In the forest, a cold wind swept through the trees.
Zabuza awoke with a gasp, clutching his chest as the chill hit him. He sat up abruptly, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
"I'm still alive?"
He could feel the phantom sensation of that terrifying chakra tearing his body apart.
"Hey, Zabuza! You're awake!"
Haku's voice cut through his confusion. The boy rushed over, holding a skewer of grilled fish.
"Haku!" Zabuza grabbed him, checking him over. "You didn't die either?"
Looking at Haku's relieved face, something cracked in Zabuza's chest. A fissure opened in his frozen heart, shattering the ice that encased it.
Ignoring the fish, he pulled Haku into a rough, desperate embrace.
"Thank goodness," he rasped, his voice thick. "You're alive..."
Screw the rules about ninjas not having emotions. Screw treating Haku like a tool. To hell with all of it.
Having survived death, Zabuza didn't want to run away anymore. He didn't want to numb himself.
Haku stiffened, feeling the dampness on his shoulder. The Zabuza who acted like a man whose heart was as cold as his blade was actually crying.
And the emotion was overwhelming, genuine.
Haku's eyes widened in panic. He pulled back, turning toward the figure watching them.
"Lord Menma Uzumaki!" he called out. "Zabuza's head injury is clearly worse than we thought! You need to treat him again!"
"Menma!?" The warmth vanished from Zabuza instantly.
He almost shoved Haku away, but caught himself at the last moment, gently pushing him aside instead.
"My head is fine," Zabuza said, his face dark. "I was just... processing."
He looked up at Menma, who had appeared in the clearing. His eyes went wide, and he immediately reached for the Executioner's Blade strapped to his back.
"You!" he snarled.
"That blond little... Jinchuriki!"
Seeing Zabuza's agitation, Haku stepped between them.
"Lord Zabuza, it was Lord Menma who spared us. He healed our injuries."
Menma stepped out of the shadows, a calm smile on his face.
"Haku is right," Menma said. "I spared you. I healed you."
"What do you want?" Zabuza frowned, pulling Haku behind him. "You want us to do something for you?"
Menma shook his head. "Not help. You'll be acting on my behalf."
"After all,", he added, his smile widening slightly, "I'll be your master from now on."
"Damn it!" The word 'master' set Zabuza off. He swung the Executioner's Blade, but halfway through the motion, a sharp pain stabbed through his body.
Beside him, Haku gasped, his face paling as wisps of crimson chakra danced like flames across his skin.
"What... what did you do to us?" Zabuza gritted out, the pain making him stutter.
"Just a few tricks that hold your lives in my hands," Menma said casually. "Nothing to brag about."
As he spoke, the crimson chakra on their skin contracted and faded. The pain vanished instantly.
With his life literally in Menma's hands, Zabuza quickly accepted reality.
"Fine. I admit defeat," Zabuza grunted. "Consider it a change of boss."
"But don't even think about making me call you 'master.' Not a chance."
Menma smirked, suppressing the urge to laugh. "If anyone's calling me that, it'll be Haku. With your ugly face, it's disgusting."
"Hmph," Zabuza grunted, ignoring the jab. As long as he didn't have to act like a slave, he could live with it.
After subduing Zabuza, Menma laid out his plan.
"It's inconvenient for me to appear in person, so I need you to handle things," Menma explained. "Don't worry, I only need three years of service, then you're free."
"Of course," Menma added, his voice dropping to a cold warning, "if you try to screw me over or slack off, you'll never be free again."
Menma didn't bother imagining how much stronger he'd be in three years. By then, Zabuza and Haku would be dispensable.
Hearing he could still be free, Zabuza's expression eased slightly.
"As long as you keep your word, we'll do the work."
"Good," Menma nodded. "That restriction controlling your lives also grants you a power. Activate it against a strong enemy, and it'll enhance your body's vitality and healing."
Menma, fully controlling the Nine-Tails' chakra, could lend a portion of it to others. It was limited—roughly equivalent to a few dozen Kakashis worth of reserves—and once used up, he would have to replenish it. However, this chakra carried the Flying Thunder God technique, allowing him to appear beside them instantly or send Shadow Clones to recharge them.
"It's Tailed Beast chakra, isn't it?" Zabuza looked at Menma with a heavy gaze. "Compared to Yagura Karatachi, you're more like a perfect Jinchuriki."
Haku, standing nearby, closed his eyes to sense the power. He directly activated the Nine-Tails' chakra.
"What a rush," Haku breathed.
A fiery red cloak erupted around him. His strength surged to a new level.
"If the Hidden Mist's hunter-nin squad comes back," Haku declared, "I can take them down single-handedly!"
Zabuza didn't bother testing the chakra like Haku. He looked straight at Menma.
"What's next? What's the plan?"
Zabuza's reliable demeanor pleased Menma.
"Take over Gato's shipping company," Menma said. "Use his money to establish an organization that works for me."
"I'll put together a business plan later," Menma continued. "Your goal is to turn the company into a global conglomerate spanning the ninja world. You understand the role money plays here better than I do."
With money, you can hire ninjas to fight, just like the Five Great Nations. They maintain their own forces, but they pay ninjas from the villages to fight their wars. They even hire groups like the Akatsuki if the price is right.
Ninja villages need money to develop. Without it, they can't stockpile enough supplies—explosive tags, ration pills, kunai. The relationship between villages and nations is a partnership. If a village fails to meet the requirements, funding gets cut, and the nation hires someone else. Hidden sand is a prime example of that.
Of course, the villages wouldn't dare rebel. If they did, they'd face the other ninja villages hired by the government. Even if they won, the victors would be warriors, not rulers. They wouldn't know how to govern a Nation.
In the end, money talks. You can hire ninjas for battle, even fund the creation of new villages. Unless you incite total outrage and get ganged up on—like the Land of Whirlpools—or encounter a monster who wipes out a Nation single-handedly, money solves most problems.
"I understand," Zabuza said.
His thoughts were similar to the Kazekage's; they both wanted to seize Gato's company to expand their influence. But Menma wanted to operate and develop the company into a massive enterprise, while Zabuza simply wanted an organization that could take on missions and earn money.
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