With Zabuza
Several water bullets shot toward Nozaki, each carrying tremendous force and speed.
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH."
Nozaki's Byakugan burned with focus, the veins around his pale eyes standing out sharply. He tracked every water bullet Zabuza launched and slipped past them with effortless grace, then burst forward—his speed so intense it blurred his outline—as he charged straight at Zabuza.
Zabuza muttered a sharp curse as Nozaki evaded each water bullet with ease. His gaze darted across the battlefield, analyzing terrain and angles in an instant.
The moment Nozaki appeared before him, he pulled back his palm and struck forward, aiming directly for Zabuza's heart with perfect precision.
"BAAM."
"PUFF."
Zabuza substituted himself with a log at the last second, and when Nozaki's palm struck it, the wood exploded into a spray of splinters.
'Damn… I barely dodged that. This guy is a freak—he sees straight through everything I threw at him.'
'I should've paid more attention to Jozu-sensei when he explained me about the Hyuga and Uchiha clans on our way here.'
Flashback
Four days ago
Jozu fixed Zabuza with a stern stare. "Listen well, Zabuza. This invasion won't be anything like the Sea Spirit Village assault you took part in. You'll be facing the Hyūga, the Uchiha, and plenty of other elite shinobi."
"These two clans have their own unique kekkei genkai—the Byakugan and the Sharingan. A lot of our comrades died at their hands, so you need to take this seriously."
"If you face a Hyūga in battle, remember: never engage them at close range. A single strike from their taijutsu, which targets your chakra points, can render you unable to use ninjutsu."
End of Flashback
"This guy is insanely dangerous—I have to go all out against him. No wonder Konoha is the strongest Hidden Village in the Elemental Nations. Sunagakure shinobi feel so weak compared to him."
Zabuza swiftly began removing the weights from his wrists and ankles—but at that exact moment, three shurikens came flying at him with deadly precision.
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH."
"CLANK, CLANK, CLANK."
Zabuza's eyes widened in shock as he watched Yukina intercept the shurikens with her own, saving his life.
Nozaki narrowed his eyes, impressed and wary, as he watched Yukina effortlessly block his shurikens.
'This little girl must be the Kirigakure genius I've heard about. She gives me the same feeling I had with Sakumo-san's son… I need to be careful.'
'I may be from the branch family, but I became a Jonin through my own hard work. I'll show them why I truly earned my rank as a Konoha Jonin.'
Zabuza glared at Yukina and yelled.
"Yukina, you'd better not interfere in my battle."
Yukina snorted and tossed a blue scroll towards him.
Zabuza caught the scroll effortlessly, his brow furrowing in confusion as he looked at Yukina. Noticing his puzzled look, she said to him.
"I stored a large amount of water in the scroll it will help you in this battle."
Zabuza narrowed his eyes at Yukina upon hearing her words. Seeing his reaction, she sighed and continued.
"Don't worry. I have my own principles and pride, and I will not interfere in your battle unless absolutely necessary. You have my word."
Zabuza's eyes eased up at those words, but in that very moment, avolley of kunais and shurikens streaked toward him and Yukina with blinding speed and deadly precision.
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH."
"THUD, THUD, THUD, THUD, THUD."
In a synchronized motion, Zabuza and Yukina flipped around the tree, letting its trunk shield them from the hail of Kunais and shurikens.
Yukina smiled and said loudly to Zabuza in a surprise tone.
"This guy can see us from all the way over there? Interesting, This is going to be fun. Let me handle him—or we can take him down together. Let me have my fun and I'll owe you a date, Zabuza."
Zabuza blushed at the thought of going on a date with Yukina for a brief moment, then growled at her and yelled.
"Interesting! Is that what you call him? He's a complete freak—he can spot us from over a kilometer away with those damn eyes, you moron!"
"And I told you this freak is mine so you better not interfere in my battle Yukina or I will never forgive you."
"HAHAHA!" Yukina laughed loudly at his reply, and Zabuza's frustration grew with every peal of her laughter.
Zabuza took a deep breath to calm himself, unfurled the scroll Yukina had given him, formed the Ram hand seal, and slammed his palm down on the open scroll.
"WHOOSH."
A torrent of water erupted from the scroll, reshaping the battlefield and leaving Zabuza momentarily stunned.
"When did Yukina seal this much water? Never mind—now I have the environmental advantage."
Nozaki narrowed his eyes as a massive torrent of water surged across the battlefield, swallowing everything in its path.
He quickly shunshined toward Zabuza and thrust his palm at Zabuza's heart.
"BAAM."
"SPLASH."
Nozaki's eyes widened in surprise as Zabuza's body dissolved into water. 'A Water Clone… he's more skilled in Water Release than I thought.'
Suddenly, multiple water whips erupted from the surrounding water, striking at Nozaki from every direction, but he countered each one with his palm, dissolving them back into water.
"SPLASH, SPLASH, SPLASH, SPLASH, SPLASH."
Nozaki narrowed his eyes as he pinpointed Zabuza's position, but he couldn't act because the water whips kept striking at him relentlessly.
'Damn it… this would be simple if I knew how to perform Kaiten. But I'm just a branch family descendant—I don't have the privilege of learning that jutsu. Curse the main family… I'll curse all of you until my last breath.'
At that moment, a thick mist enveloped the battlefield, and Yukina's lips curved into a wide, knowing smile as she continue watching the battle.
'Not bad, Zabuza. You're finally using your head. You need to take his sight when dealing with this guy—he relies too much on his eyes. They're both his greatest strength and his biggest weakness.'
Nozaki cursed as he faced the thickening mist. A massive amount of chakra molded within it, making it impossible for him to pinpoint Zabuza's location.
'This mist… it's dangerous. I need to find a way out.'
"BZBZBZBZBZBZ."
"Lightning Release: Multiple Lightning balls Jutsu."
Multiple blue lightning spheres streaked toward Nozaki, detonating violently upon striking the water.
"AAAAAHHHH."
Yukina raised her eyebrows, watching the battle intently, and gave a small smile.
'Not bad, Zabuza. You've mastered the jutsu Ameyuri-chan taught you, and your strategy is impressive: using the water whips to make him cautious, then blocking his Byakugan with your overpowered hidden mist jutsu, and finally paralyzing him with the multiple lightning ball jutsu.'
After executing the lightning ball jutsu two more times, Zabuza dispelled his Hidden Mist Jutsu and saw Nozaki on his knees, blue sparks of lightning crackling across his paralyzed body.
Zabuza shunshined in front of him, seized his cleaver from his back, and without a hint of mercy, ruthlessly beheaded Nozaki.
"SQUASH."
Yukina landed gracefully beside Zabuza. She glanced at him and offered a small, knowing smile.
"Not bad, Zabuza. That strategy of yours wasn't bad—aiming to paralyze him and block his Byakugan with an overpowered Hidden Mist Jutsu. You've become stronger; you've finally mastered Ameyuri-chan's Jutsu."
Zabuza snorted but said nothing, a small smile visible beneath his bandages. He was clearly pleased with Yukina's compliment.
He then grabbed his corpse storage scroll sealed away Nozaki's corpse and asked.
"So what now? Do we go and backup the others?"
Yukina shrugged her shoulder and replied.
"The Hyuga you defeated and the foe I defeated were the strongest Konoha shinobi around. Our comrades won't have any trouble handling the rest since we outnumber them."
"For now, I'll simply watch their battles and preserve my strength."
"Don't forget what Yukito-sama said while we were sailing: we will most likely face shinobi from the Uchiha and Hyuga clans, so it is wise to conserve our strength and be ready when the real battle begins."
Zabuza nodded seriously, quickly resealed the water back into the scroll, and then tossed it back to Yukina.
Yukina glanced at the scroll for a moment before tossing it back to Zabuza.
"Keep it with you, you need it more than I am."
Zabuza was about yell at Yukina but she glared at him.
"Don't be so stubborn with me, you eyebrowless fool."
Zabuza glared at Yukina, his anger barely contained. "What did you say, you—bitch? Are you trying to pick a fight with me?"
Yukina giggled, then looked at Zabuza seriously. "Zabuza, we're at war. I'm not looking down on you—I know you're a great shinobi. But we all need to be prepared if we want to survive this war. You're one of my best friends, and I don't want to see you dead."
Zabuza was stunned by her words. He looked seriously at Yukina's elegant face, finding no trace of deception in her eyes.
He then snorted at Yukina.
"Fine, but I'll be owing you a favor when we return to the village."
Yukina smiled and shrugged. "Suit yourself."
Zabuza nodded in satisfaction and placed the storage scroll in his kunai pouch.
Yukina closed her eyes, tapping into her hidden sense. Moments later, she snapped them open and erupted into maniacal laughter.
Zabuza took a few steps back, a chill running down his spine as Yukina's maniacal laughter echoed around him.
"How interesting… Kisame‑kun is butchering Konoha shinobi as if they were chickens. I must see it for myself."
Zabuza was stunned when he heard this, his eyes lighting up with interest.
Yukina then turned to Zabuza and asked.
"So, you coming with me, or are you off to kill another Konoha shinobi?"
Zabuza snorted in amusement and replied.
"I'll go with you. I want to see how Kisame is slaughtering Konoha shinobi as easily as slaughtering chickens."
Yukina burst into loud laughter at his words, and the duo shunshined away together, heading straight for Kisame's location.
_______.