Haku took Zabuza and left.
The only reason they had survived this time was because Higashino Makoto had generously spared them after seeing that the two of them had actually done a pretty decent job as sharpening stones.
After experiencing a brush with death, the Demon of the Mist suddenly realized a lot of things.
All this time, none of his plans had ever been about becoming the Mizukage. What he truly wanted was to resist the absurdly cruel system that had continued to plague Kirigakure to this very day.
That was also why he had slaughtered all his classmates during the graduation exam.
Though, admittedly, that was still pretty insane behavior.
But that was the reality of shinobi. Most people in this profession simply couldn't think of any better way to solve problems. The only thing they knew how to do was pick up their weapons and use the most primitive form of violence to achieve their goals.
Zabuza felt that if Higashino Makoto had not lied to him—if Kirigakure's order really was slowly improving—then he wanted to go back and see it for himself.
No matter what, he was different from the other rogue shinobi of the Mist. Zabuza had always deeply loved the village where he was born.
His moral standards were far higher than lunatics like Kurosuki Raiga or Munashi Jinpachi. Otherwise, there was no way he would have tolerated Haku's constant acts of kindness.
Sasuke looked somewhat surprised.
"Sensei, you're really just letting them go?"
"Of course." Makoto looked at him. "Do you think I did something wrong?"
"No. I just feel like… your way of doing things is very un-shinobi-like."
"Maybe. But I think shinobi are still people. We're part of this world too. Sometimes killing is just a method—it isn't the solution to every problem. I also don't want you kids growing into the kind of people who solve every issue by killing."
Naruto fell into thought.
"Sensei, if people could truly understand one another, would the world become a better place?"
"Of course not. Every person is an independent individual with their own thoughts and desires. How could everyone possibly understand each other? Could you understand the bastard who murdered your parents?
"So, Naruto… where exactly did you get such a naïve idea from?"
Naruto scratched his head awkwardly.
"I read it in a novel. Dad said it was the philosophy of his sensei—Jiraiya-sama."
Makoto did not look surprised in the slightest.
"I knew it had to be that old pervert. At his age, he's still wandering around outside all day searching for his so-called Child of Prophecy."
Sasuke frowned slightly.
"Child of Prophecy? Does something like that really exist?"
"Does it matter whether it exists or not?" Makoto said. "Sasuke, would you give up training hard and just wait for the Child of Prophecy to come save you?"
"Of course not," Sasuke answered firmly. "Then what would even be the point of my life? My future has to be created by my own two hands."
"Good. Very spirited answer."
Naruto then asked, "Sensei, then what do you think it would take to make the world better?"
"That?" Makoto shrugged lightly. "That's not something you can explain in just a sentence or two. Later on, you can go browse the archive room at the dōjō. On the shelves under shinobi society, there are some things I've written over the past few years. They might help you find your own answers."
"I understand."
Not wanting to fall behind his rival, Sasuke immediately added,
"I'll read them too."
By then, the pink-haired girl had already removed all the senbon needles from her body.
She looked miserable, but her injuries were actually very light. That little cross-dressing boy Haku had been far too soft-hearted. He had basically been giving his opponent acupuncture treatment.
Out of all those senbon, not a single one had struck a vital point.
Makoto placed a hand on her shoulder, and chakra infused with Yang Release power swept through her body, instantly healing all her injuries.
Sakura looked a little dejected.
"Sensei… am I useless?"
"No. You did well. At the very least, you didn't panic and abandon your client to save yourself. The fact that you kept standing in front of Tazuna the entire time already proves you have courage."
"But remember today's lesson. Don't expect every enemy you meet to spare you. Someone like Haku—with kindness like that—is an extremely rare breed among shinobi."
"So his name is Haku?"
"Yes. Maybe you'll all meet again someday. Don't be too surprised when that happens." He waved a hand. "Come on. Bring Tazuna-san with us. Time to continue Team 7's mission."
...
Tazuna's home stood at the edge of the town, not too far from the bridge still under construction.
But the sight before them dealt a tremendous shock to the three kids, all of whom were leaving the Land of Fire for the first time.
Dilapidated old buildings. Pedestrians with lifeless expressions. Shops stripped bare from lack of resources.
And everywhere they looked—beggars and homeless children filled the streets.
This was a level of misery they had never once witnessed in either Konohagakure or the Land of Fire.
None of the three had ever imagined that a small nation like the Land of Waves could be impoverished to such an extent.
It wasn't just poor—it was chaotic as well. Groups of street thugs carrying swords and axes swaggered through the streets openly and arrogantly.
Whenever they saw someone they didn't like, they would walk right up and start beating them. Even stray dogs passing by would get kicked for no reason.
According to Tazuna, they were all subordinates of the wealthy businessman Gatō.
After dinner, during tea break—
Everything they had seen during the day left everyone unusually quiet.
Holding his teacup tightly, Tazuna spoke with a pained expression.
"This is my country. It's already dying. Everyone has given up hope… but I can't."
"So please, I'm begging all of you to help me. Help me finish building the bridge. It's the Land of Waves' only remaining hope."
Naruto replied, "That's our mission, so of course there's no problem with that. But Tazuna-san, when we crossed the strait, we saw that the bridge was already close to completion."
"I think that without someone like Gatō quietly allowing it, there's no way you could've gotten this far. In other words, once the bridge is finished, he'll probably still end up controlling it anyway."
"That bastard is obviously just using all of you. He'll get a cross-sea bridge without spending a single coin. So what are you going to do after that?"
Tazuna trembled slightly.
"I know everything you're saying. But… this is the only way I could think of to reignite hope in everyone's hearts."
Naruto continued, "Even if we help you get rid of Gatō, I think another scumbag merchant like him will just appear sooner or later. So how will you deal with that then?"
"You can't possibly hire ninja every single time, right? That doesn't solve the root problem. Ninja operate under rules and systems. We can't just carry out large-scale slaughter against ordinary people. At most, we can only drive them away."
"And once the ninja leave, it'll be easy for them to come back again. Then everything will return to square one, and nothing will have changed."
"Maybe…" Tazuna said softly, "once people's hope is rekindled, things really will begin to change."
Sasuke crossed his arms.
"That's how it should be in the first place. There are far more of you than there are of Gatō's men. As long as you unite, you can protect yourselves, protect the bridge, and slowly make your country better."
"What a bunch of idiots who don't understand anything. Isn't living peacefully good enough? Why come here just to die?"
A gloomy mocking voice drifted down from the staircase.
The speaker was Inari, Tazuna's grandson—a gloomy-looking little brat around seven or eight years old.
Sasuke had no intention of indulging him.
"We're not going to die. The only people who get threatened and intimidated by those bastards, then picked off one by one, are cowards too afraid to resist."
The kid instantly broke down.
"Stop talking big! What do you even know?! Everyone who opposes Gatō dies! You'll die too!"
Naruto replied calmly, "Dying while resisting is still better than rotting away at home."
"Then go die already!"
After shouting that, the boy ran back into his attic room again.
Sakura looked confused.
"Um… Sensei, what about the Land of Waves' Daimyō? His country's become like this, and he just doesn't care?"
Makoto smiled faintly as he explained, "Why would he care? Taking money from Gatō is a lot easier than collecting taxes from the citizens. As long as his own interests aren't affected, that's enough for him."
"Isn't he afraid that Gatō might replace him?"
"Not at all. There are unspoken rules in the shinobi world. No matter how small a nation is, its Daimyō holds the same status as the daimyō of the great nations. Anyone who dares lay a hand on a daimyō will quickly be eliminated."
Sasuke frowned coldly.
"A daimyō who doesn't care whether his own people live or die has no reason to exist in the first place. Someone like that should just be killed."
"What a shame, Sasuke." Makoto shrugged. "We're legitimate ninja, not rogue shinobi. We are absolutely forbidden from targeting daimyō."
"Tch. That's seriously irritating. Makes us ninja feel like bodyguards for a bunch of useless trash."
"You're not wrong," Makoto admitted. "That's the rule the shinobi world has operated under for hundreds and thousands of years."
"No one ever tried to change such a disgusting system?"
"Of course they did. But they all failed. It's not something easy to accomplish. You'd need to completely overturn the entire structure of the current shinobi world."
"Real change requires countless lives to be thrown into the fire…"
"Or the arrival of a once-in-a-millennium opportunity."
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