A Yellow Flash

It was a completely silent moment. Naruto had joined Kakashi and Zabuza, who had been pinned to the ground by the silver-haired Jonin's Hounds.

The three shinobi were all staring at the army of violent thugs in front of them. Gato, the most disgusting man on the planet, led the despicable lot.

And after announcing his tardiness, he uttered something that should never be stated in front of a girl's 'father.'

"Gato, what the hell did you just say?! Because I don't believe I heard you correctly. Would you mind repeating that?" Zabuza threatened the tiny guy, challenging him to answer the fatal question.

Gato, on the other hand, simply scowled.

"Oh, I'm sorry, 'Demon of the Hidden Mist,' I didn't know you'd gone deaf. Hahahahaha And, just so you know, Zabuza, I WAS NEVER GOING TO PAY YOU, YOU DUMB BITCH!" Gato screamed with delight, making Zabuza's anger boil even more.

"...Now that Raiga is gone, and you're set to follow in his footsteps, all that's left is to finish you off. But the Konoha kunoichis and your little whore are mine to keep. I'm going to have my fun with that bitch, and then I'm going to give the rest of her to these fine...'gentlemen' hahaha." Gato remarked this as he licked his lips hungrily at Haku, while his guys laughed and called out extremely "vulgar" things they wanted to do with the Yuki girl.

When Haku heard this, she had no fear in her eyes. Zabuza, on the other hand, wants to murder each and every one of them. Slowly and agonizingly.

After that, he shifted his attention to Kakashi and Naruto.

"Kakashi, could you just get these fucking dogs off of me so I can murder this fucking obese, slimy, backstabbing, depraved piece of shit?" Zabuza inquired, attempting to rein in his deadly instinct.

With a nod, Kakashi reversed his summoning, enabling all of his Ninja Hounds to vanish in a cloud of smoke, releasing Zabuza.

However, the dog's severe bites and blood loss left Zabuza's arms numb. He tried to hoist his Kubikiribocho, but his one decent arm could barely handle the massive blade.

He need some time to regain his strength. He considered fighting with his mouth, but he wasn't suicidal yet.

When Zabuza watched Naruto approach forward, his thoughts were interrupted.

"Zabuza, save your strength. I'll look after them" Naruto said, slightly giddy at the prospect of fighting an army for the first time. While it wasn't quite an army of well-trained Shinobi, it was the best he could do.

Zabuza, on the other hand, just sneered. He admires the bravery of the blonde, but Gato is HIS prey.

"No. That filth dies by my hand "Zabuza was enraged.

At first, Naruto considered it and decided that Gato should die at Zabuza's hand in order to gain the swordsman's favor. Zabuza, on the other hand, was still unfit to combat the thug army.

".....Fine. The slime ball is yours. But I'll take care of the rest." Naruto asserted himself.

But Kakashi would be damned if he continued to be silent and let his younger brother to do this, especially at such a young age. He had no doubts in Naruto's ninja talents, but he was concerned about the consequences of this action.

"There are over a hundred people there. Allow me to deal with them." Kakashi remarked.

"With all due respect, Kakashi-niisan, it is not a wise decision. Your chakras are virtually depleted. Whether or not these men are shinobi, one of them will almost certainly strike a fortunate hit and kill you. And I'm not going to let it happen because you know your girlfriend is going to murder me." At the end, Naruto murmured, gently laughing.

"Perhaps....but you'd be insane if I let you battle them all by yourself." Kakashi continued to insist on assisting.

"Don't be concerned, Kakashi-niisan..." As he removed a single Kunai from his pouch, Naruto replied.

However, there was a strange 'seal' inscribed on the handle.

".....this will be over in a Flash" Naruto finished with a soft smirk, but the last word made the silver haired Jonin widened his eyes in disbelief.

"N-Naruto...don't tell me that you...." Kakashi gasped, as tries to find the right words, for what Naruto was about to do.

Without wasting anymore time, Naruto threw the single kunai towards Gato, and made a couple of hand-seals.

"Ninja Art: Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

The Single kunai then multiplied into hundreds, causing Gato and his army to tremble in fear, and attempted to take cover. But surprisingly...all of the kunais....missed?

They just landed on the ground beneath their feet. But Naruto didn't look disappointed.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA" Gato and his men laughed out loud, for the blonde boy's 'lack of accuracy' and 'stupidity'

"THAT WAS COMPLETELY PATHETHIC! THAT WAS THE WORST FUCKING THROW I EVER SAW! YOU HAD US SCARED THERE FOR A MOMENT BRAT! BUT NON OF YOUR STUPID KNIVES EVEN TOUCHED US! HAHAHAHA" Gato yelled out with glee, and continued laughing hysterically with his men.

Zabuza's eyes twitched for a moment. He actually thought the blonde boy was about to do something Awesome! Saying he was disappointed, was an understatement.

"Umm...kid.....WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! YOU CAN'T AIM FOR SHIT!" Zabuza yelled out frustratingly and angrily, but Naruto didn't bat an eye.

Kakashi wanted to say something as well, but he has a good feeling, that he already knows what Naruto was about to do.

Naruto only responded by taking out the Dākusuchīru, his mother's sword from a scroll, his chakra caused the sword to have a red shining like blood at the blade.

Zabuza and Kakashi's eyes were widened, at the magnificent sight of the unique sword, that was in the blonde's hand. Especially Zabuza who recognised the blade immediately, he still remembered The Red Death's sword! He was about to ask who he was and how he got his hands on that sword.

".....I wasn't trying to" Naruto said calmly to Zabuza, before he instantly disappeared in a Yellow and Red Flash.

'Holy Shit' Kakashi and Zabuza thought at the same time.

As Gato continues to ignorantly laugh-out-loud in front of his men, he didn't realize that the laughter of his army behind him, was slowly growing silent.

He failed to hear their sudden gasp, before their bodies fell limp on the ground, or the sounds of an energy blade being swiped around, cutting through flesh after flesh.

They wanted to scream, but Naruto was inhumanely fast, as he teleported from one spot to another, slicing their throats, before they could utter a single word.

Slice after slice, each one of them fell in the ground, their bodies ripped to shreds, the blood spread everywhere but not a single drop of blood was anywhere in Naruto's clothes, hands or face.

Gato slowly stopped his hysterical laughter, when he felt a cold chill crawling up his spine.

As he turned his head around, his eyes widened in fear, when he saw all of his men lie dead on the ground, with a single figure standing over them, wielding the sword in his hand. He then noticed, it was the same blonde boy that he was laughing at earlier.

"Flying Raijin Slice"

Naruto said his Jutsu's name calmly, with a cold look in his eyes, for the little businessman.

"W-Wh-What...h-how d-did...." Gato was stuttering heavily at the sight of the blonde boy, but he noticed his clothes didn't have a drop of blood in them, not a single one.

"Believe me, it took me some time to master this Jutsu. Your men were unfortunate enough to be my first field-test. They have my....undying gratitude" Naruto said with a smirk on his face, it was enough to put the Fear of God in Gato.

As Naruto slowly walked menacingly towards the short businessman, Gato instinctively and fearfully ran at the opposite direction, trying to get as far away from the blonde as possible.

But that was a very foolish decision.

He had completely forgotten who was standing at the other side of the bridge.

As he ran and ran, he bumped into something hard, and fell on his butt. He lifted his head, and his eyes widened in fear at the person standing before him.

"Z-Zabuza" Gato said with fear in his voice, but then he grins widely, when he realized a golden opportunity to save his ass.

"Q-Quickly Zabuza! Kill that Brat! I will pay you double!" Gato ordered, as he pointed his finger at Naruto.

But Zabuza gave no response, as he continues to glare daggers at the short man.

"W-WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, YOU IDIOT?! KILL THAT-AAAAHHHHH!" Gato yelled out in pain, as Zabuza swiftly used his Kubikiribocho to cleanly severed both his legs from his body, causing him to drop to the ground, with buckets of blood pouring out of his wounds.

"AHHH G-God damn it! Wait! N-No! don't-AAAAHHHH" Gato tried to crawl away, and used his non-broken arm to shield himself from Zabuza, but the swordsman simply severed his arm without a second thought, causing him to scream out in agony once more, as more blood was spilling from his new wound.

Gato was completely immobilize. Both his legs and left arm were severed. He was losing so much blood, that he could go into shock at any moment.

If he lost his last limb, he'll most likely look like a potato in a bloody five million ryo suit.

"Z-Zabuza please! d-don't kill me. I will give you anything! Money! Weapons! Wome-AHHHHH" Zabuza cut him off, by severing his last remaining arm. Causing him to scream out in agony, while crying his eyes out, and pissing his pants in the process.

It was truly a pathetic and bloody sight.

Zabuza was now standing over Gato, with the giant cleaver sword in his hand. Looking down at the man who threaten to rape his little girl.

"When I first met you Gato, I knew you were a worm. Hahaha I guess you practically are now" Zabuza said mockingly, implying all of his now severed limbs.

"Money won't save you this time, Gato....You know, there are only three things I hate in this world. One, people who break their deals with me. Two, degenerate scum who prey on innocent women. Three.....ANYONE who even THINKS....of touching my little girl." Zabuza said, as his killing intent was releasing from his body.

'Gulp' was all Gato could do.

"And you know the funny thing is? You're all three." Zabuza said as he lifted his giant sword high up in the air.

Gato's eyes were widened. It can't end like this, he thought.

His fears intensified when saw the giant Demonic Aura surrounding Zabuza. He truly was a Demon.

Gato tried to beg pathetically, but it was futile, as Zabuza dropped his giant sword downwards, and sliced the short businessman in half, from top to bottom.

Gato was finally dead.

Zabuza was tired. He was injured, but still alive. This job had been a complete waste of time. He was frustrated, but he was glad that he and Haku are still alive. For now.

When he heard the sounds of footsteps running towards him, he turns around, preparing for a sudden attack.

But instead, he was engulfed with a sudden tight hug. He looked down, and saw it was Haku, as she was sobbing heavily on his chest.

Zabuza honestly did not know how to react. Haku never hugged him before, and neither did he, to her.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry, Zabuza-sama. I have failed you. I am a useless tool" Haku said sadly, as she continues to cry on his chest.

But what she just called herself, made Zabuza cringe and regretful. He never truly saw her as a tool, and he was ashamed of himself, for letting her believe that she was.

"Stop. Please Haku....don't call yourself that anymore." Zabuza said softly, which made Haku looked at him with wide eyes.

"But....you said I was your tool? Your weapon?" Haku reminded.

"I know what I said.....and I was wrong. You're not my tool Haku....you're my little girl. And I'm so sorry I never told you that before." Zabuza said lovingly, as returned Haku's hug. Embracing her tightly like he should have done long ago.

Haku couldn't believe what was happening. For years, she had always saw Zabuza as her father. She had accepted, that Zabuza only sees her as a disposable tool. But she always dreamt, that he would one day see her as his daughter.

So when he hugged her for the first time, she couldn't help but cry even more. This was what she always wanted from him.

"T-Tousan....I was so scared. I thought....I thought I was going to lose you." Haku said with tears in her eyes.

Hearing her called him 'Tousan' again made him feel very warm inside. He smiled at her, as he wipes the tears from her cheeks.

"For a second there, I thought so too. I thought I was a complete goner.....until THAT kid showed up out of nowhere." Zabuza said, as he pointed his head towards Naruto.

Haku turned her head and saw Naruto from a distant, still walking towards them.

"Y-Yes, he was the boy I met in the forest." Haku said with a soft smile.

"That kid? The so called 'kind boy' you can't stop talking about?" Zabuza asked with a raised eyebrow, since his first impression of Naruto, was someone not to be fucked with. Not kind and gentle like what Haku described.

But Haku blushes from embarrassment, when Zabuza mentioned that she can't stop talking about Naruto.

Naruto then finally approached the Kiri Shinobis, as Kakashi and Asuma were also approaching them from the other side. Zabuza felt a bit worried, and he knew he needed to make his intentions clear to the Leaf shinobis.

"Well Kakashi, looks like my contract with Gato is terminated. Permanently. I guess there is no need for us to fight anymore." Zabuza said, as he let go of Haku.

"I guess we don't." Kakashi said, as he pulled his headband down, to cover his lone Sharingan eye.

"So what now?" Asuma asked the Kiri ninjas.

"I believe is time I returned back in Kiri, I think I might be able to do something this time," Zabuza stated knowing about Naruto's offer, he knew the blonde wanted to make a deal and was actually quite interesting on knowing what that was.

Haku just stood beside Zabuza with a slightly disappointed look, she wondered when she would meet Naruto again.

But luckily Naruto noticed the disappointed look on her face, and knew what he needed to do, to protect them.

"Don't worry Haku, our roads might be different but sometimes different roads leads to the same Village," Naruto stated with a grin, Haku nodded at him with a smile.

".....You saved my life, Naruto. And I have a feeling you saved Haku's as well. I am in your dept. You have my gratitude." Zabuza said.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of footsteps running towards Naruto's direction.

"NARUTO-KUN!" Ino yelled out, as she tackled Naruto in a bone-crushing hug. Naruto wasn't that surprised since he sensed Ino running towards him from a mile away, and returned the hug in full.

Naruto always loves how soft her touch was, and the flowery scent of her hair was just mind blowing. He didn't realize how much he missed her.

Haku looked a little disappointed when saw the level of affection from the blonde pair. But nevertheless, she still sees Naruto as someone very special to her. And if he was happy, then she will be happy for him. A part of her wasn't that surprise that Naruto already has girlfriend. The blonde boy can be quite a charmer.

"Ino-chan, are you alright?" Naruto asked in a sweet loving voice, as he softly stroke her cheek with his fingers.

This caused the Yamanaka to blush immediately.

"Tee-hee, I should be asking you that. You look as bad as that Ebisu guy, when Asuma Sensei told Kurenai Sensei, about his secret peeking at the hot springs." Ino said with a cute giggle, but both Asuma and Kakashi managed to overhear, and couldn't help but laugh at the memory.

Kurenai can be very brutal when it comes to perverts.

"Really? Don't worry I'm not harmed, not even a little," Naruto said.

Ino then subtly made a single hand-seal, and activated her Mind-Link with Naruto.

'That's too bad though. I guess you won't be nursing me back to health, when we get back home.' Naruto thought with a teasing smirk.

'Naruto-kun, please don't make me blush in front of all these people. And besides.....who says I won't do it?" Ino thought with a seductive tone, that made Naruto blush a bit.

'Now look who's teasing.' Naruto thought, as he looked at Ino lovingly.

'Oh Whiskers, this is just the start.' Ino thought with a cute giggle, as she already can't wait to get back home, so she can spend some quality time with her Naruto.

As the blonde pair were still having their telepathic conversation, Zabuza was asking Kakashi about what Ino meant, when she mentioned the beaten-up pervert at the hot springs.

And the answer Kakashi had given him, was not at all satisfying.

"Jeez, no wonder girls from Konoha are always crazy," Zabuza commented. Asuma nodded in agreement.

Kakashi then turned his attention back towards his fellow Konoha Jonin.

"Where's Shikamaru?" Kakashi asked Asuma.

"He's with Tazuna and Team 7. He wanted to make sure they are safe, when they awake." Asuma answered.

Team 7

Sasuke saw Shikamaru and Choji walking towards them. Shikamaru was helping Choji walk by letting the chubby boy lean on the lazy Nara. Which Shikamaru was starting to regret.

Sakura had just woken up, immediately checking on Sasuke who just scoffed.

"Are you okay, Choji?" Shikamaru asked his friend.

"Yeah, I don't feel like a pin-cushion anymore thanks to you Shika, so that's good. But now.....I'm super hungry" Choji said as he rubbed his 'empty' belly.

"You're always hungry, Choji." Shikamaru said with a lazy smirk.

"What happened when I was out? What happened to Haku?" Sasuke asked the pair standing before him.

"Guess" Shikamaru simply asked.

"....Naruto?" Sasuke answered with a deadpan look, feeling that was the obvious answer.

"Naruto" Both Shikamaru and Choji said in unison.

"Choji you can walk right?" Shikamaru asked, still helping Choji to stand up.

"...Yeh," he answered unsure when Shikamaru suddenly dropped him in the ground, stretching out his limbs.

"That was troublesome,"

Sasuke then turned his head, and saw Naruto, Ino, Kakashi and Asuma, talking to Zabuza and Haku. He can only assumed that the battle was over, and it ended peacefully.

He then noticed the pile of bodies behind them, and Naruto's sword was covered in blood. He assumed it was not his, since he looked healthy and uninjured.

The Uchiha gritted his teeth in frustration.

'How am I supposed to catch up to him now? Naruto....has always been better than me. I won't be able to defeat Itachi at my current level. I need to get stronger.....no matter what.' Sasuke thought with determination.

He really wanted to surpass Naruto, but at this rate he won't be able to stop Itachi. He needed more power. But the real question is how?