Shigure was the first to notice something strange on the road.
Right behind him, Kakashi caught on as well.
In this sweltering heat… there were two puddles by the roadside.
That alone was enough to raise suspicions. More than where they came from, the real question was: why hadn't they evaporated under this kind of sun?
"Not bad… you noticed, little devils."
Shigure's combat strength was already top-notch, but Naruto and Sasuke weren't pushovers either.
Still—when it comes to actual combat, your reaction and your courage are what matter. Will you act in time? Will you even notice the details?
As the team moved closer to what was clearly an ambush, Kakashi's hand instinctively reached for his ninja tool pouch.
Bang!
Without warning, two enemy ninja burst out of the puddles from both sides of the road!
Weapons drawn, they charged straight at Naruto and Sasuke.
Take out those two first—and with only Shigure left, the remaining one could easily finish off Tazuna and complete the assassination.
Even if Shigure wasn't killed outright, that much would be enough for their mission.
When the ambushers lunged, Sasuke froze for only a second—then moved.
He drew a kunai and kicked his attacker in the same breath.
Good reaction.
Kakashi gave a small nod.
On the other side, Naruto stood paralyzed. A textbook stress response.
His body locked up from panic—unable to move in the face of danger.
It was bad… but understandable. This was his first real fight.
Kakashi's gaze shifted to Shigure.
From the moment the enemy had appeared, Kakashi had kept a close eye on him.
And what he saw was… surprising.
Calm.
Still.
Not even a change in breathing.
He had sensed them long before the attack. That much was clear.
When Naruto didn't react, Shigure simply raised his hand and threw a kunai.
Whoosh!
The air cracked, and in the next instant—
The kunai pierced straight through the attacker.
Kakashi's eye twitched.
That throw had absurd power. Just one kunai—and it went clean through. Shigure's raw strength was something else.
The enemy—a Chunin—collapsed. Instantly killed.
Meanwhile, Sasuke had managed to drive off the other Chunin attacking him.
But he hadn't killed the enemy—yet.
Scrambling to his feet after hitting the ground, the enemy ninja quickly realized his teammate was already down. Panic flickered in his eyes, but he didn't stop. He charged at Sasuke again.
Stopping meant death. Attacking meant there was still a sliver of hope.
Sasuke swung his kunai, deflecting the enemy's wild strike. It looked like this opponent would take some effort to finish off. Shigure paused his advance, deciding not to interfere for now. Off to the side, Tazuna looked on in alarm.
"Why are there two of them!?"
No one answered him.
Shigure walked over to Naruto, who stood frozen, eyes wide.
He patted Naruto's shoulder. "Everyone has a first time. If you didn't do well today, just make sure you do better next time."
Naruto, who had been gloomy and silent, visibly relaxed. The weight on his chest seemed to lighten a little.
He glanced again at the man Shigure had killed earlier—still blaming himself for not being able to act in time.
As a shinobi, freezing up like that wasn't acceptable.
BANG! BANG!
Sasuke brought down the last enemy. Though the man was a Chunin, rank didn't always equal strength. Sasuke had swiftly trapped his arms and legs, rendering him immobile.
He looked up at Shigure.
"What do we do with this guy?"
Shigure glanced at the restrained ninja. "That's your decision."
Sasuke hesitated, then turned his gaze to the body of the other enemy, lying still on the wet ground.
In that moment, he made up his mind.
Without hesitation, he raised his kunai and slashed the enemy's throat. The body slumped.
It was Sasuke's first kill—and it didn't sit well with him. His face darkened.
Watching from the shadows, Kakashi sighed silently.
Shigure had made the right call. The sooner Naruto and Sasuke overcame this barrier, the better prepared they'd be for the brutal path of the shinobi.
"All right," Kakashi muttered, "let's keep moving."
The rain fell gently, forming no ripples in the puddles.
But in the hearts of Naruto and Sasuke, the water wasn't calm.
This… was what it meant to kill.
This… was what it meant to face an enemy who wanted you dead.
Their minds stirred restlessly.
But Shigure believed in them.
They were, after all, the protagonists of this world.
Dazna watched Shigure—calm from beginning to end—and muttered, "This kid's killed before, hasn't he?"
During the earlier ambush, the other enemy had put up a fight—yet Shigure had simply flung a hidden blade and ended it.
He was clearly the strongest of the three brats.
Realizing this, Dazna instinctively stepped closer to Shigure, as if for protection.
After the group left, Kakashi appeared next to the two fallen Chunins.
He crouched beside one of the bodies, examining the bloody wound.
"…Such terrifying power."
"Fast. Precise. Merciless."
"It's clear this isn't Shigure's first time taking a life."
"But…" Kakashi murmured, eyes narrowing, "this test wasn't just for them."
The Third Hokage had chosen to use a dangerous missing-nin as a whetstone—to see how sharp Shigure, the rising blade, truly was.
From Konoha to the Land of Waves, several days of travel remained.
After the failed assassination by the two Chunins, the following day passed in tense silence.
That night, while everyone else rested, Naruto didn't sleep.
Instead, he crouched in the dark, gripping a rubber training ball tightly in both hands—trying to force change with sheer willpower.
Shigure noticed and smiled faintly.
Looks like Naruto's starting to feel the pressure too. He wants to get stronger—but rushing won't help.
Still, seeing Naruto training late into the night, Shigure felt the urgency as well.
So he began his own regimen.
Brutal physical training, nonstop, even through the night.
His dedication was reminiscent of Might Guy and his infamous training methods.
From the shadows, Kakashi chuckled quietly.
"No wonder this kid's power is insane. Is this really his daily routine?"
"But how…?" Kakashi muttered, puzzled. "How can his body endure that kind of punishment and still march onward the next morning?"
Such rapid recovery was not normal.
Not for most people.
While the others slept under the stars, another storm brewed elsewhere.
Far away, Momochi Zabuza received a report.
"They failed? Two Chunins… beaten by three Genin brats from Konoha?"
His eyes narrowed.
"Well now. This is getting interesting. I want to see what makes these little brats so special…"
...
TN:
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