Time Skip 10 days later -
After ten consecutive days of D-rank missions—ranging from weeding gardens to capturing the Fire Daimyo's runaway cat—paired with intense, before-and-after training sessions, Team 7 felt prepared for a greater challenge. Having carefully monitored the available missions, Kakashi Hatake steered his genin squad toward the mission assignment desk to accept a specific C-rank task. With the Third Hokage's prior approval, Kakashi led his team into the assignment room, officially accepting the escort mission for the bridge builder, Tazuna.
Mission Type: Escort (C-Rank)
Target: Land of Waves
Team 7: Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura
Iruka was stunned; seeing this fresh Genin team accepting their first C-rank assignment only ten days after graduation left him worried, even despite knowing that Naruto was the rookie of the year and Sasuke was second.
"Lord Hokage, isn't this too soon? They're fresh out of the academy, genin."
The Hokage shook his head before gesturing to a ninja by the door to retrieve the client, Tazuna, the bridge builder.
"No, Iruka, in fact, you'll be happy to know that this mission is well within Team Seven's capabilities. With Kakashi and Naruto on this one, there's absolutely nothing to worry about."
Though Iruka knew the staggering history of Kakashi's rapid promotion, he struggled to understand why the Hokage was so sure of Naruto. He saw the 'Rookie of the Year' title, yes, but Iruka hadn't yet realized the true depth of the young blonde student standing before him with that gentle smile.
The stench of alcohol hit the ninja as an older man with a working-class build, tanned skin, dark eyes, along with greyish hair and beard, walked in with a slight stumble, a bottle of sake in his hand, and flushed from the alcohol.
"h-huh, I asked for ninja, not brats straight out of their mothers' wombs'. At least the blonde is taller than the rest of them; he must have sucked on the tit longer than the rest."
Tazuna slurred his words slightly before bringing the bottle to his lips and throwing it back for a big gulp.
"Ironically enough, I'm an orphan, so no breast milk for me."
Naruto replied with an amused tint to his voice, watching as the old man choked and spluttered due to the surprise.
"*cough* *cough* I like you, kid. What's your name?"
"Naruto, the black-haired guy next to me is Sasuke, and the pink-haired girl is Sakura."
Naruto replied, gesturing to their teammates, and said teammates silently wondering to themselves if the drunk was going to drink himself to death based on the amount they could smell on him.
"And I'm the team leader, Kakashi Hatake."
Kakashi introduced himself before taking a step back along with his students, the stench of alcohol too much for his sensitive nose.
"We leave tomorrow at 3 pm. I suggest you sober up and only drink water from here on out."
Tazuna went to reply sarcastically before stilling when he caught the Jonin's one visible eye, shuddering slightly and nodding.
"Y-yeah, I'll do that."
Kakashi turned his head to address his team.
"No training today, have a filling dinner, and don't forget to pack the essentials for tomorrow's mission. I'll prepare enough ration bars to last us each a week into a storage scroll. Take what you think you'll need, but don't overdo it. Dismissed."
The next day, 3 pm -
After a quick inventory check and a final nod from their client, Team Seven passed through the great gates of Konoha, stepping out of the village for the first time with a mixture of nervous excitement and eager anticipation.
As they walked, Sakura questioned Tazuna about the Land of Waves, and he answered in a much more pleasant, sober tone than the day before.
Explaining how the village operated, its main source of income, and the fact that they lacked any military power, like ninja or samurai.
While the rest of the team remained oblivious, Naruto caught a subtle shift in pace as Kakashi hung back near a puddle. In a flash, two figures in gas masks erupted from the water, their chain-linked claws tearing the jonin to shreds.
"One down, just three brats, then the bridge builder."
One of the masked ninja sneered at how easy it was to kill Kakashi.
While shocked, Sasuke and Sakura quickly covered the client, Naruto's hand slipping into his back pouch and retrieving a shuriken.
"So, you're after the client, and not us as leaf ninja."
Naruto caught how the two mentioned the bridge builder.
"Tch, smart kid, but not like that'll save you. Let's go, Gozu."
Gozu nodded, charging alongside his brother, Meizu. Their claws gleaming as they reached out to tear the blonde in front of them into shreds.
With a cross of his index and middle fingers, Naruto summoned three clones to attack while he stayed near his teammates just to stop any other potential ambush.
A whistle pierced the silence, followed by the heavy thwack of the chain being pinned to the dirt. In a seamless strike, three clones swarmed the target, stripping them of their clawed gauntlets while staying clear of the venom-slicked edges.
Walking out of the tree line as Naruto tied the two with ninja wire, Kakashi walked up to the stunned Tazuna with an eye-smile.
"Explain, no lies, I'll know."
After learning the truth about the tyrannical businessman Gato and the dire situation in the Land of Waves, the team decided to continue their mission, despite the danger level spiking from C-rank to B-rank—or possibly A-rank.
Path to Tazuna's house, outside Wave -
"Get down!"
At Kakashi's shout, Sakura pulled down the client as Naruto and Sasuke hit the ground.
An oversized butcher knife blurred through the air, burying itself into a tree with a deafening thwack. Before the vibrations stopped, a figure flickered onto the handle. Bandages covered his face, but his eyes were unmistakable—widening briefly as they locked onto Kakashi—before a sinister smile curled his lips.
"Well, if it isn't Kakashi Hatake, copy ninja, the man who has copied over a thousand jutsu."
"Quite the entrance, Zabuza Momochi," Kakashi said, a subtle smile hidden beneath his mask. "Now, are you going to get off that tree so we can fight, or are you planning on posing all day?"
Zabuza scoffed, dropping from the handle of the blade, his right hand reaching up to yank it free before he landed with the large blade over his right shoulder.
"Let's see it then, your Sharingan eye."
"I could use it," Kakashi drawled, that eye-smile appearing, "but that would just be overkill, wouldn't it?"
Kakashi watched the realization dawn on Zabuza, shock instantly hardening into rage before the rogue ninja lunged. Kubikiribōchō descended with enough force to cleave a lesser Jonin in two, but Kakashi was already moving. Snapping two kunai from his pouch, he intercepted the massive blade, the metal screeching in protest. Immediately, Kakashi surged lightning chakra into his weapons, forcing Zabuza to break off the attack and jump back, narrowly avoiding a paralyzing shock.
Seeing a confrontation wouldn't be to his advantage, Zabuza quickly weaved a set of handseals faster than any jutsu in his arsenal.
'Hidden mist jutsu'
Kakashi watched the mist thicken rapidly, reducing visibility to a mere couple of feet. "Manji formation! Protect the bridge builder," he ordered. Acting instantly, a lightning-enhanced kunai snapped from his hand, finding its mark in the water clone sneaking up behind his team, deflecting shuriken from multiple directions in the same exchange.
Ducking a slash from his left, Kakashi buried a kunai in Zabuza's heart—only for the missing ninja to dissolve into a splash of water. Anticipating a counter, Kakashi vaulted a horizontal slash and landed squarely on the flat of the giant blade. Without missing a beat, he pivoted, driving a spin-kick into the real Zabuza's chin.
The force of the blow sent him hurtling backward. Zabuza slammed into the earth ten feet away, his heels digging deep trenches into the dirt as he struggled to arrest his momentum.
'Does this guy have eyes in the back of his head? And that kick, why did it hurt so much? No kick like that should pack that much power.'
Zabuza gingerly rubbed his jaw, his mind racing. He had been a ghost—no sound, no scent, not even a flicker of killing intent. Despite the thick shroud of his Hidden Mist Jutsu, it was like Kakashi could see him perfectly.
"Well, I guess I'll come to you."
The threat was punctuated by jagged streaks of lightning chakra sparking from Kakashi's sandals, dancing with a low, predatory hum. In a heartbeat, his defensive stance evaporated into a blur of motion. Before Zabuza could even register the shift, Kakashi's sandal was driven deep into the missing-nin's chest. The sheer kinetic force launched the rogue backward, skipping him across the lake's surface until the final impact sent a massive surge of water cresting over the banks.
A barrage of water projectiles cut towards him a moment later, but Kakashi advanced with fluid grace. He didn't waste an inch of movement, weaving through the crossfire with nothing more than effortless micro-adjustments. A slight tilt of the head allowed a high-pressure jet to graze his mask; a tilt of his hips sent another whistling into the distance. To the missing-nin, it looked less like dodging and more like the water was simply refusing to touch him.
Another surge of lightning hissed beneath his sandals, and Kakashi simply ceased to be. He materialized inches from Zabuza's face, his movements blurring into a singular, violent snap as he intercepted the missing-nin's reach. Before the next seal could be woven, Kakashi's fingers locked around Zabuza's hands, pinning them in a paralyzing vice that rendered his jutsu dead on arrival.
Zabuza's pupils contracted, his breath hitching. Even during his failed assassination of the Mizukage, he had never felt this completely outclassed. Kakashi was an impossibility—too swift to track, too heavy to move.
"You..." Zabuza managed, his voice a low rasp as he stared into the calm, visible eye of the Hidden Leaf shinobi. "Can you see the future?"
It was the only explanation his mind could offer. Every strike he'd planned was being read, and every instinct he relied on was being dismantled with effortless, crushing precision.
"Yes."
Kakashi replied before continuing in a whisper.
Hearing the whispered reply, Zabuza's eyes widened in shock and fear before two senbon struck him in the side of his neck, and he went down, no longer moving.
*Ding*
Tramatized Zabuza
Increased understanding of the (Water) Element
Chapter End -
Hope you enjoyed the chapter.