Just as Sakura was scolding Naruto, a massive blade came flying toward them from a distance.
"Whirr... whirr... whirr..."
The giant sword sliced through the air at tremendous speed.
Realizing the danger, Kakashi immediately shouted, "Everyone, get down!"
Although no one understood what was happening, they all instinctively dropped to the ground.
The great blade passed over their heads and embedded itself deep into a nearby tree.
A moment later, a ninja wearing a forehead protector engraved with the symbol of Kirigakure appeared, standing on top of the sword with his back facing them.
Everyone stared at the figure in confusion and fear.
Kakashi stepped forward, his expression turning grave as he looked up at the man.
"So it's you... Zabuza Momochi of the Hidden Mist, the rogue ninja."
His voice hardened. "It seems things just got a lot more troublesome."
Standing behind Kakashi, Naruto immediately pulled out a kunai and charged forward.
"So you finally showed up! This time, I won't lose to Sasuke or Yoruha!"
He had been frustrated by his poor performance earlier. Seeing Zabuza now, he thought it was his chance to prove himself.
But Kakashi stopped him, his tone stern.
"Don't interfere. He's not someone you can handle."
Naruto frowned in protest. "Kakashi-sensei, this time will be different!"
Kakashi's brow tightened. Zabuza wasn't just any opponent—he was an elite Jōnin, not a regular Chūnin.
Even Kakashi himself had to be cautious; one mistake could mean death.
Upon seeing Kakashi, Zabuza's expression also changed slightly.
"So it's the Copy Ninja, Hatake Kakashi with the Sharingan," he said coldly.
"No wonder those two brothers failed."
Sasuke froze when he heard that.
"Sharingan?"
"Kakashi has the Sharingan?"
After the Uchiha clan's destruction, Sasuke had believed he was the last surviving member of his clan in all of Konoha.
Sakura, on the other hand, didn't even know what the Sharingan was, since Sasuke had never shown it to her before.
"What's the Sharingan?" she asked.
Naruto also turned to Kakashi. "Yeah, Kakashi-sensei, what's a Sharingan?"
Kakashi said nothing, so Sasuke explained quietly, "The Sharingan is a dōjutsu—an eye technique that can see through ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu."
Zabuza glanced at Sasuke and added with a low chuckle, "That's right. The Sharingan can also copy an opponent's techniques."
"Hatake Kakashi... back in the Hidden Mist, your profile was in the Ninja Handbook.
'The Copy Ninja Kakashi'—a man said to have copied over a thousand jutsu."
Both Sakura and Naruto were stunned.
Although Yoruha had told them before that Kakashi was strong, they'd never truly understood what that meant—until now.
Sakura gaped in awe. "So Kakashi-sensei really is that strong..."
Naruto stared at Kakashi in disbelief. "Over a thousand jutsu?! That's insane!"
Sasuke's eyes, however, stayed fixed on Kakashi—not because of his strength, but because of the Sharingan.
That was supposed to be an Uchiha's exclusive power.
But since Kakashi hadn't revealed his eye yet, Sasuke still found it hard to believe.
Kakashi's gaze sharpened. "This will be a tough battle. Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura—form a protective formation around Tazuna and guard him well."
Then he turned slightly. "Yoruha... looks like today's our first time fighting side by side."
Yoruha stepped calmly to Kakashi's side, drawing a kunai without a word.
Although Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura were reluctant, they knew they couldn't match Yoruha's strength.
They could only form a protective triangle around Tazuna.
Zabuza looked down at Yoruha with narrowed eyes.
He couldn't sense anything particularly special about the boy.
"So, you trust that little brat this much? Is he your disciple?"
Kakashi said nothing. Instead, he slowly lifted his forehead protector.
Sasuke's attention sharpened; his gaze didn't waver for a second.
When Kakashi raised the protector, his left eye was revealed—a fully matured Sharingan, marked by three tomoe.
Sasuke froze.
"It really is the Sharingan... and a three-tomoe one at that. Even among the Uchiha, only a few ever awakened it. Could Kakashi be one of us?"
In Sasuke's mind, only members of the Uchiha clan could possess such an eye.
Naruto and Sakura, too, stared at Kakashi in shock.
It was their first time seeing such a strange, intimidating eye.
"What kind of eye is that? Why does it feel so terrifying?"
They could both sense the killing intent radiating from Kakashi.
Naruto even felt an inexplicable discomfort under its gaze.
Kakashi ignored Zabuza's question.
Zabuza smirked. "I've read your file carefully, Kakashi. Do you really think I'd fight you on a battlefield that favors you?"
As he spoke, thick mist began to rise all around them.
The eerie scene made Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura tense up, immediately drawing their kunai.
Yoruha, however, remained calm.
Even as visibility dropped and the world around them blurred, he could still sense Zabuza's chakra approaching.
That was one of the special functions of the chakra within him.
Kakashi frowned. "So, you're using the Hidden Mist Technique to block my vision, huh?"
"As expected of you Zabuza... if I'm not careful, I really might die here."
He looked toward Yoruha with a trace of concern.
"Yoruha, stay close to me. This is the Mist's Silent Killing Technique.
Be alert for the slightest movement."
Yoruha said nothing, his eyes fixed on Zabuza's movements in the fog.
Even though the mist obscured everything, he could still track Zabuza's presence perfectly.
Kakashi, thinking Yoruha had been caught off guard, suddenly flared his chakra.
BOOM!
The sheer force of it blasted the surrounding fog away—revealing Yoruha standing unharmed nearby.
Seeing that, Kakashi exhaled in relief.
"Why didn't you respond? You nearly scared me."
Yoruha smiled faintly. "I thought you could already sense me, Kakashi-sensei."
Kakashi sighed and shook his head.
"Focus. Our opponent's an elite Jōnin—don't drop your guard."
As Kakashi's chakra flared, the three younger ninjas behind him felt an overwhelming pressure.
"So this... is the killing intent of two Jōnin-level fighters?" Sasuke whispered, trembling. "In this atmosphere, I'd rather die than face it."
The intense clash of their auras completely paralyzed the three genin.
The murderous intent distorted their minds—Sasuke even raised his kunai toward his own stomach, overwhelmed by fear.
Naruto, too, was frozen in terror, losing all will to fight or even survive.
---
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