Chapter 27: The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki
Naruto's soft words struck Zabuza like a physical blow.
Both he and Shiro stared at the young blond boy in astonishment.
Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
The name was infamous across the ninja world. The mightiest of the tailed beasts. A force of nature wrapped in human flesh. And this child—this calm, controlled boy who had just shattered the Executioner's Blade and defeated a legendary swordsman—was its vessel.
Zabuza's mind raced. The Fourth Mizukage, the man he had once tried to assassinate, was also a Jinchūriki—the vessel of the Three-Tails. Zabuza remembered that battle well. When the Mizukage had lost control, when the tailed beast's chakra had erupted, Zabuza had barely escaped with his life. The raw, primal power of a tailed beast was something no ordinary ninja could hope to match.
And Naruto was the vessel of the Nine-Tails. The strongest of them all.
But more than that—Zabuza could feel it now. The chakra radiating from Naruto was like a mountain pressing down on his chest. Heavy. Suffocating. Dangerous.
He was holding back, Zabuza realized with a chill. Our entire fight… he wasn't even trying.
This boy had power beyond what Zabuza could comprehend. And he had the mind to match it. Zabuza had been impulsive when he attacked the Mizukage—charging in alone, relying on brute force and assassination techniques. He had failed.
Naruto, by contrast, was planning. Building alliances. Laying groundwork. He was thinking years ahead, playing a game that Zabuza hadn't even known existed.
Then Naruto's eyes changed.
Zabuza's breath caught.
Blue irises bled to crimson. Pupils darkened. And within those new, blood-red eyes, three tomoe spun slowly—hypnotic, powerful, unmistakable.
The Sharingan.
"Those eyes…" Zabuza whispered, his voice hollow with shock. "You're—"
"No," Naruto interrupted calmly. "I'm not Uchiha. I acquired these eyes through other means." He didn't elaborate.
Zabuza's mind reeled. The Sharingan was the bloodline limit of the Uchiha clan—a power that could not be copied or stolen. And yet here it was, glowing in the eyes of a blond boy who claimed no connection to that legendary family.
What IS this child?
First the mist. Then the shattered blade. Then the impossible strength, the strange fire jutsu, the Sharingan, and above all—the Nine-Tails.
Naruto had shown Zabuza more secrets in the past few minutes than most shinobi revealed in a lifetime. And he had done so deliberately, not out of carelessness, but as a calculated display of power.
He's showing me his cards so I understand what I'm agreeing to, Zabuza thought. So I know exactly who I'm dealing with.
"You really are a monster," Zabuza said quietly, staring at the young boy before him. "I never imagined Konoha would produce someone like you."
Naruto smiled—a thin, knowing expression.
"So what do you say, Zabuza? Have you made your decision?"
Zabuza glanced at Shiro, still kneeling beside him, still watching with anxious, hopeful eyes. He thought of the Mist—the village that had raised him to be a killer, that had forced him to slaughter his own classmates, that had hunted him like an animal when he refused to be their tool any longer.
He thought of all the years of running. All the nights spent waiting for hunter-nin to find him.
He thought of Shiro—pure, innocent Shiro—and what would happen to the boy if Zabuza died here today.
No more running.
Zabuza met Naruto's crimson gaze.
"I'm in," he said. "Tell me what you need."
Naruto's smile widened.
"For now, I need you to build me an army. Train shinobi. Recruit missing-nin. Gather your old subordinates. I don't care how you do it—just build me a force that answers to me and me alone."
Zabuza blinked. "An army? What are you planning?"
Naruto turned his head, looking toward the distant horizon—toward the direction of the Land of Fire, toward Konoha. His eyes grew cold. His fists clenched.
"I told you," Naruto said softly. "We're the same. The villages used us. Made us into weapons. Stole our childhoods." He paused. "I'm going to make them pay."
His voice dropped to a whisper, but it cut through the air like a blade.
"I'm going to destroy Konoha."