Journey to the Land of Waves

That night

On the battlefield, the thunder roared like thousands of birds singing in unison. A flash of lightning surged from the hands of a black-haired youth.

"Raikiri!" shouted Sasuke.

Sasuke's speed, enhanced by the Raiton stimulating his body's cells, reached its maximum. Unnoticed, his eyes glowed a blood-red hue.

"Nani!?" exclaimed a large man, his face wrapped in bandages. Seeing the jutsu Sasuke wielded, which nearly made him shiver, he didn't have time to handle Kakashi, who was controlled by the Water Prison Jutsu. He quickly retreated.

"Sasuke!" came a clear, bright voice from behind.

Zabuza slightly turned his head, using his peripheral vision to check behind him. The blonde-haired boy, whom he had previously underestimated, was now charging at him with a bright blue chakra ball in his hand!

The chakra ball spun rapidly, like a small storm compressed tightly within his palm!

"Another high-level jutsu!" Zabuza thought in frustration. "Are these two from Konoha really just gennin?!"

In this critical moment, Zabuza couldn't help but want to curse.

"Naruto!" shouted Sasuke, unleashing his lightning-based attack towards Zabuza!

However, at that very moment, a barely perceptible sound of a bell rang in the air.

Several nearly invisible senbon flew towards Naruto and Sasuke!

Sakura, who was standing nearby protecting Tazuna, quickly pulled out four shuriken from her ninja tool pouch.

Of course, with such a crisis at hand, even Zabuza's subordinate couldn't resist taking action!

The shuriken, thrown with immense strength, shot through the air at incredible speed, cutting through the senbon that was about to strike Naruto and Sasuke!

"Zabuza-sensei!" a voice called out from ahead.

A figure in deep blue clothing rushed towards Naruto and Sasuke. Kakashi, though running low on chakra, wouldn't give his opponent any opportunity.

Kakashi blocked the youth's path.

"Get out of my way!" Kakashi ordered.

But the youth ignored Kakashi's attack and rushed forward, even as Kakashi's kunai cut into him, drawing a bloodied wound. The youth still pushed on, determined to reach Zabuza.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment. The hot blood splattered onto Sasuke's face!

The youth who suddenly appeared had blocked Sasuke's Raikiri!

Sasuke felt his hand deeply embedded in the youth's chest, sensing the warmth of his blood and the fearless resolve to protect Zabuza.

"Haku, good job," Zabuza glanced at the youth in front of him, then swiftly turned to face Naruto, who was charging at him with Rasengan.

Zabuza's decapitation sword was raised high, ready to strike. Zabuza, already tall with long arms and legs, wielded the giant sword with ease, ready to cut Naruto in half before he even got close with his Rasengan.

However, at that moment, Zabuza staggered. His decapitation sword veered off course, and the immense force nearly caused his hands to shake!

A whistling sound rushed by as a giant shuriken embedded itself deeply into the ground. With a loud bang, a puff of white smoke erupted, and the shuriken returned to its normal size.

Zabuza didn't have time to figure out who threw that shuriken. At that moment, Naruto, with his Rasengan, was already in front of him!

"Rasengan!" shouted Naruto.

The jutsu created by the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, slammed heavily into Zabuza's chest!

The rapidly spinning chakra tore through his skin, muscles, and bones. The force of the spin was so intense that even a high-ranking jōnin like Zabuza couldn't withstand it!

Zabuza was immediately sent spinning by the force of Rasengan. Sasuke, who was within range, quickly retreated to avoid being caught in the attack.

Zabuza was sent flying back several meters, spinning in midair!

Sakura calmly observed. The deaths of Zabuza and Haku didn't stir her much.

She had spent four years in the Anbu under Sarutobi Hiruzen's guidance and had become an Anbu captain. She didn't earn this position through connections.

It was just part of the job.

Zabuza had appeared only to be defeated immediately, with no chance to flee or retaliate.

The boss of the Land of Waves had already been defeated.

Now, they only needed to wait for Tazuna to finish building the bridge.

As for the person behind Zabuza, Gato...

Sakura knew him.

A few days later

Night

Sakura entered a brightly lit, secluded villa.

Two rows of men dressed in black suits greeted her.

Behind her, Kakashi looked uneasy.

"Hehehe, Lady Haruno..." said a short man in a white suit holding a gem-encrusted staff.

This man was Gato, a wealthy businessman.

Although Gato's methods were sometimes unscrupulous, his business acumen was sharp.

He had sensed danger during Sakura's earlier mission and quickly avoided the seemingly tempting but ultimately deadly trap.

Now, he had a strong influence in the Land of Fire.

"I don't want to say much. Once the bridge in the Land of Waves is finished, you can collect the tolls, but don't squeeze the people too much," Sakura said in a flat tone.

Gato nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes, Lady Haruno. Is there anything else?"

Sakura looked at him coldly. "After I leave, kill Tazuna. Don't touch his family or anyone else."

With that, Sakura and Kakashi disappeared into the night.

Tazuna, who had downgraded an A-rank mission to a C-rank, regardless of his reasons, had committed an unforgivable act that no ninja village could tolerate.

Moreover, he had used the mission funds for his own indulgence. That old man had effectively signed his own death warrant.

Tazuna was lucky that Sakura still had some compassion for him.