The Bridge of Heroes, huh?
Team 7 followed Tazuna deeper into the mist, and as they listened to his story, they finally understood what that great bridge truly meant.
A shinobi washed up on an isolated island, and a band of bridge-building craftsmen, saving a nation on the brink of collapse.
Both were heroes worthy of respect.
Everyone felt it in their bones, all except Konome Taketori, who stared at Naruto's back with a strange look in her eyes.
That bridge was supposed to be called the Naruto Bridge.
Because of her butterfly effect, it had been completed five years early, and became the Bridge of Heroes instead.
"So Gatō's people came back again?" Kakashi asked, puzzled.
"Yes." Tazuna's head drooped. "After the Bridge of Heroes was completed, the Land of Waves' economy recovered completely. Gatō's lot, greedy as they were, tried to invade several times, but they were driven off by that shinobi every time, so we stopped taking it seriously."
"But a week ago, they announced they'd hired powerful ninja and were coming to seize the Land of Waves again. We thought that shinobi would keep protecting us, but then we found out he… disappeared."
"D Disappeared?" Naruto blurted out.
He'd wanted to meet this legendary hero shinobi. Sasuke and Kakashi were disappointed too, but not surprised. The Land of Waves' situation was right in front of them. If that shinobi were still here, this mission would never have fallen to them.
"He really vanished," Tazuna continued slowly. "Maybe he left in a hurry. Everything in his house was still there, untouched. The only thing missing was the big sword he never let out of his sight."
As he spoke, his gaze kept drifting toward Konome, like he was watching her expression.
"So that shinobi's name was?" Konome asked.
She had noticed his little tells. And in truth, she already had a guess, but she still didn't quite dare believe it.
Tazuna hesitated.
That man had warned him not to speak his name casually. It could bring trouble.
But after traveling with them these past few days, Tazuna had slowly figured out their temperaments.
They didn't seem like bad people.
So he glanced at Konome's face and answered carefully, almost timidly.
"He said his name was Zabuza. A wandering shinobi."
"Zabuza?"
Naruto and Sasuke both found the name familiar. A heartbeat later, they remembered Konome had asked about him yesterday, along with a girl named Haku.
Even Kakashi drew in a slow breath of fog.
He never imagined that the mysterious shinobi who saved the Land of Waves was none other than the infamous Kirigakure missing-nin and one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Momochi Zabuza.
They said that when he graduated from the Academy, he slaughtered every classmate in the room, forcing Kirigakure to change how they split students into classes.
A genuine butcher, a psychopath among psychopaths.
And yet after defecting, he'd become a hero instead.
But how did Konome know?
Question marks rose in everyone's mind. They turned to stare at her, more and more convinced she was impossible to read.
"I once crossed paths with him in the Land of Water," Konome said.
She couldn't explain it in detail. But when she heard about Kaiza rescuing a Water Release shinobi five years ago, she'd already started suspecting.
Who would have thought it really was Zabuza?
Back when she was fleeing through the Land of Water, she'd just devoured the Three-Tails' flesh, her strength surging. She'd tried to take a ship called the Hope to cross the current and reach the Land of Fire, only to sense two Kage-level chakra signatures aboard. She hadn't dared board.
She turned back to settle accounts with the casino boss instead.
But Zabuza and Haku boarded that ship.
Most likely, a world-shaking battle erupted halfway through the voyage, the ship was destroyed, and Zabuza was gravely wounded. He could only drift with the current.
Whether it was fate, or whether this country had some strange, inexplicable pull on Zabuza, he washed up on the island nation caught between Water and Fire.
And became the hero who protected it.
Same location, different time.
Completely opposite outcome.
People always said a hero could turn into a dragon.
No one ever said a dragon could become a hero.
Konome could only marvel at the twist of destiny.
"And did you see a girl with him?" she asked anyway, refusing to give up.
Tazuna studied her face, and when he saw no hostility toward Zabuza, he answered without hesitation.
"Absolutely not!"
"When he washed ashore, he was alone. Covered in wounds and poisoned. If the whole village hadn't worked together to save him, he'd have been dead. There's no way he could've brought a girl with him."
"Fine." Konome let out a quiet breath.
Her hope of obtaining Ice Release shattered again, and she could only accept it.
While they spoke, they had already reached the middle span of the bridge.
Waves rolled and struck the shore, a constant roar.
The fog thickened behind them. It felt like walking into the clouds. When they turned back, the road they came from had vanished.
Ahead, the mist thinned slightly. A massive black shadow crouched silently inside it, like a mysterious beast lying in wait.
"Tazuna, is there any special requirement to enter the Land of Waves?" Konome asked.
Her Byakugan had already been activated, those pale eyes piercing through the fog as she looked ahead.
"Huh? No requirements," Tazuna said, confused by the question, but he still answered honestly. "This bridge was built to make trade and transport easier between the two countries. Anyone can pass. No toll."
"Mm." Konome stared into the distance. "Then the people ahead aren't from the Land of Waves."
What?
The others were still confused when a rapid series of footsteps came from the front.
Kakashi and the others turned at once.
Shinobi sandals crushed through the fog as more than a dozen black silhouettes burst onto the bridge. The three in front were exceptionally fast, instantly pulling away from the rest.
The sea fog was so thick that only when they were nearly upon them did their faces become clear.
Black uniforms, hooded cloaks, murderous intent.
Under slashed missing-nin forehead protectors, cold eyes stared out, sharp enough to freeze blood.
No need to ask.
They were the same group that had attacked Tazuna at the border.
"It's the Konoha ninja Tazuna brought back. One woman, three men." The leader, positioned in the middle of the front three, narrowed his eyes. When he saw the Leaf headbands, his expression turned heavy at once.
A man's reputation was his shadow.
Konoha was recognized as the strongest shinobi village. Their ninja were never weak.
As for those "kids" in the enemy squad, any shinobi who looked down on children or women tended to die ugly in the end.
"Go notify Boss Kurosuki," the leader snapped. "Everyone else, with me, move!"
"Yes!"
The shorter shinobi on his left paused for a fraction of a second, then turned to slip back into the fog.
Bzz.
A familiar hum flashed by Tazuna's ear and vanished.
His whole body jerked. Instinctively, he looked at Konome.
She still stood there with her hands lowered, expression blank.
Only her lips moved slightly.
And the dense fog warped as it stretched outward like a living thing.
"Ryōki!"
The leader's howl tore through the mist.
He stared behind him, terror frozen on his face.
The subordinate who'd been sent to report was still walking toward the Land of Waves, following orders exactly.
Only his head was gone.
As if he'd heard his captain's shout, the missing-nin named Ryōki stopped, turned back toward the leader.
Before his body could fully rotate, he slammed onto the bridge with a heavy thud.
The severed head rolled across the stone, leaving a wet trail.
Silence fell.
Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi were familiar with Konome's methods, but for the past five years she'd cultivated herself and rarely acted. They'd thought she'd changed.
Turns out the moment a mission started, she snapped right back to her true nature.
Only Tazuna had been fooled by her appearance. He'd assumed the earlier incident was a loss of control under surprise attack.
Now he understood.
This was just how she operated.
Good thing he hadn't badmouthed her.
"That girl is a Wind Release user," the leader barked, experienced enough to judge instantly. "Use Earth Hardening for defense!"
The leader and another shinobi beside him began to glow, as if their bodies had been sprayed with a layer of metallic lacquer.
Only then did the dozen-plus men behind them catch up. When they saw the twitching corpse at their feet, their charge faltered.
They wore masks, their expressions hidden, but terror leaked from their eyes like smoke.
Seeing his men hesitate, the leader frowned. He and the other shinobi retreated behind the crowd, clearly using them as human shields.
"They aren't shinobi," Sasuke said, Sharingan flaring red.
He stared at the black-cloaked group. Only the two hiding in the back carried chakra light. They looked like a swarm, but most of them were just ordinary men.
"Naruto, Sasuke, take the enemies in front." Kakashi swept his Sharingan across the field and issued orders fast. "Konome, protect Tazuna."
Konome had no interest in slaughtering civilians. She swallowed the Wind Release chakra she'd been gathering and simply stood in front of Tazuna like before.
"Yes!"
"Leave it to me!"
Finally able to cut loose, Naruto lit up with excitement. He pulled a pair of knuckle guards from his pocket, and that terrifying wind that made Tazuna's skin crawl gathered around his fists.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Boom, boom!
Countless orange figures filled the wide bridge, some even standing on the railings. A tide of identical shinobi crowded the front like a uniformed army, and just the sight of them made people feel safe.
Clang!
Steel rang out.
To conserve chakra, Sasuke only activated his Sharingan. His crimson gaze locked onto the enemy as he kicked off the ground and plunged into the crowd.
His blade flashed.
Blood sprayed.
Screams rose one after another.
Naruto's clones surged forward even more eagerly, and the "numerous" enemy suddenly looked laughably thin.
Watching Naruto and Sasuke crash into them like tigers among sheep, then glancing at Kakashi and Konome guarding him, Tazuna suddenly felt every coin he paid was worth it.
"The fog is too thick," Kakashi said lowly, eyes on the mist rolling off the sea. "My Sharingan isn't as effective."
"Kurosuki Raiga is an elite jōnin from Kirigakure. He must be proficient in Silent Killing. Konome, keep scouting. Watch for him trying to ambush Tazuna."
Kakashi and Konome held Tazuna between them, one on each side.
Shinobi didn't care about honor. Raiga was strong. If he hid in the fog and struck at Tazuna, Kakashi might not be able to stop it in time. He needed Konome's sensing, and her medical support.
"Relax. Fog can't block my perception."
Konome had already fully opened her Byakugan.
In her vision, the so-called thick fog was transparent under her three-hundred-and-sixty-degree sight.
But then her body paused.
Under the bridge, in one spot, the mist was unnaturally dense.
This…
The veins at her temples rose. Her Byakugan could see that the fog carried a massive amount of chakra, yet her sight was still blocked, unable to pierce into it.
The Byakugan was said to be the origin of all dōjutsu. It sounded exalted, but the truth was less glamorous.
It couldn't distinguish Transformation Jutsu or Shadow Clones.
It couldn't see through barrier or sealing techniques.
Its weaknesses were obvious.
Its true strength was its potential to evolve without limit. The basic eye itself didn't match its grand reputation.
"What is it?" Kakashi asked at once, noticing her change.
In front of a swordsman of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen caliber, he'd already shed his usual laziness.
"Nothing." Konome shook her head after a brief look.
But her lips curved into a beautiful, subtle smile.
That chakra pattern in the thick mist felt… familiar.
Kakashi didn't press. If Konome's senses weren't being jammed, he stopped worrying about the fog beyond the bridge and turned his focus to the fight ahead.
The ordinary men at the front were already down. Only the two missing-nin were still fighting.
Naruto's signature roar rang out as his wind-wrapped fist smashed into the leader's abdomen.
The impact was brutal.
The man's body folded like a cooked shrimp.
Sharp knuckle guards, reinforced by Wind Release, tore at the lower belly, but the Earth Hardening stopped the cut. Sparks flew. Chunks of hardened earth scattered.
"Die!"
The leader snapped his head up, eyes shot through with blood.
He felt like his body was about to fall apart, but Earth Release defense and chakra's natural resistance to blunt force kept him from taking serious damage.
He raised his blade and slashed for Naruto's neck.
If it landed, Naruto would be beheaded in an instant, just like the man Konome had cut down.
Naruto didn't dodge either.
He kept pouring chakra into his knuckle guards, grinding away at the hardening layer on the man's body.
Wind Release failed to break the hardening.
But the blade still sliced cleanly across Naruto's throat.
Naruto's body stiffened for a beat.
Smoke burst out in a puff.
Before the missing-nin could even react, a monstrous force slammed into his back.
Boom!
Whether it was the real Naruto or another clone, no one could tell.
A savage flying kick crushed into the missing-nin's lower back.
The man had no chance to resist.
His head slammed through the railing, and he tumbled into the sea.
Crackle!
A bright lightning serpent tore through the white fog.
Sasuke's crimson eyes met the last missing-nin's gaze. He watched the man's pupils contract, then drove his blade inch by inch into the enemy's chest.
Earth Hardening might resist Wind Release, but in the face of tightly condensed lightning, it shattered on contact.
With elemental suppression on his side, Sasuke didn't even have to work for the kill.
Why are they all Earth Release users?
Konome felt something was off.
The ninja who attacked them outside the Land of Fire used Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole to strike from below.
These two used Earth Hardening.
Yet they were on an island nation, and almost every attacker relied on Earth Release.
Only Kurosuki Raiga used Lightning Release.
Wait.
Lightning and Earth?
Konome's gaze snapped to the unnaturally dense fog under the bridge.
Those two elements counter Water Release.
And Raiga was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
This was far too targeted.
What did Zabuza do to Gatō to make him hate Water Release users this much?
"Don't kill us!"
"We surrender!"
The ordinary men on the ground tore off their masks, faces bruised and swollen, and kowtowed as they begged.
Facing civilians, Naruto and Sasuke clearly hadn't struck to kill.
Tazuna stared at one of them, and a flicker of recognition crossed his face.
"Y You're Moton?"
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