Mizuki emerged from the forest, "Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura — you three performed very well just now."
Naruto scratched his head, "Hehe, I'm a genius after all. Handling this kind of situation is easy for me!"
Sasuke, "Tch, you're clearly the dead-last, yet you dare call yourself a genius. Shameless."
Naruto said angrily, "Sasuke, you don't accept that? Come fight me one-on-one!"
"One-on-one it is. A dead-last will always be a dead-last. I'll beat you until you can't get up." Sasuke wasn't backing down either, looking ready to fight at any moment.
He had just noticed that when Naruto performed the Multiple Shadow Clone and Earth-Style Wall Techniques, he didn't make any hand seals at all. With just a single clap of his hands, he executed them.
This ability was clearly what Mizuki had mentioned — a sign that chakra control had reached an extremely high level.
'I can't even simplify hand seals, yet he's already able to release jutsu without seals. His dead-last image at the Academy was definitely an act.'
Sasuke felt unwilling. Recalling the Academy days, Naruto always lost to him during combat classes — it made him feel agitated inside.
'I'm an Uchiha, the strongest. I don't need him to go easy on me. I want to fight him fair and square. I want to prove that I, Uchiha Sasuke, am the strongest.'
Seeing their fighting spirit growing more intense, Mizuki quickly stopped them.
"Now's not the time for this. We just experienced an attack — there might still be enemies lurking in the shadows. We must stay alert."
Hearing this, Naruto and Sasuke immediately calmed down.
The two attackers were tied to a tree. Though their bodies were charred black, they weren't dead yet. Fire Style jutsu were famously non-lethal…
"These two are Chūnin from Kirigakure, yet they appeared here to assassinate you. Mr. Tazuna, I think you owe us an explanation."
Tazuna remained silent.
"Why were you able to see through our actions and use the Substitution Jutsu in advance?" Meizu, one of the Demon Brothers, asked unwillingly.
Mizuki, "It hasn't rained in several days. On a clear day like this, there's water on the ground — that ambush method is a bit too obvious, don't you think?"
The three kids had a sudden realization.
Tazuna asked, "You clearly knew, so why did you let the children take action? What if something dangerous happened?"
Mizuki smiled, "I wanted to test their courage. The result was very satisfying. Besides, with me here, there won't be any danger."
Tazuna, "What do you mean? You're also just a Chūnin — what makes you so confident?"
Mizuki didn't need to explain.
"Next, two of you must kill these two Kiri ninja." he said calmly.
Naruto was shocked, "What? Kill them? They've already lost the ability to resist — why do we still need to kill them?"
He was truly kind-hearted. No wonder, despite how the villagers treated him, he never turned dark.
"Those who show mercy don't deserve to be ninja." Sasuke said, pulling out a kunai and slashing it across Gōzu's throat.
"Sasuke-kun, you…" Sakura looked at him, fear flashing in her eyes.
After finishing one off, Sasuke glanced back at Naruto.
"Coward, are you too scared?"
The contemptuous look instantly got to Naruto, "I'm a man who's determined to become Hokage! Killing someone is nothing — why would I be scared!"
The kunai swept across, and the remaining Kiri ninja met his end.
"Show no mercy to enemies! Otherwise you'll harm yourself and your comrades." Mizuki said calmly. He turned to Tazuna, "Mr. Tazuna, the mission you posted was C-Rank. We're only responsible for protecting you from threats like thugs, bandits, and ordinary armed groups. But now, ninja assassins have appeared.
This exceeds the scope of a C-Rank mission — it's B-Rank or even A-Rank. Perhaps you have your difficulties, but false requests cause us a lot of trouble. Either we abandon the mission, or…"
Or, pay up!
Sakura immediately said, "This kind of mission is too dangerous for novices like us!"
Recalling the earlier battle, especially the scene of Mizuki being cut into pieces, she was terrified and wanted to give up.
Naruto shouted, "No way! We promised to protect the old man until the bridge is built. How can we give up halfway? Keeping my word is my ninja way — Naruto Uzumaki's ninja way. Besides, the enemies aren't that strong. We don't need to be afraid."
Mizuki, "Sasuke, what do you think?"
Sasuke, "I think a certain someone's courage still needs more training, so let's continue. Consider it practice."
Naruto jumped in front of him and shouted, "Who has small courage? I dare to stay alone in a graveyard at night — do you dare?"
Sasuke, "Tch, it's just a graveyard."
Naruto, "I dare to transform into a woman — do you dare?"
Sasuke stiffened his neck, "I dare!"
Naruto, "I dare to eat shit — do you dare?"
Sasuke, "I… I…"
Naruto clutched his stomach, "Hahaha, you don't dare! And you called me a coward. You don't even dare eat shit — you're the real coward."
Mizuki: "…"
Sakura punched Naruto on the head, "Naruto, if you dare say anything that disgusting again, I'll kill you."
The party of five continued on their way.
❊❊❊❊❊
After three days of travel, they finally reached the sea and took a boat to the Land of Waves.
"Mr. Tazuna, we're almost at the Land of Waves. If you don't give us a reasonable explanation, the mission ends once the boat docks."
Tazuna decisively played the sympathy card, then resorted to moral blackmail.
Naruto's sympathy overflowed, and he declared he would complete the mission no matter what.
"Mizuki-sensei, I will finish this mission. If you don't agree, you can go back first. I'll defeat that villain Gatō by myself."
Mizuki, "Fine, I give up arguing with you. However, Mr. Tazuna, I'm classifying this mission as B-Rank, and the payment will increase to 100,000 ryō. The Land of Waves doesn't have money now, but once the bridge is completed and the nation becomes prosperous, you must pay back the mission fee."
Tazuna, "As long as you can protect me until the bridge is finished, even 200,000 ryō is fine — let alone 100,000."
After the boat docked, a forest path still remained to Tazuna's home.
"Everyone be careful. From here on, the enemy could launch a surprise attack at any time." Mizuki reminded them.
He was already on high alert.
Zabuza Momochi, known as the Demon of the Hidden Mist, was no ordinary ninja. They couldn't let their guard down. Echolocation was already activated. From time to time, he made sounds, and everything within a 30-meter radius appeared in his mind.
Soon, echolocation detected someone hiding in a tree by the roadside, carrying a large sword — it was Zabuza.
"Sasuke, Great Fireball Technique — use it on me!" Mizuki jumped into an open space and shouted.
He didn't waste time — he would strike first.
Sasuke was stunned, then immediately realized something.
Snake → Ram → Monkey → Boar → Horse → Tiger
Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu ▻ Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique
Zabuza's eyes went wide in the tree.
"Releasing Fire Style jutsu at his own teammate — has he gone mad?"
Equally confused were Naruto, Sakura, and Tazuna.
"Sasuke, what are you doing?" Naruto shouted, then clapped his palms together.
Doton: Doryūheki ▻ Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall
Sakura also stood in front of Mizuki, starting hand seals while staring at Sasuke in complete bewilderment. Two earth walls rose in front of Mizuki, successfully blocking the fireball.
Mizuki: "…"
His teammates were holding him back.
Originally, with the fireball approaching, one Body Swap would swap Zabuza over, and even if he didn't die, he'd be severely injured.
But now, they'd just wasted three people's chakra.
"Mizuki-sensei, why did you tell Sasuke-kun to attack you? And Sasuke-kun, why did you just attack him when he said to?"
Sasuke didn't respond. He gripped his kunai, staying on guard.
The next moment, wind whistled.
Mizuki shouted, "Naruto, Sasuke, get down!"
They sensed the danger and dropped immediately. A large sword flew over their heads and struck a tree.
Zabuza appeared!
He stood on the sword's handle, looking down from above, radiating killing intent.
"Three brats and one nameless Chūnin, yet the Demon Brothers failed at your hands. You're not as simple as you appear. However, for me, this will be easy."
Mizuki didn't waste words. He retreated quickly, creating distance from Sakura. At the same time, he activated three explosive tags and released them.
Using the same trick again!
Zabuza's eyes focused. He saw every one of Mizuki's movements but couldn't understand them.
The next moment…
Ichi Kōtai no Jutsu ▻ Body Swap Technique
"What?"
The scene before Zabuza's eyes suddenly changed. When he looked again, he was already where Mizuki had just stood. Three explosive tags detonated with a thunderous boom.
Aside from Sasuke, neither Naruto nor Sakura reacted.
In just an instant, the enemy was — defeated?
"Their positions suddenly switched — what kind of jutsu is this?" Naruto and Sakura were filled with curiosity.
Sasuke watched with burning envy, wishing he could perform this technique.
The explosion ended, but Mizuki discovered there was no corpse — only a puddle of water on the ground.
"Water clone?" Mizuki's pupils constricted.
This Zabuza wouldn't be easy to deal with.
❊❊❊❊❊
In the river not far away, Zabuza had a sudden realization.
"No wonder he had that black-haired brat use Fire Style on him earlier — he can swap positions with people. Good thing I was cautious and tested with a water clone, otherwise I'd be severely injured by now. Also, he detected the clone hiding in the tree. He likely has sensory abilities. Sensing range — approximately 30 meters."
In an instant, he'd analyzed a wealth of useful information.
"This person is dangerous, different from all previous enemies. I must be careful!" Zabuza no longer underestimated him, but he didn't think he couldn't win either, "But no matter how strange his abilities, he's still just a Chūnin. Once he exhausts his chakra, he'll pose no threat to me."
He created another water clone, then raised his hand:
Kirigakure no Jutsu ▻ Hiding in Mist Technique
❊❊❊❊❊
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want to enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations: MrBlackWing (on that website with P)
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)