just something I was doing on the way.
" Genin?!!"
Sakura and Naruto stared wide-eyed at Suigetsu and the others, then cried out in unison!
They weren't blind during the fight just now.
Several Chunin were Chunin killed, and you're saying these people were all Genin?
Even Kakashi was quite Zabuza's words.
If you hadn't told me, I would have thought it was a squad sent out by the Kirigakure Village on an S-rank mission.
And you're telling me this is to go to our village for the Chunin Exams?
Are we really going to have to compete against Sakura and Naruto, rookies who just graduated from the Ninja Academy?
Sai, who had maintained a cold expression, twitched slightly upon hearing this news.
But he quickly regained his composure and coldly observed Sasuke, who had remained silent.
So this is the evil clan that Lord Danzo always talks about...?
The road back to Konoha from the Land of Waves.
The original four people have grown into a lively eleven.
Naruto, who quickly accepted the truth, kept chattering around Sasuke.
Faced with Naruto's talk-no-jutsu, coupled with Suigetsu's occasional irritating taunts, he was completely overwhelmed.
Sasuke, who always had a cold face, finally stopped.
Sasuke, his face flushed, grabbed Naruto by the collar and growled, "You idiot!"
"You used to be at the bottom of the class, and your current strength is just as pathetic!"
"You're dreaming if you think you can defeat me!"
Upon hearing Sasuke's assessment, a hint of sadness flashed in Naruto's eyes, but he quickly rallied his spirits.
Naruto shook off Sasuke's hand that was grabbing his collar and announced loudly with a resolute expression:
"I will definitely defeat you fair and square in this Chunin Ninja Exams!"
"Go Naruto! I support you!"
"Beat that pretentious brat up!"
Suigetsu, never one to shy away from stirring things up, joined in the commotion.
" Sasuke... Naruto..."
The male god who's not under anyone's roof, the long-time simp...
Sakura looked at the two of them, her feelings even more complicated.
"It's alright, Sakura."
"Those two seem to have a very good relationship."
Bai, standing to the side, offered a soft word of comfort.
Sakura looked at the gentle white figure, her face flushing slightly, and whispered, "Thank you."
Haruma, who had been hanging at the back of the line, looked at the lively scene before her and slightly raised the corners of her mouth.
This journey to the Land of Waves was simply a random decision made on Haruma.
He had foreseen that Kakashi would bring Naruto to this place on a mission.
Was it their destined fate...?
Or perhaps it was some unseen force at work, orchestrating the bond between the two.
Sasuke's fate seemed to be rewritten by Haruma, but in the end, it still became intertwined with Naruto's.
Haruma gazed deeply at the two of them, her dark eyes like unfathomable whirlpools.
The reincarnations of Indra and Asura...
The Sage of Six Paths should have died long ago...
maybe,
In the original story, the deepest hidden mastermind in the Shinobi World was not Black Zetsu, who was solely focused on saving his mother...
Haruma had said this long before she left Konoha.
Before reaching the strength of the Six Paths...
He wouldn't risk getting close to Naruto, who might be possessed by the will of the Sage of Six Paths.
Now, let the Kirigakure Village members travel with Kakashi.
This only proves one thing.
These past three years Haruma been worthwhile...
They traveled together without any other unexpected incidents along the way.
After spending a few days together, Kakashi's Team 7 had gained some understanding of the members of the Gold Medal Collection Team.
The ruthless duo, Sasuke Kimimaro.
The goofy Suigetsu, the shy Chōjūrō.
The gentle and kind Bai, and the mysterious Haruma.
Throughout the journey, Kakashi kept a close eye on Haruma's every move.
But this person always seemed completely relaxed and carefree...
All that was known was that a few of the Kirigakure treated him with unusual kindness.
Like Suigetsu, who was constantly stirring up trouble, this attitude wasn't limited to Naruto Sasuke.
Even with your own people, or even Zabuza Jonin the team, you should occasionally make bold jokes.
Only towards that person,
The moment the other party raised an eyebrow, Suigetsu would flee in a panic, like a mouse seeing a cat.
Kimimaro possesses unparalleled strength and exudes a coldness that emanates from his very bones.
They showed excessive respect and obedience to this person.
When Kakashi was chatting with Zabuza, he casually asked about Zabuza's identity and background.
Unfortunately, the other side didn't fall for the trap at all.
Kakashi gazed at the Konoha Gate not far away, recalling his mission experience from a few days ago.
At that moment, he almost wanted to persuade Naruto and Sakura to give up on the Chunin Promotion Exam.
After all, the difference in strength was too obvious...
This prevented Kakashi from seeing any hope that the two of them could stand out.
As for Sai, it's actually because he grew up in that kind of environment.
The chances of promotion are significantly higher for him than for the other two.