"This... this doesn't seem quite right. After all, doing this would still be deceiving Zabuza-sama."
Although Haku was somewhat tempted by Furina's suggestion, out of the respect in his heart for Zabuza, he still wasn't too willing to go through with it. For him, that mental hurdle was just a bit too hard to cross.
Furina, however, wasn't disappointed by Haku's refusal at all. From the tone of his voice, she could tell he was already a little swayed he just had some reservations. All she needed to do was give him a few more reasons.
"It's not like we have to say you're the one deceiving him. I just defeated you and mistakenly thought I'd finished you off, while you simply got lucky and survived. There's no deception involved at all or rather, if anyone's deceiving him, it's me."
"This..."
Seeing Haku grow even more hesitant, Furina knew her words were working. She immediately poured on a bit more fuel, determined to talk him into it.
"Besides, even setting this aside for a moment, you should think about Zabuza too. Let me tell you Kakashi-sensei became a genin at five, a chūnin at six, and was promoted to jōnin at twelve. He's also a strong contender for Hokage. His strength is terrifying. Zabuza is definitely no match for him.
If you keep hesitating here, who knows Zabuza might end up getting taken out by Kakashi-sensei. If we head over now, we can at least get them to pause the fight for the time being."
"Kakashi... is he really that powerful? Powerful enough to become Hokage?"
Hearing about Kakashi's formidable strength, Haku's heart couldn't help but waver. Zabuza-sama had only gone rogue after failing to assassinate the Mizukage.
If Kakashi truly had the power to become Hokage, that would make him a shinobi on par with a Kage meaning he'd be far stronger than Zabuza-sama by a wide margin.
"Of course he's that strong. Otherwise, why do you think I'd be his student?" Seeing Haku clearly fall into hesitation, Furina didn't forget to drive the point home with one more jab.
As for whether Kakashi was really as strong as she described? Of course he was. Heavens as her witness Furina hadn't told a single lie just now; everything was the absolute truth.
After all, Kakashi's teacher was a Hokage, his teacher's teammate later became a Hokage, his teacher's teacher's teacher was a Hokage, and his teacher's teacher's teacher's teacher was also a Hokage.
Just say it isn't he a strong contender for the Hokage position? And Kakashi did eventually become Hokage later on. She was already holding back by not outright saying he was definitely going to become Hokage.
As for his strength, it really was that impressive. And if the fight dragged on for too long, given Zabuza's current condition, he definitely wouldn't be able to outlast Kakashi.
So were there any lies? Not a single one, okay? It was just that he misunderstood.
"Indeed... If he has the ability to be your teacher, then he does indeed qualify to compete for Hokage."
Haku naturally had no idea that Furina was misleading him. In his eyes now, Kakashi was already someone capable of standing against a Kage-level powerhouse. For Zabuza to fight someone like that meant the outcome was truly a matter of life and death.
"I believe you. But if we do it the way you said, will Kakashi-sama let Zabuza-sama go?"
Once he realized Zabuza was in imminent danger of losing his life, Haku temporarily set aside whether this would be disrespectful to Zabuza. Before they set off, though, he still had one question: would this really save Zabuza?
"Of course at least a seventy or eighty percent chance. Kakashi-sensei is someone who values his comrades deeply. If he recognizes the bond between you and Zabuza, he should let you both go. Even if he doesn't, I can plead for you on your behalf. Consider it repayment for you warning me to be careful earlier, even when we were about to fight to the death."
After receiving Furina's assurance, Haku finally let out a breath of relief. But for some reason, he suddenly became a little shy and awkward, his face tinged with embarrassment.
"Um... uh... could we maybe go with the second scenario you mentioned?"
"Heh, of course we can." Looking at Haku blushing and acting bashful, Furina couldn't help but sigh inwardly this guy really was born in the wrong gender. If he hadn't been, who knows how many people would have wanted him as their wife.
...
On the other battlefield
For some reason, Zabuza and Kakashi weren't competing with ninjutsu instead, they were locked in fierce taijutsu combat. The constant clashing sounds of Zabuza's broken sword against kunai echoed nonstop through the forest.
But anyone with eyes could see that Zabuza had clearly fallen into a disadvantage. Under Kakashi's Sharingan, his movements were growing more and more strained.
This wasn't because Kakashi truly possessed Kage-level strength as Haku had imagined. Rather, Zabuza himself was already in poor condition, and the weapon he specialized in had issues.
Meanwhile, aside from the initial sneak-attack Raikiri, Kakashi had barely expended any chakra. The Sharingan also provided a huge advantage in close-quarters taijutsu battles.
With one side weakening and the other staying fresh, the situation had become Kakashi suppressing Zabuza who was wielding a massive blade with just a small kunai in melee combat.
"Sigh... I wonder how Haku is doing over there."
Struggling to hold on, Zabuza knew the only way to turn the tables now was for Haku to defeat Furina first, then come back to support him against Kakashi.
But he had fought Furina himself and knew she wasn't easy to deal with. Hoping for Haku to provide backup wasn't realistic. So today... he was probably going to lose for real.
"Yo, Kakashi-sensei, how come you're so slow? I've already finished over there, and you're still fighting? I told you to read less of that kind of book, sigh."
"Nani!" Seeing Furina appear on a nearby tree, Zabuza instantly had a bad feeling. She was here... which meant Haku...
Distracted and agitated, Zabuza lost all desire to keep tangling with Kakashi. With a sudden burst of strength, he forced Kakashi back, then looked up and glared fiercely at Furina as he demanded,
"Brat, why are you here? What happened to Haku now?"
Even at this moment, a small flicker of hope remained in Zabuza's heart. He hoped Haku had only temporarily hidden and was still lurking in the shadows, waiting for an opening.
Kakashi, seeing the situation, also stopped attacking. Furina's arrival here already explained a lot at the very least, that masked ninja named Haku was no match for her.
As for how he confirmed this was really Furina and not the masked ninja using Transformation Technique? Simple. No one else would talk to him in that exact way except Furina. You could say this method of identifying someone was a first in his life.
Once he was certain it was Furina, that meant it was now two against one. Zabuza had no hope of turning things around. In that case, there was no need to rush. And judging by Furina's demeanor, it seemed she wanted to say something anyway.