Meanwhile, Meizu didn't pay attention to his brother's fight, as he thought it would be easy for him, especially after killing the strongest one.
Right now Meizu had to complete their mission and focus on killing Tazuna, but there were people who were blocking the way, especially the white-haired teenage boy, whom Meizu intended to kill in one hit.
Meizu was completely confident in his strength and speed, especially in the fact that the teenager in front of him didn't even move or take his weapon.
Suddenly the white-haired teenager disappears, and before Meizu could even think about what's going on, someone grabs his head and slams it directly to the ground with such great force that the ground cracks on impact, knocking Meizu unconscious.
Naruto just stared at the cloaked man with an indifferent expression while his head slowly turned towards Tazuna, and he observed the elder man's reaction.
Tazuna didn't sense Naruto's gaze but focused on the cloaked figure, who had all been dealt with pretty easily by teenagers, yet fear still enveloped his entire being.
Satsuki, who finished her own fight, stared at Naruto and the Meizu, who had been knocked unconscious by Naruto. She wasn't surprised that Naruto easily defeated the enemy; what surprised her was how fast Naruto defeated the enemy.
Hinata also stared at Naruto, and while she knows Naruto is strong, seeing him defeat the enemy in one attack is still eye-opening.
Fugaku suddenly appeared by jumping down on one of the branches of the tree, surprising Hinata and Tazuna, especially the latter.
"Sensei!" Hinata said in a little louder voice than usual, but one can feel the happiness within her voice.
Hinata is happy seeing their sensei alive and well, and when looking at her teammates, a realization finally hit her.
Due to her panicing that Hinata almost forget that Fugaku was one of the elite Jonin ninja of the Hidden Leaf and with the latter experience it should be easy to escape such sneak attack.
"But... I saw..." Tazuna muttered as he looked at Fugaku standing calmly while glancing at the area where he previously got ripped into pieces.
"Substitution Jutsu," Hinata said. "Sensei replaced himself with a piece of wood before the enemy ripped Sensei apart." Hinata's eyes looked at the pieces of wood on the ground.
"But... why would you do that?" Tazuna asks angrily. His expression was that of someone who had been given a terrible surprise.
"It was for two reasons," Fugaku calmly said while his eyes stared directly at Tazuna, who unconsciously took a gulp.
"The first was to assess how my team would react in an actual battle situation." Fugaku then looks at his students. "You three did well. I'm proud of you." A small smile appeared on his face.
"And the second was to determine which one of us they were after." Fugaku's eyes narrowed slightly while staring at Tazuna, causing the latter to tremble slightly.
"When the two were dashing straight to all of you, their eyes didn't stare at my students despite knowing they were ninja and only stared at them when they were on the way, but instead the first thing they stared intently at was you, Tazuna," Fugaku said in a cold tone.
"But—"
Before Tazuna could even speak, he was cut off by Fugaku.
"These two ninja weren't ordinary people but the Demon Brothers of the Hidden Mist, Chunin-level rogue ninja. Their ambushing us means this is no longer a C-rank mission. Explain yourself," Fugaku said with his authoritative and cold voice.
Tazuna looks to the three genin, desperate for help, but he receives no such thing from them, and Tazuna could only sigh inwardly while at the same time worried.
"Are you familiar with Gato of Gato Industries?" Tazuna asks in a low voice.
Fugaku recognized the name. Gato is one of the wealthiest men in the world, and he also happens to be a criminal, having a criminal empire that spans many nations.
The only reason why he wasn't targeted was the fact that Gato hadn't yet made a move targeting the interests of the Daimyos of the Five Great Nations.
"A few years ago Gato came into my country posing as a legitimate businessman who wanted to take a share in the potentially rich economy that was blooming at that time," Tazuna continues, and he unconsciously clenches his fist. "But he later revealed his true color."
Tazuna proceeds to explain how Gato and his subordinates take a hostile takeover of the nation, with even the Land of Wave Daiymo being powerless to help its citizens. Tazuna also explains the reason why his bridge project became a threat to the crime boss.
"I only lied to you because of the short funds we have, and we can only pay for a C-rank mission." Tazuna kneels on the ground and stares at Fugaku. "I'm sorry. Please help me. I just wanted to save my country." Tears flow from Tazuna's eyes.
Satsuki and Hinata had sad expressions on their faces while staring at Tazuna. They are initially angry to find out that he lied about the content of their mission, which will definitely cause the loss of their lives if they aren't capable enough.
Yet this anger diminished after hearing Tazuna's reason behind his action, and they couldn't help but feel pity for the elderly man.
Fugaku's face didn't change since he already knew the situation about the Land of Wave. In fact, Minato knows the situation and the reason why they even accept Tazuna's mission despite knowing the true information because of the future plan they had with the Land of Wave.
The Fire Daimyo was the one who proposed the idea, with Minato ironing out the plans, and Fugaku knows what he needs to do at this moment and had his head turned towards his students.
"We're heading back to the village," Fugaku calmly said, much to Tazuna's horror. "This mission is no longer yours to complete. I'm not asking; let's go."
"No!"
All the heads turn to Hinata.
Satsuki was shocked to see Hinata disagree with their sensei, especially given the fact that she is a meek person.
Naruto slightly raised his eyebrow while staring at Hinata. He also had the same opinion as Satsuki regarding Hinata.
"What?" Fugaku questioned while at the same time inwardly impressed.
"I said no, sensei," Hinata said, trying to suppress the nervousness and fear she felt at this moment.
"I won't abandon this man or his people while they're in need," Hinata added while staring at Fugaku's eyes.
Fugaku was also staring at his students and was somewhat impressed by the courage she had, especially knowing that he was the one who had the final say on this.
"What about you two?" Fugaku asks while staring at Satsuki and Naruto.
"I also didn't want to abandon the mission," Satsuki said while staring at her father.
While Satsuki wanted to help the Land of Wave against Gato, the other reason why she wanted the mission to continue is for her to grow stronger.
She believes that fighting a stronger opponent will accelerate the growth of her strength, and this mission without a doubt will force her to face powerful opponents.
Fugaku already guessed the reasoning behind her daughter's decision and turned his head towards Naruto, the mysterious person in the entire team.
Naruto didn't immediately respond because a puff of smoke suddenly appeared, and when the smoke dissipated, a small white tiger appeared with a collar carrying a scroll.
"Naruto-sama, a letter for you," the white tiger said in a cute voice.
'A Summoning Animal? 'Fugaku thinks as he observes Naruto. This was really an eye-opener, as he didn't expect Naruto to have already formed a contract with Summoning Animals.
This also makes Fugaku speculate about how Naruto manages to form a contract.
Meanwhile, Satsuki and Hinata were shocked to see the small white tiger talking but quickly realized what it was. They also stared at Naruto in confusion since they know the dangerous method of acquiring a contract with Summoning Animals.
They didn't expect for Naruto to do such a dangerous thing, but they didn't voice out their opinion for obvious reasons.
Naruto takes the scroll and reads the contents behind it, and after finishing reading the content, he immediately burns the scroll.
"Tell him that I will do it," Naruto calmly said while giving the white tiger a scroll that happened to appear in Naruto's hand.
The white tiger's eyes shined after seeing the scroll being placed on its collar.
"I will!" The white tiger responds and disappears in a puff of smoke.
"Let's continue the mission," Naruto said while staring at Fugaku with a calm expression.
"Alright," Fugaku nods. "You're in luck, Tazuna; we will continue completing the mission," Fugaku says.
Hinata and Satsuki smile after hearing it, while Tazuna bows as tears flow from his eyes.
Fugaku, though, didn't think about the reaction of others but about Naruto. From what he can see previously, Naruto seems not to care about the situation of Tazuna and his people but suddenly changes his mind after reading the scroll.
'Who is this person Naruto mentioned? 'Fugaku asked inwardly but didn't manage to come up with an answer.
But this only made Fugaku observe Naruto more, which didn't escape Naruto's eyes.