Over the next few days, teams 7 and 8 worked together on training and defense. At any given time, two ninja were guarding Tazuna at the bridge, two were practicing teamwork exercises at Tazuna’s house, and two were practicing jutsu in the forest. Kurenai made routine circuits to make sure everyone was doing what they were supposed to, and Kakashi stayed with whichever pair seemed to need his unique brand of teaching most that day. Throughout it all, while Sakura and Sasuke got to team up with Naruto’s “summon,” the genin of team 8 were kept in the dark about what Naruto really was. It was a secret, after all.
Divided as they were, was it any surprise that they missed a faux hunter-nin hiding in the trees?
Zabuza tested his sword arm by slicing a tree in half. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sorry, Zabuza-sama, but all I have are legends…” Haku said.
“A dragon hasn’t been seen since before the First War,” Zabuza said. “You have no reason to apologize. Is it what the legend speaks of?”
“It is, Zabuza-sama,” Haku said with conviction.
“Then we are ready. Tell me what you have seen of them.”
“They divide their forces. If we strike the bridge as the jonin woman leaves, we will claim an easy victory.”
“Gato has thugs for easy victories,” Zabuza sneered. “Tell me about Kakashi. Tell me about the summoner.”
Hinata twiddled her fingers. Here with Naruto, guarding the bridge-builder, alone…it was…it was…
It was really hard not to faint.
Naruto frowned and considered Hinata. The old dragon had shown him how much Hinata cared, but he had also seen how much Hinata as overcome by her own nervousness. He resolved to be as supportive of her as he could. After all, wasn’t that his third wish? To prove the Hyuuga wrong about how awesome his Hinata-chan was?
The moment of reflection ended as the mists began to rise. Naruto felt his neck prickle in remembered adrenaline. “He’s here,” he whispered.
“Ano?” Hinata murmured, taking her attention off her fingers and noticing the mist. She flashed back to the briefing they’d had and squeaked. “Eep.”
Naruto got up. “Tazuna-san!” he bellowed. “Get everyone off the bridge!”
“Byakugan!” Hinata cried. “Naruto-kun! Above you!”
Naruto grabbed Hinata and dashed towards Tazuna as Zabuza landed sword first where they had been. “Oooo,” he laughed cruelly. “A Hyuuga, is it? How would you like to die today?
Hinata shivered and got into a basic juuken stance. “Naruto-kun, we need help.”
Naruto glanced around and saw nothing. Well, with luck…he put his hands together. “Kage bunshin no jutsu!” A dozen clones filled the mists between them and Zabuza. “That might slow him down,” he muttered. He tilted his head back and opened his mouth wide.
Hinata saw Naruto’s chakra do something…strange.
Kakashi felt it and looked out at the bridge. He wasn’t sure what he was seeing. A whirlwind had formed, straight as an arrow and thin as a tree, and it was pulling a cloud from the ground to the sky. He shifted his headband and grimaced. The compressed tornado was glowing with chakra. “Naruto,” he muttered. He turned to Shino and Sakura. “You two stay here and guard the client’s family!” he ordered, then he vanished, making for the bridge at full speed.
In the forest, Kurenai reached the same conclusion. She didn’t have a Sharingan, but you didn’t become a genjutsu specialist without seeing patterns. That whirlwind was a jutsu, no question. She turned to Kiba and Sasuke. “Move out!” she snapped. All three of them hurried off to the bridge.
Zabuza idly decapitated another clone, impressed despite himself. The summoner had breathed some kind of fuuton that sucked all the mist into the sky, where it was as useless as any cloud. “I had expected you to summon, boy, not flood me with clones,” he said conversationally.
“You think I only have one trick?” one clone asked.
Zabuza shrugged and ended that clone. “I suppose that whirlwind will bring Kakashi here just as well.”
Naruto hesitated long enough for the last of his clones to fall. “You want Kakashi-sensei here?”
Zabuza’s eyes narrowed in that way that showed a malicious smile under his mask. “Worthy opponents are to be treasured. But I don’t need you distracting me.”
Naruto felt a thrill as he saw Zabuza suddenly in front of him. The massive sword was coming in a lateral arc that would shave his hair down below his ears. Naruto gathered chakra into his feet and leaped like he was planning to fly. The sword passed under him harmlessly.
Only then did Naruto realize his mistake. His legs, even in this form, were mighty enough to get a leap high enough to catch the wind with his wings. Adding chakra to that was overkill, and it would be seconds, many seconds, before he could rejoin the fight.
And Hinata was down there alone. With Zabuza.
Zabuza looked at the girl that was his only opponent for a few seconds. A Hyuuga. She could cause problems with that gentle fist they used, even if she did seem paralyzed by his killing intent. He took a step forward and swung, using the reach of his sword to kill her without getting into her range.
Naruto opened his mouth to breathe at Zabuza, knowing he was too late. Hinata! No no NO!!
Then Kakashi was there, a simple kunai ending Zabuza’s swing. “Hinata, cover Tazuna and get out of here.”
Hinata nodded dumbly and turned to the bridge builder. “Tazuna-san!”
“No argument,” the old man said grimly.
Naruto finally landed a few feet away, damaging the bridge with the heavy impact. He knew his role; stick with Tazuna until he could find a reason to slip away and back up Kakashi. He wasn’t that comfortable keeping Hinata in the dark about who he was, but now would be a really bad time for the reveal. “We’re on it, Kakashi-sensei!”
“I’m afraid I can’t let you leave,” said a new voice.
Hinata whimpered. She had hoped that presence would stay hidden, but now the obviously-ninja observer had managed to get between them and the shore.
Haku regarded Hinata and Naruto from behind his mask. “Zabuza-sama has contracted to kill that man,” he said simply, as if that was reason enough for the coming violence.
“What kind of freak contracts out to kill an innocent man!?” Naruto yelled.
Haku blinked and tilted his head. “A ninja,” he said simply. “That’s what we are made for.”
Zabuza smiled and hopped away from Kakashi, signaling a break to their battle. “Come, Kakashi, let us watch our students’ fight.”
Kakashi held his pose for a splitsecond before apparently relaxing. It was as much a façade as Zabuza’s – if either made a move, they knew the other would take full advantage. No, their fight wasn’t over, it was just…on hold. Until one of them twitched.
Haku understood Zabuza’s message. He pointed to Hinata. “You. You will show your boyfriend-”
“Eep!”
“-what it means to be ninja.”
Read the comments on this episode
(Posted Sun, 29 May 2011 19:40)
Questions? Problems? Suggestions?
Send a mail to addventure@bast-enterprises.de
or use the contact form.
らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
All other series and their characters are © by their respective creators or owners. No claims of ownership of these characters are implied by the authors of this Addventure, or should be inferred.
The Anime Addventure is a non-profit site.