Chapter 16: Mission target

Kakashi astonished by his misfire, or to be exact….

“hehe, that was a brilliant job Haku” Zabuza praise the boy in his interference, to jump between the Chidori and Zabuza.

Naruto’s eyes widen at the sight, while Zabuza slashes his swords towards Kakashi.

Kakashi dodged it by jumping behind in a small leap while bringing Haku’s corpse. He then pulled his wrist out of the young man’s body.

Then Kakashi warned Naruto “Naruto, stay out of this”

Naruto flinched, and he hears Sakura calls him. And ask him the whereabouts of Sasuke, he then turns his head away, while Sakura search for Sasuke’s whereabouts.

“I’ll go with you so you won’t disobey your leader’s order” with that, she ran while grabbing the old man’s hand, and search for Sasuke.

Not long after, Sakura’s eyes widen in shock, while the old man turns his head away. He looks remorseful at the sight of a little boy being punctured by needles all over his body, that even his neck not failed to be pierced through…

Sakura shocked, and released her hand from the old man, she then walked towards the corpse slowly.

Sakura touch Sasuke’s face.

“he’s so cold, this isn’t an illusion, right?”

“You don’t need to hold back for this old man, and cry…”

Said the old man while turned his head sideways.

“I always get a perfect score in my test in school, I remembered all the rule of shinobi and within there’s a rule number 25…”

“that time we’ve got the question on the paper, I write down the answer proudly and brag about it to my parents” her voice slowed down, “the paper asked what written in the rule number 25”

The old man looked at the back of the young girl in front of him and puzzled at her statement.

“no matter what happens a true shinobi must never show their emotion! Th-the mission is the only priority, carry that and never shed a tear…”

The drop of tears falls on Sasuke’s face, while Sakura’s cries increase. The old men acknowledge the resolve a ninja should have and felt the burden in her little immature voice.

Naruto looking down while squinting his eyes guiltily, and clench his fist while holding his stomach.

Zabuza stands up while using swords like a cane. He then rushed toward Kakashi while dragging his swords only to receive a side punch on his head from Kakashi, he fell once and attacking again.

Kakashi jumps to avoid his sweeping slash, and point a kunai behind his head.

“there’s no way you can beat me”

“WHAT?!”

“it’s over already…”

He got interrupted by the sound of knocking from a cane, with a man in a black suit and black round-glasses.

Seeing they’ll be interrupted he spiraling his kunai to gather a momentum then stab at Zabuza.

Zabuza sees the kunai head towards him, and sweep the swords behind him, the kunai aim missed, and it stabbed to his bicep.

His swords then dropped to the ground while his hands dangling while he stands.

“now you can’t use both of your hand, no jutsu, no kata, no chakra,” said Kakashi.

Naruto sees the wound, and the figure of the man wide-eyed. The man in the black suit then walked towards Haku’s corpse and kick him in the head.

He mocked Haku, Naruto pissed off by him, and ran towards Gato only to be stopped by Kakashi.

“stop it Naruto!”

Naruto then yelled at Zabuza “you bastard! He cared about you, and he was devoted to you, he gave his life for you, he dies without any dreams of his coming true and dies as a tool for you!”

“That’s too much! Too cruel!” Naruto yelled in a big voice while crying his tears out.

“Kid” Zabuza said

Naruto then looks towards the man that uttered the voice and see tears in his eyes.

“not another word…”

Kakashi looks at the figure solemnly, while Naruto stop yelling. Tears continue to pour from his eyes.

“kid… What Haku did… wasn’t just for me. While we fought broke his heart over you and your friends. That’s the truth.” While biting the bandage veiled around his mouth.

“he was too kind… too gentle. I’m glad my last battle is against you, boy… you’re right you know…”

Zabuza then turns his body to Naruto and said “say what we will do what we will. In the end, we shinobi are just human after all… With feeling all too-humane…”

“and I’ve lost everything…”

Then he requested Naruto a kunai, astonished by his answer Naruto threw his kunai to the man. He then bites the kunai thrown, and head to Gato.

Strands of chakra surround the place suddenly and envelop the battlefields…

“What is this…”

Kakashi then opened his Sharingan, only to see the place already covered with strands of chakra all over the place. And soon, a man with a vest the same as him, along with a girl went towards him and his companion.

The girls ran towards the boy in Gato’s feet.

Feeling the glare of her, Gato then backed off unknown of the strands of chakras surrounding the bridge.

He backs away and hide within his army of thugs.

The girl then felt the pulse of the boy, as expected he’s already becoming a corpse. She thus bringing the corpse behind Kakashi and his team leader, while throwing a kunai imbued with a flash talisman that being ignited while the kunai reaches its highest.

The light flashes and blinded the thugs along with Naruto and the others. Even Zabuza’s kunai in his mouth dropped.

Clang

Clang

With the sound of dropped steel kunai, strands of chakra strings then moved towards the thugs’ army.

By the end of the flash, only Gato stood alone within the group cowering in fear and drenched in blood.

The end became anti-climax with Hotaru and Hiura surround the man, stood within blood and corpses.

“What is… this Hayate?”

Kakashi asked his peer while staring at the sight…

“a clean-up?” said Hayate while smiled at his senior.